In the fourth year of Shaoming Dynasty, 949 AD, at the end of September, Zhang Hao personally came to the foot of Zijin Mountain and set up his tent only two miles away from Zijin Mountain.
The elite troops of the Zhou army attacked the inner Xiangdu of Shandu and the Qianxiangdu that came over, including the Jinwu Guards on the left and Bao Tao Guards on the right, the elite Imperial Guards in Hanhai, Yingyang, Hue and other towns, plus six guard troops and various patrols. During the Long March, a total of 53,000 troops began to launch a fierce offensive against the Qing Huai Army stronghold of the Southern Tang Dynasty on Zijin Mountain.
Although Liu Renzhan diverted water from the Huaihe River in advance and turned the foot of the Purple Mountain into a quagmire, Zhang Yan also had a way to deal with it.
At this time, after the autumn harvest in Zhengzheng, Zhang Jian ordered the Privy Council and the Ministry of War to coordinate with the Pingzhang Yamen of the three provinces of Zhili, Hubei, and Jianghuai to recruit more than 200,000 civilians from eight states including Chen, Su, Bo, Shen, Cai, Ying, Hao, and Si.
They were ordered to pick rice, wheat, millet and other crop straws, mix the straws of these crops with wooden boards, soil, etc., and spread them directly on the muddy ground created by Liu Renzhan.
The Huai army of the Qing Dynasty attacked several times in an attempt to disrupt the progress, but was repulsed all the time.
In early October, more than 200,000 people took turns paving the ground millions of times. It only took more than ten days to pave a road several miles wide.
After that, it became simple, because Zijin Mountain is indeed as Gao Huaide and others said. This mountain is far less steep than Luliang Mountain in the Hedong area. Although the Qing Huai Army set up many forts on the mountain, the geographical advantage was not so obvious.
Moreover, the Qing Huai Army had a huge flaw, that is, their military strength was not enough.
Liu Renzhan's father, Liu Jin, was originally one of Yang Xingmi's thirty-six heroes and one of the founders of the Yang Wu-Nantang country.
To be precise, Liu Jin and Liu Renzhan were shareholders of the Southern Tang Dynasty and not simply ministers.
But this led to a problem. Although the Liu family and his son were very loyal to the Jiangning court, the Southern Tang court would not limit the strength of the Qinghuai army in Shouzhou, and it was impossible for the imperial court's forbidden army to replenish Shouzhou.
So since Liu Renzhan returned to Shouzhou, he has actually been fighting alone. Even though the Luzhou Baoxin Army is not far away from him, there is still no reinforcement to this day.
The seven counties of Shouzhou alone, plus Guangzhou and other counties that are willing to advance and retreat with Liu Renzhan, only have a total of 30,000 troops.
Among the 30,000 soldiers and horses, thousands were injured in the previous attack on Sizhou. Huangfu Hui had just been defeated and lost thousands more, leaving only more than 20,000 people. There are now only more than 10,000 people in the entire Zijin Mountain.
The entire Zhou army has 53,000 people, and those who can be called elite must exceed 30,000. In terms of equipment, they are even more overwhelmed.
Faced with such a disparity, it's no wonder that Gao Huaide and others didn't take the castle on Purple Mountain seriously.
On the ninth day of October, Zhang Gao sent Zhang Gaojiu (Dunzhu), Zhang Cheng, Gao Huaide, Yang Jiye, Murong Xinchun, Wang Quanbin, Wang Shenqi and other generals in turn, each with their elite troops, to attack Zijin Mountain from various places.
Taking advantage of the fact that the elite are better at fighting at night, Zhou Jun often chooses the time to initiate battles in Shen Zheng, which starts at four o'clock in the afternoon, and continues until the end of Youshi, which is after seven o'clock in the evening.
This made the Qing Huai army on the mountain extremely uncomfortable. Their level of eliteness, and even their food, were not comparable to that of the Zhou army. Although they did not suffer from night blindness, at night, their vision was obviously far less than that of the Zhou army who ate beef and mutton openly. good.
In addition, the Zhou army had more armor, and it was cooler in the evening, making it more suitable for armored combat. With the sight of the enemy trapped, the Zhou army could engage in melee combat in close proximity, making it impossible for the Qing and Huai army to rely on forming formations to offset the personal prowess and equipment disadvantages of the Zhou army. Advantage.
On October 14, after five days of high-intensity fighting, the Zhou army took the Hedong Bujia and the Hengshan party Xiang Bubazi as the forerunners, and super strong men such as Dunzhu, Gao Huaide, and Yang Jiye as the backbone, and employed 500 people. The small-scale combat method continued to attack the Qing Huai Army's stronghold in Zijin Mountain.
The Huai army of the Qing Dynasty finally couldn't hold it anymore. Often, a fort guarded by five or six hundred people, with a geographical advantage and a large number of stones that could be thrown from a high position, could be broken into by the Zhou army of about five hundred people with a single attack. Go to the fortress.
