Leading these thousands of elites was a Mingjiao figure who fled to Yanyun with Li Tian. His name was Zhao Jue, and he was a close associate of Li Tian. Zhao Jue led a thousand elites to stand in the mountain col and looked up at the cliff in front of him. He felt that it was too high to climb up, but he didn't feel this way when he looked at it from a distance just now.
An officer next to Zhao Jue said: "General, although this mountain is steep, it shouldn't be particularly difficult to climb." The reason why he said this was because although the cliff in front of him was steep, the vegetation on the mountain wall was lush, and There is a certain slope. Although it is difficult to climb with bare hands, there is no problem if you use a rope.
Zhao Jue nodded, observed it, and saw that there was a small gentle slope in the middle of the cliff where they could rest. He immediately ordered four soldiers who were particularly good at climbing to carry ropes and climb first. When they reached the gentle slope in the middle, they fixed the ropes and allowed the group to climb up along the ropes. Four soldiers each carried a large roll of rope and began to climb. These four men were indeed very good at climbing. When they reached the rock wall, they climbed up like apes.
As everyone looked up below, the figures of the four soldiers gradually became blurred. Under the moonlight, it was no longer clear whether the four shaking shadows were humans or apes.
Zhao Jue was very worried, worried that they might suddenly fall down and make a loud noise. Finally, with God's blessing, the four of them climbed up the gentle slope in the middle of the cliff very smoothly. Zhao Bu couldn't help but breathed a sigh of relief. The four men fixed the rope to the trunks of some old pine trees on the gentle slope, and then threw the rope down.
Zhao Jue gave an order, and all the soldiers climbed up along the rope. After about half an hour, Zhao Jue and more than 500 soldiers arrived on the gentle slope, and the remaining soldiers stopped climbing, because this gentle slope was only so big, only enough for more than 500 people to stay.
Zhao Jue ordered the four sergeants to continue climbing upwards with four new bundles of ropes. The four sergeants climbed up, much slower and more cautious than before, because the upper half of the cliff was much more steep than the lower half of the cliff!
Zhao Jue withdrew his gaze and looked towards the plain in the distance. He knew that General Li and his army had already entered their position, but he could not see anything from here, and he did not know where Yan Yun's army was ambushing.
Snapped! A loud noise suddenly came from above. Zhao Jue was startled and quickly looked around, and saw a large black shadow falling from above. It was clearly a human body. Zhao Jue's first thought was 'Oh no,' he thought one of the soldiers had slipped and fell.
Almost at the same time, crackling and booming sounds came one after another from above. Zhao Jue clearly saw someone on the top of the mountain throwing stones and wood down below. The three sergeants who were climbing had nowhere to hide on the cliff, and were hit by rolling stones one after another. The wood hit and fell, and the screams were particularly harsh.
Zhao Jue realized that the enemy was on guard and shouted urgently: "Retreat!" The soldiers immediately retreated along the rope. At this moment, a loud roar like a mountain torrent came from the top of the mountain, and countless rolling stones and trees were seen rushing down like a waterfall. The officers and soldiers of the Yanyun Army on the mountainside had nowhere to hide, and their faces turned pale. With the fans of the world of demons: 115715909, rolling stones fell into the crowd like raindrops, only to It was a scene of blood and flesh flying everywhere, and no one could hear anyone screaming, because the sound of rolling rocks and trees rushing down was too shocking!
When everything calmed down, only a few people were seen lying motionless on the gentle slope halfway up the mountain. Others had been knocked down the mountain col by the rushing rocks.
Li Tian, who was waiting for news, heard loud noises coming from the mountain col, and was startled and confused. Immediately after receiving a report, he learned that the sneak attack failed and a thousand elite soldiers suffered heavy casualties, including his close confidant Zhao Jue. Li Tian, filled with grief and anger, took a hard look at Changcheng Ridge and ordered the troops to return to camp.
The Xixia army won a small victory, and the morale of the army was greatly boosted.
The monarchs and ministers of Xixia were waiting for good news from the front line, but bad news came again. Generalissimo Li Zongdao was defeated and retreated to Changcheng Ridge, and Yan'an Mansion was finally lost. The king and his ministers were shocked, looked at each other in shock, and were at a loss as to what to do! The emperor asked the ministers: "The situation is serious, what should we do?"
