Guo Zhongyuan glanced down at the city and saw a man in brocade robes. He had broad shoulders and a round waist, with a fat belly that was barely held up by a widened and thickened belt. He glanced again and saw the fat man talking to the military academy carelessly and from time to time.
He waved to emphasize the tone. The right hand he waved was different from ordinary people, only half of it was missing, and the index finger and thumb were also missing.
"Fat Wang! Why are you here in Kaifeng? Come up and talk!" Guo Zhongyuan shouted.
This fat man's name is Wang Qingshan. He is an old subordinate of Guo Ning who defected to the army when he set up camp in Tangluo, Hebei Province. He is older than Guo Zhongyuan in terms of seniority. In his early years, he served as Han Xuan's deputy general and was the commander of the capital. Han Xuan
In Liaodong, during a night attack on the famous Mongolian general Zhebie, two generals led his troops to disrupt the enemy's stronghold. Wang Qingshan was one of them.
It was also in that battle that Wang Qingshan was pursued by the Mongolian army. After a hard battle, he was seriously injured and fell from his horse and fainted. Although the Mongolian army fell into Han Xuan's trick of luring the enemy and did not bother to give Wang Qingshan a last-ditch wound, he was rescued after he was rescued.
, the body became disabled, and the physical condition was not as good as before after the internal organs were injured, especially the wind and cold in the north.
He can no longer stay in the army, but based on his achievements, he will naturally receive generous compensation, and he can also choose a suitable place to go.
The relationship between warriors is intricate. When Wang Qingshan was serving under Han Xuan, he had a close friendship with his colleague Wang Bao'er. Wang Bao'er's cousin Wang Kou'er was an officer in charge of horse husbandry in the Ding Navy and was Li Ting's father-in-law. So Wang Bao'er's cousin
Qingshan was ordered to form a convoy specifically responsible for transporting military supplies to various military departments.
This is a huge profit, and every year he raises horses and builds cars, which brings huge benefits. Most of the money Wang Qingshan gets is used to take care of the old Pao Ze, and the rest is spent to satisfy his own appetite. So he counted
Over the years, his body expanded like a balloon until he became a fat man who was instantly recognized by Guo Zhongyuan.
Hearing Guo Zhongyuan's call, Wang Qingshan hummed and climbed to the top of the city. His body was so weak that he had to support his knees with his hands in the last few steps: "I was supposed to transport a batch of grain to Jingzhao Mansion, but I didn't expect it to be here.
You can meet Mongolians even after two days of rest in the parking lot? It’s really a ghost! How many people will die on the entire Nanjing road now!”
He was a veteran and had no scruples about what he said. He immediately asked: "I heard that the Mongols were coming and going outside the city to intercept and kill our soldiers and civilians, but we dare not go out of the city to rescue them?"
This guy has really been away from the army for too long, he is too lax, and he is seeking death when he opens his mouth!
Guo Zhongyuan snorted coldly, and when he was about to speak, Wang Qingshan crackled and said again: "Brother, there is no reason to shrink in defense of the big city... If this continues, people's hearts will be unstable! It's better to go out of the city and fight!"
Guo Zhongyuan's deputy general Wen Sengda stepped forward and pulled Wang Qingshan fiercely. He lowered his voice and told him that Guo Zhongyuan had just killed Wei Deng, his old subordinate who made a noise and left the city without authorization. He watched Wang Qingshan swallow a few mouthfuls of saliva, not knowing that it was cold.
, or suddenly became nervous.
Guo Zhongyuan waved and motioned to Wang Qingshan to look out of the city with him.
"The Mongols arrived suddenly, just as Kaifeng City's armament continued to weaken. The day before yesterday and yesterday, most of the people on the city wall were temporarily gathered together. Although they were threatened with axes and axes, they could only stand firm and hold on to their swords and guns.
Flags, don't just wave in the wind... In order to frighten the Mongols with straw bag skills, I had to sit back and watch the fighting outside the city, and I also had to behead people to establish authority and give strict orders. Of course, the most important thing is that the Mongols initially
The purpose is not to Kaifeng."
Having said this, Guo Zhongyuan looked at Wang Qingshan, and Wang Qingshan immediately said: "The Mongols have never been good at attacking cities. Their first choice must be to besiege the city and bring reinforcements."
After all, the battle-tested old foundation is still there. After a few years of living as a rich man, his judgment has not been lost.
