Memoirs of the Heavenly Khan

Chapter 12: Wait Until Autumn Comes September th

Dozens of cavalrymen crossed the mountain pass.

The autumn air is refreshing, and under the clear sky, a pastoral scene of beautiful mountains and rivers slowly unfolds.

Erzhu Rong exhaled a breath of foul air and praised:

“Nan Xiurong is such a great place!”

As an in-law of the Northern Wei royal family, the Erzhu family was responsible for providing horses to the royal family.

Erzhu Rong used to travel this road south again and again, bringing rare treasures to the dignitaries in Luoyang.

But this time, the situation is different!
Erzhu Rong looked at this land as if it were his own territory.

"It seems that Second Brother has already figured out how to take down Wan Ziqi!"

Beside Erzhu Rong, Li Shuang was riding a dark blue horse and asked with a smile.

"How to defeat Wan Ziqizhen? I had already figured it out long before he started his rebellion."

At this moment, Erzhu Rong no longer minded exposing his ambitions.

In fact, Erzhu Rong, who had been traveling back and forth between Beixiurong and Luoyang in his early years, realized very early that the world was about to fall into chaos after witnessing the chaos in Luoyang.

In this Jin area, Erzhu Rong had already screened all possible opponents.

After saying that, Erzhu Rong looked at Li Shuang, as if asking, as if testing!

"Third brother, what do you think?"

The military system of the Northern Wei Dynasty was very complicated. In addition to the tens of thousands of permanent imperial guards in Luoyang, the northern border also established the Six Garrisons System and the Muzi System with Pingcheng as the center.

Wan Ziqizhen, as the shepherd of Nanxiurong, controls the most important grain-producing area in the Northern Wei border area.

After he rebelled, he quickly captured the county seat of Xiurong County, killed the Minister of the Imperial Household, and took control of the pastures and treasuries.

With money and food under his command, Wan Ziqizhen quickly recruited tens of thousands of troops.

"Although Wan Ziqizhen is a shepherd, he has a bad relationship with the local Han people. The imperial court has always strictly prevented Han people from serving as soldiers. Even if he uses food, fodder, and jewelry to temporarily gather tens of thousands of troops, it will not be able to form a fighting force in a short time."

After the analysis, Li Shuang expressed his own judgment.

"If we want to destroy them, we must fight quickly and decisively! Draw out their elite Hu soldiers and annihilate them in one fell swoop."

After hearing this, Erzhu Rong couldn't help but laugh, and there was even a hint of relief in his smile.

"Fortunately, my third brother voted for me, otherwise I would have a headache!"

"What do you mean, second brother?"

"If Third Brother hadn't surrendered, my first battle southward would have been against him. It would have been hard to say who would have won!"

At this moment, Erzhu Rong exuded the aura of a hegemon, looking down on everyone.

To achieve hegemony, the most important thing is not soldiers and food, but time.

Only by taking advantage of the chaos and quickly gaining a foothold can we achieve something.

Even if Erzhu Rong won against Li Shuang, he would waste a lot of time and energy.

If you take one step slowly, all steps will be slow.

By that time, all the big and small mountaintops in Jin will have a firm foothold, and it will be difficult for Erzhu Rong, who is in Beixiurong, to achieve anything.

Bei Xiurong is a pastoral area and cannot be compared with agricultural areas like Nan Xiurong, and its consumption cannot be compared.

This is why Erzhu Rong spent a lot of money and even became sworn brothers with Li Shuang in order to win him over!

Li Shuang naturally didn't want to get too entangled with Erzhu Rong on this matter, so he quickly changed the subject.

"How does Second Brother plan to lure out Wan Ziqizhen's elite troops?"

"I should lead my light cavalry to meet him at the front of his formation. If he pursues me, I can ambush him halfway!"

"Wan Ziqizhen is also a cautious person, I'm afraid it won't be that easy."

