Xiahou Dun knew very well that he had too few people and could not defeat Ji Ling, so he only hoped to contain Ji Ling.
In large-scale wars, the greater the number of people, the greater the gap, making it easier for fewer to win against more.
But in a small-scale war, the smaller the number of people and the larger the gap, the harder it is for this to happen.
For example, the battle of Kunyang was ten thousand against four hundred and twenty thousand. The battle of Chibi was fifty thousand against more than two hundred thousand. The battle of Feishui was eighty thousand against eight hundred thousand.
Because the more people there are, the more chaotic the command will be. Not everyone is Han Xin. In ancient times when communication capabilities were extremely poor, it was extremely difficult to remotely control every man and horse.
But a battle involving thousands of people is different. As long as there is a little bit of military literacy, the side with the numerical advantage will definitely have a greater chance of winning. If you want to defeat a large number with a small number, it will be difficult to reach the sky.
Ji Ling had 20,000 men, while Xiahou Dun had only 5,000. The gap between the two sides was four times. Unless Xiahou Dun could kill Ji Ling in formation and create a situation where he would kill the general and seize the flag, it would be almost impossible to get an advantage from Ji Ling.
Therefore, along the way, he just followed and put pressure on Ji Ling, and did not take the initiative to attack.
Ji Ling's station was closer to Lu County, so he and Liu Xun retreated in different directions. Liu Xun went south from Pei State, while he went south from Xiapi State. If he also chose to go from Pei State, he would go south.
It's not cost-effective to take a long detour.
The two parties, one after another, have arrived near Xia Qiu. About two hundred miles west of here is Daze Township. Ji Ling arrived at the south of Xia Qiu and headed for Xu County. As long as he passed Xu County and then passed through Huailing, he entered
We arrived at Jiujiang County and successfully completed our return to defense.
Three days have passed now. Liu Xun and Ji Ling are both one to two days away from Jiujiang. None of them know what the situation is like at Yuan Shu's side, so they are all anxious and try to retreat as quickly as possible.
It is December, the time when late winter turns to early spring. Although the weather has warmed up, it still remains cold. The roads in the wilderness are overgrown with weeds. The weeds that have just sprouted in early spring can’t wait to dig out of the soil.
Breathing fresh air, only to be trampled back into the ground by countless feet.
Xiaqiu and Xu County are actually Si County and Sihong County in later generations. The two places are mostly plains. Further to the southeast is the famous Hongze Lake in later generations. However, it has not yet become a lake at this time. It is only because of the Huaihe River.
A large number of swamp wetlands formed by flooding downstream.
At this time, we have not yet approached the Huai River system further south, there are not many lakes and rivers, and the hills in the distance are gradually turning from brown to green. It is still snowing in Saibei in the twelfth lunar month, but the north bank of the Huai River is already full of spring.
Xiahou Dun was riding on his horse, constantly urging the soldiers to march faster. Now that he was getting closer to Huainan, he could not let Ji Ling cross the river, so there must be a battle at this time.
Cheng Yulang said: "Yuan Rang, just bite tight. You must not give them time to cross the river, and you must not fight them."
"I know."
Xiahou Dun expressed his understanding.
"I predict that Ji Ling will definitely fight us when he returns home. You must remember that if the enemy advances, I will retreat. Do you understand?"
"Know."
"Okay, then I'll leave. Don't be reckless!"
Cheng Yu gave many orders and instructions.
Xiahou Dun is not blind at all now, his eyes show a ferocious look: "Even if I die, I will not let Ji Ling go back."
After saying that, he urged the horses and flew forward.
This is the difference between having tactics and not having tactics.
Dian Wei didn't know tactics, so he chased you stupidly, and when he caught up, he fought you. The reckless man rushed forward and fought Liu Xun like crazy. In the end, he was forced to leave by Lu Bu, but he didn't get any advantage.
Xiahou Dun and Cheng Yu were much smarter. They just clung to Ji Ling and followed behind them. If they did not take the initiative to attack, they would never fall into the ambush set by Ji Ling.
In fact, Ji Ling tried to set up ambushes in front of him several times, but Cheng Yu saw them through. Each time he tried to do so, he wasted more time.
The most important thing is that both Ji Ling and Liu Xun must cross the Huai River to return to Huainan.
Before Liu Xun crossed the Huai River, Dian Wei hurriedly approached him for a fight. In the end, there was no winner. Liu Xun could naturally cross the Huai River calmly and rush to Yuan Shu's aid.
Xiahou Dun and Cheng Yu divided their forces.
While Xiahou Dun continued to follow Ji Ling, Cheng Yu led a thousand men to take a detour and ambush near the Huai River ferry in advance.
