Three Kingdoms

Liu Dan was unwilling to retreat in vain, and he wanted to win one more victory to restore his reputation. The same was true of Ma Chao, who was far away in Longyou, gritting his teeth and unwilling to retreat.

We absolutely cannot retreat like this!

Ma Chao kept roaring in his heart. He must not retreat. He could not retreat just like this with the name of failure, because once he retreated like this, the Qiang people who had not eaten the meat would swarm up and tear him to pieces!

So where is the way out?

The large groups of Qiang cavalry have gradually become like evil ghosts near Ji County. It is becoming increasingly difficult to obtain food sources, and the increasingly cold climate has made these Qiang people miserable.

Every day, more than a thousand people disperse into teams of one or two hundred, driving out in various directions to search for food sources in the surrounding area. But in fact, in areas beyond forty miles away, even if they encounter food, there is basically no food. How much help? First of all, a round trip distance is enough. If you can't go back and forth in one day, it means that the team that goes out to find food has to sleep in the wild. If it is summer, it is easy to say, but now winter is approaching, in Longyou at night The knife whizzes so fast that it even drops below freezing in the middle of the night!

On the other hand, searching for food is a small team, no matter what, it is a small team of one or two hundred people. It is no problem to bully ordinary farms and copycats, but if we really encounter a Han army city with high walls and deep castles, there is nothing we can do...

In addition, the Qiang people are extremely exhausted. They have been beaten and carried away for hundreds of miles in the past few days. They have nothing to eat or drink, and they can only sleep in the wild. Even a tough man can't Gradually, my body was exhausted, and my energy and strength had been exhausted to the limit.

Especially war horses.

Comparatively speaking, human endurance is stronger than that of horses, so in this process of consuming energy and physical strength, humans can hold on better than horses, but what's the use of just holding on?

When the Qiang people came, the main force totaled about 20,000 cavalry, and the rest were mostly women and children who accompanied the army. Although they could also hold bows and arrows, they were somewhat inferior in combat power. The horses they brought could have been used for one person and two horses, but now , the war horses that can go into battle are declining significantly over time. The autumn fat that large numbers of war horses finally raised in the autumn has been completely consumed, and even the ribs are exposed. If this continues, even if these horses can recover, they will still need to be fed for a long time. Only then can you recover.

What can support the Qiang people to continue to live in Liuji County now is nothing more than the extravagant thoughts in their hearts.

The Qiang people can endure hardship, so they gnash their teeth, like hungry wolves with their chests pressed against their backs, drooling and wandering around Ji County.

There is still hope...

Yes, that must be the case.

However, Quinoa was not as optimistic as Ma Chao. He stared at Ma Chao's figure in the distance, threw the bones with all the meat in his teeth to the ground, bared his teeth with meat shreds still hanging on them, and said fiercely: "The Han people...the Han people will not come to reinforce us...they are so cruel..."

The Qiang people are good at besieging cities, but not good at attacking them.

Not to mention the city, even Baishan Mountain, which can be climbed over a large area, was not able to be attacked by the fierce Xiongnu at that time. Although the various tribes of the Xiongnu had their own considerations, it can also be seen that the nomads are really not very good at it. When it comes to conquering cities, like the Yuan and Qing Dynasties in later generations, returning to the green camp and so on, in fact, it was more the Han people who fought against themselves.

When the Han people faced the invasion of the Hu people, they often did not use whips to urge them, because everyone knew that once the Hu people outside the city broke through the city, no one would be spared. Over the years here in Longyou, the Qiang people have come and gone, and many people have experienced the cruel methods of the Qiang people. Therefore, the city of Ji County has become a fortress for everyone. This fortress protects not only themselves. , and his wife, children, and children, there is no choice, and there will be no luck.

So from the very beginning, Quinoa Lijiu and Ma Chao's siege of Ji County was extremely difficult and brutal. Every battlement on the city seemed to be stained with blood. The two sides were constantly exchanging lives, depending on which side Can't hold it on first.

The Han Dynasty's county system had flaws, but it also had advantages.

Power is like a huge piece of meat. When the emperor of the Han Dynasty was strong, the knife in his hand was sharper, and he naturally snatched a lot of benefits. Harvesting the world's rich was like cutting leeks, but as the knife gradually became dull, The middle palace, relatives, and nobles also came up to grab the meat. Then you stared at me, and I stared at you, controlling each other's territory, and then staring at the meat in other people's bowls.

