Continuous mountains, turbulent rivers, and passes connecting mountains to the sky. This is the majestic pass that cuts across the eastern and western capitals of Bangzhou.
At the foot of Hangu Pass, countless Qin people gathered here.
Although Hangu Pass is no longer as dangerous as it was in the past few hundred years and can now accommodate several vehicles at the same time, it is still not that easy to break through.
This is still a great barrier that requires blood and life to break through.
The only difference is that in the previous Hangu Pass, ten lives were exchanged for one life, and in the current Hangu Pass, five lives were exchanged for one life.
With the sound of war drums, the Qin people charged in waves like a tide.
The corpses fell from the city wall like dumplings, and countless pieces of meat were piled under the city wall. They were very bright, a mixture of blood and brains, mixed with red and white, somewhat like a witch's dress.
Among the corpses, only the faces were bloody and bloody, which was considered good. The heads of most of the corpses were directly sunken. Those who didn't know better thought they were the ancient god of war, Xing Tian.
There were only a few scattered catapults, because the terrain was too dangerous to use, so they could only slowly and laboriously reassemble them on the mountain level with Hangu Pass.
It mainly relies on the powerful crossbows newly invented in recent years. The power and distance of this crossbow far exceed that of bows and arrows. It can not only cause huge damage to people, but can even cause some damage to city walls.
Faced with the high casualties, Uncle Qin's expression did not change at all. Since he had decided to attack Hangu Pass, this was the inevitable outcome.
"What are Wei's casualties?" This was what he was most concerned about.
The Qin general in charge of organizing the attack finally looked a little better and said: "The Wei family's casualties are far lower than our army, but with these continuous attacks, their losses are about one-third of our army's."
In a city defense battle, this casualty ratio is already incredible!
Uncle Qin was very happy when he heard this and walked around: "If we fight like this, the main purpose is to kill and injure the soldiers of the Wei family. Wei Qing will definitely not be able to hold on. Now let the people we arranged before persuade Wei Qing."
Above Hangu Pass, there are also traces of war everywhere. Powerful crossbow arrows are nailed to the city wall, and the occasional falling trebuchets create deep pits.
The defenders have an absolute advantage. According to the current situation, as long as there are no problems with logistics, they can last for at least three to five years. However, the expression on Wei Qing's face in Jin State was extremely ugly.
"Are these Qin people crazy? They attack Hangu Pass like this. Even if they take Hangu Pass, will they still have the troops to fight in the Central Plains?"
From the moment they came to Hangu Pass, the Qin people looked like they were fighting to the death. Even at night, they did not stop for a moment, and they suffered countless casualties, but they still did not stop for a moment.
Wei's retainers said anxiously: "Master, we can't go on like this. Qin is a big country with a population of millions, and it has 300,000 soldiers.
Even if all the Qin people were annihilated under Hangu Pass, would the Wei family be able to survive alone?
Patriarch, Mr. Gao was right what he said that day. For us, this is really an unnecessary war. "
Of course we are not the Kingdom of Jin as mentioned by Wei's retainers. If we were the Kingdom of Jin, even if all the Qin people died, they would not be able to break through Hangu Pass.
We here are the Wei family who came to guard Hangu Pass.
One of the great clans in the Jin Kingdom!
The retainer's words made Wei Qing fall into deep thought. Seeing Wei Qing's expression, thinking about the beauties and endless treasures at home, he felt secretly happy.
The Wei family's fiefdom was close to Qin and Chu, and they were the Jin ministers who had the deepest penetration in both countries. Not only did they make good friends with the Qing clan, Qin and Chu also bought countless retainers of the Wei family.
These people would not sell the Wei family directly, but they could still get the Wei family closer to Qin Chu.
Back in the mansion, Wei Qing's concubine, who was born in the Qin State, also persuaded him, "Your Majesty, I have seen the power of the Qin State with my own eyes. If the stalemate continues like this, the losses of the Wei family will definitely be greater. It's better to just let the Qin army pass, it won't hurt the Wei family."
In the past few days, the increasing casualties of Wei's private soldiers and the overt or covert persuasion of everyone made Wei Qing unable to help but recall what Young Master Gao said a few months ago.
A few months ago, the Qin people just arrived at Hangu Pass.
The young master carried boxes of treasures into the hall, and Wei Qing looked at these precious treasures greedily.
