Chapter 1080: The Buddha's Fate in the Grottoes
Since the beginning of summer, the weather has been dry and rainless. Even the Jinshui River that runs through the city is almost dry, so that the troops stationed around Jinyang City have to go further to find water sources, and they have to spend a lot of time every day to drink water.
However, such a tormenting day is finally coming to an end. The Supreme in the Jinyang Palace finally ordered the troops to gather at the Jin Temple and prepare to swear to fight.
As this military order was conveyed to the camps, the soldiers were also excited and excited. It was not only because staying outside Jinyang City was thirsty, but also because the unfavorable battles on the front line made people anxious and thirsty.
In the past period of time, Jinyang City has gathered more than 100,000 soldiers, most of whom are border guards drawn back from various borders in the north. Even if the tens of thousands of divisions and brigades previously sent to Jiexiu are deducted, there are still nearly 80,000 troops stationed in Jinyang.
When the day of the oath was agreed, 80,000 troops gathered in the wilderness near the Jin Temple, with flags like forests and the army marching into the mountains. Not long after the soldiers of the army gathered, the emperor also crossed the Jin River under the protection of hundreds of guards.
Today, the emperor was still wearing armor and riding a horse. There were many strong soldiers and horses in front and behind the team. This majestic procession made people feel familiar, and some soldiers with good memory had already recognized that this procession was the old one when His Majesty went north to conquer the Rouran last year. Many people were moved to tears and couldn't help but beat their chests and shout: "The Supreme Mighty, Invincible in the World!"
Since Gao Yang, the Lord of Qi, came to power, there have been many magnificent deeds. When it comes to the glorious military achievements against foreign countries, the most glorious one is the conquest of the Rouran last year. Although the real decline of the Rouran was due to the rise of the Turks, the continuous sweep of the southern desert by the Lord of Qi Gao Yang and the attack on the remaining forces of the Rouran were also talked about and praised by the people of the country, and regarded as the most glorious military achievements since the founding of the country.
It should be noted that the main component of the Northern Qi army was the Six Garrisons, and the Northern Garrisons were originally established to guard against and attack the Rouran. Although the Rouran had once declined, after the Six Garrisons mutinied and the Garrisons went south, the Rouran forces quickly recovered in the northern desert and frequently disturbed the southern desert. Even when Emperor Gao Huan was alive, he had to marry the Rouran because of their strength.
The Rouran can be said to be the most important enemy in the minds of all the children of the Six Garrisons. Under the continuous conquest of the current Supreme, the Rouran was finally completely solved. This martial arts achievement is naturally of great significance in the minds of the children of the Six Garrisons.
So when the emperor showed off the ceremonial carriage he used to go to the Rouran, the enthusiasm in the hearts of the soldiers was immediately ignited, and the memory of the golden swords and iron horses and the invincible battles of the year became vivid again!
When Gao Yang heard the cheers of the soldiers, he gradually showed an intoxicated look on his face, and couldn't help but sigh: "The heroic voice of the army is the most magnificent in the world, how can it be compared with the erotic voices of stringed instruments, flutes, and court prostitutes!"
Amid the cheers of the soldiers, Gao Yang rode his horse all the way to the generals' platform under the protection of the imperial guards. His indulgence in wine and sex over the years has made his body much worse than before, but under the influence of this majestic and exciting atmosphere, his spirit also became excited. He simply went up to the generals' platform himself and raised his hand to greet the soldiers below the stage, and this action immediately caused a wave of applause like a tsunami.
When the cheers of the soldiers gradually faded, Gao Yang shouted again: "There were many stubborn bandits who disobeyed the imperial edict in the past, but where are they now? Who dares to be disrespectful! Only the Qiang bandits still do not obey the order, and they raise troops to attack us, treating our Jinyang army as nothing. I ask you, do you dare to fight?"
"Dare to fight! Dare to fight!"
As soon as Gao Yang finished speaking, the soldiers in the audience shouted loudly again, and the sound shook the wild for a while, and the morale was like a rainbow.
