"Captain Xu, are there any masterpieces from Gaochang and other countries in Dunhuang and Yiwu today?"
"Of course, since we occupied this place, there has been a steady stream of enemy spies. Although we have hunted them down many times, it is difficult to completely clean them out." Xu Ye said with a chilling air.
Wei Zilin smiled faintly and said: "So, in their view, it is normal for the defenders in our cities to go out to chase the horse thieves? They don't think we will send out troops for a western expedition, do you?"
Xu Ye nodded and said: "Of course, we may have been very careful at first. But now, they all think that we are busy stabilizing the place and dealing with the counterattack of the Liangzhou Army in the east, and they don't think that we will make any offensive moves. . After all, in the eyes of Gaochang and other countries, we just seized the land of the Three Prefectures from the Liangzhou Army and attacked the Yong Army. "
"In that case, let's change from passive to active. We will sneak attack Shanshan and attack both countries." Wei Zilin said coldly.
"Sneak attack?"
"Sneak attack! These two countries are different from Gaochang and other countries. Although they are independent countries, the land they occupy is the territory of the former Great Yan Empire. In the past, the Great Yan Empire also moved a lot in order to stabilize its rule in the west. There are few Han civilians included. Moreover, the two countries are not large, and there are not many soldiers and civilians. They will not be able to resist the surprise attack, and other countries will not be able to support them in time when our army takes over. After getting the news, it has become a foregone conclusion.¡±
Xu Ye pondered for a while and said: "This is also an excellent way. In the name of suppressing horse thieves, the troops in each city were mobilized, and then they gathered together, marched day and night, and went straight to the place of rebellion, Shanshan, and not yet. The two countries took down the two rebellious countries that had separated themselves from each other in one fell swoop.¡±
"However, if we want to completely eliminate the two countries, we will need at least ten thousand cavalry. However, there will be fewer defenders left! The guards of the two western mansionsespecially Yiwu, which is not far from Gaochang Kingdom, once Gaochang State heard that the defenders of the three northwest prefectures were insufficient and attacked, then" Xu Ye was still a little worried about the safety of the three northwest prefectures.
Wei Zilin smiled and said: "It doesn't matter! Aren't there still fifteen thousand new soldiers? Although they are not of much use, they can still wear our armor and deter the enemy. In addition, General Xue Qinglan will also return to the land of Yiwu to personally Sitting in command, Gao Changguo will definitely not dare to act rashly when he learns that the head coach of our Zhao army has come to Yiwu. This battle will depend on you, Lieutenant Xu. You are the most familiar with the situation here, and only you can accomplish the best. Sneak attack."
Xu Ye was also unambiguous and said in a deep voice: "In that case, then change from passive to active and sneak attack on both places."
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"My lord, officials from the Yanzhou Army have begun to come to Youzhou City to report on their duties. As a result, the southern princes have weakened their tendency to fight. They all seem to suspect that we have a deeper relationship with the Yanzhou Army."
Zhao Xun said with a smile: "Of course they will be suspicious, and they will be afraid that we will follow the Yanzhou Army down south. The Yanzhou Army has now penetrated deep into the Central Plains of the South and can attack the Xuzhou Army, Qi Army, and How can they not worry about the Tang army ruling the land? "
Pei Yi said: "Do we need any countermeasures?"
Zhao Xun shook his head and said: "There is no need to do anything more. The more abnormal behaviors there are, the bigger the loopholes will be. This makes it elusive and makes it more difficult for them to see clearly."
"By the way, have all the grain and grass supplies prepared for the Liangzhou operation started to be transported? There won't be any problems, right?"
Situ Liang smiled and said, "No problem. The direct sneak attack by the defenders of Yanju Mansion relieved a lot of pressure on our offensive. We originally thought we would have to fight for ten days, but unexpectedly, we won without a single casualty." This is the important land in the north of Liangzhou. The three northwest prefectures are now under our control. However, the three northwest prefectures are weak areas in Liangzhou and need to open up the connection with Xiazhou as soon as possible. "
Zhao Xun nodded and said: "It doesn't matter, let Yanju Mansion's army march to the southwest now and try to establish contact with Wei Zilin and the others as quickly as possible. In addition, if people spread the news in Liangzhou, they will The governor wants to contact the countries in the Western Regions and ask them to send troops to resist our army at the cost of betraying Liangzhou. "
Pei Yi stroked his palm and smiled and said: "If it were just the three northwest prefectures, the soldiers and civilians in Liangzhou would not care much. But with Liangzhou as the target, these soldiers and civilians cannot remain indifferent. It will create chaos internally and disintegrate Liangzhou externally. The heart of military resistance.¡±
"What about Situ Lei? What are their actions now? Our message must have caused him a lot of trouble. Now that our army has entered Liangzhou, it's time for him to respond."
