Yanshi can be regarded as one of the oldest cities on this land. It was built by King Wu of Zhou Dynasty in the past, and it means Yanshi Rongshi.
As if it was God's will in the dark, in the thousands of years since then, Yanshi has really managed to put Yan Rongshi to rest.
Because as the east gate of Luoyang, Yanshi City, where Yanrong troops were stationed, was often the prelude to the capture of Luoyang. Most of the rebels coming from the east would renovate here and then go straight to Luoyang.
Since the end of the Tang Dynasty, Yanshi has become the hardest hit area by war.
In the twenty-nine years since Emperor Zhuangzong of the Tang Dynasty established the religious sect, six emperors have changed. Luoyang City was destroyed five times, and Yanshi was also destroyed five times, including once in less than six years.
Oh, no! In addition to the two since the war between Yong and Liao, it should have been defeated seven times in twenty-nine years, and now, it is likely to be the eighth time.
A slight morning breeze blew, and outside Yanshi City, wolf smoke was rising in all directions. Yelu Deguang personally led 75,000 infantry and cavalry, marching eastward from Gong County. The army was divided into three armies, the front, middle and rear, and came steadily along the Yinluo River.
Before the army arrived, thousands of Qingqi from the Khitan expedition were dispersed all over the place. They provided good reconnaissance and cover for the advancing Khitan army.
At the same time, thousands of Yongliang's Yi Cong Xiaoqi also dispersed. These cavalry were selected from the Liugu Tribe of Lianglan, the Qiang Dangxiang of Shuofang, and even the various tribes in Moxi. They had very strong combat capabilities.
Even though they were righteous soldiers, they didn't seem to be regular troops.
But in fact, the reason why Yongliang was able to mobilize so many Yicong Xiaoqi was not only its own custom of martial arts and many war horses.
In fact, it was because the Yong Kingdom's finances could not support too many organized cavalry, so they could only appear as righteous and heroic cavalry.
A Liao army's expeditionary horsemen were repairing their horses by a creek. They usually had twenty cavalry as a combat unit.
There are two regular soldiers among them, and those who can serve as regular soldiers are generally members of the core Khitan tribe.
Even a light cavalry such as the Yuan Xing Lan Zima would carry a longbow, a horn bow, three horses, and two servants.
However, after the southern invasion, the replenishment of war horses was not very timely, and a large number of our own people from the north were needed to guard everywhere, so now the regular soldiers are equipped with two horses and one servant.
In addition to the two regular soldiers, there are also four Banhan-turned-Ding cavalry.
The so-called Ban Han to Ding is similar to the flag bearers of the Manchu Qing Dynasty. They are not necessarily Han people, but also Bohai people, female straight people, and even Korean people.
Among them, one of the regular soldiers led two banhan soldiers, and the two banhan soldiers led three cavalry soldiers.
Cavalrymen come from many sources, including soldiers from other ethnic groups who are not yet qualified to become transfer cavalrymen, and there are also Khitan people who are not yet qualified to become regular soldiers.
On top of this, four regular soldiers, that is, forty cavalry, formed a team, commanded by the team commander, and continuing onward were military schools, junior generals, generals, supervisors and other official positions.
By the creek, the weather in July was already a bit hot. Ten of the twenty Liao soldiers were taking out linen cloths with them to wipe the sweat on their faces and necks, and some were seizing the time to give them water bottles. Fill it with water.
The remaining ten people were all on horseback, and two others were on guard on the hills in front and behind. They had to wait for the ten people in the stream to wipe their sweat and drink water before it was their turn.
The Khitan soldier who was on guard was a man with ridges on his face. He looked very young, but in fact he was only twenty-one years old. The ridges on his face were the indelible marks left on him by the cold wind in Mobei. .
Zheng Bing's face was not very good, and he was mumbling something.
The weather in the Southern Dynasties is too hot. If I were in my hometown of Jinshan (near Qiqihar), it would still be very cool at this time.
The emperor's desire to stay in the Central Plains was somewhat scornful by the soldiers. I wonder what those big shots thought? What's there to do in this hot and humid Southern Dynasty?
It is said that the Southern Dynasties were prosperous, but in Zheng Bing's view, except for a few larger towns, the households were very poor and there was little money to grab.
"Maybe they were rich before, at least they had many beautiful houses, but now they are poor!"
Zheng Bing was still beeping, but he was overheard by another Zheng Bing who came up from the river. He clapped his hands and said with a smile.
"Ala! The people of the Southern Dynasties are already very rich, and wars are happening everywhere now. Last time my brother followed the crown prince to fight against Goryeo, but he didn't get anything."
A'la curled his lips, "But the Koreans are easy to fight! They will run away when scared, and they will only burrow into the forest. We just need to rush in and knock them over like roe deer."
The people of the Southern Dynasty are not good at it. They are all very fierce and many of them have very good archery skills. If you don't pay attention, you will be attacked. I see that there are more than a dozen pieces of cloth from Han Dynasty to Ding Dynasty, so I should go back early. "
Another soldier chuckled and said, "Your Mosi is a famous beauty, of course you want to go back.
But many of the others had robbed women from the Southern Dynasties. They were afraid that they would not be able to support themselves if they took them back, so how could they be willing to leave?
I heard that Supervisor Tuolie had robbed hundreds of beauties and listened to songs and plays every day. How could he be willing to leave? "
Zheng Bing kept saying how could he be willing to leave, which made A La look depressed.
When I left, my wife Mo Si was already pregnant. The baby is probably crying now. I wonder what it will look like?
Ala sighed in his heart, and was about to ask his soldiers to go to the stream to cool off. He looked up and saw that the sentry he had placed on the mountain to the west suddenly shook twice, and then the man and his horse climbed up the hill. Rushed down wildly.
