The Jagged Cavalry of the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 220 Chapter 219
Xu Huang led two thousand fine cavalry and conquered Dangtu County with lightning speed. When the county magistrate suddenly heard that Xu Huang led the army to arrive suddenly, he was so frightened that he had to surrender in order to protect himself.

Later, Zhang Yan led an army to Dangtu County. Because the county was too small to accommodate an army of tens of thousands, Zhang Yan only brought three thousand of his relatives into the city, and the rest of the army was stationed outside the city.

On the other hand, Zhang Liao took over Maqiuju, which made Zhang Yan quite gratified.

That night, Zhang Yan was discussing with Jia Xu, Liu Ye, Lu Su, Gu Yong, Yang Xiu and others in the Dangtu County Yamen how to deal with the invading army of [-].

While discussing, someone suddenly came to report: "My lord, General Zhang has sent scouts to deliver the good news of Ma Qiuju!"

"Okay! Zhang Liao lived up to everyone's expectations and won the first battle, let people come in!" Zhang Yan said happily.

After a while, a scout walked in from the outside, carrying a package in his hand, which was stained with some blood. After Zhang Yan looked at it, he knew that it should contain a human head. clear.

So, without waiting for the scouts to speak, Zhang Yan first asked: "Whose head are you holding in your hand?"

The scout immediately knelt down on the ground and said respectfully: "My lord, this is the head of the rebel general Ji Ling!"

"What did you say? Is it Ji Ling's head?" Zhang Yan asked in surprise.

"It's Ji Ling's head. General Zhang set up an ambush in Machuju, and ambushed the enemy army who came to rob Machuju. The leader of the army was Ji Ling. General Zhang killed Ji Ling, and all his troops One thousand were all wiped out by General Zhang, but none of General Zhang's subordinates lost a man or a horse." When the scout said this, he was also very happy, Ji Ling's beheading can be said to be great news .

Zhang Yan ordered the scouts to open the package, and a bloody human head came into his eyes immediately. Ji Ling's eyes were wide open, and he didn't close his eyes. Zhang Yan seemed to be able to see Ji Ling's fear when he was dying from those eyes. And unwilling.

Ji Ling was the number one general under Yuan Shu's tent. When Yuan Shu led his army to invade Xuzhou, Zhang Yan had captured Ji Ling alive, but later released Ji Ling in order to recruit him in the future.Unexpectedly, he was killed by Zhang Liao.

Moreover, what surprised Zhang Yan was that Ji Ling, as the general of the rebel army, only brought a thousand cavalry to rob Maqiuju, which is a bit unreasonable.

Therefore, Zhang Yan immediately asked the scouts about the situation, and only then did he know that the west of Xiquyang City was hit by heavy rain. Ji Ling led five thousand cavalry from Shouchun to brave the rain and wind. Due to the oppression, many people in the army fell ill and temporarily lived in Yangcheng, Xiqu.

However, in order to compete for this strategically important place, Ji Ling did not hesitate to lead a thousand cavalry to Machuju at starry night.

Coincidentally, when Ji Ling arrived, Zhang Liao had just occupied Machuju for less than half an hour. If the scouts hadn't discovered Ji Ling's army first, told Zhang Liao, and made Zhang Liao prepare, I'm afraid they might not be able to wipe out Ji Ling's entire army. .

After Zhang Yan learned the ins and outs of the whole incident, he regretted Ji Ling's death.He had met Ji Ling before, and he could be considered a useful general, and his force was not weak. He originally planned to subdue him for his own use in this confrontation, but he had already been beheaded by Zhang Liao.

It's only Zhang Yan's fault that he didn't predict that such a bizarre thing would happen. If he had known that Ji Ling was coming with the exhausted army, he would have asked Zhang Liao to keep Ji Ling alive.

But at this time Ji Ling was dead, and it was too late to say anything.And Zhang Liao won the first battle and beheaded the enemy's general. This credit is really not small.

Therefore, Zhang Yan immediately appointed Zhang Liao as Huya General, doubled his salary, and rewarded him with a thousand pieces of gold for his achievements.

Jia Xu said at the right time: "My lord, according to the intelligence of the scouts, my subordinates think that Zhang Liao can lead a victorious army to rush to Xiquyang City in the starry night. , Our army disguised as Ji Ling's army, opened the city gate, and then occupied Xiquyang City, it should not be a problem."

Zhang Yan thought for a while, and felt that what Jia Xu said was quite reasonable. This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. If he could capture Xiquyang City, it would be a blow to Yuan Shu's army.

