Text Volume Chapter 246: Walking along with the setting sun, Zhang Xing returned to the military camp behind him.
The twilight could not cover the eyes of the master of condensation. Zhang Xing rode his horse and walked slowly inside. His eyes scanned the various things in the camp along the way, including the pentagonal outer fortress, the main inner military camp arranged like plum petals, and then ditches and fences.
, earthen forts, with horizontal, vertical and diagonal lines, plus complicated sentries, and endless patrol teams... If these can be regarded as regular settings in military camps, there are some places, that is, inside the outer fortress and outside the inner camp.
There are many separate barracks and watchtowers set up in specific locations, and although they are hasty, they tend to be semi-permanent, which seems very strange.
However, for the top management of both parties, the thing behind this matter is by no means a secret. The gang chose to stay here because they were preparing to use the method they had discovered in Jiang Ling's experiment to create a death formation, and Bai Hengqiu, who was opposite him, was originally Bai Hengqiu.
The family's serious inheritance is naturally confirmed at a glance.
Moreover, these extra camp locations are still not the weirdest thing here. In fact, the biggest problem with the camp is that it is too orderly and serious.
"Are there any people running away this afternoon?" Returning to the Chinese army's tent, Zhang Xing put away his composure in front of Li Ding and asked.
"No more." Ma Wei, who was busy with something else, quickly got up from the many staff documents. "After the changes to the Shiwu Company and Sitting Interlocking Regulations at noon today, there will be no more escapes."
"I didn't expect that one day I would have to run the army in this way." Zhang Xing did not sit down, and he rarely looked worried.
It turned out that with the departure of the military regiment, and the combined forces of Taiyuan-Wu'an-Dongdu that totaled more than 70,000 people appeared in the reconnaissance field of this place yesterday, the army was shaken by it, and after the shock.
The Central Committee could no longer suppress the rumors, and soon relevant information was leaked, and rumors spread, so that many sergeants and army personnel were further shaken and fled.
"Actually, it's human nature. It's pretty good to have so few escape." Xiong Bonan raised his voice to comfort him. "How does it compare to the deserters during the Three Expeditions?"
Hearing the latter sentence, even though the room in the tent was extremely serious, they couldn't help bursting into laughter.
"Throughout the ages, how can anyone compare to the deserters of the Three Expeditions?" When the laughter stopped, Zhang Xing also smiled bitterly. "And I'm not worried about the deserters, but I'm worried that the morale of the troops will be tight and they won't last long."
"Instead of worrying about this, it's better to worry about the people outside." Xu Shiying suddenly came in from the outside and stopped behind Zhang Xing, with a stern face and a heavy tone. "We are a carefully selected team here, with strict camps, and
Chief Zhang has King Xiong, so he can definitely withstand the pressure, and only a few scattered ones can escape. They all want to run back instead of surrendering, but people outside can't say... Tomorrow and the day after tomorrow, the Cui family will
Fall, raise the flag, I don’t know how many people will surrender.”
Not only that, Xu Shiying still didn't say half a sentence, because it was meaningless - he felt that even if he wanted to resist in this way, he should retreat to Qinghe and Wucheng where Cui could easily control, and finally behind Wucheng.
It's good to have a high chicken mooring at your back.
But even so, Zhang Xing could only remain silent, and Xiong Bonan even hesitated to speak.
On the other hand, Ma Wei suddenly laughed: "If you ask me, the chief and Chief Xu are worrying too much."
"What should I say?" Xiong Bonan was refreshed.
"The key is the battle tomorrow or the day after tomorrow." Ma Wei said with a smile. "If that battle can be defended, our military morale will be greatly boosted when we fight on the mainland, so how can we continue to be tense? As for those people outside,
It's as inappropriate as Cui's, and he will change his mind after seeing that we can hold on."
Xiong Bonan raised his eyebrows slightly: "That's good, but a few of us said we were worried about other things, but we all became suspicious first."
"What if we lose tomorrow?" Xu Shiying couldn't hold it back and sneered while hugging her arms.
"Then run away, to the rear." Zhang Xing blurted out after recovering. "I called you here to talk about business! In the current situation, do we need to attack at night?"
"What do you mean, chief?" Ma Wei asked seriously. "When you meet with Li Ding, can you find out some of the facts on the other side?"
"Forty to fifty thousand troops are densely packed with experts. Wherever there is weakness, there is strength everywhere." Zhang Xing said with a bitter smile.
"Then cancel the plan and don't conduct a night attack?" Xiong Bonan followed the trend and asked.
