Chapter 654 Daxian Mountain
On the morning of the first day of April, more than 6,000 men from the Yinqianzhong camp advanced quickly and arrived at Laiwu County.
This is the true "rapid march of light troops", that is, no armor or other things that hinder the march are carried, and the baggage is also abandoned. People carry food and water for several days, running out of breath, and falling behind. A lot of people.
This kind of extreme march usually only occurs when there is a very urgent military situation, or when a sneak attack is decided to take a side road. It is a matter of amplifying one's own danger to capture fleeting fighter opportunities.
To put it bluntly, it’s gambling. Whether it is worth it or not depends entirely on the Lord.
Anyway, in history, some people advanced quickly with light troops and won great victories; some others made mistakes and suffered great defeats.
When Zhang Shuo (Zhang Daniu) rushed to Laiwu, he nodded and found that most of the laggards were newly enlisted soldiers in November of the previous year. They were still no more than a year old and had poor conditions in all aspects. Taihang, it is understandable to fall behind during a forced march.
In comparison, soldiers who have been in the army for two years are much better. Apart from anything else, at least during this period we had enough to eat, and there was broth and cheese from time to time. We became stronger, our physical fitness improved, we were more organized, we helped each other, and those who were left behind were better. few.
Zhang Shuo took one look at these panting guys and decided to send his deputy to stay in Laiwu to take in the stragglers and wait for the baggage troops. He himself took more than a thousand "veterans" and continued to move forward to join Yang Quan as soon as possible.
Yang Chen was still nearly a day away from Laiwu, and was greatly surprised when he heard the news from the front.
"Wang Zheng, where is Mr. Liang?" The troops were still marching. Yang Chen spread a carpet and table in the grass on the roadside, took a short rest, and asked after reading the military report.
"A messenger just came this morning to report that he was still waiting for the ship in Jiyin. After hearing that the situation on the North Road had opened up, he decided to send the Yijun army first. The infantry abandoned the boat and went overland, and rushed to Gaoping." The General's Mansion. The king of Zhonglang replied.
He came with Yang Chen, actually as a supervisor. For this reason, Liang Gong also temporarily assigned him a hundred swordsmen and axemen and six or seven civil servants, who only listened to his orders.
It can be seen that Mr. Liang did not expect such a smooth start.
The leader of this expedition is Liang Gong, and there are three governors under his command, each commanding troops ranging from more than 10,000 to more than 30,000 horses.
As for Liang Gong, he led the first part of the Yijun Army, the entire Yinqiang Zuoying and the pro-army. Counting the Ding Zhuang of Xuchang Shibing and Jiyin and Jiyang counties who served as auxiliaries, the total number was 20,000. The infantry and cavalry are the main force holding down the formation.
The three governors are progressing smoothly, so he will not take action.
The three governors made major mistakes. If the situation is critical, he will invest 20,000 troops.
In addition, the troops he commanded also had the intention of guarding against the south.
In short, it is the reserve team, go wherever you need to go.
But Mr. Liang obviously missed it.
The North Route Army commanded by Xi Jian was divided into two, and the cavalry made a surprise attack. The Hebei soldiers forcibly crossed the river and surrounded and annihilated thousands of Cao soldiers. At this time, they had already attacked the city and captured the territory with the assistance of some of the nobles in Le'an, and at the same time cut off the connection between Jinan and Qi, creating extremely favorable conditions for the soldiers of Dongping and Gaoping and the infantry of various counties who rushed over - -The enemy soldiers are panic-stricken and may not have much fighting spirit.
Yang Chen led more than 30,000 infantrymen into Laiwu Valley. Yang Quan, the commander of the vanguard, said that he had seen the outline of Linzi City. This was probably not false.
After successfully passing through Laiwu Valley, they were much more comfortable along the way. The primary goal is to conquer Linzi and eliminate this city that threatens the retreat. At the same time, it can also be used as a starting base for the next military operation to stockpile the grain, grass and equipment transferred here.
After Linzi was captured, they went straight to Guanggu without any hesitation.
I just don’t know what happened to the Southern Route Army.
I only got the news a few days ago that Jin Zheng led the Silver Spear Right Battalion to arrive at Xiapi by boat, and then waited for another two days to get the baggage.
Mi Huang, the governor of Xuzhou, led more than 10,000 troops from local wealthy families to join him and headed north to Langya, but now he doesn't know where he is.
They spent too much time traveling along the way, and they probably haven't had time to get results yet.
"How about the south?" Yang Chen asked.
"I heard that Zu Ti was hoarding food, grass and military supplies." Wang said: "There is no other movement."
"Where is the north?"
"Liu Yao captured several remaining counties and villages in Taiyuan. , but did not go east to Hebei."
Yang Chen said with a smile: "I have rested enough, let's go into the army."
After that, let the soldiers pack their equipment and lead the troops. He grabbed the horse, jumped up, and ran forward.
******
The road to Jinzheng is indeed a bit slow, for no other reason than the longest distance and too much time spent on the road.
