Chapter 1228 Strong

Chapter 1228 Strong

Chapter 1228 Strong
"It's been very chaotic outside recently. After we finish the spring plowing, we stay at home. When a large army passes by, we retreat to the fort. When we encounter bandits, we see their skills. When we have nothing to do, we stay in the fields and tend to the crops." Liu Xiaoshu put on his green official uniform and pointed to the fields not far away and said, "Some people are guarding outside all year round. When they see someone coming, they will inform us. We knew it when the general landed. Later, when the relatives of the Ji family came to visit, we realized it was the king's army."

"Are millet still planted in the fields?" Yang Qin retracted his gaze and said casually.

"General, you don't know. Everyone thinks that rice is grown in the south of the Yangtze River, but that's not true. The most people grow millet, followed by rice, and the least are wheat." Liu Xiaoshu said.

Yang Qin hummed, and then asked, "Where is Wang Bin?"

"Wang Bin did not come here." Liu Xiaoshu said, "I only heard that Lei Ming, who seemed to be the governor of Jiangzhou, came from Pengze County with thousands of people. He first went down to Shicheng, then went north along the river and east. Then I didn't hear any more news."

"Why walk along the river?"

"The south is full of mountains, and it's hard to walk." Liu Xiaoshu pointed to the flat land by the river and said, "I heard from the locals that the land we are standing on was actually a sandbar in the river before, and later it was connected to the south bank and gradually became land. When we first came here, it was full of swamps. After summer, mosquitoes and flies were everywhere. After many swamps were filled, there were fewer mosquitoes. Many people died at that time. There were five brothers in my family, and two of them died one after another. My eldest brother was skilled in archery and horse riding, but later he became a sickly person and passed away at the age of 40. Alas."

Yang Qin's expression changed when he heard this, and he asked, "Are mosquitoes very powerful?"

"General, you must not underestimate mosquitoes." Liu Xiaoshu said seriously, "If northerners come here in summer, at least 41% and at most 2/3 will suffer from headaches and fever. In mild cases, they will feel weak all over and have a loss of appetite, and in severe cases, they will die. But if you can survive, your chances of survival will greatly increase. That's how we all survived."

"Will you die if you can't make it?" Yang Qin asked.

"If he doesn't die, he'll be skinned alive." Liu Xiaoshu said, "I don't even know what disease he has."

Yang Qin took a breath of cold air.

The emperor once said that "in ancient times" there was an army that marched south and was known as "a million strong army crossing the Yangtze River". It had thirty "battalions" (divisions) in the early stage, and marched into Jing, Xiang, and Jiangzhou. As a result, in the summer, at least a quarter and as much as three quarters of the soldiers fell ill. There were 100,000 sick people in the entire army, and they had to take an emergency rest.

Yang Qin was very skeptical about when this "ancient times" was. Could it be the campaign when the Qin army of 500,000 troops marched south?

"Then we have to fight quickly. It's hot now, how hot will it be in June?" Yang Qin immediately asked, "Do you know where Guo Song's tribe is?"

"A few days ago, soldiers from Jiangzhou came to various forts to collect grain. Someone said that they were going to send it to Xuancheng. Apparently, the royal army is confronting the bandit army in Xuancheng. The people over there from Lujiang (Qingyi River) must be the Shanxia tribe."

"How many people are there in Shanxia?"

"I don't know about that."

Yang Qin lowered his head and thought. War is like this. Being in the middle, it is difficult to get a glimpse of the whole picture. He wanted to attack Wang Bin, but he didn't even know where the main force of the Jiangzhou army was.

The mountains are high and the forests are dense, and the people are unfamiliar with the place, so it is a hassle to explore. It is necessary to issue more letters of authorization. The more letters are issued, the more "eyes" there will be.

"Where is Sima Chong?" Yang Qin asked again.

"I heard he is still in Anwu. A few days ago, news came that Xin'an had returned to the right path. Sima Chong was terrified and wanted to return east. I haven't heard any news about him recently."

"Okay." Yang Qin waved his hand and said, "Prepare more food and grass. My troops will go to Shicheng tomorrow."

******
In fact, Liu Xiaoshu's information was wrong. Lei Ming did go to Shanxia, ​​but returned to Shicheng. The main reason was to supervise the transportation of grain and fodder.

It was embarrassing to say that after Shanxia transferred all the 15,000 elite main forces of Liyang Town to Xuancheng, the food pressure increased greatly. And because more and more forts and manors chose to remain neutral, Shanxia's food and grass were somewhat insufficient. Looking around, only Jiangzhou, which had not experienced war, could provide sufficient food and grass, and it could be transported by water without the risk of being intercepted.

So Lei Ming came back.

However, before the issue of food and fodder was resolved, the Liang army crossed the river.