"No! There's a thief!"
Ah La roared and immediately got back on his horse to meet him. The Khitan cavalry in the stream also hurriedly ran up.
The detective covered his neck with both hands, and blood began to gush out from between his fingers, flowing everywhere.
He wanted to open his mouth to say something, but when he opened his mouth, blood and blood foam also poured out of his mouth.
Horse hooves formed in formation, and just when Ala could clearly see where the sentinel had been hit by the arrow, a dozen cavalrymen suddenly appeared in the distance.
A'la's face darkened and he ignored the sentinel. Instead, he waved his hands rapidly and shouted.
"Come on! Come on!"
The opponent's horse speed has already picked up, and he will definitely not be able to outrun him by turning around. Only by facing him head-on can we have a chance of survival, and can also buy some time for his colleagues behind him who are still mounting their horses.
Eight cavalry versus eighteen cavalry was at a huge disadvantage, but Ala still raised his horse's bow without fear.
The cavalry coming from the opposite side were very silent. This was the characteristic of the Yongliang cavalry. They were as silent as machines. Ala clamped his legs lightly and turned slightly to the left. The war horse accelerated slightly to the left with perfect understanding.
A'la took advantage of the very short moment of the horse's sideways movement to suddenly let go, and the arrow in his hand shot out.
At this time, the rain of arrows from the opposite side had also been shot. A Laba's horse went astray quickly, and the arrows from the opposite side were missed immediately.
But at the moment when he felt happy, a muffled sound of winter came from the opposite side.
He reluctantly looked back and saw that there was a small iron-covered buckler tied to the arm of the cavalryman on the opposite side. There was no need to pull the horse and go astray, and he directly caught the arrow with the small iron-covered buckler.
"What a powerful Tibetan thief!" Ala shouted.
Because he knew that anyone who dared to use the small buckler on his arm to catch a missing arrow must have a lot of experience in order to be able to stay calm in times of crisis. Of course, he also had to be very lucky.
Zhang Xiaobao was so shocked that cold sweat broke out all over his body, and he felt his whole back was cool.
When he heard the sound of breaking through the sky, he felt that it was too late. He subconsciously stretched out his arm to block it, and actually blocked it.
After being frightened, there was anger. Inspired by the bravery of his father and brother, he felt that he had never lost face like this.
In a rage, he picked up two arrows and lost them, only to find that the thieves who shot him had run away, so he directly vented his anger on other Khitan people.
The arrows were shot out in succession, and the arrows from the opposite side were also shot again. The Khitans suffered a disadvantage in terms of numbers. They fought eighteen against eight at one time, and the number of arrows lost was more than doubled.
In a short period of more than 20 seconds, both sides shot hundreds of arrows and missed. Zhang Xiaobiao was hit by three arrows. Only one of his comrades fell on the horse, apparently seriously injured.
But five of the eight Khitans were gone, and the remaining three had no choice but to draw out their long swords in despair.
Zhang Xiaobao also pulled out the Huanshou sword from his waist, which was used for horse fighting. There were several sounds of sharp weapons piercing the body, and the three Khitan cavalry were cut to pieces in an instant.
Taking advantage of this opportunity, the remaining dozen or so riders on the opposite side had already seized the high ground and drew their bows and arrows at them.
Zhang Xiaobao also discovered that the Khitan soldier who almost shot him was among them.
Most of the Yicong Xiaoqi were light cavalry, so it was not a good choice to attack the enemy in a favorable location.
Without armor, even a horse bow can cause fatal damage to people.
Zhang Xiaobao sneered and jumped off the horse. He took out the copper-tied iron-backed bow given by his brother Zhang Xiaobiao, then stretched out a finger and shook it.
"Ten people dismount, and the rest exchange spears!"
Zhang Xiaobao wanted to use his infantry and bow to deal with the cavalry on the opposite side who had occupied a favorable position.
This kind of walking bow, which is generally more than one stone in strength, is much more powerful than the riding bow.
A'la's face suddenly darkened. The person he met was exactly what he expected. He was very experienced.
Another regular soldier next to him approached Ah La and whispered: "We can't dismount. If we do, the cavalry on horseback opposite us will definitely come and kill us with spears."
Ala nodded to express his understanding. As soon as their eyes met, they knew what the other wanted to do.
As he spoke, Zhang Xiaobao had already led nine dismounted cavalry to approach, with a copper-tied iron-backed bow weighing more than a stone, a well-made arrow shaft, and the arrows flew out like messengers from hell.
A'la and another soldier quietly pulled their horses' heads and ran six or seven steps before shouting.
"withdraw!"
The other warriors, who had just woken up from a dream, quickly turned their horses around, but it was already too late.
Yi Congxiaoqi, who had not dismounted, was already chasing after him. Amidst the curses and cries, the Khitans fell off their horses one after another.
Zhang Xiaobiao didn't care about others, but started to speed up his horse. He still wanted to kill the Khitan soldier who almost shot him.
But as soon as he climbed over this small hill, Zhang Xiaobiao immediately stopped his horse.
In the distance, there is a vast plain, and the wide Yinluoshui can be seen in full view.
Countless Khitan cavalry and infantrymen, holding various bright flags, were pressing forward one square after another.
The surrounding expeditionary horses were everywhere like flying bees, and the boats on the water in Yinluo were connected front and back, loaded with grain, grass and baggage.
Someone had already discovered them. A flag waved left and right. At least two hundred riders came out of the front square formation and came towards them.
"We have found the main force of the Khitan people. They are eighteen miles east of Yanshi. We must cross Guoling immediately and disperse to break out. We must send the news back!"
Zhang Xiaobao shouted, before even cutting off the head, he pulled his horse and left.
