The Puppet Qi Army spent a day and a night and spent a lot of effort to remove the burning giant trees. But to their despair, an even bigger pile of giant trees appeared a hundred steps away. A Song Army soldier raised his hand
The torch stood on the giant tree and looked at them with a proud face.
Li Chi was furious and said, "Shoot an arrow! Shoot him to death!"
Arrows were fired, and the soldiers disappeared. However, the torches ignited the kerosene and giant trees on the ground. The fire burned again. All the soldiers seemed to have fallen into an ice cave. The aura of despair permeated the entire army.
No one knows how many piles of giant trees are waiting for them ahead after this pile of giant trees is removed.
When the time came the next night, the giant wood burned to ashes. The soldiers removed the giant wood that had been burned to charcoal. Sure enough, another pile of giant wood appeared in front of them. They seemed to be trapped in the giant wood formation. The giant wood immediately burned. At this time, the world began to rise.
There was a light rain, and the fire burned particularly vigorously in the rain.
More than 10,000 puppet Qi troops were sitting under the stone cliff, soaked by the rain, cold and hungry, unable to sleep. Fear and despair filled everyone's heart. A news spread quickly among the soldiers.
The person who blocked them was not Jiang Yanxian, but the Song Army.
Many people saw the soldier who lit the fire, who was clearly a Song army. This meant that Yiling County had been captured by the Song army. They rushed on their way, but in the end they were a step too late.
The last meal of dry food was eaten in the afternoon, but the logistics team they were looking forward to never arrived. Logically, it should have arrived a long time ago, but now there is no trace. The soldiers have a bad feeling in their hearts.
At the third watch, the soldiers sent to urge the logistics team came back. More than a dozen people left, but only two came back. They brought news like a thunderbolt from the blue. Behind them was Chen Qing's army dozens of miles away. There were five soldiers.
Six thousand people and the logistics team have been taken away by the Song army.
Needless to say, the Song army blocking their way must also be Chen Qing's army. They fell into a trap and were blocked on a dangerous mountain road, unable to advance or retreat.
At the fourth watch, a distracted Li Chi inspected the army with more than a dozen soldiers. The soldiers gathered in groups of three to five and talked quietly. When they saw him coming, they separated cautiously. You don't have to guess that Li Chi knew about them.
What are you talking about?
Li Chi scolded him all the way. At this time, he came to a corner. A group of soldiers on the other side obviously did not see him coming.
"If Chiang Kai-shek had been here, things wouldn't be so miserable. At least our brothers wouldn't be hungry."
"Chiang Kai-shek has considered the matter carefully and will never abandon the food and baggage. This was the case when we came. The food and baggage went in the middle and the troops went to the two ends. Although it is a little slower, it is very safe."
"I heard that the man named Li seized power and wanted to kill Jiang Dutong, so he forced Jiang Dutong away."
"It's better to surrender! It's better than starving to death!"
Li Chi was so angry that he drew his sword and rushed forward, shouting, "You bastards!"
More than a dozen people were gathered together. Li Chi suddenly appeared, and they all stood up in fright.
"Do you Chinese dogs want to rebel? Who said you wanted to surrender just now!"
Li Chi stared at a young man fiercely, as if he was the one who said it.
"Did you say you wanted to surrender?"
The young man mustered up his courage and said, "If this continues, all the brothers will definitely starve to death. Surrendering is of course better than starving to death."
Li Chi said with a ferocious smile: "You won't starve to death, you have to die now!"
He stabbed hard with the sword, but Young Tou was unable to dodge, and was pierced through the chest by the sword. Young Tou screamed and died instantly.
"Kuroko!"
The brother next to him shouted and hugged his brother's body.
He slowly raised his head and stared at Li Chi, his eyes turning blood red.
"He shakes the morale of the army and deserves death!" Li Chi shouted with a guilty conscience. Gu
"I'll fight you!"
Du Tou drew his sword and rushed towards Li Chi. The soldiers around him also raised their spears and stabbed Li Chi, killing his brother on the spot.
The tragic death of the two brothers angered the dozen or so people around them, and they all shouted together: "Brothers, kill this pseudo-Tatar!"
