(2-in-1)

After the dam was built, it was almost dusk. Pen @ fun @ pavilion wWw. ｂｉｑUｇE。 infoSince the afternoon, the news of the chasing soldiers has been coming in an endless stream, and almost every other pillar of incense there is news about the chasing soldiers. Dozens of teams of scout cavalry went back and forth to reconnoiter and report like flowing water, and every time the pursuers approached, every move Wang Yuan and the others quickly knew.

In the early afternoon, the pursuers arrived thirty miles northeast of Qi County. An hour later, they had arrived ten miles north of Qi County. Twenty miles in an hour is already a very fast speed for an army of 30,000 infantry. From such a fast march, it can be concluded that the pursuers must have known that the target of the pursuit was not far away, so they accelerated the speed of the march.

Halfway through the Shen period, the pursuers arrived at the county seat of Qi County. It may be that there are ambushes in the county seat of Qi County, so the rebel pursuers can not patrol in the north of the city, and it took a while to determine that there is no one in the city, so they walked through the city and went straight to the Qishui River in the south of the city. An hour later, for the first time, the rebel pursuers finally saw the target they had been pursuing for several days up close - the Tang army and tens of thousands of civilians who had evacuated from Pingyuan City. Just like the evil wolf that had been running for a long time to catch its prey finally approached behind its prey, the excitement in the hearts of the pursuers of the 30,000 Great Yan Kingdom was indescribable. The pursuit was very arduous along the way, and finally it was time to kill.

Before dark, the tens of thousands of people who built the dam began to evacuate, except for the 2,000 soldiers and young men who stayed behind and hid under the dark Shuanglu Mountain, all the people and soldiers arrived at the foot of Niutou Mountain. Under a flat hillside, Wang Yuan gave the order. He had the people light bonfires and set up camps. At this time, not only does there be no need for lighting control, but also a large number of bonfires need to be lit to guide the rebels. Because it was already dark, Wang Yuan didn't want the rebel pursuers to lose their targets, so he instead wanted to lure them to the campfire camp.

On the side of the camp, Wang Yuan was already fully armed and neatly draped in his sword, standing on a dirt slope and looking in the direction of the county seat, although under the night, in the hazy night, he could not see any movement on the other side of Qishui, but Wang Yuan knew that under the hidden darkness of that night, countless rebels were staring at himself and the tens of thousands of people around him with shining eyes like wolves.

With the sound of footsteps, Yan Zhenqing walked briskly with a few of his subordinates and came to Wang Yuan's side to salute. Wang Yuan returned the ceremony with a smile and said, "Yan Taishou, everything is ready?" ”

Yan Zhenqing nodded and said, "Wang Xiangguo, rest assured, the lower officials are ready." Once the fighting began, Xia Guan organized the people to take refuge on the slopes of Niutou Mountain to avoid being attacked by the pursuers. ”

Wang Yuan nodded and said, "Very good, tell the people not to panic, just leave in an orderly manner." It's dark, so don't panic to avoid accidents. ”

"Xia Guan understands. Wang Xiangguo, these subordinates of the lower officials have some small requests, I don't know if they can say it clearly. Yan Zhenqing arched his hand.

Wang Yuan glanced at the three or four subordinates behind Yan Zhenqing, nodded with a smile, and said, "If you have something, just say it." ”

Yan Zhenqing said: "Thank you Xiangguo, the lower official will introduce Wang Xiangguo, these are a few powerful people under me." This one is Li Zejiao, the secretary of Pingyuan County, who joined the army, and he was the hero of my Pingyuan City that was able to hold on for several months. These are the commanders of my garrison on the plains, and although I recruited them from the market, they are all brave and brave men, and they have never slackened off in defending the city with me for months. ”

Wang Yuan actually knew them, and after entering Plains City, Wang Yuan became familiar with them. "They are all old acquaintances, why do you need Yan Taishou to introduce them once? Let's just say what's the matter. Wang Yuan said with a smile.