Prince Gao saluted Wei Qing very respectfully. This was a courtesy that ministers would only pay to foreign monarchs. Wei Qing was shocked at that time.
He quickly said: "Sir, what do you mean?
I am just a minister of the Jin State, not a king. Your etiquette is inappropriate. "
Unexpectedly, Young Master Gao actually smiled and said: "Wei Qing, this is the king of our country congratulating you, because you will soon become the lord of the princes."
Before Wei Qing could respond, Prince Gao continued: "Wei Qing, you are the top minister of the Jin State, and you take turns in charge of the state affairs of the Jin State with other ministers.
The Wei family's territory and population account for 30% of the Jin State. You are far superior to most monarchs in terms of status and strength, but you are just a prince and minister. Is this appropriate?
These territories were conquered by your ancestors. The Jin government did not pay a single soldier, but collected taxes from these territories. This is not the principle of a king.
Look at these treasures. Qin has always been poor, but it can easily take out so much wealth and donate it to you.
And what about you?
Your fiefdom is so rich, but you have dedicated most of your wealth to the officialdom. Are you really willing to do so? "
The obvious conspiracy does not need to be decorated with cunning words.
When Wei Qing heard this, he was furious and said: "So the king of Qin sent you here with such thoughts?
Do you want to drive a wedge between the Wei family and the public office, and then ask me to let the Qin army pass Hangu Pass?
Then Uncle Qin thought wrongly. The monarch and I are not just monarchs and ministers, but also close friends and relatives. We once formed a blood-based alliance in Yicheng and will never betray. "
Young Master Gao didn't care about Wei Qing's current angry attitude. Wei Qing showed such anger after just a few words of conversation, which just showed that what he just said hit a weak point in his heart.
"Wei Qing, the king of Qin is a gentleman well-known in the western frontier. The whole land of Guanzhong is praising the king's benevolence. How can it be possible to sow discord between you and Duke Jin?
The State of Qin is doing this for the sake of you and the Wei family.
Is there still half of the Daqing clan that survived during the reign of Duke Wen of Jin?
How glorious was the Zhi family in the past?
In the Jin Kingdom, one person is inferior and ten thousand people are superior. Where is he now?
Fifty years ago, the Zhao family was just a hair away from being exterminated. Have you forgotten?
Now that you have become the largest member of the Qing family, can the Jin government tolerate your existence?
Jin Gong clearly knew that the whole country of Qin was at the gate, but he still sent your clan to Hangu Pass. Is this out of trust?
Even though there are great dangers at the pass, who doesn't know the reputation of the Qin people for their bravery?
Wei's soldiers will definitely be consumed.
The king asked me to tell you that no matter how many lives of Qin people are lost here, Qin must pass through Hangu Pass.
After both the Qin State and the Wei family were defeated, Qin State would eventually retreat to Guanzhong, and the west of Weihan would be in Qin's hands.
Although it is not as dangerous as Hangu Pass, the Kanto countries will also have to pay a bloody price if they want to enter.
But what about Wei? I'm afraid the only ending waiting for you is destruction.
It is a pity that the Qin State has been in Zuo for five hundred years, and there will be another five hundred years in the future, and the Wei family may not exist in thirty years.
Wei Qing, if you want to be a loyal minister of Jin, you have to ask other members of the family if they agree.
That's all I've said, and I hope you'll think about it.
The Qin army will begin to attack the city tomorrow, and you will see Qin's determination! "
After saying that, Prince Gao still used the etiquette of a monarch to pay homage to Wei Qing and left directly.
There is only one heart-wrenching sentence left, "How can the Qing clan always be invincible? Only by turning the family into a country can the highest honor and power be achieved."
After a few months, Gongzi Gao returned to Hangu Pass again.
This majestic city was shrouded in war and full of murderous atmosphere. Countless wounded soldiers were transported to the city for treatment. There were groans of pain everywhere, no different from the Qin army's camp.
Young Master Gao still saluted Wei Qing respectfully, without showing any arrogance, and brought even more goods than last time.
This made Wei Qing's aggrieved heart feel better, and he felt Qin's sincerity.
"Wei Qing, the king asked me to bring you greetings. I hope that Qin and Wei can have a good alliance for a hundred years."
Wei Qing sighed: "Sir, what you said last time is indeed the truth.
However, although the Wei family's fiefdoms were large, they were scattered. The Wei family's power was great, but it was not recognized by the Emperor of Zhou.
