There was blood rain outside Heqing County, and the fighting continued.
Arrows, falling rocks, gold juice, and kerosene are constantly harvesting the lives of the Heweifan soldiers, but they have no right to retreat. They still risk their lives and rush to kill, hoping that good luck will favor them, and they can finally survive to receive generous rewards...
…
A large number of ships also began to gather inside and outside Biankou.
Pang Shigu traveled day and night and rushed to Bianzhou with his own soldiers. After receiving instructions from Zhu Quanzhong, he rushed to Biankou without stopping, preparing to lead his army on the expedition.
This time he brought back 40,000 Xuanwu Yamen troops from the south, and 20,000 Xu, Su, Hao, and Shou Chuzhou soldiers, a total of 60,000 troops. As for Sizhou, the governor Zhang Jian resolutely surrendered to Yang Xingmi. It was heard that the king of Dongping County sent there
The envoy is arrogant and arrogant, and people will feel angry, but they will not surrender to you.
But Yang Xingmi was also very aware of the situation and made no further moves for the time being. His hometown, Shezhou, had just been pacified, and the army was still stationed in the south of the Yangtze River and had not yet returned to the north.
Moreover, Yang Xingmi showed a kind attitude. The people in Huainan were scattered, the fields were deserted, and the food and grass were no longer available, so he sent people to Bianzhou to trade with tea and salt.
Honestly, this benefits both parties.
Bianzhou is not short of money. Taxes have been very light for many years, which has earned Dongping County Prince a great reputation. The people still have the spending power. Tea and salt are in urgent need, and the shogunate will help them sell them to
The common people and scholars could still make a small fortune. And Yang Xingmi could also get precious food to survive the most difficult time.
Both parties agree to do this kind of transaction. At least on the surface, the relationship is very good, although they don't know how it will develop in the future.
Pang Shigu climbed up to Lianggongyan and overlooked the magnificent and beautiful mountains and rivers.
Dai Siyuan, who came from Luoyang, followed closely behind, carefully flattering him.
Next to him stood Shi Shucong, with the corners of his mouth slightly raised, as if he was mocking Dai Siyuan's eager thoughts.
Shi Shucong is Pang Shigu's old subordinate.
After Zhu Quanzhong left the town to declare war, in order to counter the influence of Yang Yanhong and other Bianzhou generals, and at the same time witnessing the great role of the cavalry under Li Keyong's account, Zhu Quanzhong decided to start anew and build a cavalry team of his own, so as not to be angry with those generals.
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Initially, 500 people were recruited, and later the scale was gradually expanded. The commander of this cavalry unit was Pang Shigu, and Shi Shucong, who was expert in cavalry and archery, also enlisted in the army and became the captain of the corps as soon as he arrived. There were many such people in the Central Plains.
Children of local tycoons who came from landlord-like families, such as Wang Yanzhang, Shi Shucong, etc., had practiced swords, spears, riding and archery since childhood. They had always been the target of Zhu Quanzhong's cultivation and suppression of the old forces.
Shishu Cong was capable. In later generations, he was also the general with the highest victory rate against Hedong among the Bian army. He surrounded Taiyuan on both sides. Needless to say, his military ability was great.
However, he was too unlucky to catch up with Zhu Quanzhong who was jealous of the generals in his later years, and he and Wang Zhongshi and other generals were executed one after another. Ding Hui, Liu Zhijun and others were so frightened that they directly rebelled. Ge Congzhou resigned from the army and retired at home. The other generals deserted and the power of Bianzhou began.
It prospered and then declined, allowing Hedong to revive from the ashes.
"Okay, General Dai. The Feilong Army has become an independent army and has strong combat power. As long as I perform well on my trip north, I will not hesitate to ask for credit from the commander-in-chief." Pang Shigu really couldn't stand Dai Siyuan's chatter.
This man is indeed talented, but after his defeat in Mianchi County, his military reputation was not good and his life was a bit difficult. He was almost dismissed from the position of Feilong Army Envoy.
However, I heard that he met the King of Dongping County and made a tearful report, and was forgiven. The Feilong Army expanded to a total of 8,000 horse-mounted infantry from the left and right Feilong Army. Many people were staring at this army, but Dai Siyuan still sat firmly in his position. It can be seen that He indeed gained the trust of Prince Dongping.
