The night will come to an end, and the sun will rise at dawn.

The grass and trees on the roadside and the frozen river glistening in the distance. The cold winter air froze the red flag, and in order to keep warm, the soldiers inserted their bows into the bow sacs. The ground was frozen solid, and tens of thousands of horses galloped on it, and even though the horses' hooves were wrapped in cloth, the sound could still be heard far away.

Deng She traveled all the way, and whenever there was a Yuan army sentry, they all captured and beheaded, and when they encountered the Yuan army's rout, they all covered up and killed.

Those who can enter the main force of the five yas are all the elite of the elite, who can fight well and endure hardships and stand hard work. In the dripping and freezing weather, unless they rested their horsepower, they worked day and night, and the next morning, they entered the border of Xingzhong Prefecture.

Xingzhong Prefecture was like a great enemy, temporarily stopped the civil strife, they did not have many men and horses, did not have the courage to come out to intercept, scouts and horses out, only strengthened the defense. In order to avoid irritating them, Dunshe ordered a bypass. Instead, it turned south, and crossed the Daling River thirty miles away.

From Yizhou to Daning, there are two big rivers along the way, one is the Daling River and the other is the Tu River. The Daling River is in the east of Xingzhong Prefecture, and the Tuhe River is in the east of Daning, so it is necessary to put the envoy in the warm spring ice melting, and there is no preparation for crossing the river, and the cavalry is not easy to pass. The reason why Dunshe decided to go on a long journey was also due to this factor.

After Xingzhongzhou, half of the journey was completed.

At noon the next day, Deng She left 2,000 men and horses and stationed them at the foot of the nearby mountains to prevent the generals of Xingzhong Prefecture and the surrounding green army from copying his back road. In the middle of the night, another early morning came, the army marched forward, stopped twenty miles outside the city of Daning, Liu Yang led five hundred military horses, lost their armor, turned their flags, pretended to be a rout, and went to the city gate.

At the head of Daning City, there are many military flags, and soldiers with swords and guns patrol back and forth.

Before Liu Yang could run to the city, an arrow had already been shot, he restrained his mount, raised his head and shouted: "I am the head of Zhang in Zhongzhou, and the thousands of households under the command of Liu Wanhu in Zuoying." Last night, the red thief rushed to Xingzhongzhou, I went out to fight, but I fell into the encirclement, fought bravely, and was going back to the city, but I was intercepted by the red thief, so I simply fled here, and asked the adults to send troops to rescue. ”

The city guard looked at the probe, didn't say a word, hooked his head and left.

Liu Yang shouted: "Where is the general of the city?" Quickly open the gates of the city for me, and I ask to see my lord. You don't know the truth of cold lips and teeth, and adults won't know it. He looked sad and angry, and shouted incessantly, and the soldiers behind him clamored and shouted, "Open the city gate quickly!" ”

Soon, the guard turned back, and there was another person in his companion, about forty, with a white face and long beard, without the armor of a military general, dressed as a civil official.

This person looked up and down, knew Liu Yang for a long time, and asked, "What is your name?" ”

Looking at his clothes and appearance, Liu Yang knew that he would undoubtedly be a family treasure. He shouted and replied, "Lord Hui, my surname is Brother Ma Mingle, and there are thousands of households in the camp of Liu Wanhu." ”

"Is Liu Wanhu's hemorrhoids cured?"

This Wanhu surnamed Liu asked from the mouth of the descendant, and Liu Yang replied: "But I have never heard of hemorrhoids." ”

The civil official nodded and said with a smile: "Liu Wanhu really has no hemorrhoids, and this official deliberately deceived you." …… Come on, open the city gate, and invite General Ma into the city. Taking advantage of the opening of the city gate, he asked, "The red thieves besieged Xingzhongzhou?" How many people are there? Who is the leader of the army? Can you hold the city? ”

"There are no less than 50,000 red thieves, and Deng Thief personally leads them. If you are rescued by adults, there is no problem in defending the city. ”

The city gate slowly opened, creaked, and the city fell silent.