"How can the power of heaven be violated lightly? The Qiang bandits are destroying themselves! I will personally lead the army to attack the Qiang bandits. Those who have made contributions in this battle will be rewarded, including the soldiers, and those who have committed crimes will be punished, including the princes! Those who can capture and kill the bandit leader Li Boshan will be appointed as the governor of Bingzhou and the king of Longxi. They will be awarded immediately upon seeing the merits, without any delay! Soldiers, are you eager for this merit?"
After listening to the deafening shouts of the soldiers, Gao Yang loudly announced the rewards for this battle.
When everyone present heard such a generous and amazing reward, they all widened their eyes excitedly. Although they knew that such a special achievement was destined to be out of reach for most people, they could not help but be inspired and shouted loudly: "Kill the enemy! Kill the enemy and be crowned king!"
Under Gao Yang's encouragement, the soldiers all became highly motivated and eager to fight, and they wanted to rush to the battlefield and kill the enemy immediately. Seeing the public sentiment, Gao Yang became confident about the counterattack and defeating the enemy. After another military oath, Gao Yang began to issue orders to the troops.
Now that the Western Wei army has expanded in all directions, the areas controlled by the east and west are like jagged teeth, which is very different from the situation at the beginning of the war.
Especially when Changle King Wei Can asked for help in Jinzhou, the intelligence transmitted to the country once said that all the Wei troops were gathered in Pingyang, but the facts proved that Wei Can was exaggerating the facts and lying about military intelligence.
According to the current situation, the Wei army was at least divided into two groups. One group went north along the Fen River to attack Pingyang and then turned into the Qin River Valley. As for the other group, they first stayed in Hedong, ambushed the Heyang Division led by Hulugu, and then went directly east from Hedong to occupy Jianzhou in one fell swoop.
Because Jianzhou and Qinshui River Valley were lost one after another, Duan Shao's division, which was supposed to be the main force of the counterattack, could only stop in Shangdang. If they attacked again, they might be attacked by the enemy from both the upper and lower routes. If the Heyang Division joined the battle, the situation in the Heluo area would become dangerous again.
In this case, in order to recover the disadvantageous situation, Jinyang, which had regained its strength, could only take on more combat tasks and try to defeat the enemy separately.
The main and most conventional way for the Jinyang Division to go south to fight was naturally to go south through Queshu Valley and Qianlijing, but now both roads were blocked by the Wei army. Moreover, Pan Zihuang, the King of Hedong who was guarding Jiexiu not long ago, also reported back that the enemy general Wei Xiaokuan chose a place to build a city south of Queshu Valley, and he intended to stay there for a long time to block the Jinyang Division from going south.
Wei Xiaokuan was extremely good at defense among the thieves. The combination of him and Yubi City had been a nightmare for the people of Qi for a long time. Now, they have entered Queshu Valley, which is even more rugged than Yubi City, to defend it. Just hearing it makes people feel that it is somewhat indestructible.
Gao Yang knew that the army seemed to be in high spirits at the moment, but once the road to the south was blocked and it was difficult to advance, it would inevitably fall into a situation of one-shot, then decline, and finally exhaustion. And this situation was mentioned by his nephew Gao Changgong when discussing military affairs before.
But at that time, due to the lack of troops in Jinyang and the unfavorable battle between Houmochen and Xiang, they still failed to firmly control these two important roads to the south. Now it is undoubtedly a waste to use this strong morale to forcibly shake the strong wall.
So for the Jinyang division, it is not advisable to break through the blockade of Queshu Valley and go south to seek an opportunity to fight a decisive battle with the main force of the Wei army. For Gao Yang and the current situation, a victory is urgently needed, the sooner the better, even if the scale of the battle is smaller.
In addition to going straight down to Jinzhou, the Jinyang Division has another route, which is to go south from Jinyang to Jiangxi, a tributary of the Fen River in the south of Taiyuan County, and then go east from Jiangxi, crossing the Bafu Ridge of the Taiyue Mountain, and then reach Pingdu City in the east of the ridge. Pingdu City can then go east through Qingzhang River to Liaoyang, and west to Wusu.
