"Hiss!" Li Xiaochang, who had a pale face, took a breath of air. There were 17,000 soldiers, accounting for 30% of the total force. However, before the soldiers fired an arrow or even achieved a single wounded soldier, they were killed.

The Sui army was overwhelmed by the dense and terrifying crossbows, and the range of the chariot crossbow was far beyond the range of the normal bed crossbow. Even with his arrow array, he was unable to fight back.

For the current plan, we can only launch a desperate offensive to destroy the Sui army's chariot and crossbow array. Otherwise, the opponent will fire endlessly. How can this be done? As for retreating, Li Xiaochang has never thought about it, nor dared to think about it.

Because once the order to retreat is given, the various Tang armies whose morale has collapsed will definitely trample on each other, giving the Sui army cavalry a chance to cover up and kill them from behind. What's more, behind them is the Minjiang River flowing south, where can they retreat?

Thinking of this, Li Xiaochang categorically issued an order to each cavalry team of 10,000 people on both wings: "Order the two wings to charge and be sure to break the Sui army's crossbow formation."

When the Tang army was beating the drums of attack, Pei Xingyan saw a huge commotion in the Tang army and issued a vicious and bloodthirsty order: "Order the crossbows to continue firing arrows at the left and right wings. After three rounds, the cavalry will attack!"

In fact, the crossbow soldiers did not need any orders at all. They had already corrected the direction of the crossbow array on their own initiative, and then pulled the hanging knife. They only heard a loud "buzz" sound, and the bow strings popped out powerfully. Each cart had thirty iron crossbow arrows.

Soaring into the sky, they gathered with the surrounding iron crossbow arrows into a large cloud of arrows. This time, they did not attack the cavalry in front, but split into two, bringing the two ten thousand cavalry teams on the left and right wings of the Tang Army into the coverage of the iron crossbow arrows.

Inside.

Thousands of honeycomb crossbows fired three times each, and the iron crossbow arrows were as dense as a torrential rain. They were so powerful that they could pierce even men and horses. The 20,000 Tang army cavalry and horses that had launched a charge fell to the ground after being hit by arrows, and the dead bodies piled up.

, the Sui army's arrows were so fast that the Tang army's cavalry were shot over when they rushed forward. In addition, the cavalry on the left and right wings fired with hand crossbows. Even if the Tang army's cavalry suffered heavy casualties, they could not get within a hundred steps.

Wherever they arrived, corpses of Tang soldiers were strewn across the field, and rivers of blood flowed. The entire army was heartbroken, and some soldiers began to turn around and flee.

Seeing that the time was ripe, Pei Xingyan immediately issued a general attack order: "The entire army will press forward and completely annihilate the Tang army."

Suddenly the trumpets sounded loudly, the battle flags flew, and the entire Sui cavalry army, which had been preparing for a long time, attacked, overwhelming the front. The chaotic front army of the Tang army fell apart in an instant, turned around and fled, and the rear army was also swept away.

On the other side, Mai Zhongcai, who had successfully annihilated the Tang Army in Jiangyuan, also led his troops to join the encirclement and suppression formation. He attacked the rear of the Chinese army where Li Xiaochang was from the south and killed the already loose and chaotic rear army with loud cries.

Howling and screaming.

At this time, the soldiers of the Tang Army were frightened. They threw away their helmets and armor and fled northward along the Minjiang River. They no longer had the will to continue to set fire to resist. This also completely collapsed the 60,000 Tang Army who rushed to assist Jiangyuan County and gave them the opportunity to attack.

The great Sui cavalry were killed, leaving corpses lying everywhere and rivers of blood flowing.

Pei Xingyan ordered Liu Rengui to lead the army to take over the unopened Jiangyuan City. He broke free from the shackles of his commander and led his guards to attack the small group of Tang soldiers who had a slight organization and attempted to counterattack. The more they fought, the more courageous they became, just like tigers among sheep.

Generally, more than a hundred Tang soldiers died under his horse.

But Pei Xingyan, who was looking around for someone who was fighting against the Tang army, was soon attracted by something else. Li Xiaochang's flag was drifting north among the rebels not far away. Pei Xingyan was overjoyed and shouted: "Brothers,

Follow me to kill the enemy chief and perform meritorious service!"

"Kill!" All the soldiers followed closely behind the general and killed the enemy bravely.

Li Xiaochang's personal soldier, the captain, saw that Pei Xingyan was as fierce as a tiger, and the ordinary soldiers who had collapsed were either killed or avoided. He gritted his teeth and led more than 300 people to charge towards Pei Xingyan with a roar, while Li Xiaochang was on the other side.

Under the protection of his own soldiers, he continued to flee north.

"Anyone who stands in my way will die." When Pei Xingyan saw Li Xiaochang walking away, he waved angrily to fight. He was so brave that he knocked several people off their horses in the blink of an eye. However, the personal guards had always had a relationship of honor and disgrace with the general. If they were in

During the war, if they abandon their commander's safety and run away, their relatives at home will have to suffer for them. On the contrary, if they die on the battlefield, they will be heavily rewarded by their commander. Therefore, knowing that they are going to die, these people can only try their best to intercept and burst out with unbearable energy.

