Attacked from both front and back, all retreats are lost. In ancient wars, encountering this kind of situation is very dangerous, and the morale of the army is unavoidable.
Zhang Jing had just slept in his clothes for two hours. When the soldiers called him up, his face was filled with impatience and helplessness.
"What happened?" Zhang Jing asked.
When I asked this question, I was already thinking, could someone want to surrender?
This is not unfounded worry.
Starting from the first month of the year, the imperial court began to move people, livestock and goods to Guanzhong.
In fact, this is done every year, but this year it is particularly eye-catching because the Jin army has already invaded Bingzhou, and we share the danger of Taihang.
In other words, the timing is not very suitable, and it is easy for people to associate with it, which will make people's hearts turbulent.
But in the current situation, doing so is not too wrong.
Since thirty years ago, there has been less rain in Guanzhong and the climate has been dry, causing a large number of people to migrate to Bingzhou, Sizhou, and Jingzhou.
This arid climate lasted until the severe drought ten years ago, and then gradually improved.
When the locust plague breaks out, everyone has it.
When the drought broke out, everyone was affected, but it has been alleviated in Guanzhong.
In the past two years, there has been excessive rainfall on both sides of the Yellow River and in the Chang'an area, causing more than a thousand households to be displaced by floods.
There are various signs that the rain that God owed to the people of Guanzhong and Bingzhou will slowly be paid back.
In the past, we paid a small amount for two or three years, so that when Henan and Hebei were hit by drought, Bingzhou and Yongzhou were not affected by the disaster. On the contrary, the grain harvest was pretty good. From the current point of view, the drought is a thing of the past. The only thing that can hit Bingzhou and Yongzhou is
Qinzhou is plagued by locusts. There is really no way around this, so much so that people in Bingzhou cannibalize each other.
This year, there might be heavy rain in Bingzhou and Yongzhou, but he didn't know which side would be worse. He hoped it would be Yongzhou, after all, it was not their territory.
Closer to home, the imperial court saw that the precipitation in Guanzhong was gradually becoming normal, or even a little more, and the cracked land was slowly being repaired, so it began to move households to consolidate the land, cultivate and graze, and store grain and grass.
You could do this before, but it's best not to do it this year.
This is Zhang Jing's opinion, but he has no choice but to ignore it.
Now there are some hesitations in the army. They all suspect that the emperor will withdraw from Guanzhong. At most, Wuling, Taihang and Zhongtiao will be used as screens to protect Pingyang, Hedong and Xihe counties as the external barrier of Guanzhong - Pingyang and Hedong have crisscrossed water systems and fertile soil.
, To be honest, he was very wealthy. It would be a pity to lose it. If you can protect it, you must protect it. In the future, if the country strengthens and counterattacks Guandong, you can also have a forward base, right?
In short, the army suspected that the emperor wanted to abandon the four counties of Xinxing, Taiyuan, Leping, and Shangdang and let them be captured by Shao thieves. Unfortunately, Zhang Jing and his lord Shi Le were within this range.
The King of Zhongshan, Liu Yao, may have been abandoned, but he may also be supported in his retreat.
All in all, I was very upset, worried, and disappointed.
How can we maintain strong fighting spirit in such a situation? We have been fighting for several days now, and we are worthy of Emperor Pingyang. If someone surrenders, Zhang Jing will not be surprised at all, although he has been trying his best to prevent this kind of thing
.
"Sima, a bandit army has arrived behind the pass and has broken through the heavy supply camp." said the soldier.
Zhang Jing stood up suddenly, taking off the bow tip from the wall and saber, and asked: "Which wealthy family rebelled? It shouldn't be. The wealthy families in Leping are scattered in various valleys, how can they be connected so easily?
"
While they were talking, several more soldiers came up and helped Zhang Jing put on his armor.
"Let's go and have a look." The soldier who saw the news couldn't explain why. Zhang Jing calmed down, strode out, and ordered: "Immediately summon all the generals to the Ximen Tower to discuss matters."
Jingxingguan is said to be Guancheng, but it is actually just a small, narrow area sandwiched between the east and west walls.
There are two gates, namely the east gate and the west gate. There are no common people in the city. Due to the lack of sufficient living area, almost all the space is used to build military camps, arsenals, and grain depots. This fortress is purely for war and does not consider
Any livelihood needs.
The east and west gates are very close to each other, and Zhang Jing arrived quickly.
The city was full of pale-faced sergeants.
Zhang Jing looked at each other and saw surprise, fear and deep-seated despair.
It looks like myself.
There was no emotion on his face, he walked to the top of the city silently, and looked around.
This way, this way, and that way...
It seemed like there was fighting everywhere, there were noises everywhere, and there was the sound of weapons clashing everywhere. People who didn't know what was going on would definitely feel that the enemy was overwhelming and endless, perhaps tens of thousands of people were coming.
But Zhang Jing had rich battle experience. He only took a cursory look, then listened carefully to the sound coming from the night wind, and then through the figures near each fire point, he immediately concluded that the incoming enemy would not exceed
Three thousand!
They can still be saved.
The generals rushed up one after another. Except for those who were directing the battle and on standby, the remaining eight generals were all present.
They looked panicked and hesitated to speak. At the critical moment of life and death, they seemed to be no better than ordinary soldiers. In the end, everyone turned their attention to Zhang Jing.
Zhang Jing was silent for a long time.
Everyone waited silently.
I don't know how long I waited, but the killing sound in the east of the city gradually died down. Everyone knew that this was because the Jin army failed to attack the city, and the remaining soldiers retreated. Then it usually stopped for a period of time until the offensive resumed again.
Zhang Jing turned around, looked at everyone, and asked: "Do you want to live?"
