At the meeting of the kings that night, Li Mi's proposed plan for a water attack was quickly approved by the kings. Anyway, there are not many people and horses in his way, Yang Xuangan, the king of Chu, and it is insignificant compared to the hundreds of thousands of anti-king soldiers and horses under this Tongguan City. However, Wang Shichong, as the leader of the alliance, still left Li Mi behind under the reminder of his personal staff Hu Shiye, and only let Yang Xuangan take his son Zhu Deng to lead the people of the headquarters to turn around and attack Shaanxi County. Although Li Mi was reluctant, he had nothing to say.

At the time when the battle in Tongguan was urgent, Yang Er on Wagang Mountain finally received news of the battle situation from several generals after several days of anxious waiting. Judging from these real-time battle news, fortunately, there were no accidents within Yang Er's expectations, which made Yang Er's tense nerves a lot easier, and he also had a long-lost and pleasant smile on his face.

These subtle changes in Yang Er were all seen by Wang Dai and Chuchen.

"Husband, but the battle ahead is going well?"

"Hmmm! Smooth can not be talked about, but it is best to seek no accidents. Yang Er shook the folding fan and said with a little tug.

"Brother Shi, I have been restless and unstable for the past few days, Sister Dai and Little Sister don't dare to talk to you, since the war is unharmed, why don't you continue to talk about the "Fengshen List" when you are relaxed? Last time, I talked about Su Hu's child being taken up by the fox spirit, so there was no follow-up. ”

"Good! All right! Before Yang Er could answer, the maid beside him, Abeyi, clapped her hands and cheered.

"Huh! Good! In the last book, it was mentioned that Su Daji had entered Beijing, so I will continue to tell you about it. Yang Er folded the fan in his hand and said with a smile.

Completely different from Yang Er's relaxed and comfortable days here, the Central Plains is now full of war.

Yu Wenhua and all the way have advanced to the city of Puyang, and the 350,000 army has killed the siege of Puyang, a big city in Yanzhou with 80,000 troops;

The 250,000 horses and horses of the Taihang Jin army led by Pei Yun have also surrounded Luokou City, which frightened the 50,000 defenders in the city;

Li Jing's 100,000 troops blocked the old Hangu Pass as planned, and had begun to build a wall as a pass and block the grain route of the rebels of the kings of the Central Plains, and completed the plan to tie up the pockets, close the door and beat the dogs;

And Yang Er's hidden hand of chess also began to be launched.

The 100,000 troops led by Lu Zhaolin went south and divided them into water and dry roads, and with the cooperation of the Fugong Shi Jianghuai Army of Langya County, they were divided into two roads and began to launch an offensive behind the kings of the Central Plains.

Lu Zhaolin's 100,000 horses and horses took a thousand sea ships in Jiaozhou Bay all the way to the south and landed in Rizhao County, Langya County, and then went all the way to the west of the city and went straight to Lu County, preparing to take advantage of the emptiness of Ren City in Lu State to capture it in one fell swoop; One way is the 50,000 Jianghuai army led by Fu Gongshi, all of whom raised the banner of King Jin and attacked Dong'an and Xintai from Mengyin City all the way to the north, directly threatening the rear of Tangbi in Jinan Prefecture.

Because the Chinese officers sent by Wang Shichong to Luoyang to urge grain were captured by the waiting team sent by Li Jing when they entered the Hanguguan Gorge, Wang Shichong and other anti-kings did not realize that the back road was cut off, and continued to storm the seemingly crumbling Tongguan. It wasn't until Yang Xuangan, who asked for an order to go to Shaanxi County to find a boat, came to the mouth of Hanguguan Gorge that he was surprised to find that the way to retreat had already been sealed by the Jin army.

Yang Xuangan and Zhu Deng were so frightened when they saw this scene that they lost their souls, and because they had few people, they didn't dare to make a move to rush through the pass. Hurriedly took the men and horses back to Tongguan overnight, and reported to Wang Shichong, the leader of the alliance. This back and forth was delayed for another 5 days.