Counties and counties are the meat in the bowl of noble nobles.

For Ji County, the Jiang family and the Yang family are both popular surnames around Ji County and have a good reputation. Therefore, when Jiang Ji and Yang Fu stood together and faced the current emergency with the people in Ji County, , naturally there are no many noisy sounds. For the people of Hebei County, people with big businesses like Jiang Ji and Yang Fu are firmly on the front line, so what else can they say or shirk?

Under such conditions, quinoa cannot be found at any discount.

Quinoa Quli is the leader of the Xianling Qiang. Among the Xianling Qiang, he is even called the Qiang King. Of course, the internal fighting among the Qiang people is also very cruel, so in fact, most other Qiang tribes do not recognize this Qiang king.

However, most Qiang people are still a little convinced by the profit from Qiang's quinoa.

During the reign of Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty, Xianling Qiang took the lead in fighting against the Han army, and finally defeated the Han army. However, Xianling Qiang was also seriously injured, and all the other Qiang people started to think about it, but soon after, Quinoa went to Convenience The sudden emergence not only stopped the rebellion and seizure of power within the Xianling Qiang, but also attacked some other Qiang people in the surrounding area who were about to make a move, quickly stabilizing the situation and restoring the status of the Xianling Qiang.

This time, Quinoa and Ma Chao made a plan to siege the city and provide reinforcements. However, they never expected that after such a long time, the Han army seemed to have abandoned Ji County and did not send any reinforcements at all!

Such an almost starving army and horses are eager for the Han people to send reinforcements, so that the Qiang people can choose to use their best method in the wilderness to attack the reinforcements, abandoning the siege. Once the opponent is given the opportunity to attack the reinforcements, opportunity, what will be the consequences?

The reinforcements of the Han people mean that there is food, grass, population, utensils, and countless baggage. Similarly, the Qiang people's advantages in field battles can also be fully demonstrated. Even if Ji County cannot be captured for a while, You can also take the baggage of the Han reinforcements, drag them down, surround them, and finally trap Ji County in the city.

However, now, the reinforcements of the Han people are nowhere to be seen, and the people who are being dragged to death and trapped to death seem to be the Qiang people themselves...

…………………………

Xu Huang was quite worried.

Li Ru is still sitting firmly in the government office, and every day he seems to have forgotten about Ji County. He doesn't seem to be worried about the safety of Ji County at all.

This Li Changshi should have comprehensive arrangements, right?

Yes, that must be the case.

Although Xu Huang thought so in his mind, he had not received the order for reinforcements to set off, which made Xu Huang couldn't help but worry about Ji County. Without sending reinforcements, Xu Huang could almost imagine that this group of hungry Qiang people would use all their means to attack the city. This battle to defend the city would also be extremely brutal...

Although the Qiang people are not good at attacking cities, there is still a very serious problem for the people in Ji County, which is military morale. People who are besieged a city are often prone to military morale. As long as the defenders of the city have a psychological breakdown, they will inevitably panic. Once they panic, they will almost certainly be breached. In this way, the tens of thousands of soldiers and civilians in the entire Hebei County will be ruined.

Although he thought so, Xu Huang also knew that haphazardly sending reinforcements to rescue them before they were fully prepared would undoubtedly give the Qiang people a chance to replenish supplies.

so……

I can only watch from the sidelines.

My hands are itchy and my heart is itching, but I can only endure it.

Meng Shu and others have already arrived, but after the Mengshi soldiers arrived, they basically trained in a closed manner in the school grounds and basically did not show up. Xu Huang did not know what kind of medicine was in Meng Shu's gourd.

Compared with Xu Huang who was a little uneasy, Li Ru seemed very stable.

Li Ru is as familiar with the Qiang people as he is with himself. Having been dealing with the Qiang people for half his life, he knows deeply that the Qiang people are actually a group of guys who bully the weak and fear the strong. When they are arrogant, their arrogance is boundless, and when they are humble, they are They can survive in a humble state, so the best way to control the Qiang people is to prove that they are stronger and more powerful than the Qiang people!

Although Jixian County must be under tremendous pressure at the moment, no matter how exhausted the defenders of Jixian County are, Li Ru believes that as long as they can delay the pace of the Qiang people, the time spent will be worth it.

