A Good Landlord in the Tang Dynasty: Emperor Yuan Cong

Chapter 1305: A Sword Travels Thousands of Miles
"The fireworks are so gorgeous. They will look even better if they are set off at night."

Cheng Yaojin was dressed in full armor, standing beside his horse, looking at the fireworks exploding in the sky, sighing, then stepping on the stirrup to mount his horse, raising his 10-foot-long horse spear and swinging it vigorously, "Shubao, it's our turn to go into battle, can you still charge?"

Duke Qin Qiong of Qi has not been on the battlefield for a long time, but he is still a household name.

He patted his old buddy Hu Leibo and said, "Buddy, let's fight again."

Hu Lei Bo is a spotted horse with mottled fur. It is an old horse that has followed Qin Qiong for many years and is a Turkic horse.

When Qin Qiong rode this horse, he was invincible. Taking the head of a general in the midst of thousands of troops was as easy as taking something from a bag.

"I've been sorry for you, old friend, for not having been on the battlefield for many years."

Qin Qiong patted his old friend, and suddenly Lei Bo lowered his head and touched Qin Qiong's chest lightly a few times, then stretched out his mouth to lick the gourd on his waist.

That was a wine gourd.

"Can I drink after the fight?"

Suddenly Lei Bo snorted and shook his head.

Qin Qiong was helpless. "Okay, okay, you haven't changed in this aspect over the years. Let's agree that you can only drink a little first, and then I'll give you a big drink after the fight."

Hu Lei Bo became impatient.

Old Cheng watched Qin Qiong open the wine gourd and feed his horse half a gourd of wine. He couldn't help but laugh and scold, "Your old spotted horse is really not as good as your yellow horse. Whose war horse likes to drink wine and eat meat? Before going to the battlefield, it has to drink a few sips, and it's not afraid of getting drunk while running."

Qin Qiong stroked his beloved horse.

The color of this horse is yellow with tiger stripes and leopard patterns, and people call it a tiger-like leopard. The sound of this horse is like thunder, which is very different from the neighing of ordinary horses, so people also call it a thundering leopard.

Although this horse is a drunkard, it can jump over three tents at a time. Even in battle, it kicks, bites, and butts the head, so that ordinary soldiers can't get close to it.

Other horses don't drink alcohol and may get drunk if they do, but this horse will become even more brave after drinking.

After drinking half a gourd of wine, Hu Lei Bo indeed made a few thunderous sounds and became extremely energetic.

Qin Qiong climbed onto his horse and nodded to Cheng Yaojin, "The last time we brothers fought side by side like this was during the Battle of Wulao Pass in the fourth year of Wude, right?"

"Well, we will follow His Majesty and defeat one hundred thousand with only five thousand men. After the war, you and I will both be promoted to Duke of the State and be awarded the honor of Senior Pillar of the State."

Qin Qiong stroked his graying beard and said, "Then today, you and I, brothers, will fight him side by side again, and make it a great battle!"

The two generals mounted their horses and attacked with their spears.

Then the drums and horns sounded,

Twelve thousand men and horses suddenly rushed out from the narrow valley.
Like a sharp blade, it struck fiercely on the waist of the Goguryeo long snake formation.

Qin Qiong and Cheng Yaojin each led a thousand armored cavalry to clear the way, tearing apart the enemies in front of them like steel monsters.

The cavalry, both men and horses in iron armor,
There isn't much left of the Tang Dynasty today.

This thing is too expensive. It requires the best knights and the best horses. Not only do the knights have to wear armor, but the horses as well. The knights even have to wear two or even three layers of armor.
Armed to the teeth, a thousand cavalrymen charging forward could tear everything apart.

Although armored cavalry has many shortcomings, such as not being able to last long and being too expensive, their instantaneous explosive power and impact are unstoppable.

The Goguryeo people never expected that there was an ambush.

Before he could react, he was knocked to the ground by the rush from the side.

During the pursuit, the Goguryeo army was in a relatively narrow valley and had no time to form a battle array. They were smashed to pieces.
Then countless infantrymen followed and rushed over.

