Contrary to Cao Yuguang's expectation, during this pre-military meeting, Zhao Guangyi did not separate the three northwest vassals. Instead, he gave them the task of attacking Xicheng. After thinking about it carefully, Cao Yuguang also understood the official's intention. Although the three northwest vassals
There are often acts of defiance, but they are nominally ministers of the Song Dynasty after all. There is nothing to blame for coming here in response to the imperial edict. The king of a country will never do anything like causing infighting before the battle and then punishing them without instruction.
If they were forced to break up the San Francisco formation and mix them into other siege forces, they would have all the means at their disposal to do their best, but they could afford it, but the officials could not afford it.
Here, the officials want to capture Jinyang, the capital of the Han Dynasty, as quickly as possible and fight a good battle. In this way, they must rely on the main force of the Forbidden Army and put San Francisco alone in the west city, which will not delay the officials.
The back leg of the family can free up the main force to attack the three cities.
As for Xicheng, even if they didn't put in much effort in attacking the city, with them guarding it, there was at least no chance that Liu Jiyuan would be able to escape. Since the Three Feuds had been ordered to do so, they would never dare to go that far. Despite this, Zhao Guangyi still sent an additional team to Xicheng.
The team was led by Pan Mei. The three feudal vassals had a high status, especially as Yang Hao was the marshal of the army in Longyou, Hexi and the military envoy of Hengshan. Pan Mei was the only deputy envoy to the privy council and was also an outstanding military commander of the Song Dynasty.
Only the most powerful general who is good at attacking can suppress him. Sending him here not only strengthens the defensive power of Xicheng, but also has the intention of using this powerful general to frighten San Francisco.
For Yang Hao, now that he has arrived at Jinyang City and there are imperial supervisors in the army, even if he wants to perfunctory, he still has to do the face-saving work. As soon as he returns to the camp, he immediately puts down the drums and gathers the generals to attack the city.
After assigning the task, he immediately dug trenches outside his camp, set up horses, set up camp, and made ladders. It can be said that Yang Hao's troops, even the troops stationed outside other cities, had just arrived at Jinyang City. Many large-scale attacks were carried out.
The city's equipment has not yet been assembled, but the official's order is to start attacking the city at midnight tonight. His determination to win Jinyang and his impatient mood are clearly revealed.
At night, a faint mist floated over Jinyang City in early spring, looming over the huge city. No stars could be seen in the sky. In the dim night, only the neighing of war horses and the neighing of an unknown army could be heard.
When the watchtowers, chariots and other equipment were pushed towards the front of the formation, the soldiers chanted in unison, and the atmosphere was unusually depressing.
Yang Hao's troops mainly adopted a defensive posture to prevent Jinyang soldiers and horses from using their weakest link as a breakthrough point to carry out counterattacks. They had too few siege equipment, so this was a last resort, and the reasons were justified. However, the imperial court
In order to defeat the Han, they had made sufficient preparations in advance. The craftsmen of the imperial army were working day and night to make siege equipment. It might not take a few days before they would have enough siege equipment to replenish their army. However, look at this battle.
, how long can the isolated Jinyang City be able to sustain it?
Although he knew that his unit would not be responsible for the main attack mission tonight, Li Yide, who took on this important task for the first time, was still very nervous. In the deep night, he and Cao Yuguang stood in the middle army, looking at the Jinyang City standing quietly in front of them, listening to the silent atmosphere.
The voices of the armies nervously preparing to attack the city made their hearts beat involuntarily.
In the Chinese army tent, Yang Hao combed the feathers of the goshawk and then handed it to Mu Yu. Mu Yu immediately carried the goshawk to the back of the tent, raised his arm, and the eagle disappeared into the vast night.
Among them, no one noticed its coming and going.
Mu Yu hurriedly returned to the tent and saw Yang Hao holding the handsome case thoughtfully, with a solemn look on his face. Mu Yu couldn't help but ask: "Sir, what's wrong with you?"
"Oh..." Yang Hao came to his senses and smiled, suppressing his anxiety and said: "Li Guangcen... indeed sent troops."
"What?" Mu Yu was overjoyed: "Sir, you really have a clever plan. He left his nest this time, but he fell into your trap."
Yang Hao looked at him and smiled strangely: "Why are you so excited? Don't you think about how embarrassed I would be if I couldn't defeat Xiazhou City and lost Yinzhou? That would be...all of a sudden
I was beaten back to my original shape."
