On the first day of the week, Liu Jing woke up on time. His two souls made him mentally different from ordinary people. He only slept two and a half to three hours a day, that is, five or six hours. Therefore, even if he slept very late every day, he could still sleep.
It's okay to get up early.
Liu Jing got out of the mosquito net, put on his clothes and came to the window, propped up the window, and suddenly a fresh scent of earthy flowers and plants hit his face.
Although dawn is approaching at this time, the sky is covered with dark clouds, rain is falling, and fog is rising. The sky and earth are gray and there is no clarity.
Suddenly, Liu Jing's eyes narrowed and he saw a sergeant wearing a raincoat striding outside the courtyard and talking to the guard guard.
Immediately, the guards turned around and hurriedly came to report that someone claiming to be Cai Xunbuqu, the captain of the Pingthief School, came alone outside the Jinxiang camp to ask for a meeting.
Liu Jing couldn't help but raise his eyebrows after hearing this. Cai Xun was not only Cai Mao's disciple, but also his right-hand man, responsible for guarding the north gate. Liu Jing had been focusing on attacking the north wall recently, and he often dealt with him.
Cai Xun sent someone to ask for an audience. To be honest, it was a bit beyond Liu Jing's expectation. However, its purpose was not difficult to guess. It was just to ask for surrender. An ant could live in vain, let alone a human being.
Liu Jing paid great attention to this. While summoning this person, he also sent people to inform Zhuge Liang, Xu Shu, Jiang Wan, Deng Zhi, Li Yan and others.
Zhuge Liang's residence was the closest, so he arrived first. Liu Jing briefly explained the situation to him, and at this time the rest of the people arrived one after another.
Soon, envoy Cai Xun was led into the front hall by the guards. He bowed to Liu Jing and said, "Little man Cai Bao, let me pay my respects to the general."
Liu Jing had no airs and asked He Yan: "Why are you here?"
"This villain is following the order of the master Cai Xun, and I have come here to ask for the general's surrender. The general is a hero in this world, he is talented and brave, and he is no human enemy. Although Jiangling is strong, it is difficult to stop the general's attack. The master of the family has the heart.
I have admired General for a long time, and often regretted that he could not be driven..." Cai Bao can serve as an envoy, so he is naturally eloquent.
"Nowadays, the epidemic is raging in Jiangling City, and countless soldiers and civilians have died. However, in Liunan County, Military Advisor Cai is indifferent and refuses to surrender. The master of the house cannot bear to see the lives of the people in the city in ruins. He is willing to serve as the general's internal response and open the door to surrender."
Liu Jing couldn't help but frown. Although he knew that the epidemic was spreading in Jiangling City, he didn't know that it was so serious. Historically, Jingzhou was the hardest hit area by the plague. Many heroes of the Three Kingdoms died suddenly in their prime due to contracting the disease.
Liu Jing immediately asked about the specific situation in the city, and Cai Baozhi told him everything.
Liu Jingzhengrong said: "Captain Cai knows how to obey and disobey, and he abandons the dark and surrenders to the light. This is a wise man's move. Captain Cai acted in time and saved the people of Jiangling from misery. It is a great merit." After that, he asked people to take Cai Bao down to rest.
After Cai Bao retreated, Liu Jing turned to look at Zhuge Liang and asked: "Kong Ming, do you think Cai Xun's request to surrender is sincere? Is it possible that Cai Hao deliberately set up a trick to lure the enemy? To lure our army into the city, half of the
Cross over and attack?"
"Cai Xun should surrender sincerely." Zhuge Liang said in a deep voice. "Now the Northern Army is trapped in the isolated city with no reinforcements from outside. There is an internal epidemic, the morale of the army is turbulent, and it is extremely dangerous. At this moment, Cai Hao will never dare to let our army enter the city."
Xu Shu nodded lightly and said: "Indeed, the current situation in Jiangling leaves no room for strategy. Once our army enters the city, I am afraid that the Northern Army will immediately collapse without attacking."
However, Li Yan thought of another possibility and warned: "Jiangling is besieged internally and externally, and it will only fall sooner or later. Cai Mao has always been selfish and will not coexist with Jiangling. This may be a bait deliberately thrown by Cai Mao to us.
, to lure our troops into the city and take the opportunity to break out, the general must not hesitate."
"What Zhengfang said makes sense." Liu Dingding nodded. It was indeed possible. However, regardless of whether Cai Hao intended to take the opportunity to break out of the encirclement, he had to divide his troops to guard the main roads outside Jiangling City to prevent Cai Hao and others from escaping.
Li Yan added: "To the east of Jiangling, there is our army's camp to the north, and to the south is the river. Therefore, Cai Mao and others are most likely to break out from the west, and the general should set up heavy troops to guard it."
Liu Jing couldn't help but laugh and said: "With Zhengfang here, Cai Mao can't escape."
With Cai Xun as an internal agent, there was little suspense about capturing Jiangling. Therefore, during the day Liu Jing did not spare any casualties and stormed Jiangling. Of course, he did not close the camp without fighting to avoid arousing Cai Hao's suspicion.
