Strange Tales from the Northern Qi Dynasty

Chapter 445 Destined
A carriage was driving slowly towards Chang'an.

There were knights guarding the front and back of the carriage. Although their number was small, they were well-trained.

Inside the carriage, Wei Xiaokuan hung his head, looking depressed.

His youngest son Wei Jin was sitting beside him, applying medicine to Wei Xiaokuan, who was already sixty years old.

His experience in leading troops in battle had reached its peak, but his physical fitness was no longer as good as before. This time, leading the cavalry back and forth for rescue, Wei Xiaokuan suffered a lot and had many wounds on his body. In addition, he had fought in battles throughout his life and had many wounds on his body. At such an age, old and new wounds broke out at the same time, which was really not a good feeling.

Fortunately, Wei Xiaokuan has a good appetite and is strong enough inside to withstand the pain.

Wei Jin sat aside, looking at his father with eyes full of heartache.

"Father should have retired and returned home a long time ago, why bother coming here?"

"Father, no matter how hard you work, what can you do? Just one sentence negates all your military achievements over the years."

Wei Jin felt very upset.

On this trip, Yuwen Yong specially brought along Wei Jin, the General Yitong, and Wei Jin's only mission was to bring his old father back to Chang'an.

Wei Xiaokuan said calmly: "Since you lost to Liu Taozi, you deserve this punishment."

"But, the Great Zhou Dynasty will be destroyed in Liu Taozi's hands."

Wei Jin was not surprised to hear this. It was well known in the court and the country that Wei Xiaokuan had been advocating the Liu Taozi threat theory for a long time. When Liu Taozi had just started his official career and served as a seventh-rank general, he began to say that Liu Taozi would become a serious threat to his family.

He has been saying this till now.

Wei Jin felt that the emperor disliked his father so much probably because of this. His father always discussed Liu Taozi regardless of the occasion. It seemed that he was asking people to be cautious, but it also had a bit of advocacy. In addition, he himself was defeated by Liu Taozi, so it sounded like he was making excuses for his defeat.

Wei Jin certainly couldn't say it directly, so he advised: "Father, now that you have lost your official position, please don't talk about these important matters anymore. We can live our lives in peace in Chang'an."

"Anxin??"

Wei Xiaokuan turned his head to look at Wei Jin, "Do you think we can live peacefully this time when we go back?"

Wei Jin was startled and his face changed drastically, "Could it be that His Majesty would..."

"It's not Your Majesty, it's Liu Taozi!"

Wei Jin finally breathed a sigh of relief and looked at his old father with strange eyes.

Sometimes, he really wondered if his father was too old, which caused his mind to not be very sharp and he always felt something was wrong.

Wei Xiaokuan was very angry at the look from his son.

"You also think I'm talking nonsense?"

Wei Xiaokuan said angrily: "I am old, my thinking is slow, and my health is not as good as before, but I am not yet at the point of talking nonsense!"

"Liu Taozi is a cavalry general! What are cavalry best at? It's charging!"

"The reason why I lost to Liu Taozi before was because his cavalry ran faster than mine and had a wider attack area. I could only follow behind him but could not stop him."

"Your Majesty is leading the army to the south. What about the north?"

"How long will it take for Liu Taozi to lead the cavalry from Yecheng to Xiazhou?"

"If he sets out now, at our speed, by the time we reach Chang'an, he will have already passed Shuozhou!"

"Who is guarding the north now? Da Xi Zhen!"

"If it was Da Xi Wu, I wouldn't be worried, but now it's Da Xi Zhen! Da Xi Zhen is extremely brave and a fierce general! However, so far, he has only led troops alone once, and that was against the Qihu. Can this Qihu army be the same as Liu Taozi's army?"

"He usually relies on his bravery and is extremely violent. It would be easy for Liu Taozi to lure him out! As long as he goes out of the city to fight, he will surely die!"

"By that time, Chang'an will be an empty city. Liu Taozi can capture it directly. Who can stop him?"

Listening to his father's analysis, Wei Jin couldn't help but sweat profusely.

"Then why didn't father tell His Majesty?"

"I said that."

"But I have been defeated by Liu Taozi many times. How could His Majesty listen to my advice to fight against Liu Taozi?"