How can one become the leader of a prince? "
The young master laughed loudly and said: "Wei Qing, Jin Gong has often been disrespectful to the emperor in recent years. Qin has also heard about it in the Western Frontier.
If you are willing to let the Qin army enter the pass, the Qin army is willing to join forces with you to attack the Jin army in the Han family's fiefdom.
The Chu army is in Nanyang. When the three parties attack, will the Jin army not fail?
At that time, Marquis Zheng, who had annexed the Han family's territory and made slanderous remarks to the emperor in Dongping, finally went to Luoyi to ask the emperor of Zhou for canonization.
You have made great contributions, will the Emperor of Zhou not reward you? "
Wei Qing was a little shocked. Was he going to use a knife to force Emperor Zhou to confer a title?
As expected of a barbarian from the Western Frontier, he really doesn't know what etiquette is.
Wei Qing sighed and said, "The Qin State is far away in the west and yet it knows how to admonish the emperor. How loyal it is.
Duke Jin repeatedly proposed to the emperor that he wanted to be buried with royal rites. How disrespectful was this?
As a minister, I should advise the Duke of Jin, but I have never been able to do so before. Now it is time to propose to the king. "
The two sides hit it off immediately, and the Qin army opened the gate to the Qin people after knocking on the pass for several months without disturbing it at all!
It's difficult to defeat a powerful pass, but it's easy to defeat people's hearts!
…
In the Song Dynasty.
The people of Qi were driven down from the city wall in despair again. The generals of the Wu army looked at the people of Qi strangely, with obvious sneers in their eyes.
Most of the nobles of the Wu army were holding back their laughter, but the soldiers of the Wu army did not have so many worries. They all laughed and said: "Qi Ren, you were beaten again and retreated in despair."
The soldiers of the Qi army blushed with shame, waved their hands and said, "Don't talk nonsense. Failure to attack the city is not considered a failure. This is a normal thing."
The soldiers of the State of Wu pointed to the soldiers of the State of Wu on the other side who had rushed up the city wall to fight with the Song people and said: "You were defeated last time, and you were defeated this time too."
So the Qi soldiers sneaked back into the camp dejectedly saying something like "Qi is the overlord of the princes".
Qi's army was obviously not as strong as their mouth. These Qi people who were obsessed with restoring Duke Huan's hegemony were beaten with blood on their faces when facing the Song people.
In this attack on Song Dynasty, Qi's army completely lost the face of its former overlord.
After Duke Huan of Qi, the State of Qi gradually declined for hundreds of years. However, because it had always been with Luo State and Jin State, it never suffered a major failure. Even during the Yingshui Peace Conference more than a hundred years ago, it suffered a major failure. Made a splash.
But this time when they attacked the Song Dynasty, when Qi and Wu attacked the city together, they were quite successful because of the Wu people's bravery. However, once the Qi people attacked the city on their own, their results were simply disastrous.
The quality of the Qi people's individual soldiers is not too bad, but they may come from different Yuanshi. Once the number of soldiers increases, the combat effectiveness will be very strange.
This situation even attracted the attention of Luo Guo.
Because in the subsequent battles, all the main forces were large corps. Even if the logistics troops were not included, the number of combat troops alone was tens of thousands.
If Qi State is still in its current state, it will only become a breakthrough in subsequent battlefields, which is something Luo State cannot allow.
For this matter, Luo Zhi also wrote a special letter to Linzi, hoping that they could select a general who could command the army in combat and carry out unified planning for Qi's army.
After several months of adjustments, results were gradually achieved. During this process, tens of thousands of people from Qi State had died on the soil of Song State.
Of course, many people in the Song Dynasty died, not only soldiers, but also countless ordinary people. In troubled times, it was really difficult to stay alive.
In the Zheng State, Luo Zhi led Luo State's 100,000-strong army. In addition to the royal army that had been gathered before, as well as the Zheng State's troops, there were more than 200,000 troops in the Zheng State. The pressure on logistics was extremely high. big.
In just a few months, 20 to 30% of Zheng's food supplies were consumed. Zheng's reserves could support such a war for at most one or two years.
The 200,000 troops of the Luo-Zhou coalition pursued the Song army all the way, leaving countless corpses behind.
After Luo Zhi saw that his great-aunt's judgment of the situation in various countries was basically correct, he fully understood that this battlefield must not be completely defeated.