"That's right, my brothers all hope to participate in this battle under the unified command of Wang Xiangguo. They don't want to sit on the sidelines. Yan Zhenqing said.

Wang Yuan smiled: "How did you stand by and watch? Didn't I assign you a mission? 1,000 men and horses guarded the levee upstream, waiting for orders, and 2,000 men on the side of the mountain to prevent the enemy from breaking through. are extremely important tasks, how to sit idly by. ”

"Marshal Wang, the lowly rank has the courage to join the battle of directly attacking the enemy's army, and the lowly rank understands that the so-called stopping the enemy's advance is actually to stand by and watch. We know that our combat strength is not as good as the two thousand cavalry brothers you received, but we are not cowards. Nine months to defend the city, we are also experienced in a hundred battles. Moreover, this battle is a battle of life and death, and it is also a battle to protect the people of our plain city. As the soldiers and horses of Pingyuan County, we hope to fight to the death with the rebels, and we must not stand by in this battle, and ask Marshal Wang to do it. Li Zejiao, who joined the army, said in a loud voice.

"Marshal Wang, please!" He Lin, Xu Hao, Ma Xiangru, Gao Kanglang and other commanders in the plain city knelt on the ground and pleaded loudly.

Wang Yuan frowned, he really didn't want the infantry of Plains City to participate in tonight's battle, because he knew that tonight's battle could only rely on his cavalry to charge back and forth and trample, and use the mobile combat ability of his cavalry to defeat the opponent. Cavalry can charge through and quickly move away before being surrounded, and then make a cross-charge to fatigue the opponent, which is the best way for cavalry to attack infantry and fight more with less. But once the infantry joins the attack, it will become an obstacle. Moreover, these infantry will become the priority targets of the opponent's attack, and the casualties must be heavy. Therefore, Wang Yuan decided to let the infantry of Pingyuan County play the role of assisting in the battle, and did not intend to let them be cannon fodder.

But now, they took the initiative to ask for battle, which made Wang Yuan a little embarrassed.

"I'll tell you the truth, I'm not going to war to protect you. I would have only liked you to stop the enemy attacking the camp from outside the camp. Once you join the war, it will be difficult for you to get out of the war. My cavalry will fight according to the established plan, and it is impossible to take care of you. Wang Yuan said.

"Marshal Wang, we are willing to die in battle rather than be a turtle with a shrunken head. We know that once we enter the battle, we will be the first target of the enemy's attack, but this can just distract them and give the cavalry brothers better conditions to kill the enemy. We are willing to do whatever it takes, just to have a better chance of winning this battle. Li Zejiao said in a deep voice.

Wang Yuan understood what Li Zejiao meant, what he meant was that the more than 2,000 soldiers of Pingyuan County could be cannon fodder, drag down the enemy soldiers, and create a better opportunity for the cavalry to charge and kill the enemy. This is very beneficial to the battle situation, but Wang Yuan doesn't want to do it.

"Come to terms with you, I didn't want to do this. If that happens, your 2,000 brothers will die for an unknown number of years. Wang Yuan groaned.

"Please give the marshal an order, I will go to the soup and die if I am willing to die." Li Zejiao said in a loud voice.

"Please give the marshal's order, please marshal fulfill." Several commanders shouted in unison.

Wang Yuan sighed and said, "Okay, since that's the case, I'll do what you want." In this way, in order to reduce your casualties, I will ask Tan Ping to equip you with 2,000 iron shields of my cavalry, and give you another 1,000 bows and crossbows. After you have crossed the river, you will come up to the top of your pursuers, and give me time for the cavalry to outflank the charge. ”

"Thank you, Marshal, thank you for your success." Li Zejiao and the others were overjoyed and shouted in unison.

