Chapter 224 Loushi survives, the King of Hell reaches out (6k)

As the saying goes, to capture the thief first capture the king.

When Yang Chang saw Lou Shi, he was surprised and delighted, so he told Zhu Tong, "There is a big fish in Jiexiu. Send someone to tell the Ruan brothers to lead the navy to the front to block the reinforcements from Xiaoyi. You lead a team of cavalry to go around the back to prevent the big fish from escaping to Pingyao."

"You still want to go around? What big fish?"

Zhu Tong's vision was not as good as Yang Chang's, and he didn't know that Lou Shi was in the city, but from Yang Chang's tone, it seemed that he wanted to wipe out all the enemies in Jiexiu.

Our own army only has 10,000 soldiers, while 5,000 Jin soldiers are defending the city. Even if it is a tired army, its combat effectiveness should not be underestimated. It is already good enough to achieve a small victory. How can we dare to hope to encircle and annihilate them completely?
"It's Loushi!"

"what?"

"Lou Shi is in Jiexiu?"

"This guy is so hateful, I'm going to beat the shit out of him!"

Everyone around him was excited, and even Zhu Tong thought it was worth the risk, but he still gave a cautious reminder: "Although the opportunity is rare, we don't have enough troops to besiege the city. If we divide our troops, we will be easily defeated one by one. This is what happened to Jie Qian."

"Don't force it, but try your best." Yang Chang's expression was solemn, and he continued, "I asked my brother to go around the rear just to contain and monitor the enemy. Only when we defeat the enemy head-on can we hope to achieve great success."

"The Jin army is good at shooting, and the siege is not in our favor."

"I don't need to, so I have to lead them out of the city to fight, Liu Tang!"

"exist."

When Liu Tang heard Yang Chang's order, he excitedly clasped his fists and came to the front of the horse.

"Lou Shi has seen me and Brother Zhu, and Master Lu's appearance is also easy to guess. Fortunately, we are a little far from the city gate, and he doesn't know it's us yet. You quickly take a team of infantry to challenge him."

"Hehe." Liu Tang patted his chest and joked, "You brought me with you, right? Watch me."

"Come closer and I'll teach you how to seduce the enemy."

"it is good."

Liu Tang got the plan and left happily, while Yang Changze kept his composure and slowly followed, making arrangements as he moved forward.

The Jin army had high-quality soldiers, so having fewer people was not necessarily a disadvantage.

If Yang Chang wants to win, he must rely on his personal bravery.

Just as he was making his arrangements, he suddenly caught a glimpse of Lu Zhishen acting mysteriously.

Looking closely, Yang Chang saw that the fat monk was actually playing with a cannonball, and he immediately became excited.

"Master, where does this come from?"

"This?" Lu Zhishen was stunned, and smiled while touching his forehead, "Before I left Weisheng, I asked Ling Zhen for ten of them, thinking that if the government troops didn't obey, I would teach them a lesson with cannonballs."

"Ten?"

Yang Chang was overjoyed when he heard this, and solemnly reminded Lu Zhishen: "Don't throw them randomly, maybe we can defeat the enemy today with these shells!"

"Oh"

Lu Zhishen nodded innocently, then suddenly opened his eyes wide and added: "I can't throw them all to you, I also want to have some fun."

"Half of each of us."

"It's settled then. I'll ask someone to get it right away."

Liu Tang led 500 infantrymen to the south gate of Jiexiu to challenge the enemy.

Jiexiu City is small and there is no moat outside the city, so the army can go directly to the city.

Jie Qian and others took turns attacking and destroyed the small town several times. At this time, the damaged city wall had not been repaired yet.

The Jin soldiers are skilled in archery and horse riding, and they are easy to be attacked if you get too close.

Liu Tang asked the soldiers to stop in advance, and he took the lead with a broadsword in hand, pointing at the city wall and shouting curses.

"Listen, Golden Dog up there. I am Liu Tang, the vanguard general under General Yang. If you don't want to die, surrender your city now!"

"Can't you see the army approaching? What are you waiting for?"

