After learning that there was a military camp of more than 100,000 enemy troops in the north of the city, how could Murong Cheng dare to underestimate it. He immediately ordered his spies to step up the investigation. After all, although these more than 100,000 troops rushed over, they would not be able to directly kill them out of Sishui.
Even if he was imprisoned, he would definitely not feel comfortable. If the losses here were too great, then the next actions would not be completed very quickly. Such a situation was not what Murong Cheng wanted.
"Brother Zhang, is this abnormal situation really what you said? Why do I feel like something is wrong? There are 60,000 to 70,000 soldiers at Sishui Pass, but only more than 10,000 people died in this battle. This
This is not how a defender of an important place like Sishui Pass should behave." While he was busy, Zhong Yan frowned and said to Zhang Tu.
Bishui Pass is Yongzhou, and the special defense line is an important line of defense in the southeast of Luoyang. If it is broken, it means that the eastern area of Luoyang is unsafe. How could the defenders here only lose more than 17,000 people?
How about running away in a hurry under such circumstances? Is it easier to guard in the camp than to guard Sishui Pass? This is simply impossible. Therefore, it is very strange for Zhong Yan to rush to this matter.
Zhang Tu also frowned and said: "I also know the doubts in Brother Zhong's heart, not only you, but also me. I don't believe that the defenders were simply defeated by us, as you said
, this is Sishui Pass, not any other city."
"Just look at Hulao Pass. The fierce attack on Hulao Pass for more than a month resulted in 150,000 or 60,000 casualties. How about it? Hulao Pass is still unbreakable. We attacked during the day and they repaired it at night. The city was strong and the pond was thick, making it difficult to
Take it. How could Sishui Pass, which has the same status as Hulao Pass, be defeated so easily and be taken by us? If so, it is possible that we will kill the defenders and defeat them miserably."
"In addition, Brother Zhong must have listened to the words of former general Qi Lin. When the defenders fled, they retreated in an orderly manner under the organization of the general and officers at all levels. Do you think such an escape can
Do you call it a rout? This clearly means that the garrison general and officers have made certain preparations for the fall of Sishui Pass."
"However, His Highness Prince Qi is now rejoicing because of the destruction of the city. Can we tell him that this place is very dangerous and we should withdraw. Brother Zhong, the situation is unclear now, and we dare not make any judgment. If it makes the prince's heart
If you are dissatisfied, there is nothing good for you and me to eat. The top priority now is tomorrow
After a contest with the enemy ten miles away, the result is clear at a glance. Regarding the unusual situation in front of us, we can only be cautious and carefully consider any decision we make. I am not afraid of your jokes. I have a very bad feeling now.
It seems that our operation was not so smooth this time."
Zhong Yan opened his mouth, but no words came out for a long time. Zhang Tu was right. Although there were many doubts, they did not have any clear evidence to express their views. Even if they knew that there was something wrong with this Sishui Pass, how could they still
Let the 140,000 to 140,000 troops who entered the city evacuate? This is obviously impossible. In order to capture this place, troops were mobilized, generals were transported, trebuchets were transported, and countless amounts of food and supplies were spent. Don't say Murong Cheng, he just arrived.
It hurts.
Now Murong Cheng is rejoicing because he broke through the Sishui Pass. If he goes to tell Murong Cheng that it is very dangerous here and we should withdraw from the pass, we will definitely not be welcomed by Murong Cheng. Not only that, but also make those generals dissatisfied.
We know that in today's battle, the siege team suffered more than 50,000 casualties. A large part of them were killed by the defenders' trebuchets, crossbows, and bows. Of course, half of the 50,000 soldiers were injured.
More than enough.
The city that was acquired at such a high cost was withdrawn due to an uncertain and strange reason. I'm afraid no one would be happy.
"Sigh... It seems that this is all we can do. I just don't know what the situation will be like tomorrow?" Zhong Yan said with a wry smile.
