Hsu Fengnian clenched his fists, feeling the coolness of the yellow soil in his palms. He sighed, "Putting aside Beimang's central line and Liuzhou's western line, the eastern line of Youzhou has more than two hundred thousand fighters. The remaining one hundred thousand auxiliary soldiers are actually no different from fighters. Beimang rides more and walks less. Dong Zhuo has set a rule that during this campaign, the fighters are not allowed to set up tents along the way. When they dismount, they sleep. When they open their eyes, they get on their horses and fight. The reason why there are one hundred thousand auxiliary soldiers is more to deal with the strongholds at the mouth of the Gourd. When Yang Yuanzan dealt with the Zaoma Stronghold, he assigned the auxiliary soldiers to attack the strongholds. Most of the commanders of these auxiliary soldiers have fathers who were Chunqiu survivors, or were actually Chunqiu survivors in their forties or fifties. As for Yang Yuanzan's personal army and Hong Jingyan's Rouran Cavalry, these main forces bypassed the strongholds and rode straight down, striving to reach Crouching Bow City as quickly as possible. By the time the main forces reach the city and the siege weapons arrive, the rear lines will have been more or less cleared. The conscripted peasants in Longyao Province who are responsible for the supply of food will be able to continue their journey south. Therefore, in this battle, Beimang and Dong Zhuo are fighting very 'Central Plains'. "
Fan Xiaochai said coldly, "In that case, the strongholds north of Crouching Bow City are clearly doomed. Why didn't Youzhou just line up Crouching Bow City, Luanhe City, and Xiaguang City at the northernmost part of the mouth of the Gourd? Wouldn't that stop Beimang's army outside the pass? They wouldn't have to worry about Beimang's cavalry slowly encroaching on the strongholds. In the end, you Beiliang don't care about the lives of your soldiers just because you want to be the best in the world! "
Mi Fengjie looked at this woman as if she was an idiot. For the first time, a smile appeared on his withered face. Of course, this smile had nothing to do with good intentions. This was not to say that Mi Fengjie had grasped the loophole in Fan Xiaochai's words. The Master of the Profound Sword Cave's thinking was extremely simple. He was a Beiliang general who had soaked in blood on the battlefield and laid in piles of corpses. How could a veteran like Yan Wenluan, who had proven his talent in war during the Spring and Autumn War, be a fool fishing for fame?
Hsu Fengnian did not ridicule Fan Xiaochai for being a frog at the bottom of a well, nor did he mock her for being a frog at the bottom of a well. Instead, he raised his clenched fist and pointed at the canyon by his feet. He calmly said, "The mouth of the gourd is not here. I have personally traveled beyond the Great Wall, so I can roughly imagine how big the mouth of the gourd is. Moreover, in terms of military affairs, where to build a city on a mountain, where to build a pass, where to build a fort near a river, and where to build a flintlock based on a dangerous situation, not only were there particular considerations, there were also all kinds of complicated adaptations. The mouth of the gourd is the most advantageous terrain in Beiliang, and it is also the only natural defensive strategic location. You were right when you said that you wanted the soldiers of the fort to die. Once the enemy arrived, these officers and soldiers who were defending the fort would not be able to 'survive'. They would only be able to 'defend to the death'. "
Hsu Fengnian clenched his fists. The wind and sand on the cliff blew against his face, messing up the hair on his temples. He said, "Beiliang only told Li Yang that the mouth of the gourd could hold one hundred and fifty to sixty thousand northern barbarians, but most of the people of the Central Plains were unwilling to believe it. If from the beginning, Yan Wenluan wanted the fifty thousand Youzhou soldiers in the three cities and two hundred forts at the mouth of the gourd to all die in battle at the mouth of the gourd … "
Hsu Fengnian, whose tone had always been calm, paused for a moment and then smiled. "I'm afraid that even if the Central Plains heard about this, they would pretend not to have heard it. Perhaps they would just say 'oh' and then say nothing else. One should drink wine, one should admire the snow, one should enjoy the snow, one should enjoy the pleasures of life. "
Fan Xiaochai bit her lip, stubbornly asking, "If one person is willing to fight to the death, a hundred people are willing. Even if a thousand people are willing, are the fifty thousand soldiers of the Youzhou border army really willing to die at the mouth of the gourd? Father and Mother gave them two legs. Won't they flee? "
Finally, Mi Fengjie could confidently teach this woman, who knew nothing but killing, a lesson. With a sneer, he said, "You are the descendant of one of the first nobles of the old Northern Han. How could you possibly understand what the people of Northern Liang are thinking? The Great General has only been in charge of Beiliang for twenty years. The morale of the army is still there. Moreover, the Beiliang border has not been peaceful for many years. When soldiers go to war, go into battle, and kill the enemy, Beiliang is the best in the world. It is not just because of the Beiliang's horses, bows, crossbows, and cold sabers. In the end, it is because of their pride! Do you, Fan Xiaochai, understand?! "
Hsu Fengnian declined to comment. With a slight bitterness, he softly said, "Beiliang has always claimed to have three hundred thousand cavalry. The busybodies of Li Yang have always been curious as to how much resources Xu Xiao has saved up for me. How many cavalry and infantry are there? How many border armies and local garrisons are there?"
