People in the Song Dynasty were lawless

Chapter 314 Give me a blast!

Among the high mountains and ridges, countless figures were slowly moving forward along the not-so-wide official road.

One carriage after another was walking hard. Sometimes the carriages and horses got stuck in the road and could not move, which might delay the progress of the large troops in the rear.

This is already a relatively good road in the Song Dynasty. The ancient road was repaired during the Sui and Tang Dynasties, and it can pass vehicles and horses, ensuring the smooth flow of materials.

But even so, it still made Song Jun's journey very uncomfortable, and he could often only walk twenty or thirty miles a day.

It was only four hundred miles from Yongzhou to Pingxiang Cave, but it took them nearly a month to walk. And if you enter the territory of Vietnam's Li Dynasty, such a road may be even more difficult.

Yang Cha was riding on horseback and looking around. He saw dense mountains on both sides. Although the mountains were not high, the trees were so deep that they seemed to be in the ocean.

But this kind of situation can be seen all the time.

Soldiers came from afar and reported: "Commander Commander, Pingxiang Cave is twenty miles ahead."

"Where's General Di?"

"The General is on his way over."

"Okay, let's explore again."

"Yes."

Tan Ma left the team again.

After more than two hours, Di Qing came over to welcome the arrival of the large army.

Not long after he left Yongzhou to inspect the terrain, the large troops had already set off, but their speed was very slow.

no way.

The traffic conditions are just like this. The ground is not only a problem with potholes, but also has undulating slopes, rocks everywhere, and is very uneven.

While Yang Chade was on his way, he sent people to build the road ahead, clearing away the obstructing stones and filling the uneven places with rammed earth. It was strange to be able to walk fast under such circumstances.

Next to the front team, several knights came slowly against the large army. When Yang Cha approached, they turned over and dismounted and saluted: "Commander."

Yang Cha also dismounted and said in return: "General Di."

He said a little apologetically: "The road is difficult, but it has been delayed for a few days. I thought I would be able to come here in half a month."

"Sishuai doesn't need to blame himself. I heard that Sishuai has repaired the roads since he took office, but even so, the road is still difficult to walk. You can know how bad the road was before."

Di Qing smiled.

Yang Cha put his hands behind his back and walked forward with him. He shook his head and said: "In the past, Yongzhou officials didn't pay much attention to road repairs. They even thought that the worse the roads, the better, because this would hinder the rebellious border residents or Invasion of the Li Dynasty.”

"As the magistrate said, all the officials in Yongzhou are afraid of trouble. They are afraid that something will happen in the territory and their career will be in jeopardy, so they deceive the superiors and the inferiors. They hide it when they can and deceive when they can. The court never thought of it. Situation in the Southwest.”

He said with great dissatisfaction: "If the imperial court had not set up the Imperial City Department and sent secret guards to various places to make secret visits to find out whether the local officials had concealed their reports. The Li Dynasty had invaded the border affairs from time to time. I am afraid that the imperial court would still be kept in the dark until now. .”

"Yes."

Di Qing lamented: "Even though the Zhiyuan has been punishing many unjust officials in the Song Dynasty, there are still many officials who are not greedy or occupying, but are lazy and neglectful in their administration. This is why the Zhiyuan often laments the country's difficulties."

"Okay, let's not talk about this anymore."

Yang Cha perked up and then said: "Your Majesty has an edict and a warrant from the Constitutional Yuan."

Di Qing hurriedly said: "I wonder what your Majesty's intention is?"

"Your Majesty asked us to attack boldly without any hesitation. The Li Dynasty invaded the border many times, and the crime cannot be punished."

Yang Cha said: "What's more, if they send people to attack you this time, they have already committed a capital crime. The Song Dynasty has a reputation for sending troops, and Jiaozhi must be destroyed."

"Yes."

Di Qing responded, feeling a little more confident.

The two of them were walking and chatting.

After about an hour, the team finally arrived at Pingxiang Cave.

At this time, Pingxiang Cave became extremely lively. There were about 8,000 Guangxi Xiang troops. Nong Zhigao was running around and gathered about 30,000 people from various tribes.

In addition to the 10,000 regular troops sent by the imperial court, the total strength is about 48,000, which is less than 50,000.

For this attack on Jiaozhi, the imperial court also allocated 500,000 yuan. In addition to raising grain and grass, it also hired a large number of local people to help transport grain and grass.

