Strange Tales from the Northern Qi Dynasty

Chapter 271 If You Don’t Come, I’ll Go

It was April of that year.

Zhou, Shiya Mountain City.

A long and narrow official road passes through the loess hills on both sides and leads to Lingwu in the south.

The climate here has also begun to gradually warm up, and the originally desolate Huangshan Mountain now has more mottled deep green.

On the gentle slope, Potala Ku lay in the weeds, staring at the official road in the distance.

There were loud sounds of horse hooves on the official road.

Potala narrowed his eyes, looked around, and clenched the bow in his hand.

Several knights appeared on the official road and they rushed towards the direction of Shiya Mountain City.

Potala immediately buried his head in the mud.

The knights gradually disappeared in the distance.

When Potala raised his head again, he could already hear the noise in the distance.

In the distance, a large group of people were rushing towards the mountain city.

Leading the group was an officer without armor.

Potala estimated that there were more than 300 cavalrymen, many of whom were riding two or three horses but had no attendants. Less than one-third of them were wearing armor, and the rest were not without armor, but they just hadn't put it on.

Behind the knight was a carriage connected to another one.

There were a large number of horse-drawn carriages, all loaded with cargo.

There were a large number of civilian laborers accompanying them, but these people had little fighting ability.

With flags flying, the transport convoy passed through the official road in a swaggering manner.

The leading officer wiped the sweat from his forehead. The sunlight was so bright that he could hardly look straight into the distance.

He shielded his eyes with his hands and complained, "Why does it feel so hot this year??"

"It's only April and it's already so hot. How will we march in May or June?"

The knights following him were also quite tired at this moment.

"Even this warhorse can't handle it. General, do we need to change armor when we enter the city later?"

Yuwen Hu believed that the troops should not be dispatched prematurely, and he had his own reasons. If they were to dispatch troops in the scorching hot summer, the fully armed soldiers would no longer be soldiers, but would become teppanyaki.

The elite troops of both sides are famous for their heavy armor, and the food they eat in the summer is easy to spoil. If they go out in the scorching heat and are fully armed, there will probably be many casualties. If they get sick, it will be a real disaster.

The officer was full of disdain. "No need. If General Liu asks us why we are not wearing armor, we can say that our armor was left in Yongfeng!"

The other knights laughed.

One person cursed unhappily: "It is incomprehensible that a person like Liu Yong, who lost Yongfeng, can still stay in Shiyashan City and lead the front line."

"What's so hard to understand? They can't fight, but they can send gifts. They sent piles of gifts to the residences of the Duke of Jin and his sons. Let alone losing Yongfeng, I don't think he would be in trouble even if he lost Chang'an!"

The officer then stopped them, "Don't talk nonsense."

The knight just sighed and said, "The Duke of Jin wants to attack Qi, but it's hard for us. I haven't been home for three months. From Longxi to Xiazhou, and then to this broken place."

"Don't complain. After this delivery, you can go home!"

Everyone was talking excitedly.

"kill!!!"

The next moment, shouts and screams suddenly rang out from both sides, startling both men and horses. The war horses neighed, and the officers were horrified and quickly raised their heads to look at the gentle slopes on both sides.

Then I saw someone standing up on the slope, holding a bow and crossbow.

"not good!!"

"bunker!!"

The officer gave a hasty order, and the next moment, all bows and crossbows were fired.

Arrows fell from both sides, the knights screamed and fell off their horses, with nowhere to hide, and the ground began to shake slightly.

From the front, a cavalry appeared, fully armed and having been waiting for a long time.

Liu Taozi rode on a green lion and held a lance in his hand. The knights occupied all the official roads and rushed towards them.

The knights wanted to evacuate, but the carriages behind them blocked the official road, and the gentle slopes on both sides were full of enemy archers.

A complete dead end.

The officer looked around, his face full of despair.

At this moment, he suddenly remembered the words of his colleagues who had withdrawn from Yongfeng.

"Will you surrender!!"

He shouted loudly and jumped off his horse.

The knights on the left and right followed suit.

Liu Taozi came running so wildly that the Qingshi horse's hooves almost stepped on the officer's head, but Liu Taozi still reined in his horse. He raised his lance and looked at the people in front of him who were kneeling to surrender.