Yu Dilong quietly asked, "Master, how many do you have?"
Hsu Fengnian appeared absent-minded. After turning his head, he gently smiled and said, "Guess?"
Yu Dilong shook his head.
Hsu Fengnian once again gazed at the northwestern sky. Once upon a time, there was an old man who liked to say, "Guess." In response, Hsu Fengnian would always roll his eyes and say, "Step on your grandpa." The old man would smile and say, "That's right, I'm your father."
Hsu Fengnian put away these thoughts and said in a low voice, "The Youzhou garrisons at Calabash Pass are willing to defend to the death because of the reason Mi Fengjie mentioned. However, you did not mention the more important reason. Beiliang has less than two million households and is limited by its small territory. No matter how much they recuperate, their population will always be less than ten million. Then let me ask you a simple question. There are only two million households, but Beiliang has hundreds of thousands of soldiers. Which household doesn't have someone in the army?! If the Beiliang Border Army is destroyed, which household doesn't need to wear mourning clothes?! "
Xu Fengnian gnashed his teeth. "Almost all the young adults of Youzhou Province are in the local army of Youzhou Province. Their hometowns are right behind the garrisons of the three cities and two hundred fortresses at the mouth of Calabash! If one of them dies, their families may live for another day! It's that simple! "
Hsu Fengnian slowly stood up and said, "Yan Wenluan, who is in charge of Youzhou's military affairs, set up an unwritten rule. When Xu Xiao was still alive, countless Youzhou officials wantonly criticized this rule. After I inherited it, all the scholars, including Huang Shang, strongly requested that this rule be abolished."
Mi Fengjie did not know about this, but Fan Xiaochai, who had become the spy of the Fu Shui Chamber, knew very well.
"The Youzhou Border Army has an iron law. No matter who it is, if someone retreats before the battle, their entire family will be executed!"
"Yan Wenluan once told me that he could give up being the commander of Beiliang's infantry and could even hand over the military power at Youzhou's border to someone else. However, before he dies in battle, no one can change this rule. Even I, Hsu Fengnian, cannot change it! "
Hsu Fengnian exhaled a mouthful of turbid air. He squinted his eyes and murmured softly, "This is war, this is Beiliang."
The mountain wind was swift and fierce. Hsu Fengnian stood at the edge of the cliff. He was a little far from the three people, and seemed a little lonely.
Fan Xiaochai hesitated for a moment before asking, "What are we going to do next?"
Hsu Fengnian smiled and said, "Whatever I can do, I'll do. I've been doing the same thing since I came to Ji Zhou. "
Mi Fengjie, who had noticed some clues before, asked carefully, "Are you trying to return to the peak of martial arts?"
Hsu Fengnian replied, "The mountain is at the end of the river and the mountain is at the end of the river. Even if there is no road under my feet, I have to find one."
Outside Dunhuang, there was a huge stone Buddha with a majestic mountain as its embryo.
Day after day, year after year, the Buddha looked at the world with a smile and pity.
In the main hall of Mount Wudang, there was the Zhenwu Great Emperor, who had stood with his sword for hundreds of years.
In the Holy Temple, the Absolute Saint, the Quasi-Saint, and the many sages who accompanied the sacrifice still had the aura of death.
He murmured softly, "Zizai Zizai Zizai Zizai, there is no one, there is no self. Ask yourself where you are, and you will naturally be at ease. Tathagata Buddha, Tathagata Buddha, there is a future, there is a future. How did this life come to be?
Daoism sat in forgetfulness to comprehend immortality. Buddhism visualized to let go. Confucianism guarded benevolence and great fortitude.
Hsu Fengnian closed his eyes and stretched out his hand, allowing the wind to blow away the handful of yellow sand in his palm.
— —
When Hsu Fengnian finally arrived at Transverse Water City, a middle-aged man dressed in a simple and clean Confucian robe came out of the city alone to welcome him. He said a few words and gave him a gift.
When Hsu Fengnian urged his horse to leave, the Sixth Year Banknote Scholar of Yonghui Academy bid him farewell.
"When I left Jiangnan in Yonghui Academy's Seventh Year Banknote, I brought with me a bag of soil from my hometown. Fourteen years later, the soil has long since disappeared, leaving only this old bag. I sincerely ask that after I die, when the hooves of Beiliang can one day step on the hinterland of Beimang, please take a handful of soil from Beimang and offer it as a sacrifice to Wei Jingtang!"
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