The power of imagination was inseparable from the fact that the soldiers led by Pei Xingyan were killed, and they even had the upper hand for a time. Pei Xingyan naturally could not abandon his troops, but when they killed this 'army of dead soldiers', Li Xiaochang

But he has fled far away and has no way to catch up.

At this time, thousands of cavalry and horses galloping under the leadership of Liu Rengui rushed into Jiangyuan City at lightning speed, making this important hub in the middle of Sichuan fall into the hands of the Sui Dynasty. This also meant that the Tang Dynasty was divided into two parts, becoming an unconnected north and south.

There are two divisions, and except for Wenshan County, which borders Jinshan County, and Beichuan County, which each have thousands of garrison troops, the northern part of Wenshan County is without troops.

However, Pei Xingyan did not give up on Li Xiaochang. He ordered Mai Zhongcai and Fan Qin to lead 10,000 fine cavalry to pursue the north. His purpose was not to defeat the Tang army, but to attack the barbarians in Tongchang County at the hands of the Tang army.

The three counties of Shang'an compressed the strategic depth of the Tang army in the north to the three counties of Dangchang, Wudu, and Shunzheng, so that Wang Fubao, Yao Junsu, and Yuchi Gong could concentrate and annihilate them.

.............

At dusk, the wilderness in the northeastern corner of Jiangyuan City, which served as the battlefield, was littered with corpses and rivers of blood. The Sui army officers and soldiers were directing the prisoners to collect the corpses and burn them together.

If the distance is sufficient, the honeycomb crossbow with a range far beyond ordinary is almost invincible on the battlefield. Unfortunately, when Li Xiaochang was unable to save his life, he decisively led the remaining defeated soldiers across the Minjiang River, then abandoned his horse and rushed into the forest.

, not only got rid of the pursuit of the Sui army, but also turned south, apparently preparing to gather the troops in Beichuan and Wenshan, either to continue fighting with the Sui army, or to flee back to Shu County with the troops from the two counties, but he brought

The 60,000-strong army that came to support Jiangyuan County was completely lost.

Mai Zhongcai had no choice but to let Fan Qin lead half of his troops back to recover. He followed Pei Xingyan's instructions and continued northward, cooperating with Zhou Shaoze on the other side of Baishui to recover the entire territory of Tongchang.

Fan Qin, who had returned, reported to Pei Xingyan with a look of shame on his face: "General, I apologize for my incompetence, but in the end, Li Xiaochang escaped."

"Okay, after all, we won this battle easily! As for the incompetent Li Xiaochang, just run away." As the saying goes, a monk can't escape the temple if he can escape. Pei Xingyan didn't pay much attention to Li Xiaochang's life and death, and asked: "

By the way, where is General Mai now?"

"In terms of time, General Mai should have passed Tieyi County and marched north along Baishui." After Fan Qin finished his answer, he introduced Mai Zhongcai's plan: "General Mai only has five thousand soldiers, so he cannot go too deep.

In the enemy's territory, prepare to find a ferry in the Dengzhi Mountain area at the junction of Tieyi and Tongchang counties, welcome General Zhou and others across the river, and then launch an attack on Tongchang County, which has a small number of troops. After defeating it, continue to the north and meet Lai.

After the troops of General Ji gathered together, they attacked Shang'an County in the north and completely drove the Tang army out of Tongchang County."

"This is a reasonable arrangement. I have no objection at all." Pei Xingyan sighed and shook his head with regret: "It's a pity that our troops are too scattered, and we need to go south to join forces with the Holy Lord. Otherwise, we can kill him in one fell swoop.

Xiang Danchang. However, the matter is now over. The Tang army in the north can now only be handed over to Lintao Ninth Army, Hanyang Yaojunsu, Hanchuan and Pingwu Seventh Army to fight. As for General Mai and their combined 25,000 soldiers

Afterwards, we will divide 10,000 troops to go south. The remaining 15,000 elite troops are more than adequate for defense but not aggressive enough. It is impossible for our First Army to defeat the Tang Army in Yibei. For the current plan, we still need to seize the entire territory of Wenshan.

It is important to go to Shu County to meet up with the Lord."

Everyone looked strange when they heard this. They never expected that after Pei Xingyan devoured Li Xiaochang's 60,000 reinforcements, he even planned to capture Liu Hongji. No one else had such appetite and ambition, and he couldn't defeat Shu County.

Li Shimin’s contribution seems to be greater, right?

Pei Xingyan thought for a while and called out in a deep voice: "Qian Jie."

"The general is here." Qian Jie responded and strode forward.

"The main force of the Tang Army in Wenshan has been defeated by us. You will lead your troops to advance southward along the Minjiang River and be responsible for recovering the counties on the east bank. The main force of our army will recover the counties on the west bank. If nothing unexpected happens, we will meet up in Wenshan County, the county seat.

