On April 11th, the fifth year of Dashun, it was already the twelfth day since the destruction of Heqing County.
The Xia army suffered another 2,000 casualties, and the remaining 700 defenders in Baiyacang finally sent envoys to contact them.
All the generals fired real fire and demanded that all the defenders in Cang City be slaughtered.
Shao Shude used his prestige to suppress the matter, saying that if the defenders surrendered, they would be innocent, and the promise of giving him one piece of money and two pieces of silk was still valid.
At noon that day, more than 700 defenders came down the mountain cautiously and lined up to surrender. Shao Shude kept his promise and no one was injured.
So far, the troops dispatched to Heqing have achieved all three results, with more than 11,000 casualties and more than 4,000 enemy killed.
Counting the thousands of Pu soldiers who were captured by Yang Liang in a sneak attack, there were still more than 2,000 prisoners in total, paying almost twice the price of the enemy.
This still took advantage of the unexpected... But no matter what, the three results of Heqing, Liaowu and Baiyacang are worth the price no matter how much it costs.
Since the first batch of Bian troops crossed the river and headed north in late March and early April, in more than ten days, more than 70,000 Bian troops have been gathered in the Heyang area, and their strength is still increasing.
At the same time, the transportation of grain, grass, and materials became even busier.
Heyangjin, Xiaopingjin, Wushedu, Luokou, Biankou, etc., almost all the ferries are used.
The amount of food, grass and equipment needed by an army of hundreds of thousands is not a small amount. Generally, it is required to have more than three months of material reserves in the camp, more than half a year's reserves in the rear grain depot, and one or two months' reserves in transit.
Although Zhu Quanzhong was confident that he could defeat Xia Jun, he did not expect a decisive battle. If you want a decisive battle, will Xia Jun be willing to fight you?
Their situation is so good, they have opened three battlefields, and they have also won over the brothers Zhu Xuan and Zhu Jin. They can kill you by playing a steady and tiring strategy. Why should they take huge risks and decide the outcome in a battle with you?
Hundreds of thousands of people from both sides are fighting in formation. It doesn't matter whether the battlefield can accommodate it, but it can accommodate it. Who dares to say that he will definitely win?
Shao Shude could not bear the consequences of failure in the field battle and the loss of the Wuwei, Feng'an, Tiande, Feilong armies and a large number of Tibetan people. Zhu Quanzhong could not accept the consequences of Changzhi, Baosheng, Xiongwei, Feilong, personal riding, seizing life, and trampling all the armies.
The result of destruction.
Especially the Changzhi Army on the left and right, with more than 20,000 people in total. Zhu Quanzhong has always been personally appointed as the military envoy. They are his most elite direct troops. This time, Kou Yanqing brought 15,000 people. Once these are lost, the old
Zhu De was so angry that he couldn't eat.
A small defeat is okay, but no one wants to see a big defeat. This is destined to lead to a period of high-frequency small-scale tentative battles before the war.
On April 13, the third batch of grain, 54,000 dendrobium, arrived at Liaowu Wharf.
Liang Zhixia, the governor of Shaozhou, organized the young men to transport the grain to Baiya Granary, and together with the seized grain and grass, 200,000 hu of grain and beans were piled in the warehouse. 50,000 hu of dendrobium was also stored at Liaowu Wharf, and 50,000 hu of dendrobium was stored in Heqing County.
More than 10,000 dendrobiums were temporarily stored in the military camp, together with 200,000 bundles of hay, and were managed by Zhu Liang, the grain envoy.
When the grain transport ships were returning, they were attacked by the navy of the Bian Army. Three ships were sunk and four were captured.
Shao Shude understood that the good times of rushing to transport grain and grass were over. He ordered Shaanzhou and Weikou to suspend grain transportation to avoid unnecessary losses.
"There is enough food and grass." On top of Baiyacang City, Shao Shude looked at the Bianjun navy warships showing off their power on the river and said: "Even if Feng'an and Tiande's second army arrived, it would only consume 40,000 yuan in one month.
There are more than 4,000 cans of military rations and some fodder. The existing reserves are enough to consume our army for more than seven months. Zhu Quanzhong has the ability to consume it with me until winter. The Bian army is very aggressive, and I don’t know how many troops have been mobilized. According to the intelligence these days,
Probably close to 100,000. There are so many soldiers and horses, overwhelming them, it’s a huge scene.”
The Bian Army has indeed invested a lot of money this time. Their overwhelming cavalry alone seems to be about five thousand. Zhang Shensi in Jiyuan should have more than a thousand cavalry, and Zhang Quanyi in Mengzhou should not have any cavalry at all.
