In the eighty-ninth chapter, King Yan beat the drums and the morale of the Yan army won the first battle of Jicheng
The Yan army finally arrived at Jicheng.
Murong Ba was originally expected to take the lead in this siege, but now Yan's leader Murong Jun has led the Chinese army southward, close to Jicheng. Jicheng blocks the Yan army's way south, and this city is an important city in the north. , generations of monarchs of the Yan Kingdom dreamed of capturing it. Now that they heard that the city was empty of defenses, Murong Jun wanted to lead his own troops and monopolize this power.
The generals under Murong Ba's tent were aggrieved, but Murong Ba was open-minded. He only led his army to compete with another Murong Ke's army, and slowly followed up to defend the central army.
Unexpectedly, the Ji city wall was high and the ditch was deep. Although the defenders were small, they resisted desperately, and everyone was determined to die. Although the Yan army was large, it lacked siege equipment. In addition, Murong Jun, in vain, concentrated his troops to attack the north gate. The people were crowded and it was difficult to use the troops, but many soldiers were shot dead by the defenders on the city wall.
Jicheng, which was expected to be captured in two or three hours, now took three days.
On the third day, in Murong Jun's camp, his uncle Murong Ping saw the urgency of the war and said: "King Yan, Murong Ba's army is on the flank. For this plan, Murong Ba's army should be led to attack his city and the whole army will be defeated." open circuit."
"No!" Murong Jun threw down the military newspaper angrily, "Our Chinese army has been attacking for three days. If Murong Ba attacks the city now, wouldn't it be like picking fruits in vain? No way."
While they were talking, a sergeant came to report, "King Yan, our army has suffered heavy losses. Can you withdraw and fight again tomorrow?"
Unexpectedly, the King of Yan stood up angrily and said: "Our ancestors in the Yan Kingdom led the Yan army to conquer the north and south, and defeated countless powerful enemies. The dangers they encountered were even worse than today. When have they ever been afraid? Those who are greedy for life and fearful of death are not worthy of our Yan army. Come on, please kill them quickly to calm the morale of the army."
"Your Majesty, you have been wronged, you have been wronged, and the general has no fault." The sergeant shouted in the tent.
King Yan was furious at this time, and no one in the tent dared to say anything for a while. He saw that the man was being pulled out by the guards on the left and right to be punished.
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty, you must not do it. If you kill the general before engaging the enemy in battle, you may be disadvantageous to the army." Meng Gao, a personal guard at the side, advised him.
"So it's Meng Gao," Murong Jun glanced at him. Ever since he was promoted from Xiang School that year, he often served him around. He was brave and powerful but quiet and talkative, but he was extremely loyal to Murong Jun. Murong Jun He is often appointed as his personal bodyguard.
"You have always been by Gu's side, and now you understand a lot about military matters." King Yan's anger had gradually subsided at this time.
Meng Gao was not good at words either. He was frightened and said one after another, "The last general, the last general just feels that it is a pity not to die at the hands of the enemy but at the hands of his own family."
After hearing this, Murong Ping said anxiously: "Meng Gao, you are brave."
Murong Jun signaled Murong Ping not to interrupt, and said to Meng Gao, "Please tell me and listen."
"Soldiers must be vigorous once, then weaken again, and finally exhaust themselves. Now after three days of attacking the city, the Yan army's momentum has already begun to show signs of exhaustion. If they can no longer summon up the courage to capture the city in one fell swoop, but kill the generals, it may be a threat to the entire army. The army is at a disadvantage."
Murong Junzhi thought for a moment and said with a smile: "Meng Gao's words are very consistent with Gu's wishes. Come and set up a high platform, Gu wants to beat the drum himself and supervise the battle."
Murong Ping hurriedly admonished: "Your Majesty, your sword and arrow have no eyes, you must not do such a dangerous thing."
The rest of the generals also said: "Your Majesty, with your body of ten thousand chariots, please do not take any risks."
