The total number of men and horses under the command of Xining Mansion is around 200,000. In addition to the 150,000 carefully trained elites, there are also 50,000 grass bandit recruits recruited after the formal army was launched.
There have been many wars in Hexi since ancient times, and it is also an inevitable place for the Silk Road. There will be large and small grass bandits entrenched on almost every hilltop.
Qi Wenliang assigned many official positions to these grassroots bandits and brought them under the command of Xining Mansion. Half of them were transferred to the front of the army to serve as cannon fodder, and the other half was left to his son who stayed in Xining to be responsible for maintaining stability in the rear.
He originally wanted to quickly capture Lanzhou and other places and look eastward to the Central Plains. Unexpectedly, the emperor actually sent Prince Teng over, leaving him unable to do anything.
The two sides have been confronting each other by the Yellow River for more than a month, but no matter how much Qi Wenliang screamed and humiliated, Wang Ziteng always insisted on avoiding fighting and refused to fight.
If this consumption continues, let alone looking eastward to the Central Plains, the bank and grain depots of Xining Mansion will be emptied by the 200,000-strong army.
Don't look at the fact that the Xining Army took over several state capitals under the control of Shaanxi Xingdusi one after another after revolting, but who knows who is in charge, these state capitals are already barren.
Not only could he not add a pound of food to the Xining army, Qi Wenliang had to find a way to feed those greedy people.
As time went by, Xining Mansion's food supply began to become tense, and Qi Wenliang knew that he could not wait any longer.
When Aluotai led the remaining 60,000 Wala troops to the bank of the Yellow River, the two sides quickly reached an agreement.
Qi Wenliang used the wealth and women of several state capitals in Guanzhong as bargaining chips in exchange for the support of the Oara army. At the same time, it was agreed that after entering the capital, the two sides would use the Yellow River as the boundary. The north of the Yellow River would belong to Oara, and the south of the Yellow River would belong to Xining Prefecture.
Of course, Arotai doesn't have much hope for the final agreement, as long as he can get into the pass.
The wealthy women in several state capitals in Guanzhong were enough for the Wala army to return home with a full load.
The temperature in Hexi gradually increased in April. In previous years, people on both sides of the Yellow River were already working in the fields.
But this year's spring plowing was destined to be wasted. As the Xining Army's offensive intensified, Wang Ziteng had to move the commander's tent to Yongjing City, which was closest to the front line.
The two sides began to test each other on a large scale by the Yellow River outside Yongjing City. The roar of artillery continued for a while. In just one day of tentative fighting, the newly unblocked Yellow River was dyed red.
The Xining Prefecture has been working hard for decades, and the private soldiers it has cultivated are obviously more powerful than the Pingxi army.
Coupled with the support of the 60,000-walled army, after several days of confrontation, the imperial army was obviously unable to withstand it.
Yongjing City only lasted seven days before it was captured. Wang Ziteng had to withdraw his commander's tent to Lanzhou, an important town in Hexi, and relied on Lanzhou's strong city to defend it.
Fortunately, tens of thousands of troops mobilized from various places arrived in time, and Wang Ziteng breathed a sigh of relief. The war once again fell into a state of confrontation, and several large-scale frontal confrontations took place under Lanzhou City.
A series of fights, with both sides winning or losing. Wang Ziteng relied on Lanzhou's city to be well-supplied, and Qi Wenliang was unable to break Wang Ziteng's defense for a while.
While Qi Wenliang stormed Lanzhou, he sent 30,000 troops south along Yongjing City, first attacking Hezhou, then falling into Lintao and Minzhou, and then going around to the rear of Lanzhou, hoping to capture Gongchang Mansion and cut off Lanzhou's supply line.
Not wanting to be defeated, Liu Yu, the king of Longxi County who was in charge of Gongchang Mansion, came and flooded the Seventh Army. He used the water of the Wei River to directly drown nearly 10,000 Xining troops, causing Qi Wenliang to give up his plan to sneak attack Lanzhou's rear.
