Traveling through the early Tang Dynasty starts with hanging

Chapter 1391 Confrontation

October 21, morning.

Li Shan stood on the head of Jiexiu County and looked up at the sky. The sky was quite gloomy. Just now he asked the old man in the county that there might be snow in the next two or three days.

Snow, for the Turks, can reduce their ability to move and reduce their range of activities, but it is also detrimental to the Tang Cavalry, as the sharp charge will also reduce the power.

However, if the snow is not heavy, relatively speaking, it will be more beneficial to the Tang army, because once it snows, the Turkic army will be unstable... Even if Dubu Khan and Turli Khan led their troops to invade from two directions this time, there are many It has strong political implications, but for ordinary grassland tribes, plundering grain, grass and property is more important.

Once it snows, a large number of Turks will have to worry about the tribes still waiting in the grassland... If they do not do well, they will be robbed and annexed.

Li Shan looked to the south. Today Liu Hongji and Qian Jiulong will lead 20,000 infantry to the north. However, it is estimated that it will be difficult to participate in this war, at least in the early stage.

If the Tang army is not just going through the motions, but wants to gain something in this war, then it must not let the Turks leave calmly. Speed ​​will be the key, so the cavalry will become the main unit of this war.

"Uncle, are you really relieved?" Li Shan looked at the cavalry who were about to set off under the city wall.

Keshi Li on the side smiled and said, "Sanlang has been courageous since he was young. Fortunately, he became friends with Huairen, and he was also infected with Huairen's courage."

Li Shan was regarded by the court officials as knowing people well and making good use of them. Su Dingfang, Liu Heier, Zhang Zhongjian, Hou Hongtao and other generals emerged one after another, so Li Shan was specially left in Jiexiu... Although this man was also from Danyangfang of the Li family in Longxi , but he was quite slick in fighting, and his bravery was far from being comparable to that of Qin Qiong and Yuchi Gong.

In Li Shan's great victories, he often used cavalry to defeat the enemy. The key is to fully utilize the terrain and rivers to maximize the impact and maneuverability of the cavalry, and cooperate with cavalry generals such as Su Dingfang, Zhang Zhongjian, and Yu Chigong to fully utilize the power of the cavalry. To the extreme.

But Li Shan didn't expect that Li Kai, who was assigned to the Chinese Army last night, asked himself to accompany Qin Qiong as a vanguard.

But unexpectedly, five or six thousand Turkic cavalry came south from Qi County. Ashina Nishu, who led the troops, had some tricks. He ordered his men to lead two thousand cavalry first. After luring the Tang army out, he led the main force to bypass the Tang army's rear. road.

However, if he knew that the enemy's strength was several times greater, Zhang Baoxiang would not fight but should retreat. Although the Tang Cavalry was a bit slow, its impact was strong and it would be difficult for the Turks to reach it.

But this time, it was Tang Jun's turn to be caught off guard.

Before Li Kai could speak, Duan Zhixuan nodded repeatedly, "If you are to defeat the enemy with a fine cavalry, it will be difficult to defeat the King Si of Wei."

Qin Qiong was the first to set off. Yuchi Gong followed up with his right army later, heading north from the easterly direction. Liu Heier led his left army along the route that Qin Qiong set out from, and turned to the northwest at Zhang Nan Fort to launch a battle array... …Because going north from Jiexiu, Wuchengbo is on the west side.

Under the city wall, Qin Qiong looked at Qu Hong, Hou Hongtao, Liu Rengui and other generals commanding the cavalry. He glanced sideways at Li Kai and said, "The heir king of Wei cannot be called brave, but he is very good at using cavalry."

Indeed not. In Li Shan's mind, Su Dingfang is a steel sword and must be used in the most critical places. This man has the ability to lead troops alone. If this battle is not necessary, Li Shan is prepared to use this sword. It was reserved for Li Shimin.

The Turkic cavalry was released on the north and west sides, and heavy troops were deployed on the east and south sides, driving the Tang army northwest. On the west side was Wuchengbo, and on the north side was a large river connected to Wuchengbo and Fenshui.

From the very beginning, this battle had the meaning of being caught off guard. Liu Hei'er encountered thousands of Turkic soldiers who were retreating north. The subsequent battles of Lingshi and Jiexiu were similar. The Turks did not expect that the Tang army was so bold and came directly with fine cavalry. The attack was so fast, and it came in the dark.

"Let's set off." Qin Qiong nodded towards Yuchi Gong and Liu Heier who were not far away, and drove his horse out of the city.

Li Shan finally nodded after pondering for a long time. Wang Renbiao was unwilling to be ordinary and made great contributions to the Xuanwu Gate Revolution. Li Kai was obviously unwilling to do so.

Duan Zhixuan was thinking of the battle of Jingzhou, Qin Qiong was thinking of the battle of martial arts, and Li Kai was thinking of the battle of Cangtou River.

In fact, in the wars of this era, unless there was a huge disparity in military strength, the city's offense and defense were still mainly based on field battles, and Zhang Baoxiang was not lured out of Zhang Nan Fort.

