Chapter 109 Qingshui River (Sixth)

Before Xiaoniu Pass, Qingshui River was still flowing downstream happily. The blood in the river passed through several whirlpools and there was no trace anymore. The blood on the shore all penetrated into the ground with several light rains, which was considered as some compensation unexpectedly obtained by the grass after being trampled by people.

Tongxin City is located on the banks of Qingshui River. When the Tang Dynasty was prosperous, the Tang army guarding Tongxin City rebuilt Tongxin City in order to cope with the attacks of the Tubo people. The rebuilt Tongxin City had a west wall facing the water, with a wall of seven or eight meters high, and the other three walls were more than 13 or 4 meters high. In this way, Tongxin City's defensive ability was greatly enhanced. The Dangxiang people did not pay attention to it and were not good at building the city. Over the past century, Tongxin City has gradually become dilapidated and has made a living in city defense. However, with the good foundation laid by the Tang army, Tongxin City is still easy to defend but difficult to attack.

After the Northwest Allied Forces Cavalry and Cavalry met under Tongxin City, they began to attack Tongxin City.

The siege plan is very simple: siege but not attack, and trap Tongxin City to death. This plan was decided by Hou Dayong, Wang Yanchao, Shi Hu, Wang Tengxiang, Guo Jiong, Wu Songdan and others. There are two reasons for formulating this siege plan. First, the Northwest Alliance fought two tough battles in succession, and suffered heavy casualties. If the city is forcibly siege now, the morale may not be high; second, the Dangxiang people are different from the people in the Central Plains. The staple food of the people in the Central Plains is food, and storing food is the instinct of the people in the Central Plains. The Dangxiang people like to eat meat and do not like to store food. Therefore, if Tongxin City does not have external support, the food will definitely not last long. Once the food is cut off, Tongxin City will be destroyed without attacking.

Hou Dayong had never liked to attack the city. After severely attacking the main force of the Dangxiang Army, Hou Dayong became the boss and was specifically directed by Wang Yanchao, the governor of Yongxing Army.

After the first siege battle started, Hou Dayong, Shi Hu, Wang Tengxiang, Guo Jiong and other main generals all looked at the siege battle with a relaxed look on their faces.

The Zhou army that sieges the city was 8,000 infantry, and more than 7,000 cavalry were just used as warning forces, scattered on the south, north and east sides of Tongxin City, blocking the way for the Dangxiang Army to break through in the city.

The Zhou army set up four artillery trucks outside the East City, picked stones from the mountain five miles away, and kept bombarding the city wall. These stones could not destroy the city wall, but each large stone roared into the air and smashed heavily on the city wall, causing great psychological shock to the soldiers of Dangxiang who were guarding the city.

Other Zhou troops dug soil and piled up mountains slowly to place more than ten crossbows of the coalition forces. The crossbows of the crossbows were thick and strong. However, because the crossbows were shot out from the ground, the arrows would be broken after they hit the ground and could no longer be used, so the crossbows of the coalition forces were exhausted in the battle outside Tongxin City. When the coalition forces training deputy envoy Wu Songzhong saw that the coalition forces had more than ten crossbows, he sent people to Qingzhou City to transport the stock of crossbows. When the earth mountain was higher than the city wall, these crossbows could bombard Tongxin City from a high point.

The generals of the Black Eagle Army witnessed the power of gunpowder for the second time. The first time was when they attacked Qinzhou City. The Black Eagle Army buried the gunpowder under the gate of Qinzhou City, exploded the gate of Qinzhou City, and finally broke through Qinzhou City, which was closely guarded by the Shu army. The second time was that the gunpowder buried underground in front of Xiaoniu Pass caused shocking losses to the main force of the Dangxiang Army. After tasted the sweetness, the generals no longer cared about the crossbow. As soon as they arrived outside Tongxin City, they proposed to transport some gunpowder before Hou Dayong made arrangements. Qingzhou City had very little gunpowder, and all the gunpowder in Jingzhou was set on fire by the Dangxiang people. Therefore, the gunpowder could only be sent to the Bianzhou, Fengxiang Mansion and Jingzhao Mansion to transport it. It would take at least one month to go back and forth from Tongxin City to the farthest Jingzhao Mansion. However, the strategy of the coalition forces' siege was very clear, which was to trap the Xiang people, so they didn't care about the more than a month.

After watching the cannon carts bombardment for a while, Hou Dayong felt uninterested. The key to this battle was no longer the benefit of military armor, but logistics supply. Without stable logistics support, the coalition forces would not be able to go deep into the Qingshui River to siege Tongxin City. Hou Dayong said to Shi Hu beside him: "Envoy Liang has been working in the yamen for nearly twenty years and is familiar with local affairs. With him in Jingzhou, the army's food and grass supply and other materials supply will not have to worry about. However, a liaison officer who knows how to contact Liang in time."