It was a murderous night with a dark moon and high winds. At the beginning of the month, the night sky was pitch black. In a house not far from the military camp in the north of Sishuiguan City, where the young man who used to help defend the city lived, the big bed in the inner house suddenly moved gently.
A person has already emerged from there. It turns out that there is a tunnel underneath.
This person was wearing a black tights. He got out of the door and looked around gently. After finding no movement, he listened carefully to the movement outside. After a long while, after no abnormality was detected,
He squatted on the ground and stretched out the secret passage under the counter to make a gesture.
Silently, men in black emerged from inside one after another. In a short while, hundreds of people had gathered in the small house. Several leading people who came up through this tunnel gathered together and held a map.
After comparing several times with their hands, they reconfirmed their respective goals.
Each man waved to his subordinates behind him, and the men and horses immediately divided into three parts. Like elves in the dark night, they quickly heard the news again in the night. On the map in their hands, there was a sign with the number seven.
words. This shows that they are members of the seventh team.
Because of the hard fighting during the day, and because the hard fighting will continue tomorrow. Therefore, except for increasing surveillance on the enemy camp dozens of miles away, Murong Cheng did not strengthen anything in Sishui Pass. Of course, it is essential
Patrol soldiers and sentries are always present.
In the darkness, men in black appeared from various places in the city. They knew the layout of the city very clearly. Wherever they went, there were important places. The occasional patrolling sentries along the way were also relaxed by them.
solved.
"Here, take out the kerosene and pour it everywhere immediately, quickly!" A leader pointed at a ruin and ordered in a muffled voice.
In an instant, dozens of people quickly moved into action in these places that looked like they had been damaged during the fighting. It was originally a residential house, but now it looked like something had destroyed half of the wall. It looked like
It was a ruin-like house. Under the actions of these men in black, a lot of sheepskin bags were taken out of it.
"Action, be careful!" The leader picked up two sheepskin bags and walked towards one place. Then he cut the bottom with the knife in his hand and let it sprinkle everywhere, sometimes being sprinkled on the surrounding houses.
Especially those houses that are filled with scrap wood and straw for unknown reasons.
"Poof..." In the end, the leader threw the sheepskin bag in his hand directly into the abandoned house. Like the leader, dozens of men in black moved along the corners, splashing everywhere
kerosene.
If you look from the sky above Sishuiguan City, you will definitely find that thousands of men in black are pouring kerosene all around the city, not only around it, but also in various places in the middle. Especially around the military camp, they are pouring kerosene.
of more.
Not far from the main camp in the north of the city, more than a hundred men in black brought hundreds of sheepskin bags, walked around the military camp, and started searching from the ground. "Here," someone whispered for a moment. It turned out that there were tiny
The trench leads directly to the interior of the military camp, especially the location where military supplies and grain are stored and the soldiers' tents.
"Pour it in, and I will turn the entire military camp into a spider-web-like kerosene trench." The leading man in black ordered in a muffled voice. This person was none other than the former Sishui Pass guard Su Yang. This time, he was facing Sishui Pass.
He strongly requested to personally participate in the Shuiguan operation. Seeing this, Situ Tai had no choice but to let it go and let him personally participate.
Sishui Pass, the place in the north of the city, was the former General's Mansion at Sishui Pass and is now the place where King Murong Cheng of Qi settled.
"Your Majesty... Your Majesty..." Following a low voice, the door was knocked and banged.
"What's going on?" Murong Cheng, who was sleeping soundly, said with some dissatisfaction when he was woken up. He drank a lot of wine in the evening because he celebrated winning the Sishui Pass, so he slept particularly comfortably.
He was a little angry when he woke up from his sleep. Also, he wouldn't be unhappy if he was woken up while sleeping soundly.
"Your Majesty, it's not good. The enemy troops outside the city have left camp and the army is coming to kill them!" The person outside the door was none other than Zhang Tu, his confidant. Hearing the echo from inside the house, Zhang Tu knew that Murong Cheng was awake.