At this time, the allied rebels who had just finished a day's attack gathered in Wang Shichong's tent to discuss. The attack was not smooth, except for the loss of thousands of men and horses every day, and the defenders of Yang Lin also adopted the wheel tactics of frequent switching. The successive attacks for nearly a month did not show the weakness of the defenders at all, but made the Allied forces who were attacking from the back more and more exhausted. And all the kings had no good plan in their tents at this time, and they all sighed.

Wang Shichong also felt that he had nothing to say in the face of the low morale of the kings, and looked at the two military advisors on the left and right and his confidant Master Hu and asked in a low voice: "Three gentlemen, it has been nearly a month of continuous attack, although the damage is not large, but this Tong Pass is really difficult to break. Seeing that the food and grass in the army are insufficient, and the military food in Luoyang has not been delivered for some reason, our army is now trapped here, do you have a way to crack it? ”

"Lord, there is no food in Luoyang, most of the grain roads have been cut off or Luoyang City has been surrounded by the Jin army, so there is no food. It can make the army of Shan Xiongxin, the king of Rencheng of Lu County, who is now guarding the back road of our army, return to Luoyang, and the grain road can also be opened along the way. I don't know if Xu Junshi is willing? Master Hu Tongju looked at Xu Mao with his eyes wide open slightly, and said.

"If the alliance leader has an order, Poor Dao is willing to personally lead my army of Lu back to Luoyang to have a look." Xu Maogong was secretly happy in his heart after listening to Master Hu's words, he had not received news of Shan Xiongxin for a long time, and he had already judged in his heart that his army had left Hangu Pass, and most of Hangu Pass had fallen into the hands of the Jin army. Otherwise, I should have been able to get news of my brothers anyway.

"Xu Junshi, is there any news that your department is stationed in Hangu Pass recently?" Li Mi on one side suddenly asked, with a suspicion in his eyes.

"Xu is that there is no foreign army to attack there, and there has been no news from Poor Dao for many days." Xu Maogong shook his feather fan and replied calmly.

"Mr. Xuansui, no news from Hangu Pass is good news! That Yang Xuangan has also been gone for a few days and there is no news from Hanguguan, presumably there is no war there, if there is an accident, even if the king's grain urging officer does not come to report, then Yang Xuangan has already sent someone to report. Wang Shichong forced a smile and said, and all the kings nodded yes when they heard it.

"Then please ask Xu Junshi to leave early tomorrow morning, go to Hangu Pass, in addition to leaving a few men and horses to continue to stay, be sure to lead the army back to Luoyang to see the situation, I think I have tens of thousands of defenders in Luokou City, I should be able to keep Luokou safe, and Luoyang is even more unharmed."

"Poor Dao receives orders, and there is no need to wait for tomorrow, tonight I will go straight to Hangu Pass from the fast horse, if I can meet the arrival of the Luoyang grain team, it will be better." Xu Maogong replied unhurriedly.

"Okay, just ask the military advisor to do it tonight." Wang Shichong bowed his hand, and Xu Maogong also hurriedly got up and returned the salute.

"After attacking the city for days, all the kings and brothers are tired, it is better to rest for two days, and when the grain and grass are there, they are attacking. It would be best if the defenders could be brought out. Wang Shichong then said to the kings.

"In that case, certain ones will obey the orders of the alliance leader." Tang Long, the marshal of the Jinan army, said with his hand, and then all the kings in the tent also gave up.

Watching the kings in the tent go back to their respective accounts, only Li Mi and his staff member Hu Shiye were left around him.

Wang Shichong couldn't help sighing: "Alas! The food is easy to solve, but this Tong Pass is really difficult to break! It is useless for us to wait for the king's army of more than 500,000 to gather here! It is said that Yang Lin Lao'er of Tongguan has already been helped by 100,000 Jin troops in Hedong to guard the pass, and he can't get through from here. Alas! ”

"Lord Wang, our army is now in an extremely unfavorable terrain, there is Tongguan in front of the road, there is the Yellow River in the north, and the mountains are connected in the south, if there is a boat, you can find a ferry to cross north to attack Hedong County, and it is best to bypass this Tongguan. It depends on whether the king of Chu can get some boats to cross the river. Li Mi whispered to comfort Wang Shichong, in the face of such terrain, Li Mi had nothing to do.