Zhang Baoxiang, Chang He, and Er Zhu Yichen who were stationed at Zhang Nan Fort all felt that it was confirmed through the previous three battles that the Turks wanted to retreat and return north, so they would only flee and not go south.

The main force is stationed in Jiexiu in the rear, and they will not sit idly by. But now Zhang Baoxiang, Chang He and other generals are leading their troops to fight. They are trapped twenty miles north of Zhang Nan Fort. They can overlook Pingyao County in the distance. The reinforcements from the rear will not be there for a while. I'm just afraid I won't be able to make it.

In fact, at the same time that Qin Qiong set out, more than 5,000 Turkic cavalry had already moved south from Qi County, joined forces stationed in Pingyao, and headed towards Zhang Nan Fort with Ashina Nishu as the main general.

And Li Shan and Su Dingfang would lead the remaining two thousand cavalry to the rear... Many generals were privately confused. Su Dingfang had always led the cavalry alone when Wei Siwang used troops, but this time it was not the case.

This is not an exaggeration. In his early years, Li Shimin was undefeated in the world and was very good at using cavalry raids. However, in general, the Tang Dynasty was not strong at that time and did not have many cavalry. Li Shimin relied on only a thousand black armor cavalry. Just the rest.

Zhang Baoxiang, who had desperately charged into the battle five times in a row, was livid, and his Mingguang armor was covered with arrows, like a hedgehog. He knew that he had been fooled, and his many experiences with the lucky generals made him lose his vigilance.

The Turks harassed the Tang army with small forces and kept throwing arrows. Once the Tang army's position became loose, they concentrated their forces to separate the Tang army bit by bit and eat them bit by bit.

Although Zhang Baoxiang, Chang He, and Er Zhu Yichen tried their best to resist and charged into the formation again and again, they were helpless because of the huge disparity in strength and were gradually forced to retreat towards Wuchengbo.

Ashina Nishu is young, but has a high seniority. His father Ashina Sunish is the great-uncle of Dub Khan and Tuli Khan, and the brother of Shibi Khan.

Calculating this, Ashina Nishu is one generation higher than Tuli Khan, but within the Ashina clan, status is never judged by seniority.

In the early years, Ashina Suni lost his son and attached himself to Chuluo Khan, Jieli Khan, and later to Dubu Khan. However, as Ashina She'er's authority within the clan was greatly reduced, Tiele With the help of nine tribes, Ashina Sunisi turned to Tuli Khan again.

Ashina Nishu is somewhat strategist. According to the battle report, the number of Tang army's cavalry heading north should be no less than four thousand, and the number of Tang cavalry in Zhangnan Fort is only more than one thousand, or at most two thousand, so there must be more in the rear. Reinforcements.

More than 2,000 Turkic cavalry were left to continue to encircle and suppress Zhang Baoxiang's troops. Ashina and Nishu seasonal troops also sent a large number of scouts southward, and soon discovered Qin Qiong, who had learned the news and was coming for reinforcements at high speed.

This is a very interesting coincidence. Qin Qiong led 2,000 cavalry as the vanguard, and Zhang Baoxiang commanded more than 4,000 cavalry. This was roughly similar to the battle report reported to Tuli Khan before.

Ashina Nishu unhurriedly deployed his formation, waited until Tang Qi came close, led his troops to retreat, extended his wings to encircle Qin Qiong's troops in a wide range, and trapped Qin Qiong's troops.

Ashina Nishu was a little complacent, and these Tang army generals were no different, but the actual situation was completely different. Zhang Baoxiang and Chang He were sure that there would be reinforcements from the rear, but they were not sure when the reinforcements would arrive... maybe they would. When he arrived, he was already defeated and dead.

But Qin Qiong was different. He knew very well that he was the first group to go north from Jiexiu, and Liu Heier led the Zuo Army right behind him. Therefore, Qin Qiong ignored the outflanking on both sides and cut off his retreat, and focused his forces on Ashina Nishu's central army to attack them fiercely.

Qin Qiong personally held a horse spear as the vanguard, and led dozens of bodyguards as arrowheads. Regardless of the flying arrows, the long spear in his hand stabbed and swept across, unstoppable, and Hou Hongtao behind him couldn't help but be speechless. He was indeed brave.

Qu Silang, Li Kai, Hou Hongtao, Liu Rengui and other generals led the follow-up troops to rush in along the gap opened by Qin Qiong, turning the Turkic troops in the middle into a pot of porridge.

In terms of leading the army into battle, Qin Qiong is a brave general who can stand alongside Yu Chi Gong...after all, they are both goalkeepers.

Ashina Nishu was killed in a somewhat embarrassing situation. Although there were not many troops in the middle, they were not small either. They were actually penetrated by a wave of Tang troops.

However, Ashina Nishu did not panic. He quickly led his troops and continued to retreat, relying on the speed of his horse to move slightly to the east. The Turkic cavalry that had previously stretched to the left wing had also caught up from the rear.

At this time, someone among the Tang cavalry shouted in peace, and then hundreds of people shouted at the same time. Ashina Nishu listened for a moment, turned his head and asked, "Who is the Si King of Wei?"