All the ministers looked at each other, and the Minister of Rites, Ge Rilang, came out and said urgently: "Your Majesty, Yan Yun's tiger and wolf army is invincible! Our army should not have rashly started a war with Yan Yun just for the little benefit given by the Khitan people. Now it is inevitable Riding a tiger is in imminent danger! In the current situation, fighting with words can only lead to greater failure. For this reason, envoys should be sent to Yanyun's army immediately to seek peace!"
When the panicked emperor heard these words, he seemed to have grasped a life-saving straw and wanted to adopt them. At this moment, Prime Minister Zuo Li Tongren came out and said: "Your Majesty, you must not!"
The emperor frowned, "Hasn't the Prime Minister always advocated peace with Yan Yun? Why is he blocking the peace negotiation now?"
Li Tongren said: "Today is different from the past. The war has not started yet, and the two sides have the same momentum, so they can make peace. Now our army has been defeated one after another and suffered heavy losses. Yanyun's army is as strong as a broken bamboo and its momentum is as strong as a rainbow. If we go to seek peace at this time, it will not only be impossible." If you do as you wish, you will only let down your own momentum and strengthen the ambition of others! Of course, our soldiers will be more frustrated, but Yan Yun's army will definitely become more arrogant. If one is ebbing and the other is ebbing, not only will the war not be eliminated, but it will make the situation even more uncontrollable!"
The emperor felt that what Li Tongren said was reasonable, frowned and asked: "Then the prime minister means war?"
Li Tongren said: "At this moment, we are on the same page and we have no other choice!"
Ge Rilang frowned and said: "Our army has been defeated one after another, and Yan Yun's army is invincible..."
Li Tongren suddenly turned his head and shouted, "Why are you so open to Yan Yunjun?" Ge Rilang was startled. Li Tongren said to the emperor: "Your Majesty, Gerilang has shaken the morale of the army. Please behead him immediately as a warning to the public!" Gerilang was not expecting that Li Tongren said this. He was horrified and hurriedly said to the emperor: "Your Majesty, you have learned this clearly. Sir, I have no intention of shaking the morale of the army!"
Naturally, the emperor would not blame him. After all, Gerilang's little sister was one of his beloved concubines. He immediately said warmly: "Although what Gerilang said is inappropriate, it can be considered as a matter of fact and has no evil intentions..." He looked towards Li Tongren, "Prime Minister, please forgive me." The emperor has said so, what else can Li Tongren, a minister, say. Gerilang said excitedly: "Your Majesty has learned clearly, His Majesty has learned clearly..."
Li Tongren said: "Although our army has been defeated one after another, the army and people across the country have been mobilized and defended to the death. Even the Yanyun Army will never be able to invade our country! As long as the Yanyun Army maintains a stalemate for some time, the Yanyun Army will not be able to invade our country." We suffered heavy losses and ran out of food and supplies, so we naturally retreated! If we want peace talks, we must wait until this war comes to an end. We must not have peace talks at this moment, otherwise our morale will be depleted and we in Xixia will be in catastrophe!"
The emperor frowned, nodded, and asked, "What about the Shaanxi-Gansu region?"
Li Tongren felt a little funny when he heard the emperor's question, but he didn't dare to laugh. He said seriously: "Your Majesty, the situation is already unfavorable to us, how can we still control Shaanxi and Gansu!"
The emperor sighed and said with great reluctance: "That is a land thousands of miles away! When the Qin State rose in the West, it was based on Shaanxi and Gansu. Unexpectedly, it was lost before we even got it! Alas..."
Li Tongren suddenly thought of a plan and said to the emperor: "We can't keep Shaanxi and Gansu. Instead of letting Yan Yun take it away, we might as well use this as bait to lure the Tubo people into Qinfeng Road. If everything goes well, maybe we can reverse the situation." The current situation!" The emperor was silent for a moment and sighed: "It seems that this is the only way to go, alas!"
Yan Yunjun's messengers galloped to the Yellow River ferry in the east of Suide and crossed the Yellow River. Then he got on his horse and prepared to rush towards Taiyuan. Now Liang Hongyu's commander's office is located in Taiyuan, so the battle report in the Hetao area will be transmitted to Taiyuan first.
