Chapter 58 Forced crossing
Shaanzhou City was in sight. Although it was only 20 miles away, it still took two days to actually reach the city.
To the west of the ancient city of Shaanzhou is the Qinglong Stream, which meanders past and merges into the Yellow River to the north. The Yellow River is to the north and east, and Ganshan Mountain is to the south.
The masonry city wall is three feet and five feet high. Because it is surrounded by rivers, it is a naturally deep and wide moat. According to the art of war, Shaanzhou Prefecture is a textbook-like fortified city that is easy to defend but difficult to attack - as long as there is a third On the other hand, Guan Shengyun and Luo Yonghao would definitely not choose this place as the first battle for the army. There were many military discussions, and all the generals were troubled by this. Apart from anything else, everyone's experience in building various siege equipment is very limited, just simple equipment such as ladders, crash carts, and trench bridges. No one dares to give a guarantee of how long it will take to build one. Push the siege tower that won't fall apart halfway. As for the catapult, don't even think about it. No one in Guan Shengyun's army at this time can make such high-tech equipment!
At the end of the discussion, everyone had no choice but to decide: continue to cut off traffic and march covertly, striving to achieve the effect of a surprise attack. Surround the city first, then plan for it slowly, adapt to changes when the time comes, and at the same time see if God will bless you. If they fail to attack and are defeated, the army will have no choice but to circle the city. Although it will leave a huge hidden danger behind, it will also cause a blow to morale that is almost a blow to the head. Whether it's a collision or a bluff, they are always invincible, and the morale of the tribe is unprecedentedly high - but no matter what, everyone can't bleed dry at the first stop.
The first problem that needs to be solved is crossing the Qinglong Stream.
This is not difficult: Guo Qinglin personally led the auxiliary fleet and marched hand in hand with the large troops on the official road. There were more than a hundred boats of various sizes, half of which carried You Futian's Tianyi Battalion, which was responsible for guarding and blocking the ferries on both sides of the Yellow River. The other half carried wooden planks and ropes, and sailed straight upstream from the Yellow River into Qinglong Stream. The place is spread out horizontally, and the boats are nailed together with wooden planks to form a pontoon bridge.
What everyone is most worried about is that they may be attacked during the construction of the pontoon bridge - and this is the most likely: no one can build a springboard under the threat of swords, guns, bows and arrows on the shore (the auxiliary troops have no armor, and the lethality of bows and arrows cannot be underestimated). If this happens, we have to sacrifice the Tianyi Battalion, abandon the boat and land ashore, and use our lives to buy time to open up a small landing area for Gu Baihua's Gangfeng Battalion. The troops will hold on first, and the cavalry will cross the bridge to press Go up and respond.
If there is no resistance, Gu Baisong's cavalry will be the first to pass the pontoon bridge. They must fight tooth and nail to block a possible counterattack from the city - even if the city has no time to organize troops to prevent the bridge from being built, attacking halfway across the bridge is a principle that fools understand. Even if it is only a short assault and burning the pontoon bridge, it will bring disaster to the army. Consequences of sex! The officers and soldiers can have enough time to build positions along the river. As long as the front road is blocked, tens of thousands of people will be stuck in a narrow valley and are in a dilemma. It is probably only a matter of time before the entire army is annihilated.
Gu Baihua's Gangfeng Battalion will be the second batch to cross the bridge after the cavalry crosses the river. If a counterattack is launched in the city, they must join the battle group to withstand the attack and leave enough beachhead for the large forces to form. On the contrary, if they do not encounter a strong counterattack, they will wait for Takatozu's three flying beast battalions to cross the river to pick them up. After defending, they will turn directly to the south and set up an ambush at Kip Shek Pass to block reinforcements as planned.
At this moment, there are only a dozen soldiers on the west wall of Shaanzhou City. Logically speaking, even in peacetime, there should be at least a hundred defenders on one wall of such a strategic strategic location. However, a while ago, when the commanders killed thousands of households and the imperial court killed the commanders, when every official’s head fell to the ground, they would be followed by several, a dozen, or even dozens of general flag officers, small flag officers, and even unlucky big soldiers from thousands of households. Due to a combination of misfortune, Hongnongwei's guarding force has suffered great losses. What's even worse is that since Mr. Ma took office, the situation has become even worse. It is said that Lord Ma is mostly looking for trouble for the local wealthy people in other places, but because he wants to please the court, since arriving here, Lord Ma has been eyeing the guard station - Lord Ma himself said that he wanted to eliminate Li Bin The remnants of Li Jian's brother's great rebellion have returned to Shaanzhou Prefecture, where the weather is pure and clear!
There were very few people in the army who were literate, so Mr. Ma went through all the houses, not to mention the inscriptions, and couldn't even find a piece of paper with writing on it. But how could Mr. Ma be willing to give up? If you can't find the book, check the comments. As long as it involves the Li brothers' private discussions, Mr. Ma will know - there will be a reward for reporting it, and it will be the same crime if you don't report it if you know it!
