Chapter 964: A matter of life and death for tens of thousands of people. Those who feel that their talents are not being recognized are arrogant and arrogant. The reason why Yan Zeng left Eastern Xinjiang to join the imperial army to conquer the West was because he wanted those in the Yan family who looked down on him to see what he had returned home in glory. Although his father was a direct descendant and he was also a direct descendant, his status in the family was far from comparable to that of Yan Li. Yan Li's father is the eldest son, and Yan Li is also the eldest son. This has an unshakable status in the family. Yan Li entered Mu Mansion immediately after joining the army and was soon promoted to general. And even if he enters the Mu Mansion, he will only get the military position of a captain at most. If he wants to be promoted to a fifth-grade general, he doesn't know what year or month it will be. Seeing Yan Li get so much, Yan Zeng couldn't feel peaceful for a moment. The day he left Dongjiang, Yan Zeng told himself that he would never come back without Dachengda. His idea of ??greatness was to climb higher than the highest position his family had ever reached. Someone in the Yan family became a duke during the founding of the Sui Dynasty, but unfortunately it was not hereditary. Precisely because of such a goal, Yan Zeng never thought of returning to Dongjiang during such a difficult time, even though he knew he might die. When he was defeated in the northwest, he really knew that he might never open his eyes if he closed his eyes while sleeping, because no one knew whether Meng Yuan's cavalry would appear while he was sleeping. That was an experience he would never forget. He fled all the way back from the vast grassland, not daring to walk in the daytime or appearing anywhere where there were people. But the moment he saw Langru Mountain, he almost jumped with excitement. He believed that not everyone could understand that feeling. There is a saying that has always been circulated among the people of the Central Plains, which is that if you survive a catastrophe, you will be blessed later. Yan Zeng did not die in that fierce battle. He thought it was God's test for him. Then, he waited for the Sui Emperor's personal expedition, and the ambition and pride that a man must do something came back to his heart. At that moment, he understood what it meant to be reborn from the ashes. He firmly believes that he has become more mature after experiencing so much and will never experience the disastrous defeat in Northwest China again. Unfortunately, what he was waiting for was Gao Kaitai's rebellion. "Yan Lihave you become a marquis now?" Thinking of Yan Li who was stronger than him in every aspect, and thinking that his cousin was enjoying the awe and admiration of others in the military camp at this moment, Yan Zeng felt a little worried. Blocking. "When you were in Mu Mansion, you always said that you would help me, that you would not let me bury you, and that you would not let the Yan family hold their heads high, but Yan Li It's you who makes me unable to hold my head up. Since we were young, our lives have been completely different. The only thing that is the same is that both your parents and my parents love their sons so much. So I hope my son will achieve great things." "Unfortunately, it is this only similarity that makes you and me more and more different. You have a father who can help you the most, but my father cannot do it even if he tries his best. One percent of what your father can do. How can they be the same if they start from different backgrounds?" Yan Zengliang sat at the window and said to himself. "Actually, I always admired you when I was a kid, because I always thought you were more responsible than me. When we were kids, we went out together to steal other people's plums. We were afraid that people would recognize us and had to change into the clothes of a servant's child. But it was you who was caught. He stayed and asked me to go back and get money to redeem him, but I didn¡¯t dare to tell my grandpa that my mother was hiding in a corner and crying. I was forced to tell her after being discovered.¡± Yan Zeng sighed slightly: ¡°Then my grandfather questioned me. Why did I take you out to do such a despicable thing, and it was you who stood up in front of me and said that it was you who took me there, and it was you who always wanted to protect me, but it was a pity that it didn't matter to you. No matter how responsible you are, it will be me who gets punished, not you. That time I almost had my legs broken, it was my father who beat me, and it was my father who hugged me and cried when I got home. At such a young age, I suddenly understood. "My father's tears must be bitter, although I have never tasted them." "In fact, sometimes I think about it, my experience is much better than that of the children who were born in a concubine and looked down upon me all day long. When you are alive, you have to flatter the housekeeper just to get the monthly payment. However, if you don't compare, you will be like a dead tree. " "I can do it!" said Yan to himself. Zeng suddenly stood up and slammed the table: "I will not lose. I will stick to the choice I made. I will definitely go back to Eastern Xinjiang with glory and let you, the dog in Mu's house, see How do I behave!" He looked back at the armor hanging on one side, his eyes gradually becoming ferocious. ¡°Come here!¡± He shouted toward the outside: ¡°Go to the city!¡± ¡??