That night, the army's night attack failed. The next day, the two sides did not fight again. Early in the morning, the top brass of both armies also confirmed the news that Qu Tu Da had broken Chanyuan City and Niu Da had fled westward.
.
By this time, the army was naturally hit hard. The excitement brought by the previous undefeated scene in the battle formation could not be said to have been wiped away, but there was not much left.
However, what is interesting is that the officers and soldiers were not completely happy here, and even broke up on bad terms again.
The reason couldn't be simpler. The army was worried that after Qu Tuda broke through Chanyuan, he would have no scruples and arrive at the battlefield quickly. The generals in the Hejian camp were generally worried that after Qu Tuda broke through Chanyuan, he would get enough perfunctory results.
With meritorious deeds, they will no longer go eastward... just like that person who took the head of a leader and then lay down.
This can be considered a sincere conclusion drawn from a heart-to-heart comparison.
In short, the situation among the senior government and military officials on this day was basically a continuation of the chaos since yesterday. Everyone had their own agendas, and instead of easing the situation, the situation became even more chaotic and tense.
This made Xue Changxiong even more upset.
However, he did not stop various military affairs despite being anxious, angry, disappointed and uneasy. In the morning, Luo Shu and Li Li led the Youzhou Army as planned to leave the battlefield and advance to Yangxin in the east, stationed there, and ordered the demolition
The "backbone" military order was also sent out last night.
And just after the Youzhou Army left, a man suddenly invited Xue Changxiong in private.
"Let him come in!" Xue Changxiong thought for a moment, and although he was a little irritated, he still decided to come and listen, because what happened in the past two days highlighted this person's reliability and sincerity.
After a moment, a person entered the small tent belonging to Xue Changxiong's personal family at the back of the Chinese army's tent. It was Cao Shancheng, the prefect of Qinghe.
"Mr. Cao Fu, what can I tell you?" Even if it was a private meeting, Xue Changxiong was really perfunctory, and he didn't even make a gesture to sit down.
"I have a military suggestion and a strategy. Please give it to the general." Cao Shancheng also didn't pay attention to this and just handed it over directly in the small tent.
"you say."
"Please general, please divide your troops to make a detour, pass through Douzigang from the west, and attack the side of the rebel army." Cao Shancheng's calculation was straightforward.
Xue Changxiong paused for a moment, then shook his head and laughed: "Mr. Cao Fu is really persistent."
"Perseverance is necessary. Cao's determination to wipe out the thieves, restore peace to Hebei, and regain peace in the world has not changed day by day since he saw Zhang Jinscale's slaughter. There must be something in this world.
Rules and order, otherwise the soldiers and civilians will suffer heavy casualties, and the bones will be laid out in the fields." Cao Shancheng continued to lean forward and answer sincerely. "However, this time's strategy is actually very different from the previous one."
Xue Changxiong thought for a while, then sighed in the seat behind the desk, and then raised his hand slightly to indicate: "I believe these are the words from the bottom of my heart, Mr. Cao Fu, who truly has the world in mind... Please continue to speak.
.”
"That's it." Cao Shancheng stood up straight and explained seriously. "As far as our army is concerned, the current situation is that the chessboard camp facing the opponent head-on has actually encountered resistance, or it has made no progress, so that it seems that
Without the prospect of this battle, the morale of the army was shaken, so there was an urgent need for breakthroughs and results. As for the enemy, although they were able to hold on at this time, they could not withstand the defeat of Chanyuan. I don't know whether the imperial armies on the western front could
They will come to attack from both sides, so even if you are holding on on the surface, there will definitely be hesitation and panic on the inside..."
"So, sending troops at this time may not have miraculous effects?" Xue Changxiong finally listened.
"It's more than that." Cao Shancheng took a step forward and continued to speak next to the table. "General, have you ever thought about it. If we are more careful, we can use the cover of moving large logs in the city behind us to separate and send a main force of elite troops there.
Then we gather from the rear, launch a surprise attack from Lujiao Pass in the west of Douzigang, and then ask the general to use the banner of General Qu Tu. Whose army will they think this is? And what reaction will they have?!"
"That's interesting!" Xue Changxiong suddenly slapped the table and pointed to a chair nearby. "Tell me more about it!"
"There is no need to go into details, some things can be revealed as soon as they are said." Cao Shancheng raised his head and faced him. "General... The reason why I asked you to meet in private today is that I only learned about General Qutu's victory at Chanyuan during the military meeting just now.
