Strange Tales from the Northern Qi Dynasty

Chapter 394 Who Said Three-Sided Attack?

It started snowing lightly.

Dugu Yongye stood on the city wall and looked at the mighty Han army outside the city.

The defensive works they were proud of were completely destroyed. The enemy attacked from three directions and killed their way to Yewang City.

Many satellite towns, garrisons, and ravines outside Yewang City have been lost.

Dugu Yongye encountered the enemy's large-scale army alone.

The city walls were filled with soldiers.

Dugu Yongye deployed heavy troops in Hanoi, and even after many areas on the front line were lost, he continued to mobilize troops from the rear.

Although he had a large army around him, Dugu Yongye was not at peace at all.

He had fought in wars and he could tell how strong the army outside the city was.

Likewise, he knew the combat effectiveness of most of his troops.

He himself had less than 20,000 Heluo soldiers, and the rest of the soldiers were forcibly gathered during this period of time.

Giving peasants a weapon does not mean they can be called soldiers.

These new recruits may be used to boost courage, but it would be a bit unrealistic to expect them to defeat the enemies outside the city.

Dugu Yongye was a little conflicted.

Not far away, several trusted generals were staring at the large army gathering outside the city.

The enemy has not yet started to attack the city, they are making preparations for the siege.

They piled up earth to build a city, made cloud chariots and catapults, and people came and went outside the city, ignoring the army inside the city and treating it as nothing.

This is really a humiliation.

However, Dugu Yongye did not dare to go out and attack them.

It's easy to leave the city, but it's hard to come back
Yang Su walked up to the city wall and walked quickly to the side of Dugu Yongye. He looked quite haggard and no longer had the arrogance he had before.

Dugu Yongye didn't even turn around and asked directly: "Is there any good news?"

Dugu Yongye's own intelligence ability is not worth mentioning, but Yang Su can often get a lot of information. No matter whether what he said is true or false, Dugu Yongye can analyze something from the information he provides.

Yang Su stood silently beside Dugu Yongye.

"Wang Lin has sent out troops."

"Ok??"

Dugu Yongye was moved and couldn't help but look at him.

"Wang Lin?"

Yang Su nodded. He would not hide many major issues from Dugu Yongye. Although Dugu Yongye was not smart, he was a veteran who had fought for many years. It would be impossible to hide lies from him on major issues, and it would easily arouse suspicion.

Dugu Yongye's face twitched, "Guangzhou Army?"

"The bandit's Gwangju is rich and has plenty of food and grass. When Wang Lin, the general of Gwangju, learned that Liu Taozi was confronting you in Hanoi, he led 20,000 troops westward along the river and has captured many cities."

"Twenty thousand??"

Dugu Yongye couldn't help but raise his voice.

"Why did he have 20,000 men to go to war?"

This army is also divided into city defense troops and field troops. Like Liu Taozi, the number of field troops that can be mobilized at present is about 40,000.

How the hell can a local general have 20,000 field soldiers?
Seeing Dugu Yongye's astonished expression, Yang Su said helplessly: "At the beginning, Liu Taozi collected a lot of defeated soldiers in the south, and settled them in Guangzhou. Later, he sent some Jinyang soldiers over. Wang Lin used them as a basis to train a Guangzhou army of more than 23,000 people, and more than 2,000 naval forces."

Dugu Yongye suddenly felt a little dizzy.

During these days, he was only concerned about Liu Taozi and his Fangs in the north, and even forgot that there were also Liu Taozi's people south of the river.

He is also a heavyweight southern general.

Yang Su saw that Dugu Yongye's hands were shaking slightly. He was trying hard to calm himself, but to no avail. For a moment, he was terrified to the extreme, with his mouth open, trying hard to breathe.

"Where is Wang Lin killing now?"

"They have already taken over Dongping, Taishan and other counties, and their main force is advancing towards Yanzhou."

Dugu Yongye's breathing became heavier.

Not to mention whether he could defend Hanoi, even if he could, he would still die if Wang Lin attacked him from behind.

