The biting cold wind penetrates the eaves and hits the walls, like a ghost crying and screaming, making people feel uneasy...
Hu Zongguo slept lightly and woke up from nightmares in the middle of the night. He sat on the bedside and asked the maid to help him get dressed. He opened the window and looked out. The night was as dark as ink and there was no starlight. Since then, She Wenzhuang and Wen Chengyun were killed by poison in Huangpi.
The news came to Xiangyang, and Hu Zongguo followed Ye Jiluorong to escape from Xiangyang west to Gucheng. In the past few days, he had nightmares at night and couldn't rest well. Looking at the dark night outside the window, it seemed that an evil beast opened its mouth and wanted to kill him.
Devour it.
"Why did the lights outside the court go out?" Hu Zongguo asked the maid.
"It was blown out by the wind at night. Hu Shun went to light the lamp, only to find that there was no lamp oil. He was thinking of getting a torch from the army tomorrow, but he didn't expect that the Lord would wake up at this time..." the pretty maid replied.
"Forget it," Hu Zongguo said in frustration, "I'm going to cross the river in two days. It doesn't matter if there are no lights in the courtyard. Be careful not to let anyone break in."
At this point in the battle, it was clear that the scouts from both sides were infiltrating each other. There were patrols at Miaotan Ridge in the night to kill the scouts from Huaidong who lurked to the south bank. Hu Zongguo was worried that there would be scouts from Huaidong lurking in Gucheng.
After arriving in Gucheng, in order to be summoned by Ye Jiluorong at any time, Hu Zongguo found a courtyard next to Ye Jiluorong's palace to stay temporarily.
At this time, the guards who were resting in the outer courtyard heard the sound and came over to say hello. Hu Zongguo asked: "Has Prince Mu rested over there?"
"In the past two days, there have been three Huaidong scouts near Miaotan Ridge. There are quite a few of them. Prince Mu is worried. He is keeping an eye on the Cao Chong stronghold and has sent people to search the mountain all night long. He hasn't stopped yet!"
The guard said.
Outside Xiangyang and Gucheng, Longzhong Mountains, Miaotan Ridge and Shilong Ridge stand near the Han River. They all belong to the remnants of Jingshan Mountain. Miaotan Ridge is the smallest in scope, with a circumference of nearly 40 miles and a height of 150 to 600 feet.
There are four dangerous peaks, and three Huaidong scouts are hiding in Miaotan Ridge. In this late night when the cold wind is howling, we need to send troops to search for them. How to search?
Hu Zongguo smiled bitterly, but he also knew that the more he got to this point, the more careless he would be.
At first glance, the upper reaches of the Han River west of Xiangyang are under their control, but the Huaidong Army has extended from Fancheng to Huanglongtan on the north bank. When the Shuiying warships arrived, they had already begun to compete for control of the Han River.
.
Especially from Longzhong to the west to Huanglongtan, the Han River is deep, steep and narrow for 20 to 30 miles, and there are many cliffs on the north bank that directly press the Han River, so the Huaidong Army set up riprap on the cliffs.
Crossbows can directly attack ships on the water, which actually greatly limits Xiangyang and Zanyang, and the navy's control over this section of the Han River...
In the past two days, the Huaidong Army has been sending scouts to the south bank to lurk more frequently. They are worried that it is a trick by the Huaidong Army, but the fact is unsettling - Huaidong has come up with many tricks over the years, which one has not tried
A big pain?
At this time, Hu Zongguo had no choice but to sleep peacefully, so he rushed to see Ye Jiluorong in the camp, walked into the meeting hall, and saw Ye Jiluorong's red eyes staring at the map, his brows furrowed like mountains.
It's a sleepless night.
Tong Erdan changed his clothes and armor and stood guard at the gate in high spirits. He escaped from the Guangshan Huaidong Army Base in Guangshan on the 26th and came to Gucheng via Nanyang yesterday to be with Ye Jiluorong.
Seeing Hu Zongguo coming, Tong Erdan smiled friendly. When he went to assassinate Luo Xiancheng, he was determined to die. Only Hu Zongguo told him that the trip seemed dangerous, and the final result was indeed like this, which made Tong Erdan feel so thin in front of him.
The shriveled ministers of Zhejiang and Fujian are indeed smarter than ordinary people...
Hu Zongguo also looked at each other and smiled. What Tong Erdan brought back was not good news:
Dong Yuan asked Huaidong to raid his old nest. Although he hated Lin Fu deeply, his life was in Huaidong's hands. He could not point to the east and dare not go west, and to the north he did not dare to go south. At this time, all the main forces of Huaixi Army were surrendered.