But this temperament is really despising. How does he look like a brave warrior?
"Pang Du will lead his troops to the north. Our troops are willing to be the vanguard and will surely repel the Xia thieves and protect Heyang."
"Okay!" Pang Shigu raised his voice, staring at the ships leaving the port, and said: "The battle is fought with swords and guns. What are you talking about now? Can you prepare it properly?"
Dai Siyuan's troops were naturally the Mule Army. They had been in Luoyang before, but they were called back this time. They were replaced by 10,000 infantry troops from Bianzhou, which to some extent weakened Hu Zhen's military power.
After the Mule Army was strengthened, Pang Shigu's troops numbered more than 68,000. Adding in the 30,000 soldiers and horses of Zhang Shensi in Heyang and the temporarily recruited Tutuan folk, there were more than 100,000 people. Shao Shude's military strength should only be 40,000 to 50,000, and his logistics cannot support a larger-scale military operation. It is still very easy to defeat him.
But it is easy to defeat, but difficult to annihilate.
There is no good ferry crossing from Liaowu to the west. If the Shao bandits retreat to Wangwu Mountain, it will be the Bian army's turn to transport grain and grass, and it will be difficult to send a large army to pursue him.
As for the Zhiguanxing area on the northern line, Qiziling has been controlled by Xia thieves, and it would be troublesome to attack by force.
The threat of Xia thieves to Heyang is actually going to exist for a long time.
A series of bells rang on the pier.
A group of watercrafts loaded up grain, grass, equipment, and set off one after another. Outside them, naval warships were also ready to escort them to the three cities of Heyang.
The naval yacht responsible for the "exploration" function has reported that Liaowu was captured by the Xia thieves, and the first stop for dispatching troops to Heyang can only be arranged in Heyang (Mengzhou).
Of course, if they could wait another two or three months, Qinshui and clear water would become plentiful, and ships could reach directly outside Hanoi County, Huaizhou, and it would be more convenient to transport troops and food, but it was a pity that they couldn't wait any longer.
The gathering of troops can only be completed in Mengzhou.
I don’t know if Shao Shude realized that this time King Dongping was determined to give him a harsh blow. It would be better not to. Pang Shigu was very much looking forward to seeing Shao Thief’s panic and astonished expression.
…
On March 27, the fifth year of Dashun, Yang Liang's troops went east again and fought against the Bian Army cavalry in the wild.
Shao Shude personally gave the order to search for the main cavalry force of the Bian Army and fight.
The advantage of Shuofang's army is the cavalry, which has many horses, low formation cost and high speed. As long as the Bian army's cavalry is exhausted through attrition battles, it will take the initiative on the battlefield in the future.
Whether it is slowing down the enemy's speed, counterattacking to kill and then covering the main force, or killing the enemy and harassing them, it can cause great trouble to the Bian army and accumulate advantages bit by bit.
Zhang Shensi didn't realize this problem at first, but after losing hundreds more cavalry, he couldn't stand this bloody war of attrition anymore, so he directly withdrew the cavalry to cover him and take the main force north to Huaizhou.
In this way, the wilderness became a paradise for the Xia army's cavalry. If it were not difficult to find supplies and their movement distance and time were both limited, they would even dare to rush across the Yellow River and harass the enemy's hinterland counties.
On March 29, the Bian army captured Sheng and rode two cavalry units to Heyang.
On the second day, the left wing of the Feilong Army arrived at Heyang Beicheng via the pontoon bridge.
At this time, Heqing County has also reached its final moment.
After many days of continuous siege, more than 5,000 people were killed and injured. The Bian army's defensive equipment was exhausted and the city walls were in dilapidated condition.
The Tibetan people were no longer able to be driven and could no longer fight. At this time, they were replaced by the elite infantry of the Wuwei Army.
Shao Shude rode his horse on the battlefield.
Outside the city, there were siege engines burned to ashes everywhere. The masters carried the corpses numbly. They had done too many such things these days.
The wounded soldiers' camp was filled with wailing.
