My Chinese ancestors

Chapter 575 The Dragon Flag Raises over the Plateau

Tianfengling is located at the highest point of the southern branch of the entire Daisetsu Mountains. It is the fastest shortcut to the Western Satsuma Plateau, and it is also the most difficult section of the road.

The mountains are steep, altitude sickness occurs, and the wind is biting at night. People who are not physically strong will find it difficult to survive here until the sun rises the next morning.

Fortunately, it is golden autumn now, and the weather during the day is quite pleasant. At this time, the southern mountain range has rich vegetation and many prey.

In the Satsuma village a hundred miles to the west, there are occasional hunters from the village who come here to build wooden houses in the forest and hunt permanently. When winter comes, they return home loaded with trophies.

When the Mongolian cavalry came over the mountains, the hunters in the mountains directly became prey. No matter how powerful they were in the mountains, if they encountered a huge group of cavalry, even if the opponent could not ride a horse here, they could only rely on their legs and superb arrows. This technique also slaughtered all the Satsuma hunters in this mountain.

Most of the prey they hoarded were plundered by the Mongolian Qingqi and used as dry food.

Of course, there are also Satsuma hunters who survived by chance. Some knew that there were caves to drill nearby. When danger came, they hid in the cave as soon as possible and avoided disaster.

When there was no more restless horse hooves and wild shouts outside, the evading hunters slowly came out of the cave.

The Satsuma hunter, who had been hungry for several days, carefully climbed out of the small cave, dragged his weak and tired body, and staggered back to the hut he had built.

……

The wooden house had been completely demolished, and everything inside had been taken away by the 'beggars' on horseback. Not even a hair was left for him.

Looking at the ruins of the wooden house, he cursed a few words, turned around and walked dozens of feet away. The bushes under the trees in front of him were swaying slightly.

"Go and see if the Prime Minister is feeling unwell." Su Chen inspected the two teams. The soldiers were in good spirits. Looking at the team passing by below, he whispered to Wu Zixun next to him: "Although the Prime Minister has some martial arts skills, after all he is literati."

Wu Zixun nodded, followed the flags of several soldiers and horses with two Shenji Battalion soldiers, and quickly disappeared into the woods ahead.

After all, not everyone can afford it.

There was a sudden loud shout, and the figures wearing leather armor and holding knives stepped on the fallen leaves, jumped onto nearby rocks, or stepped over the grass, and rushed directly towards the Satsuma hunter. The latter reacted, turned around and ran away.

Rabbits at this time of year are fattening up, and their bodies are so plump that people are envious of them.

The running hunter shrank his head astutely, and the arrow grazed his ear and flew forward, nailing it on the tree trunk. At this time, the hunter ignored the burning pain coming from his ear. He was so frightened that he rolled over and hurriedly rushed down a steep slope. .

The Yuezhou soldier wiped the blade of his knife on the corpse, picked up the head and tied it around his waist. Then he returned to the steep slope, joked with his companions, and sneaked into the dense forest again to search.

"Kill him directly."

"A Western Barbarian."

The Yuezhou soldiers walking down the steep slope swung their blades and slashed from top to bottom.

The Yuezhou soldiers holding bows rushed to the edge of the steep slope and looked down. They saw a series of smoke and dust, as well as the Western barbarian's scream of "Ah--", and the other party was rolling down the steep slope.

After comforting Xu Chu for a few words, Su Chen took him with him and the soldiers of the Shenji Battalion to inspect the various troops and horses. Sometimes he would stop and wait to see if there were any signs of disengagement in the entire army.

This hunter is about fifty years old. He wears a tattered leather jacket. He has deep-set eyes, a high nose bridge, and fluffy hair. His green eyes symbolize that he is a pure Satsuma.

Soon after, other scouts who were searching were reunited. They passed through the coniferous forest and climbed over several hills. After marking the terrain, they returned, pushed aside the hanging branches, and stood on the cliff. Densely packed flags came into view. .

The harelips chewed the thick serrated leaves back and forth. The plump hare flapped its ears while chewing, while looking at the unkempt human in front of it.

In the time from Tianfengling to now, only twenty or thirty people had suffered from altitude sickness, and then they were pulled to the front of the team by the prepared carriage and went down the mountain as soon as possible.