Wei Jin couldn't sit still anymore. "If that's the case, then Chang'an is in great danger, isn't it?"

"No! We can't go back!"

The next moment, Wei Jin began to have trouble again.

"No, if we don't go back, what will happen to our mother, brother, and sister?!"

Looking at his terrified son, Wei Xiaokuan sighed. He raised his head and said with emotion: "Your Majesty, who used to be the most patient, became furious because of the Chen people. He ignored the advice and led the army to the south. Isn't this God's will?"

"Don't be afraid, go back."

"If we hesitate now and do not go to Chang'an, but stay on the road, Liu Taozi will not have to kill us."

Wei Jin's eyes were still filled with panic, but at this moment he could only take his old father to an unknown destination.

He could only hope that his father made another mistake in judgment this time and Liu Taozi would not come at all.

Mianyang.

"Boom~~"

The catapult roared angrily, and rocks flew up and hit the city wall.

The defenders on the city wall were in a very awkward situation at this moment. They held their shields high and hid behind the parapets, listening to the horrifying stones flying over their heads. Some fell directly into the city, causing wailing, while others hit the city wall, causing it to shake continuously.

Chunyu Liang held a sharp blade and looked at the soldiers on his left and right.

The soldiers around him all had some fear in their eyes.

In the past, too many old soldiers of the State of Chen were killed by Liu Taozi. The current legion has recruited many newcomers, both officers and soldiers. Many of them have not experienced several battles, and more than half of them have no experience in fighting against the northerners.

The Zhou people's fierce and violent attack frightened these newcomers.

They had never seen anything like this before.

The Zhou people no longer used strategies or tactics. They just kept attacking and wasting time against Chunyu Liang, as if they were determined to take the city even if all their men died.

The Zhou people had suffered heavy losses, and Chunyu Liang relied on the advantages of terrain and defense to repel the enemy many times.

However, the enemy's offensive did not weaken, but became increasingly powerful.

And at this moment, an even more desperate scene appeared.

In the distance, dust was rolling. From Chunyu Liang's perspective, he could see quite clearly that the enemy reinforcements were arriving.

This is not just a small group of reinforcements. Judging from the situation, there should be tens of thousands of them, a huge force.

These people seemed to be coming from the direction of Nanyang, which made Chunyu Liang even more worried.

The catapults stopped firing, and the enemy gradually withdrew their forces.

They saw the Zhou camp in the distance becoming noisy, with smoke rising from various places, as if to reward the newly arrived troops. But what was horrifying was that the smoke spread all the way, and wherever the soldiers on the city wall could see, there was enemy smoke.

There was noise everywhere, even reaching the city walls.

Then I saw dust rolling in the distance and war horses galloping.

"General."

Xu Jingcheng stood beside Chunyu Liang, looking into the distance, feeling quite uneasy.

"Did something happen in Nanyang?"

"No. They probably think Nanyang is strong and difficult to capture, so they will work together to capture Mianyang first."

"The enemy has a lot of cavalry and can fight back and forth, and we can't go out of the city to pursue them. This battle is difficult."

What Chunyu Liang was worried about was not the enemy in front of him, but the upcoming war.

If Liu Taozi was still there at this time, the enemy would not dare to divide its troops so arbitrarily. If Liu Taozi sent out one group, he could defeat one. But now, Chen Bing was outside and had no cavalry to pursue. The enemy could come and go as they pleased and could move freely between the two war zones.

what should we do?

In the military camp outside the city, several generals of the Zhou State were surrounding Yuwen Xian, standing beside him respectfully.

Yuwen Xian began to give orders.

"Tell the knights not to stop, and keep the smoke from the cooking fires burning."

"For the next three days, don't attack. Just create the impression that reinforcements are coming!"

"Let the soldiers rest and reorganize for three days. The craftsmen will work hard to build siege equipment!!"

A general stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, we have been attacking fiercely all night, and our morale is high. If we reward them for three days, their morale will decline, which will give the enemy a chance to rest."

There was a shrewd look in Yuwen Xian's narrow eyes.

"Don't worry." "Just do as I say. If you fail to take the cities in Mianyang County, I will apologize to Your Majesty."

"only!!"

