Tiantang Splendid

Block along the river
From ancient times to the present, the history of the Chinese people is a history of struggle against the heavens. The simple and industrious Chinese ancestors did not believe in gods or the destiny of heaven, but they firmly believed in the creed of "man will conquer heaven". Another generation thrived on the land of China.

A long time ago, the Chinese ancestors waged unremitting struggles with nature, and canals were one of the means to fight against the sky.

From Guanzhong in the west, Fujian and Guangdong in the south, and North China in the north, there are traces of canals dug by our ancestors.

When Emperor Yang of Sui came to the throne, he mobilized millions of people to connect the canals left over from the ancient times with the natural rivers. The Huaihe River, Jiangdong and other regions are connected together to make an indelible contribution to the promotion of economic prosperity and the unification of China.

Everyone said that Emperor Yang of Sui Dynasty was stupid and innocent, but just this canal that runs through the north and south is enough to make his achievements shine through the ages, and future generations will inherit his blessings from generation to generation.

Where Banzhu enters the Yellow River, due to the difference in height between the two rivers, a huge sluice was built to separate them. When ships pass, the upper sluice is closed first, so that the boats approach the gate, and then the downstream sluice is closed, and the upper sluice is released. , the water of the Yellow River poured in, the water level rose, and the ships sailed into the Yellow River through the released gates.

The navy fleet entered the Yellow River from here, with boats and boats connected, white sails like clouds, and mighty upstream along the river, heading straight for Luoyang.

From Xingyang to Luoyang, several armies on both sides of the Yellow River channel moved to the embankment at the same time. All the rolled logs and iron cables that had been prepared were taken out, and one end of the iron cable was fixed. On the big tree on the bank, across the river.

Although Zheng Rentai had used it in the Battle of Banzhu before, the water flow above the canal was gentle, and the naval warships were full of wind, which made the speed extremely fast, and the iron cables also broke under the huge inertial force.However, the water on the Yellow River is surging, and the naval warships going upstream will inevitably lose speed and lack inertia, so they are very likely to be blocked by iron cables.

There are also huge logs piled up on the bank, and when the naval warships approach, they will push these logs into the river. The river is tumbling and rushing, and the rolling logs can generate huge inertia and form a powerful destructive force, which is enough to smash the hull of the ship. ...

Su Jia, the general of the Right Houwei, stood on the bank of the river with his helmet on top of his armor.

A fast horse galloped along the official road by the river, and drove up the embankment as close as possible. After flying off the horse, it came to Su Jia and said loudly: "General Qi, the enemy warship has arrived ten miles downstream. Ten ships, thirty gunboats, and fifty supply ships and troop carriers are coming at full speed!"

Su Jia's face was serious, and he ordered: "Everyone is in your place!"

"Here!"

The soldiers behind hurriedly arranged them according to the previous drill process. Dozens of iron cables were already lying across the river, and a lieutenant stood on the side of the stacked logs with a knife. He only waited for the enemy ship to come, then cut off the tied ropes, and the logs were rowed. into the river.

Dozens of other people were operating two siege crossbows and were ready.

Su Jia tightly held the handle of the horizontal knife at his waist, the veins on the back of his hand were bulging, and he was very nervous.His task is not to defeat the navy. The Battle of Banzhu that just happened shows that the navy is invincible above the water. All those who had doubts about this before have shut up. The navy ship was sunk on the shore.

It only needs to delay the speed of the navy to buy as much time as possible for Meng Jindu's Shandong private army who is crossing the river.

It seems simple, but it is not.

Because once the delay cannot be completed, the price to be paid is too great, and the consequences are too serious...

A piece of white sail suddenly jumped into view at the end where the river surface meets the sky, and immediately after that, a piece of sail shadow was connected, going upriver against the trend as fast as a galloping horse.

Su Jia took a deep breath, and the boats went upstream on the river, usually needing to be pulled by the trackers, and then cooperated with the sailors to paddle, the speed was extremely slow.Even though I heard that the new type of sail developed by the navy can make the ship sail against the wind, but I think it is only faster than usual. How did I expect it to be so fast?

Seeing the mighty naval ships filling the river getting closer, Su Jia raised his arms and shouted: "Let go!"

The captain swung his knife to cut the rope, and the giant wood piled up like a hill rolled down into the river in an instant. It first sank into the water, then floated up, and then was carried by the surging river water and rushed downstream. horse.

