Chapter 489 Fierce Battle on the River Bridge

Chapter 489 Fierce Battle on the River Bridge

In the Zhitang Hall of Beizhong City, Heyang, Hu Lujin, who had just returned from the Hebei Racecourse, listened to Xue Guyan's account of his battle with the enemy. He lowered his head and thought deeply. After a while, he looked at Xue Guyan again. Gu Yan sighed: "How careless."

"The last general will only think that the troops on this road should be the thieves' partial troops. After taking my defense, they will definitely become more greedy. If we don't attack head-on and regain the lost ground, it may attract more..."

Xue Guyan dared to glare and argue a few words when facing Pan Le, but he did not dare to refute when he heard Hu Lujin's accusation, especially when he was already at fault this time. Even though he sent troops to inform Hu Lujin , but without waiting for a reply, he eagerly led the crowd away.

However, Hu Lujin did not continue to listen to Xue Guyan's excuse. Instead, he turned to look at Pan Le and frowned: "Xianggui doesn't think he has responded well this time. The three cities are the foundation of our river defense. We are here to guard them." This is all about the security of this city. Other than that, the rest is beyond your control. It’s too late to regret it.”

Pan Le knew that Hu Lujin was accusing him of not being able to recapture Nancheng in time due to being trapped in the Fanbing Bridge. He hesitated for a moment before clasping his fists and saying: "Da Sima Mingjian, where I am defending Zhongli City, it seems that I am in the same position as Nancheng." They are dependent on each other and can support each other, but they are not subordinate to each other.

Xue Guyan did not inform me of the critical situation after his defeat. If I had known about it earlier, how could I have allowed the thieves to seize the city defense? By the time they knew what had happened, the opportunity had already passed. The thief was able to set up defenses one by one in this short period of time, so he must have used his power to subjugate people in the city. Without the help of people from behind, the general would not dare to put all the troops in Zhongli City to the south of the bridge..."

When Hu Lujin heard this, he frowned slightly, and immediately spoke again: "I don't think I need to say more about the current situation. You and I are waiting together, and we share weal and woe. Xue Guyan lost his place. I don't blame him deeply for guarding, but I am afraid that his authority will take away his ambition, which will undermine the heroic feelings of hatred and revenge.

It is because you have always been wise and courageous. When the Lord is here, he often says to himself that the power you have obtained from Xianggui can be used by more than one general. You can suppress, conquer and garrison, and every appointment is without fault. It is indeed a pity to lose a city, but it is still too early to tell the merits and demerits of the matter, and there is much room for redemption. What I say today is just a warning to you and others, don’t become decadent and lose your morale and only increase the power of the thieves! "

When Pan Le heard this, he quickly stood up, raised his hands, and said with a look of shame: "Da Sima has a broad mind and puts the overall situation first. He will be ashamed in the end, but he never loses his ambition to sacrifice his life to serve the country! How to deal with the aftermath? , I will only wait for the commander-in-chief to be dismissed, but if he is sent, he will never dare to resign!"

Hu Lujin also stood up from the table, came forward to support Pan Le's arm, turned back to look at Xue Guyan aside and sighed: "You were worried that the thieves would become more greedy, which is indeed justified. . Nowadays, there is unrest both internally and externally, and people are uneasy. The slightest turbulence will cause the public to become upset.

The Crown Prince sent us out to control Heyang in the hope of guarding the key points and calming the overall situation. The success or failure of the Heqiao bridge is more dangerous to the current situation than the chaos in Henan. The thieves in Guanxi have been suffering from me for a long time. Previously, they were weak and had no opportunity to take advantage of them. The advance of Heyang will definitely encourage the thieves. If the black otter comes, the situation will be critical. Retaking Nancheng is a top priority, but other defenses cannot be ignored. "

At this point, he held Pan Le's hand and said: "I would like to ask Xianggui to lead his troops back to guard Zhiguan to prevent the Western bandits from pouring out from Qiziling to attack my side. Maybe things will not end like this in the future, but we are always prepared. ”

Pan Le heard about this arrangement. He was stunned for a moment, then nodded and said: "Da Sima, please don't worry, I will definitely not let any of the Western Bandits enter the Kou River!"

