Guiyi Fei Tang

Chapter 146: Jincheng Pass
"Smash!"

"Boom bang bang-"

On the tenth day of June, when Liu Jilian recaptured Guangwu without bloodshed and marched towards Wuquan.

The battle also broke out on both sides of the Yellow River, hundreds of miles away from him.

The water of the Yellow River is usually known for its yellow color in people's impression, but at this moment, the water of the Yellow River that separates the east and west banks is unusually clear.

The river water flows to the north. The clear water makes people doubt and dare not imagine that this is the Yellow River flowing through the north.

At the ferry on the west bank of the Yellow River, thousands of soldiers in armor were waiting to cross the river, while fifty catapults were placed on the ferry, constantly attacking the ferry on the east bank, trying to destroy the camp at the ferry on the east bank.

The Sanchen flag fluttered in the wind, and the Guiyi Army soldiers under the flag were anxiously waiting for the order to cross the river.

Faced with their catapults, the foreign soldiers on the east coast could only passively take the beating, but they would also use crossbows to fight back from time to time.

The Yellow River, which is less than 50 meters wide, seemed like an insurmountable natural barrier.

By the river, Zhang Huaishen was wearing armor and frowning.

What he was looking at was not the foreign soldiers on the east bank, but the water level of the river bank eroded by the Yellow River.

He stood on the shore, which had a drop of nearly seven feet from the river bank caused by the water level in the past.

"The Yellow River water level has dropped so much, the drought in Longxi may be more serious than I thought."

Zhang Huaishen spoke slowly, but Suo Xun, who was standing next to him, said impatiently: "These bandits on the east bank only know how to hide, and wait for us to cross the river so that they can shoot us with crossbows and bows."

"We wasted three days on the west bank, and more than sixty of our brothers drowned. Do you still have the heart to care about the drought in Longxi?"

Suo Xun's impatient tone made Zhang Huaishen look at him and frowned, "If there is a severe drought in Longxi, the water level upstream must be lower than here."

"If we can't cross the river from here, we can search south along the Huilan Road to see if there is a suitable ferry crossing."

Zhang Huaishen's words made Suo Xun's eyes light up. He quickly summoned soldiers and directed them to search for a suitable ferry along the Lanzhou Wuquan official road.

As for his ridicule of Zhang Huaishen just now, he had already forgotten it.

Looking at his back, Zhang Huaishen shook his head, feeling that Suo Xun was of no use.

Looking at the foreign soldiers on the east bank, he thought of Liu Jilong at this moment: "I wonder how things are going over there..."

While he was muttering, on the official road hundreds of miles away, a large army also came out of the valley and ran into the Yellow River rushing northward.

“This is the Yellow River!”

“Isn’t it yellow?”

"It's so wide, wider than the Dan River!"

"It's so wide, how can we cross the river?"

"I can't swim, Zhang Chang, you have to help me."

"Do you think I can?"

Faced with the Yellow River that stretches across both banks, Liu Jilian's troops faced the same difficulties as Zhang Huaishen and his men.

The Yellow River, which is more than 40 meters wide, is like a natural moat blocking the way of the army, but the good news is that the ferry is unguarded. As long as they are patient and cross the river, they will be able to cross the Yellow River sooner or later.

"Build a raft and let the soldiers go to the other side to observe. We must ensure that there are no enemy troops along the ten miles."

Looking at the Yellow River, Liu Jilong dismounted from his horse and began to give orders to his attendants.

With his order, the army quickly got into action.

More than 4,300 elite cavalrymen and 4,000 civilians from Changsong and Guangwu began to build rafts.

The more than 700 sheep killed in Guangwu were not simply for rewarding the troops, but for preparation for crossing the river.

Sheepskin rafts have existed since the Western Han Dynasty and were popular along the Yellow River.

Since a sheepskin raft needs to be inflated by blowing air into it, the saying "blowing bullshit" comes from this.

Under Liu Jilian's watchful eyes, the laborers picked up the sheepskin and blew air into it back and forth. Soon, they had blown out more than 700 leather bags.

These leather bags were fixed under the assembled rafts, and soon eight huge rafts appeared on the ferry.

These rafts are four or five meters long and nearly three meters wide. There are more than ninety sheepskin bags fixed under each raft, which can carry more than ten people.

"The Tang cavalry will cross the river first, followed by the Tang soldiers, then the armored soldiers, baggage and civilians!"

As the raft was launched into the water, Liu Jilian selected more than ten soldiers who were good at swimming from the army, and had them paddle the raft across the Yellow River.

