In front of Jize County, more than 60 camel cyclone cannons were lined up in a row, roaring and throwing stones larger than fists into the Dazhai Fort.
The Hedong troops in the fortress occasionally let out shrill screams, but most of the time, there was silence.
Li Fang and a group of Wang Yisi's staff were writing and drawing, and the craftsmen of the Shenji Battalion were also calculating various data. They regarded the bombardment of the Hedong Army's Dazhai Fort as a drill.
Jinyang County Duke Li Congyi also stood beside Li Fang. The youngest son of Emperor Mingzong Li Siyuan was quite talented in these aspects.
After he calmed down from his panic and made sure that Zhang Zhao really didn't want to do anything to him and didn't regard him as a threat at all, he immediately wanted to do something.
So I entered Tiangongyuan to study, and now I am here to see the world with Shenji Camp.
Li Congyi looked at Jize County in the distance and felt a sense of fear in his heart, as if there was something hidden there that could kill him.
No! It was at this time in history that Liu Zhiyuan entered Kaifeng Mansion in Tokyo, and then mercilessly executed the miserable Li Congyi, Hua Jiansha, mother and son.
Princess Yong'an escaped the disaster because she married Zhao Yanshou, but Zhao Yanshou was also tortured to death quickly by Liao Shizong in history. It is estimated that the end of the beautiful Princess Yong'an is really unpredictable.
Zhang Zhao also rode his horse to the front of the formation and asked Li Congyi with a smile, "Can my son get anything?"
Li Congyi quickly saluted and replied: "Sir, although this fortress is mostly built of wood, it is still difficult for the camel tornado cannon to cause serious damage to it.
Erchen is thinking, there are currently many types of trebuchets in our country, but there is no unified standard. If we can make a standard and adjust the force range so that it can have the same number of stones as a crossbow, and use different trebuchets for different occasions, Only then can everything be put to its fullest use.”
"It's a good idea! You can research and develop in this direction. If you have any questions, just come to me."
Zhang Zhao smiled and encouraged him a few words, but the biggest problem with the trebuchet was that Zhang Zhou couldn't afford it at this time.
In fact, including the entire Five Dynasties, there was no use of trebuchets. Compared with the Tang Dynasty, they can be regarded as disappearing.
The reason is that the people's power is exhausted and they can't use it at all. Even the two wars launched by Zhang Zhao, if it weren't for the blackmail from the Southern Tang Dynasty, Zhang Zhao's fight against local tyrants in the Central Plains, and the support from Hexi and Guanzhong, Zhang Zhao would not have been able to use it. Zhaodu is a bit helpless.
‘Boom!’ A loud noise came, and Zhang Zhao immediately left Li Congyi behind and rode his horse to look at the place where the loud noise occurred.
I saw that a large archery tower built by the Hedong Army on the right was collapsed by the Zhou Army. Hundreds of Hedong Army were screaming miserably in the flying dust.
In yesterday's battle, Shi Hongzhao, the most powerful general of the Hedong Army, was killed in battle. The losses of the entire Hedong Army reached a terrifying number of more than 4,000.
Except for a small number of prisoners, the rest were killed directly in battle or died of serious injuries on the battlefield. More than 10,000 people were injured.
If Bai Zairong hadn't adjusted quickly after seeing the situation, the entire army would have almost collapsed.
However, the Hedong Army was not having a hard time now. The biggest blow was that the more than 4,000 Tuyuhun Rangers who had been entangled with the Zhou Army's cavalry outside the battlefield ran away under the leadership of this generation of Tuyuhun King Bai Zongyi.
This dealt a major blow to the Hedong Army. Without Tuyuhun's rangers, they would have no one to cover them even if they ran away.
However, Zhang Zhao was very worried, fearing that these Tuyuhun cavalry would harm the people along the way, so he sent Zhao Kuangyin to lead five hundred cavalry to pursue them all the way, so that they would not dare to plunder everywhere.
After Tuyuhun's cavalry fled, the entire Hedong Army could only shrink into the three strongholds in Jize County and outside the city. The Zhou Army began to attack separately from early this morning.
