Guide to Traveling through the Northern Song Dynasty.

Chapter 961 0956 [Breaking Through the Helan Mountain Gap · ]

There were only two watchtowers with two or three hundred soldiers stationed there, so Yue Fei and Han Shizhong were naturally not afraid.

As soon as they sent troops to attack the watchtower, several smoke signals rose from the mountains on both sides, and the approximate locations of the smoke signals had been drawn.

When Wang Gui sent someone back to report the specific situation, Yue Fei pointed to the several marked smoke signals and said, "The places with smoke signals should all be watchtowers used for observation and messaging. The real enemy camp may be hidden somewhere else."

Han Shizhong took out a map, which was sent back to the court by a spy.

The person who drew the map is currently hiding in Shengwei City and cannot go north due to the war.

This thing is extremely crude and is an ancient travel map.

"To the north of Keyimen City, there is a valley that can pass the army. It is about 20 miles long and has varying widths. The widest one is about 7 or 8 miles. The narrowest one is about 3 or 4 miles... The wide part is full of gullies..."

"From Keyimen City, three miles north is Camel Ridge, on top of which is a fortress..."

The stronghold clearly marked on the map is the one on Luotuo Ridge.

The rest of the places were marked with words like "there is a ditch coming out of the mountain", "cannot be entered, or there are hidden forts and fortresses", etc.

Judging from the map, the terrain becomes more complicated as you go further south.

Moreover, there is more than one valley, and the valley used for merchants and troops to pass through is only the flattest one.

This is also the reason why Cao Yu, as a military supervisor, had passed through this place many times but had no idea of ​​the geography. He only knew that there were a few forts on the mountains.

Before setting off, Yue Fei and Han Shizhong interrogated the prisoners, but the prisoners' statements were similar to Cao Yu's.

"Han Duhu, Yue Duhu, the Tangut chieftain is leading his people to surrender!"

Just as the two of them continued to study the simple map based on their explorations in recent days, a soldier suddenly came running to report important military intelligence.

More than a hundred people came!
The leader claimed to be the son of the patriarch of the Chage tribe and his name was Qie'e.

Han Shizhong was extremely surprised: "Where are you from?"

Qie replied: "The west bank of the Yellow River."

Han Shizhong asked, "Weren't all the people there relocated?"

"We hid in the desert," Qie explained.

Yue Fei asked: "The Chaoshun Army has been defending its walls and clearing the fields for many days. How did you survive hiding in the desert?"

Qie E explained in detail: "There is a salt lake to the west of the Yellow River, which can be reached by crossing ten miles of desert. There is a green area around the salt lake, but the fresh water cannot support too many people. Usually, there are only a few hundred salt workers boiling salt there, but this year the salt workers were also moved away. We took food and water and hid in the desert for a few days, then went to the salt lake where no one was anymore."

"Where did you live before?" Han Shizhong asked.

Qie replied, "Our place is called Jinshatan, which is 20 miles north of here. We have farmland on both sides of the Yellow River. Last year, Brother Richard conscripted many people from my tribe to fight in the war, and also took our food indiscriminately. My father also went to fight with us. When we set out, we had more than 2,000 people, but when we returned, there were only more than 300 left."

Cao Yu interrupted and said, "You are a big tribe, as you can mobilize more than 2,000 men to fight."

Qie said: "We are the largest tribe in the jurisdiction of Chaoshun Army! We no longer graze, but only farm on both sides of the Yellow River. We don't have many war horses in our tribe, and most of us are infantry during the war. That's why we suffered heavy losses last year. We couldn't even escape after the defeat."

Yue Fei said: "If you can make a contribution, all the surviving captives in your army should be selected and sent back home. Where is your father now?"

Qie said, "Brother Richard ordered to fortify the city and clear the fields. My father, with most of his people, has retreated to the south of Keyimen City. Before he left, he asked me to take more than a hundred young men to temporarily hide in the desert."

This tribe is very lucky, but also very unlucky.

They lived in the richest area around Keyimen, which was full of fertile soil washed by the Yellow River. All grasslands were reclaimed to grow crops, and they bid farewell to the grazing life. In addition, the regular soldiers were unwilling to raise horses for the court, and gradually they became mainly infantry.

They were too wealthy and too close to the Chaoshun military headquarters.

Every time a war breaks out, the most soldiers are drawn from their tribe, and the most grain is also collected from their tribe.

Especially in recent years of famine, the Western Xia court has increased taxes frantically, and the entire tribe can no longer bear it.