On the night of early April, more than a thousand people crossed the river from Wankou to Shicheng. The navy had been focusing on Wankou, and at least ten days ago they learned that a large number of people and ships had gathered near Wankou and were trying to cross the river, so almost all the ships in Chaisang and Wuhu came over.

It's not that no one has considered whether this is a diversionary tactic of the Liang army, but to be honest, there is nothing you can do. It's impossible to watch over such a long section of the river. If you don't intercept this group of people, they will really cross the river.

As expected, someone crossed the river that night.

The navy intercepted part of it.

A part of the Liang soldiers retreated to the sandbar in the river in panic and were surrounded by the navy.

Another two or three hundred people suddenly reached the south bank, but were defeated by the Shicheng defenders who were ready for battle, and only a hundred or so people were scattered.

Lei Ming did not order a pursuit. These people would either be captured as slaves by the commanders of the forts, or die of starvation or disease in the mountains. There was no hope of survival.

On the third day of the Lunar New Year, he received news that the Liang army had landed at the junction of Shicheng and Lincheng counties. More than a thousand people who rushed over to encircle and suppress them were defeated. This made him realize that this force was probably quite large.

He was decisive. He left only one thousand soldiers to guard Shicheng and led five thousand soldiers from Jiangzhou to the east.

Coincidentally, Yang Qin also planned to remove this thorn in the rear first to prevent the Jiangzhou army from attacking from behind.

Since both sides were traveling on the post road, a collision was inevitable.

On the fourth day of April, the sunset in the west was very gorgeous. Yang Qin and Lei Ming met on the road. Both sides immediately deployed their battle lines. Drums and horns blew in the mountains, and birds flew up in fright.

"Tang Xiang!" Yang Qin climbed to a high ground, looked around, and shouted.

"I'm here." An officer who was directing the soldiers to form a line jumped out and answered loudly.

"Deputy Governor Zhang has returned home to mourn his father's death. This position has been vacant for half a month. Do you want to be deputy governor?" Yang Qin asked.

"I've wanted to be one for a long time." The owner of the building, Tang Xiang, said without hesitation, tilting his head back.

"If you defeat the enemy's vanguard, lead them to escape, and then recapture Shicheng, I will risk my life to recommend you as the deputy governor. What do you think?" Yang Qin asked.

"It's enough to have the commander-in-chief's words. Whether it will be accomplished depends on God's will." Tang Xiang bowed, then went down to the road and urged the soldiers in his unit to quickly form up.

The so-called "encounter on the road" can be described in plain words as an encounter.

The post road was not wide, and there were mountains and forests on both sides. The terrain was complex, so the army could not form a formation.

As the ancients said, "When two brave men meet in a narrow road, the brave one prevails." Now is the time to demonstrate your bravery.

There were 600 soldiers in a column. After deducting some non-combat personnel, there were more than 500 left. At this time, they were all wearing armor and holding guns, with bows strung and swords unsheathed, ready for battle.

The sunset was beautiful and the mountain breeze was strong. After a drumbeat, Tang Xiang led 500 people and rushed forward with almost no mobilization.

The other side is hastily forming its troops.

The first few rows were already in place, but the ones at the back were still a bit messy, obviously not very skilled. The officers were so anxious that they shouted and screamed, and it took a lot of effort to finish. From the perspective of the Jin army, the Liang army rushing towards them was neatly arranged, well-equipped, and kept its formation very well while marching. No one stood out too much, and no one fell behind too much.

Hundreds of people marched forward with powerful steps and charged aggressively, as if in their eyes no opponent was worth mentioning.

"March!" Drums sounded behind the Jin army's formation.

They came from Poyang County and shouted together, with shieldmen in front and spearmen behind, slowly crawling forward.

Lei Ming's cousin Lei Qu was in the center of the formation, with his servants all around him, breathing heavily.

He was short and could only see through the gap in front of him.

The setting sun shone on the Liang army's armor, dyeing it a gorgeous red.

Walking in the middle of the front row was a swordsman with a shield and sword on his back. On his back was a black flag with a tiger painted on it, rustling in the mountain breeze.

His expression was extremely calm, neither sad nor happy, as if he was not going to a war but just strolling in his own vegetable garden.

The distance between the two sides was within thirty steps, and almost no one used bows and arrows.

Lei Qu noticed that the shieldmen in the front row of the opponent all raised their swords diagonally in front of their foreheads, and the sound of their footsteps also changed.

Before, we were taking small steps, but now we are taking big strides forward.

When the military boots stepped on the ground, the rhythmic sound almost hit people's hearts.

The clanging of the armor leaves is like a death note.

Someone shouted something from the opposite formation, and hundreds of people responded in unison, then suddenly quickened their pace and rushed over.

Lei Qu was startled suddenly, and then he felt the servant in front of him retreat straight back, almost hitting his iron mace.