Liu Zhiyuan did not give up and sent Murong Yanchao to lead 5,000 troops out of the city for rescue. However, he was defeated again and lost more than 1,000 men. As a result, the Hedong Army completely lost the courage to fight out of the city.
Now one of the archery towers outside the city has collapsed, leaving only two of the three strongholds, and a chain reaction soon occurred.
The Hedong Army in the arrow tower on the left saw the tragedy after the arrow tower on the right collapsed and immediately gave up their defense.
A few wanted to fight back to Jize County, but were killed by the Zhou army's cavalry. Most of them opened the gates of the village and knelt down to surrender.
The front gate of Dazhai Fort was still closed. Although it was riddled with holes, the Hedong Army inside, led by the heroic generals Liu Ci and Li Tao, still resisted. Zhang Zhao sent people to attack twice, both times. were kicked out by them.
This has to mention another strange thing about the Five Dynasties, that is, when two armies are fighting, as long as the superiors do not surrender, the people below rarely surrender on their own initiative.
It's not that they are very loyal. If these guys were so loyal, the Five Dynasties wouldn't be so chaotic. The reason why they didn't surrender is very simple, it's because of money.
This is no longer the era during the Tang Dynasty when the population was 89 million and there was no shortage of money, food and goods.
At this time, after two hundred years of war, living supplies and household registration had declined to a terrible point.
In the whole world, if Zhang Zhou unified the Central Plains, Guanzhong, Hedong, Hebei and Longyoushuofang in Hexi, the maximum population would be about 11 million.
In addition, there are about 8 million in the Southern Tang Dynasty, nearly 3 million in Qian Yue, more than 2 million in Meng and Shu, more than 700,000 in Nanping, 600,000 in Ma Chu, about 1 million in the Southern Han Dynasty, and about 400,000 in the Qingyuan Army of Zhangzhou.
The entire population is only 26 to 7 million. As the main battlefield, the Central Plains, excluding Hexi, Longyou and Shuofang, only has about 8 million.
For such a small population, the number of military personnel is quite large. Even if it is averaged over each person, the common people are squeezed to the extreme, and there is not much oil and water, not to mention that the officers and nobles at all levels will take up a large part.
Therefore, during the Five Dynasties period, if the warriors surrendered, it did not mean that you could still maintain your original status, or even your life.
When the Later Tang Dynasty entered Bianliang, the Imperial Guards of the Later Liang Dynasty did not get a good deal. Similarly, the changes in the Later Tang Dynasty and the Later Jin Dynasty also basically meant a major change in the enjoyment of production and materials at the level of warriors.
The current situation is similar. Zhang Zhao is unwilling to offer a high price for the Hedong warriors. He hopes that they will surrender unconditionally and then select some elites, while most of the rest will have to return to their hometowns to work in the countryside.
Of course, the benefits of Hedong will be enjoyed by Zhang Zhou's ministers, generals and soldiers.
As for the warriors in Hedong, they were still counting on Liu Zhiyuan from top to bottom, or at least on Zhang Zhao to appease them.
Otherwise, after losing their status as warriors in such troubled times, let alone whether they would have land to cultivate, even if they did, they would not be able to cultivate the land.
Returning home with wounds from the war basically meant choosing one of the two endings of dying in poverty or dying violently.
In Jize County, the situation is even more dangerous. With the fall of the two archery towers, there is only one Dazhai Fort left outside Jize County. It is only a matter of time before it is captured.
Now even the road from Jize County to Xingzhou is covered with Zhang Zhao's sentries. If we wait any longer, the road back will be completely blocked.
Liu Zhiyuan's face was flushed, and his cold and cold seemed to be much better, but there was something wrong with his energy.
He looked around and found that except Liu Ci, Li Tao and others who were trapped in Dazhai Fort, the rest of the generals were here.
Although there are still more than 10,000 people in the city and there is still enough food and grass to last at least twenty days, there is definitely no way to get any more supplies.