"Think about Yin Shuke, think about Basuli, and by the way, it was Liu Sichu who surrendered to you before, and it was his head that was chopped off by grandpa."

Liu Tang continued to shout and curse outside the city, but Lou Shi frowned and stroked his beard without saying a word. He won every battle against the Song Dynasty.

Only the name Yang Chang was worth his hesitation and consideration.

In the past month, the Jin army in Taiyuan has frequently mobilized and fought, and achieved impressive results.

After defeating Zhe Keqiu a few days ago, Lou Shi learned through interrogating prisoners of war that this was the last reinforcement from Taiyuan.

Since Fenzhou was no longer a threat, he withdrew his troops and returned to Yangqu, while at the same time dividing his forces to attack Pingding Army.

Yang Changling blocked the way at Pingbei and Weisheng, which had the advantage of geographical location and was easy to defend but difficult to attack. If they could not overcome this tough challenge, the Western Route Army could leave Zhending from Pingding and invade the heartland of the Song Dynasty.

There had been constant war in Fenzhou in the past two years, and the local people had either fled or been enslaved. No one had grown crops in the state for a long time. Lou Shi believed that leaving too many troops would put pressure on supply, and he determined that Yang Chang did not dare to send out troops, so he hurriedly transferred the main force of the Jin army and stayed behind to deploy the defense.

But Lou Shi had made all kinds of plans, but he didn't expect that Yang Chang would dare to send troops.

What does this guy want to do?
Taking advantage of the Jin army's exhaustion after the war, you want to be the fisherman between the snipe and the clam?
With just tens of thousands of people, you dare to think of retaking Taiyuan?

Yelu Ma Wu stayed with Lou Shi. As Wanyan Tuhesu's deputy general, he also had to stay in Fenzhou to guard Taiyuan.

He saw that the people below the city were constantly cursing, but Lou Shi seemed to have heard nothing, so he whispered, "General, according to the prisoners' confession, Liu Tang was the infantry commander under Yang Chang, and also one of the garrison commanders of the Pingbei Army. I see that this man has red hair, so he must be the Red-haired Ghost Liu Tang."

"Ok?"

Lou Shi's eyes shone coldly, and he snorted, "I can see that this person is one of Yin Shu's enemies."

"The troops stationed in Fenzhou are all in Xiaoyi. Do you think we should send people to ask Tuhesu for help while we are out of the city to fight, or should we use the arrogant strategy to withdraw the troops?"

"There are 10,000 people behind Liu Tang, and there are 5,000 cavalry in the city. Do I need to use the strategy of arrogant soldiers?"

"But our soldiers are exhausted, and Commander Yang is a brave man who can't be matched by ten thousand men."

Although Yelu Ma Wu was fighting against Yang Chang, he heard many people in the camp praising him, and he couldn't help but be afraid of this name.

"Yang Chang is indeed powerful, but..."

Lou Shi was halfway through his words when he glanced into the distance and suddenly pursed his lips and said, "Han Chinese military tactics say 'All is fair in war'. Could it be that Liu Tang is using Yang Chang's name to deliberately steal my city? I'm sure Yang Chang is not here, so come closer and listen."

"Huh? Oh"

Yelu Ma Wu leaned forward and listened to Lou Shi's instructions, agreeing with them deeply.

Then, he walked forward, holding onto the bricks, and shouted at Liu Tang: "Hey, that red-haired fellow under the city, have you cursed enough?"

"No, Grandpa didn't."

Liu Tang waved his hands and continued to shout like a bad boy: "If you dare not leave the city, I will keep scolding you!"

"Humph"

Yelu Ma Wu smiled contemptuously and asked jokingly, "It is said that Yang Chang is here, where is he now?"

"The general is right behind."

Liu Tang pointed behind him without even turning his head, his expression still as defiant as before: "You can see him once you leave the city, what? You don't dare anymore?"

"Okay, okay, since you're rushing to die, I have no choice but to oblige you. Just stick your neck out and wait!"

