In the twenty-fifth year of the Qin Dynasty (222 BC), late February.
Zhao Tuo led the Qin army to Ayi and joined forces with Meng Tian's tribe here.
After some pleasantries, Meng Tian immediately reported the latest military situation.
"General, according to reports from our army's scouts, there is no Qi army defending the front line of Jishui. The Qi people gathered all the soldiers from the cities on both sides of Jishui and stationed them in Linzi City."
"Gather your troops. This is to defend the fortified city and wait for reinforcements from various places."
Zhao Tuo nodded slightly, this arrangement was within their expectations.
It seems that the Battle of Pushui has completely made the Qi army realize that they are no match for the Qin army in the field. They dispersed their troops in various cities and towns, just waiting to be defeated by the Qin army separately, so they chose to shrink their troops in Linzi and rely on the strong city.
defense.
Zhao Tuo asked casually, "Da Sima died for his country in Zhencheng. Who will the King of Qi choose as his general this time?"
Meng Tian replied, "I heard from the captured Qi people that it seems to be the deputy general Tian Chong who escaped from Zhencheng and returned to Linzi."
In Zhao Tuo's mind, he recalled the tall man he had seen outside Hangu Pass.
"It's Tian Dan. It seems that he has learned a lot from Da Sima. It's a pity that the general situation in today's world has been determined, and stubborn resistance is nothing more than a mantis trying to fight a chariot."
Zhao Tuo smiled and didn't care.
The overall situation has been decided and no one can stop it.
After he ordered his soldiers to renovate in Ayi for a day, he immediately led his army to march eastward along the Jishui River.
The Qin army's grain and supplies were loaded on the Jishui boat division collected by Meng Tian and supplied along the river.
The Qin army's infantry was divided into two groups.
One force, led by Meng Tian, crossed the Jishui River and marched along the south bank. Along the way, they captured Gucheng, Lucheng, Lixia, Gaowan and other places on the south side of the Jishui River. They divided their troops and garrisoned them to ensure the safety of the Qin army's Jishui transportation line.
Zhao Tuo then led his army along the north bank of Jishui River, collecting places such as Luoyin and Maiqiu along the way, all the way to Dicheng, about two hundred miles northwest of Linzi.
Dicheng is an important city and ferry north of Jishui. In the past, King Jian of Qi was under pressure from Qin and wanted to kill people from the four countries.
After crossing Jishui, Han Cheng, Zhang Liang and others wanted to go to Daidi from here. As a result, they were surrounded and killed by the Tian Dan brothers, the tycoons of Dicheng, and Han Cheng, Lord of Hengyang, was captured.
But now that the Qin army is coming, the officials and people of Dicheng are united in the city and have no intention of resisting.
"I, Mr. Tian from Di City, would like to eat the slurry from the pot to welcome the general."
An elder of the Tian clan in Dicheng named Tian You led a group of Tian clan members behind him to kneel down outside the city and beg for surrender from the Qin army.
Behind these Tian family members, there were also wealthy officials in the city, all of whom looked at this black-armored army with respect and fear.
Zhao Tuo stood on the chariot and looked at the surrendering figures in the distance. He was not surprised.
He had watched this scene countless times along the way.
In the battle of Zhencheng, the Qin army defeated the 300,000 Qi army led by Da Sima. Tian Chong committed suicide and died for his country, which completely broke the Qi people's fighting spirit. Zhao Tuo did not kill the captives and promised to release the captives after the war.
As the incident in the township spread throughout Qi, it further weakened the Qi people's will to resist.
The Qin army neither killed and massacred the city nor looted the property of the surrendered Qi people, but allowed them to continue to retain their power and wealth in the local area.
These conditions attracted the hearts of officials and wealthy people in Qi.
If you can't fight and fight, and you can't run away, then you might as well surrender.
Therefore, the Qin army marched all the way eastward, and except for the occasional sporadic resistance launched by some hot-blooded rangers, they did not even fight a single siege.
Indeed, along the way, all the cities and towns surrendered, and the people of Qi ate pots of wine to meet the Qin army.
The surrender of the Tian family in Dicheng is an epitome of this.
Zhao Tuo comforted the elder Tian and then handed over the specific matter of comforting and surrendering to Li Shiqi.
He himself led his generals to go along the Jishui River to observe the geographical situation and prepare for the army's crossing of the river.
"General Zhao is truly a handsome man in the world, whom everyone admires. There is a woman under my knees, about fifteen years old, with fair appearance. I would like to serve as General Zhao."
Please take a pillow and recommend me to General Zhao."
When Tian You saw Zhao Tuo leaving, he shyly spoke to Li Shiqi.
Li Shi was startled.
This is to give the girl as a concubine to please the general.
