Guiyi Fei Tang

Chapter 363: Fire in the Mouth
"Crackling..."

"You delicate Tang people... move faster!"

By August, the troops of Duokang Tubo swept into the hinterland of Chengdu like a hurricane. The cities of Pengzhou, Shuzhou and other counties near Guankou were still safe and sound under the garrison of Yang Fuguang, Suo Xun, Li Changyan and others, but the rural villages outside the city were reduced to ashes under the iron hoofs of Tubo.

Many Tang soldiers stood on the top of the city wall and looked into the distance, only to see flames from the villages outside the city rising into the sky and thick smoke billowing upwards.

The houses where the people lived were burned down, and the cries and shouts of the Tibetan soldiers intertwined, telling the misery of the people outside the city...

A large number of civilians had their hands tied up with rough hemp ropes by the Tibetan soldiers. They were divided into teams of 100 and escorted by three Tibetan soldiers, slowly marching towards Guankou.

Among these people, there were white-haired old people, women holding babies, and children with frightened faces.

Their eyes were filled with despair and their steps staggered, but they had to move forward towards Guankou amid the insults of the Tibetan soldiers.

Such scenes occurred not only in one place, but also on every road leading to Guankou from the counties of Shu and Han states.

There was an endless stream of escort teams like this, hundreds and thousands of them, like long winding snakes, slowly crawling in the countryside in early autumn.

Most of the Tibetan soldiers responsible for escorting the civilians were low-ranking soldiers who had just been pardoned from slavery and became civilians.

Although their tasks are heavy, they are the most menial jobs in the army.

The army issued a strict order that these Tang people must be delivered to the designated place alive, so that these soldiers can receive rewards.

If the destination is a nearby place like Maozhou, you are still lucky.

If it is to remote places such as Weizhou, Wenzhou and Longzhou, it will take more than half a month to escort it.

When they returned, Shuzhou and Pengzhou had already been looted by the Tibetan soldiers, and not even a complete piece of rubble could be found.

Compared to these soldiers, the soldiers who were only responsible for looting enjoyed more generous rewards.

Of the property they looted, 30% belonged to themselves, 30% went to the generals, and 40% went into Duokang's treasury.

In addition, they also have a 20% share of the money and grain earned from the trafficking of human beings.

Because of this, the soldiers, warriors and generals of the entire Dokang Tibetan army paid special attention to these captured people.

In their eyes, all the people, regardless of gender, age or strength, could receive foreseeable money and food.

Even if a few soldiers wanted to abuse or commit violence against the civilians, they would be severely rebuked by the soldiers patrolling along the way.

After all, the value of these people is far greater than momentary venting.

More than half a month has passed since the Tibetan army captured Guankou, and the villages in Shuzhou and Pengzhou near Guankou have been almost completely looted by the Tibetan army.

Countless people were escorted to Guankou, and then sent in batches to Maozhou, Weizhou and other places.

Outside Guankou Town, the Tubo army’s camp stretched for more than ten miles, with flags flying and countless bonfires.

The camp was bustling with noise, as the soldiers played and frolicked, enjoying the brief pleasure brought by the looting, while those who had just been pardoned as civilians watched on with envy and reluctance in their hearts.

Mei Ludanzeng walked towards the central military tent with several personal guards and witnessed everything along the way.

He saw several generals ordering their men to abduct women for their own sexual gratification, and his brows furrowed slightly, but then he thought that a few women were not worth much food, so there was no need to be so serious about it. With this thought, his mood calmed down a little, and he continued to move forward.

"Dad!"

When he entered the central army tent, Mo Ludanzeng saw Shang Moyan standing in front of a map, thinking intently.

The candlelight in the tent flickered, illuminating Shang Moyan's face. He looked solemn, and his finger moved slowly on the map, as if he was planning the next route of attack.

Meilu Danzeng stepped forward and said respectfully, "Father, all the people within a hundred miles have been captured. The Tang army is hiding in the city and many people are hiding in the city with them."

"I just checked the documents. More than half a month has passed, and they have only captured more than 120,000 people. Although they are worth 600,000 dan of grain, I don't know how many of them can survive after being taken to Maozhou."

Hearing this, Shang Moyan raised his head, his eyes were sharp, and he said in a deep voice: "These horses are our Duokang's wealth, and we must not lose them."

After he finished speaking, he asked again: "What did the Longyou Army say about the horses that were taken to Yizhou?"

No Lu Danzeng responded: "They have all been registered, but they didn't move too many people away, and Marshal Liu Jie sent us a military order, telling us not to rush to send the people to Yizhou, but to stay in Maozhou."

