In just three days, Ma Zhaoyuan successfully captured the Dongchuan Gate, Meng Shu's most important natural barrier on the Yangtze River.
Gao Yanchou, the military commander of the Ningjiang Army in Meng Shu Kui Prefecture, committed suicide and martyred his country. The military judge Luo Ji and others surrendered to Jinyin, the military commander of the Ningjiang Army.
Wu Shouqian, the supervisor who boldly asked Gao Yanchou to see his meritorious service, quickly surrendered after the Zhou army entered the city.
Ningjiang Army Deputy Envoy Zhao Chongji's right arm was penetrated by the Divine Arm Bow. After losing an arm, the young Deputy Zhao survived unexpectedly.
Among the nearly 6,000 tooth soldiers of the Ningjiang Army who accompanied Gao Yanchou, more than 700 were killed on the spot, and more than a thousand were later killed in chases and street fighting in the city.
After the war, the prisoners were counted, and nearly 2,000 people were still lightly or seriously injured, and another 1,000 or 2,000 people fled in all directions. Ma Zhaoyuan was ordering people to clear them out.
The four thousand mountaineer hunters who left the city were basically unscathed.
Because they were just hired to work together in order to make a few big bucks a day, so when they saw that the situation was not right, they ran faster than anyone else.
However, no matter how fast they were, they could not outpace the Zhou army's cavalry. In the end, most of them were captured, and Ma Zhaoyuan actually started to select the guard troops among them.
This trick worked as expected. The mountain people were originally afraid of being beheaded by the Zhou army, but unexpectedly it turned out to be beneficial and they could get good fields on the flat land.
You must know that places like Kuizhou are basically similar to Yunnan and Guizhou. The land is no more than three miles flat. The few good fields are in the Yangtze River valley and on both sides of its tributaries.
In the Central Plains, the criteria for good farmland should be fertile and convenient for irrigation.
But here, the criterion for a good field is first of all to have it leveled. As long as it is level and there is no shortage of water for irrigation, etc., a level field is a good field.
The mountain people were overjoyed and immediately called their relatives and friends to come to Kuizhou to participate in the assessment. Ma Zhaoyuan was also happy and generous. Anyway, these lands belonged to the Ningjiang Army. He came to get the equal land, which didn't feel distressed at all.
As for the Ningjiang Army soldiers, Judge Luo Ji and others were treated somewhat well, but the rest of the soldiers were not given any preferential treatment. They were all scattered and reorganized into various armies as auxiliary soldiers and coolies, while their families were detained in Kuizhou City.
If you can make meritorious deeds, you may have some future. If you can't make meritorious deeds, then it depends on your fate.
After a day of repairs in Kuizhou, Ma Zhaoyuan ordered people to collect Gao Yanchou's remains and bury them.
Afterwards, Hou Zhang, the commander of Jiangling's left guard, was left to guard Kuizhou, and the army continued to set sail, heading straight for Meng Shu's second military envoy on the Yangtze River, the military governor of Fuzhou Wutai Army.
However, despite Ma Zhaoyuan's rapid advance in troops, the importance is actually not too high.
Because at this time, the east of the basin, including the entire later Chongqing City, had a low status in Shu, especially its economic status.
The most important area in Sichuan is the Chengdu area.
In the Tang Dynasty, the West Sichuan area in Jiannan was dominated by Chengdu, and the East Sichuan area in Jiannan was dominated by Zizhou.
Zizhou is the Santai County in Sichuan that was adjacent to Chengdu in later generations. It is not that Xichuan is in Chengdu and Dongchuan is in Chongqing as people in later generations thought.
Of course, the more important thing is that it is too far from Kuizhou to Chengdu, nearly 500 miles farther than Hanzhong to Chengdu, and it is difficult to transport upstream.
Ma Zhaoyuan only had 20,000 people, and every time he conquered a place, he had to send people to garrison to maintain navigation on the Yangtze River.
According to this strategy, at most the Wutai Army Jiedushi in Fuzhou will be defeated, and after advancing into Yuzhou (Chongqing), Ma Zhaoyuan will probably not be able to walk.
