People in the Song Dynasty were lawless

Chapter 368: There are Liao troops in the northeast, but they have to lower their eyebrows when they meet me.

"Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu!"

The desolate horn sounded among several nearby cities such as Yingzhou, Guangning, and Yuguan.

The three cities were basically located in the northeast of Changli County, Hebei Province, to Qinhuangdao City, and then to the Shanhaiguan area, only more than 20 kilometers apart.

But the soldiers stationed on the city saw the ships on the sea in the distance, like ghosts, slowly approaching the shore.

The soldiers at Yuguan were the most frightened, because when they were still about ten miles away from the shore, the main force of those ships came straight towards the direction of Yushui, as if they were going to sail directly into Yushui.

The rest divided some ships and headed towards Yingzhou and Guangning.

Yingzhou is not actually close to the sea. It is about three or four kilometers away from the coastline. It is almost northeast of Changli County in later generations and close to Beidaihe, a famous tourist resort in later generations.

At this moment, as the ships of the Song Dynasty were getting closer and closer, the defenders in the direction of Yuguan were already in chaos. Some ran from the shore to the city, some were still standing there blankly, and some even simply looked around. The commotion actually sneaked away somewhere else.

Many of the soldiers behind the Jijin Prefecture of the Liao Dynasty were recruited Han soldiers. According to the "Khitan Official Rituals", the Liao Dynasty "had Hanxiang soldiers from each state."

In the final analysis, it is true that the Liao artillerymen lacked training. However, Song's naval fleet was also seriously lacking in training and had no experience in dealing with enemy artillery.

Huyan Shouyong said.

Di Qing became interested and looked in the direction Hu Yanshou was pointing. After thinking for a moment, he said: "Have you checked out the rocks over there and whether there are any hidden reefs? In addition, it is winter now. Is the river water sufficient? The ship can't move forward."

"Oh?"

Yingzhou and Yuguan could only watch. They were too far away from the coast and the artillery on the city walls was useless, while Guangning was busy firing up the artillery.

"Is there anything else going on?"

Now that they suddenly encountered artillery fire from the Liao army, the shortcomings of insufficient training were revealed.

Hu Yanshou pointed to the direction of Yuguan in the distance and said: "There is a river over there, called Yushui. If we go up the river and place the ships in the middle of the river, we can cut off the connection between Tokyo and Nanjing in the Liao Kingdom. The only way to go.”

Therefore, the loyalty of these soldiers was not high. Except for the recovery of the Sixteen Prefectures of Yanyun in the Song Dynasty, the local Han people were afraid of the Song Dynasty's tax revenue, and then rose up to resist the Song Dynasty. They basically had no fighting capacity.

Where did the cannons on the smuggling ships they dealt with before come from?
It would be good to have cold weapons.

"We secretly sent people to the Liao Kingdom to do illegal business. In fact, we were observing the terrain. We have already figured out their city defense terrain."

After all, you only get a few hundred copper coins a month, why are you risking your life?
Under such circumstances, the entire direction of Yuguan was in chaos. Some Liao officers scolded, some Han soldiers shouted randomly, and some unknown Liao or Han soldiers glanced around and then left secretly.

Di Qing nodded.

This cut off the connection between the two southeastern capitals of the Liao Kingdom, directly causing the main force of the Liao Kingdom to be intercepted in Liaoyang Prefecture, Tokyo.

The order was quickly passed on.

Even though the cannonballs were far away, and even though they were safe and sound, there were still some oarsmen and wheelers in the fleet who stopped unconsciously and listened to the movements outside in surprise, fearing that some artillery fire would hit the ship. .

Hu Yanshouyong responded quickly and immediately ordered the flag bearer on the ship to use flags to notify surrounding ships.

After all, the excellent artillery crew members have been transferred to the front line. Many of the gunners in the rear have not been trained a few times. At most, they only know how to fire. Their accuracy and skills in firing are far behind.

"Shuai Di, I have a good idea for my humble position."

In addition, Yuguan is not the kind of natural chasm pass that only one person can pass, and no one can open it. It has the Bohai Sea to the south, the Yanshan Mountains to the north, and a smooth road of about 20 to 30 miles from north to south in the middle.

"Well, I'll do as you wish."

Di Qing was naturally keenly aware that many ships on the left and right sides were starting to slow down. He snorted coldly and said: "Send the order and move forward at full speed. The slower you go, the more likely you are to be a target. But those who hesitate will be dealt with by military law."

But that is obviously inappropriate.

