stubborn thief

Chapter 156

General Ai Mu stood on Wen'an Post City, caressing the battlements that had been in disrepair with his callused hands.

Ten years ago, he followed his father as a servant and studied military affairs in the Dingbian camp.

At that time, he lived in Wen'an Station.

He remembered that Shandaokou was particularly prosperous here. People from ten miles and eight villages gathered to open the market. The houses on the streets were row upon row, all built in the shape of flat-roofed cave dwellings, which could gather water when it rained, and grow food when it didn’t rain.

Between the shoe shop and the inn there is a clothing shop. People like the new rather than the old. They made new clothes a year ago and exchanged money for new ones when they were worn out at the end of the year.

Yu Ding, a military household, performs sumo wrestling every day to earn rewards, surrounded by peddlers who sell chickens and fruits, and a painter whose hair scarf can't cover his bald head sits by the Wen'an Post River and draws beauties. catties of beef.

The green plants climbed up the wall bricks, and the post city built on the top of the mountain was lush and lush. There was a Kuixing Tower in the city, and he even visited it.

Now that I think about it, it's really funny, Mizhi Ai's family, with three generations of generals, probably doesn't need Kuixing's blessing.

The broad scene and prosperous appearance of Wen'an Station are still vivid in my mind.

In the span of ten years, the old father died of overwork and illness in the Dingbian Camp official office. He also inherited his will and served as a general to defend the border for the Ming Dynasty.

All memories of yesterday seem to be illusions.

The shop sheds were nowhere to be seen, and the village houses in the west of the city were devoid of beams and pillars, collapsed and dilapidated.

The creepers covering the city did not know whether they died of drought or were eaten, but they were all clean. The bricks of the old city had the color of earth, and the Wen'anyi River not far away was about to dry up.

There is no one in Wen'an Station.

But there is no one other than Wen'an Station.

The sound of armor clashing behind him interrupted Aimu's contemplation, and when he turned his head, it was a young man in cotton armor and iron helmet holding his sword.

The young man stepped forward and knelt down on one knee and said, "General, the prisoner said that last year Cao Cao was able to gather thousands of people with a wave of his hand, but this year he only recruited more than a thousand refugees from all over the place. If you can see the leopard, the Yan'an mansion's thieves have declined."

The young man's name is Ai Huaiguang, and he is the eldest son of Ai Mu.

In addition to Ai Huaiguang, Ai Mu also has four sons, Huaixiang, Huaiying, Huaiqian, and Huaiyuan, all serving in the army as he did when he was young.

"Wake up."

Ai Mu responded softly, asked his son to stand up, and then said: "The governor wants to appease the bandits, that prisoner is Cao Cao's uncle, can you persuade him to surrender?"

"Yes, I can, but father...General, I am worried that he will just say what he wants. If he is told to leave, he will go into exile with Cao Cao."

"Then let him go."

Ai Mu put it categorically: "The Governor's decision to recruit is correct. Yanchuan Yanchang is a small county with a household of less than a thousand and a population of less than [-]. In such a small county, there are hundreds of people who are thieves. The county magistrate should be taken to beheaded. Now more than a thousand people follow the thief?"

He waved his hand to make his son look at the barren mountains and bald mountains in his field of vision: "Huaiguang, this river is named after Wen'an Post. On both sides of the river, there are few rich places among the mountains, and there are no people there now."

"It's not because of thieves. Mi Zhi's youngest son, Master Ai, was hired when his child was practicing martial arts. His baby went to the mountains and fell into grass last year. I heard people say that the surname Li who used to work as a long-term worker for Uncle Nianhuai's family did not return this year." Take the money and kill Dian Shi."

Ai Mu shook his head: "Look at this day, how could he afford it."

Ai Huaiguang looked at the mountains outside, then at his father, and murmured in a low voice: "Just that little money, why did Uncle Nianhuai ask him to pay it back? Why did he still lend him the money when he knew he couldn't pay it? "

"What can I do?"