Therefore, Zhang Yan ordered the scouts to rush to Maqiuju, and asked Zhang Liao to lead the crowd to attack Xiquyang. As for what method to use, it was up to him. Anyway, as long as the city of Xiquyang is captured at dawn, it will be a great achievement.

The scout received the order, turned around and left.

Then, Jia Xu said to Zhang Yan: "Master, after Zhang Liao occupies Xiquyang City, as long as we don't change the flag and block the news, our army can set up an ambush here again, and then face Yuan Jun's army. One battle will be enough." Defeat Yuan Shu's army."

"There are still more than 9 people in Yuan Shu's army who have not yet arrived, and our army has only [-] people. Is it too risky?" Zhang Yan asked cautiously.

Jia Xu said: "Just now the scouts have said that the west of Xiquyang City is being hit by a storm. Most of Ji Ling's [-] cavalry have fallen ill, let alone the infantry? They are newly recruited, many of them have never been on the battlefield, they are simply a mob, and not all soldiers are willing to die for Yuan Shu, not to mention that Ji Ling is dead, Yuan Jun has no leader, and the rest of the generals are all incompetent. Our army has set up an ambush on all sides in the Yangcheng area of ​​Xiqu, Yuan's army will definitely be defeated!"

"House of Flying Daggers? Tell me quickly!" Zhang Yan heard Jia Xu mentioned House of Flying Daggers, so he knew that Jia Xu had a plan in mind, so he immediately asked.

Jia Xu then spoke out his strategy in public. After Zhang Yan heard it, he even praised it. Even Lu Su, Liu Ye, Gu Yong, Yang Xiu and others lamented Jia Xu's clever strategy.

It's no wonder, after all, Lu Su, Liu Ye, Gu Yong, and Yang Xiu are all young talents. In terms of life experience and way of looking at things, they are not as advanced as the elder Jia Xu.This also confirms a truth from another aspect, that is, ginger is still spicy when it is old.

Zhang Yan immediately conveyed the order to Xu Huang, Chen Ying, and Li Dian to lead an army of [-] to advance lightly, with only three days of dry food, to go to Xiquyang City overnight.But he left Yang Xiu, Gu Yong, Mi Fang and [-] soldiers to guard the grain and grass in Dangtu County and defend Maqiuju to prevent Yuan Shu's other troops from harassing.

As the saying goes, before the soldiers and horses move, the food and grass go first. This food and grass are necessary for marching and fighting. If there is no food and grass, no matter how powerful the army is, it will not last long.

Therefore, guarding food and grass is also a heavy responsibility.

Yang Xiu has now become Zhang Yan's confidant, and even the master of the army, so it is understandable to leave behind to guard the food and grass.However, Zhang Yan also considered that Yang Xiu was too young, and he was afraid that he would not be able to take on this important task alone, so he left Gu Yong behind. He is also a few years older than Yang Xiu.In addition, Zhang Yan specially left Mi Fang to lead the seven thousand soldiers. Mi Fang is Zhang Yan's brother-in-law, and he can be regarded as a close relative. With such a heavy responsibility, who else would he?

The army set off overnight, Xu Huang ordered all the soldiers and horses in his headquarters, acted as Zhang Yan's vanguard, and led two thousand elite cavalry to quickly march towards Xiquyang City.

Xu Huang already knew about Zhang Liao beheading Ji Ling, annihilating Ji Ling's troops, and being named General Huya.Xu Huang was envious on the one hand, and jealous on the other. He wished he could exchange positions with Zhang Liao, so that he could gain military exploits.

Therefore, after Xu Huang ordered all the soldiers and horses, he immediately led his troops to gallop away, heading towards Xiquyang City.

Xu Huang was in the front, Zhang Yan led an army of [-] as the central army, and the rest were all under the command of Chen Ying and Li Dian. They were very energetic, even though they had been traveling all night, they didn't feel tired at all. They all sensed the upcoming battle, but each soldier's heart was full of energy, ready to fight and make contributions.

Since Zhang Yan brought the Son of Heaven to Pengcheng, there have been relatively few wars. In order to stabilize the situation and concentrate on developing the occupied area, the army trains every day in addition to training, which makes people feel a little boring.

This well-trained and disciplined army has been hidden by Zhang Yan for more than half a year. Now is the time for them to show their swords to the outside world. A fire is burning in the heart of every soldier, looking forward to a battle that can win Great battle.

……

Zhang Liao received Zhang Yan's order in Maqiuju. He was awarded the title of General Huya for his meritorious service, and he was asked to lead [-] cavalry from his headquarters to attack Xiquyang City.

In fact, Zhang Liao already had this intention when he presented the good news. After all, this is a rare opportunity and it is fleeting. However, because he was under Zhang Yan's tent for a short time, he dared not directly express his opinion, so he could only stay where he was and wait. Order.

