Chapter 157 Chapter 25 Fire Burning Qinshui

Chapter 25 of the fifth part, the fire burning Qinshui The Yong army was defeated and blocked the river with iron chains to block the Northern Han water army. The mountain was dangerous and difficult to attack and defend. On the first day of April, Long Tingfei ordered General Duan to sink the river with black oil and set it on fire.In the next thirty years, there was no grass in the mountains, and the next year, the Qinshui became clear. ——"Zi Zhi Tong Jian".Yongji III On the early morning of March 30th, Li Xian walked out of his military tent. Although it was already spring, the temperature in the morning was still very low. But there are nearly 10,000 Tibetan soldiers, and it is the nearest barracks to the mouth of the Qinshui Valley where the Northern Han Army stationed troops. Last night, the Yong Army camped in more than a dozen such valleys along the Qinshui River. Starting today, they will be supported by infantry. The troops are retreating. This valley is not a good place to resist the enemy. Although it is cost-effective to defend the Northern Han cavalry with infantry, Li Xian never likes this kind of sacrifice without the possibility of victory, so retreating is the only option, and who knows What method will the Northern Han army come up with to attack? After all, such a valley is also a kind of bondage to the Yong army's iron cavalry. The most important point is that if you want to win, you can't defend here. The Han army seemed to have no intention of defending the valley at all, and of course the losses should be as small as possible.While carefully thinking about how to deal with the current battle situation, Li Xian walked towards the tent not far away with his hands behind his back, which was Xuansong's camp. Li Xian thought angrily, he was too busy yesterday, he only heard that Jiang Zhe left first, so he must ask clearly Xuan Song, how did this guy get cold feet.

Approaching Xuansong's tent, there was no one there. He must have gone out to arrange defense, but Li Xian didn't care and walked in.As a general, Xuan Song's camp is naturally quite comfortable, with curtains separating the inside and outside, the inside is a camp bed, the outside is tables and chairs, and the floor is covered with thick felt.Li Xian was sitting on the chair, thinking about how to retreat cleanly. At this moment, he heard the sound of footsteps coming from outside. One was not in a hurry, the footsteps were clear and swift, and the other was walking like a tiger, mighty and heavy.Li Xian could tell that these two people were walking side by side, and he also knew that Xuan Song and Jing Chi had come together. Suddenly, his heart moved. These two people are the emperor's confidantes, and they have been colleagues for many years. They must have a lot of confidantes If you want to say, why don't you listen to what they say in private?

Li Xian was determined, so he opened the curtain and walked into the inner tent. Just as his figure was hidden behind the curtain, the tent door of the military tent was pushed open by Jing Chi. He poured out a large cup of clear tea from the teapot on the desk, and drank it clean in one gulp.Xuan Song followed in behind, seeing this scene, shook his head and said: "The general still likes this kind of cow drink, what a pity this top-grade tribute tea, this is the good tea that the supervisor army lost to me in a chess game a few days ago what." As soon as Jing Chi heard the words "Supervisor", he spit out a sip of tea, laughed and said, "It turned out that I won by playing chess, so it was very easy. Everyone in Tiance Mansion didn't know that Mr. Jiang Although his talent is peerless, his chess skills are mediocre. Once he lost miserably, he recited a seven-reject chess game. Although I am an old man, I still remember it. The poem is like this, "Everything in life is always about love, Ya Xie One after another. It’s not that he is afraid of difficulties and is willing to stand still. He thinks he is too clear about black and white.'”

Li Xian almost laughed out loud behind the tent, but he knew about it, and he even knew that the reason why Jing Chi remembered it so clearly was because Jing Chi was accompanying him that day, so he couldn't help laughing at Jiang. After Zhe said a few words, Jiang Zhe punished him for copying this poem a hundred times. In the past, although the Yongwang Mansion was tightly guarded, Fengyimen still had some spies in the Yongwang Mansion. Li Xian saw these things from Qin Zheng. But later on, the Prince Yong's Mansion became more and more strict. In the end, it was very difficult to get any useful information.

