Chapter 101: A Hulao Pass Falls from the Sky (Part 2)
October 15th, the night is getting darker.
In the city guard's mansion, Wang Shichong's nephew, King Jing Wang Xingben, was very happy.
He had just received a message from the spy. Dou Jiande had already sworn in Mingzhou early this morning and led an army of 100,000 people to come south for reinforcements.
Its vanguard of 5,000 fine cavalry set off in advance yesterday to prepare to cross the Yellow River from Guandu.
With an army of one hundred thousand, how can Xu Yuanlang, Meng Jiigong and others resist the overwhelming power of Mount Tai? The rebellion of Bianzhou and others is even more unbearable.
Mingzhou is only six hundred miles away from here. He only needs to hold on for about another month before the Xia army will arrive.
By then, Dazheng will surely turn the crisis into safety.
However, Wang Xingben was still very confident in holding Hulao Pass for a month. Even three months or half a year would not be a big problem.
Hulao is the most powerful gate in the world. No matter how powerful Li Shiji is, what can he do to him?
Therefore, for more than half a month, Wang Xingben, who was extremely angry and had his blood pressure soared due to the successive rebellions in the ten states of Zhengdong, was really overjoyed.
Just now, I even had a few drinks for the first time, and I felt that the clouds had finally cleared and the moon was bright.
"Master," the concubine accompanying the army was very happy to see Wang Xingben, and she also felt a little moved: "Why don't you go to bed early tonight?"
Wang Xingben was a little itchy, because the war situation was so bad that he had not been able to have sex with women for some days.
But after thinking about it, he still shook his head and said: "You should go to sleep first. The Tang army has arrived at the pass. I am not worried, so I went to inspect it."
Wang Xingben's martial arts skills were mediocre and his military skills were mediocre, but he was trusted by Wang Shichong and guarded strategic points such as Hulao Pass, so he was naturally outstanding.
One is that this person is a relative of the Wang family and is extremely loyal.
How loyal is Wang Xingben?
Wang Shichong wanted to proclaim himself emperor, but Sui Emperor Yang Tong didn't know what to do and refused to take the initiative to take the throne. Therefore, Wang Shichong wanted to be tough.
However, such dirty work is just a dodge, and no one is willing to do it.
Killing the Lord is something that will be recorded in the history books and reviled for thousands of years. Therefore, anyone who has a good idea will hesitate.
Wang Xingben took the initiative to invite troops, led troops into the palace, poisoned Yang Tong, and solved Wang Shichong's big trouble.
Secondly, although Wang Xingben is mediocre in ability, he is decisive and fierce, able to control situations, cunning, sophisticated, cautious and responsible.
All these factors allowed Wang Shichong to hand over Hulao Pass to him with confidence.
Wang Xingben lived up to his trust and patrolled day and night, fearing that there would be some leakage. At this time, Li Shiji had concealed his presence, so he was even more worried.
When the concubine saw this, she was very helpless and had to go to bed first.
Wang Xingben put on his armor and led more than a hundred personal guards out of the gate. They inspected Guanzhong all the way and found nothing unusual. They soon arrived at the east city gate tower.
Hulao Pass is located between two mountains, with two cliffs and a line of sheep's intestines. It overlooks the river. There is one man guarding the pass, and ten thousand people can't open it.
Looking from the gate tower, dozens of miles away, the lights of the Tang Army's camp were faintly visible.
Although the weather was calm, Wang Xingben still frowned and asked the primary school officer on duty: "Where is General Shen? Why can't he be seen?"
When the Tang army arrived, Wang Xingben and Shen Yue agreed that one person would be stationed at the gatehouse every night, just in case.
But now, he couldn't see Shen Yue, and he couldn't help but wonder if he had left his post without permission, and his face looked a little ugly.
The principal hurriedly replied: "Back to Your Highness, General Shen has just gone to inspect the city defenses and is expected to return soon. How about you go first and rest in the gate tower?"
Only then did Wang Xingben's expression clear up. He had been busy for a day and was a little tired, so he nodded and said, "Okay, I'll give you a cup of hot tea. I'll meet General Shen and I'll come back later."
"promise."
Wang Xingben then turned around and entered the gatehouse. Most of the guards stayed outside, and only a dozen people followed him into the house.
In ancient times, the gatehouse had both a watch function and a frontline headquarters, so the facilities inside the house were complete.
Wang Xingben sat down, and soon hot tea was served. He drank tea and rested while waiting for Shen Yue to come back and exchange information.
In just a cup of tea, there was a sound of footsteps and scraping of nails outside, and it seemed that many people were approaching.
"General Shen is back. Your Highness is waiting for you inside." Wang Xingben heard the voice of his own captain.
"Okay, okay. Please wait, Your Highness. I will go in right away."
Hearing Shen Yue's return, Wang Xingben stood up. It was already late at night and he didn't want to stay too long. He wanted to ask a few quick questions before going back to rest.
At this moment, a scream suddenly came from outside the door, and it suddenly stopped after a short flash of swords and swords.
There were even streaks of blood splattered on the window lattice of the gatehouse.
Wang Xingben's muscles tensed up instantly, and his back was dripping with cold sweat. He was not a fool, so he immediately understood what happened.
It's a mutiny!
Shen Yue rebelled!
"boom!"
Soon, someone violently kicked open the door.
Immediately, dozens of heavily armed soldiers poured into the house, surrounding Wang Xingben and the remaining guards.
"His Royal Highness King Jing." Under the candlelight, Shen Yue's face was filled with pride.