The key battles still depend on Hanzhong and Qishan Road.
....
At Wukou Pass, Er Zhujing was also facing the same dilemma as Ma Zhaoyuan.
He brought eight thousand cavalry and tens of thousands of civilians from Xiangyang Prefecture, and went all the way up the Han River. After reaching Wukou Pass, he was already five hundred miles away from Ankang Prefecture in the rear.
Such a long supply road must be completed entirely by the Han River. Not only are there insufficient ships, but there are also insufficient civilians. It is bound to be impossible to move forward. Even Erzhujing cannot maintain its current scale.
He could only order the release of most of the civilians after building the Wu Pass, and then allocate four thousand soldiers and horses to station in various states and counties along the way in order to reduce the pressure of food consumption.
After this allocation, Er Zhujing only had three thousand regular troops and two or three thousand civilian workers left in his hands.
Although the soldiers were still brave, the Wuding army in Yuanzhou on the opposite side was much larger than the Zhou army. It was no problem to fight in the field, but it was very difficult to attack the city.
Therefore, the two armies formed a confrontation east of Yuanzhou.
....
Baoxie Road, Wuxiuguan, this is the fifth day of the siege of Wuxiuguan.
In five days, the Zhou army, led by its own troops, launched more than twenty uninterrupted fierce attacks along the ridge towards Wu Xiuguan.
Wuxiuguan does not occupy a large area. After all, there is not much open space for the Shu army to build the city.
Therefore, similar to Baidi City, Wuxiu Pass can only accommodate six to seven hundred people at most, and it also requires a supporting army to be stationed behind the pass for rotation and reinforcement.
The Zhou army's continuous fierce attacks greatly consumed the physical strength of Wu Xiuguan's Shu army. Even the more than a thousand soldiers Sun Shunchao, the Marquis of Yu in Shannan Road, who came for reinforcements, had been rotated twice.
There is also a problem with Wuxiuguan. Although it is easy to defend and difficult to attack due to its high position, Meng Shu only started repairing it in the past year. The fortifications are strong, but there are not many ways to kill the enemy, that is, rolling stones, wood, etc.
Mainly, with bows, crossbows and spears as auxiliary.
Seeing this situation, Luo Yu'er quickly formulated a countermeasure plan. The Zhou army set up many flags and drums at the foot of Wuxiuguan Mountain, shouting and shouting day and night.
The attacking soldiers were mainly selected from Hengshan Dangxiang, who could fly across the mountains, and soldiers from the mountain people of Zhongnan Mountain in Guanzhong.
These soldiers are quite powerful in combat. When equipped with powerful crossbows such as divine arm bows and small wooden crossbows, even a feint attack can put great pressure on the Shu army at Wu Xiu Pass.
When the Shu army at the gate saw how sharp the Zhou army's attack was, they thought it was a desperate attack by the Zhou army. The consumption of rolling stones, wood, etc. was astonishing.
In particular, the Wuxiu Pass is not big. After the rolling stones and wood are consumed, they need to be moved up from the back of the pass. This is not an easy task.
Although the Zhou army's attack suffered heavy casualties, the Shu army's defense was also grunting from exhaustion.
On the fifth day of the battle, the soldiers assigned to the task of carrying rolling stones and logs by the Shu Army began to collectively fish, and their attack power was significantly weakened.
Now the time has come, it’s up to Wang Tongtong!
Luo Yu'er looked at Wu Xiuguan, expecting that the big brother of the Yuancong faction would bring him a surprise.
Wang Tongtong now has a deep understanding of how difficult it is to cross Wuguan Mountain.
Because just a few breaths ago, he watched a warrior who had been following him since the time when he was guarding the generals in Wucheng, Liangzhou, fall into the abyss.
Wang Tongtong, who was gluttonous, lustful, fond of luxury, ignorant and illiterate, looked at the cliff beside him with red eyes for a long time and was speechless.
One of the good things about him is that he is really loyal. As long as you have a good relationship with him, he will be willing to spend half of a big sum of money on you. If something happens, he is really brave.