Hu Lujin looked at Xue Guyan again and said: "I will pay you another five thousand soldiers and immediately stationed at Heyang Pass. If the city is lost to you and regained by you, the merits and demerits will be balanced. If not, you can go back to Ye to plead guilty." In front of the Crown Prince!"

"The last general has taken the order! We must fight to the death to seize the city and live up to the great Sima's favor!"

After Xue Guyan heard this, he quickly clasped his fists and bowed in obeisance. His eyes were already bloodshot, which showed his deep hatred for the Western thief.

The soldiers in the north city of Heyang were preparing for battle endlessly that night, and the south city was also not stable.

Although He Ruodun and Gao Le successfully entered the city and drove the Hebei soldiers back with the help of Prince Yuan Xiaoyou of Linhuai who surrendered, and arranged emergency defenses, they finally managed to delay the first wave of enemy counterattacks.

But then the arduous test they faced really began, and the more they thought about it, the more they felt that this Heyang Nancheng was really a sweet trap, and if they were not careful, they would most likely die without a burial place.

There is no need to elaborate on the reasons. The most important thing at the moment is that it is better to have fun alone than to have fun together. Pass this news back as soon as possible to make Master Lang and the others happy. Therefore, soon after entering the city, He Ruodun sent his troops to report.

Although the enemy did not launch another attack that night, He Ruodun and the others did not dare to neglect. The soldiers were on duty in the south of the bridge in batches to prevent the enemy from launching a night attack.

At dawn, the river is filled with fog, and the night has not completely receded, so the field of vision is even more restricted. Every time the waves in the river rise and fall, people are worried, worried that there are other extraordinary sounds hidden under the waves, no matter how daring it is. He Ruoden and Gao Le also tightened their weapons at this moment, each guarding one side of the river bridge.

"W-what is this sound? Is it the sound of paddles hitting the water or the sound of horse hooves?"

A strange and very rhythmic sound came from the heavy fog. The few people who heard it at first thought it was an illusion, but as more and more people heard it, buzzing comments gradually began to sound in the team. .

This kind of fear in the face of the unknown is the most terrifying thing. Even veterans who have experienced many battles, if they are in this kind of frightened situation for a long time, they are very likely to have a mental breakdown and then have vicious events such as camp roars.

"Should we set fire to the bridge? This way, even if the enemy attacks, we can postpone the offensive..."

Gao Le felt that the crowd was getting more and more tense, so he came closer to He Ruoden and whispered.

He Ruoden was also very nervous at the moment. When he heard what Gao Le said, he looked tangled and struggling. After a while, he shook his head and said: "No, if I burn the bridge now, the thieves will know that my fighting spirit has disappeared, and the offensive will only be Even faster! Alas, the situation has reached this point, I can only hope that Master Lang will arrive as soon as possible. "

As soon as he finished speaking, several riders rushed out of the thick fog, and the leader was Zhang Shinu. When they saw each other, they all showed joy. Zhang Shi Nuxuan immediately said: "Master Lang will arrive in half an hour. I order you to hold on to the city and not lose it!"

A white mist hit his face, and a layer of moisture hung on the inside and outside of Li Tai's robe. The moisture almost soaked into his bones, making him feel hot and unbearable.

But he had no time to raise his hand to wipe the dew on his face. He just hit the horse and ran wildly along the way, and he didn't know how many times he scolded He Ruodun and Gao Le in his heart.

If these two bastards hadn't been greedy for success and neglected their lives, he should have slept happily in Golden Granary City right now instead of galloping all night, crossing half of the Heluo Plain to reinforce and rescue them.

It is indeed gratifying to capture Heyang City, but the definitions of capturing and conquering are different. Li Tai only felt that after this time, we must strengthen the ideological construction of the team so that everyone can be down-to-earth and not always think about making big events and act more and more grandiosely. Today we captured Heyang, will we rush into Ye tomorrow? city?