¡?Standing on the city wall, you can clearly see the team approaching from the other side of the moat. The darkness is like thick dark clouds in the sky falling to the ground, but instead of reducing the sense of oppression, it is getting stronger. Get heavy. Soldiers wearing black leather armor lined up neatly, with bright red battle flags flying above their heads. The defenders on Liyin City Wall couldn't help but look at each other, and they could see fear in their companions' eyes. To be honest, they were all glad that they were left to guard Liyin instead of joining the large army to attack Chang'an City. They now all know how many corpses are lying under Chang'an City. "I heard that the Black Flag Army never lost a battle?" someone asked with a dry throat. The comrades beside him also had a burning throat: "I heard that the commander of the Black Flag Army, Fang Jie, is really amazing. From the time he started his army to the present, he has never been defeated. Even if he faced the famous Luo Yao has never lost against Meng Yuan's cavalry or the barbarians in southern Xinjiang. Moreover, I heard that he never leaves his enemies aliveas long as he dares to resist, he will kill them all." "Those are all rumors, right?" A soldier not far away lowered his voice and said: "Jie Cai just defeated the imperial troops in the south of the Yangtze River. Didn't they kill all the surrendering troops?" "What they want is food. If we surrender, we will definitely surrender. Will you be okay? "The speaker used the word "certain" in his words, but there was no certainty in his tone? "Anyway, this battle is not easy to fight. You all know it, right? I heard that our Liyin is now an isolated city. The surrounding areas have been attacked by the Black Flag Army, and only our Liyin is surrounded from all sides. Stay. Without reinforcements, we can only resist. But the more we resist, the more intense the Black Flag Army¡¯s slaughter will be when the city is broken. There are still 20,000 troops, and our general Yan's ability in leading troops is well known, and the defense has been done to the best of our ability. It will not be a problem for us to hold on. As for the fact that all the surrounding cities have been breached, there is a 90% probability. Ninth, it¡¯s the rumors spread by the Black Flag Army.¡± The soldiers talked about everything. Yan Zeng climbed onto the city wall and frowned as he looked at the formation of the Black Flag Army outside. He raised his clairvoyance and looked at it, and he had to admit in his heart that the Black Flag Army was definitely better trained than his soldiers. You can know the combat effectiveness of a team by looking at its marching formation. "There are a lot of siege equipment." One of his generals said in a serious tone: "General, look, there are many auxiliary soldiers carrying burdens. If nothing else happens, the Black Flag Army plans to fill up the moat. One section. Our moat is drawn from the river in the distance, and the river is too gentleWhether it's building a pontoon or filling in the river, it's actually not too difficult. Now it depends on whether our archers can suppress the enemy." "Yeah." Yan Zeng nodded: "The enemy can only attack from this direction, so it is not difficult to suppress the enemy when defending. Concentrate all the ballistae, and it will not be easy for the enemy to cross the river." "The enemy "I didn't bring a trebuchet." Another general put down his clairvoyance and said with some surprise: "A large trebuchet can throw stones up the city wall from a distance of five hundred steps. As long as the enemy builds a pontoon bridge or fills the wall. When crossing the river, use trebuchets to suppress the archers on our city wall. The enemy's casualties will not be very large." Yan Zeng frowned and raised his clairvoyance to see that there was no trebuchet in the Black Flag Army. "This is good news." The general who spoke before smiled and said: "The enemy must be unfamiliar with our Liyin terrain, so he did not bring a trebuchet. That thing is sharp enough for siege, but it is too difficult to transport. "It's not urgent to talk about this now. There is something more urgent." Niu Ben, Yan Zeng's personal soldier, said with a solemn expression: "Before, my subordinates were walking among the soldiers, and many people were talking about it." Our Liyin is already an isolated city. Although there is nothing too extreme, people are worried. If we don't find a way to calm down the soldiers, they will lose their fighting spirit." Yan Zeng nodded and looked back. A glance at the soldier reporting the news not far away. "Call him over here, and I'll ask him how the Black Flag Army attacked the city." The soldiers quickly went over to call the reporting soldier from Ming'an. The man hadn't rested yet, but his face was still very bad. Yan Zeng carefully inquired about the Black Flag Army's attack method. The soldier knew that the survival of Liyin City was at stake, so he described it in detail. "Thank you." After hearing this, Yan Zeng solemnly thanked: "Although I can't send troops to help Ming'an, I admire you and your comrades for not retreating. My soldiers and I will be like you, and would rather die fighting. You won't surrender to the enemy on the city wall, but you can't go back now. If nothing else, your home has been invaded by the enemy. The only thing you can do now is to try your best to avenge your comrades, relatives and friends. You try your best." The soldier who reported the news sighed: "What else can I do now?" "Yes." Yan Zeng looked at him and said seriously: "My soldiers are guarding Liyin. The longer the time goes, the more enemies will be killed, which is equivalent to avenging your comrades. But now because of the bad news you brought, my soldiers are panicked. How can they fight to the death? " A look of guilt appeared on his face. "General, your humble position is wrong." "It's okay. You made a mistake, but you can still make up for it. It's up to you to restore the morale of my soldiers." "Huh?" The soldier who reported the message didn't understand, and just as he was about to ask a question, Seeing Yan Zeng cupping his fists and giving him a salute: "I want to thank you one more time for restoring the morale of our soldiers." After saying this, Yan Zeng waved his hand: "Capture this man, remove his jaw, and escort him to Beheaded at the school ground! This person is a spy sent by the Black Flag Army to spread rumors in order to make our Liyin defenders lose their fighting spirit." The expression of the soldier who reported the news changed greatly, and before he could say anything, he was killed by Yan Zeng's soldiers. Colonel Niu Ben held down his jaw and picked it off, and then several soldiers swarmed up, tied him up and took him away. As he walked Niu Ben, he shouted that this man was a spy of the Black Flag Army and was spreading rumors. Yan Zeng looked at the backs of those people and shook his head: "If it wasn't a matter of life and death for tens of thousands of people, how could I dare to do such a harmful thing?"