Accustomed to the self-centered thinking of a big country, the national personality of the subjects of the Tang Dynasty has risen to a somewhat arrogant level in the decades since it destroyed the Turks.
All the wars launched by Datang over the years were to destroy enemy cities and destroy enemy countries. The wars had always only raged in foreign countries. For decades, no enemy country dared to take the initiative to invade Datang's territory.
So when Xu Yanbo heard that Tubo dared to surround Shanzhou with troops, his first reaction was shock and disbelief.
How brave do you have to be to do this? Is Lu Dongzan crazy?
Then Xu Yanbo learned another news from the people.
The emperor's envoy Li Qinzai led thousands of elite troops and flew hundreds of miles to rescue Shanzhou. After a battle outside the city, he killed nearly 10,000 enemy heads in front of the battle line and solved the siege of Shanzhou.
These people all escaped from the city after the siege of Shanzhou was lifted. There were originally only two thousand Shanzhou defenders. After the city was besieged, they could not withstand the attack of 30,000 Tibetan troops. Fortunately, Li Qinzai relieved Shanzhou. The siege saved tens of thousands of people in the city from total destruction.
Xu Yanbo suddenly felt comfortable and looked up to the sky laughing.
He is worthy of being my respected brother Jingchu and a highly valued minister of the emperor. He has indeed lived up to his expectations.
This is the style of my great Tang son, it should be revealed!
Xu Yanbo was very happy. While he admired Li Qinzai even more, Fengliu was not willing to lag behind others, so he ordered the caravan to take out the dry food they carried to help the people who had fled the city in panic and had no food to eat.
I continued westward with a happy mood. After walking for a while, I still met many people who had escaped from Shanzhou City.
Xu Yanbo looked at the crowds of people and said with emotion: "This is all the merits of brother Jingchu. It is the grace of thousands of people who have survived. Bodhisattvas are shaking their heads in fear. What kind of child will he be born in the next life to be worthy of the merits he has accumulated in this life?" , I am worried about the King of Hell..."
Suddenly, a middle-aged couple holding a child stopped in front of Xu Yanbo's horse. Xu Yanbo subconsciously turned the horse's head to get out of the way, but the middle-aged couple still stood motionless in front of the horse.
,
Xu Yanbo frowned: "Why are you stopping my horse?"
The middle-aged couple looked ordinary and wore ordinary clothes. The child in their arms was about six or seven years old. He blinked in his father's arms and looked at Xu Yanbo innocently.
The middle-aged man handed the child to his mother-in-law, then bowed to Xu Yanbo and said, "May I ask if you have an official position? I see that the guards in the caravan are all capable people. They may have been in the military, so I Even if you risk your life to stop me, please give me a little help."
Xu Yanbo raised his eyebrows: "It's interesting that someone with no relatives or friends actually asked me for help. Tell me, what do you want me to help you with?"
"The villain doesn't need help. The one who needs help is Li Qinzai, the emperor's envoy."
Xu Yanbo was stunned, immediately dismounted, walked up to the middle-aged man, and said seriously: "Li Qinzai? What's going on?"
"Uncle Li County relieved the siege of Shanzhou and saved tens of thousands of people. However, he and his soldiers were surrounded by the Tibetan army. The situation was critical. I saw that you were dressed luxuriously and that there were military men in your caravan, so I became bold. , please send troops to rescue County Uncle Li."
Xu Yanbo was taken aback, and his face suddenly turned ugly: "Brother Jingchu was surrounded by the Tubo army? When did it happen?"
"After the siege of Shanzhou was lifted, Li Xianbo led his troops to leave. Along the way, the villain met people who had escaped from other cities. After asking about it, he learned that the Tibetan army mobilized troops on the border and surrounded Shanzhou. There are at least 40,000 to 50,000 soldiers and horses, but County Uncle Li only has a few thousand, so the situation is critical!"
Xu Yanbo's body trembled, he stared at the middle-aged man and said, "Who are you? Do you know County Uncle Li?"
