The army stopped immediately.
Zhang Yong was right beside him. He hurriedly reined in his horse and asked, "My lord?"
Why is this?
We must cross the Dongluan Road before three o'clock in the morning, otherwise it will be too late to encircle Prince An.
Zhang Yong was anxious, and generals such as Chen Qi and Fan Ya also rode over. However, Wei Jing said nothing, and stared at the river for a long time with his eyes narrowed.
"wrong."
That's not right.
It rained for days and nights, and the river swelled, but the river water is always clearer in winter. It is like the Taki Water in front of us. Although it rushes downstream very fast, stirring up waves of white foam, the water is still clear and transparent to the naked eye.
Everything is normal.
But this is where it all goes against common sense.
You should know that there is a large iron mine on the side of Dongluan Road, just a little upstream of the Taki River. The mine is open-air and has no vegetation coverage. The continuous heavy rains must have washed away a lot of loess.
The waterfall water cannot be so clear, it should be more turbid, at least this section is very obvious.
Unless there is no large iron mine in Dongluan Road.
The big iron mine is actually on Daning Road.
In a flash, Wei Jing understood everything. He suddenly looked up at the dark green mountain ridge in front of him. In the twilight, the official road between the two mountains was pitch black, like a sharp mouth that could bite people.
"Pass the order! The rear army will turn to the front army and rush to Daning Road. Move forward at full speed!"
…
The Yizhou army was extremely disciplined. At Wei Jing's command, they all turned around, quickly returned along the way they came, took the Daning Road, and rushed to Lingcheng.
"Miss Fu was so frightened that she might have remembered the wrong direction."
Thanks to Prince An's roundabout and cautious statement, it actually helped Meng's mother and daughter a lot at this time. A frail woman, obviously something bad had happened to her, and she fled from the iron mine in panic, running across the mountains. It has been more than two years, so it is not surprising that she has some lapses in her memory.
Ji Huan thought that Fu Yun might have remembered the time and location incorrectly, otherwise according to his deduction, this iron mine would never be able to reach Daning Road.
Therefore, he dared to assert that it was Dongluan Dao.
Ji Huan heaved a long sigh of relief. Fortunately, his lord had a sharp eye, otherwise his side would have faced a tough and fierce battle.
At this time, everyone did not know about Hulu Gorge, nor did they know that the Tung Oil Fire Array would lead to their death. Also, because he couldn't calm down and think carefully during the rapid march, and most importantly, because of Wei Jing's relationship, he didn't suspect Fu Yun for the time being.
Wei Jing was the same. At this time, he still did not doubt his only two remaining blood relatives.
But for some reason, he felt a vague sense of uneasiness in his heart.
To Fu Yun.
A strange feeling came from somewhere.
He immediately sent scouts to stay on Dongluan Road, ordering them to be careful and lie low and keep an eye out for any movement; he also specifically pointed out people and ordered them to stay behind to search for iron ore when they reached Daning Road.
Wei Jing acted according to his instinctive intuition, an intuition that came from his many experiences between life and death. But even after the order was issued, the uneasiness has not dissipated.
He suddenly thought of his wife, and his heart skipped a beat, then started beating wildly.
An unknown sharp intuition, which is related to Fu Yun.
No, he shouldn't have such thoughts. His aunt and cousin had survived a near-death experience and were the only two blood relatives left in the world. They were finally reunited.
His aunt treated him no differently than before.
Wei Jing shook his head, trying to get rid of the slight doubt that had quietly arisen in his mind.
But almost immediately, he gave an order in a deep voice: "Han Xi, you must immediately select a thousand men, take off their armor, travel light, and rush back to Pingcheng as quickly as possible!"
"Remember not to alarm anyone, quietly escort the lady out, and go back to Hanzhong first."
Wei Jing's voice became more and more urgent: "Order people to surround the backyard of the county governor's mansion, and no one is allowed to enter or leave!"
