In the wilderness in midsummer, the verdant and enthusiastic greenery is as far as the eye can see.
Flowers, plants and trees are dotted in the blue sky, and along with the trajectory of the breeze, they flaunt the pride and stubbornness of life.
Wei Yan, who was leading the horse slowly, took out the water bag from the horse's belly and drank several sips of it to moisten his almost smoking throat. When his eyes fell on the big Han soldiers who were marching like a long dragon, he couldn't help but
He raised his head and cursed a few times in a low voice facing the scorching sun.
The sun is really too poisonous.
It was just after midnight that the ground was already on fire.
Not to mention the soldiers wearing armor and swords, even the horses of each general were panting and foaming at the corners of their mouths.
It also made Wei Yan feel agitated.
Not only were they worried that the hot weather would make the march too slow and they would miss the opportunity to fight, but they were also worried that the soldiers who had traveled a long and dusty journey would faint from heatstroke and lose their lives without fighting.
But the only way he could think of was to reduce the harshness of the scorching heat of the day as much as possible.
For example, when the march begins at the fourth watch, the whole army rests at the end of the hour, and then stays there until the heat subsides in the evening, and then marches ten miles.
Inevitably, the journey was a lot slower.
The original plan was for the army to arrive at the Wuting Nishui River Valley in early July to threaten Jincheng County, but now it is the end of June and he has not yet arrived at the Fortress of Manyin.
"General, why don't you let the soldiers rest?"
Just when Wei Yan was secretly worried, Fei Yi, who was temporarily serving as the commander of the army, came to his side at some point and suggested in a low voice, "The post-superintendent has paid his dues. More than ten of the troops who were protecting the food and supplies have been succumbed to the heat."
It’s hurt!”
When Wei Yan heard this, he couldn't help but frown with worry.
Due to the frequent wars in recent years, the soldiers rarely disarmed and the people suffered a lot, in order to protect the people's livelihood, Prime Minister Zhuge Liang would not recruit civilians for transportation unless it was absolutely necessary.
The same is true for this expedition to Liangzhou. The military supplies and provisions all depended on the accompanying officers and soldiers of each department to escort them themselves.
Thanks to the poor people's livelihood in Longyou, the Han Dynasty did not have the energy to cut down wood and build boats, nor could they transport ships through the water of the Zuli River. Although many draft animals were transferred from Xiaolongshan and Suoxicheng Racecourses to help, the sandy ground along the way was very serious.
Many and heavy carriages often get stuck in the sand and have to rely on human power to push and pull them.
The journey was difficult and the weather was scorching hot, so it was inevitable to be injured by the heat.
What worries Wei Yan even more is that the four to five hundred mile journey through the barren valley from the Fortress of Manyin to the Wuting River Valley is much more difficult than the Zuli River Valley.
In the past, when Jiang Wei circled back and attacked, twenty-three out of ten of the lightly armed soldiers fell dead on the road.
Now that the army is marching with provisions and siege equipment, how many evils will there be among those who will not live long?
"No, there are no trees here to provide shade, so resting is useless."
With worries, Wei Yan said to Fei Yi in a tone that did not allow for rejection, "Wen Wei, you go to the front army to pass the order and ask the Anguo tribe to double the route and find a shady place to camp for the army. I will go to the rear army to supervise the formation."
After saying this, without waiting for Fei Yi's reply, he turned to his side and said, "You two will protect Fei Chang Shi. Well, give up the war horse to Chang Shi."
Then he jumped on his horse and rode away.
Fei Yi quickly raised his sleeves to block the dust kicked up by his horse.
This general's meritorious service is outstanding, and his compassion for his subordinates is not lacking, but his actions are difficult to make people feel good about him.
With a wry smile, Fei Yi took the horse's reins from the retinue and rode off.
However, after a while, he turned his horse's head and headed back towards the rear.
Madai tribe, who was on guard outside the army, met Jiang Wei who came from the Fortress of Manyin, and was leading the Chinese army to look for Wei Yan!
