The Golden Family, rising from the Western Regions

Chapter 245 The Fall of Two Prefectures in Gansu Cuts Off the Hexi Corridor

Suzhou City, which is the later Jiuquan.

The city wall is tall and majestic, more than three zhang high, standing at the foot of the Qilian Mountains, overlooking the Hexi Corridor.

But on this day, cavalry from the northern frontier suddenly appeared outside Suzhou City.

The garrison immediately issued an order to close all four gates, prohibiting anyone from entering or leaving.

At this moment, Renduo Yimai, the garrison commander of Suzhou, and Liu Benyi, the governor of Suzhou, stood side by side on the city wall, looking at the northern frontier army outside the city, their faces extremely heavy.

"Boom boom boom~"

Thousands of cavalry from the Second Garrison roamed the desolate land, stirring up billowing dust.

They were all armed with red flags and red armor, exuding a fierce, fiery aura. With overwhelming force, they surged towards Ganzhou City, trapping the entire city in a scorching cage.

"Sigh~"

"These barbarians from the northern frontier have become even more ferocious and savage."

Liu Benyi stared intently at the outside of the city and spoke in a solemn voice.

This was not the first time he had encountered the Northern Frontier Army. Two years ago, when the Northern Frontier first launched its eastern expedition against the Western Xia, it had reached Suzhou City.

However, the military might of the northern frontier is now even greater, and its combat power is even more terrifying.

How long has it been since he received the intelligence that the border was in dire need?
The northern barbarians actually captured Dunhuang and Guazhou in succession, and then besieged Suzhou.

“The Northern Frontier Army has been fighting one battle after another, and must be exhausted. Now that they have just arrived in Suzhou, they are not yet firmly established. Perhaps our army can launch a surprise attack under cover of night,” said the garrison commander, Renduo Yimai.

"No!" Liu Benyi quickly dissuaded him.

"The barbarians of the northern frontier are cunning. Two years ago, they lured our army out of the city and took the opportunity to inflict heavy damage."

However, Rendo Yimai didn't take it seriously and shook his head dismissively, saying, "I have already sent people to find out."

"The true barbarians of the northern frontier number only three or four thousand; the rest are auxiliary troops of the Gaochang Uyghurs, and their fighting strength is pitifully weak."

"But I have ten thousand elite soldiers in Suzhou City. Why can't we fight them?"

After saying that, he glanced at Liu Benyi indifferently, shook his head and said, "Opportunities in war are fleeting. Governor Liu doesn't understand military affairs. You should focus your attention on civil matters."

"The important thing is to think of a way to get more food for my army."

Upon hearing Rendo Emi's sarcastic remark, Liu Benyi's face instantly flushed red, and he looked annoyed: "You—"

However, there was no other way, as the army in Suzhou was nominally under the control of the garrison headquarters.

This was a temporary military command agency below the Tongjunfu (military command headquarters), specifically established for commercial hubs like Suzhou.

Because Suzhou is bordered by Guazhou to the west, where the Xiping Military Command is located, and by Ganzhou to the east, where the Gansu Military Command is located.

There was no need to establish a military command, so a temporary garrison was set up.

Renduo Yimai, on the other hand, was a newly appointed garrison commander after the Battle of Hexi two years prior, and was a noble young master from Western Xia.

Therefore, even though the position of garrison commander was lower than that of governor, he still looked down on Liu Benyi, a Han Chinese, to the core.

However, in Liu Benyi's view, this young master may have studied a lot of military strategy, but this is his first time leading troops. He was very worried that this guy was just talking about war on paper and would ruin the Suzhou garrison.

Liu Benyi tried his best to persuade him, but Ren Duoyi remained obstinate.

Impatient, he turned and left, leaving behind the words: "Hmph, I'll show you what it means to be a son of a general."

Liu Benyi was anxious and stamped his feet in anger: "If we lose this battle, you will be a sinner of the Great Xia."