It is a strategy that arises in response to the situation; secondly, there are many people talking, and at this time, I have already said that this matter should be kept secret as much as possible and carefully concealed; thirdly, I actually know that the previous strategies of asking for raids around Douzigang were all wrong.
Being refuted, not only did the general feel that it was not necessary in terms of military affairs, but the general also doubted that the reinforcements from the various armies on the west route were deployed from the east capital, and there was a possibility that someone would become a new leader of Hebei with the support of Cao Zhongcheng. And this time I want to make it clear.
With the general, let's divide our troops here. The general can use the river soldiers to do this, and I can be the leader and deputy general."
The third article obviously made Xue Changxiong feel slightly embarrassed, but it was only awkward for a moment before the Hebei marching commander started thinking seriously.
The more he thought about it, the more he realized that what the other party said made sense.
From a military perspective, whether to divide the troops or not is just a matter of choice.
But the problem is that now the two heavily armed groups are concentrated around Ban County, north of Douzigang and south of Maface River. The possibility of a large-scale breakthrough in a short period of time has actually been lost. So it is not a bad idea to take some risks and divide the troops to open up a new front.
No. If you take into account the military mentality of both sides and launch an attack disguised as Qutuda, it may be really effective.
In addition, there is another thing that Cao Shancheng doesn't know, and that is what is going on in the east. Xue Changxiong only said that there were some bandit troops arranged by Zhang Xing to harass the Bohai Sea, and asked Luo Shu and Li Li to go to Yangxin for cooperation.
We should be on guard and pay attention to the possibility of the rebel army advancing eastward. We did not dare to publicly mention the direction of the rebel army entering the state before the end of the Lingxiang Flood, which meant that large-scale support would be provided within a few days.
Therefore, his desire to open up the situation was actually more urgent than Cao Shancheng imagined.
For political reasons, although the other party's words were obviously full of resentment, it seemed to be true.
Moreover, there is something that Cao Shancheng did not think of or simply did not say, that is, if he attacks from the west in the name of Qu Tuda, even if it is not completely effective, it can still play an excellent urging role - let Qu Tuda
Tu Da and others should not hesitate to move forward, so they asked reinforcements from all over the west road to come quickly.
Even, considering how difficult it is for thieves to attack, including the complexity of the entire battle situation, Xue Changxiong must consider the possibility of a long-term battle. And if it is a long-term battle, it is most direct to divide the troops from the north to the south to trap the thieves, and cut off the most direct route from the east.
, the most effective support route, that is, around Lujiao Pass on the west side of Douzigang, becomes very necessary.
In a word, at one moment and another, Xue Changxiong was not only tempted, but also directly convinced to a considerable extent.
As soon as he thought of this, General Xue picked up the straight knife on the desk in front of him and patted the desk in front of him with the scabbard. As soon as the desk rang, a bell outside the tent also rang inexplicably. When he heard the sound, he immediately
Several armored guards came in to salute.
"Go and call Chen Sima." Xue Changxiong immediately ordered.
Hearing this, Cao Shancheng also breathed a sigh of relief. He knew that Chen Bin was Xue Changxiong's deputy and think tank in daily handling of military affairs. He called this person here, firstly, to get his final opinion; secondly, if this person did not object,
If so, you will probably directly ask the other party to help arrange and implement it.
"My subordinates think it's feasible." After hearing this, Chen Bin just thought for a moment and then directly expressed his agreement. "But there is one thing... Who should the actual coach use? The fourth general or the seventh general? Or the third general? The general
Can't it be the manager who goes there in person?"
Xue Changxiong smiled, but immediately became embarrassed.
Cao Shancheng, on the other hand, still had the magnanimity to think about the overall situation at this time, and immediately suggested: "In name, under the banner of General Qu Tuda, but judging from the strength of the thief, it is best to have a master of Chengdan in charge, so that we can take action."
In order to achieve the best shock effect and self-protection ability, as for the number of major generals, there is no harm in sending a few more, but the overall situation must still be respected."
“This is natural.”
, I might as well wait for General Qu Tuda... As for Chen Sima and I, we are mainly afraid that the two brothers will be dissatisfied with each other."
"If the major generals don't go, the general manager is worried that they won't march properly, right?" Cao Shancheng shook his head, but immediately moved away from the topic. "But let me, if you have to choose one of the major generals,
person, you should still choose General Xue Wanbi... The four generals are among the generals who have the highest cultivation, the best martial arts, and the most determination to fight. To be a vanguard general on the front line and to command in separate directions, he must be the one, and the others
Will not work."
A look of embarrassment flashed across Xue Changxiong's face, then he thought seriously for a while and finally nodded.
Because it is.
