Water Margin: Lu Bu sits on Mount Liang

Chapter 767: Northern Attack on Xiangzhou
The clouds in the east were gleaming with golden light.

The temperature in midsummer was becoming more and more suitable. Small flowers of various colors blossomed in the fields and wild lands, and the green all over the mountains was dotted with colors. The gray-fur rabbit's three-petal mouth kept moving. At a certain moment, it suddenly stood up, its ears trembling, and it stood there, moving its mouth and nose, then turned around and jumped away. It stopped and turned around to look back when it reached the top of the hill. Its dark eyes reflected an army of ten thousand people gradually approaching from the distance.

The roar of footsteps continued to be heard. On the grassy road, soldiers in black armor were marching under the daylight. Flags with the word "Qi" fluttered in the wind. Flags of Qi army generals passed by one after another, looking murderous.

Along the way, there were many rocks and broken trees on the road between Huanglongfu and Xiangzhou. It was obviously the work of Wanyan Loushi who was returning to the north. Young and strong men in ordinary clothes came, moved the rocks, removed the broken tree trunks, and cleared the road again so that the soldiers of the Qi army could pass quickly.

"Although blocking the road is an old-fashioned tactic, it does work." Xi Sheng was on his warhorse, rising and falling with the horse, his gaunt face full of helplessness. He had to patiently stop again, watching the young and strong running ahead amid the shouts, and turned to Di Lei and the Ma brothers and said, "But we can also detect from the side that the Wanyan tribe's troops don't have the confidence to fight against us."

The three captains under his command nodded, and soon a messenger came to say that they could set off again.

In the rear, Han Shizhong and Hua Rong were helpless, and they kept stopping and starting. If they hadn't sent people to find out the truth, they would have thought that the Wanyan tribe had arranged a means to stop the enemy...

Thinking this way seems to be a way to stop the enemy.

However, no matter how many stones and broken wood there were, they could only delay the enemy for a while. At noon the next day, the angry team finally arrived in Xiangzhou, only fifteen miles away from the city called Huaide.

……

The people in Huaide City naturally knew that the Qi army was marching northward, but Wanyan Xiyi, as the defending general, did not feel too nervous. Thanks to the supplies from Huanglongfu, he felt that he could defend the city for a year or so. When the Qi army lost their patience and Huanglongfu was short of food and soldiers, he would naturally win.

"We are all from the Wanyan tribe, why do we have to fight each other?"

A look of regret appeared on her fair face. The Jurchen woman wearing the Confucian scholar's robe of the Song Dynasty turned around. Her smooth scalp reflected the sunlight as if it was greased. The two braids hanging down the back of her head were tied with a red and a white silk ribbon. She looked at the Mouke named Dajibao and said, "If we can unite as one again, neither Liao nor Qi can crush us. What a pity..."

Dajibao didn't say anything, he just stood there with his head down. His burly figure cast a shadow, and Wanyan Xiyi looked like he was standing in front of a wild beast.

"It's still a little late after all." He turned around with a regretful tone, looked at the fields outside that were rippling in the wind, and let out a sigh: "It's too late to make the decision..."

The sound of running footsteps was heard, and the two turned around to look. The scout who was shot in the shoulder came over with cold sweat on his face. The moment he looked at Wanyan Xiyi, he breathed a sigh of relief, his legs and feet went weak, and he almost fell to the ground.

A soldier at the side hurried forward to support him, and a weak voice came out of his mouth: "Reporting to Meng'an, Qi army scouts were found outside the city, only ten miles away from here."

After standing quietly for a moment, Wanyan Xiyi took a breath and said, "Finally here, pass on my order, prepare to fight—"

……

In Xiangzhou, the dust between the hills settled down, the war horses stopped their hooves, and swung their tails with a hot breath.

The scout in black armor jumped off his horse with a longbow in one hand, ran to the corpse in two steps, squatted down to search, picked up a sign and looked at it, then put it in his arms, turned around, and returned to the road.

The same scene was playing out in other places with wide views. The fighting between scouts never stopped. Both sides of the hunt suffered casualties. However, as the Qi army pressed forward, the scouts of Xiangzhou gradually retreated.

