Chapter 120: Ambuscade In Qinzhou
West of Tunliu County is Liu Chong’s sphere of influence.
That day, they set out. Xiao Yi and thirty-eight soldiers donned the uniforms and armor of the Xuzhou army. Zhang Mei would still accompany Liu Yun to potentially feign opening the Qinzhou City Gate if needed.
Exiting Tunliu to the west, they passed through a perilous mountain pass.
Xiao Yi enjoyed chatting with the old guide. He urged his horse forward and asked, “Old man, what mountain is this?”
“Replying to the General, this is Mount Sanyun. It guards the throat of Luzhou to the west, and it is said to be where Hou Yi shot the nine crows.”
The old guide was quite talkative, pointing to the peak standing before the post road and introducing it to Xiao Yi.
“The so-called ‘Sanyun’ refers to Mount Lin, Mount Ling, and Mount Xuling. The character ‘yun’ has the character ‘xiong’ above it, signifying an ill omen associated with this mountain. Therefore, a temple was built on the summit to appease it. Later, the temple was destroyed, and Hedong has been plagued by military disasters ever since.”
Xiao Yi, however, felt that a watchtower built on the summit would be more useful.
Emerging from this mountain pass, the path ahead was the old Eyu road, which was much easier to traverse.
The old guide said this was a crucial route between Qinzhou and Luzhou, and the site of the Battle of Eyu.
“General, you must be careful. The path ahead is Qinzhou territory.”
The subsequent mountain passes all belonged to Qinzhou. The first was Ma’an Mountain Pass. The pass was very narrow, allowing only two horses to pass abreast. The cliff walls on either side rose vertically, as if chopped by a blade, over thirty zhang high.
Traveling on such a road now, Xiao Yi’s mood was vastly different from when he traveled for leisure. He said, “If the Hedong army were to roll stones and logs down here, it would be an excellent ambush point.”
Li Rong said, “I’m not an idiot either. Of course, I scouted ahead, and there were no enemy traces.”
The old guide said, “Generals, look up there. Those are the remaining holes of the plank road that Sima Yi carved during the Cao Wei period.”
After exiting the pass, they followed the valley of the Gushui River, and the road became much easier.
Li Rong, however, looked unhappy and said, “This kind of river valley is all ice slopes. The ground is wet and slippery, and cavalry cannot charge effectively. We are not as accustomed to foot combat as the Hedong soldiers. It’s infuriating.”
Xiao Yi learned valuable information. He looked back and saw that the soldiers’ morale was not high.
Fortunately, the Qinzhou soldiers had not set up defenses, and they encountered no enemies in the treacherous passes, proceeding silently.
Finally.
“We’ve reached Tongdi!”
The old guide raised his hand and pointed, saying, “This is the last mountain pass, Wusu Pass. There are no other natural barriers beyond Qinzhou City.”
Xiao Yi rode forward and reined in his horse to observe.
Ahead lay a vast basin. They were on high ground at the edge of the basin, overlooking Qinzhou City and the surrounding post roads.
Heaven and earth were like a chessboard. Qinzhou City was situated in the center of the basin, on the west bank of the Qin River, with water flowing around its perimeter. In the distance of the basin, the Taiyue Mountain range stretched out.
The cities in Shanxi all had natural defenses of mountains and rivers.
Xiao Yi realized that his current position was an excellent observation point. Turning his head, he indeed saw a watchtower not far away. However, in the deep winter snow, it was empty.
Therefore, it could be said that Hedong’s lack of defenses significantly reduced the difficulty of the campaign. If they failed to take Qinzhou this time, there would likely be no better opportunity.
“General, look there.”
The old guide pointed to a plain near the official road and said, “The snow has covered the ice. It looks like solid ground, but it’s actually a swamp, Tongdi Marsh. You must be careful when passing through.”
Xiao Yi said, “If we didn’t have the old man leading us, we would surely get stuck in there.”
Li Rong put his hands on his hips and looked for a while. He called over a scout and asked, “Is there a bridge over the Qin River? Has it not been dismantled yet?”
“Yes, it hasn’t been dismantled!”
“March quickly and cross the Qin River!”
“General, look!”
