After sending away the governor of Cangzhou, Yang Peng came to the official hall. Yang Peng also felt that this arrangement was a failure and almost caused Tianjing New City to be destroyed. He did not expect that Xiao Tianzuo would attack his hometown. Yang Peng faced his master Lin Qing'er and Mrs. She said, "Master, Mrs. She made a mistake in my arrangement this time. It almost put Tianjing New City in danger. I think we must have a response plan. When the danger comes, At that time, the young people of the whole city must come out to protect our city, and I decided to hold a meeting every month with employees from various factories to defend the new city."
Mrs. She said, "Yes, we were also shocked this time, thinking that Tianjing New City was not safe. We did not do a good job this time. In addition, we notified Dagou to send reinforcements. At Dagou and the port, We have almost 20,000 troops in Yanshan County. This time we panicked and forgot about this. Next time you go on an expedition, one of you and Zhang Xiang must stay behind, so that everyone can have a backbone. This Everyone is at fault every time.”
Yang Peng said, "We will go out this time to intercept all the people Xiao Tianzuo robbed near Cangzhou. We will also give a severe blow to the Khitan people, so that Empress Dowager Xiao will remember this lesson and leave it to us." There is room for development. Zhang Xiang will stay this time and transfer two thousand people from the direction of Dagou to defend the city. This time Seventh Sister-in-law will go out with us. Seventh Sister-in-law, thank you for your hard work this time, our General Huyan." Thanks to Seventh Sister-in-law’s work, I thought of a poem for Seventh Sister-in-law. I didn’t know Sister-in-law Seven liked it.
Yang Peng picked up a pen and paper and wrote in thin gold handwriting, "Go to war." He was impressed by Huyan Chijin's battlefield style and said, "The mountains are high, the roads are far away and the pits are deep, and the armies are galloping in all directions. Who dares to draw a sword and stand on horseback? I am the only one." Call me General!" Seventh Sister-in-law is giving this to you to thank you for your help to my little brother. Thank you Seventh Sister-in-law.
Mrs. She said, "Seventh daughter-in-law, look at your brother-in-law who is partial to you. He has written two poems for you in just a few days. Yang Peng, the writing of this word is so beautiful and beautiful. I love this poem." Just keep it for Huyan Chijin, haha." Huyan Chijin didn't expect that Yang Peng had written a poem for him, and his heart was beating wildly, and he couldn't balance himself at all.
Yang Peng arranged the expedition, while Zhang Xiang stayed in Tianjing New City, and also helped the people resume production as soon as possible. The seven departments of Tianjing New City also went to the countryside to help the people resume production. Yang Peng led his troops northward to Qingshan Pass.
Qingshan Pass is located fifty miles north of Dingzhou County. It is an important official pass on Xiao Tianzuo's return to Yingzhou, Mozhou and Huiyouzhou. It was basically rebuilt in the 14th year of Taizong, and was rebuilt again later. The Qingshankou Great Wall is built in the mountains, with a dangerous terrain and numerous watchtowers. There is a guard stationed in the south of the pass. Of course, these watchtowers and garrison offices have now fallen into Khitan hands.
Yang Peng led his troops to advance quickly, and it took ten days to reach Qingshan Pass. After ten days of walking at a fast pace, the soldiers all felt very hard, especially the temporary draft troops. Fortunately, you can rest for two days after arriving at Qingshan Pass. Yang Peng camped ten miles south of Qingshan Pass. After sending troops to scout the area for two days, he decided to build a fortress in a canyon called Maligou by the locals.
This canyon is the only way to enter the Qingshan Pass from the south. It is more than ten miles long from north to south and three miles wide from east to west. Both sides of the canyon are impassable mountains. There is a small river flowing through the middle of the valley. The river is not deep and you can wade across it on foot. If you build a camp in the middle of the canyon, the entire east and west of the canyon will be within the range of the crossbow.
Under the threat of powerful crossbows, the Khitan army's more than 100,000 livestock could not pass smoothly. The two thousand Khitan troops at Qingshankou Pass saw Yang Peng setting up camp outside, and sent dozens of scouts out to conduct reconnaissance. At first, these scouts were very arrogant because of their proficiency with bows and horses, but as soon as they approached the Huben division, they were defeated by a volley of gunfire from the Dang bandit soldiers, and fled back in panic. From then on, the two thousand Khitan soldiers in the pass no longer dared to come out to spy.
