Yao Lei slowly walked to Luo Wei's side and asked in a low voice,""County Magistrate Luo, are these reinforcements brought by the prefect?”
Luo Wei stared at it for a long time before replying slowly,"Probably!"
After entering the city, the archers immediately rested and prepared for tomorrow's battle.
Liu Heng went straight to the government office, and Yang Ling immediately dispatched guards to take over the duties of the guards. Soon, Luo Wei and Yao Lei arrived together.
Entering the room, Yao Lei immediately knelt down."I order the county lieutenant Yao Lei to pay his respects to Governor Liu!”
Liu Heng gestured for the two to sit down and asked,""County Magistrate Luo, give a detailed report on the situation of the residents of Ling Zhi County. After a while, Yao County Lieutenant explained the situation of the enemy.”
Luo Wei tidied up his clothes and replied,"The prefect has ordered the sub-county to govern five villages, with a population of 8,750."
Because they had scouted the Wuhuan beforehand, they had ample time to prepare. By yesterday, nearly 3,000 people from the three villages north of Ling County had been safely evacuated.
More than 1,000 of them entered the county town, and the rest entered Xu Wu and Fei Ru to take refuge. The two villages south of Ling Zhi also entered the county town.”
Liu Heng calculated in his heart and asked,""So there are five thousand people in the city?”
Luo Wei nodded to confirm." The prefect is right. Yesterday, in order to defend against the Wuhuan's attack, I did a calculation. The elderly, women, and children make up most of the population. There are about 2,500 young and strong people who can be used to support the battle. Including the original county soldiers, we can barely make up 3,000.”
Liu Heng closed his eyes and listened quietly. Then, he asked Yao Lei,"How's the situation in the Wuhuan?"
"According to our investigation, the one leading the invasion is the number one general of Wu Yan Tribe, Chi Mule. He is in his forties and has followed Wu Yan for thirty years.
This person was brave and famous among the Wuhuan. He was also a strategist and Wu Yan's right-hand man. According to the enemy camp, they had around 30,000 soldiers.
The strange thing was that the enemy's main force did not rush to attack after arriving yesterday, which was unpredictable.”
Hearing this, Liu Heng smiled and said,"This time, Ju Gong's prediction is correct." The Wuhuan were waiting for Liaoxi Prefecture to gather their troops at Lingzhi and then surround them. At that time, the vast Liaoxi Prefecture would be left to the Wuhuan to wreak havoc.
County Magistrate Luo, the migration of the people must be completed before dawn. All the food in the city must be left for military use. It seems that this battle will take ten days to half a month!”
Luo Wei immediately stood up." I'll make the arrangements immediately. I'll ensure that the people are safely sent out before dawn."”
After saying that, he quickly left the county government.
Yao Lei peeked at Liu Heng and saw his calm expression. He asked softly,""Governor Liu, this subordinate sees that although the reinforcements are well-equipped, they only have a thousand men. Even if we include the three thousand soldiers in the city, there are only four thousand of them. With this meager force, how can we resist the fierce attack of the thirty thousand Wuhuan soldiers?”
Liu Heng slowly stood up and walked to the door, staring at the starry night sky."Wise man, create something out of nothing. Besides, does Yao County Lieutenant think that I will only send 1,000 soldiers to rescue him? War was always a charming game of life and death!”
"County Lieutenant Yao!" Liu Heng suddenly turned around and said in a low voice,"Immediately arrange for people to dig a tunnel to the dense forest in the south of the city overnight." The outcome of this battle was hard to predict, so he had to prepare for the worst.”
Yao Lei immediately looked at Liu Heng with a hint of disappointment." Governor Liu, I believe that we must have the determination to die in a bloody battle with the Wuhuan. Otherwise, we won't even have a one in ten thousand chance of winning." Digging a tunnel to escape would probably disappoint the soldiers and civilians!”
Liu Heng stared at Yao Lei and said lightly," You don't understand this. A battle to the death is necessary, but we can't waste the lives of the soldiers and civilians.
Besides, digging the tunnel is the worst case scenario, and I don't want him to come in handy.
Although I have made up my mind to live and die with the city, there are still people who want to live. The tunnel can be considered as the hope I left for them!”
Yao Lei immediately stood at attention and saluted, his eyes filled with admiration. Then, he walked out of the door with firm steps.
Ling Zhi City quickly became restless. Luo Wei had the county soldiers go door-to-door to inform them about the evacuation.
From the big families to the common people, all of them were sad and happy.