Everyone shook their heads... King Wei Si was Li Shan's title after the victory in Jingzhou last year. After all, there was little contact between the grassland and Chang'an, and the news was cut off.

Dubu Khan could still know, after all, he had entered Jingzhao, and Tuli Khan didn't know if he could tell...but Ashina Nishu really didn't know.

In fact, at this time in the Tang army, Qu Silang was almost mad at Hou Hongtao... What are you calling Wei Si Wang in Hedong!

Qin Qiong was also a little speechless. He followed the enemy general to pursue him. On the one hand, he wanted to disrupt the formation to facilitate Liu Heer in the rear. On the other hand, he also wanted to announce Li Huairen's name to scare the Turks and delay time.

Now it's better, the other party can't understand... Ashina continued to lead the army to the northeast, trying to lure the Tang army to pursue him.

If Qin Qiong continued to chase, it would be difficult to catch up due to the speed of the horse. Instead, the team would be cut off by the Turkic cavalry behind because it was too long and would be divided.

"Let's go!" Qu Silang shouted, raised his horse high, urged the horse to rush out of the formation, and galloped towards the position of the Turkic general.

After a while, Qu Shilang's Mingguang armor was covered with feather arrows.

Holding a shield to cover his head slightly, Qu Silang held a spear in one hand and knocked over five Turkic cavalry in succession, shouting loudly: "The King of Handan has arrived!"

"The King of Handan has arrived!"

The effect this time was almost immediate. It seemed that someone had cast a large-scale magic, and the entire Turkic army came to a brief stagnation.

Ashina Nishu couldn't help but swallow his saliva, it was actually the God of Death who came? !

I couldn't help but Ashina Nishu was not frightened. He and his father personally participated in the battle of Guji Town. He even watched how the Handan King came out of the city to fight to the death. He even witnessed the Handan King's marksmanship with his own eyes.

Being chased all the way, Ashina Nishu will never forget the another Yunzhou defeat caused by the Handan King Duanzhu riding into the formation alone, and the piles of corpses on the Cangtou River.

In fact, Ashina Sunisu, the father of Ashina Nishu, was captured alive by the Cangtou River. Fortunately, his head was not beheaded but was sent back to Chang'an. He was eventually captured together with Ashina She'er. Release.

"It's actually the King of Handan..." Ashina Nishe hesitated for a while, hesitant for a moment, but then the scouts who rushed over made him make up his mind.

Withdraw!

Withdraw!

Six or seven miles away to the south, a large group of Tang cavalry was coming at high speed, which reminded Ashina Nishu of the battle in Guji Town...it was Tang cavalry who came quickly to help, disrupting both wings, and Jieli Khan could not control the situation. , will collapse.

At this time, the ignorant Hou Hongtao finally reacted to Li Kai's reminder, and hundreds of people began to shout, "The King of Handan has arrived, the King of Handan has arrived!"

This time, not only the Turkic soldiers of Ashina Nishu, but also several other Turkic cavalry groups began to be restless. The experienced ones even lay on the ground and listened carefully. Although they were on the battlefield, they could still tell that there were indeed troops on the south side. A large group of cavalry moved north.

The horns sounded continuously, and the Turkic cavalry began to retreat northward. Hou Hongtao clicked his tongue and said, "This is the end of Alang's reputation!"

Li Kai on the side rolled his eyes, and he was embarrassed to say that, if Qu Silang hadn't stepped forward to shout desperately, you would have almost ruined the situation.

Liu Heier's troops in the rear also appeared in sight, with Duan Zhixuan as the vanguard, shouting: "Pursue, pursue!"

"Don't delay!"

Qin Qiong frowned. The Turks had conquered Qi County. The number of troops nearby was unknown. It was inappropriate to rush northward.

But the next moment, Qin Qiong's eyes narrowed, because Duan Zhixuan then shouted: "Wu Guogong has led the right army to detour and cut off his retreat!"

Not only Qin Qiong, but also generals such as Li Kai and Hou Hongtao were excited. If Yuchi Gong could cut off the retreat of the Turks, even if he couldn't, as long as he could slow down the opponent's retreat and attack from the south and east, it would be difficult for the Turks to be undefeated!

Moreover, although the terrain of Fenzhou from the north of Jiexiu to the central part of Bingzhou is flat, there is Fenshui outside Qixian County, so it will be difficult for Turkic troops to come to rescue for a while.

Qu Shilang, who was pulling out the arrows from his armor one by one, simply refused to pull out the arrows. He snatched the horse from the hands of the guards and shouted: "Today is the day to make great achievements!"

There was a whistling wind in his ears, and Li Kai, who was galloping, couldn't help but think in his heart. According to the order of dispatching troops, Zhang Nanbao's battle report should have just been sent to Jiexiu. Duan Zhixuan was so confident that Yuchi Gong had led the army to the right. The army cut off the Turks' retreat... This shows that the decision can only be made by Liu Heier, not Huairen or Su Dingfang.

After Su Dingfang there was Zhang Zhongjian, and after Zhang Zhongjian there was Liu Heier. As Huairen said, all three of them were handsome.

(End of this chapter)