The Zhou army, which had been attacking fiercely, stopped. Yuwen Xian rewarded them with the supplies he brought. He met with several soldiers who had made meritorious contributions in killing the enemies and gave them rewards. He also punished several officers who withheld military merits.

The smoke from the cooking fires grew thicker day by day, and the noise made by the cavalry became louder day by day.

The number of knights going to the Mian River to water their horses was also increasing dramatically. The team fetching water could see the front but not the back.

Obviously, the Zhou people did not launch any more fierce attacks, but the Chen army on the city was extremely frightened. The panic was spreading, and many rumors were spreading in the city, saying that Nanyang had been captured and that the enemy had gathered an army of 200,000 to annihilate them in one fell swoop.

Chunyu Liang was furious and captured several spies who spread the rumors. He forced them to confess the truth in front of everyone and then executed them.

But the morale of the defenders in the city could not be raised at all, and it was getting worse day by day.

They endured until the third day. Yuwen Xian did not leave any spare energy for himself. He ordered that no reserve troops should be left and the entire army should march out to the city.

At this moment, the Zhou army was surrounded on three sides of the city. It was so powerful that there was still dust rolling in the distance, and the number of enemies could not be seen at all.

As the Zhou army beat the war drums, the army began to attack the city.

Of course, it is impossible for so many troops to attack at the same time. Most of them are defending their positions, but siege equipment can be used.

One after another, the dump trucks were pushed to the front.

As the soldiers shouted, stones whizzed past.

Yuwen Xian ordered his generals Han Qinhu, Yang Su, He Ruobi and others to take the lead in the attack and launched a siege from three directions.

When countless rocks smashed into the city and almost submerged it, the enemy's elite armored troops began to climb ladders and launch a fierce attack.

Arrows flew everywhere and elite vanguards climbed the city walls.

The morale of the Chen people collapsed immediately.

Chunyu Liang took the lead in counterattacks several times and repelled the enemy, but an endless stream of enemies still climbed the city from other directions.

Chunyu Liang changed his long weapons several times, and finally even engaged the enemy in close combat.

But this old man in his sixties could not withstand such a fierce attack from those vigorous young warriors. The city wall fell, and Chunyu Liang led the rest of the army into the city to fight the enemy again.

Chunyu Liang had arranged a lot of hay, firewood and other items in the west city. After the enemy entered the city, he ordered people to set fire to the west city. The blazing flames directly blocked the enemy's way.

He once again led his army to attack eastward, trying to retake the East Gate.

Yuwen Xian had never expected that the enemy general would be so resilient. After the Zhou army fought for a day and took down the city wall, Chunyu Liang still resisted for more than three hours! !

It was not until the next day, when the sky gradually brightened, that Yuwen Xian personally led the army to attack the city.

In the ruins, Chunyu Liang could not be found.

He has already fled here with his personal soldiers.

Although Yuwen Xian paid a lot of price, he was the winner in the end.

Yuwen Xian ordered the knights to take off the armor and clothes of the Chen people from the captives and corpses, and took out the flags, drums and music, and then asked his generals to take these to Nanyang.

Let him tell the defenders of Nanyang that Chunyu Liang has been killed and his head, flag, and armor are here.

Yuchi Jiong also understood Yuwen Xian's intention. He made good use of it and continued his strategy of attacking the enemy's heart.

Sure enough, the Nanyang defenders were in chaos.

However, because of Huang Fachi's daily behavior, although the soldiers here were afraid, they were still willing to continue fighting to the death with Huang Fachi, and the morale was not seriously reduced.

As the war continued, Chen State only had the advantage on the Mian River. The Chen State navy defeated Hua Jiao again and took the initiative on the water.

But on land, the Chen people suffered defeat after defeat. Mianyang, which was occupied by Chunyu Liang, was constantly being taken away by the Zhou people. His position was getting further and further back, and because of previous wars, the morale of the soldiers was getting lower and lower.

Chunyu Liang was almost too exhausted to fight anymore.

Although Huang Fachi's situation was better, the cities around him had already been captured, and he was becoming increasingly isolated and helpless.

The weather is getting colder.

Although it had not snowed yet, the cold wind was howling, and the soldiers of the State of Chen were faced with their next enemy, the cold winter.