Wang Yuan smiled and nodded, waved his hand and said, "Go ahead, prepare quickly, it will start soon." ”

Li Zejiao took He Lin and the others to go happily. Wang Yuan looked at Yan Zhenqing and said, "Yan Taishou, I'm afraid a lot of people will die tonight." Isn't Yan Taishou distressed? ”

Yan Zhenqing said in a deep voice: "But if you can increase the possibility of victory in this battle, what is the point of dying a few people?" ”

Wang Yuan nodded and smiled: "If that's the case, I originally only planned to let five or six thousand enemy troops cross the river, but now I can let them come over more than ten thousand." Once 10,000 enemies are annihilated, the other party will inevitably collapse, and then you can get rid of a hundred, and you don't have to worry about them coming to entangle after this battle. ”

Yan Zhenqing said in a deep voice: "If this can be done, it is worth killing and wounding some soldiers." Didn't Sangkook say that? It is absolutely worth it to exchange the lives and deaths of a small number of people for the benefit of the overall situation. ”

……

On the north bank of Qishui, 30,000 rebel pursuers arrived at the river. This soldier and horse was the rebel soldier stationed in Taiyuan and Zhengzhou. More than ten days ago, the news of the attack on Yecheng and other three state capitals reached the two state capitals, and the defenders of the two places immediately dispatched, and a few days later merged and rushed to Pingyuan City. After several days of pursuit, he finally caught up with the opponent who fled south.

The leading general, Taiyuan City Shou Chang Yuantu, ordered the army to stop advancing, and he personally took a dozen generals to the north bank of Qishui on horseback, looking towards the mountains and fields on the opposite bank at night. In his eyes, a bonfire and torches were lit up a few miles ahead, and there was the overnight camp of the Tang army. Obviously, the Tang army did not seem to realize that their soldiers and horses had approached their side.

A general came on horseback and galloped to Chang Yuantu's horse and saluted. This is Chang Yuantu's favorite general, the forward general Yuan Bin.

"General Yuan, what's the situation?" Chang Yuantu returned the salute and asked lightly.

"Hahaha, that's funny. Tang Jun, a group of fools, although they demolished a bridge over the river, they did not know that the Qishui River had dried up. The mud at the bottom of the river was exposed, and when I went to explore it, it was only knee-deep and only a thin layer of water, and there was no need for a bridge to cross the river. Yuan Bin laughed.

"Well, God help me. They never dreamed that such a river would be very open, and they thought that they could rest easy by tearing down the bridge. Chang Yuantu smiled and stroked his proud long hair.

All the generals laughed when they heard this, and someone shouted: "General Chang Jiren Tianxiang, this time it is exactly a hundred, even Yan Zhenqing of Pingyuan City and the soldiers and horses of the Tang Army who broke in were wiped out together, that is a great achievement." General Chang has made this great achievement, I am afraid that he will be summoned by His Majesty to Luoyang to reward him, so let's congratulate General Chang in advance. ”

"yes, yes, congratulations in advance. Maybe His Majesty the Great Yan Emperor will let General Chang be the secretary of the military department. By then, our brothers will all be gone, haha. A group of people chimed in.

Chang Yuantu laughed and said, "You bunnies like to coax." The battle hasn't been fought yet, and they are all thinking about making meritorious contributions. That's it, let's not rub it off, brothers, are you ready to be rewarded for meritorious service? The great credit is in front of him, tonight all the soldiers and horses on the other side and the group of people in Ping'an County will be cut off in one fell swoop, and no one will be spared. ”

All the generals agreed in unison, and for a time ordered the undulating troops and horses to move, and after a meal, the rebel soldiers and horses chose a relatively open and flat section of the river within a hundred paces and began to wade across the river. They lined up like a long line of more than a dozen people, and went down the embankment in an orderly manner and walked towards the opposite bank unhurriedly.

The soil at the bottom of the river is very hard, and the silt and sewage on it are actually just floating mud flowing down the water, so it is not difficult to walk. Although the speed was unhurried, thousands of rebel soldiers and horses soon crossed the Ke River. In accordance with the general's orders, they immediately formed a formation on the opposite bank to protect the follow-up soldiers and horses who were wading in the water.

