"Kill!" Wang Jin Huoran pulled out his saber, and the word "kill" burst out from between his lips and teeth, echoing between heaven and earth, with a long rhyme. Pen ~ fun ~ pavilion www.biquge.info

Rows and rows of cavalry roared past the king's back, rushing straight ahead. The vast wasteland was covered with a thin layer of snow, on which the horses of war stood, stirring the snow and mud like a black wave.

A not magnificent fortress appeared in front of him, covered with snow, and half of the gate on the city wall was gone, and even the traces behind the fortress could be seen, and the Mongolian soldiers standing on the gate slowly raised their blades at the moment when the enemy appeared.

The two teams of cavalry did not stop their speed, but went directly around the sides of the fortress and directly attacked the Mongol cavalry behind. The Mongolian cavalry behind the city also did not hesitate, and roared angrily to meet it head-on. In the white snow of the wasteland, in fact, the war horses can't run at all, so the best and only way for the two teams to face each other is to fight head-on, otherwise it is easy to be attacked by others on the flanks whether they retreat or flank each other.

Tang Zhen did not compete with Wang Jin for the credit of leading the army to assault, but only slowly rode his horse up the hill not far from the pass with a few personal guards.

"The north wind swept the white grass and folded, and the snow flew in August." Tang Zhen looked at the scene in front of him and muttered, it didn't look like he was on the battlefield at all, but like a literati and ink artist who came to the ancient battlefield to pay his respects.

On the battlefield under the hills, the situation has become brighter and brighter, thousands of cavalry staggered in all directions, the number of only one or two thousand Mongolian cavalry was cut and split, in the face of the absolute difference in numbers, even if the Mongolian cavalry is brave and desperate, it is difficult to escape the fate of being besieged.

After all, in order to catch up with them, Wang Jin led the cavalry to drive for a hundred miles, but he finally didn't let them run away, and these Mongolian cavalry had some skills.

Su Zhi rushed to Tang Zhen's side and looked at the scene in front of him

Tang Zhen glanced at him and said in a deep voice: "This is Yangguan, and it can't go far from Yangguan in the west to Dunhuang." ”

Su Zhi showed a gloomy look on his face, and replied softly: "When you go out of Yangguan in the west, there is no one else." ”

"Let's go, now there is. Seeing that His Majesty means that he wants the Ming Dynasty to take deep roots in Hexi and even the Western Regions, so if we stand in this place in the future, we don't have to worry about having no old people," Tang Zhen pulled out his blade and licked his lips a little excitedly, at this moment he didn't look like a civil official at all, but like a knife head licking blood for many years, "Looking at the few living mouths left for us, are you interested in killing him?" ”

"Kill!" Su Zhi Huoran lifted the horse lance and urged the war horse fiercely. The war horse neighed and rushed down directly from the top of the hill, leaving Su Zhi with a back.

And a smile appeared on the corner of Tang Zhen's mouth, beckoning the guards around him to catch up with Su Zhi.

In fact, Yangguan has been basically abandoned in the Tang Dynasty, from the original two most important checkpoints on the Silk Road in the Han Dynasty into a "Yangguan Fengsui" that is not even a guard and capture, but in the final analysis, it is not because of the loss of the importance of Yangguan in terms of geographical location, but because of the Tang Dynasty's development of the Western Regions, so that this pass on the throat of the north of the Hexi Corridor is no longer so important, and the defense of the Anxi Protectorate has been advanced from Hexi to the line of the Green Ridge. And for a long time, the Anzai Prefecture has maintained an offensive posture to the outside world, and there is no need to pay special attention to defense.

Now Hexi has re-become the front line before the Ming Dynasty and Mongolia, so Mongolia has also repaired Yangguan, but it has only widened the Guancheng, which has been seriously shrunk, and even did not form a four-sided city, but only built a wall facing the interior of Hexi between the two hills, and because of the shortage of funds and the outbreak of the Mongolian civil war later, even the city gate was not properly built, which looked a little nondescript at this time, and was very shabby.