Qie complained, "My father said that last year we suffered too many casualties and our tribe has very little food left. We will have to fight for the imperial court next year. If we continue to fight, our tribe will be gone. He asked me to hide and look for an opportunity to surrender to the Ming."

Han Shizhong asked: "Do you know the topography of the valleys in Keyimen?"

Qie replied, "I know roughly, but I'm not sure. I heard that many valleys near Keyimen were used for grazing, but later they became barren. There are also grasslands on some high mountains, and some people fled to the mountains to graze. There are low walls on the mountains on the east and west sides, and I heard that they were the Great Wall built during the Tang Dynasty."

That is not the Great Wall built in the Tang Dynasty, but the Great Wall built in the Qin Dynasty!

The mountain range stretching over a hundred miles is directly surrounded by three sections of the Qin Great Wall. The longest section of the Great Wall is more than 8000 meters long and is located in Subaiyingou, where Han Shizhong and Yue Fei planned to pass.

However, the Qin Great Wall has been abandoned for thousands of years, with only some ruins left. The Western Xia built the Great Wall to defend against Mongolia on the basis of the Qin Great Wall, and only a very short section of it was built.

Yue Fei said to Han Shizhong: "It seems that the mountains further south are gentler, suitable for grazing, building the Great Wall, and of course building forts and stationing troops."

Qie said, "Generals, we can bypass the Keyi Gate."

"Impossible!" Cao Yu shouted.

Yue Fei and Han Shizhong's eyes lit up.

There is always this kind of plot in the stories of wars throughout the dynasties. When the army is facing a strong pass that cannot be conquered, suddenly the local people come running and say: General, please take the small road.

Where is the trail here?

Qie squatted down and drew a simple map: "This is where we are. Go back more than ten miles to the west and cross the Yellow River. There is a protruding river beach, and crops can be grown within a radius of five miles. Go west from the river beach and cross the desert for about ten miles, and you will encounter a salt lake. That is where I hide. The local people have been forcibly relocated."

"Turning south from the salt lake and crossing the desert for about ten miles, you will come to an oasis. It is very close to the Yellow River, but the Yellow River often floods and there is sand along the way, so crops cannot be grown. The Yellow River also floods and creates a mess of rivers and small lakes."

"I heard that the south of the oasis was a place for grazing a long time ago, but now it has become a desert. The desert is about 10 to 20 miles long. You can see mountains after crossing it. The east of the mountains is a place for farming and grazing. It is the territory of the second largest tribe of Chaoshun Army. They graze on the mountains and farm at the foot of the mountains."

"After crossing the desert, walk another 20 to 30 miles south, cross the Yellow River eastward, and you will be able to get to the rear of Keyi Gate."

Yue Fei and Han Shizhong looked at the schematic diagram carefully and calculated the distance they needed to take a detour.

Crossed the Yellow River twice.

We crossed the desert three times. The total distance of the desert was thirty or forty miles, but there were two oases in the middle where we could get fresh water.

Yue Fei asked: "After crossing all the deserts, what areas can be cultivated and grazed? Are there any enemy strongholds there?"

Qie replied: "The easiest place to cross the river is a fortress. There is a temple on a nearby mountain. I have been to the temple with my father to worship Buddha."

Han Shizhong said: "Should we be able to find other crossing points?"

Qie smiled and said, "In fact, we don't need to cross the river. We can go south along the Yellow River for 300 miles and reach Xingqingfu, the capital of Daxia. These 300 miles are flat and all is smooth! Of course, there is Dingzhou City in the middle."

Han Shizhong pulled Yue Fei aside and asked: "Do you believe him?"

"Maybe it's credible." Yue Fei was not sure.

Han Shizhong asked excitedly: "Do you dare to take a gamble?"

Yue Fei asked: "You mean to lead the cavalry to attack the capital of Xixia?"

"That's right," Han Shizhong analyzed, "Western Xia is a small country with few soldiers. They have to divide their troops to guard against us at Keyi Gate, and also to defend against the large armies in Shaanxi. So how many soldiers can be left in Dingzhou City and Xingqing Prefecture? To make an inappropriate analogy, I will be Zhong Hui leading the army to confront the enemy here, and you will be Deng Ai rushing to attack the capital of Western Xia."

Han Shizhong actually also read "The Three Kingdoms".

Yue Fei's blood was boiling, and he nodded and said, "Okay!"

Han Shizhong said, "You take 6,000 cavalrymen with you, each with three horses. Of the 6,000 cavalrymen, half are yours and half are mine. How about we divide this tremendous military achievement equally?"

