The fire soared into the sky and spread to two mountaintops in less than an hour. The entire official road and the dense forests on both sides of the hills were swallowed up by the fire. The fire lifted the sky, as if the entire mountain peak was burning. Flames and thick smoke filled the surrounding area.
For five miles, the surrounding black smoke fell like heavy black snow, was blown high into the sky by the hot flames, and then scattered on the ground within a radius of more than ten miles.
The fire even changed the local climate. The spring sky was originally bright and blue, but now it was gloomy and gloomy, obscured by thick smoke and fly ash. It looked like the end of the world was coming, which made people feel frightened and frightened.
A few miles to the west, Yalu Buhua was not happy because the official road was opened, but he got the bad news that the road ahead was blocked by fire. When he rushed to the front and climbed to the top of the hill, he saw two peaks like two
It was like a burning scene like a flaming mountain. Seeing the terrifying scene of black ash flying in the sky and shrouded in smoke, I couldn't help but be stunned and turned gray.
Soon after, Alibai came back dejectedly and led the encirclement and suppression troops. Yarubuhua quickly went down the mountain to greet him and asked Alibai what happened.
Ali Bai felt depressed and sighed and recounted the story. After listening to this, Yarubuhua was stunned for a long time and murmured: "So...does that mean we can't leave? Are we trapped here? How can this be?
Is good?"
Ali Bai smacked his lips and said softly: "General, the situation is really not good. They have spent so much effort to trap us here. I am sure that they will have reinforcements coming and want to annihilate us here. This is no longer a guess.
, it’s already a done deal. We have to respond quickly.”
Why didn't Yalu Buhua know what the fire blocking the official road meant? He was so confused that he spread his hands and asked: "But... what do you think we should do now? The fire blocked the road and we can't go. Brother Ali Bai,
What can you do?"
Alibai thought for a while and said: "I thought a lot on the way back. At present, it seems that we only have three ways to go. I will tell you and we will consider it together."
Yalu Buhua kept saying: "Tell me, tell me quickly, which three ways are there?"
Ali Bai pondered: "The first way is for us to stand still here and wait for the fire to go out. The fire will eventually go out. When the fire goes out, the official road will naturally be clear, and we can leave. But...such a fire, I'm afraid
It will take at least two days to burn. We will not be able to pass until the ground cools down. I estimate that we will be able to pass in three days. The problem is that we have to be trapped here for three days in vain, which is very dangerous for us. The other party's reinforcements may have already been
On the way here, if the fire goes out and their reinforcements arrive, it will be in vain. We will face a siege from the other side, which is probably not what the general wants, but what the other side wants."
Yalu Buhua waved his hand and said: "You're right, we can't delay for three days. When the fire is extinguished and the enemy's reinforcements arrive, we will be finished. This road will not work, it will definitely not work."
Ali Bai nodded and said: "I think so too. But the second way is, since we can't escape, we simply turn back.
Attack the pass and put it to death before resurrecting. As long as the Luoyan Army soldiers and horses guarding the pass are annihilated, even if the opponent's reinforcements arrive, we will have a foothold. We can even occupy the Magpie's Nest and attack the Funiu Mountains to turn against the guests."
Yalu Buhua stared at Alibai in a daze, smacking his lips for a while and saying: "Brother Alibai, are you kidding? Do you really think we can conquer the mountain pass? Then how could we be in such a mess in the past two days?
If we can capture the pass, why should we withdraw our troops?"
Alibai nodded with a wry smile and sighed: "I don't know, but this is indeed a choice for us. Rather than being trapped and dying here, it is better to fight to the death. Of course, I also understand what the general said, and I dare not predict it now.
As a result, perhaps attacking the pass at this moment is asking for death, and it is not a suitable plan at all."
Yalu Buhua nodded and said, "What about the third way?"
Ali Bai said: "The third road...well...although the official road ahead is blocked by the fire, people and horses cannot pass. However, besides taking the official road, we have another way out of the mountain. Although the hills around here are undulating,
There are many, but they are all not too steep peaks that can be climbed. We can abandon the official road and take a detour. We will exit this mountainous area twenty or thirty miles northeast, which means we have escaped from the enemy's encirclement. I
It is estimated that we can climb over these hills and reach the outside in one day. This will allow us to leave here as soon as possible."
Yalu Buhua said in surprise: "You mean to go out over the mountains and ridges? This... this... our war horses can't climb such a mountain. Unless we abandon the mount and walk. But in that case... the horses will all
It's going to be discarded. Our cavalry will become infantry. Is this...appropriate?"
