Chapter 380 King of Qin (Part )

As the commander-in-chief of an army, Wang Zongkan was very sensitive to the situation on the battlefield, and his vigilance was not wrong.

On the top of Fengxiang City, Liu Zhijun, who had surrendered to Li Maozhen and entered Qi, was climbing up the city bricks and looking to the east.

Below the city wall, a large mass of Qi army soldiers were constantly pressing towards the Shu army’s eastern camp, causing the latter’s scouts outside the camp to retreat like frightened birds. From time to time, scouts of the Qi army would rush up to fight with them.

But at this time, the Qi army’s main formation suddenly stopped, the sporadic fighting among the scouts also stopped, and the cavalry on both wings of the Qi army kept looking back to the north.

Because not long ago, the main camp of the Shu army in the south had sent out more than a thousand Shu cavalrymen, who circled from the west of Fengxiang City to the north of the city, obviously heading straight for the main camp of the Qi army.

The movement of the more than one thousand Shu cavalry was not small, and the battlefield was open, so there was almost no need for the Qi army scouts to report the news. Both sides had already vaguely seen the movements of the more than one thousand Shu cavalry.

Therefore, for a moment, many people in the Qi army could not help but look back to the north, as if they were worried that the main camp would be lost and the retreat route would be insecure.

However, Liu Zhijun on the top of Fengxiang City and officers of all levels of the Jingnan Army who stayed in Fengxiang City found that the place where the banner representing King Qi was located showed no signs of looking back, let alone giving up forcing the Shu Army’s eastern camp to return to protect their own main camp.

“What is King Qi going to do?”

The generals watching the battle on the top of the city wall had mixed thoughts. Some were puzzled: “Even if they wanted to abandon the camp, they should have led the army north. Why did they press the Shu camp? Does the King of Qi want to enter the city?”

“How do we enter the city?” Someone else pointed to the two Shu camps that had been waiting for a long time. “The Shu army has gathered in the east and south. If the King of Qi wants to enter the city, the Shu army in the east will definitely come out of the camp to chase him. If they are attacked from behind, should we open the city gate or not? Even if the King of Qi has 2,000 cavalry to protect his back, what if Wang Zongkan seizes the opportunity to attack the city from all sides? Not only will the King of Qi not be able to enter the city, but Fengxiang will also be lost. What will happen then?”

The generals had a heated discussion and their opinions were obviously divided.

Fengxiang is where the families of most of the Qi soldiers are. If the city is breached, according to the military habits of that era, it is obviously impossible for the Shu army, which has been deadlocked for two months under the city of Fengxiang, to do nothing. At the very least, they will loot the entire city, and at worst, they will massacre the entire city. How dare the generals be careless?
Liu Zhijun never spoke a word. He was a surrendered general from Daliang and had made almost no achievements after entering Qi. However, because his reputation was too famous, Li Maozhen once wanted to make him a military governor.

There were no vacancies in the military governorships of several towns in Qi State. If Liu Zhijun wanted to become a military governor, he had to either expand the territory or ask someone to vacate the position. Comparing the two methods, the latter was naturally the most effective. Therefore, many generals of Qi State were secretly wary of Liu Zhijun, so his popularity could not be considered good.

Two months ago, when the empress led the Fengxiang Army to attack the State of Jin, Liu Zhijun was left in Fengxiang. He now only holds a few honorary positions in the State of Qi and has no real power to command, let alone control the military power. The only people he can use are his old subordinates who he brought from Daliang in the past. While he was still thinking to himself at this time, he quietly left the generals.

“Brother, Li Maozhen’s life or death is unknown, and this fake King Qi keeps making stupid moves. I’m afraid Fengxiang is in danger…”

The one who spoke was Liu Zhijun’s third brother Liu Zhiyan. He looked around and said sternly, “Once the camp outside the city is lost, Fengxiang will be left without a response. If the Baoda, Baosai, and Yisheng armies cannot rush to help in time, Fengxiang will really become an isolated city and will be conquered by the Shu army sooner or later!”

Liu Zhijun walked in front with his hands behind his back, not saying anything, but Liu Zhiyan spoke again softly: “In my opinion, why don’t we try to contact Wang Zongkan… Brother, you are known as a famous general, but after coming to Qi State…”

Before the latter finished speaking, Liu Zhijun sighed and said in a deep voice: “If I surrender to Shu again, I will be a slave of three surnames.”

“What’s that?” Liu Zhiyan shook his head nonchalantly. “In this era, who doesn’t have three or five lords? Even the Liang Emperor Zhu Wen served Huang Chao first and then surrendered to the Tang Dynasty. Wasn’t it him who sent the Tang Dynasty on its last journey?”