Xuan Song naturally didn't know this secret, but he sighed: "Chu Xianghou is easy-going, indifferent to fame and wealth, but he is loyal to the king, dedicated to his work. In the past, I heard that Master Jiang almost fell ill because of fatigue. Song originally just heard it. I can't think of it." I only saw the color yesterday. When Mr. Jiang left yesterday, he could hardly get in the car in person. He must be extremely tired. We can only do our best to complete the plan set by Mr. Jiang, otherwise we will lose the favor of the emperor and Mr. Jiang below. painstakingly."

Li Xian's body trembled when he heard the words. Of course, he saw the changes in the Hunting Palace with his own eyes. In the Xiaoshuang Palace, Jiang Zhe was disfigured and his bones were broken. , although Jiang Zhe has recovered his health, but the gray hair and the slight frost on the temples still make Li Xian feel sad. These days, although Jiang Zhe is superficially lax, Li Xian knows that Jiang Zhe often reads all kinds of information Until late at night, he personally handled and arranged many seemingly inexplicable things, but Li Xian knew Jiang Zhe's ability to make arrangements, so naturally he would not think that Jiang Zhe was being lazy.Hearing that Jiang Zhe retreated first yesterday, Li Xian was only slightly resentful. After all, he also knew that Jiang Zhe's body might not be able to withstand the road of defeat, so he was not really angry, but he heard that Jiang Zhe was so weak when he left, I couldn't help but feel uneasy, what should I do if Jiang Zhe's old illness relapses, not to mention my uneasiness, even the emperor and Princess Changle can't explain it to me.

His mind was confused, and his breath immediately became heavy. Jing Chi outside heard that Jiang Zhe was in poor health. He was frowning at first, but when he heard the sound inside, he was startled. He stretched out his hand to hold the handle of the knife and said, "Inside Who, why are you eavesdropping here?" Xuan Song was originally a Confucian general with mediocre martial arts. When he heard Jing Chi's shout, he immediately got up and moved towards the tent door. If there were really assassins or secret spies, then he naturally didn't want to delay Jing Chi's action, but he saw the curtain of the inner tent jump , Qi Wang Li Xian came out, with a cold expression on his face, and said indifferently: "General Xuan, immediately order our army to pack up and start retreating according to the plan. This king is not in the mood to waste time with the Northern Han people."

Both Xuan Song and Jing Chi were taken aback, but seeing King Qi's expression was unhappy. Besides, the difference between top and bottom was there, so they couldn't accuse the prince of listening to the corner, and hurriedly agreed to go down to arrange military affairs. The original plan was to stay here. In the last two or three days, the army will be withdrawn on a large scale, but since King Qi wants to change the plan, Xuan Song feels that the impact will not be great, so he has no advice. At this time, the sun was already high, and the Northern Han army had already begun to challenge at the front of Taniguchi. In order not to make the Yong army suspicious, the Northern Han army continued to fight in Taniguchi, and the attacking equipment outside showed no flaws. .If it was normal, Li Xian might go into battle to confront the enemy in person, but after he heard that Jiang Zhe was ill, he was depressed and didn't bother to go into battle, so he just let Jing Chi lead the army out to fight the enemy.

On the Northern Han army formation, Long Tingfei and Lin Bi stood side by side, looking at the two armies facing each other at the mouth of the valley, their expressions were a little disappointed. After a long time, Long Tingfei said sadly: "The Yong army was defeated yesterday, but it took only one night. We can no longer see the decadent atmosphere, and the Yong army's determination is stronger than ours." Lin Bi also felt the same in his heart, and said: "Dayong now has a wise emperor and a good general. The soldiers use their lives, and they are all willing to die. It's a pity that I live in a corner in the Northern Han Dynasty. Although I have the same heart, I can't do what I want."