"My officers and men of the Yan army are all fighting bravely at the front, but as the leader of a country, I am sitting in the camp, how can I face the common people? This time Meng Gao can accompany him, but I don't believe that Zhao's bows and arrows can I'm so hurt." Seeing that King Yan had made up his mind, all the officers and soldiers in the tent had no choice but to say anything.
In the open space of the Yan Kingdom's military camp, a high platform was erected with a drum on it. The King of Yan, dressed in armor, slowly climbed up the steps and shouted to the audience: "Now that the great ambition of the ancestors of the Yan Kingdom to go south is about to be realized, how can we not do it?" Blocked by a Ji city, our Yan army was trapped under Ji city, and it was our fault. Now there is no king of Yan in the Yan army, only the drummer Murong Jun beats the drum for the soldiers to conquer Jicheng."
The soldiers in the audience raised their heads and held their breath. They saw King Yan raising his mallet and began to beat the drum heavily, once, twice...the drum kept sounding all day long.
"Kill, kill, kill!" shouts of killing spread throughout the camp.
Above Jicheng, the Yan army's offensive has stopped. On the city wall, sergeants patrolled back and forth, collecting arrow clusters, and reorganizing military affairs in preparation for the Yan army.
"General, look." On top of the city, Wang Tuo was patrolling. The sergeants of Jicheng guarded for three days. Although the number was small, they killed many Yan troops. The morale of the army was still good. Everyone laughed and said that the Yan army was no match. Err. Suddenly, in the Yan army camp, there was a thundering sound of killing, and everyone leaned out of the crenellations of the city wall to look.
"The man playing the drum seems to be a high-ranking official. There is a circle of sergeants around the audience." The sergeant with good eyesight reported back.
General Wang Tuo only said viciously: "The Yan army is hateful. They bully my small number of soldiers and want to conquer Jicheng in one fell swoop."
Wang Tuo then asked the soldiers, "Who can shoot this thief?"
"The last general is willing to try." A small soldier was eager to try.
Wang Tuo saw that this person was still small, but he had a look of contempt, "You?"
"I have been hunting with my grandfather since I was a child. I can shoot a cunning rabbit a hundred steps away. I wonder if I can still shoot with one shot. If the archery skills of the generals in the army are better than mine, I am willing to give up this military achievement."
When everyone saw that the high platform was far away, and the boy was indeed famous for his archery skills in the army, they all retreated.
"In that case, let's give it a try." Wang Tuo handed the bow he brought to the man.
I saw the man drawing his bow and setting up an arrow, with the bow fully drawn, aiming at the man beating the drum from a hundred feet away.
"Whoosh" the arrow finally shot out.
On the high platform of the Yan Army, Meng Gao was on guard. The sun in the wilderness below Jicheng was particularly dazzling. At this time, Meng Gao looked at a bright spot above Jicheng in the distance, which attracted his attention. He took a closer look and faced it. But the sun saw something flying out of the sky, it was an arrow! "Hurry, Your Majesty." After saying this, he immediately pushed King Yan away.
Above Jicheng, everyone heard the drums stopped and cheered in unison.
"You're a good boy."
"The younger generation is formidable, but his skills are superior to those of us veterans, Youzi."
Wang Tuo also wanted to commend the man, and at this moment the drum beat that had stopped sounded again.
"Sir, the Yan army has launched an offensive."
Wang Tuo patted the man who was shooting the arrow on the shoulder and said, "I had no hope of hitting the target. Send my order to the general to assemble the army and prepare for war."
"Meng Gao, Meng Gao, what's going on?" King Yan leaned down and held Meng Gao in his arms. Meng Gao gasped and said, "Your Majesty, you can be strong but don't let go. The city will be destroyed today."
"Report, Your Majesty, Pingdi General Murong Ba ordered people to send the ladders and rush the car." A sergeant hurriedly climbed to the high platform to report.
Hearing this, Meng Gao forced a smile on his lips and said, "Thanks to General Ping Di's power, Jicheng can be conquered." After saying this, he felt dizzy.
The King of Yan said in a hurry: "Pass the doctor, tell the doctor quickly."