Just when the herald was about to ride his horse, he saw a soldier wearing a secret guard armor and tabard riding over and blocking the way. The herald's heart moved. The secret guard asked: "Brother, are you conveying military information about the Hetao?" The herald clasped his fists and said, "Exactly! Is His Royal Highness the King of Yan coming nearby?" He looked around and saw a bamboo shed not far away. Many people have done this, and two of them are King Yang Peng and Princess Han Bing of Yan! The secret guard said: "King Yan and the princess are over there, come with me!" Then he led the way, followed closely by the herald.
The secret guard led the herald into the bamboo shed. The secret guard clasped his fists towards Yang Peng and Han Bing and said, "Master, empress, bring the herald."
The herald immediately paid homage: "I pay my respects to His Highness King Yan, and to the Queen Concubine!"
"No need to be polite, just get up and talk."
"Thank you, King Yan!" The herald stood up, then took off the bamboo tube on his back, held it up with both hands, and bowed: "This is the latest military report, please see it for His Royal Highness King Yan and the Princess!"
The secret guard untied the bamboo tube and presented it to Yang Peng. Yang Peng untied the bamboo tube, opened the seal, opened the lid, and poured out a volume of letters. He put down the bamboo tube, unfolded the letter and read it again, and said with a smile: "Okay, Yang Yanzhao is indeed Yang Yanzhao. This move is really amazing!" He handed the letter to Han Bing, "Yang Yanzhao saw through Li Zongdao's plan and used it to lay a trap. Almost wiped out all the opponent's cavalry, and then counterattacked. The Xixia army suffered heavy losses and has retreated into Changcheng Ridge!"
After reading the letter, Han Bing thought: "Now the situation is completely in favor of our army. I believe it is only a matter of time to cover the entire north of the Wei River!" Looking at Yang Peng, "What needs to be considered now is whether to stop here or not. Take advantage of the trend to attack?" Yang Peng said with a smile: "As the saying goes, 'To win, you have to rush, and to lose, you have to retreat.' Our army has won successive victories, and its morale is so high that there is no reason to give up! Moreover, our army has suffered heavy losses in these battles. There’s no need to stop the attack right now!”
Han Bing thought and nodded. Yang Peng shouted: "Bring me pen, ink and paper!" The two secret guards immediately ran to a horse at the door, took out pen and ink paper from the backpack hanging beside the saddle, and returned to Yang Peng and put them down.
Yang Peng picked up the brush and started writing quickly. He had been in this world for so long, and he was used to using the brush. However, the font was still so shocking. According to Han Bing, he had an aura of overlord, but in terms of appearance, he was still thin. Gold lettering.
Yang Peng finished writing the letter, put it in an envelope, and handed it to Wang Kai, the captain of the secret guard at the side. Wang Kai immediately took off the backpack on his back, took out an oil lamp with a full wick and kerosene, lit it, and then took it from his waist. Take out a little clay and something like an iron spoon from the cloth bag. Put the clay into an iron spoon and put it on the fire to burn, then carefully pour it on the seal, then take out a metal seal a little larger than a one-yuan coin from the bag, flatten the clay, pick it up, and you will see the flat clay seal. The opening of the envelope was closed, and a double-winged flying tiger pattern was printed on it. Wang Kai then put the envelope into the bamboo tube, screwed on the lid, and sealed it again.
Yang Peng pointed to the commander, "Give him the letter."
Wang Kai stepped forward and handed the bamboo tube into his hand. Yang Peng ordered: "Hurry back and hand it over to General Yang Yanzhao!" The messenger agreed and ran down.
Yang Peng walked out of the tea shed and stared blankly at the herald who was leaving. Han Bing walked up, "What are you thinking about?" Yang Peng smiled, "Come with me for a walk." Then he walked to the left, and Han Bing followed. Upon seeing this, Wang Kai asked most of the people to stay, while he followed from a distance with a dozen Shadow Killers and several Feifeng Female Guards.
Yang Peng and Han Bing were walking along the edge of the Yellow River. On one side was the roaring Yellow River, and on the other side was the vast deserted garden with lush grass. The land in the northwest was desolate and vast, which made people feel sad. Heroic feelings.
