Zhu Gaoxu was startled at first, and then said with emotion: "Once our army crosses the Suishui River from the lower reaches, it will be equivalent to inserting itself behind the three city defense lines of Shengyong and Xusuhuai. It is indeed a clever move to turn passivity into initiative."

Qiu Fu looked at the march route drawn by Lan Feng and nodded: "This way we don't have to be trapped between the two strong cities of Xuzhou and Suzhou. When the army continues to approach south, Xuzhou's Chen Hui and Suzhou's

Ping An He Fu will be left behind by us and will have to chase after us to eat ashes."

Zhu Di said cautiously: "The idea is a good idea, but Ping'an Hefu is not a fool. When they understand our intention to forcefully cross the Suishui River, they will definitely lead the main force to the south bank of the Suishui River to prevent our army from crossing the river."

"That's exactly what you said." Lan Feng blinked, "Then I dare to ask the king, do you have confidence?"

Zhu Di was startled.

Lan Feng repeated: "Do you have the confidence to cross the Suishui River and fight Ping'an Hefu on the bank of the Suishui River?"

"This is a good opportunity to defeat the three enemy armies of 'Xu Suhuai' one by one. Once we win, the entire area north of the Huaihe River will be at the mercy of the king."

Zhu Di was startled again, and only now did he fully understand the meaning of Lan Feng's proposition.

This is a clever plan that kills two birds with one stone.

The first is to cross the Sui River to allow the army to penetrate behind enemy lines and take the strategic initiative.

The second thing he hadn't thought of just now was that in order to prevent him from crossing the river and taking the strategic initiative, Ping'an He Fu, who was located in Suzhou, would definitely use all his strength to fight him at the ferry.

According to Ling Yufei's report just now, Ping An He Fu's troops numbered around 100,000 men. Although they occupied the favorable terrain on the ferry bank, they were not necessarily able to withstand the impact of his 200,000 strong troops.

Sheng Yong deployed more than 300,000 troops along the Huaihe River, but at the moment of forcibly crossing the Huaihe River, only 100,000 troops would be able to immediately enter the battlefield.

If we can use this advantage to defeat Ping'an Hefu in one fell swoop, it will be equivalent to taking an important chess piece in Sheng Yong's hand, which is more meaningful than capturing a city.

Thinking of this, Zhu Di suddenly laughed and said with great pride: "Back then, I was not afraid of Li Jinglong's half a million with one hundred thousand Peking troops, let alone two hundred thousand against one hundred thousand now?"

In the following days, Zhu Di sent Qiu Fu, Li Yuan and others to continue to besiege Xuzhou and cut off all contact between Chen Hui's troops in the city and the outside world. On the other hand, Zhu Neng led his team to advance to the north bank of Suishui River and hurry up to build the pontoon bridge.

Their construction of the pontoon bridge was not deliberately concealed from others, and the Southern Army scouts quickly reported it to Suzhou's Ping'an and He Fu generals.

Ping'an had been in battle for a long time. When he heard that the Yan army was building a pontoon bridge, he asked about the number of people and immediately concluded that Zhu Di's siege of Xuzhou was a lie and that crossing the river to the south was true.

So while he sent a message to Sheng Yong who was stationed in Huaishang, he and He Fu mobilized all the 100,000 troops in Suzhou City and arrived at Louzhuang on the south bank of Suishui River.

Louzhuang is located to the east of Suzhou and directly south of Xuzhou City. When the Suishui River flows through this section, the river is very shallow and the flow is slow, making it most suitable for large armies to cross the river.

Zhu Di was ready and ordered the army to set off and advance to the north bank of Suishui River.

Qiu Fu, who was originally surrounded by Xuzhou City, and Li Yuan's troops quickly withdrew. Chen Hui, who was in the city, did not know what was happening outside the city. He was afraid that the Yan army was deceived and did not dare to pursue him deeply.

When the army gathered on the north bank of Suishui River, Zhu Di immediately gave the order to start crossing the river.

The cavalry under his command could wade directly through the shallower river section, while the infantry set up more than a hundred pontoon bridges upstream and downstream to quickly cross the river.

They encountered the stubborn resistance of Ping'an Hefu's troops on the river bank. The two sides fought fiercely all night, and each suffered heavy casualties. The winner was decided at dawn the next day.

Although Ping'an and He Fu's troops had the advantage in terrain, Zhu Di was one of the best offensive commanders in this era, and his infantry and cavalry coordinated operations seamlessly. In addition, Zhu Neng, Qiu Fu, Zhang Fu, Zhu Gaoxu, and

Lan Qiao, Feng Yeling and others fought hard, but finally could not resist, abandoned the Louzhuang camp and fled south.

After Zhu Di occupied the Louzhuang camp, he immediately raised the tent to discuss matters.