. Although he understood that Murong Cheng was feeling uncomfortable at the moment, he couldn't care less and had no choice but to tell the information directly.
"What?" Murong Cheng was suddenly startled, shook his head vigorously, and said: "I will be there soon, summon all the generals, and get the soldiers ready for action. But without military orders, no rash actions are allowed.
"
"When will the enemy army set out, and how long will it take to get to the city gate? How many people will the enemy army send out?" Murong Cheng asked loudly while getting dressed. Although he had confidence in his subordinates regarding the enemy's actions at night, it did not mean that
He doesn't care about that. Nothing is absolute, and no one can guarantee that everything will go as they want.
Zhang Tu replied: "According to the report of the scouts, there are about sixty or seventy thousand people. Although they can't see clearly in the darkness, our northern city defenders have seen densely packed torches several miles away outside the city wall, approaching the city wall."
"Sixty or seventy thousand people?" Murong Cheng frowned slightly, opened the door, and said in a solemn voice, "Does the other side want to fight at night? It doesn't make sense. For them, they should delay the time instead of directly counterattack? Let's attack
There are still 180,000 soldiers in the city's army. With more than 100,000 of them, there is no way they can successfully counterattack. Maybe we will take advantage of the situation and push them back, even losing the camp. What do you think they are doing?"
Zhong Yan said anxiously: "Your Majesty, this matter should not be underestimated. No matter what, this matter has been weird from the beginning. The defenders of Sishui Pass left easily with less than 20,000 casualties. Even the officers at all levels
No one is left to carry them to death,
Compared with Hulao Pass, one is in the sky and the other is on the ground. Now, a hundred thousand enemy troops suddenly appeared outside the city, which is obviously a huge problem. But we are not aware of it.
It’s also a weird place…”
Murong Cheng frowned and said: "What you said makes sense, and I understand it in my heart. However, after all, this has no actual evidence and has no practical effect. Now, let's go to the city wall and take a look first. What should I say?
, oh, it also kept tens of thousands of people busy.
In the afternoon, the North City was well repaired. It was impossible to break into the city without forty or fifty thousand casualties. Besides, our more than three hundred trebuchets and more than one hundred crossbows were
If we set up defenses in Beicheng, what do we have to fear? Let’s go and have a look.”
"By the way, immediately send an order to the camp outside the city, so that the rear army and the central army can prepare for the battle and support us at any time." After thinking about it, Murong Cheng ordered again. Sishui Pass is not big, so it will be just in case.
1. Therefore, Murong Cheng had the front army, left army and right army stationed in the city, while the rear army and the middle army were stationed outside the city. The Qi army camp was still there. The two responded to each other from a distance and could advance or retreat.
"Well...it's strange. Why do I smell a strange smell? What about you? Do you smell any strange smell?" Murong Cheng suddenly said except for the General's Mansion in the north of the city. Except for the gate of the mansion, there is always a trace of strange smell.
It seems to be brought here by prestige.
Former army general Qi Lin said: "Reporting to the general, because when we attacked the city, we suffered heavy casualties, and when the enemy troops abandoned the city and fled, they set it on fire. Therefore, the city was filled with the strange smell and stench of burning corpses, so
…”
"Forget it, let's go." Murong Cheng did not continue to dwell on these details. But Zhang Tu always felt that something was wrong. However, at this moment, Murong Cheng was in a hurry to board Beicheng, so Zhang Tu's heart felt a little bit wrong.
The idea of weirdness was also completely messed up.
Murong Cheng walked straight to the north gate under the escort of his own soldiers. The group hurriedly climbed up the city tower, and saw that under the dark night sky outside the city, there were densely packed torches. The horses were neighing and the crowds were boiling. The momentum was terrifying and the endless army.
It actually occupied the space several miles north of the city, and the momentum was quite impressive.