Suddenly, a soldier raised his hand and pointed to the north.
Xiao Yi gazed intently and saw troops emerging from the river valley north of Qinzhou City like a snake.
“Scout commander!”
“Here!”
“Dispatch all scouts; you must ascertain the enemy’s situation!”
“Yes!”
“The rest of you, follow me westward. Muffle your horses! Unload the pack horses!”
Xiao Yi also took out a “muffler” from the side pocket of his saddle. It was a long strip of tanned cowhide with hemp rope attached to both ends. He stuffed it into Wuzhui’s mouth and tightened it around the horse’s chin, leaving only a half-inch gap for the horse to breathe.
Wuzhui was displeased. Xiao Yi patted its mane and checked its saddle and weapons.
The spear was from the military and not as good as his own, but it was serviceable. He also had a saber and a six-jin bow.
Afterward, they muffled the pack horses and unloaded all the linen cloth bags from their backs, leaving them for the soldiers guarding the pass to watch.
He climbed onto a pack horse, saving Wuzhui’s strength for a charge.
He put on white linen cloth to conceal his figure in the snow.
“Bring Liu Yun along.”
“We can’t feign opening the city gate now, can we?”
“We’ll act according to the situation,” Xiao Yi said. “Conceal our movements and strike the unprepared with preparedness.”
“Alright, let’s go!”
Four hundred men were left to guard the position, build fortifications, and protect supplies. They could provide support from the battlefield and act as a rearguard if they were defeated.
The cavalry advanced in two columns, left and right, in a long serpent formation, with a spacing of three zhang, not in the middle of the official road to avoid making their tracks difficult to conceal.
This avoided congestion and allowed for a quick consolidation if attacked.
Xiao Yi rode on the east side of the official road, looking back. Behind him was a clearing team. These men worked swiftly, using the tips of their shovels to scrape away loose snow, blurring the tracks made by the horses.
Next to them was Tongdi Marsh. The reeds towered over seven feet high, and the dry stalks scraped against his lamellar armor, causing ice shards to fall.
Before reaching the banks of the Qin River, a signal flare from a scout came from ahead—one short, one long—indicating enemy contact, but not an immediate crisis.
Xiao Yi and Li Rong both reined in their horses. A scout emerged from the depths of the reed thicket.
“General, Hedong troops have been spotted north of Qinzhou City. Their banner is the character ‘Li,’ numbering over five thousand. They are heading towards Qinzhou City, and based on their marching formation, it looks like they intend to enter the city and garrison there.”
“It’s Li Cungui, as expected.”
“Did any scouts of his come this way?”
“They went south along the river.”
Li Rong’s eyes flashed. “Damn it, we can’t let him get into the city before me! We must cross the Qin River; charge!”
“Absolutely not!”
Xiao Yi had already experienced Li Rong’s ferocity in battle at Huazhou. This time, however, he did not want to risk his life with Li Rong.
“The Hedong intelligence is delayed. Li Cungui’s mission is to escort Liu Yun southward, not to fight the enemy. Forcing a crossing, our two thousand exhausted troops may not be able to defeat five thousand elite Shachuo cavalry. It’s better to ambush him.”
“No, it’s getting late, and he’s about to enter the city. By tomorrow, we’ll have lost the initiative, our movements will be exposed, and our men will be cold and hungry, making the battle even harder.”
“I will use Liu Yun to lure him, and before he enters the city, we will severely cripple him.”
“How?”
Xiao Yi observed the surroundings. Near the Tongdi Bridge in the distance, there was a posthouse, but it was inhabited and not suitable for an ambush.
However, not far from the official road, there was a deserted village with some remaining rammed earth walls.
He dismounted, picked up a reed, and drew on the snow.
Li Rong also dismounted, picked up a fresh piece of horse dung, and held it in his hand to warm it.
“Instead of being attacked by Li Cungui when half-crossing, it’s better to lure him to the east bank and attack him when he’s half-crossing.”
“Can you lure him?”
“I will deceive him into coming in the name of Liu Yun. We’ll say he’s being pursued by the Tianxiong Army and is hiding in that abandoned village. He’ll likely bring one or two thousand guards to rescue him. We’ll use the pursuers to lure him, feign defeat, ambush him, rout him, and just like at Huazhou, use the fleeing soldiers to attack his main force.”