That afternoon, Renduo Yimai received news that the Northern Frontier Army had left only two thousand Northern Frontier True Barbarians and six thousand Gaochang Army soldiers to continue besieging Suzhou City.

The other true barbarians from the northern frontier scattered in all directions, presumably to plunder villages outside Suzhou City.

Rendo Emi's face lit up with joy: "That's wonderful, heaven is helping me!"

"If all the cavalry of the Northern Barbarians were left outside the city, I might be more wary."

"Those Gaochang people? Humph!"

"Not worth mentioning!"

After saying this, Renduo Yimai mobilized his troops, preparing to launch a major attack on the Northern Frontier Army.

Late at night, the gates of Suzhou City were wide open, and Western Xia cavalrymen, with gags in their mouths and their horses' hooves wrapped in cloth, arrived outside the city.

As the northern border army camp drew ever closer, Renduo Yimai roared, "Warriors, kill them!"

The northern frontier is truly fierce and difficult to deal with, so Renduo Yimai chose to attack the Gaochang army camp first.

Under the moonlight, three thousand cavalrymen charged toward the Gaochang army camp.

The speed increased rapidly, quickly causing chaos among the Gaochang army.

"kill!"

Renduo Yimai rushed into the camp, wielding a spiked club, and instantly smashed the head of a Gaochang soldier.

Red and white substances splattered on his face, and under the moonlight, he looked like a devil.

But the stench only fueled his excitement, and he continued his rampage, shouting and yelling.

His father and grandfather were both veteran generals of the Western Xia Dynasty, and by his generation, the family had become a true military family.

The proud and ambitious Ren Duo Yi Mai is determined to make a name for himself and is unwilling to be overshadowed by his father and grandfather.

Seeing the northern barbarians invade, he saw it as the best opportunity to make a name for himself.

If he were facing the main force of the Northern Frontier Army on the northern route, he would definitely choose to defend the city to the death.

However, the Northern Frontier Army on the western route only had 10,000 troops, and the majority of them were Gaochang troops. Renduo Yimai vowed to take them down.

"Ahhh~"

"Enemy attack, enemy attack~"

The screams of the Gaochang soldiers continued as they fell one by one to the slaughter of the Suzhou army.

But gradually, Rendo Emi began to sense that something was wrong.

The Suzhou army's charge became increasingly difficult, their pace slowed, and the number of Gaochang troops surrounding them grew larger and larger.

They gradually calmed down and began to organize themselves, using tripwires, spear formations, bows and crossbows to encircle and kill the Suzhou army.

As more and more Suzhou soldiers screamed and fell off their horses.

Rendo Emi's face grew increasingly pale, and all his previous arrogance vanished.

"be cheated."

“Damn it, we’ve been tricked,” he said in a trembling voice.

The advantage of cavalry lies in their speed and mobility, but once they lose these two qualities, they will inevitably become lambs to the slaughter by infantry.

"Retreat, retreat!"

Rendo Yimai roared loudly, smashing a spear that was thrust at him with his spiked club, but then felt a sharp pain in his back.

It turned out to be an archer who had ambushed him and shot him in the shoulder blade.

A sharp pain shot through him as the heavy spiked club slammed heavily onto the ground.

"The Garrison Commander~"

"Go rescue the garrison commander!"

"Get out!"

The Suzhou soldiers around him shouted loudly, rescued Renduo Yimai, and turned to rush towards Suzhou City.

But just as they rushed out of the Gaochang army camp, the sound of galloping warhorses suddenly rang out in the distance.

Suddenly, a guard shouted, "Cavalry! It's the cavalry of the northern barbarians!"

"We're surrounded."

Countless torches were lit, winding and spreading across the land, like endless fire snakes dancing wildly.

Although the Northern Frontier Army could not be seen, the roar of the Northern Frontier cavalry could be clearly heard.

Thousands of northern frontier cavalry were charging towards their remnant army from all directions.