"It's a bluff. If it's a surprise attack, it's okay. Can they do this head-on battle?" Murong Cheng looked at the situation outside the city and said coldly.
Outside the North City of Sishui Pass, Situ Tai came to the battlefield in person. They were five hundred meters away from the North City of Sishui Pass, but under this straight-line distance, one was higher and the other was lower, and they could see each other very clearly.
"Situ Tai!" Looking at the middle-aged general under the torch, Murong Cheng turned aside and frowned slightly involuntarily. Murong Cheng naturally knew Situ Tai very well. As Situ Lei's parent and son, Wu Rongcheng still had real abilities.
It is impossible for him not to understand one of his sons.
Situ Tai said that it was not unusual, but Situ Tai personally commanded a hundred thousand troops and had been waiting dozens of miles away from the North City for many days before he attacked the city. This was not a good thing.
"Situ Tai, how dare you appear here? Aren't you afraid that I will kill you all tonight and capture you alive so that you can ascend to heaven before your father, the old thief Situ Lei?" Murong Cheng Dasheng shouted on the city wall. Speaking of which,
Murong Cheng was only about ten years older than Situ Tai. Both of them were in the prime of their lives.
Situ Tai laughed and said: "Old thief Murong Cheng, you want to take down this general? Tonight is the day when you, Murong Cheng, are buried, and this place is the place where you, Murong Cheng, are buried. If you want to take down this general,
This general also wants to sacrifice your head to the flag. As long as you are dealt with, your so-called coalition forces, that is, the chickens and dogs, will be vulnerable."
Murong Cheng sneered and said: "Boy, when I was fighting with your father, you didn't know where to play in the mud. Why do you want to fight with me? Forget it, let your father come here. Right.
Come on, little Situ Tai, are you here secretly leading troops to compete for the right to inherit the throne this time? If you win, it will be easy to say, but if you fail, then there will be nothing."
Situ Tai smiled faintly and said: "Old thief Murong Cheng, why do you come to test me again? I tell you, general, that my coming here this time is not on a whim, nor is it a private deployment of troops. Instead, I know that you, Murong Cheng, are at Hulao Pass.
What kind of trick was he playing? Think about it, His Highness the King of Qi, who commanded the soldiers to fight hard at Hulao Pass, now actually
Came here. Doesn't this just mean that the general came right? How about it? The strategy of luring the tiger away from the mountain is not easy to implement. Old thief Murong Cheng, your strategy has been seen through by us. If you are smart, you will surrender the city immediately.
Surrender. Seeing as you were once an official in the same court as my father, maybe my father will spare your life."
Murong Cheng's heart trembled, and he secretly admired Situ Tai's intelligence. Yes, what he said at the beginning was to test Situ Tai's movements this time. However, the results he got now made Murong Cheng frightened.
Without him, the other party's words clearly told him that his plan to lure the tiger away from the mountain had been seen through. In other words, his current actions were all under the eyes of the other party, and he still thought that no one knew about it.
Of course, Murong Cheng was not a good person and said quietly: "Really? Have you seen through it? But this easy-to-defend but difficult-to-attack Sishui Pass, which is also one of the eastern gateways to Luoyang, was not captured by me in the end? Why?
, could it be that you can stop us just by relying on the tens of thousands of horses in your hands? What a wishful thinking!"
Situ Tai raised his arms and said: "Enough nonsense, old thief Murong Cheng, does he have the courage to send people out to fight with this general? Hiding on the city wall and being a coward is not what His Highness the King of Qi should do.
."
Murong Cheng sneered and said: "Aren't the defenders at Sishui Pass and Hulao Pass hiding behind the city wall and acting like cowards? When will they dare to go out of the city to fight? Boy, the method of provoking generals will not work. What if?
If you have nothing to do, you can just stand outside the city all night. I don’t have time to accompany you. Of course, if you want to attack the city, I am very welcome. Hahaha..."