In the distance, the campfire of the Tang army camp was swaying, and they had no idea that the pursuers had crossed the river and were approaching. The undisturbed troops crossing the river were like marching troops on the broad road, without encountering any difficulties. Waves of soldiers and horses arrived on the other side, seemingly slow, but in fact very fast. Only half an hour later, seven or eight thousand soldiers and horses had arrived on the embankment on the opposite bank and in the wilderness.

It was only at this time that Chang Yuantu breathed a sigh of relief in his heart. He was actually quite nervous in his heart, although what he had just said was very relaxed. Because he knew that the Tang army on the opposite side was not easy to deal with, after all, it was an enemy cavalry team that broke through the kettle pass and connected three cities. Although they knew that they were not numerous, the cavalry who could do such a thing would not be easy to mess with. And even the defenders of Plains City are not easy to deal with. Kang Wuyebo, who fought for more than half a year and didn't take the defenders, must not be good at stubble. So Chang Yuantu was very nervous.

But at this moment, seven or eight thousand soldiers and horses have passed, and Chang Yuantu is greatly relieved. After all, the number of the opponent is very small, and seven or eight thousand soldiers and horses are enough to resist their attack. As long as the opponent is dragged down, the follow-up soldiers and horses will keep up, and it will be enough to wipe out the opponent. After all, he led an army of 30,000 and occupied an absolute advantage.

Chang Yuantu, who was in a relaxed mood, also rode his horse to the river embankment, preparing to cross the river along the route that the soldiers had stepped on. However, as he was urging his horse down the riverbank, he suddenly noticed that there seemed to be several lights shining on the dark ground in the distance. It was definitely not a campfire, and it wasn't far from the riverbank, it should be two or three miles away.

Then, something even more surprising happened. Miles away, three colorful fireworks suddenly rose from the dark horizon. The fireworks rose flat into the dark sky, illuminating a large area of darkness around them, and then suddenly erupted in the sky, and the goddess scattered flowers and burst into a rain of colorful flowers, which was dazzling.

The rebels saw the brilliant fireworks, and they looked up at the vanished flowers, not knowing what they were or what had happened. Chang Yuantu was also stunned for a long time, and he suddenly had an ominous premonition. This firework was definitely not fired by his own soldiers and horses, and he didn't have these things in his army. Nine out of ten, the Tang army on the other side of the river found that their soldiers and horses were crossing the river, which was the fireworks for them to transmit their message.

"Speed up, speed up the river crossing." Chang Yuantu ordered loudly. Because he knew that since the opponent had discovered the traces of his soldiers and horses, they would definitely attack. Speed up all the soldiers and horses to cross the river, so that more soldiers and horses can reach the opposite bank, and they will not be afraid of their attack.

As Chang Yuantu's order was given, the soldiers picked up speed, and they trotted down the river embankment, wading through the mud and thin water towards the opposite bank. Originally, they were unhurriedly lined up to cross the river, but at the moment it seemed to be chaotic. Originally, there were only a dozen teams crossing the river, but now the river was densely packed with soldiers running to the opposite bank.

After the fireworks went out, darkness returned to the surroundings, and no enemy troops seemed to be visible. Some were just crackling and the noise of running through muddy water, and the heavy wheezing of soldiers. There was no imaginary shouting of killing. Chang Yuantu stared and opened his ears to carefully probe the information around him, but he found nothing.

……

A few miles upstream, the Shuanglu Mountain embankment is full of dangers. Because of the rapid increase in water storage, the water level rises rapidly, resulting in increasing pressure in the embankment. The leaks between the dikes are filled with columns of water that are several feet away from the pressure, like water spurs. The levee itself is also crumbling, and every small wave of water ripples in, and the levee seems to be bending and shaking slightly, and it feels like it will collapse at any moment.

The 2,000 soldiers and civilians who remained behind had to risk being swept away by laying diagonal braces under the levee with long logs, barely holding the levee. But they don't know how long they can hold on.