There are more than 30,000 horse-drawn carriages alone. The troops in the front have already set up camp in Pingxiang Cave. The horse-drawn carriages in the rear are still dozens of miles away. The total number of people employed in the southwest has reached more than 100,000.

The Song army arrived at the Song-Vietnam border in a large scale, and the Vietnamese side naturally got the news quickly. Guo Shengyi quickly sent someone to report the matter back to Sheng Long and reported it to Li Foma, Taizong of the Li Dynasty.

It's just that the distance from Langzhou to Thanglong is still more than 200 kilometers, and the road is rugged. You need to go out of Lang Son Mountain Road and enter the Red River Plain to speed up. Therefore, every time you go back, you will need at least three or four days on the road. Naturally, it is not It may be reported promptly.

Therefore, Guo Shengyi could only strictly control the official road, block the mountains on both sides, block the throat, and prepare for the attack.

And he quickly sent a messenger to the Song camp, while using a low profile, he asked the Song army what they were doing for their visit. On the other hand, they also made a faint threat, saying that Annan had 70,000 to 80,000 soldiers, and hoped that the Song army would not be ignorant of good and evil.

This strategy of using both carrot and stick is not bad. If under normal circumstances, the Song army does not have enough numbers and sees that the opponent is alert, it may be necessary to reconsider.

But now it will only make Di Qing and the others laugh.

Yang Cha personally wrote a reply, denounced the Li Dynasty's mistakes over the years, expressed that the imperial court was furious and wanted to eliminate the Li Dynasty, and then asked Li Dynasty's messenger to take it back.

Guo Shengyi's face turned pale when he saw the reply, but he had no choice but to continue to strictly block it.

For a time, the border between the two sides was tense.

In the early morning of July 26, this was the third day that the main force of the Song Army arrived at Pingxiang Cave. The supplies of food and grass in the rear were basically in place.

The soldiers have also finished resting. Taking advantage of the fact that the Mid-Autumn Festival has recently entered and the weather temperature has dropped slightly, and it is not as hot as June, Di Qing is preparing to officially march.

Early in the morning, the soldiers all left the camp, and the civilians began to pack up the camp, pull up the tents, and reinstall the carriages and horses.

Di Qing was riding on horseback, accompanied by officials such as Yang Cha, Zhao Wenzuo, and Nong Zhigao.

This time Yang Cha and Zhao Wenzuo will be in charge of logistics and stationed in Pingxiang Cave to transport food and grass for Di Qing on the front line.

As the deputy general, Nong Zhigao led the ethnic minority soldiers to fight with Di Qing.

"Hanchen, please don't be careless during this expedition."

Yang Cha warned: "Be careful and don't let down the court's expectations."

"Commander, please rest assured!"

Di Qing arched his hands and said, "I'm leaving."

"it is good."

Yang Cha nodded.

Following Di Qing's order, the large army officially began to set off.

Also marching with the Song Dynasty was the Dali army.

As early as a few days ago, Yang Cha had sent people to notify Dali and asked them to send troops quickly.

However, the Dali army did not attack in Guangxi. Instead, it set out from Xiushan County in Dali State, which was the area around Gejiu City in later generations. It went south along the Hong River, took Tierong and Ayue, and took Jiaozhi directly.

The route is basically starting from Gejiu City, Mengzi City and other places in later generations, walking all the way along Yuanjiang River to Hekou Yao Autonomous County, and attacking Laojie City in Vietnam.

Therefore, one of the Song Army and Dali took the Yongjiguan Ancient Road to go south, and the other took the Honghe Ancient Road to the southeast, and launched a pincer-shaped offensive against Jiaozhi.

The Song army marched out of Yongji Pass and entered Menzhou along the ancient road.

This place is still nominally the territory of the Song Dynasty, one of the forty-eight Jisu prefectures of the Song Dynasty, but it is occupied by the Jiaozhi people.

Upon learning of the arrival of the Song Army, the local Jiaozhi people dispersed and fled in all directions.

The Song army successfully occupied Menzhou, which was Tongdeng Town in Vietnam opposite the port of Pingxiang City in my country in later generations.

The terrain here is relatively open and not suitable for blocking, so the Li Dynasty's army will naturally not be stationed here. Therefore, after occupying Menzhou, the Song army continued to move south.

There are two branches from here, one is heading west, passing through Wenguan County and Beishan County in later Vietnam, and entering Taiyuan Province in Vietnam.

The other way is to go south to Langzhou, pass through Langzhou and directly enter the Red River Plain.