They surrounded and chopped up the scattered Goguryeo people like cutting melons and vegetables.
The light cavalry galloped across the battlefield in groups. They came and went like the wind and lightning, with bows and arrows flying everywhere, taking away one enemy after another.

On the north mountain.

A group of generals stopped the emperor,
Li Shimin also wanted to ride his horse to join the battle.
"Your Majesty, leave the charge to me, Your Majesty can just watch the battle from the mountain." After saying this, Yuchi Gong raised his horse spear and led his army down the mountain.
Like a tiger descending from the mountain, unstoppable.

Xue Rengui stood guard beside the emperor, holding a long spear, watching the fierce battle at the foot of the mountain, his eyes full of desire.

Li Shimin reluctantly sat on the small stool under the big banner.

He glanced at Xue Rengui and said with a smile, "Since you are so eager to fight, then go ahead."

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

Xue Rengui was so delighted that he did not even bother to change the ceremonial halberd he used. He simply ran towards his mount with the halberd in hand.

He mounted his horse and gave a loud roar of excitement.
He galloped down the mountain.

Waving his halberd, he charged into the enemy group.
Stab like a spear, chop like a knife, smash like a stick,

It is majestic, combining both hardness and softness, fierce and swift, with great force and power. No one can stop it wherever it goes.

West side of the valley.

Wu Huaiyu also sat under the general's banner.
Wearing iron armor and sitting on a small stool,
The sun is scorching,

It's not a pleasant feeling to bask in the sun wearing armor.

Fortunately, their main task had been completed and they successfully lured the enemy into the valley.

Their main task now is to block the western exit.

This task is relatively easy.

Spears were arrayed one after another.
A forest of spears,

The archers also drew their bows and put their arrows on them.

The Goguryeo people were ambushed, but those in the front still wanted to fight their way out.

Wu Huaiyu sat there calmly.
The silk robe on his body did prevent the armor from being directly exposed to the sun, but it was still stuffy and unbreathable.

"Hold your ground first and don't let the enemy impulsively act on your position."

Wu Huaiyu had 12,000 men under his command, including Tang troops, Turkic troops, Mohe troops, and Sogdian troops. He also had a large number of retainers.
But with more than 10,000 people forming a battle array and guarding the valley entrance, there should be no problem.

Just shoot arrows and crossbows at the enemy.
When they got closer, they were supported by spears and large shields.

The Goguryeo cavalry had no advantage at all in the face of the overlapping square formations at the narrow valley entrance.

Not to mention that their armored cavalry fell behind, even if they were sent to the front now, they would not be able to break through such a thick defensive phalanx.

The Tang army, which was well prepared, was even able to bring in chevaux de frise from nearby and scatter strings of caltrops in front of them.

Wu Chengzhi was standing nearby, his face flushed and his blood boiling. He wished he could rush forward to fight as well, but unfortunately, although Wu Huaiyu brought him to the battlefield, he would not let him rush forward to fight.

Everyone has a different identity and does different things.

It's like the army, the team leaders must stand at the front of the team, holding guns and leading the fight, and the flag bearer must follow closely behind. However, the deputy team leader must also be the military judge, standing at the back of the team, holding a sword and a beheading horse. Anyone who dares to retreat and fear fighting will be held responsible for enforcing military law.

Officers above the team level generally do not need to stand at the front, as their duties are more about commanding rather than fighting.

A commander of Wu Huaiyu's rank cannot charge into battle at will.

Everyone should do his job and stay in his position.

Wu Chengzhi is the Duke of Luzon County and the Governor of Luzon. He came to Liaodong to deliver food and fodder. Now that he is on the battlefield, he can only observe at most. There is no way he can fight in the battle.

At this point in the battle,
In fact, it has entered garbage time.

Half an hour later,
Wu Huaiyu stood up and moved around for a while, feeling a little sleepy. He looked at the battlefield situation and saw that the Goguryeo people had been cut into countless pieces, being chopped and cut repeatedly by the Tang army.

There were only about 60,000 to 70,000 people who entered the valley, and the remaining two-thirds did not come in, but those who came in were exactly the majority of Goguryeo's elite main forces.