The city gate was opened, and Liu Yang was quite surprised. He looked at the black gate of the city, looked up at the civil official, and thought, "Listening to the words of the general, it is difficult to deceive the city gate, but I didn't expect it to be so easy." After thinking about it, I couldn't help but wonder, "Didn't this guy see through my fraud, or was there an ambush behind the city gate to make dumplings?" ”

An accompanying hundred-hundred-household whispered: "General, enter, or not enter?" Another said, "If he has opened, why doesn't he go in?" And first seized the city gate, I beat the horse back, reported to the general, and the army came over, since the fake became true, simply a brain, kill all the Tartars in the city. ”

The civil official at the head of the city said with a smile: "The city gate has been opened, General Ma, please come in." ”

……

The sun rises in point.

Among the tens of thousands of cavalry troops outside the city, the men and horses were silent and silent. Tong Shengyang gently stroked the mount to soothe its restlessness.

After a long time, military horses are like soldiers, and they can also experience the atmosphere before the battle. It is a great pleasure to gallop with thousands of of the same kind, trampling on the bones of the dead in battle, falling down the hooves of horses, breaking flesh and bones, and splashing blood, but after the blood, listening to the cry of losing a partner on the desolate battlefield, it is inevitable that the rabbit will die and the fox will die.

This feeling is both exhilarating and fearful of the unknown.

One step forward, life and death are unpredictable.

……

At the head of the city, the civil official urged twice: "The city gate has been opened, the general please enter." ”

In the dark doorway, Liu Yang saw a cold light, which flashed away. The icy morning wind whipped up dust from the ground and swept the ends of his hair. When everything was silent, he saw in a trance that a few withered yellow leaves rose with the wind, and the posture was graceful, like a butterfly in spring, fluttering.

"General, please enter the city."

Liu Yang inexplicably, there is an illusion of time and space. Where do butterflies come in winter? The yellow leaves have long since fallen. The sky is high and the clouds are light, and the distant mountains are lonely. On the glacier not far away, three or two flocks of wild birds flew up, he suddenly looked up, and saw the head of the city, the civil official smiled, and the surrounding Yuan army was intentional or unintentional, and the bow and arrow were all in hand.

The yellow leaves must be collected from the withered branches, good ends, why are the withered branches piled up behind the door? …… He spurred and kicked the horse, drew his knife with his backhand, pulled up the reins, and shouted hoarsely: "There is an ambush behind the door!" The Tartars should set fire to it, withdraw. ”

The cannon sounded at the head of the city, and the rain of arrows stopped.

Behind the city gate, there was a cry that shook the earth, and countless men and horses were crowded, the guns were bright, and the arrows were like locusts. Liu Yang saw the opportunity quickly, escaped from Li Xu between breaths, and heard the laughter of the city in the distance, and the civil official said loudly: "General Ma is good to go, I will not send it far." told Xiao Deng that Liu Wanhu had no hemorrhoids, but he died in Yizhou early, and the official knew it clearly. ”

……

The cavalry army outside the city, the sound of artillery alarmed the horses, and they rushed back to call the police.

Deng She jumped on his mount and looked left and right: "This must be General Liu's deception, which has aroused the vigilance of Shijiabao." He raised his spear and rode his horse, and shouted around the formation: "Reward for those who kill the enemy!" Punish the cowardly! Get the first level, and the reward is consistent. Whoever enters the city first, a hundred households pull out a thousand, a thousand households pull out ten thousand, all the kings, and follow me. ”

Someone translated it into the Jurchen language, and the Jurchens listened to it, shouted and shouted, and got on their horses one after another. Tens of thousands of Jurchens, tens of thousands of pigtails, and earrings collided together, jingling and ringing.

Facing the sun, everyone is enthusiastic. Tong Shengyang took the lead, swept and galloped, he put his arms around the horse's neck, shrunk sideways, and hid in a stirrup during the gallop, then turned over, opened his bow and shot an arrow, and shot a small tree dozens of steps away, breaking two connected branches.

"More! More's forehead! ”

Tong Shengyang put away his bow and arrows, ran to Deng She's side, reined in his horse with one hand, drew his knife downward, and then struck the armor, and shouted: "The Jurchen Mo Ergeng, I would like to be my brother's answer." "Mor Geng, the meaning of the archer in Jurchen words; Answer, the meaning of dog in Jurchen words.