"We still need to attack at night, but don't attack the enemy in front of us." Zhang Xingyan said firmly. "Tonight, we will attack the Dongdu Army on the other side of the river... They have very few soldiers and horses. They are obviously a vanguard force, and their camps are even worse than those on the opposite side.
It’s a big piece and it’s easy to scatter in shock!”
"I object." Xu Shiying reminded sternly. "What if during the night attack, the Taiyuan troops notice that we have sent our elite troops to the other side and raise troops to attack this place? Especially when there is a British Duke on the other side, and you all say he is a great master! Yes!
Won't it be hit with one blow and collapse overnight? Not to mention, the pontoon bridge is broken, and the ships hidden in the camp will be exposed now."
"It doesn't matter." Zhang Xing had clearly considered it. "There are too few soldiers and horses on the other side of the river, so I only asked King Xiongtian to lead a dozen military masters there... In this way, if the Taiyuan army moves, they can easily come back. I will hold my own and ambush."
Dragon Seal can just sit here."
Xu Shiying stopped saying anything and only looked at Xiong Bonan with Ma Wei and others. King Xiong Tian thought for a moment and nodded immediately: "It's feasible! No matter what, we should try to weaken the enemy's energy so that the army can surrender."
Take a breather."
Zhang Xing nodded immediately, and the matter was settled.
On the other side, in front of the hastily built tent, the British Duke Bai Hengqiu was listening to a report by the brazier... After the military commanders and generals had dinner together, Li Ding reported all the conversations he had with Zhang Xing, and
Nothing to hide or conceal.
"Okay." After hearing this, the British male, who finally took off his armor, couldn't help but laugh. "Knowing that he deserves to die, he is not a hero in vain. As for saying that he wants to win this time, it is ridiculous... In this battle, he is
We have tried our best and used all kinds of tricks, but the best result is just to resist for a few months, only to escape during the Kansai War after I get married, and force me to withdraw."
Li Ding thought for a while: "It is true, this is the best result for the army... But from an overall perspective, this can be regarded as a victory for the army."
The British Duke was slightly awe-inspiring: "Then don't worry about him, and let's see the outcome of the battle tomorrow."
Li Ding nodded.
Bai Hengqiu hesitated for a moment, and then asked again: "Let's not talk about military affairs for now, but I have something to ask Mr. Li Fu."
"Mr. Bai, please speak."
"In this march, the coalition forces in Taiyuan, Dongdu, Wu'an, and Hejian were more than 100,000, and the momentum was huge. There were 78,000 on this road alone. It is ridiculous to say that it shocked the world, but it was enough to scare the whole of Hebei. And if
"Before, we were all outside the territory of the thieves, or Wuyang County was just the first time the thieves had conquered it, and Yuanbaocun was separatist, but now we have arrived at Qinghe, and my flag has been raised, why don't we see any thieves asking for surrender?" Bai Hengqiu said
Ask seriously.
Li Ding was about to speak but stopped.
"Did they all escape?" Bai Hengqiu's nephew, Bai Li, the general in charge of setting up the camp, blurted out as he was late. He had just finished eating and was about to drink a glass of wine.
"Is that possible?" Dou Qi frowned. "The chief and elite members of his gang are right in front of him. The sentries and civilians have also encountered them before. The local officials and rangers must be nearby."
"That's what I mean." Bai Hengqiu raised his hand and nodded.
"Then you are planning to escape, right?" Another general, Sun Shunde, frowned slightly. Unlike the others, this one was both an in-law of the Bai family and a companion of Bai Hengqiu's childhood, so he spoke casually. "I'm about to run away.
, so I won’t surrender.”
"It's still wrong." Dou Qi argued seriously. "Not everyone can run away. There are always people from the local area. Such people have more thoughts of surrender when others run away. Not to mention, everything is lacking these days.
But there is no shortage of opportunistic people... Therefore, no one comes to surrender at this time. It can only be said that thieves have always won the hearts of the people, and the system is strict, and no one dares to rebel easily in a short period of time."
Bai Hengqiu nodded slightly.
"Not necessarily." Li Ding thought for a while and replied seriously. "There is also the reason why the gang's field troops stayed in various cities... Although the movement of the gang's soldiers is roughly clear, there are more than 100,000 troops here alone, which is enough to divide the troops.
Guard the place and have soldiers and horses garrisoned in each city to suppress the city. In addition, most of the cities are on the other side of the river. Even if you want to surrender, I'm afraid it won't be shaken until all the Dongdu army arrives tomorrow."
Only then did Bai Hengqiu feel a little enlightened, and sighed again: "No matter what, the gang system is strict and the military affairs are in order. Zhang San also knows that the stakes of this battle are to shake the hearts of friendly soldiers. After all, he has some ability. I think this battle can
We must treat it seriously and strictly... There will be no battle tomorrow, but a day's rest, waiting for the troops from the Eastern Capital to arrive, and then the whole army will fight decisively at sunrise."