After twenty days, we will definitely have to run out of food. Besides, people's hearts are so unstable now that they can't keep it at all.
Murong Yanchao looked around and saw that he was surrounded by the core of Hedong warriors, so he stood up and spoke directly.
"Your Majesty, the only plan now is to return to the east of Hedong. Lieutenant Guo still has ten thousand people in She County. Guo Congyi, Bai Wenke and others also have more than a thousand people. We guard Jingxing Pass and Junji Pass, and protect the mountains and rivers inside and outside Hedong. , it is not that easy for Zhou Jun to enter Taiyuan."
Liu Zhiyuan understood what Murong Yanchao meant. If he was defeated and captured in Hejize County now, he would lose all his capital.
If we can escape back to Hedong and rely on the natural dangers of Hedong to fight the Zhou army, we will definitely be able to fight until the Zhou army cannot bear it. When it comes to the conditions, it will be much easier to negotiate.
Seeing that Liu Zhiyuan was still brooding, Bai Zairong was rude. In yesterday's battle, Liu Zhiyuan's direct lineage suffered heavy losses. Of the 10,000 Hedong Ya soldiers, there were now less than 2,000.
In this era where people are judged on their ability, any great king or any degree of control is all illusory. The only real thing is how many capable athletes he has under his command.
"Your Majesty, a certain family also agrees with Commander Murong's opinion. Even if Your Majesty doesn't think about it for himself, he should think about it for the officers and soldiers of Hedong and the generals of Zuowei."
Liu Zhiyuan's nose suddenly turned crooked with anger. What do you mean by not thinking about yourself? I am thinking about myself now, okay?
However, although Bai Zairong's words were not polite, they really hit Liu Zhiyuan's weakness.
That is Li Sanniang and her two sons Liu Chengxun and Liu Chengyou who are far away in Taiyuan, especially Li Sanniang. Liu Zhiyuan has a very good relationship with her. The eldest son Liu Chengxun is beautiful and kind-hearted. He is deeply loved by Liu Zhiyuan and it is impossible not to think about them.
If Liu Zhiyuan died in Jize County, there would definitely be trouble in Hedong, and someone would definitely use his family as a stepping stone.
That’s it! That’s it!
Liu Zhiyuan sighed and said, "Kill pigs and sheep, and the soup and cakes will be enough. Tell the warriors below that there is still enough food in Jize County for three months, so that they can guard it with peace of mind. The Central Plains of Zhou Kingdom is in ruins, and Zhou's army has traveled thousands of miles, and they are still hungry." Let them go."
After saying this call, Liu Zhiyuan turned to show a cold expression, "Each general will go down to collect the elites and collect the horses secretly.
Before the fifth watch tomorrow, we will first order the city's defenders to attack to rescue Liu Ci and other generals in Dazhaibao, and then break out with light cavalry.
It’s just that one of the generals needs to be left behind, who among you is willing to stay?”
Cruel enough! This is to build up confidence, and then let the people in the city die to buy time for them to break out! But it is difficult to leave the candidate at the rear.
However, their eyes unanimously looked at Wang Yin who was standing aside.
Because Wang Yin was not from Hedong, nor was he a close associate of Liu Zhiyuan, he was from Weizhou. Liu Zhiyuan, who had only gone to Taiyuan after the Khitan conquered Weizhou, was the most suitable candidate to stay.
Liu Zhiyuan immediately stepped down from his seat, took Wang Yin's hand and said, "I know you are very willing to fight, but the situation is like this. If you can delay it for two quarters of an hour, I will do whatever you want."
This means that it has to be delayed for half an hour, and Wang Yin can just think of what to do.
Wang Yin was silent for a moment. Most of his direct descendants had been wiped out by the Zhang River, and he didn't want to go to Hedong, so he easily agreed.
....
Daibei, Zhongshou Jiangcheng, which is near Baotou in later generations, Zhang Zhou's Shuofang Province Pingzhang Zhe Deyi, finally met his brother Zhe Deyuan, whom he had not seen for a long time.