So, under the watchful eyes of everyone, more than 30 horses and cavalry were the first to cross the river.

Seeing them crossing the river, everyone looked around nervously.

Perhaps the severe drought caused the water level to drop, so the river water upstream was not turbulent. The more than 30 Tang riders quickly arrived at the ferry on the south bank, and then galloped along the official roads on both sides.

Soon, more than ten soldiers paddled the raft back to the ferry on the north bank, repeatedly picking up and dropping off the Tang cavalry and soldiers.

From noon to dusk, the rafts only ferried more than 3,000 soldiers to the south bank.

Seeing that the delay would last another day, Liu Jilian ordered the remaining soldiers to camp on the north bank first, and transported tents, food and iron pots back on the raft, while he led his troops to camp at the ferry on the south bank.

At night, footsteps were heard outside the tent. Cao Mao smiled and pushed open the tent curtain with his butt, then walked into the tent holding a wooden tray.

"Sir, what do you think this is?"

Cao Mao put down the wooden tray like he was presenting a treasure, on which was a plate of steamed fish and a bowl of corn rice with braised pork.

“Is this a fish from the Yellow River?”

Liu Jilong put down the brush in his hand and naturally told the origin of the fish.

Cao Mao laughed when he heard this and said, "This is the fish that Zhang Bie caught in his net a while ago. He caught hundreds of kilograms of fish and almost dragged them into the water. All the brothers in the army got some."

"This guy dares to go fishing when he can't swim." Liu Jilong joked: "Don't let the fish pull you down and turn you into a water ghost."

After saying that, he picked up the bowl and chopsticks and started eating, but he did not have a very peaceful meal.

He had only taken two bites when the sound of horse hooves was heard outside the tent.

Soon, the tent curtain was opened, and Hu Siguang walked into the tent and bowed, saying, "Governor, we have detected smoke signals 20 miles east of Lanzhou Road. I think it was the bandits' beacon tower that discovered us."

"If we find out, we'll just have to be on guard. Anyway, we have to move eastwards and take the pass tomorrow."

Liu Jilong remained calm and said, "Come, try the fish Zhang Chang and his friends caught online."

"I'd better go back to the tent to eat." Hushiguang refused with a smile, then bowed and left the tent.

Liu Jilong did not force him to stay. Instead, after eating and drinking his fill, he picked up his pen and began to compile several books that he had kept in the bottom of his box. He did not lie down to rest until midnight.

The next morning, at daybreak, the Guiyi Army's rafts began to ferry people across the river.

At the same time, a group of Tang cavalry also galloped eastward along the official road on the south bank of the Yellow River.

Before noon, the official road ahead suddenly widened. There were still mountains on the right side of the road, but the left side was no longer close to the Yellow River, but instead there were large plains and hills.

These plains and hills were formed by alluvial deposits from the Yellow River. They are four or five miles wide from north to south and one or two miles narrowest.

In such terrain, the Tangqi ran eastward for more than thirty miles before they gradually saw the narrow area ahead.

In front of them, a pass backed by mountains and adjacent to the Yellow River stretched across the basin, blocking the official road.

The pass is connected to Gaolan Mountain in the south and the Yellow River in the north. It is one and a half miles long from north to south. It is built of rammed earth and is ten feet high. It has a gatehouse and a gate.

Seeing the Tangqi people riding towards them, the foreign soldiers behind the gate quickly opened the city gate, and the Tangqi people also rode through the pass without stopping.

This seemingly majestic pass actually has only a single wall, strong on the outside but weak on the inside.

However, after passing the pass, the terrain ahead became wide and flat again.

As the Tangqi riders traveled another seven or eight miles, large tracts of abandoned fields began to appear ahead.

Crossing these wastelands, the city ahead gradually became clear, and the land around the city gradually turned green.

On the river bank, hundreds of people were carrying water from the Yellow River on their shoulders and hands, and then pouring the river water into the gullies, irrigating the farmland near the city as much as possible.

The Tang riders had no intention of observing this group of slaves and rushed into the city on horseback. During this time, the armored soldiers guarding the city did not move at all, as if they had fallen asleep.

There were mud houses and thatched huts on both sides of the road in the city. The whole street was empty, as if you had entered a ghost town.

"Shut up!"

More than a dozen Tang riders reined in their horses, then dismounted and trotted into the Wuquan government office.

The soldiers at the gate of the yamen were chatting and laughing, and ignored them completely.

The armored soldiers in the yamen were also sitting on chairs to rest, and only looked at him when the soldiers spoke.

"Where's Qiliben? I have urgent military information I need to tell Qiliben!"