The boat made full use of its strength and headed towards the river bank. At this time, the defenders in various places finally came to their senses.

I saw firelight splashing and smoke rising from the top of the city. More than a dozen cannonballs drew a gorgeous arc in the air, like the sun falling, and violently attacked the Song Army's fleet.

On the Ping Navy main ship Fu Ship, Di Qing used a telescope to observe the enemy's situation. When he saw the Liao army panicking on the shore in the distance, he said: "Let's just go ashore and charge into battle."

He originally planned to approach the shore first, bombard the city with artillery, and capture the three important city passes of Yingzhou, Guangning, and Yuguan.

But it's different if the boat is sailed to Yushui. The boat can patrol back and forth, controlling the entire north and south of Yuguan, and no Liao army can pass through.

Therefore, the dozens of cannons at the top of the city in Guangning seemed to be firing lively, but in fact they were hundreds of thousands of miles away from the fleet, and they all hit the sea. The Song fleet suffered no losses at all.

The most important thing is that even if there are targets on the ocean, in fact, even in close combat, it is often easy to fire empty guns. This is why in many naval battles before and after World War I, many ironclad ships had to get close to enemy ships and fire.

The two sides felt a bit like novices pecking each other.

Yuguan City is located in the middle of the terrain. Without the support of too high terrain, the artillery can only shoot about two kilometers at most, and cannot cover the entire Yuguan Passage.

"Bang bang bang bang!"

So this is really a good idea.

Because they need to carry the artillery on the ship to the city, and every time they come back, they will definitely give the enemy an opportunity, and they may even find a chance to defeat them.

Hu Yanshou smiled and said, "Don't worry, Commander Di. We have been conducting reconnaissance for several years, and we already know the presence of reefs and the conditions of the river."

At that time, the core army of the Liao ruling class was still dominated by the Pishi Army of the Khitan people, with tribes ruled by the Bohai people, Nüzhi people, and Mongol people as the vanguard. The Han people in the Yanyun Sixteen Prefectures only served as the local rural army. It has the same nature as the Xiang army of the Song Dynasty.

Di Qing asked: "What's your idea?"

However, although the artillery skills of the Liao State were slightly better than those of the Xixia artillerymen who lacked training, they were actually not much better.

"Yes."

However, although no ship in the fleet was hit by artillery, the sudden artillery fire still frightened many warships.

After receiving the order, each ship immediately sent messengers to the cabin to convey the message.

"Commander Di has an order to advance at full speed. Anyone who disobeys the order will be dealt with according to military law."

"Quick, quick, you lazy guys, what are you afraid of? The Liao people's artillery can't hit us at all."

"If the speed is slow, it will be easy for the enemy to target us. Only by maintaining high speed can we not be hit. By lowering the speed, do you want all of us on the ship to be buried with you?"

"Speed ​​up now, do you hear me?"

"Yes Yes Yes."

Under the scolding of the officers, the rowing and wheeling sailors in the cabin quickly speeded up and started working hard again, and the ship's speed immediately increased.

Although it was early winter and the wind was blowing from the north, and the fleet was sailing against the wind, the waves did not stop and soon began to move closer to the shore.

The firing range of both sides gradually approached, and once they were within the artillery range of the Song Dynasty fleet, the fleet began to fire artillery fire at Guangning City.

The artillery of the Song Dynasty was much more powerful than that of the Liao Kingdom, and the number of artillery reached more than 600, forming a huge fire suppression on the city head.

"Bang bang bang bang!"

Countless cannonballs flew towards Guangning City, causing the city to scurry away, unable to fight back.

Soon, under the suppression of ship artillery fire, the Liao people did not even dare to show their heads.

Up and down the city of Guangning, there were endless rumbling sounds, dust was rising high, and a large number of artillery shells could be seen embedded into the city.

Many Liao troops fled, and the situation was quickly taken over by the Song army.

Seeing this, Di Qing waved his hand and said: "Occupy the various port terminals, and the other boats will sail into Yushui first to seize the pass."

"Yes."

Hu Yanshou agreed and immediately went to issue military orders.

Immediately, the Song army fleet poured into the port near Guangning City like a black cloud.

This was once a trading center for smuggling ships, so the port was large enough to accommodate so many ships.

After the port was captured, the soldiers on the ship began to disembark and raised their muskets. The scattered Liao troops nearby had almost no resistance and were quickly dispersed.

The Song army then began to settle in Guangning City.

After the firearms age, siege methods also changed a lot.

