Chapter 84: The storm rises again (7)

Deputy General Wang Huan was hit by two arrows, one shot into his right chest and one shot on his thigh. The iron arrow in his right chest shot through the leather armor, which was very deep. However, Wang Huan faced the Dangxiang cavalry that was rushing like a huge wave, and did not care about the arrow injury, nor aimed. He desperately shot arrows at the Dangxiang cavalry group. The two shield formations were covered with shooting Dangxiang cavalry horses and soldiers. A few Dangxiang riders avoided the blockade of the iron arrows and rushed to the front of the formation, but were blocked by the shield formation. The spearman behind the shield formation took advantage of the Dangxiang rider's opportunity to slow down and stab the Dangxiang cavalry with a spear.

Fang Dang Bai Ge saw that Feng Xiang’s army was fighting extremely tenaciously and the Dangxiang army could not resolve the battle for the time being, so he ordered: “Fang Dang Ronghao led his army to stay and eliminate this Zhou army. Other troops would go around and don’t bother here.”

Soon, the Dangxiang Army completed the adjustment. The main force of the Dangxiang Army bypassed the shield formation and rushed towards Ocang Pass. Fang Dangrong Hao led three thousand Dangxiang cavalry to surround the Fengxiang Army shield formation. The Dangxiang Cavalry did not attack the shield formation, but circled around the shield formation and shot the Fengxiang Army soldiers hiding in the shield formation with precise bows and arrows. This is the specialty of the Dangxiang Army. The Fengxiang Army in the shield formation is very dense. Except for the shield players who can hide behind the shield, the others have no place to hide. Every iron arrow shot by the Dangxiang Cavalry is a deadly demon.

Wang Huan was hit by another arrow, and the arrow hit his left face. The hard iron arrow penetrated Wang Huan's facial bone without any effort. With the sound of the facial bone rupture, the deputy general Wang Huan fell heavily underground. Another lieutenant immediately stood up and took on the heavy responsibility of command. Soon, the lieutenant was also shot and killed by the Dangxiang people.

The front team of Fengxiang Army bravely withstood several waves of impact from the Dangxiang Army, but the front team of Fengxiang Army suffered heavy losses under the attack of the Dangxiang Army's arrow rain. When the last Fengxiang Army commander fell down, a gap was opened, and the Dangxiang riders quickly expanded the gap. The infantry of the front team of the front team was destroyed by the cavalry. At this point, the organized resistance of the Fengxiang Army's front team was over.

Many Fengxiang Army soldiers gathered together in groups, entangled with the Dangxiang cavalry, fighting to the death, killing and injuring many Dangxiang cavalry. However, more Fengxiang infantry soldiers began to flee around after the formation was broken. They were easily caught up by the fast-moving Dangxiang cavalry. The Dangxiang cavalry was like a hungry wolf who saw the fresh and tender lambs, and pounced on them, tearing the fleeing sergeants into pieces.

The resolute resistance of the front team bought valuable time for Wang Jing's central army. The central army was Wang Jing's main force. There were three thousand cavalry and one thousand infantry, which was the elite among the elites of Fengxiang's army. When Wang Jing saw the Dangxiang army crossing the front team, he ordered: "The central infantry set up a shield formation, and the cavalry team rushed backwards."

The central army was located at the bottom of the valley of Kokuraguan. Three hundred infantry shields inserted square shields on the ground and formed a simple blocking position. Because the valley bottom was narrow, the shield formation blocked the valley bottom tightly. The soldiers looked at the entrance of Kokuraguan with a tragic expression. When the Dangxiang cavalry appeared in front of them, the soldiers knew clearly that it was time to fight to the death.

Half of the generals and schoolmen at all levels of Fengxiang Army were Wang Jing's tribe members. Wang Huan, the deputy general who died in battle, was Wang Jing's distant nephew, and Wang Chuyun, the commander of the central army's infantry, was Wang Jing's tribe brother. Wang Chuyun shouted to the infantry: "Retreat is a dead end, fight to the death, or there may be a way to live."

The central infantry was all Wang Jing's soldiers, and they were determined to die. They calmly attacked the violent Dangxiang cavalry with crossbows. The narrow passage at the bottom of the valley restricted the movement of the cavalry. Although the number of Dangxiang soldiers was superior, they could not form a surround. Several charges were made, except for leaving corpses on the ground under the dense net of arrows. The continuous influx of Dangxiang cavalry filled the valley.