After finding the location, Yang Peng began to build the fortifications of the camp. The first step is to dig trenches to block the enemy. The trench designed by Yang Peng is a large trench three meters wide and two meters deep. Such large trenches were dug four times outside the camp, from two hundred meters away from the edge of the camp to eighty meters away from the edge of the camp, with trenches dug every forty meters. Eighty meters was the range of the Khitan army's bows and arrows. Without crossing these four ditches, the Khitan army's archers would not be able to shoot against Yang Peng's riflemen.
A low wall fifty centimeters high was piled on the inside of the trench to ensure that Khitan soldiers and horses could not jump over the trench. While trenches were being dug, the soldiers built earth batteries for the artillery.
Yang Peng's powerful crossbow was mounted on a crossbow cart, and the muzzle was three feet above the ground. The soldiers built a wall with rammed earth below this height to protect the crossbow. With the protection of the earth fort, if the Khitan army's machine crossbows and Yang Peng's powerful crossbows fired at each other, the chance of being hit by a long arrow in the earth fort would be reduced by half.
The crossbow turret was built in the middle of the rifleman's shooting position, scattered in the gaps between the infantry queues. Then there was the construction of defensive earthen walls for the riflemen. The rifle is fired against the shoulder. The shoulder height of soldiers is generally more than four feet, so Yang Peng built four four-foot-high earth walls in front of the shooting positions on all sides of the camp. The earth wall is one foot thick. Shooting behind an earth wall can reduce the probability of soldiers being hit by Khitan army bows and arrows.
On top of the earthen wall, a canopy was built for the riflemen. The awning is five feet four inches high and six feet wide. It has a pointed roof and is covered with thatch. This canopy sheltered the riflemen from the rain. The flintlock gun can also be used for combat in drizzle, but when the rain is heavy, the probability of firing will plummet, and it may even become impossible to fight. When it rains in the wild, you can retreat when you encounter enemies. The rain will stop after an hour or two. However, they could not retreat in the camp, so they could only repair the facilities to protect them from rainwater.
With this canopy, you can fight even during heavy rains. Of course, the archers of the Khitan army cannot fight on rainy days. The Khitan army generally does not fight on rainy days. The awning is not high, and the roof is just above the soldiers' heads. It can also shield the soldiers from the thrown bows and arrows. If you shoot with the Qing army's bows and arrows behind such a protective facility, the casualty rate will be reduced by several percent.
Then there is the construction of wood spurs. Wooden thorns are made by cutting wood and sharpening the head. When using, bury the tail into the ground. The wooden thorns are half a foot high, and the wooden heads on them are chopped into sharp points, and they are scattered on the ground. Wooden spikes are arranged within eighty meters in front of the awning. The Khitan army could not pass where the wooden thorns were placed, so they had to bypass the wooden thorns to rush to the Huben division's formation.
It takes a lot of time to pull out the wood thorns, which is basically impossible. If the Khitan army wanted to rush into the formation, they could only take a few winding passages without wooden spurs, which greatly slowed down the Khitan army's approach to the Huben division's formation. Finally, Yang Peng brought a large amount of caltrops this time. Yang Peng laid several layers of caltrops behind the wooden thorns and in front of the awning. If they want to pass through the area occupied by these iron caltrops, the Khitan army will have to pay a heavy price.
After finishing all these arrangements, half a month has passed. On February 13, 70,000 Khitan troops escorted more than 100,000 livestock, various property and supplies, and drove to Qingshan Pass in a mighty manner. The forward scouts of the Khitan army arrived at Qingshan Pass and were immediately shocked by the camp built by Yang Peng. Those trenches, those earth walls, canopies and other defenses were like the spikes of hedgehogs, preventing the Khitan army from getting close. The riflemen behind the fortifications put their rifles on the earth wall and stared at the Khitan army outside.
The key is that unless this hedgehog-like camp is removed, the Khitan army will not be able to enter Qingshan Pass. The canyon of Maligou is only three miles wide. If Yang Peng's cannon moves to the middle, the Qing army will be bombarded by artillery when passing through the canyon, making it impossible to pass. A group of scouts tried to rush across the edge of the canyon, but were fired upon by ten powerful crossbows. Half of them were killed, and they retreated in embarrassment.