He was transferred to the north of the Huai River to recapture Queshan, Ruzhou and other places. Huaidong even banned the Huaixi army from setting foot in Nanyang. It was not too bad, at least Dong Yuan did not give in completely because his life was in the hands of Huaidong.
The Huaixi Army marched north, and Yue Lengqiu and the Chizhou Army also asked Lin Fu to move north to contain the Huaixi Army. However, they were in Xiangyang, and Nanyang only had to face the Huaidong Army alone - although the Huaidong Army could mobilize 150,000 elite troops.
Fighting in the north, Beiyan still has 170,000 elite soldiers and horses in Xiangyang and Nanyang, so they are not weak.
The key right now is to keep an eye on the Huaidong Army's frontline troops deployed at Shiqiaoling toward Xinye and Dengzhou. The Huaidong Army's troops are gathering at this line very quickly; the other is to pay close attention to the Huaidong Army's troops.
The speed at which the main force of Shuying moved northward.
As long as there are ten more days, the total number of troops crossing the river to the east wing of Danjiang will reach 120,000, and the main force of 50,000 troops and horses remaining on the south bank will also be withdrawn to Gucheng and the west of Gucheng.
Dongshuiying controls the Xiangfan waters and will not affect the overall situation of the northward retreat.
"Huaidong's scouts have been moving a lot between Shilong Ridge and Miaotan Ridge in the past two days. Will Shangrao's plan be repeated?" Ye Jiluorong asked when he saw Hu Zongguo coming.
In the battle of Shangrao, the Huaidong Army opened up the Guanxi Ridge Road on the south side of Shangrao and built a dam to intercept the Shanxi River, forcing Shefei Xiong to withdraw from the valley in the middle reaches of the Shanxi River. The real hidden strategy of the Huaidong Army was to secretly build warships in the upper reaches of the Shanxi River.
When the Zhejiang and Fujian troops were threatened by the dam water and withdrew from the fortress, they used warships carrying troops and horses to attack through the waterway. They almost completely wiped out the Zhejiang and Fujian troops in Shangrao. Even She Feixiong and others did not escape.
Death in battle.
Although the Beiyan Navy currently controls the Han River section west of Xiangyang, the Huaidong Navy is unable to move upstream for a while. Ye Jiluo Rong is still worried that the Huaidong Army will repeat the same tactics it used in Shangrao in Huanglongtan.
Secret warships were built and launched into the water to attack Xiangyang. The navy might directly transport troops and horses across the river to attack the south bank.
In the past few days, the Huaidong Army had made quite a lot of moves on the front line of Huanglongtan. Ye Jiluorong had to set up lookouts on the three main peaks of Shilongling and Miaotanling to monitor the movements on the other side and above the Han River.
For Huaidong, it is a strategy to go around to the upper reaches to choose a place to build ships, but it takes time and may not be much faster than the water camp warships arriving from the lower reaches. After analyzing Huaidong's strategy after the Shangrao War, the Huaidong Army
Crossing Guanxiling and building ships in the upper reaches of Shanxi, it took nearly 300,000 stones of shipbuilding materials to be transferred from Chongzhou, Jiangning, and Mingzhou. It took half a year. Obviously, this kind of strategy is not something that Huaidong can do anytime he wants.
of.
"If Prince Mu is worried, he can add two more defense barriers between Miaotan Ridge and Shilong Ridge, and between Miaotan Ridge and Longzhong Mountains..." Hu Zongguo said.
Since the Longzhong Mountains, Miaotan Ridge and Shilong Ridge are all located directly on the south bank of the Han River, and the mountains to the north directly invade the Han River, the actual passage from Xiangyang to Gucheng is located in the Longzhong Mountains, Miaotan Ridge.
Tanling is between the shallow valley between the southern foot of Shilongling and Jingshan Mountain, and then goes north through the Nanhe River Valley to Gucheng. It is not close to the south bank of the Han River.
Since the Beiyan navy controls the section of the river west of Xiangyang, there is no need to build beacon towers and fortifications close to the south bank to prevent the Huaidong army from crossing the river at a time when supplies are so scarce. However, since Ye Jiluorong is worried
If so, then build fortifications between Miaotan Ridge and Shilong Ridge, and between Miaotan Ridge and Longzhong Mountains to prevent the Huaidong Army from crossing the river, and send troops from between these three mountains to cut off the link between Xiangyang and Gucheng.
The channel can also be regarded as a strengthening measure.
Hu Zongguo's suggestion also made Ye Jiluorong hesitant.
Ye Jiluorong knew that Xiangyang could not be defended, but he did not completely give up on Nan'an.
From the Longzhong Mountains to the west, the Han River is rapid and narrow. Just as the Huaidong Army set up catapults on the cliffs on the north bank to directly hit the water, in the future they will withdraw to the west of Gucheng and use the control of the two sides of Sanyang and Xianshi Mountains.
