Zhao Kuo returned to his tent, drank a bowl of porridge, and regained some strength. He took a group of retainers and followers to visit the generals of each family. Under his inducement, all the ten thousand generals agreed that the top priority now was to open up the food channel, specifically, to recapture Nanshan. At present, the camps are extremely crowded and it is difficult to mobilize the troops. Zhao Kuo decided to adopt the principle of proximity and launch an attack from nearby camps.
After Zhao Meng was killed in battle, the remaining troops were dispersed to various armies, and the original camp was vacated. But it was immediately burned down by the Qin army, and no camp fence remained, leaving only open space. This provides conditions for using more troops at once. Zhao Meng's twenty battalions were arranged along Nanshan to cover the flanks of the entire army. The armies behind him formed a column with their fronts mainly facing Danshui and Nanshan. There were ten battalions in the defense zone of six battalions, and they were also divided into three armies.
Zhao Kuo designated two Qin camps for each army and asked them to use all means to attack continuously until they captured the Qin camp.
Zhao Kuo asked other armies to take turns sending troops to actively engage the enemy, constantly tiring the Qin army and preventing it from resting. But it doesn’t have to be a real offensive.
Starting tomorrow, all armies will fight according to new plans.
The commander of the Qin army, Bai Qi, was on the bank of Danshui. This made Zhao Kuo feel like he was in trouble, but he couldn't find any good way to counterattack. He could only make the Zhao army on the front line of Danshui frequently launch small-scale offensives in the direction of mountains and hills. Explore the truth and then think of other solutions.
Bai Qi has summoned all the generals to his tent, and there must be a new plan. He didn't know what these plans were, so he could only respond to changes by remaining unchanged, constantly harassing and weakening the Qin army. He was unable to break out of the siege, and he was unable to break the Qin army's siege independently. He had no choice but to build a small victory into a big victory through a series of small-scale battles! Even if they cannot win, they can use this method to consume the Qin army while maintaining their fighting will.
In the afternoon, the lookout came and many people came down from the mountain. When Zhao Kuo arrived, Wang Lu was already approaching the mouth of the valley, while Wang Ling, Li Bing and his entourage appeared at the foot of Liang Mountain.
At today's meeting, the Qin army decided on the next battle plan, and attacking Liangshan was the focus of the entire army. In order to achieve this goal, it was decided to transfer Li Bing's Northern Army from Wang Ling to Bai Qi's command. The main attack on Liangshan was completed by the Nanjun Army. Li Bing and Wang Lu were responsible for ensuring the safety of its flanks. After the Nanjun Army opened a breach, 20,000 swordsmen entered the offensive from the breach. Nanjun Wei returned to Gaodu with a group of craftsmen to build oar shields, and the Nanjun army was directly commanded by Bai Qi.
The generals returned to their military camps and immediately took action according to Bai Qi's arrangements. Swordsmen scattered in two places prepared to break camp. Wang Lu also transferred 10,000 people from the mouth of the valley to camp out to protect Bai Qi's flanks.
Zhao Jun's lookout posts saw dust rising from the Qin army's camps on the east and west sides, and it seemed that a large number of Qin troops were mobilizing, so they urgently reported to Zhao Kuo again. Zhao Kuo could not guess what action the Qin army was going to take, so he only ordered all armies to be on strict alert and report any situation immediately.
At sunset, all armies sent envoys to report. In front of them, the Qin army lined up and prepared, and there seemed to be signs of an attack. The lookout reported that there were large armies on both the east and west roads heading towards Dongling-Danshui. Zhao Kuo ordered all the troops to prepare for the Qin army's invasion, and then went to the lookout post to check. Sure enough, he saw two battalions of soldiers on the east and west sides heading towards Danshui. Because it was already dark and the distance was far away, Zhao Kuo failed to determine that the two battalions of soldiers were swordsmen. He thought that they were simply thickening the strength of the Baiqi camp. There were only four battalions in total, which seemed to have nothing to do with the overall situation. He looked at After a while, he left.
When night fell, the Qin army launched a full-scale night attack on the entire Shicheng defense line from Danzhu Ridge to Nanshan. It was the end of the month, there was no moonlight, and the stars in the sky made everything feel hazy, making it possible to see but not see clearly.
The foot of Zhongshan where Zhao Kuo's tent was located was also attacked by the Qin army. Zhao Kuo wanted to go to inspect it in person, but was persuaded by his retainers, saying that the entire army was under attack. If the general left the tent, it would easily lead to a leaderless situation, which would be detrimental to the battle. After Zhao Kuo heard this, he could only stay in the big tent, frequently sending military envoys to each camp to collect intelligence, and also accepting the news reported by each camp.
The intelligence from each camp was relatively consistent: the Qin army generally did not beat drums or shout, but quietly approached the camp fence and launched a sudden attack. Lookouts and patrol posts are usually the first to discover the Qin army's oppression, and can proactively give warnings and prompt the entire battalion to enter combat positions. Some battalions were lax in their defenses and were not discovered until the Qin army reached the edge of the camp. This would cause chaos and required reinforcements from neighboring battalions to repel the Qin army's attack and restore their position.
