Wu Huaiyu then ordered his troops to set off. He led 3,000 cavalry to advance first, followed by 12,000 infantry.
Li Tu Diji and Wu Fuyu, wearing armor and brocade robes given by the emperor, accompanied the expedition with their tribal cavalry.
It was windy and snowy, but the two old Hu generals were still in high spirits. They left the Great Wall early in the morning to take the photo and returned to the Turkic camp. Dai Tuli, who was in charge of the special service of the Bei'an Governor's Office, had already assembled 10,000 Turks under Wu Huaiyu's order.
Cavalry outside the Great Wall.
Three thousand Youyan Tang cavalry, followed by two thousand Mohe Fan cavalry, another five thousand Turkic light cavalry, followed by 12,000 Youyan horse infantry, and behind them were thousands of voluntary conscripts.
Xiongjiujiu, high-spirited,
The stronger the wind and snow, the higher the fighting spirit.
daqingshan,
Also known as Black Mountain.
For example, Daihei Mountain has been covered with thick white snow, and everything as far as the eye can see is completely white. In the past, it was difficult to distinguish Baidaoling, which could be seen at a glance from hundreds of miles away.
At the southern foot of Black Mountain, in a valley not far from Baicheng, Su Lie led his army to hide and lurk. They were not too close to Baicheng and Baidao. Even in the cold winter, people and horses often passed by and were easily discovered.
In order to hide themselves, the men and horses were scattered and lurking in several nearby valleys without even lighting a fire.
For several days, they could only eat fried rice or dried meat, without even drinking hot water.
"It's extremely cold today, General. We can't just lie down in the snow and drink ice like this."
"Yes, when will Jieli come over?"
"Can't we keep waiting like this?"
"If you ask me, let's cross the Black Mountain quietly and capture the Black City first,"
Although Su Lie had brocade fur on his body, he still felt very cold, but in order not to be discovered, he still refused to light a fire, "Bear in it any longer,"
"Our mission is to intercept Jieli from crossing the Yinshan Mountains, but we don't know when Jieli will come. If we show up early, we will alert Jieli,"
"But let's wait like this. When will we wait? Besides, if Jie Li flees north, it will be difficult for us to intercept him in the ice and snow. If we can seize a city in advance, no matter how small it is, it will be more advantageous. After all, we only have five thousand riders."
"Five thousand elite cavalry," Su Lie emphasized.
"But our five thousand elite cavalry only brought two months' worth of dry food. Now half a month has passed and we can only hold on for another month and a half."
"It should be soon,"
He marched on Sulie Road for ten days, and then lurked here for five more days. During these five days, he did not sleep in the valley every day. He hid the large army, but also sent out many small groups of elite cavalry, put on Turkic attire, and went out to investigate.
Gather intelligence.
He already knew what was happening in Dingxiang City, more than a hundred miles away to the south.
Yuchi Gong occupied Evil Yang Ridge, and Jieli was helpless. He could only continue to summon people to Dingxiang to assemble. However, according to Su Lie's calculation, no matter how many people Jieli gathered, he would be helpless at Evil Yang Ridge.
According to the imperial court's plan, Jieli was in a dilemma. Even if Dingxiang's safety could be guaranteed by gathering troops and horses, it would not last long. The wind and snow would consume a lot of their food and grass. Yuchigong's constant attacks and harassment would also make Jieli's people sleepy and exhausted.
They can hold on for two months at most before they can't bear it.
Two months later, Li Jing and Li Ji will lead the elite main force to fight over and wait for work.
So according to the plan, Su Lie and the others need to hide here for about a month, or even that long.
This was also the reason why they only brought dry food for two months. Two months later, Wu Huaiyu also led most of the troops from Youzhou, so there would naturally be supplies of food and grass.
However, based on the information collected so far, it is estimated that it will not take that long.
"General, today is the winter solstice and we are celebrating the festival. How about we turn back the fire and make less fires? Let's light up as little cigarettes as possible so that everyone can have hot rice and soup."
"yes,"
In the icy and snowy valley, although they were sheltered from the wind and had tents, they couldn't light a fire. Not only was it cold, but they couldn't eat hot food.
