Chapter 401 Chaos
Yuexi County, Beishui City.
The city wall of Beishui City is not too high. The Han army could easily make a ladder truck higher than the city wall, and there was no need to build another siege ladder on top of the ladder.
The soldiers below the city were working hard to push the ladder truck and put it tightly against the city wall.
The surrounding barbarian soldiers guarding the city looked at this siege monster that was taller than the city wall and were a little at a loss.
It was the first time for many of them to see this kind of thing.
They thought that the Han people's city walls were already very high, but they didn't expect that the Han people could actually create siege monsters that were even taller than the city walls.
As soon as the ladder approached the city wall, Guan Xing took the lead and jumped off the city wall from the top compartment of the ladder truck. After landing, he felt a little strange.
He thought he would be surrounded by enemy troops as soon as he jumped down, but he didn't expect the barbarian soldier's reaction to be so slow.
However, as the advanced soldiers behind him fell to the ground one after another, he didn't think too much and just rushed towards the surrounding barbarians with his long sword.
The sound of fighting and shouting suddenly broke out.
At the same time, at the bottom of the ladder truck, the Han army quickly rushed up, using the cover on both sides of the ladder, began to climb up the ladder and pillowed the city.
As long as they climb to the top compartment of the ladder truck, they can jump from the compartment to the city wall and join the fight.
“Protect the ladder!”
Guan Xing shouted.
Seeing that the barbarian soldiers finally reacted and began to rush towards this side in a swarm, Guan Xing quickly asked the advanced soldiers to put their backs against the ladders to resist.
As long as the soldiers below rush up, the siege will be half successful.
Even if those who can be the first soldiers are not veterans of hundreds of battles, they are still brave people. They fight bravely and hold on to this place.
The walls of Beishui City were not high, and the barbarian soldiers had no experience in defending the city. Soon, ladder trucks in other places began to be set up, and countless Han soldiers began to jump off the city walls.
Not far from Beishui City, Zhuge Liang was guarded by soldiers. Watching the Han army rushing up the city wall like ants, he knew that it was only a matter of time before the city was broken.
The barbarians did fight bravely, but they did not have unified orders, let alone what the art of war was, and what military formations were. Most of the time, they fought independently.
Moreover, many of the weapons in their hands were even made of wood, which were much less lethal than the iron weapons in the hands of the Han army.
So in fact, Zhuge Liang, like many others, did not find any difficulty in countering the rebellion.
The difficult thing is how to bring the Yi people in Nanzhong under the effective management of the Han Dynasty so that they will not rebel all the time.
At this time, only a dull roar was heard, and the city gate was finally knocked open by a car while the inside and outside were being closed.
“Prime Minister, the city is broken.”
A middle-aged scribe standing next to Zhuge Liang said, "As soon as the city is destroyed, it is time for the official to set off south."
Zhuge Liang withdrew his gaze from Beishui City and fell on the middle-aged scribe, showing a somewhat hesitant look. Finally, he said as if he had made up his mind, "Yi Qiang, you need to be extremely careful when going here."
"If...if things are not harmonious, don't be brave, retreat as soon as possible, and then plan later."
The middle-aged scribe cupped his hands and said with emotion, "Thank you for your concern, Prime Minister. Since Xiaguan was highly valued by the late emperor, and now he is also entrusted by the Prime Minister, how can he cherish this life when the Han Dynasty is in crisis? The Prime Minister is waiting for Xiaguan's fate. That’s the good news.”
Zhuge Liang nodded and sighed, "If it wasn't for the need to win over the people of Nanzhong, I would definitely not take such a risk as Yuan Qiang."
The middle-aged scribe smiled calmly and said, "The Prime Minister has long-term plans for Nanzhong, how can the lower official not know about it? Since the lower official is now the governor of Yizhou County, how can he not fulfill his duties?"
After saying that, he bowed deeply to Zhuge Liang and said, "I'm going to go to Xiaguan. If there is really any disharmony, Ziyou, the clan brother, has the style of Xiaguan's deceased brother. If the prime minister sees it, he can still shape it." , please take care of me and two brothers for the sake of exhausting themselves to serve the country."
Zhuge Liang had a look of displeasure on his face after hearing this, "Why does Yi Qiang care about his future affairs like this? You go now, even if it doesn't work out, you have to protect yourself. I'll wait for your return."
The middle-aged scribe nodded, said goodbye to Zhuge Liang, took a few followers, and headed south.
In May of the third year of Jianxing, Zhuge Liang, the prime minister of the Han Dynasty, defeated the Yi king Gaoding in Beishui. The barbarian soldiers and barbarian generals from all walks of life who he had finally gathered were defeated one after another.
Gaoding fled alone when the city was breached. His wife and children who stayed in the mansion were caught by the Han army before they could escape.
The Prime Minister of the Han Dynasty led his army to pursue Qiongdu. He felt that Gaoding was at the end of his rope, so he sent envoys to the city of Qiongdu to persuade him to surrender.
