Just when Zhao Hongrun led the Shangshui Army to leave the camp, a messenger hurried over, knelt on the ground with one knee, clasped his fists and reported: "Your Highness, the King of Yan on the right has been in contact with South Korea's Shanggu Army, and has now entered
The combat stage.”
Zhao Hongrun was stunned for a moment when he heard this, then he smiled and said to the generals on his left and right: "Brother Si Wang is still so impatient."
In the knowing smiles of the generals, Zhao Hongrun asked again: "What's going on over there with the King of Nanliang?"
As soon as he finished speaking, the deputy general of the Shang Shui Army, Zhai Huang, clasped his fists and replied: "There is no movement yet."
"Hmm." Zhao Hongrun nodded slightly and said, "Let's do this for now...send someone to inform King Nanliang to keep in touch at any time and set off!"
"Yes!" the generals responded with clasped fists.
With an order, tens of thousands of merchant navy soldiers slowly left the camp and headed towards the battlefield.
In this final battle, the Wei army was divided into three armies, namely the Shangshui Army in the middle, commanded by Zhao Hongrun himself, the Suppression Army on the left, commanded by Zhao Yuanzuo, King of Nanliang, and the Shanyang Army on the right, commanded by Zhao Jiang, King of Yan.
Together with the Nanyan Army and the rest of the private armies of Wei nobles such as Chengling King Zhao Shen and Anping Marquis Zhao Tan, they were also split and supplemented into three groups.
On the way to the battlefield, the Shang Shui Army sent someone from Zhao Yuanzuo, the King of Nanliang, to send a message. It was a simple sentence: His opponent was Qin Kai's Yuyang Army.
After learning about this, Zhao Hongrun was slightly stunned.
Since Zhao Jiang, King of Yan on the right, encountered Ma She's Shanggu Army - he didn't know that Shanggu Guard Ma She had passed away, and Shanggu Guard was currently in charge of the former deputy general "Xu Li" - while Zhao Yuanzuo, King of Nanliang on the left, encountered
It's Qin Kai's Yuyang Army, so obviously his opponent is Beiyan Army's Le Yi.
Unless Han Wangran abandons famous generals like Le Yi, but just thinking about it, it seems unlikely.
"keep going!"
Zhao Hongrun ordered in a deep voice.
Among the three armies, the Shang Shui Army in the middle is the slowest in movement. This can't be helped because the Shang Shui Army has many war weapons, and the biggest common feature of these war weapons is their slow movement.
.
For example, those giant stone-throwing carts that are more than ten feet high, even though they have wheels bigger than millstones, still need hundreds of Shangshui soldiers to pull them with ropes to slowly pull them onto the battlefield.
Another example is war weapons such as tortoise-shell chariots, Wugang chariots, and crossbow chariots. These war weapons have greatly slowed down the marching speed of the Shang Shui Army. Fortunately, the battlefield is not very far from the Wei army's camp. It is only twenty meters away at best.
Moreover, the dense battlefield did not have much space for Korean cavalry to penetrate and attack. Otherwise, such a bulky Shang Shui army would be at a great strategic disadvantage.
It took several hours, until around noon, before the merchant navy led by Zhao Hongrun could reach the battlefield.
The corresponding premise is that those huge trebuchets were far behind, and the Shangshui Army general Wu Ji personally led the Shangshui cavalry to respond from the side, paying attention to every move around them at any time to prevent
South Korean cavalry crossed the battlefield and attacked these trebuchets.
This is just in case, but in fact, the Korean army has no idea that the Wei army has such a thing.
After arriving at the battlefield, the craftsmen of the Smelting Bureau directed the soldiers of the Shang Shui Army to build a high platform in the formation, so that Zhao Hongrun and the commander of the Shang Shui Army, Zhai Huang, could climb up and overlook the entire middle battlefield.
During this period, Zhao Hongrun and Zhai Huang climbed up a slope and peered at the Korean army's position in the distance opposite.
"It is indeed the Beiyan Army..."
After seeing the flag of the Korean army on the opposite side, Zhao Hongrun shook his head and said.
If the Yanmen Cavalry is the cavalry with the strongest mobility, the most flexible tactics, and the most powerful individual soldiers in South Korea, then the Beiyan Army is the most elite infantry in South Korea.
Le Yi, a descendant of the Wei State, relied on the Wei State's infantry training methods to train the Northern Yan Army, an indomitable and elite infantry for South Korea. The strength of its army was no less than that of the Wei State's first-line army.