In this regard, Su Chen was also helpless. Long-haired war elephants were not easy to tame. When he came back from conquering the Japanese pirates, he asked Zheng He's fleet to go out to sea to look for and buy as many as they wanted. Taming this thing is not easy, so As for the fleet, they returned empty-handed every time.

From the moment he set foot on Tianfeng Mountain, Su Chen, who came as a descendant, has been paying attention to whether the soldiers have altitude sickness.

puff!
The Satsuma man lying on the ground raised his hands to resist. As the sound of the blade entering the flesh was heard, his arms kept resisting, and the head on his shoulders and neck rushed into the air dragging a line of blood.

Soon after the rustling sound of shaking was heard, a small beast jumped out. The Satsuma hunter followed it and saw clearly that it was a gray-haired hare.

Later, he was drafted into the army and after half a year of training, in addition to his skills on the battlefield, he was also able to walk on plain ground in the mountains.

For a moment, he heard a sound and subconsciously raised his head, and saw a fierce oriental face, grinning ferociously at him. The next moment, the coldness of the blade was reflected in the eyes of the Satsuma hunter.

The two figures at the front quickly exchanged words. One of them drew his bow and nocked an arrow. The moment he jumped off the rock, the arrow flew out with a whoosh.

When the Satsuma hunter entered the narrow cave, his bow was broken by the cave passage, and now he only had a rough dagger in his hand.

He looked at Dian Wei in front of him who was using his war elephant to clear the way, "What's so great..."

The Satsuma hunter turned around with the same vigilance. He thought he was a wild wolf in the mountains behind him. The moment he turned back, he saw several figures holding knives, standing under a big tree and looking over. Then they ran wildly towards him. .

In their field of vision, a huge army was divided into dozens or hundreds of teams, marching across the mountains and plains.

There is no medicine for altitude sickness in this world. We can only transfer the soldiers who feel unwell as soon as possible, but it is impossible to bring them back to the Western Region.

At this time, the hunter licked his lips and thought about how to catch the rabbit. At this moment, footsteps came from the direction behind him. The hare turned his head alertly, turned around, kicked his legs, and swooped in. Grass nearby.

"You still dare to resist?!"

An Eastern soldier used the dialect of Yuezhou to laugh at his comrade who had just shot the arrow. The latter took a sip and ran through the rugged mountains and forests with his bow. They had grown up in the mountains of Yuezhou and were not afraid of the mountains even with their bare feet. Sharp stones.

After the hunter landed heavily, he was half dead from the fall. His face was covered with blood, and the leather jacket on his body was also torn. You could see that the skin and flesh were cracked, and a lot of blood flowed out. The huge pain made him cry out. , I tried to struggle to get up, but I couldn't get up after several attempts. Both legs were broken.

"This way I can miss the target and let you show off!"

Su Chen was riding a war horse at this time, marching in the army like Xu Chu. The ancestral coffin was too huge, so he stayed behind and was slowly brought over by the soldiers.

Occasionally, Dian Wei can be seen riding a giant woolly elephant, walking through the mountains and forests, his huge body squeezing the forest trees upside down.

The horse under Xu Chu was also a thousand-mile horse. It was relatively strong and tall among war horses, but compared with Dian Wei's horse, he still couldn't help but have a sour tone in his mouth.

Fortunately, the soldiers in this world are relatively strong. Over the years, soldiers in the army have been taught some Qi training methods to strengthen their bodies and increase their strength.

More than 100,000 people were divided into dozens or hundreds of teams, ranging from as many as 2,000 to hundreds, spanning dozens of miles to the west of this mountain range.

After all, there was a rebellion, and the soldiers were okay and quickly pulled him down the mountain. But Zhuge Liang was different. If something happened, it would be too late to regret it.

"Now I'm a little envious of the cavalry on the grassland." Liu Sheng, the commander of the Shenji Battalion, also had some symptoms of discomfort, but he only felt tightness in his chest and some difficulty breathing.

He only mentioned the prairie cavalry and did not mention the word Mongolia. As a Ming Dynasty person, he had a deep hatred for Mongolia.

"Your Majesty, that Subotai has bloody methods and has so many troops under his command. You need to be careful."

Only a few know that once the token is destroyed, the general summoned by the token will also die.

Liu Sheng didn't know, so he reminded Su Chen like this.

