Standing on the east bank of Luoshui, Yang Xi could see the mighty Qin army arrayed on the west bank, like cubes of tofu - this was also a new thing from Jiaodong. Each army followed their respective captains and crossed several pontoon bridges in batches.
, and lined up on the east bank to prepare for the counterattack of the bandits from the Six Nations.
Yang Xi and others were at the forefront of the entire army, scattered within a hundred miles, scouting for any signs of trouble.
A cavalry commander came on horseback carrying military orders, cupped his hands towards Yang Xi and said:
"Commander Yang, the army of the kings and lords has crossed over to Ji. Lieutenants Li and Luo ordered us to go to the direction of Puban to investigate the enemy's situation!"
Yang Xi nodded and blew the copper whistle to gather his subordinates who were wandering around him.
"Go east, to Puban."
Running on all fours, the horse's haunches surged, Yang Xi was at the end - this was the custom of cavalry marching, and when fighting, he would move to the front.
Yang Xi was promoted. He was originally just a "cavalry commander" in charge of five people, but now he was promoted two levels in a row and became a "cavalry commander" in charge of a hundred cavalry because of his role in being the first to surrender in Lantian and triggering the collapse of Wang Li's army.
.
In the past more than half a month, Lantian's former Qin Jiang soldiers accepted the changes of the Northern Expeditionary Army. As early as when Yang Xigang surrendered, Ji Ying, the guard captain, told him the policies of the Northern Expeditionary Army:
"You have abandoned the dark and surrendered to the light. Marquis Wu Zhong ordered us to welcome you wholeheartedly. From now on, no matter the people of the old Qin or the new Qin, we are all one family. Marquis Wu Zhong treats the surrendered soldiers no differently from the old troops of Nanjun. As long as you do your best to serve, naturally
The future is boundless and wealth is expected!"
Seeing that Yang Xi was still quite reserved at that time, Ji Ying even comforted him and said, "Don't have any worries. Although you are young, your parents also helped the First Emperor to conquer the Six Kingdoms, and you and Wu Zhonghou are strangers to each other. From now on,
Still fighting side by side, sharing the same hatred!"
So in those days, Yang Xi and others listened to the lectures of the military judges of the Northern Expeditionary Army in elegant dialects with southern accents, asking them to "remember the bitter and think of the sweet" - recalling the bitterness of Hu Hai's reign, thinking about the political clarity of the past, and the Qin Dynasty under the First Emperor
The sweetness of winning every battle under the banner.
He emphasized to them over and over again that the reason why there was this civil war and the reason why people in the world suffered was all the fault of Hu Hai and Zhao Gao.
A few days later, news came that Xianyang had surrendered without a fight and that Hu Hai had died. Marquis Wu Zhong completed the peace process and became the regent of the Qin Dynasty. He also announced a series of policies such as amnesty and rent reduction, and Qin surrendered.
, this decline makes the pawn feel a little more at ease.
However, at that time, officials with more than 500 officers were isolated in isolation, and rumors spread among the army. It seemed that the Northern Expeditionary Army wanted to separate the officers and soldiers. This made Yang Xi and others worried: most of the Northern Expeditionary Army officials had southern accents.
It's extremely serious. It's difficult to communicate with people in Guanzhong. It will take a long time to even listen to military orders, let alone other things.
But in the end, Heifu just idled the replacements of Li Liang and other assistant generals, and kept them below the captain level, so that the subordinates would not be ignorant of the soldiers and the officials. After a slight adjustment, they were brought to Lishan in batches.
Guards 170,000 prisoners.
Yang Xi and other cavalrymen were gathered together to make up for the lack of cavalry in the Northern Expedition. They were gathered in Weibei. At that time, many people complained and wanted to go home. However, Marquis Wu Zhong specially sent a group of military judges to describe the six
The crimes committed by Guo Yigui led a group of thieves in Xihe, and what they are going to fight next is what they are going to fight for!
"Save my captives, restore my land in Xihe, and give me peace in Qinchuan. Not only to avenge the humiliation of the prince and princess, but also to avenge the unjust murder for the people of Xihe!"
Every point is an irritation to the old Qin people, such as Yang Xi. His hometown is in Ningqin County, right on the edge of the Xihe River. If the bandits from the Six Nations are not repelled, the next ones to suffer will be his mother and brothers.
, are the neighbors close to each other?
Then let's fight...
In this way, Yang Xi directed a hundred cavalry to march eastward. Within a radius of more than a hundred miles, there were more than a dozen cavalry teams performing similar tasks to them.
Their first stop was called Shangyuan, also known as Shangyan. There were more than ten thousand hectares of brine land here, and the riverbanks were prone to collapse. It was supposed to be a poor place, but because there was a spring under the source, the water tasted salty and bitter, and the sheep drank it.
The fat and delicious meat makes Shangyan a good place for livestock raising.
"Have you ever heard of Kuquan Sheep and Luo Shuijiang?"
According to one of his subordinates, a local cavalry commander, he boasted that a spoonful of plump mutton soup soaked in the grilled membrane, which has been popular in Guanzhong for the past ten years, tastes better than that of an immortal. The local mutton is even directly supplied to the Xianyang Palace for the emperor's meal.
, the locals are quite proud...
But the current regent, Marquis Wu Zhong, may not be able to eat Shang Yan's sheep for the time being.
