On October 25th, Cheng Mingzhen, the general manager of Weizhou who had not moved for most of the year, suddenly led his troops to attack and led more than a thousand cavalry from Neihuang north into Xiangzhou.
At the same time, Qi Shanxing, the general manager of Xingzhou, who had been retreating south for more than a month, personally led more than a thousand fine cavalry and two thousand infantry to march eastward from Anyang.
The two armies joined forces at the junction of Xiangzhou and Weizhou, raised their troops eastward, and entered Weizhou.
"We have captured a few prisoners, Guantao is indeed impregnable." Cheng Minzhen looked at the river from a distance, "Liu Heimai said that the city of Guantao was destroyed, and the sword was not sealed for three days. The enemy attacked fiercely for five days but failed. Tian Liu'an sent hundreds of troops at night. The remaining warriors attacked the camp, causing a huge uproar in the enemy camp, and thousands of people were trampled to death.”
Ma Zhou smiled and said nothing. Qi Shanxing, who was standing side by side with Cheng Mingzhen, laughed and said, "Brother Tian can be entrusted by His Highness to stay in Weizhou. He is by no means a mediocre person."
Qi Shanxing entered the Qin Palace after the Battle of Hulao Pass last year, and had some contacts with Tian Liuan. He had been retreating south for more than a month, and he was already feeling angry.
After confirming that the Turkic army was returning north, Liu Heitao's army might be short of food, and it would be difficult to attack Guantao for many days, Qi Shanxing decisively led the army eastward.
Ma Zhou thought about it and couldn't help but feel suspicious. Although Tian Liuan was a veteran on the battlefield and had rich experience, this method... was more like Ling Jing and Li Shan's style.
"General Manager Tian is an important general under the command of His Highness King Qin, so he is certainly not a mediocre person." Cui Xian smiled and said, "I have heard for a long time that there are all heroes in King Qin's palace. In the future..."
Ma Zhou, who had been silent all this time, sneered and said, "Isn't the second brother of Jun Yi Ling a close minister of the Crown Prince of the East Palace?"
"Does your Excellency want to enter Prince Qin's palace?"
Qi Shanxing coughed twice and gave Ma Zhou a look that was enough... Aren't all the big families like this?
Indeed, the Zheng family in Xingyang belongs to the prince's wife family, but Zheng Rentai is Li Shimin's confidant. There are countless similar things. The three masters of the Danyang house of the Li family in Longxi, Li Jing, Li Keshi, and Li Qianyou, are the most typical examples.
But Ma Zhou refused to give up and said in a manly voice: "General Manager Qi doesn't know something. This person is by no means a simple person with both ends."
"At the end of the previous dynasty, this official had been appointed as the dredging ceremony order. He first joined Zhai Rang in Wagangzhai to succeed him as the dredging ceremony order, and then transferred to Li Mi and then served as the dredging ceremony order. Li Mi joined the Tang Dynasty, and this official joined the Xia king to succeed him as the dredging ceremony order. Hulao Pass After the war, he surrendered to the Tang Dynasty and was appointed as Junyi Commander again. Last year, Liu Heitai captured Luozhou and the Han Dongwang went south to attack Xiangzhou and Weizhou. This officer opened the city gates to greet them. This is the sixth time that he has been appointed as Junyi Commander!"
Cheng Mingzhen sighed. He originally wanted to keep Cui Xianshou in Weizhou... Ma Zhou used this last reason to ask him to keep Cui Xianshou with the army.
In Ma Zhou's words, if you leave Cui Xianshou in Weizhou, maybe Li Yangcang will fly the Liu character banner tomorrow!
Cui Xianshou was so angry that his face was livid. Weizhou was the place where the Fourth War was fought. Could it be that he was still stubborn and refused to surrender?
Ma Zhou has a bit of a venomous mouth. He and Ling Jing have obviously made a lot of progress in the past month or so. "Lu Fengxian of the Three Kingdoms can be called a slave of the three surnames. Today, the descendants of the Cui family of Qinghe have joined six families..."
"King Ma Bin!" Cui Xianshou, with red eyes, pulled out the sword from his waist.