"

Now that the goal of locating the source of the river has been achieved, and there is no Tang army at the junction of Tongchang and Wenshan, there is no need for him to continue to waste time here. Although there are still two Tang armies in Beichuan and Wenshan, Pei Xingyan does not think that these two

The entire army plus Li Xiaochang's remaining defeated generals could withstand the powerful First Army, not to mention that Yang Tong had already blocked Mianzhu Pass. Even if Li Xiaochang wanted to return to Shu County, he would be powerless. If Yang Tong sent an army from the south,

If the people from the north cooperate with them in fighting, then Li Xiaochang will still have to finish playing in Wenshan County.

"I will obey your orders." Qian Jie responded excitedly, clasping his fists. This was the first time he led an army alone in action.

Not long after Qian Jie left, a captain escorted a large group of people over and saluted: "General, in order to rescue Jiangyuan City, Li Xiaochang asked all the soldiers to go into battle lightly, but he brought a large number of craftsmen. It is said that once Jiangyuan is lost, they will

Build siege engines on the spot.”

"Be sure to treat them well." Yang Tong stipulated to the Sui soldiers that if they encounter skilled craftsmen on the battlefield, they should try to capture them alive instead of killing them. Pei Xingyan now also realizes the importance of craftsmen to all walks of life, especially

In the military, it has played an indelible role. If a new weapon is created with an idea, a skilled craftsman can be worth a hundred thousand elite soldiers.

"Here." The captain responded, and then said: "And we also found a middle-aged scribe, who seems to be a high-ranking official of the Tang Dynasty!

"Oh?" Pei Xingyan followed the message and saw a middle-aged scholar with a dignified appearance and elegant temperament being escorted over. Although he looked a little embarrassed, he was very calm and calm.

It can be seen that the other party's calmness and calmness are not just showing up, let alone pretending.

"What do you call this gentleman? Can you tell me his name?" Pei Xingyan always maintained polite respect for such courageous people. He waved his hand and ordered the two soldiers to retreat. A scholar asked him in front of him.

Can't afford any waste.

"Shi Lu Deming, the marching commander of the Tongchang Governor's Office, has met General Pei." Lu Deming straightened his clothes, cupped his hands and saluted.

Pei Xingyan felt that the name seemed familiar. After thinking about it for a while, he remembered it and replied with a smile: "It turns out it's Master Lu who wrote "Classics", "Zhouyi Commentary", "Zhouyi Jianyi" and "Yi Shiwen". Sorry.

sorry."

"General Pei actually knows about this old man's work?" Lu Deming's reputation in the Tang Dynasty was not that great. Maybe even Li Yuan had never heard of him, but he never expected that this young Sui Dynasty general not only knew about him, but also knew about him.

He read out all his hard work in one breath.

Pei Xingyan smiled and said: "The Holy One pays great attention to talents in various industries and specially asked people to draw up a list of talents from all over the world. Mr. Lu's name is on the first page of 'Literature', so I remembered it as soon as I heard it."

"That's it." I thought that in order to make the literati have their own traditions and to select scholars through the imperial examination, Yang Tong summoned famous scholars from all over the world to Luoyang to study the "Yi", "Poems", "Books" and other "Thirteen Classics"

Lu Deming nodded silently, thinking that Yang Tong should have heard his name from some famous scholars, so he asked his subordinates to pay attention to it.

Lu Deming actually had no objection to Yang Tong, because he came from a poor family and knew too well how difficult it was for poor people to study. As for the aristocratic families and the seven major noble families... he quite agreed with many of Yang Tong's practices.

Pei Xingyan knew that Lu Deming played a huge role in the inheritance of culture and classics, and was afraid that he would make a mistake in Yizhou, so he said: "Since you are Mr. Lu, I can't handle it. Let me escort you to Luoyang first, and wait until the war is over.

What do you think if it’s up to the Holy One to make the decision?”

Lu Deming smiled bitterly and said, "Does this old man have a choice?"

"When you arrive in Luoyang, Mr. Lu will have a choice." Pei Xingyan said with a smile: "You can choose a sutra from the 'Thirteen Classics' and compile a set of unified and reasonable annotations as a standard model for this sutra."

"..." When Lu Deming heard this, his face turned dark.

"Since Mr. Lu has no objection, let's make it a decision." Pei Xingyan stopped talking and asked people to take Lu Deming into Jiangyuan City first, and then asked Liu Rengui to arrange for people to escort him to Luoyang.

.......

The fighting here in Jiangyuan City has ceased, and the Sui army officers and soldiers are enjoying the joy of a glorious victory, while the Shunzheng County under the same sky is in flames of war.

Cold arrows were like locusts, piercing the sky over and over again, wreaking havoc on the city walls of Shunzheng County. Even though the defenders were protected by shields, powerful crossbow arrows still broke through the gaps in the shields from time to time, or broke the shields.

, hunting down the Tang army soldiers behind the shields, the blood gathered at the top of the city into small meandering red streams. Looking from a distance, it looked like the face of a demon, looking ferocious and terrifying.

"Boom~" The moat has been filled with sandbags, the suspension bridge has been burned, and the city rush vehicle has hit the city gate again and again. Not only does it make a loud noise, but the solid city wall seems to be shaking.
To be continued...