At this time, there are pursuers behind and ambushes on the flanks. Can't Ji Ling cross the river?
Crossing the river will cause the army to have no fighting position. The people in front are still crossing the river, while the people behind have to fight, which will inevitably cause the army to be in chaos. When 5,000 people defeat 20,000 people, it may not be impossible to succeed.
But it would be even worse if he didn't respond to the request. The situation on Yuan Shu's side was unclear. If something went wrong on Yuan Shu's side because he didn't respond in time, Ji Ling would definitely be punished afterwards.
Therefore, this is a dilemma for Ji Ling. It is also the brilliance of Cheng Yu's tactics, which can effectively attack the enemy.
It's just that Ji Ling was also one of Yuan Shu's generals. When he arrived in Xu County, less than eighty miles away from the Huaihe River, he finally came to his senses and realized that the enemy was planning to stop him on the bank of the Huaihe River.
For a moment, he was riding a tiger and couldn't get off. After thinking for a long time, he decided to personally lead 10,000 people back to face Xiahou Dun, and then asked his lieutenant to lead 10,000 people to the Huaihe River Ferry to prepare ships.
Xiahou Dun was not stupid. Before he split his forces with Cheng Yu, he repeatedly ordered him not to fight Ji Ling. So when Ji Ling turned around, he immediately retreated.
On both sides, the enemy advances and we retreat, the enemy retreats and we advance, going back and forth, it's a great time.
It was not until the next day, the fourth day after Yuan Shu asked for help, that Ji Ling slowly arrived at the edge of the Huaihe River.
Logically speaking, the total distance between Huainan and Huaibei is less than 300 miles. This is still Hanli. According to later generations, it is only more than 100 kilometers.
Let’s not talk about those big guys who walk a hundred kilometers a day. Based on the conventional marching mileage in ancient times, which was about seventy miles a day, that’s all covered by walking in four days.
For example, Sima Yi intercepted Meng Da's rebellion letter and rushed thousands of miles to kill Meng Da. He was marching at an average marching speed of fifty kilometers per day.
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading! There is also Xia Houyuan who can run 500 in three days and 1,000 in six days. He can run an average of 167 miles per day, which is a well-deserved marching speed.
But now it was supposed to arrive in Huainan within three days, but it took Ji Ling four days to reach the edge of the Huai River. It was still more than a hundred miles away from Huainan, which meant that it took him four days to reach more than 200 people.
inside.
Two or three days later than normal.
From this point of view, it can be seen that Xiahou Dun and Cheng Yu's delaying tactics played a key role and seriously slowed down Ji Ling's march.
On the north bank of the Huaihe River, at the Xu County Ferry, you can see the rolling river in the distance, the endless plains, and the undulating hills submerged in the forest leaves. The people nearby have long since disappeared, leaving behind the empty ferry and rolling streams.
of big rivers.
Ji Ling looked into the distance and saw that it was clearly noon, but the sky was very dark. It often rained in the Huaihe River area in December, and fishermen who made a living by fishing fled into nearby lakes and tributary waters, hiding in the reeds.
.
The river bank was luxuriant with grass and reeds. Only by the ferry, his lieutenants tried their best to search, but they only found more than 30 small boats. According to the 20 soldiers in each boat, they had to make more than 30 trips back and forth.
"hateful!"
Ji Ling used his three-pointed two-edged sword to slap the ground hard, causing a hole to appear in the mud: "There is a big river blocking the road in front, and there are pursuers behind. How can we cross the river?"
The deputy general said: "General, for this plan, only by defeating the pursuers in the rear can we cross the river to rescue General Zuo."
"Don't I know?"
Ji Ling glanced at him fiercely and said angrily: "But the enemy is as cunning as a fox and will not fight with us at all. We go up to fight and they retreat. How can we start a fight?"
Xiahou Dun had always maintained a safe distance of seven or eight miles away from him. This distance was neither long nor short. If Ji Ling chose to forcibly cross the river, he would only be able to arrive there in two to three quarters of an hour by a quick march. If Ji Ling chose
If you choose to turn back and attack, you will have enough time and space to retreat.
So the current situation makes Ji Ling very uncomfortable. It's not that he can't defeat the pursuers behind him, but that the pursuers are pestering him and not letting him go. But if it's a big road, he can organize the troops in front, middle and rear.
Just walk all the way there.
As a result, Huai River is now blocking the front, unless his troops can fly.
"General, I see that there are a lot of wild basil and reeds over there. People are hiding inside and can't be seen at all. What if we ambush an army inside and pretend to cross the river, waiting for the enemy to come and then suddenly rush out? What do you think?
how?"
The deputy general looked around and suddenly pointed to the dense weeds and reeds on the river bank in the distance and made an opinion.
