The battle on the frontal battlefield gradually became more intense. Yelu Zhongyuan's left army attacked the most vigorously. His left army had the largest number of troops. Nearly 400,000 troops were lined up from the mouth of Bohai Sea to Xiongzhou of Bazhou. Of course, the hundreds of miles of the front were divided. This time, the focus of the attack was concentrated in the area near Xiongzhou and Bazhou to the west. The purpose was self-evident. It was to get closer to Xiao Hui's right army for easy coordination, and at the same time, after the breakthrough, it would be closer to Bianliang. , more threatening.
The enemy was Fan Zhongyan, who was known for his solid defense. Fan Zhongyan expected that the focus of the attack would be Bazhou and Xiongzhou, so he only deployed 50,000 troops to follow Xia Song to garrison Ningbei at the mouth of the Bohai Sea. Almost all the remaining main forces were There are more than ten cities and fortresses in the Xiongzhou and Bazhou area.
This is more like a collision of sharp spears and strong shields.
After a little trial and error, Yelu Zhongyuan ordered a fierce attack in early May, and the Song Dynasty also operated the three checkpoints of Waqiao Pass, Yijin Pass and Yukou Pass in the Bazhou area of Xiongzhou for a long time. Due to Youyun With the loss of the Sixteen Prefectures, the Xiongzhou and Bazhou areas were originally flat and dangerous, but the Song Dynasty adapted to local conditions and took advantage of the local lakes and rivers and the characteristics of loose soil. '' strategy was to block the Xu, Bao, Sha, Tang and other rivers among the nine rivers, forming numerous water pools connected by the rivers, forming a unique north-south defense line, which effectively curbed the Liao cavalry's sudden advance. Defense against Tangluo.
But this time, the Liao people were obviously well prepared. They didn't know who came up with the idea, so they brought a large number of wooden planks connected together called a 'moving bridge', which looked like it had been enlarged dozens of times. The ancient bamboo slips were carried by oxcarts and followed the army. When encountering quagmire and swamp, they were spread out and connected in difficult places to form a pontoon bridge. People and horses stepped on it, but it did not sink or sink. It was quite remarkable. Effect.[
But even so, mobility is still greatly reduced. Small swamps, ponds and ditches can be crossed, and large lakes such as Baiyangdian and tidal flats can never be crossed. The three passes of Waqiao Pass, Yijin Pass and Yukou Pass all guard key points. Built on the road, the final battle still comes down to capturing the pass going south.
The Liao army's siege equipment was also well prepared. There was a five-story new ram, which when assembled was more than three feet high, even higher than the defender's city wall. It had wheels underneath, so it could move forward or be used. Oxen-horsed vehicles were highly maneuverable; soldiers hid in the vehicles and shot arrows directly into the city from the vehicles. They could also be used to approach the city wall, destroy the stacked walls, or directly attack the enemy defenders on the city wall.
In addition to being equipped with various long weapons, the carts are often also loaded with heavy weapons such as crossbows and stone cannons. These advanced siege equipment are similar to the chariots independently developed by the Song Dynasty. The only shortcoming is that they are made of wood. , there is only a small amount of iron armor protection on the front, which seems not strong enough.
Others, such as lifting ladders, crossings to deal with moats and ditches, as well as long-range crossbows and catapults, are all powerful siege equipment.
When Fan Zhongyan fought with the Xia State, the Xia people only relied on the field strength of their cavalry to fight, and they could only blind people when attacking the city, because they did not have these siege equipment and did not pay attention to them; now with the Liao people During the battle, so many powerful weapons appeared, which made Fan Zhongyan feel at a loss.
In the first few days of fighting, the casualties of the soldiers guarding the three passes rose sharply, and there were even cases where the city wall was breached. The defenders suffered more casualties than those who attacked the city. This is simply unimaginable; fortunately, Fan Zhongyan is also a man who has experienced hundreds of battles.
, and soon he found the enemy's loopholes, and the kerosene from the northwest came in handy. When the charging car approached, the soldiers on the city desperately tried to remove more than a dozen earthen jars filled with kerosene from the attack.
Throw it into the mouth, and then throw a torch on it, and you can stand by and watch the Liao soldiers being burned in the ram chariot crying for their fathers and mothers; when the ram chariot several feet high burns, the fire shoots into the sky, and the soldiers trapped in it are like
They are sweet potatoes roasted in the fire. If you jump down, you will fall to death. If you don't jump down, you will be burned into braised pork. In short, there is no way to escape.
After losing hundreds of ram vehicles, Yelu Chongyuan did not dare to use this tactic again. The enemy seemed to have plenty of kerosene. It was really puzzling that the Song people used such expensive materials without frowning;
Yelu Zhongyuan was not worried about these soldiers, he was worried about the damaged rams. Manufacturing the rams was labor-intensive, time-consuming and expensive. His army on the left only had a total of 1,600 rams, and it would be enough to attack three passes.