This time they were infantry, and the cavalry had an overall advantage, overwhelming the Shuofang army. Even the number of the mule army was not less than that of the Xia army's mounted infantry.
Not to mention the navy across the river, the advantage seems to be overwhelming. This is the advantage of their internal combat and projection capabilities.
In later generations, projection capabilities are reflected in the number of amphibious assault ships and strategic transport aircraft. Without these, even if there are millions of troops, how many tens of thousands can you mobilize to fight in foreign countries?
The projection ability at this time is reflected in shipping.
"Commander, don't take it lightly. I'm worried that Pang Shigu and Zhang Shensi are paralyzing our army. On the other side of Heyang, it's hard for scouts to get close. There are thieves everywhere. Heqing is only a few dozen miles away and can be reached in a moment." Chen Cheng
Said: "To the east of Heyang, there are many ferries. After crossing the river, most of them are in Wude, Wuzhi, Huojia, Huaizhou, and Wenxian in Mengzhou. Now most of them have rushed to Heyang. The reason why they did not go westward is that one touched
We don’t know the strength of our army, and we are still waiting for equipment, food and fodder.”
"Will there be any movement over at Zhiguan?"
"It's possible." Chen Cheng pondered for a while and said, "Maybe the Hezhong Army can be mobilized to come up and guard Jiguan? It's better than Tu Tuanxiang to fight bravely."
Between Jiguan and Zhiguan, Shao Shude sent people to dig out the post roads and break off the trees. This strategy was proposed by Feng Wei and Shao Shude adopted it.
But now he regrets it.
Perhaps showing too much cowardice allowed the Bian army to see through the reality that there were no elite soldiers on the North Road?
"I don't worry about Wang Yao." Shao Shude sighed and said: "The Tielin Army has 13,000 cavalry. It is such a large force. Why don't I transfer it to the front line? The gang of warriors in the river are always a hidden danger, so we have to
Be on guard."
"Commander, Li Tangbin has a lot of troops. Why don't we send a group of troops to go north to assist the Heyang battlefield?" Chen Cheng suggested: "There is a mule army in the Heyang Bian Army. According to the intelligence from the Tingwang Division, this is Dai Siyuan's command.
, a total of 8,000 people, have been stationed in Luoyang and Xin'an. The appearance in Heyang at this time must have been transferred by Zhu Quanzhong. Li Tangbin's army was stationed in Mianchi County and around Qianqiu City to attack Xiashi Fort, but it was impossible to deploy its troops.
, there is no need for so many manpower.”
"Li Tangbin reported that he wants to attack Shazha City in the south, return to Xizan, open the road to Luoshui River Valley, and threaten Ge Congzhou. Yang Shihou is on the side, and it may be necessary to use troops here."
"Commander, this is nonsense!" Chen Cheng said rudely: "The trail is opened on the slope of the mountain, with high mountains on one side and deep ravines on the other side. How to use troops in such dangerous areas? It is difficult for the rebels to go north, and it is also difficult for our army to go south.
, this is not a place for troops."
"Okay." Shao Shude was persuaded by Chen Cheng and said, "Then we will transfer him back to the German army and go north."
The returned army originally had 5,000 soldiers, all of whom were from Hengshan Dangxiang Mountain. Later, hundreds of outstanding Tibetan warriors from the Qing and Tang Dynasties were selected. Wang Yao also selected 2,000 elite soldiers from the river. Recently, 500 Pu soldiers were added. Xu Jiangbing
Strong and strong, there are already eight thousand people.
He had been training troops in Huguocheng before, and from time to time he had small-scale battles with the Bian army. Shao Shude didn't know why Li Tangbin didn't like to use Fu Cunxun. In that case, he was transferred to Wangwushan to camp, and Gao Renhou commanded him.
On the Jiguan side, we really need a force capable of fighting to hold down the battle line.
…
In the dark night, the rain fell like it was pouring from the sky, making people upset.
Liu Sanhu, who returned from injury, walked on the river embankment with his head held high despite the envious and jealous eyes of his fellow soldiers.
The raincoat I was wearing couldn't block the wind and rain at all. After walking around for a while, I was already soaked to the skin.
But he has no right to be lazy now. He is known to be troubled like this. He is always stared at and will be accused if he is not careful. It is far from being as good as it seems.
But it’s still worth it!
The dancing girl who was rewarded by the commander-in-chief at that time gave birth to three children for him. Not long ago, he rewarded the wife of a thief official and gave him a special leave - it was impossible not to let him go. He was lying there injured.
The woman was well-educated and seemed to accept her fate. She had been taking care of his diet these days, which made Liu Sanhu very satisfied.
Fighting with the commander, you are so motivated!
