Chapter Ninety-Three: Occupy Huozhou and Intercept the way of retreat

Huozhou is an ancient city, and the Chinese's habit of sticking to the door god originated here.

It is said that there is an old dragon in the Jing River near Chang'an (Xi'an), once he was angry with a fortune teller, he didn't rain when it should have rained, and he violated the rules of heaven, and the Jade Emperor sent Prime Minister Wei Zheng to supervise and kill the old dragon at three o'clock in the afternoon. Lao Long begged Tang Taizong to intercede for him the day before, and Tang Taizong agreed at that time. The next day, Tang Taizong announced that Wei Zheng had entered the court, and deliberately left Wei Zheng behind to play Go with him. Unexpectedly, at three o'clock in the afternoon, Wei Zheng dozed off and beheaded the old dragon in his dream. The old dragon resented Tang Taizong's words but did not believe them, so he came to the palace every night to make trouble, making Tang Taizong's six gods uneasy. There was no way, Wei Zheng sent Qin Qiong and Wei Chigong, two generals, to guard the palace gate, and sure enough, Lao Long didn't dare to make trouble. Tang Taizong thought that it was too hard for Qin Qiong and Wei Chigong to guard the door every night, so he asked someone to draw a portrait of the two and paste it at the palace gate, but the old dragon didn't dare to make trouble. Since then, the habit of hanging door gods has spread among the Chinese, and Qin Qiong and Wei Chigong have become door gods.

However, this time, the Dashun army did not have the "door god" that could resist the kiln gang people.

Chen Yufeng and Ouyang He slowly controlled the speed of the team's march, and led four infantry divisions, five cavalry regiments, and a naval fleet, known as 100,000 troops, to Huozhou.

Li Zicheng and Prime Minister Niu Jinxing have already followed the front team and passed Huozhou very early. But after the follow-up, the last ones were all baggage teams, their grain and grass had long been exhausted, and they didn't care about any military discipline at this time, so they kept grabbing grain and grass to stay alive along the way. In this way, the queue in front and behind is getting longer and longer. Liu Zongmin, the general of the right who stayed in Huozhou, and Song Xiance, the military advisor, were also helpless at this time, so they had to organize more than 100,000 soldiers and horses to prepare for a battle with Yaogang in order to meet the large group of men and horses behind.

Song Xiance knew that the Yaogang people were really calling, and they had no way to fight against them at all, so he said to Liu Zongmin: "General Quan, you also know the combat effectiveness of the Yaogang people, and you must ensure our retreat." The Yaogang people are really attacking with all their might, and we can't stop them even if we have these people. ”

"I see, Strategist. Don't worry, as long as I'm here, I'll definitely kill you. Liu Zongmin also respected the military advisor Song Xiance at this time, and it was he who still wanted the brothers behind him at the moment of crisis, and took the risk to stay at the end.

Liu Zongmin also did his best, and did not dare to be a little lax in commanding the soldiers to defend Huozhou, and even got up several times at night to check the sentry. He was afraid that the kiln gang people would sneak up at night. Because of this, Li Jing and the others did not find the opportunity to enter the city.

At night, Song Xiance and Liu Zongmin were discussing in front of the map why the people of Yaogang should move forward slowly and leisurely, when a loud "boom" suddenly came from outside the city, and Song Xiance was startled and said: "What, the people of Yaogang want to attack at night?" No, Tanma said, they still have some distance? ”

Liu Zongmin yelled: "Go and take a look!" What the hell is going on? ”

A moment later someone came back and reported that the bridge to the south had been blown up.

Song Xiance listened, gasped, and said, "The kiln people are too ruthless!" They're all killed! ”

Liu Zongmin said: "The military advisor doesn't need to be afraid, I have seen the river, the water is not deep, and you can cross it on horseback." ”

"The teams behind us are all baggage convoys, they can't get by!" Song Xiance relieved his mind and turned around the room with his hands behind his back.

Liu Zongmin said: "I can't control so much now. Just bring as many people back as you can. ”

Song Xiance snorted with his nose and said, "The people of Yaogang are really in business, and they are too calculating. ”

"Strategist, what do you mean by that?" Liu Zongmin asked puzzled.

"Kiln people! I just want things and territory. They have no interest in our people. Song Xiance figured it out.

"Humph! We just burned them all, and we didn't leave them behind. Liu Zongmin gritted his teeth and said.

Song Xiance stopped and said, "No! If that happens, our people will suffer. But if this battle is not fought well, we will die so many people in vain, and we don't know how powerful the kiln people are. ”

The 100,000 army led by Song Xiance and Liu Zongmin set up a camp outside the city of Huozhou, far away. Camping in the village is the strength of the military advisor Song Xiance, this person is familiar with military books, proficient in Qimen Dunjia. The camp he set up completely followed the five elements of yin and yang, and the door of death set up according to the direction of the gossip. Such an arrangement is well-founded, and unfamiliar outsiders can get in, and they will soon be lost in the camp.