Because, he believed, Zhang Yan would definitely not miss this opportunity.

Sure enough, he waited for the news he needed to wait for.

Zhang Liao turned over and jumped onto the black shadow that had just been tamed, and got all his men on horses, and took the rest of the more than 700 captured horses and [-] sets of armor with him, for other purposes.

"set off!"

Following Zhang Liao's cry, three thousand soldiers, led by Zhang Liao, immediately marched to Xiquyang.

The sound of rumbling horseshoes resounded on the official road at night. Every soldier below Zhang Liao wanted to make contributions, and the enthusiasm in his heart was extremely high.

Zhang Yanjun's war horses were all bought from the Wuhuan people, and because Li Cai was a man who knew horses very well, he had high requirements for the quality of the horses.

At that time, Li Cai carefully selected these [-] good horses from the tens of thousands of war horses raised by the Wuhuan people, and transported them to Xuzhou by sea boat twice.

Wuhuan horses have very good stamina, are not afraid of severe cold, and are relatively fast. Zhang Liao's [-] soldiers all ride such horses on their crotches.

From Machuju to Xiquyang City, the distance was only fifty miles. Zhang Liao and others rode their horses at a fast pace, and it only took more than half an hour to reach the territory of Xiquyang.

The cold moonlight has moved to the western sky, and the night has become more intense. It is already Yin time, and it is the time when people are sleeping soundly.

Zhang Liao led the cavalry and gradually approached Xiquyang City. In order not to attract people's attention, they wrapped the four hooves of the horses with cloth to avoid loud noises.

Along the way, Zhang Liao sent another [-] scouts to deal with Yuan Jun's secret sentry ahead of them, and only then was he able to arrive at Xiquyang City silently.

About one mile away from the city, Zhang Liao stopped the army. He looked at the high wall, the closed gate, and the soldiers standing on the wall. If he attacked by force, there would definitely be casualties. Moreover, they were all cavalry, and they didn't lead the siege equipment, so they couldn't capture the city at all.

Fortunately, Zhang Liao was well prepared. He asked people to bring the [-] pairs of armor that were almost in good condition, and some bloody clothes. He selected the most elite [-] cavalrymen and put them on his body, pretending to be Yuan Jun's cavalrymen.

But he mixed with the cavalry, led the [-] cavalry, pretended to be very tired, and swaggered to the bottom of Xiquyang City.

On Xiquyang City, the guards were very heavily guarded, there were many swords and guns, and the bows and crossbows were ready. Suddenly, everyone heard a chaotic sound of horseshoes coming from far and near. Facing the faint moonlight, they saw hundreds of cavalry galloping towards the city. Come, everyone was nervous for a while, and immediately drew their swords and drew their swords, ready to fight.

It wasn't until these cavalrymen gradually approached that they could see clearly that these people were wearing the same armor as them, their bodies were already covered with blood, and they looked very tired.

At this moment, Zhang Liao took a step forward and came to the base of the city, pretending to be weak, gasping for breath, and falteringly said: "We were ambushed... the general... was gathered in Maqiu... Surrounded, the general ordered us to rush out of the siege, come forward to report, pray for reinforcements...quick...quickly open the city gate...let us go in..."

When the soldiers on the city tower heard this, they immediately believed it, and hurriedly reported it to the guard. The guard saw this, and immediately asked someone to open the city gate, and personally led the army out to meet him, ready to ask what happened.

Unexpectedly, as soon as the city gate was opened, Zhang Liao was the first to charge into the city with a long spear in his hand. He opened the way first and stabbed to death a soldier blocking the door in an instant, and the five hundred cavalrymen behind him also Immediately swarming up, the cavalry hidden in the distance also rode out one after another, scrambling to rush towards the city gate.

Zhang Liao was brave and good at fighting. With a long spear, he cut a bloody road and stabbed the guard to death. The soldiers behind him followed closely, rushed past the guards at the gate of the city, and rushed into the city.

The officers and men of the Yuan army were suddenly attacked, at a loss what to do, cavalry entered the city continuously, Zhang Liao commanded, and sent people to occupy the gate of the city, killing all the defenders at the gate of the city.

In just one stick of incense, Zhang Liao occupied the city gate and bloodbathed all the soldiers at the gate.

After Zhang Liao occupied the city gate, he made a decisive decision and immediately ordered: "You take 500 people to the west gate, you take 500 people to the south gate, you take 500 people to the north gate, and leave 500 people to guard here. Be sure to guard the four gates. , don’t let one go, the rest will follow me and go into the city!”

(End of this chapter)