Guiyi Fei Tang

Chapter 253: Northwest Turmoil
"Da Lang, the Hu Za have begun to send troops eastwards. I'm afraid they are going to attack Changsong!"

When Suo Zhongyi arrived at the north gate tower, he was almost covered in blood, which showed that the battles at the other two gates were fierce.

Seeing Suo Zhongyi coming, Suo Xun, who was shaking in his chair, finally spoke:

"Aye...we've fallen into a trap..."

"Liangzhou is a dead end. We have to break out..."

Suo Xun finally reacted, but Suo Zhongqi had already guessed it.

"I knew that a long time ago, but I didn't expect the Chishui Army to mutini!"

"There is a white wind blowing outside the city now. Even if we send out signal smoke, the other cities won't be able to receive it."

"There are only 300 soldiers and horses in the city. Even if we want to break out, it will probably be difficult to succeed."

Suo Zhongyi's face turned pale. Suo Xun stood up and said, "Am I going to die here?"

"No..." Suo Zhongyi's face was grim, but he still shook his head:
"No matter how powerful the Umu people are, they dare not kill you, the Hexi Surveillance Commissioner."

"Rebellion is one thing, killing officials is another..."

There was some uncertainty in Suo Zhongqi's tone, and Suo Xun also heard it.

"I won't let these idiots decide my life. At worst, I can lead the troops to break through."

"It's only about 400 miles from here to Wulan County, Huizhou. I will fight and retreat at the same time. I don't believe they can capture me!"

"Why are you so anxious?" Suo Zhongyi quickly comforted him:
"We have only held out for less than a day, and today we have only suffered more than 40 casualties, while the Hu people have suffered at least 2,000 to 3,000 casualties."

"If this continues, Wu Mo may not be determined to capture Guzang, and we still have Zhang Huaiquan and Wang Zonghui's 1,400 reinforcements!"

"Besides, we have already submitted our petition, and the imperial court should be on the way to send troops to aid us!"

Suo Zhongyi still had thoughts about the imperial court, but Suo Xun knew very well that the imperial court would not do anything without benefits. Moreover, the Chishui Army mutinied, and the imperial court was probably already busy and overwhelmed, so how could it have the time to take care of them?
"Hold on for a few more days, and wait for them to send out their armored soldiers. Once we have worn down some of their armored soldiers, we will break out!"

Suo Xun gritted his teeth and made the arrangements, and Suo Zhongyi breathed a sigh of relief when he saw this.

The night was long, and thousands of militiamen in Guzang City were mobilized to carry pestle stones and rolling logs, while the Duga tribe outside the city slaughtered sheep and cattle, rewarded the men of the Emo tribe, and sent out elite cavalry to keep watch at night.

The next day, the white wind was still blowing, and Dugazhi also ordered to continue the attack on Guzang City.

The battle of iron and blood continues, but the Sanchen flag is shaking in the wind.

The whistling white wind blew away the hot air exhaled by people, and the shouting and killing almost shook away the dark clouds in the sky.

The Umu people launched attacks like a tide, but the Liangzhou army in Guzang City, led by Suo Xun and his sons, repelled wave after wave of enemies.

The fighting lasted from the 14th to the 20th, and the white-haired wind did not abate, but both sides suffered heavy casualties in the tug-of-war for several days.

Thousands of Umu people's corpses piled up under the city of Guzang, filling the moat.

Inside the camp, there was constant wailing.

"Great Khan, when will you send out the armored troops?!"

"Yes, Khan, if we continue like this, when will we be able to take Guzang?!"

Inside the tent, several generals were asking for orders to dispatch the troops.

In response, Dugazhi, who was sitting in the main seat, glanced at the few people like a sick tiger, coughed and said:

"Stop attacking the city and take a few days to rest."

"When Dulunxijia takes Changsong, we will gather all our strength to take Guzang."

"Remember, don't surround the east gate and give them a chance to escape. Don't offend the court."

"Yes!" Several generals responded in unison.

Soon, they withdrew from the tent and began to rest with their troops in preparation for the next stage of the attack.

Seeing that they did not launch an attack, Suo Xun in front of the north gate tower of Guzang City also breathed a sigh of relief.

After four days of fighting, there were less than 800 Liangzhou troops left in Guzang City.

Although the armor of the fallen soldiers was exchanged for other Hankou, there were very few Hankou in Guzang City, and there were only a hundred or so men who could serve as able-bodied men.

If the fighting continues like this, Guzang City will probably be conquered before spring.

Suo Xun's fingers were trembling. That was the aftereffect of the intense knife-wielding fighting in the past few days. He didn't know how many years of rest it would take for him to recover.

"Screw rustle..."

The sound of armor plates rang out as Suo Zhongyi led dozens of armored soldiers into the city wall. He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that Suo Xun was safe and sound.

