Flames rose into the sky, blocking the Goguryeo people's road to western Liaoning. The soldiers guarding the bridge breathed a sigh of relief, evacuated the fire bridge one after another, and assembled into teams on the river beach.
Suddenly, someone pointed to the other side of the Liao River and screamed loudly.
"Red flag, red battle flag!" Several soldiers with sharp eyes screamed, and their faces turned pale in an instant.
Indeed, there was a broken scarlet battle flag in the distance that picked out the horizon and rushed towards the burning pontoon faster than the other smoke and dust.
Under the red flag was a group of soldiers wearing Sui uniforms. They rushed towards the pontoon and towards the flames, but were forced back from the pontoon by the flames.
They stood on the east bank of the roaring Liao River, only a bridge away from their hometown. From all around, tens of thousands of Goguryeo people rode towards them, swallowing them up like a tide in an instant.
"Little San'er!" Old General Yuwenshu screamed and ran a few steps towards the river, spit out a few mouthfuls of blood, and threw himself on the river beach.
"Brother Hongji!" Li Jiancheng burst into tears and knelt down towards the battlefield on the other side of the river, bowing deeply.
On the other side of the river, a red flag fluttered in the smoke and dust, and finally disappeared in the smoke and dust.
Although Liu Hongji and others deliberately did not alarm everyone, some soldiers still got the news privately that the Sui soldiers who were originally stationed in the camp were massacred. As the news spread, more and more brothers from the food protection army came to see their soldiers off.
, first in twos and threes, then in groups, and finally, nearly eight hundred food protection soldiers surrounded the pagoda.
Seeing those pairs of unblinking eyes, almost everyone's first reaction was to vomit wildly. While vomiting, they cursed and howled in a southern and northern accent. After the howling, there was a deathly silence, and the sad and angry soldiers held their hands high
Lighting the torch, he stood motionless next to the pagoda like a rock, guarding the departed heroic soul with his own silence.
The guys hiding in the food protection army are most likely not optimistic about this war against Goguryeo. They are not willing to die fighting in Liaodong for His Majesty the Emperor's incomprehensible sense of honor, and they are not willing to let their own bones be paved.
The road to becoming a prince for an ambitious guy. They rarely have the ambition to gain fame right away. Their highest ideal is usually to gain some military glory in order to gain a better inheritance position in their own family. They are like all ordinary people of this era.
Similarly, most people are greedy for life and afraid of death, most people are greedy for money and lustful, most people bully the weak and fear the strong, want to take advantage of the advantages, and want to hide far away when there are difficulties. But at this moment, most of them
No one wants to watch helplessly as the heads of the 300,000 people trapped in Liaodong are cut off by the Goguryeo people and built into pagodas.
Liu Hongji ordered people to remove dry wood from the fence of the camp, pile it around the pagoda, and pour vegetable oil on it. Then Li Jiancheng personally lit the pagoda where five hundred lives were buried. The moment the flames jumped, Liu Hongji
Hongji loudly ordered the entire army to return to camp and rest. As for the choice of tomorrow, it was no longer up to the generals to decide. At this moment, anyone who dared to give up would be regarded as a mortal enemy by the entire Sui Dynasty.
At this moment, his mind was not completely affected by grief and anger. Liu Hongji even clearly knew that since the Goguryeo people had launched a counterattack, it meant that they would no longer abide by the peace treaty of ceding territory and becoming vassals. At the same time, it also meant that the 300,000 expedition
With no aid or food, the expeditionary force was under siege from all directions. Under such circumstances, the hope that the expeditionary force could safely withdraw across the Mazhai River to the agreed point to receive supplies was slim. Moreover, with a little carelessness, he and the eight men under his command
Brother Bai Huliang will turn into another pile of human-headed pagodas. However, everyone has no choice. Even if there is a mountain of swords and a sea of fire waiting ahead, he and the 800 people under his command can only pounce on it like moths without hesitation.
.
"Perhaps we can save some!" Almost everyone thought expectantly. Early the next morning, without any urging from the generals, everyone quickly packed their bags, ate some dry food with cold water, and immediately rode on.
War horses and livestock continued to march eastward. The voices of people crying out for pain and tiredness that they heard every day disappeared, and the noise that once made people irritated during the march also disappeared. Everyone remained silent and walked quickly in silence.
They were marching so fast that by just after noon, they had completed their planned day's journey. In the afternoon, Liu Hongji had to repeatedly order everyone to slow down to avoid excessive physical exertion and being attacked by the enemy.