The middle-aged man lowered his head and said, "I was favored by Uncle Li in Shanzhou City. I wanted to die with Uncle Li, but my wife and children were by my side, so I couldn't bear to abandon him. I feel so ashamed that I can't repay my kindness because I was grateful. I have no choice but to tell the news to you, and if you have any spare power, please be generous and help me.”
Xu Yanbo's eyelids twitched, and he refused to give up and asked the caravan guards to invite a few more people to come over. After asking about it, they agreed with the middle-aged man's statement.
Xu Yanbo stamped his foot heavily: "Why didn't you tell me earlier! Quick, the caravan will send horses to turn around and tell Su Dingfang's army to tell the details of what happened here and ask General Su Dingfang to lead his troops to help!"
The middle-aged man was immediately relieved when he heard this.
Xu Yanbo pondered for a moment and said: "All the caravan guards have gathered to find the specific location of Brother Jingchu's whereabouts, and to find out the route for General Su Dingfang in advance."
"Soldiers are valuable and quick. Brother Jingchu's life hangs on a thread. Don't delay! Hurry!"
A group of caravan guards rode on horseback and accepted orders with fists clasped, then turned their horses' heads and galloped away in different directions.
The middle-aged man saluted again and said: "I would like to do my best to contact the people fleeing on the road, collect dried cow and horse dung along the way, light beacon fires, and lead the way for the army."
"The people on the road have all been saved by Uncle Li. If they can do anything for Uncle Li, they will be willing to do so."
Xu Yanbo praised: "Okay, this can save at least a few hours. Every moment here and now is extremely precious, so be careful!"
The middle-aged man's eyes turned red, he knelt on his knees in front of Xu Yanbo, and choked with sobs: "Thank you for your help, sir. I hope County Uncle Li is safe and sound."
Xu Yanbo helped him up, patted his shoulder, and sighed: "You are a true righteous man. I would like to thank you on behalf of brother Jingchu."
"The villain did not do his best, failed to relieve County Uncle Li's worries, and cannot live up to the word 'righteous man'." The middle-aged man said with shame.
"No, you have done what you should do, and you have done it perfectly."
After discussing it, the two said goodbye to each other.
The middle-aged man entrusted his wife and children to a trusted neighbor, then turned around and walked back the way he came.
The figure, weighed down by life, disappeared in the crowd, and was finally lost to all living beings.
Xu Yanbo suddenly realized that he didn't even have time to ask this man's name.
The only shining moment of this nameless hero may be today, and he will remain ordinary and mediocre for the rest of his life.
…………
On the unknown hilltop, there are dead bodies everywhere.
There are enemy troops and there are those of your own robe.
Li Qinzai's troops have successfully resisted no less than ten attacks by the Tibetan army here. Relying on the ultra-long range and intensive shooting of the three-eyed gun, they barely managed to hold on to their position.
But the situation at this time was becoming increasingly pessimistic. The Tubo army's brazen charge at the expense of their lives made Li Qinzai's thousands of troops feel heavy pressure. With wave after wave of attacks, more than a thousand Tang army soldiers were killed.
Fortunately, the trenches dug in advance protected the Tang army from countless arrows and halberds, thus preventing the Tang army from suffering greater casualties.
Those who are good at guarding are hidden under the Nine Earths. Li Qinzai took the word "guarding" to its extreme.
In contrast, the Tubo army dropped nearly 10,000 corpses on the position, but the final result was only to occupy the Tang army's position at the foot of the mountain.
The Tang army retreated to the mountainside.
Five miles away from the top of the mountain where the two armies were fighting for each other, in the headquarters of the Tibetan army, Lu Dongzan was deeply shocked by the tenacious resistance of the Tang army.
He did not expect that the Tang army, which numbered only several thousand people, would resist so fiercely and tenaciously.
After painstaking planning and mobilizing almost all the Tibetan troops, when the army finally surrounded Li Qinzai, Lu Dongzan did not expect that the battle to annihilate these thousands of people would be so difficult.
The Tubo army sacrificed nearly ten thousand people in front of the battle before they could break through the foot of the mountain. If the siege continued, how many tragic casualties would they pay?
As the head coach of the first army, Lu Dongzan's ability to assess the situation is certainly extraordinary.