After Yelu Ma Wu finished his response, he turned around and volunteered to Lou Shi: "I am willing to go out of the city to kill Liu Tang. Please give me 4,000 cavalrymen in the city. I will lead 2,000 through the south gate, and the remaining 2,000 through the east and west gates. We will attack from three sides and disrupt the enemy's formation. We will surely win a great victory!"

"Four thousand Jin soldiers against ten thousand. It should be easy to win. Your thinking is correct."

Before Lou Shi could finish his words, a messenger suddenly arrived from behind and interrupted him with a sonorous speech: "Report to the general, the Song army cavalry was found at the three gates of Jiexiu City, east, west and north at the same time."

"What? All three?"

Yelu Ma Wu's plan was discovered and his face immediately turned ugly.

Lou Shize smiled and said, "It seems that this red-haired boy is not a simple reckless man. He knows how to send out scouts in advance to guard the area. It is not feasible to attack from three gates at the same time."

"I don't think Liu Tang is very wise. Could it be that the commander is someone else?"

"There are indeed a few war horses in the enemy's camp, but no white horses. Perhaps they belong to Zhu Tong or Han Tao?"

"Now what?"

Yelu Ma Wu's plan was discovered and he didn't know how to respond.

Lou Shi calmly instructed: "Well, you lead 3,000 elite cavalry out of the south gate, and I will observe and command from the city. Pay attention to the movement of the command flags, and return to the city immediately when you see a red flag."

"Yes!"

Yelu Ma Wu immediately went down to the city to inspect the troops and led three thousand elite cavalry out of the city through the south gate of Jiexiu.

Liu Tang, who had challenged the opponent just now, had already retreated at this time.

Yang Chang lined up his fishing line half a mile away, waiting for the fish to bite the hook.

Normally, in order to prevent cavalry charges, the army should be pushed directly to the city, but that would mean they would have to endure the defenders' shooting, and half a mile was neither close nor far, so thousands of cavalry could just be deployed, but there was not enough distance for an effective charge.

Lou Shi, who was watching the battle on the city wall, felt something was wrong.

He saw Yelu Ma Wu leading his troops out of the city, holding their ground and gathering the troops as they walked, but before he could launch a charge, a black dot suddenly flew out from the enemy's formation.

There was a bang.

The city gate at the rear exploded like thunder.

Due to the shortage of materials, the new shells made by Ling Zhen were not as lethal as before, but the explosion was louder and had a miraculous effect on frightened horses.

The war horses near the city gate were frightened and running around uncontrollably.

Yelu Ma Wu didn't know what was going on, so he curiously asked his followers: "What's going on? What's the sound?"

"do not know!"

Whoosh whoosh whoosh.
Just as Ma Wu was puzzled, three more black dots flew out from the enemy formation, but they no longer landed at the city gate, but in various places of the Jin cavalry.

In an instant, those war horses were like wild horses, running around in disorder, and the three thousand cavalrymen were in chaos.

Whoosh.
"Everyone, follow me and kill!"

"Kill!"

Commander Yang was given five artillery shells, and he threw them all at the first moment of the battle. He then remounted his horse and led his troops towards the chaos.

Yelu Ma Wu saw that the army was in chaos, and when he looked back at the city wall, he did not see the red flag. He did not know what Lou Shi meant, so he had to fight hard despite the disadvantage.

When Lou Shi saw the shells flying and Ruhua exploding in the cavalry formation, he stood there in a daze for a moment.

He had fought for so many years, but had never seen this kind of tactic, nor had he seen artillery in the enemy's camp. How were the shells fired?
At the moment when Lou Shi was distracted, Yang Chang threw the last shell, but aimed at himself on the city wall.

Fortunately, he reacted quickly and leaped to the side, thus avoiding being injured by the shell, but the red flag was hit.

How can we continue the war when the enemy has such a powerful weapon?
Without the red flag command, people ran to the Loushi behind the city wall and hurriedly sounded the warning, but it was too late. The two armies under the city had already started fighting.

Before Lou Shi could think about the next step, another cannonball fell from the city wall, and this time it was indeed thrown by Lu Zhishen.