However, Yangguan is still the last line of defense of Mongolia in Hexi, and Dunhuang in the back is facing the enemy on all sides, and there is no danger to defend at all, so Mongolia originally stationed more than 500 people here, plus the soldiers and horses who retreated from various cities in Hexi one after another, and a Mongolian cavalry rushed over from the north to support, so there are a total of two or three thousand people to defend, which is definitely a strong force for Hexi and the Western Regions, where the Mongolian army is seriously empty.

But this kind of strength is like a layer of thin paper in front of the cavalry of seven or eight thousand Great Ming Shen Ce Army, not to mention that this thin paper is leaking on all sides.

Hundreds of cavalry bent their bows and arrows at the same time, and a dense stream of arrows roared across the city, suppressing the crossbowmen above. The cavalry behind did not hesitate to light the thistle and threw it at the city gate. Originally, the entire city gate was actually only half, and the material of the city gate was also wood that I don't know where to find it, which had been severely weathered, and the explosion was violently pushed, and the city gate was actually shattered and smashed into the sand.

The cavalry of the brigade roared and rushed into the city. And the cavalry outflanked from both sides had already pressed the stubborn Mongol cavalry on the corner of the city wall and slashed desperately, basically five or six people against one person, not so much fighting as fighting for prey.

Among these cavalrymen, there are the Praetorian Guard, the Shence Army, and the Tianwu Army, each of which represents an army that has always had an honor and a glorious past, so no one wants to embarrass their own team. And on the battlefield, the best way not to be ashamed is military merit. For this kind of cavalry rushing battlefield, what could be more worthy of military merit than the enemy's head?

Wang Jin rushed through the chaotic crowd with his personal guards, restrained his horse under the gate, and then strode up to the gate. The already small Guancheng was already full of Ming soldiers, and because it was a long way to outflank from both wings, Wang came in even one step later than Tang Zhen and them.

The Mongol general guarding Yangguan had been killed, and a man of color who was his lieutenant was intermittently telling the guide about the situation of the surrounding Mongol garrisons, and then the guide translated it to Wang Jin and Tang Zhen sentence by sentence. This man never imagined that one day the Southern Barbarian in his eyes would appear in front of his eyes with a sword, and then slaughter the invincible Mongols, so that she never thought of learning a language like Chinese, which is used by lowly people.

And now, as long as he can save his life, the centurion is willing to tell everything he knows.

Tang Zhen listened to a rough idea, turned to look at Wang Jin, this guy was still carrying a bloody knife in his hand, and he didn't know if he had chopped a few Mongolian cavalry just now, but Tang Zhen didn't care, if it wasn't because he didn't catch up, I'm afraid Tang Zhen wouldn't mind having a good time:

"This guy is too nervous, our guide is just an ordinary Han man, I can hear a rough idea, what he wanted to say when you didn't come just now is that there are about three or four thousand people stationed in Dunhuang and Yumen Pass, most of them are Huihui, Semu and Tang Wu."

Wang Jin nodded: "It seems that it is a bit overkill to send a force to attack Yumen Pass." ”

"I always feel that the atmosphere in Hexi is a little weird, so it's better to be careful." Tang Zhen frowned, "Since there are only two places around, Yumen Pass and Dunhuang, where Mongolian Tartars are stationed, then let's hurry up and head directly to Dunhuang." ”

Su Zhi said from the side: "This is simple, after passing the Yangguan road, I have walked it twice, and I don't need a guide to take the brothers to the top." ”

Wang Jin waved his hand: "Don't panic about this, just now Lao Tang said that the atmosphere was a little weird, and I also noticed that these Mongols basically abandoned the city and abandoned the land all the way in Hexi, and we drove all the way to the west from the beginning, and it is not wrong to say that we are chasing and killing all the way." This is not the usual style of the Mongol Tatars, even if the Mongol Tatars were short of troops during the previous Northern Expedition, they would choose one or two cities to defend to the death, thus delaying time, but this time ・・・・・・"