Long Tingfei laughed and said: "Bimei doesn't have to be like this, as long as we capture and kill Li Xian this time, Dayong will suffer heavy losses, and we won't be able to enter Qinzhou in a few years. Chu and Dongchuan alliance, when the time comes, Dayong will never have the power it has today." Lin Bi smiled slightly. She knew that Long Tingfei was just trying to comfort her. How could Dayong collapse so easily? She had deeper worries in her heart. She promised her father and brother to send troops on behalf of the state this time, and it must be on April 20. The barbarians rushed back to Daizhou a few days ago, and the barbarians were ready to move. There were only 10,000 cavalry in Daizhou. Although the soldiers and civilians in Daizhou were sleeping every night, the eldest brother and the second brother were fierce generals, not generals. My father was sick in bed, so how could I rest assured? get off.

The battle between the two armies of Taniguchi was in full swing. A young general under Jing Chi's command was the bravest. He rushed into the Northern Han army several times, risked his life, and returned to the Yong army loudly to encourage him. Long Tingfei frowned. , was about to order someone to kill the general of the enemy army, Xiao Tong hurried over and said in a low voice: "General, let the Lu brothers go into battle, that general is ours, he must have an urgent letter to pass on." Long Tingfei's expression changed, and he said loudly: "Bo Yan, Zhong Tian, ​​and Shu Han, you all lead the army up, and you must capture and kill this general." The three Lu brothers were already eager to try, and they quickly agreed with each other. Tong had already retreated to the side, and said a few instructions beside Lu Shuhan, Lu Shuhan's eyes flashed coldly, and followed the two elder brothers out of battle. Soon the three of them rushed to the front, Lu Boyan and Lu Zhongtian personally met Jing Chi who was leading the army to kill, while Lu Shuhan led the army to block the partial general intentionally or unintentionally, both the enemy and our army said it was I didn't think there was anything weird about the Northern Han army's move to stand up. The general raised his horse and rushed forward. People borrowed the power of the horse, and it was unstoppable. Lu Shuhan was no less powerful than the vanguard general Su Dingluan back then. With a sneer, Ma Leng picked it up, the general let out a startled cry, dropped the weapon from his hand, Uncle Lu shouted sharply, and the horse lance swept across, just hitting the waist of the general, and swept him off the horse, but the defiant The general refused to admit defeat, but he jumped up when he fell off his horse, but Lu Shuhan raised his horse spear and stabbed down, it seemed that he was about to pierce the general's throat.That general flipped over in the air, and the horse lance brushed against his cheek and pierced into the dirt. The general couldn't stand still and fell to the ground, but the general raised his hand, and a flying knife with a frost blade was like a meteor lightning. Like a dodge, he shot towards Lu Shuhan's face, but Lu Shuhan couldn't dodge in time, but he opened his mouth and bit the flying knife, intercepting it.At this moment, Na Pianjiang was rescued by Yong Jun who had rushed up. The two armies fought in a melee, and there were fights everywhere, but the clean and neat confrontation between the two still caught everyone's eyes. Both armies were iron-blooded men, and they respected warriors the most. He was also as nimble as a spirit fox, and although he was defeated, he didn't lose much face, so both the Yong army and the Northern Han army applauded in unison.At this time, the Northern Han army had also saved face. The two armies had been fighting for a long time. Seeing that the sun was rising and the two sides were calling for gold, they both retreated slowly. Back at the camp of the Northern Han Army and dismissed all the generals, Uncle Lu handed the flying knife to Xiao Tong, Xiao Tong gently turned the handle of the knife, but the handle was hollow, with a scroll of paper stuffed inside, It was written in petite characters slowly. "There are rumors in the army that the Marquis of Chu's old illness has relapsed and he has returned to Zezhou. The King of Qi has decided to withdraw troops early, starting this afternoon." After reading the above information, Long Tingfei's expression was mixed with worry and joy. He silently handed the scroll to Lin Bi, tapped his fingers on the book case, and seemed to be lost in thought. After a long time, Lin Bi raised his head and said: "If the