"Think." Everyone responded.
"Do you want to reunite with your parents, wife and children?" Zhang Jing asked again.
"Think." Everyone became excited.
"Then follow my order." Zhang Jing glanced at the crowd and said.
"I would like to obey Sima's order." Everyone said in unison.
"Take advantage of this opportunity to open the west gate and attack from behind!" Zhang Jing paused here.
Just when the generals thought they were going to take the initiative to eliminate the threat from the rear, Zhang Jing added: "Gather up your courage and take advantage of the darkness to attack backwards. The enemy will certainly not be able to stop us. After breaking through, we will return to Xingxing."
, Never come to this place again!"
"As ordered!" The generals agreed loudly, and then went to prepare themselves.
Not long after, someone from the east city came to report that the Jin thieves were arrayed in the wilderness again, preparing to attack, when the west gate suddenly opened and countless sergeants rushed out silently.
Hundreds of armored warriors were at the front, followed closely by the others, who rushed out of the city gate, shouted loudly, and attacked with all their might.
Zhang Jing's judgment was very accurate.
Lu Ya led less than two thousand soldiers. At the moment, some of them were living in the mountains and forests, making noises and shouting, thinking they were suspicious of the soldiers; some of them were setting fires everywhere to create chaos; some of them were chasing people to the north, and they were scattered. There were only less than a thousand people pulling some baggage.
Cars were lying on the side of the road, preparing to block the enemy troops in the city.
The battle was fierce from the beginning.
The enemy troops rushed to the baggage train like crazy, stabbing with spears and slashing with swords. In the dark night, archers kept shooting, regardless of whether the shots were accurate or not, or whether they would hit one of their own.
The arrows poured out and he didn't care about anything.
A mere thousand people can't stop it.
The enemy troops climbed over the baggage vehicles, broke up the formation of the Qingzhou soldiers, and continued to charge into the depths of the night.
The Qingzhou soldiers were forced to disperse to both sides. As they ran, they secretly cursed that they were all a bunch of lunatics. It was also at this time that they deeply understood the true meaning of "Don't stop them when they return to the army" in the Art of War - some troops, if you stop them from returning home
The desire is really a heavy price to pay.
Lu Ya was overwhelmed by the rush, and the soldiers around him fell one after another. He was also hit by an arrow, and stumbled towards the mountains and forests on the right.
After calming down for a while, he looked at the post road by the light of the fire and found that the enemy troops were not chasing them at all, but running westward in a swarm. At first, they were quite organized, but as they ran, the formation became a bit scattered and a little bit scattered.
The meaning of running away suddenly became clear.
Seeing hundreds of soldiers gathering around him, he stopped everyone and said: "Don't act rashly. Wait for the enemy soldiers to pass by and hit their tails! Hit their tails!"
The sergeants were confused, but some military schools came to their senses. Together with the Jingxing defenders, they were scrambling for their lives!
Then these people who were blocking the road were really unlucky. They had to shoulder the enemy's most ferocious troops and fight at the moment when the enemy's morale was at its strongest.
Based on this judgment, they could make way for the post road, gather their troops, and then pursue the enemy behind them.
Hot blood will become cold, morale will drop, and strength will weaken.
When the fleeing enemy troops find that there is no obstacle ahead, their desire to survive will cause them to flee in all directions irrationally. At that time, it is useless no matter how much the officer shouts, and there is no way to pull them back.
At this time, attacking from behind the enemy's rear can achieve miraculous results.
What a pity! I didn’t think of it in my haste.
It took a while for the enemy army to retreat almost completely. When Lu Ya saw that three to four hundred people had gathered around him, he immediately ordered an attack.
Morale is so mysterious!
The enemy, who had been so brave just now, had almost lost all fighting spirit. They didn't want to stop fighting, they just wanted to escape.
The Qingzhou Army, which had been beaten down just now, now had strong morale again. They rushed down the hillside, cut off the enemy army in the middle, and blocked the last few hundred people.
The enemy army showed its fierce appearance, and just as they were about to fight, they heard warm cheers from above the city. There was no doubt that the Jin army had attacked the city, and the Jingxing Pass city was about to be defeated.
Almost instantly, the momentum they raised visibly declined.
Some people threw down their equipment and knelt down to surrender.
Some people fled into the mountains and forests or deep valleys, fleeing for their lives.
There were still people who gritted their teeth and rushed forward, but they were quickly wiped out.
Another defeated army surged out of the city in a noisy manner. They were shocked when they saw a large number of their own soldiers kneeling on the ground abandoning their weapons.
Looking ahead, there was a blazing fire, and I didn’t know how many people came in the dark night, and I suddenly lost my fighting spirit.
The shouts of death behind him were getting closer and closer.
They hesitated for a moment, then abandoned their weapons and surrendered.
On the night of March 27th in the third year of Shengui (319), Liu Ling's troops attacked from both sides and captured Jingxing Pass.
After learning that Zhang Jing led his troops to flee, Liu Ling personally led his troops to pursue him.
On the afternoon of the 28th, he intercepted the enemy's rear column, beheaded 200 people and captured more than a thousand people.
On the evening of the 29th, they pursued them to the east of Shangai County, killing more than a hundred people and capturing a thousand more.
On the 30th, they continued their pursuit westward and advanced towards Shooyang (now Shouyang).
Almost at the same time, the Wubao commanders and manor owners who received the news took out the Jin flag on the spot to express their submission.
As the news spread, the wealthy families in Leping, Taiyuan, Xinxing and other places were in a commotion, and their eagerness to try was obvious.
The Huns' rule in this area has a tendency to collapse.
Chapter completed!