There seemed to be more than a hundred powerful crossbows in the camp. Perhaps 70,000 Khitan soldiers rushed through the edge area regardless of casualties, and sacrificing a few thousand people could probably make it through. But the price is too high. The generals cannot let the warriors of Daliao sacrifice in vain! And if they rush over like that, what will happen to the people and animals escorted by the Khitan army? Especially those southerners. It is estimated that when the crossbows are fired, all these southerners will be scattered. When the time comes, they will disperse in a rush. The Khitan army does not know how many people they will have to kill to chase them back.
Seeing the stronghold built by Yang Peng, the Khitan army stopped in front of Mali ditch and did not advance. In the center of the Khitan army, a group of Khitan generals were riding on their horses looking at Yang Peng's camp with different expressions. Handerang whipped his riding whip in the air and cursed loudly: "This Yang Peng! Does he want the lives of 70,000 of us? We have given up on Dingzhou and rushed to Qingshan Pass at full speed just to get out of the customs. ! He actually came to Qingshan Pass to build a stronghold to deal with us!"
Zhang Hua bit his thumb and said: "This camp is stuck in the middle of the canyon. The Nannan people and livestock we robbed cannot rush through." Han Derang was defeated by Yang Peng in Tianjing New City. Knowing Yang Peng's combat power, his face at this time The commander was already very panicked, and he said loudly: "Commander General, let's abandon the robbed Nannan people and livestock and rush over. The further we delay, the worse the situation will be!"
Xiao Tianzuo shook his head and said: "We have lost 30,000 warriors in the past few months since we entered the pass, and we relied entirely on these southerners to supplement our manpower. If we abandon humans and animals this time, my warriors from Daliao will no longer have the courage to enter." The city has been plundered!" "In that case, the offensive of the Liao Kingdom against the Song Kingdom will be over."
After hearing Xiao Tianzuo's words, all the generals calmed down. No matter how strong Yang Peng's camp is, he can't change the national destiny of the Great Khitan just for one camp. If they no longer dare to enter the fortress and plunder, Daliao will rapidly weaken. Handerang shouted loudly: "General, let's capture this camp! After all, he only has 10,000 people, and we have 70,000!"
Handerang seemed to suddenly remember the crossbows in the army and said loudly: "Shoot him with a crossbow. We have more than fifty crossbows. Shoot against him and knock out his powerful crossbow." Zhang Hua gritted his teeth and said: " Yang Peng has more than a hundred powerful crossbows, and our machine crossbows may not be able to defeat him."
Handerang said: "How will you know if you don't try?" Looking at the trenches in front of him, Handerang said: "There are ways to do those trenches. We cut down giant trees to make wooden bridges and put them on the trenches to rush over." After everyone heard what Handerang said, His eyes lit up.
Han Derang added: "As long as we build a wooden bridge and rush through the four trenches, our warriors can shoot at the Song army in front of the formation! Then while shooting arrows and rushing up, our warriors can fight with the Song army in hand-to-hand combat! We have seven Thousands of people!”
From a mile away, the generals of the Khitan army could not see the wooden thorns and iron caltrops in front of Yang Peng's formation, and thought that they could fight Yang Peng's soldiers and horses by rushing through those trenches. Hearing Han Derang's words, the generals of the Khitan Army were a little moved. They all sat silently on their horses, thinking about the feasibility of Yang Peng's tactics. Zhang Hua suddenly said: "We can drive the southerners to dig and fill the trenches. If the Song army doesn't shoot, we will fill it all the way! If the Song army shoots, it will only be the southerners who die."
Xiao Tianma was defeated by Yang Peng in Tianjing New City, and he was really scared of being beaten. After listening to the words of the generals, his face was still flustered. He opened his mouth and said with fear: "General, the Song Army Yang Peng is very cunning. I think his methods are not limited to these trenches." Han Derang looked at it with disdain. Xiao Tianma said: "Xiao Tianma, you are afraid of being beaten by Yang Peng. Yang Peng is good at fighting in the field, but he may not be good at defending the city."