Yang Peng stopped, turned around and held the rolling Yellow River in front of him, "Han Bing,"
Han Bing showed concern, thinking he was going to say something. Yang Peng turned around and said with a smile: "We haven't gotten married yet, right?" Han Bing was stunned for a moment, and then Xia Fei raised his cheeks and said angrily: "Why are you talking about this kind of thing all of a sudden? "
Yang Peng held Han Bingxian's hand and said depressedly: "Look, you are already the Princess of Yan, but the two of us haven't slept together yet. Wouldn't it be a joke to say this!" Han Bing said angrily: "This Are you going to talk about this kind of thing everywhere? Could King Yan be such a shallow and boring person?" Yang Peng also held Han Bing's delicate hand with his left hand and said with a smile: "Don't you think you didn't do this? Things, are our couple always imperfect? Is it possible that you don’t want me to touch you? If so, just tell me, and my eldest brother will never mention this again!"
Han Bing said angrily: "You knew that I didn't think that way, but you deliberately said those words to hurt me! Humph!" He tried to pull his palm away from Yang Peng's grasp with both hands, but he didn't know whether it was because of his lack of firmness or Yang Peng's grasp. Peng's grip was too tight, and he couldn't take advantage of this thrust.
The more Yang Peng looked at Han Bing, the more he liked him, "I have decided, tonight we will be on the bank of the Yellow River, with the sky as our bed and the earth as our bed, in the bridal chamber!" Han Bing felt ashamed and anxious, "How can this be possible?!" Yang Peng said : "Why not? I am the husband and you are the wife. It is natural for husband and wife to have a bridal chamber!" Han Bing blushed, "That's not possible, it can't be like this!" Then he said angrily: "Do you want me? Do I leave myself to you in a place like this?" Yang Peng smiled, leaned down and kissed Han Bing's red lips. Han Bing was startled and quickly looked around, seeing no one around. Wang Kai and the others were far away from each other and didn't seem to be looking at them. He couldn't help but breathed a sigh of relief and rolled his eyes at Yang Peng angrily.
Yang Peng said with a smile: "Since Han Bing doesn't like it here, let's wait until we return to Bingzhou Mansion. At that time, you can't push back any more." Han Bing blushed and glared at Yang Peng fiercely, which was regarded as acquiescence. Already?
Yang Peng chuckled, took Han Bing's delicate hand, and continued walking along the river. After walking for a while, Yang Peng asked: "Han Bing, how do you think this war will evolve? How will it end?"
When Han Bing heard Yang Peng talk about business, he quickly suppressed his thoughts and thought: "Although the previous battle situation had twists and turns, the overall situation still developed in the direction we hoped for. Now Xixia has suffered heavy losses, and the situation is changing. Our army is very advantageous, but Xixia has been a country for a hundred years and has a very solid foundation. I am afraid that we will not be able to sweep Xixia! If Xixia uses all the strength of the country to fight back, the outcome of this battle is really unpredictable!"
Yang Peng frowned and nodded, then glanced at Han Bing, "What suggestions do you have?"
Han Bing said: "Our army's strategic goal has been achieved. I feel that it is not the time for a decisive battle with Xixia just yet. It is better to rest and recuperate. Since the counterattack against the Khitans last year, our army has been fighting continuously without much rest. In fact, the soldiers We are all very tired, and have consumed huge amounts of money and food, making it difficult for us to support a protracted war."
"Cease fighting..." Yang Peng muttered with a frown.
Han Bing glanced at Yang Peng and said, "Brother, aren't you willing? I know that eldest brother is ambitious, but given the current situation, it is not the time to destroy Xixia. Even if we try hard to win by chance, the price will be huge and the gain will not be worth the loss."
Yang Peng nodded, "You're right! I was too impatient!" After a pause, "But even if we have to stop fighting, we still have to put up a posture for further fighting, otherwise the Xixia people will think that we are They have an opportunity to take advantage of it." Liang Hongyu nodded, "Brother is right! Why not dispatch 150,000 troops from the 200,000 troops guarding Yanmen Pass to reinforce westward. Now the Khitan people's attention It all depends on Goryeo. Although the Khitan army on Xijing Road has more than 300,000 troops, they are not elite. Xiao Tianzuo is not a brave man either. Guarding Yanmen Pass with 50,000 troops is enough."
Yang Peng thought for a while, "The 150,000 soldiers and horses are a little short, so we might as well transfer the First Army Corps, for a total of 220,000 soldiers and horses. Huh, let's put on a fight posture and send peace and negotiation at the same time. He I’m afraid the Xixia monarchs and ministers will not have a second choice!”