On October 14th alone, the Zhou army destroyed six fortresses in a row.
Liu Renzhan was at the top of Shouzhou City. He could see the silver-white flags of the army on Purple Mountain waving in the wind in the distance, and when he heard the faint cheers, he knew that the matter was irreversible.
He made another huge strategic mistake. He thought that the Zhou army came to attack Shouzhou to open up the Huaihe River, and in order to continue southward to attack Luzhou, he built the Zijin Mountain Camp, hoping to delay the Zhou army's attack by building a fortress in the mountains. .
But in fact, Zhang Yan simply wanted to capture Shouzhou City and killed his chicken Liu Renzhan to scare Li Jing and Qian Hongchu.
Therefore, if Liu Renzhan had a more sensitive political sense, he should retreat into Shouzhou City with all his troops.
In this way, Shouzhou City has at least 25,000 people. The city is tall and strong, with the Huaihe River as a moat, and enough food for a year. It cannot be captured in a short time.
Historically, in the latter Zhou Dynasty, when Liu Renzhan's army retreated, Guo Rong mobilized more than 100,000 troops and more than 400,000 civilians. They fought for more than a year.
It was not until the encirclement of Zijin Mountain to mobilize reinforcements and defeat all the effective forces in the Southern Tang Dynasty that could assist Shouzhou that Shouzhou ran out of food and the city could be broken.
Although Zhang Gao's methods of breaking the city are now much higher than those in the later weeks in history, it is still no problem for the Qing Huai army to hold on for two or three months. Their ability to hold on for such a long time will undoubtedly give Li Jing greater confidence.
However, it was too late to say anything at this time. Even Liu Renzhan didn't realize this until now. Seeing him extremely worried, Yao Feng, the deputy envoy beside him, raised his hand.
"Liu Gong, the Zhou people don't know yet that we have a tunnel leading to Zijin Mountain, and the main stronghold of Zijin Mountain has not been captured yet. Please send three thousand elite soldiers to go to Zijin Mountain at night and capture all the Zhou troops. Get off!"
Liu Renzhan thought about it and found that among the 10,000 Qing Huai troops in Shouzhou City, 3,000 soldiers could still be enough.
If they could catch someone by surprise through the tunnel, their chances of winning would be high. Wouldn’t the Zhou army like to fight at night in the evening? Just enough to cover Yao Feng going up the mountain.
Gao Huaide was squatting on the mountainside, surrounded by three generals: Murong Yanzhao, Wang Quanbin, and Wang Shenqi. Behind him were rising stars in their teens and twenties such as Zhang Deqing, Lin Renzhao, Li Zun, Fan Changgong, Gongsun Nian, and Han Huzi.
Several people were resting in armor. Wang Shenqi scratched his head and took out a small cloth bag from his arms.
Not far above their heads was the largest fortress of the Southern Tang Dynasty in Purple Mountain. There were probably fifteen hundred Southern Tang armored soldiers inside.
Now that 400 of them had destroyed two fortresses, they naturally wanted to take a break and eat some high-fat and high-salt rice balls made with honey, refined salt, lard and glutinous rice to replenish their energy.
Gao Huaide finished his rice ball in three gulps, then took out a wine bottle and drank from it, then handed it to Murong Yanzhao.
He looked at the soldiers behind him with satisfaction. Everyone here was an absolute elite. There was no one like the Saint Xionghu who didn't have twenty or thirty lives in his hands.
At the top of the mountain fort, Yao Feng was quite out of breath. Although there was a tunnel, it was still not easy to climb up the mountain with his armor on his back. The same happened to the soldiers behind him, with several of them staggering around.
Yao Feng just wanted to reprimand him a few words, but after thinking about it, he gave up. He would soon have to rely on them to attack down and take back the occupied fortresses.
Don't ask for too much when you are working hard. They can start wearing armor as soon as they arrive in Dazhai, which is pretty good.
Zhang Deqing held up a huge shield covered with a layer of raw iron. This thing weighed more than 30 yuan and 40 kilograms. Only a strong man like him could hold it with one hand and run forward.
There was a bang. Yao Feng was still resting when he heard a sound on the right side of Dazhai. He didn't know how many Zhou troops had already entered through the gap.
It turned out that they were all covered in very dark black robes outside their armor, so it was difficult to see clearly in the evening. By the time the Southern Tang soldiers discovered them, they had already run closer.
Gongsun Nian held a big ax and chopped down the horse on the right side of Dazhai with three strokes. Zhang Deqing rushed in with a big shield.
Yao Feng waved his hand and the crossbow arrows shot out, but unfortunately, Zhang Deqing was holding this thing to prevent crossbow arrows.
His side fired the crossbow first, and Fan Changgong and others immediately started to fight back with their hard bows. There was only a clanging sound mixed with screams, and the people in the front of the Southern Tang Army who were shot fell over.
It was not until this moment that the Southern Tang Army in the stronghold realized that the Zhou Army had entered.