Liu Zhijun frowned and said nothing, still thinking. Liu Zhiyan was about to say a few more words when they heard footsteps on the city wall. They were both startled and looked up to see Liu Zhiyan’s son Liu Siyi walking towards them. Before he could get down from the city wall and approach them, the latter had already impatiently laid on the bricks and shouted, “Uncle, father, listen quickly! Listen quickly!”

Liu Zhiyan listened for a while, still frowning in confusion, but Liu Zhijun suddenly looked towards the north.

“Oh, that’s the sound of the horn.” Liu Zhiyan sighed and said, “It must be that the Shu army has captured the camp north of the city.”

“It’s different.” Liu Zhijun said in a low voice, and he quickly ran towards the city wall. Liu Zhiyan didn’t understand why, so he followed him.

At this time, there was chaos on the city wall, and many officers were lying on the top of the city wall looking north.

Because Liu Zhijun and his companion were wearing armor, they could not climb the tunnel very fast. As soon as their heads appeared above the wall, they heard the sound of war drums and the loud shouts of killing. The sounds rose and fell, merging into thunderous waves that poured into their ears. Liu Zhijun, who had commanded countless battles of all sizes, even changed his expression.

“Uncle, look to the north! There are so many cavalry, so majestic!”

Liu Siyi tried to help him anxiously, but Liu Zhijun had already shaken him off nimbly. He then climbed over a few junior officers on the top of the city wall and looked north. Sure enough, he saw a cavalry in the direction Liu Siyi pointed, a huge cavalry!

The Shu cavalry, which had just approached the main camp of the Qi army in the north, was now retreating southward in panic. In their panic, they had even entered the range of the bows and arrows of the Fengxiang defenders.

However, at this time, the defenders on the top of Fengxiang City did not even bother to shoot arrows at the Shu cavalry below the city. They were all staring towards the north with wide eyes.

The light cavalry, divided into two teams on the left and right, had already crossed the main camp of the Qi army in the north and were arranged in a wide front. Most of these cavalrymen wore white round-collared military uniforms, fine scale armor on the outside, and iron helmets on their heads, which were light and defensive.

However, what is surprising is that some of these light cavalrymen actually wore large hats with very wide brims on their heads, but upon closer inspection, they looked more like bamboo hats than hats. Liu Zhijun, who had fought in Daliang, recognized that this was the “Fan Yang hat” which was said to be quite popular in Youyan area of ​​Hebei.

Moreover, these cavalrymen seemed to have all kinds of weapons in their hands. They not only held swords, spears, but also had longbows hanging at their sides. The quivers next to the saddles were filled with densely packed arrows. From a distance, it looked like layers of white reeds swaying.

The light cavalrymen either rode their horses at a moderate pace or urged them forward, making a leaping charge, until they were close to the Shu cavalry in Qi camp, then they reined in their horses and turned back. It was obvious that each of these light cavalrymen was proficient in riding, and they were obviously good at serving as scouts, as well as riding thousands of miles on the battlefield and killing the enemy with bows and swords.

At first glance, these people seemed to be very similar to the Hu cavalry galloping on the grassland, even the equipment of the Hu cavalry, two or three horses per person, was exactly the same, and their proficiency in archery and horse riding could be seen from their slow driving. But what was different from the Hu cavalry was that their armor and weapons were extremely sophisticated, and when they marched, countless fine scales on their armor were like layers of dancing light spots in the sunlight, dazzling people so much that they could not open their eyes.

Between the light cavalry on both wings, there were no less than four infantry commanders. Among the infantry, some wore armor, neck guards and shoulder caps, with only a pair of eyes exposed, and held the most common standard spears in their hands; some only wore infantry armor, carried longbows, and held weapons such as maces, solid iron rods, and iron bones in one hand.

To the north of Fengxiang City, there is a flat road with only earthen hills and scattered trees. At a glance, it is a large wilderness suitable for the deployment of troops.

The infantrymen walked slowly down the mound with heavy steps, crossed the empty camp in the middle, and gradually emerged from the cover of the light cavalry on both wings.

When the infantrymen stood still, several riders rode out from the top of the mound they passed by, holding different flags and giving orders to the left and right. Then, another black group of five or six hundred cavalrymen appeared on the top of the hill.

These cavalrymen were very different from the light cavalry. They were covered in heavy black iron armor. The men wore phoenix-wing helmets and iron masks, and their horses were also covered in heavy armor. They looked extremely ferocious.

At this time, in the vague circle formed by the heavy cavalry, a dozen officers in distinctive armor appeared. These officers were even more aggressive. They just reined in their horses and stood there casually, like ferocious wolves staring at all the prey under Fengxiang City.

“Damn it, this army is so majestic…”

There was silence on the city wall at first, and then there was a great uproar, a deafening noise.

