I Xiaoxiong

Chapter 19 The Hexi War Begins
In September of the 16th year of Xuanjia in the Great Jin Dynasty, Fu Maoxiu, the governor of Hexi, met with the four Khans in Ganzhou, and then led them to send [-] troops to Liangzhou to wait for dispatch.

Almost at the same time, Qingtang Emperor Tuoba Chide ordered General Manglong Zhibu to lead [-] troops to invade Shazhou.General Mi Hong from Liuzhi Township led [-] troops to attack Qilian, and the Hexi War officially kicked off.

Thousands of people and horses, boundless and boundless.

The 7 Qingtang army, followed by almost the same number of auxiliary soldiers and miscellaneous servants, [-] to [-] people joined forces for several miles, and it was impossible to see from the city of Shazhou.

Under the banner of the Chinese Army, Manglong Zhibu, who is nearly forty years old, is wearing luxurious armor. Looking at the heads hanging on the top of the Shazhou City not far away, he knows that this trip is like two years ago, and he wants to quickly break through the Shazhou City through the interior. It is impossible.

Because they are all dead.

Two years ago, he participated in the battle of the sandbar as the deputy of the famous Qingtang general Nori Gongro.

In that battle, because of the meticulous work to open the door, and the lack of military equipment on the sandbar at that time, the Qingtang people succeeded.

Today, two years later, looking at the city wall of the sandbar, he knew that if he wanted to take down the sandbar, it would be impossible to take advantage of it.

It has never been a good job to capture a strong city.

Moreover, Qingtang people have never been good at siege, and their siege relies more on the method of surprise attack, which is similar to luck.

The people of Qingtang live in the West Sea Plateau, half-cultivating and half-grazing, and based on tribes. The Qingtang Kingdom is more like a tribal alliance rather than a centralized dynasty like the Central Plains Jin Dynasty.

So every time when troops are dispatched, seeing the fortified city, how to make the leaders of the tribe willing to take their tribe to climb the top of the city is a difficult problem for the leader of the army.

His former chief general, Nori Kyouroku, liked to motivate the tribal armies with generous rewards before the war and the division of benefits after the war.

Very straightforward and very effective.

Manglong Zhibu was thinking about how to use words to irritate the generals around him. A tribal leader beside him pointed to the city wall and said, "General, the opposite side is very strange. We are already approaching the city. They seem to be drinking on the city wall." what?"

When Manglong Zhibu heard it, he fixed his eyes and saw that there was still smoke on the city wall, as if a whole lamb was being roasted?
"What the hell are you doing?"

A group of Qingtang generals were confused by the Jin army on the city wall.

"Why don't we attack the city now?"

A general suggested in a low voice.

"Do you consider yourself a first-rank grand master, able to fly to a city wall several feet high?"

After losing the chance of a surprise attack, the siege must rely on various siege equipment, such as ladders, building carts, ropes, etc. to climb up the city wall. This process is called "ant attachment".

But now the Qingtang army is extremely short of siege equipment, and can only wait for craftsmen to make it, and the number of craftsmen in Qingtang is very small, and it will take at least ten days to gather the equipment needed for the siege.

Moreover, the trees near Shazhou City had been cut down a long time ago, so it was simply unrealistic to get materials nearby.

In this way, it seems that they can only look at the city wall not far away, where the Jin army is feasting, drinking and eating meat, so happy.

"Did the Jin army already know that reinforcements are on the way, so they are all relieved and not panic?"

Another clan chief raised the possibility.

"Anyway, be careful."

Manglong Zhibu looked at the city wall again, then turned and went back to the tent.

At this time, Chen Shougui, the governor of Shazhou above the city, was holding a bowl of wine, looking at the camp of the Qingtang Army below the city, and remained silent.

Two years ago, the city of Shazhou was broken, and the people of Qingtang defended the city of Shazhou for a year before withdrawing.It was not because the Jin Dynasty took the initiative to drive away, but because the Jiedu made Fu Maoxiu's alienation plan come into effect. The famous Qingtang general Yeli Gonglu was killed by the Maharaja Tuoba Chifu. evacuate.