He didn't know whether he was unlucky or lucky. He had such a disgusting group of subordinates and only had a few thousand troops. He was able to take down Luoxi's Hanguan City. He was already extremely lucky. Is that what he can think about in Heyang?

For now, just one rush for reinforcements is already a bit life-threatening, and the troops he brought from Kansai have been dispersed and stretched to the limit. Tian Hong and others who stayed behind in Hanguan City are completely unable to What kind of cooperative interaction did you have with him?

Although he felt very unhappy and didn't even know how it would end next, he still came. It's really because Heyang's temptation is so great that not only his boss Yu Wentai is scratching his head thinking about it, but he is also extremely greedy. Such a big piece of fat, even if you can't swallow it in one bite, your mouth will be full of oil after you lick it!

As dawn breaks in the eastern sky, the water mist on the river is quickly receding. The Yellow River is not as turbid as it would be in later generations, because the water rises in midsummer and becomes wider. But at this time, on the river, there were hundreds of flying boats sailing from the back to the south bank through the waves.

Seeing this scene, Li Tai breathed a sigh of relief first, which meant that Heyang Nancheng was still on guard, and at least his trip was not in vain.

The armored soldiers who were crossing the river in the boat also discovered their team galloping eastward on the shore, so the oars pumped even more vigorously, presumably to rush to the shore and form an array to meet the enemy.

But whether we should talk about it or not, we still have to look directly at people’s shortcomings. These Jinyang soldiers, who are mainly citizens of the six towns, do not have the gene for water warfare in their bones. Before, they were able to sail down the river in an orderly manner, but now the more urgent they become, the more chaotic they become. They suddenly accelerate and rush forward. The boat at the front was directly knocked over by the surging water.

Li Tai didn't know much about the combat ships of this era. From a distance, the ships coming from the north were of many types. The largest among them was a speedboat similar to a stern, several feet long, with an inboard There were about a hundred soldiers standing on the deck. The largest number is the small boat, with about twenty or thirty people in each boat.

But if we say that they are the most stable, they are those wooden rafts and bamboo rafts. Although they rise and fall with the waves, they are not in danger of capsizing easily. However, these rafts are not very capable of crossing currents and can still be used near shoals. A boat can be used to change the direction of the boat, but if it reaches deep water, it must be towed by a boat, otherwise it will be swept downstream along the river.

Watching so many people seriously trying to do something they are not good at but not doing well is a rare experience, and it even gives people a very strange feeling of cuteness.

When Li Tai saw this scene of boats fighting for the crossing, his originally anxious and nervous mood improved. However, he had no time to continue admiring it, not only because these boats were about to dock, but also because the battle on the river bridge had begun.

"Quickly form a formation to meet the enemy!"

Li Tai raised his hand and ordered Han Xiong to lead his troops to defend the dock next to the river bridge. He led other troops to rush towards the river bridge and quickly joined the battle.

"Master Lang, Master Lang is finally here!"

He Ruodun was often bold and arrogant because of his strong martial arts skills and extraordinary bravery. However, when faced with the Eastern Wei troops who were attacking fiercely on the river bridge, they were defeated step by step. When he saw Li Tai leading his troops to join the battle, he stood up even more. They were all a little unsteady on their feet.

After all, they had been in high-intensity operations from the night before to now. Although their physical strength had recovered last night, their spirits were doubled. At this time, not only He Ruoden, but also other soldiers were in poor condition.

However, as the attacker, Xue Guyan and the thousands of soldiers newly assigned to his command are full of strength, each one is like a wolf like a tiger. If it were not for the unique combat terrain of Heqiao, I am afraid that the bridge would have been closed long ago. The soldiers were surrounded.

At this time, seeing Li Tai leading his troops to join the battle group, Xue Guyan was like an injured and rampaging bear. He roared loudly and waved the sword in his hand to attack Li Tai.