Mu Yu was stunned and said with a surprised smile: "How could it be possible? Although Li Guangrui is powerful, no matter how careful he is, he will never be as prepared as the adults. If they think they have a plan, they will attack Yinzhou as quickly as possible.
, so it is impossible to carry any large siege weapons. Today's Yinzhou City is no longer what it was at the beginning. Are his soldiers and horses more powerful than the elite soldiers of the Sixth Academy of Khitan?
Hey, he wants to build equipment under the city first, why can't he take a month? Besides, Xiazhou, our troops will suddenly appear in their heart by surprise, and there are our internal agents in the city. When our army rushes into the city, I'm afraid
The Xiazhou soldiers guarding the city still don't know whether the visitor is an enemy or a friend. You don't need to worry so much.
When my sister and brother-in-law and I hunted leopards together, the leopard was so powerful and cunning that it seemed to understand human nature. Even a dozen hunters couldn't get close to it. However, we set up a trap and put some food in the trap.
Didn't the leopard fall into the trap obediently after eating the meat he likes most? Now our Yinzhou is like a trap with bait, and it will not be easy for him to get in and climb out again."
Yang Hao stared at him for a long time, then suddenly knocked his head, and said with a smile: "Good boy, a newborn calf is not afraid of tigers. When things come to pass, I won't be able to see things as clearly as you. Anyway, I have already done it, and I still miss it."
What to do, haha, go to hell, don’t think about it anymore, let’s go out, let’s go out and see how the battle goes tonight.”
Yang Hao stood up with his sword in hand, his fighting spirit renewed. Mu Yu's unintentional words unexpectedly dispelled Yang Hao's worries about gains and losses. He saw that Yang Hao was in high spirits, which was very different from the distracted look just now, and he was immediately happy.
He got up, quickly grabbed his sword and helmet, and ran out of the tent after him.
As soon as the two people walked out of the Chinese army tent, they heard "Woo~~~Woo~~~~, dong dong dong dong dong dong..." in the distance. After the desolate horn sound, there was a drum sound as fast as a shower.
Yang Hao perked up and blurted out: "It's begun!"
Almost like a conditioned reflex, Yang Hao looked at Pan Mei's army. Pan Mei's troops were worthy of being the well-trained Forbidden Army of the Song Dynasty, and Pan Mei himself was worthy of being the best general of the Song Dynasty who was best at attacking. His troops moved to
Xicheng only started in the afternoon, and Yang Hao's troops had already made a lot of preparations before. However, the camp he built in half a day was stronger than Yang Hao's camp, with three trenches and two barriers.
The erection and passages for advance and retreat are all in good order.
And all this is done in silence. Often when an order is issued, no one comes and goes and roars, and no generals shout orders. Instead, a group of soldiers immediately rush forward and immediately implement the commander's wishes. On the other hand, Yang Hao's
In the camp, every time a general comes next, he always shouts and yells. The soldiers come and go in a hurry, running faster than anyone else, but it takes a long time to get into position. The quality of the soldiers is really different.
So when he heard the attack order, Yang Hao didn't look at the reaction of his soldiers, but first looked at Pan Mei's camp, which was dark and silent, with no lights at all.
Yang Hao felt his eyes light up, just like the sun bursting out and leaping out of the sea, spreading countless rays of light all over the earth. But that was not the sun, but countless firelights, each of which was weak.
, but when they lit up at the same time, it caused the heaven and earth to tremble.
Countless rockets rushed towards the city head, followed by a loud killing sound. Under the constant suppression of rockets and gas bombs, the soldiers pushed forward the siege equipment such as watchtowers, chariots, ladders, trenches, bridges, etc....
At the same time, there were tsunami-like sounds of fighting in all directions. Standing in the middle, Yang Hao saw that Jinyang City was like a city under the blooming of countless fireworks. It was illuminated brightly, with rockets pouring down like the Milky Way.
The stream was flying towards Jinyang City in an endless stream, and the figures of the soldiers who had been mobilized in an emergency at the top of the city seemed to be clearly visible.
Then, Yang Hao saw huge stones flying from the top of the city. Two of them hit a nest cart. Although the nest cart was extremely strong, under the impact of such huge rocks, it was also broken by pieces of wood.