Guo Zhongyuan nodded: "The Mongols are not good at siege. They march straight into the heart of a big country, and they cannot carry siege equipment. But in the past few days, the Mongolian army has destroyed a large number of military fortresses in various places. With their ability to encircle and entangle, we I guess now that the siege equipment is available, a large number of people have gathered to use it as a base for the knives. The continuous victories are prompting more and more of them to set their sights on Kaifeng."
"The commander-in-chief is worried that just relying on the tower to show off is not enough?"
"The city of Kaifeng is too big. It has a thin skin and a big stuffing. It will break if you poke it. I need time to organize enough troops to defend the city. During this period, if a team of people comes out of the city in the name of rescuing the wounded and gives a decent fight, Even if we pay a heavy price, we can tell the Mongols that there are more than enough troops in the city."
When Guo Zhongyuan said this, he seemed to agree with Wang Qingshan's previous words. Wang Qingshan was silent for a while, then suddenly thought of something, and his face gradually turned ugly.
He asked: "Didn't you kill Wei Deng just now? I thought..."
"One moment and another. When Wei Deng was shouting and yelling, there was no one available to me at all. It's a coincidence that you brought someone here."
Wang Qingshan muttered a few words, like complaining or cursing. He then asked: "Commander, please don't lie to me, you have many people under your command..."
"I only have these dozens of people around me." Guo Zhongyuan raised his hand to give instructions to Wang Qingshan, and said leisurely: "In the past three days, the largest number of troops around me was no more than two hundred, which is no match for your 3,000-man brigade."
"Hey!"
Guo Zhongyuan only led so few people to sit in the city, which clearly showed that he did not take his own life seriously. If one of the country's few generals is like this, what can Wang Qingshan say?
He was silent for a moment, the features on his chubby face were wrinkled so tight that his eyes were almost just slits. After a while, sweat broke out on his forehead.
He suddenly said: "Half of these three thousand people are craftsmen. They can be used to defend the city. Not only are they useless when they leave the city, they will also expose their flaws."
"Then there are only 1,500 people, and the momentum is enough."
"I want to fight horses, spears, and shields. I don't need bows and arrows. I guess you don't have many on hand."
"These bows and arrows are indispensable. Go and talk to Wen Sengda and I will give you as many as you need."
"Okay... In addition, we need good hands around you, at least twenty who can draw strong bows and fight tough battles!"
Guo Zhongyuan's eyes narrowed: "Why is this?"
"There is a young man in the convoy guard, surnamed Xiao. His father saved my life more than once, and later died in the battle in Fuzhou. If I leave the city, I must save his life."
"Just leave him in the city, can't I take care of him personally?"
"Even if the ten fingers are not the same length, among the fifteen hundred people, there are some who still dare to fight, and there are also those who have lost their temper after a few years of comfortable life, and there are also the old grunts and old gangsters in the army! These If people find out that I have arranged for my old friend's son to be sent out in advance, how can they have the heart to follow me and fight to the death?"
Wang Qingshan sneered repeatedly and looked at Guo Zhongyuan: "Commander, you and I are both veterans. You use the head of your cronies to establish your authority, and I want to take my cronies out of the city to take risks. It's the same reason. However, I am not as cruel as you, no matter what
No matter what, you must save the life of your old friend’s son!”
Even though he is senior, his current status is extremely different from Guo Zhongyuan's, so such words are extremely rude.
But Guo Zhongyuan was not angry, and just sighed: "Wei Deng was a bit unlucky. If you had already come when he was shouting and inciting, you would at least have a chance to go out of the city and die in battle. But how can you predict everything on the battlefield?
Where’s Zhou Quan?”
He reached out and patted Wang Qingshan on the shoulder: "I'll ask Guo Luda to bring someone to help you."
As soon as he finished speaking, a man with ape-like arms and a wasp-like waist and an iron complexion flashed out from beside him.
Guo Zhongyuan pointed at him and said to Wang Qingshan: "Guo Luda from Huizhou is a warrior recommended to me by Li Ting. I am worried that I have nowhere to test his ability... so I will let him take the lead and accompany you.
."
The two of them said nothing more, and Wang Qingshan turned and left.
