In the second year of Baoyi in Xixia, in midsummer, on the bank of the Yellow River, at the foot of Helan Mountain, there was Lingzhou City, an important town in Xixia.
The water of the Yellow River surged north, and the Helan Mountain stood silent. They witnessed the vicissitudes of the human world for hundreds of millions of years, and also witnessed the tenacity and tragedy of Lingzhou City in the desperate situation.
On the city wall, flies were flying "buzzing" and lingering. Whether it was the blood on the city wall or the blood stains and wounds on the dead body, they were the targets of their search.
Traces of smoke and fire are everywhere on the wall, the stacked walls are dilapidated, and the defenders on the wall are sallow, thin, and weak.
The corpses of dead people can be seen everywhere in the streets and alleys of the city. The soldiers are carrying them and then burning them. The Mongolian army was besieging the city and could not leave the city to bury the corpses. They had to be cremated, which avoided all kinds of disputes and embarrassment. Many houses have no roofs, and the beams have been removed. They are heated by fires in winter and fighting against the Mongolian army outside the city. The sun is shining directly and they are a piece of rubble, just like in the wilderness.
White flags are everywhere in the city, money is flying, cuckoos cry blood, and people wearing linen and mourning are everywhere. Everyone looks sad and their tears seem to be drying up.
A battle to defend Lingzhou City separated many Lingzhou families forever. Tens of thousands of people died of starvation and freezing. The streets and alleys in the city were filled with the trauma of the war.
Even so, even after eight months of siege, even though countless people died of starvation, disease and freezing, Lingzhou City is still as healthy as an invincible Xiaoqiang.
Starving to death, dying of illness, or freezing to death, there may still be some comfort in the soul by having family members by your side. If they surrender, not to mention suffering endless humiliation, they will most likely be massacred by the Mongolian army.
With perseverance and patience, Lingzhou City, a city of heroes, is looking forward to the glimmer of dawn in the eastern sky.
Li Deren, the deposed prince of Xixia and the guard of Lingzhou, went to the top of the city and walked slowly along the city wall. He looked at the blank-eyed and wounded guards on the wall and felt worried.
The city has run out of food, and eating tree bark, grass roots, and people is a daily routine. If this continues, Lingzhou City will collapse in less than ten days and a half.
In recent days, the Mongolian troops outside the city have not attacked the city. Firstly, it was hot, and the Mongolian army was not used to siege the city in hot weather; secondly, most of the Mongolian army retreated, and the number of Mongolian troops besieging Lingzhou City could not support one siege battle after another. They just sent out rangers to cut off traffic and prevent the guards of Lingzhou City from leaving the city to find food or escape.
But even so, the city no longer has the ability to actively annihilate the enemy. Due to the lack of food, almost all the horses had been killed. Hungry, the Xia army seemed to be unsustainable.
Li Deren glanced north. Lingzhou City is like this. Needless to say, Zhongxing Mansion may not be able to hold on.
"Ms. Ning, you are here too."
Seeing that Ning Zining had also climbed up to the top of the city and comforted the sergeant on the wall, Li Deren stepped forward and exchanged greetings.
"Your Highness, you are here too."
The two looked at each other, both smiling bitterly.
When the country's affairs are difficult and unstable, no one can feel at ease.
"Your Highness, the reinforcements from the Song Dynasty are far away. If this continues, the soldiers and civilians of Lingzhou City will all starve to death!"
Ning Zining couldn't help but complain.
It was said that the Song people sent troops to rescue them, but why did the people in the city starve to death for more than half a year, and not even a single Song army was seen.
"Mr. Ning, there is something I want to discuss with you."
It is better to seek help from others than from yourself. Looking at the Mongolian army camp outside the city, Li Deren secretly made up his mind.
"Your Highness, speak directly if you have anything to say."
Ning Zining replied listlessly.
Seeing that his face was pale and fat, Li Deren couldn't help but murmur to himself. The city is short of food, but old husband Ning is looking good.
"Ms. Ning, you also know the current situation."
Li Deren put his hands on the city wall and braced himself under the scorching sun.
"In the eighth month of the Tartar siege, Lingzhou City has run out of food, and tens of thousands of people have starved to death. If this continues, I am afraid that within a month, all the people in Lingzhou City will be dead."
"Your Highness, what do you mean..."
Ning Zining was still a little confused.
"Ms. Ning, what I'm saying is, rather than sit back and wait for death, it's better to rise up and give it a try."
Li Deren pointed to the Mongolian army camp outside the city with a solemn expression.
"I want to lead the army and horses in the city to sneak out of the city to attack the Tatar military camp and grab some food so that the soldiers and people in the city can have something to eat."
"Sneak attack on the Tatar camp?"
Ning Zining's eyes were full of surprise, and then he shook his head like a rattle.
"Your Highness, you are the guard of Lingzhou City. You must not let anything happen! If this doesn't work, let's discuss it later!"
Li Deren, isn't this a joke? What the Mongolian army is best at is luring the enemy. If they leave the city for a sneak attack and annihilate the entire army, Lingzhou City will be doomed.
"Mr. Ning, the Tatar army has been besieging the city for several months, and they did not expect that our army would come out of the city for a sneak attack. Now is the hot season, and the Tatar knights are not good at hot weather. Coupled with the sneak attack at night, the opponent will be even more unexpected."
Li Deren persuaded patiently.
If the Mongolian army of 100,000 troops was under Genghis Khan's command, he would never dare to leave the city for a sneak attack. There are only ten thousand horses outside the city now, so it is worth taking a risk and risking death to survive.