At this moment, Renduo Yimai understood perfectly well that this was a conspiracy against him. "Those traitors from the Northern Frontier are utterly hateful."

"Instead of fighting me fair and square, you resort to such underhanded tricks."

"You're not worthy of being a man!"

Rendo Emi's arm hung limply in front of his chest, and he roared with a ferocious expression, blood flowing all over the ground.

Little did they know that his night raid was also a scheme, a mere mockery of the wild boar by the crow.

"Quick, retreat!"

"Hurry back!"

Renduo Yimai roared in anger, wanting to return to Suzhou City before the Northern Frontier Army could completely complete the encirclement.

But when they arrived at the city gate, they were dumbfounded.

"Open the door! Open the door quickly!"

"The garrison commander is here! Open the gate immediately!" the guards shouted urgently.

But the city gate remained completely still.

Because Liu Benyi was standing on the city wall, he watched helplessly as Renduo Yimai was gradually surrounded.

At this moment, he couldn't hate that bastard Rendo Emi more than he could ever feel.

He's just a self-righteous, stupid pig.

The three thousand cavalrymen who perished in Suzhou City are left with only the remaining garrison. It is uncertain how long they can hold out.

"Don't open the gate!" Liu Benyi shouted, stopping the guards at the city gate.

“The barbarians from the northern frontier are right outside the city. Once the city gates are opened, the northern frontier cavalry will surely charge in, and then everything will be over.”

Upon hearing this, the soldiers on the city gate looked at each other in bewilderment and immediately stopped trying to open the gate.

However, since Rendo Emi personally led a large army in a night raid, he must have left trusted confidants in the city.

Naturally, the other side refused to obey Liu Benyi's orders and insisted on letting Renduo Yimai into the city.

Ultimately, Liu Benyi had no choice but to overstep his authority and order his guards to kill him.

As the prefect, he temporarily assumed the position of garrison commander and was in charge of the defense of Suzhou City.

When Renduo Yimai, who was outside the city, saw that the city gate remained closed for a long time, he could easily guess that Liu Benyi was behind it all.

His pale face was filled with shock and anger as he roared furiously, "Liu Benyi, you are a treacherous villain!"

"Those who betray the imperial generals will certainly not have a good end."

“My father will never let you get away with this.”

Renjia was a powerful military family in Western Xia, and Liu Benyi was well aware of the consequences of keeping the city gates tightly shut.

But for the sake of all the people in the city, he did not regret doing so.

Therefore, he completely ignored Rendo Emi's angry curses and instead ordered his confidants to take control of the garrison's military power.

The bright moonlight shone on the earth, and the reflection of the yellow sand made the world look like the dawn.

The cold wind howled, whipping up yellow sand and making the red sun and moon battle flag flutter loudly.

Beneath the battle banner, Li Dongjiang, clad in crimson cotton armor and holding a cavalry saber, gazed at the distant city of Suzhou by the moonlight.

After a while, they found that although more and more Suzhou cavalrymen had gathered outside the city gate, no matter how angry the cavalrymen were, the city gate did not open.

"It seems there are some experts in the city!" Li Dongjiang shook his head slightly and smiled helplessly.

Once the city gates are opened, the cavalry outside will swarm in, making it impossible to close them again.

The northern cavalry could also take advantage of the situation to storm into the city.

However, the people inside Suzhou City were not fooled.

"Let's do it."

"Eliminate the cavalry outside the city first," Li Dongjiang ordered in a deep voice, deciding to wipe out all the cavalry outside the city before considering attacking the city.

"Woooooo~"

The deep sound of horns rose in the night, echoing across the desolate Hexi Corridor.

The northern cavalry abandoned their feigned attack and began a real charge.

Warhorses galloped, and arrows were fired in unison.

In a short time, the elite cavalry of the northern frontier decisively defeated the thousands of Suzhou soldiers who were like frightened birds. Hundreds were killed and more than two thousand were captured, achieving a great victory.

