People in the Song Dynasty were lawless

Chapter 366 Recovering Qingtang
"Boom!"

The rain has slowed down a lot.

But there was still an explosion of autumn thunder, which was loud and powerful.

Accompanied by the sound of autumn thunder, artillery burst into brilliant flames outside the north city of Miaochuan City.

Even if there were twenty gun crew members, the tractor could still unload the force, but the terrifying recoil still caused the wheels to tilt backwards and the soil to fly.

Hundreds of cannonballs drew an arc in the air, hitting the city in the distance, and landed inside and outside the city.

The national power of the Song Army was too strong, and after the Industrial Revolution, steel factories sprung up like mushrooms after the rain. If there was no shortage of steel, there was naturally no shortage of artillery and training ammunition.

Therefore, the artillery crew members of the Song Dynasty were very experienced, and their calibration capabilities were far superior to those of the Xixia artillery that lacked effective training and live ammunition training.

There is no way, Xixia is barren, and the raw materials for gunpowder need to be imported from the Liao Kingdom, and the Liao Kingdom already has second-hand goods. The Song Dynasty first imported it from Japan and then resold it to the Liao Kingdom, and very little of it leaked into the hands of Li Yuanhao.

This led to the fact that although Li Yuanhao had made some artillery by selling iron and steel, he had to scrimp on training. It was very difficult to even train a slightly better artillery crew member, let alone an excellent one.

Especially when the team has to be assembled temporarily.

"Bang bang bang bang!"

You cannot use muskets on rainy days, but Song Jun's design has a waterproof cover, and the ignition device relies on flint, not match ropes, so naturally there are not so many restrictions.

The deputy general had already heard it. It was the sound of artillery.

Yeli Wangrong knew that once the Song army broke through the city, they would definitely rush into the city and fight, and they would be forced to fight in the streets.

The deputy general walked out of the city gate tower and glanced around. No one moved the forts on both sides. Although they all set up sheds to protect themselves from the rain, the heavy rain still affected them, and no one dared to open fire without authorization.

The recoil of the artillery is strong, and it is normal for the ground to vibrate slightly when firing. Moreover, the thunder also covered up the sound of cannons, and no one could tell whether someone in Miaochuan City was firing cannons at the mountains in the distance.

The direction they were aiming at was either the city gate tower or the city gate below. A large number of cannonballs bombarded the city gate. Many big holes were quickly made in the city gate. It was already shaky and would fall down as soon as it was pushed.

"As long as I control the mountains to the north and prevent the Song army from mounting artillery and forming a condescending shelling advantage over us, then they will have no way to do anything to us."

"what?"

"Hey, what's going on?"

The faint roaring sound kept sounding, and every time he heard it, his mood sank a little.

There was another faint roar in the direction of the south city gate, which made people shudder.

He also quickly observed the change in the direction of the south city gate.

However, Yeli Wangrong had already ordered that if there were Song army activities on the hilltop, he must be notified to observe.

Under such circumstances, it would be good if Xixia's artillery could skillfully fire out the shells, but the error rate was very high.

The thunder was still exploding outside, and the vibrations under his body continued. Yeli Wangrong couldn't help but said to the deputy general beside him: "Go outside and take a look. Did they set off the artillery without authorization?"

But this cover-up did not last long. Yeli Wangrong did not sleep too much last night. He himself lived on the tower of the north city gate, vowing to fight to the death with the Song army in the mountains to the north.

The Xixia army on the top of the city was frightened. There was a chaos on top. Some hurriedly blew whistles, some looked for cover everywhere, and some just ran away with their heads in their hands.

He immediately felt that something was wrong, and quickly ran back to the city tower to report to Yeli Wangrong: "It's not good, King Tiandu, the Song army seems to be bombarding the city with artillery outside the south gate."

Although the rain has become lighter, the thunder is still there, and that sound of autumn thunder covers up many things.

Suddenly, he felt a faint vibration sound coming from the seat where he was sitting cross-legged, which surprised him.

On the other hand, the error rate of the artillery of the Song Dynasty was much lower.

Inside the city gate tower of the north city gate, Yeli Wangrong was sitting cross-legged on a mat. His face looked a little haggard, but his eyes were fixed on the map on the table. This was his habit to memorize the surrounding terrain.

"Well, it would be great if the king had not had bad relations with the Song Dynasty in his early years. Our country in Daxia is already poor, and with the continuous wars, I am afraid that in a short time, the people in the country will be in dire straits again."

Moreover, there was chaos over there, with many soldiers fleeing in all directions, leaving everyone at the North City Gate completely confused.

If it is launched without authorization, it will definitely be dealt with by military law.

"It's a pity. The king should have withdrawn all the people into the city. Although the camp in the mountains did block the Song army for two days, it could not stop it at all. So many troops were lost in vain. If you want to resist the Song army, you still have to By artillery.”

There are less than 30,000 defenders inside the city and more than 40,000 outside the city. Moreover, the Song army holding muskets will definitely not be able to defeat them, so they must defend the area near the city gate.