"Alas! Mr. Li said lightly, that is, there is a boat to cross the river, and the north bank is also a mountain with a dangerous wall and no way to go. The old man heard that there is an extremely difficult trail in Pinglu, which can go straight to Luzhou, but he doesn't know whether it's true or not. If it is true, it is possible to use the plan of Ming Xiu Plank Road to darken Chen Cang, and attack Yang Guang's lair, which is no less than breaking Chang'an. Master Hu said with his eyebrows fluttering, but the speaker had no intention of listening.

Li Mi was shocked when he heard this, and immediately said: "What the master said is best false, Xiaguan has studied in Luzhou Academy for a month, and he has made many inquiries in his spare time, and I have never heard that there is a road to Pinglu County in Luzhou." If there was a road, why didn't Yang Guang garrison the two cities of Pinglu and Shaanxian? ”

"Yes! Rumors are not true. If there was a Jin army stationed in Shaanxi County, this king would have known about it a long time ago, and he would not have led the army to go deep into this Tongguan. ”

"Lord Wang, the lower officials are indeed still uneasy! Imagine, if Yang Guang did not have a way to connect Pinglu, it would not make sense to ask for Shaanxi County from the prince in the first place. Li Mi's doubts in his heart were not dispelled, and he said suspiciously.

At this time, the curtain door was raised, and a Chinese military flag officer hurriedly entered the account and reported: "Lord, Yang Xuangan, the king of Chu, is back, and all urgent matters will be met with the lord." ”

"Huh?" Before Wang Shichong could speak, Li Mixian exclaimed.

Wang Shichong saw Li Mi's face change abruptly, and suddenly felt bad, and hurriedly shouted to the flag of the Chinese army: "Quickly call the king of Chu to enter the account and speak, quickly!" ”

Before the flag officer turned around and went out, Yang Xuangan had already heard it outside, lifted the tent curtain suddenly, strode in and ran in front of Wang Shichong and shouted: "Uncle Shi, the leader of the alliance, something is wrong." ”

"Huh? Virtuous nephew, why are you so alarmed? Speak quickly. After Wang Shichong finished speaking, he saw that Li Mi and Master Hu also hurriedly surrounded him.

"Uncle Shi, Hangu Pass--- Hangu Pass has been occupied by the Jin army, and all my nephews and horses have been blocked."

"Huh?"

Wang Shichong, Li Mi and Master Hu were stunned when they heard this, Li Mi almost didn't stand firm, and fell down and sat on the chair.

"Lord Chu, can you see clearly? Where is the Jin army? Seeing that Wang Shichong and Li Mi were so shocked that they couldn't speak, Master Hu asked in detail.

"The one who blocked the pass must be the Jin army, and there are several "Li" banners on the Zhangyu earthen wall that was built in a hurry, and the one who can be the commander in the Jin army must be the general of the Qianniuwei of the Luzhou battalion, and Li Jing, the governor of the left capital, is undoubted. ”

"Ahh I only heard Wang Shichong scream and fainted in the seat. Seeing this, Master Hu hurriedly stepped forward to help, and Yang Xuangan was also so panicked that he called "Uncle Shi".

Master Hu's sip of cold tea sprayed down in front of him, Wang Shichong breathed a sigh of relief, and asked his henchman Master Hu, who was still wiping his chest for him, dejectedly: "Mr. Hu, the matter has come to this, what should we do?" ”

"Lord Wang, don't mess with yourself. Who else knows about the prince of Chu? Master Hu turned his head and asked Yang Xuangan.

"Sir, only a few of us know about this matter now, and our department is now camped a few miles away, and only this king has come to report to Uncle Shi."

