Chapter 316: The Right Way to Win
Chapter 316: The Right Way to Win (Part )
Fangcheng Mountain has been famous since ancient times.
Du Yu of the Qing Dynasty annotated Zuo Zhuan: "Fangcheng Mountain is located in the south of Ye County, Nanyang."
The Nanyang here refers to the entire Nanyang Basin, not Nanyang County or Nanyang State, just like Hedong sometimes refers to the entire Bingzhou (as opposed to Hexi), rather than Hedong County.
During the Spring and Autumn Period, the State of Chu regarded Tongbai, Funiu and the many mountain ranges in between as its northern border.
There is a gap in the middle of this natural defense line: Fangcheng Pass.
Therefore, the Chu people began to build a city north of Fangcheng Mountain and had Prince Jian live there to connect with the north.
To this day, nearly a thousand years have passed, and Fangcheng Mountain is still the main transportation pass between Nanyang and Luoyang, or the only dangerous place.
On the ninth day of October, a large army gathered on both sides of Fangcheng Mountain, filled with murderous intent.
The area north of Fangcheng Mountain belongs to Ye County, and the area south of it belongs to Duyang - both counties were under the jurisdiction of Nanyang State in Jingzhou.
Ye County was occupied by the Yamen Army in September.
After defeating Li Hong in Wuyang and Yexian, Li Chong headed south and set up his camp at the Fangcheng Pass, overlooking the entire Nanyang Basin.
Such a strategic location was occupied by government troops, and Hou Tuo, who was stationed in Wancheng, felt like a thorn in his back and was very uncomfortable.
But he didn't have the energy to take care of this place at the beginning, because there were still many remnants of government troops in Nanyang who needed to be cleared out one by one.
In addition, it took time to negotiate with local nobles and powerful families, so it was delayed. Li Hong was only ordered to lead the remaining troops to counterattack Fangcheng Pass in an attempt to seize it.
Li Hong had already lost his courage and his strength was greatly reduced, so naturally there would be no result.
Until the work was almost done, with Li Hong complaining again and again and the government troops' intention to move south becoming more and more obvious, Hou Tuo finally left Wancheng and led the main force to Duyang, setting up camp south of Fangcheng Mountain.
In fact, he didn't want to fight with Shao Xun. But he was going to fight him, and he had no choice.
Shao Taibai's reputation was still very great, so Hou Tuo did not dare to neglect it. He sent out all his elite soldiers and generals, determined to decide life or death in a battle.
The sky is a little gloomy today, and the dew is heavy. Outside the government army camp on Fangcheng Mountain, the flags are wilted and hanging there weakly.
Perhaps it's a good omen? Hou Tuo thought secretly.
Suddenly, war drums sounded in the mountains, and more than two hundred horsemen rushed out of the camp, went down the gentle slope and passed through the pass, galloping in the wilderness.
The leader was wearing golden armor and looked very majestic.
A general followed behind him, holding a gun in his left hand and a few reins in his right hand.
Hou Tuo watched silently.
He knew that the commander-in-chief usually rode the most majestic warhorse, and the personal soldiers around him would also bring a few extra empty warhorses for him to ride in the battle formation.
The most outrageous thing is that some generals who were born as scholars brought twenty empty horses into the battlefield. No one knew why they were so afraid - twenty horses were not for changing horses during the battle, but mostly for escaping.
The golden-armored general in front of him looked like a serious warrior. The way he rode, the route he planned while riding, and the places he stopped to observe along the way were all choices made by an expert.
Hou Tuo continued to watch.
In the camp, a cavalry general had already led his men out.
Hundreds of cavalrymen were divided into two groups, making a roundabout and aggressive move.
On the camp wall, some people were beating drums to cheer and shouting loudly.
Hou Tuo felt his blood boiling.
This is the battlefield, where men fight wantonly and shed blood.
The golden-armored general immediately gathered his troops and retreated.
Upon seeing this, their cavalry shouted loudly and sped up their horses.
The golden-armored general rode slowly, made a slight half circle, then began to slow down and turned his horse's head.
The more than 300 cavalrymen who encircled the enemy from the right wing were chasing but were blocked by a small woods. The two or three hundred cavalrymen on the left wing continued the pursuit without stopping.
Hou Tu subconsciously felt a little unwell.
Sure enough, the golden-armored general led his troops to turn their horses and go directly around the outside, with the bowstrings in their hands ringing continuously.
The personal soldiers following him also fired continuously.
They don't shoot people, but only horses, and their archery skills are very accurate, obviously they have practiced for many years.
The battlefield was in chaos, and the route of the subsequent cavalry charge was slightly blocked, and the formation was a little chaotic.
The general in golden armor put away his horse bow, waved his hand, and more than two hundred riders sped up and rushed towards them.
Like a sharp knife, it instantly cut open the soft abdomen, causing blood to flow.
Bloody in the physical sense!
Hou Tuo looked around and saw that the enemy cavalry were all wearing a set of Ming Guang armor, and most of them were holding thick horse lances. When they rushed over, they swept or stabbed with the lances, and almost no one could match them.
The man on the left was tall and strong as an ox. Against his exaggerated stature, the warhorse, which was not short, looked like a donkey, which made people laugh.
But the people facing him couldn't laugh.
This man's lance was thicker than that of ordinary people. When he swung it, there was a rapid sound of breaking through the air, and each swipe would knock down one or two people.
Many of the cavalrymen who were knocked off their horses by him had blood oozing from their mouths and noses, and it was obvious that they had suffered severe blows.
The horse lance had the same effect as a wooden club, it could only be a natural power.
The man on the right had his eyes wide open and when he charged, his roar was like thunder, captivating everyone’s heart.
Someone was stunned in front of him and was picked up by the horse spear and thrown to the mud.
