Late Tang Dynasty Floating Life

Chapter 25 Killing the Enemy (For the Alliance Leader Lao Li Jiagen)

On the third day of the second lunar month in the fifth year of Qianfu, in the Zhelu army city, the red flag was not turned over by the wind.

Yesterday was the last time the Tiande army left the city.They destroyed a grove a few miles from the city.Part of it was chopped into firewood and transported back to the city, and the rest was set on a fire, along with the surrounding large weeds and shrubs, all burned, so as not to stay behind to help the enemy.

Siege, of course, to siege equipment.The Datong Army of Li Guochang's father and son is a complete system, with all kinds of talents gathered, there are soldiers, auxiliary soldiers, and a managed army with the military craftsman's camp.Of course, their baggage battalion has the ability to make siege equipment in the face of battle, but it requires a lot of wood. The Tiande army has cleared the nearby woods, one is to prevent the enemy from ambushing the troops, and the other is to prevent them from getting nearby wood. Increases their time and cost of making the device.

In addition, there were originally many people living in the area of ​​Caochengchuan, and Hu and Han were mixed.The Tiande army had "stroked" it once before, and requisitioned a lot of grain and cattle, sheep and horses.Before, they had been cut wool by Datong rebels, and no matter how stupid they were, they knew that they couldn't stay for long, so they ran away without a shadow, and either went to hide in the mountains, or went south to Lan and Shi Erzhou for refuge.Li's father and son come again, presumably there is nothing to plunder, it must be very painful.

Time just passed by day by day.On the sixth day of December, the Datong rebels arrived as scheduled.

The vanguard was a mixed infantry and cavalry unit with the banner of the word "Li", and I don't know who their surnames are. After all, there were too many people surnamed Li in the Tang Dynasty.Judging from the observation from the top of the city, the enemy army probably has more than 800 infantry and [-] cavalry.

As the confidant of the supervising army, Shao Shude was of course "fortunate" to go to the city to defeat the enemy.He secretly estimated the number of enemy troops by consulting others, and finally concluded that there were more than 3000 infantry and about [-] cavalry.There is a little gap with the estimated figures of several veteran scouts, but it is normal. After all, I haven't studied for long, so this level is not bad.

After the enemy army arrived at the city of the Zhelu army, it sent two cavalrymen to call.The rhetoric is not fierce, the main idea is to show his identity, at the same time boast of martial arts, and want the Tiande army to surrender quickly, Li Zhenwu (Li Guochang) and his son will definitely ignore their previous suspicions, but they can "conspire together".

"Who can kill this thief for me?" Hao Zhenwei asked angrily, looking at the two rebel cavalry soldiers who were showing off their might.

Shao Shude drew a heavy arrow from the quiver and was about to answer when he heard a soldier beside Hao Zhenwei shout, "I'm coming!"

I saw this person take off the long arrow, wind the string, sink the waist, draw the bow, and aim, all in one move, full of rhythmic beauty. "Whoosh", the arrow from the string flew away, brushed the helmet on a knight's head, and mercilessly sank into the frozen ground.

The people at the top of the city sighed in unison, regretting the arrow that was so short.The knights at the bottom of the city were taken aback, and while yelling, they turned their horses around.Shao Shude didn't wait for them to go far, he stretched his bow and arrow, and the heavy arrow smashed away, carrying a powerful force, and shot down a knight from the horse.

The knight has iron armor on his body, so the damage is not serious, but it is extremely insulting.He staggered up from the ground when two armor-piercing arrows came one after another, one shot off his helmet, and the other hit the back of his thigh, bleeding profusely.The other person didn't dare to save them, so he ran off on the road, leaving his comrades on the spot.

When the rebel brigade in the distance saw it, there was a commotion.The cavalry that fled back was grabbed by the officer, and then several people stepped forward to tie him up and cut him off before the battle.Abandoning Paoze to escape, no matter where it is placed, it is not a glorious thing, not to mention that it is before the battle, which will affect morale.

Shao Shude was also amazed at the strict discipline of the rebels, but he was not slow. He shot another arrow and completely killed the injured enemy rider. Then he put down his bow and said to Qiu Weidao and Hao Zhenwei: "The generals and the military supervisors, fortunately not to be humiliated!"

"Good! Good! Vice Admiral Shao is so brave, this envoy is extremely pleased, and rewarded ten thousand dollars!" Qiu Weidao said with a smile, conscious of the light on his face.

"Deputy Shao has really mastered this hand of archery, and he gave him [-] pieces of silk." Hao Zhenwei was also a little happy, although this guy had once rejected his invitation, which made him a little unhappy, but now and then, he shot and killed the enemy in front of him. Boosting the morale of the party is beneficial to the overall situation, and the reward is still rewarded.

"Lieutenant General Shao Shude Shao shoots and kills the enemy general, and he will order a reward of ten coins and thirty pieces of silk!" Soon a messenger came down the city and spread the order to all the battalions to inspire the soldiers to fight the enemy bravely.

Shao Shude was a little ashamed, what the hell is this Nima!The enemy soldier who was shot to death by him had no flag on his back, and his attire did not look like a senior officer.Propaganda is propaganda!
But you have to admit that Hao Zhenwei's hand is quite beautiful.Most of the soldiers were inside the city, and they didn't see what happened outside the city.Everyone said that killing the enemy general was true, so at this moment, everyone's morale improved.

In addition, the reward is not low, and the wealth and silk are very attractive. Ten thousand dollars plus thirty pieces of silk are worth more than a lieutenant. It is almost the reward of a ten general, and there is no problem in returning home to buy land and marry a daughter-in-law.