By the end of April, Wang Ziteng was in charge of the overall situation in Lanzhou, Longxi County Prince Liu Yu was in charge of Gongchang, and Prince Liu Hong was in charge of the dispatch of the army's food and grass. The three of them worked together to drag Qi Wenliang along the line from Lanzhou in the north to Minzhou in the south. Go up and don't dare to move at all.
As soon as the battle line was lengthened, the shortcomings of Xining Mansion's insufficient military strength became apparent.
For a time, the threat from Liangzhou and Yongchang Guards was temporarily lifted. Jia Cong did not have many men and horses under his command. In addition to sending a small number of cavalry south to fight guerrilla warfare with the rebels, the remaining men and horses were not idle either. They were all sent out of the city by Jia Cong.
Those who herd sheep and those who farmed the fields helped the people of Liangzhou and Yongchangwei replant their crops for spring plowing.
The farming season has already passed, and it is too late to plant wheat and millet. Fortunately, Liu Hong had sent a large amount of potatoes earlier.
Seedlings, plowing, planting...
The fight in Hexi was indistinguishable, but Liangzhou and Yongchangwei were peaceful and quiet.
If the scouts hadn't been sending the latest battle reports every day, the people who returned to the city would have almost forgotten that there was still a war going on outside.
After eating beef and mutton for nearly two months, Jia Cong felt like he was about to be marinated in the fishy smell. Looking longingly at the green grass outside, he wanted to pick it back and eat it to satisfy his craving.
The war in the direction of Lanzhou was fierce, and the city of Liangzhou was quiet for several years, but this tranquility was soon broken.
On the Dragon Boat Festival, the scouts finally opened the channel to Lanzhou and delivered two letters from Wang Ziteng and Liu Hong.
Wang Ziteng was furious about Jia Cong and others' boldness in sending troops to surprise the Wala Khan Court. However, after learning that the accidental attack solved the food crisis between Liangzhou and Yongchang Guard, he put the matter aside for the time being and ordered Jia Cong to integrate Liangzhou. The soldiers and horses of Zhouzhou and Yongchang Guards went south to Xining Mansion to attack Qi Wenliang's rear.
Liu Hong's letter was very supportive of Jia Cong's strategy of raiding the Wala Khan's court from thousands of miles away. Not only did he praise it in the letter, he also asked Jia Cong how the beef and sheep in Wala tasted, and if he had the opportunity, give him some to try.
Regarding Wang Ziteng's order for Jia Cong to lead his troops south, Liu Hong said that Jia Cong should assess the situation and protect himself.
It is probably because they are worried that there are not many people in Liangzhou. If the Xining army raids Liangzhou, the gains will outweigh the losses.
However, Jia Cong still felt that Wang Ziteng's plan was worth a try, so he did not hesitate and summoned the main generals in the city to discuss sending troops.
On the eighth day of May, Jia Cong appointed Chang Wei, the commander of the Ningxia Central Guard, as his general, and led 10,000 cavalry from Liangzhou and Yongchang guards through the Qilian Mountains and south to Xining Prefecture to quell the rebellion.
At the same time, Zhang Daiyan was appointed as the second-echelon general, leading 20,000 infantry to attack Zhuanglangwei, located between Lanzhou and Liangzhou, in order to open up the Hexi Corridor and completely restore the connection with Lanzhou.
Ten thousand elite cavalry passed through the Qilian Mountain Pass in a mighty manner, blocking and killing gods and Buddhas along the way, and swept away every bandit recruited by Qi Wenliang along the way.
The Qi family who stayed behind in Xining Mansion were shocked when they received the news, thinking that the imperial court had sent a large army to attack from the north, and hurriedly went to the front line to deliver a message to Qi Wenliang.
