Late October, Kansai, Hongnong-gun.

The Western Liang Army and the Northern Xinjiang Army fought a bloody battle on both sides of the Candlewater River.

Yue Fei set up 30 stone-throwing carts on the east bank of the Candlewater River, arranged 700 Wuhan Iron and Steel chariots, 500 ballistas, and arranged 12,000 strong bows. On the battlefield about five miles long, the dense arrows and stones beat the Xiliang army so much that they couldn't raise their heads.

The weapons of the Western Liang Army are also very sophisticated, and the number of ballistas and strong bows is more than that of the Northern Xinjiang Army. But in the face of the Northern Xinjiang Army's vehicle formation and the mighty and invincible stone-throwing carts, crossing the river became an extremely terrible thing. Occasionally, a brave vanguard team would attack the opposite bank, but after crossing the chariot formation, they immediately lost the cover of their bows and arrows, and were killed by the Northern Xinjiang army lined up behind the chariot formation.

The Candlewater River was littered with floating corpses, fragments of rafts and boats were everywhere, and occasionally a few moans and cries came from under the embankment full of corpses, and the miserable sound was heard far away with the howling and killing cold wind.

Behind the battlefield, under the command of the soldiers of the Bing Cao battalion, countless people formed hundreds of long queues, busy in an orderly manner. Some drove horse-drawn carts, delivering stones and crossbow arrows to chariot operators, and some carried them on their shoulders and carried all kinds of weapons to the soldiers in front. At the same time, the men who came down from the battlefield carried the bones of the fallen soldiers and a large number of wounded all the way, and more people carried the damaged weapons and collected enemy arrows to the rear camp.

In the camp, the fallen were immediately buried on the spot after they were registered. After preliminary treatment, the wounded were rushed to the Hongnong camp. Damaged weapons are to be recycled, and enemy arrows that are still intact are immediately sorted and distributed to different armies.

Surrounded by a group of guards, Yue Fei slowly walked through the camp and towards the battlefield.

After Chang Yuchun, Li Zhong and Li Yi received the report, they each hurried from the battlefield.

Yue Fei exchanged pleasantries with the three of them, and then pointed in the direction of the Candle Water River and asked, "How many times did Niu Fu attack today?" ”

"Three times in the morning." Li Zhong replied, "After noon, there will probably be three more attacks." In recent days, the attack of the Xiliang army has not been as fierce as it was some time ago. ”

"The weather is getting colder and colder, and if Ushisuke is determined to fight to Hangu Pass before the heavy snow comes, the battle will be fierce next month." Chang Yuchun touched his face tiredly, and said with a reluctant smile.

Yue Fei nodded and said: "From November to early December, the river will be frozen and frozen, and the Xiliang army can quickly cross the Candle Water River and go straight to Hongnong and Mianchi. ”

He looked at the three of them, waved the horsewhip in his hand violently, and said with a cautious expression: "November is a key for us, so no matter what the cost, we must stay here until December." From the beginning of next month, organize forces to launch a counterattack. ”

"Counterattack ......" Li Yi hesitated for a moment and asked, "General Yue, we are not strong enough to forcibly repel the Xiliang army from the front. And, if we launch a counterattack, the casualties of the Great Army ......"

"The situation has changed." Yue Fei smiled slightly, "The lord has a letter, Yuan Shao and Gongsun Zan have already had a conflict, and the two may break up in the near future." Now the various ministries of Jizhou are quickly assembling in Handan in accordance with the orders of the lord. It is estimated that in mid-November, the Northern Xinjiang Army will engage in a fierce battle with Gongsun Zhan. ”

Chang Yuchun, Li Zhong and Li Yi were very surprised, they looked at each other and asked in surprise, "So fast?" Jizhou is about to go to war so soon? ”

"I was surprised, too." Yue Fei said with a smile, "After the fight in Jizhou, Yuan Shao's attention will soon turn to Luoyang, so Yuzhou must immediately give way to Yuan Shu." ”

"I have ordered Xun You and Mu Shun to quickly withdraw from Yangzhai City and return to Luoyang. It turned out that Huang Zhong, who was stationed in Luoyang, led his army to Hangu Pass to meet Zhang Fei. As soon as Zhang Fei arrived, we launched a counteroffensive. ”

"Is it a little too early to give Yuzhou to Yuan Shu now?" Li Yi said, "It will take a while for us to fight Jizhou, and at the same time, we must guard against Yuan Shao and Gongsun Zhan suddenly joining forces to counterattack." If Yuan Shao backtracked and joined forces with Gongsun Zan again, Li Jing's army would inevitably fall into the danger of running out of food and grass. Therefore, whether or not the grain we purchased from the southern counties and counties this spring can be safely delivered to northern Xinjiang will directly determine the victory or defeat of the Jizhou battlefield. It is very risky for us to cede Yuzhou to Yuan Shu too early, and to hand over control of the Chi Road to Northern Xinjiang to Yuan Shu. ”

"Yuan Shu's strength is relatively weak now, especially after Sun Jian was defeated by us, his follow-up is weak, and he can't fight on the two battlefields of Yuzhou and Jingzhou at the same time." Yue Fei explained, "If Yuan Shu is flanked by Yuan Shao and Liu Biao and quickly defeated, the northern frontier will face the danger of being besieged by Dong Zhuo, Yuan Shao, and Gongsun Zan on three sides. Giving Yuzhou to Yuan Shu now can give him plenty of time to expand his strength, and the prerequisite for him to expand his strength quickly is the stability of Luoyang. If Luoyang is occupied by Dong Zhuo, how can he expand his strength? From this point of view, Yuan Shu will definitely have a good relationship with us before his strength is expanded and Liu Biao's worries are not completely resolved, and he expects us to stop Dong Zhuo in Kansai. ”

Yue Fei looked at the three of them, waved his hand, and said loudly: "As long as we block Dong Zhuo, the grain will be safely sent to the northern Xinjiang." At this time, Yuan Shu definitely didn't dare to provoke us. ”

Chang Yuchun and the three of them nodded again and again.