The dangerous terrain, standing stone crossbows and bed crossbows can block the warships of Huaidong Water Camp downstream, so as to achieve the purpose of not abandoning the defense of Gucheng and retaining it as an attack position on the south bank to contain the Huaidong Army.
At present, the supplies on the south bank are very tight. Ye Jiluorong hesitates whether to build a temporary defense fortress between the three mountains that will most likely be demolished in the future, or is it just because he is too worried?
During the battle of Jingxiang, Ye Jiluorong, who had been fighting on the battlefield for more than thirty years, also felt mentally and physically exhausted. He lacked the decisiveness of the past and became hesitant and easily swayed. He even thought about the battle of Jingxiang all night long.
The question of who will be replaced in the future to clean up the mess: Ye Ji Baishan?
Seeing that Ye Jiluorong had hesitated for a long time and had not made up his mind, Hu Zongguo moved his eyes to the map, seemingly unaware of Ye Jiluorong's hesitation: at least starting from the withdrawal of troops from the west bank to the north, Ye Jiluorong's performance was far better
It was better than Hu Zongguo's expectation; when nearly 200,000 troops and horses on the eastern front collapsed, Ye Ji Luorong was still able to stabilize the morale of the army and slowly retreat north. Such a commander can already be ranked among the famous commanders in the world. We cannot be too demanding.
many.
Hu Zongguo wanted to persuade Ye Ji Luorong to rest for a while. At this moment, the alarm bells sounded in the northwest, which made people stand up in fear and tremble with fear! Of course, the Huaidong Army made two attacks from time to time on the north bank. After the shock,
It made everyone in Nan'an become numb.
"Send someone quickly to find out. What is the warning?" Ye Jiluorong ordered Tong Erdan.
Tong Erdan walked quickly and came back after a while to report: "This is Shihutan. Two lookout posts in Dongling raised fire at the same time. I have sent a sentry boat downstream to check. I think there will be more patrols coming to Miaotan Ridge and Cao Chong Village."
Go scout..."
Dongling is one of the main peaks of Miaotan Ridge, and Shihutan is located at the eastern foot of Shilongling. Dongling and Shihutan burned beacon fire alarms at the same time, which means that there is a problem with the gap between Shilongling and Miaotanling.
- When the Shi Fenghuo sent a message, the information that could be conveyed was very limited. Raising a fire just meant that the military situation was serious, but to what extent it was serious. If you want to know further information, you need to wait for the Xinqi from the outpost to return!
Gucheng is right next to Shilongling, but when the sentinel from Shihutan at the eastern foot of Shilongling came to report the news, he had to take a detour from the southern foot of Shilongling for more than fifty miles, and it would take an hour or two to find out even if the horse was racing.
Exact news!
It is fast for the sentinel boat to go down from Gucheng, but it is much slower than Xinqi to go back against the current.
Ye Ji Luorong thought of Hu Zongguo's suggestion just now, and recalled his previous worries, and said: "No, pass on my military order, and Cao Chongzhai guard Ma Tuhai will immediately lead 3,000 soldiers and horses to enter the area between Shilong Ridge and Miaotan Ridge for surveillance.
In response to the enemy's situation, Wu Ya and Lin Wen, the guards of the valley in front of Miaotan Ridge, ordered two thousand troops to go to Matuhai to join forces..." He was worried that waiting for the situation to be ascertained before dispatching troops would be delayed, so he decided to send troops in first.
, even if it is a false alarm, a fortification to monitor the north bank must be set up between Miaotan Ridge and Shilong Ridge.
Tian Chang, who had followed Ye Ji Luorong and led his troops to retreat to Gucheng first, also rushed in at this time. Hearing Ye Ji Luorong's military order, he hesitated and asked: "Will sending troops to Miaotan Ridge affect the Xiangyang soldiers?"
Masi withdraws?"
Today, there are still nearly 70,000 soldiers and horses from Zhou Fan, Pu Jieshi, Tong Ruilin and other troops in Xiangyang. The passage from Xiangyang to Gucheng is very narrow. At this time, it turns halfway to the south bank of the Han River at the western foot of Miaotan Ridge. It will affect the situation.
The westward retreat of Xiangyang soldiers and horses.
This is only one reason. The other reason is that Ma Tuhai, who was in Cao Chong Village at this time, was an elite direct descendant of Tian Chang.
Although Tian Chang led his troops to withdraw to Gucheng first, as a condition, Tian Chang's troops would serve as the rear troops of Gucheng and finally retreat to Gucheng.