"Generals, listen up and march at full speed!"
…
But for Prince An, Wei Jing's order to Han Xi was still a little late.
…
Prince An's scouts had been keeping an eye on Zhiwei Pass. As soon as Wei Jing's army set out, half of them immediately rushed back to report, while the other half followed quietly.
But the blocked roads brought obstacles to both sides. When the scouts of Prince An discovered from afar that the Yizhou army suddenly turned to the front and returned along the original route, they had no way to take a shortcut back to report the news.
They could only go around Daning Road and run as fast as they could.
By that time, the news from the previous group of scouts was almost reaching Prince An.
Prince An deliberately set up a confusing formation and carefully concealed the situation. He eventually led an army of 100,000 to set up an ambush at the Heyi section of the Dongluan Road, right behind Hulu Gorge. Once the fire formation was formed, he could take the opportunity to wipe out the chaotic enemy troops.
Everything went smoothly. When the king received the news that the Yizhou army had left Zhiwei Pass and headed straight for Dongluan Road, he was ecstatic, but he quickly suppressed his excitement: "Order the ambush troops in Hulu Gorge to be extremely careful and not to make any noise."
There were ambushed troops in Huluxia, but they were very few, and their main purpose was to use rockets to explode tung oil barrels. It is not difficult to lie dormant with few people. Although there are densely packed tung oil barrels and fire lines hidden on both sides of Hulu Gorge, this is a natural treasure land with a small mouth and a large belly. The trees and thatch are extremely lush, there are many potholes, and poisonous insects are everywhere. Unless a large number of soldiers conduct a dragnet search, there is no possibility of finding any flaws in a short period of time.
Although Wei Jing sent out a lot of scouts, they were still scouts after all, and their number was far from the above-mentioned scale. General Chen Ang, who led the ambush troops in Hulu Gorge, gathered the rockets in his hands, crouched carefully, and kept his eyes fixed on the Yizhou sentries.
The Yizhou sentinels searched for a long time but found nothing wrong, so they headed back to the road ahead.
Everyone waited patiently until the light began to dim, then they saw the Yizhou scouts who had been exploring the way turn around on their horses and go back the way they came.
The most critical moment is coming.
Prince An and his generals and soldiers waited with bated breath.
But the Yizhou army did not appear yet.
The King of Ni is a man with rich experience in warfare. Even if everything is normal, it is not surprising that he still hesitates. Let's wait patiently.
Time passes quietly, the Shen hour, the You hour, the Xu hour, the Hai hour, and then the Zi hour. The cold wind whistled through the mountains, making an eerie sound. The dark clouds in the sky gradually grew thicker, and a cold winter rain was brewing.
After lying dormant for a long time without any movement, people gradually became anxious.
A gust of wind blew by, and Wei Xu stood up suddenly, his wide black sleeves fluttering in the wind. He solemnly declared: "No need to wait any longer, the King of Qi must have led his army to turn around and head towards Daning Road!"
The strong wind did not blow away his voice. His clear and crisp words were like a huge rock hitting people's hearts, and Prince An's breathing suddenly became rapid.
His cheeks twitched and his expression was terrifyingly ferocious.
Guo Huai said: "Perhaps the Rebel King is cautious and is still observing."
As he spoke, he was actually very hesitant, but the cost of a failed ambush was too high, so he couldn't help but hope for a little more luck.
Wei Xu frowned and said, "The King of Qi will immediately counterattack Dongluan Road after passing through Daning Road. If we can't retreat to Lingcheng in time, our situation will be worrying."
From Huluxia to Lingcheng, the Dongluan Road is still dozens of miles long. Since it is most suitable for ambushes, it must be extremely dangerous and difficult to pass. It actually takes a lot of time for the army to pass through.
Once the plan fails, we have to retreat back to Lingcheng quickly, otherwise the ambush will fail and we will be surrounded, and the situation will be reversed immediately.