Half a year ago, he had to stand at the gate of Jinshan Palace for a whole day because of the injustice of one of his subordinates, forcing Zhang Zhi to go out to solve the problem.
In the end, Wang Tongtong was fined half a year's salary as Marquis of Wucheng, and Zhang Gao found an excuse for breaking military discipline and gave him ten blows with a military stick.
But Wang Tongtong finally got the job done, and thus received praise and respect from a large number of lower-level officials and soldiers.
Therefore, Wang Tongtong cannot be a personal guard like Man Xiong and Dunzhu, but he can lead hundreds of people as surprise troops to do great things.
Because the soldiers at the grassroots level all trusted the Marquis of Wucheng, who ate, drank, whored and gambled with them, but who was absolutely willing to go out of his way to gain benefits for them.
Two hundred people set out, and it took three and a half days for Wang Tongtong to finally cross Wuguan Mountain with 130 people.
Of course not all of them fell to death, many were unable to continue due to physical strength or injuries.
Regardless of the small number of people, there are not many Shu troops in Wuxiu Pass! These 130 people are enough.
Wang Tongtong climbed over the mountain, and after sharing the last bit of food with his men, he immediately lit the big firecracker in his hand.
There was a loud bang that shook the whole world!
At this moment, Sun Shunchao was urging the Shu army to carry out all their efforts to carry the rolling stones and wood.
But I didn't expect that with a roar, on the top of Wuxiuguan, which was supposed to be a thousand-meter-high cliff, a Zhou army with its clothes torn by tree branches descended from the sky!
At the same time, at the foot of the mountain, Luo Yu'er gave an order, and Li Cunhui personally held up a large shield and started a fierce attack with hundreds of carefully selected warriors.
One hundred and thirty people, even if they have no armor, and even if they only have short horizontal swords in their hands, the warriors who can perform such a feat are not something that the Shu army can resist.
Wang Tongtong and others were like tigers entering a flock of sheep. Sun Shunchao held up a spear and wanted to resist. Wang Tongtong shouted loudly and quickly arrived in front of Sun Shunchao.
Looking at the murderous god in front of me, all the past events suddenly came to mind.
It turned out that Sun Shunchao had also been captured by the Zhou army. Li Xiaojie had mentioned to Zhang Gao that the nephew of Sun Hanshao who was instigated to rebel was the Sun Shunchao in front of him.
However, after returning to Shu, Sun Hanshao thought that his nephew had not rebelled after being captured for a year and was still brave, so he promoted him to a more important position.
Sun Shunchao was originally going to be a second- and fifth-level employee, but he was re-employed when he came back, so he quickly gave up his thoughts, but the fear in his heart was still there.
At first glance, he saw that the person was Wang Tongtong, one of the famous four fierce dogs of Shaoming Sage, who had beaten more than ten people by one man in the Shu Army prisoner-of-war camp.
I was immediately frightened to the point of having difficulty breathing, and my hands felt sore and weak. I could only perform 30% to 40% of my ability.
After a few rounds of fighting between the two sides, Sun Shunchao was knocked to the ground by Wang Tongtong. He was so slippery that he simply knelt on the ground and shouted, 'I wish to surrender, I wish to surrender!'
The Shu army was already exhausted from carrying rolling stones and wood, but now that Sun Shunchao is shouting that he is willing to surrender, let's give him a hammer!
So the Shu army, which clearly had superior numbers, superior equipment, and superior physical strength, actually laid down their weapons in front of a group of beggar-like Zhou troops.
When Li Cunhui and his men rushed to the front of Wuxiu Pass, Wang Tong stepped on Sun Shunchao, swaggeringly asked someone to open the door and let them in directly.
....
Xingyuan Mansion, Shannan Road Jiedushi Office, Sun Hanshao knew that the situation in Yuanzhou was barely stable, but he was not very relieved, because the occupation of Wukou Pass was always a trouble.
Not to mention the current threats, as long as the Zhou army can occupy Wukou Pass, they will spend the first half of the year to dredge the Ziwu Road and there will be no need to fight the next battle.