Compared with Xiangyang, which is exposed to the outside world, Gucheng has to shrink nearly a hundred miles to the west, and can rely on Zanyang and Baiyang Pass on the north bank. The situation is much better than Xiangyang. As long as Zhou Fan, Pu Jieshi, Tong Ruilin and other troops are withdrawn
Going to the north bank, Tian Chang thought that it would not be a problem for him to stay and hold on to Gucheng.
But Tian Chang's bottom line is Shougu City. Everything west of Shilongling will be exposed to the attacks of the Huaidong Army on the north bank and the Huaidong Water Camp that is about to enter the Han River. He will send troops into the area between Miaotan Ridge and Shilongling and the Huaidong Water Camp.
The Eastern Army was in a confrontation, and Tian Chang was afraid that his direct soldiers and horses could enter at this time, but they might not be able to withdraw by then!
"We can't delay it for two days. There is indeed a need to strengthen the area between Miaotan Ridge and Shilong Ridge. It is only a temporary defense. It will be withdrawn in five or six days, not for the sake of the rear..." Ye Jiluorong said.
"Well, the general will also rush to take a look, just in case the generals below do not handle it properly..." Tian Chang said.
Ye Jiluorong didn't know the scale of the attack on Shilong Ridge and Miaotan Ridge. Since Tian Chang wanted to rush there to take a look, it would be the best. He said to Tong Erdan: "You and Tian Chang go there together! The Three Mountains
There is no room for carelessness.”
When Tian Chang and Tong Erdan rushed to Cao Chong's stronghold, the sky was already gray and bright. The guard, Ma Tuhai, heard the news early and acted quickly. He had already ordered three thousand soldiers and horses, waiting for Tian Chang and Tong Erdan to break camp and set off.
The sky was covered with dark clouds, and it looked like snow had not yet snowed. At this time, further news came to Cao Chongzhai, but the further news was called Tian Chang. The hair on Tong Erdan's back stood up: "What, the enemy pulled three suspension ropes on the Han River at night
Cross the river?"
"There are only three suspension ropes, how can the sentinel ship be destroyed by fire?" Tong Erdan asked.
They had long discussed the various ways in which the Huaidong Army could infiltrate into the south bank. The Han River section west of Xiangyang was under their control. If the Huaidong Army wanted to infiltrate, the first way would be to cross the river, and the second would be to cross the narrow river.
You can directly pull the suspension rope everywhere. But in these two methods, you can only send a small group of soldiers or scouts to infiltrate.
"When the sentinel patrol passed Shanmenyan at night, something unusual was discovered. However, the enemy troops had already been deployed on both sides of the strait. The ambushes on both sides of the strait immediately shot and killed sixteen of my people with crossbows. The sentinel had no time to react and could only light the beacon fire warning and go downstream.
Escape. Two sentry boats, one hit a reef and sank halfway, and the other docked from the east foot of Miaotan Ridge. Wuya and Lin in the valley in front of Miaotan Ridge had also just sent people to summon them, only earlier than Tian Shuai and General Tong.
"Half a step forward," Cao Chongzhai guard Ma Tuhai reported, "the enemy took advantage of the night to set up a suspension rope between Longzhao Rock and Shanmen Rock. Judging from the scale of the attack on the sentinel ship, there were at least fifty or sixty on the south bank.
Huaidong archers; when we rush over, there should be two to three hundred enemies crossing the river..."
How could Ma Tuhai imagine how the Huaidong Army used rigging and wire ropes to cross the river quickly? He just imagined the general situation and speculated that the Huaidong Army used ropes to cross the river and could transport two to three hundred people in two or three hours.
The armored soldiers with well-dressed and well-equipped weapons will stand up to the sky when they come over...
Tian Chang had been fighting fiercely with Huaidong for many years, and he knew that it would take a lot of effort for Huaidong's two or three hundred elites to annihilate them all based on the steep terrain of Miaotan Ridge, but it was obvious that Huaidong would not do it for no reason.
Send two to three hundred people to the south bank to die.
Tong Erdan frowned and said to Tian Chang: "The enemy set up a suspension rope between Longzhao Rock and Shanmen Rock. They sneaked some people over first. They thought they only needed to hold on to this end of the suspension rope, and then used bed crossbows to block both sides on the north bank.
By crossing the Han River, we can continue to send more troops and horses from the north bank to expand our position and delay our army's retreat to the north. They have a good idea! It seems that it is not enough for us to send troops from the land to encircle and kill them. We must immediately attack them from upstream and downstream.
Only by sending warships through the Huaidong Army's blockade and destroying the suspension ropes..."
Tian Chang suspected that it would not be that simple, but judging from the current situation, he could only send people back to Gucheng to see Ye Jiluorong and ask him to send warships with strong sides from Gucheng to destroy the Huaidong Army.
According to the established plan, he and Matuhai led their troops to Shanmenyan.