Shi Hu thought about the right candidates in the army one by one. He said: "This liaison army is not easy to choose. Should the best quarantine officer in the Black Eagle Army be considered Meng Shu? The few quarantine officers behind him are slightly inferior. Now Li Man is also pretty good."

Hou Dayong smiled and said, "Li Man is responsible for the military supply of the coalition cavalry. The burden is very heavy, but he has a lot of opinions. He always wants to return to the combat troops to be the commander, and has looked for me several times."

Shi Hu thought of announcing Li Man as a quarantine officer, and he looked furious and couldn't help but smile, saying, "Li Man, Tiechuanyuan, Liu Shixu, Chen Meng and others are all rising stars of the Black Eagle Army. Among them, only Li Man has been a scholar, so of course the most suitable quarantine officer is."

Hou Dayong also smiled and said, "He is a scholar who is big and thick and brave in combat. He is really a vanguard official. Forget it, everyone has their own ambitions and cannot force it. It is also a good thing for him to charge forward. Let him be the liaison officer first, and go to the Fengxiang Mansion and Jingzhao Mansion to transport the gunpowder and other materials needed by the army. If the errand is done well, he will be sent back to the combat troops after this battle."

When Wang Tengxiang heard that Li Man had been beaten by a scholar, he smiled and said, "Li Juncheng was also beaten by a scholar. No wonder the horse materials, grains and arrows needed by the Lingzhou cavalry army were refreshing and had no mistakes at all. He was much stronger than those big guys. If you ask for help, don't replace people."

Guo Jiong smiled and said, "General Wang, don't let Li Man hear this, otherwise he will definitely fight with you."

When all the generals thought of this big and thick scholar, they would laugh heartily.

At this time, a large rock flew into the sky and hit the thick city wall. In August, the clear water river shone with sunshine and visibility was very good. Although the generals were about 700 meters away from the city wall, Hou Dayong seemed to see the rising dust and cracked pieces of stone.

The war horse "Feng" followed Hou Dayong for nearly three years and has been tested by countless wars. Now it is showing some fatigue. The stones fell on the city wall and made a low impact sound, which makes it tremble slightly. Hou Dayong felt the trembling of the "Feng". He patted the "Feng" on the neck with his hand to show comfort. The "Feng" quickly returned to normal. The "Feng" seemed to feel that it was indecent trembling inadvertently. He raised his head, sniffed, and looked energetic.

Guo Jiong asked Hou Dayong to replace the horse several times, but Hou Dayong did not agree. Although "Feng" is a little old, it still runs quickly. More importantly, it has been with "Feng" for three years. People and horses have become one. Even if Hou Dayong makes a light move, "Feng" can accurately understand what it means. It is not easy to find such a war horse. It is difficult to find a talent, and it is also difficult to find a horse.

Shi Hu said again: "Let Li Man be the liaison army, then who will be the quarantine officer of the cavalry and local ranks?"

Hou Dayong had someone in his heart and said, "Go to Jingzhou City to urge the army to handle the supplies. You must be an expert. The journey here is long. You must always beware of the sneak attacks of the Dangxiang tribe. Li Man is familiar with military affairs and is also a military officer. It is most suitable for him to serve as the liaison army. As for the quarantine officer of the cavalry, Bai Shuanghua, the deputy commander of the Independent Army of the Northwest Alliance, she is also an excellent quarantine officer."

Although Bai Shuanghua was the deputy commander of the Independent Army, she actually did a job as a military officer, and she acted as Meng Shu’s role in the Hei Diao Army. She had two thousand cavalrymen in the Independent Army, eating, drinking, pulling, and weapon distribution, maintenance of wounded personnel, etc. This big thing was a lot of clues and complicated. Bai Shuanghua only brought five or six soldiers with her. She made everything clear. Although Guo Jiong felt that Bai Shuanghua was a bit weird in dealing with people and did not interact with the soldiers, she was always cold all day long, but she still gave her extremely high evaluation of her work ability. Guo Jiong repeatedly praised Bai Shuanghua in front of Hou Dayong.

Hou Dayong sent Bai Shuanghua to the Independent Army. His original purpose was to match Guo Jiong and Bai Shuanghua. Unexpectedly, he discovered a talent unexpectedly. Hou Dayong prepared to send Li Man to Jingzhou to urge him to handle food, grass, gunpowder and other military supplies. Bai Shuanghua replaced Li Man as the military commander of the coalition cavalry and local military supplies.

Guo Jiong is now the chief officer of the Northwest Independent Army. Listening to the generals discussing the quarantine officer, he secretly thanked in his heart that the Independent Army had a good quarantine officer. Suddenly, he heard that Hou Dayong wanted Bai Shuanghua to serve as the quarantine officer of the Northwest Allied Forces Cavalry, and hurriedly said: "The recruitment cannot dig out the corners of the independent army and the territory. The Independent Army is in a good manner and cannot find a suitable quarantine officer."

