Li Sheng recruited 30,000 troops in just five days. Li Sheng did not use militia soldiers from Bashu states. He knew very well where to recruit the soldiers he wanted. He recruited them from the refugees who fled to Bashu from the Central Plains and Guanzhong.
They are eager to go home and are willing to fight to get home. More importantly, the harsh living conditions make them have low requirements for military salary. As long as they can have enough to eat and have enough money to support their families every month, they are willing to join the army.
Li Sheng quickly recruited 30,000 strong soldiers from hundreds of thousands of refugees. Most of them had military experience and could easily be trained into an elite army.
After training for a month, Li Sheng led this army southward in a mighty manner, leaving Sichuan from Xiazhou and heading to Shannan East Road.
It’s late August, and wheat fields everywhere have gradually begun to turn yellow.
During the great battle in Hexi, a Hexi army of 50,000 men was marching through the canyon towards Hehuang. Guo Song personally led this army. Most of the soldiers in this army were refugees who fled to Hexi from Longyou.
, among them there are recruits who joined the Hexi Army the year before last, and there are also soldiers who have just become regular soldiers from regiment training. After two years of military training, and more than two months of intensive intensive training this time, they have gradually been built into a team.
Elite army.
It's just that they still lack actual combat experience. Every soldier is working hard. They have enough qualifications but lack of military merit. Therefore, every soldier is looking forward to this battle. After this battle, they will be promoted to second-class soldiers.
They can also accumulate land every month like first-class soldiers.
This army was led by Guo Song himself. It was about to be the wheat harvest season. Once the wheat was harvested, Zhu Si would take away half of their wheat. How could Guo Song agree to such a thing?
At this time, Guo Song saw that it was getting late and they happened to be walking in a spacious place, so he ordered: "Camp on the spot!"
The soldiers got off their horses one after another, fed and watered the horses, took good care of them, and then sat down to rest, drinking water and eating dry food while chatting with their companions.
More than a dozen major generals also gathered in Guo Song's marching tent to discuss the strategy of attacking Longyou.
"Information sent by the scouts shows that the Longyou Army is mainly concentrated in Shanzhou City, with 10,000 troops stationed, and the other 10,000 troops are stationed in various dangerous places. It can be seen that this Longyou Army is still very defensive against Tibet.
, I want to make it clear to you here that whether it is Zhu Si's army or other armies, they are fundamentally different from the Tubo Army, the Uighur Army, the Shatuo Army and the Geluolu Army. In fact, their soldiers are all
As an ordinary citizen, my attitude is not to kill as much as possible. Of course, the premise is to win. I must not waste the opportunity by not killing, let alone be too merciful."
"Then how to grasp the balance point here?" Liang Wu couldn't help but ask.
Seeing that everyone's eyes were focused, Guo Song obviously wanted to know the answer. Guo Song smiled and continued: "Whether you choose to siege the city or choose to fight the enemy head-on, these do not consider the enemy's
Casualties, let’s put it this way! When I say don’t kill if you can, I just mean after defeating the enemy, whether to accept the opponent’s surrender or to kill the opponent. The answer is of course to accept the opponent’s surrender. Secondly, I don’t mean to treat prisoners of war.
Treat prisoners of war preferentially, but at least don’t torture them, let alone kill them, and let them go back to their hometowns after the war is over, everyone understands!”
Everyone nodded, and Guo Song asked the soldiers to hang up a map. He pointed to a huge city on the map and said: "This is Shanzhou City. We captured it before, and now we face this city again."
, but I need to tell you some good news. After we captured this city, Marching Sima conducted a detailed survey on it, making us well aware of its weaknesses."
After a pause, Guo Song continued: "In the ninth year of Tianbao, Shanzhou City was demolished and rebuilt. At that time, because the money allocated for city construction was insufficient, the north city wall that seemed to be relatively strong was retained. However, decades later, the north city wall also began to decay.
, especially at the interface between the north city wall and the east city wall, the cracks are very large. Children often get in and play. From the outside, the cracks are only as thick as an arm, but the cracks inside are two feet wide. The scouts went there a few days ago.
After checking it, I found that the Longyou Army had not repaired it properly and the cracks remained."
"The commander is planning to blow up the city wall directly with iron fire thunder?" Commander Li Bing asked.
Guo Song shook his head, "I plan to be polite first and then attack, to give Zhang Feng a chance to surrender."
.......
Before dawn the next day, the Hexi Army set off again. All 50,000 troops were riding war horses, followed by 10,000 camels loaded with various supplies. At noon, the team left Dadou Valley and entered Hehuang.