Can't afford effective resistance.
In the evening, on another hill, everyone discovered the second camp left by the Eastern Expeditionary Army. At the same time, they also discovered the second human-headed pagoda. With the fading daylight, the veterans even found in the valley
The corpses of soldiers who were built like a city wall were found. Most of them had their hands tied behind them, and the only wound on their bodies was on their necks. They were driven into the valley by the Goguryeo people after they surrendered and massacred. To the Goguryeo people, the Sui Dynasty
The army is an invader and shows no mercy.
Liu Hongji led his brothers to gather the bodies and heads of the robes together, and then set fire to the entire valley. The thick smoke covered the sky and could be seen dozens of miles away. This approach was very unusual.
It is not conducive for the grain protection army to cover up their hiding places, but Liu Hongji believes that by now, everyone no longer needs to cover up their hiding places. The food protection team has been walking along the route of the Eastern Expedition Army for several days and nights, and it is impossible for the nearby Goguryeo people not to discover it.
The existence of these soldiers and horses. The reason why the other party did not send troops to intercept and kill them is most likely because they are unable to distinguish the true strength of this team. After all, the smoke and dust kicked up by more than 3,000 war horses when marching look very spectacular from a distance.
.The Goguryeo people, who were sure of victory, had no need to stop a team of unknown numbers and combat effectiveness from rushing east to die.
On the morning after setting fire to the nameless valley, everyone finally walked out of the continuous mountains. Near a rather wide river, they encountered a group of Goguryeo people who were resting. Suddenly they saw the enemy army appear, and soldiers from both sides almost simultaneously
The horn was blown. Immediately afterwards, Liu Hongji danced his long spear and rode his horse into the midst of the Goguryeo soldiers.
One hundred veterans who were selected as vanguards quickly attacked and followed Liu Hongji. The Goguryeo cavalry who had no time to jump on their horses rushed into pieces. Immediately, the servants of the Li family who served as the guards of the grain team were attacked by Qian Jiulong and
Under the leadership of Fan Xing, they also rushed forward. Then, Qi Ziying, Wang Yuantong and other recruits who were protected in the center of the grain transport team shouted to let the Goguryeo people experience their anger. Li Xu, who was in the rear team, was thrown in as a new force by Li Jiancheng
On the battlefield, the battle was coming to an end. The Goguryeo people who were resting by the river did not expect that the "main force" of the Sui Dynasty would suddenly come from the mountains at this moment. With an absolute advantage in strength, they were killed in a hurry. When they saw
After more and more cavalry rushed out of the valley, they did not dare to fight and fled in all directions.
The food protection team annihilated more than 200 enemies at a slight cost of five deaths and twenty injuries, and achieved a brilliant victory in this encounter. They did not pursue the enemy troops, but buried their fallen brothers and wounded the Goguryeo soldiers lying on the ground.
After each soldier replenished his sword, they continued to move forward along the river. At noon, Liu Hongji ordered the army to rest by the river and give all the horses water and feed. At the same time, he carefully sent out several groups of veterans to inquire about the surrounding situation.
After everything was settled, Liu Hongji called Yu Wenzhong, who was responsible for guiding everyone, and asked in a low voice: "If we keep walking along the river beach, at the current speed, how many days will it take to reach Bopikou?"
"If we keep walking along the river beach, we will definitely be able to reach Bopikou in more than a day. But we have to take a detour in the middle..." Yu Wenzhong pointed lightly at the Wugu City stuck on the south bank of the river on the map, and lowered his voice.
He suggested: "Based on the current situation, there must be defenders in the city. If we keep walking along the river, the other side will definitely send troops to intercept and kill us!"
"You once said that the defenders of Wugu City were defeated by Master Yu Zhongwen, and the defenders were killed by our formation! Is this true?" Liu Hongji frowned and asked in a low voice.
"That's true, but that was nearly a month ago..." Yu Wenzhong blushed, with a hint of guilt in his voice. After seeing the "Pagoda" the night before and last night, he also knew that the hope of the Eastern Expeditionary Army's survival was over.
It was very slim. The food protection officers were willing to risk their lives to come to the rescue. This kindness moved him very much. Therefore, he hoped to avoid the loss of the food protection team as much as possible within his ability.
"Go and call the main generals in the army and tell them that I have something important to discuss with them!" Liu Hongji ignored Yu Wenzhong's guilt and whispered an order. This kind of tone in which a boss spoke to his subordinates made Yu Wenzhong listen.