Prince An looked unhappy. He had spent so much time and effort to set up today's situation.
Has Wei Jingzhen discovered the clue and turned around?
His face was gloomy, and he finally gritted his teeth and said, "Go, scouts! Immediately follow the official road south and find out the movements of the Yizhou army!"
The failure of the ambush meant too much. Even though he believed in Wei Xu's judgment in his heart, King An was still unwilling to accept it.
If we send out scouts, there will be a considerable risk of being discovered by the Yizhou army, but we can no longer worry about that now that things have come to this point.
Unfortunately, the Yizhou army had indeed turned around, and the messy horse hoof prints came to an abrupt end in front of the Heyi section.
Prince An stood up suddenly and said, "Pass the order! All troops return to Lingcheng immediately!"
…
However, due to this delay, they were unable to catch up. When Prince An led his army to cross the Dongluan Road at the fastest speed, they were blocked by Wei Jing's army which had marched overnight.
That’s right, it’s congested.
They almost ran out of Dongluan Road, but were blocked by the Yizhou army at the entrance.
The worst happened.
It is now bright today, and last night's rain did not fall. Thick layers of dark clouds are piled up, making the sky gloomy. In the cold wind, the black mass of Yizhou troops surged in like a tide. One could clearly see the red commander's flag surrounded by the enemy troops. A huge and majestic "Qi" character stood tall in the cold wind, proudly standing.
Prince An's pupils shrank.
Wei Jing, who was under the general's banner, slowly drew out his sword and pointed it at the enemy: "All soldiers, listen to my order! Attack!"
The cowhide drum suddenly roared, and the Yizhou army burst into thunderous shouts, rushing towards the frightened An Wang army like a tide.
A fierce encirclement battle then unfolded.
Prince An is in the most critical and embarrassing situation in his life.
The bright red blood replaced the rain, flowing at the ancient Dongluan Road, dyeing the yellow-brown soil into ochre red. The battle started in the morning. Due to the disparity in troop strength and the fact that his side was completely at a disadvantage, King An was defeated. By the evening, the fierce battle had almost collapsed.
A gust of wind blew by, and cold rain came down in the face with a crackling sound. Prince An wiped the rain mixed with blood on his face, his eyes were red, and he was breathing heavily.
At this critical moment of life and death, fortunately, Wei Xu is there.
"We will retreat upwards immediately and use the terrain to repel the enemy!"
In this battle, even Wei Xu, who had been silent all this time, drew his sword. His fighting ability was not much inferior to that of Wei Jing, and he provided a backbone for the defeated An Wang army, keeping them together and preventing them from being killed and dispersed.
While fighting and retreating, Wei Xu was always looking for a suitable place to hold so that he could get a chance to catch his breath.
Finally he found it. It was a high peak with steep terrain and many rocks, making it too slippery to climb. With his sharp eyes, he saw from afar a small path leading up the mountain on the left side of the peak.
Very good, if we retreat and guard the intersection, we can catch our breath.
It was dark and it was raining heavily. It was difficult for the Yizhou army to climb the trail, so how could they attack?
You can be safe for now tonight.
As expected, Prince An Weixu led the remaining troops to retreat. Wei Jing frowned and glanced at the dangerous peaks. He had no choice but to issue an order: "Sound the horn!"
Given the terrain and weather, we can only call a truce.
But it doesn’t matter, just surround the peak.
It is difficult to attack upwards, but breaking through downwards is even more difficult. Surrounded by hundreds of thousands of troops, King An cannot possibly break through.
Wei Jing snorted coldly and ordered to set up camp on the spot.
After a forced march and continuous fighting, the soldiers were exhausted.
…
The baggage soldiers and logistics soldiers had already arrived. Wei Jing gave the order to set up camp on the spot, cut grass and cut wood, and soon set up tents. The soldiers were divided into two groups and took turns to eat and rest.
However, the remaining troops of Prince An on the mountainside were not so at ease.