This is Jiangling, which is not as cold as those ghost places like Youzhou and Yingzhou. However, when it comes to preparing for the winter, the Zhou people are obviously more experienced. Their winter clothes are distributed quickly, and cold-resistant supplies are delivered from various places one after another. However, the Chen people are a step slower.

Yuchi Jiong launched another fierce attack. Huang Fachi held out for more than a month in the isolated city, but finally could not hold on any longer. He realized that if he persisted any longer, his entire army might be buried in Jingbei, so he reluctantly gave up the Nanyang defense line and retreated to Anzhou.

However, when they arrived in Anzhou, they faced even greater threats.

Yuwen Xian came over from the other side.

Huang Fachu was defeated again.

The advantage that the Chen people had finally gained was lost bit by bit under the fierce attack of the Zhou people, and the situation even became worse. If the Zhou people continued to fight like this, this offensive war against Jiangling would turn into a defensive war against the Lianghuai region.

December.

Yuwen Yong stood on the chariot, with the knights in front and behind him.

Yuwen Yong's face turned red due to the cold wind.

But his face was filled with a happy smile.

Finally, he finally won once!
The Chen army suffered repeated defeats after he personally arrived at the scene, and its commander Huang Fachi was even beaten and fled for safety!
If he could capture a few important generals of the State of Chen and bring them back to Chang'an, then his reputation would be completely established. Then who would dare to say that he had no military merit?

The more Yuwen Yong thought about it, the more excited he became, and he even laughed out loud at one point.

"His Majesty!!"

Then he saw a general riding a horse galloping to the chariot. He raised his head and looked at Yuwen Yong on the chariot.

"We have discovered Huang Fachu's defeated army! They are less than forty miles away from us!!"

"Good! Good! Great!!"

Yuwen Yong clapped his hands, not hiding the joy on his face. He drew out his sword and pointed at the distance, "Chase at full speed! Today, we must stop Huang Fachu! I will kill him myself!!"

The general lowered his head hastily, "Your Majesty, the battle is dangerous. Please stay here first. We will go and pursue. We have enough troops. Your Majesty just needs to wait here for good news!"

"Humph!"

Yuwen Yong held a sharp blade in his hand, his face sullen. He cursed, "The thief from Jiangdong actually acted as a lackey for Liu Taozi, relying on Liu Taozi's power to invade my city and kill the soldiers of the Great Zhou. If I can't kill this thief with my own hands, why would I come here in person?!"

"At present, the left wing has 50,000 soldiers led by the Duke of Shu, the right wing has 40,000 soldiers led by the King of Qi, and my central army also has elite cavalry. How can I be afraid of him?!"

"Follow my orders! Chase!"

"only!"

The general dared not refute anymore and began to speed up the pursuit.

And right in front of them, Huang Fachi was leading the infantry and cavalry of the State of Chen, quickly retreating towards his hometown.

Suddenly, Huang Fachi reined in his horse, and the knights around him also stopped.

Hundreds of cavalry appeared in the distance, and the leader stood on a high slope, staring at them.

"Han cavalry! Those are Han cavalry!"

The officers around him shouted, and Huang Fachi was stunned. The cavalrymen were already galloping towards him. When they got closer, Huang Fachi recognized them.

"General Gao!"

The person who came was actually Gao Yanzong.

Huang Fate was confused, "Why is General Gao here?!"

Gao Yanzong looked at the troops around Huang Fachi and laughed, "I am here to pick up General Huang. We will talk about these things later. General, please follow me."

"Don't go south. There's an ambush there."

Huang Fate frowned, and Xiao Mohe beside him was very surprised, "We have the advantage on the water, how could the enemy get behind us?"

"Hahaha, although General Huang was defeated, he was the most glamorous among you. He was still able to maintain his organization. The rest of you were defeated thoroughly. Your defenses have been penetrated. Some deserters even ran to the road where I was patrolling. If you don't believe me, just keep moving forward. I'm leaving."

There was no hesitation on Huang Fate's face. "Please lead the way, General!"

Xiao Mohe hesitated to speak, but decided to trust his ally.

As a few people were talking, the sound of fierce horse hooves came from afar.

The flag of the Zhou emperor is fluttering in the wind.

Gao Yanzong's expression suddenly became excited.

ps: I went home, it’s too late, no time for the second update.

(End of this chapter)