Situ Liang said in a deep voice: "Our message has indeed brought trouble to Situ Lei who is in Chengdu. In addition to the replacement of the Governor of Liangzhou, the Governor of Yongzhou, who is Situ Lei's son, has also been replaced.The son has also been replaced. It is said that Situ Hao, Situ Lei's eldest son and the most qualified to inherit the throne in name, has been summoned to Chengdu Mansion by Situ Lei and is following him. The remaining governors of Ningyi and Chang'an were also replaced by Situ Lei. "
"Although this move eliminated the possible divisions caused by rumors, it also caused turmoil in the states under Situ Lei's rule. Now, the new King Yong has become a matter of concern to all the civil and military officials under King Yong. In addition, according to the Shadow Division According to what the Eagle Eye Division has discovered, the newly appointed governors of various states are also changing the manpower originally assigned by the governors. It seems that Situ Lei is preparing to appoint a new King Yong. "
"Situ Lei did not react much to the war situation in Liangzhou. Perhaps, for Situ Lei, the land of Liangzhou did not bring him much benefit. But the countries in the Western Regions to the west, on the contrary, he Situ Lei only asked the army to defend Chang'an to prevent our army from cutting off the connection between Yongzhou and Yizhou. Otherwise, he had no intention of sending troops to Liangzhou. Or, it was confirmed that the new Yongwang was the Yongwang. First things first.¡±
Pei Yi said: "I just don't know which of Situ Lei's sons will be established as the new King Yong. It would be best if something can be done about it."
Situ Liang smiled and said: "No matter who takes the throne, it is good news for us. This shows that Situ Lei's time has really come. Without Situ Lei, what do his sons have to fear? They are far behind Situ Lei."
Pei Yi smiled and said: "That's right. This is good news for us. It is also good news for other princes, especially the Qi army."
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After some mobilization, nearly 10,000 elite cavalrymen from the Zhao Army in Yiwu and Dunhuang were mobilized one by one out of the counties and cities. Instead of training in the big camps in each city, there were 10,000 new soldiers and 5,000 surrendered soldiers who were recently recruited.
And the 10,000 Zhao army cavalry gathered a hundred miles west of Dunhuang, were fully equipped, and headed west in a mighty manner.
Shanshan and Qiewei are located in the west of Dunhuang. They have been the bridgehead from the Central Plains into the Western Regions since ancient times. Therefore, all dynasties and dynasties in the Central Plains would send troops here to implement their rule. However, often when the Central Plains was in chaos or weak, the place would lose contact with the Central Plains court and be occupied by foreigners.
If the Zhao army wants to take Liangzhou, it will naturally destroy the trade routes between the Central Plains and the Western Regions. It is impossible to allow the countries in the Western Regions to cause trouble on the borders. Naturally, the two places that rebelled were the first to be captured by the Zhao army.
This time, Xu Ye, who was familiar with the western part of the country, led the troops, with a total of 10,000 Zhao cavalry. They marched westward on the boundless Gobi Desert, traveling by day and night, hoping to attack the two places.
Although the soldiers under his command were not his former troops, Zhao Jun's military discipline and quality made these soldiers very satisfactory to Xu Ye. And Xu Ye lived up to everyone's expectations. His leadership style was serious and orderly, and everything was done in a reasonable and orderly manner, and he was meticulous. Therefore, even though it is surrounded by hundreds of miles of Gobi Desert, the camp site is still full of barbed spears and thorns. Even observation towers have been erected and sentries have been sent out. The flags in the camp are clear and the troops of each battalion are orderly. , horses and humans are clear, everything is arranged in an orderly manner, even if it is only for one night, every detail must be fulfilled.
In the large tent of the Chinese army, Xu Ye was having a meeting with more than a dozen captains, sergeants and other officers to discuss a sneak attack. In the middle of the big tent, there is a map of the two western countries hanging. These maps were found from the yamen of Dunhuang Wenfu. After all, these two places were also the territory of Great Yan in the past. However, Xu Ye and several guides living in the west are also familiar with the situation in the west.
