The strong wind stomped with broken snow, which hurt the face. The stars and moon in the sky disappeared, and it was pitch black everywhere.

Xiao Huji led several generals in the army and carried a few lanterns to walk towards the River in the west of the military camp. The weather suddenly became cold these days, and the River in the River finally became ice. But I tried it during the day, but I still couldn't do it. Today, the wind was still cold, and I don't know how the ice on the river was like.

In the words of later generations, a cold current suddenly came in the Quyang area, and the temperature dropped by more than ten degrees in one or two days. It was just that the ice in the river was for pedestrians, not just one or two days, but it was cold for a long time. The so-called freezing of three feet is not cold for one day, which means this. Moreover, the heavy snow last night, and the snow on the ice had the effect of keeping heat, and I don’t know what the result was.

When he arrived by the river, Xiao Hujiu took a lantern and said, "The snow is still so thick, I don't know if the ice is harder."

Han Jianu said, "What can you tell me? Go up and try it, won't you know?"

After saying that, he took a few steps forward and stood on the ice. He turned around and said to everyone, "It's okay, okay, look, aren't you going to stop?"

Xiao Hujiu said: "It's not okay to just be able to stand people. The army rides by horses, not like this. You jump to see if it will collapse."

The Han family slave obeyed the order and jumped hard, splashing many snowflakes. But the snow was too thick, and I couldn't tell what the ice surface looked like, but it was nothing cracked anyway. After jumping a few times, the Han family slave walked a few more steps inside, jumping and jumping there, and tossing hard.

Xiao Hujiu said, "Looking at this point, it is possible to travel tomorrow. Today, the Song army arranged artillery and aimed at our military camp. If we don't leave tomorrow, we are afraid that the whole army will be filled with dust. God is pitiful, and finally gave us a way out."

The generals said yes and congratulated them one after another. Now, everyone has seen the situation clearly. It is impossible for the Khitan army to defeat the Song army, and the only way out is to escape. But the surroundings are all sealed by the Song army, and the only way out is to rivers. As long as the river surface is frozen and the army crosses the river, they can always find places where the Song army is not defended enough.

In addition to border areas, the defense of the Song army in the mainland was quite lax. Often hundreds of thieves could traverse several states, and sometimes they were helpless. Once these 10,000 Khitan cavalry broke through the Song army's encirclement and arrived in the mainland, there would inevitably be a stir in the world.

The Han family slave walked on the ice for a while and felt that he was not satisfied. He jumped back all the way. Several generals saw it and laughed. Suddenly, they heard a "click" sound, and the ice suddenly cracked. The Han family slave fell into the water with one foot, and was startled.

Xiao Huji hurriedly said, "Go and save the person quickly! It seems that the ice surface will be frozen for one night. I wonder if the army will be able to survive tomorrow."

The Han family's slave tried hard and pulled his feet out of the water, saying, "But it's unlucky. I think there is something here. The ice surface is thinner than other places, and I happened to step on it. Look, other places are fine, and I will definitely leave tomorrow."

After saying that, he was farther away from the place where he was trapped in and jumped a few more times.

Calling Han’s slave back, Xiao Hujiu said, “I hope the weather will be colder and the ice will be thicker tomorrow, so that the army can escape.”

After saying that, he brought the generals back to the camp, but he was uneasy. He could naturally see that it was OK for pedestrians on the ice now, but if the army was acting, they were afraid of risks. They were all cavalry, not the weight of one person. Han family slaves were not wearing armor tonight and fell into the ice. If they rode a horse, the risk would be very high. Not to mention, what weight would a 10,000 cavalry and a large army be on the ice? I am afraid that if they wait for a few more days, the weather will be cold and the army will be able to survive on the ice.

Thinking of this, Xiao Huji looked up at the night sky and sighed secretly. The Song army opposite would not give him time. Today they had arranged artillery and would definitely use artillery to bombard the barracks tomorrow. There is a city wall in Quyang City, but it only lasted for one day. There is no one in his own city wall. How long can the Song army's artillery be beyond expectations.

In the lower reaches of the River Li, Liu Jianji, Yang Sui and several other generals also arrived by the river to see the freezing of the river.

He ordered a few soldiers to come forward and sweep away the snow on the ice with a broom. Liu Jianji stepped forward to watch. After a while, he said, "Carry the ice here and see how thick it is. Tomorrow, attack the Khitan military camp. If the Khitans cannot resist the enemy, it will be troublesome to escape from the ice. The weather has been particularly cold these days, and the river suddenly has ice. I don't know if the army can be carried out."

Several soldiers stepped forward, raised the ice axe, and tried hard to chisel the ice open. Several generals hurried forward and watched together.

Looking at the ice on the river surface, it was more than an inch thick and looked very hard. Zhu Gui stomped hard and said, "There is no problem for people walking on the ice surface, but if the army is walking, it is probably a little thinner. Thousands of people are crowded together, and the ice cannot bear it."

Liu Jianji nodded: "Yes, now it seems that it is not easy for the army to escape from the ice. However, it is still cold tonight and I don't know what tomorrow will look like. Forget it, I'd better prepare some artillery on the river bank first and knock down the ice on the river first."

Zhu Gui said: "If you don't need heavy artillery, you're afraid that you won't collapse easily. Besides, shells are all things in front of you, and it's not easy to use to bomb the ice surface. I think this inch of thick ice cannot pass the army."

Liu Jianji said: "Today, there is no room for mistakes. There are not many Khitan soldiers on both sides, and there are not many artillery pieces. Tomorrow, it will still be a bombardment on the river. If a Khitan escapes and the ice is bombarded, it will not be easy to run away."

All the generals said that it was. Although they knew that the direction of the shell attack was in front, the ice-killing effect was not good, so they couldn't care.

After crossing the River, it was Xingtang. Not far from Zhending Mansion, Dou Shunqing's troops were ready. Even if the Khitans escaped, they could not pose a threat. However, Liu Jianji looked at the victory and did not want to leave hidden dangers.

With 30,000 troops to fight the Khitan, the 30,000 cavalry were already excellent enough to have such a result. If you wipe out the enemy, you will have almost no losses, which is enough for the Song army. Such a result has a lot to do with the terrain. The river has not frozen for a long time, and the Khitan army was blocked between the Xihe River and the Tang River, losing room for maneuver. The Song army's ability to attack is really not comparable to that of the Khitan.

After looking at a few more places, Liu Jianji said: "Tomorrow morning, twenty cannons will be arranged to hit the river on the shore. It happened to be outside the Khitans' barracks and bombard the river near their barracks. The artillery fire happened to be just right. The armies are ready to prevent the Khitans from getting fired and suddenly repulsing out."

Fang Hong said: "The Khitans rushed out with such thick snow, and they happened to be the target of the musket. The victory has been decided, so the Taiwei doesn't have to worry."

Liu Jianji shook his head: "I know the victory is decided, not because I am worried about failure, but because I am afraid of leaving a last resort. Our battle is the first battle of the Khitans going south. The better the battle, the greater the impact on the morale of both sides. If we let none of the Khitans escape, the Khitan army in the north will inevitably be affected and we dare not be careless anymore."
Chapter completed!