The cold wind blew on his face, and Deng Sheze rode his horse up the glacier. His archery skills are not as good as Tong Shengyang's ilk, but after riding a horse for more than ten years, it can be said that he grew up on horseback and has excellent riding skills. He declared to the Jurchens: "Your archers, my brother, are willing to be my answers. I swear by this arrow that I will never fail each other. ”

The Jurchens shouted in unison: "Take this arrow as an oath, never lose each other!" ”

Deng She galloped at a speed, threw the brigade down a distance, and then immediately shot a horizontal gun, the galloping mount stopped effortlessly in the middle of the glacier, the iron hooves stirred up ice chips, he turned around, facing tens of thousands of cavalry, facing tens of thousands of Jurchen bravery, he asked: "You, my warriors, are you willing to be my guide, are you willing to be my oblique spirit?" ”

The glacier is like a belt, and thousands of horses are galloping. The distant city is like iron, and the iron riding is like a flood.

At this scene, everyone was moved and shouted in unison: "I am willing to answer for the general!" May it be the general's oblique martyrdom! "Slanted fierce, the meaning of the blade.

Dunsher laughed and turned forward.

……

Daning, Jizhou in the Xia and Shang periods, Zhou is Youzhou, the Warring States belongs to Yan, and Qin belongs to Liaoxi. Since the Qin and Han dynasties, they have all been the Central Plains, and since the Song Dynasty, they have been descended. Great rivers, magnificent rivers and mountains, my Chinese gate, my Chinese domain, but it has been stained for 400 years, and the Han people have not seen their clothes for 400 years.

Deng Shebing came to the city, although he did not come to attack Daning this time, he was also full of emotion in his heart.

Soon after crossing the river, he caught Liu Yang, who was galloping back, and briefly asked about the situation, Deng She comforted him, and the cavalry slowed down, and the baggage battalion moved forward for ten miles, and then stopped and officially set up camp. Instructed Lu Qian12 to lead a thousand people, play the banner of the headquarters, and challenge the city, if there is no battle in the city, there is no need to come back, tour left and right, and prevent him from taking advantage of his own army to camp and come to sneak attack.

"Our army has arrived at the city, when is the general going to set up an ambush? Is Huihe's Tanma back? Did the Buddhist slaves go out to the army? Lu Qianwu twisted his body uneasily, he was always worried that his efforts would be in vain and he would not be able to deceive the Buddhist slave.

"It's only early in the morning, how can you set up an ambush? When the camp is first established, fight with the family treasure once, and then it is not too late to talk about it in the evening. ”

With thousands of soldiers and soldiers of the baggage battalion, plus more than 10,000 cavalry to help, the camp soon took shape. Lu Qianxi sent someone to report that the gate of Daning was closed, and many artillery pieces were pulled on the city, full of bows and crossbows, and the cavalry was slightly close, it was a rain of arrows and bullets, and Shijiabao did not come out to fight at all.

"Point three thousand Jurchens, take the ladder and other things, and attack the city."

……

"It's almost night, the red thieves are attacking the city, do you have to fight all night?" A general of the Yuan army asked suspiciously, "He traveled three hundred miles in a hurry, and he didn't stop?" When was there such a brave thief among the red thieves? ”

Standing at the head of the city, looking at the military horses of the two cities rushing over like a tide, Shi Jiabao thought for a moment and said: "Even if the soldiers are beaten by iron, they can't fight without enough rest. Deng Thief didn't want to fight all night, he just tested the combat strength of our army and saw the will of our army to defend the city. ”

Shi Jiabao asked, "Are there red thieves in all the four city gates?" ”

"The red thief is surrounded by three queyi. The last general will look carefully, the north city gate has the most red thieves, more than 10,000 people, and the other two city gates are only thousands. It will not be difficult for our army to break through the encirclement. ”

"Our army has many foot soldiers, and the red thieves are all cavalry. The cavalry is not good at attacking cities and field battles, and the Deng thief is familiar with military affairs, so he will not know the truth of promoting strengths and avoiding weaknesses. Therefore, he showed hypocrisy, and his intention was to lure our army to break through. When you look at the red thief camp at the north city gate, is it noisy and extremely lively? ”

"Exactly."

