Chapter 731: The Eagle and the Sideways
The two armies of the Han Dynasty, the north and the south, and the main force led by Wei Yan, marched in a hurry, hoping to capture Yuzhong in the shortest possible time.
But Feng Yong is much more relaxed.
Stayed for one day while passing through Didao.
Shi Ma Yong, the governor of Longxi who was originally stationed at Guguan, had been sent to Daxia Pass by Longxi Prefect Chen Shi to replace Liu Hun long before Feng Yong arrived.
July is already the hottest time of the year in Longxi.
Fortunately, when they were in Longxi, the army marched along the Tao River, so they would not be too tired.
However, some people have jumped into the water because they were disobedient and sweating profusely, and then fell ill the next day.
Most of these patients are from the Tiger Infantry, and a small number are new recruits who joined the Qiang Guards' Mansion last year.
After following Feng Junhou for several years, the veterans all know that every rule in the army has its uses and will not violate it.
When Feng Yong led the army to Guguan, Liu Hun was waiting there early.
The weather was too hot, so Liu Hun didn't wear a helmet and tied his hair up, not covering up the fact that he only had one ear.
Maybe the Hu people don’t care about this.
Because there are still several scars on his face, which he made himself when he swore an oath.
He walked behind Feng Yong carrying a long horsetail and saluted: "I have seen the prince."
Jiang Wei, Zhang Yi, and Jufu had learned that their soldiers had fallen ill and caught colds in the past few days because they were trying to cool off, so they stepped up patrols wherever they set up camp.
Gongsun Zheng and the people on the staff constantly revised the battle plan and march plan based on the scouting horses ahead.
So by the Taoshui River, Feng Yong was the only one sitting on the bed, admiring the afterglow of the setting sun.
“Oh, Polu is here!”
Feng Yong turned around and said hello, "Come and sit."
“Thank you, Lord.”
Liu Hun put the horse's straw on the ground, walked over and sat on the bed next to Feng Yong, upright and upright.
Feng Yong watched the Tao River flowing by, and after a while he asked, "How is the situation over there in Wuhan?"
"Back to the king, the leader of the rebellious army sent an envoy to Daxia County and said he was willing to surrender to the Han Dynasty, but he was beheaded by the general and asked his entourage to send his head back."
Liu Hun replied immediately.
“The leader of the rebellion?”
Feng Yong narrowed his eyes slightly.
"Exactly. When the rebels besieged Didao, they once again raised the slogan of "pacifying the king of Han at the head of the river." After they were driven to Wuhan by the king, they were trapped in a corner of Longxi."
“When the tribes who rebelled against the Hu were in panic and confusion, the descendants of Song Jian took the opportunity to stand up and are now the co-leaders of the rebellion against the Hu.”
Liu Hun looked at Feng Yong with admiration.
Feng Yongwei's narrowed eyes quickly returned to normal, and he asked, "Where is the Bald Hair Department in Baishi City? Has the withdrawal been completed?"
“The withdrawal has been completed.”
When Liu Hun said this, he couldn't help but tilt his head slightly.
Looking from his direction, you can only see a small part of Feng Langjun's profile, but you can't see Feng Langjun's expression at all.
Three months ago, Feng Langjun designed to kill Han Chou who led the army from Heguan, and then returned directly to Pingxiang. When the Bald Hair Division in Baishi City learned about it, they immediately panicked.
Bald-faced Tianli personally brought a thousand good horses, a thousand cattle and three thousand sheep to give gifts to Pingxiang.
I just heard that Feng Langjun not only failed to meet Bald Khotan Li, but also planned to send someone to drive him away.
Later, Bald Khotan knelt outside Pingxiang City for a day and a night. Mrs. Junhou couldn't bear it, and finally begged Feng Langjun for mercy.
Feng Langjun then allowed them to exchange 30,000 livestock for woolen cloth and some grain.
After exchanging supplies, Bald Hair Ministry began to return north to Xihai Pasture.
It was inconvenient to communicate between Daxia County and Pingxiang, so Liu Hun could only mechanically carry out Feng Yong's original order, but he couldn't figure out why he did so.
There were only two people by the water at this time, and Liu Hun couldn't help but curiously asked one more question.
"Your Majesty, whether we ask the Bald Hair Ministry to help or accept the surrender of the traitorous Hu, we can defeat Wuhan in one fell swoop and completely pacify Longxi."
“However, when I look at the king, he seems to be intending to indulge these barbarians. Why is this?”
Feng Yong smiled slightly, stood up, and looked towards the top of the mountain. The sun had completely dropped below the horizon, and he could only see a few golden lights coming from behind the mountain.
“Polu, you have lived on the grassland since you were a child, have you ever survived an eagle?”
Liu Hun quickly stood up and said, "Back to the king, although I lived on the grassland when I was a child, the tribe has declined since it was passed down from the eldest father to the adults."
"I am not a legitimate son, how could I ever have the opportunity to do such a thing in ordinary times?"