Gao Huaide shouted loudly, and his 500 men dispersed into six teams and attacked fiercely in the directions assigned to them.
If they fight more with less, they will definitely turn this battle into a melee. If they fight in formation and the opponent uses numbers and formations to make up for the gap in force, they will suffer.
Yao Feng was shocked, but he quickly came to his senses, because the Zhou army attacking from the opposite side was obviously too small, with a maximum of six or seven hundred people.
And now he has led 3,000 people, and there are more than 1,000 people in the stronghold. If eight or nine people fight one person, how can I be beaten back?
Thinking of this, Yao Feng was about to loudly order his soldiers to fight back. Suddenly, a strong man whose black robe was torn, revealing a silver-white cloth-covered iron armor, leaped high from a carriage, and then slammed into Among the soldiers of the Southern Tang Dynasty.
Yao Feng couldn't help but was speechless. This man's armor weighed at least forty or fifty kilograms, and the two iron whips he held in his hands weighed more than ten kilograms. He could jump so high that he might not have the strength of a thousand kilograms. He would never do it. less than.
As soon as Zhang Deqing landed, countless swords, guns, swords and halberds came to greet him, but he was not afraid at all. He did not look at the direction of the weapons coming from the opposite side. Instead, he slammed into them like a bull, and one person killed four or five A soldier from the Southern Tang Dynasty was knocked over, and then he rushed towards the place where the person who was hit was knocked over.
This is the experience that only melee masters have. If you don't move, the enemy will immediately surround you in a circle. At that time, even with three heads and six arms, you will not be able to defend against attacks from all directions.
But now, after you slam into a gap and rush in one direction, the enemy can only chase after you.
It may seem like a huge force, but with so many people pushing against each other, there are only a few people who can attack you.
Of course, this requires you to rush fast enough. If you are slow, you will still be surrounded.
Zhang Deqing was regarded as the next generation of wild bears in Zhang Zhou's army, before the little black bear was only sixteen years old and had not yet fully grown up.
Zhang Deqing, who is six feet three inches tall, or more than 1.93 meters tall, weighs 210 kilograms, and has two legs that are made of iron. He can grab the horns and overturn a large buffalo weighing eight to nine hundred kilograms. He is capable of fighting alone. ceiling.
Even a tough guy like Gao Huaide is no match for him when fighting alone.
The eighty-nine kilogram heavy cooked copper mace was in Zhang Deqing's hand, as if it were a plastic toy. He ran and beat him all the way. If he came close, he would be beaten to the head and bleed, or else he would be stabbed in the center by the mace and fall to the ground.
In less than a dozen breaths, more than twenty soldiers of the Qing Huai Army fell to the ground with howls and screams after being beaten. Although the roar of the rest was loud, the number of those who really dared to step forward at the risk of their lives immediately decreased.
Gao Huaide was stimulated by this scene and became fierce. Historically, Gao Huaide was the ceiling among the founding heroes of the Northern Song Dynasty. Zhao Kuangyin should be inferior to him in terms of military force.
Murong Yanzhao shouted behind Gao Huaide: "Although there are many thieves, it is a good time to make contributions. With so many of them suddenly appearing, there must be a tunnel leading to Shouzhou City!"
Gao Huaide laughed, "Only with a small number can we show our bravery by defeating a large number of enemies. Please follow me and defeat the enemy!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Gongsun Chao jumped out of the formation holding a long-ke axe. With his swing, the soldiers of the Southern Tang Dynasty who had only slashed were turned upside down. Gao Huaide also held a large wolf fang and attacked personally.
Fan Changgong climbed to the roof of a house in Dazhai and saw Yao Feng wearing Mingguang armor and holding a horizontal sword commanding a hundred steps away. He took off the copper-tied iron-backed bow on his back, took a sharp breath, and shot two arrows in succession.
The Southern Tang Army was attacked by strong men like Gao Huaide and Zhang Deqing, and was beaten back and forth. Yao Feng was about to hesitate whether to let his bodyguards take over, when he suddenly felt as if his chest had been struck by lightning!
He shook twice, a mouthful of blood spurted out, and there were two arrows stuck in the bright light armor on his chest.
Although the armor was not broken deeply, Yao Feng could feel that his internal organs might have been injured.
, he opened his mouth, wanting his bodyguards not to panic and to stay steady, but his bodyguards had already been beaten to the point of being frightened. When they saw Yao Feng vomiting blood and couldn't even speak, they panicked and they snatched Yao Feng. Want to step back.
Fan Changgong's eyes were sharp and he immediately shouted loudly, "We are defeated!" Lost! '
Upon seeing this, the surrendered generals of the Southern Tang Dynasty, such as Lin Renhan and Lin Renzhao, immediately shouted loudly and in Jianghuai dialect that they were defeated! Lost!
For a time, the Qinghuai army, which had been suppressed and beaten, finally could not withstand the pressure. When he looked back, he saw that Yao Feng, who was wearing Mingguang armor, had disappeared, and they were suddenly defeated.
(End of chapter)