Wang Chuyun was superb in arrow skills. He shot through the throat of a Dangxiang Army rider with one arrow and looked at the fallen rider. Wang Chuyun shouted at Dangxiang Army: "Come on, you bastards."

Just when the central army successfully blocked the Dangxiang army, the rear army also fell into a tough battle.

The Dangxiang cavalry, who were ambushing the south of Xiaocang Pass, saw the rising smoke from the ground, rushed out of the small valley and cut off the Fengxiang army's retreat.

When the Fengxiang army was attacked, the rear army had not yet entered Xiaocang Pass. Wang Jing's order was very timely. Two thousand rear army turned into the front army. Gao Luowei, the commander of the rear army, was extremely agile. He immediately ordered the dozens of grain-carriage carriages from the rear army to form a temporary camp. As soon as the carriages were gathered together, the aggressive South Road Dangxiang Army appeared in front of the rear army. Two thousand rear army hurriedly hid behind the civilian carriages, using the carriages as a cover, and blocked the Dangxiang Army with crossbows. Seeing this scene, Gao Luowei sweated coldly. If there was no cover of the carriage, the consequences would be unimaginable.

The carriage effectively resolved the impact of the Dangxiang cavalry. The Fengxiang army soldiers hid behind the carriage and shot arrows out frantically. They knew that once the Dangxiang cavalry broke through the defense line, they would arrive soon. The Dangxiang army on the southern route launched charges on the carriage many times, and retreated back under the crossbow of the Fengxiang army. When the fierce battle between the two sides was in full swing, Wang Jing led the 3,000 cavalry team of the Fengxiang army to rush out of Xiaocang Pass and launched a frantically charge towards the Dangxiang cavalry. When the two cavalry teams collided head-on, the bloody close-fitting hand-to-hand combat began.

Gao Luowei saw two cavalry teams mingling together and ordered loudly: "Run out and chop the horse's legs."

The Fengxiang infantry, hiding behind the carriage, pushed the carriage away and rushed towards the chaotic cavalry team. The cavalry group that lost its speed lost its impact, reducing its power by at least half. The Fengxiang rear infantry, led by Gao Luowei, rushed into the Dangxiang cavalry group without hesitation, and the spearmen assassinated the horse and the Dangxiang soldiers who fell off the horse. The shield hand threw away the heavy local shield, held a knife in his hand, and chopped the horses when they saw the horse's legs. The Dangxiang war horses quickly fell down, but the Fengxiang war horses were also accidentally cut off a lot.

Since Wang Jing became the governor, he has never charged. He did not expect to go barefoot this time. The standard weapon of ordinary soldiers of Fengxiang Army was a long sword, while Wang Jing wore a long sword. The long sword was a symbol of the status of a nobleman. However, in the cavalry battle field, the long sword was not as practical as the long sword. Wang Jing held the long sword and slashed the fierce sword by a Dangxiang Army. This sword almost made Wang Jing lose his sword. The guard behind Wang Jing was quick-eyed and slashed with one knife.

After all, Wang Jing escaped the disaster by attacking Wang Jing. After all, Wang Jing is a veteran who has been in the field of killing. After several rushes, although he is older and his health is not as good as before, the blood splattered everywhere quickly regained his sense of being the best of the three armies. When another Dangxiang rider rushed over, Wang Jing let his opponent's spear and shot straight at the same time. He deeply penetrated the throat of the Dangxiang army. When the sword was drawn out, the blood shot out.

Under the crazy impact of the Fengxiang Army's cavalry and infantry, the Dangxiang Army on the South Road was broken open, and Wang Jing, with more than a thousand elite cavalry, escaped from the Dangxiang Army's encirclement.

Fangdang Bai Ge was blocked at the bottom of the valley, and he furiously ordered the Dangxiang cavalry to launch a charge again. The narrow valley was covered with the bodies of the Dangxiang cavalry. The Fengxiang infantry at the bottom of the valley was extremely casualties under the successive attacks of the Dangxiang army. They were stubbornly nailed there under the leadership of Wang Chuyun. They blocked the Dangxiang cavalry tightly, making the Dangxiang army unable to join the army. It was precisely because of their tenacity that Wang Jing, the commander of the Fengxiang army, was able to concentrate his troops to break through the interception of the Dangxiang army in the south.