This time, Zhe Deqin was ordered to move here together with Yao Yuanfu, the defense envoy of Shuofang Province, leading 10,000 soldiers and more than 6,000 civilians and herdsmen, a total of 30,000 people.
Originally, the Khitan, Turks, Tuyuhun and other tribes here were caught off guard and were captured by Zhe De. There were about 10,000 people. Now they are basically detained and waiting for distribution.
"What a great river and mountain!" Zhe Deyuan couldn't help but sigh as he looked at the green fields and abundant water and grass all around him.
"Before, the sage said that the Yellow River is full of evils, but only the rich. I didn't understand it. Now that I see this, I know that this statement is true."
Zhe Deyi looked at the map Zhe Deyuan brought, pointed at the Yellow River turning here and said, "The word "Hetao" is quite worthy of its name."
Then, one of the youngest officials in Zhang Zhou, who was growing very fast, looked at Zhe Deyuan.
"I have made a plan to relocate the people to enrich the Hetao, rebuild the western, central and eastern surrender cities, as well as the Fengzhou Tiande Army and Zhenwu Army. Please take a look at some suggestions for additional additions and submit them to His Majesty when you return to Beijing."
Zhe Deyuan took it and took a look, and immediately frowned, "Brother wants to move to Ningxia, bring 150,000 people from Hedong here, and restore Jiuyuan, the ancient name of Yunzhong. Isn't it too big a move?
Moreover, Ningxia and Hedong are not very well-populated. Hedong has not yet been pacified, so if there is a sudden immigration, there is a risk of resentment or even rebellion."
Zhe Deqing smiled faintly, "Erlang wants to say that it was my Zhejia who initiated the move of the people from Hedong to Ningxia, and the Zhejia took the lead in relocating the people. This will definitely arouse resentment between the two places and only increase the Zhejia's enemies."
right?"
Zhe Deyuan looked at his brother strangely, "Since the eldest brother knows, why do you still do this? This is not of much benefit to the Zhe family, it is just a laborious and thankless job."
Zhe Deku gently patted his younger brother on the shoulder, "Does Erlang know how long it has been since a certain family has corresponded with his father?"
Zhe Deyuan didn't understand what his brother meant, and tilted his head strangely.
Seeing this, Zhe Deqing said directly and calmly: "Since I entered Lingwu, I have corresponded with my father three times, and I have been home for one day in two years."
Zhe Deyuan understood, and he looked at his brother in shock, "Moreover, these three correspondences and this time back home were all made known to the saint first and approved by the saint. Why does the elder brother do this? The saint is not the master of suspicion!"
"Of course a certain family knows that the saint is not the master of suspicion, but on the contrary, he is the leader of the world with a broad mind, but because of this, we and other ministers should be more cautious.
I have a family of three father and two sons. My father is the powerful one in the valley, my elder brother controls the border areas, and my younger brother is the adopted son of the emperor and married into the clan in the center. He is in a high position without any merit. You must understand the preciousness of this kindness.
The saint has entrusted the entire northern Xinjiang to my father and son. The responsibility is heavy, so of course we must avoid suspicion."
"No wonder! No wonder Brother Murong has been deliberately getting close to me recently and asked me to bring you gifts. It turns out that he wants to send all the Tuyuhun people in Hedong to the Hetao area!" Zhe Deyuan suddenly realized.
Zhe Deke laughed three times and patted his younger brother on the shoulder again, "You only know now! I heard that the saint intends to promote Qinghai County Duke as a Duke after this battle is over. Such a cautious character deserves the saint's favor.
.
His family is the last bloodline of the Tuyuhun Murong royal family, and they can even give up the hundreds of thousands of tribesmen they have obtained.
He is in a high position and enjoys the great favor. He is like a boat sailing in turbulent waves. He is so safe and secure, which is very human!"
Zhe Deyuan understood that his brother Zhe Deyi also wanted to be like his sworn brother Murong Nobunaga.
The Zhe family started out in a mere Fugu area and did not have much merit. However, in such a short period of time, they were so favored by the emperor and entrusted with the border defense of the north. They really should be as cautious as their elder brothers.
