The wind at night became stronger and stronger, causing the wicker basket to swing sideways. The whole balloon was like soaring clouds and mist, heading west rapidly. The coal and oil in the stove had been exhausted, and the brass mouth only occasionally sprayed a few sparks.
.
The three of them watched as the originally bulging balloon began to become loose, less like a balloon and more like a piece of waste paper rolled up by the strong wind.
The night was getting darker and darker, and strong winds brought layers of thick clouds high in the sky, covering up the stars and moon. The hot air balloon seemed to be wrapped in darkness, struggling left and right with Li Ting and others screaming,
After an unknown amount of time, the three of them suddenly felt the wicker basket falling rapidly.
The sinking feeling that their internal organs were about to fall out, and the fear that they were about to be smashed into meat patties gripped them, causing them to shout subconsciously.
Not long after, the wicker basket fell heavily into a forest. The basket instantly collided with countless branches and turned into pieces. The three of them fell to the ground with their hands and feet tied.
Li Ting tried his best to curl up, and relied on his back, arms and legs to block countless hits. Even so, when he landed on the ground, he felt a sharp shock in his chest and abdomen, and he vomited blood.
He lay on the ground, his vision turned red, and he vaguely saw not far away from him, Zheng Rui tried his best to open his arms to protect A Duo, who was holding his head and shouting, and rolled down a steep cliff.
He muttered subconsciously and tilted his head again, only to realize where the red light in his eyes came from.
It turned out that the huge balloon fell to the ground, rolled around the stove, and knocked down several trees. The remaining fire in the stove ignited the paint on the surface of the balloon, and soon the balloon turned into a fireball, and the flames began.
Spreading among the woods.
Li Ting endured the severe pain and slowly stood up. As soon as he stood upright, he felt that the world was spinning and his feet felt weak.
He fell to the ground with a thud, panted for a while, and tried to stand up again. This time, he felt sharp pain in his left ankle again. He didn't know whether it was a broken bone or a broken tendon. He touched his left side on the ground, and then touched again.
I found a thick branch to use as support and jumped forward a few steps on one leg.
At this time, the fire in the forest began to spread. Accompanied by the whistling wind, the sound of crackling fire and crackling fire was like exploding beans. Li Ting staggered away from the heat wave and retreated to the steep slope ten feet away from the forest.
On the edge of the cliff, look at the shadows below.
He held back the pain in his chest and shouted, "Zheng Rui! A Duo! Are you still alive?"
After a while, the sound of rushing water came from below, and Ado's mumbling words came up, with echoes, and he was very angry: "It's over now, it's over."
Zheng Rui gasped and said weakly: "Shut up, climb up, hurry up!"
Li Ting laughed twice and collapsed on the edge of the cliff. He murmured: "I've caused big trouble now, and I'm afraid I'll be punished by Guo Liulang."
Under normal circumstances, a hot air balloon has hemp ropes tied to rocks on the ground, and it seems to be floating in the air awkwardly. In fact, once it loses control, it can ride on the wind and run faster than a galloping horse.
What Li Ting didn't know was that the balloon had fallen to Yizhou territory to the west of Xianping Prefecture.
This area is located between the rolling sand ridges in the northwest and the forest meadows in the southeast. Travel from Liaohai to the east, pass through Yiwulu Mountain, pass Tribulus Mountain, Qianmaling and other places, rest for a while again, and then follow the path northeast
Xianpingfu can be reached via the "Eagle Road" in the Liao Dynasty.
And if Li Ting did a little exploration, he would have discovered that the ruins of Lingfeng County in the Bohai Kingdom were within four or five miles of winding down the mountain along the small river under the cliff.
At this time, a Mongolian army was resting on the old site of Lingfeng County. From time to time, there were cavalry patrolling at night, holding torches and circling the outside.
Thousands of people in the camp were lying down with their clothes and their own horses. It was originally very quiet, but the roar of the hot air balloon and the blazing fire alarmed all the Mongolians.
The sound was the same as rolling thunder, dull and terrifying, like a bombardment in the heart, making the heart throb and tremble involuntarily.
The horses neighed repeatedly, and thousands of people stood up almost at the same time, looking towards the mountains.