After the infantry commander Wang Chuyun shot another arrow. His right hand habitually placed it on the arrow box, but the arrow box was empty. Wang Chuyun looked down and found that the arrow was used up. He looked at the Dangxiang cavalry running from the south, and his heart was cold. He threw away his beloved longbow and shouted loudly to the remaining soldiers: "I have no arrows. Fight with the Dangxiang people, kill one enough, and kill one pair of them to make a profit."

The remaining 600 soldiers' arrow casings were basically empty. They stood up silently and quietly waited for the charge of the Dangxiang people. The Dangxiang cavalry from the north and south rushed towards the last established Fengxiang army. The narrow valley bottom made the Dangxiang cavalry unable to exert its superior forces. There were no more than twenty Dangxiang cavalry in front of the Fengxiang infantry. The Fengxiang infantry at the same time withstood the attack of the Dangxiang army from the north and south. One fell down and the other one made up.

Fang Dang Bai Ge saw the army on the south road appearing at the bottom of the valley. He knew that his adventure had been successful. Looking at the extremely brave Fengxiang infantry, his anger was gradually replaced by respect. The soldiers always respected the same brave soldiers. However, respect is one thing, and the enemy must be completely eliminated. Fang Dang Bai Ge whispered a few words to his personal guards, and a few short horns sounded from the Dangxiang army.

After hearing the horn, the Dangxiang cavalry stopped charging and slowly retreated, setting a distance from the Fengxiang infantry. A rider of the Dangxiang clan walked forward with a horse and gave an order. Xiaocang Pass was a relatively closed environment with excellent sound transmission effect. The Dangxiang army on the South Road clearly heard the order. The Dangxiang cavalry on the north and south routes took out a bow and arrow and aimed it at the Fengxiang infantry.

When Wang Chuyun saw that the Dangxiang Army was about to deal with them with bows and arrows, he knew that he could not escape. He smiled pale and said, "I will be another hero in 18 years." Before this bold and magnificent word could be finished, an iron arrow swept them ruthlessly like a strong wind.

With the screams and the sound of killing stopped, the entire battlefield suddenly became quiet, and only the heart-wrenching moans made by the seriously injured people struggling on the brink of death echoed so clearly in the narrow valley bottom.

More than 20 injured and captured Fengxiang Army soldiers were escorted by Dangxiang people and searched carefully at the bottom of Xiaocangguan. They wanted to confirm whether the commander of the Fengxiang Army Wang Jing escaped. When the Dangxiang Army searched the bottom of the valley, any serious injury-free soldiers, whether it was the Fengxiang Army or the Dangxiang Army, would be replaced with a knife to completely free them.

Several corpses in general's clothes were placed in front of the Bai Ge horse. After carefully identifying the captured Fengxiang Army soldiers, they said, "There is General Wang Chuyun, the one who has been broken is General Wang Huan, and the one who has cut open the chest is General Gao Luowei." Wang Chuyun, Wang Huan, and Gao Luowei are both famous brave generals of Fengxiang Army. Although the three of them died terrible and were thrown to the ground like a pile of rags, the Fengxiang Army soldiers were still full of respect when they spoke their names.

After counting the results, a Dangxiang Captain came to Fangdang Baige and reported: "The eight thousand Fengxiang Army killed 6,753 and twenty-seven were captured. Wang Jing fled with more than one thousand people. Our Party Xiang Army killed 2,676 and countless injuries."

The corpses all over the ground emitted a strong smell of blood, which made Fang Dang Bai Ge, who was used to seeing the corpses, sucked a breath. He said to the generals who followed him: "We have always thought that the people in the Central Plains are cowardly. Now it seems that this statement is not realistic. The soldiers of Fengxiang Army are also warriors. They are not inferior to the Uighurs and Tubo people. If these people were not guarding the bottom of the valley, Wang Jing would definitely not have been able to escape from the siege. It's a pity that Wang Jing ran away." Fang Dang Bai Ge looked at the Fengxiang Army generals lying on the ground again and said: "Cremn these Zhou generals." In the customs of the Dangxiang people, cremation is more noble than burial. Fang Dang Bai Ge ordered the cremation of Fengxiang Army generals, which was a great respect for his opponents.

When the fierce battle at Xiaocang Pass was in full swing, the Dangxiang Army and the Banzhou Army were still tensely confronting each other in Qiaojiabao outside Jingzhou.

