In mid-September of the fourth year of Xian De (957 AD), Jinzhou.
Hedong is surrounded by mountains and rivers, and the mountains and rivers run north and south like gullies, and the terrain is shaped like the Chinese character "川". Hedong is also the central area in the north of the Chinese chessboard, and has always been the core of the offensive and defensive forces in the east and west of the north; it is also a corridor for the north to enter the Central Plains. The basin corridor in the middle of the mountain range is also a place where wars have always occurred, such as the battle of Changping, such as Jinzhou Linfen.
Now Jinzhou is once again shrouded in the flames of war.
It was the dry season, the Fen River was flowing slowly in the west, the towering city towers on the east side of the river and the Luliang Mountains on the opposite bank were far away. To the south of the city, dust and fog covered the sky, and the soldiers and horses in the yellow dust looked like they were riding on clouds.
Crossbow bullets flew in the air, the creaking sound of wood rubbing against each other, the banging sounds, and the shouting of the people mixed together, and there was a noisy uproar on the city walls.
Murong Yanzhao looked at the countless siege weapons and the dust covering the sky below the city, his eyes wide open and he said: Why didn't the rebels rush up to attack the city this morning? Are they going to blow up the city
As soon as he finished speaking, there was a loud bang, and a large stone fell on the wall outside the tower, and the broken stones and bricks flew everywhere. Several soldiers around him covered their heads and hid. Ah, a soldier held his thigh and screamed, "My leg is so big!"
He looked over there, then turned to Murong Yanzhao and said: If it explodes, just block the gap and gather the able-bodied men to repair it overnight.
Murong Yanzhao frowned and said: The key is when the imperial court's reinforcements will arrive. Li Chongjin is also heading towards Jinzhou. By then, Jinzhou will be besieged by 60,000 troops. Can we hold it with so few people
Xiang Gong pondered in silence.
Murong Yanzhao said again: Tokyo is nearly a thousand miles away from Jinzhou. Guo Shao is too late. It seems that you and I are really going to die here.
Xiang Gong forced a smile: Dying on the battlefield and being wrapped in horsehide has always been the ending I expected. As a warrior, is there any better way to die than this
A look of emotion appeared on the broad face between the beard of Commander Murong Yanzhao.
Xiang Gong patted Murong Yanzhao on the shoulder and said: If Guo Shao does not come, I will lead two thousand cavalry of the Zhen'an Army out of the city for a decisive battle; the future of Jinzhou will be left to Commander Murong Jie, and I will not force him.
At this moment, there was a sudden loud bang, and Xiang Gong and Murong Yanzhao's faces changed, and they felt that the city wall seemed to tremble. In an instant, soil and rocks flew not far from the east wall, and a large amount of white smoke rushed up quickly and flew straight into the sky.
Then, another puff of white smoke rose from the ground in front of the fence below the city. The smoke rose rapidly and soon covered half of the city wall, and nothing could be seen.
The screams from afar soon came over. Looking into the distance, he saw smoke billowing from the rebel fortifications about two hundred steps away. In the thick fog, many people were running for their lives, and the war horses were panicked, with a large number of horses running in a panic.
The wall didn't collapse and the arch shouted after a moment.
The surroundings were soon shrouded in smoke, and coughing sounds were heard everywhere. Murong Yanzhao said: What the hell, the city wall didn't move at all, the smoke is too thick!
At this moment, Zhang Jianxiong, who was deployed on the north-south main road, shouted loudly, and suddenly the horses' hooves roared. Zhang Jianxiong led the cavalry to swarm towards the location of the thick smoke, regardless of the frightened horses.
A general from the imperial army who was about to send reinforcements entered Li Jixun's central military tent and hurried to report.
The atmosphere was gloomy because Li Jixun's troops had just failed to bomb the city and their own camp was in ruins. This news made the situation even worse and all the generals were immediately in an uproar.
Impossible! Li Jixun said angrily. Tokyo is thousands of miles away. Could the imperial guards have grown wings and flown here
The general who came in said: "I don't know, the flag is the world's military commander Guo Shao, the big army is all elite soldiers, all equipped with war horses; except for the imperial guards, who has so many horses?"
Zhao Kuangyin's face was very gloomy, and he was too embarrassed to speak for a moment.
Li Jixun asked: Where are the troops
The general said: I came from Jiangzhou. When the enemy soldiers arrived in Jiangzhou, the governor who surrendered just half a month ago would definitely surrender again. My troops were weak, so I had to evacuate that place first.
Jiangzhou is only a hundred miles away, the staff member reminded.
Li Jixun asked: How many troops
The general replied: It looks like there are 20,000.