Ai Mu asked back, and in exchange for his son's long silence, he said: "If you don't borrow it, he had nowhere to go to become a thief last year. The thief still hates you, and he will be the first to trouble you."

"There is a severe drought in the sky. If you borrow it, he still can't pay. You don't want everyone to come to you to borrow it. If you don't borrow it, everyone will come to you from the thief. You can only pick one and put it in the county government. Let everyone It looks like I dare not borrow it."

Ai Mu shook his head, the expression on his face couldn't tell whether it was joy or sorrow: "I chose a hard life."

He thought to himself: There are 400 households in Mizhi, and there are more than [-] households with the surname Ai. Thousands of people of the same clan can't finish helping.

Those who should help can help earlier.

I have also helped what should not be owed.

It's just that the world is like this, God has decreed, and the rest depends on whose fate is hard.

Thinking about this, Ai Mu thought of the corpses of those thieves lying in the valley.

He said, "The team sent to cut off the head?"

"The Sixth Squadron of Zuo Division in the Outpost, the team is called Ma Maoguan." Ai Huaiguang said: "Guanzhong soldiers have not been in battle for a long time, and cut off their heads. I think it would be better to set up a frontier camp."

Suddenly, from the corner of his eyes, Ai Mu saw several riders running back from the official road in the east, all of them were dressed as Tang soldiers, and it seemed that someone had arrows stuck in their backs.

Three rockets screamed and flew from the mountain highlands.

This is a sign that the sentinel sees a large group of enemy troops.

The sergeant who was sent to fetch water from the river first ran back with a bucket and a shawl hanging on his shoulders, and after running for a while, he saw something on the other side of the mountain, so he even lost the bucket.

He narrowed his eyes, frowned and said to his eldest son: "Huaiguang, go to the beacon tower to warn, send Tang to ride out of the post city, and notify the Huoshaogou and the Liangjia River on the other side of the camp..."

On the official road to the east, the neighing of mules and horses can be heard.

As soon as a sentinel ran into Aimu's field of vision, he was shot in the back with an arrow. The arrow shot very fast and deep, and it looked like it was shot by a war bow.

Immediately after, several riders rushed out in pursuit, all of them looked like frontier soldiers in their armor, galloping on big horses, some were holding bows and shooting, some were chasing with golden gourds, and some were galloping with spears on their backs.

The sergeants in the post city were busy putting on their armour, officers at all levels shouted and shouted in the post city, and thick black smoke was also burning from the beacon tower on the hill west of the post city.

The sentry rider turned around with his bow and took aim, but several thieves who were chasing him rushed to his right rear, barely shot out with an arrow, but failed to hit it, but a thieves nearby shot him down with an arrow a few steps away. his helmet.

The hair scarf was also hung up by the helmet, and for a while he looked embarrassed with disheveled hair.

The sergeant who fetched water saw that several bandits were chasing here, seeing that he could not escape and had no armor to protect him, he had to draw his sword to fight.

But as soon as he drew his knife, the bandit with the spear slowed down and charged at him. He was pierced in the chest by a spear, and he was pushed back several steps by the horse while holding the spear.

At this time, the horses also stopped, and the thief horse soldier pulled out the spearhead, grasped his hands on the horse's back and stabbed the spear a few more times, then poked the weapon on the ground, jumped down and untied the soldier's cloak and hung it on his body, triumphantly on the horse again.

And the situation of the sentry rider was not much better, he lost his helmet and was shot by an arrow, he rushed to the base of the post city, was chased by a bandit holding a golden melon, hit the back of the head with a hammer and fell off his horse.

But once the sentry was killed, the gunmen on the southeast corner of the post city no longer had any worries, a row of guns fell down and wounded a bandit soldier and a war horse, and they were so shocked that they hurriedly retreated.

But there are still a few horses rushing to the gate of the post city.