After Zhang Daiyan conquered Anyuan City, the heavily defended Zhuanglangwei bridgehead, he followed the Great Wall eastward and successively recaptured Zhenqiangbao and Wushengyi, and was about to hit Zhuanglang City.
Knowing that there was chaos in the rear, Qi Wenliang had to ask for help from Aluotai, the grand master of Wala who had an army of 60,000.
What kind of person is Aluotai? Do you want the Vala warriors to work for the Qi family? Okay, bring the money!
After Qi Wenliang gritted his teeth and promised another million worth of goods, Aluotai ordered 30,000 generals under his command to return to Xining Mansion to help the Qi family block the imperial army.
The scouts passed the news to Chang Wei, who broke the army into pieces and began to play hide-and-seek with the Wala army.
It was not until the end of May that Liangzhou sent a letter from Jia Cong, ordering Chang Wei to directly contact Aluotai, the grand master of Wala, and ask him to come to Liangzhou City for negotiations.
Wala Khan Borjijin Yilan, Kedunchoros Lanqiduo and their two children, as well as dozens of dignitaries including the left and right prime ministers of Wala were escorted to Liangzhou City by Jia Shiyi.
If it weren't for the lack of manpower that Jia Shiyi brought to the raid, he could have captured all the hundreds of royal nobles from the Walakhan Court.
…
"So, Brother Xue accidentally picked up Yilan?"
Even though he had heard how Yi Lan was captured several times, Jia Cong was still shocked and in disbelief.
It’s so outrageous. There are still weird things like picking up the leader of an enemy country!
Jia Shiyi nodded solemnly again, cupped his hands and said: "I didn't believe it at first, but Yilan was indeed captured by Xue Qianhu, and only dozens of the two hundred people he led were injured, and none of them died in the battle. Speaking of picking up Coming back is quite appropriate."
Hey hey hey...
Xue Pan, who had been grinning stupidly, scratched his head and said naively: "I am also lucky. That Yi Lan was exhausted by Master Eleven, and he was surrounded by some young masters. He looked quite bluffing, so let's fight There was no energy at all, and I couldn’t even get enough of it.”
Good guy!
Jia Cong called him "lucky shit". He was jealous of such achievements!
Although Jia Shiyi was the leader of this raid, Xue Pan's contribution was enough to upgrade him to three levels in a row, and it might even be greater than Jia Cong's contribution.
Outrageous, outrageous!
"Forget it, let the people in the Ministry of War deal with the matter of describing the merits. Let's talk about the next thing first..."
Jia Cong truthfully wrote down the achievements of Jia Shiyi and others in the merit book and quickly sent them to Lanzhou with the military information.
There were all his own people in the room, and Jia Cong didn't hide them.
"The imperial court's reinforcements have arrived in Lanzhou one after another, and the Xining Army is no longer a big threat. If it weren't for the 60,000 Wala Tatars, Lanzhou's counterattack would have already begun. Yi Lan and others can take advantage of it, just look at A Luotai What will you choose?"
The commander of Yongchang Guard Luo Zhijie frowned. He saw that Jia Shiyi, Xue Pan and other generals did not question Jia Cong's words. He hesitated again and again, looked at Jia Cong several times and opened his mouth, but did not make a sound.
"General Luo, we are all one of our own, just speak up if you have anything to say."
Luo Zhijie clasped his fists and said, "Uncle, Yi Lan has a special status. How to deal with it? Should I ask the palace first?"
Jia Cong nodded, smiled and explained to everyone in the hall: "Liangzhou is thousands of miles away from the capital. The war in Hexi is urgent. Don't ask your majesty to make up your mind. When the decree is sent back to Liangzhou, the day lilies will be gone." It's going to be cold. Besides, when I left the capital, Your Majesty gave me something that can be used to act on behalf of God in case of emergency."
As he spoke, Jia Cong took a long wooden box from the soldiers, opened it, and lifted something with both hands.
This object is a gold mace with a jade handle and a gold body, with nine dragons carved on it.
call!