Therefore, when the Shangshui Army encountered the Northern Yan Army, it was more like a civil war between two Wei infantry armies than a confrontation between the strongest infantry armies of Wei and Han. The only variable may be the commanders of both sides.
That is, Zhao Hongrun and Le Yi.
It is worth mentioning that in the "Battle of Ningyi", Zhao Hongrun had a deal with Le Yi. If anyone is worthy of the words "watertight" and "impeccable", then Le Yi is - this
It is an opponent that is difficult for you to successfully calculate.
"Is Beiyan Army's Le Yi?" Zhai Huang took a long breath and said solemnly: "It is indeed a difficult opponent. Your Highness, do you have any plans?"
When he said this, Zhai Huang looked at Zhao Hongrun with a strange look.
Because in the previous combat meeting, Zhao Hongrun did not formulate any tactics except appointing Nanliang King Zhao Yuanzuo and Yan King Zhao Jiang as the commanders of the left and right wings. Of course, this is actually understandable. After all, Zhao Hongrun and Nanliang King Zhao Yuanzuo, Yan Wang
Wang Zhaojiang and Wang Zhaojiang are three commanders with completely different personalities.
First of all, the military strategy of Zhao Yuanzuo, the king of Nanliang, is no less than that of Zhao Hongrun, so the latter does not need to worry too much. However, Zhao Jiang, the king of Yan, is just like Jiang Bi, Wu Ji, Cai Qinhu, Lian Pi and other powerful generals.
Commander, if Zhao Hongrun planned the tactics for him, this might actually limit the latter's performance.
In this case, we simply let both parties play freely.
However, after that, Zhao Hongrun did not summon the generals of the Shang Shui Army to hold a combat meeting of their Shang Shui Army. To be honest, this made Zhai Huang feel slightly guilty.
In fact, apart from Zhao Hongrun, Zhai Huang can be said to be the most intelligent and strategic leader of the Shang Shui Army. In recent years, Zhai Huang has followed Zhao Hongrun in the north and south, and has long been able to take charge of his own affairs. But having said that, this war is really too complicated.
It was so critical that even a calm general like Zhai Huang couldn't help but feel a little guilty.
"Tactical arrangements?" Still looking at the Korean army's position opposite, Zhao Hongrun said casually: "There is no such thing. Zhai Huang, I will leave the command of the first half to you."
Hearing this sentence, Zhai Huang smiled bitterly, but inevitably felt more pressure in his heart.
After a while, 3,000 people came to Xu Jiong to report: "Your Highness, the viewing platform has been built. Please move on."
Zhao Hongrun nodded and motioned for Zhai Huang to go to the viewing platform with him.
The so-called viewing platform is actually just an ordinary wooden tower, only a dozen feet high, so that Zhao Hongrun and Zhai Huang can better pay attention to the entire battlefield.
But having said that, this kind of thing with no foundation is indeed unreliable. When Zhao Hongrun and Zhai Huang boarded the viewing platform, they both felt that the wooden building seemed to be shaking, which made Zhai Huang even more worried.
He was a bit nervous - he didn't know whether it was the Korean army on the opposite side that put more pressure on him, or the viewing platform that seemed like it might collapse at any time.
But it is undeniable that it is true to stand high and see far. After boarding the viewing platform, Zhao Hongrun and Zhai Huang had the illusion that the entire battlefield was in their eyes.
"Your Highness?" Zhai Huang asked Zhao Hongrun for instructions.
"You give the order." Zhao Hongrun nodded and told: "Advance slowly, don't be greedy for credit, don't forget, there is a heavy cavalry on the opposite side ready at any time."
"I will save it for you." Zhai Huang nodded.
He also understood that the Shiwandai Commandery Heavy Cavalry was definitely the most powerful force in South Korea. It was so powerful that it could even destroy his Shang Shui Army in one go, without allowing him to make the slightest mistake.
Thinking of this, Zhai Huang ordered in a deep voice: "Pass my order and order Chen Xie and Xu Jiong to march forward slowly!"
As soon as he finished speaking, there were messengers waiting on the viewing platform to convey the general's orders. Immediately, two people climbed down from the high platform and rode their horses to convey the order.
Chen Xie and Xu Jiong are both old men in the Shang Shui Army. Maybe they are not as brave as Xiang Li, Ran Teng, and Zhang Ming, but they are the generals that Zhai Huang focused on cultivating - and Wu Ji.