Flying, the tall support showed a tendency to collapse, and then countless rockets hit the untilted nest car. The spark spread quickly, and the defenders in the city began to fight back.
Pan Mei's, Guo Jin's, Tian Chongjin's and Mi Xin's troops who were besieging the four cities took the lead in launching the attack, followed by Cui Yanjin, Chi Zhong, Li Yide, Liu Yu, Li Hanqiong and other generals, each driving their troops to attack Jinyang City.
On a high mountain in the distance, a woman wearing cyan night clothes and a sword with apricot spikes on her back stood there in surprise. This was the first time she had seen such a scene. For a moment, she could no longer care about the scene in the firelight and gunpowder smoke.
Looking for Yang Hao's banner, I just looked at the Jinyang City that instantly became extremely brilliant.
This is a war between men, but even women's blood is racing and they are dazzled when they see it: when the brilliance of the fireworks passes away, all they burn are grains of gunpowder. But the star-like splendor at the top of Jinyang City burns so brightly
It is human life. How many lives will be burned up in this life this night?
Caozhang Town is a small town, mainly composed of people from the two major surnames: Cao and Zhang. There are not many guests there, so the only inn in the town is not busy.
Fortunately, it was my own house, and it didn't cost much money to leave it idle, so Shopkeeper Cao kept running this small inn, selling breakfast, tea, and groceries during the day to supplement his family's income.
Last night, a pair of guests stayed in the store. They seemed to be a couple. The husband was dressed as a Confucian scholar, but he was very tall and dignified. Judging from his face, he was a very square man. His wife was smaller than the husband.
She is in her early thirties, wearing a plain skirt and short skirt. Although her dress is ordinary, she is elegant and elegant, and has the temperament of a lady.
Such a couple came here on foot. I heard that there was another war in the north, and there were fewer merchants and customers. The business of the Ye family's car dealership, which traveled long distances, was affected, so the south-to-north car trip was temporarily stopped.
The couple couldn't rent a car, so they just walked all the way. It was pitiful. Shopkeeper Cao was a kind-hearted person. He woke up his wife early in the morning, cooked some porridge, and prepared some pickles and steamed buns.
It's not easy for the couple to eat well so they can continue on the road, isn't it?
But this good intention also paid off. As soon as the shop opened early in the morning, seven or eight people came suddenly. They seemed to have come from a long way. Seeing that there was a small shop, they couldn't help but be overjoyed and hurriedly rushed into the shop.
I came and ordered six plates of steamed buns, one big bowl per person, and a few pickles. At this time, I ate all the breakfast that Lao Cao had prepared for his guests and his family.
Lao Cao hurriedly entertained the guests, and quickly asked his wife to cook some more porridge, pick out the pasta that cooked quickly, and put some away. While he was busy, the couple who lived in the hotel came out with their bags and sat at another table.
When the meal arrived, the husband called out: "Staff, please bring two bowls of porridge, four steamed buns, and a plate of pickles."
Lao Cao stepped forward with a smile and said, "I'm really sorry, sir. The business of my small shop is usually very light, so I don't prepare much for food. Well..." He said to the two tables
The guest babbled: "Two tables of passing customers came here all at once. What we prepared earlier is not enough. We still have rice porridge, but you have to wait a while for these steamed buns."
After hearing this, the lady said: "Zhonglang, let's drink two bowls of porridge first and wait a little longer."
The scholar was also a good talker. He glanced at the guests at the two tables next to him and said with a smile: "Well, I'll bother the shopkeeper. It's okay for me and my wife to wait a little longer." As he said this, he helped the lady sit on a table.
He sat down at the table and placed the package on the table.
The package was very heavy. As soon as it was placed on the table, it made a clanging sound, which immediately attracted the attention of those who were interested. One of the guests at the two tables, a man with a sharp mouth and monkey cheeks, had just swallowed a bun whole into his mouth. When he saw the weight of the package, his eyes suddenly twitched.
Ning Ning, he used his elbow to give the sarcastic man next to him a look, and whispered: "Brother."
The big man also noticed it and said in a low voice: "You can't tell that this couple is shabbily dressed, but they look like a pair of fat sheep. Hey, keep an eye on it. It's not easy to do anything in the town, but in the wilderness of Huangxiao..."
The sharp-tongued man understood, nodded slightly, and started eating.
After a while, a petite woman wearing a Taoist robe walked into the store. She also wore a bamboo hat with a black veil on her head. She bowed to Lao Cao and said crisply: "Shopkeeper, I... I want to buy it.