In ancient times, environmental pollution was not serious, especially in winter and spring, when vegetation grew wildly. In the wilderness where no one was clearing land, a large number of trees and weeds began to grow luxuriantly, often in a small forest or a hill full of trees. Thousands of
Thousands of people are present, which is a common occurrence.
For example, when Liu Bei set fire to Bowang Slope, he hid his ambush troops in the woods on the hillsides on both sides. When Xiahou Dun underestimated the enemy and rushed forward to pursue him, he fought and retreated all the way, luring Xiahou Dun into Bowang Slope, and then suddenly rushed out and defeated Xiahou Dun.
.
Don’t think that the vegetation in modern society is not prosperous, just because the vegetation in ancient times was not prosperous either. Modern society is full of people, and weeds cannot grow without human intervention. However, in some places in ancient times, there were not necessarily people inhabited for hundreds of years. The original
There are so many dense forests that it would be difficult to walk even if you walk inside.
There were originally human activities at the Huaihe River Ferry in Xu County, but in these troubled times, it was almost semi-abandoned for many years. The army came and went, and the people had to hide everywhere. Life was not easy. Naturally, it was impossible to cut the weeds on the riverbank. Therefore,
The water and grass here are extremely lush and can completely hide people and horses.
Ji Ling looked around and felt that what the lieutenant said was reasonable. He nodded and said: "This plan may work, so I'll do as you say. Later you will lead three thousand people and hide them behind the slope, and there will be two thousand more."
People, hide in the reeds here. I will lead five thousand people in front of the formation and ten thousand people across the river to lure the enemy to attack. When the enemy is close, you will attack from the side and rear, and the three parties will attack at the same time."
"only!"
The deputy general and another military commander took the order and left.
Naturally, this strategy cannot be carried out in front of other people's scouts. Xiahou Dun himself led the army at the rear, but there were still many scouts following them like cranes, watching from a distance. The nearest scouts were less than a mile away, and their side
All enemy scouts are in action.
Therefore, Ji Ling first sent out his own scouts to drive away the enemy scouts. After there were no informants around, he immediately arranged for an ambush and river crossing.
Ten thousand soldiers preparing to cross the river were crowded at the ferry, and the boats slowly began to cross the river.
Xiahou Dun, who was stationed seven or eight miles away from the ferry, heard the report from the scouts that Ji Ling was driving the scouts away. He guessed that the enemy might be preparing to cross the river, so he immediately decided to set off and start rushing towards the ferry.
After walking only two or three miles, we could already see the end of the wilderness and a hill beside the river. Ji Ling's army was lined up on the road in neat formation, when two scouts came to report on Pegasus.
"General, the military counselor asked you not to attack."
The scout said immediately after dismounting.
Xiahou Dun reined in his horses, stopped the army, and asked, "Why?"
The scout said: "The military advisor said that the enemy has set up an ambush in the mountains to the east. Once you attack, you will be attacked from both sides."
Xiahou Dun frowned: "Then what should we do? The enemy is already crossing the river. If we don't block it, won't we just have to watch them pass by?"
The scout added: "The military advisor said, let the general calm down for a while. He will find the right opportunity later and attack suddenly, disrupting the enemy's plan to cross the river and causing chaos to the enemy. If the general attacks again at this time, he will definitely be able to break it."
"I see."
Xiahou Dun calmed down and nodded: "Okay, then I will wait."
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading! Along the Huaihe River, the grass and leaves are lush.
Cheng Yu led a thousand people and also hid in the reeds by the river.
Anyone who has watched "Little Soldier Zhang Ga" knows that the reeds on the banks of lakes and rivers are so deep that they can be more than enough to hide a hundred thousand people, not to mention a thousand people.
There are many rivers and lakes around the Huaihe River system. Cheng Yu slowly approached the main river from the edge of a tributary of the Huaihe River on the north bank. A scout stuck his head out from the reed marsh to watch. Only then did he discover Ji Ling's ambush plan and quickly came over to notify Xiahou Dun.
.
After arranging a strategy, Cheng Yu personally led his troops to explore all the way from the river. The cold wind of late winter blew, the river waves rippled, and the reeds floated like sea flowers, and waves of catkins were rolled up.
Since there have been human activities near the ferry, all the weeds, basil and reeds around it have been cleared away, so if you force your way through, you will be discovered.
Cheng Yu checked the distance with his naked eyes and found that the reeds were almost a mile away from the ferry and there was an empty river beach. If he suddenly killed them, it would indeed have an impact, but a thousand people was too few. If the enemy general commanded
If done properly, it may be difficult to cause large-scale chaos.
He searched carefully and noticed a large number of wooden buildings near the ferry. Whether it was the Yellow River ferry or the Huaihe River ferry, there would definitely be a large number of vendors, stalls, wooden sheds and other buildings while waiting for the ships on both sides of the river.
