Memoirs of the Heavenly Khan

Chapter 249 The other side not only refused to surrender

Dasanguan!
Yang Fachen led his Di tribe to Dasanguan Pass, but did not continue his advance.

The Di and Qiang peoples lived together in the Longyou region for a long time. At their peak, the Di leader Yang Ding established the Houqiuchi Kingdom, which once occupied Hanzhong and Shanggui.

Unfortunately, it was born at the wrong time. This Houqiuchi Kingdom encountered Liu Yu's northern expedition. It did not prosper for long before it entered a period of decline and was later destroyed by Liu Song.

After the destruction of the Later Qiuchi Kingdom, the Di people entered a state of division.

The Di people lived in the mountains and were not a nomadic people; they were highly Sinicized.

Yang Fachen surrendered to the Northern Wei several years ago and became the governor of Liangzhou. However, the Di regime, caught between two powerful states, never had true loyalty.

After witnessing Li Shuang enter Guanzhong and drive out the Hu people there, Yang Fachen realized that his opportunity had arrived.

For several years, Yang Fachen actively contacted the Southern Liang and gathered many Hu people who had fled from Guanzhong, waiting for an opportunity to prepare.

Finally, the opportunity to cooperate with Liang Jun in this battle has arrived.

Unlike the Qiang people of Longyou, the Di people were not adept at cavalry warfare. In the rugged mountains, relying on the complex terrain, the Di were formidable fighters. However, once they left the mountains and reached the plains, their fighting strength diminished significantly.

He dispatched Mo Zhetiansheng as the vanguard for two reasons: first, he was wary of the fighting strength of the Qiang cavalry under Mo Zhetiansheng's command; second, he wanted to assess the capabilities of the local militia in Guanzhong.

To his horror, before he and his troops even reached Guanzhong, news of the battle arrived from the front.

Don't let fate break you!

Not only did they lose, they lost miserably.

General Chigan Qilin was killed in battle, 20,000 men scattered, and Mo Zhetian's heavily armored Hu cavalry, which he had accumulated over many years, was completely wiped out.

What puzzled Yang Fachen was that when the defeat report came, there was also the strange story of the enemy general leading dozens of men chasing after Mo Zhetiansheng and his thousands of men.

Yang Fachen had heard of such things, but that was all he had heard of.

That's an ancient story passed down in the tribe. Back then, the Liu Song army had no shortage of such fierce men who dared to chase and kill large groups of Di people in the mountains with only a few dozen men.

Yang Fachen did not believe it.

He thought this was just the ancestors trying to save face and shirk responsibility for the country's demise.

As for what's happening now, Yang Fachen still doesn't believe it.

He still believed that this was just Mo Zhetian exaggerating the other party's actions to shirk responsibility for his defeat!

You're saying dozens of people are chasing and killing thousands? Why don't you say one person is chasing and killing thousands?

Therefore, upon receiving the battle report, Yang Fachen immediately issued an order strictly prohibiting any discussion of the matter within the army.

The more you forbid it, the more intense the private discussions become within the military.

After arriving at Dasanguan, as the defeated troops gradually turned back, Yang Fachen finally realized the seriousness of the situation.

The fighting strength of the Guanzhong Prefecture troops exceeded his expectations.

Mo Zhetian did indeed lose, and it was a crushing defeat.

Yang Fachen was already starting to have doubts. Mo Zhetian had already lost; if they continued to enter Guanzhong, could they still win?

When Mo Zhetiansheng's plea for help finally arrived, Yang Fachen made a decision: no matter what, he would still lead his troops to meet Mo Zhetiansheng.

Yang Fachen selected three thousand Di people and led them out of Dasanguan Pass to meet up with Mo Zhetian's defeated troops.

Only half a day apart, along a five or six-mile mountain road, Yang Fachen witnessed a scene he would never forget—

At this point, Mo Zhetian had only a few hundred defeated soldiers by his side, while behind him was a group of Guanzhong soldiers who were bloodthirsty.