So Sun Hanshao still wanted to take advantage of the fact that the Zhou army had not yet come out of the Baoxiang Road, and sent more troops to fight against the Zhou army at the pass for an afternoon.
At least the defense of Raofeng Pass must be restored. Anyway, the Shu army has the Han River that runs through Xingyuan Prefecture and can come and go freely.
But Luo Yu'er didn't give him this chance. Just when Sun Hanshao was considering dispatching troops, Wang Tongtong escorted Sun Shunchao and, together with Li Cunhui, deceived the last pass of Baoxie Road, Qipan Pass.
The guard of Qipan Gate was unwilling to open the gate, but Sun Shunchao couldn't help but put pressure on him as Sun Hanshao's nephew. As a result, when he opened the gate and realized that something was wrong, it was too late.
After Wang Tongtong's Li Cunhui deceived the gate to open, more than 10,000 Zhou troops filed out of Baoxie Road and began to storm Baocheng County outside the pass.
Baocheng County is only forty miles away from Hanzhong, and it is not a pass but a county town.
After occupying Baocheng County, we can use it as a stronghold to besiege Hanzhong.
Historical dynasties have fought against Hanzhong from Guanzhong. If they have reached Baocheng County, the battle is basically over, and the leading figures in the separatist Hanzhong will begin to consider asking for surrender.
Because Hanzhong (Xingyuan Prefecture), like Baocheng County, is undefendable and it is impossible to resist the soldiers.
However, this time it was a little different. First of all, the Zhou Kingdom had only occupied Guanzhong for two or three years, and it followed the route of elite troops, so it was not able to mobilize a hundred or eighty thousand troops to march out from Baoxie Road like previous dynasties.
Secondly, the Shu army in Baocheng County turned out to be very tenacious. In addition, the Zhou army was quite exhausted after coming from a long distance and could not capture Baocheng County immediately. This gave Sun Hanshao time to deploy his troops and generals.
In the early morning of the second day after receiving the warning from Baocheng County, Sun Hanshao sent a message on flying horses to Wang Huan and Li Jin of Yuanzhou, ordering them to abandon Yuanzhou City quickly and bring 7,000 people back to Xingyuan Prefecture.
On the one hand, they exhausted the treasury of the Xingyuan Prefecture to reward the troops, and also recruited brave warriors from the people of Shannan Road to prepare for a decisive battle with the Zhou army on the bank of the Han River.
In the third year of Shaoming of Zhangzhou and the eighteenth year of Guangzheng of Meng and Shu, it was the seventh day of April in AD 948.
Sun Hanshao sent out 12,000 elite soldiers from Xingyuan Prefecture on the southern route of Meng Shu Mountain and recruited 20,000 athletes. He took the initiative to leave Xingyuan Prefecture and go north, hoping to rescue Baocheng County and fight the Zhou army.
Sun Hanshao said to the generals of the Shu army: "The soldiers from the north came from far away. In one month, they walked 500 miles south along the Baoxiang Road. They were also frustrated at Wuxiuguan. They must be extremely exhausted, and because they even looked down upon the city.
Our numbers are twice that of the enemy, but we still have the advantage of the landlords. If we can unite as one, we will definitely be able to defeat the Northern Army."
After Sun Hanshao and Li Congke Fengxiang raised troops in the Later Tang Dynasty, he submitted to Meng Shu as the military governor of Wuding Army in Yuanzhou.
Meng Zhixiang treated him extremely well. The soldiers under his command were never divided and were always controlled by Sun Hanshao.
At the same time, after Meng Chang succeeded to the throne, Sun Hanshao actually became Meng Chang's political ally.
Because he does not belong to Zhang Ye, Zhao Tingyin or Meng Zhixiang's veteran faction, and he has not much involvement with the big families in Shu.
Therefore, even though he was recalled to Chengdu by Meng Chang and held in high esteem, when Meng Chang learned about Sun Hanshao's role, he was immediately returned to Hanzhong. Moreover, Meng Chang also sent more troops to Sun Hanshao and did not even send a supervisory army. He was extremely trusting.
Sun Hanshao's identity in Meng Shu was deeply explored, and he could no longer be regarded as a minister.