Then Chen Shougui was appointed as the governor of Shazhou. After receiving the appointment, he took a few soldiers to Guazhou to take up the post. It was not long after the Qingtang army withdrew. severe.

It took Chen Shougui a year to appease the soldiers and civilians in Shazhou, repairing the city walls and fortifications. At this time, the army of the Qing and Tang Dynasties arrived again, and the people in the city were panicked.

So he organized the soldiers to drink and have fun on the city to calm the morale of the army.In fact, the soldiers under the city wall are already on standby, ready to defend the city and fight at any time.

And the people in the city saw that the soldiers were all drinking on the city wall, so they were no longer anxious, and their hearts were settled.

At the same time, Qilian City, which was also approached by tens of thousands of troops, seemed much more chilled.

Zhang Renyuan, the deputy envoy of Jiedu, went to the city in person to inspect the defense facilities in various places, trying to be safe.

"The leader of the army is Mihong from Liuzhi Township, who is second only to Lun Zanpo and Ye Li Gonglu in Qingtang's reputation. The No.1 general in the middle. Look at his camp, well-organized, and there are indeed rules, and there are no worthless men under his reputation."

Zhang Renyuan pointed to the Qingtang camp under the city and said to the generals under his command.

"Why does Deputy Commander Zhang want to spoil his own prestige with other people's ambitions? I would like to lead the army to fight and meet this famous Qingtang general."

The envoy of the Qilian army, Jia Shixun, asked for orders immediately, and was about to leave the city to fight against the Qingtang people.

Looking at his subordinates eager to fight, Zhang Renyuan smiled and shook his head, "It's not yet time, so don't be impatient."

Qingtang Bingfeng two groups, a total of [-] troops, including auxiliary soldiers and miscellaneous service, totaled more than [-] people. For Qingtang's national strength, it would take several years to mobilize such a large-scale army. Involved, so Qingtang Maharaja, who is far away in the Qingtang King City, is also very concerned about the various situations on the front line.

For the two armies, military reports were sent back to Wangcheng almost every day.

Tuoba Chide, who is nearly 40 years old, has a well-trimmed beard, wears a white luxurious white leather robe, round neck and narrow sleeves, and a gold silk flower cap. He paces back and forth in the study room of the palace.

"Majesty, the Prime Minister is here."

The servant reminded in a low voice.

"Please."

Tuoba Chide hastily ordered.

Not long after, an old man in his 60s wearing the same style of robes as Tuoba Chide walked into the Maharaja's study.

"Sir, Lun Zanpo pays homage to His Majesty the Majesty."

Tuoba Chide hurried forward and helped the old man up.

"The Prime Minister doesn't need to be too polite, come here and show the Prime Minister a seat."

Zanpo stood up and bowed slightly to thank the majesty for his seat before slowly sitting down.

"I don't know what orders the Majesty called the old minister."

Tuoba Chide looked at the 60-year-old Qingtang military god in front of him, and his etiquette was extremely thoughtful and his attitude was extremely submissive from the moment he entered the door.

But just like that, Tuoba Chide still hated it.

At this time, the army is away on an expedition, what else can you do besides war?

But this cannot be said clearly.

The other party was an important minister of the Qing and Tang Dynasties, and he had a very high reputation among various tribes.Although he is now idle as the prime minister, he must give enough respect to such a veteran as a maharajah.

Then Tuoba Chide handed over the military reports of the past few days to Lun Zanpo, "Here are the military reports of the past few days, the Prime Minister will take a look at them first."

After receiving the battle report, Lun Zanpo began to study it carefully, trying not to miss every detail.

After a while, he put down a few military newspapers.

"What is your majesty worried about?"

Tuoba Chide said: "From the perspective of the Prime Minister, what are the chances of our army winning this time?"

Lun Zanpo didn't speak, but shook his head, "I'm not on the front line, and I haven't commanded troops for many years, so I can't answer the Majesty's question."