"Good! This matter must not be reported, otherwise the morale of the army will be in chaos, and 500,000 people will collapse by themselves. Lord Wang, for the sake of today, we can only do everything to capture Tongguan, otherwise we will only die here when the food is exhausted. ”

"Brother Xuangan, Hangu Pass has long been destroyed, only the location is favorable, how many people do you think Li Jing has seized Hangu Pass to build an earthen wall to prevent me?" After Li Mi recovered his mind, he grabbed Yang Xuan and asked.

"Mr. Xuansui, this king once let the minions who are good at rock climbing climb the cliff to see, Li Jingluzhou army is not less than 100,000 people, and they are all cavalry, there are several earthen walls built in the narrow part of the canyon, and the difficulty of attacking is not weaker than Tongguan."

"Alas! It seems that only according to Mr. Hu's statement, he will do his best to attack Tongguan again, hide from the kings first, and just prepare for another day. ”

After the discussion stopped, several people left the tent with their own thoughts. Li Mi still accompanied Yang Xuangan to his own camp.

"Brother Xuangan, the situation is critical. In the coming day, we will also attack with all our might, if we can't break through Tongguan, you and I will be captured by Yang Guang. All the kings have descended, but you and I cannot descend! Li Mi walked all the way and reminded Yang Xuangan all the way.

"Sir, I don't think this Tongguan is easy to take, others don't know Yang Lin, he must not hide it. Now that I think about it, the Sui army guarding the pass the day before yesterday did not use all its strength, and deliberately delayed our army in front of the pass. ”

"Hmmm! Brother's words are reasonable. ”

"Mr. will not be able to win the attack in Japan, so he should think of a plan to retreat."

"Let's negotiate the bill." After speaking, Li Mi and Yang Xuan whipped their horses and left quickly.

The next day, Tongguan Chengtou.

Monk Yang Lin's apprentice and the second general of Xin Wenli stood at the head of the city and watched the rebel camp of the kings in the distance.

"Lord Wang, it seems that the rebels will not attack today, it seems that they are preparing siege equipment." Master Shang said in a low voice.

"Lord Wang, you see that the rebel army has erected a siege cloud cart in front of the wall, as if the cloud car and trebuchet in the army have been pushed to the front of the wall, it seems that there is a sense of fighting to the death with me!" Xin Wenli also exclaimed.

"Hmmm! The situation is indeed different from the past, and it seems that the anti-kings are really in a hurry. It's almost time to calculate, if General Li of Luzhou hasn't tied his pockets well, he will live up to the heart of this king. Listening to General Tong Huan, that old thing Han Baohu has come to pick up credit, hehe! Originally, the king still couldn't believe in Li Jing, who was born later, and now Lao Han is sitting with him in Hangu Pass, and this anti-king is not running away. Yang Lin said with a laugh.

"Lord Wang, do you think it's time to use firearms?" Master Shang suggested that he couldn't bear the mood of using a big killing weapon for a long time.

"Hmmm! It's time for the old man to see the new gadgets in Luzhou, and order the firearms army to go to the city, and all the archers to go down. ”

"Yes, the last general will go and prepare." Master Shang listened to the order and said with great joy.

The anti-king army outside the gate is preparing for the final blow, but the gate is making arrangements for changing guards. 5,000 crossbow fire thunder arrows were quietly sent to the wall, and the original archers left one after another.

The sky gradually darkened, and looking down from Tongguan City, dozens of miles of continuous bonfires were lit, like countless stars in the sky. Faintly, there were bursts of roaring trumpets from time to time, and it was obvious that the soldiers who were about to attack the city tomorrow were constantly pushing siege cloud vehicles and giant catapults in the direction of Tongguan.

The defenders of the city knew that the enemy would not attack tonight, but every sergeant had a serious look on their faces, and they all looked at the enemy troops in the distance quietly, and everyone knew that this would be the last night before the unprecedented cruelty of the battle.