"Hit...beat...is this the king's whip?"
Every time Jia Cong saw this golden mace, he would think of the old man who cared about the country and the people.
Xining was at peace, and Daxia was about to succeed in cutting the vassalage. Unfortunately, the old man left in a hurry and was never seen again.
I saw Jia Cong caressing the golden mace gently and said with regret: "Yes, it is the Prime Minister... Wei Wenzhenggong's royal whip. Originally, His Majesty asked me to use the power of this mace to frighten the vassals in Hexi and the Western Regions and deal with them. It’s hard to make a decision, I don’t want it to happen to the Wala people first.”
"Long live Long live Long live!"
After a brief shock, everyone left their seats and bowed respectfully.
Jia Cong put away the golden mace again and asked everyone to sit down again.
"Actually, we were able to succeed in the raid this time. In the final analysis, we took advantage of the lack of troops in the Wara Khan Court. We did not really seal the wolf and live in Xu, and it was not to the extent of destroying the country. Therefore, Yi Lan's life and death is not important. What is important is Take this opportunity to cut off Qi Wenliang's help and drive Aluotai back to the grassland."
Luo Zhijie asked unwillingly: "Is Yilan going to be put back?"
"Well, Yi Lan must put it back..."
"What? How can this be done? I boasted about Haikou and asked Yi Lan to dance for the Second Saint."
Jia Cong smiled and comforted the jumping Xue Pan: "Brother Xue, sit down first, I haven't finished speaking yet."
Just listen to Jia Cong continue to say: "Yilan is just a puppet. The one who is really in power in Wala now is Aluotai. Of course, puppets have their uses. This time when Aluotai went south, it can be said that he lost his troops and was attacked by us. Ting has kidnapped a large number of Wala's relatives and nobles. Let's let Yilan go back. Do you think those Wala's relatives will turn to support Yilan in seizing power because they resent Aluotai?"
Xue Pan was unwilling to give up and couldn't help but said: "Anyway, there are only 60,000 people left in Aluotai. We might as well block the route back to the north and kill them all in Hexi."
Jia Cong smiled and said nothing. Luo Zhijie sighed and said: "We can't do it. Don't forget that we are not only facing Hexi now. The chaos in the Western Region is enough to exhaust us."
"That's the truth..."
Jia Cong roughly summarized the news received in the past few days, and then Xue Pan understood the complicated situation the court was facing now.
Qi Wenliang knew that the power of Xining Mansion alone could not directly confront the imperial court. So before he raised his troops, he turned the Western Regions upside down.
Almost all the vassals in the Western Regions betrayed Daxia and formed a coalition to attack the Protectorate of the Western Regions and the Shaanxi Xingdu Division.
Most of these vassal states were city-states with few military forces. However, the alliance of more than a dozen vassal states, and the involvement of foreign forces, really made it difficult for the Western Region Protectorate and the Shaanxi Xingdu Division to resist.
If the imperial court does not put down the rebellion in Xining Mansion as soon as possible and send a large army to support the Western Region Protectorate, this land of complex ethnic groups may really be removed from the empire's territory.
Seeing that all the generals in the hall were silent, Jia Cong said with a smile: "I'm not letting Yi Lan go back just to exchange for A Luotai's withdrawal. I must talk to this Grand Master Wala properly. He A Luotai wants to If you want us to let Wala Yiying go back, you can, but you have to pay more!"
"ah?"
Everyone in the hall was stunned and looked at Jia Cong with their mouths open.
I saw Jia Cong spread his hands: "The army is working hard on an expedition. Do you want any compensation for the brothers who died in the battle? Besides, this raid of thousands of miles has brought back a large group of Wala people. They eat what horses chew. Who doesn't want money? I and I He wants some money as compensation, is that too much?"
Monthly ticket recommendation ticket
I’ll stop updating here tonight and continue tomorrow. Good night!
(End of chapter)