Ma Zhou methodically pulled out his long sword, "You have no servants to help you today!"
Cheng Minzhen was too lazy to answer, Qi Shanxing glanced over, and a dozen personal guards hurriedly came up to block him.
There was a report from a scout ahead, and one of the generals came galloping towards them. His expression could not be called panic, but it could not be said to be steady either.
Soon, Ma Zhou learned the news.
Liu Heitao led his troops to attack Guantao but failed. Today he bypassed Guantao and went south. He attacked Yuancheng in an hour. He looted the city and killed many people. Almost no chickens or dogs were left in Yuancheng.
"Slaughter the city..." Qi Shanxing opened his mouth in shock.
We are all locals, but you Liu Heitai actually sent troops to massacre the city and harm the countryside... Weizhou is bordered by Beizhou and Luozhou.
Qi Shanxing's first reaction was that Liu Heitai had messed up his position and made a stupid move... Even if it swept across Hebei in the next two months this year, Liu Heitai would definitely be defeated next year.
It's not unusual to massacre a city. Massacre in my hometown... What kind of person can do such a thing?
Ma Zhou hesitated and said: "The enemy suffered two defeats in a row outside Guantao City...perhaps Liu Heitai wanted to boost his morale?"
Qi Shanxing frowned and said, "Brother Mingzhen, what do you think?"
Cheng Mingzhen thought for a moment and then shook his head and said: "Send more scouts across the river to investigate and guard the two bridges. We will not cross the river for the time being."
When Ma Zhou heard this, he blurted out, "The enemy will attack Wei County!"
Qi Shanxing and Cheng Mingzhen both nodded in agreement. On the one hand, Wei County is the capital of Weizhou, and on the other hand, Wei County must have stored a large amount of grain and grass.
The storage location of grain and grass in Hebei is mainly affected by two factors. One is political factors, such as Luozhou and Xingzhou, and the other is geographical and transportation factors, such as Liyang, Wucheng, Yongji, Guantao, Wei County and other places.
These cities were all built on the edge of Yongji Canal. They were once the places where a large amount of grain and grass were stored when Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty sent troops to attack Goguryeo.
This is also the reason why Liu Shishan was able to raise a large amount of grain and grass in Beizhou. There was Yongji Canal, but unfortunately it was all burned down by Li Shan and Su Dingfang.
Among the cities beside the Yongji Canal, Wucheng is out of food, Yongji is small and Guantao is difficult to defeat. If Liu Heitai really lacks food and grass in his army, then he will definitely attack Wei County.
Wei County is within sight of Qi Shanxing and Cheng Mingzhen. The Yongji Canal in front of them flows mightily to the east. The small Wei County is on the other side of the river.
He could already vaguely see the yellow dust filling the sky in the winter. It was obvious that a large group of cavalry was coming. Although Cheng Minzhen wanted to kill Liu Heitai immediately, he could hold his nerve and waved his hands and shouted: "Guard the two bridges and set up formations along the river. Raise the flag and the rest will retreat five miles and set up camp."
Ma Zhou nodded in approval in his heart. Crossing the river rashly was a wave of battle. If he failed, he would be defeated. After all, the enemy army had just defeated Yuancheng, and massacred the city to boost morale. It was the time when wolves and tigers were like tigers.
To guard the bridge, set up formations on the other side of the river, and raise flags, Liu Heitai's troops must be vigilant and will not rush to attack Wei County with all their strength.
Cheng Mingzhen's move may seem like an understatement, but it kills two birds with one stone.
The ensuing battle turned out to be exactly like this. Thousands of enemy troops appeared from all directions one after another, tightly surrounding Wei County on the riverside.
Without even a single trial, the enemy troops stormed Wei County. There were corpses all over the city and below, a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood. But what was surprising was that after an hour, the enemy troops had no choice but to withdraw their troops and set up camp. Wei County was safe. No problem.
There were a large number of soldiers on this side of the river, wielding spears, shouting loudly, and communicating with the Tang army at the head of Wei County.
