Chapter 771: Roundabout

Chapter 771: Roundabout

Chapter 771 Detour
A group of people appeared in the distance on the horizon.

They walked, leading their horses, carefully avoiding farmland.

The wheat planted last fall was about to be harvested, but it had been completely destroyed.

Part of the fields were bare, obviously having been harvested by someone - most likely the Xianbei people.

Some of them were trampled to pieces and scattered everywhere.

Some people were harvesting in the fields, mostly to feed livestock as it was not enough for humans to eat.

The millet sown this spring grew sparsely and was also trampled, but there should be some harvest.

There were carcasses of cattle and sheep by the river, surrounded by flies. It was obvious that they had been dead for a long time, but for some reason they had not been eaten by humans.

All in all - pretty miserable.

Behind the cavalry followed a long line of carriages, which were filled with military supplies and fodder.

Most of the drivers and servants came from Xiurong and Jingle counties. They had sad faces and were full of worries, and were obviously not very happy.

The convoy soon stopped in front of a camp fence set up on the road.

Soldiers with yellow scarves on their heads came from nowhere, and they were everywhere.

Some of them were practicing in formation, and the officers kept walking around and correcting their movements over and over again.

Others were wielding shovels and pickaxes, digging trenches, building earth walls, and placing deer antlers, as if they were on guard against cavalry raids.

An officer came out of the camp and led the newly arrived Volunteer Cavalry to a valley, where there were roughly built barracks, a spring for the horses to drink, and a hay barn nearby.

"Be careful, don't let the Xianbei get close to you without your knowledge." The officer warned before leaving.

"What are you talking about? I am a Xianbei. Am I going to kill myself?" said one of the new soldiers.

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone laughed.

The Yicong Army now has nearly 7,000 cavalrymen, nearly 40% of whom are Xianbei people, but they belong to the Duanbu Xianbei, not the Tuoba Xianbei.

The rest were mostly Jie, Wuhuan, and even the miscellaneous Hu people recruited from Guanzhong that year. There were not many Han soldiers left.

But there were only a few Han soldiers, and the military commands were in Jin dialect, which made people very uncomfortable.

The officer also laughed and said, "Let's fight well."

As they were talking, someone brought in a few bowls of cheese.

Everyone was not polite at all. They took out wooden bowls from their saddle bags and drank directly from them.

We had been walking for a long time and hadn't been willing to ride a horse. I was extremely hungry, so this thing was just right for us.

"How was the battle before? I heard that you were defeated?" The person who spoke asked bluntly while drinking the cheese that was sent to him.

As expected, the officer who brought them here was embarrassed and said, "We met suddenly in the valley and were careless for a moment, so we were separated. We lost some cattle, sheep and food in the valley, but it's not a big deal. The bandits once tried to attack our pasture, but were repelled when they attacked the mountain slope."

The officers and soldiers of the Yicong Army ate and drank while listening.

I'm afraid what this person said is not entirely true.

It was indeed difficult for the Tuoba Xianbei to attack the mountains, because they could not charge at all times. At this time, the archers were often more advantageous, and the Jie people might not be much different from them. In the case of defending their homes, their morale was relatively high and they could repel the enemy's attack.

Just like the Huns defeated Tuoba Pugen in Kelan, Xihe and even in the mountains west of Pingyang.

But did the Xiongnu defeat the Tuoba Xianbei in Jinyang? No.

Because Jinyang has a flat terrain, the Xiongnu cavalry cannot defeat the Xianbei cavalry. This is the reality.

The Jie people had almost the same problem, but they were better at close combat than the Xiongnu. The final result was also shown outside, the farmland in the river valley was destroyed, but the pastures on the mountain were preserved.

If they want to confront Tuoba Xianbei, they have to come.

However, judging from the fact that they were repairing the camp in the valley, it seemed that they had no intention of engaging the Xianbei cavalry head-on, and it was unclear whether they would be able to get a chance to engage in a head-on fight with the enemy.

******
Tianchi Lake is like a blue mirror, embedded in the mountains.

The forest, white clouds and flying birds are reflected in the mirror, like a colorful oil painting.