Just as he was about to start cursing, he suddenly saw an astonishing scene: more than a dozen hook-and-sickle spears extended from the rear of the Liang army's sword-and-shield soldiers, hooked the large shields in the hands of his own soldiers like lightning, and then pulled hard. Many people either staggered or had their large shields knocked to the ground, and the front row instantly became defenseless.

What followed was a bloody storm.

Before Lei Qu could react, he saw the soldiers in front of him falling down like felled trees, and the screams suddenly rose several levels.

"Ah!" The huge shield suppressed the spear of a servant in front of Lei Qu. A cold light shot out from the gap in the shield and accurately hit the servant's throat.

"Ouch! Ah!" After flipping over the big shield, the hook-sickle spearman did not retreat to the back, but thrust his sickle straight into the face of another servant. The servant tilted his head to avoid it, but unexpectedly the hook-sickle spear also changed, and the curved blade hooked the servant's chin. With strong tearing, half of his face and throat were torn off and fell into the dust.

The Liang army sword and shield soldiers were not to be outdone. They used their shields to suppress the opponent's weapons with great skill, and stabbed their ring-handled swords through the gaps in the armor. The stabbed soldier screamed instantly, and his breath was filled with blood foam, as if his lungs had been pierced.

The Jiangzhou army was defeated almost as soon as they met.

In front of the Liang people, they were as clumsy as new soldiers who had only been in the army for a few months. The skills and coordination that they were proud of in the past were full of flaws. Soldiers fell down in large numbers, and the casualties on both sides were completely disproportionate.

A soldier rushed towards Lei Qu, holding a large shield in his left hand and a ring-handled sword in his right hand, and his roar was like thunder.

Lei Qu seized the opportunity and hit the back of the opponent's sword with his mace, knocking him to the ground. When he was about to strike for the second time, a gun stabbed from the front, forcing him to retreat repeatedly.

The Liang soldier who had lost his sword slowed down and hid in the army formation. A spearman came up and the formation was restored to its original state.

Sweat broke out on Lei Qu's forehead. After blocking a spear with his shield, he swung the iron mace in his right hand fiercely and hit the shoulder of the Liang soldier in front of him hard.

The man screamed, his left arm dropped limply, and he could no longer hold the gun.

Lei Qu wanted to attack again, but two long spears stabbed at him from the left and right. He barely blocked one and lowered his head in embarrassment to avoid the second one, resulting in his helmet being knocked to the ground.

He was so frightened that he stepped back.

The servants rushed forward and defended him from the swords and guns coming from all directions.

Lei Qu was so angry that his eyes turned red. He had been practicing martial arts since he was seven years old, and it had been almost twenty years now, but he couldn't even kill a single person. His combat record was even worse than that of some of the soldiers who took advantage of the chaos to kill and injure the Liang soldiers.

But the fast-paced battlefield did not allow him to indulge in self-pity. There were fewer and fewer people around him, and the Liang soldiers' formation was so complete that it was despairing, as if there had never been even a single casualty.

"Whoosh!" Another spear stabbed towards him, and Lei Qu tried his best to block it.

"Qillang, run away!" The last servant beside him rushed forward in despair and hugged Liang Bing tightly, who had not yet retracted his spear. The huge momentum caused both of them to fall to the ground.

The knife in the servant's hand fell and he was stabbed on the back, but his eyes were red and he bit Liang Bing's ear with blood foam in his mouth, digging his nails into the other's eyes.

Liang Bing also became ruthless and strangled the servant with his big hands, almost breaking his neck.

"Puff!" The servant was stabbed on the back of his neck. His whole body trembled violently and he fell to the ground.

The Liang soldier who was knocked down by him stumbled to his feet, looking forward blankly with bloody eyes, one hand groping on the ground, as if looking for a weapon, ready to continue charging.

Is he still human? Lei Qu seemed to have lost his soul. He threw away his shield and ran away.

He was not the only one who escaped.
The 1,000 Jiangzhou soldiers who were ordered to attack were already in a state of rout. They were swept to the rear by the Liang soldiers, who were only half their number, directly disrupting the formation of thousands of people behind them.

In this battle, 5,000 Jiangzhou soldiers were defeated and more than half of them were killed.

A day later, Tang Xiang led the vanguard to Shicheng, and the remaining bandit soldiers fled on the spot.

On the sixth day of April, the Liang army continued their pursuit, killing hundreds of enemies and beheading the Jin general Lei Qu. It was not until the night of the seventh day that they withdrew their troops back to Shicheng.

With a battle without any tricks, they declared the failure of the Jiangzhou troops' attempt to advance eastward.

At this point, the western half of Xuancheng was also stabilized.

The local powerful people seemed to have no choice but to surrender.

(End of this chapter)