Ambushed and divided in this narrow valley, they were completely powerless to recover.

The battle formation at the entrance of the valley where Wu Huaiyu and his men were standing was already filled with the bodies of the Goguryeo soldiers who were trying to break out.

They couldn't move forward anymore, and now they were like ants on a hot pan, running around everywhere.

"Almost there, blow the horn, counterattack, advance forward, and sweep the battlefield!"

Wu Huaiyu waved his hand.

The horn blew.
On Wu Huaiyu's side, there are still more than 10,000 people, and the casualties are only a few hundred. This is the advantage of the formation.

Every ten steps forward, the soldiers would stop and gather themselves, shouting, and then slowly move forward.
This moving forest of spears and shield wall made the Goguryeo soldiers despair.

The crossbowmen also stopped to shoot a few arrows as they walked.

On the North Mountain,
The emperor looked at the battlefield and a smile appeared on his face.

Victory is already decided,

"Send a message to King Jiangxia to have him make a detour and encircle Goguryeo from behind, cut off the bridges, and block their way back."

The battle lasted till the afternoon.

Goguryeo was defeated.
The Tang army beheaded more than 10,000 people.

Gao Yanshou and Gao Huizhen regretted not listening to the advice of the white-haired old man, but it was too late. They were trapped in the valley with nowhere to escape.
They had no choice but to gather the defeated soldiers and form a battle array on the mountain to protect themselves.

The Tang army blocked both ends, closing the door to beat the dog and catching the turtle in the jar.

Li Shimin reined in and walked slowly, watching the camp of the defeated Goguryeo army from afar.

Wu Huaiyu, Li Jing, Qin Qiong, Jingde and others accompanied the emperor, all with joyful smiles on their faces. This battle was fought beautifully, and even the victory seemed a bit easy.

"More than 10,000 people were beheaded,"

"There are about 50,000 troops trapped here,"

"In addition, the return route of their follow-up troops has also been cut off by King Jiangxia. The 80,000 to 90,000 troops have been divided into several groups and retreated to the nearby mountains."

Li Shimin nodded, "How many casualties did our army suffer?"

"According to preliminary statistics, about 500 people were killed."

Five hundred men were killed in battle, but more than ten thousand were killed.

Another hundred thousand people were surrounded. This battle is enough to go down in history.

"Huaiyu, we won a great victory today. You succeeded in luring the enemy. You should be credited with the main achievement."

"Shubao, Zhijie, you two charged into battle and deserve to be credited for your great achievements."

"Respect virtue..."

The emperor first commended several generals responsible for the battle in person, then pointed to the enemy camp on the mountain and said, "Goguryeo was defeated and is defending the mountain, but there is no water or food here. How long can they hold out?"

Li Jing suggested surrender.

Yuchi Gong believed that if they continued to besiege them like this, they would surrender in a few days.

Li Shimin sighed, "Goguryeo came with all its might, and our survival depended on it. We were defeated with one blow. God bless me."

The emperor dismounted and bowed to thank God.

Wu Huaiyu and others also dismounted and thanked God for his protection.

"We should carve a stone tablet to commemorate this battle. Huaiyu, I will leave the inscription to you."

There was much controversy within the army as to how to deal with the defeated Goguryeo troops.

However, after some consideration, Li Shimin thought that they could first recruit and persuade Gao Yanshou and others to surrender. As long as Gao Yanshou and others were willing to surrender, all the officers from Nousa down could be granted military ranks and moved to the inland areas.

All the vassal troops of the Mohe tribe were buried alive and killed.

As for the rest of the Goguryeo soldiers, they were moved inland, and the Goguryeo civilians who were temporarily recruited were released.

"Your Majesty, I object."

Several voices sounded at the same time, including Wu Huaiyu's voice.

"Huaiyu, why do you object?" asked the emperor.

"Your Majesty, I agree that we should surrender now. This will help us deal with these 150,000 troops in advance and prevent them from fighting desperately. However, I do not agree with this method of handling the matter."

"Tell me your suggestion."

"We can promise Gao Yanshou and others that as long as they surrender, their lives can be spared, but they must all be relocated to the Central Plains.
Including those Mohe tribal vassal troops."

