Guide to traveling through the Northern Song Dynasty

"General, urgent report from Chengdu!"

Just when Ju Ming was besieging Xi County, a so-called eight-hundred-mile expedited letter arrived from Chengdu.

Ju Ming opened it and read it, and soon his face turned cold.

Dali Kingdom has sent troops!

Barbarian tribes such as Aduman and Baozhaiman were originally closer to the Dali Kingdom. Although they accepted the canonization of the Song Dynasty on the surface, they actually listened to the orders of the Dali Kingdom. (Given a choice, they don’t want to listen to orders from anyone.)

Now that Dali is sending troops, it was invited by the Song Dynasty court. The two suzerain states spoke together and these tribes must naturally follow.

Qiongbu Chuanman was beaten badly by Ju Ming. There should have been no suspense at this time, but something unexpected happened.

Half a year ago, I heard that the Song Dynasty asked Dali for help. Ju Meng, who lived in Tokyo, asked to see Song Huizong: "In the official family, I have been the Great Ghost Lord of Baimandu for twenty years, and I have prestige in the south pole of the Dadu River. If I let you go back, We can definitely persuade hundreds of barbarians to raise troops and help the imperial court regain the land in Shu!"

Song Huizong was overjoyed and praised: "You are really a loyal minister!"

So Ju Meng and his son were sent to Dali to rule the barbarians as the Great Ghost Lord of the Hundred Barbarians.

Hearing that Ju Meng was back and that he was the Great Ghost Lord of Baimandu, Qu Mang, Li Shun'en, and Mi Wang, who had planned to attack Sichuan, immediately joined forces to resist the Dali invasion.

These three brothers are the leaders of the Qiongbu Sichuan Barbarians, the Lianglin Barbarians, and the Aboriginal White Barbarians respectively. They are also the Great Ghost Lords of the Hundred Barbarians whom Ju Ming requested the imperial court to confer!

Now that Ju Meng is back to reset, where will he put them?

If Song Huizong didn't mess around, most of the barbarians south of the Dadu River would rebel, posing a huge threat to Lizhou and Yazhou.

However, Emperor Huizong of the Song Dynasty released Ju Meng, forcing the leaders of the three major tribes to collectively take sides.

Unable to defeat the Dali army, the indigenous Bai barbarians were the first to move north.

The Qiongbu Sichuan Barbarians and the Lianglin Barbarians were divided. Some tribes took refuge in Ju Meng, who had returned from the king, while some were led by Qu Mang to the north and attached themselves to Lizhou.

The Han-dominated tribes and Henan barbarians installed by Ju Ming also hurriedly fled across the Dadu River.

Tens of thousands of barbarians who supported Ju Ming, led by the Hanyuan County magistrate, garrisoned various ferries on the north bank of the Dadu River.

The five tribes of barbarians also mobilized collectively in the western mountains of Lizhou to prevent the Baozhai barbarians from crossing Hebei. These tribes had no choice. They had sent many of their sons to join Ju Ming's rebel team and were incorporated into the Tengxiang Army as a cavalry unit.

Gao Jingshan and Bai Qi met in front of Zhang Jinping and established a plan to defend against the enemy.

Gao Jingshan was responsible for raising and transporting grain and grass, and Bai Qi ordered the Tengxiang army to attack and bring the barbarians of Yazhou with him.

In addition, Shi Shu, the prefect of Jiazhou, was the commander-in-chief, uniting the troops from various states and counties to go to Lizhou for a decisive battle.

After reading the urgent report, Shi Yuangong handed it to Zhang Bor: "Why didn't it say how many soldiers and horses came from Dali?"

Ju Ming had already guessed what was going on: "The commander of the Dali army wanted to come and eat meat but was afraid of being beaten. He kept driving the barbarians to fight, but he did not use his full strength. He probably robbed those who could win, and looted if they couldn't. The idea of ​​withdrawing the troops is to let the barbarians fight among themselves first. The more barbarians die, the more stable the northern border of Dali will be. Anyway, they will not suffer losses. If they successfully plunder Lizhou, they will make money, and they can plunder the vicinity of Chengdu. The prefectures and counties will make a lot of money. How can we know their military strength if they are so shrinking?"

