Chapter eight hundred and sixteen burning Meilianggou
Li Chongbao put up a pergola and looked into the distance, then ordered: "Get closer and see clearly the details of the enemy's stronghold."
The soldiers followed his gesture and moved forward. Unexpectedly, as soon as they took two steps, a soldier was hit by an arrow in the neck and fell crookedly to the ground. The soldiers around him looked around hurriedly, and one of them raised his finger and pointed at the hills on both sides and shouted.
: "On top!"
Arrows shot down from the gaps in the branches and leaves of the bushes on the mountain top, hitting the soldiers at awkward angles. The soldiers hurriedly raised their shields above their heads, and the crossbowmen raised their crossbows. However, they were unable to find the target due to the dense green bushes.
They have become eye-catching targets on the mountain trails.
Li Chongbao clearly saw Zhaoyi soldiers wearing light leather armor hanging on the hillside, with straw ropes wrapped around their waists, holding crossbows in their hands and shooting arrows downwards. Although their protection was weak, they were better than being blocked by trees from high above.
The Hexi army could not gain any advantage by attacking.
"Quickly, retreat, evacuate Meilianggou!"
The Hexi Army's rear team changed to the front team and withdrew out of the valley with their heads lowered. Since the Hexi Army's armor was relatively good, only more than 300 people were shot dead by the enemy with bows and crossbows.
Li Chongbao had no choice but to set up camp in front of the valley, and fell into melancholy alone in the camp. Now he was blocked in Wenxi County, making it impossible for him to start. If he did not capture Wenxi, even if he found a path and climbed over Mingtiao Gang, he would not be able to carry out logistical supplies.
So this busy line must be opened.
This is a severe challenge for him. If he is stumbled by a small Meilianggou, it will be a complete denial of his military ability. Although victory or defeat is a common thing for military strategists, this is a certain aspect in his life.
The first time is crucial.
The camp built by the Tang army in Meilianggou was at least five or six miles away from the outside of the gorge. If they attacked by force, their troops would not be able to deploy. Instead, the enemy would be able to flexibly move light-armored soldiers to climb up between the two mountains and attack them from a high position.
Now is the season between summer and autumn, and the grass and trees in the valley are lush, yes! The grass and trees are lush.
Li Chongbao excitedly pounded his fist into his right hand, and immediately went to Xu Bin, his father's military advisor and chief secretary, to ask him about the supply situation in the army.
"Mr. Xu, when we entered Shangdang, did we bring gunpowder with us?"
Xu Bin's eyes sparkled and he said with a smile: "The amount of gunpowder we have in the Hexi Army is very small. However, when your father led the troops to join the Shangdang, he specifically asked me to bring some grease and gunpowder with him in case of emergency. Look now
Just use it.”
Li Chongbao was overjoyed: "It's really great. I'll send someone to get it with you right away."
…
You have to wait until night to launch a fire attack. The Tang army has a guard post outside the camp. If you approach rashly, you will be discovered and cannot approach the enemy camp. Therefore, you must find an opportunity to climb up the mountains on the left and right of Meilianggou to escape.
Hidden whistle, using fire attacks from a high position.
He immediately sent scouts near Mingtiao Gang and Zhongtiao Mountain to search for a mountain trail that could lead to the top of Meilianggou Mountain. After five or six days of exploration, they discovered a steep trail on Mingtiao Gang.
It is said to be a trail, but in fact only animals can walk on it, and humans cannot pass at all. Because it is blocked by lush vegetation, it is necessary to use a hatchet to cut a path.
Li Chongbao selected 300 soldiers, took off their armor and carried dry firewood, pine trees, oil and gunpowder on their backs, and personally led the team to climb Mingtiao Post. He also arranged for his deputy general to lead his troops into Meilianggou the next night and arrived at the outskirts of the Tang Army's guard post.
Wait for the open fire to be thrown on the north mountain and the fire will start in the camp, then attack in and use the prepared rocket arrows to throw rockets at the enemy camp.
The main peak of Mingtiao Gang is still thirteen miles away from the northern mountain of Meilianggou. Li Chongbao and the others set out that morning and climbed all the way to the top of the mountain. When they encountered dangerous places, they needed rope assistance, and they had to forcibly carve out a path on the high and low thorny mountain tops.
Come.
