A water war started in Guangzhou.
King Ale personally led his troops to attack. He boasted that his cavalry was strong and invincible on land, and that the Nanman's fighting power was beyond the reach of Wei. However, when they reached the water, the soldiers who had been riding and shooting for many years were not used to fighting on water, and their strength was reduced.
This gave Guangzhou the strength to fight.
But is King Ale an ordinary person?
King Ale led the army all year round and enforced strict military discipline. If his soldiers were not good at water battles, he would practice water battles. If any of them were sick, he would abandon them; if he could not conquer the enemy, he would sacrifice his life.
But after King Alek started the naval battle, he began to regret it.
Because his original intention of this battle was to take down the Princess Danyang of Wei while Guangzhou was not able to react, and then use this princess to threaten Jiannan to withdraw troops. If Yan Shang refused to withdraw, King Ale would use Mu Wanyao's life as a pretext. However, when he arrived in Guangzhou, he found that the actual situation was different from what he thought.
First, they were not good at naval warfare; second, Mu Wanyao had been prepared, and Guangzhou had been prepared as well.
Guangzhou could not be conquered for the time being.
But King Ale had come this far, how could he turn back? If he turned back, he would be laughed at. The food and manpower consumed along the way would be huge, and without the Wei army to pay for them, King Ale could not afford such a huge loss.
King Ale already felt that this year's war with Wei was not as easy as he had previously imagined. He planned to attack Guangzhou as a short-term assault, but in reality Guangzhou was like a quagmire that held him back.
The Battle of Guangzhou became a protracted war.
King Ale regrouped and adjusted his strategy - since it had come to this, no matter how difficult it was, he had to carry out his original idea of taking down Mu Wanyao.
As long as we take Guangzhou, or even just Mu Wanyao, the losses suffered by the Nanman in this battle can be made up!
Meanwhile, Mu Wanyao found that King Ale refused to withdraw after failing to capture the city, so she had to consider other situations. A naval battle in Guangzhou was possible, but the soldiers were not as strong as the Nanman. She had watched the battle for a few days and had seen that if King Ale continued to fight with his life for his life, Guangzhou would be captured soon.
She had to think more about it.
For example, how to defend the city after the waterway is captured. Guangzhou does not need to be invincible, Guangzhou only needs to contain the Nanman and provide a buffer for the other two main combat forces.
Mu Wanyao began to instruct the construction of city walls for prefectures and counties.
Soldiers went out of the city to fight, and the people in the city were also mobilized. A parapet wall was added outside the existing city wall to protect the city. The parapet wall protection method adopted was "turning the head to open the door".
Turning the gate around means that the inner gate and the outer gate of the city are not directly opposite. Even if the enemy army has captured the outer gate, they still need to go around a long way to find the corresponding inner gate, so that they can continue to attack. This asymmetric direction of the inner and outer gates prevents the enemy's archery from attacking directly, and also increases the difficulty of attacking the city.
Meanwhile, Mu Wanyao studied the topographic map with the generals. She found that there were gates leading to the land and gates leading to the water for goods to enter and exit. Generally speaking, the gates leading to the mainland were heavily guarded and difficult for the enemy to attack. Although there were iron gates at the water gates to prevent sneak attacks by the enemy, they were still weak in military strength.
Mu Wanyao gave the order: "Block all six water gates with stones."
General: “Ah?”
Mu Wanyao said: "Since the military strength here is already weak, it is better to abandon it and abolish these six city gates, and transfer the military strength to more important places."
In the naval battle in January, the generals had a clear understanding of this princess who had the final say. Mu Wanyao's beauty was attractive, but her heart was cold and cruel.
If she hadn't supervised the battle and urged them to train day and night, Guangzhou would not have been able to resist the fierce southern barbarian forces. No one dared to look down on the princess at this time. The generals regarded Mu Wanyao as their backbone and asked for instructions on everything. A princess of a country should be a leader when defending a city.
At the same time, Mu Wanyao and her husband Yan Shang, who was in Jiannan, had been communicating with each other non-stop, exchanging information about the battle situation on both sides.
Yan Shang was extremely worried that it would be difficult to defend Guangzhou, but Mu Wanyao was full of confidence and told him not to worry.
