In Yuanyong City, although Zhang He and others brought back the spoils of war, they were not optimistic and felt a little admiration for Xia Houyuan's suspicious tactics.
Chen Dao, Wei Yan, and Chu Yan were all gathered in the hall. The three of them still haven't understood why Xu You saw through Xia Houyuan's plot.
"Military advisor, how did you figure out that there really weren't many Wei troops outside the city? As soon as we went out, the Wei troops disappeared without a trace, leaving only the guys eating." Chu Yan asked in confusion.
.
Xu You chuckled and said: "Well, it's because you didn't observe carefully. Xia Houyuan is known as the Divine Marching General, and his subordinates are also Divine Marching Army. They are first-rate in running. In such a place surrounded by dense forests, rivers, and low mountains,
The role of cavalry is not obvious, and there is a
The feeling that heroes are useless. But for Xia Houyuan's Divine March, it was perfect. Because his men ran fast, they would circle around the city every once in a while, deliberately making some noise.
, let you all believe that there are Wei troops outside the city..."
"Oh, I understand, grandma is a bear! I used to be a figure who gathered in the mountains and forests. Since I followed my lord, there have been very few opportunities to go into the mountains. It was my negligence this time. Why didn't I think of this?"
Chu Yan patted her head and said regretfully.
"It doesn't have to be like this. Xia Houyuan will definitely leave and come back again, and if he comes back this time, he is very likely to mobilize the army back for a strong attack. Therefore, General Chu has a great opportunity to display his skills." Xu You said.
After hearing this, Zhang He asked: "What does the military advisor mean?"
"Xiahou Yuan's 30,000-strong army does exist, but the 27,000-man horse and infantry army is ambushing at least 30 miles away on the road from Guandu to Yuanyong City. Since we have seen through Xiahou Yuan's plan, he must be afraid of us taking the initiative to attack
, will inevitably lead the army to attack. Yuanyong City is small and cannot be defended.
The city wall is strong enough, but the city wall is also in disrepair, so this battle will be a great test for us. If we lose, then Xia Houyuan will drive straight in and attack the important grain-harvesting areas of Juan County. Then our army will not be able to
The Central Plains has gained a foothold, and the tens of thousands of troops in the main attack will inevitably be affected." Xu You said.
Zhang He nodded and asked: "Then, let's actively prepare for the war. There are only five hundred cavalry in the city, and the rest are infantry. Although Xiahou Yuan has the power to march, not everyone can run so fast. Military advisor, do you have
What plan can we use to defeat the enemy?"
"Pincher attack!" Xu You stroked his beard and said proudly, "Although Xia Houyuan is an outstanding general in the Wei army, he has an impatient personality, rushes and fights, and is not restricted by orders. He often does some extraordinary things.
Lift, elusive
He appears and disappears like a ghost. He is good at running long distances and sneak attacks on enemy camps and granaries. However, Yuanyong City happens to be stuck in a key position and he cannot get around it, so he can only capture Yuanyong City first before he can complete his long-distance attack.
’s strengths.”
Zhang He said: "I understand, then let's ask the military advisor to make a plan. Zhang He is willing to hand over the command to the military advisor and fully obey the military advisor's orders. Military advisor, please give me an order on how to flank Xiahou Yuan!"
Xu You had a good impression of Zhang He. He had a general understanding of the general situation and always put the overall situation first. After hearing this, he was deeply moved and said: "General Zhang puts the overall situation first, and Zi Yuan admires him. However, General Zhang does not have to be like this, commanding
It's better to leave it to General Zhang, I'll just give you advice."
After saying that, Xu You told Zhang He, Chen Dao, Wei Yan, and Chu Yan about his ambush plan. After listening to it, the four of them all felt that the plan was very clever and laughed.
……………………
Xia Houyuan ran fast and finally arrived at Laoya Bay, where he asked the soldiers to stop and rest. After a while, more than a dozen troops arrived one after another, and the Shen Marching Army in units of villages gathered.