"Splash!" Shao Xun tipped the bamboo basket into the lake. Several big fish swung their tails and disappeared in the blink of an eye.

Tianchi is a high mountain lake. There are actually more than twenty large and small lakes nearby, which together with Tianchi constitute this high mountain lake group.

Standing by the lake, the scenery is breathtaking and the view is broad, which makes people feel relaxed and happy.

Shao Xun didn't know much about Tianchi, and his only impression came from later generations.

The last emperor of Qi and his concubine Feng were hunting at Tianchi. The Zhou army was approaching Pingyang and Jinzhou was in danger. From dawn to noon, post horses arrived three times and the last emperor "went hunting again".

This event is so famous that it also illustrates the charm of Tianchi.

The monarchs of the Northern Dynasties, in particular, liked to travel around with their civil and military ministers and tens of thousands of soldiers and horses, and Tianchi was a place they often visited.

Emperor Xiaowen of Wei came here, Gao Huan came here, Gao Yang came here, Gao Wei came here, and Emperor Yang of Sui also came here...

Yang Guang even built Fenyang Palace here to escape the summer heat, but it was never used again after being used once. Four months later, when he was inspecting the northern border, he was surrounded at Yanmen by the army led by the Turkic Shibi Khan. The father and son hugged each other and cried bitterly.

The courage of a villain like Shao Xun in troubled times is not comparable to that of Yang Guang.

Standing by the Tianchi Lake, he could see enemy cavalry vaguely visible in the hills from afar, but he still had the leisure to fish here, and he was calm and composed, with no air force.

Liu Zhao stood respectfully aside, while the military strategist Zhang Bin was explaining to him how to defend against the enemy: "The Fen River is accessible to boats and rafts. In May, there will be wheat harvest in Xiurong, which can be transported to Jingle and Tianchi via the Fen River without any worries. The infantry will set up a camp at the foot of the mountain to block the enemy's passage. The government soldiers are brave and sharp, and Huang Tou'er is loyal and brave. With these more than 8,000 infantry, the Tuoba clan will not be able to defeat them, and they can only go around the mountain. You can mobilize your men to shoot on the slopes and repel the enemy army."

"Mr. Zhang." Liu Zhao bowed and asked, "Xiu Rong's grain is probably useless. We need the imperial court to send grain and grass." Zhang Bin sighed and said, "The king has already given the order. We will do our best to raise it."

Liu Zhao didn't believe it.

The biggest problem now is the lack of food and grass, and they can't hold out for long. I'm afraid that in the end, they will be forced to slaughter their livestock and live on their own.

"If it doesn't work, just kill the animals." As expected, Shao Xun said, "Don't worry, it's just a temporary shortage of food. It won't be that scarce in a few months. Kill a sheep and I'll give you 20 hu of grain. I'll never break my promise."

Liu Zhao felt a little relieved.

"Lord Liu, you can't retreat any further." Zhang Bin said, "The king gave you more soldiers to block this road. If this road is broken, the enemy army will take advantage of the situation and attack Jingle and Xiurong directly. The situation will be very bad, and someone will be held responsible. Lord Liu should think about it carefully."

Liu Zhao blushed.

There are only two north-south roads in the northwest of Taiyuan, all within the territory of Kelan County. The one he controlled was the widest and most convenient one, which had been broken through by the Xianbei people before.

Fortunately, they were unable to clear out the troops on the mountains on both sides, and their retreat was threatened, so they retreated, otherwise they would have been in big trouble.

Shao Xun silently calculated the military strength on the side.

The troops left behind in Lan Valley were the soldiers and followers of the two Longxiang Prefectures (2400) plus Huangtou soldiers. The total force on paper was nearly , but in reality there were , stationed in the county town and the camp.

He brought the rest of the troops to Tianchi and Guancen Mountain areas.

The plan is to leave behind slightly more troops here than in Lan Valley, including 5,000 soldiers from the two Longxiang Prefectures and their followers, as well as the Huangtou Army, totaling nearly 10,000 people, with a relatively complete organization.

He planned to take the remaining troops eastward, including 6,000 men from the Silver Spear Camp, 10,000 men from the Yellow Head Army, and 2,000 men from the Yicong Army, to Jinyang.