Previously, Ji Lingjun analyzed the situation of various countries for Luo Zhi, and even predicted the possibility of a war, "If this war is won, the situation of Bangzhou will not get better, because both Jin and Qi have deteriorated.
If this war fails, Bangzhou's destiny will be directly fulfilled, and the Luo Kingdom will fall with Bangzhou.
If this war is basically a draw, or a small-scale failure, then Bangzhou can still last for more than a hundred years, or two hundred years.
But no matter which outcome it is, the emperor's crown will be completely knocked to the ground. The patriarchal system created by the ancestors has come to its end, and the existence of Zhou Rites will completely become history.
These guilts will be shouldered on your shoulders. You are such a poor child. "
This is what his great-aunt said to him back then.
Luo Zhi didn't care about his future reputation, but he was extremely frightened by his great-aunt's predictions about the future.
He knew that Bangzhou's survival was good for King Su. Faced with the current complicated situation, he could only pray secretly, "Old ancestor, although I am stupid, I am willing to use this blood to fight for you for another two hundred years." , all the descendants of the Luo clan and the people of the entire Luo Kingdom are willing."
Regarding those precious destiny artifacts, Luo Zhi adhered to the principle of not using them if they could, because his great-aunt made it very clear that even if this war was won, the situation in Bangzhou would still not get better.
There is no doubt about the wisdom of my great-aunt. In this case, there is no need to waste the destiny artifact here.
Song Gong and Chen Hou led the army and fled towards the territory of Yingguo.
The Ying State was indeed a small and weak country, and the Chu State was in the south. In just a field battle, the Ying State's army was directly defeated, and it was impossible to stop the armies of the Song State and Chen State.
The armies of Song and Chen kept running away. At this time, they already knew the news of an all-out war between Chu and Wu, which made them ecstatic.
"Chu and Wu are at full-scale war, so Chu will definitely be outnumbered."
When they finally met Chu's army and hurriedly met, they found that Chu was actually using the guise of military remonstrance.
This made Song Gong and Chen Hou look at each other. What's going on?
Shouldn't you just rebel?
Shouldn't you be shouting loudly that you want to go to Luoyi to test the strength of Jiuding?
Xiang Cheng didn't expect that Song and Chen were beaten so badly. When he heard that Song Gong and Chen Hou had defeated Zhou Emperor's army, Xiang Cheng laughed out loud.
When he heard that Luo State's army was coming for support, the expression on Xiang Cheng's face became a little unclear.
"Two monarchs, start gathering your armies and the baggage you brought with you. The real war will begin next."
News of the Chu State's army heading north has arrived. Luo Zhi led the army and stopped a hundred miles north of the Huanghuai Plain, which was once the land of Cai State.
The general of the Luo State analyzed the current situation, "Emperor, King, the current military strength of the Chu State is unknown, but the Chu State occupies a large area of fertile land and develops water conservancy. With the national strength of the Chu State, it has thirty to forty thousand soldiers, with a total strength of two One hundred thousand is no problem, the Song and Chen coalition forces should still have one hundred thousand.
Now we have to wait for the army of Jin and the remaining troops of Luo to arrive. The armies of Qi and Wu may not be able to wait. "
Qi State's stretched combat power became a hidden danger in the war. It was originally intended to break through Song State quickly, but Qi State was unexpectedly hindered by Song State.
The Wu and Chu states were so obsessed with fighting east of the Dabie Mountains that it was impossible to support them. In an emergency, they might even withdraw the Song troops.
The states of Qi and Song were left to peck each other.
The envoy from Chu State came to the camp of Luo State and said to Ji Bai with a proud face: "The king was very worried when he heard that the emperor was attacking Song Dynasty for no reason.
The Song Dynasty is a descendant of the Yin Shang Dynasty, and is one of the two kings and three kings established by King Su. He exists as a guest in Zhou Dynasty. It is not what the emperor should do to criticize such a distinguished guest.
Marquis Zheng is slandering you. Such ministers should be killed so that they can be treated by Song officials and appease the people of Song Dynasty.
The king believes that you should learn from the ancient holy kings, explain your sins to the world, and express your repentance.
If you do this, everyone in the world will be grateful for your kindness and the current war will be eliminated. "
As soon as the words to kill Zheng Hou came out, everyone in the tent changed their expressions at the same time.
The Chu State came here deliberately to disgust people. They knew clearly that Zheng Hou had been executed, and that the emperor himself had done it, but they still said this, just to label the emperor as attacking the Song Dynasty for no reason.