"Everyone, this is the important frontline town of Shanshan Kingdom. It is mainly the Qingyuan Town that resisted the counterattack of the Liangzhou Army in the past. In the past, this was also an important town, but now it has become their frontline to resist us. There are more than 500 households in this town Renjia is an important resting place for business travelers. There are also two thousand Shanshan troops stationed in the town. There is a beacon tower built by the imperial court in the past, which is now used by the Shanshan army. There is a distance of three hundred miles from Qingyuan Town to the capital of Shanshan. Distance, in between, is the Gobi Desert, with ten beacon towers built in the middle, each with five soldiers, and there is a water storage well in the beacon tower"
The guide, who was also a businessman traveling between east and west, slowly told everyone about the situation of Shanshan Kingdom. Xu Ye then added, and supplemented the military.
"Everyone, because we are attacking the land of the two countries, we will not have too long in Shanshan Kingdom. In addition, although we travel day and night, we may not be able to hide for too long. Therefore, we must attack in the shortest possible time. Within a short period of time, the Shanshan Kingdom was captured, and then it was conquered in one fell swoop, and the former two provinces were restored. Only by becoming an established fact can these two places be avoided from falling into a protracted stalemate, and the countries in the Western Regions to the west be avoided. Lead the troops to help.¡±
Xu Ye glanced at everyone and said loudly: "So,We only have five days at most. We must capture Shanshan Kingdom within five days, and then follow the trend to the west, and then conquer Qiewei Kingdom, so that the western countries cannot react in time. "
"Don't worry, sir. This is a sneak attack. The other side is unprepared and will definitely be able to defeat it in one fell swoop. Sir, just give the order to take action!"
Xu Ye nodded and said: "Very good. In Shanshan and Jiwei, foreigners live together. Therefore, our operation is not only to occupy the military, but also to stabilize future rule. Therefore, for the two countries, All powerful people, especially foreign powerful people and those with deep ties to the rebels of the two countries, will be killed! This is also our mission this time, you should all understand."
??Everyone was silent, naturally understanding the meaning. This time, the two places were captured, and those who were to be cleared were not just the rebels and their tribesmen in the two places
Qingyuan Town is a town that was originally developed from an oasis. It has a population of more than 500 households but a garrison of 2,000 people. It is the gateway to Shanshan Kingdom. Of course, at the beginning, there were only four to five hundred defenders here, but as Zhao Jun entered the three northwest prefectures, the number of defenders here became more than two thousand. Obviously, they were on guard against this sudden new neighbor.
At the forefront of Qingyuan Town, there is a beacon tower built by the former imperial court. The Qingyuan garrison can use the beacon tower to send warnings to Qingyuan Town. Therefore, if they want to capture Qingyuan Town as soon as possible, they must first kill the beacon tower.
On a hill about fifteen miles east of Qingyuan Town, there is the first beacon tower. It is made of huge rocks, three feet high and divided into three floors. The horses are raised below, people live in the middle, and the beacon tower is on the top. , there are six Shanshan soldiers in the beacon tower.
At night, there are no clouds in the sky, and the full moon casts a cold light on the endless sea of ??yellow sand. The beacon tower is bathed in this silvery moonlight, and it is unusually quiet.
At this time, dozens of black figures quickly approached the beacon tower. Most of them were hiding behind dozens of large rocks within a hundred steps. Only an unusually agile figure quickly approached the beacon tower. His body was close to the beacon tower. On the stone wall of the platform, he suddenly threw the coiled rope upwards. The rope was accurately placed on the crenellation of the female wall on the top of the third floor. He was like a nimble ape, climbing up the rope quickly.
After a while, the black shadow climbed onto the top of the beacon tower, threw down all the firewood and wolf dung used to light the beacon tower, and waved to the bottom of the beacon tower. In an instant, dozens of people rushed toward the beacon tower
An hour later, when the news that both the east and west beacon towers had been captured reached Xu Ye's ears, Xu Ye also issued an order to attack: "Surround Qingyuan Town and annihilate all the enemy troops. No one is allowed to run away. Anyone who dares to resist will be killed!"
Ten thousand Zhao Jun cavalry formed a fan shape and surrounded Qingyuan Town two miles away, shrouded in darkness. The sound of horse hooves was like thunder, and they rushed into Qingyuan Town in an instant.