“Can it work?”
“Does the General dare to try?”
“What is there to fear!”
Li Rong discarded the horse dung and took the reed. “With this division of troops, you’ll use those wearing Xuzhou uniforms to lure the enemy. Four hundred men will feign pursuit of Liu Yun. Nine hundred men will ambush in the reed marsh south of Tongdi Bridge. I will also divide three hundred men to go downstream, cross the river, and create a disturbance from the rear to disrupt their morale, attacking them from both sides.”
“The General is skilled in warfare.”
After a rough plan was made, Li Rong began to make arrangements.
All the bows and arrows were allocated to the ambush and rear-attack forces. Shields were given mostly to those impersonating Xuzhou soldiers. Long weapons were for the pursuers. Tripwires and caltrops were to be set up near the battlefield. Next were the military drums and horns for creating a disturbance. They agreed to use arrows with different colored feathers as signals for communication.
“Mu Lingjun, you will lead these men to escort General Xiao and Liu Yun.”
“Yes!”
“Fan Shouxu, lead your team in feigning pursuit.”
“Yes!”
“Li Shoujie, lead three hundred cavalry to the downstream for a rear attack. Don’t disgrace me.”
“Your son receives the order.”
The arrangements made, Li Rong waved his hand and led his troops away, disappearing into the reed marsh after a while.
The remaining Mu Lingjun was a general who appeared fierce and brave. Xiao Yi nodded to him and said, “Let’s begin.”
“Yes.”
They took only a few horses to carry supplies. The rest walked. Upon reaching the abandoned village, they set up a blue cloth tent behind a rammed earth wall, disguising it as a temporary shelter for refugees.
Having marched rapidly, everyone was disheveled, so elaborate disguises were not necessary.
Liu Yun was truly too weak to walk and was dragged like a sack and thrown into a corner.
“Do you know what to do?”
Liu Yun’s lips trembled, and he murmured, “I… I’m so tired…”
Xiao Yi ordered someone to give him something to eat and said, “I keep my word. Once we meet Li Cungui, as long as you lure him as I instructed, you will be wrapped in thick felt blankets afterward, roasted by the fire, with fine wine and good food. I guarantee you won’t suffer like this.”
Liu Yun stared at him, his eyes complex, and finally nodded.
“Good.”
Xiao Yi beckoned Zhang Mei and handed him the seal of the Wuning Military Governor. “Brother Xuan Gui is familiar with Xuzhou. I’ll trouble you to make this trip.”
Zhang Mei said, “I came with the army; it seems I finally have a use for my skills.”
“Jin Sanshui, Shou Tao, you will protect Brother Xuan Gui. Do not speak and do not make any mistakes.”
“Yes!”
The three riders were ready and quickly departed.
“Start a fire and rest. We are serving the Successor Lord; we must not mistreat him…”
Hearing this, Liu Yun’s face turned even paler.
Xiao Yi climbed onto the rammed earth wall and surveyed the surroundings. The clearing team had concealed most of the tracks made by the troops. The rest would be covered by the falling snow.
The dry reeds concealed the traces of the ambushing soldiers. The wind rustled through them, making a whispering sound.
After a while, Xiao Yi spotted a group of about twenty cavalry to the west, following Zhang Mei towards them.
Twenty men would not be able to take Liu Yun away.
He raised a flag signal, indicating for the four hundred pursuers to prepare to surround them at any moment, forcing Li Cungui’s troops to come to their aid.
Gradually, the group of Hedong cavalry approached.
Xiao Yi watched, his eyes suddenly narrowing.
He recognized that the man at the head of the group was highly skilled in horsemanship, leaping over gullies at extreme speed as if on level ground.
This person was likely still young, clad in lamellar armor, with a ring-pommel sword at his waist and a silver spear on his back. The red tassel fluttered in the wind, exuding heroic spirit.
As they reached the entrance to the deserted village, the man reined in his horse and shouted loudly, his voice like thunder.
“Is Big Brother here?! Liu Jiye has come to pick you up!”