"I tried to send troops to Huizhou for help, but the Umo people outside the city did not stop us. It seems that they want to force us to leave."

Suo Zhongyi explained the situation, but Suo Xun sneered: "It is also possible that they are trying to lure me out and then ambush me from a distance."

Suo Zhongyi did not refute his words, but said in a deep voice:
"The Umu people have been divided for two days. I think the fighting has already started in Changsong."

"The white wind was a little weaker this morning, so I tried to send out a signal smoke. If the defenders of Fanhe and Jialin in the west could see the signal smoke, they might send troops to help..."

His voice gradually became quieter, and he was clearly losing confidence.

After all, the defenders of the two western cities were only 1,300 people. Even if they came to help, they could not have any impact on the hundreds of thousands of Umu people.

Thinking of this, the father and son fell silent, and this silence lasted for two whole days.

In the next few days, Dugazhi no longer attacked Guzang, but surrounded it and waited for good news from Dulun Xiga.

At the same time, the beacon tower fort in the Longshou Mountain area of Ganzhou also sent light cavalry to report an important military intelligence to Zhangye.

The light cavalry arrived at Zhangye City in the snow and wind, dismounted in front of the government office and presented military intelligence, which was then brought into the main hall by the government office guards.

"Envoy, there is news from the beacon tower of Longshou Mountain that the Ganzhou Uighurs are marching south in large numbers, along Longshou Mountain and heading east. I'm afraid they are preparing to invade Liangzhou!"

Li Mingzhen walked into the Ganzhou government office with military intelligence, while Zhang Huaishen was handling government affairs in the main hall.

When he heard the news, he immediately looked up at Li Mingzhen.

Since he moved to Ganzhou, Li Mingzhen recommended himself and served as the governor of Ganzhou.

After many twists and turns, the position of Governor of Ganzhou finally fell to Li, but Li Mingzhen married Zhang Yichao's daughter, which made him Zhang Huaishen's cousin-in-law.

In addition, the two have known each other for many years, so Zhang Huaishen is not that hostile towards him.

He took the military intelligence from Li Mingzhen, cut the sealing wax with a knife, and quickly read the contents of the letter.

The situation was even more detailed than what Li Mingzhen said. Almost all the Ganzhou Uighurs moved south and deliberately came to Longshou Mountain to demonstrate to him.

"How dare you be so presumptuous!"

Zhang Huaishen snorted coldly, and then ordered Li Mingzhen: "Gather the elite cavalry from the four states of Guasha, Gansu, and Zhangye, and prepare a month's worth of military rations."

"Are you going to rush to Liangzhou to help?" Li Mingzhen was surprised, but Zhang Huaishen shook his head:

"I have no interest in Liangzhou, and I don't want to help Suo Xun, but I know one thing..."

Zhang Huaishen looked at the snow in the courtyard outside the main hall and said, "As soon as Liangzhou is in chaos, Liu Jilong will leave."

"When Liu Jilong sends troops to recapture Liangzhou, we will send troops to cut off the Hu Lu's retreat and make him owe us a favor."

"What's more, this dispatch of troops can also severely damage this group of barbarians, making it easier to expel them in the future!"

"Yes!" Li Mingzhen understood, and immediately bowed in response. He quickly walked out of the yamen and issued military orders to all states.

When Zhang Huaishen saw him walk out of the yamen, he picked up the brush and continued to handle government affairs, but the hand holding the brush became more powerful.

The sound of wind and snow outside the window was getting louder and louder, and the entire Hexi was shrouded in white.

Compared with Hexi, the situation in Longyou is slightly better.

However, the strong wind and snow also caused the Sanxianlou in Longyou to lose contact with Lingzhou, Yanzhou and other places.

"General Jie, the snow and wind are too strong. I'm afraid the pigeons from Lingzhou and Yanzhou can't fly over."

Cui Shu hurriedly walked into the main hall of the Protectorate, while Liu Jilian was still in his casual clothes.

"No problem. Judging from their speed, the group of rebel soldiers should have entered Yanzhou."

"If they wanted to go home, they could only follow the Shuoshui River to the Yellow River, cross the Yellow River when it was frozen, and then go to Heyang after reaching the middle of the river."

"Has there been any news from Chang'an?"

Liu Jilong asked calmly. Cui Shu shook his head and said, "The snowstorm is too strong. We can't use pigeons. If Chang'an wants to pass on the news, we can only send light cavalry. It will take at least seven days."

Cui Shu sat back in his seat while he was talking, and Li Shangyin beside him took the initiative to speak:

"General, if the imperial court wants to suppress the rebellious soldiers, what do you think..."

"That's embarrassing." Liu Jilong told him the result before he finished speaking.

"Wang Shouwen and Wu Wei did not follow Suo Xun to provoke Zhang Huaishen because they only came to guard the border to make money, not to fight for their lives." "Now they have made enough money and want to go home, but the court will not let them go home, so they will mutiny and return to the east with one mind."