After gathering troops and military supplies in Xiapi, we took a boat and headed north along the Yishui River. However, we only walked a short distance before we had to get off the boat and walk. It finally took five days to arrive in Kaiyang (near today's Linyi). It was already noon on March 22.
On the evening of the 23rd, we arrived in Linyi County (50 miles north of present-day Linyi). For some unknown reason, Kim Zheng led his army straight to Director Wang's old residence in the south of the city and stayed there overnight.
Then they marched along the Yishui River Valley, leaving Langya and entering Dong'an County, arriving in Dongguan County on the night of March 28th.
The entire army rested here for two days, waiting for the baggage troops that had fallen behind, and recovering the physical strength of the main force.
On the first day of April, the entire army maintained a medium-low marching speed, arrived outside Daxian Mountain on the afternoon of the third day, and set up camp.
On the morning of the fourth day of the Lunar New Year, Kim Jong and his staff climbed to Daxian Mountain to observe the bandits.
Well, after observing the thieves’ potential, the first stop they arrived at was a ruined temple.
No matter what the temple was used to do, the soldiers cleaned it up and built five altars to worship the Five Emperors.
After Jin Zheng led everyone to perform sacrifices with a serious face, he seemed to have opened up some knot in his heart and said with a smile: "The letter from Xi Zhizhang and Yang Sima said that Cao Yi sent troops and horses northward to plug the leak. I didn't believe it at first, but now I've been on the mountain for a long time, but I haven't seen the demon soldiers coming to cut them. I know it's true."
From Lanling Xiao family, Langya Wang family, Yan family, Donghai Mi family, Wang family, Xu family, He family, etc. The generals of the wealthy clan laughed together.
Never mind what you think of Jin Zheng in your heart, this is wartime. There is a ban on beheading in the army, and Jin Zheng is offended. I will behead you justifiably, and there is no reason to say anything.
“Let’s go down the mountain.” Jin Zheng took one last look at the high mountains and said.
Da Xian Mountain is not some heroic mountain range.
Compared with the difficult and dangerous terrain like Taihang Baxing, it is not on the same level at all.
According to the guide sent by the Wang family, it takes thirty-five miles to cross Daxian Mountain. Among the thirty-five miles, the most difficult part is actually in Shannan, where Jin Zheng and the others are located.
The mountain is not high, but the terrain is a bit strange. In many places, you can barely pass a carriage, and it is absolutely impossible to pass a carriage.
After walking through the Shannan section, the road is much easier to walk until Daxian Pass.
From a normal military perspective, defending Daxian Pass requires guarding several dangerous terrains south of the pass. Without a city, you still have to build a few strongholds and rely on the terrain and forts to gradually wear down the attacker's strength and vigor. By the time they reached the front of Daxian Pass, they had already lost their troops and generals, and their morale was low. It would be much easier to fight by then.
Now Cao Jun has completely abandoned Guannan, and all his troops have shrunk to the city of Daxian Pass. They themselves are inferior, which shows that they are a little panicked.
There are many reasons for panic, and we can’t tell yet.
Perhaps due to insufficient troops, a large number of the original defenders were transferred north to reinforce other battlefields. After all, the Xianbei cavalry was already racing in Le'an and could rush into Beihai and Qi at any time. It was a flat terrain, and there was no way to restrain them. Wasn't Cao Yi panicking?
In addition, Yang Chen has already sent troops to Laiwu Valley, and there will definitely be fierce battles in the valley. Even if he cannot win for a while, Cao Yi will be under great pressure, and he may transfer the garrison from Linqu and Daxian Pass to reinforce Laiwu Valley. .
Another reason is related to the previous one, that is, after Cao Yi deployed the garrison, he was worried about the Daxian Pass area, so he sent more troops and horses. However, these newly arrived soldiers are not comparable to the original garrison. Their quality is low and their combat effectiveness is weak. They can only be looked at and their true colors will be revealed after a fight.
Jin Zheng believes that there are two reasons.
Coming late has its advantages, damn!
Even if he won this time, he still had to accept the feelings of the other two groups of soldiers, which made him quite embarrassed.
But no matter what, let’s fight first and test the enemy’s strength. ****
On the sixth day of April, almost all the soldiers, horses and supplies of the battalions were present.
In the morning of the same day, Yan Zhuo, a younger brother of Yan Han who joined the army in the Sima Rui shogunate, led an army of two thousand people and walked up the mountain road towards the gate of Daxian Pass.
Because the mountain roads are rugged and the terrain is unfavorable, no siege equipment can be deployed or used. Yan Zhuo's two thousand soldiers can only carry large shields and long ladders to attack the city with ants. Hard grind.
Jin Zheng found a hillside that was conducive to watching the battle and led his generals to observe the battle.
Dense arrows were shot from the top of the city, occasionally mixed with the "buzzing" sound of a crossbow machine.
Yan's tribe suffered heavy casualties for a while. By the time they reached the trench below the city, more than 200 people were already lying down.
The noise among the tribe is getting louder and louder, and there is a tendency to collapse.