The situation of the levee is getting worse and worse, and just as the log frame in the levee has cracked and is about to break and collapse, the long-awaited fireworks flare finally rises in the night sky. The crowd breathed a sigh of relief, and as soon as they saw the fireworks rise, they began to pull seven or eight ropes that had been tied to the huge frame in advance in the middle of the embankment. As the seven or eight wooden frames broke and detached, the flood rushed down the breach, like a herd of roaring beasts. In an instant, the surrounding levees were also collapsed by the strong current, and a large amount of water that had been accumulated for a long time roared down and swept across the river below.

The river channel below the embankment was instantly widened several zhang wide, because the rushing torrent collapsed the embankment on both sides, and swept away more than a dozen giant willows on the bank.

The power of the current made the two thousand people silent, and of course they knew what would happen if someone crossed the river in the east of the river when such a current rushed down.

……

On the embankment on the north bank of Qishui below, Chang Yuantu was wondering what this strange fireworks that suddenly appeared meant something. Before he could figure it out, he suddenly heard a rumbling thunderous sound in his ears. The sound was like muffled thunder, but it wasn't in the air. The river bank seemed to tremble underfoot, but it was not the roar of the hooves of the galloping horses. It was a deeper, duller roar. Occasionally, there is the sound of a rumbling collapse and the crash of a huge wave.

Chang Yuantu's eyes widened in astonishment and looked in the direction where the voice came from, and then he heard the panicked screams of the soldiers dozens of paces away on the right.

"The water is rising, the water is rising. What a big flood. ”

As soon as the soldiers' voices fell, Chang Yuantu saw a huge wave of white flowers rushing out of the river dozens of steps above. The waves were rushing down the river like a beast with teeth and claws, and almost in the blink of an eye they were in front of them. The white waves undulated with a dull roar. It was like a group of trapped beasts bound in the confines of the river, and the trapped beasts were tumbling and jumping, washing the banks on both sides. In Chang Yuantu's stunned gaze, a tall willow tree next to the river bank more than a dozen paces away collapsed violently, as if it had been pulled down by a giant beast, planted into the water, and then rushed down by the flood.

"Amazing. Everybody get ashore. Chang Yuantu screamed in horror. But the order was clearly too late. The beast of the flood had already rushed through the river in front of him, carrying everything it could to carry it downstream. The soldiers who had just crossed the river were like a swarm of ants, and they were swallowed up by the waves in an instant, and disappeared under the influence of the turbid and turbulent water.

All of this happened in just a few breaths, originally Chang Yuantu was facing a dry river full of soldiers, but now he was facing a roaring flood of the river, and the large branches and leaves of the trees wrapped in the flood, and the soldiers who were floating in the water like dolls and were carried by the current to cross the river. At least 1,000 soldiers in the river were rushing to the opposite bank in a dense formation. But now, all the more than 1,000 soldiers have been washed clean by the current of water like a wash of dirt. And everyone understands that these people have no way to live, and in such a turbulent torrent, they will be shattered by the impact, and there is no chance of survival.

"General Chang, get out of there quickly." One of the generals shouted.

Chang Yuantu recovered from his astonishment and hurriedly lifted the reins of his horse and retreated. Under the hooves of his horse, a large area of the river embankment rumbled and collapsed, fortunately he was reminded by the lieutenant general, otherwise Chang Yuantu would have fallen into the torrent with his men and horses.

"Stand back, all stand back." Shocked, Chang Yuantu ordered loudly. All the soldiers hurried away from the riverbank, away from the rushing torrent of death.

Chang Yuantu, who was in shock, looked at the rolling torrent in front of him in a daze, how could the originally dry river flow with such a big flow, what the hell was going on. Suddenly he understood everything, and it was clearly man-made. After the three strange fireworks were raised, the flood rolled down, which was clearly an elaborate ploy. In an instant, cold sweat broke out on Chang Yuantu's body, and he realized that he might have stepped into a trap.