Neither kill nor let go.

If Gao Yanshou and others can agree to this condition, they will surrender. If they do not accept it, then the siege will continue. They are now short of water and food, and they can't survive for more than three to five days. Then they will be slaughtered.

The conditions offered to them for their surrender and relocation to the interior were already the limit.

You can't let him go. If you do, it'll be like letting a tiger go back to the mountains.

Move them to the inland and disperse and resettle them. These hundreds of thousands of Goguryeo people can still be managed. After 20 to 30 years, they will be completely assimilated. If you are worried, then move them to Yunnan, Guizhou and Sichuan. Qianzhong, Yunzhong and western Sichuan are still full of barbarians. There is no need to worry if you move the Goguryeo people to the military farms.

There was no need to massacre the Mohe people. Although these tribes were vassals of Goguryeo, they could also be won over.

The emperor discussed with his ministers for a long time and finally adopted Wu Huaiyu's suggestion.

Li Shimin sent Sun Daiyin as an envoy to negotiate with Gao Yanshou and Gao Huizhen.

Gao Yanshou still refused to surrender.
But Li Shimin was certainly not in a hurry.
Liang Wanchun's troops in Anshi were blocked in the city and could not leave.

Gao Yanshou's other troops were also cut off from retreating, and were scattered and retreating to various hills.

Three days later,
Gao Yanshou was in despair.

Because their food supply was exhausted,
And they had no water. They had endured the past three days, which was already their limit. Now they didn't even have urine to drink, and there was no rain.

I can't hold on any longer.

The soldiers could no longer fight.
They had no choice but to surrender. Gao Yanshou hoped that Li Shimin would let them go back and was even willing to hand over their weapons, but at this time they were no longer qualified to negotiate terms.

They could only lay down their arms, surrender, and then accept the result of being sent to the interior for resettlement.

Gao Yanshou and others were helpless.

Finally, I had to go down the mountain.
He crawled on his knees before the emperor and knelt down in surrender.

Li Shimin also fulfilled his promise.
More than 3,500 officers including Gao Yanshou and Gao Huizhen were granted corresponding military ranks while retaining their official ranks.

After laying down their weapons, the defeated soldiers under his command, whether they were from Goguryeo or Mohe, were given water and food.

What awaits them next is to go to the port in southern Liaoning, take a ship to the Denglai Peninsula, and then be dispersed and sent to the inland for resettlement.

Basically, they were sent to the southwestern border areas to open up wasteland and cultivate land.

One hundred and fifty thousand troops,
As a result, they were destroyed in one battle, more than 10,000 of them were killed, and the rest were all taken prisoners.

The Tang army also seized more than 30,000 war horses, more than 50,000 cattle, 5,000 sets of Mingguang armor, and a large amount of other food, fodder and equipment.

The victorious emperor moved to the city of Anshi.
He specifically sent Gao Yanshou and Gao Huizhen to bring a group of surrendered generals to the city to persuade Liang Wanchun to surrender.

Liang Wanchun, who was standing on the top of Anshi City, looked at the two Noosas with a deathly pale face.

Nuosa was equivalent to the governor of the Tang Dynasty. The two Nuosa and their 150,000 reinforcements were completely wiped out. Liang Wanchun knew very well what this meant.
North of the Yalu River, Goguryeo had no more troops to support it.

They became a completely isolated city.

Isolated.

However, despite the Tang Emperor's persuasion to surrender, Liang Wanchun still refused to surrender.

But there are not many people who are as tenacious as Liang Wanchun.

The news of the annihilation of 150,000 reinforcements spread quickly.

The Goguryeo soldiers and civilians in the surrounding mountain fortresses were extremely terrified. The mountain fortresses west of Jicui Mountain, such as Houhuangcheng and Yincheng near Anshi, fled one after another.

Within a few days, they all ran away.

There was no human habitation within hundreds of miles, and all the people had retreated to the east of Jicui Mountain.

No one dares to challenge the Tang Dynasty’s army anymore!
In a radius of hundreds of miles, only Anshi City is still resisting!

(End of this chapter)