The head of the ten households of the Tang soldiers urged the armored soldiers on duty. Seeing this, the armored soldiers lazily got up and walked towards the inner hall.

Half a cup of tea later, a pot-bellied foreign general walked out of the inner hall, and the head of the ten households of the Tang soldiers hurried forward to salute.

"Qiliben, the Tang army has appeared in the direction of the river mouth. There are no less than a hundred Tang soldiers deployed on the official road alone!"

"Tang army?" Mouruna showed a look of contempt on his face: "Where did the Tang army come from Longxi?" "They crossed the river from Guangwu in the north. I'm afraid they are the Tang army from Hexi!" The head of the ten households hurriedly explained.

Hearing this, Muruna finally took it seriously. He sat up straight and asked, "Where are they going?"

"Come to Wuquan!" After the head of the ten households said this, Muruna finally perked up: "Come to Wuquan?"

"Pig-dog guy, are you sure you're not seeing things?"

"I'm sure!" The head of the ten households responded quickly, which made Muruna nervous: "Call all the centurions in the city to me!"

"Yes……"

Following Mou Runa's instructions, several figures appeared in the yamen half an hour later.

"The Tang soldiers reported that the Tang army in Hexi has crossed the river mouth and is heading towards Wuquan."

"That pig-dog guy Rebajian didn't even send out a single message!"

Mou Runa was cursing, and the originally lazy centurions, after hearing the news, quickly cheered up and did not miss any details.

"How many of them are there?"

"We crossed the river yesterday, so we can reach Jincheng Pass tomorrow or the day after tomorrow. We must strengthen the city defenses!"

"That's right!"

The six centurions were talking at once, and Muruna clapped his hands and said, "The exact number is not clear yet, but it will not be less than 2,000."

"Pass on my military order. Gather the slaves in the city to collect stones and send them to Jincheng Pass. Leave 200 armored soldiers in the city, and the rest will follow me to Jincheng Pass!"

Although he didn't know the number of enemy troops, Mouruna didn't want to give up Wuquan City.

He managed to survive the severe drought with great difficulty. Although there will be another severe drought this year, he can still survive by relying on the Yellow River.

If he were to give up Wuquan City like this, then what would be the point of all his hard work in the past few years?
Thinking of this, Mouruna began to gather troops and conscript civilians to guard Jincheng Pass.

Before nightfall, he led 400 armored soldiers and 2,000 militiamen to Jincheng Pass, pulling cartloads of stones for slingshot.

Looking at the five hundred armored soldiers and two thousand militiamen inside and outside the city, as well as sufficient firewood and stones, he believed that he could defend the Jincheng Pass.

But while he was busy defending, Liu Jilian, who was more than 60 miles away, finally managed to transport more than 5,000 people and 5,000 cattle, horses and baggage carts from the north bank to the south bank after a whole day of ferrying, and set up camp after marching 15 miles to the east before nightfall.

The next morning, with the sound of trumpets, more than 4,000 elite cavalry and 4,000 civilians set out eastward.

The foreign soldiers' beacon towers on the eastward route were all occupied by the Tang soldiers of the Guiyi Army, and Liu Jilian also left a hundred soldiers garrisoned at the ferry crossings north and south of the Yellow River.

Before dusk, the Guiyi Army finally saw the Jincheng Pass built against the mountain range, and Mouruna finally saw his enemy.

"Why are there so many people?!"

As the Guiyi Army gradually approached from a distance, the faces of Muruna and the foreign soldiers at Jincheng Pass changed drastically.

They thought that the Guiyi Army came from afar and should not have too many troops, but the reality was just the opposite.

Thousands of elite cavalrymen rode their horses to two hundred steps outside Jincheng Pass and looked at Jincheng Pass carefully.

These thousands of elite cavalrymen alone were enough to give Mouruna and his men a hard time, and the three thousand armored soldiers following closely behind made them look even more pale.

"Governor, there are no catapults or crossbows on the horse trail at Jincheng Pass!"

Turning his horse back to the central army, Shang Duoluo reported to Liu Jilong what the elite cavalry had seen and heard, while Liu Jilong was scanning the Lanzhou Basin.

It has to be said that the Lanzhou Basin, relying on the Yellow River, does have unique geographical advantages. Whether it is grazing or farming, it can be carried out in this basin covering hundreds of millions of acres.

If there are enough people in a place like this, it would be more than enough to cultivate millions of acres of arable land and graze hundreds of thousands of cows.

Not to mention the basin east of Jincheng Pass, just the basin under their feet is enough to develop millions of acres of arable land.