The road on the west side was the route taken by Song Army general Guo Kui during the historical war between Song and Vietnam. Here you can pass through Xuanhua of the Li Dynasty and reach the Ruyue River. Several battles broke out here between the two sides.

The reason why they took the west route was naturally because the south route was heavily controlled by the Cochin army, so they could only make a surprise attack by taking a long way around.

However, Di Qing chose the South Road without hesitation.

The army continued to move south, and Nong Zhigao ordered those soldiers from the border ethnic minorities who could cross mountains and ridges to explore the road ahead and press forward slowly at a distance of thirty miles a day.

At the end of July, at noon on the 30th, while the army was still marching forward, Tan Ma came to report: "Report!" "What's the matter?"

Di Qing asked.

"The front has reached Jiaozhi Pass, and they are building a wall at the pass."

"Take me to see it."

"Yes."

Tan Ma then took Di Qing to find Nong Zhigao.

When Di Qing came to Nong Zhigao, Nong Zhigao was looking on a hillside.

His ethnic minority troops served as vanguard at the front, but their numbers were not large.

Because the real main force of the battle was the Song Army's musketeers and artillery teams. If they deployed too many troops in front and the Li Dynasty launched a sudden attack, they would be unable to withstand it and might roll back.

Therefore, the layout of the entire Song army was planned. Nong Zhigao led five thousand of the most elite soldiers to explore the road in front, the firearms army served as the front army, and then there were more than 20,000 ordinary soldiers in the middle, with the artillery behind. He followed with the civilian husband pulling the cannon.

At this moment, the Song army was in a narrow mountain road, with dense mountains on the left and right sides and forests as deep as the sea.

Many of the five thousand soldiers in front of them got into the forest and looked around to see if there were any Jiaozhi horses. They even fought fiercely in the forest.

The main force of Jiaozhi was in the rear. Facing the attack of the main force of the Song army, Jiaozhi's probing horses in the forest were no match, and they all retreated in defeat. Therefore, the place was quite safe, except for the flags towering on the mountains in the distance.

The sun was high in the sky at noon, and the air was a bit muggy. Even though everyone in the firearms army carried mosquito repellent sachets, the mosquitoes lingered like dark clouds.

There are many mountains and forests, and centuries-old trees can be seen everywhere. Although the mountains are not high, they are covered with bushes and wild grasses taller than people.

Nong Zhigao's hillside is on the right side of the road. It is a small slope under the mountain. He is riding on horseback and looking at something from a distance.

"Tongzhi, what are you looking at?"

Di Qing came over and asked.

Nong Zhigao pointed to the mountains to the southwest and said: "General, the intertwining people have built a camp in the south of the mountain."

Di Qing looked over and could vaguely see flags fluttering on the mountains.

He looked around and then said: "Is there any higher terrain here where I can see the whole distance?"

"Yes, there is, but the mountain is steep and difficult to climb."

"It doesn't matter, let the army rest where it is first, and let's go up the mountain to see the situation."

"Yes."

Nong Zhigao responded.

Then the army stopped, and he personally took Di Qing up the mountain.

The mountain forest is too dense, and there are almost no roads, so we have to cut through the thorns and find one.

That is to say, this time Di Qing brought a large number of ethnic minority soldiers. Otherwise, if they relied solely on their firearms army, even going up the mountain would be difficult.

These ethnic minority soldiers often lived in the mountains, and it was easy to cross mountains and ridges, so they quickly opened up a road.

Even so, it took Di Qing more than an hour to finally climb to a hill that was only fifty or sixty feet high - this was already the highest mountain nearby. They looked around from the open area on the top of the mountain.

I saw dense mountain fog in the distance. At the end of the road in the mountains, the Jiaozhi people built a pass. There were camps on the mountains on the right side of the pass. There were even more densely packed camps in the back, covering the entire transportation thoroughfare. Block it up.

Obviously, if they attack from the front, the Song army will not only be beaten to death at the pass in front of the enemy, but will also be attacked by enemies on the mountains on both sides. Whether they use bows and arrows or rolling stones and wood, they will be unable to launch an offensive.

But Di Qing could see the weakness at a glance. Although the enemy occupied the mountains on both sides, the other nearby mountains were completely unguarded. Especially, there was a high-lying mountain within a few kilometers of the pass. If he occupied the There, you can attack the pass from a high position.

So he pointed there without hesitation and said: "Pass it down and set up camp at the foot of the mountain!"

"General, is that mountain too close to the enemy?"

Nong Zhigao was surprised.