The reason why the enemy army failed to break through Wei County is that on the one hand, the enemy army could not use its full strength. They needed to be wary of the two Tang armies Qi Shanxing and Cheng Mingzhen on the other side of the river. They needed to blockade the two bridges, and they also needed to divide their troops to guard against the Tang army suddenly building a bridge to cross the river.
On the other hand... Qi Shanxing sneered and said: "Hebei and Shandong have been experiencing war for more than a hundred years. Liu Heitai's massacre of cities like this will only make the cities stubbornly defend themselves!"
Yuancheng's example is there, no chicken or dog is left behind... If you can escape, you will naturally escape, but if you can't escape, you can only fight.
Shandong has experienced wars for more than a hundred years, but it is not afraid of massacres.
In fact, Liu Heitai's method of massacring the city was just a helpless move. He did not care about Wei County giving up resistance or defending the city more desperately out of fear. What he cared about was Li Yangcang.
"It's Cheng Mingzhen and Qi Shanxing..." Wang Xiaohu waved his riding whip and whispered: "Qi Shanxing has been retreating south, do you want to try to fight?"
"They are guarding the bridge, how can we fight?" Liu Heitai touched the horse's hair on his crotch angrily.
After five consecutive days of attacking Guantao County, he was attacked and stolen by the Tang army at night. Liu Heitai gave up completely. He made a decisive decision and bypassed Guantao and quickly captured Yuancheng.
When everyone was slaughtering the city, Liu Heitai made a mental decision to attack Kewei County from the west, massacre the city, and spread the news.
Then he sent a large army across the river to attack Xiangzhou and Weizhou, and sent elite soldiers south along the Yongji Canal to capture Liyangcang.
The army attacked Xiangzhou and Weizhou. Whether Qi Shanxing or Cheng Mingzhen led the army to fight or defended the city, they would definitely not be in Liyangcang.
The elite cavalry went south to attack Liyang, threatening the massacre of cities in Yuancheng, Wei County and other places. It was very likely that they could capture Liyangcang... This was Liu Heitai's life-saving food.
But all this came to nothing when Liu Heitai arrived in Wei County. He did not expect that when he had swept most of Hebei Province, Qi Shanxing and Cheng Mingzhen would dare to lead their troops eastward to confront him across the river. .
At this time, elite cavalry were sent south to attack Liyangcang... This was almost impossible. With such a large army and a scouting range of nearly a hundred miles, it was impossible for the cavalry attacking Liyang to escape the detection of the opponent's scouts.
What's more, the Wei County in front of us has not yet been conquered. I sent my elite cavalry south to attack Liyang, but the effect is hard to say... Is it necessary to massacre the city if someone shouts that the granaries are burned?
Staring at the Tang army on the other side of the river and the flag flying in the river wind, a sense of powerlessness secreted from Liu Heitai's heart and quickly took over his whole body.
In the battle of Xiabo, the main force of the Tang army was destroyed and the king of Huaiyang, Li Daoxuan, was captured alive. The army marched westward and southward, capturing Jizhou, Beizhou, Xingzhou, and Luozhou with little effort.
Unexpectedly, Qi Shanxing, the general manager of Xingzhou, gathered his troops and retreated south twice in a row, and set fire to the Xingzhou granary.
The young man whom he had not yet met planned a night attack on the Beizhou camp, burned all the food and grass, and captured Ashina Yugushe.
Liu Heitai recalled that probably starting from the night when the Beizhou camp was attacked at night, everything shifted and everything was out of his control.
His right-hand men Fan Yuan and Dong Kang were killed in battle. The Turkic army suddenly moved eastward and was forced to attack Guantao with all its strength. They were defeated twice by Su Dingfang...
Do you just accept your fate?
Liu Heitai touched the handle of the knife at his waist, took a deep breath, and waved to call his general Cao Zhan.
He didn't believe it. He didn't believe that the Turkic army had just left. He still had tens of thousands of troops under his command. Qi Shanxing and Cheng Mingzhen really dared to go out of the city to fight in the field!
He vaguely guessed something... After all, Qi Shanxing, who burned down the Xingzhou Granary, was on the other side, and when they attacked Guantao before, the army did not surround the city.