It is easier to get supplies there, although there is not much food stored there.

After all the calculations, the biggest problem is still the devastation of Bingzhou.

Two consecutive years of heavy rains have made it impossible to carry out any construction. If Bingzhou were deserted, the series of defense systems in the north would not be established.

If he had not intended to train the Yellow Head Army soldiers during his northern tour, he would not have brought so many people north. And if he had not brought so many people, Tuoba Xianbei would have been able to reach Jinyang and Lishi City. If they went further, it would depend on their supply capabilities.

The area north of Jinyang and Lishi is almost undefended, and the northern border system is non-existent. This is the reality.

Shao Xun washed his hands in the lake and was about to leave when he saw his servant Liu Bai running over and said anxiously, "My lord, Shiling Pass has collapsed, and the Tuoba clan is approaching Jinyang City."

Shao Xun's heart tightened and he asked, "How did it collapse?"

"The bandits took a detour to the southern foot of Shiling Mountain, using their light cavalry to plunder the villages and harass the baggage train." Liu Bai said, "When the Qi people saw the Xianbei cavalry, they all fled. Shiling Pass was cut off from front and back, and the two thousand guards fled into the mountains."

"Where's Liu Ling?"

"General Liu tightly closed all the gates of Jinyang and defended it strictly."

It sounds good to say that we should defend the city with all our might, but in fact it means we should be trapped in an isolated city and not dare to fight in the open.

Of course, this is not Liu Ling’s fault.

He had only 5,000 infantrymen, and he sent 2,000 to guard Shiling Pass. It was very difficult for the remaining 3,000 to stay in Jinyang, so it was naturally impossible for them to go out of the city and fight.

If we were defeated in one battle - which was almost inevitable - Jinyang would certainly not be able to be defended.

"Send the order, head south immediately." Shao Xun asked someone to bring the horses.

******
The number of enemy cavalry gathering outside Jinyang City was increasing and they were very arrogant.

Perhaps knowing that Liu Ling did not dare to go into battle, they even openly grazed horses, cattle and sheep in the wild and sent people to harvest the crops that were not yet ripe.

After nightfall, a group of people quietly headed westward, upstream along the Fen River Valley. Each person rode three horses, carrying ten days of dry food, and galloped away.

They were moving very fast. In a few days, they covered three hundred miles along the relatively flat river valley and soon arrived ten miles east of Xiurong.

In the lush river valley, the herdsmen from various tribes who had just come down the mountain to harvest wheat were staring at all this in amazement.

Without anyone's instructions, they, who were already accustomed to looting and killing, immediately asked their families to bring horses and weapons to prepare for battle.

The Xianbei cavalry reined in their horses.

A moment later, a knight in a purple robe rode forward, took a closer look, and cursed, "Be careful, but the thieves still found you."

After that, he called a few people and said, "Go, find a way to capture a few people alive and see who is here."

The Bu Liugu clan failed in their attack on Lan Valley and lost hundreds of men, greatly losing face.

After the remaining soldiers retreated, they made all kinds of excuses, saying that they encountered the thief Shao himself, so their attack was thwarted.

After the news reached them from Pingcheng, he didn't quite believe it.

Why did Shao Ze come here? What was he doing in this poor mountain valley with no one around?
When they broke through Shiling Pass, they also captured some scattered Jin soldiers. After torture and interrogation, they knew nothing and could not clearly tell where the thief Shao was, which made him even more suspicious.

But he did not completely ignore it. If he got the chance, he would naturally prepare to capture a few people alive and torture them.

If the thief Shao really came to Taiyuan, hey, maybe this would be a good opportunity to surround him.

After dispatching the rangers, the man called a few messengers and whispered, "Take this token and go south to look for some old friends. They may not be in the same place anymore, so just look for them. If you can't find them, forget it."

The messenger took the token and the map and left quietly under the guidance of the guide.

The four gates of Xiurong County in the distance had been closed, and there were shadows of people on the city walls and the sound of drums.

Just over a year had passed, and Xiurong was faced with war again.

(End of this chapter)