Zezhou, Gaoping.
This city has become an important place for the storage and transportation of supplies for the Liao army in Yangtoushan. Since Geng Chongmei led his army northward, it has transported military supplies to the front twice.
Early in the morning, before the morning fog had cleared, a baggage team consisting of dozens of carts, escorted by a battalion of Liao troops, slowly headed north. Among them, the ones driving the livestock and carts were more than 300 strong local men who had been forcibly recruited.
The transportation this time was not smooth. They were attacked before they even left Gaoping. First, the strong men from the nearby villagers gathered to attack, and then a "Jin Army" suddenly appeared from the side and charged in. The leading general looked very fierce. The strong men who had been forced to work also took the opportunity to resist, and soon Quickly, a battalion of Liao troops was wiped out.
The battle ended quickly, and the scene quickly calmed down. After the "Jin Army" took part of the military supplies, all the remaining food and equipment were shared with the "Rebel Army". Those people were also like thieves, and in the "Jin Army" Under the maintenance of stability, dozens of carts of supplies were quickly divided up.
The general leading the army was naturally Li Wanchao. He was ordered to lead the Surui Battalion and take a secluded route to sneak into Zezhou to cut off Geng Chongmei's retreat. This was a home battle, and there was no shortage of people in the army who were familiar with the mountains and roads, so the advance went smoothly. After entering Zezhou, they quickly found out the situation in Gaoping and still had time to organize some "rebels" to cooperate in the battle.
Riding on the horse, holding the reins, and sweeping the mess everywhere, Li Wanchao ordered: "Be more agile in your movements..."
Smelling the smell of blood in the air, Li Wanchao licked his lips, his eyes were cold, and he murmured: "It's a pity that they are all Yan soldiers. When will I have the opportunity to kill real Khitan people again!"
A small number of "rebels" were left to assist in the battle, and the rest of the common people were dismissed by Li Wanchao. Turning the horse's head, Li Wanchao stared straight to the south and ordered one of his subordinates: "Put on the enemy's uniform and go to the city!"
"yes!"
"General, what should we do with these prisoners?" At this time, a junior colonel asked.
There were less than 300 Liao troops escorting military supplies. About half of them were killed and the rest were captured. Li Wanchao glanced at the prisoners who were disarmed and guarded by the roadside. They are all Yan people. He frowned, but without much hesitation, he waved his hand and said coldly: "Kill them all."
After the order, the Su Rui sergeant under his command immediately waved his butcher knife, and more than a hundred prisoners put up a weak resistance.
Even though Li Wanchao appeared to be righteous and upright in front of Liu Chengyou, he was ruthless on the battlefield. The general who licked blood from the tip of the knife and was killed in the mountain of corpses and sea of blood had a very hard heart.
After a brief cleanup, Sergeant Surui headed south decisively under the leadership of Li Wanchao, leaving only a miserable scene, and the smell of blood in the air became much stronger...
There are still hundreds of Yan soldiers guarding Gaoping City. Li Wanchao came up with the idea of cheating the city on the spur of the moment when he saw that the enemy troops escorting him were completely wiped out. The effect was very good. The Yan Bing Military Academy who was guarding the city was not a cautious person. His soldiers put on blood armor and pretended to be defeated. They easily opened the city gate and Li Wanchao, who was hiding outside the city, suddenly broke out with his army. Got in.
...
To the north, the frontal battlefield.
"What a mistake! What a mistake!" Geng Chongmei murmured in the general's tent. His voice was almost whimpering, and his face was full of exhaustion and desolation. In just these two days, he seemed to have aged a bit.
The actions of the "Jin Army" on the opposite side were very strange. They came under pressure, but they were obsessed with consolidating the fortress. They had the intention of attacking, but they also adopted a defensive posture.
After all the large and small temptations, at this point, the sinister intentions of the "Jin Army" can still be seen. Although it was still uncertain what conspiracy Liu Chengyou would pull next, he knew that he and his subordinate Yan Bing were already in danger.