Seeing that Yang Changru had thrown all his firecrackers, Lu Zhishen urged the soldiers to light them. The first one was aimed at the cavalry crowd, but it exploded in the sky because of too much force. The second one was thrown at the edge of the enemy formation.

As Lu Zhishen had no accuracy, he threw the last three shots into the city, then he picked up his staff and rode away on his horse.

Yang Chang started the battle by scaring the horses with cannonballs. The Jin soldiers had to control their horses while distracting themselves from fighting the enemy. Moreover, they had just fought several battles and were physically and mentally exhausted and slack. They were almost killed in battle as soon as they met the enemy.

"Retreat, retreat!"

When Yelu Mawu heard the horn, he hurriedly ordered his troops to withdraw to the edge of the city, hoping to get help from the defenders on the city wall. However, he did not know that Lou Shi had already issued an order to withdraw, and there was only an empty city wall behind him. Thousands of cavalrymen rushed back, like dumplings in a teapot, all blocked at the mouth and unable to pass.

When the cavalry was close to the infantry, they instantly lost their mobility advantage and their combat effectiveness was even inferior to that of the infantry.

The scene was in chaos. Seeing that the situation was irreversible, Yelu Ma Wu could only give up and try his best to squeeze into the city gate.

Yang Chang made a winning start and was certain that he could break into the city, so he gave up his front-row charge position and used [Eagle Eyes] to check on his own cavalry sentries.

Among the five thousand Jin soldiers in Jiexiu City, none of them could be as important as Lou Shi.

Now that victory has been secured, Yang Chang has to think about how to achieve a complete victory. He doesn't believe that Lou Shi will just sit there and wait for death.

Just as he was looking around, a target suddenly appeared in his sight on the left, and he immediately rode his horse to meet it.

The scout saw Yang Chang running towards him and hurriedly reined in his horse to report: "General, a group of cavalry just rushed out of the north gate, numbering about a thousand people, and General Zhu is dealing with them."

"understood."

Yang Chang looked back towards the south gate of Jiexiu and saw that the Pingbei Army was driving the Jin soldiers in like pigs with overwhelming superiority.

Seeing that the situation was inevitable, he gave a few instructions to the people around him, then spurred his horse to chase after the enemy.

Yang Chang did not have the Jade Lion of Zhaoye at this time, so there was no guarantee that he would be able to catch up. Zhu Tong only had a few hundred cavalrymen with him, so there was little hope of holding back Lou Shi.

Although the hope is slim, we should still try, and it all depends on God's will.

Yang Chang was traveling alone. He took a detour through the west gate of Jiexiu. His head was like a camera, constantly moving around to observe.

Although he no longer has the speed advantage, he still has the overwhelming vision.

It is ironic that Wanyan Jiemu's skills were used to deal with Wanyan Loushi.

The chaos outside the South Gate just now caused the Jin army to lose unity. They all hoped to return to the city to obey Lou Shi's orders, but when they escaped back to the city at risk of death, they heard that the commander had already evacuated Jiexiu.

The feeling at that time was like a child abandoned by his parents, sad and desperate.

If I had known that I was going to abandon the city, I shouldn't have crowded at the city gate. The streets in the city are narrow and the houses block the way. It is far more difficult to escape than outside the city.

The Jin army is also human, they can get tired and cowardly.

At this point the defeat was like running water, how could there be the determination to turn around and fight?
They had just squeezed in through the south gate and had to find a way to squeeze out again after entering the city, while the pursuers behind them did not stop for a moment, as if they were chasing a dog into a dead end alley.

The fleeing Jin cavalry lost their morale and their speed advantage.

Their companions kept falling down, and the horses they were riding were captured by the enemy's infantry and became accomplices in their pursuit.

Yang Chang was not in the army at the time, so Lu Zhishen, as the vanguard, charged forward like a bull, wielding his staff.

At that moment, the domineering image of the bald fat monk was deeply imprinted in the hearts of the defeated soldiers.

Yelu Ma Wu originally wanted to lead the team to cover the retreat, but when he saw that Lu Zhishen treated him like tofu, how could he have any hope at all?

run.