This road is also the most convenient road from Jinyang to Yedu. Whenever Gao Yang travels between the two capitals, if he does not go through Jingxing Jing but through Fukou, he will mostly go in and out through this road.
Although most of this road passes through rugged mountains and fields, after years of walking and repairing, the road has become relatively smooth. When Gao Yang was about to abdicate the Eastern Wei last year, he first came from Jinyang to Pingdu City, where this road was located, and then summoned all the nobles to discuss the major plan, and sent his confidants to communicate information back and forth between Ye City, because this road was convenient for communicating between the two places and flexible in advance and retreat.
At present, the road to the south is blocked, and the enemy has already invaded Qinshui. After occupying the Qinshui River Valley, the enemy's next target is very likely to be Wusu. In this case, Gao Yang simply gave up the futile attempt to rescue Jinzhou from the south, and instead went south through Liaoyang Road to the battlefield, seeking an opportunity to fight the enemy.
Going south through Liaoyang to fight the enemy, you can join forces with Duan Shao's troops stationed in Shangdang and attack the Western Wei army together. At the same time, it can also strengthen the situation deterrence against Ye City, so that the people of Ye City dare not have any other plans or actions.
So Gao Yang sent Wuxing King Gao Pu and Xiucheng King Gao Xiaoxu to lead 10,000 vanguards to set off in front, while he led the rear army to follow.
The stone walls on both sides of the Bafuling Mountain Road are towering and the road is winding. On the stone walls on both sides of the mountain road, there are many caves excavated by believers. These large and small caves are scattered on the mountains on both sides. For travelers on the road, visiting along the way is also a pleasure to relieve fatigue.
During the day's journey, the front scout led the emperor's carriage to a mountain stream to drink water and rest. Gao Yang saw a large cave on one side of the mountain stream, so he walked in for a tour.
In addition to the stone statues of Buddha, Hercules and others in the cave, there is also a statue stele next to it. Gao Yang approached the stele and took a closer look, and found that it was donated by Zhang Baoluo, the former governor of Liangzhou, when he was guarding Jingxing in the old years of the Eastern Wei Dynasty. There are also vague words of blessing for the King of Bohai, the general and the Duke of Taiyuan.
Seeing this, Gao Yang was deeply moved. When his father and brother were still alive, he was just a nobody in the family. It was rare that Zhang Baoluo had not forgotten to pray for him when he carved the cave and made the statue.
"Where is Zhang Baoluo now?"
He turned around and asked the people around him. When he learned that Zhang Baoluo led his army to the south to fight in Jiankang, Jiangdong last year, he was captured by the southerners and sent to Guanzhong, and was eventually killed by the Qiang people. He was defeated and humiliated the country in the battle of Jiankang, and he did not even allow the descendants of the defeated generals to inherit the title.
If nothing unexpected happened, with the death of Zhang Baoluo, his family would probably have fallen. But today, Gao Yang happened to see the remains of the statue made by the man to pray for him last year during the expedition, which could be regarded as a Buddhist fate, so Gao Yang immediately ordered to allow Zhang Baoluo's son to inherit his title and prosper his family.
After seeing this scene, the accompanying soldiers couldn't help but sigh, and at the same time, some people also thought about it. After the battle was over, should they donate money to build a Buddha statue in the Eight Fu Mountains to pray for the Supreme? Maybe one day the emperor would accidentally see it, which would be a rare incense!
The Liaoyang mentioned in the article is near the present Zuoquan County, Shanxi Province. Gao Yang practiced Buddhism to prolong his life in his later years. In addition, a friend of the book mentioned in the previous article that the Jinyang army did not need to go through Jinzhou to go to Yedu. In fact, Fukou can quickly go to Jinyang via Liaoyang and Ping. Because this article does not take the Northern Qi Dynasty as the main narrative perspective, the information is basically only checked in detail when it is used. I also lack a detailed and specific understanding of the Southern and Northern Dynasties. I didn’t know much about Liaoyang Road before, so I would like to explain it here.