The leader was none other than Yang Kan, the enemy's general.

"Your Majesty, save me!" Mo Zhetian's cry echoed through the mountains, and Yang Fachen immediately ordered his troops to form ranks.

Mo Zhetian spotted Yang Fachen's troops, and a glimmer of hope flashed in his eyes. He quickened his pace, and Yang Fachen led his troops forward to provide support.

Standing in the alley, Yang Fachen grasped Mo Zhetiansheng's hand, looked at his expression, and comforted him:
"With me here, don't worry!"

Mo Zhetian looked grateful and was about to say something when Yang Fachen heard a whoosh and his vision suddenly blurred.

Yang Fachen rubbed his eyes, only to see a sharp arrow piercing Mo Zhetiansheng's throat. The look of gratitude still lingered on his face, his mouth slightly open, as if he wanted to say something, but before he could finish, his body collapsed limply.

Yang Fachen stared intently. In the enemy formation, under the banner with the character "sheep," the general stood on a high place, having fired an arrow and was now drawing out another.

Yang Fachen felt his body go weak and instinctively drew his knife to block his throat, quickly retreating.

Only after retreating back into the formation did Yang Fachen feel a sense of security.

However, the soldiers from Guanzhong, seeing the newly arrived 3,000 elite Di people, not only showed no signs of withdrawing, but instead had an eager impulse to try.
-
The north entrance of Ziwu Valley.

Looking at the smoke and dust ahead, Liang Jun's generals realized that Guanzhong had been prepared for this for some time.

Unlike the garrison troops that faced the Qiang-Di allied forces at Chencang Pass, the troops facing the Liang army here were mostly Hu cavalry temporarily conscripted.

The leader was none other than General Gao Ang.

When Gao Ang led his troops here and saw the Liang army, he was eager to make a name for himself.

He immediately led his Hu cavalry to charge forward and engage the Liang army in battle.

The Liang soldiers, even the elite troops, who had marched along the Ziwu Road, had seen their combat strength decline considerably.

To Gao Ang's surprise, this Liang general was quite capable. Instead of being routed by Gao Ang's attack, he maintained a well-organized formation and slowly retreated, attempting to use the terrain to his advantage to resist.

Gao Ang led his Hu cavalry and inflicted heavy casualties, but he did not completely defeat the Liang army.

When Liang Jun retreated to a high ground, Gao Ang stopped his attack and roared as he looked at Liang Jun's formation.

Who is General Liang?

Gao Feng's roar was reminiscent of Zhang Fei's famous roar that terrified Cao Cao's million-strong army. The opposing general, not to be outdone, retorted:

"Wang Sengbian, under the command of General Xinwu of the Great Liang!"

Hearing this voice, Gao Ang asked in return:
"Your lord appointed my lord as king, why have you betrayed him and launched a counterattack?"

Wang Sengbian, clearly aware of Gao's high status, replied:
"The emperor punishes the disloyal; how can this be considered a breach of faith?"

Gao Ang said:
"How dare you speak of disloyalty! Whose lord do you rule? Your army is too weak, why not surrender now!"

"Our army consists of brave warriors from Jingchu, who are always at the forefront of the charge and invincible. General Xinwu leads a large army behind us, leaving Guanzhong with few troops. Why do you not surrender?"

After their conversation, Gao Ang stopped talking.

The Liang army before them was no ordinary elite force; their will was extremely strong. Even after being intercepted by his troops, they remained calm despite their weakened state.

Gao Ang understood that this army could not be swayed by words alone.

A gentle breeze was blowing, and the afternoon sun was quite dazzling.

In this chaotic world, the two armies met on the Guanzhong Plain, their battle formations filled with killing intent and fighting spirit.

Without the slightest hesitation, the two armies engaged in fierce combat.

……

(End of this chapter)