The subsequent paragraph where the emperor admitted his mistake to the world made Luo Zhidu suddenly change his expression. It was really too cruel. It wanted to deprive the emperor of all his sanctity.
It is not a big deal for the king to issue an edict to sin against oneself, but it can only be done under the control of the situation. The purpose is to ease sharp conflicts and explain the correction of policy direction to the world.
Now the two sides are in a state of war. If Ji Zhuo gives an imperial edict, the Chu State will immediately say, "Sure enough, you are a foolish king. The current situation in the world is because of you. All loyal ministers and righteous men will join me in raising an army to kill the single man and save the world." !”
Ji Bai was angered by the arrogant attitude of the Chu envoy and was about to get angry when he was held down by Luo Zhi. Luo Zhi stared at the Chu envoy and said in a cold voice: "Marquis Zheng is indeed a treacherous minister. The emperor has already punished him." Kill Zheng Hou.
However, Song Gong and Chen Hou did not send any envoys to express their grievances to the king, but directly betrayed and even attacked and killed the king. Is this what loyal ministers did?
They are obviously treacherous people who are trying to assassinate the king, and they should also be killed!
Please also ask your envoy to return to the Chu Kingdom, inform the Chu Hou, kill Song Gong and Chen Hou, and send their bodies to the camp. This must be able to prove the Chu Hou's loyalty. "
Luo Zhi skipped the process of entangled with Chu envoys and went straight to the core of the monarch and his ministers. Since the Marquis of Chu wants to be a loyal minister, loyal ministers need to submit a certificate of honor, so bring it.
The Chu envoy was speechless and walked away angrily, "The emperor ignored the Chu people's loyalty, and he deserves to be punished."
Looking at the Chu envoy walking out of the camp, Ji Zhuo said angrily: "The Chu people are rampant. For more than a hundred years, they still have the same wolfish ambitions. What kind of things can fill the ravine of their desires?"
Luo Zhi said quietly: "Of course it is the Jiuding in Luoyi that symbolizes the destiny of the state. Get ready to meet the enemy. The Chu army is not easy to resist."
Chu State will naturally not give up until its goal is achieved, while Luo State will never retreat without even fighting.
Since Chu wants to deprive Bangzhou of his destiny, let's use swords and guns to do it.
Only blood can bring the sacred crown to the ground!
The heroic King of Chu was not surprised, but this in itself was an excuse for war. "Uncle, organize your army, defeat the Luo coalition, and jointly attack the Jin. It's time for the world to listen to the voice of the Chu people."
The armies of Chu and Song and Chen were powerful, with more than 300,000 people spread across a hundred-mile battlefield. The Luo army present, plus the gathered Zhou and Zheng coalition forces, were less than 200,000.
The Chu State's army was elite, and Luo Zhi could not possibly consume Luo State's most elite warriors in a tug-of-war, so Luo State led the coalition forces to continuously shrink the front line.
Everyone had the same thought in their minds, "Wait for the Jin army. This is the main battlefield. The army sent by the Jin country will definitely be the most elite and the largest."
At least 200,000 troops will come here. When Jin enters the scene, the situation will change. "
The commander-in-chief of Luo State engaged in battle with Chu State every day step by step, and then slowly retreated. Whenever the war ended, the battlefield was filled with smoke and fire.
Because the corpses on the ground must be burned. This is the experience gained from countless years of war.
In this regard, both sides have a tacit understanding to clean up the battlefield respectively.
Along with the fire and strong wind, countless amounts of dust, smoke, and powder from burned human corpses blew towards the soldiers on both sides.
…
At the end of the Spring and Autumn Period, the balance of power among the countries has undergone major changes, and the conflicts between the countries have become more acute. Chu and Qin have reached the peak they can reach in a short period of time, and they must once again Challenge the old patriarchal order.
According to records, the four kingdoms of Qin, Chu, Jin and Qi had no real strategic goals. On both sides of the war, Qin and Chu just wanted to enter the Central Plains to replace the Ji Jiang alliance, while Qi and Jin followed the usual practice of stopping Qin and Chu.
But the outcome of the war was beyond everyone's expectations. Perhaps only Luo Kingdom understood that this was a war that would destroy all the Xia. ——"The Rise and Fall of the Zhou Dynasty"
Woohoo, I just saved the manuscript. Thanks to the leader, I still have to keep saving it.
(End of chapter)