Even in ancient times, this kind of ferry was often a market for nearby villagers and a shopping center for residents on both sides of the strait. Therefore, the area cleared for a mile around it can almost be said to be the distribution center of this market.
During the war, although the ferry was semi-abandoned, except for a few nearby fishermen who occasionally came over to compete for five baht coins, there were few people coming and going.
But the buildings left behind from before still exist. It is late winter, so as long as it doesn't rain, it should be possible to light a fire.
Thinking of this, Cheng Yu immediately ordered to take out the prepared rockets.
Thanks to Chen Mu's early invention of rockets, various princes would prepare some fish paste and grease to wrap around the arrows, which would come in handy at critical moments.
"kill!"
After preparing the rocket, Cheng Yu ordered the attack without hesitation.
A group of eight hundred soldiers suddenly rushed out from the reeds on the west side and swarmed towards the ferry.
As expected, the defenders at the ferry caused a commotion. Those who were preparing to cross the river, those on guard at the side, and those resting in place did not expect that there was an enemy attack from behind.
The scene was quite chaotic for a while. Before the fighting started, some soldiers were trampled to death due to the commotion of the crowded crowd.
Some of the defending generals responded quickly and immediately organized manpower to resist.
In an instant, the two sides were in close combat and collided.
This wave of advance had brought Cheng Yu's army close to the ferry. At this time, he decisively ordered the remaining 200 archers to aim at the wooden buildings at the ferry to release arrows.
As mentioned before, the distance of ordinary bows and arrows is very long, between one and two hundred meters, and the farthest can even reach more than three hundred meters.
Since the rocket arrow is heavy, fifty or sixty meters is the limit.
But there is no need to pay attention to accuracy with this kind of thing. A hail of arrows hit many buildings on the ferry, quickly setting the ferry on fire.
Although there are fewer weeds and reeds around the ferry, it does not mean that there are none. After all, it is semi-abandoned and has been neglected for a long time. The rockets ignited the weeds on the ground and spread quickly to the surrounding area.
The fire was not very big or fast at first.
Cheng Yu was short of manpower. Two hundred archers rained arrows, and the area that could be ignited was small. Many bows and arrows fell into the crowd, causing a commotion.
But as the 800 dead soldiers in front resisted Yuan Shu's army's attack and bought them enough time, more than ten rounds of arrows rained down. The quantitative change led to a qualitative change. The fire quickly started. Coupled with the strong wind at the mouth of the river, it ignited the surrounding reeds.
, the sky-wide fire instantly turned the entire ferry into a sea of flames.
"Ha ha ha ha."
Cheng Yu looked at the raging fire and Yuan Shu's army, which was already in a large-scale commotion in the distance, and couldn't help laughing proudly.
Although the weather is gloomy now, and there seems to be signs of rain, it should not rain in a short time. He must defeat Ji Ling here today.
The commotion here quickly disturbed Ji Ling's front army. The front army was still two miles away from the ferry. The smoke was filled and the fire was blazing. Ji Ling's front army was in shock and they didn't know what was happening behind them.
matter.
At this moment, Xiahou Dun immediately ordered an attack, the drums sounded, and the whole army attacked.
Cao's army suddenly roared towards Ji Ling's army like a roaring mountain and a tsunami.
At this juncture, Ji Ling had no choice but to act like a dead horse and order an attack.
The two sides collided like two torrents, and at the same time all the ambush troops appeared in the mountains on the east side. Originally, Ji Ling planned to retreat deliberately first, and then wait for Xiahou Dun to pursue, and then attack from all three sides.
But now that the rear is in chaos, the ambush in the reeds by the river will definitely be of no use, so we can only find a way to annihilate Xiahou Dun far away from the ferry.
However, Cao Jun fought extremely tenaciously, and Ji Ling fell into a bitter battle in a short period of time.
At the same time, the rear troops were forced to flee by the fire and became a defeated army, attacking towards Ji Ling's rear, causing chaos in Ji Ling's rear army.
Seeing this situation, Xiahou Dun launched a desperate attack and defeated Ji Ling's army. The remaining soldiers fled towards the river bank in the east.
"Wan Sheng, Wan Sheng!"
After a great victory, Xiahou Dun excitedly raised the long sword in his hand and looked at Ji Ling's defeated army in the distance with a serious look, preparing to take advantage of the victory to pursue him.
At this moment, there was a roar and thunder, and the earth shook and the mountains shook.
In the distance, a large group of people came in a mighty manner, with the leading soldier holding a flag high with a big "LV" written on it.
Seeing this scene, Xiahou Dun's smile suddenly froze.