Li Kuangwei led his troops to the Tiancheng Army, and Liu Rengong, who acted as the vanguard, advanced to the Qing Sai Army to the west of the Tiancheng Army, met with the Shuofang Army's cavalry, and stopped there.
The Tiancheng Army was located in Tianzhen County, Datong today.
The Sai Army of the Qing Dynasty was originally based in Yuzhou. During the reign of Emperor Xuanzong, Wang Zhongsi moved north here to "take advantage of the power of the country" and located in the south of Yanggao County in present-day Datong.
Youzhou Town had just won a great victory over Hedong, and its morale was at its peak. They were pursuing them all the way from Yuzhou. Because they heard on the way that Li Keyong was reorganizing his troops and retreating, they suddenly slowed down their pace.
It’s the habit of the old vassal to suppress soldiers!
When others threaten them, they can cheer up and fight bravely. But once the enemy retreats and the threat is removed, they will look passive and slow in their work. Only the commander can reward them to drive them forward, but their combat effectiveness is the same as before.
The same cannot be said for defending your homeland.
Opposing Liu Rengong was the Tianzhu Army's Rangers.
Shao Shude had already led his troops south, and the Tianzhu Army was guarding the left wing. The rangers dispersed far away, so Liu Rengong's troops were quickly detected.
The news was reported immediately and delivered to Shao Shude's carriage.
He still attached great importance to this matter, because it was related to one of the results of this troop dispatch.
Helianduo now has two "fathers", who will he turn to? This is a question.
"Dafa Rangers, check how many troops have come from Youzhou Town." Shao Shude called for Xia Sanmu, who had been promoted to Yuhou, the capital of Tielin Army, and ordered.
Xia Sanmu took the order and left.
The troops and horses in Hedong have been clarified. There are 40,000 to 50,000 people in Yunzhou City, and there should be a group on the east road, but not as many as Yunzhou. If 20,000 people are killed, there may only be more than 10,000 people.
After hearing that Yang Yue led his troops out of Shanyang Pass, he sent troops to investigate, and Li Keyong sent troops to reinforce Shuozhou, which he occupied.
I don’t know who the general is, nor how many troops there are. It’s probably between 10,000 and 20,000 people. Counting the soldiers and horses guarding Shuozhou, it’s almost 20,000.
In this battle, Li Keyong actually used 80,000 to 90,000 people. For Hedong, it was considered an all-out effort.
Shuofang's army of 130,000 people, against the 80,000 to 90,000 people from Shanghedong, what are the chances of winning?
Shao Shude was not sure, because only 60,000 yamen troops out of the 130,000 army could be trusted, and the other combat effectiveness would be reduced by a certain amount or even a large amount.
I don’t know what the 80,000 to 90,000 people in Hedong are like. Maybe there are only 50,000 government troops, and the rest are Tibetan soldiers, state soldiers, county soldiers, and even united soldiers. But when marching, you have to consider strengthening the enemy.
, otherwise you will suffer a big loss.
Of course, it is meaningless to investigate the quality of the troops in Hedong now, because Li Keyong has already begun to withdraw his troops and will not come back in a short time.
Shuofang's army also made a tacit understanding not to push too far, lest it lead to another fight, which was not worth it.
What if we lose? The battle is fierce and dangerous, and there is no guarantee of victory on the battlefield.
Shao Shude has emptied his fortune, and Li Keyong is also going north with all his strength. Now for the decisive battle, it is just a straw and a wolf.
Li Keyong's initiative to withdraw his troops is probably the most acceptable thing for all parties. He will still have a lot of troubles to deal with, and he may not be interested in going north again.
As for the strength of Youzhou's reinforcements, Li Keyong should know a lot about it. Of course he would not tell Shuofang's army, he could only investigate this himself.
Although everyone was on the same front before, the envoy from Youzhou had just spent more than 3,000 kilograms of silver to buy 5,000 horses from Xiazhou. However, Li Kuangwei refused to disclose the number of reinforcements, which shows that he had many ideas.
In this world, there are no so-called "teammates" you can trust. Everyone is on guard, and teammates may fall out at any time.
On the ninth day of April, Shao Shude arrived at Yanchang City, forty miles north of Yunzhou City.
"The guilty general Shen Xin paid homage to the King of Lingwu County." Wan Sheng's army sent Shen Xin out to surrender, trembling with fear.
After being trapped inside Yanchang City for so long, food and water were running out, reinforcements were repulsed, and the only way to break out was to surrender.
Also surrendering with Shen Xin were 4,100 infantry and more than 300 cavalry from the Wan Sheng Army. At this time, they all took off their armor, turned in their weapons, and were guarded by people from the Silver Spear Capital.
Shao Shude had learned before that there were more than 4,000 people in the Wan Sheng Army, and the armor rate reached 70%, which was more than 3,000 pairs of armors, of which some 1,500 were iron armors, and the rest were leather armors, which was quite good.