The military doctor hurriedly stepped forward and helped Meng Gao to rest in the tent.
King Yan stood up and said to the soldiers: "Today is the day to capture Jicheng." Then Murong Jun raised his mallet and beat the war drum again, "Dong, dong, dong."
The officers and soldiers of the Yan army were all impressed after hearing this, and they rushed towards the city gates like a tide. The setting sun fell on the city wall of Jicheng, a red color. The sun finally set in the west, and Jicheng fell.
"Kneel down!" the Yan army soldiers captured the guard Wang Tuo, took him into the tent, and yelled at Wang Tuo from left and right.
"If you don't lose in battle, why should you kneel down?" Wang Tuo, however, did not bother to surrender. The sergeant kicked him hard and only bent his legs, causing him to collapse to the ground. However, his upper body struggled to straighten up and refused to give in.
"What a man of iron bones, I will give you a happy experience." King Yan motioned to the left and right, pulled him down, and showed his head to the public.
The guards dragged him down and paraded him in the school grounds.
"Bring it up." After Wang Tuo finished handling it, the sergeant escorted another person over. The leader raised his hands and said: "Your Majesty, this is the person who wants to shoot your Majesty."
"Raise your head," said King Yan.
The man slowly raised his head, and King Yan saw that he looked about sixteen or seventeen years old.
King Yan was somewhat appreciative when he saw this, "You are so young, but you have such skill with arrows. It's very impressive. If you shoot an inch more accurately, if you are not one of my bodyguards, you may die alone."
The young man said hurriedly: "Your Majesty, please spare my life. I am originally a hunter. I followed my grandfather to hunt since I was a child, so I have quite a lot of experience in archery."
"That's it." King Yan murmured. At this moment, a soldier reported: "King Yan, when the city is destroyed, there are still more than a thousand surrendered troops in Jicheng, how to arrange them."
"The Zhao army has left, but they are willing to defend the isolated city. I think they are all the remnants of the stubborn Jie people. They will all be trapped and killed."
"According to the decree."
"Wait a minute." A loud voice came from outside the tent.
King Yan turned around and saw a man standing outside the tent. He looked extremely tall against the backdrop of silver armor and red tassels. The person who came was Murong Ba.
As soon as he entered the camp gate, Murong Ba bowed and said in greeting: "Your Majesty, my brother has cleared away the remaining soldiers on the outskirts of Jicheng and came here to report back to your Majesty."
King Yan slowly sat down and motioned to others to give Murong Ba a seat and said: "The city is now in ruins. Thanks to the siege equipment prepared by Brother Ba, we were able to conquer this fortified city. Thank you very much, my king."
Murong Ba hurriedly left the table and said: "Fortunately, relying on the might of King Tianwei and the bravery of our Yan army, we were able to fulfill the long-cherished wish of our ancestors."
When King Yan saw Murong Ba being so respectful, he couldn't help but smile.
After a while, Murong Ba slowly asked again: "My brother heard that Brother Wang wants to trap Zhao Guo and surrender his troops?"
"Exactly. Those people are very powerful against our army. Our army is going south to conquer the Central Plains. In the future, we will have to conquer dozens of cities. If they were all like Ji City, wouldn't it be a huge waste of effort and a waste of troops. Ignorant,
All the princes in the world will be trapped and killed. If the princes of the world fight to the death again, they will all end up like this. Let the enemy countries tremble when they hear the military power of our Yan army."
Murong Ba was thoughtful and slowly spoke to King Yan: "Brother Wang, do you think this matter is a little inappropriate?"
"Oh, but why?" King Yan raised his eyebrows, but he was full of doubts.
"The State of Zhao is tyrannical and unruly. King Yan's Xingyi army attacked it in order to save the people and prevent their lives from being destroyed, so that they could occupy the Central Plains. Now that they have only got a Ji city, they have tricked their soldiers. I am afraid that this will damage the Yan army's reputation as a righteous army.
unfavorable."
Murong Ping, who was standing by, expressed his dissatisfaction and said: "These people have caused heavy losses to our Yan army. If we don't kill them, it will be hard to get rid of the hatred in our hearts."