But when Yang Xi and others arrived at Shangyan, they found that the place was no longer as prosperous and peaceful as it had been in the past. Blood soaked the bridgehead into the city, spread along the lines of the stones, merged into ditches, and flowed to the wells, where there was a stench.
Yang Xi looked inside and saw that the well, which was forty feet deep, was filled with densely packed corpses and even naked women. It was so disturbing that mosquitoes and flies flew around, as if there was a sandstorm.
Although he was used to seeing blood flowing from swords and soldiers, and could even face the robe with bones exposed without changing his expression, Yang Xi almost felt sick at this moment.
According to the Shangyan people who fled to the nearby mountains, before the bandits from the Six Nations arrived, the countryman did his best to evacuate most of Guizhou. The old man himself put on the armor that he had not worn for many years and held the garrison.
At the bridgehead, he blocked the vanguard of a group of thieves and finally died in a fierce battle. His heads and those of a group of fellow soldiers were impaled on wooden stakes at the bridgehead.
A town with ten houses must have loyal men. Yang Xi had the head removed from the bridge and buried properly. He also pulled down the walls and filled up the well.
As for the local sheep, they had already been devoured by the hungry bandits from the Six Nations, leaving only a pile of wool and sheep bones scattered in their old camp.
The local cavalry commander failed to find his family, wife and children, and it was not known whether they had escaped or died. He lay crouched in front of his house that was destroyed by fire for a long time. Yang Xi went over and patted him.
"We will drive out the thieves!"
They left Shangyan and continued to gallop eastward. Along the way, they saw fires burning in many villages, which were set off by bandits from the Six Kingdoms when they retreated.
Some local Guizhou leaders who fled into the mountains, forests and rivers have returned. They are so skinny that they can only watch helplessly with tears in their eyes as their homes burn and their cottages turn into a sea of flames.
A thin young man stared blankly at this scene, gritted his teeth and stamped his feet, knelt on one knee by the roadside, and asked the passing Qin army cavalry to take him away. He wanted to catch up with the bandits and avenge his family members who died.
But Yang Xi refused and asked the young man to wait for Wu Zhonghou's army. He followed Captain Ji Ying's words and said: "The Northern Expedition needs every young man who can pick up a spear and carry a shield."
After walking forward for more than ten miles, a fertile farmland appeared in front of us, with the breeze blowing and waves of wheat flowing.
A group of chariots and riders of similar numbers also appeared in front of them. They were chopping down a bridge over a small ravine and setting fire to the yellow-orange corn beside the road. This was in order to slow down the pursuit of the Qin army.
And destroyed the food in Xihe.
"He is the last scout of the Six Kingdoms group of thieves!"
Everyone's eyes lit up, and after a long pursuit, they finally caught the enemy's tail. The enemy's large force was probably not far away.
The bandits from the Six Nations on the opposite side also discovered Yang Xi and others, and immediately regrouped and began to form a formation. It was a wise choice to evacuate immediately. However, in the past six months, every battle must be successful, and the Chu army was a little drifting.
"Blade draw!"
Yang Xi loudly ordered the five cavalrymen to turn around and report the situation to the cavalry captain, while he led the remaining men into formation.
They had no room to retreat. The army fought with the army, and the scouts fought with the scouts.
Half a month ago, Yang Xi, as a scout and cavalry commander in Wang Li's army, encountered a group of Northern Expeditionary Army scouts. At that time, he had no intention of fighting. Instead, he wrapped the letter of surrender with stones and threw it heavily.
At that time, he lost the courage to draw his sword.
I remember that just after surrendering, the military judge of the Northern Expeditionary Army asked the surrendered soldiers a question.
"You have been called by Hu Hai to fight against the Northern Expeditionary Army. Have you ever thought about why you are fighting?"
At that time, Yang Xi couldn't answer.
His ancestors knew why they were fighting:
In order to respond to the king's father's call, to avenge Xihe's century-old humiliation, and to make the princes no longer belittle Qin, this is the backbone of the old Qin people!
His father also knew why he was fighting:
Fight for the dream of the First Emperor and for military merit!
However, their generation, who grew up after the unification, could not even cope with the labor service and land rent. When there was no profit in serving, people gradually lost the fighting spirit of their ancestors.
Just because of the government's recruitment order and the harsh punishment for desertion, he was forced to leave his home and embark on the battlefield. The military officials shouted every day to suppress the rebellion and perform meritorious service, but everyone had no interest and thought about the family behind them.
And now?
Why did they, who once lost their fighting spirit and threw away their weapons, pick up their weapons again and stand under this flag?
"Do you know where this is?"
Yang Xi gritted his teeth and stared at the group of bandits from the Six Nations showing off their power in the distance.
"This is my hometown!"
This is the endless Qinchuan of loess, this is their home!
Who gave you the courage to act recklessly here?
Why are we fighting? That question once again lingered in Yang Xi's mind.
"Not for the glory of the king."
"It is not the law of the government."
Not even for military exploits and illusory glory.
The Qin people fought for themselves.
Qin people fight for their homeland!
Yang Xi showed off his sword!
It may have become dusty and rusty, making it difficult to unsheath it.
But today it shines brightly, still shining brightly in the sun!
The courage I once lost is back!
Following Yang Xi, the Qin cavalrymen unsheathed their swords, and more than a hundred cavalrymen came out from their prancing horses, rushed towards the enemy, and shouted their new slogans!
"Protect our home and country!"
"Protect our home and country!"
…
ps: I sent out the last one before the ship sailed. It was a bit rushed. Please leave a message if there are any typos.