When the country was at its peak, the armor rate once reached 80%, and the armor rate of the entire army was 50%, which was already the highest level since ancient times.
After the mid-Tang Dynasty, the average armor ratio of the troops in northern feudal towns remained at 60%. The ratio of leather armor to iron armor varied depending on the economic situation of each town.
But no matter which vassal town it is, iron armor is a high-value item, even for the imperial court.
Decades ago, when Tubo invaded Kou Shuo, the imperial court gave Yanzhou one hundred and fifty swords and one hundred pairs of armor.
To attack Zhaoyi Liu Zhen, he gave the Heyang army 2,000 Mo swords, 3,000 bows, and 1,000 pieces of armor.
The current armor rate of the Shuofang Army is about 75%, but the proportion of iron armor is much smaller than that of the Hedong Army. Only 20% of the entire army is in iron armor, while the Hedong Army has at least 30%, and the more elite ones are estimated to be even higher.
The famous town in Hedong and the northern capital of Jinyang have a really solid foundation.
Without cavalry, I really can't beat them, damn!
Of course, Marshal Shao also wanted to get rid of it. Li Keyong was resting on his laurels, while Shuofang's army was slowly accumulating and rising. It depends on the trend.
During the Western Expeditions, many craftsmen were captured. Sui, Xia, Ling, Lan, and Weiwu metropolitan academies were also established. In the future, the number of craftsmen will increase, and the folk blacksmith industry will also develop greatly. In a few years,
Let's see again?
"What crime is General Shen guilty of?" Shao Shude said warmly: "When you go back, tell your sworn brother that the Helian family of Yunzhou has always been loyal and brave. Every time there is an imperial edict, they send troops to fight. Why do we attack each other? It is better to stop the troops. The proud feudal lord of Hebei
Ni Zhen has no rules and regulations and often causes chaos, so we should really punish him. Henan Xuanwu, my brother's enemy, should also be punished."
Shen Xin Wenyan was greatly surprised: "The king of Lingwu County is willing to let someone go back to Hedong?"
"Why not?" Shao Shude said with a smile: "I and the king of Longxi County are brothers, what is the irresolvable grudge? Let's go back to Hedong. Not only you, but also the soldiers and equipment can be brought back. Well, it's time.
It’s almost noon, you can have a meal before leaving.”
"The King of Lingwu County is so benevolent and righteous, General Yong doesn't know what to say." Shen Xin said with a moved expression on his face: "Your Majesty's reputation for benevolence, righteousness and generosity will spread throughout Hedong."
He was trapped in Yanchang City like a hostage, and finally surrendered after running out of food. He thought he would end badly, but in the end, such a good thing happened? The soldiers must have been very excited when they heard that. Who doesn't want to go back and reunite with their families? After surrendering, they were sent to
It's a far away place, and you can never return to Hedong in your lifetime. If you don't really have no choice, who would want to do this?
"Does General Shen know how many troops Li Kuangwei brought? How many defenders were there in Yuzhou?" Shao Shude suddenly asked.
"Weizhou has been controlled by Youzhou for several years. Yan general Liu Rengong has about 4,000 people under his command. This time, Li Kuangwei's reinforcements should be no less than 30,000, maybe 35,000.
." Shen Xin said happily.
Shao Shude was overjoyed when he heard this and immediately ordered meals to be prepared for Wan Sheng's soldiers. He then held a banquet for Shen Xin alone. During the dinner, he asked many questions about Hedong. Shen Xin was generally cooperative and said everything he needed to say.
…
Near Shenduzha in the southwest of Yunzhou, Li Keyong climbed a high mountain and overlooked the northern wilderness.
In the field, a large group of cavalry was gathering. The flags could not be seen clearly, but the horses were many and well-trained.
"Let Kang Jun come over." After watching for a while, Li Keyong suddenly said.
Kang Junli trotted all the way up the mountain. As soon as they met, he said: "Commander, why don't you leave? Behind them are all Shao's soldiers. I don't know why they stopped, but who knows when they will march south again?"
Li Keyong only had Yi'er by his side, and he rode two armies himself. These were the last two troops to leave. He was also very courageous, and he actually dared to stay and observe the strength of Shuofang's army.
"Mr. Kang, judging from your experience of fighting against the Yi Shao thieves, where is his cavalry strong? Where is it weak?" Li Keyong asked, looking carefully at the Shuofang cavalry almost everywhere.
.
"The armored cavalry is very strong. It is rare to see such a thick horse. It reminds me of Yangkan in the Southern Dynasty." Kang Junli said without thinking. It seems that the iron kite left a deep impression on him.
Yang Kan's ancestor once served under Liu Yu, and later became an official in the Northern Wei Dynasty. During the Southern Liang Dynasty, Yang Kan crossed the river and surrendered to Emperor Wu of the Liang Dynasty.
At that time, "Shaofu made a new two-edged sword", which was two feet and four feet long (about 5.88 meters) and one foot and three inches in circumference (circumference 0.32 meters).