Murong Ba leaned over and admonished: "King Yan, Uncle Ping, if you can't pacify the Central Plains and take over the world, you will be sorry for the dead soldiers."
Murong Ba straightened up and said to the King of Yan: "Your Majesty, Ji City is surrounded by mountains to the north and plains to the south. In addition, its city is strong, and its advance and retreat are well-founded. Duke Zhao established his capital here and it will last for eight hundred years. If our Yan Kingdom establishes its capital in Ji, then it will be Eyes on the Central Plains are wide open, and the passage southward for hegemony is wide open."
"Make it the capital of Jicheng?" Murong Jun's heart moved. He had never thought about this before. Now that Murong Ba mentioned it, he also felt that the Yan Kingdom had just moved its capital to Longcheng because it was in Jicheng before. The palaces were small and the city was cramped.
Although Longcheng is at the foot of Longshan Mountain, close to mountains and rivers, it is already much larger than Jicheng. Now that the troops have entered Jicheng, they realize that Yan State is a small country that suddenly rose up. It was originally a nomadic people on the grassland, and building a city was not the best choice for it. Director, the walls of this Ji City are high and the trenches are deep, which is beyond the reach of the Yan State with Pingzhou alone. Furthermore, if we were to go south to the Central Plains to obtain supplies and troops from Pingzhou Longcheng, the journey would be long and inconvenient, and we would still have to pass through it. Miyun Mountain, Yinshan Mountain. If the mountain is blocked by heavy snow, and the military situation is urgent, the army may not be able to rescue. If the capital is Jicheng, there will be no such trouble. In addition, if the Yan State army goes south from Jicheng, the road will be flat and the movement will be fast. Will not miss the opportunity to annex the Central Plains.
When Murong Ba saw that the King of Yan had changed his mind, he admonished him: "If our army is to be based here, we should gather the hearts of the people and the army. The soldiers and people of Jicheng will all be our subjects of the Yan State in the future. Now the Zhao State is unruly. The man who swore to defend Jicheng to the death is nothing more than the fact that his father, brother, wife, and children are all here. If the king forgives his mistakes, rewards his loyalty, and accepts him for the use of our Yan Kingdom, he will definitely become the copper and iron wall of our new capital of Yan Kingdom."
The King of Yan only changed his expression slightly and said with a smile: "Brother Ba has such a plan. It is our great luck to the Yan State. The people who come will follow General Ping Di's words and release those surrendered soldiers."
"Thank you, Your Majesty." Murong Ba thanked him hurriedly.
"Wait a minute, this man also shot my personal bodyguard Meng Gao. Meng Gao is also a loyal man. If he is released, he may chill his subordinates." King Yan still had murderous intentions towards that man.
At this time, the doctor from behind the camp came out. The man held up the wooden basin and greeted King Yan and the generals, "It's really dangerous. If we missed it by a few inches and hit his lifeline, Meng Gao would be dead. Now the arrow has already Take it out and cultivate it for a while, then there should be no serious danger."
When Murong Ba heard what the doctor said, he hurriedly approached King Yan. King Yan also understood and just waved his hand and said to the man: "Haha, you really shouldn't die."
The people on the left and right were about to carry the man who was shooting the arrow out. After hearing the king's words, they threw him to the ground. The man got up and kowtowed to thank him.
King Yan stepped down from the commander's desk and came to Murong Ba's side. He only touched his back and said in his ear: "Brother Ba is very popular in the army. The soldiers are dedicated to their lives. Brother Wang should not be like him."
Murong Ba just turned his head, smiled slightly and said, "Your Majesty, you are joking."
King Yan walked to the man, helped him up and said, "You are very good at archery. Even so, you can be a charioteer by my side."
The man's head kept grabbing the ground, "I thank the king, I thank the king."
The guard next to him hurriedly joked to the man: "Even my colleagues don't hurry up and tell me that they are dead."
"Young man Ai Lang, thank you so much, king and generals, for not killing me."