Mu Wanyao felt that Yan Shang was in a more difficult situation: "The Nanman cavalry is strong, while the Wei army is weak. They cannot retreat because of poverty, so they will move forward. Even with you and Yang San, the Jiannan battlefield will be very difficult. Moreover, Meng Zaishi's combat ability is unmatched by ordinary people. He is treacherous and ambitious. You have to be careful."
Yan Shang warned: "Guangzhou should not be a battlefield. If you have any difficulties, you must let me know. I heard that King Ale is a hero of the southern barbarians, and even Meng Zaishi admires his leadership. You must be careful..."
Mu Wanyao said nonchalantly: "My husband, you are wrong. War and defending a city are not the same thing. Even if they take over the waterway, it does not mean they can take over Guangzhou. To fight a war, you need troops, but to defend a city, just people are enough."
Yan Shang wrote again: "I feel relieved that you are here to defend the city. What I want to remind you is that according to my observation of the battle in Jiannan, Yaoyao should pay attention to two aspects. Once the enemy captures a city, the first thing they do is to set it on fire; the second thing is to rape women. Women are the most humiliated in city battles, so you must protect them."
Mu Wanyao replied, "I know. Thank you, second brother, for reminding me in advance. I was originally afraid that people would eat each other. Second brother, is the situation already so serious over there? You must be very sad."
Yan Shang wrote back again, without answering whether he was sad or not: "Anyway..."
Mu Wanyao: "No matter what, soldiers must establish their authority and fight to the death."
Once the war begins, there is no turning back and you must not lose heart. A war is a fight to the death and there is no chance of luck.
-----
Two months after the war in Guangzhou began, the southern barbarians were focused on conquering the waterways.
The strength of both sides in Jiannan battlefield was stalemate, just as Mu Wanyao thought, after King Ale left, the Jiannan battlefield was fully under Meng Zaishi's charge, and without a leader, the Nanman's troops became stronger. But naturally, Yang Si and the soldiers had known each other for half a year, and they began to have a tacit understanding, and the Dawei's troops also increased.
Both the Great Wei and the Southern Barbarians entered the period when each was at its strongest.
Meng Zaishi didn't necessarily have to defeat Wei. His ultimate goal was to kill King Ale and negotiate peace with Wei. But no matter what his final plan was, Meng Zaishi knew that at least he had to win the Jiannan battlefield.
If you want to negotiate peace, you must have the strength to negotiate with the other party. He doesn't care about the life or death of King Ale, and he doesn't care about the situation in Hexi. In Jiannan, Meng Zaishi vowed to kill Yang Si to establish his authority. A general like Yang Si is a threat to him now and in the future.
He wanted to kill this threat before he fully grew up.
As it happened, Yang Si had the same idea as him. Even if the Wei Dynasty wanted to negotiate peace with the Nanman, it would be best if the leader of the Nanman was not someone like Meng Zaishi.
At the end of this year, the Wei Dynasty was embroiled in war. No one was in the mood to celebrate the New Year, and the people were all praying that the war would end in the new year.
Even in Chang'an, sandwiched between Hexi and Jiannan, the emperor always felt the threat of losing his life. In particular, the court officials and eunuchs were constantly fighting for the right to speak in the war, and the emperor was unable to mediate, which made him exhausted.
So the emperor urged when the war would end.
The emperor faced the pressure from Jiannan, and it was Yan Shang who resisted it. The emperor kept pointing fingers and interfering, asking why they hadn't fought yet, why it hadn't ended yet, whether Yan Shang had other thoughts, and why there had been no progress on the Jiannan battlefield.
The pressure from the center is worrying.
But because Yan Shang was blocking Jiannan, the soldiers only had to fight and did not have to deal with the court.
Compared to Jiannan, Hexi was not so lucky. After all, Hexi was too close to Chang'an, and Jiannan was in a rugged terrain. If the Nanman hadn't insisted on getting Jiannan, Jiannan would not be a good battlefield. However, Hexi had an open terrain, and was a very suitable battlefield for the Nanman.
The Wei Dynasty's Hexi battlefield was originally in a stalemate with the Nanman. After Prime Minister Liu arrived, they received the support of the backbone of the court and became more confident in fighting this battle.
But soon after, as the emperor exceeded his authority in commanding Hexi, the battlefield in Hexi began to fall into chaos.