"I think my brother will definitely not go to Yunzhou City to see my father. I won't waste much time. Your Excellency is still waiting for reinforcements!"
Zhe Deyuan came to see his brother from far away from his father Zhe, just to ask for reinforcements, because the Khitan people in Yunzhou City became fierce. The army surrounded them and attacked fiercely for more than ten days, but they could not advance even an inch.
On the first day of June, just as Zhang Zhao returned to pursue Liu Zhiyuan, Zhe Deyuan and Yao Yuanfu led two thousand Lingwu Town forbidden troops and more than three thousand local party cavalry to Yunzhou.
At this time, the outer city of Yunzhou had already been captured, but more than a thousand Khitans, holding hundreds of Han men hostage, were holding on to the inner city of Yunzhou.
The reason for holding on is also very simple, because before Zhe Congyuan led Yang Hongxin, Wu Luan and other generals to attack Yunzhou with 20,000 troops.
In order to prevent the Han people from rebelling in Yunzhou, the great Khitan king Yelu Talie who was stationed in Yunzhou killed thousands of Han people in the city and robbed all their food and grass to use for the defense.
Therefore, the Khitan people in the city had done everything possible and had no way out, so they naturally had to fight tooth and nail to resist.
After Zhe came from far away, he quickly captured the outer city with the help of the Han people in Yunzhou, but the inner city had thick walls and a small defensive area.
Yelu Talie had plenty of food and water in the city, but the soldiers in Fugu Town and Datong Town lacked siege equipment. They were so anxious that they really could not capture the city.
Just after Yao Yuanfu arrived with his new force, Yang Jiye also arrived with five hundred cavalry.
Moreover, they also brought the emperor's imperial banner and clothes and armor of the Khitan Emperor Yelu Ruan, as well as Yelu Ruan's own palace tent, Yelu Hanerduo, and fifteen senior officers.
As soon as these people arrived, Zhe Congyuan immediately became emboldened. In fact, he didn't have many manpower to attack Yunzhou these days.
Because he had to always be on guard against the Khitan cavalry coming to attack him from a certain direction, but now he finally no longer had this worry.
In an instant, the three armies cheered loudly, and the shouts of long live continued for a long time. Zhe Congyuan even laughed so hard that tears came down. He looked at Yang Jiye and said.
"It has been ten years since the Shi family ceded Yanyun, which caused China to lose its barrier. The people of Fulin and other prefectures have also suffered greatly from it. Today, it can be said that a great revenge has been avenged!"
Then Zhe Zhiyuan withdrew all the troops guarding the Khitans. After the three armies slaughtered pigs and sheep and had a happy gathering under Yunzhou City, the Zhou army, which had strengthened to 30,000 men, began to storm the inner city of Yunzhou.
Before attacking the city, Yang Jiye specially held the Yelu Ruan Dagu to show off under the city, and the prisoners he brought also reported their identities one by one, crying that the emperor had died.
The Khitan people in the city were greatly frightened when they heard this, and Yelu Talie also shed tears of pain.
Their only courage to persevere is that they know that there are not many people in Zhe Congyuan, and they are expecting the Khitans from Youzhou to come to rescue them. Now that the emperor is gone, why fight?
On the third day of the battle, the residents of Yunzhou and the Imperial Guards of Datong Town, who had a deep hatred for the Khitans, took the lead in capturing the area near the east gate of the inner city.
The great Khitan king Yelu Talie could not do anything, so he burned himself to death in the inner city government office. The Zhou army swarmed into the city and captured more than 700 Khitans in the city.
Originally, Zhe Congyuan wanted to leave a few for Zhang Zhao to offer as prisoners, but as a result, Yunzhou Han'er and the Datong army had been suffering from the Khitans for a long time. Whenever the Khitans in the city were dragged out, they were killed on the spot.
So amidst the joy of the masses, Yunzhou, which had been lost for ten years, once again returned to the embrace of the Central Plains Dynasty.