"Stay in Maozhou? Humph!" Shang Moyan snorted coldly, "These people consume thousands of tons of grain every day. I don't have that much food to feed them."

He walked away from the table and stopped at the door of the tent, looking into the brightly lit camp under the night sky.

When Lu Danzeng came up behind him, he spoke up, "It will snow in less than a month. We don't have much time left."

"There are at least 600,000 or 700,000 people in Shuzhou and Pengzhou. Even if most of them have fled into the city, there can't be only this many people outside the countryside."

"A hundred miles is still too small. We have regrouped our troops now. We have nearly 100,000 soldiers at hand. We can definitely try to attack those cities."

"Pass on my military order. Starting tomorrow, the army will be divided into eight groups to attack the eight counties under the jurisdiction of Shuzhou and Pengzhou respectively."

"I obey your command!" Mei Ludanzeng bowed without hesitation and then passed Shang Moyan's military order to the protector generals of each army.

The next day, a marauding army consisting of 20,000 armored warriors and 80,000 soldiers began to besiege the eight counties under the jurisdiction of Shu and Peng states.

The Tubo Tangqi troops even entered the territory of Chengdu Prefecture.

If Chengdu Prefecture had not just been looted by Dali, they would probably have followed the smoke from cooking fires and plundered Chengdu Prefecture clean.

However, Chengdu Prefecture was rich after all, and the number of villages and towns that Dali could plunder was limited. Chengdu Prefecture, with a population of more than 800,000, was likely to become another target of Duokang Tubo after it took over Shuzhou and Pengzhou.

Under such circumstances, Gao Pian, who was stationed in Lingzhou and watching from the sidelines, was the first to receive the imperial edict from Chang'an.

"In the court, Gao Pian, the Earl of Bohai County, the Inspector of the Ministry of War, the Special Advancement of Guanglu Dafu, and the Jiedushi of Dongchuan, was appointed as the Governor of Yizhou, the Yin of Chengdu, and the Jiedushi of Xichuan..."

"The decree is as on the right. Please obey it and implement it. I'm very careful."

"Your Highness Gao Pian accepts your order and bows down to wish you a long life!"

On the fifth day of August, when Gao Pian received the imperial edict, he did not show any disappointment, as he had already learned what had happened through Yu Gongchu.

Compared with Xichuan, Dongchuan is far inferior in terms of population and status.

Being transferred to Xichuan has already made his plan almost half successful, and what he has to do now is to defend Xichuan firmly and then turn around to control Dongchuan.

Thinking of this, he took the imperial edict with both hands and ordered his attendants to send the angel to Yin Hotel to rest.

After they left, Gao Pian summoned General Lin Ruzhen.

A quarter of an hour later, Lin Ruzhen rushed the dusty man into the county government hall and bowed without hesitation, "General Ji!"

"I have been transferred to Xichuan. Now I can deal with those pig-like and dog-like barbarians in Xichuan."

Gao Pian sat in the main seat and spoke lightly. General Lin Ruzhen also said solemnly: "There are still 4,752 elite cavalrymen outside the county. Why not transfer some of the troops from Rongzhou back? We will have a better chance of success!"

"No need!" Gao Pian narrowed his eyes and said, "Mobilizing troops will make too much noise and easily alert the enemy."

"Send a fast horse to deliver a message to Wang Zhongren and Zhang Lin, asking them to send troops immediately to recapture Longzhou!"

"I will obey your command!" Lin Ruzhen responded without hesitation, and Gao Pian also stood up and said:
"Lead the elite cavalry outside the city, abandon all baggage, and follow me to attack Guankou!"

"This..." Lin Ruzhen hesitated, but Gao Pian looked at him with a frown.

Facing Gao Pian's military order, General Lin Ruzhen could not help but worry: "Although Shang Moyan is not as good as his father Shang Bibi, he is also a brave general."

"Now they have a 100,000-strong army, and we have less than 5,000 elite cavalry. Should we fight them head-on..."

"Who said I want to fight head-on?" Gao Pian snorted:

"Guankou is the retreat route for their three armies. If we cut off Guankou, the situation will be resolved."

General Lin Ruzhen's eyes lit up, and he immediately bowed and said, "I will obey your orders!"

As Gao Pian's military order was issued, two hours later, more than 4,700 elite cavalrymen outside the city broke camp and headed straight for Guankou.

However, at the same time when he received the imperial edict and took action, Liu Jilian, who was in Pandi County, also received information sent by Dou Yun in the Chang'an Jinzouyuan.