Liu Wenji continued to pass on the emperor's orders to Hexi: "Your Majesty asks why you haven't started the war yet since you have been resting for several days?"
Prime Minister Liu replied that it was snowing and the soldiers needed to rest.
Liu Wenji said: "It is snowing in Hexi, so it is difficult for you. It is also difficult for you to attack the southern barbarians. Since both are difficult, you just need to be stronger than the enemy. His Majesty has ordered you to go to battle."
Liu Xianggong's face turned pale: "Now is not a good time to fight!"
The court envoy sent by Liu Wenji smiled and said, "It is your majesty who wants to negotiate peace, and it is you who insist on fighting. Your majesty appreciates your heroic spirit and patriotism, so he agrees to let you fight. Your majesty uses the power of the whole country to support you, and there is no shortage of food, fodder, and military pay, but it is not for you to sit here and drink in the open air."
The general following behind Liu Xianggong had an unpleasant expression on his face: "What do you mean, eunuch? Drinking is also to inspire the soldiers' morale."
The envoy said disdainfully: "If we win, it's worth it to encourage them. If we don't win, what's the point of encouraging them? Anyway, His Majesty is urging you to send troops. If you don't send troops, His Majesty will replace you with a general who is willing to send troops."
Liu Xianggong: "Changing generals before the battle is a taboo!"
The envoy said, "Your Majesty, there is nothing you can do. Your Majesty has been sleepless all night, worrying about the war... When the king worries, the minister is humiliated. Don't you understand this, sir? As a loyal minister, you should share the king's worries. Sir, go to the battle."
Mr. Liu uttered a few words from between his teeth: "The time is not right."
This was reported back to the central government, but the emperor remained calm and continued to issue proclamations. Seeing the emperor was so anxious, Liu Wenji decided to avoid being the bad guy and just watched from the sidelines.
Liu Wenji had already anticipated this.
Your Majesty is urging the troops to march forward day by day. Even if Prime Minister Liu is tough, are the soldiers in Hexi tough enough to withstand the pressure from the central government?
Hexi will send troops soon.
According to the intelligence exchanges between Liu Wenji and the Nanman people in private, and the correspondence with Longyou, this battle will be very difficult for Liu Xianggong. If Hexi loses and Wei cedes land, will the effect be similar to what the Nanman wants?
By then, Liu Wenji will have solved the problem of the Nanman holding him responsible and will be able to truly gain a firm foothold.
-----
It is ridiculous to allow personal desires to influence national affairs, but troops were still sent from Longyou.
Liangzhou in Longyou is a relatively peaceful place nowadays. After the war in Hexi, most of the people moved to Liangzhou. The troops of Longyou were also stationed outside Liangzhou, guarding the last pass of Longyou.
Liu Ruozhu and her husband Lin Dao were also in Liangzhou. Since her grandfather came to Longyou, the grandfather and grandson finally met each other. Mr. Liu was relieved, and Liu Ruozhu was also relieved to see her grandfather come to guard it in person. If her grandfather was here, he would definitely not give up Hexi.
However, just after the New Year, the situation in Longyou became tense due to pressure from the central government.
That night, after the mother coaxed the child to sleep, Liu Ruozhu and Lin Dao chatted about their worries about the war, and then went to sleep. They were awakened by the noise outside not long after they slept. Longyou had been at war for half a year, and this was not the first time that there was such a crisis in the middle of the night.
Liu Ruozhu and Lin Dao hurried out of the house and saw that the soldiers in the city were frequently mobilized and the people were fleeing.
She was about to send someone to inquire about the situation when a soldier came hurriedly and grabbed the girl when he saw her: "Girl, Master! My husband said that we fell into a trap. Someone leaked the information. The southern barbarians attacked the city in the middle of the night. Our army was defeated and is retreating.
"My husband, let Lord Lin and Lady Lin lead all the people in the city to retreat to the interior!"
After the soldier finished speaking Liu Xianggong's words, he turned around and was about to look for other people. Liu Ruozhu grabbed him and said, "What about my grandfather? My grandfather is so old, won't he go with us?"
Soldier: "My lord said he came here to supervise the battle, how can he abandon his troops and run away? My lord asked you to withdraw first, and his troops will stay behind to prevent the southern barbarians from harming the people."