Chen Bin still had no need to express anything, he just agreed.
It is said that Xue Changxiong liked his younger son very much. While the eldest son was held hostage in Jiangdu, he vaguely regarded the seventh Xue Wanquan as the successor to the Hejian Camp. However, the other Xue brothers have been dissatisfied with this, especially
Xue Wanbi, the fourth child with the most outstanding ability, did not dare to express his dissatisfaction with his father and could not talk to the seventh child about the matter because his eldest brother was still alive in Jiangdu. However, he hated Chen Bin, Xue Changxiong's confidant, for this reason.
people.
Since the beginning of the war, Chen Bin has been ridiculed and attacked by Xue Wanbi many times, but it is not really because of Chen Sima's mishandling.
But Chen Bin still agreed, not because he was generous, but because he still hasn't been able to get over what happened yesterday. He probably will only deal with Xue Changxiong before this battle is over, and everything will go according to the other party's wishes.
coming.
"How many people do you think we should send?" Xue Changxiong continued to ask after seeing that the matter had been decided.
"I'm afraid it won't be effective if we send too few. The core force must at least exceed the size of General Qu Tuda, and it must have a strong military force... I thought it should be four Zhonglang generals, preferably five, and 15,000 elites...
...It is only appropriate to mix the soldiers from Qinghe County led by me and the soldiers from Pingyuan County led by Lord Qianfu." Cao Shancheng said solemnly. "General manager, Lord Qianfu's anger yesterday was justified, but he never thought about it.
, if the thief is not eliminated in a day, the whole county of Pingyuan will be poisoned, so he will be angry... In short, he will turn around sooner or later, not to mention that his subordinates will only know the topography of Douzigang better than other tribes.
."
"You can't use him." Xue Changxiong waved his hand. "This is not because I'm stingy, but it's such a big deal. It affects the success or failure of hundreds of thousands of troops. The military situation is strict. With his resentment yesterday, even if it's for his own good,
He shouldn't be allowed to go... You can let his soldiers from Pingyuan County go back to Ande or Jiangling, just to transport the big wood, and then you will take them as guides, and he himself must stay here with me to take care of me personally."
Cao Shancheng sighed. He wanted to defend Qian Tang again, but he was more worried that the plan would fail and things would not be accomplished, so he simply stopped mentioning the matter.
But Chen Bin just skipped this topic and continued: "If this is the case, how about letting Ande's three generals directly participate in this battle? The troops from Ande, Pingyuan, and Jiangling will follow us.
There are only four generals and one Chengdan general, plus two county soldiers..."
Xue Changxiong hesitated for a moment: "Are the troops still too few?"
"If we don't move too many troops, wouldn't it be dangerous in the camp?" Even though Chen Bin was not prepared to do anything disobedient to Xue Changxiong, he couldn't help but feel a headache at this time. "We have divided the Youzhou Army.
Yang believed that, together with Leling's troops and horses, another 15,000 troops were transferred out at this time, plus the casualties in the previous few days, there were actually only about 30,000 elites from the Hejian camp left, and there were still
We need to allocate some more troops and horses to suppress Ande City, which is the most critical place... we can’t have any less.”
"That's not necessarily the case." Xue Changxiong said disapprovingly. "The rebel army has twenty-five battalions and fifty thousand people. But as you have also seen, their combat power as an organized unit is actually not as good as ours. They can barely hold on when they defend."
Just hold on. At this time, we have lost casualties in consecutive days of fighting, plus the garrison of Banxian County and Pingchang County. Even if it happens, how many people can fight? Moreover, we still have mountains, camps and countless auxiliary troops.
The civilians, as well as the county soldiers sent by many local states and counties to deal with errands in the past, but not a small number, when the emergency comes, I am not afraid that they will come to us, but I am afraid that they will not move and the troops will be noticed, and I will suffer a loss in a hurry.
."
"Then..." Chen Bin was instantly discouraged. "Another three thousand soldiers or six thousand soldiers? One general or two generals?"
"Let Lao Wu go too." Xue Changxiong thought for a moment and spoke seriously. "Let Gao Zhan take charge."
"General Murong Zhengyan seems to be safer." Cao Shancheng couldn't help but suggest.
Xue Changxiong's eyelids twitched and he wanted to refute, but Chen Bin shook his head repeatedly: "General Murong Zhengyan's company has fought many times, and the number of troops has been reduced..."
At this point, without waiting for Cao Shancheng to speak, Chen Binfu hurriedly came to ask Xue Changxiong: "The Fourth General also suffered heavy losses, what should we do?"