Dugu Yongye knew Wang Lin's strength to some extent, and he knew the officials of the southern states and counties even better.
They couldn't stop Wang Lin at all, and might not even be able to stop him for ten days.

Wang Lin will soon appear in Heluo, and from another aspect.

The 20,000 Gwangju troops were veterans who had experienced the war in the south.

Dugu Yongye was completely silent.

Yang Su said seriously: "General, don't worry, the King of Ye is still strong, and you are here to take charge!"

"As for Wang Lin, there will always be a way."

“There is always a way??”

"Is there always a way?"

"Who's going to stop him?"

Dugu Yongye suddenly became furious. He pounded hard on the battlements in front of him and said angrily, "It's useless!"

"Even if we can stop Liu Taozi here, who will stop Wang Lin?"

"We agreed to attack from three sides, but now, I am the one being attacked from three sides. Where is Yuchi Jiong? Where is the Turkic Khan?!"

"What about the agreement that the Southern Kingdom would cut off trade with Liu Taozi?"

"Gwangju can even organize an army of 20,000 people to go on an expedition? Is this the result of cutting off trade?"

Dugu Yongye really couldn't help it. Before the war, he said something very nice. He said that once the war broke out, the South would stop trading with Liu Taozi, so that Liu Taozi would not have a large amount of food and grass for the attack. He also said that Liu Taozi would be attacked from three sides so that Liu Taozi could not go all out. But when the fighting started, everything was different from what he had agreed.

Dugu Yongye walked down the city wall angrily, leaving behind a group of astonished people.

Watching Dugu Yongye leave, Yang Su was a little stunned. Only until he could no longer see him did his expression return to calm, and a hint of gloom flashed in his eyes.

Wang Lin did go on the expedition.

However, it was not 20,000 troops, but just over 10,000.

However, considering the quality of the officials in Henan, they could say that 10,000 enemy troops were only 30,000 or 40,000, so Dugu Yongye could not be sure of their number at all.

As for why he threatened Dugu Yongye so much, it was because Yang Su changed his strategy.

The original strategy was to lure Liu Taozi's army to Henei, and then capture Lingzhou where his military strength was weak. After taking Lingzhou, Da Xiwu would lead his troops south, stab Dugu Yongye in the back, take over Heluo, and take over Henan.

This strategy encountered many variables after its implementation.

The progress on Yuchi Jiong's side is very, very unsuccessful.

Liu Taozi's progress was too smooth. It took him less than two months to reach the city of Yewang.

In this case, the original strategy becomes invalid.

The current strategy is to force Dugu Yongye to surrender to the Great Zhou.

It would be fine if Lingzhou could not be taken, but at least Heluo had to be taken, occupying the important road for sending troops, and competing with Liu Taozi for the ownership of Henan.

However, it is not easy to intimidate Dugu Yongye. One has to keep putting pressure on him without destroying him directly. One has to make him fail, but one cannot let him fail completely. Everything has to be done in moderation.

We must not let him harbor doubts and must guide him slowly.

Yang Su was still quite confident about this.

Dongping County.

The city gate was wide open. The prefect, wearing only his underwear, tied himself up, carried a bundle of brambles on his back, and walked out barefoot.

Behind him were many officials and generals of the local army.

The prefect was a big and strong man, and even though he was only wearing underwear, he looked several times bigger than a man wrapped in thick clothes.

The soldiers followed closely behind him and came out one after another. They had thrown away their armor and had no weapons in their hands.

Wang Lin was riding his warhorse right in front of the city gate, with his head lowered, looking down at the prefect in the distance.

The governor walked up to Wang Lin tremblingly and immediately knelt before him. "General Wang! I surrender! I surrender!!"

"Please be lenient and forgive my family for my timely surrender."

The prefect kowtowed repeatedly, his face filled with horror.

Wang Lin raised the whip in his hand and pointed at him, "This is my first time at the city, how come you don't know to surrender?"

The governor kowtowed like a chicken pecking at rice, "It's all my fault. I shouldn't have offended the general's majesty."