At such an urgent moment, there is no time to say more.
Liu Ruozhu suppressed her worries and looked at Lin Dao, who immediately went out of the house to call on the people to flee the city in an orderly manner to prevent people from being trampled to death and to prevent people from dying at the hands of their own people. Liu Ruozhu asked her mother to take the children and the people to flee first, and she began to sort out the books left in the house.
After Lin Dao came back, the two loaded the books and classics into the car, counted them, and began to evacuate the city with the people.
The people of Liangzhou are more accustomed to wars than those in Guanzhong. Even if they are woken up in the middle of the night, they have officials to command them. It is said that even the prime minister's granddaughter is among them and is fleeing with them. So what is there to be afraid of?
The common people retreated first, and the army held the rear. More than 100,000 southern barbarian troops attacked from behind, and a bloody battle ensued.
-----
Someone leaked the information, which led to the military deployment of Liangzhou being known in advance. The Wei side was suddenly attacked, and there was no time to think too much. The emperor urged them to fight day and night, and they were under pressure, but to this night, they were still forced to fight.
The snow was several feet thick, causing inconvenience to both sides' movements.
This should not be a good time to fight, but the Southern Barbarians cannot wait, and the Wei Dynasty cannot retreat.
The common people retreated first, but Liu Xianggong, who was so old, still rode a horse and held a sword, and went in and out with the soldiers. The horses were stuck in the snow and could not move forward. The soldiers resisted the test of nature while dealing with the cruel pursuers behind them.
Prime Minister Liu's voice was as loud as thunder, and he kept shouting to encourage everyone: "Wait until we get to the next city! We can rest and regroup, and we can work together with the next city to drive the barbarians back! This is our territory, they can't win!"
It was thanks to the Prime Minister's personal example that the army avoided defeat when attacked in the middle of the night and has persisted until now.
From midnight to dawn, they fought and fled exhaustedly, getting closer and closer to the next city. The soldiers saw hope and fought more vigorously. However, the first to fight encountered difficulties. Liu Xianggong ordered people to enter the city, but found that the front was hesitant and made no progress.
When Liu Xianggong heard the situation from his soldiers, his face suddenly changed. He did not dare to let the soldiers know the news, but rode his horse to the city himself.
He saw that the people who had fled here before them were crowding in front of the city gate like ants, but the city gate was closed and no one was allowed into the city.
Prime Minister Liu was furious. Seeing the shadows of soldiers on the top of the city wall, he sent a message: "I am here with the seal of the prime minister! Why don't you open the city gates, support the people, and fight with us to resist the enemy!"
After a while, a rope was lowered from the tower, and a bamboo basket was tied to the rope. A soldier sat in the bamboo basket. The soldier lowered his head and walked through the people who were shouting and cursing to open the city gate, and came to report to the prime minister: "Our governor said that your army was defeated so quickly, there must be spies. We dare not let you enter the city, for fear that the spies will harm the people in the city."
Liu Xianggong's beard trembled with anger: "Ridiculous!"
He suppressed his anger and said: "If you dare not let the soldiers enter the city, then you should at least open the city gates and let the people in! Shouldn't officials protect the people?"
The soldier who delivered the message knew that he would be scolded, and he blushed with shame, but he lowered his head and said, "Our Jiedushi said that the refugees are not the people under his jurisdiction, and have nothing to do with him. He only needs to defend this city, and the rest have nothing to do with us."
When Mr. Liu first heard this, he was stunned for a moment.
The general who came with Liu Xianggong cursed loudly when he heard this. He didn't expect the enemy fire to come from his side. They fought for their country, but now they were driven out of the city and couldn't even enter the city gate.
A soldier came breathlessly to report: "General, sir! The enemy is less than ten miles away from us!"
The cavalry marched southward with great momentum, and no one could stop them.
Liu Xianggong looked at the crowds of people who were unable to enter the city, then he looked up at the blazing flames on the tower. He turned around and looked at the troops following him, the blood on their bodies, and the anxiety and expectation on their faces.
His Majesty urged war every day, but nothing could make him despair as this night.
Your Majesty's urging for war was predictable, but the sinister human heart was unpredictable.
The general cried miserably: "Sir, what should we do?"