Before the five officers and soldiers who led their horses out of the post city to pass the message could leave, the gate of the city was blocked by several cavalry. Arrows rained heavily for a while, and some even fired guns on the horses.

Five people ran down, leaving behind three corpses, and the other two ran back to Yicheng.

Immediately the city gate was closed tightly, and officers and soldiers lined up on the east, west and south sides of the post city.

In the ruins of the village in the west of the city, resting officers and soldiers saw the beacon tower warning, quickly put on full armor, assembled the baggage vehicles to the village, and then quickly marched to the old cart and horse shop on the west side of the post city through the pontoon bridge on the moat.

Ai Mu commanded the commander's army on the high wall of the south gate of the post city, and punched the battlements heavily.

Before entering Wen'an Station, the officers and soldiers carefully inspected the surrounding valleys, and they fought all the way from the east, and earlier sent a team of Ma Maoguan to the east to cut off the head.

He didn't expect that the brigade of bandits would come from the east.

But fortunately, the bandits seemed helpless against the post city, fearing the muskets and artillery on the southeast corner of the post city, the brigade could only line up far away, not daring to press forward.

This brought the rest of the sergeants in the middle post who were resting in the west the opportunity to enter the post city to escape.

The lion camp is arrayed in the east of the city.

"General, why don't you keep chasing after him, step forward now, and prevent those officers and soldiers from entering the city, the moat is far away, let me defeat them!"

Although Yang Yao's injury is still not healed, among the six combat post chiefs, he is the most enthusiastic about calling for battle, and it seems that his troops are invincible.

Liu Chengzong held the saddle with one hand and looked relaxed, and his tone did not seem to be in a tense battlefield. Instead, he raised his hand holding the whip as if chatting, and pointed to the post city in the distance: "Have you been to Wen'an Post? Look at this post city, it's a good place what."

Yang Yao shook his head first, and then said: "I've been here, I just joined the general last year, we're going west to Yan'an Fucheng, passing by here...but this is not the time for chatting, general!"

"Don't worry, listen to me."

Liu Chengzong raised his whip and pointed at the post city: "Everywhere in this city is good. It is surrounded by mountains to the north and east, and there is a moat outside the west city. The south side is the post river except for this official road. You can use platoon guns to shoot the city from here. you."

"You can't form an array in the south of the city. If you want to attack the city, you can only attack from the southeast corner. Ten steps to the east and [-] steps to the south. This is fifty steps wide. If you form a dense formation, a single shot on the city can cause several casualties to my brothers." Ten people."

Although he spoke seriously, his expression was as relaxed as if he was telling a joke, pointing to Yihe Road: "Do you know why I am so clear? There are more than [-] postmen brothers in Tangqi who came from here. Its postman I killed it, I emptied the food, I am very familiar with this post city, you have to go across the river."

"We have to go across the river, but not now. We have to wait until the army from the west of the post city enters the city, and then block them in the post city."

Yang Yao frowned all the time when he heard this, Wang Wenxiu on the side was also very puzzled, and asked, "Does the general know that this post city has a tunnel?"

"Unreasonable."

"Then this post city is easy to defend and difficult to attack, so why put the enemy into the city?"

"Put it in the city to beat others."

Liu Chengzong smiled rightly: "This city is easy to defend and difficult to attack, but the city is small and there are not many people in it. Ma Maoguan said that there are 200 troops stationed in the west of the city and 50 troops in the city. Now there are [-] troops in this city. People, [-] people are here with me."

"There are 700 people stationed in Huoshaogou in Beishan outside the city, and [-] in Liangjiahe in Nanshan... Listen to the order."

As Liu Chengzong said, he sat up straight on his horseback, and the whistle chiefs surrounding him immediately turned serious.

Just listen to him say: "The left post is stationed in the east of the city, the right post is stationed outside the south gate of the post city, and the middle post is on the other side of the moat in the west of the city. Hongyi bombarded them and blocked them back."