All the armaments had been abandoned, there were no tents, and the exhausted soldiers could only take shelter under rocks or trees. The rain was icy cold, and the ordinary soldiers were shivering with hunger and fatigue. Generals such as Chen Ang and Xu Cang were worried and went to guard the road crossing themselves.
A sad and desolate atmosphere filled the air. Looking down the mountain in the distance, there were dots of yellow light and many soldiers had despair on their faces.
There is no way to go up to the sky and no door to enter the earth. Those trapped up there without food or clothes will die without being killed. But how can one break out?
A young soldier cried in fear. Prince An, who was pacing with a gloomy face, heard the sound and suddenly stopped: "Those who disturb the morale of our army will be killed without mercy!"
Immediately, the personal guards rushed out and dealt with the crying soldiers.
No more cries of grief were heard, but Prince An did not feel much better. He was like a trapped beast, anxious and angry, with a ferocious face.
The end of the road.
Could it be that he is going to die here today?
No, you can't!
He had lived in a low position for twenty years, enduring humiliation and trying hard to plan. How could he die when his mother's revenge had not yet been avenged and his ambitions had not yet been fulfilled? !
Prince An's cheeks twitched a few times, and he stood still suddenly: "Jinzhi, what do you have in mind?"
Now we can only hope that Wei Xu can find a good way to escape.
Wei Xu was wearing a dark robe that was soaked and stuck to his body. He lacked his usual ethereal and graceful look and instead looked more vigorous and heroic. He sat under a strange rock that was a foot high, frowning and thinking for a long time.
Hearing King An's question, he raised his head and said, "We are surrounded alone, without clothes or food. If we defend for a long time without attacking, we will collapse."
Holding on to the isolated peak would mean certain death, but if he tried to break out, Wei Xu glanced down the mountain and saw dotted with dim tents, so densely packed that there was no end in sight.
"Zhonghe, if I help you break through, I am 70% sure I can escape unscathed."
In this harsh environment, if we want to find benefits, there is one. It is not a conventional battlefield. There are vast mountains, tall trees and lush vegetation, and there are hidden places everywhere. Wei Xu himself is actually not in much danger. With his skills, he will be able to escape successfully.
As for the others.
Wei Xu looked around at the remaining soldiers huddled together in twos and threes under the rain, and at the generals such as Chen Ang and Xu Cang who were solemnly guarding the road crossing in the distance.
And there is King An.
After all, Prince An was not a strong fighter. He carried such a burden into the army. Even Wei Xu was only 70% sure that the two of them could escape unscathed.
As for the others except Prince An, he could not guarantee anything. Generals like Chen Ang might have some chance of survival, but for the ordinary soldiers, he was afraid that only one in ten would survive.
"Seventy percent?"
At this moment, defeat or not is no longer the most important thing. The most important thing is his own life. Upon hearing that there is a 70% chance of victory, Prince An suddenly felt relieved.
As long as the green mountains remain, there will be no shortage of firewood. He knew Wei Xu's abilities, and what he said must be true.
It's only 70%, which is still not safe enough.
As Prince An was thinking this, he heard Wei Xu say, "The King of Qi is as capable as I am. If it weren't for the high mountains and dense forests, his chances would be even smaller."
He is confident but never conceited.
Prince An suddenly raised his head and said, "Jinzhi, what if Prince Ni is not here?"
What's the meaning?
How could Wei Jing not be here?
Wei Xu was surprised, but he knew that King An would not speak without a purpose, so he said directly: "King Qi is not here, I am sure I can get you away."
"good!"
Prince An stood up suddenly: "Go and bring Fu Pei over!"
To ambush Wei Jing, he also prepared a backup plan to lure and provoke the enemy, so he brought Fu Pei along as well. In the subsequent fierce battle, Fu Pei was not abandoned because he could probably serve as the final amulet.
When he heard that Fu Pei was being held captive, Wei Xu raised his eyebrows: "You..."