Differently, Zhai Huang still prefers commanding talents.
A moment later, Chen Xie, a 5,000-strong Shang Shui Army general, received the order and said to his left and right with a smile: "Ah ha, I said we will be the vanguard..."
Where does his confidence and determination come from?
In fact, it comes from those tortoise-shell chariots and Wugang chariots - most of the tortoise-shell chariots and Wugang chariots that the Metallurgical Bureau brought from the mainland of Wei on ships some time ago were equipped with Chen Xie and Xu Jiong.
This made Chen Xie understand that they would definitely be the vanguard of this tough battle.
In addition, Chen Xie also understood his mission: it was not to kill many Korean soldiers, but to advance the battle line. After all, the tortoise-shell chariot and the martial arts chariot were, to put it bluntly, "movable positions."
.
"go ahead!"
Following Chen Xie's order, his soldiers followed the slow-moving tortoise-shell chariots and martial arts chariots and slowly marched towards the battlefield.
On the other side, Xu Jiong, who also belongs to a family of 5,000 people, also issued almost the same order at the same time.
Of course, the movements on Wei Jun's side could not be hidden from Han Jun's eyes.
In fact, as early as when the first batch of Shang Shui troops arrived on the battlefield, the commander here, Le Yi, and Han Wangran, who had come to watch the battle, had already learned of the arrival of the Wei army, mobilized the Korean soldiers in the position, and were ready to dispatch at any time
preparation.
While the Wei army was arranging their formation, the Han army was also lined up outside the position, waiting to be attacked.
Similar to Zhao Hongrun's idea, Le Yi also ordered people to build a platform with mud at the base of the formation. He piled an earth platform about seven or eight feet high. He climbed onto the earth platform with Han Wangran and peeped at the movements of the Wei army in the distance.
Originally, Le Yi was not a talkative general, but Han Wangran beside him knew nothing about military matters, so Le Yi would explain the situation on the battlefield to Han Wangran from time to time.
"...I have just received news that General Xu Li's Shanggu Army has broken out with Wei Gongzijiang (Yan Wang Zhaojiang); to the west, General Qin Kai's opponent is Wei's Nanliang King Zhao Zuo, and the two sides are still there for the time being.
Wait and see each other..."
"Hmm." Han Wangran nodded.
Because he knew nothing about military matters, he didn't say much so as not to disturb Le Yi's thoughts, which made Le Yi slightly less uncomfortable with Han Wangran watching the battle.
Suddenly, there was a strange movement in the Wei army. Two Wei armies slowly entered the battlefield at a very slow speed.
"Is that... Wei Gongzi Run's Wugang chariot?"
Le Yi frowned slightly and murmured: "It's really steady..."
After that, he ordered: "Ask Ji Kuo to attack."
"Yes!" The messenger at the side immediately went to give the order.
After a while, Ji Kuo, the brave general of the Northern Yan Army, led a group of infantry and slowly headed towards the battlefield.
It is worth mentioning that there are many Wugang chariots in Ji Kuo's infantry.
This made Han Wangran a little confused: In a war, shouldn't both sides invest their troops and then start fighting? Why is it that at this moment, neither the Wei army on the opposite side nor Le Yi beside him are in a hurry to start a war?
Out of curiosity, Han Wangran asked humbly: "General Le, can you explain it?"
"This..." Le Yi thought for a moment. Of course, he was not hesitating whether to explain to the king, but he didn't know how to explain it to the latter. After all, the young king didn't know anything about military affairs.
After thinking for a while, Le Yi asked: "Is your Majesty proficient in playing chess?"
"I know a little bit about it," Han Wangran replied in confusion.
Seeing this, Le Yi explained: "The behavior of the Wei army and the last general on the opposite side at this moment is like the "drop point" and "small tip" in the chess game..."
Han Wangran was always a smart person. Hearing this, he suddenly understood. He nodded and said, "I understand."
As Le Yi said, his and Wei Jun's actions at this moment are indeed very similar to the positions in the chess game.
The "points" in the chess game are very important. They can be used to connect one's own chess pieces in a line, and they can also be used to cut off the opponent's chess path. This is similar to the situation on the battlefield at the moment - the Wei army sent out tortoise-shell chariots and weapons.
The purpose of the Gang Che is to occupy a favorable stronghold on the battlefield in advance, which can be attacked when advancing, and defended when retreating. Le Yi also sent his favorite general Ji Kuo for the same reason.