illness of the Marquis of Chu Township is true, then this is the best opportunity. The reconciliation between Emperor Yong and King Qi depends entirely on this person. The Marquis of Chu Township is sick. King Qi must be feeling uneasy at this moment. That's why we havetened the retreat, and in this way, the Yong army will inevitably feel uneasy and march impatiently, and it will be much easier for our army to win." Long Tingfei frowned and said: "But it's hard to judge whether this is true or not, and since the Yong army hastened its retreat, our fire attack strategy will inevitably be much less effective. Xiao Tong, do you think this information is true?" Xiao Tong said respectfully: "This person is a collateral disciple of my Demon Sect. He is from the Northern Han Dynasty. His parents and relatives are all in Jinyang. When our army robbed Zezhou two years ago, a village was bloodbathed. His subordinates ordered him to replace him." The identity of one of the villagers who was killed has never been used for two years, so the subordinates believe that the identity of this person has never been revealed. Moreover, the information he risked to send back is of great importance, but it is simple and rough, which is also in line with his It is absolutely impossible for this person to know these things in detail, this person is smart and resolute, if it is difficult to distinguish the truth from the truth, he will never take such a risk." Both Long Tingfei and Lin Bi nodded silently, their eyes met, both of them had made up their minds, Long Tingfei stood up and said: "The order is invincible, although all the black oil has not been delivered, but I can't care about it, the fire will start tonight." Attack, and then when we pursue the Yong army, we might as well spread some rumors, saying that the Chu Xianghou deliberately framed the King of Qi and failed, and now he fled before the battle. When the time comes, the Yong army will definitely be upset, and maybe Li Xian will think the same. " In the dead of night, on Qinshui, more than a thousand soldiers of the Northern Han Dynasty wore dark night clothes, pouring buckets of black oil into Qinshui lightly, the night was dark, the stars and moon were dark, and the deep Qinshui was covered There was a thick layer of black oil, and the black oil trickled downriver without attracting the attention of Yong Jun in the valley at all.Long Tingfei and Lin Bi stood on the shore, both of them looked solemn. According to their estimates, at least one-third of the Yong army had been withdrawn in one day. , then the odds are even smaller. Duan Wudi approached the two of them, and said in a low voice: "According to the speed of the water, it can cover thirty miles of the river around four o'clock. Princess, General, we need to start the fire at that time." Lin Bi nodded lightly, and sighed slightly. Although she was decisive in killing and attacking in Daizhou, she was mostly bloody with blades. This kind of fire and water attack method was rarely used, and she felt a little uneasy. After all, Daizhou Yingjie, I like aboveboard battlefield confrontation the most.Long Tingfei looked calm and said, "Okay, I hope this big fire can burn down the courage and confidence of Yong Jun." In the valley, the big tent of the Yong army was brightly lit. Today, at Li Xian's insistence, 20,000 infantry and more than 10,000 cavalry were withdrawn. no rest.They didn't know that there were murderous intentions hidden in Qinshui, the water flow was fast, and the wind was blowing down along the river tonight, and the black oil had been processed, so it didn't have a pungent smell, so no one noticed the potential danger. In the third watch, there was almost no sound in the Dayong barracks. Except for the defenders who defended Taniguchi and feared that the Northern Han army would sneak attack at night, everyone was asleep. At this time, two people walked out of a small tent. They were all wearing blue armor, but under the reflection of the firelight next to the camp, they could see that the two people were slender, but they were actually two women.These two people are Su Qing and her confidant maid Ruyue. Su Qing has been through life and death for many years, and has been able to overcome dangers like a barbarian. Although most of them rely on martial arts and resourcefulness, there is another advantage that is hard to match, that is, their sensitivity to danger. She can often be vigilant, although it is often just restlessness or even palpitations, but it is almost effective every time. This is also the key to her ability to dominate the Northern Han Dynasty with