The pre-war mobilization meeting of the rebels of the Central Plains kings was held early in the morning at the request of Wang Shichong, the leader of the alliance.

I saw that Wang Shichong's face was extremely heavy, and the kings who had entered the meeting didn't dare to say much when they saw it, so they just waited for Wang Shichong to speak.

"Brothers, do you know why the leader of this alliance wants to cease fighting for 2 days to prepare for the final attack?" Wang Shichong saw that all the kings had taken their seats, so he said softly.

Seeing that the kings were puzzled, he continued: "The day before yesterday, the Hangu Pass in the rear of our army was attacked by the Jin army in Luzhou, Hedong, and several earthen walls were built in the mouth of the Hangu Pass Gorge, which not only cut off the way for us to retreat, but also cut off the grain road of our army. Our army has less than 10 days of food and grass. ”

"Huh? How could this be the Alliance's leader? Didn't you already arrange for the king of Lu County to garrison the city? Where did the Hedong Jin army come from? Isn't Luoyang already in the hands of Yang Guang? After hearing Wang Shichong's words, Shen Faxing, the king of Ruyang, stood up abruptly and asked loudly, and the other kings were only stunned.

"Alas! It's all to blame for the king's negligence, thinking that the king of the city, Shan Xiongxin, was originally a rich man in Luzhou, Hedong, and the helm of the green forest, and the official government of Luzhou, Hedong, must have had an affair. I regret that I shouldn't have let Xu Maogong go to Hanguguan the day before yesterday. As for how the Luzhou Jin army appeared behind me, most of them were smuggled from the mountain trail in Pinglu. Wang Shichong said helplessly.

"Alliance leader, since this is the case, it is better to immediately return to the army to recapture Hangu Pass. Even if the Jin army occupies Hangu Pass, it needs to rebuild the city to defend against me, the old wall has long been destroyed, how can the rebuilt wall block us. Jinan Tanglong, who was eager to return to the army, shouted, and this proposal was also approved by most of the anti-kings, and they shouted one after another.

"Ladies and gentlemen, listen to a certain word." Li Mi saw that Wang Shichong was forced to have nothing to say, so he hurriedly got up and said.

"Brothers, be quiet, listen to Mr. Xuansui's words, it's not too late to make a decision." Wang Shichong saw Li Mi relieving him from the siege, and hurriedly shouted.

"Ladies and gentlemen, if you go back to the army to fight Hanguguan now, my more than 500,000 troops will definitely be in turmoil. Besides, now several walls have been built in the mouth of the Hangu Pass, outside the mouth of the gorge Jin army and the old pass site rebuilt the Hangu Pass, where the terrain is more difficult than the Tong Pass in front of you, if you can't break through the pass within 10 days, we will run out of food, then we can only tie our hands and capture! And it will take my army five days just to return. It is better to take advantage of the fact that our army is here in good preparation in the past two days, make a desperate move, and the whole army will go up together to forcibly attack Tongguan, if it is a drum down, the food in Guanzhong can be enough to ensure the use of our army for a month. After Tongguan, there is no more danger, and the army can approach the capital. Where to go, please think twice! After speaking, Li Mi bowed his hand to the kings, then looked at Wang Shichong, saw Wang Shichong nodding his beard, and then sat down.

"What else is there to hesitate about? Today, the whole army will go out and take Tongguan in one fell swoop, and I will wait for all the kings to go to the Jinluan Palace in the capital to talk to Emperor Sui. Meng Haigong, the king of Song Yi in Caozhou, shouted, because his wife was sitting behind him, Meng Haigong had to act like a man in this scene, and he couldn't seem to be timid and looked down on by women.

"That's it! The Luoyang soldiers of the Wang League Lord are the most sophisticated, so it is better to take the lead first, and we will follow behind, and we must break through today. The White Emperor Gao Tansheng also shouted, but now there is no turning back, so he can only move forward bravely. After listening to the speeches of the two, the kings were also aroused, and they all echoed and said.

"Good! Everyone immediately straightened out the people of the headquarters, and after a quarter of an hour, they all gathered outside the wall to attack the city with the leader of the alliance. Wang Shichong saw that his opinions had been unified, so he ordered eagerly. When all the kings heard this, they all cried out, and then went out of their accounts and sent their troops.

The sound of drums outside Guancheng had already attracted the attention of Guan Shangyang Lin and the others. The 5,000 fire and thunder arrows on the wall also raised their spirits and looked at the enemy troops in the distance with a serious face.

"Lord Wang, today's movement against the king is really not small! There are 50,000 people in the first line, and this formation has to be broken. Master Shang said softly.

"It seems that the news of the back road and the cut off of the grain road is known to the kings, and this is going to fight with me. Let the soldiers be ready. ”

"Yes, lord." After the master and apprentice were finished, he turned around and ordered the drummer to beat the drum and line up.