"Maybe the Mongol Tatars really can't draw their troops anymore?" Su Zhi raised his eyebrows, "You must know that the Mongol Tatar civil war has been going on for so long, and there should be no time to take care of Hexi." ”

"This is true, but even if the Mongol Tatars don't have the strength to take care of Hexi, they should not be so close to self-defeating, or even a big rout." Tang Zhen's voice turned cold, "Kublai Khan is definitely not a mediocre talent, when His Majesty was still a dragon dive before, Kublai Khan was able to make the world shake between the palms of his hands, these two years have passed, it can only show that His Majesty is a great talent or even a saint from heaven, but there is no way to show that Kublai Khan is such a fool who does not know how to choose." ”

Su Zhi's face suddenly changed slightly, he was able to go north to Dunhuang and go to such a desperate situation of ambush on all sides, which showed that his personal courage and wisdom were enough to be recognized, and now when Tang Zhen said this, his heart was also chuckled, and the chill climbed up directly down his backbone.

"Report, ten miles ahead, I found a Mongolian Tartar sentry horse!" A sentry strode over, a puzzled look on his face.

"But what's unusual?" Wang Jin immediately saw that this person's face was wrong, and he almost subconsciously held the hilt of the knife, so when people who had experienced the battlefield faced danger, the first thing they thought of was their own blade, because that was the best partner who could help them survive in a desperate situation.

The sentry nodded: "Although that sentry does not have a flag, it can be seen that the style of clothing is definitely not the Mongolian sentry we met before." ”

Tang Zhen and Su Zhi glanced at each other in surprise.

And another meteor scout came from the southeast: "Your Majesty is in a hurry! ”

"Your Majesty?!" Wang Jin and the others stood on the gate and turned around.

The tanma ran up the city wall in three steps and two steps, and stuffed the bright yellow edict embroidered with the red dragon directly into Wang Jin's hand: "Your Majesty's edict, eight hundred miles urgent, the order does not need to kneel and burn incense to receive the order, read it quickly!" ”

Wang Jin hurriedly glanced at the fire paint, and Tang Zhen next to him had already pulled out the dagger and quickly pried the fire paint open.

Just seeing the first line of words, the faces of Wang Jin, Tang Zhen and others changed again and again.

No wonder the Mongolian Tatars have not resisted in the slightest along the way, no wonder the Shence army is marching westward, because Kublai Khan never intended to keep Hexi, after the elite of Hexi was cleaned, Kublai Khan left a group of old and weak soldiers to pretend, which is why the Mongolian soldiers, who have always been fierce, did not resist to the death but chose to surrender obediently in the face of the Ming army.

Once the Shence army enters Hexi, and then enters the Western Regions along Hexi, it will be equivalent to the Ming interfering in the Western Regions and meddling in the Ogedai Khanate, although Haidu's greatest energy is still focused on the life-and-death duel with Kublai Khan, but for this sudden appearance of the enemy, it will not be taken lightly.

Even once the Shence Army shows its powerful combat power, I am afraid that Kublai Khan and Haidu can still join forces to besiege and kill the lone army of the Shence Army first. The Shence army seems to have a lot of people, and there are even seven or eight thousand cavalry as the biggest dependence, but after all, most of the Shence army are foot soldiers, fighting in the Western Regions wasteland, and the foot soldiers are good at guarding the city, and there is only one possibility of being eaten and wiped clean when they go out of the city.

After all, Haidu and Kublai Khan pulled out one alone, which was not terrible for the Ming Dynasty, and even a Sichuan and Shu army could still drag almost all of Kublai Khan's main army in Chengdu Mansion as long as they were properly prepared.

But now the Shence army is very likely to face the combined forces of Haidu and Kublai Khan, and the Shence army is not all the main forces of the Ming Dynasty, but only one of them, even if it is a strengthened seven or eight thousand cavalry, in the face of tens of thousands of cavalry overwhelming cover-up, there is only one possibility of rout.