the body of a woman.Tonight she was awakened by a nightmare in the middle of the night, and when she got up, she found that she was covered in cold sweat, so she immediately woke up Ruyue, put on her armor, and walked out of the tent. Although she couldn't use her own mood to warn the police, at least she could go and check to see if there was anything wrong. something wrong. She walked slowly in the barracks, and the inspecting sergeants bowed and saluted when they saw her. Su Qing returned the salutes one by one, but her mind was flying to nowhere. She looked around intently, hoping to find a warning sign in her heart. trail.But all she could feel was solemnity and tranquility, and a trace of anxiety gradually surged in her heart. Su Qing turned and walked towards Qinshui. Sitting by the river at night and listening to the whimpering of the water should be the best way to clear away her troubles.Walking to the river, Su Qing took a deep breath, the cold air sucked into her lungs, Su Qing suddenly frowned, there was a faint familiar smell in the air, pungent and spicy, her eyes immediately showed a cold light, and her eyes flashed Su Qing's complexion suddenly changed tragically, and without thinking, he turned and walked towards the big tent. Don't panic, don't disturb the camp, otherwise there will be a danger of bombing the camp in the dark. The lights in King Qi's big tent had already been extinguished, Su Qing went outside the tent, and saw that the person guarding the night outside was Zhuang Jun, King Qi's confidant guard, she hurried forward and whispered: "Where is Your Highness, there will be an urgent military report at the end. " A flash of surprise flashed in Zhuang Jun's eyes. He didn't understand why Su Qing looked so dignified, but he knew that Su Qing was a good scout, so he rushed into the camp. Not long after, King Qi came out wearing his battle robe, and the light of the torch shone on Su Qing. On the green face, her clear face was as pale as snow.After listening to Su Qing's report on the military situation, a fiery flame flashed in Li Xian's eyes, and he immediately sent orders to all the Yong troops to withdraw immediately.They don't know when the Northern Han army will launch, but Su Qing made it very clear that the smoke from burning black oil is poisonous, and it is difficult to escape the danger even if they hide in the valleys on both sides. It's catching a turtle in a urn and dying in a desperate situation, so no matter what, there is only one escape word. Fortunately, the Yong army has not disarmed or undressed their horses for the past two days, so in less than half a shift, the whole army is ready, and the fastest group has already set out on the road.Li Xian looked at the confused infantry. It was difficult for them to retreat in time. Originally, they were left behind for better defense and to prevent the Northern Han army from discovering the inner intention of withdrawing, but these good men were going to die in humiliation here. , although I don't know when the Northern Han army will launch, but before dawn, it is difficult for these people to escape the valley, the road is too narrow.However, Li Xian knew that he could not explain the truth now. If these sergeants knew that they were in a desperate situation, there would be chaos, and the Northern Han army would be alarmed, and no one would be able to escape.Li Xian was heartbroken, and said: "Xuan Song, send someone to lead them to wait at the valley entrance, and say that they will sneak attack the Northern Han army camp at dawn, and if the fire breaks out, take them out of the valley entrance and attack the Northern Han army. You choose one Willing to die." Xuan Song felt a pain in his heart, but he knew it had to be so, he stepped forward and saluted: "Your Highness, these soldiers will be in command for many days, it is better for the last general to lead them to attack in person, so as not to choose the wrong time and die for nothing." Li Xian said angrily: "Nonsense, you are a general in the army, and this king is going to rely heavily on you, how can you do something that must die for this." Xuan Songdao: "His Royal Highness relies heavily on the last general, but it is to stop the Northern Han pursuers. His Highness was also good at retreating in the past. The last general is not necessary, but for the bloody battle with the Northern Han pursuers, a general like General Jing is needed, and Now if there is no general in the rear, I am only afraid that the army will change, and the last general is the most suitable candidate, not to mention that this time the blunder is because