Xiao Tianma said in a panic: "We can abandon Qingshan Pass and attack other passes! Exit from other passes!" Hearing Xiao Tianma's words, the generals were a little contemptuous, feeling that Xiao Tianma was really defeated by Yang Peng. How easy is it to temporarily attack other passes? The Song Dynasty had been operating for decades, and all major passes were surrounded by high walls and deep trenches, and they were well prepared. Every time the Khitan army entered the pass, they had to coordinate carefully and conduct careful reconnaissance at each pass to know which pass was empty of defense before they could attack by force.
Even so, it may not be possible to capture it. We must work carefully and wait for the right opportunity at the right time and place to break through. For example, when I entered the customs this time, I obtained intelligence through careful detective work and launched a sudden attack to succeed. Sometimes the border walls near Cangzhou were well-defended and impeccable. In order to enter the pass, the Khitan army even had to detour thousands of miles to Datong in order to break through a fortress with empty defenses. This shows how difficult it is to break through.
As long as the Great Wall pass is slightly tightly defended, Xiao Tianzuo cannot break it. The Khitan army's ability to attack fortresses is not strong. As long as the Song army is not too weak, the Khitan army is generally helpless against fortified cities. There were only a thousand weak soldiers defending the city. This time, Xiao Tianzuo's tens of thousands of troops surrounded the city for two months but failed to capture it.
At this time, Xiao Tianzuo was in the territory of the Song Dynasty, and the Liao Kingdom spread all over the Song Dynasty to report to the Empress Dowager Xiao. Xiao Tianzuo couldn't get the information for a while, and he didn't know the truth and reality of the Song Army's various passes, and he couldn't break through the passes. . To attack a tightly defended pass is to sacrifice the lives of Daliao warriors to the Song army in vain. If we abandon Qingshan Pass and attack other Great Wall passes with high walls and deep trenches because of the four trenches, it will undoubtedly be giving up the easy thing for the hard one.
Handerang ignored Xiao Tianma's words at all, but said to Zhang Hua: "Using giant trees to make wooden bridges to cross the trenches is a good idea. As long as we rush through these four trenches, our 70,000 people can defeat Yang Peng's 10,000 people." People!" Xiao Tianma nodded and said: "Commander General, we can give it a try. If 70,000 people give up Qingshan Pass because of four trenches, where will our warriors dare to meet Yang Peng in the future? Then what will our warriors do? Entering the border and plundering?"
What Xiao Tianma said is right. Fighting in the era of cold weapons is all about morale. If the 70,000-strong army fled because of a few trenches and encountered Yang Peng in the future, the Qing Khitan army would have no choice but to flee as soon as they met. Xiao Tianzuo thought for a long time, then turned and looked behind him. Behind Xiao Tianzuo, 70,000 Khitan soldiers lined up behind the central army, like a sea of iron armor in full swing. Seventy thousand people stood in the valley, covering every corner of the valley, seemingly endless. The tassels on the helmets of tens of thousands of warriors fluttered in the wind, looking like flowers blooming in the valley in spring, which was dazzling. The flags on the backs of the warriors formed clouds one after another. The overwhelming force of 70,000 people made people feel invincible.
How could such a large army stop because of Yang Peng's small stronghold? Xiao Tianzuo said loudly: "Just do what Xiao Tianma said, make a wooden bridge!" The generals sang loudly, and each led their men to set up camp, make fires to make food, and prepare to go to the nearby mountains to cut down trees to make wooden bridges.
Yang Peng personally climbed onto the lookout vehicle and used binoculars to observe the enemy in front. The Khitan army had too many people, 70,000 in total, and its mighty momentum was intimidating. Coupled with the more than 100,000 people of the Song Dynasty who were robbed, the Khitan army's troops spread all the way to the outside of the valley more than ten miles away. Looking from the observation pole car, the Khitan army feels like a swarm of ants occupying the entire land, boundless.
The world seemed to be filled with the Khitan army. Yang Peng took a breath and carefully observed the details of the mighty Khitan army with his binoculars. Yang Peng looked over carefully and felt that the Khitan army had well-organized orders and reasonable arrangements. Soldiers from each tribe camped in the valley in batches, specifically choosing places with higher terrain and easy access to water, and arranged them in an orderly manner. Auxiliary soldiers pushing carts were waiting in front of the baggage cart next to the Khitan army. They all stood solemnly. There was no crowding and noise like when the Song army was distributing grain. It was obvious that the Khitan army had strict military discipline. One hundred thousand Song people were divided into twenty large groups and arranged in the belly of the Khitan army. Although they were guarding more than 100,000 Song people and hundreds of thousands of livestock, there was no chaos in the Khitan army's formation.