If he was happy, his wife and children would be able to leave this dangerous place.
The sad thing is that the husband and son will stay behind to fight with the Wuhuan.
As the crowd gathered, cries gradually came from the south gate. Words of comfort, advice, and exhortations were repeated over and over again, carrying endless kinship, friendship, and love.
With tears in his eyes, Luo Wei pulled away his tightly clenched hands again and again. Every group of more than a hundred people would open the city gate and set off south. Each group would be led by the county soldiers. Each group would choose a different route, just to let as many people enter Haiyang safely as possible.
Looking at the people leaving in batches, Luo Wei said worriedly,"" Governor Liu, your branch is more than a hundred miles away from Haiyang. What if you encounter a scout from the Wuhuan…"
Liu Heng looked at the darkness outside the city. He could vaguely see the faint firefly light from the torch in the bailiff's hand." Don't worry. The Wuhuan cavalrymen don't like to fight at night. I've already arranged for the county soldiers to receive them. As long as we wait until dawn..."
Yang Ling, who had left the city to scout before dawn, reported that there were no unusual movements in the Wuhuan camp. Luo Wei's heart finally relaxed.
Liu Heng looked at his bloodshot eyes and comforted him,""Don't worry. I believe the people have already left Ling's territory safely.”
……
On the official road to Haiyang, two county soldiers escorted a hundred women and children to the south.
They were the last batch, and because a few old people had sprained their feet and slowed down their progress, they had not left Ling Zhi's territory before dawn.
Seeing that the sky was getting brighter, the county soldiers became more and more nervous.
The Wuhuan people usually sent out scouts early in the morning. If they were discovered, the hundred men would be doomed…Just as he was thinking, the neigh of a horse suddenly came from the forest to his right.
Shocked, the two turned their heads and saw more than ten Wuhuan cavalrymen rushing out of the forest. Each of them had a ferocious expression on their faces as they brandished their weapons. The leader of the cavalrymen even cried out in a strange manner, not knowing whether it was due to excitement or madness.
The two soldiers looked at each other and shouted in unison,""Take the villagers and leave first!"
Then, they were stunned at the same time. The slightly older one suddenly roared,"Folks, follow Xiao Hei into the forest. Don't gather together. You must reach Haiyang safely!”
With that, he gripped his halberd tightly and charged at the Wuhuan Cavalry.
The Wuhuan soldiers saw that the Han army dared to fight alone and laughed loudly. After the scout leader gave the order, he unsheathed his sword and urged his horse to charge at the Han army. The rest of the scouts spread out and charged at the targets they had already chosen among the women and children.
The laughter of horse hooves and the weeping of evading were intertwined, scaring away a large group of birds in the forest.
The older soldier didn't hesitate and raised his halberd to stab at the scout captain.
Unexpectedly, the scout leader suddenly sped up with his horse between his legs, and the sword in his hand went straight for the soldier's throat.
The county soldier had misjudged and could only retreat to the side. How could the scout captain let go of this opportunity? He hooked one leg onto the horse's back and leaned his body to the right, doubling the attack range.
The young soldier was shocked. It was too late for him to retreat. He could only squat down to dodge the sword.
The scout leader muttered to himself and the tip of his sword slid down, leaving a deep wound on the soldier's shoulder.
Several old men had already died under the Wuhuan swords. Blackie was filled with grief and indignation. He raised his halberd and charged at the Wuhuan soldiers while crying,""Villagers, run! Don't let Third Brother…"
Before he could finish his words, the clattering of armor suddenly came from the forest on the left. Then, a loud voice sounded,"Arrows! Prepare the javelins!"
Little Black was shocked, not knowing if the person shouting in the forest was an enemy or a friend…
The injured soldiers who were still fighting heard the order from the forest behind them and could not help but sigh. Heavens…
The Wuhuan soldiers who were chasing the woman also heard the noise in the forest opposite them and quickly reined in their horses to take a closer look.
However, before they could find their target, dozens of sharp arrows pierced through the forest and came straight at them. One of them was the fastest and went straight for the captain's heart.
With the sudden change, a few young Wuhuan soldiers were shot and fell off their horses before they could react. The other veterans used various methods to avoid the arrows. They each rode their horses around and took their bows and arrows, ready to fight back.
The scout leader quickly lay flat and used his sword to dodge the arrow. He then urged his horse to run and roared. The rest of the Wuhuan soldiers heard the order and began to fire back into the forest.
This book comes from：m.funovel.com。