the last general did not notice the enemy's conspiracy, and the last general should stay to take the blame and make meritorious service." After Li Xian heard this, he only felt heartache unbearable, but he knew that if there was no general like Xuan Song in the palace, the army's morale would be easily disturbed, and regret flashed in his eyes, and he whispered: "Alright, Jing Chi, we Let's go." After saying that, he got on the horse and galloped without looking, Jing Chi hesitated for a moment, but had no choice but to follow.Only King Qi and a few generals knew about the enemy's plan to attack with fire, so there was no confusion in the Yong army, only King Qi decided to withdraw overnight.After riding his horse for a while, Li Xian suddenly turned around and ran back, pointing to Xuan Song and said: "General Xuan, you can do what you want in this matter, don't die for your country lightly, if there is any mistake, I will take care of it." Xuan Song His body shook, knowing that King Qi hinted that he could surrender in an emergency, so as to save his life. Although this was not something he could do, he still bowed down and said: "The last general obeys." There was a faint sadness in his tone. When the figure of King Qi disappeared into the night, Xuan Song recovered his calm face and said: "At dawn, we are going to attack the camp. Now pass down the order, and the three armies will move out." They asked everyone to wrap their mouths and noses with towels soaked in the clear spring water in the valley, and asked their confidantes to walk by the river. In addition, the light was dim, and no one discovered the mystery in the river.Although some clever people have already noticed that something is wrong, but the military order is like a mountain, if it is publicized at this moment, it will inevitably become a ghost under the knife immediately, and they can only follow the army in silence.Not long after, Yong's army had arrived at Taniguchi, and Xuan Song ordered his confidant guards to go out to investigate. When the guards came back, their faces were pale, and they whispered: "General, the enemy's camp is not far from here. I saw many figures by the river. .” This personal guard already knew the truth, so he naturally knew the danger. At this moment, suddenly the flames outside the valley burst into flames, and the Qinshui around him was already filled with flames, and toxic black smoke poured towards the shore. Black smoke filled the air, and it was difficult to see anyone on the other side.Xuansong made people beat the drums, the sound of the drums was deep, like a desperate beast howling, Yong Jun rushed out of the valley according to the military order.Immediately there was an exclamation in front, and the sound of a weapon colliding.Tears flashed in Xuan Song's eyes. This was an act of suicide. The 20,000 Yong army infantry faced the 100,000 Northern Han iron cavalry and the Daizhou army. They would definitely die. Your expectations, you did not see through the enemy's conspiracy to burn Qinshui, if the end general knew earlier, no matter it is natural, there is still a way to deal with it, but now you can only atone for your sins with death, I hope your plan succeeds, for my Dayong boy Take this deep revenge." He raised his head, drew out the long sword at his waist, and rushed forward under the protection of his personal guards, towards the place of death in front of him.Behind him, the fire above Qinshui was still spreading rapidly for a few seconds. Below was cold water, above was flames, black smoke billowed, and poisonous gas was hazy. The vegetation on both sides was burned by the fire, and the fire became more fierce. The rock was blackened by black smoke. If anyone was here, there would be no hope of surviving. The mountains and rivers thirty miles away became a Shura field, and the raging fire devoured all life. The Northern Han army burned Qinshui. In addition to the more than 10,000 cavalry and 20,000 infantry that were withdrawn first, there were still 30,000 cavalry under the command of King Qi and Jing Chi, and more than a thousand people were swallowed by the sea of ​​​​fire. Insufficient, so the main force of the Yong army survived, but the suicidal attack of 20,000 infantry, apart from causing a short period of chaos for the Northern Han army and the death of more than a thousand Northern Han cavalry, the entire army was wiped out.So far, the Yong Army's Northern Expeditionary Army has 130,000 cavalry, and only half of the remnant army remains. Although the main force still exists, the Northern Han Army has already occupied an absolute advantage.