Jin Zhengzheng gave the order for the second formation to attack without expression.
The disciples of the He family in the East China Sea followed with more than 1,700 soldiers, their swords unsheathed and their bows strung. If Yan's troops in the front line collapse without a fight, the rear line will cut off the front line and they will not be allowed to withdraw - if they want to withdraw, they have to wait for orders and get permission before walking down the densely forested hillsides on both sides.
The Yan tribe quickly filled in part of the trench, rushed to the bottom of Guancheng, and attacked the city with ants.
The battle did not last long.
The Yan family tribe was completely defeated without even taking the city head.
He's tribe immediately fired arrows, mowing down all the Yan family soldiers who escaped the fastest.
The Yan tribe in the back did not dare to advance, and did not dare to retreat. They suddenly cried and screamed.
After receiving the order, the He family's tribe beat drums and marched.
Yan's troops retreated step by step. At the end, he finally bit the bullet and shouted, carrying the long ladder and attacking the city again.
The brutal fighting immediately started all over Guancheng.
The soldiers on both sides blushed, shouted angrily, and tried their best to harvest the lives of the enemies in front of them.
The second formation of He's tribe continues to advance.
The third formation of Donghai Wang's two thousand soldiers is already in formation.
Their faces were solemn, as if they were mourning for their heirs, and their legs were shaking unconsciously, but there was nothing they could do. Another command sounded from behind, and the soldiers and horses of the Lanling Xiao family were gathering.
The Yan family's troops who were the first to attack the city finally couldn't hold on any longer. Their last courage was exhausted and they collapsed for the second time.
The flag lights up on the hillside.
Yan Zhuoru was granted amnesty. With disheveled hair, he led the remaining defeated soldiers in two groups and slowly withdrew from the mountains and forests on the left and right sides.
On the frontal battlefield, He Jiajun followed closely and launched a rapid offensive.
Jin Zheng observed silently.
The enemy's arrows were still very fierce, and I don't know how many of our own soldiers were killed or injured. But when the Yan clan collapsed, they didn't pursue them in Kaicheng, which was a bit incredible.
Is there such a stubborn defense of the city? Will the defender fight?
If he realized something, he calmed down and continued to observe.
The He Jiajun actually did not hold out for long, but they attacked the city and fought with the enemy, but finally failed and collapsed.
Jin Zheng opened his eyes wide and did not miss the slightest movement of the enemy.
There were not many people from the He clan who attacked the city just now, but the enemy army spent a lot of time to clear them out. This shows one thing, at least the quality of the enemy troops preparing for close combat at the top of the city is worrying, and they are not as well prepared as soldiers and horses.
The He family attacked again, but this time they did not reach the top of the city. It seemed that after losing their temper, their morale was too low and they could not attack.
Kim Zheng ordered He's tribe to retreat to the rear for containment and reorganization - after the reorganization is completed, they can go to the battlefield in a few days.
The third formation of Donghai Wang's soldiers came up.
As soon as they attacked, Jin Zheng's eyes widened.
The first group of enemy crossbowmen retreated and were replaced by another group. But the level of this group of people who changed their defenses was far inferior to before. Their archery was a bit rusty, their speed was not fast enough, and their accuracy was also worrying. The soldiers loading the crossbow were so clumsy that the shooting rhythm was obviously disrupted.
“Haha!” Jin Zheng laughed out loud.
Master Shao often said that you should try the opponent's strength by giving him a dozen. This is a wise saying.
A lot of times you can’t tell by just looking at it. You have to use real swords and guns to test out the true level of the enemy.
The Donghai Wang family's fighting power is a bit fierce, much more powerful than the previous two, and it seems that they have a bit of old ground.
They carried long ladders and climbed up, and the sound of killing was loud.
The defenders at the head of the city were in a hurry and tried their best to resist.
For a time, corpses fell one after another, and they were piled up layer after layer under the city.
The fourth formation of Lanling Xiao's 1,500 soldiers soon arrived with reinforcements.
In the fifth formation, two thousand people from the Donghai Mi clan are already making preparations.
The enemy defenders were obviously a little panicked.
At the critical moment, the defender led his fresh troops to the city, and was able to break up the most ferocious offensive of the Donghai Wang family and drive them completely off the city.
The flag for retreat was raised.
Wang's soldiers and horses fled one after another, as if they were surviving a disaster.
The fourth team started the attack.
Jin Zheng relaxed. He had already seen the enemy's actual strength: there were elite soldiers who could fight, but they were not many in number. There were a lot of strong men who lacked training and were just making up their numbers.
This city is not difficult to defeat.
He was already planning when to deploy the elite Silver Spear Right Battalion to make a final decision.
His eyes even roamed on both sides of Daxian Pass to see if there was a path that could bypass it.
It is true that if there is a trail, the enemy will definitely cut down trees and set up fences to guard it. But so what? Just hit it.
Just to deceive you about the lack of troops and the low quality of the soldiers!
I will take this ruined city for you in three days at most.
(End of this chapter)