Chapter 88: Baoji has treasures
Cao Youwen had already made arrangements, but the prefectures and counties below did not have the written instructions from their superiors, so they had no clear idea of the situation and their execution was greatly reduced .
He took Zhao Yulin to Qingyeyuan to meet Zhao Yanna, hoping to persuade him again.
The two men came to the central army tent, and everyone avoided them.
Zhao Yan said helplessly: Your Excellency had told him before he left that he must obey the orders of his superiors. To put it bluntly, he was still afraid of death. He also questioned Cao Youwen for burning the plank road without authorization. If the Mongolian army had not come, who would bear the losses caused?
Cao Youwen's face flushed red and he stood there with a lot of anger in his heart.
Zhao Yulin said that the Mongolian army would definitely come in the next few days. If there had not been this war, the Lianyun Plank Road would have been restored at the expense of the Shenwei Army.
Zhao Yan also knew that it was a critical moment and it was rare for someone to stand up and take the lead, so he gave Cao Youwen the right to act at his discretion and let them do it.
After coming out, Cao Youwen said that it would be a lunch break and Nanzheng would be handed over to his brother. He and Wang Hancheng went up to hold the defense and resolutely prevented Toure from breaking through.
Seeing that he was in low spirits, Zhao Yulin was not able to persuade him, so he told him that he would dispatch a team of 1,000 men to help him implement the strategy of tiring the enemy.
The two then parted ways, and Zhao Yulin immediately rushed to Nanzheng.
In Baoji outside Dasan Pass, Toure was drinking in his big tent.
His youngest son reported to him that they had lost contact with intelligence stations in Jinzhou, Yangzhou and Xingyuanfu one after another. Tu Lei held Zhao Yulin's glass in his hand and ate his Wu Gu Feng. He said that the two countries were at war, and we were in each other. Didn't we kill their spies?
Turay murmured with some dissatisfaction, these Song generals just have no sense of contract. We have signed an agreement to jointly destroy Jin, so why are they still blocking the way and not letting me pass?
This is simply outrageous.
His youngest son, playing with the glass in his hand, said: It is possible that the abandoned child of the Zhao family could have created such a gorgeous treasure.
Tulei asked him calmly: "Are you powerful? Do you have more cannons than me?" These little barbarians will not cry until they see the coffin.
Tell Android to pass Dasan Pass immediately.
The lieutenant in front of the tent took the token and set off immediately.
In front of Dasan Pass, there were already large and small Huihui cannons, which were catapults modified by the Arabs. When the cannons sounded, the Mongolian army attacked, and the soldiers kept moving the catapults, throwing stone bombs, incendiary bombs and lime bombs into the pass.
Thick smoke and screams immediately filled the small Dasan Pass. During one of the Mongol charge, the commander-in-chief was shot and killed, and the remaining soldiers burned their weapons and food and retreated .
This is really helpless. In the last bombardment, all the catapults were destroyed in the bombardment. Now without heavy weapons, they are just passive targets.
If we don’t withdraw, what else can we do?
When Zhao Yulin returned to Nanzheng, Shunfeng reported to him that Dasan Pass had been lost.
He felt that it was only a matter of time and was quite normal, so he called the combat envoys and training envoys together to discuss the matter.
Wu Jie reported: The Third Column is on the way.
Zhao Yulin ordered his troops to go directly to Mianzhou to rest and prepare for battle, and asked Shunfeng to contact the First Column to remind them to guard against enemy sneak attacks and to deal with any problems promptly.
Li Shichang said that according to intelligence, the enemy numbered about 50,000, and if they all took the Chencang Road, they would probably fill up the river valley. Such a long and narrow marching column could completely harass him, making him unable to eat or sleep well.
Zhao Yulin nodded and said that was exactly what he meant. He asked him to find Gao Jin and ask him to lead a group of elite soldiers to set off immediately to cooperate with General Cao in carrying out the task of tiring the enemy.
Li Shichang went there immediately.
