The Splendor of the Five Dynasties

Chapter 120 Ambush in Qinzhou
West of Tunliu County lies Liu Chong's sphere of influence.

On the day of departure, Xiao Yi and thirty-eight soldiers changed into Xuzhou soldiers' uniforms and armor. Zhang Mei still brought Liu Yun with them, in case they needed to trick the Qinzhou city gates open.

Leaving Tunliu to the west, we passed through a dangerous pass.

Xiao Yi quite enjoyed chatting with the old guide, so he spurred his horse forward and asked, "Old man, what mountain is this?"

"Reporting to the general, this is Sanzong Mountain, which guards the western throat of Luzhou. It is said to be the place where Hou Yi shot down nine crows."

The old guide was quite talkative, pointing out the towering peaks in front of the post road and introducing them to Xiao Yi.

"The so-called 'Three Peaks' are Linshan, Lingshan, and Xulingshan. The character '嵕' has the character '凶' above it, because the mountain was considered to have ominous signs. Therefore, a temple was built on the mountaintop to suppress it. Later, the temple was destroyed, and Hedong suffered constant wars."

Xiao Yi felt that building a lookout tower on the mountaintop would be more useful.

Once you get out of this dangerous pass, the old road to Eyu is ahead, which is much easier to travel.

The old guide said this was a vital passage between Qin and Lu prefectures, and the site of the Battle of Eyu.

"General, be careful, the territory of Qinzhou is just ahead."

The next mountain passes all belong to Qinzhou. The first one is Ma'anshan Pass. The pass is very narrow, only wide enough for two horses to walk side by side. The cliffs on both sides are vertical, as if cleaved by a knife, and are more than 30 zhang high.

Xiao Yi's mood was quite different from when he was traveling, as he walked this road now. He said, "If the Hedong Army were to place rolling stones and logs here, it would be an excellent ambush point."

Li Rong said, "I'm not stupid. Of course I've scouted it out. There's no trace of the enemy."

The old guide said, "Generals, look up there. Those are the remnants of the plank road dug by Sima Yi during the Cao Wei period."

After exiting the pass, the road became much easier to travel along the valley.

Li Rong, however, looked displeased and said, "These valleys are all icy slopes, the ground is wet and slippery, the cavalry can't charge. Our infantry are not as used to fighting as the soldiers from Hedong. It's so annoying."

Xiao Yi learned some valuable lessons, but when he looked back, he saw that the soldiers' morale was not high.

Fortunately, the Qinzhou troops were undefended and did not encounter any enemies along the treacherous passes, allowing them to advance quietly.

at last.

"We've arrived at Tongdi!"

The old guide pointed and said, "This is the last pass, Wusu Pass. There are no other mountains or rivers to protect Qinzhou City."

Xiao Yi stepped forward, stopped his horse, and looked around.

Ahead lay a vast basin, and they were on a high point on the edge of the basin, overlooking Qinzhou City and the surrounding post roads.

The land is like a chessboard, with Qinzhou City situated in the center of the basin, on the west bank of the Qin River, surrounded by waterways; in the distance of the basin, the foothills of the Taiyue Mountains stretch out.

The cities and towns of Shanxi are all situated between mountains and rivers.

Xiao Yi realized that he was in an excellent observation position. He turned his head and saw a watchtower not far away, but it was deep winter and snowing heavily, so there was no one inside.

Therefore, with Hedong unprepared, the difficulty of the campaign has been greatly reduced. If Qinzhou is not captured in this battle, there will likely be no other such opportunity.

"General, look over there."

The old guide pointed to a plain near the official road and said, "The snow has buried the ice, so it looks like land, but it's actually a swamp, the Tongdi Marsh. Be careful when you go there."

Xiao Yi said, "If it weren't for the old man leading the way, we would have inevitably gotten stuck inside."

Li Rong stood with his hands on his hips for a while, then beckoned to his scout and asked, "Is there a bridge over the Qin River? Has it not been demolished yet?"

"Yes, it's there, it hasn't been demolished!"

"March quickly and cross the Qin River!"

"General, look!"

Suddenly a soldier raised his hand and pointed north.