Liu Xianggong's face was leaden gray. "Go to the people, find my granddaughter and grandson-in-law, tell them that the people are not allowed to enter this city, tell them not to hold out hope, lead the people, and continue to flee to Guanzhong."
The general agreed.
Seeing that Liu Xianggong was so calm, he also gained confidence. Wiping the blood off his face, the general stared at the old and vigorous man with burning eyes: "What should we do then?"
Liu Xianggong asked back: "General Guo, are you afraid of death?"
The general was stunned.
Liu Xianggong looked up at the endless sky and murmured, "I was born into a noble family and was recommended to serve in the court. I was only sixteen when I first started, but now I am seventy-six... I have been in the court for sixty years since I was a child. I have done my best to serve the emperor and I am loyal to him.
"I saw the building collapse, the wild geese fly south, the setting sun turn red... In my old age, everything is in vain.
"I thought that all my energy would be wasted, and I could only wait to retire and enjoy a peaceful life. The future of the Great Wei, the sun and moon in the court, what can I do... But now, now... It's good like this!"
The wilderness is desolate and as silent as death.
The general stared at him in a daze, the flames illuminating the old man's clear eyes filled with tears. The general didn't know what to say, the old man had already passed him, walked towards the soldiers, and shouted: "Order the three armies, fight to the death tonight! Anyone who deserts will be executed immediately!"
-----
When Liu Ruozhu and his wife received the message from Liu Xianggong, they knew something was wrong. They helped to evacuate the people, but at this time, the people also found something wrong. When the people found that the officials would not let them enter the city, they began to panic and shouted, "The court doesn't care about us! The court is going to withdraw its troops! We are going to die!
"Hexi is going to be lost, we are all going to die here, everyone run away!"
Liu Ruozhu shouted: "No! The court has not abandoned us, don't panic..."
But no matter how loud her voice was, it was drowned out by the crowd, like waves in a flood. No one listened to her, no one believed her. The people were in chaos. Some cried and banged on the city gates, begging to enter the city. Some turned around and fled far away in panic. Some went in the wrong direction and stepped into an area that could be attacked by the enemy's arrow array...
Seeing them panicking and at a loss of where to go, Liu Ruozhu wanted to teach them how to escape with her own body. But with thousands of people in chaos, she could not get anyone to listen to her even if her voice was hoarse.
Lin Dao held her shoulders and said, "Ruozhu, let's just leave it at that... We have tried our best, and we have to flee... We have already informed the people to flee, and we cannot die here. We still have books to protect, and children... Ruozhu, let's go too."
Liu Ruozhu was filled with reluctance, but she could only nod her head, harden her heart, and under the protection of the guards in the mansion, she and her husband escorted the carts of books and fled to the interior.
-----
The sky was turning pale, and I was in a state of panic all night.
When there was a little light, Liu Ruozhu and Lin Dao stood on a high sand dune and saw the people scattered like mud. She and Lin Dao looked back and saw the direction they had fled from the city. There was a raging war, which had been burning all night without stopping.
Liu Ruozhu stared at it in a daze, and his shoulders couldn't help but tremble.
She knew in her heart that her grandfather would die there, and that he would not retire. Her grandfather was a prime minister of the dynasty, and he should have retired and lived out his days! However, however...
She looked at the scattered people again and saw that the enemy had already caught up with them, arrows were flying, and iron hooves were trampling on each other. She and Lin Dao walked on the safe road opened up by the government, but the people were scattered in panic and were chased by the cruel enemies...
All this made her feel cold all over.
Lin Dao held her trembling hand and said, "Don't look at it, Ruozhu, let's go."
Liu Ruozhu suddenly covered her face and cried, she choked up and said, "I can't do this... I can't do this!
"I can't let everyone die in such an unclear way. I can't escape alone knowing that they will die. If all the people die, what's the point of escaping to a safe place?"
Liu Ruozhu raised her eyes, tears rolling down her cheeks. Through her tearful eyes, she looked at the books that she and her husband had protected along the way. She and Lin Dao traveled from Chang'an to Hexi, from Hexi to Liangzhou, and from Liangzhou to here... For these books, they had spent several years, thousands of days and nights, all to protect these books!
However, however!
Liu Ruozhu suddenly snatched the fire from a soldier next to her and walked towards the ox cart containing the books. Her hand holding the torch trembled for a moment, but she still let go and poured the fire down to set the books on fire.