But no matter how clever Song Xiance is, they forgot that the opponent they faced was not interested in these, although his opponent Ouyang He was also a good person, but he knew more than Song Xiance, and what kind of camp formation in front of the cannon was useless. Now Ouyang He has long stopped playing with these. From this point, the two of them made a judgment.

Yaogang's fleet went down the river from north to south, and when they reached the north of Huozhou, they found a small camp of the Dashun army on the shore, which was obviously a camp set up by the Dashun army to meet the retreating troops from the north.

As soon as Ouyang He and Chen Yufeng discussed, they decided to go ashore from here and attack Huozhou in the south.

To deal with such a small camp, the navy fired a few **** shots from the boat, and a company was sent from the ship to occupy the place. To the surprise of a civilian army, more than 1,000 people who were defending the camp did not run away except for some who were killed by shells, and all of them stayed in the camp and surrendered.

When asked, they found out that they did not dare to run back, because they were ordered to fight to the death with the kiln people, and if they did not have the order to run back, they would definitely die. Besides, they don't have much food, so they will leave it behind and run back, and if they don't get it, they will starve to death.

Ouyang He said to Chen Yufeng: "Mr. Chen, we have won this battle without fighting. ”

"Let Liu Yun and them cross the river. We're still on the boat. Chen Yufeng said.

After Liu Yun crossed the river, he arranged an infantry division to build a blocking position overnight based on this small camp, preparing to intercept the retreating Dashun army here. Three divisions went ashore and were arranged in echelons before and after, ready to attack and advance under the cover of the ship's artillery fire. Five cavalry regiments remained on the west bank of the Fen River and did not cross the river.

Speaking of which, the Dashun army has more than 100,000 people here in Huozhou, but they have to defend the city and arrange the camp outside the city into a formation, so that when the Yaogang people attack, there are only a few people who can contact the Yaogang people's attacking troops, and the Yaogang people can attack from the road and provide artillery support from the water.

As soon as the morning dawned, the Yaogang Navy began to shell the camp of the Dashun Army on the shore.

As the rows of **** fell, the camp of the Dashun army immediately became like hell, and the tent flew into the sky with the arms and legs of the Dashun army. Song Xiance's carefully arranged doors of life and death have all become doors of death.

As the artillery fire extended, the Yaogang People's Army marched forward in a horizontal formation, and the soldiers of the Dashun Army who were not killed fell under their guns one by one.

After receiving a report that the Yaogang people were attacking from the north, Song Xiance looked at the map and said, "What a master!" In this way, our arrangement is one that stands up to the beating. We have to change the current situation with attack. Preparing for the cavalry to be dispatched, the Yaogang people are in the middle of the attack, and it is the time to give full play to the superiority of our cavalry in the field. ”

Liu Zongmin said: "Our 20,000 cavalry rushed over together and crushed them at once. ”

"Yes, General Quan. Our cavalry must be used intensively, and strive to crush them at once. Song Xiance said.

The dispatch of 20,000 cavalry was earth-shattering, and after they drove out of the city in a steady stream, they lined up in front of them in a horizontal formation a hundred meters wide, ready to rush along the river bank towards the attacking infantry division of Yaogang to the north.

As soon as the cavalry of the Dashun army was dispatched, Liu Yun and Chen Yufeng and Ouyang He on the ship heard the voice. Ouyang He said: "It seems that Song Junshi is going to come out and fight with us. ”

"If this round of attack by the Dashun army doesn't work, it's time to escape." Chen Yufeng smiled, and after speaking, he ordered: "Commander Fan, as soon as the cavalry of the Dashun Army starts in a while, you will use all the artillery fire to intercept and shoot." Tell Li Wei not to be careful, heavy mortars also participate in the shooting. ”

Liu Yun's side also stopped the attack, set up a position on the spot, and set up all the heavy machine guns. Mortars of three divisions were also concentrated.

The battle against the cavalry in front of Liu Yun had not yet started, but the gunfire began to rage behind him.

The fighting began on the southern blocking position.

The troops of the Dashun army retreating south had already been notified that there was a camp here in Huozhou to meet them, and there happened to be a large group of retreating Dashun troops, and the food had been insufficient for two days, so they woke up in the morning, reluctantly drank some gruel, and wanted to rush here as soon as possible to get something to eat. But unexpectedly, what they encountered was the sniper position of the kiln gangsters. It's something that makes them feel hopeless. They have more than 30,000 men, including more than 5,000 cavalry, and they are still a team with very strong combat effectiveness. Just when they hesitated, they heard the rumbling of artillery fire in the direction of Huozhou, and they knew that there was a fierce battle ahead. If you don't rush over to participate in the battle at this time, when the Yaogang people win, you will never have a chance to escape back.