Unwilling to accept defeat, Gaoding **** the envoys and swore an alliance with the various barbarian commanders in the city. He also killed the Han envoys at the alliance meeting and used their blood and heads as sacrifices.
Zhuge Liang was furious after hearing this and ordered his army to attack the city.
This time, Guan Xing once again ascended to Qiongdu City first, rushed into the commander's mansion in the city, killed Gaoding, and cut off his head, making his first contribution.
Just when Gaoding was defeated and died, the rebels in Yizhou County lost Wei County, which opened the door to Yizhou County. Meng Yan, who stayed behind at Dian Lake, personally led troops to inspect the counties around Dian Lake to prevent accidents.
Unexpectedly, Li Hui, the commander-in-chief of Nanzhong's surrender, actually brought elite soldiers. He repeated the same trick and directly took a small road, marched to the city of Dianchi Lake, and occupied Dianchi Lake.
When Meng Yan heard about it, he hurried back with his troops and saw that the flag of the Han army had been erected on the top of the Dian Lake city.
In anger, he directly beheaded the guard of Dianchi Lake who escaped, and then gathered the rebels from various counties in Yizhou County to surround Dianchi Lake.
It's just that the barbarians are not good at siege, let alone the sophisticated siege equipment that requires skilled craftsmen to make. Although the soldiers led by Li Hui are few, they are all elite soldiers. The city has no good solution.
The news of Gaoding's defeat and death and the breach of Dianchi Lake were sent to Meng Huo almost at the same time.
“You are a thief, you and I are at odds with each other!”
In Meng Huo's tent, Eshun let out a loud roar, drew his sword and chopped down the table in front of him, with tears streaming down his face.
He knelt down in front of Meng Huo and said, "I beg King Meng to lend me an elite army. I swear that I will cut off the head of Guan Xing's dog to avenge my king!"
“Do you want to keep going forward?”
Unexpectedly, Yong Kai on the side almost jumped up when he heard this, "I told you to retreat when Wei County was captured, but you didn't want to. We have only walked more than half of the way now, so..."
He originally wanted to call Gao Ding by his first name, but after all, he was a little afraid of Eshun's appearance, so he changed his words and said, "King Gao Ding was defeated and died."
“Now that Yizhou County in the rear and even the Dian Lake have been captured, and Zhuge Liang’s army is in front of us, we are attacked from both sides. If we don’t quickly find a way to return to Yizhou, do you want us all to die here?”
Hearing this, Eshun turned his head sharply and stared at Yongkai with blood-red eyes. Coupled with his extremely ugly face, he really looked like a ferocious beast that chooses people to devour.
Yong Kai was startled, fearing that he would suddenly pounce on him and kill him, so he couldn't help but take two steps back.
This time Meng Huo finally agreed with Yong Kai and said in a low voice, "If we go any further, we will all die on the way."
Meng Huo glanced at Eshun and said, "I know you really want to avenge King Gao, but this is not how you avenge yourself. It's not that I don't want to allocate my troops to you, but that the situation is not good for us now and we need to consider the long term. "
"Chief Yong is right. If we continue to move forward, we are afraid that we will all die here. That would not be to avenge King Gao, but to be buried with him. The only solution now is to find a way to return to Yizhou County. Stabilize the rear first."
The capture of Wei County was beyond Meng Huo's expectation. At this time, Dianchi Lake was captured, and he was actually beginning to panic. He wished he could fly back to Yizhou to take charge of the overall situation.
Seeing Eshun still thinking about moving on, he felt disgusted and irritated.
When Wei County was destroyed, I didn’t even think about going back. I had already done my best to be benevolent and righteous. Now even Dianchi Lake has been destroyed. If I don’t go back, will I be a lost dog?
But as the head of the Meng family and the leader of the barbarian kings of Yizhou County, at times like this, the more he showed his desire to stabilize people's hearts. Meng Huo still had this in the city.
Fortunately, the barbarians are different from the Han people.
Barbarians usually live in their own villages, unlike the Han people who live in cities and farms and villages on the plains around the cities.
Otherwise, if Dianchi Lake is breached at this time, the wives and children of countless people in the army will fall into the hands of the enemy. I am afraid that the morale of the army will be in chaos before the battle.
Fortunately, Li Hui's troops were not too many. Now they are surrounded by his brothers in Dianchi City. As long as Li Hui is trapped, there is no need to worry about him causing any big waves.
At this time, Meng Huo could only comfort himself in this way.
Of course Eshun knew that Yong Kai and Meng Huo were telling the truth. Even if he was unwilling to do so, there was nothing he could do.
After all, he only has a hundred or so songs in his hands. Without King Gao, what else can he do?
I saw him kowtowing to Meng Huo repeatedly, with blood coming from his forehead, "The villain is deeply favored by King Gao. I only hope that King Meng will allow the villain to go into battle and kill Guan Xing when he faces the Han army in the future. To avenge King Gao."
“Don’t worry, I promise you that if you see Guan Xing when you face the Han army in the future, you will definitely get your wish.”