Just by glancing over the intelligence, he knew something was wrong.

"Gao Pian was transferred to be the governor of Xichuan. It seems that the court can't wait any longer."

Liu Jilong burned the information with a serious expression, then looked up and met the generals in the hall.

They had dealt with Gao Pian before, and they still remembered the time when Gao Pian led his army to block the Longyou Army's withdrawal from Chengzhou to Weizhou. They naturally knew that Gao Pian was not easy to deal with. Because of this, they also guessed that Gao Pian's transfer to Xichuan Jiedushi was definitely not good news for them.

But this is exactly the kind of news they need now, because only with this kind of news will their own commander-in-chief send troops.

Facing their expectant eyes, Liu Jilong calmed down and said without hesitation: "Chen Ying, report to the court that our army has recovered Songzhou. In addition, the foreign bandits are looking for trouble, and Xichuan cannot control them. I have no choice but to send troops south to expel the Tubo in Wen Fulongmao and other six states!"

"Send a fast horse to tell Shang Moyan to withdraw his troops immediately and hand over the counties of Longzhou, Wenzhou, Maozhou, and Weizhou."

"I obey your orders!" Chen Ying stood up and responded, while Liu Jilong continued, "Wang Sifeng, Liu Yingyan..."

"I will!" The two men stood up one after another. Liu Jilong said without hesitation: "You two will each lead a garrison and go to Fuzhou to recapture Maozhou."

"I obey your orders!" The two men bowed in response, and Liu Jilong continued:

"Send a message to Hu Siguang, asking him to send troops to retake Weizhou on the third day after receiving the urgent report."

"As for Wenzhou and Longzhou, a certain general will personally lead the army south to retake them!"

"I obey your orders..." The generals stood up one after another, and the military camp outside Panti County, which had been silent for a long time, also became anxious.

The troops of the two towns set out one after another, going west from Fuzhou to Maozhou.

On the second day after they left, Liu Jilian personally led 5,000 elite cavalry, 10,000 horse infantry and 20,000 civilians to Wenzhou.

At the same time as he set out, Shang Moyan in the south successively captured the four counties of Daojiang, Qingcheng, Dayi and Jinchang.

Tangchang and four other counties were still struggling, and a large number of people were captured and taken to Guankou.

Under such circumstances, Yang Fuguang and others in Chengdu were anxious and kept sending military orders to Dongchuan, trying to get Gao Pian, the new governor of Xichuan, to rescue Xichuan.

However, while they continued to send letters to Lingzhou, Gao Pian left Renshou County, Lingzhou, and his whereabouts were unknown.

At the same time, on the fourth day after the Longyou army set out, Shang Moyan, who was in Guankou, also received a letter sent by Liu Jilong.

In the Guankou military camp, Mei Ludanzeng hurried into the tent and presented an urgent report: "Father, General Liu sent an urgent report saying that the Tang court sent Gao Pian to take over Xichuan. General Liu asked us to withdraw the troops and he will march south to recover the four states."

At dawn, before Shang Moyan had finished washing up, he heard everything that Mei Ludanzeng said.

He slowly wiped his cheek with a handkerchief made of Shu brocade, and then asked: "Gao Pian? Is he the one who severely injured You Shilong in Niutou Gorge?"

"Yes!" Mei Ludanzeng nodded quickly, and then said: "Father, should we order the troops to withdraw to Guankou?"

"Withdraw?" Shang Moyan frowned slightly, and after thinking for a moment, he said, "No matter how powerful Gao Pian is, he is just one person."

"There are less than 40,000 soldiers and horses in Xichuan right now, and only 13,000 or 14,000 soldiers and horses near Chengdu. Even if Gao Pian comes, he can't create a large army out of thin air."

After hearing this, Lu Danzeng hurriedly said, "But Gao Pian was originally the governor of Dongchuan, and he personally trained all the troops under his command."

"The military governors of the Tang court have always had the custom of commanding the cavalry of their own towns and escorting the military governors to other places. If Gao Pian brings troops from Dongchuan, we will be in a passive position."

Although Shang Moyan was arrogant, he was not stupid. When he heard that Gao Pian might lead the army to take up the post, he perked up and nodded:

"Pass on my military order. All troops should withdraw to Guankou, but they must not abandon the looted money, food, food and horses!"

"Yes!" Mei Ludanzeng responded quickly, and then sent hundreds of light cavalry to the east to deliver the message.

At this time, most of the military camps in Guankou Town were empty, with only 5,000 armored soldiers and nearly 10,000 tribesmen stationed there.