So they organized their teams and went on the offensive. The first of them was the cavalry rushing ahead, and the division commander of the defending army, as soon as he saw the cavalry rushing over, immediately ordered the mortars of the whole division to open fire together. The heavy machine guns of the whole division also opened fire together. The good thing is that the front of the defensive position is not very open. The cavalry gathered together in front of mortars and heavy machine guns was a live target. Soon the cavalry and horses were piled up into a mountain of flesh, but the cavalry behind still rushed over with flesh and blood, and some even brandished sabers and rushed in front of the infantry. The soldiers of these kilns also admired the cavalry who could rush in front of them, and they also shot politely and knocked them off their horses.

The cavalry of the Dashun army who rushed out of the city, how could they let go of the opportunity to attack from both sides, they immediately started to rush, and at this time, the firepower of the Yaogang people was powerful. The mortars of the three infantry divisions commanded by Liu Yun, together with the mortars on Fan Chengkun's ship, threw shells on the heads of the cavalry of the Dashun army. For a time, on the way of the cavalry charge of the Dashun army, it became like a meat grinder, and the war horses and people were lifted aside, especially the shells of the 120 heavy mortars, each shot would blow up several war horses. However, the cavalry of the Dashun army were not afraid of death, and many cavalry rushed through the barrage and continued to rush towards the position of the Yaogang people, but the heavy machine guns of the Yaogang people fired a few long points, and these galloping war horses could only roll on the ground with their masters.

Song Xiance, who was watching the battle on the city wall, understood that the Dashun army and the Yaogang people collided, and no matter how they fought, they had no chance of winning. Although Liu Zongmin is extremely brave, he is not a fool. He also understood this, and he said, "Strategist, you take people to withdraw quickly, and I will cut off the queen." Otherwise, it's too late. ”

Song Xiance said: "Give the order to let the cavalry behind stop attacking. They are all good, and they can't all die like this. ”

After Liu Zongmin gave the order, he said to Song Xiance: "Military advisor, what's wrong? We've been fighting for so many years, why didn't we fight? My brethren are not afraid of death! ”

Song Xiance said: "General Quan, you are not to blame for this defeat. As soon as we came out of Shaanxi, we were defeated. To be honest, so far, I haven't understood what the kiln gang people mean. I'm not qualified as a military advisor, and I've killed so many good brothers. After I go back, I will ask the emperor to leave. ”

Liu Zongmin said: "Military advisor, Zong Min has always been reckless, and he has had many confrontations in the past, please don't blame the military advisor." But you really can't go. Without you, the Dashun Army is even more finished. ”

Song Xiance was also very moved, and said, "Thank you General Quan for your trust." Let's clean up the situation as soon as possible and try to bring back more people. In my opinion, the kiln people will not kill us completely, they will leave us a way out. Otherwise, they wouldn't have fought from north to south. They were forcing us to retreat from the south. ”

"Forcing us to retreat from the south, and they blew up that bridge last night?" Liu Zongmin asked.

Song Xiance smiled bitterly and said, "That's telling us, leave things behind!" ”

Liu Zongmin asked: "The people of Yaogang are really so smart and have everything settled." ”

"The terrible kiln people are here, they want everything in front of us. But we often don't understand until it's the end of the day. Song Xiance said.

"Strategist, don't talk about it. I'm a little panicked when I hear it! We are at war with demons. Liu Zongmin said.

The cavalry of the Dashun army stopped the attack, and the Yaogang people also stopped shelling.

The location of the camp outside the city of the Dashun army is on a hillside, the terrain is relatively high, and the soldiers in the camp can see the situation of the slaughter of cavalry by the Yaogang people. They knew that when the Yaogang people attacked the camp, they didn't use all their strength. They also knew that they couldn't stop the attack of the kiln gang people at all. The occasional few cannons fired by his own artillery were not enough to tickle the kiln people. Using a bow and arrow against someone's rifle is even more of a joke. Although the Yaogang people did not continue to attack, the morale of the Dashun army had been shaken and they were unable to fight anymore.

Chen Yufeng's order to Liu Yun was that after the cavalry retreated, do not follow the attack. Ouyang He meant to give Song Xiance a little time and let them retreat by themselves.