The army crossed the Haomen River and headed for Shanzhou City, a hundred miles away.
After walking for another day, the next morning, 50,000 Hexi troops arrived at Shanzhou City.
Zhang Feng, the governor of Longyou, has felt something bad these days. Seeing that the wheat harvest season is approaching, officials from Hexi should have come to discuss the wheat harvest with him, but there has been no news so far. Don't they want wheat anymore?
? Of course it’s impossible, then why not come?
There is only one reason, and that is that Hexi officials don't want to talk to him. Those who don't send letters must come to fight.
He thought at the beginning that with the strength of Guo and Song, it was unlikely that he would agree to Zhu Si's conditions, but when Hexi actually gave Zhu Si 200,000 sheepskins and 25,000 war horses, he was a little confused.
Okay, why did Guo Song show weakness?
It's just that Zhang Feng never dreamed that Hexi officials only compromised in the name of Guo Song. Guo Song was not in Hexi at all and led an army to conquer Geluolu westward.
'Dang! Dang! Dang!'
As soon as Zhang Feng walked out of the government office, he heard the urgent sound of alarm bells coming from the city wall.
Zhang Feng was startled and asked: "What's going on?"
"Reporting back to the general, I don't know what's going on. There must be enemy situation."
‘Enemy situation?’ Zhang Feng was surprised. He suddenly thought of Guo Song. Could it be that Guo Song’s army was coming?
He immediately got on his horse and galloped towards the city.
The Longyou Army also had many military forts south of Dadou Bagou, but Zhang Feng did not use them. Once Longyou's troops were insufficient, they could no longer disperse their forces. Secondly, he felt that it was unnecessary. Guo Song really wanted to start from Dadou.
A few military forts couldn't stop the Bago army from attacking, not to mention the Hexi army coming from Lanzhou without much resistance.
Zhang Feng got off his horse at the city wall and quickly walked up to the west city wall. He saw a mighty army in the distance coming towards us. At the front was a black dragon flag with a red background, which was the military flag of the Hexi Army.
Already.
Zhang Feng sighed secretly, but he still guessed that Guo Song would not come to negotiate, and would definitely use force to solve the wheat harvest problem. I am afraid that it is not only the wheat harvest problem now, but also the life and death of the Long You Army.
........
The Hexi Army began to set up camp about five miles away from Xicheng, and three thousand tents appeared one after another in the wilderness. The Hexi Army once stationed a camp here, and the trenches dug back then are still there, eliminating the need for the Hexi Army to continue again.
Keep digging trenches.
Not long after, a Hexi Army scout and cavalry rushed over. He drew his bow and arrow a hundred steps away from the city wall, and shot a letter into the city wall with one arrow. The scout who delivered the letter turned around and rode away.
A soldier picked up the letter and rushed to give it to Zhang Feng. Zhang Feng took the letter and saw that it read: "Zhang Feng, the envoy of Yuanzhou soldiers and horses, personally signed it", signed by the prince of Zhangye County, the governor of Anxi, and the governor of Hexi Province Guo
Song Dynasty.
"General, didn't he make a mistake? How could he be the military envoy of Yuanzhou? Shouldn't he be the military envoy of Longyou?" A general next to him asked strangely.
Zhang Feng smiled bitterly and said, "He is not wrong, but he does not recognize the official title given to me by Zhu Si, and still thinks that I am the military envoy of Yuanzhou."
Zhang Feng opened the letter, and it turned out to be a letter written by Guo Song himself. The letter persuaded him to surrender. He promised to make himself the Duke of Xiping County, the governor of Longyou Jiedu Prefecture, and the governor of Shanzhou. He also guaranteed that his wife, children, and mother would be safe from Chang'an.
Evacuate.
Like all generals stationed abroad, Zhang Feng's family members also stayed in Chang'an as hostages. He had a son and a daughter, as well as a wife and mother. Guo Songlian even thought of this, which showed that he was indeed serious.
Zhang Feng's current official position is Long Guogong, Champion General, and Longyou Jiedushi. However, Guo Song downgraded his official title by one level. This makes Zhang Feng feel a little uncomfortable. Besides, Guo Song can represent the South.
Tang court? What if Li Shi doesn't accept Guo Song's promise?
But what if you don't agree? The other party has an army of fifty thousand, with bright armor and murderous intent. It looks like an elite army at first glance. How can your own army of ten thousand resist it?
Zhang Feng was so confused that he continued to read the letter. The last part of the letter was to give him a reply before noon tomorrow, otherwise he would meet in full force.
Zhang Feng let out a long sigh and went to the city with his hands behind his back worriedly.