The sandstorm, carrying the cries of the Suzhou army, lashed against Renduo Yimai's face. He watched as the Ganzhou cavalry were either killed or forced to kneel and surrender under the rampage of the Northern Frontier Army.

At this moment, his heart was filled with grief, indignation, and regret.

"Young master, run!" A soldier's roar came from behind. He was a servant of the Ren family, loyal to him, and was now using his own body to block the pursuers.

The cold moonlight illuminated his distorted face, and Renta Emi suddenly burst out laughing.

He knew he couldn't escape.

"I am the eldest son of the Ren family, and I cannot bring shame to the family."

He slowly drew his scimitar with his left hand, the blade moving slowly upwards along his Adam's apple, and murmured, "The warriors of the Tanguts should die wrapped in horsehide."

The words abruptly stopped, and a streak of bright red snaked down the blade, spreading across the yellow sand.

On the city wall, Liu Benyi heard the sounds of killing outside disappear, his expression turned solemn, and he felt even more desperate.

Rendo Yimai committed suicide, and the Rendo family will not let him go.

However, Liu Benyi had no other choice.

His eyes gradually hardened, and he ordered in a deep voice, "Send word that all men and women in the city, regardless of age, go up to the city wall."

"Defend Suzhou City."

The northern frontier forces are terrifying, and Suzhou City has suffered heavy losses. The only way out is to hold out and wait for reinforcements.

He had already received orders from Xingqing Prefecture before the Northern Frontier Army besieged the city.

The Deputy Privy Councilor, Wei Ming Shi'an, is leading an army of 50,000 to provide support. Together with the armies from Liangzhou and Ganzhou, the total force is no less than 100,000.

There is still a glimmer of hope for Suzhou City.

The next day, the Northern Frontier Army began its attack on the city.

Because the Second Town lacked the support of the Divine Might Cannons, and only had twenty Tiger Venerable Cannons, the damage it caused to Suzhou City was limited.

Therefore, they could only order the Gaochang army to be the vanguard and attack the city in the most primitive way.

However, the Gaochang army encountered fierce resistance from the city's defenders, and despite three days of intense attacks, they were unable to defeat them.

Liu Benyi served as the prefect of Suzhou for several years. During his tenure, he treated the people well, encouraged agriculture and sericulture, and was a diligent and caring official.

He held great prestige in Suzhou City, and under his personal leadership, the entire city, young and old, defended the city together, repelling several attacks by the Gaochang army.

On the fifth day, thousands of corpses had fallen beneath the city walls, yet Suzhou City still stood firm.

This moved even Li Dongjiang.

"The prefect of Suzhou is named Liu Benyi, right?"

"That's right, his name is Liu Benyi."

"He's a real talent," Li Dongjiang sighed.

As a civil official, he was able to lead a city of the elderly and weak to hold out for so many days under the fierce attack of the Gaochang army, which shows his ability and his prestige among the people of Suzhou.

"Go and persuade them to surrender again."

"Tell Liu Benyi that if he opens the city gates and surrenders, our Northern Frontier Army will guarantee the safety of the people of Suzhou."

“If they remain stubborn and refuse to change their ways, the city will fall soon, and the entire population of Suzhou will die,” Li Dongjiang said in a cold voice.

"As ordered."

The Northern Frontier Army sent envoys again to persuade them to surrender, and the result was as expected.

Liu Benyi replied with the words: "A loyal minister does not serve two masters, and a good woman does not serve two husbands."

After listening, Li Dongjiang gently shook his head and said, "What a pity."

Having said that, he ordered the Gaochang army to continue their fierce attack and make sure to capture Suzhou City.

A few days later, Suzhou City remained intact. The Gaochang army tried many methods to no avail, leaving Li Dongjiang speechless.

Previously, the existence of the Divine Might Cannon had given many people in the Northern Frontier Army a misconception.

But in reality, how easy is it to breach a tall city?
In this era of low productivity, a siege lasting several months was quite normal.

However, the second town was not yet equipped with the Shenwei Cannon.