Tuoba Chide frowned, he felt that the other party was evading, but the evasion was justified.

Lun Zanpo was a famous general in the Qingtang Dynasty, who made many military exploits. He once defeated the Jin army in Dafeichuan, and was regarded as the god of war by the Qingtang Dynasty.

And in the past ten years, since Tuoba Chide became the maharaja, Lun Zanpo became the prime minister of the country, lost his military power, and has been in a state of unemployment.

After all, Qingtang is different from Jin, and the prime minister is just a decoration, so how can he have the authority of the prime minister of Jin?
Although he talked about Zan Pofu, but as the Qing Tang Army God, Tuoba Chide didn't believe that he didn't see something.

But there is no way to take the other party.

After all, the other party is not Yeli Gonglu's ambitious tribal chief, but someone who can really threaten his throne.

Therefore, he would rather risk civil strife than eradicate Yeli Gonglu when he knew it was a scheming scheme by the Jin people.

Weaken the wild family.

Divisive schemes have always been based on exploiting the weakness of human nature and attacking every corner.

But you can't do that if you praise the theory.

The other party had sensibly given up military power a long time ago, and the other party was from a small tribe. He had always been extremely submissive to Tuoba Chide as the great monarch, and there was almost no threat to the monarchy.

Killing such an old minister is afraid that many people will be disappointed and unwilling to serve the royal family.

So there was really nothing he could do about this courteous and respectful old minister.

After all, the other party really has not led the army for many years, and has not left the Qingtang King City for many years. Now that he is asked about the frontline war, it is reasonable for the other party to refuse.

In the end, it was Tuoba Chide who showed emotion and moved with reason, so that the old military god "don't talk nonsense".

"My lord, although we Qingtang people are tough and good at fighting, there are five disadvantages if we attack Hexi."

"One is the expedition of labor teachers. It is nearly a thousand miles from Qingtang Wangcheng to Shazhou City in Hexi, and Jin people can wait for work at leisure."

"The second is that bows and crossbows are not good. Our Qingtang people are brave and good at fighting, with excellent armor and sharp swords. Only bows and crossbows are far inferior to Jin's bows and crossbows in strength."

"The third is our allies. We and Jinzhang agreed to attack the seven prefectures of Hexi in Dajin. Neither side will try their best. When facing a tiger, the snow leopard and the wolf will never trust each other. They both hope that the tiger will use its sharp claws. As for the four clans, they are not even argali, at most they are rabbits and pheasants."

"Fourth, we Qingtang people are not good at siege and lack equipment. It is absolutely impossible to replicate the surprise attack on the sandbar two years ago."

"Fifth, Mihong in Liuzhi Township and Manglong Zhibu are our generals in the Qingtang Dynasty. If they fight the Jin people in Dafeichuan, I believe they will be able to make the three armies use their lives. , all tribes will definitely have the heart to preserve their strength, and when the time comes, they will be taken advantage of by the enemy."

The old military god spewed hundreds of words, basically analyzing the situation of the two countries thoroughly.

This is also the biggest problem facing the Qingtang Kingdom. If they want to attack Hexi, or even Longyou and Guanzhong, in addition to facing the powerful Jin Kingdom, they also have to face the various tribes in Qingtang.

It is expected that they will not have the heart to preserve their strength when facing the Jin people, unless the Jin people come to the door.

This is also the reason why the war with Jin usually has a higher winning rate in Qingtang.

Such as the surprise attack on the sandbar, even if the two countries have confronted each other for a hundred years, it is difficult to find a few such cases.

"What if the country's prime minister is the general?"

Tuoba Chide suddenly asked, as the only remaining first-class famous general in the Qingtang Dynasty after the death of Ye Li Gonglu, and had the experience of defeating the Jin army head-on, he actually seemed to know the odds of winning if the Prime Minister personally led the army.

Lun Zanpo shook his head.

"What I can do, Manglong Zhibu and Liuzhi Township Mihong can also do. I may not be as good as them if they are in another place."

"The outcome of some battles is doomed before going to the battlefield."

(End of this chapter)