Rely on Fu Pei to make Wei Jing retreat?
Impossible.
Then, the only people Fu Pei could involve were the Meng mother and daughter.
The mother and daughter of the Meng family were in Pingcheng, the rear base of Wei Jing.
There are many upper-class figures in Yizhou in Pingcheng, but the most important one among them, who is also the one that the mother and daughter of the Meng family are able to attend and who has the closest connection with Wei Jing, is only one person.
Wei Xu's mind suddenly changed: "Princess Qi? Shao?"
“That’s right!”
Prince An asserted: "Prince Ni values his princess very much. If Shao is in danger, he will leave the camp and return to Pingcheng."
Can Shaw Brothers have such a big impact?
Wei Xu didn't comment on this for now. He frowned and said, "Even if you have any plan now, it's probably too late, right?"
How to deliver a message when surrounded by enemies?
Moreover, the ambush on Dongluan Road failed, and I don’t know whether the mother and daughter of the Meng family are suspected. Maybe the King of Qi has already sent people back overnight, so even if the message can be delivered, it will be too late.
Unexpectedly, Prince An shook his head and said, "It's not too late."
"oh?"
"I gave the order when I told the mother and daughter to get ready."
As early as when Zhiwei Pass was breached, Prince An had already sent a message to Meng's mother and daughter, asking them to be prepared so as not to be caught off guard and reveal their flaws.
The order against Shao Qing was issued at that time.
What command?
A casual command aimed at recycling waste.
Wei Jing had many talented people under his command. After the ambush on Dongluan Road, no matter whether Wei Jing died or not, the mother and daughter of the Meng family became useless chess pieces.
Since the chess piece is useless, just use it one more time when you can.
Prince An selected the upper echelons of Yizhou who were left in Pingcheng and chose Shao Qing.
In fact, he had never paid much attention to Shao Qing before. She was just a woman. All his actions were always directed at Wei Jing himself.
Shao Qing first attracted his attention because she was pregnant.
With the mentality of making good use of waste and being wary of Wei Jing, even though he was sure that the situation in which he was bound to die was flawless, he still took precautions.
At that time, Prince An ordered Meng's mother and daughter to create an opportunity to kidnap Shao Qing.
Wei Xu raised his eyebrows: "Zhonghe, I'm afraid this will be difficult to accomplish?"
How can the Princess of Qi be abducted just like that?
He usually stays in the county magistrate's mansion, which is heavily guarded by the county magistrate, so it is impossible for him to do so; if he goes out, he is surrounded by the personal guards, who are not short of good men, and it is difficult to see any gaps even if you get close to him.
With the mother and daughter of the Meng family around, it might not be surprising to create an opportunity, but the guards around the Princess of Qi are not dead, and their own manpower in Pingcheng is not that large. Do they want to kidnap the Princess of Qi smoothly?
He looked uncertain.
I'm afraid 30% is too much.
Prince An said, "Whether it succeeds or not is irrelevant. Prince Ni can return to Pingcheng immediately upon hearing the news."
He didn't want to successfully kidnap someone.
Prince An sneered: "I didn't expect that my legitimate brother is actually a love-sick man."
In the past, Wei Jing had only one wife, and it was rumored that he was deeply in love with her. King An scoffed at this. Coming from a royal family, he did not believe it at all. At that time, he thought that Wei Jing was probably overly cautious because he had suffered betrayal.
But with Fu Yun's failure in her bid for a concubine and various subsequent reports, Prince An had to believe that his brother, the god of war, was actually a romantic man.
Because of this, and also because Shao Qing was pregnant, and because of the limitations of the identities of the Meng mother and daughter, he had casually chosen Shao Qing.
Who would have thought that the order he gave casually with the intention of making good use of waste could actually save his life!
"Then you try it."
Wei Xu actually didn't really believe that Shao Shi could have such a big effect, but it didn't hurt to give it a try. If it worked, it would be good, and if it didn't, there would be no harm.