Probably in order to agree with him, the premonition quickly turned into reality. Geng Yajiang hurried in and reported in panic: "Commander, we are reporting from the rear. Gaoping has been attacked?"
Hearing what he said, Geng Chongmei's eyebrows were locked at that time, and his expression became gloomy at a speed visible to the naked eye. He took a heavy breath: "When did it happen? Who attacked? How many enemy soldiers are there?"
Although there was a look of surprise on Geng Chongmei's face, she was not surprised. Instead, she had a sense of understanding. She tried her best to stay calm and asked about the specific situation.
"It should have happened this morning. It was a group of Jin troops flying a flag with the word 'Liu' and some local unruly people in Zezhou. It is not yet known which Hedong soldiers and horses they are and how many there are. ....." Yajiang replied.
"Trash!" suddenly burst out. Geng Chongmei pointed at the dusk scene outside and yelled: "I'm just reporting on what happened this morning. The enemy troops have come around behind us. We don't even know where they are. I know, what do you want to do?"
Being scolded to the point of being speechless, Yajiang lowered his head in shame.
Geng Chongmei's face was twisted together in an ugly way, and he was holding his old fist, thinking hard. Before he could think of a way to deal with it, another junior high school student broke into the tent and reported nervously: "Commander Jie, Zhai Lingqi, the governor of Zezhou, rebelled. He summoned the soldiers and civilians under his rule in Jincheng and killed our People, announced the surrender of the city to the puppet emperor Liu Zhiyuan..."
If Gaoping's fall only frightened Geng Chongmei, then Zezhou's fall made him feel cold and suffocated. After a few rapid breaths, he suddenly felt a pain in his heart and murmured: "What a fast move..."
The Jin army in Gaoping obviously took a small path to cross the mountains. As for the "surprise change" in Zezhou, it was obvious that Hedong had secret hands and feet. The governor Zhai Lingqi and Geng Chongmei knew that he was as timid as a mouse and would never dare to rebel, but now he is directly stirring up trouble!
"Commander Jie, once Zezhou is lost, our army's retreat will be completely cut off." The tooth general seemed to have realized something, and said uneasily: "Now the Hedong army is in front, and there are partial troops covering the rear, and the food and equipment are cut off. ..."
The more he spoke, the weaker his tone became, and finally he pinned all his hopes on the veteran: "Tell me, what should we do?"
"What should I do?" Geng Chongmei was also asking herself.
Since he joined the Khitan official, he has always been with the two generations of Khitan kings, even when leading troops in battle. This was the first time he was leading an army alone. He didn't fight much, but he was unknowingly forced into such a dangerous and difficult situation. The commander of the Hedong Army on the opposite side was still a young boy. Geng Chongmei felt really uncomfortable. .
After all, he is an old man who has experienced the world. Geng Chongmei gradually calmed down and analyzed the situation in front of him with a clear head. Thinking about his actions in the past few days, he said in a sneer tone: "Hesitating these past few days, let's see. Come on, I'm going to be decisive tonight!"
"Send the order!" As soon as he finished speaking, Geng Chongmei turned around and waved his sleeves, and said to the two generals seriously and decisively.
...
It was still early, so Liu Chengyou was still reading peacefully in his tent at night. The title of the book he read was "Lang Wai Chun Qiu", which was written by Li Quan, a famous Taoist priest in the Tang Dynasty. It is said that Guo Wei loved reading this book, so Liu Chengyou took it. have a look. The so-called defense of the country with integrity, the use of troops with surprise, the control of chaos based on survival and death, and the recording of the success and failure of the wise and foolish, this book is somewhat interesting.
"Your Highness, there is something going on in the Liao camp."
Ma Quanyi hurriedly came to report, and immediately alerted Liu Chengyou. He put down the book, took his helmet and put it on. He greeted the soldiers and followed Ma Quanyi out of the tent to check.
Along the way, I asked, "What's going on?"
"The Liao army may be fleeing!" Ma Quanyi said.