Xiao Yi stared intently and saw soldiers and horses emerging like snakes from the river valley north of Qinzhou City.

"Scout general!"

"exist!"

"Send out scouts to gather intelligence on the enemy!"

"Here!"

"The rest of you, follow me westward, gag yourselves! Untie the packhorses!"

Xiao Yi also took out a "piece" from the side pocket of the saddle. It was a long strip of tanned cowhide with hemp rope tied at both ends. He stuffed it horizontally into the mouth of the black horse, tightened it around the chin, leaving only a half-inch gap for the horse to breathe.

Wuzhui was very unhappy. Xiao Yi stroked its mane and checked its saddle and weapons.

The spear was from the army and wasn't as good as his, but it was still handy. He also had a knife and a six-pound bow.

Afterwards, gags were put in the packhorses, and all the burlap sacks on their backs were removed and left to be guarded by the soldiers who were establishing defenses at the pass.

He mounted the packhorse, saving the horse's strength for the charge.

They draped themselves in white linen and concealed their figures in the snow.

"Take Liu Yun with you."

"They can't trick us into opening the city gates anymore, can they?"

"Act according to the situation," Xiao Yi said. "Conceal your tracks so that you can strike when no one is prepared."

"Okay, let's go!"

Leave four hundred men to guard the position, build fortifications to protect supplies, and provide support from the enemy lines or cover their retreat in case of defeat.

The cavalry were divided into left and right wings, each advancing in a long, serpentine formation, with a distance of three zhang between them. They did not travel in the middle of the official road, so as not to make their tracks difficult to conceal.

It avoids crowding and can be quickly closed in case of attack.

Xiao Yi rode his horse on the east side of the official road and looked back. Behind him was a team of people clearing away snow. They moved quickly and used the tips of their shovels to scrape away the loose snow, making the tracks left by the horses blurry.

Beside him lay the Copper Dike Marsh, where reeds grew to over seven feet tall, their withered stalks scraping against his armor, scattering ice shards everywhere.

Before they even reached the Qinshui River, the whistling of scouts came from ahead, one short and one long, indicating that enemy activity had been detected, but that the situation was not critical.

Xiao Yi and Li Rong reined in their horses at the same time, and a scout emerged from the depths of the reeds.

"General, the Hedong Army has been spotted north of Qinzhou City. Their banners bear the character 'Li,' and they number over five thousand. They are heading towards Qinzhou City, and judging from their marching formation, it seems they intend to enter the city to garrison it."

"It really is Li Cungui." "Has he sent any scouts?"

"They went south along the river."

Li Rong's eyes flashed with a sharp light as he said, "Damn it, we can't let him get into the city before me and cross the Qin River. Charge through!"

"No!"

Xiao Yi had already witnessed Li Rong's bravery in battle during the last battle in Huazhou, and he did not want to die alongside Li Rong this time.

"The news from Hedong is delayed. Li Cungui's trip south is to protect Liu Yun, not to defend against the enemy. If we force our way across the river, our two thousand exhausted troops may not be able to defeat five thousand Shatuo elite cavalry. It would be better to ambush him."

“No, it’s getting late, and he’s going to enter the city. If we wait until tomorrow, we’ll lose the initiative, we won’t be able to hide our whereabouts, and our men will be cold and hungry, making it even harder for us to fight.”

“I used Liu Yun to lure him, and before he entered the city, I dealt him a heavy blow.”

"How do I do it?"

Xiao Yi surveyed the surroundings. There was an inn near the Tongdi Bridge in the distance, but it was inhabited and not suitable for an ambush.

However, not far away, beside the official road, there was an abandoned village with some remaining mud-brick walls.

He dismounted, picked up a reed, and began to paddle in the snow.

Li Rong also dismounted, picked up a piece of fresh horse dung, and warmed his hands with it.

"Rather than being attacked by Li Cungui while he is crossing the river, we should lure him to the east bank and then attack him while he is crossing."

"You can summon it?"

“I tricked him into coming here in Liu Yun’s name. We went to that abandoned village and said we were being chased by the Tianxiong Army. He would probably bring one or two thousand soldiers to rescue us. We used the pursuers to lure him, feigned defeat, ambushed and routed him, just like last time in Huazhou, when we drove the routed soldiers to attack his main force.”