In the past, people could only climb to the city via siege ladders or ordinary ladders, seize the city walls and open the city gates.

But now it's far less troublesome. All it takes is artillery to blow down the city gate. This was also a common siege method used by the Ming or Qing armies with artillery during the late Ming and early Qing dynasties. "Shuai Di, our army has successfully captured Guangning!"

Hu Yanshou said excitedly.

Although the Huyan family is an honorable family, honors are worthless these days. Without solid military merit, having such an honorable background is useless.

If you can win Guangning now, you have made a great contribution, and your promotion will be a matter of course in the future.

"Well, enter the city immediately and wait for me to observe the terrain."

Di Qing nodded.

Immediately, all the ships of the Song Army began to dock quickly and enter the harbor, and some small boats began to go up the Yushui River.

The remaining ships docked at the dock, and after leaving enough personnel to guard them, large forces began to garrison Guangning City to eliminate the remaining Liao army forces.

Many Liao soldiers fled in panic, and the vast land of Youyan was full of fleeing enemy troops.

The Song army did not pursue it. They began to enter Guangning in an orderly manner. Then the fleet went north from Yushui and attacked Yuguan from the rear.

It didn't take long for Yuguan to be breached, and the remaining Liao troops fled in all directions.

At this time, another Liao army came from the direction of Jinzhou towards Yuguan, intending to pass through Yuguan and head to the front line of Liaoyang Prefecture.

Naturally, Yelu Zongzhen's hundreds of thousands of troops did not pass by at once. The noise caused by that would be too great and would be noticed by the Song people. Knowing that he had mobilized an army in Youyan, they would not necessarily lure the Song army to attack on his own initiative. Therefore, all Come in batches.

This time there was an army of 5,000 men, and the leading general was named Shulu Puiliji. Although he was not the top nobleman of the Liao Kingdom with the surname Yelu or Xiao, he was from the Shulu tribe second only to Yelu and Xiao.

As a member of the high-ranking aristocracy of the Liao Dynasty, Shulu Chuiliji once served as a confidant, also known as the Pishi Army. Now that he is in charge of a part of the palace branch army, he is naturally highly regarded by the top military officials.

He was riding on horseback, and behind him, in addition to the Wuqiangong branch army he commanded, there were about 10,000 Bohai navy and Jurchen troops further in the direction.

"Your Majesty has gathered a large army this time and is finally going to fight the Song people. I have been waiting for this day for a long time."

The lieutenant of Shulu Chuiliji looked excitedly into the distance. After passing Yuguan, he arrived at Nanjing Prefecture of the Liao Kingdom, where was the Song and Liao front lines.

The Liao people have suppressed the Song people since ancient times, but in recent years, the Liao people have been repeatedly defeated, which has long made some young Liao generals feel dissatisfied, and now they finally want to avenge their shame.

However, Shulupu Liji had experienced the Song-Liao War before. At that time, he was just a commander of the Lala Army, equivalent to the battalion commander of the Song State. He personally experienced the battle that makes him feel scared when he thinks about it now.

Yelu Dilugu, a well-known warrior in the Liao Kingdom, was bombarded to pieces in this way, and it is still fresh in his memory.

So Surupalaji knew very well that this war would be very cruel.

He glanced at his deputy. This was a noble son of the Dieci tribe. He was only promoted last year. How could he know how powerful the enemy was?
But Shulvpuriji didn't say anything, smiled and shook his head.

It's not a bad thing for a young man to be motivated. I just hope he can survive this cruel war.

At this moment, someone suddenly shouted from one side: "What is that?"

People nearby looked around.

They saw a lot of black spots running around in the wilderness in the distance, as if there were some monsters chasing them behind them.

"what happened?"

Shulvchuiliji reined in the horse, and then said to the scouts beside him: "Go and have a look."

"Yes."

The scout immediately galloped away.

The team of five thousand also stopped in place and watched quietly.

The wilderness in the distance is vast, the winter wind blows, and the wild grass and basil on the seaside sway in the wind. The remaining mountains of Yanshan Mountain in the north tower into the clouds, and the earth is filled with a solemn silence.

After a long time, the scout came back and reported a very bad news to Shulvpuriji - the Song Dynasty people are coming!
"what?"

When he learned that the Song people emerged from the sea and occupied Yuguan, Shulu Chuiliji was shocked.

He never expected that Song people would actually appear here.

You must know that Yuguan is the only way to connect Tokyo and Nanjing. If Yuguan is cut off, it will be a huge bad thing for the Liao Kingdom.