Yeli Wangrong was observing the map, thinking about how to stop the Song army from going up the mountain. While feeling sorry for myself and worrying about the future of Xixia.

By the time Yeli Wangrong rushed to the south gate with more than 10,000 hastily assembled horses, the south city had already fallen. A large number of Song troops rushed into the city and were firing everywhere.

But just as the lieutenant was surprised, he turned his head and looked south. In the direction of the South City Gate, about 1.5 kilometers away from him, dust and smoke seemed to be rising everywhere. Even if it rained, it could not stop the smoke.

Under the gunshots, the Xixia soldiers collapsed, especially in the tight alleys, where people crowded together and became living targets.

In his opinion, this was the Song Army's only breakthrough. Even if he destroyed all the ammunition in the city, and even if all the artillery in the city exploded, he still had to hold on to this position.

The sound of "bang bang bang bang" musket shooting was endless.

"Quick, gather the team immediately and rush to the south city gate for reinforcements."

"However, the artillery of the Song Dynasty is indeed much stronger than our artillery of the Xia Dynasty. Not only are they well-made, but they are also made of hundreds of smelted steel. Their ability to withstand gunpowder is much stronger than our artillery made of wrought iron."

Yeli Wangrong was shocked, stood up from his chair, and rushed out of the tower.

After all, once a few Song troops appear on the hilltop, they will fire artillery. The consumption of multiple artillery fires will be very large. In order to prevent the Song army from cheating on the artillery, he had to personally confirm every time before firing artillery shells to the top of the mountain.

"The Song Army's consistent strategy is to occupy the mountains and increase the range of artillery by raising the terrain on the mountains. The longest range can even be more than ten miles."

However, the distance from the North City Gate to the South City Gate is obviously longer.

The Song army poured into the city like a tide, and the Xixia army could not stop it at all. The chaotic battle lasted for less than an hour, and a large number of Xixia soldiers fled from the direction of the west city gate.

"Commander Commander, the enemy has been defeated."

It was not yet noon, almost the end of the morning hour, and the beginning of the morning hour. After an hour and a half of fighting, the Xixia army finally collapsed.

The scouts came quickly to report the results of the battle to Zhang Kang.

Zhang Kang narrowed his eyes and asked, "What's the situation in the city now?"

"The enemy's defense at the south gate collapsed and is now fleeing towards the west gate."

"Let them go."

"Yes"

The scouts were a little surprised, but still obeyed the order.

Next to him, Fan Ke, the deputy general manager of Qin Feng Road, was very puzzled by Zhang Kang's order and asked: "Commander, why did you let them go?"

Zhang Kang glanced at Fan Ke and asked, "Do you still remember our mission goal?"

Fan Ke replied: "Destroy Xixia and recover Qingtang." "Recovering Qingtang, are you recovering it for Goussiluo, or are you recovering it for me, the Song Dynasty?"

"This"

Fan Ke opened his eyes wide and understood what Zhang Kang meant in an instant. He then hesitated and said, "Is this the intention of the court or not?"

If the imperial court wanted to annex Qingtang, it would be easy to say that they were just acting on the orders of their superiors.

If this was Zhang Kang's own idea, then we have to discuss it.

After all, if the imperial court does not want to be known as a annexing ally, if they make the decision without authorization, they will most likely be held accountable in the future.

"How dare I do this without the will of the Constitutional Yuan? Besides, why do you think the imperial court summoned Tongzhou Defense Envoy Zhao Youlu?"

Zhang Kang's calm words made Fan Ke suddenly realize.

Yes.

Miaochuan City is a city located on the south bank of Huangshui River. Outside the north city gate is Huangshui River, and on the other side of Huangshui River is the hill.

The direction of the Song army was from the east, and the direction of the attack was from the south gate.

Then the Xixia army could only run west.

Where is the west?
Qingtang City.

If the Xixia army did not run westward, what reason did the Song army have to continue pursuing?
Although the current situation of the top management of the Zoussiluo regime is very bad. Zousiluo was seriously injured. It is said that the wound was infected, and his life and death are still uncertain.

Dong Xiang, the youngest son of Zusiluo, was captured by the Xixia army and is now missing. He doesn't even know whether he is alive or dead.

However, the Zusiluo regime still had some troops, led by General An Ziluo and others.

If the Xixia people were annihilated here, An Ziluo and others could easily take over Qingtang and Miaochuan. In this way, Qingtang would still belong to the Tubo people.

But it would be different if the pursuit continued.

Zhao Youlu, the defense envoy of Tongzhou, was the eldest son of Xisiluo and had already surrendered to the Song Dynasty.

At this time, in the name of continuing to annihilate the Xixia army, the Song Dynasty successively recaptured Lanzhou, Miaochuan, Qingtang and other cities, and then established Xiangzhan as the master of Qingtang.

When the time comes, Xiang Xiang will be given some benefits, such as allowing the descendants of Xi Siluo to enjoy the same prosperity and wealth as Li Jipeng, and he can dedicate Qingtang to the Song Dynasty in the name of the Lord of Qingtang.