Wu Jie told him: After the Lianyun plank road was burned, the difficulty for the enemy to enter Xingyuan Prefecture after lunch break increased by a hundred times. Nanzheng did not need so many soldiers. If the enemy really reached the city of Nanzheng, no matter how many soldiers there were, they would not be able to defend it.
After comprehensive analysis, he believed that the enemy would break through Xianren Pass and suggested transferring a part of the troops to Xianren Pass to intercept the enemy there, which would increase the chances of winning.
Zhao Yulin nodded and told him to continue.
Wu Jie thought that there was no need for a column on the Ziwu Road, and he could transfer some more troops over. By then, we could concentrate at least 30,000 troops. As long as we use them properly, even our Shenwei Army would be able to beat Tulei back.
He looked at Wu Jie and smiled, thinking that he was indeed a descendant of Wu Jie, and his analysis was good. He took a sip of tea and asked Gao Jin why he hadn't arrived yet?
Immediately someone outside responded and shouted, "We're here, we're here."
Zhao Yulin said he came in without saying a word?
Gao Jin said with a smile that he was listening to the warlord's calculations. Wu Jie immediately stood aside modestly and made tea for Gao Jin.
He said that as soon as Li Shichang arrived, he knew that Lao Gao would come. He asked: How are the preparations going?
Gao Jin said excitedly that they could set off at any time.
Zhao Yulin, holding a teacup, said that many soldiers had already moved into Mianzhou, and the troops had to prepare for camping, leaving 3,000 people to guard the front line for lunch break. You should lead the troops to Mianzhou in person, with the target being Xianren Pass.
Gao Jin jumped up happily and was about to leave immediately.
He said it's not easy here either, with 3,000 people having to guard against enemy sneak attacks, if they scatter they won't be able to see a single one, so they have to be careful, as they will still be responsible if something goes wrong.
Gao Jin nodded repeatedly and ran away.
He asked Wu Jie to inform Miao Gui to lead 10,000 troops to Xianren Pass immediately and ordered Han Yongchao to garrison Yangzhou and Jinzhou.
Zhao Yulin was able to boldly draw troops to Xingyuan Prefecture, thanks to his rapid expansion of the army and the joint defense and protection of the militia in Jin and Yang states, which tightly bound the Shenwei Army and the people together. The army loved the people, and the people supported the army, supporting the Shenwei Army to act quickly.
After a night's rest, Zhao Yulin set out for Mianzhou. The vanguard of the Fourth Column was already on the way. He entered Mianzhou City and came to Gao Jia's mansion.
The prefect immediately made him tea and asked about the battle situation.
Zhao Yulin assured him that the Mongolian army would not come here. If they really came, it would mean that the Song army had lost the battle to defend Hanzhong.
The prefect sighed and said: The people of Fengzhou wrote to him, saying that they would sacrifice their lives and live and die with the city. Zhao Yulin handed over the tea bowl and clinked it with him, saying that if the people are saved, the land will be lost. If the land is saved, the people will be lost, and both the people and the land will be lost.
He stomped the ground under his feet and said, "Take Mianyang Prefecture for example. It is located on a small piece of flat land with no strategic location to defend. How can we fight the enemy?"
If it were me, I would move to the mountains outside to fight the enemy and there would be a chance to take back the lost territory.
Gao Jia shook his head and said that according to the rules of the court, local officials have the responsibility to defend their territory. Now that the city has been lost, how can they face the people of Jiangdong?
Zhao Yulin didn't want to argue with him, so Fan Zheng came in and reported: Captain Zhou's navy has arrived.
After Zhou Ping came in, Zhao Yulin introduced Gao Jia to his navy column leader. In the future, Mianyang Prefecture would become the main activity area of the Shenwei Army, so he would have to be in trouble.
The prefect accepted the offer quite readily and promised strong support.
Zhao Yulin asked him to transport all the logistical supplies to Xianren Pass and transfer the military supplies on Jinniu Road to Lianghekou.