"It's a deal!" Yue Fei said with a clenched fist.

Just do it.

Han Shizhong gave all of his best war horses to Yue Fei, a total of more than 18,000 horses. Some of the tribal chiefs' good horses were also borrowed.

As for Han Shizhong himself, he led a large army to confront the enemies at Keyi Gate, and from time to time he would go up the mountain to attack the watchtower.

Yue Fei took Qi E as a guide and retreated more than ten miles at night, resting until dawn when he crossed the Yellow River.

Each cavalryman was equipped with three horses, one horse to carry the person, one horse to carry armor, and one horse to carry food, fodder and water.

The place where Yue Fei crossed the river was exactly the riverside avenue in the urban area of ​​Wuhai in later generations.

The riverbank after crossing the Yellow River was full of paddy fields, which were usually used to grow rice. But due to the policy of clearing the land, there was no one there, even the houses were burned down, let alone sowing and raising rice seedlings.

After a short rest and filling up the water bag, we crossed the desert to the oasis and came to a salt lake that was more than 4 miles long and 2 miles wide.

There was grass around the salt lake, so the horses nibbled on the grass and were fed concentrate and salt. The soldiers also sat down to eat and rest.

That afternoon, we crossed the desert again and arrived at the second oasis.

There is a smaller lake here, and it is a freshwater lake. Due to the flat terrain, once the Yellow River floods, the flood can directly flood here. Even in the dry season, there is a semi-dried river connecting to the Yellow River.

After filling the water bag, Yue Fei rested for a night and continued on his journey.

The six thousand soldiers were extremely excited; they already knew what they were going to do.

The next morning, Yue Fei led his troops through the last desert area and found that there was no clearing of the fields. Near the Yellow River, farmers were plowing the fields with oxen. Farther away from the Yellow River, herdsmen were grazing.

Perhaps because all the men were drafted to fight in the war, most of the farmers and herders were elderly people and women.

"The Han army is coming! The Han army is coming!"

An old man who was herding sheep was so scared that he fled on horseback, shouting to spread the message along the way.

Yue Fei didn't care and, under Qi E's guidance, he ran at full speed through the half-farming and half-pastoral area that was more than 30 miles long.

When they had run through two-thirds of the area, they could still see smoke rising from the fortress on the other side of the Yellow River.

Qie pointed ahead and said, "There are many mountains a few dozen miles ahead. They are not very high, but they are quite barren. We need to take a detour in some places. After we pass that area, it will be flat land."

The straight-line distance is only more than ten miles, but it takes dozens or even hundreds of miles to go around.

Yue Fei's army disappeared in the hilly area, but the Western Xia stronghold on the other side of the Yellow River was frightened and thrown into chaos.

They thought Yue Fei was going to choose a place to cross the river and attack the stronghold, plant a stake behind Keyimen City, and then attack Keyimen from both sides. So while guarding the stronghold, they sent people to Keyimen to report the news and invite a large number of cavalry to explore along the river.

Another day passed, and Yue Fei had crossed the hilly area and was galloping on a smooth road.

To his west is the Helan Mountains, to his east is the Yellow River, and he is already in the Yinchuan Basin.

This is the real way to break through the Helan Mountain Pass!

This was the core ruling area of ​​Xixia, so it was impossible to fortify the city and clear the fields. There were farmers working on the land everywhere. But the majority of the people were old people and women, as all the young and strong were sent to fight.

The Xixia farmers fled in panic. Those who did not have time to escape far hid in their houses and dared not come out. Some rode horses to Dingzhou City to report the news.

Yue Fei ignored the danger and led his troops down at full speed.

Last winter, the three tribes of Dingzhou rebelled and made a mess of the place. The few standing troops and young and strong men left were all withdrawn to defend Lingzhou, leaving only 500 rubbish troops in Dingzhou.

By the time the defending general received the news, Yue Fei had already led his troops four miles outside the city.

The garrison commander looked at his 500 old, weak, sick and disabled soldiers and ordered them to guard the city gate. Then he went home to pack up his belongings and quickly fled with his wife, children and the elderly.

When Yue Fei's troops arrived at the city, the five hundred defenders fled in panic.

A merchant stepped forward and said to his shop assistants, "I am the emperor's servant. Follow me to open the city gate!"

Yue Fei rested in the city for a night, replenished his supplies and continued south.

The capital of Western Xia, Xingqing Prefecture, is less than a hundred miles ahead!

(End of this chapter)