Led by these two men, the enemy cavalry was so brave and difficult to control that they broke through their left wing in an instant, then went around to the rear of the right wing and charged again in the same way.
Hou Tuo's face looked extremely ugly.
It was not easy to train cavalry. Most of the hundreds of cavalrymen under his command were from Guanzhong who followed them to Nanyang to beg for food. They were not bad in basic skills, but they were defeated in the first encounter. What should he say?
Of course, he could see that. The reason for this result was not just the difference in combat power between the two sides, but the other side's commander had a great sense of the battlefield, as if he knew by nature how to choose the place of battle, seize the opportunity of battle, and use reasonable tactics.
He was a natural born cavalry general, perhaps born into a family of imperial guards officers.
Hou Tuo suddenly wanted to kill him, but when he saw his cavalry retreating one after another, he sighed and gave up this unrealistic idea.
"Guard the camp well, there will be no fighting today." Hou Tuo gave the order with a grunt.
"Yes, sir." The generals responded one after another.
Morale has been slightly dampened, so it is indeed not advisable to fight again today. We need to make some adjustments and restore morale before we fight again.
On the opposite side, the general in golden armor had not left yet.
Sometimes he rode his horse at a gallop, sometimes he dismounted to observe, and pointed and talked to the people around him, being very arrogant.
Everyone just pretended not to see it. Out of sight, out of mind.
This battle is indeed difficult to fight. The group of people in front of us seem to be much more difficult to deal with than the Jingzhou army.
******
After Shao Xun returned to the camp, Li Chong and others immediately surrounded him.
"Send people to attack the enemy camp in the afternoon." Shao Xun threw away his whip and said, "The men in Xiangcheng will attack first, the auxiliary troops will follow, and the Yamen troops will attack last."
"My lord, there are no less than 10,000 bandits. Although their morale has been slightly dampened, it is not a problem for them to hold on to the camp. If we charge and fight so fiercely, I'm afraid there will be heavy casualties." Li Chong advised.
Jin Zheng glanced at him with a hint of mockery in his eyes.
There are always casualties in war. The young men and auxiliary soldiers are weak in combat, so we don’t feel bad if they die.
What's the point of fighting a war if Li Chong is so fussy?
"This is not the first time you have been a general." Shao Xun said earnestly, "Not everyone is willing to fight you in the field. Sooner or later, you will encounter tough situations. Li Hong has suffered two losses at your hands. Hou Tuo is frightened and will certainly act cautiously. Let's fight first and see how the bandits are willing to fight."
"Yes." Li Zhong immediately sent someone to prepare.
Shao Xun sat down and looked at everyone.
Most of the generals under him came from the grassroots.
Due to limitations in qualifications and talents, some people cannot move up any further after reaching a certain level and will gradually fall behind.
Some people have good learning ability and talent, so they can keep up with the team. But they are not used to being generals, and they are not used to treating the lives of soldiers as just numbers.
You have to love your soldiers like your own sons in normal times and be ruthless and cruel in real battles. Only when you can do this can you be considered qualified.
I don't want numbers, I just want XX, this is the true portrayal of war.
"I just received news that two days ago Shan Jian sent troops north, but was defeated by Wang Ru in Yiyang. Yan Yi took advantage of the situation and led his troops to advance. Shan Jilin was afraid and abandoned Xiangyang and stationed in Xiakou in the south. This guy ran quite fast, but abandoned all the lands of Han and Mianyang, allowing Wang Ru to plunder." Shao Xun said.
Tang Jian had already hung the map on the wall.
Shao Xun pointed at the map and said, "The Xiongnu may move south at any time. The most urgent task is to quickly quell the unrest in Jingzhou and return to the north."
Everyone's eyes fell on the map.
Nanyang has been occupied by Hou Tuo.
Only the county town remains in Shunyang.
Yiyang is in Wang Ru's hands.
Now Xiangyang was occupied by Wang Ru and Yan Yi. Looking at the declining state of Shan Jian and Wang Cheng, Nanjun and Jiangxia might not be able to hold out, and the unrest in Jingzhou was likely to expand.
At present, some barbarians are ready to respond to the refugees from Guanxi, rebel again, and capture cities, just like when Zhang Chang started the rebellion.
"Since Hou Tuo has accepted Wang Ru as his master, he must have asked him for help. No one can say whether Wang Ru will go north." Shao Xun said: "If we delay for a long time, once the Xiongnu army arrives, they will definitely send troops to attack Yuzhou to support Wang Ru. In this way, we will be attacked from both sides, which is not a good thing."
"I don't want to waste too much time in Nanyang. A quick victory is the key to this battle. Li Zhong!"
"The end will be here."
"You will personally supervise the battle this afternoon. If anyone hesitates to advance, he will be killed immediately without mercy."
"As ordered."
"Tang Jian."
"The end will be here."
"Find a few people who are agile, take the Le family as a guide, and go to Nanyang and Yuyang through secret routes to deliver this letter to Le Kai."
"As ordered."
"Kim Jong."
"The end will be here."
"In the afternoon, you will lead six silver spear troops to form a battle array outside the bandit camp to prevent the bandit army from attacking."
"As ordered."
"After receiving the order, make preparations on your own and don't let me down." Shao Xun waved his hand and said.
The generals dispersed one after another.
Your Excellency has made it very clear. The longer we delay, the more complicated the situation will become.
In this southern expedition to quell the rebellion, they are only good at winning quickly, not at sustaining a long battle.
It's a pity for the Jingzhou army. If they could still fight, they would go north from Xiangyang and fight against our army from north to south. It would be easy to defeat the bandits. But they lost Wancheng first, then Xiangyang, and lost all the land of Han and Mianyang, which was very disappointing.
They can only fight this battle alone.
(End of this chapter)