"What is the combat effectiveness of the soldiers left behind in Chengdu?" Zhang Bor asked.

Ju Ming said: "Except for the three thousand Tengxiang troops and the three thousand Han sergeants, the rest are all temporarily trained local troops. The three thousand Han sergeants must stay in Chengdu, not to guard against the barbarians, but to guard against the rebellion of the great clans in Shu!"

Zhang Bor thought: "To put it bluntly, if the Dali army is allowed to plunder Lizhou and Yazhou, and the Dali soldiers and barbarians are brought in, the big families in Shu will return. In order to defend Sangzi, they must Recruit local soldiers and always stand on the side of the rebels. Even if the Dali soldiers are invited by the emperor, the powerful gentry will resist resolutely and will resist to the end even if they are thieves."

"That's right!" Shi Yuangong quickly agreed.

He always felt that his thinking was a beat too slow. It was Gao Jingshan before, but now it's Zhang Bor, who always steals his limelight.

Ju Ming said: "With the gentry and powerful people here, nothing will happen in Shu, but Yazhou and Lizhou must also be preserved as much as possible. We can't delay it any longer, and the war must be ended as soon as possible."

The situation in the south is very delicate. No matter how the Dali soldiers burn, kill and loot, as long as they do not advance into the Chengdu Plain, they have nothing to do with the big families in Sichuan, and they may even take the opportunity to cause trouble. Therefore, the three thousand Han soldiers cannot move and must always be stationed in Chengdu.

Once the Dali soldiers march into the Chengdu Plain, the wealthy people in Shu will immediately change their minds and actively recruit troops to help the rebels fight desperately.

"Luogu Pass has been captured by surprise," Zhang Bor pointed to the map and said, "At this time, we can divide our troops and use more grass-roots soldiers to confuse the defenders of Yi County. The main force of the rebel army will go west to capture Guo County!"

Ju Ming also had the same idea: "I will stay in Yi County, and you will lead the troops to attack Guo County."

"Promise to fulfill the mission!" Zhang Bor accepted the order.

Shi Yuangong was a little envious. He could only be a military advisor, but Zhang Bor could lead troops at critical moments.

That night, Zhang Bor quietly left with his main force, followed the mountains away from the Wei River, and headed for Guoxian at full speed.

The other 2,000 soldiers were divided to support Luogu Pass. There were only 2,000 people to seize the pass and hold on, so more troops had to be added to guard against Liu Yanqing's desperate attempt to jump over the wall.

Meanwhile, Ju Ming, along with miscellaneous troops and civilians, continued to besiege Xi County, with only 3,000 elite soldiers around him.

Many of the rebel camps that stretched for miles were empty, with straw men dressed in clothes and pretending to be soldiers.

The more empty the camp is, the more bluffing is necessary.

The day after Zhang Bor left with his troops, Ju Ming took the initiative to go out to the camp to provoke, which frightened the defenders of Xi County and refused to leave.

In order to prevent the defenders from leaving the city for a night attack, Ju Ming took the initiative to make a noise at night, sending miscellaneous troops and civilians with torches to beat drums and shout in the west and south of Xi County.

"This is Zhu Thief's tactic to tire out his troops," Zhong Shizhong analyzed. "The constant shouting of provocations day and night makes our army always nervous and fearful. When our army gets used to it and the soldiers are exhausted, they suddenly attack unexpectedly at night. city."

Liu Xi nodded in agreement: "It must be so."

Liu Qi said: "The thieves kept beating drums at night, and most of them couldn't sleep. In a few days, when the thieves can fall asleep, I will take my own soldiers to attack the camp, and I will give the thieves a try. taste."

They still don't know that Luogu Pass has fallen.

Because the rebels made a surprise attack and captured the pass, the guards could only flee to the south. The valley to the north was all blocked, and it was impossible for broken troops to come to deliver the message.

On the third day after the division of troops, Luogu Pass guard Liu Guangzu was brought in. This man was Liu Yanqing's nephew.

Zhu Ming instantly felt happy and said very generously: "Put this guy back to Xi County."