Wei Yan had previously sent an envoy to Manyin City to inform him that the army would arrive in three days. However, Jiang Wei rushed back with a few of his followers. Fei Yi, who had been in the army for a long time, knew without asking that there must be something urgent.
Already happened.
Therefore, he directly asked Hu Cong to inform the Guanxing tribe camp, and then personally led Jiang Wei to the rear army.
In case Wei Yan needed his detailed information after hearing Jiang Wei's report, he would have to send someone to look for him.
After a while, Fei Yi and his party arrived at the rear army.
At this moment, Wei Yan had hung his helmet on the side of the saddle, and was sweating profusely, shouting slogans with his soldiers, and struggling to push the cart that was stuck in the sand.
Hearing the sound of galloping horses' hooves, he raised his head and glanced casually.
When he recognized Jiang Wei who had jumped off his horse, he couldn't help but pause in his movements. He suddenly pushed the cart out of the sand pit and strode towards Jiang Wei.
The pace is quite urgent.
If you think about it, it's easy to understand.
After Zhao Yun died of illness and Li Yan was demoted, he became the leading general of the Han Dynasty.
Regardless of qualifications, ability, military exploits and official positions.
This expedition to Liangzhou was also the first time that the prime minister gave him full power to supervise the war. Even the official position of Liangzhou governor was granted by the court in advance. If the war failed without success, he would "not be able to see the elders of Jiangdong"!
Furthermore, he has always been proud of himself.
Since the beginning of the Northern Expedition, he has always relied on the prime minister to advise him, and more than once he has treated the generals of the various tribes who rebelled against the Wei Dynasty as a bunch of local chickens and tile-roofed dogs.
He claimed that if the prime minister could grant him the power to decide the war independently and lead more than ten thousand elites to advance, he would be able to defeat the enemy and be invincible.
Now, the prime minister has given him 30,000 elite soldiers, and has tried his best to prepare enough food for a year's expedition. He has also transferred Guan Xing, Jiang Wei and other outstanding talents to his command for training. He has high hopes and trust. If this is the case,
He is unable to perform meritorious deeds, so how can he have the dignity to lead the army to conquer evil in the future!
"Wei, I've met Wei"
Jiang Wei, who was also striding forward, quickly saluted and spoke words of respect.
But before he finished speaking, Wei Yan grabbed his arm and lowered his voice and said, "Mo Duoli. Bo Yue returned urgently, but something has changed against Wei?"
"Back to General, something has indeed changed."
Jiang Wei, who stood up, also lowered his voice and said, "Wei is brave, please ask the general to move to speak."
Well.
Moving conversation?
It seems that there are still many changes.
After hearing this, Wei Yan was no longer so anxious.
After many years of conquest, he knew that the more changes there were in the war, the more opportunities there were.
He was confident in his keenness and courage to seize opportunities, and the generals in Liangzhou against Wei were far inferior to him.
"Okay! Wen Wei is here too."
Wei Yan nodded lightly, asked the governor of the department to fetch the war horse, jumped up, called Fei Yi, and then galloped out of the crowd.
He also waved his hand to the bodyguards not to follow him too closely.
But among the retinue brought by Jiang Wei, there was a man wearing a gauze bamboo hat on his head and wrapping his mouth and nose with a Ge scarf. He was riding a horse with Jiang Wei and Fei Yi behind.
Who is this?
How dare you not avoid suspicion and want to listen to the military situation?
Wei Yan, who caught a glimpse of him out of the corner of his eye, felt unhappy in his heart.
But seeing that Jiang Wei was calm about this and did not say anything to stop, he also had a vague understanding - Boyue has always been respectful and he is not a person who does not know the importance of things. Now that he has done something extraordinary, maybe this person and him
The changes mentioned are closely related, right?
With doubts, several people rode their horses and slowly left about a mile away from the main army.
But the man who covered his head and face took off his bamboo hat and scarf without waiting for Wei Yan to ask questions.
It also made Wei Yan and Fei Yi say in unison: "Zijin?!"