However, it's no wonder that Zhu Di has a bad impression of him. Although he said these things behind his back, it was for Su Chen's benefit, but after all, he was suspected of gossiping behind his back.

"You know so much!" When Xu Chu, who was straight-faced, turned around on horseback and said something to Liu Sheng, Wu Zixun and his men had already galloped back.

Seeing him panting, Su Chen frowned immediately.

"Looking at your posture, does the Prime Minister also have symptoms of discomfort?"

Since Wu Zixun was injured, his body has been weak. In addition, following Su Chen, his former martial arts skills have long been wasted. He gasped and nodded: "Your Majesty, the Prime Minister is indeed feeling a little unwell, but it is not serious. The Prime Minister asked me to come back and reply. "Don't worry, it will be fine after we go down the mountain."

"It's really hard for him!"

Su Chen rubbed his brows, summoned a commanding officer, and asked him to take the imperial doctor who was staying with him and go over to check Zhuge Liang to see if he could prescribe medicine to suppress his physical discomfort.

After walking another twenty miles, when they reached a place where the terrain gradually eased, the army began to rest where they were, taking the time to eat dry food and drink water.

If there are war horses, let the horses go to the nearby area to show off on their own. Soon, Zhuge Liang was pushed over by soldiers on a two-wheeled cart.

"...Haha, your majesty is worried. I went to Qishan Mountain many times and climbed the peak. I didn't expect that I would feel such discomfort here."

Seeing that Zhuge Liang's face was slightly blue and his breathing was not smooth, Su Chen walked to the side and asked in a low voice: "Can you still hold on, Prime Minister? If not, I will send someone to take you to the front first, and you will come down the mountain as soon as possible to recover for a while."

"No, no need!" Zhuge Liang took a sip of water and looked better, "...I am your Majesty's close minister, so I should set an example, but your Majesty doesn't have to worry about my health. I have been growing flowers and grass here these years. Your body and bones will have been well maintained for a long time. If you don't believe it, ask Wang Lang when your majesty returns home!"

Haha!

Hearing this, Su Chen laughed out loud. During the competition between the three armies, Zhuge Liang beat Wang Lang severely in front of everyone. Later, during the three years that the two worked together, they often had quarrels that turned into fights.

Su Chen had no idea that a fight between two civil servants would be more exciting than a fight between generals on the battlefield.

"Since the Prime Minister thinks it's okay, I won't force the Prime Minister to go down the mountain first." Su Chen patted the dirt off his hands and stood up from the side of the two-wheeled vehicle.

Zhuge Liang smiled and nodded: "The march of the three armies and the collection of intelligence are all inseparable from people. I will go back to the team first. Your Majesty, don't worry. If you are tired, I will sit in the car and rest!"

Zhuge Liang specially patted the armrest of the two-wheeled vehicle, and then asked his soldiers to push him away.

Here, Su Chen got on the horse again, looked back at Zhuge Liang who was leaving, and then galloped towards the front of the army, his voice echoing in the mountains and forests.

"Hurry up and march. The Mongolian cavalry of the former army has swept across the barbarians. How can we, the soldiers who have fought hundreds of battles, fall behind!"

"In front of us is the first city of the Western Expedition, Hasai of the Satsuma people. After the city is broken, my men can search it!"

The cavalry carrying the holy message carried the flag and galloped along the way.

……

The blue sky is covered with white clouds.

Smoke and dust rose and fell on the ground. In the direction of Hasai City, the soldiers on the city wall looked at the wilderness in fear. Densely packed cavalry moved quickly around the small city.

In the fields outside the city, there were loud arrows exploding in the sky from time to time, attracting people's attention. Soon, groups of running cavalry were heading that way.

They were broken troops left over from the battle ten days ago. They were resisting in the nearby mountains, forests or fields. However, when they encountered the Mongolian cavalry following the guidance of the sounding arrows, after several passes and collisions, the remnant soldiers who resisted were shattered like waves.

Bodies trampled by war horses and hacked by blades were left everywhere in the fields and mountains.

In the eyes of the soldiers in Hasai City, there were still many deserters running around outside.

The battle ten days ago was like a nightmare to anyone.