It was difficult to transport food and grass, and there were even fewer other supplies. The Tibetan soldiers retreated with wounded soldiers. Apart from simple cleaning and bandaging, they had very little medicine for their wounds. They had to carry it on their own. The mortality rate was unimaginable.
How high.
Cui Su, who came over temporarily to meet Shao Shude, followed behind him, with a very serious expression on his face.
After witnessing the series of fights between Liaowu and Heqing, he finally understood the cruelty of the war in the Central Plains.
The opponent is skilled in combat skills and is proficient in killing people. The most disadvantageous thing is that they have a strong will to fight and are often stubborn to the end. This is completely different from that on the grassland.
The intensity of the war was also much higher.
Think about it. In the past, the town of Shuofang was not strong enough, but the two states of Yan, with more than ten thousand soldiers and horses, were able to overwhelm the nearby parties, and the Tubo tribe. Thousands of infantry could defeat thousands of cavalry. This pond in the northwest is really small.
According to Prince Lingwu, it was just like chickens pecking each other.
"Li Tangbin is attacking Xiashi Fort, and the Hexi Tibetan tribes are taking turns to attack. Are you scared after seeing the scene in front of you?" Shao Shude suddenly asked.
"Come back to the Commander-in-Chief, it is true that I, Hexi Erlang, am not good at attacking cities. I just want to break through this rolling mountainous area and enter the plains, which will definitely make the Bian thieves look good." Cui Su replied.
"Don't rush to talk big." Shao Shude smiled and said: "Your soldiers are loose, have bad habits, and their equipment is not sophisticated enough. They may not be able to compete with the cavalry generals and cavalry who have been eating this bowl of food for generations in the Central Plains.
Okay. But you are still very brave when fighting on foot, so you should take good care of yourself and listen to Li Tangbin's military orders."
Since the Tubo era, most of the Helong Tibetan people have actually practiced infantry warfare. The Tibetan army also has the majority of infantrymen. It is impossible for everyone to have a horse.
The Liao Kingdom in later generations was similar. When they fought in the Northern Song Dynasty, they usually only had tens of thousands of cavalry, but they were often followed by hundreds of thousands of infantry, mainly Xi people, Bohai people, and Youzhou Han people. If these people were equipped with good equipment and training, w
From Shao Shude's perspective, its combat effectiveness was average, but it wasn't too bad, and the lower limit was guaranteed.
In the Battle of Junziguan, although the Liao cavalry was fierce, the Song army was actually defeated by the Liao infantry head-on. Just because the weather was cold, the bows and crossbows could not be used, but they could not use them either. It would not work in face-to-face combat. They were defeated head-on.
Defeated, nothing to say.
"The general will definitely restrain his son and fight according to his orders." Cui Su promised.
Shao Shude nodded.
At this moment, a burst of earth-shattering cheers erupted outside the west city of Heqing County.
Soon, an order came to report. Liu Sanhu, the deputy general of the Wuwei Army, led the troops to ascend the city first and firmly defended the city. Follow-up soldiers and horses were constantly following up.
"Congratulations, Marshal, Heqing County has been acquired." Cui Su said loudly.
"There is still one Baiyacang left. If we can capture this place, this troop dispatch will be perfect." Shao Shude was also in a very good mood and rode directly towards the West City.
If we can capture Heqing, Liaowu and Baiyacang, we will be out of Wangwushan District. From now on, we can overlook Heyang from a high position and send cavalry troops eastward at any time. The initiative is in my hands.
"Send someone to Baiyacang again to persuade you to surrender. There are only a thousand or so defenders in the city. If you are willing to surrender, you will be innocent. I will give you one piece of money and two pieces of silk. I keep my word and I will never lie." Before leaving,
Shao Shude also gave some instructions.
"As commanded."
The war horses ran up a gentle slope, and Shaoshu Delema stopped. Looking at the soldiers of the Wuwei Army who were still fighting in the sunset, they couldn't help but laugh: "If we get this place, how many troops will Zhu Quanzhong arrange to block me in Heyang?"
Zhu Quanzhong was far away in Bianzhou, so naturally he could not answer him.
On this day, Pang Shigu took Tabaidu across the river to the north and arrived in Heyang.
The Bian army is still steadily gathering.
The competition for the ownership of the two prefectures of Heyang is finally entering a fierce stage.