In an instant, the loud shouts of killing, accompanied by exclamations and screams, resounded through Qingyuan Town, spreading far and wide in the night. However, the beacon tower more than ten miles to the west has been captured by Zhao Jun, so the root of the news here cannot be detected by the rear.
"Who are you? How dare you"
"kill¡¡"
"Break the door open and kill without mercy!" A group of soldiers stood in front of a mansion, and the officer shouted sternly.
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Three days later, eight thousand Zhao Jun cavalry appeared outside Shanshan City, the capital of Shanshan Kingdom, after breaking through three cities. At this time, Shanshan had not yet received the news.
Night slowly fell, and the eight thousand Zhao Jun cavalry slowly stopped their march and looked at Shanshan City ten miles away. Under the bright moonlight, Shanshan City was particularly clear.
"Sir, I didn't expect that they didn't even know that we were here."
Xu Ye smiled and said: "Thanks to the cavalry for this operation, otherwise, how could it be so fast? It's not that they didn't have anyone to report the news, it's just that they weren't as fast as us. Furthermore, our scouts constantly reported possible dangers along the way. Deal with the enemies that appear one by one, how would they know that we are coming to kill them?"
"Our people have sneaked into the city, and we are ordering the three armies not to slack off and be ready to charge at any time!"
The night gradually deepened, and the noisy and lively scenes of Shanshan City during the day disappeared. Everything was quiet, and almost everyone fell asleep. The streets and alleys became extremely quiet. Under the moonlight, the former Shanshan City revealed its dilapidated and old side. . Although this place was founded by people from the Western Regions, the images and traces of this place once being a border city of Dayan cannot be erased.
A group of patrol soldiers gradually went away, and a group of black figures appeared from the dark night. "Okay, the patrol is leaving. Their next patrol will be at least half an hour later. Let's start taking action!"
Accompanied by several screams, the city gate, which was not wide and thick, finally slowly opened a crack Then, a rocket soared into the sky, flashing a flame in the sky
"Charge!" Seeing the light of the fire, Xu Ye's face condensed and he ordered sternly.
In an instant, a rumble like thunder began to resound through the night sky. The whole city of Shanshan was suddenly awakened, making the originally silent night suddenly lively.
"What's going on? What's going on?" Su Dun, the king of Shanshan Kingdom, stood up and exclaimed in surprise.
"Reportreport to the king, Zhao JunZhao Jun has entered the city!"
"What? Zhao Jun has entered the city? How is it possible? How come they are here? Come on, pull down and chop this guy who lied about military information!"
"Your Majesty, it's true. Zhao's army of more than 10,000 troops has already entered the city!" the messenger shouted loudly.
Suton woke up a little and listened attentively, but his face suddenly turned pale. The loud shouts of killing outside cannot be faked, "How is it possible? Why is there no news from Qingyuan Town and Guhe City? Why did Zhao Jun suddenly appear here? Damn it, I will kill the bastard in charge of the intelligence "
"No need, he has been killed by our army!" A rough voice came from outside the house.
"who is it?"
In an instant, a group of soldiers covered in blood rushed in and chopped down the guards in the house with several knives. Suddenly, blood surged to the sky and filled the entire inner room. The princess, who was still lying on the bed, had already been frightened into a coma.
"This general is the captain of the Zhao army and the commander-in-chief of the Zhao army this time! Now, the capital of your Shanshan Kingdom has been captured by our Zhao army, and most of the nine cities under your rule have been captured by our army. Now, what's the point? There are two ways in front of you, either surrender to us and cooperate with our army to take over the remaining city, or I will hang your head on the city gate! Tell me what to choose." Xu Ye looked at him with contempt. The trembling Suton said coldly.
Su Dun said in a trembling voice: "There is no enmity between you and me. Why is your army attacking our territory?"
Xu Ye's face turned cold and he said sternly: "Your country? You are just a traitor who took advantage of the weakness of the Yan Dynasty to separatist rule. Are you worthy of talking to us about the country? It seems that you are unwilling to surrender. Come on, will you? Pull him out, Xiaoshou!"
"Wait I surrender, surrender" Su Dun said urgently when he saw that two Zhao soldiers were coming to kill him.
"Very well, go out and ask the defenders in the city to surrender!"