Thinking of this, Liu Jilian remembered the more than 10,000 Han people that Shang Bibi had promised him.

If we can bring the more than 10,000 Han people from Guzhou to develop the Lanzhou Basin, I believe that in a few years, Lanzhou will become a big granary in our hands.

Thinking of this, Liu Jilong turned his attention back to Jincheng Pass.

"Governor, should we set up camp here?"

Zhang Chang rode forward to ask, but Liu Jilong glanced at him and said, "Set up camp? No... attack the city!"

"Attacking the city?" Zhang Chang, Ma Cheng and others were surprised and said, "We have only marched fifty miles today, and it will be dark in another hour. We..."

Liu Jilong interrupted them and said coldly: "Advance 200 steps, build catapults, and attack the city!"

Faced with his military order, everyone looked at each other in bewilderment, but still carried it out reluctantly.

The laborers began to collect stones and build catapults, while the soldiers were setting up camp and cooking.

Because it is close to Gaolan Mountain, the laborers have already dug up a lot of slingstones as soon as they started digging.

At the same time, on the official road 200 steps away from Jincheng Pass, more than ten catapults were built by civilians.

"What are they going to do?"

"We've just arrived here, and we're about to start attacking the city?"

"It's crazy..."

"I really want to skin these pig-dog Han slaves alive!"

On the horse road of Jincheng Pass, the foreign soldiers were frightened by the Guiyi Army's move to attack the city overnight after its march. Even Mou Runa couldn't help swallowing.

"The pig-dog guys are so bold because they saw that we have no city defense equipment!"

Mou Runa cursed, but he was also helpless.

There was a severe drought in Longxi, and all states were facing the possibility of running out of food at any time, so no one would go to attack the city.

Because of this, Muruna, like most of the Qilibens in Longxi states, did not prepare any siege or defense equipment.

After all, Lanzhou is surrounded by various states and is the place least likely to encounter foreign enemies.

But he miscalculated. The Qiliban from various states did not come to attack him. Instead, the Tang army far away in Hexi crossed the Qilian Mountains and appeared before him.

While he was daydreaming, fifteen catapults stood on the official road, and cartloads of stones were sent behind the catapults.

"Governor, if the stone is not polished, the leather belt will be easily damaged. This..."

Zhang Chang was reluctant to part with these cowhide belts used for parabolic objects, but Liu Jilong saw it more clearly.

There must be a herd of Wuquan people behind Jincheng Pass. It would not be difficult to obtain the leather belts by capturing their herd and killing a few old cows.

"attack!"

"The last general takes command!"

He gave the order with a cold face, and Geng Ming and Zhang Chang bowed subconsciously.

Seeing that they had received the order, the two men turned and walked towards the trebuchet, took a deep breath and began to give orders to add weight to the counterweight box so that the leather belt could be loaded with slingshot.

Under their military orders, the civilians, under the guidance of the armored soldiers, skillfully operated the catapults.

"Smash!"

"Bang bang bang-"

At the command, the mechanism was activated, and a heavy stone weighing seventy or eighty kilograms was thrown out, crossing the yellow sky and slamming into the wall of Jincheng Pass.

"Cough cough cough!!"

"Get down! Get down behind the parapet!"

"Uh-"

Just like Moli, Mang Longhua, Shang Moling and others at the beginning, the foreign troops at Jincheng Pass never expected that the catapults of the Guiyi Army would be so powerful.

The heavy stones destroyed the rammed earth parapet in an instant, causing the wall to collapse.

Not only that, more than a dozen soldiers and civilians were killed or injured on the road.

Screams rang out on the horse path. People whose limbs were broken or who were injured by the broken soil could not bear the pain and kept screaming, which made people present shudder.

Those foreign soldiers who were conscripted were terrified and fled to the city.

"Those who escape will be beheaded!"

"Let's see who dares to run!!"

Mu Runa reacted quickly and chopped down a foreign soldier with his sword, shouting that he would be punished by cutting off his hands and feet.

It must be said that his actions did intimidate many foreign soldiers, but before he could become arrogant again, the Guiyi Army outside the city started the second round of stone throwing.

"Bang bang bang-"

Dust was rising everywhere, and many foreign soldiers and militiamen standing on the road were killed or wounded.

Muruna, who had just been shouting about cutting off his hands and feet, was hit by the flying dirt from the stone. Although it did not cause him any harm, he was frightened and fell to the ground, his heart trembling with fear.
"How come the pig-dog Hannu can throw so fast?!"

(End of this chapter)