After losing more than 500 aircraft, how can we attack a larger city in the future?
As for the thousands of soldiers who rushed into the car, it was not a problem. They were all subordinates and were used as cannon fodder. Those who survived a battle were not necessarily lucky, because they would be the ones to die next time.
Yelu Zhongyuan adjusted his strategy and adopted the traditional strategy of first suppressing it by throwing stones with a trebuchet, and then attacking with a ladder truck. Fan Zhongyan breathed a sigh of relief. Although this traditional fighting method was powerful, it was easy to deal with.
, it’s just a bloodbath; and if Yelu Zhongyuan continues to use the tactics of charging cars, he really has no choice. Su Jin has transferred three thousand barrels of kerosene from the northwest. The battle of the pass has consumed two thousand barrels. It is continuing.
What are you going to get to burn?
…
While there was a fierce battle on the frontal battlefield, Su Jin led his army to attack the small city of Yunnei overnight. This city was located on the edge of the desert southwest of Jiashan Mountain. It was the starting point of the road north planned by Su Jin and others; Yunnei said it was a small town.
The city is actually a gathering place for herdsmen. It has simple adobe sand walls and low mud houses. The streets are only one main street and two auxiliary streets. The sandy ground is the same color, with potholes and dust.
Over the feet.
In the early hours of the morning, the residents of Yunnei City were awakened by the trembling of the earth. The leader of the local herdsman tribe was the acting lord of Yunnei City. He only had a few hundred soldiers under his command. Before they realized it, they found that the whole city was full of cavalry.
The cavalrymen wearing armor on their horses were unable to resist at all.
After daybreak, Su Jin ordered people to gather more than 3,000 residents of Yunnei on the dirt field in front of the city's main hall, identify themselves, and warned them not to resist, otherwise they would be killed without mercy.
What's surprising is that these residents didn't even know about the war between Song and Liao. If Su Jin hadn't told them, they wouldn't have known about it at all. Think about it, it's no wonder that Yunnei is very remote, and thousands of people gather in the hinterland of Liao.
Across the mountains and rivers, the small tribes here gather to graze on a small piece of pasture and live a difficult and self-sufficient life. In recent years, sandstorms have invaded and the pastures have shrunk. Many people have left here to find a way to survive. The remaining residents are
The old, weak, sick and disabled have too much time to take care of themselves, so who will care about the war between the two countries.
But even so, Su Jin did not dare to take it lightly. He decided to leave 500 soldiers to occupy Yunnei City, disarm the city guards, and take away all the strong men in the city to be strong men and guides for pulling carts and unloading. In addition, all the strong men in the city were to be taken away.
All the horses were taken away.
As soon as the residents of Yunnei City saw the army starting to collect their livestock and horses, they immediately started to cry and make a fuss. The city owner and clan leader repeatedly bowed and begged for permission. Su Jin could not understand a word of what he said, but one person who understood a little bit.
The Han people conveyed the words of the patriarch to Su Jin, to the effect that the residents here all depended on these animals and horses for their livelihood. If the animals were taken away, it would be better to kill all the people.
Su Jin thought for a while and said: "I must take away the horses, but I can give you some compensation. I will leave food and money. After the war is over, you can buy more animals."
Pan Jiang said: "Commander, why should you be polite to them? They are all Liao people. The horses they raise may become war horses for the Liao people to help the Liao people kill their enemies. Even these residents may become soldiers who attack our Song Dynasty."
"
Su Jin smiled and said: "Am I a bit kind-hearted to a woman?" [
Pan Jiang said: "How dare you say that in such a humble position?"
Su Jin waved his hand and said: "Don't say any more, just execute the military order. Bring the horses, leave five hundred soldiers to guard, and leave five thousand dan of food, which is enough to feed these thousands of people for more than half a year. All the horses that were taken away will
Each household will be given five guan as compensation."
Pan Jiangyu had no choice but to go and do it. Seeing this situation, the lord of Yunnei City and the people stopped making trouble. They also knew that this was the best result. After searching the entire city, the army gained 3,000 more horses.
and 600 cattle, plus the 30,000 horses that were plundered in front, the number was already quite impressive. Su Jin ordered to rest in Yunnei City until the afternoon, because next he would take the road to the edge of the desert, the sunshine in May
It doesn't matter if you take the light elsewhere, but it makes a big difference in the desert. Although the journey is urgent, it must not wear down your physical strength.
Using this half-day, the army cut down the shrubs and trees inside and outside the city, and made many simple sand sleds. More than 30,000 unridable animals could be used to hitch the sand sleds, and the soldiers could sit on them without walking.