"So I gave him a big gift first."
-
Outside Xiurong City.

Erzhu Zhao, with the 3,000 soldiers given to him by Li Shuang, had already lined up outside the city.

Wan Ziqizhen stood on the city wall, looking at the soldiers below, frowning. "It's Erzhu Zhao again!"

Wan Ziqizhen did not have a high opinion of Erzhu Zhao. The last time he released him, not only was it because he was afraid of Erzhu Rong, but also because this man who was brave but not wise was not a threat.

I didn't expect him to come again so soon!

"Who can fight him?"

The Hu generals under Wan Ziqizhen's command soon responded to the challenge.

The city gates were wide open and the soldiers in the city rushed out.

Wan Ziqizhen did not use his most core Hu soldiers, but sent out all the newly recruited Han soldiers.

I was just a cannon fodder originally, so I wouldn't feel sorry no matter how many Wan Ziqis died.

Erzhu Zhao's bravery exceeded his imagination.

Although the number of his men was far less than the newly recruited Han soldiers by Wan Ziqizhen, Erzhu Zhao relied on his bravery to hold the line and almost defeated this group of Han soldiers.

"Hmph, the courage of a common man!"

Wan Ziqi was very disdainful. He waved his hand and called over the three thousand Hu archers who had been prepared long ago.

Just when the situation was about to collapse, Wan Ziqizhen ordered thousands of arrows to be fired at once.

The arrows flew and penetrated into the formation. In an instant, both Erzhu Rong's Hu soldiers and Wan Ziqizhen's Han soldiers were killed by the arrows.

Seeing the shouts and pleas for mercy from his Han soldiers, Wan Ziqizhen seemed not to hear them and continued to order shooting.

Wan Ziqizhen was not worried at all that these Han soldiers would rebel because their families were in the city.

Wan Ziqizhen’s greatest expectation for these Han soldiers is to serve as cannon fodder.

Even if it was just four or five Han soldiers in exchange for one Hu soldier under Erzhu Zhao, Wan Ziqizhen thought it was worth it.

Under the indiscriminate attack of Wan Ziqizhen, Erzhu Zhao soon could not hold on and retreated from the battlefield in a very embarrassing manner. Only a few hundred of the three thousand Hu soldiers he brought escaped.

Wan Ziqizhen had no intention of pursuing him and said coldly:

"Bring all the uninjured Han people and Erzhu Zhao's Hu soldiers into the city."

"What about the injured Han people?"

"There aren't that many medicinal herbs in the city, and they are precious. They should be used where they are needed."

Wan Ziqizhen's cold words had already determined the fate of those Han people.
-
"Uncle, I'm defeated!"

Erzhu Zhao was covered in wounds and looked miserable when he returned to Erzhu Rong's camp.

When he left, he was full of confidence and said he would definitely come back with a great victory.

But he didn't expect that almost his entire army was wiped out.

Erzhu Rong was very calm and did not intend to blame.

"You lost well!"

Erzhu Zhao raised his head and looked at his uncle, but saw him stretch out his hand and touch his head, just like when Erzhu Zhao was ignorant.

"Uncle, I have betrayed your trust. I will definitely win next time!"

Erzhu Rong looked at Erzhu Zhao, a hint of disappointment flashing in his eyes. However, he still tried to explain.

"We have far fewer men than Wan Ziqizhen, and we don't have any cities under our control. We can't win by force. If you lose, Wan Ziqizhen will look down on us even more! Then, we can quietly set a cage for him."

"Uncle, I don't understand!"

Erzhu Rong was a little tired. At this moment, he missed the atmosphere when he talked with Li Shuang very much.

He didn't have to explain anything; the other party already understood.

"Go down and rest first!"

Erzhu Zhao left, and Erzhu Rong shook his head helplessly and sighed:

"If Tumo has even one-tenth of my third brother's talent, then my Erzhu clan will have a successor!"

(End of this chapter)