"You try now. We can break out by daybreak at the latest."
They really couldn't wait any longer. Prince An followed Wei Xu's gaze and looked around. Even if they could barely avoid the rain, it was so cold and wet that ordinary soldiers couldn't stand it. The longer it drags on, the weaker the combat effectiveness will be.
Until the last moment, Prince An did not think of escaping without a commander. He saw Fu Pei coming over from the corner of his eye, and his expression became fierce: "Cut a long piece of wood and hang this guy in front of the road!"
No paper, no pen.
The personal guard simply scratched his upper arm, used blood as ink and cloth as paper, and Prince An personally wrote a letter, explaining the whole story of the Meng family's three daughters. Finally, he wrote the previous order to abduct Shao Qing on it word for word.
"Chen Ang, shoot this letter at the enemy's gate!"
…
"Without food and cold rain, we will be in a dead end if we hold on for too long. At dawn, Prince An will surely break through."
As soon as the camp was set up, Wei Jing immediately summoned all his ministers to the central tent. There was no need to discuss too much. He stared at the topographic map that he had drawn for a long time and directly ordered: "Zhang Yong, you lead 50,000 elite soldiers to guard the front road."
"The order has been given!"
"Fan Ya, you lead 30,000 elite soldiers to go around the left rear and block the entrance to the pass."
"The order has been given!"
"Chen Qi, you lead 50,000 elite soldiers to surround the rear. Generals Fan Qing, Liang Dan, Yang Yuan, etc., each of you lead your soldiers to form a fan-shaped formation at the outermost edge. Don't make any mistakes!"
"I will take your orders!"
…
Prince An only has about 10,000 remnant soldiers under his command. With 300,000 surrounding 10,000, and the advantage of time and place, he is sure to win tomorrow's battle.
All the generals obeyed the orders in unison, with high morale, except Wei Jing, whose face was still tense after he gave the orders one by one.
Ji Huan was alert and realized that his lord had other thoughts. Just as he was about to ask, he heard footsteps approaching outside the tent.
It turned out that the two groups of scouts Wei Jing had sent out before had returned with results.
He immediately said: "Report it immediately!"
Several scouts were still dripping with water. The one on Daning Road said first, "My lord, we have indeed discovered an iron mine near the Yangxian section of Daning Road. It is very large and is probably not inferior to the Qining Iron Mine."
Qining Iron Mine is one of the three largest iron mines in Yizhou.
Wei Jing's expression grew more gloomy, and he cast his gaze towards the scout on Dongluan Road.
"My Lord, there is a Hulu Gorge on the Dongling Road, which is ten miles long, wide and low-lying, with dense trees and weeds. Once you enter, you can't see more than ten feet away. There are huge numbers of tung oil fire lines hidden deep inside. Once ignited, they will explode and burn the entire gorge immediately. ... My subordinates climbed the rock wall and found fresh traces. In addition, behind Hulu Gorge, a large number of hidden soldiers were ambushed during the day."
When these words were spoken, everyone in the room was shocked. Wei Jing stood up suddenly, his black eyes suddenly shining fiercely.
At this moment he thought more about it, and had some vague bad guesses in his mind, which coincided with the news.
His heart was pounding, but before he could say anything, there was a sudden sound of hurried running approaching. The young general Liang Dan, who was guarding the gate, hurriedly reported: "My lord, my lord! A boy suddenly appeared at the entrance of the mountain, and shot down a letter!"
"The enemy general claimed that the boy was Fu Pei, the fifth son of Pinghai Marquis Fu Jun!"
Some bad thoughts were further confirmed. Wei Jing's pupils shrank. He rushed forward with a few steps and snatched the letter.
At first glance, he was shocked.
"Wei Ping!!"
With an angry shout, Wei Jing's eyes were bloodshot.
"Prepare the horses! I will return to Pingcheng immediately!!"
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