In order to conserve physical strength, the Xia army was ready to once again implement the strategy of 'echoing inside and outside, flowering in the center, and fixing the river in a war'; in addition to regular inspections, the whole army dug wild vegetables, shaved tree roots, brushed leaves, went down to the river to catch fish, went up the mountain to hunt, and struggled to fill their stomachs. ^//^

After Zhao Ta set the strategy of 'braking with static', he just kept adjusting the fortifications, digging ditches and repairing the village, strengthening the defense, and mobilizing grain and grass, which made people seem to be preparing for a protracted war with the Xia army. With the completion of defensive measures, Xia Jun, who was good at riding and shooting, and charging became a small-footed woman, and the scope of his activities was shrinking day by day.

The Song army from all walks of life is now gathered in the Zhuolun River, plus the archers of the Fan soldiers who cooperate with the battle, the total number of troops has reached 50,000, and the number of troops has surpassed that of the Xia army for the first time since the beginning of the war.

Zhao Ta ordered the main force of the army to stick to the camp, block all the crossings out of Sichuan, and send soldiers to patrol and inspect the small roads that can only be walked by single bicycle; Then the various departments sent small units to harass the Xia army day and night, so that they could not be at peace, and at the same time ordered an assault force to stand by, waiting for the opportunity to come out when the Xia army was tired, often making the Xia army scramble, and when they were ready to counterattack, the Song army, which had made a handful, withdrew and returned to the camp, not fighting with them. After a few days, the Xia army is a rumor, and he can't look for food with peace of mind, who knows which attack of the Song army is real? I can only wait for it every day!

Soldiers come and go on the battlefield. There was a lot of fun. But Zhao Xin found that the prince who was hiding in Liangu City to escape the summer was not happy, and often sat in the courtyard in a daze, and sat for a long time, until the sun set, and the stars went back to the house to sleep, but he often tossed and turned and couldn't sleep all night, which made him not worry about it, thinking if the prince had something on his mind?

．．．．．．

'Mu Usu' is a Mongolian word that means a place where no grass grows, however. The city of Xiazhou was built on the southern edge of the Mu Us Gobi, on the north bank of the Hongliu River in the upper reaches of the Wuding River. The scenery is pleasant, it is not only a good pasture, but also a good field. However, with the increase of population, excessive development, coupled with climate change and war, the ground vegetation was completely lost, and sand was raised on the spot, and there was sand accumulation in the Tang Dynasty, and the situation became more serious in the Song Dynasty.

At the beginning of the Song Dynasty, the city of Xiazhou was already deep in the desert. *.*// In addition to the earthquake damage, the city was destroyed, Li Jiqian rebelled and took this place as the capital, but then moved to Lingzhou, and then moved to Xingzhou, in addition to political factors, the natural conditions of Xiazhou are harsh, and environmental changes are also important factors. With the relocation of the capital, the political status of Xia Prefecture continued to decline, and it became an ordinary state and county in Western Xia.

Xiazhou has always been the main road from Guanzhong to Mobei. Every summer, many merchants pass through here, and Itai Station is the last post station from Toyosu to Xiazhou, so a large number of merchants gathered. It is said that 'when the wind is high and the fire is set on fire, the moon is dark and kills the night'. It was the end of the month, and the wind was high and there was no moon. A group of 'thieves' raided the inn, and everyone was gathered in the open space in the inn, surrounded by about a hundred people armed with long knives. Caravans have been walking all year round, and it is common to encounter thieves, many of whom are brave, but now they have lost the courage to resist and squatted there in despair.

"I don't want to embarrass everyone, as long as you don't resist, we will ensure the safety of your lives and property, but if you resist and make some small moves in private, those people will end!" Under the torches, Wang Heng, the commander of the desert battalion of the Loyal Army, slashed the two sides with the long knife in his hand and said with a hideous expression, the murderous aura that rushed to the sky made everyone shudder, and squinted at the more than ten corpses lying on the side that were still steaming, and lowered his head and plunged into the crotch of his pants. …,

"Commander, the entire post station has been controlled, and no one has slipped through the net!" A man ran up to the man who spoke and whispered.

"Okay, Zhou Dutou, you immediately notify the capital control and inform you that Banjing Station has been controlled by our department and can enter!" Wang Heng nodded and said.

"Commander, what should these people do, is it according to the usual practice..."Zhou Li ordered one of his men to deliver the letter, he glanced at the hundreds of people squatting on the ground, and made a gesture to wipe his neck and said.

"No need, let's do less killing, these people are all merchants, find a yard and lock them up, as long as they don't run away, don't embarrass them!" Wang Heng shook his head and said.

"Huh?!" Zhou Li sighed as if he didn't understand, looked at the commander's face again, and once again confirmed that he didn't mean anything else, so he ordered someone to drive people to a courtyard and set up a sentry.

"Dutou, does the commander want us to deal with them here?" After closing the door, a person approached Zhou Li and asked, looking at the armband, he knew that he was a captain.