"Everyone take a rest first!" Xia Houyuan panted and said to the others.
After Xia Houyuan came to rest, he immediately said to the person next to him: "Send the order and ask Generals Wen Ji and Deng Bai to bring the entire army over and prepare to attack Yuanyong City!"
"promise!"
In the evening, Xia Houyuan's generals Wen Ji and Deng Bai withdrew the ambush and rushed to Lao Ya Bay with a horse infantry of 27,000 people. When they saw Xia Hou Yuan sitting on a rock next to Lao Ya Bay, they walked over.
"Finally, I will meet the general!"
Xia Houyuan said: "You came just in time, did you encounter the Yan army coming to rescue?"
Wen Ji and Deng Bai looked at each other in confusion, and finally shook their heads together and said, "No, I didn't see a single person."
Xia Houyuan sighed and said: "It seems that I made a mistake. You guys take a rest first. After dark, we will start to attack Yuanyong City and let the soldiers prepare well."
"promise!"
………………
Yuanyong City is located about one mile away from the west bank of the Liuzi River. The city is not large, and there is a small flat land in the middle. The east bank of the Liuzi River is densely forested, where the tall trees block out the sky and the sun, making it a good place for a concealed ambush.
After some preparations, Zhang He, Wei Yan, and Chu Yan each led 2,000 infantry in ambush near the curved Liuzi River. According to Xu You's calculations and the geographical location here, if the Wei army is to arrive, it will inevitably come from the dense forest on the east bank of the Liuzi River.
Therefore, Zhang He, Wei Yan, and Chu Yan were ambushing in three different directions in the south, north, and west of Yuanyong City to prevent the Wei army from rushing over and quickly surrounding the city and watching from a distance.
Although it is already evening, but it is approaching summer, the weather is still so hot. Zhang He's face is wet, and the sweat on his head is suffocated in the iron helmet, forming strips of water flowing down his cheeks. Under the iron armor,
The shirt is also stuck to the back, which makes me feel uncomfortable.
The sound of broken metal echoed crisply in the woods. Zhang He looked around. Some soldiers were taking a nap under the shade of the trees, while others were silently maintaining their weapons and armor. In order to prevent the metal from reflecting under the sun and being discovered by the enemy, the shield
Both the armor and the weapon have been painted black.
Zhang He took off his helmet, wiped the sweat from his forehead with his hands, and then, feeling the softness and warmth of the breeze, he sat under the big tree with his spear in his arms and fell asleep.
Waiting has always been the most troublesome thing. Zhang He took a nap for a while, woke up from a short but deep sleep, squinted his eyes to adapt to the strong sunlight coming through the gaps in the treetops, and listened to the deep green shade of the trees.
The sound of birds playing and chirping could be heard.
Zhang He sighed, who could have imagined that in a short while, such a peaceful and beautiful forest would turn into a bloody battlefield.
Suppressing the emotion in his heart, Zhang He focused his attention on the upcoming battle. He stood up and tried to move all the joints in his body, and asked the soldiers to move as much as possible at this time, otherwise no one would be able to move after a while.
Moved.
Zhang He was a general who led troops and cared very much for his subordinates. This also made him deeply loved in the army.
At this time, the soldiers had all put on their armor, and each one held the short wooden stick in his mouth to prevent the sound from being made, and went into the predetermined ambush location to hide. There was still half an hour before dark, and a large net to hunt Xia Houyuan had quietly been
It opened without any breath, just waiting for the prey to throw itself in.
After the sun was about to sink into the horizon, dust slowly rose from the trees on the east bank of the Liuzi River. Although it was not very eye-catching, it still made Zhang He feel excited and excited as he had been waiting.
Xia Houyuan finally arrived.
