In September of the second year of Jianwu of the Song Dynasty, Hexi Road and Yumen Pass.
The vast Gobi Desert, the clear Hulu River heading north, black smoke columns rolling in the sky, mixed with dark red firelight, thick smoke billowing in the peaceful town beside the river, houses burning wantonly, flames reaching into the sky.
Under the towering euphratica trees outside the town, a group of ferocious-looking cavalrymen full of violence were surrounded by a general in his thirties and covered in bright armor. They were looking with cold eyes into the town where the sound of fighting was loud.
Mamula, a nobleman of the Gaochang Uighurs in the Western Regions and the commander-in-chief of the Gaochang army, with a tall nose and deep eyes, tough and tough, was watching this human tragedy with his subordinates.
The capital of Gaochang Kingdom is Gaochang, which is a large country in the Western Region. It borders Yumen Pass, Yangguan and other places under the control of the Song Army to the south. In the second year of Jiading in the Song Dynasty (1209), the Mongolian Empire rose. The king of Gaochang, Balshu Aerte, surrendered to the Mongolian Empire and became its vassal state.
The Song army occupied Hexi and was naturally an enemy of the Mongol Empire. The Mongol army moved south, and the Gaochang Kingdom was ordered to invade Hexi. Naturally, they wanted to burn, kill, loot, capture cities and seize territory, and use their troops in the direction of Shaanxi.
Outside the town, corpses of Song soldiers were scattered everywhere. Several Song officials and more than a hundred Song civilians were tied up and pushed over by the menacing Gaochang soldiers. The leading official had an angry look on his face and struggled endlessly, shouting loudly. He yelled and cursed.
"You devils who are worse than beasts, you will die a good death! Our Song Dynasty border army will avenge us!"
The people next to the officials looked miserable. Some were crying and kowtowing repeatedly, while others were kneeling down and begging for mercy, with a lot of snot and tears.
"You guys kneel down and kowtow. Otherwise, I'll chop off your dog's head!"
Seeing some people from the Song Dynasty with blood-red eyes and refusing to kneel down even though they were tied up, their horses pointed their whips and shouted threats.
"You beasts will not be spared by the common people. God will take you!"
"Wait! You beasts, my Song army will avenge us!"
"Cut their heads off and tell them to shut their mouths!"
The people of Song Dynasty cursed loudly, Mamula's face darkened, and the Gaochang general next to him shouted.
After a burst of punches and kicks, the soldiers pushed the officials and civilians to their knees on the ground. Mamula raised his hands in disgust, and the general next to him shouted loudly.
"Kill them!"
The soldiers of Gaochang laughed ferociously, wielding their sharp sabers one after another, and chopped down with all their strength. The cries, begging for mercy, and curses suddenly stopped. Hundreds of huge heads rolled on the ground, and scarlet blood flowed everywhere.
Cries rang out, and another group of people were escorted over, including men, women, old and young. They were also pressed and knelt down on the grass. Some were in despair, some were crying like ghosts, and some were also swearing.
"General, let's forget it. These are the people of the Song Dynasty. It's pointless to kill them!"
Some generals couldn't bear to see the people crying in misery, so they spoke to persuade them.
"General, we have killed all the men in this town. These old, weak, sick and disabled people, why not let them go."
Another Gaochang general couldn't bear it.
"Crack!"
Two consecutive blows, the two generals each received a severe whip from Ma Mula.
"You have the final say or I have the final say! If you dare to fart randomly again, I will chop off your dog's head first!"
The two generals lowered their heads, covered their faces, and did not dare to say anything again.
Mamula is a noble of Gaochang Kingdom and the prospective son-in-law of King Baershu. Who dares to offend ordinary generals like them?
"These are greedy and unruly people who don't know the current affairs. When our army from Gaochang Kingdom came to the city, they didn't obediently offer their property. Instead, they fought against us. If I don't kill them, how can I let them kill me in the future? We first swept away Yumen Pass and Shazhou. To clear the way for the rear troops. Whoever dares to disobey military orders, I will chop off his head first!"
After Mamula lectured, the generals all bowed their heads, smiled apologetically, and nodded in agreement.
"That's what the general said!"
"Listen to the general!"
Whoever dares to disobey the boss under such power is asking for trouble.
Song and Meng are an enemy country. If they enter the Song Dynasty, they will definitely burn, kill, loot, and plunder gold, silver, and beauties. Why should they care about the lives of these worthless people?
"Brothers, kill them all!"
Another Gaochang general shouted proudly.
The soldiers raised their swords and dropped them, the cries of the people disappeared, blood stained the ground red, and soon there were dozens more cold corpses.
"Go and see what's going on in the town. I'll kill every living thing. No one will be left alive!"