It was actually very useful to get up, so he agreed and ran quickly to the brigade. After a while, Li Jiancheng, Li Xu, Qian Jiulong, Samurai Xun and others hurriedly gathered over.
After a few days of getting along with each other, Liu Hongji had completely won everyone's trust. However, in order to show respect for others, he still called in the protagonist general to discuss the next action plan. Referring to the map Li Xu got, Liu Hongji
Hong Ji used tree branches to draw the approximate current location and the direction of the final target of the food protection team on the river beach. Then he used tree branches to poke a hole in the path that everyone must pass, and whispered: "This is Wugu City, march as it is.
Speed, we will pass across the city at noon tomorrow. We are on the north bank of the river, and the Goguryeo garrison is on the south bank of the river. But the river is not wide, and the shallow parts can be crossed on horseback! If we go around, we will have to take a day's journey north.
, if you pass directly across the city, you may have to fight with the defenders!"
"I think we should go around. Although we just won a battle, it was by mistake. If Goguryeo sends five thousand soldiers to fight, we will definitely be wiped out!" Before anyone else could express their opinions, Qian Jiu said
Long said first. Among the people, he is the oldest, so he is also the most cautious in his actions. From his point of view, the current combat effectiveness of the food protection army is entirely supported by the hatred in his heart. And with hatred alone, an army without sufficient training will definitely not be able to
It can last for a long time. It’s no problem when fighting a smooth battle, but once you encounter a hard nut, everyone will be knocked back to their original shape very quickly.
Li Liang, Samurai Xun, and Wang Yuantong all agreed with Qian Jiulong's point of view. Everyone was hanging out in the food protection army all day long, and no one knew better than them how much their brothers weighed. But Qi Poning and Qin Ziying put forward
They received completely opposite suggestions. They believed that even if everyone took a detour, they might not be able to encounter the enemy. It was better to take advantage of the current high morale and rush through Wugu City. If the expeditionary force had already withdrawn to Bopikou, they heard that
If you shout to kill, someone will definitely be sent to respond. The distance between the two sides is only forty miles, and there are no mountains to block it. The cavalry can kill them within an hour.
"What if the Eastern Expedition Army hasn't arrived at Bobokou yet?" Yu Wenzhong interjected at an inappropriate time.
"If the Eastern Expedition Army has not yet reached Bopikou, Lord Yuwen, do you think the Goguryeo people will let us go back the way we came?" Qin Ziying shook his head and asked with a sneer.
Yu Wenzhong tilted his head guiltily and avoided Qin Ziying's aggressive gaze. He did not need to answer this question. Everyone knew the answer to this question, but everyone just tried not to think about it. After seeing the Human Head Pagoda, he chose to continue eastward.
The moment we entered, everyone had already left their fate in the hands of God.
The atmosphere was a little heavy for a moment. Will this adventure lead to death, or can it save hundreds of thousands of lives in time? The answer is right in front of them. Everyone wants to uncover the answer as soon as possible, and everyone is more afraid of seeing the truth that they try their best to avoid.
"You and Zhong Jian have experience fighting outside the Great Wall, so it's up to you two to make the decision!" After a moment of silence, Li Jiancheng sighed and suggested.
Liu Hongji turned his attention to Li Xu. In the other person's eyes, he saw the same trust as when they first met. It was this trust that moved him and made him want to give him a fortune. But he didn't expect that in the end, he gave him a fortune.
What the other party faced was an unavoidable risk. Thinking of this, Liu Hongji sighed softly and asked in a low voice: "Zhongjian, what do you think? You might as well tell us and let everyone listen!"
"This area is vast and sparsely populated. We don't know what the enemy's situation is, and the enemy certainly doesn't know what our situation is." Li Xu nodded and said with a smile. He understood what kind of support Liu Hongji needed at this moment. He had already reached this point.
At all times, he naturally wants to provide the other party with all the help he can.
"If we are bluffing, get more flags and put them around the cavalry, spread out the soldiers, and make it look like a large group of people are marching eastward..." Li Xu looked at Liu Hongji, his eyes were like those who had just met each other on the grassland.
As clear as day.
"So, we might as well change the queue and put all the elites at the front of the queue to demonstrate!" Liu Hongji nodded with a smile and said a bold plan, "We won't hide or hide, we will rest by the river tonight. Tomorrow morning,
