But it was said that Er Xiao came to the central hall of the government office and summoned his men to discuss the strategy against the enemy. Pinglu City is backed by Shizuishan Mountain and has four gates: southeast, southeast and northwest. The four gates were also guarded by fifty soldiers. In addition to the brave soldiers in the guard station, there are only four hundred people in total. This time Kuaiyun came with three thousand iron cavalry, and he was so powerful that he insisted on taking Pinglu City in one fell swoop.
Behind Xiao Ruxun is a screen with a cowhide map hanging on it, marking the topography of Ningxia. Pinglu City straddles the throat of Ningxia, connecting Yinchuan to the south, the desert to the north, Helan to the west, and the natural moat of the Yellow River to the east. Once they fall, the Tatars will march straight in and invade the territory of the Ming Dynasty.
Xiao Ruxun pointed at the map with a riding whip and said: "Although Chiyun is defeated today, I predict that he will never give up. He will definitely attack the city again at nightfall. The guerrilla generals ordered people to prepare gold juice and rolling stones to prevent the ladder attack. City. In addition, the wolf fangs on the city tower cannot be photographed as a last resort and should not be used lightly. There are swords and chariots hidden behind each gate. Once the city gate is breached, we can still resist with all our strength."
All the guerrilla generals took orders one by one. Xiao Ruxun said again: "Pass on my general order to have the soldiers guarding the city take turns to change their posts every two hours. You four guerrilla generals, Brother Xiao and I will take your place.????????????? ??A battle is inevitable tonight, everyone must work together to protect our city."
After everything was arranged, Xiao Yunfan followed him to the grain depot. On the way, Xiao Ruxun said worriedly: "Yunfan, the thieves are so powerful. We don't know when this battle will end. What I'm most worried about is the lack of food and grass and the unstable morale of the army."
Xiao Yunfan said: "Then brother, is there any way to raise it?" Xiao Ruxun shook his head and said: "There is no way, but I can't bear to take food from the mouths of these people in this city." Xiao Yunfan said: "Brother is a bodhisattva, but I can't To hold on to this city, food and grass must be our top priority."
The two men came to the grain depot and inspected it. The rice grain in the depot was only enough for the sergeant for five days. In the evening, Xiao Ruxun returned to the government office, where seven or eight guards were carrying food. He couldn't help but feel surprised and asked: "Where did you get this rice?"
The guard said: "My wife asked me to move the rice store in the city." As the two of them were talking, Yang walked over slowly. Xiao Ruxun saw her long hair hanging around her shoulders and asked quickly: "Madam, where does this rice come from?"
Yang smiled and said: "Ms. sir, I know that you have been worried about food and grass these days. I couldn't discuss it with you, so I made my own decision and pawned all the gold and silver jewelry from the dowry. I specially exchanged for some food, wine and meat. To relieve the urgent shortage of military supplies."
Xiao Ruxun was moved and immediately stepped forward to hold her hand and said, "With a virtuous woman like this, the city of Lu will have no worries." Yang lowered his head, his cheeks flushed and said, "Ms. sir, is there anyone else here?"
The sky has darkened and the snow has stopped. Yiyun camped on a hillside twenty miles south of Pingluo City. In the big tent, the charcoal fire in the copper basin burned red and was as warm as spring. Kuaiyun was wearing a short shirt and sitting on a tiger-skin chair to warm his hands.
A middle-aged man with a thin body and gray hair next to him said: "General, the flag of our commander was broken today because of a master in the opponent's camp." Yiyun said lightly: "Who are you talking about?" That man Said: "It's probably Xiao Yunfan."
Yiyun was startled and said: "Why is he here?" The man said: "I just got the secret letter from the Lord today. His old man mentioned in the letter that we must be careful about this person. Today we attack the city. The other party showed his hand, so my subordinates guessed that this person might be Xiao Yunfan."
A bright light flashed in Yiyun's eyes and he said: "I heard that Xiao Yunfan is the leader of the current righteous martial arts world. A good leader will not sit down and come to this bitter and cold place to suffer. If I were him, I wouldn't be so boring. But even Xiao Yunfan , I’m not afraid either. If we fight alone, I may not be his opponent, but if we want to march and fight, he may not be able to match me.”
The man saw that Wei Yun was very conceited when he spoke, so he advised: "General, don't underestimate the enemy. It is said that Xiao Yunfan once obtained a military book from Qi Jiguang. Qi Jiguang did not gain fame in vain, and his disciples should not be underestimated."
Yi Yun said disdainfully: "Mr. Nan, I don't believe that one can be invincible by reading a military book. It is true that Qi Jiguang is a hero, but Xiao Yunfan is not Qi Jiguang. On the contrary, Xiao Ruxun, who is behind this general, is our real enemy."
】
Mr. Nan said: "What the general said is absolutely true. Pingluo City is easy to defend but difficult to attack, and Xiao Ruxun is not someone who takes things for granted. In my humble opinion, it is better to attack the city slowly than in haste."
Yiyun shook his head and said: "I boasted in front of my father that I could take over Pinglu City in Haikou within three days. You said it was better to go slow than to rush, but wouldn't that cost my life? I????????????" ?????We must attack quickly. The art of war lies in the word "deception". What is "deception"? It means taking the enemy by surprise and attacking him unprepared. Xiao Ruxun may have thought that when I was defeated for the first time, I would not attack the city. Tonight we will kill him by surprise. "
Mr. Nan said with worry on his brow: "Young general, I have received the kindness of my master in knowing you. You should tie a grass ring to repay me. Your master sent me to plan for you, and I also hope that I can take care of the general's worries."