"I'll give him my elite troops." Xue Changxiong didn't hesitate. "I'll give him my personal guards as well!"
Cao Shancheng was speechless, but he did not dare to say more at this time, for fear that his long-cherished plan would go awry again.
"Then it's settled?" Chen Bin finally came to ask. "On the pretext of going to the three cities behind me to get the big wood, let General Gao Zhan take Lord Cao and the soldiers of the two counties to supervise and transport the matter, and then let the four generals,
The fifth general also went to defend the plains, Ander... Except for these generals, there was no need to tell anyone else in the camp. Even the third general and the others only asked a few generals to inform them in person with military orders and tokens.
?”
"Gao Zhan, the Fourth and the Fifth Lao don't need to be notified." Xue Changxiong made up his mind. "Write the military order and let them see it after crossing the Ma Face River! If you don't know it's a strategy, how will the thieves know?
By the time the thieves find out, it will be too late... This is called a raid!"
"That's exactly what I mean." Chen Bin also nodded at the end. "Once the restless army passes Douzigang, we can attack from all fronts. The Zhenqi army formation formed by the masters is enough to support each other within a mere twenty or thirty miles to ensure that the thieves
If you can't use it, you will defeat them one by one."
"Why is this necessary?" General Xue said with a smile. "As soon as they start to pass through Douzigang, we will move the whole army to Tushan and press them face to face... This will make them more panicked and better able to ensure the safety of the remaining divisions."
At this point, Xue Changxiong paused and suddenly made a correction. "No, if the trick is successful, they will only think that they are General Qu Tu's troops, and they will be pressed by us. The whole army will definitely be shaken, and they will continue to be unable to retreat.
If we are passively attacked, we will either be dispatched from the chessboard stronghold to concentrate our forces or divide our forces to capture the partial divisions. Then we can try to launch a general attack head-on, so that we cannot take care of both the head and the tail. Why bother asking for the safety of the partial divisions?"
"That's it." Cao Shancheng exhaled.
"That's it." Chen Bin also took a long breath.
Xue Changxiong was not a hesitant. Once this strategy was decided, it was immediately implemented. The simple military meeting was immediately reopened. Gao Zhan was ordered to send troops to supervise the transportation of large logs in the three cities. He was asked to strictly enforce military laws. Cao Shancheng led
The soldiers from Qinghe and Pingyuan counties went to transport the big wood.
Immediately, Chen Bin promptly suggested that after this incident, the people of the three cities must resent the garrison of the three cities. In addition, the troops had been fighting for days and were quite damaged. It was time to take a break and rotate the garrison of the several cities behind them. Therefore, they could take the opportunity to use Xue Wanbi.
, Xue Wancheng, Wang Chang and three generals replaced the garrison of the three cities of Pingyuan, and Wang Fubei replaced the garrison of Leling.
The arrangement of the matter was so reasonable that Xue Wanbi was even slightly dissatisfied about it and made a fuss. In the end, his father promised to separate the headquarters to fill up his unit, and then he agreed to go to Ande City to replace his third brother Xue Wannian.
As for Qian Tang, perhaps he knew that he was a biological father and his son, so he had no room for resistance at all, so he unexpectedly did not protest, but just watched indifferently, watching his county soldiers being taken away.
In one day, 20,000 to 30,000 people left the camp, but it did not seem empty at all, because in addition to the nearly 60,000 soldiers from Hejian and Youzhou, there were also hundreds of thousands of county soldiers, auxiliary soldiers, and civilians.
Moreover, this kind of thing will not last long, because the few cities they need to go to are Leling, Pingyuan (county), and Yangxin, which is a little further away, and the other two cities in Pingyuan County, Jiangling
He and Ander were so close that they could always be regarded as one with the camp.
This time, if there is no need to move a large amount of baggage, it is estimated that both cities can arrive that night, and the replacement can be completed at noon tomorrow. Leling and Pingyuan are more difficult, and can be completed at most tomorrow night. As for Yang
Although the letter is far away, considering that the Youzhou Army has many cavalry and set off early, it is estimated that they can arrive tonight.
Just the transportation of big wood, everyone can't help but murmur a little, and they all feel that it may be delayed for some time due to the chaos of defense change.
In fact, until dark, everything seemed calm, without words or fighting.
Even that evening, Sima Chen Bin, the supervisor of the Hejian Camp, received a letter that was delivered quickly, which caught him off guard and made him somewhat angry.
The letter was written by the Zhou Prefect of Bohai. He was probably frightened by the threat in the last urgent letter, so he publicly admitted in the letter that he was indeed afraid to come because he was afraid of fighting before. Most of the excuses were made by him.
