Chapter 504 Confrontation between the 2 armies
Chapter 504: Two Armies Confronted
Two days later, Sun Lei led 5,000 troops to Qiantang to prevent the enemy from launching a surprise attack on Qiantang County by using the strategy of besieging Wei to save Zhao.
Xiao Xia personally led an army of 30,000 elite soldiers toward Kuaiji County, accompanied by more than a hundred large ships loaded with food and supplies, and escorted by two thousand county soldiers led by Zhao Feng, the commander of Kuaiji County.
From Qiantang County to Kuaiji County, there are endless plains, which are very suitable for large-scale military operations. Although Xiao Xia has only 30,000 troops, their combat effectiveness is strong, especially the 10,000 cavalry, which is like an unstoppable spear.
At the same time, King Lan Zhaotian of Yue in Kuaiji City also received urgent intelligence that about 30,000 Sui troops were heading towards Kuaiji County and had now entered the territory of Kuaiji County, about 60 miles away from the county seat.
This news made Lan Zhaotian both excited and nervous. He immediately ordered: "Order the entire army to assemble!"
"Boom! Boom! Boom——"
The drums on the city walls were beating loudly to gather the troops. Kuaiji County was almost an empty city at this time, and the houses became the soldiers' tents. The drums were beating, and 150,000 troops gathered on the main street from all directions.
Lan Zhaotian's military advisor was Fan Shicheng, a Han Confucian scholar from Yuyao County. He was well-read and especially loved reading military strategies. A few months ago, Lan Zhaotian asked him for advice. Fan Shicheng quoted from classics and talked incessantly for the whole morning. Lan Zhaotian was deeply impressed by his profound knowledge and appointed him as his chief of staff. After taking Kuaiji County, he was appointed as his military advisor.
Seeing that his lord was going to send troops to fight against the Jin army, Fan Shicheng was immediately anxious and hurried to find Lan Zhaotian, "Your Majesty, the Jin army is an elite army famous throughout the world. Although we have 150,000 people, we are a motley crowd. I am afraid that the weak ones will be easily defeated by them, which will lead to the defeat of the entire army. Kuaiji County is tall and solid and can be defended for a long time. It is better to defend the city and send troops to attack its reinforcements, or besiege Wei to save Zhao. Order Lou Shigan and Shen Faxing to attack Qiantang County, and the Sui army will definitely retreat!"
Lan Zhaotian was really unhappy when he heard Fan Shicheng belittle his army as a mob, but the other party did have some truth in what he said, which made Lan Zhaotian silent for a moment. At this time, the door suddenly opened, and several generals walked in, followed by Yuan Wenzhen.
The leading general was Lan Zhaotian's eldest son, Lan Ankui. He stepped forward and spit a mouthful of thick phlegm on Fan Shicheng's face with a loud "Pah!". Fan Shicheng was immediately shocked and angry, and shouted, "How dare the prince humiliate me!"
"You bastard dare to shake the morale of my army, I'm going to kill you for spitting on you!"
Lan Ankui drew his sword, and the others quickly hugged his arms. Lan Zhaotian's face darkened and he shouted, "Ankui, don't be rude!"
Lan Ankui glared at Fan Shicheng fiercely, put away his sword, clasped his fists and said, "Father, why did you listen to the corrupt scholar? A 150,000-man army was besieged in the city by 30,000 troops. If it gets out, aren't you afraid of being ridiculed by the world? Father, you don't even have the courage to fight, how can you lead the Shanyue people to establish a country?"
The son's last words hit Lan Zhaotian's sore spot. The Shanyue people were known for their strength and bravery. They admired the strong and despised the weak. If he did not fight, he would indeed be despised by the Shanyue people. But if he went to war, he had no confidence at all.
Lan Zhaotian looked at Yuan Wenzhen again. Yuan Wenzhen's position was similar to that of a military supervisor or advisor. He was not in charge of military affairs, but he was everywhere. It was he who taught Lan Ankui the last words.
Yuan Wenzhen felt Lan Zhaotian's gaze and said calmly, "I am a businessman. I am more concerned about profit. If you defeat Xiao Xia's 30,000 troops, Your Majesty will get the entire Jiangnan Road. Do you think the profit is not big enough?"
Yuan Wenzhen always hits the nail on the head with one sentence, and he can arouse Lan Zhaotian's ambition. Everyone knows that Xiao Xia's main force has only 30,000 soldiers, and the rest are new recruits. Defeating these 30,000 soldiers is equivalent to defeating Xiao Xia's main force, and seizing Jiangnan Road is just around the corner.
Lan Zhaotian slammed the table and said murderously: "Order the entire army to attack!"
"Woo——"
A low horn sounded, and the city gate slowly opened. Lan Zhaotian personally led an army of 150,000 out of the city to fight. The Sui army was already thirty miles away. In an hour at most, they would engage in a major battle with the Sui army.