"The purpose of our counteroffensive is mainly to attract Dong Zhuo's attention and the strength of the Xiliang army. Once Dong Zhuo gets the news that we and Gongsun Zhan are fighting in Jizhou, he will definitely not miss this golden opportunity to send troops to Hedong. Yue Fei continued, "Think about it, if Dong Zhuo uses a part of his forces to contain us in Guanxi, a part of his forces to attack Hedong, and a part of his troops to go south to Wuguan to attack Yuanshu, what will be the situation in the Gyeonggi area?" ”

"Yuan Shao will effortlessly take Luoyang, Yuzhou, and even Jingzhou." Chang Yuchun said, "Yuan Shao has the support of various states and counties, and his strength cannot be underestimated. ”

Li Zhong frowned and said, "Yuan Shao took Luoyang and faced Dong Zhuo directly, what good would it do him?" ”

"After Yuan Shao occupies Luoyang, relying on the support of many states and counties in the east and south of Luoyang, his strength will swell suddenly." Chang Yuchun shook his head and said, "Yuan Shao has strong strength, he can first join forces with Northern Xinjiang to defeat Dong Zhuo, and then confront Northern Xinjiang. ”

"You are right, but that is for the future. Who can predict what the future will bring? Yue Fei looked at Chang Yuchun and praised, "Now we have to drag the Xiliang Army in Kansai at all costs." We don't care whether Yuan Shao can occupy Luoyang or not, as long as we can take Jizhou and completely solve the crisis plaguing northern Xinjiang, we will win this battle. ”

"Why can't we occupy Luoyang?" Li Zhong pointed in the direction of Kanto and said, "Luoyang is in our hands now, why give it to others?" ”

Yue Fei looked at Li Zhong and said, "At present, we don't have the ability to fight on both sides. And as the lord said, today's Luoyang is like chicken ribs for our northern Xinjiang, and it is a pity to abandon it if it is tasteless. The lord also told me that if the land is lost, the people and the land will be lost; If people lose land, people and land will survive. If we can give up Luoyang in exchange for the advantage of our northern Xinjiang in the entire war situation, why can't we give up Luoyang? ”

Yue Fei said with a smile: "Of course, if Jizhou can be taken quickly, and Luoyang is still in our hands, then of course we will not give up Luoyang." ”

As soon as Yue Fei's words fell, the sound of fierce war drums suddenly rose into the sky, and the sound shook the sky.

Everyone looked up in unison. In the distance, flags fluttered, and the roar was like bursts of spring thunder, one after another. All the hurried men suddenly turned around, and all of them roared and retreated like a tide in the direction of the camp.

The soldiers of the Bingcao battalion rode their horses and galloped in the crowd, and shouted wildly: "The war has begun...... There is a war ahead, everyone retreats...... Pull down ......"

"Boom...... Boom ......"

A deafening roar exploded in front of me like a landslide, and the heavens and the earth changed color in shock.

Immediately afterwards, pieces of black clouds rushed up to the sky above the Candlewater River, and a huge roar tore open the sky, making people feel heartbroken and their souls scattered.

Bloody rain fell from the sky in an instant.

A lieutenant rode on a fiery red horse, held high the blood-red banner, and galloped along the stone throwing array.

Huge catapults roared like bloodthirsty beasts with their mouths wide open, and lay on their stomachs with all their strength, waiting for the most powerful fatal blow.

A stone weighing about 30 to 50 catties has been placed on each stone-throwing cart, and nearly 100 strong men who pull the rope hold the heavy hemp rope in their hands, and look intently at the flag bearers holding high the command flag in front of them, ready to go.

The flag-wielding lieutenant roared: "Brothers...... Prepare to fire ......"

The stone throwing cart is to throw stones, so the soldiers of the chariot battalion affectionately call it a stone cannon. The commanders who were standing behind the artillery carriage and commanding the firing saw the lieutenant patrolling the formation, they were very excited, and shouted one by one:

"Ready ......"

"Everything is ready ......"

"Let's start banging......"

……

The flag-bearer suddenly pulled his horse upright, waved the flag with all his might, and raised his arms and shouted: "Let go...... Put ......"

All the flags fell in an instant, and the flag-bearers opened their eyes one by one, and their tongues bloomed with spring thunder: "Let ...... go"

In the earth-shattering roar of thousands of people, thirty huge stones with wind and thunder soared into the sky with the momentum of thunder.

"Kill ......"

Yue Fei looked at the boulder and tore open the arrow curtain all the way, tearing apart the black clouds, roaring, roaring, roaring away with the momentum of Mount Tai, he couldn't help but be shocked, his blood boiled, and he said loudly: "Go, let's go and see ......"

Li Yi hurriedly stopped: "General Yue, you are busy with official business, so let's go back to the camp first." ”

"Haha......" Yue Fei whipped his horse and galloped away like a cloud, "Let's go, brothers, ...... to the battlefield" (to be continued.) )