Looking at Liu Jingjun retreating like a tide, Cai Mao couldn't help but have a flash of doubt in his eyes. The southern thieves seemed to have little fighting spirit today, and several offensives were quite anticlimactic. Could it be that after the continuous bloody battles in the siege, the southern thieves finally couldn't stand it anymore?
?
Cai Mao relaxed and turned his attention to Cai Xun beside him, and asked: "Hey, why don't you see Cai Bao?" Cai Bao is Cai Xun's slave and is never around Cai Xun, so Cai Mao has
This question.
Cai Xun's heart suddenly rose to his throat, and he deliberately said with a grimace: "Cai Bao had diarrhea last night. I don't know if he contracted an epidemic. I asked him to recuperate in the house."
Cai Mao did not doubt that he was there, patted Cai Xun on the shoulder, and comforted him: "I think Cai Bao is very strong, so he should be fine."
"Borrowing my brother's good advice."
With the deafening sound of war drums, Liu Jingjun launched another attack on the city wall. Of course, he was quickly repelled by the Jiangling defenders.
After that, Liu Jingjun's offensive showed no improvement, and in the afternoon, it ended hastily.
When the battle was about to begin, Liu Jing killed pigs and cattle to feed the soldiers. After the soldiers had had enough wine and food, they rested early. It was not until midnight the next day, and the sky was still dark, so the soldiers got up one after another.
Huang Zhong and Wei Yan each had a thousand men and were responsible for the important task of entering the city first, followed by Liu Liang and his thousands of cavalry. After dinner, they got their titles, picked up their bells from their horses, quietly left the camp, and rushed to the north of Jiangling City in the dark.
.
Gan Ning and Chu Fang each led 5,000 men as the main force of the attack, following closely behind.
Liu Zong and Han Guang supervised thousands of water infantry troops to block the Jiangling waterway. They also served as a reserve force, ready to enter the city to provide support if the war did not go well. However, given the current situation in Jiangling, the two of them had almost no chance to appear.
As for Liu Jing, he, Zhuge Liang and others stayed at the Jinxiang camp, waiting for news of victory.
At this time, it was dark and windy outside, and he couldn't see his fingers. Although the chance was small, there was still a possibility of encountering danger. He was now confident of winning, and there was no need to go out and take risks.
The Jiangling garrison's recent defensive focus has almost always been on the gap in the north city wall, and the north city gate has naturally been neglected.
Cai Xun planted several close confidants in advance, and then in the dead of night, he led dozens of close associates and followed the orders of the night watch, cooperating inside and outside. He quietly killed the non-confidant guards and successfully seized control of the city gate.
.
The city gate had been completely sealed from the inside, and Cai Xun spent a lot of effort to open the city gate.
The time agreed upon by both parties was when the rooster crows. The risk of being discovered any later would increase exponentially. Huang Zhong and Wei Yan arrived as promised.
In order to show that he was sincerely surrendering, Cai Xun went out of the city alone to welcome him.
Huang Zhong and Wei Yan had no time to waste time with Cai Xun. They briefly checked the city gate and confirmed that there was no ambush. They immediately sent their troops into the city, leaving a group of troops to take over the city gate to meet the successors. Then, Cai Xun and his
Under the guidance of his cronies, he went straight to the garrison's residence.
After Huang Zhong and Wei Yan entered the city, they no longer had any scruples. They were no longer as careful as before and hid their whereabouts. They were soon discovered by the defenders.
"The southern thieves have entered the city, the southern thieves have entered the city..." A shrill cry instantly resounded over Jiangling, and the content was even more horrifying.
"Rumble...Rumble..."
At this time, Liu Liang led thousands of cavalry into the city and galloped freely through the lanes. Everyone they met along the way, whether they were defenders or civilians, were swept away.
"The southern thieves have entered the city, the southern thieves have entered the city..."
Cai Hao vaguely heard shouts in his sleep. He woke up immediately. Regardless of his dizziness, he rushed to the door in a few steps and listened carefully. When he confirmed that he had heard correctly before, his expression changed greatly.
At this time, a close confidant staggered in and reported with panic: "Military advisor, something bad has happened! The southern thieves have entered the city!"
Cai Mao's eyes were bloodshot and horrifying, and he yelled out of control: "How could the southern thieves enter the city?! Why at this time? God will perish on me!" Jiangling city walls were damaged, many soldiers died, and the epidemic was rampant.
Seeing that he could no longer defend it, he had recently planned to abandon the city and break out of the siege. Unexpectedly, before he could take action, Liu Jingjun rushed into Jiangling.
The confidant added: "The southern thieves entered the city from the north. The north is heavily guarded. There must be traitors. Open the door to welcome the thieves."
Cai Mao felt a chill in his heart. Originally, in his mind, the most unlikely place was the north, because more than half of Jiangling's troops were stationed here, and the guard was his younger brother Cai Xun.
"Did Zi Gu betray me?"
Seeing Cai Mao in a daze, his relatives were very anxious and said: "Military strategist, the southern thieves suddenly entered the city. The city was in chaos and all the camps were shocked. Jiangling is completely over! The strategist should not delay anymore. It is best to break out of the encirclement quickly. The strategist is the best strategy."