In addition, this kind of propaganda is of great benefit to Shao Shude himself.Fame is also an invisible resource.To give an inappropriate analogy, one day the German army will be defeated and the army will be scattered. If Shao Shude encounters a defeated army, he will be able to gather many people on the spot by virtue of his fame.Sometimes, it is even more useful than money, although it is invisible and intangible.

"Qiu Shijun, Li Jinzhong will not be able to attack the city anymore. The morale is new, and there are only so many people. Today, I have nothing to worry about." Hao Zhenwei stroked his beard and said to Qiu Wei: "You and I might as well go back to the camp to deal with military affairs, the city It's enough to leave the head to the younger generation."

Hao Zhenwei's words were a bit pretentious, but he couldn't be wrong.Li Jinzhong - Shao Shude also just knew the name of this rebel vanguard general - with only [-] cavalry, and lack of equipment, he is unable to pose a threat to the Zhelu army city.They couldn't even cut off the foreign traffic of the Zhelu army. The messengers from the city could easily find a gap to go to other places, and the rebels couldn't stop them at all.

Of course, Qiu Weidao is also very clear about this.However, he did not have the big heart of a warrior, and was still somewhat afraid of the main force of the rebels.

Li's father and son claim to have an army of 20,000, which is of course nonsense, but there are still more than 6000 people.I heard that after the Honggu victory last time, more and more Huhan residents in Daibei joined the army, and their military strength expanded again. Although the Tiande army has about [-] people in the Zhelu army city, the composition is complicated, and less than half of them can actually fight , if Li and his son attack with all their strength, it is not so safe.

Of course, he wouldn't say anything in front of the sergeants. This was inappropriate and might affect morale.Therefore, after nodding with a smile, he and Hao Zhenwei both went down the tower and walked towards the general's mansion in the city.As the deputy general of the guard army, Shao Shude will of course be accompanied by him. The battle that may break out in the city has nothing to do with him, and he can't intervene. That is the matter of Hao Zhenwei's generals.

"The rebels are divided into two groups, one way to Daizhou, led by Li Guochang to defend against heavy troops, and one way to attack Lan and Shizhou, led by Li Keyong. I just don't know which of these two roads is the main force. It's hateful. The court soldiers and horses between Xin and generations are at odds with each other, otherwise they will assemble to attack and know where the main force of the rebels is." Walking on the heavily armored street, Qiu Weidao said with a sigh: "Hedong, Zhaoyi , Yicheng, Yiwu, Zhongwu, Heyang, the six towns of the army, tens of thousands of dragons and tigers, but they are unable to enter, hesitating, and the battle is like this, everyone should be killed!"

Hao Zhenwei glanced at this indignant eunuch army and felt a little funny.You eunuchs, what else can you do other than get power?With such a pretentious attitude, who would you show it to?
However, he was surprised and despised, but it did not prevent him from singing praises: "The supervisor is worried about state affairs, and he is really a role model for my generation. On the side of the camp, things are complicated, and it is really hard to say. On the way, there is nothing else to say, only to fight the enemy bravely and serve the court."

"General Hao Du is a man of righteousness. In the future, when the envoy returned to Chang'an, when he met his grandfather, he had to say it well. There are so many generals in this generation of Beihang Battalion, who come and go, but they are all incompetent. In front of General Hao Du, there was the battle of Zhonglingshui and the dignified formation to defeat the enemy, and now he has defended the Zhelu and leveled as a passage of thieves, and his loyalty to the imperial court can be learned from the sun and the moon. If such a good general is not needed, who else is to be used?" Qiu Weidao seemed to be indignant said.

Hearing Qiu Weidao mention the word "Father", Hao Zhenwei's expression changed suddenly, but he soon returned to normal.Unlike other vassal towns, the Tiande Army only had one state and two counties. They were also located in the borderlands and faced the threat of the grasslands, so they were very dependent on the imperial court. Daily food and supplies needed the imperial court to pass through Lingzhou, Xiazhou and Zhenwu Army. Waiting to transfer over.

Therefore, for them, the big man in Chang'an is God, who can decide their prosperity, wealth and even life and death in one word.Hao Zhenwei has the intention of making progress, so it is normal for him to deliberately befriend the eunuchs of the military.

The two walked while chatting like this, and soon arrived at the general mansion.Shao Shude took off the bow and arrow and handed it to the sergeant guarding the door, then followed Qiu Weidao and walked in.There are a lot of people working in the mansion, and they are basically the officials of the Fengzhou shogunate who came with him when he went on an expedition. They are not high-level, but their practical ability is not bad.

Of course, there are many generals in the mansion, and Shao Shude even saw the small army officer of the Ya army who had clashed with him in the warehouse outside the city that day.However, his face was solemn at this time, and he was arguing loudly with others. It seemed that he was going to send someone out of the city to deliver news to Li Renjun, the tenth general who was defending the stockade outside the city.The stockade and the Zhelu army city are in a situation of mutual entanglement. As long as the stockade is not broken for a day, then the rebels will never be able to attack the city with all their strength and will be in a situation of being pinched.

Everyone is a "veteran" warrior who has fought for many years, and has a very deep understanding of the value of the stockade, and it is absolutely impossible to sit back and watch it be defeated by the rebels.Therefore, it is natural to send someone out of the city to make contact and strengthen their determination to stick to it.

Shao Shude was too lazy to care about the private quarrel of Hao Zhenwei's direct descendants. He followed the two big men step by step and quickly entered the hall of the general's mansion.

(End of this chapter)