The Wind Rises (4)

At ten o'clock in the evening, a cloud of smoke swept towards Liling.

The desolate sound of the horn immediately sounded in the harbor city, and the soldiers took up their weapons in a panic and rushed to the city. His eyes were fixed on the cavalry who were getting closer and closer, and cold sweat slowly broke out in the palms of his hands.

Liu Xie, a thousand households of the new attached army, crouched behind the battlements in fear, his legs trembling like convulsions. Under his influence, the nearby soldiers turned pale, and the beads of oil and sweat on their heads rolled down.

Before the fight could start, morale had already collapsed.

This is not entirely to blame Liu Xie and others, the places on Jinghu South Road were already the inner belly of the Northern Yuan Dynasty at this time, and the new attached armies in various places had already lost their most basic combat effectiveness under the deliberate suppression of the Northern Yuan.

After going south, the departure and retention of the new annexed troops in various parts of Jiangnan has always been a headache for the imperial court. It was proposed that they should be disbanded on the spot and that the soldiers should be left to the people. However, Hututmur and others were worried that these new annexed troops had the Great Song Dynasty in mind and planned an uprising among the people. And with them, at present, the imperial court is fighting on the north and south fronts, and it really can't come up with so much ordnance and salary to support these useless guys. Therefore, the newly attached armies in all parts of the Yangtze River, except for high-ranking generals such as Fan Wenhu and Lu Shikui, are basically in a state of self-destruction. Not only was the number of soldiers insufficient, the equipment was seriously damaged, and even the military salary was not paid for several years. If you follow Dachun on the front line, you can also slaughter the people of a place on the charge of "banditry" at will, and then use the property to replenish military supplies. On the Jinghu Road, the common people had been under the rule of the Great Yuan for several years, and their family resources had long been wiped out by the Mongolian nobles and tax collectors from all over the country. Even if you knock them out to the bone and suck the marrow, you can't pull out a few taels of oil. Besides, the soldiers are all natives of their own country, and they can't kill their relatives for no reason. (Drunkard's note: Historical facts, the soldiers and horses of the Northern Yuan Dynasty basically did not have military salaries, and they all relied on plunder.) It wasn't until after Yashan that there was no place to plunder in the world, so I started to solve the problem of military salaries)

The smoke is getting closer, closer and closer. Suddenly, the soldiers on the enemy tower let out a cheer "It's our people, I saw it, I saw it, they were playing wool dumplings, wool dumplings!" ”

All of them breathed a sigh of relief, and some simply fell down on the earthen wall and gasped. At noon, everyone got the news that there were robbers robbing the court officials in the direction of Luohuling, and every soldier was worried about his fate. I have the heart to save it, but I am afraid that I will not be able to save people, so I bring myself in. Don't go to save it, it is said that the one who was intercepted and killed is the pearl of Dachun's palm, once it is lost, the right man of Jiangxi Province will blame it, and the head of the Liling guard may not be saved.

Several generals of the newly attached army discussed for a long time, and finally decided to send Liu Xie's nephew Zhou Yanghao to lead 500 people to symbolically rescue them. Before leaving, Liu Xie took his nephew's hand and kept telling him that after arriving at the destination, he should adapt to the situation, and let Yuan Gui, the guard of Pingxiang, do the meritorious work. This little bit of family wealth under his command must be brought back safely, and the equipment, grain and grass to be transported to the front line in Liling are piled up, once these materials are lost, it will be more fatal than losing Dachun's daughter.

"Open the door, I'm Baolige, my young lady was intercepted!" On horseback, the knight, covered in blood, shouted loudly. His helmet had been cut in half, his steel armor was covered in knife marks, and one thigh was wet, and blood was dripping down the stirrup to the ground.

"It's a Mongol, Lord Dachun's guard!" The soldiers shouted in panic. The soldiers under the city were about 400 people, all with smoky faces and oblique armor on their bodies, and at a glance, they knew that they had just escaped from the defeat.

Liu Xie, a thousand households of the new attached army, straightened out the clothes with several holes, leaned down from the city tower, and poked out half of his head: "Is it General Baolige?" Below is Liu Xie, who was ordered by the emperor to guard this place, how was it on the road. Why are you so embarrassed? ”

"The bandits robbed, Lao Tzu accidentally landed, and the eldest lady was injured. General Liu, please open the city gate quickly and let us go in and take refuge. The enemy is coming after you right away! Bao Lige, who was not very fluent in Chinese, replied anxiously, accidentally touching the wound as he spoke, and grinning in pain.