Feng Yong nodded, "I forgot about this. Then do you know how to cook an eagle?"
"This little man has heard something about it. Wild eagles are arrogant and untamed, violent and wild. After being captured, they are not allowed to sleep for several days and nights, and then they are starved, their eyes are covered, and their wings are bound to temper their wild nature..."
The more Liu Hun spoke, the slower he spoke. Finally, he paused and looked at Feng Yong with a look of shock and fear. "Is there anything you can do to be a prince..."
Feng Yong nodded and smiled lightly, "In this world, there are not only people called eagles flying in the sky. In fact, there are also people on the ground called eagle dogs."
"It doesn't matter if the eagles and dogs are unwilling to obey at first. As long as they are slowly polished like an eagle, their wild nature will be worn away. Then we can let them hunt for us."
On a July day, when the sun had just set, the heat had not dissipated, but Liu Hun felt a sudden coldness on his back.
“Polu!”
Feng Yong said suddenly.
“The villain is here!”
Liu Hun immediately tensed up his body subconsciously and stood up straight.
Only heard Feng Yong's voice coming slowly, "You have been following me for a long time. You should know my temper."
“I am actually a very soft-hearted person. I treat my own people with all my heart and soul.”
“It’s just that I can’t tolerate those enemies who are bent on opposing me, right?”
Liu Hun had a drop of cold sweat dripping from his forehead, "Yes...yes!"
“So this eagle, do you understand what I mean?”
"understood!"
Feng Yong then nodded with satisfaction and looked at the rising smoke. He didn't know whether it was fog or smoke from the military fires.
“Let’s go back to camp.”
“No!”
Liu Hun pulled up his horse and followed Feng Yong, just like he had always been by Feng Yong's side before.
After the army left Longxi, it began to leave the Taoshui River and turned north.
The road gradually became rough, and it was obvious that the terrain was rising.
When the army finally climbed over a mountain, Feng Yong finally couldn't help but spit out one word: Cao!
I saw a continuous mountain range standing so abruptly in front of me. Compared with it, the mountains in front were just hills.
What’s even more terrible is that this mountain range runs east-west.
Looking to the east, there is no end; looking to the west, there is still no end!
Just blocking the way of the army.
“Bring me a map.”
Feng Yong gave an order.
Staff Zhang Yuan immediately spread out the map and sent it to Feng Yong.
“Your Majesty, the villain is here.”
Li Jian hurriedly walked to Feng Yong's side.
“Where is this mountain on the map? How long is it? Where does it end?”
Feng Yong pointed to the mountains in front of him.
“Going back to Junhou, this mountain is close to the south of Jincheng. As long as you climb over this mountain, you can reach the foot of Jincheng.”
“There is a big river to the north of Jincheng. The mountain and the river enclose Jincheng. At the east and west ends of the mountain, there are big rivers.”
Li Jian said while drawing on the map.
Feng Yong stretched out his hand and said, "Pen!"
Taking the pen handed over by someone, he found a large, high rock, placed the map on it, and then sketched according to Li Jian's description.
After finishing sketching the rough map, everyone took a breath.
“No wonder it’s so impregnable!”
Feng Yong looked at the terrain and murmured.
The main vein on the west side of this mountain range extends to the edge of the Yellow River, tightly protecting the south and west sides of Jincheng.
In addition, Jincheng’s head rests on the river, which means that it only needs to guard against enemies coming from the east.
To reach Jincheng, the best way is to follow the Yellow River from the east.
There are the remnants of this mountain range and the narrow pass formed by the Yellow River.
But Feng Yong looked to the east and then at the mountain range, his face as dark as the bottom of a pot.
Because standing here, he could only see the continuous high mountains to the east, blocking the sky and the sun, and there was no way for hunters and woodcutter.
Moreover, I heard from Li Jian that if you go east, you have to reach the main road from Longxi through Yuzhong before you can come out of the mountains.
Feng Yong’s face turned darker after hearing this.
If that's the case, wouldn't it be more convenient for me to go to Yuzhong with Old Man Wei from the beginning?
What's the point of leading an army through Didao?
In order to go around in a big circle?
If I really dare to lead the army into the mountains to the east, there is at least half a chance that I will get lost, and only 50% of the people who can get out of the mountains and forests will be able to do so.
Think again that Li Jian said that if you enter from the east, you have to pass through a pass.
Feng Yong immediately gave up the idea of heading east.
“Are you sure you can climb this mountain?”
Feng Yong looked at the mountain range in front of him to the north and murmured in his heart.
This one seems to be higher than the mountains to the east.
“The road back to the king is actually a side road.”
Li Jian explained, "In the past, when the Han Dynasty was at its peak, we could take the Di Road and pass through Huanhan. After crossing the river, we could take the Huangshui River to reach Xiping."
“Then from Xiping you can go through a narrow entrance in the Qilian Mountains, and from there you can reach Zhangye.”