"Can it be done?"

"General, would you dare to give it a try?"

"What are you afraid of!"

Li Rong tossed aside the horse manure, took the reeds, and said, “Divide the troops like this: use these men dressed in Xuzhou soldiers’ armor to lure the enemy; four hundred men will pretend to pursue Liu Yun; nine hundred men will ambush in the reeds south of Tongdi Bridge; I will send three hundred men to go downstream to cross the river, then make a ruckus from behind to disrupt their morale and attack from both sides.”

"The general is skilled in battle."

After a general agreement was reached, Li Rong began making arrangements.

Bows and arrows were reserved for those who ambushed and flanked; shields were mostly used by the disguised Xuzhou soldiers; long weapons were used for pursuing troops; tripwires and caltrops were placed near the battlefield; then came drums, horns, and other noisy instruments; it was agreed that different colored arrows would be used as signals for communication at any time.

"Mu Lingjun, you take these men and accompany General Xiao to protect Liu Yun."

"Here."

"Fan Shoutu, lead the team to feign pursuit."

"Here."

"Li Shoujie, lead three hundred cavalry to the downstream area and flank them. Don't embarrass me."

"Your son obeys."

After making the arrangements, Li Rong waved his hand and led his troops away, disappearing into the reeds after a while.

The one left behind, Mu Lingjun, was a general who looked extremely brave. Xiao Yi nodded to him and said, "Let's begin."

"Here."

They carried only a few horses to carry goods, while the rest of them walked. When they arrived at the abandoned village, they set up a blue cloth tent against the earthen wall in a sheltered spot, pretending to be refugees temporarily staying there.

After a long march, everyone was in a sorry state, so there was no need to pretend too much.

Liu Yun was so weak that he couldn't walk anymore. He was dragged around like a tattered sack and thrown into a corner.

"Any idea what to do?"

Liu Yun's lips trembled as he murmured, "I...I'm so tired..."

Xiao Yi ordered someone to feed him something and said, "I keep my word. When you see Li Cungui later, just follow my instructions to lure him here, and I will wrap you in a thick blanket, warm you by the fire, and provide you with fine wine and delicacies. I guarantee you won't be suffering like you are now."

Liu Yun stared at him, his eyes filled with complex emotions, and finally nodded.

"it is good."

Xiao Yi beckoned to Zhang Mei, handed him the seal of the Wu Ning Army Commander, and said, "Brother Xuan Gui is familiar with Xuzhou, so I'll trouble you to make the trip."

Zhang Mei said, "Having come with the army, I finally have a chance to use my skills."

"Jin Sanshui, Shoutao, protect Brother Xuangui. Don't speak and don't make any mistakes."

"Here!"

The three riders, having completed their preparations, quickly departed.

"Light the fire and rest. We are serving the heir apparent; we must not mistreat him..."

Upon hearing this, Liu Yun's face turned even paler.

Xiao Yi climbed up the earthen wall and looked around. The Thorn-Cutting Team had concealed most of the traces left by the troops' march, and the rest was left to Luo Xue.

The withered reeds concealed the ambush, rustling softly in the wind.

After a long while, Xiao Yi saw a group of about twenty cavalrymen following Zhang Mei toward the west.

It's impossible for twenty people to take Liu Yun away.

He raised a flag to signal the four hundred pursuers to prepare to surround Li Cungui's troops and force them to come to his aid.

Gradually, the cavalry from the east of the river came closer.

Xiao Yi looked at it, his eyes suddenly narrowing.

He could tell that the leader was a skilled horseman, leaping across ravines at great speed as if walking on flat ground.

This person must be quite young, clad in fine scale armor, with a ring-pommel sword at his waist and a silver spear on his back, the red tassel fluttering in the wind, exuding heroic spirit.

Upon reaching the crossroads of the abandoned village, the man reined in his horse and shouted at the top of his lungs, his voice like thunder.

"Is your older brother here?! Liu Jiye is here to pick you up!"

(End of this chapter)