Everyone felt that it was not as good as marching in the wind and snow for ten days. At least they could have a hot meal every night and cook by the fire.
"Be patient,"
night.
Several knights rushed back, and knights dressed as Turkic herdsmen brought exciting news. Jieli had led the main force out of Dingxiang City early this morning and was heading north, intending to retreat to the north of Yinshan Mountain.
"Jieli is going to run away now?"
"Jieli's confidant Kang Sumi left the city and surrendered to Yuchigong. Jieli was frightened and left Dingxiang and is now heading north."
"How fast is Jieli?"
"The large group of people moves very slowly, about forty or fifty miles a day,"
Su Lie became excited, and so did the generals.
"Hurry up and invite Governor Li, Governor Xue and others to discuss matters."
Li Keshi and Xue Wanshu arrived with their generals.
"Jie Li has left Dingxiang and is heading north to Yinshan Mountain with most of his troops. Everyone, it's time for us to take action."
Master Li laughed and rubbed his hands, "The bastards under my command have been unable to bear it for a long time."
"Should we set out at night to rob Baicheng?" Xue Wanshu also asked immediately,
"Well, we have to seize Baicheng before Jieli. This is still dozens of miles away from Baicheng. Let the brothers have a good meal, and then set off overnight. We must reach Baicheng before dawn. Then we can catch them off guard and capture Baicheng.
Eat breakfast."
"Would you like to light a fire so that the brothers can have a warm meal?" a school captain asked.
Su Lie shook his head, "Be patient for one more night and capture Baicheng tomorrow morning. Let's kill cattle and mutton to make stew and drink soup."
Li Keshi also said, "Well, if you bear with me for one more night, I will release the flying slaves to the military commander, and the flying pigeons will send messages to report the military situation."
"good."
Generals Su Lie, Li Ke and Xue Wanshu were very confident about taking Baicheng. Baicheng was not big and there were not many defenders, so it would not be difficult to launch a surprise attack.
Moreover, they still carry magical firearms and special weapons for destroying cities.
Li Keshi went to release the pigeons, while Xue Wanshu arranged more light cavalry to keep an eye on Jie Li's movements in the direction of Dingxiang.
·······
The first day of December,
After Yuchi Gong captured Dingxiang City last night, he did not stop. After dawn, he mobilized his troops and horses to continue chasing Jie Li. When there was no more obstructive plan to restrain his hands and feet, Yuchi Gong was like a tiger released from the cage.
Jieli's troops left Dingxiang and walked for a day and a night. As a result, the leading troops only walked fifty or sixty miles, and the baggage, old and weak, livestock, etc. behind them only walked twenty or thirty miles.
At dawn, the people behind had not yet moved to their nests, but Yu Chigong had already led his troops to kill them.
Yuchi Gong took the lead, like a god coming to the world, and countless iron cavalry came rolling in from behind. The Tang cavalry in black robes and black armor suddenly attacked in the vast snow, catching the Turks by surprise.
Many people thought that Yuchi Gong had bypassed Dingxiang City and caught up with him, but they did not know that Dingxiang had been lost last night.
After all, it is hard for anyone to believe that Dingxiang City was lost in just one day.
There are quite a few people there,
The chicken is flying and the dog is jumping,
But those who stayed behind were not elites. Before they could organize their defense, Yu Chigong had already led his troops to charge in, like a red-hot iron hammer driven into butter.
The man turned his back on his horse.
Five thousand Tang cavalry, plus three thousand Sogdian barbarians, they were Turkic barbarians a few days ago, but now they have transformed into Tang servants.
Facing their former own people, these Sogdian Hus performed no better than the Tang cavalry. They brandished their swords, rode their horses, and slashed along the way without mercy.
Even Kang Sumi, the Sogdian Hu leader, roared and led his Tuoji warriors all the way to kill. He showed his loyalty to the Tang Dynasty by killing Turks.
It collapses as soon as it hits, and no one can stop it.
After several repeated attacks, the Turkic troops were completely defeated. Yuchigong asked Kang Sumi to lead the Sogdian servant army to pursue him, while he led Tang Cavalry to continue chasing Jieli.