"General Bao, General Bao, not the last general, this city is hoarding the military supplies of Lord Zhang Hongfan, according to the orders of Lord Zhang, any soldiers and horses must be treated with caution. Look, can you go around the city, the thieves will chase you, and the last will block for you! Liu Xie salivated and prevaricated carefully. He didn't believe the words of the generals under the city very much, and he had heard that recently there was a team in Luoxiao Mountain under the banner of breaking the captive army, brave and good at fighting, and the leading general Lin Qi was a young man under the age of thirty, who had always been known for his cunning, and even the Mongolian generals sent by Dachun had suffered several times under him. Once he led his troops to deceive the city, he and the city soldiers faced great trouble.

"Enemy block, Lao Tzu can't stop the person, you can block!" The voice under the city immediately turned cold, and he scolded in a mocking tone, "General Liu really regards himself as a general, since he is so good at fighting, why don't you go into the mountains to suppress bandits as soon as possible." I had to let them hurt my young lady before I remembered the words of the enemy. Open the door, otherwise it will delay the young lady's injury and make you unable to eat and walk around! ”

"Open the door, open the door, and you will sell your mouth!"

"Open the door, open the door, Zhang Hongfan is an old man!" The soldiers under the city shouted loudly, and the sounds of insults and mockery in Chinese and Mongolian were deafening.

At the head of the city, the soldiers of the new annexed army looked at the Mongolian army covered in blood under the city, and they were annoyed and relieved. They exchanged heads and ears, discussing which master could hurt the Mongols so badly.

"My lord, I have my own difficulties, if General Zhang Hongfan knew, he would definitely kill me!" Liu Xie was scolded so red that his face was red, and he cried and mourned, and pushed the responsibility upward.

"The difficulty, what the difficulty? Could it be that Zhang Hongfan can kill you, a southerner, and my master can't kill you, a southerner. If it weren't for the greed for life and fear of death and connivance with the bandits, how could my young lady be injured and my brother so embarrassed? General Liu, I don't think you are in trouble, but you have already colluded with the bandits, and you want to arrest my young lady to ask for credit, right? Well, well, I will die in battle under this city today, as you wish. When my master knows, look at the people of Liling City, how to explain it to him! "Baolige's war horse circled around the city a few times, waved his hand, and prepared to go around with the remnants of the army.

At this moment, due south, another cloud of smoke rolled over in the distance. The cavalry of the rearguard blew their horns to report the news, and Paolig looked back, drew his scimitar, and let out a cry of grief and indignation. A hundred and ten Mongolian cavalrymen in tattered armor waved their sabers and rushed forward with a shout.

The shouts of killing sounded in the distance, and slowly calmed down. The smoke and dust continued to come eastward, and no one could return to the soldiers who rushed up.

With a wave of his hand, another group of cavalry turned back to intercept the pursuers, shouting closer and closer. At the head of the city, Liu Xie saw the Mongolian warriors and the other party's rolls together. Outnumbered, they fell one after another.

Under the city, all the soldiers clamoured, and some even bent their bows and arrows and shot at the city.

Liu Xie trembled and held the battlements with both hands, unsure of whether to open the city. There are many suspicions in the person who came, and it is very likely that he is a liar. But he couldn't let the other side die in battle under the city. Bao Lige said well, if everyone died in the city, Da Chun was furious, and it may be the officials and people of the city who were martyred for hundreds of Mongolian soldiers.

With a dumb voice, Liu Xie asked again, "General Bao, have you seen the nephew of the last general?" His surname is Zhou, and he brings people ......! ”

"See, that kid is heroic, and he took the initiative to break the queen for me, and he has already lost the battle. My young lady promised that after returning to the capital, she would personally ask for credit for him. Among the southerners, there are such heroes! Bao Lige arched his hand into the distance and replied admiringly.

Two lines of hot tears rolled down Liu Xie's face. For a while, his heart ached like a knife, and he didn't have the heart to think about other problems, waved his hand, and ordered his subordinates to open the city gate.

The remnants of the Mongol army cheered and swarmed in. After entering the city, he immediately assisted the defenders in blocking the gate.

"Go up the walls, find weapons, help defend the city, help defend the city!" As soon as General Paulig entered the city gates, he immediately and decisively gave the order. The weary cavalry immediately dispersed, some ran up the city wall with swords, some jumped off their horses, asked the soldiers in the city where the ordnance was placed, and asked to move out to defend the city, while others ran straight to the north gate.