The observer Xing Peisheng hurried to the camp of the governor Li Hui. The scouts he sent had just returned. The scouts not only confirmed what Zhou Qing said, but also had new discoveries. "The six scouts of the Banzhou Army had just returned. They were divided into two groups. One group searched along the southwest direction. They found a large amount of fresh horse manure along the way to Fengzhou. It can be judged with certainty. A Dangxiang Army with a population of four or five thousand passed by this road. Another group of scouts had been observing the Dangxiang Army. They found that although there were many tents in the Dangxiang Army, there were much fewer Dangxiang soldiers in the military camp than in the previous few days, and they did not look like a military camp of 20,000 people at best. At most, only five or six thousand people. After reporting the objective situation, Xing Peisheng added: "According to the idea of ​​the general, if the Dangxiang Army still comes to provoke tomorrow, we will give them a moment."

Li Hui did not express his opinion. He asked back: "According to the usual experience, the Uighurs, Tubos and Dangxiang people invaded the border, and did not aim to capture the city. They mainly rob property. They ran away after robbing it and would not confront the army for a long time. What do you think the Dangxiang people are going to do?"

Xing Peisheng was eager to go out to fight. He said: "We can only know the intentions of Dangxiang people by constantly testing them."

Xing Peisheng's last words touched Li Hui, and Li Hui said in a melody: "Xing Lang said it makes sense. Tomorrow you will lead 1,500 horse soldiers and 2,000 infantry soldiers out of the fort to fight, but you must act according to the opportunity. If the enemy is powerful, you cannot fight in love.

Since the late Tang Dynasty, wars have been constant, especially in the decades of the Five Dynasties. Wars are so frequent that it is common. It is still a new thing not to fight that month. In this turbulent era, those who can become governors crawled out of the dead, and they have more or less some real skills, which are definitely not comparable to military generals in peacetime, especially military governors like Wang Jing, Hou Dayong and Li Hui who guard the border, are even more proud of the governors. Li Hui is extremely careful in strategy, but is not conservative in specific tactics. He did not set a framework for Xing Peisheng, but asked him to act at the right time.

The next morning, Xing Peisheng was wearing armor and holding a spear, and majesticly led the Banzhou Army out of the village. Xing Peisheng was a young and energetic person. He was unwilling to wait for the Dangxiang people to attack the door of his house. Before sending troops, Xing Peisheng called several scouts and nearby villagers, repeatedly asked about the terrain near Qiaojiabao, and drew detailed terrain maps. He discovered that there was a dense hillside not far from the Dangxiang Army Camp, so Xing Peisheng decided to ambush the Dangxiang Army unexpectedly here.

Shortly after the Banzhou Army set up an ambush, more than a dozen fast horses rushed out of the Dangxiang Army camp and soon arrived at a small hillside.

Xing Peisheng turned around and stared at a scout behind him, asking: "Didn't you say that the Dangxiang Army never sent a scout, what's going on?"

The scout of the Fengzhou Army said: "Some time ago, the Dangxiang Army did not send out any reconnaissance cavalry every time it was dispatched. Today, it may be a temporary place to send out."

The hillside used by the Banzhou Army to hide was only a gentle slope. Xing Peisheng set up an ambush whenever the Dangxiang Army was dispatched every time, and the reconnaissance cavalry that had never appeared unexpectedly appeared on the hillside. These more than 3,000 people could not escape the eyes of the reconnaissance cavalry.

Xing Peisheng ordered: "When the Dangxiang cavalry goes up the hillside, they will be killed."

The Dangxiang Cavalry Team is very familiar with this hillside. This is the only way they can pass to Qiaojia Fort. During this period, they have to pass here almost every day. The Dangxiang Cavalry Team did not realize the danger ahead. When they rushed up the hillside, they were surprised to see a crowd of black people. Dozens of Fengxiang crossbowmen held their crossbows and looked at them fiercely.

The Dangxiang cavalry did not have time to turn their horses, dozens of crossbow arrows rushed towards them with a roar. Only one Dangxiang detective cavalry avoided the attack of the crossbow arrows. He leaned on the horse's back and ran back fiercely. More than a dozen Bangxiang cavalry quickly rushed down the hillside. The Dangxiang cavalry rider was very skilled and turned around and shot several arrows. Two Bangzhou soldiers were caught in the arrows. A fast horse passed the chase of the Bangzhou rider and led an arrow to hit the back of the Dangxiang detective cavalry. The rider was Guang Zitu. After shooting the Dangxiang detective cavalry, he heard the sound of horse hooves again. He saw more than a dozen Dangxiang riders running towards the Dangxiang military camp in the distance.