Reason told him that he must withdraw his troops.
What is more important at the moment is the land of Tuyuhun. At this point in the war, it is impossible to completely swallow up Tuyuhun. Lu Dongzan is even less sure of fighting the incoming Su Dingfang army.
The only thing that can be done is to negotiate with Tang State and divide it with Tang State.
However, negotiations must have bargaining chips.
Lu Dongzan had no bargaining chips. He heard that Su Dingfang had 10,000 soldiers and horses armed with strange new weapons. Tubo had no power to resist in the face of such powerful force.
Once Su Dingfang's army arrives, Tubo will have no choice but to give up all the land in Tuyuhun. So what is the significance of the land that the Tubo army conquered at great cost in the past few months?
Therefore, Lu Dongzan decided to change his tactical purpose.
His only bargaining chip is Li Qinzai.
If Li Qinzai can be captured alive in this battle, won't the bargaining chip come?
An important minister who was favored by the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty and sent Tuyuhun as an envoy to accomplish immortal feats. If such an important figure was in the hands of Talu Dongzan, would the Tang Dynasty be willing to negotiate? Are you willing to give half of the land in Tuyuhun to Tibet?
It may not be possible to negotiate, but it is at least a very important bargaining chip to make Tubo invincible.
In the commander's tent, Lu Dongzan suddenly stood up and said in a deep voice: "Order the warriors to stop attacking and send a message to Li Qinzai. I want to go to the battle to see him."
Tang army's mountainside position.
Waves of shrill and painful wails came one after another.
It was difficult to hold the hilltop, but the soldiers paid too many casualties. In less than half a day, one-third of the more than 3,000 soldiers had been killed, and most of the others were injured.
There was a cloth strip wrapped around Li Qinzai's arm, and there was faint blood oozing from the cloth strip.
During the Tubo attack just now, the enemy shot a cold arrow at him. Fortunately, Old Wei's quick eyes and hands quickly grabbed him, and the cold arrow that shot towards the chest deflected and hit his arm.
Zinu squatted on the ground and kept bandaging the wounds of the wounded soldiers. For those seriously injured who could not be saved, Zinu could only give up with tears and turn around to save another one.
In this tragic war, some people sacrificed and some grew.
"Injured and uninjured, please take out the dry food and eat quickly. Hurry! The enemy is about to attack again!" Li Qinzai shouted loudly as he shuttled around the position.
Everyone silently took out the dry food and ate it with numb expressions.
In the trench of the position, the soldiers sitting on the ground were eating dry food. Occasionally, they broke out into a burst of mournful crying. The crying suddenly stopped, and the sad soldiers blocked their crying mouths with food.
Wounded soldiers could be seen lying everywhere in the trenches. Some of them were moaning feebly on the edge of death, and some had turned into corpses.
The yellow earth under your feet has been dyed red with blood, like flowers blooming on the bank of the Forgotten River, silently telling the meaning of life beyond life and death.
Li Qinzai walked in the trench and watched the groans of the wounded soldiers helplessly with grief.
A wounded soldier was at his feet, and blood could not stop pouring from his abdomen.
Li Qinzai knelt down and covered his wound with all his strength, but blood still gurgled from his fingers.
"Please bear with it a little longer, bear with it a little longer..." Li Qinzai said with red eyes.
The wounded soldier knew that he was hopeless, so he smiled miserably at him and said weakly: "Uncle Li, do we...do we have any reinforcements?"
"Yes, there are reinforcements. The reinforcements will arrive soon, believe me."
The wounded soldier bared his teeth and smiled: "You are a big shot,... no, you cannot lie to us small soldiers. Where are the reinforcements coming from?"
Li Qinzai said with tears: "If you persist a little longer, you will be able to see the reinforcements with your own eyes. General Su Dingfang sent someone to deliver a letter, and his army will arrive soon."
The wounded soldier shook his head with difficulty: "It's not important anymore, County Uncle Li... I want to ask you one thing."
"you say."
"Take my... corpse back to my hometown. I... don't want to be buried here. I can't enter the ancestral graves and can only be... a lonely ghost!"
"You...you all need to live, live, and take me home."