This time, those who followed Ma Chao to invade Longyou were all Qiang people, that is, they were originally in the north of Xiliang, close to the Western Regions, and some were located in the high mountains and deserts. These people had less interaction with the Han people and had no understanding of Wang Hua. , if we can take this opportunity to eliminate these Qiang people, or cripple them in Ji County, then this war can be regarded as a complete victory!

From then on, the Qiang people must have been frightened and would not dare to turn around and look eastwards for a long time. Therefore, for the overall situation of General Fei Qian's campaign to the west, the room for maneuver and maneuver was naturally much greater.

What Li Ru needs is a complete victory, a complete victory like a miracle!

A cold wind howled through the air.

Li Ru looked up at the sky. Now that the right place and people were in place, he was just waiting for the right time to come...

…………………………

The Qiang people's crazy siege for several days brought the entire Hebei County into the most dangerous moment.

Jiang Jiong and Yang Fu took turns on duty, leading countless soldiers and civilians to defend on the city wall. The Qiang people swarmed in, on the earth platform under the city and on the towers built, they bent their bows and arrows and shot at the top of the city indiscriminately.

However, the consumption of arrows was extremely high. In the later period, the Qiang people even secretly sent people to Ji County at night to pull out the arrows that were still intact and reuse them, so that many Qiang people could only hold empty arrows. The bow was waiting at the foot of the city, but it failed to exert its strength.

Some weak war horses also became food for the Qiang people before the siege.

The Qiang people turned red-eyed and angrily towards the direction of Ji County. Then the elders in the clan chanted unknown emphases, cut off the horse's head, broke it up and threw it into the pot, and then gave it to the Qiang people who were about to attack the city.

Quinoa became more and more anxious. At this moment, he even hoped that the reinforcements of the Han people would appear in front of him. Even if the tricolor flag general Zhengxi attacked in person, he would rush forward without fear!

The Qiang people are like a knife. This knife has been sharpened in Ji County for too long. It needs to find a flesh and blood body in order to vent its killing intent. If it is sharpened again, it will not only be sharp, but may also be broken. Already...

In order to vent these murderous intentions, Quinoa went to Li and even braved the bone-piercing wind of winter to organize the Qiang people to attack Hebei County at night!

The Qiang people braved the biting cold wind and secretly put up cloud ladders on the city walls of Ji County. Those Qiang people who suddenly jumped out and climbed in the darkness were like evil ghosts running out of hell. generally!

Each of the Qiang people who attacked at night let out a hoarse roar, and the reverberation became a mass, rushing towards their faces, almost swallowing up the Ji County in front of them!

The soldiers guarding the city in Ji County were exhausted for several days in a row, and their spirits were inevitably a little neglected. They thought that the Qiang people were sneaking around to pull out arrows and put them back for use, so they didn't pay much attention to them. However, they never expected that the sunrise would be the scene for the past few days. The Qiang people, who were fighting at sunset, actually launched a surprise attack at night!

However, these Han soldiers on duty still fulfilled their responsibilities at the last moment. They gritted their teeth and pushed forward. At the same time, they sounded the warning gong and shouted "Enemy attack! Enemy attack!"

At any time, as long as the soldiers are unprepared and are attacked by a sneak attack, the level of chaos will be the same. Even elite soldiers will panic, but the difference is the time required to change from panic to calmness.

The Qiang people unexpectedly made a sudden night attack, especially when Quinoa sent his most elite armored warriors up. The defense of Ji County was really like a thin layer of fence, as if it would be destroyed in the next moment. Will be pushed to the ground!

Quinoa's elite armored warriors are all wearing armor and holding long swords in their hands. They are extremely ferocious. Some even hold heavy long-handled maces. When they are smashed, even shields can be broken. You may not be able to handle it!

A tall figure appeared in the queue of Qiang people, jumping in the firelight, holding a spear-like weapon in his hand, pulling the ladder with one hand, and climbing up quickly.

It was Ma Chao.

Ma Chao climbed over the battlements and shouted loudly: "The city is broken today! The ban will be lifted for three days! No need to turn in what you get!"

The Qiang people were so stimulated that their blood boiled, and they roared and wanted to completely wipe out the defenders of Ji County!

Maybe tonight, the deadlock will be broken!