Hou Dayong looked at Guo Jiong with a smile and said to himself: "This kid is such a fool. Although Bai Shuanghua has a beard, her voice, skin, body and Adam's apple all reveal the woman's information, why can't Guo Jiong see it?"

In modern society, information connects the world into a web. Various information is as vast as the sea. There are many people who see it naturally have a wide range of knowledge. Hou Dayong is too familiar with the story of dressing up as a man. Therefore, when he hears Bai Shuanghua's name and sees her appearance, he will naturally follow the idea of ​​dressing up as a man. There is no need for information from the military camp. Although Guo Jiong is a rich child and has extensive knowledge, the limitations of the times have caused him to have a blind spot in his thinking. In addition, Bai Shuanghua appears in front of Guo Jiong as a mustache, and his martial arts are very skilled. These reasons make it difficult for Guo Jiong to tell the difference between male and female for a while.

Guo Jiong looked at Hou Dayong's smile with a happy smile, and felt cold in his heart. With his understanding of Hou Dayong, he knew that the Independence Army would definitely not be able to keep Bai Shuanghua. He regretted and said, "It's all caused trouble for too much."

Hou Dayong comforted him sympathetically: "The commander Guo Du's vision should be longer-term. Bai Shuanghua comes from the Independence Army. In the future, if the Independence Army wants food and grass, it can take the Bai Shuanghua path. This is a good thing."

Guo Jiong was plotted against by Hou Dayong for a while. The mute sucked and couldn't say anything about the hardships of eating Coptis chinensis, so he had no intention of watching the game of attacking Tongxin City. He returned to the Independence Military Camp in a depressed mood. As soon as he entered the camp, he saw some military supplies piled up in the camp, including repaired crossbows, bows, arrows and bowstrings, door flags, door guns, five-color flags, team flags, Yan police drums, etc., and all kinds of items piled up in the camp, which was very messy.

Bai Shuanghua stood in front of these items and directed the sergeants to count the items. Two sergeants were sweating all over their heads and sorted them out. Another sergeant specifically counted the items they had sorted out. Another sergeant counted in a small notebook. They were doing it attentively and did not notice that Guo Jiong walked in quietly.

Bai Shuanghua first discovered Guo Jiong who came in. She asked casually: "Commander Guo is back, the siege will be smooth." After asking, without waiting for Guo Jiong to answer, he buried his head in his hand and looked at a booklet in his hand. The sun shone slanted over, just shining on Bai Shuanghua's rosy and delicate cheeks. There was a bead of sweat on the tip of her nose, which looked particularly crystal clear under the sunlight. Guo Jiong suddenly felt an impulse to wipe the sweat for Bai Shuanghua.

Guo Jiong was startled by the impulse that came out of his heart. He thought to himself, "Are I good as Long Yangzhi? No, I have a man from my wife." Guo Jiong coughed twice in concealment and said to Bai Shuanghua: "Deputy Commander Bai, after this matter is over, come to my tent." Bai Shuanghua did not raise her head and asked, "Is there anything wrong?" Guo Jiong did not answer her and left on his own.

Late August is the most beautiful day of Qingshui River. The sunshine, white clouds, blue sky, grass, green trees, and flowing water form a beautiful scenery like a paradise on earth. In the beautiful scenery of the Northwest Alliance, it surrounded Tongxin City. For several days, it used cannon trucks to hit the nerves of the Dangxiang people in the city.

This kind of life is extremely relaxing for the coalition soldiers who have fought hard one after another. Every day, except for the sergeants in the field, the rest of the soldiers are just alert.

Under Hou Dayong's arrangement, the coalition cavalry began training activities on the banks of the Qingshui River. Every day, two battalions of cavalry were allowed to practice formation and riding on the banks of the Qingshui River. The cavalry rarely had the opportunity to gallop in the grass on weekdays. Every time they rode a horse, they were always covered in dust and galloping on the banks of the Qingshui River. It was really a pleasure.

These cavalrymen had just defeated Fangdangren's main force, so they were naturally arrogant. Whenever each battalion of cavalry went out, they would always look for Dangxiang herdsmen everywhere. If they found a household, they would slaughter cattle and sheep, and enjoy a lot of food. Dangxiang herdsmen along Tongxin City to Xihuizhou were miserable. Although these herdsmen were very brave, they were weak and could not stop these Zhou cavalry armed to the teeth. All the herdsmen who dared to resist were cut and killed. For a moment, the quiet Qingshui River was filled with violence and resentment.