Then Shulu Chuiliji asked for details.

When he learned that the Song people had just landed ashore and had not yet established a foothold, he thought for a moment and said without hesitation: "We must not let the Song people seize Yuguan. We must seize it back now."

"Yes!"

The deputy general didn't ask why he was going now and accepted the order excitedly.

When the following Lüchuiliji calmly commanded, he sent people to send messages to the troops in the rear, and at the same time ordered people to gather the defeated soldiers, and at the same time personally led the troops to attack Yuguan.

In fact, he knew that this time was a disaster.

But there was nothing he could do.

The importance of Yuguan is too great. Once it is lost, the entire Liao Kingdom will be in an extremely embarrassing situation.

So he could only take the risk and grab it back before the Song people had a foothold.

In the wilderness, thousands of horses surged away.

At the same time, the Song Army had just seized Yuguan, but they put their main combat power on the ships and did not move the artillery to Yuguan City.

Yuguan is located on the east bank of Yushui River, so it was natural that the Liao people would bear the brunt of the attack.

Di Qing had just entered the city at this moment.

Yuguan has not yet been renamed Shanhaiguan. When it was established in the Tang Dynasty, it was not as majestic as Shanhaiguan in later generations. At this time, it was not even bigger than an ordinary county town in the Song Dynasty.

After all, Yuguan was established by the Tang Dynasty and was occupied by the Liao Kingdom for a long time. Neither of these two countries needed to pay too much attention to the invasion of ethnic minorities from the Northeast, so there was no need to repair it. It was not established until the Ming Dynasty to resist the ethnic minorities from the Northeast. Shanhaiguan.

Di Qing planned to go up to the city tower to have a look, but before he went up, he saw Hu Yanshouyong running over to report to him: "Shuai Di, a large group of Liao troops has appeared in the east. Should we retreat to the boat first? "

Because the city is small and the main force is on boats, there are actually only a few hundred Song troops in the city. Once a war breaks out, Huyan Shouyong may not be able to withstand the lack of artillery.

However, Di Qing did not answer immediately. He just climbed up the tower and began to observe the enemy's situation.

Not far behind Yuguan is Yushui. Ships can bombard the city on Yushui, but the height of the city is higher than the water surface, which can be said to be condescending.

At most, the ships can hit the city wall. If the enemy recaptures Yuguan, there will be only one result - the Liao army will rearrange its artillery at Yuguan, and then it will become a situation where the Song army is on the water and the Liao army at Yuguan are shooting at each other. .

After looking at the entire terrain, Di Qing had some concerns.

He said solemnly: "The best way is to dismantle Yuguan, or retreat to Guangning, deploy artillery in Guangning, dismantle the bridges on the river, and rely on Yushui to block the attack. But it is unrealistic to dismantle Yuguan. , and retreating to Guangning means that our release line is only Yushui and Guangning, which is very disadvantageous for us once the enemy uses Yuguan to push back our ships on the river and then build pontoon bridges. Crossing the river, there is still a risk of losing Guangning, so I must guard Yuguan and cannot evacuate unless it is absolutely necessary. "

"But Di Shuai."

Hu Yanshouyong wanted to say something else.

Di Qing interrupted: "Needless to say, I have made my own decision. The number of enemies coming is only a few thousand. If we can persist in this attack, we will be able to gain a foothold in Yuguan. Immediately send an order to the rear to send two more Thousands of people came over, and the rest dismantled the cannons on the ships and prepared to install them in the city. "

"Yes."

Hu Yanshouyong saw that he had already decided, so he immediately went to implement it without saying anything.

Di Qing narrowed his eyes and looked at Dongfang.

Smoke and dust billowed across the wilderness in the distance, and thousands of cavalry surged in like wild wolves.

He planned to attack with three lines of defense: Yuguan, Yushui and Guangning.

But they have just entered the customs and have not yet established themselves. How difficult is it to move the artillery on the ship?

I'm afraid it won't take a few days to transport the cannon to the city.

However, Di Qing knew that no matter how difficult it was, he had to do it. Only in this way could he successfully intercept the Liao army.

Therefore, before the artillery was carried up, they could only use the muskets in their hands to fight against the huge number of Liao troops.

snort!
so what?
No matter how many Liao soldiers you have, I will make you sink here!
Di Qing watched the dust and smoke rising from the east and clenched his fists.

this time.

He will use ten thousand people to stop the entire Liao army in Tokyo from rushing to reinforcements!
(End of this chapter)