Meng Huo was overjoyed after hearing this. E Shun seemed to be aware of his situation and knew that he had nowhere to go. By saying these words, wasn't he taking refuge in him in disguise?
He knew that Eshun was a rare and fierce general, and it would be of great benefit to his side if he could rely on him, so he quickly agreed.
"Guan Xing is just a young man. How can he be as brave as the general? When we face him, the general will definitely get what he wants and kill that man. Guan Xing to avenge King Gao."
“Thank you very much, King Meng. As long as King Meng allows the villain to take revenge on King Gao, he will be willing to do it even if he has to work as a cow or a horse.”
"Why do I need to be an ox or a horse? I am really the loyal ear of the general!"
Meng Huo quickly helped Eshun up.
"General, listen to me for a moment. Follow me back to Yizhou County to reorganize your troops and horses. It's okay if the Zhuge villagers don't come. If he dares to come, I will let him taste the power of my Nanzhong children!"
“The little man is willing to listen to King Meng.”
After the three of them reached a consensus to return to Yizhou County, Yong Kai hurriedly left Meng Huo's camp and returned to his own army.
“Sir, Couture has been killed.”
As soon as Yong Kai entered the camp, he said something directly.
I saw a middle-aged scribe sitting in the tent. Hearing Yong Kai's words, he couldn't help but be a little stunned, "How could it be? When I went south, the prime minister once told me that all the armies in the south, except Zhu from Zangke County, Bao is the one who must be killed, and everyone else must be recruited and demoted to the top."
"What's more, Gao Ding is the Sou King of Yueqi County, and he is highly valued by the Yueqi Yi people. If he is recruited and surrendered, the Yueqi Yi people will surely return to their hearts, so how can they kill him?"
"According to the spies and defeated soldiers from the north, it was true that the Prime Minister recruited Gao Ding to surrender. However, Gao Ding was determined to rebel against the Han Dynasty. He even killed the envoys sent by the Prime Minister to recruit the surrender. The Prime Minister was furious. , then the city was broken and Gaoding was killed."
Yong Kai's face turned a little pale, "Also, Governor Li has led his troops to break through Dian Lake..."
“Is this true?”
Before Yong Kai finished speaking, the middle-aged scribe suddenly stood up with a look of ecstasy on his face, "This is really great! Where will Meng Huo run this time?"
"Sir, please hear what I have to say first," Yong Kai said with a look of embarrassment on his face, "Although Governor Li defeated Dianchi Lake, he was trapped in the city. Now he can only defend the city."
“So, isn’t Governor Li waiting for the Prime Minister to lead troops to rescue?”
The middle-aged scribe had a look of worry on his face. He thought for a moment, then cupped his hands to Yong Kai and said, "I would also like to ask General Yong to write a letter and secretly send someone to send it to the Prime Minister. Please send troops quickly and go south directly to save Li The Governor is in urgent need."
“Sir, how dare I disobey your instructions? It’s just...”
Yong Kai pondered for a moment, but then paused.
“Just what?”
"It's just that I am a rebellious person now. If I repair the book and send it away, how can the prime minister believe me?"
Yong Kai said and glanced at the middle-aged scribe.
The middle-aged scribe knew what he meant, so he smiled and said, "This is easy to hear. When the time comes, I will sign it, edit another letter, and give General Yong a token. How can the Prime Minister not believe it?"
After Yongkai heard this, he was overjoyed and said, "That's very good! Please write a letter quickly, sir. At night, I quietly sent my confidants out of the camp. During the introduction, I hope that sir can say a few nice words in front of the prime minister."
"The general was just confused for a moment. Now that he has returned from his lost way, how can the prime minister blame him? As long as the general surrenders sincerely and is willing to help the court to pacify Nanzhong as soon as possible, then he has made a great contribution. I will definitely tell the general about today in front of the prime minister in the future. merit."
“Then I’d like to thank you sir.”
Yongkai received the guarantee and quickly bowed deeply to salute.
Yong Kai was frightened by the news of Gaoding's defeat and death and the sudden breach of Dianchi Lake. At this time, he finally discovered that everything he relied on before became vulnerable when the big man really freed up his hands.
Zhu Bao of Zangke County was defeated so quickly that people were caught off guard.
I thought that even if Gaoding could not win, they could still hold on until they arrived with their own troops. Unexpectedly, only halfway through, Wei County and Dian Lake in the rear had already been destroyed.
Haoding had so much time and gathered so many troops, but his speed of defeat was comparable to that of Zhu Bao.
My entire group is suddenly under attack from both the front and the back. How to fight this battle?
In addition to surrender, what else can be done?
In the middle of the night, I saw a few figures moving around the Yongkai military camp and quietly disappearing into the dark night.
The next morning, Meng Huo sent someone to send a message to Yong Kai, asking him to go over and discuss how to arrange the retreat.
The middle-aged scribe waited in the commander's tent for a day, but did not see Yong Kai come back. He felt a little bad. When he was trying to find a way to inquire, he heard a sudden commotion outside.
(End of this chapter)