Kangsumi showed no mercy to his old friends from the Khanate, killing them ferociously until those people knelt down in fear and begged for mercy.
"Pick up your weapons and follow me. Now you are the saintly people who have surrendered to the Tang Dynasty,"
Kang Sumi laughed proudly. Instead of killing all those who surrendered in fear, he gathered them all and led them to follow Yu Chigong's footsteps and pursue Jie Li.
Yuchi Gong fought more than ten battles a day,
The Turkic army was defeated in consecutive battles, and Jieli had no intention of turning back at all. He just wanted to run away. Although his troops were about to report, the only ones pursuing them were Yuchi Gong's thousands of Tang cavalry and Kang Sumi's thousands of Sogdian Hu tribes, with less than 10,000 people.
But Jieli didn't believe it, so he whipped the man and continued running north without looking back.
Dingxiang City was defeated in one day, and Yuchi Gong pursued him so fiercely. It must be that the main force of the Tang army has arrived, and it will be too late if he doesn't run away.
The battlefield was chaotic, and he didn't know which information was true and which was false. He couldn't tell the difference between true and false, and he had no intention of distinguishing between them.
Of the thirty-six strategies, running is the best strategy.
It's a pity that damn Yuchi Gong, he clings to it and his ghost lingers.
He can always catch up, and Jieli has no choice but to send troops to intercept him again and again.
Yuchi Gong and Jie Li were fighting and pursuing each other on the vast snowfield.
Su Lie and the others took advantage of the darkness and headed towards Baicheng at the mouth of Baidaochuan at the southern foot of Yinshan Mountain.
Night is the best cover,
Five thousand men and horses, marching dozens of miles at night,
It was still dark, and they had already reached the foot of Baicheng.
Baidao City is located at the foot of Baidao Ridge, next to the Great Wall of Qin and Han Dynasties. The Northern Wei Dynasty rebuilt Baicheng on the south side of the Han Baidao City ruins. The city is not big, with a circumference of only 800 meters and an area of only dozens of acres.
But Baidaocheng is located right at the mouth of the Baidaochuan Valley, with mountains behind it and water on its side.
dawn,
A group of Tang troops disguised as a Sogdian Hu caravan appeared in front of the castle.
Su Lie has two plans,
First send people pretending to be a caravan to deceive the city. If there is an opportunity, there is no need to attack by force. If it is discovered, it will not be too late to use gunpowder to attack.
There is only a small group of Turkic soldiers in White Castle, or a group of Sogdian barbarians. They are stationed here, and their main task is not military defense, but tax collection.
Everyone who passes by the Baidaochuan will be taxed. These Sogdian Hus are very shrewd and are better at calculation than the Turks, so they are appointed here.
Seeing the caravan coming, the Sogdian Hu in the castle was not even a little wary. In fact, there was no reason to be wary. After all, this was at the southern foot of Yinshan Mountain. Less than two hundred miles south of them was Dingxiang City, where the Khan
Baicheng is equivalent to the important area of Gyeonggi Province, and the rear area is not at the foot of the Great Wall, so where is the threat?
Sogdian on the castle was cursing, as if scolding these caravans for coming too early, and loudly asked what goods they had brought.
The people at the castle responded loudly, saying that they were supposed to pass the customs last night, but they were delayed for a while on the way, so they spent the night nearby and came over early in the morning. They also said that they had prepared some tea and wine to honor the castle guards, etc.
The people on the castle were a little happier,
After a while, the south gate of the castle was opened, and the Sogdians came out in a big way, wanting to collect their benefits, but what awaited them was a surprise attack.
The disguised caravan killed several Sogdian guards and quickly rushed into the city gate to control it.
Several thundering arrows shot into the sky,
Soon Su Lie led his cavalry to rush over.
In front of the city gate lay several corpses of Sogdian Hu soldiers with their eyes still wide open, their blood still flowing, steaming in the cold wind.
The cavalry stepped over the corpses and rushed into the White Castle,
In less than half an hour, the entire castle had been cleared. Su Lie climbed up to the gate and finally showed a relaxed smile!