Mamula shouted coldly, his brows even more sinister.
All the strong men who resisted had been killed, but they still did not let go of other unarmed people and continued their atrocities.
Bodies all over the street, blood everywhere. Men, women, old and young, stacked on top of each other, in different postures, there are constant cries. The soldiers of Gaochang are whistling with arrows, slashing with swords and trampling on horses. It is a wanton massacre.
"Brothers, search carefully and kill all these unruly people for me!"
The soldiers walked in and out of the streets and alleys with sharp blades in hand. The blades were dripping with blood. Everyone's face was filled with murderous looks, and their eyes were ferocious and ferocious, making people shudder.
This is not an army, this is simply a demon from hell!
In a common people's home, Xiaohua, who was only three years old, hid in the stove, covered her ears, closed her eyes tightly, her face was full of tears, and she remained silent. This was built recently by the family to avoid military disasters. Because the Gaochang cavalry came too quickly, only Xiaohua hid in it.
She was hiding in the stove when she saw the door of her house being knocked open, and a group of demons that made her skin crawl fiercely broke in with knives and guns in their hands.
The father stepped forward to protect the mother behind him, but was stabbed in the head by the demon in the lead. Dad screamed, and half of his arm fell to the ground. Then another demon struck him with another knife. Dad's big head flew out and landed in front of him. His father stared at him with his eyes wide open.
The mother and sister panicked and yelled and cursed loudly, but they were swarmed by the demons and dragged into the house. In this house, they started doing things worse than animals.
Xiaohua could see the painful expression on her mother's face. The devil on her body had a ferocious look, and there was a scar on her dark forehead, which made it even more ugly.
Xiaohua lowered her head gently, buried her face in her arms, and never dared to look outside again.
The scolding and crying of the mother and sister lasted for a long time, until finally they weakened and became weak. Then several screams came, and there was no sound in the room again.
Xiaohua stayed in the stove, motionless even if the sounds outside became quiet.
On the grassland outside the town, grains were piled up into a small mountain, and copper coins were scattered everywhere on the grassland. Silks, silks, cattle, sheep, pigs and donkeys were all dazzling. Hundreds of people were pulled out of the town again, but they still did not escape the disaster.
The bandits started killing again. All in all, hundreds of men, women, and children in Ping'an Town were basically slaughtered by them.
The blood of the people was spattered, the demons killed wantonly, and the demons in their hearts were released wantonly, destroying lives and causing harm to the world.
"General, I've gained a lot this time, and there are women. It's really fun!"
An officer came up to report. He was very satisfied. He took off the wine bag from his horse and drank guzzlingly. He was obviously in a good mood.
A stocky officer took a sip of wine, hung up his horned bow, and said loudly: "General, Ogedai has become the Great Khan of the Mongolian Kingdom. This time he was ordered to attack the Song Dynasty, and he can plunder again!"
"Wo Kuotai is sweating profusely, otherwise there will be chaos on the grassland! Wo Kuotai asked us to use troops against the Song Army in Hexi, so we have to work harder, right?"
The generals were all talking, and Mamula nodded with satisfaction.
As the prospective son-in-law of King Balshu of Gaochang and serving as the former army commander, he must not disgrace his mission.
"You all listen carefully. When the time comes, you will deal with the Song army well and make military exploits. You will be rewarded!"
Mamulas was so proud that all the generals were beaming with joy and smiling apologetically.
"General, when you come back from the war against Song Dynasty, you will get married to Ana'er. Ana'er is the most beautiful woman in our Gaochang Kingdom. You are so lucky!"
"That's what Arhan said! I heard that several princes in Mongolia also want to marry Anal. The general is really lucky. Maybe in the future, the throne of the king of Gaochang will also belong to you, the general!"
The generals were flattering, Mamula laughed loudly, and lightly whipped the generals with his riding crop.
"Nonsense! The king has two sons, how can it be my turn to take the throne? However, I heard that there are so many beauties in the Song Dynasty, won't they be enough for you to enjoy yourself by then?"
Ana'er is young and beautiful, and is the apple of King Baershu's eye. It is a great blessing in life to be able to marry this delicate beauty and gain both wealth and wealth.
"I heard that the Song Dynasty was rich. Gold, silver, jewels, and silk tea were piled like mountains. Those women were white and tender, so tender that you could pinch water. When we destroy Lin'an City, all the gold, silver, jewels, and silks in the world will be in the palace of the Song people. Aren’t all the beauties ours!”
Some generals laughed and began to imagine the plundering going south with the Mongolian army.
"Let's not worry about Lin'an City. Let's destroy these cities in Hexi first. To deal with these Song soldiers and unruly people, just one word is "kill"! If you kill them until they are afraid, they will obey orders obediently!"