Seeing that the young general is eager to make achievements, Wan Sheng wants to advise the general that the attack on the city should not be done too hastily. Your Majesty has informed me that we need to work together with the Tatar leaders to discuss the plan regarding the siege. I hope the general will think twice. "
Kuaiyun said: "Mr. Nan, I don't have the patience to wait for the old fox like Li Tu to take action. We have to attack the city tonight no matter what. If we break the city one day later, my life will be in greater danger. Has the Lord ever done anything for me? consider?"
Mr. Nan was speechless for a moment, and Yiyun stood up and patted his shoulder and said: "Mr. Nan, I know that you are loyal to the Lord. If the Lord wants to achieve great things, you and I are both pawns, but I am the pawn first." It’s about protecting yourself.”
At the top of Pinglu City, Xiao Ruxun and his wife prepared ginger soup and beef to ward off the cold and distributed them to the soldiers. A big man with a Chinese character face, after drinking ginger soup and eating beef, his heart felt much warmer. He came over and said: "The general and his wife treat the brothers like this, and the brothers should die as retribution."
Xiao Ruxun said: "The night was cold and windy, brothers worked hard to defend the city. Zhuo Jing and I also tried our best." This man's name is Ma Yuan, and he is a guerrilla general guarding the south gate.
Ma Yuan was moved in his heart and he had heard earlier that the general's wife sold off her jewelry for tonight's food and drinks. Then he said loudly: "Brothers, cheer up for me after eating and drinking." The sergeant at the head of the city agreed.
At this moment, the sound of hooves thundered and the earth shook. Groups of black shadows below the city are slowly approaching. Suddenly, hundreds of flaming arrows shot out, lighting up the entire night sky like shooting stars. As the black shadow approached, it turned out that groups of sergeants holding spears were running forward.
Xiao Ruxun pressed the sword in his hand and said loudly: "Fire the arrows." On the top of the city, the archers also fired arrows one after another. A dense rain of arrows fell, and the enemy soldiers raised their shields to resist.
The enemy army was charged by three groups of infantry in front, and behind the infantry were three ladder trucks that slowly advanced forward. Kuaiyun, on the other hand, sat on the chariot in the distance and watched. Next to him is Mr. Nan, the staff member.
Yiyun looked ahead, raised a riding whip and pointed forward: "Mr. Nan, you have to be careful tonight. I dispatched a thousand soldiers to attack the south gate, and divided three teams to attack the east, west and north gates. Xiao Ruxun was in a hurry. .”
Mr. Nan stroked his beard and said: "The general's move seems unexpected, but the other party has been prepared for it. From what Wansheng can see, we can't get any advantage tonight."
Kuaiyun smiled and said: "You are wrong. Not only will I fight like this tonight, but I will fight like this tomorrow night. As long as I continue to harass, even if the city cannot be breached in a moment, the soldiers and civilians in the city will definitely be frightened. In this way, on the third day I can defeat the city in one fell swoop.”
After hearing this, Mr. Nan admired and said: "It turns out that the general had planned for a long time, but he was too worried late in life."
Kuaiyun's rebels quickly pressed into the city. Xiao Ruxun and Ma Yuan commanded the soldiers and shouted: "Let's release the rolling stones!" As they said this, the soldiers standing at the crenels raised stones the size of watermelons and threw them toward the city. For a while, there was endless wailing, and the enemy had to retreat.
When one of the enemy generals saw the soldiers retreating one after another, he raised his sword and beheaded one of them and shouted loudly: "No retreat, no retreat." But at this time, the forwards suffered casualties. It was so disastrous that the soldiers scurried away in panic.
A guard ran forward to report to Kuaiyun. Kuaiyun became fierce and said: "If you come here again, anyone who climbs the city will be rewarded with a hundred gold coins." He gave the order, and another group of infantry advanced.
There must be a brave man under the heavy reward, and sure enough, this team of people soon came to the city again. Three ladder trucks were also set up on the city wall. The ladders slowly unfolded, and groups of rebels shouted and climbed up.
The hot golden juice was poured down, and the rebels who boarded the city had their skin charred and their flesh rotten. They fell one after another, suffering heavy casualties. In desperation, the ladder had to be withdrawn. The east, west, north and west gates were also heavily defended, leaving no opportunity for the enemy to take advantage of.
Seeing the enemy's defeat, Xiao Ruxun waved an order flag and said: "Open the west gate to meet the enemy and kill." Drums sounded from the turret. The west gate was guarded by guerrilla generals Luan Yu and Xiao Yunfan. After receiving the order, the two rode War horses lead troops into battle.
These enemies had been unable to attack for a long time and were already anxious. Their men had suffered heavy casualties, and they had long been fearful in their hearts. Unexpectedly, the opponent took the initiative to fight again at this moment, and was caught off guard by the fighting.
With one man and one sword, Xiao Yunfan broke into the enemy's formation like a tiger rushing into a flock of sheep, killing more than fifty people in a row. The tooth general who attacked the west gate was also killed on the spot by him. Seeing the general's death, the bandits turned into birds and beasts and dispersed.
After a night of fierce fighting, Yiyun's side suffered more than 400 casualties, and Xiao Ruxun's side also lost more than ten sergeants.
The rebels returned to the camp and looked at the disgraced men one by one. Kuaiyun looked angry and said angrily: "A bunch of losers, don't think how many people Xiao Ruxun can have. You can just replace them one by one and give up this Pinglu City." I got it."
A big man with a beard said: "General, please calm down. It's not that the brothers are unwilling to work hard, but..." Yiyun asked: "But what? Four hundred brothers died in one night. How can I explain to my father, the commander-in-chief?" "
The big man lowered his head, and the other generals did not dare to breathe. Kuaiyun rubbed his temples and yelled: "Get out! Get out! Get out! Get out of here, let me have some peace and quiet."
Mr. Nan, who was standing next to him, winked at the generals, and the generals also exited the tent.