Liu Guangzu thought he was going to die. When he heard that he could survive, he immediately jumped for joy. He spread his legs and ran down the city. When he got close, he shouted: "Don't shoot arrows, I am Liu Guangzu, the guard of Luogu Pass!"

The cultivator was shocked, so he hung him up in a hanging basket and asked, "Why were you caught by the bandits?"

Liu Guangzu said: "Tens of thousands of bandits stormed Luogu Pass, and I was caught because I couldn't defend myself."

"That's nonsense. The main force of the bandits is right in front of us. How can we get tens of thousands of people to attack Luogu Pass?" Zhong Shizhong angrily yelled.

Liu Guangzu said: "There are not tens of thousands, but ten thousand."

Zhong Shizhong ignored this guy and discussed with the Liu brothers: "Luogu Pass was probably captured by bandits in a surprise attack."

Liu Xi had lost his energy: "Liu Yanqing and Yang Weizhong's tens of thousands of troops were blocked in Luo Valley and could not get out. Of the three armies of Shaanxi, only Yao Gu's troops remained, and the war situation could no longer be reversed."

The reason why they stick to Xi County is to wait for help.

When all the soldiers and horses of Liu Yanqing and Yao Gu return, the total number of Western armies will be 60,000 to 70,000, and they can still fight Ju Ming in a decisive battle in Yi County.

Once Luogu Pass is lost, there is basically no chance.

Zhong Shizhong, Liu Xi, and Liu Qi are all cautious people. It is difficult for them to understand that the main force of the bandits was pinned in Yi County, so how could Luogu Pass be captured by surprise?

If you tie a dog there, you won't lose Guancheng!

Just as the three of them were discussing countermeasures, a boat came from the upper reaches of the Wei River and sailed straight to the north dock of Xi County.

A civil servant covered in blood came to the door and called: "I am Yang Tong, the magistrate of Guo County. Let me enter the city quickly!"

Liu Xi quickly brought this person in and asked nervously: "Guo County is gone too?"

Yang Tong replied: "I defended the city according to the methods you gave me. I blocked all the city gates. I also informed the people in the city that thieves and soldiers were eager to kill, and recruited thousands of young men, old and weak women and children in the city to defend the city. to carry supplies. But...but it was useless. Countless bandits suddenly appeared on the south bank of the Weishui River. They crossed the river on rafts and then besieged them from three sides. The young man in my hand had no bow and arrows, so I could only watch them. Cross the moat.”

"Rolling wood, falling rocks, and gold juice are all useless?" Liu Qi asked.

Yang Tong said in horror: "It's been used, but the bandits are not afraid, and these things are not enough. A wave of bandits climbed up the city wall, and all the young men recruited temporarily collapsed. They were all common people in the city, and they didn't even have decent weapons. How could they stop them? Can you keep those thugs at bay?"

The master asked, "How many bandits are attacking the city?"

Yang Tong replied: "I don't know, I can't count them."

"Were you released by the bandits?" Liu Qi asked.

"Yes, the bandits returned a boat." Yang Tong said.

The three guard generals looked at each other, confused as to whether Ju Ming was lying or not.

Yang Tong was only a civil servant and did not know how to fight. His statement that there were countless thieves and bandits was probably an exaggeration. Even if there are so many rebels attacking Guoxian County, they may be mixed with many civilians to make up the number, and Zhu Ming's real elite is in Xixian County.

Deliberately sending the county magistrate back to report the news was actually to lure the defenders of Xi County out of the city.

"You can't fight outside the city!" Zhong Shizhong said.

Liu Qi muttered: "What if the Zhu Thieves really divide their troops and send their elites to attack Baoji? Then the bandit camp in front of us will be empty."

Zhong Shizhong said: "If the elite thieves attack Baoji, their target is Yao Gu. If they just make a false shot to the west, their target is Yi County. Both situations are possible, and a choice must be made."

Liu Xi said: "If Xi County is lost, Fengxiang Mansion will not be protected, and Taiwei Gao will not be able to explain it."

The three of them were all silent. There was no way to make a decision. It was just a matter of guessing.