Under the sky, Xi Sheng commanded the officers and soldiers of the Qi army to build a simple military camp. Tens of thousands of infantrymen sat on the ground under the nervous eyes of the young and strong men, eating cold and hard march rations and drinking cool water from water bags, quietly recovering their strength.

Soldiers near and far were talking to each other. Behind the long line of troops were craftsmen making siege equipment. Thick trees were felled and moved aside, and pre-made parts were piled up on the empty ground.

In the army formation, Xi Sheng, Han Shizhong, and Hua Rong gathered together and pointed at the geomancy map: "There is not much to say. Huaide City is not big, with a total of 3,000 soldiers. I think it is better to surround the city and open the north gate. Let Niu Gao and Zeng Tu ambush on the road. In this way, whether they go northwest to Jingyuan or north to Binzhou, cavalry can pursue them." He pointed at the line representing the river: "If they break out to the northeast and want to cross the river, they can also ambush here in advance."

He looked up at Han Shizhong and Hua Rong and said, "Your Highness the Prince of Qi naturally hopes to capture Xiangzhou and immediately advance north to Binzhou. The two generals must show their abilities and do not disappoint His Highness."

"This is my responsibility, General Xi, there is no need to say more." Han Shizhong and Hua Rong smiled.

The two men looked at the feng shui map for a moment and stood up. "I will attack the west gate." Han Shizhong stroked his chin and thought for a while: "I also have several hundred cavalrymen in my army. If they break out to Jingyuan City, we can chase them from behind and cooperate with the brothers in the cavalry to drive them into an ambush."

"In that case..." Hua Rong looked up and said, "I will attack the east gate. I don't have many cavalry in my army, so I won't rush in and make a fool of myself."

"Okay!" Xi Sheng clapped his hands and said, "I'll attack the South Gate." He sneered, "It's time to settle the score for the attacks in the past two years."

The other two also sneered.

Soon, a craftsman came to report that the equipment had been assembled, and a sad horn sounded under the sky.

……

The tension before the war spread in the city. Countless Jin soldiers put on their armor, sharpened their swords, and waited for the assembly horn. The young and strong men carried frames of stones and walked up the city wall. The sweat dripping from their foreheads soaked the blue bricks under their feet. Some of them were so hungry that they lost their balance and stepped on empty air.

wow-

The stones hit the ground and bounced up, hitting the instep of the person behind. "Ah--" "Ah--" screams rang out one after another, more people fell down, and piles of stones rolled down the steps of the city wall.

"Damn it!" The Jin soldiers who arrived looked at the stairs blocked by stones. The injured young man sat down in the pile of stones, holding the place where he was hit by the stones and screaming.

"You bastard, did you do this on purpose?" The furious soldier raised his scabbard and smashed it at the man who fell first.

"Ah! Stop hitting me! Ah——" the man yelled, "I was just too hungry and my legs were weak. I didn't mean to do that. Ah——"

The scabbard hit his head and blood flowed.

Wanyan Xiyi was standing on the parapet at the top of the city wall. When he heard the noise, he came over and said, "What's the matter with all the noise?"

The soldier heard the voice and turned around quickly. Seeing that it was the superior officer in the city, he stood up quickly and said, "Meng'an, this guy is lazy..." He pointed to the stairs and said, "Look at this mess."

"I... I haven't eaten, so naturally I can't lift heavy objects." The young man immediately cried out in grievance.

"There are reasons for everything, there is no need to be so harsh."

Wanyan Xiyi nodded and said something. The young man just breathed a sigh of relief when the elegant Jin man said again: "Just chop him off, there's no need to beat him."

"Hello..."

puff--

With a look of horror frozen on his face, the soldier pulled out the bloody knife, wiped the blood, and put it back into the sheath.

Glancing at the dead man coldly, Wanyan Xiyi ordered, "Clean up quickly. The Qi army will be here soon. Don't let these trivial matters delay your efforts."

"Yes."

The soldiers bowed and watched him walk away. Then they pointed at the young men and shouted, "Move the stones up quickly, or you will end up like this guy!"

Outside the city, as if to confirm Wanyan Xiyi’s words, a black line appeared in sight, with raised flags fluttering.

(End of this chapter)