There was a thunder in the sky, and the rain seemed to be getting heavier. Liu Sanhu cursed in a low voice, but quickly stopped.
In the flash of lightning, he seemed to see the dark ship.
There seems to be parapets on both sides of the ship's side, with windows and holes above and below.
"Captain Mao, go to the barracks immediately and call out all the brothers."
"Vice Captain Cui, take the two of you to the clock bell and wait for news."
"The rest of you, follow me!" Liu Sanhu gave three orders in one breath, and then rushed to the river with more than 40 people who were confused.
Another bolt of lightning fell.
This time I could see it more clearly. Crossbow bolts were fired from the window on the female wall, and several screams sounded from the river.
"Bitch, it's raining so hard, but the crossbow string is still so strong!" Liu Sanhu cursed loudly.
The sergeants behind them already understood that thieves were attacking from the river, and they chose such a rainy day.
Captain Cui, who ran to the place where the bell was rung, also understood. He took two sergeants with him, and the three of them worked hard together and rang the warning bell without hesitation.
The dull bells floated far away in the night sky. All parts of the pier immediately became "live" and noises were everywhere.
Angry curses were also heard from the river, and people simply stopped hiding and started making a big show of it.
An overwhelming barrage of crossbow bolts was fired from the river. Almost no one could stand in the open field by the river. The sergeants on patrol kept screaming in agony. It was unknown how many people had been hit.
The first ship slowly approached.
Eighty sailors were shouting slogans in the bottom cabin and rowing hard. The helmsman opened his eyes wide and carefully looked at the location of the dock and controlled the direction. The deck was full of sergeants, holding swords and guns, eager to try.
No one expected that the first battle between Xia and Bian would be at Liaowu Pier.
After the crossbows were cleared, the melee sergeants of the Bian Army Navy rushed onto the dock along the steps.
The officers and soldiers of the Wuwei Army guarding the dock responded quickly. After the bell rang, they basically began to put on armor and assemble. Then under the leadership of the officers, they quickly reinforced the place where the fight was taking place.
"Kill!" On the narrow dock, the battle was almost fierce.
Bodies kept falling into the river, and the smell of blood was so strong that it was nauseating.
Liu Sanhu arrived first. He held up a long spear and stabbed repeatedly.
The more than 40 sergeants behind him cooperated tacitly and blocked the direction of the rebel soldiers' advance.
Reinforcements arrived one after another, and the dock was crowded with people. Both sides were unable to get into position, so they cut down people who came into contact with each other.
The sky was overcast and raining. There was no moonlight or stars. Except for the dense lights on the river, there was no one visible on the pier.
By the end of the fight, both sides were almost in chaos.
Liu Sanhu kicked a Bian soldier into the river and wiped the rain off his face. He couldn't tell whether the black shadow around him was one of his own or the enemy.
"I'm from Junyi County." He thought for a moment and shouted in the Bian-Song accent he had learned from others.
"Brother, it turns out you are one of our own, and I almost attacked you." The person on the other side lowered his guard and said.
"Poof!" A spear was thrust out, hitting the man's abdomen. Liu Sanhu didn't pause. After pulling out the spear, he swung away the spear that was thrust at him. Then he strode forward, thrust out the spear, and stabbed the man in the dark.
There was another scream, and two people were killed in a row.
"Everyone, the bian thief navy has no armor. If you encounter someone without armor, don't be polite, just kill him. You won't go wrong!"
"General Lu has arrived with his men, don't panic, hold your ground."
"The rebels don't have many soldiers. Our 50,000 troops are stationed at the dock, and every one of them can drown them with spit."
In the darkness, people kept shouting loudly in Lingxia accent to boost morale.
This is the subjective initiative of junior officers, the source of an army's combat effectiveness. If they can reasonably read the battlefield situation, make timely changes, and are full of strong morale and full fighting enthusiasm, they will be difficult to defeat.
Two torches lit up the distant hillside, and the sound of drums and horns resounded through the night sky.
The soldiers of the Wuwei Army who were fighting were greatly boosted in morale, while the navy of the Bian Army was a little depressed.
Marine sergeants generally have no armor, or at most wear leather armor, so they are at a disadvantage in battle.
They came on a rainy night with the intention of making a sneak attack. Now that they were discovered and the sneak attack failed, and Xia army reinforcements were still gathering, their failure was doomed.
The continuous sound of clanking can be heard on the river, which is the retreat signal sent by the Bian Army Navy.
The Bian soldiers who were fighting broke out one after another, threw away their weapons and jumped into the river.
This sneak attack and landing battle started unexpectedly and ended in a confused manner, allowing the soldiers of the Xia Army, who were born in the northwest landlubbers, to have a good understanding of what a land and water attack is.