Li Li of Baihu is quite prestigious in the camp, he is loyal and has some real abilities. When the previous magistrate took office, several strong men came from the south and hid in the mountains and came out to grab a handful from time to time. Commander Li dealt with them in a superficial way and didn't pay much attention to them at all. After Li Ye drank, he was provoked by the owner of the tavern who had been robbed. In order to win a few coins for drinks, he led people into the ravine to save face and actually brought back two heads - the credit naturally went to Li Ye. Commanding, but Li Ye earned enough face and won another drink, that was enough, and he didn’t care too much.
It's a pity that, in real terms, Li Ye and Commander Li Bin are some distant relatives. However, this relationship is really far away. Even if we haven't played in the fifth server, it's almost the same. We don't have much contact with each other - otherwise, Commander Li wouldn't be embarrassed to actually grab the decapitation power, right? This relationship, which no one remembers very much, was somehow known to Mr. Ma. In addition, Mr. Li complained a few times while drunk, and then Mr. Li was arrested. Because he "didn't tell the truth", he was sentenced to a cage at the gate of the city. The man who was more than five feet tall was carried out from the state government office and his bones were already broken. On the fifth day, his head was dead in the cage. Almost at the same time, I saw that Gu Sanyazi, who was not wanted to see anyone in the camp, proudly changed into a new outfit, and even caught someone bragging about how sweet the Datong mother-in-law in Yichun House was... What was going on in everyone's minds? We all understand. It's just that Mr. Ma's methods are really ruthless, and no one dares to do anything to Gu Sanzhi, who talks nonsense.
Later, it was no longer possible for the soldiers to whisper to each other in private. The two living examples of Gu Sanzhizi and Li Ye were there. More and more people were snitching, and no one knew what they said inadvertently. At that time, it was not a joke to hear it in Master Ma's ears - a light palm, a heavy arrow piercing the camp, Master Ma was as if he was facing a formidable enemy, and sent many spies to inquire about all kinds of information. , On the contrary, the real city defense does not care at all. Mr. Ma seemed to have a firm belief that as long as there were people gathering, it would be an intolerable potential threat to the court and must be severely extinguished. After eight or nine months, there were fewer and fewer soldiers on guard duty on the walls and at the door. In the winter, everyone just wandered around and basked in the sun. In the summer, they found a shady place to take a nap and hang out.
The soldiers on the west wall were squatting against the wall stacks to avoid the sun. Finally, the soldiers who got up to relieve themselves discovered the Nuo fleet sailing upstream from the Yellow River into Qinglong Stream, and the cavalry that had already formed a formation on the other side. Behind the cavalry is a forest of swords and guns shining brightly in the sun, which is Gu Baihua's strong front camp. Looking to the west, an endless stream of teams came into view from the bend of the mountain. The winding mountain road looked like a ferocious dragon, with figures one after another spitting out from the dragon's mouth, marching murderously. The pace came at a steady pace, as if it would never end.
The soldier rubbed his eyes to make sure that this was not his hallucination. He opened his mouth in horror, but could not shout out a complete sentence. He pointed to the front with his hand and shouted "Ah, ah, ah". Others stood up one after another and pointed at the Looking in the direction, they were all stunned by the horrifying sight in front of them.
"Police"!
"Close the city gate quickly!" Someone finally understood and shouted at the bottom of the city at the top of his lungs.
Shaanzhou has an important location, but the city is not big. There are only four main gates: Xuanwei Gate in the east, Zhengping Gate in the west, Yingen Gate in the south, and Xuanhua Gate in the north.
Zhengping Gate is adjacent to Qinglong Stream. No one has crossed the river for several days. Two city gatekeepers who were on errands were taking a nap in the doorway, one to the south and the other to the north. The soldiers who had been shouting for a long time on the wall were ignored. They ran down the horse track to find the city gate guards, and some rushed to the city government office to report the news - unfortunately, the alarm gong was locked in the city gate tower, and the flag officer who was supposed to be on duty the day before yesterday was slapped by Mr. Ma for talking too much. The board is still lying on the bed and humming, and the key is still hanging behind the door panel in the house.
Because of the terrain, the people outside the city lived outside Yingen Gate in the south. Not far from the Zhengping Gate in the west is the Qinglongjian River Beach. The North Gate and East Gate are also adjacent to the river. There are no ordinary people's houses - that is to say, because the corner of the city wall blocks the view, the ordinary people are not aware of the approaching army. !