The archers on both sides stopped shooting at this moment. They stood on both sides, holding bows and crossbows, aiming at these people.

The knights in charge of the escort did not dare to resist, and the civilians were even less brave.

Potulao rushed to Liu Taozi's side quickly. He almost flew down and walked to Liu Taozi's side on foot with a smile on his face. Without waiting for Liu Taozi's orders, he sent people to tie up the captives and ordered the carriages and horses to turn around.

The soldiers were very busy.

Potala finally laughed out loud.

"Hahaha, there was a robbery outside the big city, and there was a robbery outside the Dailai city, why are they still defenseless? Yuwen escorted a lot of good things!"

Liu Taozi said calmly: "The pseudo-Zhou army system is like this. Each unit is clearly divided, and communication between them must be through the commander or Chang'an. There are advantages and disadvantages."

Potala was not willing to think about the reasons, he just hoped that such things would happen more often.

The Zhou people were really rich. The food they got from these robberies was enough for them to eat for a long time.

Potala began to arrange other matters, but Liu Taozi walked up the slope and looked into the distance.

After an unknown amount of time, Potala wiped the sweat off his face and came to Liu Taozi again. He stood on tiptoes and looked into the distance.

"What are you looking at, brother?"

"This place is very close to Shiya City. It is impossible that Liu Yong could not have heard it. Why didn't he send troops?"

Potuo Luo's face was full of disdain. "That Liu Yong was scared out of his wits by my brother in Yongfeng. Not to mention hearing the noise, even if my brother was killing people outside the city, he might not dare to look outside the city."

"What do you think of Shiya Mountain City?"

Hearing the question, Potala was stunned for a moment, then put on a serious face and said, "I think it's very solid."

"In the past, Yongfeng Town was there to protect it, so the danger of this place was not obvious. But now that Yongfeng has fallen into our hands, it has become the first city to fight against us. It is surrounded by mountains on three sides, with only one official road and one direction for attack. The city wall itself is strong, and Liu Yong has stockpiled many soldiers. If someone else becomes the commander, perhaps we will not be able to come and go freely in Zhou territory."

Liu Taozi nodded gently, "I have made some progress."

Potala laughed, "I have followed my brother for many years. If I had not made any progress, how could I have survived until now?"

Liu Taozi looked at the city in the distance again.

"I want to capture this city."

"There is only one strategic fortress on the road of more than 100 miles from Yongfeng to Lingwu. If we can capture it, our army can move freely around the area without any threat."

Poduoluo's eyes widened. He thought he had a big appetite and wanted to eat a few more grain transport teams, but he didn't expect that his brother's appetite was several times bigger than his. Was he going to eat Shiya Mountain City? ?
Potala frowned slightly.

Shiya Mountain City has a geographical advantage. Although it is not as strong as Yubi City, it is definitely a strong city. Liu Yong has more than 20,000 troops stationed here, while they only have less than 2,000 troops this time. They are not at a disadvantage in terms of food and grass. Instead, they have to worry about the enemy's reinforcements.
He felt that it would be extremely difficult to capture.

But this is my brother's order.

Potala immediately saluted and said, "I am willing to be the vanguard!!"

Liu Taozi just looked at the Shiya Mountain City in the distance, as if he was calculating the gains and losses.

at the same time.

Liu Yong stood on the city wall.

Shiya Mountain City is in an excellent location. There is only one official road leading to the distance, and it is surrounded by high mountains on three sides. The soldiers running back and forth on the city wall at this moment seem particularly uneasy.

Liu Yong hid on the city wall, looking into the distance with a frightened look in his eyes.

There were several scouts outside the city gate, who were the ones who had just passed by. They reported that the grain transporting troops behind them had been attacked and requested Liu Yong to open the city gate.

But no matter how they begged, Liu Yong did not open the city gate. He even ordered people to block the city gate with debris and asked the civilians in the city to help defend the city.

The former commander of Shiya Mountain City looked at the frightened knights outside the city gate and said helplessly: "General, you can let them in first."

"No!" "Liu Taozi is very cunning, who knows if this person is sent by him."

Liu Yong's eyes were filled with fear, and even though he was wearing heavy armor, he couldn't feel at ease.