The Liuzi River is not too wide, and the water is not deep. People can jump in. The deepest point is only over the chest. Of course, this is a general reference. Not all people are the same height, so some
For a short soldier, the water level might reach his neck.
Zhang He used his right hand to force the spear, and used this force to leap up the tree. When his old strength was exhausted in mid-air, he reached out with his left hand and pressed down on a thick horizontal branch, and used the force to fly up again.
, standing firmly on this horizontal branch.
He reached out and pulled out the saber from his waist, and pointed the blade at the sun that was about to sink into the horizon as agreed. He shook it five times towards the city head of Yuanyong City, and then looked at the city head on the other side of the river intently.
On the high oar in the southeast of Yuanyong City, someone flashed his weapon three times. This was the agreed signal, indicating that the 500 cavalry and 3,500 infantry in the city could go out to fight at any time, and stepped up their attack on the east side.
monitoring.
The chirping of birds stopped. As he climbed up and looked into the distance, the enemy gradually became clearer in Zhang He's field of vision.
The silhouettes of the Wei troops walking through the narrow paths in the woods were extremely long and could not be seen to the end. Looking at their soldiers marching in unison, the dust rising in streaks, clear but not chaotic, they were indeed an elite army that had been on the battlefield for a long time.
When the entire team appeared in sight, Zhang He couldn't help but frown. Not only did the soldiers at the end of the team make chaotic steps, but the dust they raised was scattered, indicating that they could not even maintain the basic marching formation.
"These people obviously have not received strict military training. How could Xia Houyuan use such soldiers to fight?"
Zhang He murmured in his heart, and after a sudden thought, he suddenly came to his senses and thought to himself: "Could it be...the Tiger Guards?"
Sure enough, when those chaotic people appeared completely, everyone walked as if there was wind under their feet, and quickly passed the soldiers in front, but then the figures jumped into the denser woods, and disappeared in the blink of an eye.
Without a trace.
This made Zhang He more sure of his conjecture. He had heard Bian Xi talk about the Tiger Guards of Wei State, so when those people appeared, with the sharp eyes of a warrior, he could tell that those people were by no means idle.
generation.
The Tiger Guards, the most mysterious army in the Wei Kingdom, are also the most ace army under Cao Mengde's account. It is said that they are one of the most versatile fighting machines in the Wei Kingdom.
The selection criteria are very abnormal. Marksmanship, riding skills, sword fighting, archery, and military skills must all meet the standards of ordinary lieutenants. Finally, they must wear the best heavy armor, a long spear, an iron bow, and a sharp sword.
, I can run hundreds of miles without stopping and still have the strength to fight on horseback.
The Tiger Guards were led by Dian Wei and Xu Chu, who were known as the two most powerful men in the Wei state. However, no one had ever seen Dian Wei and Xu Chu having mysterious subordinates. Usually, their appearance was just to stand beside Cao Mengde as personal guards.
As for the traces of the Tiger Guards, it has become an even more confusing mystery.
Because of his special status in the Wei State, Bian Xi accidentally heard the name of the Tiger Guard during a conversation between Dian Wei and Xu Chu. As he was always thoughtful, he secretly remembered the name in his heart.
They asked about it, but the people they asked all said they had never heard of it, which also cast an even more mysterious veil on the mystery of the Tiger Guards.
Just when Zhang He was thinking strangely, he suddenly discovered that the smoke and dust in the dense forest suddenly stopped, and the Wei army stopped advancing less than a mile away from the river bank. More and more soldiers gathered, as if they were forming a formation on the other side of the river, but they were not in a hurry.
attack.
Zhang He retracted his head behind the tree trunk and was very awe-inspiring, "The troops stopped advancing and the dust immediately stopped flying. This requires hard training and the general's extremely high level of military management. From this alone, it can be seen that Xia Houyuan's
God's march is not just about running fast. There are many enemies this time, and there are troops like the Tiger Guard among them. In addition, Xia Houyuan is not mediocre. I don't know whether this ambush can be successful. It seems that this is a tough battle.