On the hill across the river, Cheng Mingzhen was giving orders, sending multiple scouts south and north along the river, and even crossing the river to investigate the military situation. Not a single trace was missed, and he also sent people to contact Li Daoxuan and Tian Liuan who were still in Guantao.
Cheng Mingzhen and Qi Shanxing both had the same idea... If Guantao did not send troops, and if Liu Heita's troops were not in chaos, we would not cross the river to attack.
At this time, they suddenly heard loud noises from the army. Everyone was shocked. They turned around and saw more than ten ships coming south against the current, docked at the pier on the other side of the river, reflected in the dim sunset. Below, soldiers as big as ants are climbing onto the ship...
"Cheng Mingzhen frowned and was already looking at Ma Zhou from the corner of his eye.
Cheng Mingzhen was persuaded to send troops for two reasons. One was the Turks returning north, and the other was Liu Heitai's army was short of food.
The combined forces of Xiangzhou and Weizhou only had 2,000 cavalry and 2,000 infantry... If Liu Heitao's army was not short of food, these few troops would not be enough for Liu Heitai to swallow in one gulp.
"The ship is not big, but it is the most commonly used grain transport ship in Yongji Canal and Luoshui." Cui Xianshou said quickly with a gloomy face: "The Xingzhou granary was burned, but maybe the enemy was raising grain and grass in Beizhou... …”
Qi Shanxing stared at Ma Zhou, "Is it confirmed that the food and grass in the camp near Wucheng and Liting have been burned?"
"There is absolutely no falsehood." Ma Zhouyi said righteously, "I saw with my own eyes that Dong Kang was shot and killed by Su Dingfang himself, and Fan Yuan was beheaded by Su Dingfang outside the Wucheng County Yamen."
"That……"
"It must be transferred from Luozhou." Ma Zhou gushed: "Transported from Luoshui to Beizhou, then transferred from Qinghe to Wucheng, and from Wucheng to Yongji Canal... It is very expensive to transport grain in this way. Zhou Zhang can’t do this without the support of a prominent family in Beizhou!”
Qi Shanxing was also speechless. Why don't you just say that Cui of Qinghe did it?
Cui Xianshou sneered: "Who knows about the night attack on Liting and the attack on Wucheng?"
"Liu Heitai likes field battles the most. He destroyed 30,000 troops in the first battle of Xiabo..."
"Beizhou native, once an old friend of Liu Heitai, Ma Zhou... could he be a dead soldier?!"
"Shut up, everyone!" Cheng Minzhen shouted loudly, "If you want to take action, one person will be stabbed, life or death, if you don't take action, just shut up and wait!"
Finally calming down, Qi Shanxing whispered: "The fire in Xingzhou is unquestionable. Beizhou...Dong Kang and Fan Yuan both died in this battle, so there should be no big mistake."
Cheng Mingzhen nodded slightly, "Liu Heitai is accustomed to making cunning schemes. He mixes the truth with the truth. Don't act rashly..."
"If you don't retreat, don't cross the river, let the scouts stay away!"
"Send a few more people to Guantao. We must contact King Huaiyang and Tian Liu'an."
Cheng Minzhen was 60% sure that Liu Heitai on the other side was bluffing, but he was unwilling to expose this trick.
Liu Heitai tried to scare away the Tang army on the bank, but Cheng Minzhen chose not to withdraw his troops after a long time of hesitation, and at the same time contacted the Tang army in Guantao County.
Across the Yongji Canal, the choices made by both sides became the turning point of this war.
Because, at the same time, Li Shan in Guantao City had exposed Liu Heitai's trick.
In fact, Liu Heitai had been using this trick for several days in Yongji Canal outside Guantao City.
In the closed room, Li Shan, who had finished his work, refused to go out and played with more than a dozen corpses in various tricks with great interest... What a pity, so many physical education teachers will definitely be buried by them later!
At this moment, the door was pushed open, and Li Shan turned around and was surprised to see Li Kai and Yuchi Baolin.
Li Kai and Yuchi Baolin's eyes fell on the disemboweled corpses in front of Li Shan. The next moment, they fled.
When Li Shan went out to find the person, these two guys vomited bile all over the floor.