"Well, admitting your mistakes and correcting them is a sign of progress. Get up."

He looked around, "Help him untie the ropes and get into the city!!"

The Gwangju army began to receive prisoners, and the local governor followed Wang Lin around, describing the situation in the city to him with a smile on his face.

The crowd entered the city and quickly occupied the government office.

The defenses of various parts of the city were also taken over, and Dongping County officially fell into the hands of the Han Kingdom.

Wang Lin was sitting in the government office, and the prefect sat next to him and poured tea for him.

The generals sat on both sides.

This government office is truly exquisite and glittering with gold. It is in no way inferior to the former luxurious prefectures of Gwangju.

When Liu Taozi went to the war, he actually did not consider letting Wang Lin go with him, because Wang Lin still had to train the navy. It was Wang Lin himself who wrote a letter, hoping to lead the Guangzhou soldiers to participate in the war.

Gwangju was wealthy and had sufficient military strength.

Moreover, in Wang Lin's eyes, these Henan prefectures and counties close to Guangzhou are basically undefended.

After Dugu Yongye and Duan Shao gained the surrender of these states and counties, Dugu Yongye could not wait to replace the original officials with his own people.

Then they frantically persecuted these areas, collecting food and fodder and militiamen, and did not treat them as their own people.

Therefore, these regions were extremely hostile to Dugu Yongye, and at the same time, influenced by Qingzhou and Guangzhou, they still had high expectations for Liu Han's forces.

Wang Lin led the army both by water and by land, killing his way all the way. Wherever he went, the people cheered, pointed the way for him, and told him the secrets of the army's garrison. Even the scholars in the city were extremely dissatisfied with Dugu Yongye's behavior of tormenting their own family, so they organized the people to open the city gates or cause chaos to help Wang Lin enter the city.

Wang Lin's offensive was extremely fierce, and facing the officials arranged by Dugu Yongye, he also adopted the strategy of surrendering rather than killing them.

If the defenders in the city surrendered in time, he would spare their lives and give them a lighter sentence.

Instead, they refused to surrender. After the city was captured, their homes were confiscated and their families were exterminated, leaving no one alive.

Wang Lin had been in the south for many years and was a veteran warlord, so he was very adept at these things.

Like Dongping, when Wang Lin sent the vanguard for the first time, it refused to surrender.

After Wang Lin slaughtered another prefect who refused to surrender and then led the main force to arrive, the prefect surrendered faster than anyone else without any hesitation.

Wang Lin simply praised the heroic performance of his generals, and then slowly talked about the next attack route.

"Yan, Xu and other states have been harmed by Dugu Yongye, and the people are full of resentment. Your Majesty has made rapid progress on Dugu Yongye's side. We don't have to rush to attack Heluo. Dugu Yongye's cronies in various places are doing whatever they want. Every day of delay will cause countless people to suffer. Your Majesty wants us to recover Yan, Xu and other states first, and at the same time guard against Chunyu Liang of Chen State taking the opportunity to seize cities and plunder land."

"I plan to split my forces into three groups."

Wang Lin gave many instructions, and the generals withdrew.

Wang Lin changed into ordinary clothes and walked out.

He had been in the south for many years, but had never been to this Central Plains area.

The city was extremely lively at this moment. The first thing Wang Lin and others did after taking over the city was to release the young and strong men who had been captured and were about to be sent to Heluo. They ordered them to be exempted from corvée labor and allowed them to return home.

The people in the city cheered.

Over the years, people who were afraid to go out because of Dugu Yongye took to the streets as if they wanted to vent some emotions.

In front of the notice board where the military officers posted the notice, a large group of people gathered. They were not afraid of the military officers, but asked questions boldly.

Although it hasn't snowed here yet, it's still cold.

Wang Lin never liked the cold, but at this moment, he was in a pretty good mood. The people along the way were all delighted and ran around to tell each other about it.

Wang Lin had only seen such things in books in the past.

This was the first time he had seen actual people cleaning the streets, running around and shouting to welcome the royal army.