Han Bing joked: "Obviously we don't want to fight, but we make it seem like they are begging us!" Yang Peng laughed. Han Bing asked: "Brother, do you want to cross the river?" Yang Peng glanced at the other side of the Yellow River, shook his head and said: "No, at least not for the time being." He smiled and said, "It is better for me, the King of Yan, to stay here, so as not to interfere with Yang Yanzhao's command. Fight." Han Bing said with a smile: "With you, the King of Yan, sitting in the east of the river, the soldiers will have to work hard!"
Yang Yanzhao was very surprised to see that the messenger came back so soon. The herald kneeled down and said: "General, I just crossed the Yellow River and met His Royal Highness King Yan and Princess Han Bing." The generals were shocked when they heard this, and Yang Yanzhao asked hurriedly: "King Yan has arrived in the east of Hedong?" "Yes?" "Then King Yan wants to come to the front line in person?" The herald said: "King Yan has no intention of crossing the river!" Then he took off the bamboo tube on his back and held it up with both hands, "This is what King Yan ordered the villain to send." I’d like the general to take a look at your letter.”
Yang Yanzhao quickly picked up the bamboo tube, opened the sealing mud, poured out the letter, and put the bamboo tube down. Then he opened the envelope, took out the letter paper, unfolded it and read it. All the generals looked at Yue Fei.
After a while, Yang Yanzhao raised his head and smiled and said to the generals: "The King of Yan would like to express condolences to all our soldiers. We all have worked hard." It was a simple sentence, but everyone couldn't help but get excited after hearing it. Yang Yanzhao continued: "The King of Yan will be waiting for our victory report in Hedong. I hope we can capture Changcheng Ridge as soon as possible!" Xiao Duli said loudly: "Don't worry, Your Highness King Yan, we will definitely be able to capture Changcheng Ridge!" All the generals agreed one after another. .
Yang Yanzhao folded the letter and returned it to the envelope. Then he put the letter on the commander's button. He turned around and said to the generals: "The soldiers of each battalion have a good rest. We will attack Changcheng Ridge tomorrow morning!" "Yes!" All the generals said in unison. swear.
Yang Yanzhao rode a horse to a hill next to the military camp and looked at the Great Wall Ridge in the distance. At this time, the sun sets in the west, and the Great Wall Ridge in front reflects the sunset and emits golden light, like a huge golden screen spanning the sky and the earth. The reason why the Great Wall Ridge is called the Great Wall Ridge is because there are relics of the ancient Great Wall on the mountain ridge, which was built during the Northern Wei and Northern Qi Dynasties. During the Northern Song Dynasty, the armies of the Western Xia and Song Dynasties formed a tug-of-war around the Great Wall Ridge, but no one was on the Great Wall Ridge. Rebuild the city wall.
Yang Yanzhao's eyes moved slowly on the Great Wall Ridge. The Great Wall Ridge in front of him was very majestic, absolutely easy to defend and difficult to attack. The Xixia military camps on the mountain ridge were lined up in an orderly manner, with flags fluttering in the mountain wind. There is a relatively gentle hillside about 700 to 800 meters wide in the front, where it is easier to climb up the ridge. However, that is also the key position of the Xixia army's defense. The horses and camps are mainly concentrated on the front of the gentle slope. Yue Fei's eyes slowly moved to a hillside on the west side. The place is very steep, with rugged rocks, and climbing is very difficult, but it is not impossible to climb up the mountain. The Xixia army also has defenses there, but it is obviously much more relaxed than the gentle slope in front. Even so, it is extremely difficult to attack from there. Although there are not many defensive troops there, the terrain is difficult for one man to pass and ten thousand men to open.
Yang Yanzhao showed a thoughtful look and said secretly: Li Zongdao is a famous Xixia general. He knows everything from all directions. It is not easy to break through the Great Wall Ridge!
A herald galloped up, reined in his horse, clasped his fists and said, "General, the baggage train has brought up one hundred and fifty cannons!"
Yang Yanzhao was so happy that he immediately ran down the hillside. When I arrived at the military camp, I saw that the soldiers were unloading and assembling cannons and gunpowder shells, and they were very busy.
The escort came to see Yang Yanzhao. Shu Shu presented a list of supplies to Yang Yanzhao and said, "General, please sign for it!" Yang Yanzhao took the document, signed it, and returned it to the escort officer. The escort officer shouted to a strong man in the distance who was instructing everyone to unload the truck: "Commander Fan, please come here!"
What happened after all, let’s see what happens next.