"On the surface, it is noisy, but in fact, it is murderous and hidden. This officer can conclude that as long as our army breaks through to the outside, he will definitely come out of the camp at the north gate of the city with iron cavalry, attack our rear road, and outflank and encircle. Shi Jiabao sneered and said, "Huihe's letter is not false at all when it comes to Deng Thief's cunning. If you deceive me that the city gate will not be opened, and I will not succeed in a plan, and I use this plan, will this official be fooled? ”

His concerns were not unfounded.

Daning's Yuan army had only experienced a fiasco, and the army's heart was shaken, if it blindly went out of the city to break through, in case of an ambush, the consequences would be unimaginable. Shijiabao thought to himself: "Even if it breaks through, it is not today, the red thief is coming, and the edge is flourishing." After a few days, when it is tired, our army will recuperate and recharge, and then we can make a good plan. ”

Hearing him mention Huihe, the Yuan general said: "Huihe said in the letter, I think that Deng Thief Ming attacked Daning and really planned to Huihe." Clearly cowardly like a tiger! More than 20,000 cavalry of Deng Thief are all in my place, what can he do to fight Huihe again? My lord, why don't you repair a letter again, and tell Huihe about all kinds of situations, if you can get reinforcements and relieve the siege of our city, it is not difficult to break the thief. ”

Shi Jiabao nodded yes, and he was a little unimpressed by the suspicion of the Buddhist slaves.

Huihe has Daning on the left, Wuping on the right, Xingzhongzhou in the back, one hundred and ten miles away from each other, two hundred miles away from each other, the military horses gallop to help the morning and evening, to talk about the degree of security, several cities, it is the highest. Deng She was only 20,000 cavalry, and if the surprise attack failed, he would inevitably fall into a heavy encirclement immediately, and no matter how bold he was, he would not dare to risk his life.

Daning is different, although the back is attached to the belly, but most of the military horses in the belly are concentrated in the west, and the arch guards most of the capital; Or deploy in the south to guard against Shandong, which is beyond the reach of the whip and difficult to draw reinforcements. In Huizhou, to the west of it, there are only enough military horses to defend the city, and it is impossible to count on it to reinforce it. In other words, Daning's current situation has no reinforcements except for Huihe.

He believed that Deng She's strategy was to first take Daning, then go north, and then attack Huihe and Wuping. It's just that the official position of the Buddhist slave is higher than him, and he is his superior, and his dissatisfaction can only be suppressed in his heart. Just as he judged, the Shuangcheng Army tried to attack twice, but did not attack, and as soon as the sun set, Mingjin withdrew his troops.

After dinner, Dunsher was in the army.

The whole battalion extinguished the torches, and the city was pitch black, only the angry wind lamps of the Yuanmen were shining, and the light was very conspicuous. At the time of the third watch, thousands of people quietly came out of the camp from behind, and the people did not ride horses, but walked a long way before galloping on horseback and going straight to the Qijin Mountain in the north.

Two hours later, at the west gate of Daning, several horsemen sneaked out and went around to the east.

The Twin Cities Patrol found them, and the Flying Cavalry reported to Deng She, asking for orders to take them. Deng She said: "Count the horses and sneak, set as the Daning messenger, see my north gate crowd, so out of the west gate, around the east." Send a few men to follow firmly, and if he turns north and goes to Huihe, he doesn't have to be captured. If he does not go to Huihe, he will be killed on the spot. ”

The patrol took the order and left.

"General, Hui and Tan Ma Lai."

"How's the military going?"

"The Buddha slaves were frightened three times a day, and the defenders at the head of the city increased to four thousand last night."

The generals are worried. Deng She smiled slightly, only called for rewarding Tanma, and didn't say anything else. Finally, someone couldn't bear it anymore and asked: "General, the Buddhist slaves are on guard day by day, and seeing that my ambush on Qijin Mountain is about to fail, why doesn't the general worry and laugh, what is the reason?" ”

Deng She smiled, but did not answer, only asked: "Who wants to be a pioneer in attacking the city at dawn?" ”