Emperor Wu of Liang Dynasty "gave him Kanma and ordered him to test it."
So Yang Kan mounted the horse Zili, "mounted the horse holding the spear, and stabbed left and right, with great skill." His power even scared the onlookers to climb the tree and even broke the tree, so the spear got its name.
"Broken Tree".
When Kang Junli said this, of course he did not mean that all the iron kites were as beasts as sheep, but that the horses they used were too heavy and too powerful, and they could only be held by carefully selected brave men in the army.
.
"Is it necessary to set up armored cavalry in Hedong?" Li Keyong asked.
The cavalrymen of Hedong were lightly armored and wore leather armor, while the heavy ones were iron armor. However, the horses were unarmored and could not be considered armored cavalry.
And A and A are also different.
Shao Shude was willing to spend money on Tie Yaozi, and all the soldiers wore cold-forged armor.
Last year, they were specially equipped with face curtains to protect the knight's face.
In this way, the knight has a helmet, a veil, a vest, the horse has a veil, a chicken neck (to protect the horse's neck), a horse body armor, a back (to protect the horse's butt), and a parasitic (to protect the horse's rump), completely
It looks like the armored cavalry of the Northern and Southern Dynasties were armed to the teeth, although in terms of armor thickness, it is not as good as that era.
This kind of equipment was also available in the early years of the Chinese dynasty, but later it became more and more simple and no longer as spectacular as before.
The Southern and Northern Dynasties were truly the golden age of armored cavalry, and it was also an era of pathological development. Even when generals, ministers, and princes were buried, they were buried with armored cavalry equipment in their tombs. This love is deeply rooted in the bones.
"Commander, the armor worn by Knight Shao Thief, according to the prisoners who were tortured, was called 'Hao Zi Armor'. It cannot be penetrated by arrows, swords and spears. It is extremely tough. Thousands of knights on it rushed all the way, and they were invincible.
They all collapsed. If we don't have armored cavalry in this battle, I will definitely be able to defeat the Silver Spear Capital." Kang Jun said: "Therefore, I would like to ask you to equip yourself with armored cavalry to contain the power of the Western thieves."
Li Keyong was noncommittal and asked: "Besides the Silver Spear City, other cavalry units have not fought against each other?"
"Never."
"I heard that the Shao thieves had elite cavalry called the 'Iron Cavalry Army'. They placed 'Tu Qi' and 'Bei Wei' in the two capitals, and they repeatedly achieved great honors. I don't know how I compare with them when I personally rode on a flying cavalry and overran the three armies.
.”
Kang Junli thought for a while and said nothing.
In his opinion, the two armies of Qingqi and Flying Cavalry are stronger than Shao Thief's Silver Spear, but they are probably about the same as the Tuqi and Beiwei armies. The Hengchong Army is actually Hengchong Capital, with only 500 cavalry. Currently, it consists of
Li Cunxiao led them and did not go north this time.
There are too few cavalry! Even if they are more elite, after a long period of tug-of-war, will they be able to replenish them after a little bit of consumption? I am afraid they will become weaker with more fighting.
The sound of the trumpet sounded in the north.
Li Keyong and Kang Junli followed the sound and saw a large group of cavalry turning north and gathering in a valley.
After a long time, another large group of cavalry came from the outside of the valley. Their momentum was like thunder, heading straight towards the east.
Li and Kang watched intently for a long time, seeing the passing cavalry one after another, as if there was no end to them.
There are some who wear iron armor, some who wear leather armor, and some who simply wear furs. There are always more than ten thousand riders of all kinds.
These people, Li Keyong knew very well, were monitoring the retreat of the Hedong army.
They did not make any attack gesture, but just watched the Hedong Army leave, apparently under Shao Shude's instructions.
A surveillance vanguard unit has more than 10,000 cavalry! If we do not shorten the gap between the cavalry armies of the two sides, it would be too much of a disadvantage to fight Shuofang's army in the vast and vast north.
"The most important thing when I go back this time is not to build armored cavalry, but to reorganize the horse administration." Li Keyong made up his mind and said: "The pastoral supervisor Loufan is getting more and more disgraceful, so he needs to clean it up.
Already."
Kang Junli was a little surprised, why did the commander change his temper?
The sound of horse hoofbeats sounded from the north, and a scout flew over.
The soldiers stopped him, and after questioning him carefully, he hurriedly climbed up the hillside and said, "Commander, Shao Shao has released Wan Sheng's army, and asked Shen Jun to come back with a letter."
"Huh?" Li Ke raised his eyebrows, a little surprised, and asked, "Did Prince Lingwu say anything?"
"I don't know." the soldier replied.
It seems that we have to wait for the application letter to come back before talking.
The sworn brother had to rein in the troops and watch them off, and then release the prisoners. Which part of this was going on? Li Keyong had some vague guesses in his mind, but when he thought of Shao Shude's attempt to stop him from seizing the Datong Army, he felt a little unhappy.
"Let's go." Li Keyong waved his hand and said, "There's nothing to see."