It's the same as the cavalry in Yangguan just now.

What's more, the Western Regions is not better than the Central Plains fortified cities can be defended, nor is it better than Sichuan and Shu with steep terrain to rely on, the endless wilderness and desert are the best places for cavalry to go and cross, and it is also a hell for foot soldiers, even if the Shence army can hold Dunhuang City and other cities, they will have to face hunger and thirst because of the lack of water and food and grass.

"We're fans of the authorities." Tang Zhen sighed heavily.

almost became Kublai Khan's best and most rebellious pawn, how could he not feel depressed.

"If you guessed correctly, the Mongolian sentry just now should not be Kublai Khan's, but Haidu's." The expression on Su Zhi's face also became solemn, and he already vaguely felt that from the beginning of the Dunhuang Massacre, this was a trap that had been laid out a long time ago, or it was a backhand that Kublai Khan had already set aside, because he had no way to predict what kind of ending that mighty southern expedition would be, so he had to consider every possibility.

Heroic, traitorous, a qualified commander. Su Zhi had mixed feelings in his heart, and was used by Kublai Khan to become a perfect chess piece, and even Su Zhi doubted that he could return to Luoyang because the Mongols released water behind his back. Perhaps looking at the world, only His Majesty can compete with Kublai Khan.

And now it seems that His Majesty, who has always had the upper hand, lost in Hexi?

Wang Jin put away the edict and said in a deep voice: "Your Majesty means that since you have already come here, there is no reason to retreat from the battle. The next and last step is to take Dunhuang, Dunhuang is the end of the entire Hexi, and then go further is the territory of the Chagatai Khanate, although there are not many soldiers and horses stationed in Haidu, but it is not the same in name. ”

"Are you saying that Your Majesty wants us to deter the two families at the same time in Dunhuang, and even seek the possibility of an alliance with Haidu?" Tang Zhen frowned and guessed, "The internal fighting in Mongolia is caused by the Xiao Wall, and it stands to reason that it should not use the power of outsiders to level the opponent." Haidu is also a hero, and he will never watch outsiders meddle in his own affairs. ”

"It doesn't have to be a union, it can be a tacit understanding or even a trade." After all, Su Zhi was in the city department, and almost instantly thought of his old job, "through Hexi, to provide Haidu with the food and even armaments they need, so as to support Haidu to be invincible and even suppress Kublai Khan." ”

Wang Jin and Tang Zhen glanced at each other and took a light breath.

What a calculation!

"I just don't know if Haidu has the courage to eat poison." A sneer crossed the corner of Wang Jin's mouth, "Tell the sentry in front of you not to act rashly, as long as those Mongolian cavalry don't approach, let's not provoke them, and make every effort to find out the situation in Dunhuang!" ”

Several generals answered and strode away.

And Wang Jin slowly stretched out his hand and gathered a handful of snow on the battlements that had not been destroyed. It's not so easy to find this handful of snow on the muddy walls.

Tang Zhen seemed to understand what Wang Jin meant, slowly stepped forward, stared at the handful of snow, and muttered: "After hundreds of years, we finally stood here again and saw this Yangguan snow that was constantly praised in the poems of the ancients. ”

"Yes," Wang Jin raised his head and looked ahead, under the gloomy sky, the endless earth spread with all his might into the distance, just like the ambition of this dynasty and the fighting spirit of these soldiers, "Not only do we have to see it, but in the future, our descendants, from generation to generation, will see the snow on this city, and see the white snow under the red dragon of the Ming Dynasty." ”

Wang Jin's voice was not loud, but when he saw his own commander standing on the city wall with white snow in his hand, the busy soldiers of the Shence Army all subconsciously contemplated and looked further west with his gaze.

There's a bigger world out there.

On the first day of October in the first year of Yongle in the Ming Dynasty, the Shence Army conquered Yangguan.

The next day, the Shence army regained the Yumen Pass.

On the fifth day, the Shence army recovered Dunhuang. (To be continued.) )