"Liu Taozi has come here to kill us. He must be here to seize the city!"

"There is no way out here!"

"We must defend to the death! We must defend to the death!!"

Liu Yong's face was pale and his voice was a little strange. The former garrison commander had already realized the general's fear, and this fear made everyone around him feel uneasy.

It is a huge joke that someone like Liu Yong could serve as a general in the court.

After the defeat in Yongfeng, he took over the second line of defense, and the generals, governors and other important officials who were originally stationed here all became his followers.

Just as the former defender was about to persuade the other side again, dust rolled in the distance and cavalrymen galloped towards them.

"They're coming!!!"

Liu Yong pounded the city wall fiercely, "Defend! Defend to the death!!"

The defending general didn't dare to advise anymore. He quickly raised the command flag, and soldiers from all over the place received the order and appeared on the city wall with bows and crossbows, ready to shoot the enemy.

The knights under the city were so frightened that they turned pale and shouted loudly.

They never imagined that one day they would be able to enjoy the same treatment as Gao Aocao in the Great Zhou.

There were not many knights charging forward, but in the distance one could still see the dust all over the sky and many people moving around. Liu Yong stood on the city wall and saw it most clearly. He saw that the enemy was cutting down trees to build siege equipment.

The knights continued to charge, and only stopped when they were almost shooting at each other.

Immediately afterwards, these Qi knights began to wander around the city walls, exploring the terrain and observing the situation of the defenders.

They were so bold, with a loose formation and no rules. They stuck their heads out carelessly and checked the enemy's situation unscrupulously.

But Liu Yong didn't have the courage to punch the other party.

He just urged soldiers from all over the country to prepare for defense.

The knights spied openly for a long time and then left.

But Liu Yong’s nightmare was not over, it was just the beginning.

Liu Taozi, who was far away, had been observing the enemy's situation. When he saw more than a hundred knights wandering around outside the city and the enemy did not dare to fight back, he knew what to do next.

No matter how strong the city or how powerful the army is, it will be useless for cowards.

On the distant hillside, one can still see Qi people moving around freely. Their numbers seem to be increasing, and the smoke from their cooking fires is also increasing.

And the number of knights coming to investigate is increasing.

From the initial hundreds of people, to three hundred, five hundred, and then a thousand people.
Their behavior became more and more outrageous. Sometimes they came without armor, and other times they shot arrows at the scouts hiding outside the city.

At the worst times, they would simply dismount and sit outside the city to eat and drink.

Liu Yong didn't dare to go down the city wall for four days. He was tense, fearing that the enemy would launch an attack as soon as he went back to rest.

This tense and desperate atmosphere enveloped the entire city. The soldiers watched the number of enemies continue to increase and their behavior became more and more outrageous, but their commander just kept urging them to keep a close eye on them day and night, and even changed the number of rotations.

Several generals in the city noticed something.

The garrison commander spoke again, "General, we can't keep going like this. We should lead our troops to attack them while they are off guard!!"

He widened his eyes, pointed at the enemy troops resting outside the city, and said through gritted teeth: "Even if we can't defeat them, we have to repel them once to boost morale!!"

"General, I am willing to be the vanguard!!"

Liu Yong was furious. "General Shi, can't you see that this is Liu Taozi's plan? He is trying to lure us into taking the initiative!"

"He came from Yongfeng with no more than 10,000 men. Our city is strong. As long as we defend it, he will not be able to break through. If we attack rashly, who can defeat him?! Duke Sui can't do it, how can you?"

General Shi said angrily: "General, the morale of the troops in the city is low, how can they be so passive? The enemy is obviously pretending and bluffing, the purpose is to break our morale and make our soldiers lose the will to fight. Even my young son can see the strength of the enemy, why can't the general see it clearly?"

Liu Yong sneered, "I know you don't like me. You follow the Duke closely, and I don't like you either. After we repelled the enemy this time, I don't care whether you want to be a garrison commander or a governor somewhere else. But this time, if you dare not obey my military order, I will kill you. Don't think I am afraid of him following the Duke."

General Shi took a deep breath and said helplessly, "Then please reduce the number of guards and increase the rotation time so that they can have enough rest. The soldiers haven't rested for many days. It's hot during the day and cold at night. There are already casualties on the city wall. How can we continue to defend like this?"