Almost at the same time, the leading naval warship hit the iron chain across the south of the Yangtze River, and the iron chain stretched quickly. The huge inertial force carried by the hull broke free from this restraining force, and the entire hull made a "click" sound. Then with a sound of "collapse", the iron chain broke.

But before the warship accelerated again, it bumped into the next iron cable, the speed of the ship was hindered, and the iron cable stretched straight but did not break.

Just when Su Jia was ecstatic and thought that he could use this to stop the navy, a ship behind surpassed the leading one and hit the already stretched iron chain, and the iron chain broke instantly. a chain...

As a result, the naval warships on the river rushed to be the first, breaking all the iron cables set up one by one.

boom!
The floating and sinking giant wood in the river finally hit the warship, making a dull sound, and the side of the ship near the waterline was suddenly cracked. Hit the naval battleship.

Boom boom boom!
The bow of a warship was smashed by a giant log, and the river rushed in. The flagship of the navy behind had to play a semaphore and order everyone to slow down. hit.

All of a sudden, sawdust flew across, and several warships were smashed into pieces and tilted into the water.

However, the number of giant trees is limited. After this wave of collisions, the sailors drove the damaged warships to the shore and abandoned them voluntarily. upstream.

Unwillingly, Su Jia cursed, calculating the time, it was only delayed by about an hour, but he led hundreds of soldiers to prepare for it for several days.

However, since there are still more than ten troops preparing to stop the attack along the Yellow River, if all of them work, it will be enough to delay the navy for one day, and Meng Jindu will have more time for the Shandong private army to cross the river.

And as long as the Shandong private army successfully crosses the river and reaches Tongguan, the current situation will change suddenly...

"Prepare the siege crossbow! Let it go!"

"Crash crash!"

The bowstring made of thick beef tendon was released suddenly, making a muffled sound that shook the five internal organs, and the crossbow bolt with the thickness of the child's arm was ejected, turning into a black shadow and flying over the river like lightning, and suddenly hit the naval warship .

Snatch snatch!
There was a muffled sound, and the sharp arrow clusters easily broke through the sides, decks, and rudder towers of the warship. Sawdust flew across, and holes were shot out of the hull. Whenever soldiers came close, their bones would be broken, and the unlucky ones would be shot out through the body. Blood sprayed.

Boom boom boom!Several cannons on the naval warship returned fire, but Su Jia on the shore had already abandoned the siege crossbow, and rushed upstream with hundreds of soldiers without looking back, heading straight for the next blocking point.

On the river, nearly a hundred warships gathered in one place, and Liu Rengui, the flagship, was calm and steady, and ordered: "Don't hurry, treat the wounded, check the damage on the hull, and the craftsmen will repair it immediately. If it can't be repaired, the whole ship will be repaired give up."

"Here!"

The soldiers under his command hurriedly raised flags to convey the order to each ship. The craftsmen got off the baggage ship behind and transported it to the damaged warship by small boats, and started repairing it in time. The army doctor also started to treat the injured soldiers.

Liu Rengui looked at both sides of the river, with a serious face, as calm as a mountain.

Although there had already been news that the Shandong private army was urgently crossing the river at Mengjindu, he was not as eager to arrive as Yu Chigong and others had guessed, to prevent the destruction of the other side from crossing the river.

Turning around and walking back to the cockpit, he took a sip of tea in his spare time, picked up the letter that Fang Xuanling had just sent to him on the table, read it carefully, put the letter back in the envelope, lit a fire, and watched the envelope bit by bit. Burned to ashes, could not help but sigh.

He prides himself on his extraordinary intelligence and strategy, and he is not willing to bow down to the navy. His ambition lies in the court, and he thinks that the princes above the temple are the same.

If he changed places, he thought he was no worse than those people.

But seeing Fang Xuanling on the letter made him slow down, and despite the order of the Shandong private army to arrive at Tongguan, he felt amazed.

When it comes to boldness and strategizing, I feel ashamed.

He was still thinking about how to approach Tongguan to defeat the rebel army of the King of Jin, but Fang Xuanling was already planning for the defeat of the King of Jin, how the court would bring the whole of Shandong into the administrative structure for the first time after entering the Tang Dynasty.

Surrounding the spot to fight for aid is a very common tactic, but this time it is about to destroy the foundation of the entire Shandong family, which inevitably makes him excited.

This time, it is not like Yanziji broke up the private army in the south of the Yangtze River like Yanziji before, and let them return to their hometown after suffering heavy setbacks. Once Tongguan was cut off one after another, they would die. impossible...

(End of this chapter)