I am the pillar of Jingzhou, and the Southern thieves will definitely want to get rid of me quickly. In order to claim credit, the traitors will definitely bring the Southern thieves to capture the military advisor. If I don’t leave now, I won’t be able to leave in a while.”
"Yes, yes...break through..." Cai Hao came to his senses and hurriedly ordered: "Quick, bring my horse." At the same time, he asked someone to fetch his armor.
Cai Hao put on his armor as quickly as possible, and with twenty or thirty personal guards on the left and right, rode out on horseback and fled westward. As for those without horses, Cai Hao could only grit his teeth and abandon them. At this time, he must not have a wife.
Human kindness.
Cai Mao believed that it was difficult to break through the siege on the north, east and south sides, but there was some hope on the west side. However, what he didn't know was that Liu Jing had already deployed heavy troops outside the city.
When Cai Mao fled to the west city, the city gate had been opened by the defenders who were eager to escape. However, because there were too many escapees, the city gate was densely packed with people and was blocked.
At the moment of life and death, Cai Hao was eager to escape, and with a strong heart, he led dozens of horses to ride on the crowd. In an instant, screams and curses were everywhere. Cai Hao ignored it and just cut a bloody path through the crowd and successfully left the city.
It was already dawn, and Cai Mao was afraid of running into Liu Jingjun, so he did not dare to flee directly north with the defeated soldiers. He planned to continue westward, take the Zhijiang River, and return to Xiangyang along the Linju route.
Unfortunately, his efforts were destined to be in vain. Before he could leave, he encountered Liu Jingjun's three to four hundred men.
Looking at the enemy on the opposite side who was ten times his size, Cai Mao did not hesitate and turned around directly to the north. Before he could get rid of the enemy, he encountered Liu Jingjun again.
Liu Jing's army also numbered no less than three to four hundred men, and there were cavalry in the formation, so it was difficult to get rid of the enemy directly.
There was a hint of madness in Cai Mao's eyes. If he wanted to survive, he had no other choice but to fight hard and find a way out for himself before the enemy surrounded him.
"Kill..." While galloping, Cai Mao pulled out the long knife from his waist and shouted violently.
"Kill..." Cai Mao's bodyguards were all skilled in bows and horses, brave and brave warriors. At the critical moment, no one was timid in fighting.
Cai Mao was also unlucky to meet the servant of Xiaowu Colonel.
Looking at the oncoming Cai Mao and others, Ah Pu's face showed a cruel smile. The horse he was riding was six feet two inches tall and quite majestic. Even if it was placed in the north, it was still a rare good horse, but Ah Pu's
He is more than eight feet long and has a body like a bear and tiger, which is different from ordinary people. Therefore, in contrast to the mediocre horse under his crotch.
The servant took down the three hundred kilogram strong bow, pointed the arrow cluster at Cai Mao, and slowly pulled the bowstring.
In history, those who can draw a bow of three hundred kilograms are all fierce generals of the time, such as Gai Yan, the Huya general in the early years of this dynasty, Ji Tong, the prefect of Liaodong, and Han Guang and Gan Ning in Liu Jing's army today.
A servant is a fallen eagle hand among the Qiang Hu. He can cross the poplar tree at a hundred steps without missing a beat. He once defeated his masters Han Guang and Gan Ning in an archery competition in the army.
"Whoops..." When Cai Mao suddenly reached dozens of steps, Ah Pu fired his arrow decisively, and saw a black light piercing the sky, instantly shooting into Cai Mao's chest. Cai Mao was knocked off balance by the huge impact of the arrow, and fell off his horse.
Down.
Everyone on the left and right were shocked, reining in their horses to avoid the situation. The charge collapsed immediately, and then they were destroyed. After one round of arrows, only five people were still able to sit on their horses. After the second round of arrows,
Everyone was wiped out.
A Pu Ce immediately stepped forward, and unexpectedly found that Cai Mao was not dead after being hit by an arrow from him. He was not even seriously injured. A Pu was curious, and after dismounting to check, he discovered that Cai Mao was wearing fine armor, which saved him.
Life.
To be able to wear such fine armor, he must be an ordinary person. Apu resisted the urge to hit him and asked in a slightly weird Chinese: "I guess you are not an unknown person. Tell me, who are you?"
?”
Cai Mao didn't want to be killed in such an unexplained way, so he lay on the cold and damp ground, grinning miserably and said: "I am Cai Mao and Cai Degui, whom Liu Jingbi wanted to get rid of quickly."
The servant couldn't hide the surprise on his face when he heard this, and then laughed and said: "Haha... The general arranged to guard outside the city and could not enter the city to kill the enemy and establish meritorious deeds. I was quite unhappy at first, but I didn't expect to get the first prize."
achievement."
Cai Mao sat up with difficulty and said to his servant: "Take me to see Liu Jing."
"Of course." The servant bent down, picked up Cai Mao like a chicken, and said: "The general said before, Liu Qi and Cai Mao, it is best not to kill them if they can be captured." He still has a mission and cannot leave for the time being.
, assigned a team of troops to escort Cai Hao back to the Jinxiang camp.