Therefore, Li Dongjiang could only say fiercely, "Continue digging tunnels, use a lot of gunpowder, and blow up the city wall."

Next, Gao Changjun pretended to launch a feigned attack while simultaneously digging tunnels.

Liu Benyi also noticed this. He looked at the Gaochang army that had retreated after attacking for a while, and then looked at a group of tents not far from the city wall.

"Dig a tunnel, huh?"

"Humph!"

"Place a large vat against the city wall and listen carefully to determine the direction and location of the tunnel as soon as possible," Liu Benyi said in a hoarse voice.

In recent days, he has set an example by staying on the city wall for ten days without taking a single step down.

His face was haggard, his expression disheveled, and his appearance was a far cry from the demeanor of a renowned scholar from Western Xia.

He looked just like a beggar.

But only those deep eyes became sharper and more spirited.

"As ordered."

The guard nodded emphatically and turned to leave.

However, what they didn't know was that Li Dongjiang didn't intend to dig into the city through the tunnel; he would stop once he reached the base of the wall.

Liu Benyi's method failed because he used explosives to damage the foundation of the city wall.

However, before the tunnel was completed, reinforcements from the Sixth Division arrived outside Suzhou City.

"Prefect, Your Excellency Prefect!"

A soldier covered in blood and mud rushed over.

With a panicked expression and horrified eyes, he panted as he spoke to Liu Benyi, who was personally carrying logs on the west gate.

"There are a lot of cavalry coming to the east city."

"Yes, there are at least several thousand people."

"They were all wearing white armor, and their flags were also white, with a sun and a moon on them."

Upon hearing the soldier's words, Liu Benyi's expression changed drastically, and he immediately sat down on the ground.

He muttered to himself, "The white sun and moon battle banner~"

At that moment, I lost all my strength in an instant. A huge feeling of fatigue swept over me, and everything seemed to go black before my eyes.

He had experienced the Battle of Hexi two years ago and knew that there was a group of cavalrymen in the Northern Frontier Army wearing white armor, and that the sun and moon battle flag was also the symbol of the Northern Frontier Army.

Therefore, the cavalry coming from the east must undoubtedly be the Northern Frontier Army.

This further illustrates that with the fall of Heishui City, Ganzhou City was in imminent danger, the Hexi Corridor had been cut off, and Suzhou had become an isolated city.

"Heaven has forsaken my city of Suzhou!"

Liu Benyi let out a cry of grief and indignation, and then fainted.

At that moment, the midday sun suddenly dimmed by a third, and the soldiers and civilians on the watchtowers of Suzhou City were all horrified, even filled with despair.

For on the eastern Gobi Desert, a crimson cavalry, like boiling waves of blood, surged up from the horizon.

At first, it was just scattered scarlet spots, but in the blink of an eye, it turned into a crimson torrent that blotted out the sky. Dozens of red flags embroidered with sun and moon patterns fluttered in the gale, dyeing half the sky an ominous blood color.

The clanging of armor clashing together, mixed with the thunder of horses' hooves, rolled across the land like a deep rumble of thunder.

The steel behemoth composed of eight thousand red-armored cavalry slowly came to a stop outside Suzhou City.

Li Donghe looked at the Western Xia flag still flying on the city wall and smiled faintly: "It seems that my second brother still couldn't beat me this time."

"I thought the Second Town would be able to capture Suzhou City before my main army arrived."

Subsequently, the armies of the two towns joined together.

The original plan was to take Suzhou City in one fell swoop, and then slaughter the city for three days without sheathing the sword.

Let everyone see the consequences of resisting the Northern Frontier Army.

However, Zhang Xinghua, the military advisor of the Ministry of Personnel who accompanied them, stepped forward after learning the whole story: "You two commanders, I am an old friend of Liu Benyi, the governor of Suzhou City."

"Can we forgive them for tomorrow?"