When Xing Peisheng heard that the Dangxiang Army had two teams of reconnaissance, he said regretfully: "The ambush can't be done, we have no need to hide, and the troops are ready for combat."

Guang Zituo returned to the front of the cavalry of the Banzhou Army, and his men and horses were in a state of excitement. He looked at the distance and was looking forward to the Dangxiang Army coming. The entire Banzhou Army was placed in a very good position. If the Dangxiang Army attacked, he could lead the Banzhou cavalry to rush down from high and give the Dangxiang Army a fatal blow.

Since Fang Dang Bai Ge left with 4,000 soldiers, Shi Gao Jin led the 3,000 Dangxiang cavalry to confront the Baozhou Army at Qiaojiabao. The burden on his shoulders was as heavy as a mountain.

When the Dangxiang Army was strong in strength, they were eager to fight the Banzhou Army. As long as they could severely damage the Zhou army, they would add more pressure to the Zhou army and create better conditions for seizing Lingzhou. However, Li Hui, the commander of the Banzhou Army, who was treacherous and sloppy, did not leave the fort to fight, making the Dangxiang army like a dog biting a turtle, and had no way to get down. The situation has changed now. The Dangxiang Army mobilized heavy troops to ambush the Fengxiang Army. There were only 3,000 Dangxiang Army outside Qiaojia Fort. The only thing Gao Jin, the division head in Jingzhou, could do now is to create the illusion of the Dangxiang Army's strong military force, in order to intimidate the Banzhou Army and maintain the confrontation.

When the second team of scouts came back, Shi Gaojin knew that the Fengzhou Army had taken the initiative to attack.

Shi Gaojin, Yuan Gao and Renduo sat in front of the tent with a serious expression. Yuan Gao said: "The Banzhou Army dared to take the initiative. It is very likely that reinforcements have arrived. We only have 3,000 people. Why not retreat to Jingzhou City."

After the Dangxiang Army defeated the Jingzhou Army outside Jingzhou City, they occupied Jingzhou City. The Dangxiang Fangdang clan lived on the banks of the Qingshui River for generations. They were good at riding and shooting, but they had no experience or interest in defending the city. Moreover, more than 20,000 Dangxiang Army were all cavalry. If they used cavalry to defend Jingzhou, they would completely lose the maneuverability of the cavalry and trap the cavalry in disguise. Therefore, after Fangdang Baige massacred all the young and middle-aged people in Jingzhou City, only one thousand Dangxiang soldiers were left to guard Jingzhou City. The main force of the Dangxiang Army continued to advance eastward. After Qiaojia Fort was blocked, they stayed outside Qiaojia Fort and confronted the Baozhou Army.

Seeing that the military camp was a little timid, Yuan Gao proposed to retreat to Jingzhou City.

Renduo disagreed with retreating to Jingzhou City. He said: "Our advantage is to have powerful cavalry. If we retreat to Jingzhou City, our army will lose its advantage. When fighting position wars, our army is far inferior to the Zhou army. Jingzhou is a burden for us. I suggest that we deal with the Zhou army outside Qiaojiabao. If we really cannot win, we will retreat to Wuliu Pass."

Shi Gao Jin and Renduo's ideas were basically the same. After a brief thought, he made up his mind and said: "The closest to Jingzhou is Fengxiang Mansion. Bai Ge has led a heavy army to ambush Fengxiang Army. Fengxiang Army will definitely not be able to come. It will take two or three days for other reinforcements in the Great Zhou Dynasty to reach Jingzhou. This must be a tentative attack by the Baozhou Army. If I estimate that it is not wrong, the Baozhou Army should have about 4,000 people, and the less than 3,000 people in the Baozhou Army. The Baozhou Army will never dare to dispatch, and the more than 4,000 people in the Qiaojiabao defense force is insufficient. We must never retreat. We must take this opportunity to annihilate the Baozhou Army that dares to attack."

Yuan Gao looked at the gentle military advisor who had always been a little surprised. He did not expect that the military advisor's courage and appetite were so great.

Shi Gaojin looked at the two with a sharp look and ordered: "Renduo led one thousand people, and went from the path to the north to the back of the Banzhou Army. Yuan Gao and I led two thousand people to attack from the front and entangled the Banzhou Army. After the Renduo unit was detoured, the Yuanduo unit and Renduo unit could form a two-sided attack, and fight the Banzhou Army in one battle."

Hearing this arrangement, Renduo was surprised and said, "In this way, the camp will be empty."
Chapter completed!