"General Bao, General Bao, please restrain your troops not to run around, the weapons are in the treasury in the north of the city, and no one is allowed to move without an order from the imperial court!" Liu Xie wiped away his tears and protested loudly.

"When is it, you are still such a mother-in-law, you are not a bandit outside the city, you are a broken army!" Bao Lige pulled Liu Xie to the side, turned around, and ordered the guards with masks beside him, "Blow the horn and order them to be in place, and don't mess around!" ”

"Yes!" The guard agreed, pushed up the visor, put the horn to his mouth, and whined.

"You, you...?" Liu Xie looked at the guard's delicate face in surprise, and suddenly remembered a person, a person who made the guards of Jiangnan West Road unable to sleep.

Before he could finish his sentence, General Paulig's scimitar was already on his shoulder. "Lao Tzu is the Ximen General of the Broken Army, he is the General Lin Qi of the Broken Army, Liling City, and now he has returned to the Great Song Dynasty!"

On the city wall, the newly arrived "Mongol" soldiers drew their sharp blades and fought with the defenders. Inside the city, the cavalry swept through the streets at a rapid pace, cutting down anyone who dared to stand in their way.

At the gate of the city, the "Mongol" soldiers heard the horn, turned their knives, and poked the defenders one by one.

The gate was pushed open with a "creak", and the "Mongol cavalry" and the pursuers who had been "killed" rushed in together and quickly pounced on the main streets of the city.

Zhou Yanghao walked up to the city with a smile and saluted Liu Xieshen, "Uncle, my nephew is fortunate not to be dishonored!" ”

"You!" Liu Xie was happy and angry, pointing at his nephew, speechless.

The nephew knew that his uncle was cautious, so he couldn't help it, so he used this method. Uncle, give the order to surrender, don't struggle. The brothers in the city had no food, so why should they give their lives to the Mongols? Besides, the weapons in everyone's hands are not neat, and if they resist, there is only a dead end. Instead of dying for the Mongols for no reason, why not sell your life for the Song people! ”

Zhou Yanghao put away his smile and persuaded him.

"Hey!" Liu Xiechang sighed and was silent. He was a subordinate of Lord Xia Gui back then, and with Lord Xia fighting with the Mongols for decades, more than 200,000 brothers were killed. In the end, the 200,000 heroic souls have not been exchanged for the wealth of Lord Xia's family?

Surrender and fight for the Great Song Dynasty. But does the Great Song Dynasty have any hope for revival?

"Uncle, what are you hesitating about, do you want to let the brothers die in battle without knowing it?" Zhou Yanghao saw that Liu Xie didn't speak, and asked loudly.

"Down, okay, I'll down." Liu Xie instantly aged more than ten years, trembled his hands, untied the sword at his waist, and raised it in front of Lin Qi, "General Lin, you can order someone to take this sword and appease the defenders, they are all my old subordinates, I hope that the generals will be large, don't embarrass them." ”

"General Liu, rest assured, everyone is from the Song Dynasty, and they have the strength to kill the Tartars, why kill each other!" Lin Qi took the sword and replied respectfully.

"Where the words collided just now, General Liu don't blame it!" Ximen Biao put away the scimitar on Liu Xie's neck, bowed his hand, and apologized to Liu Xie, "I heard General Xiao Zhou say that General Liu was also a hero back then, and he was forced to follow the commander to surrender to the Northern Yuan Dynasty due to the situation. Now that the situation has reversed, can General Liu fight side by side with us and fight against the Tartars together? ”

Liu Xie first shook his head, looked at everyone's eyes, nodded again, sighed and said, "Thank you for the love of several generals, let me think about it again, and think about it carefully!" ”

"Uncle, what are you hesitating about? Do you expect the Mongols to spare you if you lose your city? Have you forgotten what you told me about the battle on the Tartar River under the command of General Xia? Could it be that there have been no Mongolian officials who have been in charge for a few years, and you have been arrogant back then, and you have smoothed it out? ”

"Me?" Liu Xie looked at his clothes with a few holes and smiled bitterly. In my heart, he is a clean official. The Mongol officers had no money, and all they gained was plundered on the battlefield. However, Liu Xie, as an official, has never connived at his subordinates to wantonly bully the people, except for occasionally extorting some necessary living expenses from large households.

Back then, he once guarded the land for the Great Song Dynasty. Empress Dowager Xie and the emperor surrendered, and he had no choice but to surrender with his superiors. Behind the cowardly face, it is the personal sentiment of the official that is adhered to. Now, Da Song called back and asked him to choose between Yuan and Song again, Liu Xie hesitated, he didn't know what to do.