With the sound of a drum, the 5,000 fire and thunder archers were divided into three rows on the wide wall, and the first row of archers knelt on one leg and put the crossbow arrows in their hands on the battlements of the wall; The second row of archers stood 1 meter behind, holding crossbow arrows in a 45-degree position; The third row stood on a row of benches at the back, also holding repeaters and preparing them.

The rebels under the pass have been pushing cloud carts and stone throwers in the sound of marching drums, and the black pressure is densely packed with people with heads and tails, and this formation is completely different from the previous siege. For a while, an extremely depressing atmosphere enveloped every defender inside and outside the pass, and the arms of many crossbow-wielding soldiers couldn't help but tremble.

"Don't be afraid, hold on! Wait for the enemy to enter 300 paces before firing. As prepared during the exercise, shoot in a row, don't shoot all at once, and keep the firing rhythm. Master Shang shouted at the crossbowmen on both sides of the tower. This was also the first time he had commanded a soldier who used a firearm, and as for the effect, he had only heard of it, but had not seen the power of such a firearm.

Tong Huan, who was a reserve army under the city, also noticed the strangeness outside the city at this time, and couldn't help but walk up to the city to watch. I also sweated in my heart for whether Tongguan could hold it.

The Allied soldiers outside the wall shouted trumpets and gradually approached to see that they were about to enter the 300-step range.

"Huh! Why didn't the alliance leader turn off the use of the stone thrower today, and the stone thrower he had there was useless a few steps ahead! Tang Long felt that the defenders on the wall were defending a little strangely today, and couldn't help shouting at Wang Shichong and the other kings.

"Huh! Xu was closed and the stones had already been consumed by our army, and even the bows and arrows were useless. Meng Haigong said with a smile.

"Not good! The prince quickly ordered the soldiers to rush under the wall. Li Mi, who was beside Wang Shichong, was suddenly alerted by the ridicule of these two, and the memory of being bombarded by firearms when attacking Wagang suddenly came to mind.

"Sir---"

"Lord Wang, why don't you remember the defeat of Wagang? This is to close the defenders to fire firearms. Li Mi saw that Wang Shichong was still going to ask, so he hurriedly interrupted and reminded.

"Huh?" After this reminder, Wang Shichong suddenly woke up and hurriedly shouted to the heralds: "The whole army is shocking, quickly, rush to the city wall." ”

But it was too late.

At this time, the besieging side had already entered the range of the crossbow fire and thunder arrows, and the follow-up soldiers were still surging forward.

"Attention! The first row of firers--- "The crossbowmen crouching in the front row immediately pulled the trigger and threw 1,500 fire and thunder arrows from the front row into the sky in front of them.

"Second Row ---" When the first row of fire and thunder arrows was still in the air and did not land, the second row of 1,500 fire and thunder arrows flew out with a shout.

"Third Row Shoots ---" When the first row of fire and thunder arrows landed and made an earth-shattering explosion, the third row of fire and thunder arrows was on the road again.

Between 200 and 300 paces outside the wall, it was now completely enveloped in the flames of the explosion, and the violent sound of the explosion completely drowned out the mournful shouts. In the eyes of Monk Yang Lin, Master and Apprentice, and Xin Wenli, the scenes presented were human stumps flying up with the sound of fire and explosions, and no one could break through this wall of fire.

After the first round of firing, the crossbow archers in the city were ready to launch the second round, and in the interval of listening to the firing command, the smoke outside the wall gradually dissipated, and within 300 paces, there was a bloody stain, and the dead bodies that were piled up by layers of explosion were paved, and the rebels outside the range were already frightened by this formation, and they all retreated, and no one dared to approach forward.

The kings who watched the battle from a distance at the bottom of the slope were also stunned by this scene, and no one spoke for a while, only staring at everything in front of them in disbelief.

Only Yang Xuangan, Li Mi and Zhu Deng, who had personally witnessed this kind of scene, let out a wry smile.

Li Mi thought to himself, originally only said that Yang Guang's personal guards were equipped with powerful firearms, but he never thought that the Sui army under the backer king Yang Lin was also equipped with this weapon to defend the city. Sure enough, the previous shut-off defense didn't put all the effort into it at all.

"Lord Wang, this battle can't go on. We were all played by Yang Lin Lao'er, so that now we are attacked by the enemy and have no way to live. Alas! Li Mi whispered to Wang Shichong.

The appearance of the fire and thunder arrow attack here that he had suffered a big loss was also unexpected by Wang Shichong. I thought that this kind of firearm was only equipped in a small amount in the elite Baima Yicong battalion headquarters in the Jin army, but I didn't want to be equipped in large quantities in Tongguan.

"Mingjin!" Wang Shichong said in despair that this time he was shocked more than last time, and the loss of his own side in the first round of offensive was far greater than the time he attacked Wagang.

With the sound of a gong, the hesitant rebels turned around and ran backwards, throwing their swords and guns to the ground, even the cloud chariots and other things used for the siege were abandoned.

"Lord Wang, the rebels have retreated. The prince, the prince, ---" Master Shang shouted a few times before he woke up Yang Lin like a sleeper.