It was Chen Meng's turn to lead a battalion of Black Diao Army cavalry training. Chen Meng was a bold character. The cavalry unknowingly came to a place only fifteen or sixteen miles away from Xihuizhou. These were met by Dangxiang Fangdangjun, who was defending Xihuizhou. At this time, Chen Meng was no longer Chen Meng's time in Zhengzhou. He had been fighting for years. He was both bold and cautious. When Fang Danghanhai's troops appeared, Chen Meng immediately ordered the Black Diao Army to shoot with bows and arrows, and then ran towards Tongxin City along the Qingshui River. He believed that the Dangxiang Army, which was severely injured in Xiaoniu Pass, dared not pursue them with all their strength. Sure enough, Fang Danghan Haitian troops chased after only ten miles and stopped. After this contact, the coalition cavalry and Fang Danghanhai's Dangxiang Army formed a tacit understanding. About twenty miles outside Xihuizhou belonged to the Dangxiang Army's sphere of influence. As long as the coalition cavalry did not cross this line, the Dangxiang Army could tolerate it.

This line was demarcated by Fang Danghanhai, who was extremely painful in Xihui Prefecture, for the Dangxiang Army.

When I returned to Fangdanghanhai, in Xihuizhou, whenever I recalled the defeat at Niuguan, I always felt that it was not a nightmare: the main force of the 20,000 Dangxiang Army was the pillar of Fangdangren's survival in this world. However, in just half a day, the most powerful sergeant in the Dangxiang Army suffered more than 10,000 losses, and the pillar was shaking.

After Fang Danghanhai led his rear army back to Xihui Prefecture, his 6,000 direct troops were basically not damaged. In addition, he also incorporated more than 2,000 direct troops from Fang Dangming. Although Fang Dangming and Fang Danghanhai had a gap, the conflict was not disclosed except for a very few confidants who knew about this. Therefore, after Fang Dangming died in the battle, the two thousand defeated soldiers naturally obeyed Fang Danghanhai's command. Among these more than 8,000 people and 3,500 left behind in Xihui Prefecture, there were still more than 10,000 Dangxiang Army in Xihui Prefecture. At this time, Fang Danghanhai was in a dilemma. On the one hand, Xiao Niuguan's disastrous defeat made Fang Dangjun, who had always been conceited, treat the Black Eagle Army like a demon slipping out of hell. There was no chance of winning again. On the other hand, Zhou army surrounded Tongxin City. If he did not dare to send troops to rescue Tongxin City, Fang Danghanhai would definitely become a sinner in Dangxiang Fang Dangfang.

To break this deadlock, Luo Ling, a Sogdian businessman, came from gracefulness. Luo Ling is good at dancing and has a wide range of social interactions. He is a guest of honor for the leaders of all ethnic groups in the northwest.

Although Fang Danghanhai knew Luo Ling's skills very well, he couldn't help asking: "Do you know Hou Dayong, the commander of the Black Eagle Army?"

Luo Ling nodded mysteriously and said, "Hou Dayong is the governor of Xiongsheng Army. His territory is in Fengzhou, Chengzhou and Jiezhou, and now includes Qinzhou. Hou Dayong is a man with a complex background. It is said that he returned to the Zhou Dynasty from the distant Baitou Mountain three years ago. He soon built the Black Diao Army in Cangzhou. After three years of its establishment, the Black Diao Army fought with the Northern Han people, Khitan people, Shu people, Tubo people and Uighur people. It is said that he has never been defeated. Hou Dayong's wife is the sister of the Zhou Dynasty Empress, and he is also the real shopkeeper of the wealthy shop of the largest merchant in the Zhou Dynasty."

Fang Danghanhai sighed, "If I had known that Zhou army would have a general Hou Dayong in the northwest, and an invincible army like the Black Eagle Army, the Eagle General would not have attacked Lingzhou. If we concentrated our efforts to attack Lanzhou, we believe Lanzhou had already been obtained. Unfortunately, Brother Luo came too late." Luo Ling raised his right hand and spread his five fingers and gestured, "I spent a lot of money to get this information." Fang Danghanhai sighed again, "Nearly 20,000 people died in battle in front and behind, what is the cost of money?"

Luo Ling already knew that the Dangxiang Army was defeated, but he did not expect that so many people would die in battle. His eyes were flexibly turned and asked, "Are you still going to fight?" Fang Danghanhai was unwilling to show his worries and asked, "Who have we Dangxiang people ever been afraid of?"

Luo Ling didn't believe Fang Danghanhai's words at all. He knew that Fang Danghanhai was the most cautious person among Fang Dang's five tigers. If the other four tigers were not restricted, the activities of the Dangxiang Army would never be restricted. "Hou Dayong has room for work. You have fought with the Tubo people Dabu. If Hou Dayong hadn't shown mercy, Dabu and the Tubo people of Hunmo would have been destroyed long ago. The Uighur Tu Shaodu was your old opponent. He was defeated by Hou Dayong in the Weishui River, and Hou Dayong did not kill them all."
Chapter completed!