“Where did the troops come from, and to which unit do they belong?”

“From the north? Are they from Jin? Or are they the mixed barbarians from the grassland?”

Not only on the city wall, but also under the city, more than a thousand Shu cavalrymen who were originally approaching the Qi army camp, retreated to the south at this time. They did not dare to act rashly but were ready to flee to the south at any time, standing there in shock.

There were too many cavalrymen on the opposite side. With just a rough glance, there were at least twenty commanders!
My goodness, nearly 10,000 well-equipped cavalrymen, who supplied them? !
Not to mention the more than a thousand Shu cavalry, even if there were twice as many, the huge light cavalry group on the opposite side with two or three horses would be able to encircle them in an instant. In comparison, if the Shu cavalry dared to act rashly, the opposite side would be able to crush them to pieces just in terms of mobility.

Before everyone could panic and be astonished for long, a knight finally held up a large flag on the mound far away in the north. The inscription on it was extremely simple, just an ordinary word “Xiao”, without even the military number or the court it belonged to.

“It’s the Liang army.” But Liu Zhijun immediately said in a deep voice as if he was sure: “The King of Song from Daliang is probably here in person…”

In fact, he had already determined that this army was the Liang army by the color of their uniforms. The Tang Dynasty was the earth virtue, and yellow was the preferred color. However, the Liang Dynasty was the Tang Dynasty, and earth gave birth to gold, and white was the preferred color. Therefore, the uniforms of the generals and soldiers under the Daliang banner were generally white.

However, when Liu Zhijun rebelled against Liang a year ago, Xiao Yan was still in Hebei and had not returned. Moreover, the number of horses that Xiao Yan handed over to the Daliang court was very small. So according to the information Liu Zhijun knew, it was impossible for Daliang to have such a large cavalry group.

He remained silent only after the large banner with the word “Xiao” on it was unfurled.

After Liu Zhijun’s reminder, all the Fengxiang defenders on the city wall were stunned, and then they started to murmur again.

At this time, Xiao Yan was already known to the world because of the Bian Jing mutiny a month ago, but to the generals of Qi State, Xiao Yan was too unfamiliar. It was really hard for them to imagine that the fierce and powerful army before their eyes could actually be this man’s army.

And the most important thing is that they are Liang Army!
Qi and Liang had always been at odds, and no one would think that the Liang army was forcing its way into the city to aid Fengxiang.

Everyone felt as if they were poured a bucket of cold water. The exclamation, excitement and excitement just now turned into endless chill. No one could understand why the Liang army came from the north. If so, didn’t Weibei fall into the hands of the Liang people?

“Humph.” Liu Zhijun’s nephew Liu Siyi, who was only in his twenties, sneered: “Just right, let Liang and Shu fight each other…”

“What nonsense!” Liu Zhiyan scolded fiercely, then looked around and said in a low voice: “If the Liang army kills the Shu army, will our family be better off?”

“I’m afraid it’s not that simple.” Liu Zhijun’s thoughts went deeper. His brows were furrowed into a shape of a “川” (river shape). Just as he was about to speak, his ears moved and he heard the unique horn sound of the Qi army from the east.

The generals on the city wall were at a loss for a moment and could not understand the meaning of the horn.

But suddenly, under the “Xiao” flag that seemed to be lying across the north of Fengxiang City like a ferocious tiger, someone raised a horn and blew it with a mournful sound, which could be heard from far away.

No one was a fool on the battlefield. Almost at the moment the horn sounded, the Shu cavalry under the city, who dared not act rashly and were even sending scouts to find out why the Liang army had come, suddenly turned their horses’ heads and fled.

But faster than them were the light cavalry on both wings of the Liang army. This group of nearly five or six thousand light cavalry moved in an instant. The sound of countless bowstrings snapping rang out. Arrows with armor-piercing arrowheads leaped into the air, then turned and fell. One feather arrow after another fell into the fleeing Shu cavalry, like a rainstorm pouring down from the sky.

Everyone knew that this Shu cavalry could not escape.

——

In the southern camp of the Shu army, Wang Zongkan had already put on his own armor and was dispatching nearly 30 infantrymen under his command to leave the camp. He had already felt something was wrong when he heard that the city on the eastern side of Wugong was completely deserted not long ago. Just now, when he heard several horn sounds echoing from the north and south, he could no longer sit still.

Fifteen to sixteen thousand infantrymen left the camp, one to intimidate the Qi army, the other to support the eastern camp at any time, and at the same time to support Wang Zonghe who was leading the Shu cavalry to the north.

But soon, he received bad news.