This guy can pull up trees and catch stone lions. The strength of his hands must be more than a thousand pounds.

Without Yang Chang to compete with him, Lu Zhishen shines brightly.

Yelu Ma Wu tried his best to avoid it, but he was wearing a general's armor, like a red crosshair on a target. He not only attracted the attention of Lu Zhishen, but also the other soldiers.

"Get off!"

Yelu Mawu finally squeezed into the city, but was blocked by the panicked soldiers in front of him, so he used his gun to push them away in desperation.

During this moment of blocking and challenging, Lu Zhishen rode his horse fiercely and attacked with his water-grinded Zen staff in hand.

There was a whistling sound of wind behind his ears. Yelu Ma Wu turned around with fright, his face pale as dirt. He instinctively raised his gun to block the attack.

A crisp crackling sound.

The power of pulling out the tree was like a mountain pressing down on one's head, and it turned into a Zen stick and fell heavily on the gun barrel. The violence not only broke the gun barrel, but also made Yelu Mawu's arm tremble.

"You guy"

"Want to escape? Go to hell!"

Lu Zhishen dropped his staff and swept Ma Wu back to the entrance of the corridor a few feet away.

Ma Wu's armor could not block the blunt weapon, and the sweeping blow broke his right ribs. He just struggled to get up when he felt a cool breeze across the back of his neck.

It is better to arrive at the right time than to arrive early. As soon as Liu Tang followed the crowd into the city, Yelu Ma Wu flew to his feet.

He raised his sword and cut off the head, then looked up and saw Lu Zhishen staring at him.

Liu Tang awkwardly raised the head and asked with a smile: "I was lucky enough to find it, so should the credit go to the master?"

"Keep it to yourself. I just want to have fun, not to get any credit."

Lu Zhishen held his Zen staff and shook his head. Before turning around, he reminded him, "I still have to catch the big fish. You lead the rear army to control the city."

"Master, please go ahead. I will save you the trouble."

Liu Tang smiled and put the head on his waist, thinking, "Hasn't Lou Shi already escaped? Where can you find another big fish?"
It turned out that Lu Zhishen was leading the way and had no idea that Yang Chang had ridden alone out of the city, and was still thinking of capturing Lou Shi as well.

The fact that Lou Shi was finally captured was also directly related to Lu Zhishen.

Just when the battle started, he randomly threw three artillery shells into the city. One of them landed right at Lou Shi's feet and injured his right leg, which created a hidden danger for his subsequent escape.

Lou Shi did not flee blindly. He knew that there were scouts watching from behind, so he sent a thousand cavalrymen out of the north gate of Jiexiu.

When the thousand cavalrymen were entangled with Zhu Tong, Lou Shicai hurriedly slipped out of Jiexiu West Gate with his five hundred personal guards.

As for the several hundred defenders, although they did not have time to assemble, Lou Shi could no longer take care of them.

As soon as Lou Shi rode out of the west gate, he saw a man and a horse coming from the south. He sent out a team of ten people to intercept and kill the man, while he himself went to Xiaoyi County in the northwest.

How could a mere team of ten people defeat Yang Chang?

He urged his warhorse to keep going, wielding the phoenix-wing gilded halberd like a broom, and the ten-man team was blown away like dust.

Da da da.
The sound of horse hooves was like thunder, kicking up dust across the plain.

Lou Shi endured the pain in his legs and hurried on his way, with beads of sweat the size of beans hanging on his forehead. He had encountered many dangers in his life, but today's predicament was unique.

Who can stop the bombs from falling from the sky?
"General, the Song cavalryman just now is still behind us!"

"What did you say? How is it possible?"

"It's just behind on the left. You can see it by turning your head."

Lou Shi turned his head and glanced, and it was indeed that image, but he did not have time to think about it, and ordered the guards around him to lead thirty riders to stop them.

Since they didn't know it was Yang Chang, the cavalry guards he sent out were just like the gourd baby saving his grandfather, and they lost two heads in a row.

When Lou Shi looked back again, it was still the same man and horse, but his thirty personal guards had disappeared.