The generals stood up solemnly and saluted each other, including Li Ding.
However, when everyone sat down, Li Silang suddenly asked: "Even if no one comes to vote, doesn't the British Duke have old friends and hidden connections? For example, here in Qinghe County, it's just the Fang family. Three or four people are the leaders of the gang.
, but what about the Cui family in Qinghe? What about Duke Cui who has been Ningdan since the Wei Dynasty merged with Qi?"
Bai Hengqiu looked at the other party and suddenly smiled: "How did Li Silang guess it?"
This is admission.
"It's just a guess." Li Ding also laughed. "This Cui Gong was under the rule of the gang, but he never showed up. He just let his disciples deal with it. I guess there is a gap between him and the gang, and Cui Gong must have an old relationship with the British Duke.
, naturally I have this idea.”
Not only Bai Hengqiu, but also many people around him were surprised.
"However." Li Ding continued to smile. "The person who brought up this idea was that the British Queen sent troops the next day...I wonder if this is a strategy to lure the enemy and scare them to see if the army will be afraid of the soldiers and horses.
Retreat? Once they retreat, Wucheng and Qinghe may be captured by Cui Gong behind them, and then protected by Grand Master. Then even if the army desperately seizes the city, it will inevitably lose its foothold and be full of loopholes. It is best for us
Defeated by the pursuers!"
Bai Hengqiu nodded, then shook his head sincerely: "I really didn't think so much, I just wanted to be better prepared."
Li Ding nodded and said no more words.
In this way, the generals discussed again, but after Li Ding remained silent, basically the confidants Bai Hengqiu brought from Taiyuan chatted and discussed casually. After waiting for half an hour, Li Silang handed over
He said goodbye and chose to return to camp.
Unexpectedly, since Li Ding surrendered, all the Wu'an generals, including Su Mu and Wang Chen, who were astonished, followed suit one after another. They all surrendered and left, which made all the generals in Taiyuan look down upon him. Only the British prince himself remained magnanimous.
After Li Silang returned, he was greeted by Zhang Shiniang in the camp. He wanted to ask about the situation, but unexpectedly the other party just waved his hand and then sat quietly in the tent... Sure enough, after a while, a guard came to report that it was Wang Chen who was surprised to see him.
.
Li Ding immediately asked someone to introduce him.
Wang Chen was stunned when he entered, but he only glanced at Li Ding and Zhang Shiniang, then "plop" and fell to his knees... Zhang Shiniang had a high level of cultivation and naturally knew that the other party had no luck at all, so she pounced directly on them.
He couldn't help but raise his eyebrows slightly.
"Why did Captain Wang do this?" Li Ding's expression did not change. He knew from the moment he saw Wang Chen stood up and followed him in astonishment that he even surprised Su Mu and others. What he did today was too obvious, but this was his original intention.
.
"I am ashamed, I dare not not come..." Wang Chen raised his head in astonishment and spoke hastily. "I dare to ask the prince, the prince only asked me to follow Zhang San, and then told the British prince everything, didn't he think that
My subordinate is communicating with the British government, so do you want me to verify it?"
"Do you dare to say that you have no communication with the British public?" Li Ding smiled.
"Of course there is, but that was before." Wang Chen answered seriously in astonishment. "Master Fu... my family has wanted to cling to the Wang family in Taiyuan for several generations, so we already had relations with Taiyuan before the British Duke took office.
, including my brother Wang Chenkuo, it was indeed me who persuaded him to seek refuge with the British Lord, but that was before Lord Fu took office... Lord Fu, my subordinates are sincere to Lord Fu, and have not done anything inappropriate!"
Li Ding calmed down slightly: "Did I blame you wrongly?"
"My subordinates are aware of Fujun's difficulties, and also know that his background and behavior are suspicious, so I have never resented injustice, otherwise I would not have come to find Fujun." Wang Chen kowtowed in astonishment.
."As long as the prince knows his sincerity and doesn't delay the prince's important affairs, that's all."
"What important event can you delay?" Li Ding laughed again after hearing this. "I tell you, if you are really sincere, go to the British father-in-law and tell him honestly that I have nothing to hide."
Wang Chen was stunned and felt a chill in his heart. He quickly raised his head and said, "Master, you still don't believe in my sincerity?"
"I believe in your sincerity." Li Ding still smiled.
Wang Chen was stunned for a moment and suddenly realized: "The Lord wants me to be a counter-insurgent?!"