In this way, the Song Dynasty could justifiably regain Qingtang.

After all, the Zunsiluo regime itself was crippled by Li Yuanhao this time. The upper echelons were almost wiped out, and the lower echelons also suffered heavy casualties. Many people from small tribes ran away, and people's hearts were severely separated.

Under such circumstances, if the Song Dynasty did not get Xiang Fei over, it is very likely that the Qingtang regime would be occupied by the generals under the command of Xisiluo.

And if Xiangxiang is brought over and the Song Dynasty ignores it, Xiangxiang will be troubled internally and externally and will not be able to defend Qingtang at all.

Therefore, this strategy of the Song Dynasty is the best way.

There was no armed conflict, and there was no bad reputation of annexing allies. The descendants of Zunsiluo were also properly settled. Everyone was happy, and it was a win-win situation for everyone.

"The imperial court's strategy is really clever."

Fan Ke couldn't help but give a thumbs up and said: "Many ministers of the Constitutional Yuan are really far-sighted. Even though they are thousands of miles away, they can formulate strategies for the world."

"How can you and I see the foresight of the Prime Ministers of the Constitutional Yuan? What we have to do is to obey the imperial court's orders and run our errands obediently. We must not mess up and lose the face of the Prime Ministers."

Zhang Kang smiled, and then said: "Okay, go to the city in person, tell the soldiers not to pursue in such a hurry, and leave a hole for the Xixia people to escape."

"Yes."

Fan Ke agreed and then entered the city in person.

The light rain was still falling, and the ground was wet and muddy. After about an hour, a large number of Xixia people escaped from the west city gate and jumped towards Qingtang.

The Song army took over the city, and a large number of Song troops poured into the city and began to rest to a certain extent.

The Xixia people took nothing with them when they fled, but the Song army could not do that. Fighting required a lot of logistical supplies. Not to mention the 40,000-strong army, there were more than 10,000 Qingtang soldiers from Anziluo and 50,000 to 60,000 civilians recruited to help escort the supplies. Woolen cloth.

Light and heavy vehicles were piled up just outside the east city.

Therefore, after the Xixia people escaped, they did not pursue them immediately. Instead, they rested for a night. After a large amount of baggage was transported to the city the next day, Zhang Kang sent the vanguard to continue setting off.

A few days later, the Song Army's vanguard arrived at Qingtang City.

At this time, nearly 20,000 Xixia remnants gathered in Qingtang City, but Yeli Wangrong, who escaped, had no intention of holding on. When he learned that the Song army was chasing him, he immediately ran away with supplies.

joke.

He was loyal to Li Yuanhao, but he was still loyal and willing to die.

All the artillery they captured from Qingtang City were moved to Miaochuan City. Qingtang City now has no artillery. Facing the Song army's artillery, it is a living target and a dead end.

Therefore, in the past few days, Yeli Wangrong has been plundering Qingtang City's supplies to ensure that their remaining soldiers can recross the Qishan Mountains from the Hehuang Corridor according to the attack route they came from, and then escape back.

Now that the Song army is coming to kill them, how long will it take if they don't run away?
Under such circumstances, the Song Dynasty's vanguard army saw countless Xixia people riding horses, leaving Qingtang City in a mighty manner and fleeing towards the vast plateau in the northwest.

The three thousand vanguard troops of the Song Army chased behind them for a while, chasing the twenty thousand Xixia people away like a rabbit. They fired a few symbolic shots. After they failed to catch up, they returned to the city and reported the situation to Zhang Kang. .

Zhang Kang was not surprised to learn that the Xixia people had not resisted. If he had faced a powerful enemy that he could not defeat, he would not have sought death like this.

Two days later, in early October, Zhang Kang arrived at Qingtang City.

The rain has stopped in the past few days, and although it is not snowing in the early winter of October, the cold wind is howling, making it bone-chilling.

Zhang Kang stood at the head of Qingtang City and looked into the distance. This is the majestic land in the northwest. Following the vast plateau in the northwest, one can reach the Western Regions that haunted the soul of the Song Dynasty.

That was territory that the Han people had lost for more than a hundred years since the late Tang Dynasty.

"Although I have been admitted as a Jinshi, what I like most is to seal the wolf and live in Xu, drink from the vast sea of ​​horses, and conquer the stone swallows. One day, I will go north and west. I will conquer the grassland and conquer the Western Regions. , Give back our Han people a huge empire!”

Zhang Kang's heart was surging and his blood was full of blood. He was talking to Fan Ke beside him, and almost fanatical excitement flashed in his eyes.

Not only later generations like the strong Han Dynasty and the prosperous Tang Dynasty, but also the bloody Song people.

Once there was nothing they could do.

I can only drink in hatred.

Just like Zhang Kang in history, he was full of passion but was repeatedly suppressed by civil officials, becoming frustrated.

now.

They will eventually achieve this goal and let the world recognize the strength and unyielding strength of the Han people again!

(End of this chapter)