"If the imperial court wants to take action against them, given the character of the old soldier of Tianping, I'm afraid he will turn against the imperial court directly."

"Even if the imperial court summons the eight garrisons in the northwest of Beijing and the three garrisons of Hezhong, Heyang, and Yicheng to encircle and suppress the rebels, how many of these vassal garrisons that have not fought for a long time can be a match for the Tianping Army?"

As Liu Jilong finished speaking, Gao Jinda said, "But the Tianping Army has never fought in Hexi, so they are no different from them."

"No different?" Liu Jilong raised his voice and looked at Gao Jinda with a smile:
"There isn't much else in Hexi, but the best horses are the best among all the roads."

"The Tianping Army robbed so many horses from Liangzhou and returned east. In addition, they have been trained in archery and horsemanship for six years. Unless we recruit elite cavalry from Shatuo and Dangxiang, only the elite cavalry from Youzhou, Chengde and other towns can deal with them."

"Of course, if the court summons me to suppress a rebellion, I wouldn't mind leading the army to suppress it myself."

Liu Jilong smiled, thinking that if the imperial court really dared to summon him to quell the rebellion, he would be showing mercy if he did not bring back more than 100,000 people.

War is the real standard for reviewing an army. In today's world, even for the two towns of Wei Bo and Cheng De, Liu Jilian does not think their combat effectiveness can be that strong.

However, there is no need to elaborate on the combat effectiveness of Youzhou Lulong Town and Datong Town, which have been located on the border for many years.

While thinking, Liu Jilong looked at Cui Shu: "While the imperial court is suppressing the rebels, we can take the opportunity to take control of Liangzhou."

"We will also draw elite cavalry from various towns to gather a total of 5,000 elite cavalry so that we can pursue and drive out the barbarians after we capture Liang Province."

"Yes!" Cui Shu agreed. Li Shangyin continued to ask:

"When does the commander-in-chief plan to dispatch his troops?"

"Once the matter in Liangzhou is settled, it will be time for us to lead our army to attack."

Liu Jilong narrowed his eyes and answered, but Li Shangyin hesitated and said:

"But if the dust settles, will the barbarians rely on the strong city to defend it?"

"If that's the case, then even if our army has gunpowder, it won't be easy to break into the city."

"Of course it's not an easy task." Liu Jilong first confirmed, and then explained:

"All the grain and fodder in Liangzhou was transported away by Zhang Huaishen, and the grain of the people and the warehouses in the city were looted by the rebels."

"Now Suo Xun has little food left. If he doesn't receive reinforcements, he will naturally lead his troops to break out."

"Although the barbarians have food, it will take more than half a year for the summer grain to be produced. Before they can eat the summer grain, I will lead my army to besiege the city."

After he finished speaking, Liu Jilong reassured everyone, "Liangzhou is already in my hands, so you don't have to worry."

"But if I lead the troops to recapture Liangzhou, I'm afraid I won't be able to come back in the short term."

"I have already arranged the affairs of Linzhou University, but I still need you to pay more attention to the affairs of the Protectorate."

"In addition, General Cui must keep a close eye on the situation in Guannei Road and Duomai area. If there are any changes, tell me immediately!"

"Yes!" Everyone bowed in response. Seeing this, Liu Jilong also stood up and returned to the inner hall.

At the same time, the Tianping Army advancing eastward gradually sensed something was wrong.

After crossing the Yellow River, they did not encounter any blockade by officers and soldiers along the way, and soldiers from Guannei Road in the army also kept leaving the team.

When they entered Xia Sui Town, there were only 3,000 elite cavalrymen from Yunzhou and 800 old soldiers from Guannei Road left in the army.

After entering Xia Sui Town, these eight hundred veteran soldiers from Guannei Road sent people to find Wang Shouwen and expressed their concerns.

"General Ya, the brothers are worried that the Tian Jiedushi will not agree to the brothers ending their garrison period. Please ask General Ya to take the brothers to Xiazhou!"

On the banks of the Shuoshui River in Youzhou, several generals surrounded Wang Shouwen and bowed to him and made a request.

Wang Shouwen naturally did not refuse this.

In just twelve days, he led the Tianping Army into Youzhou, which was only fifty miles away from Xiazhou.

The Xia Sui Army controlled four states and twelve counties, but had only 6,000 soldiers. On average, each county had no more than a few hundred soldiers.

He believed that as long as he led his army to the city of Shuofang, the seat of Xiazhou, Tian Zaibin, the governor of Xiasui, would certainly treat him with courtesy and allow his 800 brothers to return home.

Thinking of this, he led his army and a long convoy towards Shuofang County, Xiazhou.

While they were moving, the Tangqi of Xiazhou also reported their movements to Shuofang County.