Yuan Wenzhen mounted his horse and rushed towards Yuyao County with thirty of his men. He anchored a large ship of 5,000 tonnes in Qiantang Bay. A gentleman does not stand under a dangerous wall. In this decisive battle, no matter who wins or loses, he needs to watch the battle from a safe place.
The gates of Kuaiji County were closed. Fan Shicheng looked grimly at the 150,000-strong army marching towards the west. A mouthful of thick phlegm was still stuck on his face, which was particularly glaring.
Lan Zhaotian's intelligence was wrong. When their spies discovered the Sui army, they were still sixty miles away from Kuaiji County. The spies rushed back to report that the Sui army was still advancing. In fact, when Lan Zhaotian heard the news, the Sui army was already thirty miles away.
The 150,000-strong army saw the main force of the Sui army from afar only five miles away from the city.
Lan Zhaotian was shocked and immediately ordered the army to stop moving forward. The army prepared for battle. The 150,000-man army lined up in a row, with flags flying and magnificent momentum. The Sui army also discovered the enemy ten miles away and began to slow down, marching slowly in the wilderness.
Xiao Xia took out his clairvoyance and looked at the enemy's formation. In the middle was a main force of 40,000 to 50,000 people, wearing the leather armor of the Northern Qi army and holding spears. They looked well-trained.
The 100,000 troops on both sides were in a mess, with their attire and equipment in a mess. Some wore cloth armor, some wore paper armor, and even tens of thousands of people wore short cloth clothes, which were the same color but had no defense at all.
The weapons and equipment were even more varied, including spears, daggers, and even sticks and hoes. Some people were timid, some were sloppy, and there was no solemnity and orderliness of the army at all.
Xiao Xia put down his clairvoyance and sneered, "What a mob!"
Although he said that, Xiao Xia did not dare to be careless. After all, the enemy had too many people. He immediately ordered, "The square formation moves forward, and the cavalry is ready to fight!"
Luo Shixin and Pei Xingyan each led a square formation of 10,000 people forward. The two square formations sometimes merged into one and sometimes split into two. The 20,000-strong army was neatly armored, all equipped with lances and Ming Guang armor, and was filled with murderous aura.
The Xue brothers each led 5,000 cavalrymen and followed slowly behind.
The two teams were getting closer and closer. When they were one mile apart, the two armies stopped and confronted each other from a distance.
At this time, a general from the other side rushed out, riding a yellow horse and holding a large iron spear. He was a rare cavalry general. He ran half a mile away, pointing at the Sui army and shouting loudly, it turned out that he was challenging the Sui army.
A duel is also a way for two armies to confront each other. It is usually used when the two sides have been in a long-term confrontation and have no strong desire for a decisive battle. It is a way of confrontation between the two armies to boost morale.
However, it is rarely used in decisive battles like the one now. However, the opponent is Shanyue people, so they may value one-on-one combat with a strong general.
All the generals were itching to do something. Xiao Xia glanced at everyone. Although Luo Shixin and Pei Xingyan were powerful enough to defeat ten thousand enemies, they had to command the infantry and could not go into battle. At this time, Xiao Xia's eyes fell on Wang Junkuo's face and saw that he looked proud.
Xiao Xia immediately ordered: "Wang Junkuo will go to the battle, Xie Yingdeng will lead the charge!"
Wang Junkuo said nothing, picked up his Qinglong Yanyue Sword, rode his horse at full speed, and charged towards the enemy general. Xie Yingdeng followed closely behind him, holding a bow and arrow, and following a hundred steps away.
When the enemy general saw the Sui general coming to attack, he shouted, "I am General Lan Tieli of Yue, come and tell me your name!"
Wang Junkuo said nothing, ran to him, swung his sword, and struck at him like lightning. General Shanyue was startled and raised his spear to block, but the blade slashed along the spear, blood spurted out, and half of the opponent's palm was cut off. General Shanyue screamed, and the spear fell to the ground. Then the sword flashed, "Crack!" The head flew ten feet away, blood spurted out, and the headless body fell off the horse.
Wang Junkuo turned his horse around and returned in triumph. At this time, Xie Yingdeng had not yet arrived at his position. The Shanyue army was silent, while the Sui army cheered loudly and their morale was greatly boosted.
The rule of the Shanyue army was to fight three battles one by one and then a decisive battle as a whole army, but by this time, Lan Zhaotian had realized that another one-on-one battle would only bring humiliation to himself.
He gritted his teeth and shouted, "Order the entire army to fight!"
"Boom! Boom! Boom!" The drums sounded loudly, and the 150,000-strong army ran together.
The advantage of the Shanyue army is their large numbers, and Lan Zhaotian will of course use this advantage to crush the Sui army.
(End of this chapter)