Lin Dao's eyes were red with anger, and he rushed towards the books from behind, but was caught by Liu Ruozhu: "Husband! We can't keep these books!"
She said with tears in her eyes: "My grandfather may have died. People were killed in front of us. We have to save the people! We have to burn books. We have to use such a big fire to attract the enemy's attention and divert the enemy's attention from innocent people! We can escape, but we have to fight for others' survival!"
Lin Dao looked at her and said in a hoarse voice: "This is the hard work of our ancestors that has been left over for thousands of years..."
Liu Ruozhu shouted: "But it's not as good as human life! Not as good as human life!"
She held the torch and looked at the exhausted guards around her. Through the firelight, she seemed to see her grandfather who was trapped in the sea of fire and died in the battle. She then saw the scattered people... Liu Ruozhu threw the torch in her hand completely into the sea of books.
She lit the books on fire, and the fire started by the wooden material burned fiercely, the flames shot up into the sky, illuminating the whole area.
She fell to the ground and cried. She saw thousands of days and nights being destroyed by her own hands. She saw all the hopes that she had tried her best to protect since she was a teenager being burned by her own hands... The desert, the fire, and the light of the sky shone on her thin and trembling body.
She cried miserably and choked with sobs, but she had to get up again and lead the people to continue moving forward. Longyou fell, Liangzhou fell. Her hope could be destroyed, her more than ten years of hard work could be thrown away...but the people had to live.
People have to survive.
Lin Dao also had tears in his eyes. He leaned over and knelt with her, watching the hard work of their ancestors being destroyed in their hands.
Heaven and earth are worried, what can people do?
-----
The naval battle of Guangzhou City ended when King Ale sacrificed many soldiers and led his troops ashore.
Mu Wanyao led the soldiers to watch the battle. Seeing that the enemy finally landed, they were powerless to turn the tide and gave up the battle. Mu Wanyao was escorted back to the city by the soldiers. She instructed: "From now on, we have to start clearing the countryside. Close the city gates and start defending the city!
"From today on, no one is allowed to step out of the city gate!"
"Fortify the walls and clear the fields" means that all the people outside the city must return to the city and are not allowed to leave. Guangzhou will start the battle to defend the city and close the city gates. The real battle to defend the city will only begin from this time.
The soldiers passed on the princess's order and hurried back to the city, but the enemy army could not wait to attack them as soon as they landed. The enemy's large force had not yet adapted to the situation, but King Ale had already separated the advance soldiers and used them as assassins to harass the retreating Wei soldiers.
Mu Wanyao was escorted back to the city. She was a princess and she was always giving orders, so her target was very obvious. Suddenly, several people rushed out from the darkness and pounced on Mu Wanyao.
The barbarians cooperated well, and several of them attacked the soldiers who were protecting Mu Wanyao. One of them rushed over with a knife in his hand, and threw Mu Wanyao to the ground, raising the knife in his hand. When he swung the knife downward, a bright light flashed upward from below. With a crisp sound, the weapons collided!
The barbarian was furious when he saw that it was the beautiful princess who was pinned down by him, holding a dagger in her hand. She was not as strong as him, and when the enemy pressed down the weapon, Mu Wan shook the dagger in her hand and injured her own skin, and blood flowed down her palm.
But because she kept holding the dagger, she blocked the fatal blow.
The barbarians were furious and swore at him using southern barbarian swear words.
Mu Wanyao, who was pressed under him, had a bright and cold look in her eyes, without any trace of panic.
The barbarian grabbed Mu Wanyao's wrist and snatched the dagger from the weak girl's hand. Mu Wanyao fought desperately, bleeding profusely, but refused to let go.
At this moment, Fang Tong, who had resolved the attack, turned around and saw the princess being held down. His blood immediately rushed backwards. He roared, leaped up, and slashed with his palm: "How dare you, the villain, hurt Your Highness——!"
After helping the coughing Mu Wanyao up from the ground, everyone easily dealt with the attacker and came to show concern.
Mu Wanyao coughed and gasped while holding his injured palm: "Don't worry about them for now, let's go into the city."
She didn't know why the enemy would do such a dangerous thing. It was impossible for the enemy to hurt her under their noses... The southern barbarians were indeed simple-minded and ridiculous.
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