On a night with dense clouds, the hills were so dark that it was impossible to see the direction of the mountains. The mountain fire suddenly lit up, and the flames were like blood, reflecting the roiling clouds in the sky, which made it particularly eye-catching.
While everyone was holding their breath and concentrating, the pitiful screams of people were vaguely heard amidst the roar. That's right, it was really thunder, and it was thunder that had descended to the ground, killed people, and ignited mountain fires!
In various camps, there was an instant burst of noise.
The living environment of the Mongols has created their unique customs. The fear of thunder is one of them.
If the Mongols encountered thunder and lightning in the field, they would immediately cover their ears and bend down to the ground to avoid thunder and lightning. If the army encountered thunder and lightning while moving, they would immediately stop marching. If they heard thunder and lightning in the tent, they would
They will drive strangers out of the tent and hide in the tent until the thunder stops.
In Mongolian legends, thunder is a punishment or warning from the Immortal God. Therefore, livestock and tents that have been struck by lightning must be abandoned. Even if someone is struck by lightning, his family or people of the same clan must move away from the place.
, in order to avoid the unknown, these people were not allowed to enter the Great Khan's ear even for the next three years, so as not to pass the bad luck to the nobles.
The reason for this custom is that lightning on the grassland can kill cattle, sheep and livestock out of thin air and cause fires. Once it occurs on the grassland, it is a terrible natural disaster that cannot be avoided.
So, what does the sudden muffled thunder in front of us mean?
The leader of this Mongolian cavalry was Bolu, the eldest son of Muhuali. He was very young and it was the first time for him to follow his father and take on an important task. He led two thousand cavalry and set out from Jinzhou with the intention of going to Xianping Prefecture to meet the troops originally belonging to Jinzhou.
Chen Nayan’s Four Thousand Households.
As a result, halfway through, they bumped into Brother Kete and others who were retreating in panic. After asking, they found out that Pu Xianwannu was a fool, and Brother Yeluliu was as useless as ever, because Shandong's Dinghai navy suddenly intervened.
During the Liaodong War, these two families had all been defeated.
As a result, Mu Huali certainly took the Beijing Road and cut off the Liaohai Channel, but after eliminating unstable factors, the Jurchen warlords from all over the Northeast, who were originally divided, had a clear tendency to unite relying on the Dinghai Navy.
This is not good news.
Bolu was also bold. He immediately urged his troops to advance quickly, intending to take advantage of the rest of the fighting at Xianping Mansion and launch a counterattack when the soldiers were exhausted. However, the closer he got to Xianping Mansion, the more defeated soldiers he encountered along the way. The more you go, the more you know about that battle.
He had to admit that the combat effectiveness of the Ding Navy was as strong as the previous rumors. But the troops led by Brother Kete and others were repulsed in a head-on confrontation!
After this battle, the Mongolian army had no allies around Xianping Prefecture to mobilize. If Polo wanted to continue fighting, he could only rely on his two thousand cavalry. But against such a strong army, two thousand cavalry could really make a difference. What effect?
Although Bolu continued to urge his troops forward, he became more and more hesitant in his heart.
What if, what if the war goes badly... That day, the fourth prince was defeated by Tu Lei, which caused the Great Khan to be furious and suffered a great deal. If I, Polo, failed to advance rashly, wouldn't I become the next Tu Lei? And even if I had the heel, , how can it be compared with tow mine?
Thinking of these, Polo didn't sleep well that night.
He had been sitting in the yurt, holding the huge scimitar across his knees, holding the scabbard tightly, forcing himself to be calm and collected. But in the middle of the night, thunder suddenly struck again...
The omniscient God of Immortality, is this a warning to me?
It would be great if Elder Huo'erchi was here. He knows Changshengtian's thoughts best, and nothing can be hidden from his divination.
Bolu stared at the mountain fire for a long time. He noticed that many people in the hundreds and thousands of households on the left and right were muttering, and his face darkened: "Thunderstorms are rare, but they are not unheard of, so why bother?" What's all the fuss about? Send an order..."
Everyone's eyes suddenly focused on Bolu's face. Bolu paused for a moment and said in a calm voice: "We can't stay in this place anymore, let's withdraw our troops!"