"what's the situation?"

"General, could it be a demon?"

"Where did the monster come from?"

Lou Shi suppressed the pain in his legs with anger. He pulled the reins to stop the remaining 400 riders from moving forward and shouted, "We'll wait here. Show your weapons. Kill anyone who stands in my way! Kill even Buddhas!"

"Yes!"

The guards all responded in unison, shouting loudly, as if they wanted to use their voices to drive away the pursuers.

Lou Shi turned his horse around and came to the front of the group. He wanted to see who this person was. He thought that even the forty riders he sent could not stop them. It was not until the group got closer that his expression changed from anger to shock.

Yang Chang?

Didn't he like riding a white horse? Why did he change to a yellow horse?

If I hadn't seen the white horse just now, how could I have made the wrong judgment?

This traitor!

Although Lou Shi knew that Yang Chang was a martial arts expert, he did not believe that he could escape unscathed, so the moment he spotted the other party, he decisively ordered an encirclement and killing.

"Surround him, kill him, and you'll get a reward of 10,000 gold!"

"kill!"

"Kill!"

Profit-driven motivation is the best means for the Jin army. They don't need to know the name of the person who comes, as long as they have ten thousand gold coins, everyone will fight for him.

This kind of group attack scene was not the first time that Yang Chang encountered it. Every time he wielded the phoenix-wing gilded halberd, groups of Jin soldiers would fall off their horses and to the ground.

Lou Shi, who was waiting for news outside, saw his people screaming and couldn't help but pick up the wolf tooth in his hand. He thought to himself that if he didn't try it himself, he wouldn't know where his strength lay.

"Get out of the way!"

"Get out of the way!"

Lou Shi shouted and rushed into the center of the battlefield, appearing just behind Yang Chang, with a hint of joy instantly appearing on his face.

Without saying a word, he raised his stick and took the lead.

"Go to hell!"

"Old thief, just you?"

It was as if Yang Chang had eyes on the back of his head. While he was beating back the Jin soldiers, he raised his sword with his backhand.

There was a muffled sound.

Lou Shi was bounced back by the upward force, his weapon almost slipped out of his hand and he was thrown off the horse. He was overwhelmed with anxiety.

"Quick, stop him!"

Compared with the ripping attack, the blocking attack can exert more power, but I am at a disadvantage?
How could I, the number one general of the Jin Dynasty, not be able to withstand a move from Yang Chang?
No, it's because I'm old and my legs are injured.

While escaping, Lou Shi was still thinking about the fight that had just taken place, and always felt that his defeat was unreal.

The guards were ordered to hold him back at all costs, while he fled to Xiaoyi alone.

Even killing four hundred pigs would take a lot of time, so when Yang Chang killed all the enemies and caught up with Lou Shi again, this guy was already close to Fenshui.

"Where's the bridge? Where's my bridge?"

Lou Shi saw that the floating bridge disappeared, and Yang Chang was getting closer and closer to him.

He was hesitating whether to walk along the river, but he unexpectedly found a small boat beside the reeds.

The crossing to the other side was only ten miles away from Xiaoyi. Wanyan Tuhesu's troops were already in Xiaoyi at that time, and if they fled upstream along the Fen River, the nearest city would be a hundred miles away.

Lou Shi was worried that he would not be able to hold on due to his leg injury, so he endured the pain, abandoned his horse, boarded the boat, and rowed forward with all his might.

By the time Yang Chang arrived at the river, the boat had already reached the middle of the Fen River.

He was just feeling frustrated that the cooked duck was about to fly away when the boat suddenly stopped in the middle of the Fen River.

It turned out that Lou Shi was rowing hard, but he couldn't row the boat anymore when he reached the middle of the river. He leaned over to hold the side of the boat and looked around, muttering to himself, "It's really strange. Why are there so many strange things happening today? Is there a demon in the water?"

"Hey, it's not a demon, it's the King of Hell!"

A hand suddenly stretched out from under the water on the side of the boat, grabbed the collar of Lou Shi's clothes and pulled it down violently.

Pfft!
(End of this chapter)