After Mamula finished speaking, a general quickly took over with an apologetic smile on his face.
"The general is right. We want to kill the people of Song Dynasty so that they dare not resist! General, where should we go next? Should we attack Yumen Pass or Yang Pass?"
Song troops were stationed at both Yangguan and Yumenguan, each numbering around 2,000. Before the Gaochang cavalry came, they had inquired clearly.
"Yangguan and Yumenguan are both military cities. There are no common people, and there is no interest in breaking them. The Song people have been operating in Shazhou for several years. There are many towns there, so it is fun to rob them. If they can break the city of Shazhou, Then you have everything!”
Mamula's incisive analysis aroused a burst of agreement from the generals, and some people couldn't wait to shout loudly:
"The general is right, Shazhou has money and women, and is very wealthy. Let's not delay and go to Shazhou now!"
Yumen Pass is located 160 miles northwest of Dunhuang, Yangguan is 120 miles south of Yumen Pass, and Yangguan is 140 miles away from Dunhuang. Yangguan, Yumenguan, and Dunhuang are at odds with each other and support each other to guard the west gate of Hexi.
The distance there is almost the same, so Shazhou is certainly the best choice for the Gaochang cavalry to plunder.
The massacre had been completed, and the horse was covered with looted property. Hundreds of young women were tied with ropes and placed on the horse.
"Give me more fire and burn this place clean!"
Mamula's eyes were ferocious, as if possessed by a devil.
Flames soared into the sky, accompanied by billowing smoke. The Gaochang cavalry marched away, leaving only Zhendian crying in the flames.
Xiaohua came out of the stove, and her mother's eyes were wide open. Her snow-white body was lying on the ground, with several blood holes on her body and stains of blood, which was shocking.
"Mom, wake up quickly!"
Xiaohua shook it for a long time, but her mother still didn't respond. Xiaohua had to stand up and go to find her sister.
When I walked into the room, I glanced at the bed. My sister's eyes had been closed. Like her mother, she was naked and the blood from the wounds on her body had dried.
The house was in a mess, and it had obviously been rummaged through by the demons. Food was scattered everywhere on the floor, and even the steamed cakes on the pot had been taken away.
Xiaohua cautiously stepped over the mess on the ground and walked out of the room. She saw her father lying in the yard motionless and bloody.
"Dad, wake up, Xiaohua is so scared!"
Xiaohua cried for a long time, but her father still didn't get up. She wanted to escape from this place, but the smoke was billowing, the fire was raging, and there were horrifying corpses and blood everywhere. She was extremely frightened and didn't know where to go, so she retreated to the house, got back into the stove, and hid. got up.
The Gaochang cavalry burned, killed and looted in Yangguan Town, and soon alerted the Song army in Dunhuang County. From the Yumen Pass to the beacons of the Han Great Wall in Dunhuang, wolf smoke billowed into the sky.
"These beasts! We must destroy them!"
At the Song Army camp outside Dunhuang County, Zhang Zhongxia, the commander of the Song Army in Dunhuang, Yumenguan, and Yangguan, heard the alarm about the Gaochang cavalry massacre in the town and cursed fiercely.
It is impossible to defend the hundreds of miles of open area between Yumen Pass and Yang Pass. The Gaochang cavalry must have been carefully guided, cleverly avoiding the Song army's inspections, and doing things worse than animals.
"General, what should we do? Do you want to report to General Ma and General Yu?"
Zhang Zhongxia's brother and subordinate Wang Gui was a little worried.
Gaochang's cavalry are fierce and their number is unknown. Once they attack, the fate of the cavalry is unpredictable.
"It's too late! We have five thousand soldiers in Dunhuang County and ten thousand people stationed in Dunhuang, Yumenguan and Yangguan. Are we still afraid of Gaochang's cavalry?"
Zhang Zhongxia shook his head. No matter how many come, we can only fight them. Otherwise, I don’t know how much harm will be done?
"Send someone to report to Xianggong Jiang and ask him to defend the city. Send out scouts to continue to investigate the enemy's situation. Send an order to the three armies to prepare to send troops in half an hour!"
Zhang Zhongxia passed the order and dressed himself neatly.
"Officer, is the military situation urgent?"
Li Siyu, now Zhang Zhongxia’s wife and a medical officer at the Hexi Route Army and Dunhuang Army Traditional Chinese Medical Battalion, handed Zhang Zhongxia a helmet.
"Madam, don't worry. You and the child will retreat to the city first and wait for my return."
After many experiences, they are now a real military couple.
"Officer, I will go with you. I am also a member of the army."
Li Siyu said softly and firmly.
Zhang Zhongxia nodded, patted his wife's shoulder gently, and strode out of the barracks.