"Your Highness, even Potian, you can't go! You are the backbone of Lingzhou's military and civilians, but you can't make any mistakes."
Ning Zining flatly refused, thought for a moment, and then whispered:
"Your Highness, why don't you let the Song army go for a sneak attack? The Song army is brave and good at fighting, and they have firearms. If they go, they may still succeed."
After fighting side by side for eight months, Ning Zining still didn't know the strength of the Song army. The firearms are fierce and the soldiers are warlike and well-trained.
The Song army is so fierce, so let the Song army go out of the city to attack.
"Ms. Ning, the Song army has used up all its firearms, and more than half of them have been killed or injured. Should we, the Xia people, still let the Song army fight for our own affairs?"
Li Deren shook his head and rejected Ning Zining's proposal.
If the Song army hadn't helped defend the city and train new soldiers, Lingzhou City would have been captured long ago.
"Your Highness, there is nothing I can do about it. The Tatar soldiers have strong horses and strong horses. They have enough food and drink to recharge their batteries. Our army has numerous casualties and casualties, and the rest are basically new soldiers. Not to mention sneak attacks, even whether they can defend the city wall is a matter of course. I have no idea. The Song army is all warriors, so if they go, they might have some chance of winning."
Ning Zining's old face turned red, and he seemed to be making excuses.
More than half of the Song army suffered casualties, and the Xia soldiers and civilians also suffered heavy casualties. It was not known whether they could escape this catastrophe.
"this……"
Li Deren was hesitant for a moment.
The Song army was fierce, but they were guest soldiers, and more than half of them were killed or wounded. It seems unreasonable to let the Song army go out to fight outside the city.
"Your Highness, didn't you say that the Emperor of Song Dynasty would personally march and send troops to rescue him? Where are the troops now? Isn't this making fun of the lives of hundreds of thousands of my Daxia people!"
Ning Zining spoke so unceremoniously that Li Deren broke into a cold sweat. He looked around and whispered quickly:
"Ms. Ning, please don't let others hear these words! After all, the Song army helped defend the city and suffered many casualties. They are kind to me, Daxia. The Emperor of Song has not come yet, maybe there is something fishy. Don't complain, wait and see. .”
Ning Zining was still a little dissatisfied. He glanced at a group of figures climbing up the city wall and sneered.
"Your Highness, Cao Youwan is here and went out of the city to attack the Mongolian army. You'd better talk to him face to face!"
Cao Youwan went up to the city wall and frowned when he saw the weak Xia army guards all over the city wall.
There is a shortage of medicine and food. If this continues, Lingzhou City will be destroyed.
Seeing that Ning Zining and Li Deren seemed to be arguing about something on the top of the city, Cao Youwan walked over.
"Your Highness, Mr. Ning, you are all here."
They had been guarding the city together for seven or eight months. Li Deren, the former prince of Xixia, took the lead and commanded decisively, which he admired.
However, this Lingzhou magistrate Ning Zining, hiding behind the scenes, is full of official authority and is well-fed and fat. I don’t know how he managed to be so fat and generous when the whole city was running out of food.
"General Cao, I have something I want to discuss with you."
Li Deren looked embarrassed, but Ning Zining no longer hesitated and directly stated his intention.
Cao Youwan has a fiery temperament and a very good face. As long as he speaks appropriately, the other party will probably not refuse.
"Ms. Ning, tell me what you have to say!"
Sure enough, Cao Youwan spoke quickly and without hesitation.
"General Cao, there is a shortage of food in the city now. Your Highness and I have discussed it. You can lead your elite troops out of the city to attack the Tatar army's barracks, seize some food, and provide relief to the people in the city. What do you think?"
Ning Zining said loudly, noticing the troubled expression on Cao Youwan's face, he followed up.
"General Cao, the defenders are too weak. Most of them are new soldiers. Defending the city may be okay, but leaving the city to attack the Mongolian camp is probably too difficult. The officers and soldiers of the Song Army are all brave and good warriors. Only you can fight against the Tatar army. Compete. If we stay huddled in the city, everyone will starve to death sooner or later!"
The soldiers around him heard Ning Zining's words clearly. Cao Youwan's face immediately turned red.
"General Cao, if you don't want to, or if you have difficulties, you don't have to go. I will personally lead the troops there, and General Cao will support our army."
Li Deren blushed secretly and spoke quickly.
It was embarrassing for him to force the affairs of Lingzhou City on outsiders, but there seemed to be no other solution.
"Your Highness, that's what I mean. Rather than letting the Tatar army surround and trap us, it's better to go out of the city and take a gamble!"
Cao Youwan's face turned red, he clasped his fists and said impassionedly.
He himself also felt that the defenders were too weak and were not the best choice for a sneak attack out of the city.
"Your Highness, please allocate another two thousand soldiers to me. I am willing to lead my headquarters and the Xia army brothers out of the city to kill the enemy!"
Li Deren breathed a sigh of relief and nodded.
"General Cao, at this point, I have no other choice, so I will trouble you and all the brothers."
There is no other way, it seems a bit despicable, but no one has a choice.
"Your Highness, there is no need to be polite. I will obey the military orders and defend the city. If Lingzhou City is captured, I will not have the face to return to the Song Dynasty!"
Cao Youwan clasped his fists in salute, said goodbye and walked down the city wall.
"What a loyal and righteous man! The Emperor of Song Dynasty has such fierce and wolf men, why should the world not accept them!"
Li Deren looked at Cao Youwan's back, shook his head and sighed.
Ning Zining's old face turned red inexplicably again.
I don’t know if Emperor Song is as rumored. When will he be able to come with his army?