Liu Zongmin arranged his own team of personal soldiers, with a thousand cavalry, to escort Song Xiance to withdraw one after another. Song Xiance insisted on refusing. Liu Zongmin said: "Strategist, if you don't leave, none of us can leave." After you leave, I will take as many brothers as I can, and if you don't go, I won't be able to do anything. Don't waste time. The kiln people don't always wait like this. ”

Song Xiance had no choice but to go down to the city. However, he instructed: "After the kiln people find out that you have retreated, they will definitely send troops to chase after you." Because at this point you don't have the power to fight back. So, as soon as you retreat, don't hesitate to leave as soon as possible. ”

Liu Zongmin nodded and said, "Yes!" Zong Min remembered. Take care! ”

After the Dashun army that broke through in the north killed and wounded many cavalry, they found that they really couldn't attack, and they didn't dare to attack anymore, but they just hoped that Huozhou's military division could win the battle.

Liu Zongmin was in Huozhou City, and ordered the troops in the south of the city to abandon their baggage, immediately retreat to the south, and wade across the river without hesitation. Then retreated were the troops that confronted the Yaogang People's Army in the north of the city. What puzzled Liu Zongmin was that the Yaogang people did not take the opportunity to attack. After the troops in the south of the city were withdrawn, the army of Yaogang quickly advanced and surrounded Huozhou City, but the south gate was also left unsurrounded.

However, the Yaogang people used bows and arrows to shoot into the city and sent a letter to the Dashun army in the city, telling the Dashun army in the city that as long as they protected the safety of the people and property in the city, and laid down their weapons and horses, the Yaogang people's army allowed them to go out of the south of the city.

At this time, Liu Zongmin in the city had never been so desperate, on the mountain in the east of Huozhou, there was a grain and grass camp, he thought that he could not leave, and was ready to send someone to inform the soldiers guarding the camp to burn the grain and grass, but not long after the people sent out, he came back in panic and said that the camp had been occupied by the Yaogang people. And now the east of the city has been surrounded by the kiln gangs. The angry Liu Zongmin had no way at all.

It turned out that Li Jing and the others didn't expose their strength, they just wanted to suddenly attack the grain and grass camp.

This grain camp is guarded by more than 1,000 people. Li Jing and the others didn't make a move here in advance, because this camp is not far from the camp of the Dashun army, if they started early, and the large troops outside did not come, they would be very passive if their actions were exposed. Li Jing and the others waited until Liu Yun and Liu Zongmin's cavalry fought.

Li Jing and more than 100 of them, dressed in the clothes of the Dashun army, deceived the gate of the grain and grass camp, suddenly killed the soldiers guarding the gate, divided into several roads, looked for the tents of the defenders, and almost completely solved most of the defenders with cold weapons, and the rest surrendered obediently. However, after solving the camp, Li Jing was a little afraid. The camp has prepared a lot of lamp oil, ready to set fire to the camp in case of defeat. Fortunately, he started in time and saved the food and grass in the camp.

After receiving the letter from the Yaogang people into the city, Liu Zongmin in Huozhou City ordered the soldiers to put down their weapons and flee south out of the city. He himself laid down all his dignity, changed into soldiers' clothes, mixed in the ranks of soldiers and went out of the city, and waded across the river.

Some soldiers who surrendered to the kiln gang people after leaving the city reported that Liu Zongmin was hiding among the soldiers, but the kiln gang people did not track him down. Because it doesn't mean much to the kiln people if he can't be caught.

An interesting scene is that the team of the Yaogang soldiers entering the city from the south gate and the team of the Dashun army going out of the city are head-on, and they do not interfere with each other. The soldiers of Yaogang wanted to enter the city as soon as possible, because they didn't want the city to be damaged too much.

Lin Feng and Wei Xiang were extremely excited when they saw Chen Yufeng, and after the two sides introduced each other's recent situation, Chen Yufeng asked Lin Feng and Wei Xiang: "How about the five hundred soldiers you two brought?" ”

Lin Feng said: "Uncle Chen, don't worry, this is all personally trained by me and Wei Xiang. There are several kinds of people in our mountains, and they usually only need to train as long as the task is to pick out the people, and they can be pulled out when they are ready to do something. ”

Chen Yufeng knew that Lin Feng and Wei Xiang were both good at kung fu, and the people they trained would not be too bad, so he said, "That's it, you continue to listen to Li Jing's command." Following the retreating ranks of the Dashun army, we finished cleaning up the Dashun army in the north and continued to pursue them south. ”

Ouyang He said: "You send someone to contact us, we have some injured personnel, and we will send them to your mountain to recuperate first." ”

Wei Xiang said: "This is no problem, we have doctors on the mountain, and they have no problem treating these red wounds." ”

After the Yaogang People's Army entered the city, Chen Yufeng ordered that one regiment be left to defend the city, and another regiment was left to assist in cleaning up the battlefield, and the others returned to the division to go north, preparing to clean up the soldiers of the Dashun Army who were blocked north of Huozhou.

=======================

The Song and Yuan armies went to war in Japan. The Mongols annexed Western Europe and moved on to Africa. --Progress of "Memories of the Southern Song Dynasty".