Li Dongjiang's expression darkened. He had suffered a humiliating defeat at the gates of Suzhou, and only a massacre of the city could wash away his shame.

That bastard Zhang Xinghua is just trying to make me feel bad.

"If you want to persuade him to surrender, I advise you not to waste your time. Liu Benyi is stubborn and unrepentant; he will not surrender," Li Dongjiang said with a cold snort.

Zhang Xinghua shook his head slightly and said confidently, "Nothing is absolute."

"Although Liu Benyi was a blindly loyal man, everyone has weaknesses, and his weakness was the people in the city."

Zhang Xinghua was originally the governor of Dunhuang, and he had a long-standing friendship with Liu Benyi, the governor of Suzhou. They were very close, and Zhang Xinghua couldn't bear to see Liu die for the Xia Kingdom.

Under Zhang Xinghua's persuasion, Li Dongjiang agreed to grant an extension of one day.

One day later, the army attacked the city, and on the day the city fell, not a single chicken or dog was spared.

That same afternoon, a package was carried up the city wall in a basket and placed in front of Liu Benyi's hospital bed.

The first thing that catches the eye is a general's flag.

The words "Gansu Military Command Rice and Poultry" were written on it.

Upon seeing this flag, Liu Benyi's eyes narrowed, and he shook his head in despair, saying, "Has the Ganzhou army been completely wiped out?"

What about Ganzhou City?

They probably have no chance of escaping it, since the army from Xingqing Prefecture simply cannot reach Ganzhou City in such a short time.

In other words, the Hexi Corridor was completely cut off, and Suzhou became a truly isolated city.

Then he opened Zhang Xinghua's letter, which also contained words of persuasion to surrender, hoping that he would have pity on the people and surrender the city. The Northern Frontier Army promised not to carry out a massacre.

Liu Benyi shook his head bitterly and said, "That old man really has me wrapped around his little finger."

But there was nothing they could do; reinforcements were no longer an option, and the fall of Suzhou was only a matter of time.

Liu Benyi could not stand by and watch the people in the city be slaughtered.

He sighed heavily and said in a deep voice, "Fine, open the city gates."

He then left the room, wanting to rest by himself for a while.

A moment later, his guards realized something was wrong and broke down the door.

He cried out in terror, "My lord, my lord!"

Outside Ganzhou City, banners fluttered, hundreds of sun and moon battle flags obscured the sky, and tens of thousands of northern frontier cavalry trampled the earth.

The raging torrents stirred up dust and sand, completely encircling the city of Ganzhou.

In the Wuwei Army, Li Xiao opened the letter sent by Zhang Xinghua, which contained a detailed account of the Battle of Suzhou.

To avoid the massacre of all the city's inhabitants, Liu Benyi ordered the city to be opened and surrendered.

However, he hid in his room and committed suicide by himself.

However, Li Xiao did not recall Liu Benyi's name in the meager historical records of Western Xia.

Perhaps it disappeared into history along with the burning of the Western Xia historical records.

But it is more likely due to the corrupt bureaucratic system of Western Xia, where mediocre people rose to prominence through connections.

"A loyal and righteous man," Li Xiao sighed softly.

Which monarch wouldn't like such a minister?
Unfortunately, despite being a Han Chinese, he was blindly loyal to the Xia state.

He put down the letter, then looked at the towering city of Ganzhou, two miles away, and his gaze suddenly sharpened.

His fingers unconsciously rubbed the hilt of his sword at his waist, and he said in a deep voice, "Order all units to set up camp and attack the city first thing tomorrow morning. We must take Ganzhou City within a day."

The bright yellow cavalry formation instantly tore through the twilight, and the dust kicked up by the horses' hooves slowly subsided.

Twenty mighty cannons stood majestically on the ground, their muzzles emitting a cold, eerie blue light, as if they were about to crush the towering city walls into dust.

The soldiers guarding the city of Ganzhou, upon seeing this imposing military force from afar, were immediately plunged into endless panic.

(End of this chapter)