By the time Ma Zhizhou ran up the Zhengpingmen city wall in panic, nearly half of the pontoon bridge in Guoqinglin had been built. On the water on both sides of the pontoon, soldiers from the three troops of the Tianyi Battalion were bluffing on the boats, wielding swords and guns. In fact, everyone including themselves knew that this kind of intimidation tactic had no practical effect at all. No: there are no big ships. There are only a dozen or so five or six soldiers in each small boat. If they don't go ashore, there will be no threat. If they actually go ashore, there are no auxiliary troops to build fortifications in advance for protection, and there are no cavalry to maneuver and support. As long as the city A real counterattack was launched here, and these two to three hundred people were killed in just a little more than a meal. The large army on the other side of the river could only watch! Therefore, even though You Futian understood that he had to sacrifice his battalion as a last resort, he still prayed silently in his heart: Don't counterattack... Well, at least wait until Brother Gu Manzi crosses the river before attacking. That way, the dead will be theirs. Man, I, Mr. You, still hope that the old foundation of Tianyiying will dominate the navy.
Everyone knows the principle of striking first and gaining the upper hand... Unfortunately, this "everyone" does not include Ma Wen's promotion to Ma Zhizhou!
Master Ma, who was usually very powerful in catching rebels and had the word "loyalty" carved on his forehead, was now like a toad struck by lightning, staring blankly at the city with his eyes open and his mouth open: the pontoon bridge and the small bridge that were gradually taking shape. The soldiers on the ship waving weapons and cursing at the city, the dark army on the other side...
After a long while, under the urging of everyone, Master Ma finally issued the first order with trembling lips: "Close the city gates! Close all the city gates immediately and top them with big rocks!"
Pan Ding, a fellow governor of Shaanzhou, heard this and said quickly: "Sir, should we gather the people in the south of the city first?"
The state judge Jing Xiangshan shouted at the same time: "Master Ma, you can't do it! There are two to three thousand households in the south of the city! We should gather the people, burn the houses, fortify the walls and clear the fields... I am willing to lead the city's best soldiers to attack head-on, even if it means risking my life. I will also buy most of your time for adults!”
Ma Wensheng pointed at the city with his finger angrily: "Asshole! There are so many thieves, look, they move so fast, how could they not have time!" As he said, he pointed at the tip of Jing Xiangshan's nose, "Are you taking people out? What the hell are you doing?" When everyone is exhausted, what can I do to defend the city?"
Jing Xiang Shanyu argued forcefully: "My lord, it is our duty to live on the emperor's salary and protect the safety of the people. Even if our bodies are shattered, we will not dare to say goodbye. We cannot just watch the people fall into the hands of thieves! At this time, the thieves have not yet gained a foothold. An inch of land is the time for a head-on attack! I beg you, Lord Ma, to think twice!"
Pan Ding also spoke up and said, "Sir, Master Jing's words make sense. Since Master Jing sacrificed his life to stop the enemy, he is willing to lead his government servants to the south of the city to gather the people. I have sworn in my humble position that the emperor and heaven are above, and Pan must do his best, and he will be the last one." Enter the city. If you violate this oath, Pan is willing to be punished by heaven!"
At this time, Ma Wensheng returned to his usual ferocity: "Shut up, everyone! Close the city gate immediately! Don't let anyone in! If there was no internal response, how could the thieves come so fast? You have repeatedly obstructed, do you want to open the city to the enemy? ? Whoever dares to talk nonsense and delay is a traitor!"
Pan and Jing looked at each other. Jing Xiangshan's face turned red, and the veins on his forehead were pulsing violently. He never expected that he, a civil servant who had decided to die generously and risk his life to resist the enemy, would be accused by Lord Ma of procrastinating and turning into a traitor! Out of anger, but unable to do anything, with nowhere to vent his anger, he stamped his feet and said "hey" angrily, as if he was about to explode.
Pan Ding's performance was much calmer. He was startled for a moment, then turned around and bowed deeply in the direction of the capital. He murmured: "Your Majesty, I have betrayed the grace of the Holy Spirit!" Two lines of tears welled up in his eyes and slowly moved along his face. It slowly flows down, then flows down the beard under the chin, hangs on the tip of the beard, and turns into a large round drop. The sunlight shines on the teardrop, reflecting beautiful colors for an instant, and then, dripping, smashing It fell to the wall and the ground, was quickly swallowed up by the bricks, and disappeared.
Ma Wensheng ran along the city wall while shouting at the top of his lungs to close the city gate. Before they even reached the south corner, they were out of breath and couldn't run anymore. They pressed their hands on their knees and hunched over, panting. From time to time, they raised their heads and cursed angrily and threatened. The soldiers ran away along the city wall like headless flies. , conveying Master Ma’s orders all the way.
At this time, outside the west gate, the construction of the pontoon bridge was nearing completion. The auxiliary soldiers, who did not feel any threat, were firmly hammering the last few planks into the land on the river beach with long nails.
Gu Baisong drew his long sword towards the tower, clamped the horse's belly with his legs, shook the reins and stepped onto the pontoon first.
The horses' hooves are beating, closely following Gu Baisong, the horse team files across the bridge.
Later, Gu Baisong took the lead and reined in his horse to stand outside the city gate. About two feet apart, more than two hundred knights formed four small formations behind Captain Gu. Each formation had a cavalry officer standing in front of him. Everyone raised their heads and cast their cold gazes towards the city.