As for the battle between the two armies, what's the rush? How can a war involving 400,000 soldiers be ended in a short time? In such a long-lasting battle, strongholds are far more important than killing a few more enemy troops.
When Le Yi used chess to explain to Han Wangran, the two generals Chen Xie and Xu Jiong of the Shang Shui Army had also noticed Ji Kuo slowly emerging from the Korean army's formation, and targeted those in the latter's army.
Wugang drove his car and cursed loudly.
The reason is very simple, because the Wugang chariot is a chariot designed by His Royal Highness Prince Zhao Run to restrain the Korean cavalry. This chariot, which at first glance is inconspicuous, greatly increases the defensive capabilities of infantry and crossbowmen——
In fact, as long as there are a certain number of martial arts chariots in hand, even if the crossbowmen encounter the cavalry, it will not be in vain at all.
However, the despicable and shameless South Korea actually stole his Wei's chariots and used them on their Wei army. How could this not make the Wei army's soldiers angry?
But they were angry and angry, and the Wei army generals had no choice but to talk freely.
"...It's almost there. If you go forward, there will be no "open space"..."
After continuing to advance for a certain distance, Wei general Chen Xie ordered the entire army to stop, and then ordered his soldiers to coil the Wugang chariot into a circle. With the help of this chariot, a formation was constructed on the open battlefield.
A defensive stronghold.
Almost at the same time, Xu Jiong, another Wei general, and Ji Kuo, the Han general on the opposite side, also stopped advancing at the same time, as if they had a tacit understanding, and each used Wugang chariots to build defensive strongholds.
Seeing this scene, Han Wangran nodded secretly: Sure enough, this war and chess game are indeed similar in approach and purpose. Isn't this the "empty" in chess skills?
At the same time, on the viewing platform of the Wei army's main formation, the deputy general of the Shang Shui army, Zhai Huang, also noticed the Han army's countermeasures and frowned unconsciously.
He did not express any opinion on Le Yi's behavior of secretly learning the tactics of their Wei army. Instead, he admired Le Yi for this. After all, a general who is stuck in his own way and is shy about learning from his opponents cannot be said to be an excellent commander at all.
But in this way, this battle will be more difficult to fight.
"The next step is the positional battle..."
After thinking for a moment, Zhai Huang said in a deep voice: "Pass my order and order Ran Teng, Xiang Li, and Zhang Ming to march into the army."
After giving the order, Wei generals Ran Teng, Xiang Li, and Zhang Ming led their brave infantry and slowly headed towards the battlefield.
Since Chen Xie and General Xu Jiong had already built strongholds with tortoise-shell chariots and Wugang chariots in front of them, the Wei army's actions were much faster than before, which also made this battlefield finally gradually become more tense.
At the same time, on the Korean side, Le Yi also sent generals such as "Qi Jie" and "Gou Yi".
"Dong dong dong - dong dong dong -"
At the main position of the Wei army, the sound of war drums gradually began to beat.
Stimulated by the sound of the majestic war drums, Wei Junxiao sat Ran Teng astride his horse, his expression becoming more and more serious, as if he was brewing emotions.
Finally, Ran Teng's army crossed the line - the invisible line between the two strongholds built by the friendly forces of Chen Xie and Xu Jiong.
In an instant, Ran Teng suddenly pulled out the sword from his waist and shouted sternly: "Kill——!"
This war cry seemed to completely ignite the atmosphere of the battle, causing the battlefield atmosphere to suddenly increase to its peak.
Amidst the roars of countless Wei soldiers, Ran Teng's army, the elite of the Shang Shui army, plunged into the army that was being robbed by the Han general on the opposite side.
At the same time, Xiang Li and Zhang Ming, three brave generals of the Shang Shui Army, also found their opponents.
"Rescue—!"
"Crossbowman shoots!"
Suddenly, generals Chen Xie and Xu Jiong issued orders in their respective strongholds.
For a time, the crossbowmen in the two strongholds of the Wei army fired wave after wave of crossbow bolts at the Korean army on the opposite side. The dense rain of arrows made the Korean army unable to breathe.
"What is that guy Ji Kuo doing?! Is he just watching me being shot by Wei soldiers?!"
The Han general Qi Jie roared angrily when he saw that many of his soldiers were killed by the Wei army's crossbow bolts.
In fact, there was no need for him to remind him. As Le Yi's most trusted general, Ji Kuo would not just watch his own army being suppressed by the Wei army's crossbowmen. He had already ordered counterattacks and launched a counter-suppression.