Such a spectacle is a must-see.

He was looking around happily. After walking for a long time, he suddenly found that the road ahead was somewhat blocked. Many people were crowded together and he didn't know what they were looking at.

The surrounding warriors immediately gathered around him. Wang Lin shook his head slightly, motioning them to move back.

He immediately dismounted, asked a warrior to lead his horse, and blended into the crowd.

In the middle of the crowd, there were several thin men who surrounded a few people who were wrapped quite tightly, pulling them and preventing them from leaving.

The faces of those who were surrounded were extremely frightened. At this moment, they couldn't push away or walk away.

Wang Lin couldn't help but narrow his eyes.

What does this mean?
The blockers looked at the people who were surrounded with gnashing teeth.

"You didn't expect it, damn it, we didn't die!! We made it out alive again!"

"You bastard, you want to run away now?"

"Go! Come with me to see the official!! See the official!"

The man who was surrounded looked embarrassed, "Mr. Wang, don't be so rude. No one will be able to get away with it when they meet an official!"

"Do you really think that if the government changes some people, they will listen to your frame-up?"

"I framed you?!"

The man was furious. He rushed forward, grabbed the person who was talking, punched him without saying a word, and then took off his clothes.

Wang Lin was still a little surprised, but when he saw the man's outer robes being taken off, revealing the monk's clothes underneath, he immediately understood.

Oh.

The rest of the people were also beaten and had their clothes taken off. As expected, they were all foreign monks.

The man looked around, his eyes red, and he cursed: "Everyone, you all know me. I was originally a butcher in the south of the city. Two of my brothers died in the war, so I was exempted from corvée labor. These monks from Dajue Temple took a fancy to my family's land and said they wanted to exchange it. Later, they were ready to take it by force. I refused to give in, so they colluded with the old thief Dugu and arrested me! This time, the old thief Dugu's people were arrested, but these bastards are still alive and well. How can we let these bastards escape?!"

Everyone shouted, and a man ran out and started to help them press it.

The Dajue Temple is the largest monastic force in the city. After the arrival of the people sent by Dugu Yongye, they actively cooperated and rushed to the front.

It just so happened that Dugu Yongye also needed the help of this kind of local forces, so he accepted their kindness, and then the two sides began to exploit the people together.

From robbing food to conscripting able-bodied men, Dajue Temple has been at the forefront in many aspects and has long aroused public anger.

Wang Lin stood in the crowd, listening to everyone cursing, and then pulled those people towards the government office.

He then nodded and motioned the warrior not far away to come closer.

"It's my fault. I was so busy admiring the walls of Zhongyuan that I forgot that there were still thieves alive. Send someone to Dajue Temple quickly. Also, tell those people in the government to be nice to the people who have arrived and not to be rude. We can't leave too many people here. I don't want to have to find a way to send people to quell the rebellion after I leave."

The warrior immediately took the order and left in a hurry.

Wang Lin walked on the street again with a smile on his face.

The further north you go, the more lively the atmosphere becomes.

The people of Yanzhou were much bolder than those of Guangzhou and Qingzhou. Someone made a mannequin out of straw, put a Qi helmet picked up from somewhere on it, and called it "Dugu Thief". They paraded it through the streets, with children following behind. Some threw stones at the straw mannequin, while others whipped and lashed him.

Wang Lin joined in the fun and threw a few stones.

They walked along the street, and when they were almost at the city gate, they made a fire and burned the straw man.

Everyone was delighted.

Wang Lin looked at these people and couldn't help but nod.

What a great source of soldiers!
The people in this place are quite courageous and as brave as those in Hebei, so they can be used.

When Liu Taozi led Wang Lin to conquer the south of the river, people fled wherever they went, making every place filled with refugees. But after only a few days, their reactions have changed completely.

Wang Lin thought to himself: If this can be done all the way, then I will be able to recover the Central Plains area outside Heluo before the beginning of spring.

By then, the original territory of Qi State would almost all fall into the hands of Han State.

The overall situation in the world will then be determined.

(End of this chapter)