How much does a bowl of porridge cost?"
Lao Cao looked up and saw a female Taoist priest. Her voice sounded very childish and she seemed to be young. She stood up quickly. He believed in Taoism and was naturally more respectful when meeting Taoist disciples. It was not because she was a young woman.
The girl lost respect. As soon as he got up, he saw the female Taoist girl's apricot-yellow robe, which was wrinkled and wet at the shoulders and corners. He couldn't help but be surprised and said: "Oh, little master... you are out alone?
This...this body is all wet."
The female Taoist boy hesitated and said: "The trail... has to travel a long way, but the money I carry is limited. I am saving money along the way, and I don't know if I will get to the right place, so... so I have to sleep in the wild at night, without any shelter."
shop."
When Lao Cao heard this, he felt pity and said repeatedly: "What a sin, what a sin! Although the young master is a monk, he is still a little girl. How can he dare to go far away alone in such a chaotic situation? It's only March. Oh my god, it's cold, and there's not even a place to stay. Please come in quickly, little master, drunk mother, bring a bowl of porridge quickly, and bring a plate of steamed buns with vegetarian fillings when they're ready."
The little Taoist boy said with some embarrassment: "Shop, how much does this... how much does this cost? I'm afraid... I'm afraid..."
Lao Cao waved his hands repeatedly and said: "No money, no money. I, Old Cao, also believe in Lao Jun. There is no reason to ask for food money when I meet the young master. A meal of porridge and rice is not worth a few coins. Young master, please come in quickly." Sit, come, come, come..."
The little Taoist boy hesitated for a moment, thanked Lao Cao again, and then entered the store. There were four tables in the store, and now only one was left in the corner. She walked over and sat down. This little Taoist boy was the dog, Deng Xiuer. Although her family was ruined, she had brought a lot of gold and silver with her when she went up the mountain. When she arrived at the place where her aunt was the host, she naturally didn't need to spend any money. She went down the mountain and bought a horse, and found out where Yang Hao was now. Then he went all the way to Jinyang to fight.
But Gou'er's family had no money, and he fled down the mountain privately. There was no money in his bag. Even the expenses he spent along the way were all exchanged for his sword. When the old Taoist Chen Tuan traveled around the world, he always begged for alms with nothing. , but he didn’t think about the fact that his disciple had no money. Nowadays, Taoism is weak. In addition, the girl is tender-faced and it is difficult to open her mouth to ask for alms. The dog really lived in the open and had nothing to do with it. The place is small, and even the food can be saved. I can get here today with just one pair of legs, even if I am hungry and full.
Lao Cao was a kind-hearted man. Seeing that the girl was pitiful and a Taoist disciple, he hurriedly served a bowl of porridge. When the buns were steamed, he quickly picked up a plate for the little master and then gave it to the scholar. The couple sent it up.
Gou'er, a martial arts practitioner, has a big appetite, and when she is growing up, she has not reached the level of her master who can live without food. She has been very hungry all the way, and she has only had one full meal today. Although the buns There was no trace of meat in sight, but the smell was very fragrant. I hurriedly lifted a corner of the veil and ate the buns with big mouthfuls.
When she first entered the hotel, she was wearing a monk's robe and she was young. The big men didn't pay attention to her. Their eyes only wandered over the couple's packages from time to time. But when the dog lifted half of the veil to eat, Although their facial features were still unclear, their straight and delicate nose, lips as red as apricots, and her pointed chin all fell into their eyes. Although this little girl still had some... It's young, but its greenness already reveals a very charming flavor.
The sharp-mouthed man's eyes lit up when he saw it, and he hurriedly turned the arm of the big man next to him. The big man with stern eyebrows raised his head and looked at the dog. The dog couldn't see the sun, and its skin was already fair. It followed Fuyaozi to practice the best internal skills. Since then, Qi and blood have been smooth and abundant, which has made up for the lack of sunshine. The fair skin is now like smooth ivory, with a faint pink and rosy color. Look at this skin, and that straight and small chin,* Her tender cherry lips tell you that she is a beauty.
The tall man with the eyebrows stroked his beard and smiled slightly, and nodded slightly. The sharp-mouthed man next to him immediately grinned, and then looked at the dog who was destroying the plate of steamed buns with relish, his eyes became a little brighter.