At noon on the second day, they finally arrived at the top of Meilianggou. They immediately ordered everyone to rest and have a meal on the spot, and then made a woven cage of dry firewood for starting a fire.
To make this kind of thing, you only need to use local materials. Thick willow branches cut from the mountain with a hatchet, dried by fire and then woven into a round sphere. Fill it with pine and oil-soaked dry firewood, wait until it is lit, and then push it down the mountain.
The advantage of the woven fire cage is that it rolls down easily and is not easy to get caught on branches.
The soldiers worked in groups of three and soon made nearly a hundred fire cages as tall as a person, just waiting to be set on fire at night.
The next step was to find a place to attack. The Tang army's camp was long and narrow, with a total length of more than six miles. There were also ruins of passes built by Liu Wuzhou in the late Sui Dynasty in the camp. He asked the soldiers to find a place to set fire, which must be surrounded by vegetation on the mountainside.
It is sparse, with more shrubs and fewer big trees, so that the fireball will not be blocked when it rolls down.
They began to lie down on the ground, looking at the scorching sun in the sky gradually setting towards the west, and the bright moon and stars filling the sky.
Li Chongbao leaned against the tree trunk without feeling sleepy at all, thinking silently about the passage of time. When it was three o'clock, he stood up from the edge of the valley, lowered his head and looked down below and could see the faintly visible torches of the Tang army's camp.
"Give the order and get ready to light the fire!"
The soldiers raised the prepared torches and ignited them. Sparks appeared in strips on the top of the mountain. Some of the soldiers patrolling the Tang Army camp raised their heads, pointed to the torches arranged on the mountain above their heads and asked in surprise: "Look, look."
,what is that?"
Li Chongbao enlarged his voice and shouted: "Start!"
One of the three soldiers put a torch into the fire cage and ignited it. The two pushed the flaming fire cage down the hill. For a moment, it was like dozens of bright fire lanterns, rolling down the flames on the hillside and falling into the fire cage.
In the Tang Army camp at the bottom of the valley.
The patrolling soldiers shouted: "The water has escaped! The water has escaped!"
Wang Sili was lying in the tent and sleeping. When he heard the shouting, he immediately jumped up from his bunk and went straight to get the horizontal knife hanging on the military tent pole. One of his generals ran into the tent and said excitedly: "Doctor,
The Hexi Army set fire to the top of the mountain! The camp has been burned, so retreat quickly!"
"What! How did they get up there!"
He rushed out of the tent with a horizontal knife, and saw flames rising everywhere, and fireballs kept rolling down. Soldiers ran back and forth to avoid the situation. The trees and wooden walls on both sides of the camp were all ignited, and the heat wave of the flames made his face hurt.
Meiliang Valley faces the Hexi Army. The Hexi Army who was deep in the valley saw a fire in the Tang Army's camp. The leading general quickly pulled out a horizontal sword from his waist, raised it high in his hand and shouted: "General Li's plan has succeeded, brothers! Come with me."
Kill the enemy camp!"
They quickly approached the Tang army's camp, using long bows and powerful crossbows to continuously fire rockets into the camp. For a while, the Tang army camp was filled with flames and black smoke. The flames climbed up the hillside, and the fire waves were several feet high. The Tang army was surrounded by both sides.
The flames burned like ants on a hot pot.
Meteor-like fire arrows flew over their heads, and many people were killed by arrows because they had no time to put on their armor.
Most of the people did not know the direction in the starry night and ran wildly towards the north. As soon as they ran out of the camp gate, they were shot dead by the Hexi Army.
Wang Sili held the knife and shouted anxiously: "Run south! In the direction of my finger! Quickly!"
His hair had been burned off by the flames, and his throat was dry and sore, but he still shouted loudly: "Commanders and captains of each regiment, take your people and evacuate quickly!"
The soldier brought the horse for him and urged him almost pleadingly: "Doctor, get on the horse and run away. The fire is too strong. If you don't leave, you will be scorched!"
He let out a frustrated sigh, stabbed the knife in his hand on the ground, got on his horse and led the soldiers towards the south village gate. Along the way, the walls of the village burned and collapsed, and the military tents were filled with flames. He rode his horse.
Jumping left and right, he finally rushed out of the village gate.
At dawn, Wang Sili fled to Puzhou with only more than 200 soldiers, and more than 15,000 Tang soldiers were buried in the sea of fire in Meilianggou.