Tens of thousands of troops fell apart in an instant and were defeated one by one on the way to reinforcements. The main force stationed in front of Hasai City was also broken through. Tonino, who had no reinforcements, could not stop the Eastern cavalry from surrounding the camp and continuously firing rockets. The desperate Eastern cavalry broke through the camp gate and rushed in.

The general Tonino was also killed in the tent by the Eastern cavalry during the night attack.

With only an isolated city left, Hasai faced a seemingly endless group of cavalry and could only close the city gates tightly and strengthen the city walls.

The news of Hasai's siege was also conveyed to Satila to the west as quickly as possible.

This is already the fastest war horse sent by Hasai City.

It was already the early morning of the next day when we arrived there. When O'Lain, who was guarding Satila, received the battle report, he rolled his eyes in anger and fainted on the spot.

Tens of thousands of soldiers and horses, but he had scraped it here and there over the years and saved it bit by bit.

He was beaten to death in one night. Anyone would be so angry that they would vomit blood. When they woke up, it was already daybreak.

O'Lain quickly summoned the generals who were still in the city to take stock of how many troops he still had. On the other hand, he also sent men to the rear to seek help from Holy Lothar.

"There are still 10,000 people available in the city, and a group of 500 swordsmen can be worth 5,000 people!"

The meeting was held in the royal palace. The generals present were all nobles from the Olayin family. There could have been more people, but ten days ago, they all died in Hasai City.

The current generals can be counted with one slap.

"Ten thousand people..." O'Lain's beard almost turned gray when he heard this number.

Tens of thousands of people were defeated. What could ten thousand people do? And they are not elite soldiers. In the entire army, only the five hundred swordsmen are available.

It's almost noon.

The second message was sent here from Hasai in the east, probably last night.

The contents above are dense and dense, all written by the scribe.

After the defeat of Tonino, Hasai became an isolated city. All the passes and strongholds outside the city were taken out by the enemy one by one. Even some troops who went to rescue were completely annihilated by the opponent on the way.

General Towa met the enemy thirty miles away from Hasai and was defeated by the enemy. Towa was killed by ten arrows in the body!

The Dagang stronghold was broken and 700 soldiers were defeated!
The Hayman Town outpost was attacked, and two hundred of our own men were killed!

……

There were beacon fires everywhere outside the city of Hasai, and almost all the sentries, strongholds, and villages were massacred. It even said that the enemy cut off the heads of the soldiers who died in the battle and piled them outside the city of Hasai to show off.

After reading this battle report, the palace was completely silent.

The arrogant generals who had conquered several city-states and small countries all fell silent in front of O'Lain, and no one stood up boldly to take on the task of defending against the enemy.

"Why is it completely different from the battles we fought before..."

Facing the silence below, O'Lain also fell into confusion.

However, while their discussions were fruitless and they were looking at the map in a daze, the third piece of information had been delivered from outside.

The news was not sent from Hasai City, but by scouts sent from the Amir Mountains for three days.

A huge army is coming out of the mountains! !
And the army? !
O'Lain looked at the information in his hand and was so frightened that he almost fell from his chair to the ground. On the paper recording the information, he roughly estimated the number of the army, which was almost equal to the Eastern cavalry outside.

In other words, Hasai City will face an army of more than 300,000? !
"Three hundred thousand..."

There was deathly silence in the palace, and the sound of breathing could be heard clearly.

Everyone, including O'Lain, subconsciously looked at the map hanging in the palace, as if they saw 300,000 troops from the east sweeping past Hasai and then rushing towards them.

——The former capital of Satsuma, Satira.

same moment.

In the direction of Hasai City, the Eastern cavalry that was originally flying across the wilderness were shrinking in the eyes of Hasai City soldiers and were no longer running around as usual.

What everyone in the city didn't know was that from the Amir Mountains, the main force of the left army from the Eastern Xia Kingdom, the 140,000 troops led by the Emperor of Xia Kingdom, were coming out of the mountains and forests, gathering in the wilderness, and advancing towards this side. .

Countless flags were flying and flying, blocking out the sky and the sun. There were figures of people and war horses all over the mountains and plains. On the terrain at the junction of plains and mountains, it stretched back and forth for nearly fifty miles.

The huge army was divided into several layers, and divided into dozens or hundreds of formations, separated by one to two miles from each other, and kept advancing.

When Hasai City heard the news, the army was less than thirty-five miles away.

The whole city is in panic!

(End of this chapter)