Li Tai would not rush forward to challenge the lunatic Xue Guyan to a duel. As he retreated into the formation, he shouted loudly: "Whoever captures and kills the thief general Xue Guyan will be rewarded with three thousand pieces of silk!"

Xue Guyan became even more embarrassed after hearing this, but he didn't have the leisure to ask why the reward was discounted. He just charged forward and killed more fiercely. At one point, he was disconnected from his subordinates behind him and was surrounded by the enemy.

But Xue Guyan's bravery is really not limited. He held a sword in each hand and flew up and down, covering his whole body. He also kept slashing and wounding the enemies around him. With his own strength, he was able to kill a living creature within a radius of ten feet. The remaining unmanned space. And his subordinates also took this opportunity to take a big step forward, getting closer to the river bank.

"Master, please retreat to the shore temporarily and wait to prevent the fire from burning the bridge!"

He Ruoden, who had retreated for a moment to rest, now came to the rear of the formation, shouted loudly to the battle circle, and ordered the soldiers to shoot rockets directly into the cabin below the river bridge.

Although the cabin is made of wood, it has already been soaked due to being immersed in water for a long time, and the cabin is also very humid. Therefore, the rocket did not directly cause an open flame after being fired, but the grease filled inside was already billowing with thick smoke. .

Seeing the thick smoke billowing in front, the soldiers of the Eastern Wei Dynasty who were waiting in line behind to rush forward also panicked and stopped moving forward despite the urging of the soldier commander. As for those who had already rushed to the front, they hurriedly retreated, fearing that they might be buried in the sea of ​​​​fire, or intercepted by the fire to the south and be hacked to death by the Western thieves.

Seeing the troops behind him retreating, Xue Guyan was also helpless. Facing Li Tai who was making various provocative moves towards him in the battle formation, he could only retreat bitterly.

Although he is brave and brave, it is difficult for him to fight against thousands of people with his own strength. Before, all his close followers were scattered among Heluo. Now, although the people assigned to him have high and low status, they are absolutely incompetent. They would not entrust their lives to him. If he still refused to retreat, these people would really dare to leave him alone on the battlefield.

As the enemy troops retreated, the battle on the river bridge temporarily came to an end, but the battle at the pier continued.

Although the enemy's boats were of poor quality, their transport capacity was still considerable. After being blocked at the pier, other dinghy boats and flat-bottomed rafts had no deep drafts and did not require docking in the harbor. They landed directly from other river beaches, and They moved towards the pier and surrounded them, causing Han Xiong's troops to fall into a siege from all sides.

However, because the battle rhythms of the river bridge and the boat ferry personnel were not coordinated, the enemy troops on the river bridge had retreated at this time, and the enemy soldiers who landed again were already alone. Seeing the people at the bridgehead turning to fight, those warships rushed He turned the boat around and didn't dare to move closer to the dock.

As for the enemy soldiers who landed first, they suffered disaster. They were either killed on the spot by the troops who came over to fight, or they turned around and jumped back into the river, where they were quickly engulfed by the waves of the river. More than a thousand enemy soldiers who landed were killed or drowned, and the rest were disarmed and captured.

When the battle at the pier was over, flames burst out from the billowing smoke below the river bridge. Li Tailuo pondered for a while before quickly raising his hand and ordering: "Put out the fire, don't burn the bridge!"

The existence of the river bridge certainly allows the enemy to have a direct channel to attack south of the bridge, but it also limits the enemy's attack methods. As long as the river bridge is still open to traffic, the enemy's counterattack strategy will also revolve around the river bridge. For example, the boats coming from the south are obviously cooperating with the offensive on the bridge. If the attack on the bridge fails, the boats will retreat. If a fire burns down the river bridge, then the enemy's counterattack will be really unpredictable.

Moreover, He Ruoden and several hundred people dared to directly defraud Heyang Nancheng. Although Li Tai complained in his heart, if he did not approve of this behavior, he would not bring his troops to come overnight for reinforcements. He was the originator of the team's exaggerated and radical style. After coming here to fight for a while, he couldn't help but have more ideas in his mind.