"Second order, I don't care what tricks the enemy troops outside the city are playing. The whole army is not allowed to leave the city without permission, so as not to be taken advantage of by the enemy. We will wait until daybreak." Murong Cheng gave the order calmly. Speaking of which, he still said:
Situ Tai was surprised and pressured by the revealed news, and did not dare to act rashly.
Situ Tai laughed and said: "Murong Cheng, old thief, you are scared! I tell you, no matter what, tonight is the day you die. Someone come, send a rocket signal."
"Chirp, chirp, chirp..." Several long flaming arrows soared into the sky and flew into the sky. In this dark night, they were so obvious and dazzling.
Seeing this, Zhang Tu and Zhong Yan looked at each other. They both felt that things had gone beyond their expectations and something bad had happened. After all, this signal arrow was not shot randomly. It had no special meaning. Shooting this rocket was not
What's the point? However, they still don't understand what the opponent's secret move is? What gives the opponent the courage.
At the top of the North City, even Murong Cheng, who was about to leave, was shocked by Situ Tai's actions. He also wanted to know what the other party's next step was. But the other party's rocket signal arrow made him feel something very bad.
Feel.
"Report... to the prince, something big... something bad has happened." Amidst the rapid footsteps, General Yiwu Benlang hurriedly climbed onto the tower and said quickly, "Fire, there's a fire, there's a fire in the city suddenly!"
"Nonsense!" ex-army general Qi Lin scolded, "Sishuiguan City is an important military city. Now there are no civilians living there during the war. Even the young and strong civilians have been evacuated by the enemy. How could there be a fire? Who is there?
Go to the fire? Besides, although there are many former civilians in the city, young and strong people have built houses to live in.
The wooden houses and thatched sheds are now in ruins. No one would go there at all. How to start a fire? Let’s be clear, lying about military information is a capital offense.” Qi Lin was in charge of patrol matters in the first half of the night, and General Wu Benlang was his own
If his subordinates lie about the military situation, he will not be able to get away with it.
"There is really a fire, I don't dare to lie!" General Wu Bi said anxiously, then pointed his finger and said: "Your Majesty, General, please look at where it is!"
Murong Cheng, Zhang Tu and others looked in the direction where Wu Benlang pointed, and sure enough they saw fires breaking out in several places in the city. There was also thick smoke rising into the sky, and many soldiers with disheveled armor ran out of the house.
, standing on the street shouting, and there were more soldiers surrounding them shouting, the situation was extremely chaotic.
Murong Cheng's eyes darkened, his heart moved, and he said angrily: "Is this the opponent's trump card? Qi Lin, why are you still standing there? You are on duty as a sentry, why don't you go put out the fire! If anything goes wrong, it's all your fault.
Responsible."
"Follow your orders!" Qi Lin immediately responded and left in a hurry, preparing to organize manpower to put out the fire.
"Is this the opponent's trump card? However, there are 130,000 soldiers in my city, how can they be afraid of these flames?" Murong Cheng thought secretly. If Situ Tai's secret chess was at this time, then I don't know how terrifying it would be.
.
Murong Cheng didn't take it seriously when there was a fire in the city. After all, even if there was a fire in a few places, it would be difficult for the fire to spread. What he was worried about was that Situ Tai had other hidden tricks, and he didn't know what tricks he would play. After all,
, it is impossible for Situ Tai to use such low-level methods.
"Situ Tai, you are going to use such a method? With just a few sparks, you can't move our Qi army in the slightest. I still advise you to go back to your camp, otherwise, I, the general, will lead the army
I rushed out. By then, it will be too late for you to regret it." Murong Cheng shouted coldly.
Situ Tai laughed and said: "Murong Cheng, old thief, do you really think so? Since you want to fight with me, then come over. However, I still advise you, if you want to survive, you should sacrifice your life quickly.
It’s best if the city surrenders. Otherwise, there will be no bones left by then.”