Because of this, Shang Moyan remained confident. He only ordered the army to focus the Tangqi on the east and south. After sending the Tangqi fifty miles away, he gradually calmed down.

But as time passed, when the sky gradually turned into night, Shang Moyan became anxious for some reason.

He summoned Meilu Danzeng and frowned, asking, "Have all the Tangqi been released?"

"They have been released. Two thousand Tangqi were released to the east and south respectively, and one thousand Tangqi were released to the north as well."

Mei Ludanzeng naturally attached great importance to Gao Pian, so he sent out 5,000 light cavalry from Tangqi.

Shang Moyan frowned upon hearing this, but finally ordered: "You will be on duty tonight, and we will withdraw to Maozhou when the troops return to camp tomorrow."

"Yes!" Lu Danzeng had no problem with it, after all, he had planned to be on duty tonight.

"Go down."

Shang Moyan waved his hands. Seeing that Lu Danzeng had not left the tent, his anxiety was slightly relieved and he fell into a sleep unknowingly.

In his dream, he saw the scene when Lun Kongre led his army and defeated his father at Yaknife.

He remembered very clearly that his father returned to Shanzhou on horseback, exhausted, and then called Tuoba Huaiguang, entrusted him with the defense of Shancheng, and claimed that he would go out to Lhasa City to seek help.

The mansion was in chaos that day, and everyone was scrambling to pack their things. He was extremely panicked and could only sit in his seat and watch the slaves pack their things.

After suffering for a long time, he was taken by his father to a horse carriage and headed for Ganzhou via the Dadouba Valley Road.

On the way, his father kept coughing and his mind was blank.

But this time they didn't seem so lucky. Tuoba Huaiguang of Shancheng surrendered to Lun Kongre and chased them with Lun Kongre's cavalry.

They could only keep running for their lives, but when they escaped from the Dadouba Valley, there was no one guarding Qilian City outside the valley.

Zhang Huaishen, Jiu Juyan, Liu Jilian... these people seemed to be his imagination.

Finally, he was dragged off the carriage and forced to kneel in front of Shang Yanxin and Tuoba Huaiguang.

The three of them, father and son, were controlled. When the foreign soldiers raised their swords high, he looked at his father in horror, only to see that his father had an anxious expression.

"Don't sleep! Wake up!"

"kill!!"

The shouts and cries of killing shook the heavens, and Shang Moyan suddenly woke up with cold sweat on his forehead.

But before he could wake up from his dream, he saw Lu Danzeng breaking into his tent with a knife in his hand.

"What are you going to do?!"

Shang Moyan questioned Mei Ludanzeng, but saw that Mei Ludanzeng was anxious: "Dad, the Tang army attacked Guankou at night, put on armor quickly!!"

It was not until this moment that Shang Moyan reacted. The shouting and screaming in his ears did not disappear with the dream, but instead became closer and closer to him.

"Put on my armor!!"

Shang Moyan quickly got up, put on armor with the help of Lu Danzeng and several soldiers, and rushed out of the tent with a knife in hand.

Outside the tent, all the soldiers were helping to put on their armor, while flames were rising from the tent in the distance.

"Where did the Tang army come from?"

Shang Moyan questioned Mei Ludan Zeng, who quickly said, "It seems like they came from the north."

"North?" Shang Moyan immediately thought of who it was: "Gao Pian, you pig-dog fellow!"

After calming down, Shang Moyan began to command: "Don't worry about the soldiers, gather all the soldiers and kill them!"

"Kill them?" Lu Danzeng looked surprised, but Shang Moyan grabbed his collar and said:

"Tenzin, Dad will teach you one more lesson today!"

He didn't explain the reason, but just pushed Mei Ludanzeng away and stood there calmly waiting for the soldiers to put on their armor.

Soon, the flames approached them. They could see with their naked eyes that countless elite cavalrymen of the Tang army were holding torches and burning the tents. At this time, the soldiers near the central army's tent also put on armor.

The elite cavalry of the Tang army also discovered them, but did not attack rashly. Instead, they kept burning tents, slaughtering unarmored soldiers, and gathering towards them.

Duokang's soldiers hurriedly put on their armor and barely gathered thousands of armored soldiers.

Shang Moyan jumped on his horse and shouted to the soldiers around him, "They are only a few thousand people, and our reinforcements are more than 20 miles away. Tell me, what is there to be afraid of?!"

As soon as he finished speaking, he shook the reins and shouted, "Kill!!"

"kill--"

(End of this chapter)