More than a thousand Shu cavalrymen who went north were almost defeated, and only about a hundred of the remaining two or three hundred cavalrymen escaped. It is said that among the cavalrymen who escaped back, someone saw Wang Zonghe, the Hanzhong Recruiting Envoy, who was shot by an arrow and fell off his horse during the retreat, and his life or death was unknown.

The most crucial thing is that Xiao Yan, the King of Song of the Liang Dynasty, personally led his troops and had nearly 10,000 cavalry under his command. It was suspected that Ding Badu, who was known as the King of Song’s personal army, and his troops had recently defeated the Shu cavalry in an instant, and then immediately turned eastward to intimidate the Shu army camp in the east.

Under the intimidation of thousands of Dingbadu cavalry, the Shu army in the east could only watch in the camp as King Qi and his troops calmly entered Fengxiang. During this period, more than ten thousand people in the Shu camp in the east did not dare to move.

Afterwards, Na Dingba entered the city openly and stationed at the Beiqi Camp.

The news one after another almost shocked Wang Zongkan to the point of fainting.

“Report to Hanzhong immediately.” He had no time to think about whether Wang Zonghe was alive or dead, nor did he have time to care about the loss of more than a thousand Shu cavalry. He just grabbed a few military secretaries and asked them to write a memorial immediately: “The King of Song of the Liang Dynasty has arrived in Fengxiang, and he also wants to make it clear. I suspect that the King of Qi, Li Maozhen, has surrendered to this person…”

He almost immediately said, “I risk my life to make this petition, and ask the Emperor to allow me to withdraw my troops.”

After saying this, everyone in the big tent was stunned for a moment, but Wang Zongkan just smiled bitterly. He couldn’t possibly explain to these people that this war against Qi was probably a conspiracy by Xiao Yan, who was underestimated by the world, with the State of Qi.

Use Fengxiang as a lure to lure the entire Shu Kingdom into Longyou.

Wang Zongkan couldn’t imagine that the Shu army, including the civilians and auxiliary soldiers, had nearly 100,000 people surrounding Fengxiang City. If they were annihilated by Qiliang…

He gritted his teeth and pounded the map on the table: “Also, hurry up and get that bastard Tang Daoxi back. The Liang cavalry is too powerful and might cut off their western army’s retreat!”

Of course, behind Wang Zongkan’s many thoughts, there was a question that no one could answer for him at the moment.

What the hell is Yang Shihou doing who claims to be planning a coup to seize Xiao Yan’s power? !

——

More than 200 miles east of Fengxiang is Guanxi and Wugong County.

In the plains, flags fell, and corpses piled up on the roads and in the wilderness. The blood had dried up in the wind. A man with a fair complexion, who could be identified at a glance as a man in his forties who was used to a life of luxury, had his crown taken off and was being escorted to a temporary camp with disheveled hair.

“Let me go, let me go! Who is your commander? I want to see him! If I don’t accept it, come and fight me again if you have the guts. If my soldiers of Great Shu were not on their way back, how could we have been defeated by you? Your commander…”

“Are you Tang Daoxi?”

The forty-year-old man was stunned by his voice and looked up, and saw a young man wearing black armor, with an unshaven beard and a tattered and dirty cloak behind him. His face was covered with black and gray sweat stains like the other soldiers. He was leading a war horse and standing in front of the big tent, looking at him, or rather, staring at the plain behind him.

“I am you!” Tang Daoxi’s face flushed. “Who are you? I’m telling you, don’t humiliate me. I’m a defeated general, you can kill me or chop me up as you please!”

His angry roar did not alarm the young man, nor did it startle the equally dusty-looking guards on both sides of the young man. It did make the warhorse behind the young man a little dissatisfied. But perhaps it was just because its body was contaminated by blood, and its mane was wet and stuck into wisps. So it fidgeted with its neck anxiously and stamped its hooves on the spot, wanting to neigh loudly at Tang Daoxi.

“I am reluctant to kill you.”

The young man smiled faintly, stretched out his hand, and gently stroked the horse’s forehead, which calmed it down. Then he said, “I just heard that your Great Shu Emperor is currently in Hanzhong?”

Tang Daoxi looked up in surprise, and then he could see clearly the young man with the backlight. Although he was thin with prominent cheekbones, his facial lines were clear, and he looked even more heroic and fierce.

His eyes were not intimidating, but even though the glare seemed to have faded, it was like a sharp sword when it fell on him, making Tang Daoxi feel as if a mountain was pressing down on him.

Tang Daoxi was stunned and asked: “You, you are Xiao Yan?”

The young man laughed loudly, “The Prime Minister is indeed a smart man, and I like him. In this case, please take the trouble to take me to Hanzhong and introduce me to Wang Jian.”

In this makeshift camp, overwhelming cheers immediately rang out.

“Go to Hanzhong, go to Hanzhong!!”

(End of this chapter)