!”
On the top of Yuanyong City, Chen Dao and Xu You had been watching Wei Jun's every move closely. Seeing Wei Jun suddenly stop, Xu You's heart beat faster, and his chest was filled with tension and worry, and he thought to himself:
"Why did Xia Houyuan stop advancing? Did he see through my plan?"
According to the battle plan that Xu You racked his brains to draw up, Chen Dao led his 4,000-horse infantry to rest in the city. After seeing the signal given by Zhang He, he monitored closely and prepared for war at any time.
Once the enemy's number of people crossing the river exceeds 5,000, they open the city gate and launch a fierce attack on the enemy's vanguard crossing the river; while the ambush troops take advantage of the enemy's dilemma and when the front and rear troops cannot respond to each other, they attack from the flanks. The first is
Two hundred people on the west side of the woods
The ambush soldiers set fire to the drums and shouted. The fire will take advantage of the wind and cover the enemy in a sea of fire. The frightened enemy will definitely flee to the southeast, thus falling into the trap. All 2,000 infantrymen led by Zhang He are lurking there. Be sure to
Xia Houyuan was buried here.
But now, no matter how perfect the plan is, it is of no use, and the enemy has stopped moving forward.
"Why exactly? Where did the flaw occur?" Xu You had a splitting headache at this time, racking his brains to come up with a plan, but it was just ruined.
"Military advisor, why did Xia Houyuan suddenly stop? Have we been discovered?" Chen Dao also looked puzzled. He had already been very energetic. He had made strict arrangements in and outside the city to wait for Xia Houyuan.
attack, but Xia Houyuan stopped advancing.
"Impossible, my arrangement was perfect. Although Xia Houyuan is a talented general, he will never see through my plan so easily." Xu You shook his head vigorously. He did not believe that Xia Houyuan could only rush and fight.
General Shenxing will see through his strategy, and he is extremely confident in his own strategy.
"But... Xia Houyuan stopped. If he doesn't attack, if time is delayed, it will be very detrimental to our army." Chen Dao was also confused.
"Stop arguing, let me think about it!" Xu You frowned. This was the first time he had encountered such a thing.
He and Cao Mengde were childhood friends. Naturally, he had seen Xia Houyuan when he was a child. That child had a runny nose, peed and played in the mud all day long. He had only one brain and seemed to have no other special skills except running fast. In his opinion,
, the reason why Xia Houyuan was able to achieve many victories was because he ran fast, came and went without a trace, and he didn't like to play his cards according to common sense and often disappeared from the battlefield. When Xia Houyuan appeared again, he actually
They are robbing the enemy of food.
He knew Xia Houyuan no less than Cao Mengde, but why, exactly why, how could a slug like Xia Houyuan see through his plan?
Beat him to death and he won't believe it.
Xu You fell completely into deep annoyance and carefully recalled all the possible reasons for Xia Houyuan's suspicion.
As time passed, Xia Houyuan's troops gathered more and more, and they all spread out on the other side of the Liuzi River, forming an arc along the river bank.
At this moment, Wei Yan and Chu Yan were very anxious. But the most anxious person was Zhang He. In his opinion, if this plan was seen through, not only would Yuanyong City be captured by Xia Houyuan, but also the whole army would probably be involved.
Neither the county nor the city is guaranteed.
Zhang He didn't have time to think too much. He saw that the enemy's formation had begun to disperse.
He looked through the gaps in the leaves and suddenly saw the terrifying strength of the Tiger Guards.
The soldiers of the Tiger Guard were as light as birds, jumping quickly on the big trees, from one tree to another, instantly forming an effective surveillance point and protection network for the ground troops. Xia Houyuan's ground troops also formed a straight line
The soldiers spread out and then gathered together. The soldiers formed a circular formation in groups of three and five, assuming a posture of strengthening defense on both wings.