"What a power! Let the old man's ears now ring. Why don't you tell the old man that this is so loud? After Yang Lin reacted, he asked Master Shang and Xin Wenli.

"Old prince, the last general is also using it for the first time! Before that, I didn't expect the noise to be so loud, which frightened the prince, and the sin of the last general! Master Shang and apprentice explained again and again, and Xin Wenli on the side only held his mouth and smiled.

"With this artifact, why can't you protect it? The old man is worry-free! The two of you are watching here, the old man has gone back to the house to rest, this ear is ---" Yang Lin turned around and went down to the city and kept patting his deafening ears with his hand.

"Hehehehehe!" Seeing Yang Lin walk away, Master Shang and Xin Wenli laughed heartily.

Unlike the joy on the city wall, the faces of the rebel kings who returned to the military tent at this time were full of gloom, and no one spoke.

"Brother kings, how can you be born now? Don't say that the city is being attacked, and you can't even get close. Wang Shichong shook his head and said.

"Now, Tongguan can't be captured, and the retreating food is not enough, who can guarantee that the Hangu Pass Jin army behind does not have this thunderous firearm in their hands." Liu Wuzhou, the king of Dingyang, said dejectedly.

"Yang Guang is too cunning, he actually used such a poisonous plan, and my 500,000 troops are now trapped in a cage." Zhu Deng whispered behind Yang Xuangan at this time, although the voice was not loud, but it made it clear that the kings had to face the reality, and the kings also heard it clearly.

"Alliance leader, now you can't attack forward, you can't retreat, what should I do?" Tang Long asked in a panic.

"If you look at it, you will withdraw immediately, and take advantage of the unstable foothold of the Jin army in Hangu Pass to attack, and you will definitely be able to take it."

"If there are still firearms in that Jin army, can King Song Yi take them?"

"My army is short of food now, and I can't return to the army at all---"

"Why don't you climb over the mountains and dense forests and go north to the river to find a boat and escape for your life---"

“-----”

For a time, there was a lot of discussion in the military tent, each saying his own thing, and there was no idea that could convince everyone. Wang Shichong listened to what the kings said to each other, sometimes nodding, sometimes shaking his head vigorously, but he couldn't come up with a mature suggestion.

"Brothers, it's late today, each of you will go back to your account and rest, and you will be in business tomorrow!" Seeing that the kings were only noisy with each other, expressing their opinions, and arguing endlessly for a while, Wang Shichong had no choice but to propose with the kings.

When the kings heard this, they got up and scattered, and went back to their accounts.

"Mr. Xuansui, now that the situation is serious, the military rations will run out in a few days, the kings and horses will inevitably collapse, and we will also be captured, please save my father and son!" Yang Xuangan returned to the account and grabbed Li Mi's arm and said eagerly, he knew that among the kings, including Wang Shichong, the king of Luoyang, and others could raise the flag and surrender to the Jin army, but he assassinated Yang Guang, the king of Jin, several times, and had too much revenge.

"Brother Xuangan, now the form is extremely urgent, you can follow the plan of Xu Mao Gonglu County to get rid of the shell of the golden cicada, and immediately break away from the army of kings." Li Mi whispered.

"Sir, where will you go away from the kings? The front and back are blocked, and there is no road around! Unless there are wings on their backs. ”

"Brother Xuangan, come and see." Li Mi walked to the table and took out the map to unfold it, and then said: "Now there is Tongguan in the west blocking the road, and it is impossible to go to the capital; The east was intercepted by Yang Guang in Hangu Pass, and the cottage was not allowed to slip back; In the north, there is still the Yellow River that cannot be crossed over the dangerous mountains, which is a dead end; Only to the south, to the south into the dense forest of the Huashan Mountains, first to Wuguan, in the southwest to Shangluo. Once our army arrived in Shangluo City, they escaped. ”

"Sir, isn't it getting farther and farther away from the Red Peach Mountain to Shangluo?" Juden asked at this time.

"Alas! Now that the army of the kings has been defeated, who else in the Central Plains can resist the southern invasion of the Jin king's army? How can I resist the millions of Jin troops in the Mountain of Hearts, and what if I don't give up? However, the Nanyang Nanshan village is far away from the Central Plains, or it can last for a long time, and there will be a road back to Nanyang after going to Shangluo. ”

"Hmmm! Not bad. Even if you can go back to Peach Mountain, you can't live there, so it's best to go back to Nanshan. It's just that Mr. Xuan Sui will go south to Wuguan here to enter the lofty mountains, and the mountains are deserted and uninhabited, so I am afraid that there will be no food in our army? Then will he not die of starvation in the mountains? Yang Xuangan first nodded in recognition of the dangerous road without a road proposed by Li Mi, and then shook his head and sighed.

"Brother Xuangan, if you want to survive at this time, you have to fight." Li Mi looked at Yang Xuangan with a fierce look in his eyes, and said fiercely.