Li Jixun was pacing quickly back and forth in front. He might be from the left wing of the Hujie Army, which was Guo Shao's direct subordinate. The horses should have been mobilized from various armies. The Hujie Army was mainly infantry, and mounted infantry did not have to worry about horsepower consumption before the battle; that's why they ran so fast. But he should have left some people from the left wing in Tokyo to guard the situation, and these people might not be mainly from the Hujie Army.
Everyone looked at Li Jixun to make a decision. At this time, Li Jixun turned around and said: There are only 20,000 people, so we can still fight. While they have come from a long distance and their troops are exhausted, let's go and fight them.
After hearing this, Zhao Kuangyin could not help it, and hurriedly advised: You must not let the imperial army, which is the strongest in the world, Brother Li does not have much advantage in numbers, and they are local garrison troops, so your chances of winning are not great; plus, if you fight to the south, there are the Jinzhou defenders behind you, who are very likely to leave the city and attack Brother Li from behind.
Li Jixun said: What do you think we should do, Brother Zhao
Zhao Kuangyin said: The best plan for now is to retreat northward into the territory of Northern Han and wait for Li Chongjin's army to join forces, then we can decide the outcome.
Li Jixun shook his head and said: A few days ago, someone from Tokyo reported that the imperial guards had not made any moves. Adding the time the spies spent on the road, it was no more than twelve days. In other words, Guo Shao's troops rushed from Tokyo to Jiangzhou in twelve days at most. At this speed, the distance is only a hundred miles. If we can outrun them, we will have to lose everything. Then what will I eat
Besides, if we flee northwards and there is any confusion, Xiang Gong will leave the city and make trouble for us.
Zhao Kuangyin sighed: Li Chongjin, this fellow Li Chongjin is not someone who can accomplish great things.
Li Jixun also cursed: Damn it, we haven’t even walked more than 500 miles yet, while others who set out later have walked more than 800 miles.
Zhao Kuangyin pondered for a long time and said seriously: Build a pontoon bridge on the Fen River immediately, and the army will withdraw to the Luliang Mountains, confront Guo Shaoxiang Gong across the river, hold the defense line first, and wait for Li Chongjin to arrive.
Li Jixun frowned and said: If Li Chongjin knew that we were trapped in Luliang Mountain, would he hold his troops and not advance? Or would he go north to deal with Li Chongjin first, and then withdraw to deal with my troops? At that time, we can only retreat to the mountainous area in the northern part of Guanzhong. The terrain is complex and the land is barren, and tens of thousands of us will be dragged down.
Zhao Kuangyin said: There is no other way now. If we go south for a decisive battle, we will be attacked from all sides and will undoubtedly be defeated. I hope Brother Li can make a decision as soon as possible.
Li Jixun rubbed his hands and said: Pass the order down immediately and build a bridge over the river as soon as possible.
Zhao Kuangyin said: Work overnight, the more bridges the better; if the enemy arrives quickly, we will form a defensive formation with our backs to the water.
The gates of Jiangzhou were wide open, and the governor led the officials, soldiers and civilians to kneel on the ground along the way. The governor looked up at the dragon-patterned Huang Chou banner with another line of words on it: "General Guo Shao, the Heavenly Army, is summoned to suppress the rebellion." He shouted: "The enemy army is coming fiercely, and I have few soldiers. In order to save the people of the city from being annihilated, I have no choice but to surrender, but my heart is with the Great Zhou!"
Guo Shao, wearing heavy armor, rode forward and pointed at the round-robed official on the ground and said: "I, the Marshal, will forgive you and reinstate you to your post to protect the people and the land. You must not make any mistakes."
I, the humble official, kowtow to thank Marshal Guo for his great kindness. The governor disregarded his dignity and kowtowed hurriedly on the yellow earth.
At this moment, several knights came galloping from the post road, stirring up a cloud of yellow soil. One knight dismounted, knelt on one knee, clasped his fists and said: "Report to General Guo, Li Jixun's bandits are building a bridge over the Fen River."
Guo Shao waved his hand, and Qin Dashi hurriedly bent forward and unfolded a map. Guo Shao pointed with his whip: The other side of the Fen River is the Luliang Mountain area, and Li Jixun intends to delay time across the river. He turned back to Shi Yanchao and said, Shi Qianfeng, you immediately lead the Control Crane Horse Army to attack Li Jixun's troops and march overnight. He turned back and said, Ma Quanyi, you immediately lead the Control Crane Archery Army to follow.
The last general received the order
Guo Shao also warned: "Shi Yanchao, you have been marching all night and your troops are tired. You must not fight lightly. After arriving in Jinzhou, you should set up camp to rest and wait for the main force. Your goal is to threaten Li Jixun's troops and force him to line up to fight and not dare to cross the river in a hurry."
Shi Yanchao said calmly: I understand.