When Feng Yong heard this, his heart moved and he blurted out: "Silk Road?"
From Chang'an to Liangzhou, what is the Silk Road if not it?
Li Jian looked at Feng Yong in confusion, not understanding what this meant.
Feng Yong forcibly suppressed his beating heart and asked, "Don't we always take Jincheng from Guanzhong to Liangzhou? Why have I never heard of this road?"
Li Jian smiled and said, "Now the way is naturally through Jincheng. But before that, there were actually three ways to go to Liangzhou."
Sanjo?
Feng Yong swallowed and looked at Li Jian.
Seeing Feng Yong's expression, Li Jian knew that he was very interested, so he explained everything in detail.
“In fact, the earliest way to go to Liangzhou is to go north through Qian County, pass through Xiaoguan, and then cross the river at Zuli, and you can directly reach Zhigu Zang in Wuwei County.”
"This road is the northernmost, so it is called the North Road. It is just more desolate, so after the South Road was opened, it gradually became deserted."
“The south road is what the villain just said. It passes through Didao and Xiping, and then you can reach Zhangye by taking the Qilian Mountain pass.”
“Because the south road is more prosperous, after it was opened, more people took this road.”
"It's just that the south road has to go around a long way. After the Jincheng is built, it will be shorter to cross the river, so everyone is going there now."
“Because Jincheng is located between Didao and Zuli, it is called Zhonglu.”
"Later, the Qiang and Hu rebelled, and the southern road was blocked. Now few people know about it." Speaking of this, Li Jian sighed, "But our Li family is rooted in Didao."
"This south road is blocked, so our Li family's caravan has to go to Nan'an first, and then to Jincheng. It has to go around the boss's circle, which is time-consuming, laborious and inconvenient."
“So in order to find a convenient way to Jincheng, our Li family tried to climb over this mountain.”
At this point, Li Jian smiled bitterly and shook his head, "It's just that this road has high mountains and dangerous roads, but it's difficult to transport bulk goods."
“Coupled with the continuous Qiang and Hu rebellions in Longxi over the past hundred years, our Li family in Longxi has long since declined and will never be as prosperous as it once was.”
He did not hide his family's secrets in front of Feng Yong.
After listening to his words, Feng Yong understood the plight of the Li family in Longxi.
This is like opening a store in a busy street, with a large flow of people.
Then one day, the front of this street was blocked, the street became deserted, and no one came to the front anymore, so naturally we had to find another way out.
He took the pen thoughtfully and connected the points of Didao, Wuhan, Xiping, and Zhangye into a line. His eyes began to become dark, and he didn't know what he was thinking.
After a long time, Feng Yong finally raised his head and took a serious look at the mountain range. He found that the hills in this area were indeed lower than the hills on both sides in the distance.
If you want to climb over this mountain range, this is indeed the most suitable location.
“Is there going to be an ambush from above?”
Feng Yong asked.
Li Jian hesitated for a moment and said with some uncertainty, "Probably not. Because this place is not close to Jincheng, and it is not easy to get here from Jincheng."
“After climbing over this mountain, what other dangerous places are there?”
Feng Yong asked again.
Li Jian replied, "Over the top of the mountain, you can see a river. Follow the water to the north and you can reach the big river (Yellow River). The most dangerous thing is the entrance of the valley when you come out of the mountain. The terrain is the most dangerous."
Feng Yong nodded, turned around, and told Zhang Yuan, "Go and pass on my order. We will rest at the foot of the mountain overnight today, and we will start climbing over the mountain tomorrow."
Normally, it would be difficult for a large army to cross this mountain range. The food, grass and baggage alone would be enough to deter people here.
But his army is different from others.
The logistical pressure was not great, and the engineering battalion did not follow us.
The soldiers in the army include Nanyi and Qianghu. They are all good at walking on mountain roads. Plus they have been trained on weekdays, so there is no need to worry too much.
The Tiger Infantry Army led by Jiang Wei is also elite, and there are also many Qiang and Yi people, so there should be no problem.
The only thing to worry about is the cavalry led by Liu Hun.
Thinking of this, Feng Yong called Liu Hun over and ordered: "Tomorrow I will personally lead the army first, Jiang Wei will lead the tiger infantry in the middle, and you will lead the cavalry behind."
"If the cavalry can cross this mountain, they will do so. If they can't, turn back and ask Governor Chen to send more grain and grass. At the same time, they will patrol the grain road to prevent Cao's thieves from crossing east from where the Tao River enters the river to make a sneak attack."
Feng Yong has been a little worried since he heard Li Jian talking about the South Silk Road.
Even though this road has been blocked for a long time, who knows if anyone knows about the Cao thieves on the other side?
What if another famous general unknown to him appears in Liangzhou and attacks his food route from the flank unexpectedly, even cutting off his retreat?
When the time comes, seven or eight thousand of our own people will be trapped in the mountains, unable to advance or retreat. How about they die of oppression?
(End of this chapter)