bookbashuk Page 1563
Page 1563
Chapter 1873 Siege
Zhao Yuan thought for a moment and said, "Most of them are from the vicinity of Liangshan Marsh."
"In the past, you needed to travel by boat to get in and out of Liangshan,"
"There shouldn't be any major problems."
"However, Li Jun and the others are not familiar with the Yellow River,"
"Would it be alright if the men under Duke Zhong's command traveled by water?"
Zhong Shidao nodded and said, "Over the years, they have disguised themselves as merchants."
"We've traveled by both water and land,"
"We also met some Western Xia people from the fortified villages along the way,"
"Some fortified villages might be able to be exploited by them."
"Okay, then let's proceed according to plan."
"I and Lu Junyi's 10,000 troops crossed the Liupan Mountains to Zhenrong Army,"
"Yao Gu led 20,000 troops westward to recapture Xihe Road,"
"Lu Zhishen's troops headed north to Xi'an Prefecture."
“A day later, Zhong Gong led a large army to follow.”
The Western Xia and the Song Dynasty fought for decades.
Spies on both sides have long been spread throughout various regions.
To prevent the Western Xia people from discovering their plan
Daliang divided its troops into three routes.
They spread the news that they were dividing their forces to take over the prefectures left behind by the Western Xia to mislead the Western Xia spies.
The 20,000 men led by Yao Gu were actually the troops that Zhao Yuan had handed over to Hua Rong.
Li Congji's troops were also added.
Hua Rong stayed by Zhao Yuan's side to serve him.
The Great King's Dragon Banner remained stationary in the central army.
The day after that, the order to return to the capital was announced.
Two days after advancing eastward,
They then divided their forces and marched north.
Although it will be exposed eventually.
However, by then Zhao Yuan's forces had already invaded Western Xia territory.
Lu Zhishen's troops also advanced eastward from Xi'an Prefecture.
They joined forces with the four groups led by Zhong Shidao—Zhang Qing, Yang Zhi, Wu Song, and Shi Bao—to attack Western Xia and provide support.
Li Ying's troops remained to guard Huaide Army.
Shangyikou was the first fortress established by the Western Xia in the Meiyan Gorge.
Backed by the Hulu River,
Not only did it block the land route through the No-Smoke Gorge,
They could also use catapults on the city walls to attack boats on the river.
When the Western Xia army invaded in three routes,
The garrison commander of Yikou, Mozang Langwu, led his troops south with Chage.
As long as the army captures the southern prefectures...
The area around Shangyikou thus became part of the hinterland.
There's no need to guard the pass anymore.
The Central Plains were in chaos.
No troops would attack Shangyikou.
Chage's army swept through the enemy lines.
Although many people were lost
However, it also destroyed all the fortresses and strongholds that had previously held back the Western Xia army.
It seems they're about to defeat Zhenrong Army.
Suddenly, the Liang army attacked.
He even used a thunderous weapon to kill Chage.
The army was routed.
Do not try to escape by hiding in the waves.
He fled to the Huai'de Army along with many other routed soldiers.
Awaiting instructions from King Li Qianshun.
But I never expected that a few days later,
However, they learned that Li Qianshun's army had also suffered a major defeat.
King Yi Gan-sun was beheaded.
The severed head was hung outside the gate of the Daliang military camp.
Several officers believed that the Western Xia dynasty was doomed.
They then abandoned Huai De's army.
Each retreated to their defensive positions.
To guard against the Liang army taking advantage of the situation to launch an attack.
Mei Zanglang originally had five thousand soldiers under his command.
However, when they returned, only two thousand people remained.
He didn't want to face that thunderous weapon either.
Unfortunately, I had my duties to fulfill.
His last shred of courage compelled him to stay and guard the post.
After retreating to Shangyikou, they reorganized the city's defenses.
However, he had no confidence in his heart.
If it were before,
Relying on the pass of Shangyikou,
No matter how many Han Chinese come.
He can hold out for several days.
But recalling that thunderous sound...
He felt that it was all in vain.
Do not stand on the city wall looking south.
Hopefully, things will remain calm and peaceful like they have been in the past few days.
A soldier on the city wall suddenly shouted,
"Boat."
Without looking away, they quickly shifted their attention from the road to the Hulu River.
More than a dozen large ships sailed downstream.
"Order everyone to go up to the city wall."
I didn't hide anything, and I didn't think too much about it.
He then gave the order directly.
At this point, the fleet that appears can only be troop transport ships.
"Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu"
A soldier next to him
He hurriedly blew the horn.
The powerful horn sound instantly resounded throughout Shangyikou.
One by one, the barbarian soldiers rushed towards the city wall in a panic.
The fleet docked more than 100 miles away.
Squads of soldiers in black armor quickly disembarked.
Arrange them in a square formation.
A five-clawed golden dragon flag fluttered in the wind.
From a distance, the man carrying the flag appeared to be half a head taller than the others.
"It was the celestial being who killed the Prince of Jin."
"God"
The barbarian soldiers on the city wall saw Zhao Yuan's banner.
They immediately began to whisper among themselves.
Even without hiding his legs, Wu felt a little weak.
He picked up a shield from the side and shouted,
"Don't panic, use your shields to block the firearms from the outside."
The generals who had been routed that day retreated to the rear of Huai De's army.
After some discussion,
I don't think that was some kind of divine lightning.
It was simply a new type of firearm invented by the Han people.
They also knew that it was the exploding iron ball that killed people.
As long as the iron ball is bounced away...
Then there's no need to fear those firearms.
Although the Tangut people on the city wall were terrified,
But they still followed suit and raised their shields.
Prepare to intercept the thunderous firearms that the officers had described.
Chapter 1874 City Gate
Zhao Yuan stood at the very front.
Behind them were Han Shizhong, Hua Rong, Liu Qi, and Yao Pingzhong, who were surrounding them.
Behind them were five thousand veterans of Liangshan.
The ships captured by the Zhenrong Army were of various sizes.
The small boat can't carry many people.
It will also make the fleet bloated.