"We are under siege. Troops from all over the country will soon come to reinforce us! As long as we hold on, we will win! It's not time to relax yet!"

"Follow my orders!!"

General Shi left indignantly.

Liu Yong watched the other party leave, then he gently rubbed his eyes. He had not rested for many days and there were always tears in the corners of his eyes. The servant beside him hurriedly brought him honey water. Liu Yong took several big mouthfuls and drank some cold tea. Only then did his body feel relieved.

The servant held a small fan and fanned him gently. Liu Yong frowned and felt very unhappy.

Even I, the commander-in-chief, am working so hard and fighting so hard, yet these people still want to neglect me?

Liu Yong had won battles before, but the defeat at Yongfeng completely lost his spirit. After learning that Liu Taozi was coming to kill him, his only thought was to wait for the enemy to fail in their siege and then retreat.

By the fifth day, the enemy's number had increased to nearly two thousand.

Many of the infantrymen were holding ladders.

However, Liu Yong was still staring at the situation in the distance. He didn't know how many troops Liu Taozi had at the moment, nor did he know where his reinforcements were.

Scorching sun.

Liu Yong was sweating profusely. Everything in the distance seemed a little unreal, and he seemed to be able to see boiling steam.

"kill!!!"

The sound of war drums and shouts of killing suddenly rang out.

Liu Yong's confused state disappeared in an instant. He became fully awake and looked hurriedly towards the city. The army of less than two thousand people had already launched a charge.

Liu Taozi, wearing heavy armor, charged ahead.

"Kill! Shoot!!"

Liu Yong screamed madly.

The counterattack on the city wall seemed weak and powerless. Arrows flew towards the enemy at a rapid speed, but the soldiers' faces were full of fear and fatigue. They seemed to be shooting numbly, like puppets.

Liu Taozi had few soldiers, so he chose the area in the south where the enemy's defense was weakest to launch the city attack.

Liu Yong was still shouting and jumping at this moment, cursing the incompetent general in the south and sending people for reinforcement.

On the ladders, warriors in heavy armor and holding large shields rushed up the city wall facing the arrows. The next moment, the guards began to flee in all directions. Some collapsed and cried, some knelt on the ground and begged for mercy, and some jumped directly from the city wall.

Five days of high pressure and fatigue brought the army's morale to the lowest point. Liu Yong was terrified when he saw the enemy climbing up the city wall and driving the defeated soldiers to flee everywhere.

"Open the city gate!!"

"Get me out!!"

"Get me out!!"

General Shi looked at him coldly, "Shua~~"

"Pfft!!"

Everyone saw General Shi draw out the sharp blade and push from behind. The sword pierced through Liu Yong's body and came out from his chest.

Liu Yong looked at his chest in astonishment. General Shi roared and lifted him up, then threw him heavily to the ground.

Liu Yong fell to the ground, motionless.

General Shi looked around and suddenly dropped the sword in his hand, "Surrender to me!!!"

The city was captured by Liu Taozi in a humiliating attack.

The generals knelt at the city gate, and Liu Yong's body was thrown aside.

The soldiers were clearing away the debris piled up at the city gate.

Potula led his troops to the scene. He looked at Liu Yong's body with some emotion in his eyes.

It's a pity that General Liu Yong has made great contributions to his brother. If he were captured by me, I'm afraid I wouldn't have the heart to kill him. Such a good general should continue to be used by the enemy.

He looked at the general kneeling in front of him and said, "It was you who killed him."

"Grandpa! Let's go!"

Suddenly there was a roar from the city. Potala turned around and saw a half-grown boy riding a warhorse bigger than himself rushing out of the city and galloping towards him. The soldiers along the way tried to stab him with spears, but he was able to dodge them easily.

General Shi looked up, stunned.

"Shu Zi!!!"

ps: When he was fifteen, Zhou and Qi fought at Mount Mang. When Wansui was about 15 years old, he followed his father into the army. When the flags and drums were just facing each other, Wansui ordered his men to prepare and leave quickly. Soon, the Zhou army was defeated, and his father was surprised. During the reign of Emperor Wu, he was released from prison and served as a senior official. ——"Book of Zhou·Biography of Shi Wansui"

(End of this chapter)