Ali Bai smacked his lips and said: "Yeah, I think it's inappropriate too, but I don't know what to do? At the moment, these are the three ways I can think of. General Yalu, don't spend any time. Is there anything you can do? It doesn't matter.
Tell me and I will consider it in detail."
Yalu Buhua calmed down and thought about it carefully. He finally admitted that there seemed to be no other choice except these three ways. The first method was obviously not feasible. Waiting for three days was too dangerous. Three days.
Time is enough for soldiers and horses hundreds of miles away to arrive here, which is equivalent to waiting for death. Counterattacking the pass sounds like a solution. Regardless of victory or defeat, this method will only be desperate when there is no choice.
. But it seems that this time is not here. Because although the third option is very unwilling and unacceptable to abandon the horses, it is still a way of escape. It only takes one day to climb over the mountains and reach the mountain.
Outside, we will reach Ye County in less than thirty miles, and we will be completely safe.
Yalu thought about it carefully and finally made a decision. There is nothing more important than saving his life. If the war horses are gone, they can be collected and trained again, but if the more than 50,000 Jurchen soldiers are gone, then
Nothing is left. People are much more important than war horses. In this situation, you need to make a decisive decision and you can no longer hesitate.
"Brother Alibai, I have decided.
We immediately abandoned our horses and baggage and traveled over the mountains with light equipment. We left the green hills without worrying about firewood. If we were all trapped here and were surrounded by the enemy, that would be the biggest loss. Preserving these more than 50,000 brothers is the top priority.
What do you think about this important matter?" Yalu Buhua said in a deep voice.
Alibai said softly: "Actually... I prefer that we turn around and attack the pass. Although that is very risky, it will bring the greatest benefits."
Yalu Buhua frowned and said: "You are the one who said to withdraw the troops, and you are the one who said to turn back and attack the pass. Brother Alibai, what do you think? One moment you say you can't fight, and the next moment you say you can fight. What do you want me to do?
Choice?"
Ali Bai said: "One moment and another, isn't there no way out now? So turning back and counterattack is a way."
Yalu Buhua said dissatisfied: "You can obviously go out of the mountain, but how can you say there is no way to go? Brother Alibai, what are you talking about? Why don't we go out of the mountain immediately? What does it mean to abandon the horses and baggage? You and I can go back alive, brother.
Isn’t it the best thing for us to go back alive?”
Ali Bai opened his mouth, unable to refute. The idea was proposed by himself, and he could not slap himself in the mouth. But in fact, Ali Bai was very uneasy. This third way seemed feasible, but the price paid was huge. Loss.
If a cavalryman loses his mount, is he still called a cavalryman?
"In that case, just follow the general's order. But what to do with the horses and baggage? You can't stay here to give the enemy an advantage," Ali Bai said solemnly.
Yalu Buhua gritted his teeth and said in a deep voice: "All the horses were killed, and all the luggage was burned. Each person carried part of the rations and water, and the rest was discarded."
After the order was issued, the entire Jurchen army exploded. Forget the baggage and other items, the war horses were their partners. Most of the war horses were trained by the soldiers themselves, from foals to today's mounts, so they can no longer
They had a close understanding of each other during the battle. Now the general wants to order his own horses to be killed, which is really hard for them to accept.
However, Yaru Buhua issued a death order and rejected the soldiers' request to drive the horses into the mountains and leave them to fend for themselves. In order to let the soldiers understand that this order was unnecessary, Yaru Buhua did so in front of all the soldiers.
, he led his well-bred and precious war horse from Changbai Mountain named Cao Shangfei to the hillside. After caressing the horse's head a few times, Yarubuhua gritted his teeth and raised his mace to smash the horse's head to pieces.
, personally slaughtered the war horse that had been following him for ten years.
The soldiers were helpless, and they knew in their hearts that this was also a helpless move. Everyone wailed, as if they were mourning for their heirs, but in the end, under strict orders, they had to lead their horses to the ravine on the hillside, slaughter them, and then push them into the valley. In one moment, the whole officer
The screams of war horses on the road resounded throughout the world, and the corpses of war horses were everywhere in the ravines and valleys. Their blood flowed into rivers, and it was too horrible to see.
After that, the Jurchens piled all the baggage, tents, carts, food and other supplies together and set them on fire. In the afternoon, all the soldiers carried only one bag of rations and one bag of water, and began their breakout journey over the mountains and ridges.