Hundreds of soldiers around him were extremely angry. They all picked up spears to kill. Li Chi couldn't dodge and was stabbed in the thigh by a spear. He screamed in pain, and then his horse was also stabbed. The horse neighed like crazy.
After galloping, the man and his horse fell off the cliff and into the Yangtze River.
The army began to mutiny. Several of Jiang Yanxian's trusted generals who had been deposed by Li Chi took the opportunity to lead their soldiers to rebel, killing four commanders and raising white flags to demand surrender.
Before entering the prison, groups of soldiers took off their armor, put down their weapons, and entered the prison with their hands raised. What awaited them was a bowl of hot white porridge and two big steamed buns. The soldiers were very hungry and squatted on the ground to eat.
stand up.
Chen Qing stood at a high place and looked at the surrendered troops who were being escorted in. The quality of this group of troops was good. They were generally tall and young. They were much higher quality than the puppet Qi army that was defeated in Hanyang.
Chen Qing's army has relatively high requirements for its soldiers. They must be over six feet tall, which means they must be over 1.75 years old and able to lift a hundred kilograms of weight over their heads. Although the requirements are high, the treatment is good.
In addition to the salary from the court, the army also received regular monthly subsidies, and was often rewarded with trophies. He could not only protect his family and country, but also earn money from the army, so his morale was always maintained high.
Chen Qing said to Wang Duo and Gao Ding: "You select three thousand elites from among them to supplement our loss of troops."
"Follow the order!" The two of them hurried away.
At noon the next day, Yang Zaixing returned with a baggage of prisoners of war, and Zhang Ziliang, the governor of Xiazhou and the envoy of the town, came with him.
Zhang Ziliang was a civil servant, but he was also tempered by the troubled times to learn both civil and military skills. He was able to teach in schools and lead soldiers in battles, and his personality was always straightforward.
"These prisoners of war are not bad. I will also pick two thousand people to supplement the strength. If we come here next time, we will kill Xiazhou and Guizhou."
"Governor Zhang may select prisoners of war, but I have a suggestion!"
Chen Qing said with a smile: "I think there is a lot of land in Yiling and Jiangling Prefecture. It is better to ask the soldiers to write letters and bring their families over to live. This way the soldiers can join the army with peace of mind, otherwise it will be easy to escape."
Zhang Ziliang nodded, "It makes sense. I will discuss with the Xuanfu envoy to convert part of the official land into military land."
In fact, Chen Qing also encountered the same problem. The soldiers in his army were all from the northwest, which meant that he would not be able to station in Yuezhou and had to find a way to transfer back to the northwest.
In the afternoon, Zhang Xiao handed him a roster of 3,000 soldiers selected from prisoners of war. Chen Qing looked at the military roster and found that almost all of the soldiers were from Henan Prefecture, Shaanxi Province, and Ruzhou.
"Capital, I'm afraid it's not easy to make the soldiers feel at ease!"
Chen Qing understood what Zhang Xiao meant. It would be okay if they were from the same country, but their families lived in an enemy country. It was indeed difficult for the military to stabilize their morale.
"I'll find time to calm their emotions."
Zhang Xiao hesitated and said: "The appeasement is only temporary. I mean, it is best if we have a foundation place, a place like Qinzhou, so that we can find a way to move their families to Qinzhou, and the soldiers will be stabilized."
, this is the fundamental solution.”
Chen Qing nodded, "I know what you mean. Maybe after the battle of Jingxiang is over, I will go to Lin'an to receive a knighthood. Then we will have some connections and try to transfer me back."
Zhang Xiao worriedly said: "But I have only been transferred to Jinghu for a few months, and I want to be transferred back. Will the imperial court agree?"
Chen Qing said lightly: "Generally speaking, it is unlikely, but if there are special circumstances, such as the fall of Hanzhong and the crisis in Bashu, there is hope. With Zhu Shengfei's pedantry and dictatorship, there will definitely be a crisis in the northwest. Sooner or later, it's a matter of time!
"
After resting for two days, Chen Qing led the army to leave Xiazhou and march towards Xiangyang Prefecture.