Of course, he had reason to be proud. No matter how cunning and cautious you, Wang Xingben, were, he completely deceived you and succeeded easily.
With such a generous meeting gift from Hulao Pass, Shen Yue has a bright future in the Tang Dynasty.
"Shen Yue! Why are you like this?"
Wang Xingben's eyes were extremely fierce, as if he wanted to eat someone.
He never dreamed that Shen Yue, who was usually submissive, would suddenly attack and catch him completely off guard.
There are 7,000 soldiers guarding Hulao Pass, and he has 5,000 under his direct jurisdiction. Shen Yue only has 2,000 soldiers.
If he had known about it in advance, he could have put down all rebellions with a flip of his hands, but sadly, he ended up sending the sheep into the tiger's mouth.
Just thinking about it made him feel frustrated.
"Haha!" Shen Yue sneered: "Why is that? Since ancient times, good birds have chosen trees to roost in. Wang Shichong is not a wise master, so Shen will not be buried with him."
Wang Xingben's eyes were bloodshot, and he was gnashing his teeth with hatred: "What a thief! You have let down the grace of God, and you are in vain -"
Shen Yue was too lazy to talk to him and interrupted: "Stop talking nonsense! Your Highness King Jing, you must choose death or surrender quickly."
How to choose Wang Xingben?
Since ancient times, how many good endings can come to the clan of an enemy country? Even if he surrenders, he will die sooner or later, so it would be better to die happily.
Therefore, Wang Xingben looked determined and slowly pulled out the sword from his waist. Under the light of the lamp, the sword's light shone brightly, as bright as autumn water.
Upon seeing this, several personal guards also drew their swords.
They are all dead men who have been favored by Wang Xingben for many years. They have already put life and death aside, so they should repay this kindness today.
Shen Yue raised her eyebrows, a little surprised.
He always thought that most of Wang Shichong's nephews were useless, but he never expected that there would be someone like Wang Xingben who was willing to fight to the end.
"He's a man!"
"Very good, I, the general, will grant His Majesty's favor. Take action!"
Although Shen Yue admired him, he still gave the order without hesitation. At this moment, there was no room for him to show any kindness to a woman.
The dozens of soldiers in the gatehouse were all Shen Yue's confidants. Hearing this, they immediately pounced on him ferociously, their swords dancing wildly.
After a fierce fight, more than a dozen of Wang Xingben's personal guards fell in a pool of blood. He himself was stabbed several times and was on the verge of collapse.
This is because he is a prince and has excellent armor. Otherwise, he would have been cold.
Shen Yue became impatient and worried about the long night and many dreams, so he pulled out the horizontal knife from his waist and prepared to kill Wang Xingben personally.
He was born into a wealthy businessman. He practiced martial arts since he was a child. He served in the army for eight years and fought hard to get where he is today.
Therefore, he was a strong warrior who fought on his own. His martial arts skills and rich battle experience were far beyond what Wang Xingben could compare to.
Wang Xingben, who was already depressed, looked miserable when he saw this.
"What a good thief! You will die a good death if you betray me for glory. Today, I will take the first step to see what your fate will be in the future!"
After that, he didn't wait for Shen Yue to make a move, he actually put the sword across his neck and pulled hard, and blood immediately spattered out.
Looking at Wang Xingben's fallen body, Shen Yue spat fiercely with disdain on his face: "Damn, I will definitely end up better than you. Do you still expect Dou Jiande to avenge you? I tell you, I'm dreaming. King Qin has already We are ready to defeat the enemy!"
This was the reassurance Li Shiji gave him last night.
In addition, there is another extremely important factor for Shen Yue's determination to surrender to the Tang Dynasty.
That is, today is an era of aristocratic families, and what is Li Tang's origin? He is Longxi Li, the most popular among the five surnames and seven, and he is the leader of the Guanlong nobles.
Therefore, behind Li Tang, there are actually behemoths like Qiwang and even the nobles of Guanlong!
But the other heroes are completely incomparable.
Wang Shichong, a Hu, and Dou Jiande, have been farmers for generations. With such background, they never dreamed of getting support from those powerful families.
Even the destruction of the old Sui Dynasty was secretly promoted by these powerful families.
Therefore, the rise of Li Tang is destined. Wang Shichong, Dou Jiande and others cannot win at all, and they will lose sooner or later.
Shen Yue is definitely a smart person, and he can see through these secrets, so he wholeheartedly bets his money on Datang.
"Come here, go to the city and send a signal, quickly open the city gate and welcome the Tang army into the city." Shen Yue sheathed her sword and was high-spirited.
"promise."
…
Not far from Hulao Pass.
Li Shiji, Wang Junkuo, and Zhang Gongjin led five thousand elites to stand silently in the darkness, motionless, waiting for the news.
Suddenly, three torches were waving left and right at the top of the city, lighting up beautiful arcs in the dark night.
"Succeeded!" Li Shiji laughed, with indescribable admiration on his face: "The military advisor is really a god! Such a powerful pass, but he is so effortless."
Zhang Gongjin was also convinced. Datang was so powerful and full of talents, so his choice seemed to be the right one.
"Okay, brothers, go into the city and seize the Hulao."
Li Shiji gave the order, and the Tang army instantly lit up countless torches and rushed toward Hulao like a tide.
…
That night, Shen Yue rebelled, and Li Shiji captured Hulao Pass without losing any blood. Seeing that Wang Xingben was dead, the rest of Zheng's army surrendered without fighting.