For a moment, the arrows coming back and forth on the battlefield were like a tide of locusts. Even the infantry of the Wei army could only block their heads with their shields, because they could not judge which direction the arrows would come from. As for arrows hitting their bodies, they were even more vulnerable.
Out of consideration.
"kill!"
Ran Teng led his troops into the Korean army with his shield on his head. His mount had already been shot by the Korean army's crossbowmen and fell to death.
It has to be said that on such a tense battlefield, any general on horseback is a target for the opponent's crossbowmen. Especially for a general like Ran Teng who rushes to the front line, the survival time of his horse is,
Maybe just a few breaths.
Of course, the same goes for the generals on the Han army's side. In fact, the Wei army's side has snipers who specialize in hunting down enemy generals and can secretly attack the enemy's generals from a distance.
"puff--"
With one slash, blood and flesh flew everywhere.
A soldier of the Northern Yan Army may not have thought that the Wei soldier in front of him was actually a fierce general with the level of three thousand generals, but he was chopped to the ground by Ran Teng with a single blow.
But when Ran Teng chopped down several people and looked around subconsciously, he silently discovered that there were also casualties among his soldiers.
He was not shot to death by the Korean army's crossbowmen, but actually died in the hands of the Korean army's infantry.
It has to be said that for being able to defeat Wei soldiers in a head-on confrontation, the soldiers of the Northern Yan Army deserved the title of "Korea's Strongest Infantry".
"Damn it!"
Cursing secretly in his heart, Ran Teng shouted at the top of his lungs: "Where's Yang Wu? Where's Cao Zhi? Give it to me!"
What he shouted were all the most powerful soldiers in his Ran Teng army.
Not long after, Yang Wu's complaining voice could be heard vaguely in the distance: "I...I'm already here!"
Ran Teng turned around and saw Yang Wu holding a shield in one hand and a knife in the other. He shouted violently and rushed into the Korean army's formation, turning the Korean army's formation in that area upside down.
After nodding secretly, Ran Teng shouted again: "Where is Cao Zhi?! Where is he?!"
Soon after, a soldier told Ran Teng: "Cao Zhiqian was unfortunately shot in the neck by a stray arrow... and died in battle."
"This idiot..."
Ran Teng cursed through gritted teeth, but his eyes were slightly red.
However, at this moment, he did not care to mourn for his beloved general. After being silent for about two or three breaths, he shouted again: "Le Bao! You come and replace Cao Zhi!"
"yes!"
Not far away, Le Bao took a deep breath and bravely led his thousand-man team to the front line.
It is obviously impossible to say that he is not frightened, because in this kind of chaotic and high-density fighting, even if Lian Pi, Wu Ji and other fierce generals are personally at the forefront, they may be killed on the spot, and even more so
Not to mention other people.
"puff--"
There was a muffled sound, and Le Bao immediately frowned, turned around and saw an arrow flying from nowhere stuck in his right arm.
"...I'm about to be promoted to a general with two thousand men, how could I die in a place like this?!"
Roaring violently, Le Bao ignored the bright arrow on his arm and led the way into the Korean army's formation. He chopped down one Korean soldier after another with the sword in his hand, watching his friends who were taking a breather not far away.
Yang Wu was stunned: When did this kid become so brave?
However, despite Le Bao's extraordinary performance, another thousand-man general "Wei Min" belonging to Ran Teng's army was shot dead by a Korean crossbowman on the spot under the eyes of the Wei soldiers. He was hit by more than a dozen arrows.
He fell to the ground and died.
"Thousands of people from Wei Min will die in battle!"
Another piece of bad news reached Ran Teng's ears. Ran Teng gritted his teeth and burst out a sentence: "Li Hui! Ask Li Hui to step up!"
After that, regardless of his own safety, he led dozens of soldiers to rush into the Korean army's formation and kill them, thereby venting the anger and sadness in his heart.
In fact, it was not just Ran Teng's army. Regardless of the Wei army's Xiang Li and Zhang Ming, or the Han army's Qi Jie and Gou Yi, the warriors in their army suffered casualties one after another.
However, looking at the cruel battlefield ahead, both the Wei army's commander Zhai Huang and the Han army's commander Le Yi remained unmoved.
Because they know very well that this is the intensity of the "final battle".
The only question is how long this fierce fighting will last.
In other words, will a force suddenly appear and change the situation on the battlefield at this moment?