Li Ding laughed when he heard this, but finally stood up with his hands behind his back and walked towards the other party: "Wang Duwei, I believe in your sincerity, but do you know that your sincerity is of no use between me and the British Duke?"
None?"
Wang Chen was stunned again, but did not wake up immediately.
However, Li Ding didn't let him wait long and continued directly:
"Captain Wang, your biggest problem is your vision, so much so that you always think that there is a clear barrier between me, Mr. Bai and Zhang Sanlang... Let alone Zhang San and Mr. Bai, the relationship between me and these two people is not simple.
We and the enemy! I don’t want to talk about the specifics. I’ll just talk about our current affairs. Are you worried that I will mistakenly think you are a spy for Mr. Bai? "
"Yes." Wang Chen was stunned and confused, but he blurted out.
"But what does it matter?" Li Ding sneered. "If Bai Gong wins this battle, will Hebei still rely on me to check and balance Xue Changxiong and Luo Shu, and suppress the remnants of the gang? If so, I need
I don’t need someone who can gain the trust of Duke Bai to contact me in front of Duke Bai? Let’s follow this to the end. Assuming that the Bai family is really the successor of Wei, if you want to be an official in the new dynasty, how can you escape my involvement?
And in name? And if Duke Bai loses, then your relationship with him will become even more insignificant."
At this point, Li Ding, who was standing in front of the other party, finally became solemn in his tone: "Captain Wang!"
"My subordinate is here!" Wang Chen bowed his head again in astonishment to avoid the other party's sight.
"I clearly tell you that I, Li Si, have been the master of two counties for three or four years. I have 20,000 Wu'an Hongshan soldiers. Although I can't compare with Bai Zhang and others, I am compared with these people. To you,
But I am a very big person, and I hold your person in my hands..." Li Ding looked at the people in front of him, and his tone became more severe. "Whether you, General Su and his son, you are still here...
Captain Gao and others have their backgrounds and talents, but in the past three years, even Gao Shisheng has only followed me for half a year, so he will never be able to escape my name of Li Ding for the rest of his life! No matter what the world
No matter how the situation changes, if I don't end up dead without a burial, you will be my soldiers! You can't even run away!"
After Li Ding finished speaking, he turned around, while Wang Chen lowered his head in astonishment, sweat dripping to the ground, but he immediately replied: "The Lord taught you a lesson!"
"Then go and tell Mr. Bai, tell him everything, and make it clear whether Zhang Xing and I have any secret words." Li Ding turned around and ordered coldly.
Wang Chen nodded in astonishment, got up, and was about to leave directly, but stopped in a hurry, and handed over their hands to Li Ding and Zhang Shiniang, who were staring at her husband, and then hurriedly retreated.
And when another half an hour passed and the Chinese army dispersed in front of the tent, the captain of Wu'an County finally found Bai Hengqiu and made a detailed report.
Bai Hengqiu, who was sitting on the couch wearing only his shirt, nodded after listening: "So, he didn't lie?"
Wang Chen, who was standing aside, was stunned and quickly responded: "That's true."
"But he took you there specifically and told me specifically. Does he doubt you?" The British father suddenly came to ask.
"Yes, so my subordinate immediately followed him and showed his sincerity... But he, he didn't seem to care." Wang Chen was astonished and became more cautious.
"Of course he doesn't care." Bai Hengqiu also smiled. "He..."
As soon as he started talking, the British Duke suddenly raised his head and looked toward the northeast, then nodded: "You go ahead! Li Ding is just out of anger, I don't dare to do anything to you."
Wang Chen was astonished and relieved, and hurriedly walked away again.
After walking for a while, Bai Hengqiu also stood up, walked out wearing only his middle coat, and then looked in the direction of the other side of the river at the military camp, slightly lost in thought - without him, with his cultivation level, he had already noticed that something broke out there.
A night raid battle, and it was a raid battle mainly involving master practitioners.
It seems that the purple-faced king whom I admired very much that day also went there in person.
What is unintentional is that regardless of the outcome or the size of the battle, this is the first battle in this battle.
"Beat the drum, gather the generals." Bai Hengqiu looked at the camp opposite, which was slightly glowing with fire, and then at the stream of light on the other side of the river in the northeast that was already faintly visible in the naked eye. He put his hands behind his hands and calmly issued the military order. "Let Dou
Qi stayed behind to guard the central army, Sun Shunde guarded the rear army's food supply, Liu Yangji and Bai Liben led the team, and brought all the generals of Ningdan and above from Taiyuan in the army to support them, overwhelming the opponent with numbers, and scaring the thieves back... This battle
, even if it’s the slightest bit cheaper, I won’t let it go.”