Although the high mountain should be three or four kilometers away from the pass, in ancient times, camping would often choose a place with better terrain, such as next to a water source, or a little further away from the enemy, so that they could react immediately to the enemy's movements.

Three or four kilometers may seem like a long distance, but in fact if the Cochin people were to sneak up on them from the mountains on both sides, they would still be caught off guard.

"It's okay, it's right there."

Di Qing smiled and said: "As long as you occupy that high mountain, the enemy can be defeated with a snap of your fingers!"

"Yes."

Nong Zhigao had already seen the power of muskets, so he no longer refuted, but carried out military orders.

Soon the army continued to move forward and arrived at the foot of the mountain about four kilometers away from the wall of the Jiaozhi army. The end of the road was not directly visible from here.

The road was not straight, but winding, but there were people on both sides looking over the mountains, so they naturally saw this situation quickly.

Jiaozhi Tanma reported the news back to Guo Shengyi. Guo Shengyi actually got the news yesterday that Li Foma asked him to defend Lang Son, and that Li Foma had personally led the reinforcements on the way.

So he was very confident and personally climbed up the mountain on the right side of the camp to monitor every move of the Song army.

He saw that the Song army had been camping at the foot of the mountain in the distance all afternoon, and a large number of civilians began to enter the mountain to cut down trees, but he didn't take it to heart. The other party's position did not threaten them.

Especially there is no water source in the Song Army's area.

You must know that this place was carefully selected by Guo Shengyi. The water sources of the mountains on both sides were occupied by them, and all the water from the mountain springs was introduced into their camp.

The closest water source to the Song Army was indeed the mountain where they were stationed, but it was only a small spring and could not meet the water needs of tens of thousands of people. The water sources in the other mountains were far away.

Therefore, Guo Shengyi didn't care about the Song army at all. As long as he could hold on for a few more days, he would have no choice but to retreat when the Song army ran out of water.

At that moment, Guo Shengyi continued to observe.

However, what he didn't know was that Di Qing had no intention of fighting a protracted war with him.

At this time, Di Qing spent the next few days building a fort while sending civilian workers to cut down trees and build a trail from the foot of the mountain to the mountain.

By August 6, a large number of dismantled gun mounts were transported to the top of the mountain, and more than 10,000 civilians were used for this task alone.

Starting in the early morning of the 6th, the Song Army began to assemble a fort on the top of the mountain. Twenty 2,000-pound steel cannons were carried up, and 240 small steel cannons were launched.

You must know that the Song Army's firearms camp has two armies of 10,000 people, with a total of six artillery battalions, 60 heavy cannons, and 360 small steel cannons.

This means that the artillery going up the mountain has almost half the firepower of the Song army.

That is to say, the top of the mountain is not spacious enough, and there are too many trees. It would take a lot of time to clean up the weeds and trees. Otherwise, Di Qing would want to put all the cannons on it and carpet bomb the entire Jiaozhi camp.

Even so, it's enough.

Even in the war between Xixia and Liao, the artillery of the Song Dynasty never showed its true power.

After all, the Song Dynasty had not built so many artillery at that time, and they did not even have muskets. They could only use grenades to give Xixia and Liao some fun.

Now the artillery of the Song Dynasty has improved qualitatively in terms of technology and steel production, which naturally led to a quantitative improvement.

More than two hundred large and small cannons formed a terrifying artillery position on the top of the mountain.

By noon, Di Qing stood on the top of the mountain and looked out. Next to him, Nong Zhigao was curiously looking at the nearby artillery position. All the surrounding trees and weeds had been cleared away, which also made the view on the top of the mountain a little wider.

"General, can these cannons really hit ten miles?"

Nong Zhigao still asked in disbelief.

This place is more than ten miles away from the enemy's position. Even if Di Qing told him, he still didn't want to believe it.

Di Qing smiled and said: "This is natural. You don't know that the first time the cannon showed its power was during the war with the Liao Kingdom. Several miles apart, it killed Liao General Yelu and Lugu with one cannon."

"It's really the power of God."

Nong Zhigao couldn't help but say something.

"General!"

At this moment, Lieutenant General Yongzhou Commander Qi Yun came up and said: "The cannons have been assembled."

"it is good!"

A hint of coldness flashed in Di Qing's eyes. He raised his head and looked at the Jiaozhi position in the distance. He raised the riding crop in his hand, pointed into the distance and said, "Bomb!"

In an instant, the entire Song Army artillery position immediately sounded a high whistle.

This is the order to fire the cannon!

(End of this chapter)