"Nonsense, watch them well, run one, take your head on top!" Zhou Li glared and said, but he also muttered in his heart, how did the commander make that killing god change his sex today and become a bodhisattva. In fact, it is no wonder that the subordinates think a lot, after the desert battalion has been divided into the desert, it has been serving as a striker, in addition to normal duties, it has to perform tasks such as exploring the road and finding camps.

Along the way, in order to keep secrets, they could not take the traditional 'green corridor', but kept walking in the desert depths that were inaccessible to avoid the crowds they might encounter, but they also inevitably ran into patrolling Xia soldiers and lost caravans, and the troops also had to replenish drinking water and find forage for war horses and camels, so the people who met them had only one fate, that is, death. That's how they came all the way, in the face of defenseless old and weak women and children, begging businessmen, they have never seen a commander soften their hearts, but today they said such a thing!

The brigade soon entered the Banjing Station, the livestock were scattered in the surrounding woods, and the people entered the post station, so the streets of the town were full of dusty soldiers, and the people and merchants in the town wanted to go out to see what was going on, and they were all ordered to stay at home and not go out a single step. The guard posts sent by the scout battalion were all changed into the clothes of the Xia army, and the people who entered the warning area were carefully checked, and they were not allowed to leave if there was no problem, and they were all found a place to be locked up, and they were only allowed to enter but not leave.

"All the rules, wash your face!" Wang Heng let Zhao Ren into a single courtyard, and said with a basin of water with his own hands.

"Wait, is there enough water here for the whole army to drink?" Zhao Ren retracted his outstretched hand and stood up and asked.

"Rest assured, there are rivers passing through here, not only enough for people to drink, but also for horses and camels!" Wang Heng said with a smile, for half a month, as soon as the army entered the desert, it made strict restrictions on water use, and the drinking water supplied from top to bottom was treated equally, of course, including the supreme leader Zhao Ren, the water supplied was not enough to drink, let alone wash his face.

"Hehe, I sat down and got sick, looking at the water in this basin, the first thing I thought of was not to wash my face, but to drink the water!" Zhao Ren licked his lips and smiled a little embarrassedly.

"I have ordered someone to make tea, prepare food, and enjoy it today, you have worked hard these days!" Wang Heng's heart was hot, during these days, everyone often stayed overnight in the ancient fortress long wall left by the previous dynasty, abandoned castle checkpoints, and even wasteland sand ridges, and every day they faced the endless yellow sand, distant journeys and unbearable hunger and thirst. In order to carry more ammunition, their supplies are compressed dry food invented by the prince, that kind of taste Wang Heng has tasted as early as in the capital, and the water that can be found is often bitter and salty water, which is also limited, not everyone can drink it every time, often the people in front drink it, and the people in the back can only wait until the next drinking point. …,

"Wang Heng, you have learned to be polite now, I think when we were trained in Beifu, we all ate in a pot, we are all brothers, what are you polite, Zhao Yong, Zhao Zhong and a few of them will be found later, let's eat together, everyone is greedy, the thing invented by the prince fills the stomach, it's okay to eat often!" Zhao Ren shook his head and said with a wry smile.

"Hehe, when I think about it, it feels like yesterday, I train with the prince every day, and if I don't get it right, I will be punished, I feel very bitter at that time, but now I think back on it is the happiest time we have ever had... I don't know how the prince of Lu Dao is now, he only has half of the men and horses in his hands, but he has to face the 100,000 army of Brother Cha, I'm really a little worried! Wang Heng looked at Zhao Ren and said.

"Don't worry, the prince is not an ordinary person, it will be fine, I have already sent someone out of Lu to contact, and I will soon know the news from the prince of Lu Dao!" Zhao Ren patted Wang Heng's shoulder and comforted, in fact, what he thought in his heart was the same as Wang Heng, as the deputy of the prince, he understood better that dealing with the Chago army was more dangerous than crossing thousands of miles of desert, and the slightest carelessness would be a catastrophe...

Banjing Station is only forty miles away from Xiazhou City, seven miles of Ping is only twenty miles, the next day, the whole army rests here for a day, Zhao Ren personally went to Xiazhou to reconnoitre, although the environment of Xiazhou is deteriorating day by day, but compared to the vast sand sea dozens of miles away, here is still paradise, the rolling Wuding River moistens this land, the old canal of the Han and Tang Dynasties is still there, and the Qianmo is vertical and horizontal, but from the day when Taizong decided to destroy the city and immigrate, 200,000 people moved south, and the prosperity of the past was lost here, announcing its fall.

In the evening, Zhao Ren finally came to the city of Xiazhou, and saw this white male city, as the capital it existed for twenty-five years, and five hundred years passed to its destruction, and now the remnant sun is slanting westward, the desert is setting, and the light of ten thousand rays dyes the dark gray sky, and the thousands of miles of yellow sand reflect the blood-colored face of the sunset, and the raging wind walks through the ruins and ruins of the white city unscrupulously, just like the Hun iron horsemen who slaughtered Chang'an in the year let out an unruly long laugh, shaking the sea of Mu Us sand in front of them, but their arrival, It will turn this place into a battlefield of blood and fire again, and the army of the Great Song Empire will once again set foot on the towering city! (To be continued.) If you like this work, you are welcome to vote for recommendation and monthly passes, and your support is my biggest motivation. )