The next day, he left Mianyang Prefecture and went to Xianren Pass to set up the central military tent.
Report to the downwind side that General Cao is sniping the enemy in Liangdang County.
Tu Lei had already occupied Fengzhou. The people who did not leave fought desperately with the prefect. After the city was captured, they burned the food and grass. Tu Lei got nothing and was so angry that he massacred the people in the city. Every street in the city was dyed red with blood.
Zhao Yulin said word for word that this was the ancestral tradition of the Mongolian army, and that burning, killing and looting were their nature. The solution to the problem was to destroy them.
Seeing that everyone was present, he asked Gao Jin to preside over the meeting. The brothers analyzed that the enemy might swim down the river, go west to Tianshui and Xihe. The most likely possibility was to go south along the Liangdang River to the Jialing River and break through Xianren Pass.
Taking into account the overall situation, they unanimously agreed to launch an ambush on the Liangdang River in an effort to annihilate part of the enemy.
Zhao Yulin appointed Gao Jin as the commander-in-chief on the battlefield and immediately made arrangements.
Gao Jin planned to lead the attack with his troops and send another 5,000 men to try to destroy the Mongol vanguard. Zhao Yulin agreed and asked Zhou Ping to come up to guard against the enemy's demolition of houses and swim down, while the rest of the troops served as a guard.
The next day, Lao Cao came down. His troops fought three consecutive battles with the Mongolian army. In each battle, they confronted the Mongolian army head-on and slashed fiercely with their goose-feather swords. There were heavy casualties, and the Loyalty Army alone was almost wiped out.
Lao Cao said that Toure was making a desperate move and attacking with all his might. No city could withstand it and all his own people would be killed.
His brother Cao Youliang was seriously injured, so Zhao Yulin asked him to lead his troops to retreat and rest.
Lao Cao reminded him that the Mongolian army's Huihui artillery was very fierce, and urged him to be careful, and led his troops to the Qingyeyuan camp.
In Liangdang County, Toure lived in the destroyed county government office. Subutai looked at the smoke and garbage being cleaned up on the ground and lamented that too many people died in this battle.
Toure smiled and said it was worth it. As long as Cao Youwen was defeated, Hanzhong would have no rivals.
His youngest son said nearby that there was also a Shenwei Army, and Zhao Qier led the troops to Mianyang Prefecture.
Su Butai said cautiously that this guy killed Chen Heshang, which was considered as revenge for us, but he was a powerful force.
While kicking the burnt wooden board under his feet, Toure ordered: Now let my cannon speak and see who is the strongest force?
Tell Android to go to Xianren Pass immediately.
However, Subutai proposed to send a force to seize Qifang Pass and catch the Song army off guard, perhaps opening the door to Hanzhong in one fell swoop?
Because everyone knew that going south to Xianren Pass was a shortcut, the Song army would definitely defend it tightly and fight hard.
Toure thought about it for a moment and agreed.
The Liangdang River Valley was only a few dozen miles long, and the Mongolian cavalry scouts reached the mouth of the Jialing River in just two whips. They were immediately shot and killed by sniper soldiers. After surviving the disaster, the remaining few turned their horses around and fled in panic.
That night, Zhao Yulin returned to the river mouth after inspecting the battlefield. He thought that the Guandi Temple, which was the ambush location, was shaped like an eagle's beak and its location was very important, so he asked Gao Jin to arrange people to control it firmly, and it would be better to move a few catapults up to assist.
He remembered Wu Yuqi saying that when the Mongolian army attacked Fengxiang Prefecture, they deployed three to four hundred Huihui cannons with extremely fierce firepower. This time when Tu Lei went south, he had to bring them down with him.
He asked Gao Jin and Miao Gui to discuss and make good use of our artillery to let Ture taste the feeling of being bombed.
The next day, the enemy did not make any movement. Zhao Yulin became curious. What was this Mongolian god of war doing?
Speed is of the essence in war. Why are you daydreaming?