"Wei Qian'ertang cavalry team is doing a good job of defense in Beishan, keeping an eye on the [-] enemy troops stationed in the direction of Huoshaogou. Once they come to the south, the high post guarding the east will immediately send troops to support the west. Post post Feng cannot move."

Feng Fu understood Liu Chengzong's intentions. He was also from the Beijing Army Firearms Battalion and was a gunner himself. He immediately responded, "Don't worry, general. As long as the officers and soldiers in the city dare to open the gate, I will shoot all the people in the gate to death with cannons."

Wei Qianer was overjoyed, this was their home field, and the twenty or so Tangqi under his command were all locals, familiar with every plant and tree in the nearby mountains.

Immediately turned his head and said a few words to his cronies, and after a while, two Tang riders came over, saying that they were locals from Liangjiahe in the past, and they would show Liu Chengzong the way.

Liu Chengzong turned his head to look at his little brother, and said, "Chengyun, you stay here with the heavy post, and the soldiers under the post are closer to the west. If the officers and troops break through and the west side is out of strength, send them to help."

Chengyun nodded very seriously: "Brother, don't worry."

At this point when the order was issued, the chief whistle officer under his command was already very clear about Liu Chengzong's tactics.

"Front post, rear post and gun post, cross the river from the south, let these two heroes lead them, and first defeat the army of Liangjiahe."

Liu Chengzong took a special look at Cao Yao and said, "Chief Cao, you can't beat the Pingyang Guard. You should try mixing up with Chief Wang in this round. One hundred steps."

Cao Yao nodded his head heavily. In this battle, it was time for him to try a salvo of artillery from a distance of one hundred paces.

This side was ordering, and the Tangqi in the southwest direction rushed back and reported: "General, several cavalry from the army galloped out of the mountain road to the south, and they retreated after a moment of fighting!"

Liu Chengzong showed a smile on his face, and said to the crowd: "It must be a spy sent by the Liangjiahe enemy army. The officers and soldiers over there may be ready to fight, you have to be careful."

The generals took the lead and arranged their own defenses. Immediately, the brigade waded across the post river that was about to dry up, and the defense began to dig trenches outside the range of the post city.

The three sentinels who should attack went south along the valley road, led by the local postmen.

After finishing all this, Liu Chengzong looked at Wen'an Post City with his binoculars. There was a general in silver armor with fish scales on the tower, who was also looking out of the post city with his binoculars.

'Are you Aimu? '

Liu Chengzong thought in his heart, remembering that when he passed through Mizhi when he just left Yuhebao, he had eaten the sheep brought by Ai's family.

"General, my subordinates don't understand, why are you doing this?"

Liu Chengzong turned his head and saw that it was Fan Sanlang who was wearing ill-fitting foam nail armor, his whole body was bulging, and his cheeks were flushed red by his hair helmet.

He laughed: "What kind?"

"Surround and divide the troops. Why don't you take advantage of the separation of the two official troops and take down the city?"

It seems that this little girl still wants to learn the art of war.

Liu Chengzong said: "Everyone in the world lacks the means to attack a city, and there are very few battles that can attack a city within three days. But have you read Sun Tzu's Art of War?"

Fan Sanlang shook his head.

"Even in field battles, it is best to encircle and wipe out ten times the number of troops; five times the number of troops, I can fight whenever I want; twice the number of troops should strive to defeat the enemy, evenly matched, and find a way to separate the enemy; if there are fewer than the enemy, find a place If you can't defend, you have to avoid the battle."

"I don't have five times as many troops, so it's not worthwhile to forcibly attack the city, but I can use twice as many troops to eat away at the enemy."

"Then, at the end." Fan Sanlang asked: "Shouldn't we besiege and attack the city in the end?"

"Everything is false. Only people are real in war. You think it is a siege of a city, but in fact it is people's hearts that are besieged and people's hearts are attacked."

Liu Chengzong looked at her, laughed, and asked seriously: "There are 200 people in this small town, what do they eat?"

　good morning friends!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)