This kind of thing is very common. The loser can preserve the wealth and status of his clan by sending a girl from his clan to the conqueror.
By accepting women from these wealthy families, the conquerors could not only enjoy the service of beauties, but also stabilize the hearts of the local people. This was a double win.
It's just General Zhao.
Li Shiqi smiled. As the general's guest, he knew the general's thoughts.
However, the Tian family in Dicheng is a branch of the Qi royal family. When the Qin army attacks Linzi, if they want to stabilize the rear, they must recruit them.
He must handle this matter well. If he handles it improperly, refuses rashly, and arouses suspicion or other ideas from the other party, that will be bad.
"My general, I understand the kindness of the elder. There are some reasons for this matter. I need to explain it to the elder in detail."
Li Shiqi opened his mouth to explain.
Tian You was startled and said hurriedly, "In this case, I am being rude. Please sir and everyone else follow me into the city."
Li Shiqi nodded with a smile and followed Tian You to the city.
The Tian clan members who came out of the city to beg for surrender and the city's rich and powerful people all stood on both sides, looking at Li Shiqi with fawning faces.
In order to show her closeness and get acquainted with these Tian clan members, Li Shiqi pointed at a boy from the Tian clan.
"I have learned some fortune-telling techniques. This guy has an extraordinary face. I think he will be successful in the future. What's his name?"
Tian You glanced at the young man and said, "Sir, I'm asking you something, why don't you answer it quickly?"
The young man raised his eyes and stared at Li Shiqi, and said in a low voice, "I am Tian Hiro!"
"Tian Guang?"
Li Shiqi smiled and said, "Guangzhi means Daye. It is indeed a good name. This boy may be able to do great things in the future."
Tian You hurriedly said, "Sir, you are so complimentary. How can a mere childish person from this tribe be able to do great things in the future?"
The two walked towards the city laughing and talking.
Young Tian Guang turned to Tian Heng who was standing behind him and said, "Uncle, this man said that I will be promising in the future and be able to do great things. Is it true or false?"
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In one day, the Qin army's cavalry could gallop under Linzi City.
…
"The Qin army is coming!"
When the news came back that the Qin people had captured Bochang and were about to approach Linzi.
In Linzi City, hundreds of thousands of people were terrified.
This is the most dangerous thing that Qi has encountered in more than fifty years. It is a scene that this generation of Qi people who grew up in a comfortable environment have never imagined.
The war actually fell on them.
Tian Dan stood on the city wall and glanced at the slightly frightened faces of the defenders.
He put his hands behind his back, facing the wind on the city, and looked towards the north.
After a while, Tian Rong strode up.
"Brother, there are soldiers from Anping entering the city today. Together with the soldiers we gathered on both sides of Jishui and the Chinese recruited from Linzi, there are already 150,000 soldiers!"
"If we ask the king to force the young men in Linzi City to conquer again, we can get another 100,000 soldiers! This will be an army of 250,000 people! I heard that the Qin army went south this time, but there were only more than 100,000 soldiers. We
There are more soldiers guarding the city than he does. If he only concentrates on defending, how can he, Zhao Tuo, break the city?"
Tian Rong looked excited, and there was no fear on his face. He thought to himself, "I have checked the treasury in the city. According to the officials in charge of food, the food in the city is enough to supply Linzi for a year. We can completely fortify the city with our army."
, fight with the Qin people to the end, and wait for the reinforcements from the cities in Qi to arrive, our Qi country still has hope!"
"A large army fortifies the city?"
Tian Dan smiled helplessly.
When he was in Zhencheng before, Tian Rong followed the orders of Da Sima and left early, so he never saw the power of the Qin army's cannons.
Although Linzi is strong, the defenders are also numerous, even twice as many as the Qin army going south.
With just one shot from that giant cannon, even if the city wall does not collapse, the so-called 150,000-strong army in the city will probably be demoralized on the spot. How can they survive for a year?
The hundreds of thousands of troops in the city are truly soldiers who have not experienced any training at all, and are not as good as the group in Zhencheng.
His heart felt heavy, but Tian Dan didn't say much. He just looked at the hills to the north of the city.
In his mind, there was the news that Da Sima Tian committed suicide in Zhencheng.
"The great Sima surrendered the city to the Qin Dynasty and then committed suicide. This was not only an act of a gentleman, but also a display of loyalty as a minister."
"Zhencheng can be surrendered, but Linzi cannot be surrendered!"
"My field must live and die with Linzi!"
There was a fire burning in Tian Dan's eyes.
He stared angrily at a hill in the north of Linzi City.
There, there are black spots emerging from the north.
One by one.
The number is endless, as if a boundless black wave is coming from the north and is about to engulf Linzi, the largest city in the world.