Back then, he guarded the land for the Great Song Dynasty and was loyal to the king. Song died, surrendered with the boss, and was loyal to the old master. Protecting the place and enduring poverty without harassing the people is to be loyal to one's work and duty. Now that he is an official of the Great Yuan, he has lost the city and surrendered to the rogues under the banner of the Great Song Dynasty, can he still be worthy of the word "loyalty"?

If you can't even insist on the word "loyalty", Liu Xie doesn't know the meaning of his life, what is left?

"Hey, I said why are you like this, mother-in-law, man, you want to join the gang, we welcome you. If you want to leave, we will send you out of the city safely according to what you have done all these years. The big husband does things in one word, thinks so much, and is not tired! Ximen Biao waited a little impatiently and accused loudly.

Liu Xie smiled bitterly, stretched out his hand to wipe away a few cloudy tears from the corners of his eyes, and said in a somewhat hoarse voice: "General Ximen is reasonable, and Liu is taught." But there is one thing to ask, please General Simon make it clear! ”

"Say, if you have any worries, tell them one by one. I, Ximen Biao, answered you in front of everyone, if you can't do it in the future, let everyone point to my face and spit at me! ”

"Without him, the general has been in the south for a long time, and he has been fighting in various places, and he is well-informed, Liu dares to ask the general" Liu Xie paused, looked back at Lin Qi, and looked at his nephew Zhou Yanghao. What you want to ask, you can't ask someone like Lin Qi who has read books, because they won't tell the truth. "The Great Song Dynasty has been weak for more than 300 years, is there really any hope? Whose hand can save the day? ”

After speaking, his eyes were blazing, staring at Ximen Biao's eyes.

All the surrounding Liling officers and soldiers turned their eyes over, and only they could understand the original meaning of Liu Xie's words. Liu Xie didn't ask for himself, but for everyone, for all the new annexes who had descended to the Yuan.

The soldiers who fought for the Great Song Dynasty all knew that the remnants of more than 300 years had long lost their souls. Even if Bian Que is alive and Hua Tuo is resurrected, I am afraid he will not be able to save him.

Back then, it was Jia Rudao who misled the country. But after Jia Yidao, Prime Minister Chen Yizhong was still powerless to save the country. Those chronic diseases, those literati's rejection and rejection of martial arts, those relatives who monopolized power, talked about the country, pretended to be elites, and regarded the people as unreasonable still exists, and have never diminished.

Although he heard that there is a prime minister now, can he control the court? Can you stop those open guns and arrows? Besides, Zhang Hongfan immediately led a million-strong army south, is the remnant Song ready to deal with it? is still busy fighting for a position of power that will not exist for a few days.

Once they lose the struggle for power, will those elites who are loyal to the head be martyred for the Great Song Dynasty? I'm afraid to surrender faster than anyone else!

Everyone lowered the Yuan back then, and then lowered the Song Dynasty at this moment, there is a demonic obstacle in their hearts, and it is not difficult to overcome. If the Great Song Dynasty doesn't become one day, it will be lowered. It's back and forth, and the joke is big. It's better to die in battle now, or roll up and go home.

"This?" Ximen Biao was a little flustered by Liu Xie's staring, and took half a step back, not knowing how to answer. Da Song is finished, and no one can save him. When the army rose to resist the Yuan, the big boss Chen Hangyan said so. But when the Great Song Dynasty is finished, won't everyone resist?

"I'm a rough person, I only speak foul language!" Simon Biao scratched his bald head and replied a little embarrassed.

"But it doesn't matter, I just want to hear the truth!" Liu Xie said expectantly.

"Whether Da Song can be saved, I don't know. But I know that I can't be a dog for a tartar. Even if he died in battle, at least when asked by later generations, General Ximen died standing up, not as a fourth-class person, and his life was more expensive than a donkey! "In the notice of the Northern Yuan Imperial Court, the reward was as high as 10,000 Ximen Biao looked at Lin Qi, with a hint of apology in his eyes." I don't understand the affairs of the court. I don't do things for the emperor, not for the court. Just ask yourself about your heart. Back then, the Great Song Dynasty government was a bastard, and it forced me to rebel. But the Mongols are more bastards, so I will continue to fight until I fight a peaceful world! ”

"Be taught!" Liu Xie straightened out his clothes and gave a salute. After the salute, he took off his helmet and threw it away to the city.

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