The Khitan army's rangers and sentries were densely deployed within two miles of the camp, blocking and interrogating anyone who tried to enter the camp. Although Yang Peng's troops were small, the Khitan army dug two trenches outside the camp to resist the enemy. As a war nation, the Khitan of the Liao Kingdom had no loopholes in fighting wars. The soldiers of Daliao at this time were also an elite force compared to the rest of the world. If Yang Peng hadn't mastered weapons far beyond this era, how would he dare to confront such an enemy head-on.
Even though there were various fortifications in front of the stronghold and the defense was tight, Yang Peng was still a little nervous when he saw the mighty momentum of the Khitan army with his own eyes. Yang Peng looked at the various strict arrangements in front of his stronghold and felt a little more at ease.
This time the Khitan army was led by General Xiao Tianzuo, and all ethnic groups came out in full force to participate in the battle. After several months of fighting, the Song army had basically figured out the configuration of the Khitan army. Among these 70,000 people, there were approximately 25,000 soldiers from the Khitan of the Liao Kingdom, 20,000 soldiers from the Xi tribe's nobles and foreign vassal tribes, and more than 20,000 auxiliary soldiers.
However, Yang Peng had to rely on a stronghold to stop them. Yang Peng carefully checked his arrangement in front of the formation again, repeatedly thinking about where there were loopholes. Yang Peng doesn't expect Zhao Heng to help him now. It would be good if the Song Dynasty group didn't add insult to injury. Fortunately, Kou Zhun returned to Bianjing unscathed. Otherwise, half of the court would be traitors, and those people would be successful. It is not enough to expose the matter, so Yang Peng has not dared to call himself king until now. He is just a city lord. With such a name, the Song Dynasty did not know what a city lord was. He was probably just a county magistrate, and the Liao Kingdom did not know anything. I thought it was a name from the Song Dynasty, so everyone was in peace.
On the morning of February 16, Yang Peng was observing the Khitan army with a telescope on horseback, but he saw the middle gate of the Khitan army camp wide open, and the Khitan army soldiers walked out of the camp holding a huge wooden bridge. The wooden bridges were lifted out one by one and lined up in front of the formation. There were twenty or thirty Khitan troops standing under each wooden bridge.
Yang Peng observed with a telescope and found that the wooden bridges were three meters wide and more than six meters long. Each wooden bridge is made of three giant logs more than six meters long as the keel, and then densely packed small wood is laid on the keel to form the bridge deck, which is fixed with ropes. Not only that, there is also a wooden barrier erected in front of the wooden bridge, which is like a wooden shield hanging down in front of the wooden bridge. It is probably used to prevent the Khitan army's rifle fire.
Yang Peng took a closer look at the wooden bridges and found that the Khitan army had built a thousand wooden bridges in three days. Xiao Tianzuo led the general and a dozen Xi clan nobles to stand in front of the formation. A dozen ornate gold-woven dragon banners stood behind them, indicating to the entire army that in front of the army were a thousand strong wooden bridges. More than 20,000 auxiliary soldiers stood beside the wooden bridge, ready to raise the wooden bridge and rush into battle at any time.
However, the brutal Khitan army did not launch its first wave of attacks from the wooden bridge. The first wave of attacks were the people of the Song Dynasty who had been plundered by the Khitan army. Yang Peng looked at the Khitan army with a telescope and saw that behind the wooden bridges, the Khitan army used whips and swords to drive away tens of thousands of looting people to the front of the battle array. Those ragged people of the Song Dynasty were holding iron shovels one by one. The Khitan army actually wanted to use these unarmed people to fill the trenches.
The people were all wearing shabby cotton-padded clothes, and some even had no cotton-padded clothes, shivering in the cold wind. The common people, including men, women and children, did not dare to resist under the swords of the Khitan soldiers. But they saw the cautious look of the Khitan army and knew that the Song army in front was not a good enemy. This time the Khitan army drove them and the common people to fill the trenches, which was a disaster. Going forward is death, and retreating is also death. Many people felt that a disaster was coming, grabbed their tools and started crying in front of the formation. The Khitan soldiers were merciless and whipped the crying people with whips.
After all, what happened next will be explained later.