Soon, the clanging sounds of weapons being distributed came one after another. In order to embolden the ordinary people, the low voices of the old soldiers shouted with the cold wind, spreading far away. After a while, the sky lit up. When the city gate opened, Wang Qingshan
Let out a shout and lead 1,500 people in uniform and leave the city.
They first picked up corpses near the city gate, looking for the injured who were still alive. They gradually transferred hundreds of people back to the city. The soldiers and civilians in the city had been watching the Mongolian army killing wantonly outside for the past few days, and their ears were hurt.
The victim screamed miserably, almost having nightmares as soon as he closed his eyes. Seeing Wang Qingshan leading people out of the city to rescue them, everyone cheered excitedly.
The cheers soon turned into exclamations: "Tatars! Tatars! The Tatars are coming!"
The Mongolian cavalry wandering in the distance discovered the team leaving the city, and immediately outflanked and approached from several directions. In winter, the ground was dry, and the smoke and dust stirred up by the horses trampling on the ground were like thick clouds rising into the sky, while the city walls appeared vaguely.
No vibration.
The number of Mongols is huge! The vast majority of the civilians on the city wall have never seen such an overwhelming momentum of thousands of horses galloping. They are almost out of breath, even though there are old soldiers shouting calm down dozens of steps apart,
He also turned a deaf ear.
Smoke and dust enveloped the wilderness, and even crossed the city wall, constantly sprinkling gravel on the people on the wall. In the smoke and dust, the sound of killing suddenly rose, and then became louder and louder. The sound of arrows hitting the shield was like a heavy rain hitting the eaves, and occasionally smoke somewhere
Low, it can be seen that Wang Qingshan's troops formed a dense formation, fighting and retreating.
The quality difference between Wang Qingshan's troops was clearly revealed at this time. After all, they were civilians led by retired soldiers, and it was impossible for them to conduct large-scale combat drills on a daily basis.
A group of people scattered on the periphery fighting on their own, after the Mongolian cavalry rushed back and forth like a pack of wolves to plunder the formation several times, they were all in pieces. The Mongols shot with bows and arrows, stabbed with spears, charged and trampled with horses, and killed
Killing them is like slaughtering pigs and sheep.
Only Wang Qingshan's headquarters formed a dense formation, using spears and large shields as outer cover, and retreated slowly.
The general retreated to the city, and the Mongolian army accelerated and approached, as if they were about to be swept into the city. At this time, Guo Lu opened his bow and nocked an arrow, aimed at a golden-armored centurion in the Mongolian cavalry, and shot, nearly two meters away
A hundred steps later, the arrow hit the centurion's chest. The centurion fell from his horse on his back, his feet still in the stirrups. In the blink of an eye, he was dragged by the horse for more than ten steps, and he saw that he would not survive.
Amidst the cheers of thousands of soldiers and civilians at the top of the city, the Mongolian army's arrogance was slightly weakened. Wang Qingshan and others retreated into the city. They counted the number of people and stopped one out of three stops. The remaining one was injured. The number of wounded people was recovered.
In comparison, the gains and losses are not equivalent in any way.
Guo Luda returned to the city and replied: "Commander, the boy named Xiao is fine."
"Where is Wang Qingshan?"
"While retreating, I was hit by an arrow in my back. It was a heavy arrow. I am in the process of first aid."
Being in first aid means that it is most likely that he will not be saved. It can be said that the general will inevitably die before the battle. Guo Zhongyuan nodded and couldn't help coughing again.
Before the battlefield situation is completely clear, the two armies continue to test each other. The more tense the situation, the more the tests tend to be hard probing, that is, armed demonstrations. This will inevitably bring a bloody price, but as long as it can play a role, all costs are
Worth it.
He stopped asking any more questions and turned to look outside the city. On the battlefield where the two armies were confronting just now, there was a small cavalry stationed there. Guo Zhongyuan felt that the Mongolian general should be among them.
Tuo Lei also noticed the location of Guo Zhongyuan.
But he had just seen the skills of Zhou Jun's sharpshooters, so he had some scruples in his heart and deliberately stayed far away and did not get close to the city to explore.
"The number of Han'er is simply endless. Just one gate in a big city like this can dispatch thousands of people to fight. Our total number of troops is only so small. How can we waste it on attacking the city?"
Tuo Lei drank a few words and saw that several thousand captains were a little resentful. He softened his tone and said: "The Han garrisons from various places are rushing to help these days. We still follow the previous agreement and fight in the wilderness."