When Xia Sui Jiedushi Tian Zaibin heard the news, he immediately became a little flustered.

He paced back and forth in the government office, frowning and saying:
"Wang Shouwen suddenly marched towards Shuofang. Is he trying to make things difficult for me?"

"There are only 200 elite cavalry and 800 armored soldiers in the city. I am afraid it will be difficult to resist the enemy."

Before Tian Zaibin took up the post of Jiedushi of Xia Sui, he held an unimportant position as General of the Right Jinwu Guard in Chang'an City.

It was thought that the Dangxiang had been pacified and Xia Suiyou's position as the Jiedushi of Yin and Four Prefectures would be idle, but he never expected that he would encounter a mutiny by the rebels.

Thinking of this, Tian Zaibin was speechless, and at this time Wang Qun, who was Tian Zaibin's staff, stood up and bowed:

"Why are you so worried, sir? Did you forget that there is a distinguished guest staying at Yin Hotel?"

"Your Excellency?" Tian Zaibin was surprised, but he quickly realized: "Are you talking about Chen Yaya from Longyou?"

"That's right!" Wang Qun nodded quickly and explained:
"This Chen Ya Ya trades more than 100,000 rolls of coarse cloth with my Xia Sui every year. If something happens to you, won't we have to start discussing this deal with someone else again?"

"I think that Wang Shouwen and his men have been stationed in Liangzhou for six years, so it is impossible that they are unaware of Liu Jilong's reputation."

"Why not ask Chen Ying to send someone out of the city to inquire about their intentions? If they pass by, we can ask them to speed up and leave."

After Wang Qun finished speaking, Tian Zaibin hesitated and said, "I am paid by the court. If I cannot defend myself against the enemy, then..."

"Your Excellency is wrong." Wang Qun saw that he was hesitating and immediately explained to him:

"Your Excellency is a floating official, and Xia Sui has few soldiers and generals. The court has also ordered Xia Sui to hold the city and wait for reinforcements. How can you talk about resisting the enemy?"

"That's true." After being comforted by Wang Qun, Tian Zaibin immediately breathed a sigh of relief, and then said to Wang Qun:

"I'll trouble you, General Wang, to take care of this matter. If you can get Chen Ya Ya to come, I will prepare a small gift to express my gratitude."

"Don't worry, sir. I will succeed immediately."

Wang Qun bowed and left, then went to the Yin Hotel in the government office.

At this time, more than 30 Longyou armored soldiers took over the patrol outside the Yin Hotel. Each of them was as strong as a tiger and often patrolled sideways, which was a skill they had acquired over many years.

If someone attacks, it is more convenient to draw the sword and fight off the enemy by turning sideways.

Because of this, the Jiedushi Yamen has become much safer since they moved in.

"General Wang..."

The armored squadron was bowing to Wang Qun. Wang Qun smiled and said, "I have something to bother Chen Ya Ya with. I wonder if Chen Ya Ya Ya has had lunch yet?"

"We are eating now." The captain said, then turned sideways and said, "Join us, please."

"Thank you." Wang Qun smiled and walked into Yin Hotel under the guidance of the other party, and stopped in front of a small courtyard.

"Ya Ya, Wang Canjun wants to see you for something."

The team was about to bow and speak, and soon a voice came from the courtyard: "Please come in!"

"Yes!" Team leader looked at Wang Qun and made a gesture of invitation.

Seeing this, Wang Qun bowed in return, then walked into the courtyard and saw Chen Ying walking out of the main house.

"Chen Yaya..."

"General Wang..."

The two of them bowed to each other, then stood up and walked into the main house.

As the matter was urgent, Wang Qun did not delay and spoke to Chen Ying after sitting down:

"I think the Ya Ya also knows about the Liangzhou mutiny."

"The rebels are now more than thirty miles southwest of Shuofang City. I'm afraid they will arrive at the city by dusk."

"I came here this time to borrow the reputation of Liu Jieshuai behind the Yaya, and send someone to find out the intentions of the rebels."

"If the yamen agrees to send troops, I will prepare a generous gift to express my gratitude."

As soon as Wang Qun finished speaking, Chen Ying frowned slightly.

He did not want to get involved in this mess, but if he left the rebels alone, if they really attacked Shuofang and drove Tian Zaibin away, the cloth route he had established with great difficulty would be destroyed.

Thinking of this, Chen Ying nodded and said, "In that case, I will send a group of elite cavalry to see what these chaotic soldiers are up to."

"Thank you for your help, Ya Ya." Wang Qun bowed to express his gratitude. Chen Ying summoned the captain and asked him to send a group of elite cavalry to find out the intentions of Wang Shouwen and other rebel soldiers.

Soon, a group of elite cavalry from Longyou left the city and headed straight for Wang Shouwen and other rebel troops...

(End of this chapter)