You must know that without his instigation, Meng Shu would not have Hanzhong. In addition, Sun Hanshao has always been quite independent, and Sun Hanshao is actually a small shareholder of the Meng Shu regime.
The same goes for the Shannan Dao Shu Army in Hanzhong. If Sun Hanshao is a shareholder of Meng Shu, they are Sun Hanshao's shareholders.
Therefore, as long as Sun Hanshao is willing to fight, the Shu army in Shannan Road can fight.
On the eighth day of April, Sun Hanshao led an army of 35,000 people and arrived five miles southwest of Baocheng County in just one day.
However, he arrived a step too late. There were only a few hundred Shu troops in Baocheng County, which could not withstand the day and night onslaught of more than 10,000 elite Zhou troops. Baocheng County had already fallen before Sun Hanshao arrived.
Sun Hanshao had no choice but to lead his troops back, and the Zhou army had already discovered Sun Hanshao's army.
Fortunately, it was too difficult for the Zhou army to take the Baoxie Road, and the horses were not well trained, because there were not many cavalry available for battle, and the Shu army also had a small cavalry guard, which ensured the safety of the Shu army.
In the early stage of contact, the light cavalry of both sides continued to engage in dogfights. The Shu army reluctantly retreated six or seven miles northwest of Hanzhong City, and the escorting cavalry was scattered by the reinforcements of the Zhou army's cavalry.
Sun Hanshao could only camp underground and prepare to fight the Zhou army.
This area is the main grain-producing area of Xingyuan Prefecture. Thanks to the irrigation advantages of the Han River and the flatness of the Hanzhong Plain, it is surrounded by good paddy fields.
It is now the spring plowing period, and the paddy fields are filled with water. Sun Hanshao has set up his camp around two hills with a height of tens of meters. There are two camps in the east and west, with the slippery paddy field silt as a barrier to block the surrounding areas.
Attack of the National Cavalry.
Luo Yu'er left five hundred people to guard Baocheng County as a logistics base, and immediately led the army to set up camp three miles in front of the Shu army camp.
After a little investigation, Luo Yu'er immediately discovered Sun Hanshao's idea. This was indeed a good place to restrict the movement of cavalry.
This place is approximately near Xingyuan Lake in Hanzhong City in later generations. The fact that a reservoir lake was built here during the Republic period shows that the terrain is low and the water source is abundant.
Luo Yu'er is not stupid either. He will not give up the advantage of cavalry and let the heavily armored infantry step on ankle-deep mud to attack the Shu army.
No matter how brave the Zhou army was, there was no need for such hard sex.
Anyway, he has already entered Hanzhong. Although the Baoxie Road is far away, it does not mean that he cannot supply supplies. I will spend some time with you first.
At the same time, Luo Yu'er continued to release the rested cavalry, asking them to plunder the grain stores of farmers in the nearby countryside and attack the Shu army's grain collection team.
This is not the time for Shi Renyi. Ensuring the supply of the army is the first priority. Even if Zhang Gao comes, he must do this.
On the second day of the confrontation, more and more Zhou army cavalry returned to combat strength. Luo Yu'er even continued to send small groups of troops to try to attack the city of Xingyuan Prefecture, which put great pressure on Sun Hanshao.
The current situation is that the Shu army on both sides has slightly more troops, but their combat effectiveness is lower.
As a result, Sun Hanshao did not dare to move around Xingyuan Lake in later generations, because if he left the protection of the geographical location, he would probably not be able to defeat the Zhou army.
So the anxious Sun Hanshao kept sending messengers to Yuanzhou to urge Wang Huan and Li Jin.
Last time, in order to reinforce Wang Huan, Li Jin took away most of Xingyuan Mansion's cavalry and a large number of mules and horses turned into heavy infantry.
Sun Hanshao hoped that Wang Huan and especially Li Jin would use the advantage of the cavalry in their hands to quickly return for reinforcements, then go around behind the Zhou army and attack him front and back.
Whether Xingyuan Mansion can defend it depends on Wang Huan and Li Jin's ability to support them.