First, Ling Yufei, the "super scout", still introduced the nearby terrain.

To the south of Louzhuang is the huge Qimei Mountain. There is a small road in the mountain that leads directly to the north bank of the Huai River. The defeated troops of Ping An and He Fu retreated through this road, presumably to join Sheng Yong on the Huai River.

To the east of Qimei Mountain, there is a road that leads to Lingbi City in the southeast. Lingbi City is located between Suishui and Huaihe Rivers. It is a small city and currently does not have a large army stationed there.

On the other hand, from Louzhuang to the west, you can follow the south bank of Suishui River to Suzhou City.

Based on Ling Yufei's introduction, Lan Feng proposed three strategies for Zhu Di to choose from.

First, since Ping'an and Hefu's troops retreated to Qimei Mountain, Suzhou would be empty. Zhu Di could advance westward along the south bank of Suishui River, and Suzhou would be at his fingertips. All kinds of grain, grass and military supplies in the city would also be available to the Yan army.

Second, you can take the southeast road, pass through Lingbi to reach the lower reaches of the Huaihe River, bypass Huaishang, which is heavily defended by Sheng Yong, march to the southeast, and cross the Yangtze River through Huaiyin, Gaoyou, Yangzhou and other cities, and the capital will be close at hand.

The third is to take advantage of the victory of the army to continue to cover up the defeated army, and go straight to the south bank of the Huaihe River from the inner path of Qimei Mountain. If there is peace on the way, He Fu's troops will return to resist, and then fight with them again. If they encounter Sheng Yong's reinforcements, due to our strong momentum

, the enemy's energy is weakened, and it is still possible to win successively with a similar troop strength. If Sheng Yong can be driven back together, the Huai River will also become a thing in the Yan army's pocket. Such Sheng Yong's Huai River defense line will be completely declared

After it collapsed, General Zhu Di could point his sword at the capital and reach the capital city in the shortest possible time.

Zhu Di analyzed one by one: "The first plan is to take Suzhou. Of course, we can get a lot of food and grass supplies, but the capital is in the south and Suzhou is in the west. At this moment, leaving the south and moving to the west will give the Southern Army a chance to breathe, which is not the best strategy."

"The second plan is to take the southeast. Although it is a main road, the defense of Lingbi Huaiyin is weaker than that of Huaishang. However, our army will have to take a detour and make a big circle from the southeast. How can it take a month?

To the capital. And the main force of Sheng Yong’s army is still there, so it is still possible for them to fight me again, so this plan is not ideal either.”

"Only the third plan is the most suitable for me. If we take Qimei Mountain, the distance is the shortest and the distance to the capital after crossing Huaihe River is also the closest. Our army is going deep alone. Nothing is more precious than time. Soldiers need to be quick. Only when we attack the capital can we count.

Touch victory."

"The decisive victory between the two armies on the battlefield requires the greatest momentum. Now that our army has forced its way across the Suishui River and defeated Ping An Hefu's army, it is the time when morale is at its highest. Taking advantage of the situation to cover up the enemy will only make the Confederate army's defeat worse."

"In comparison, the morale of Ping'an Hefu's defeated army is depleted. It's a good thing that Sheng Yong didn't come to rescue him. If he came, the morale of his own central army would also be depleted by Ping'an Hefu's defeated army. When we meet on a narrow road, the brave will win, and it's definitely not me.

The rival of the King’s Master.”

Speaking of this, Zhu Gaoxu reminded proudly: "In the previous two battles, Li Jinglong chased after Li Jinglong after winning the first decisive battle. He chased Li Jinglong until he lost his helmet and armor. Hundreds of thousands of people were defeated. It can be seen that morale waxed and waned.

, more important than numbers."

"Sheng Yong, I am not afraid that he will come, but I am afraid that he will not come. My revenge for Dongchang has not been avenged yet." Zhu Di pulled out his sword, pointed directly in the direction of Qimei Mountain, and shouted wildly: "Chasing! General Nanjun

Annihilate the main force in one fell swoop, save trouble!"

He mentioned the "Revenge of Dongchang". Zhang Fu, who had experienced the pain of losing his father in Dongchang, responded loudly and led his troops to rush out first and drove into the path of Qimei Mountain.

The other units followed in turn. The Huairou Battalion led by Lan Qiao and the Changping Battalion led by Feng Yeling had no choice but to follow at the end of the group because of their low status in the army.

Lan Feng looked at the steep mountains of Qimei Mountain and felt a faint doubt in his heart, but seeing the high spirits of the soldiers, he finally suppressed the doubt.

After all, Sheng Yong has almost played all the cards in his hand.

As Zhu Di said, even if Sheng Yong personally led a large army into the mountains to support him, his chances of winning would not be as good as those of Zhu Di, who was suffering from the defeat and wounded soldiers.
Chapter completed!