He made up improvised ideas, and he didn't know whether they were true or false. For example, pirates, it seemed that some thieves had gone to the Yanshan Mountain east of Wudi before... He begged Chen Sima to intercede for him with General Xue, and at the same time said that he
We have already set off from Wudi at noon that day and are expected to arrive at the front line at noon tomorrow.
Chen Bin immediately gave the letter to Xue Changxiong. General Xue was also furious to death, but there was nothing he could do... This was obviously a temporary top eunuch, what else could he expect?
So, after the two of them were angry, they went to have a rest.
Not to mention the other situations on all sides that night, just before the second watch, General Luo and Li led 8,000 Youzhou cavalry to drive for a day, and finally arrived at the place where the Bohai prefects were captured in the evening of the same day.
Yangxin City, the capital, has been abandoned for more than half a year.
He went with someone to call the door.
But in response to these Youzhou cavalry, there was silence for a while.
Luo Shu and Li Li were both anxious, but after looking at each other, they murmured inexplicably. They all began to think about the real reason why Xue Changxiong asked them to come here to defend this place.
Fortunately, someone appeared on the city wall with a burning brazier. He was only wearing a turban and a white-haired short cloak and asked: "In the middle of the night, do you think you are an army or some Youzhou?"
Army, who believes it? Where is the seal and ribbon? Where is the troop deployment document? Is there a co-signature from my new master?"
Luo Shu smiled, only to laugh on his horse: "How come you pretend to know nothing? We sent a sentry to report first in the afternoon, why don't you know the basics? Why did you close the door?
?”
The man was stunned for a moment, but he also laughed: "I know who is coming, but it is not me who is entertaining. I only care about the safety of the city gate... If you ask me, so many of you are the officers and soldiers, and my county magistrate.
I won’t allow you all to come in.”
Luo Shu nodded, turned the horse's head, and suddenly the ice energy flowed through his body. Then he turned around, bent his bow and nocked an arrow, and shot straight towards the city wall.
The man on the city was caught off guard, and he suddenly raised his body-protecting energy, leaned back, and avoided the arrow by wiping his body. However, he still staggered, and before he could regain his strength, he drank from the top of the city.
scold:
"You didn't have time to send someone, did you? Are you bluffing me? With such a cunning person, could he be Qin Er's grandson's uncle?"
Luo Shu was startled for a moment, and then was shocked. But before he could speak, he saw a golden light rising from behind the city wall, like a golden phoenix rising out of the ground, which was particularly dazzling in the dark night.
But in an instant, the golden phoenix flew down from a high position with an afterimage.
Luo Shu, Li Li and below, including Luo Xin and many masters of the Youzhou Army, instinctively unleashed their true energy and fought hard to attack. However, many people were still caught off guard and were knocked off their horses on the spot.
"It's Sanniang Bai of Yitian Sword!" Luo Xin was blown off his horse and was horrified. "This person cannot be saved by common sense, father, be careful!"
"Don't be afraid!" Luo Shu was frightened after receiving that blow, so he blurted out. "I have actually touched the Cheng Dan. Together with Lao Bai and the others, if we form a formation together, we may not be able to stop her!"
In the dark night, the scolding male voice from before sounded again: "With such a plan, where will you put me, the leader of the gang, the Great Sage Wang Zhen?"
Immediately, another stream of light rose from the top of the city.
At the same time, the city suddenly lit up with lights and armor and uniforms, as if a large group of soldiers were ambushing them.
There was even another stream of light rising up, and someone couldn't help but laugh in the night sky: "Idle clouds and wild cranes, come to meet the famous generals of Youzhou!"
Li Li woke up and cursed loudly: "This is a large group of reinforcements coming from Dengzhou by sea! Xue Changxiong is a bastard! He had guessed that this was possible and deliberately tricked us into doing such a hard job, but he was still a step too late!"
Luo Shu was dumbfounded and was about to say something. As a result, another golden light several feet wide flew in front of him in the dark night. He could only block it with all his strength. But this time he was obviously shocked by the movement in the city and was a little unprepared, but he felt that
There was a turbulence in my chest that was almost unspeakable.
However, this did not delay the fact that he had already cursed all eighteen generations of Xue Changxiong's ancestors in his heart.
After this attack, not to mention how furious the two generals Luo Shu and Li Li were, Luo Xin was easily swept away early. At this time, he only had one thought - the opponent must have kept his hand that day!
Relying on the sky and slaying the dragon, his reputation is well-deserved.