Zhao Kuo paid special attention to the movements in the direction of Liangshan. In addition to accepting reports from the defenders and marking them on the map, he also sent military envoys many times to inquire. According to reports from the garrison's ten thousand generals, the lookout post promptly discovered the concealed approaching Qin army and issued an alarm. Currently, the Qin army is patrolling a hundred steps away and is not allowed to advance. Occasionally, a small group of Qin troops penetrated within a dozen steps, but were driven away by Zhao Jun. Zhao Kuo asked tens of thousands of generals to prepare the entire army for battle and coordinate operations in the granary at any time, making sure that the granary was not lost.
The Danshui front line was relatively calm, and the Qin army did not attack.
In the middle of the night, the commotion everywhere gradually subsided, and envoys from each camp came to report that the Qin army had retreated on its own initiative. Zhao Kuo always warned that patrols must be strengthened and must not be careless and give the enemy opportunities to take advantage of.
The surroundings became quiet. The military envoys sent by Zhao Kuo to each camp reported that the Qin army had retreated, and the patrol posts did not find the Qin army attacking. Zhao Kuo also sent two military envoys to Liangshan Mountain, both of which reported that the Qin army had not seen any movement since its retreat. Zhao Kuo was also relieved.
As time goes by, the tension of the battle gradually recedes, and sleepiness creeps into people's hearts. The soldiers after a tense battle looked even more tired. Originally, hunger in the belly would make it difficult for many people to fall asleep, but after a tense battle, even hunger could not stop them from falling asleep.
A cock crows from somewhere in the distance. Almost at the same time as the shouting, there was a scream in front of the Liangshan Camp: "The Qin people are here! ~ The Qin people are here! ~" Then there were several screams, which were obviously soldiers on patrol encountering the Qin army.
The soldiers who were awakened by the screams opened their sleepy eyes and looked down the mountain, only to see the dark crowd approaching a mile away. The soldiers jumped up and shouted: "Night attack! ~Night attack!~" The soldiers on the lookout seemed to have just woken up now and exclaimed: "Drumming to warn!"
As the warning drum sounded, the entire battalion of officers and soldiers got up and quickly entered the position. As expected, the Qin army came from all over the mountains and plains. When the five hundred generals saw this formation, they immediately panicked and hurriedly sent envoys to report to the thousand generals that a large number of Qin troops were attacking. Then control the archers around you.
When Zhao Jun entered the position, Qin Jun had already appeared within a hundred steps. The Qin army, which originally looked like a mass of darkness, can now be seen clearly. There are only a few hundred people in number, but they are far apart from each other. From a distance, it creates the illusion of a large number of people.
The 500-man Zhao army ordered to shoot arrows into the center of the crowd. A shower of arrows passed by, and there seemed to be a few screams, but it did not affect the progress of the brigade. The second and third arrows were shot, and even the screams were reduced, just one or two.
The five hundred generals were even more panicked: If archery doesn't work, how can we stop the Qin army's attack? He didn't think of any other way but to let the archers shoot another round of three arrows. This time, it sounded even less effective, almost like it was shot into an open field.
In an instant, the Qin army advanced to a distance of fifty steps. Only then did the five hundred people see clearly why the effect of archery was getting worse and worse. This was because the Qin people had automatically avoided the position where the arrow rain was shooting during the march, and now there was still a big gap there. This group of Qin people had no shields and held long weapons in their hands, comparable to spears, but very light because they came up running. The space between them was still very wide. Five hundred people ordered to shoot arrows. Zhao Jun shot three arrows at the crowd. Most of the arrows passed through the crowd and did not hit anyone. Occasionally, one or two arrows hit. , to no avail.
The five hundred men will completely lose confidence in their bows and arrows and order the fighting soldiers to come out of camp to fight.
The main force in the fight is the shield soldiers in the front row and the spear soldiers in the back. The halberd soldiers are scattered behind them to play a supporting role.
The gate of the Zhao army's camp was opened wide, and the shield soldiers and spear soldiers rushed out first, quickly formed a formation, and advanced towards the Qin army. The Qin army moved away from the front and outflanked their flanks. At this time, the main fighting force lost its target. The halberdiers rushed to the front and took the initiative to fight against the Qin army's outflanking troops.
The Qin people made long bamboo poles with daggers tied to them, and they chopped them down diagonally with great force, making an astonishing sound. The halberd was not long enough and could not reach the Qin army. Most people had no choice but to retreat. A few people tried to block, but were either hit in the arm or hooked on the halberd pole. Under the fierce blow, Ge slid down the halberd pole, directly injuring his front hand, and the halberd fell to the ground. After the first sharp blow, the second blow followed. The bamboo pole hit the ground and bounced up. Qin Jun took advantage of the rebounding force to take a step forward and lifted it up violently, causing many halberds to fall to the ground. In just a few strikes, the advancing halberdiers were defeated.
After the Qin army defeated the obstruction of the Zhao army's halberd soldiers, they did not turn back to attack the Zhao army's fighting soldiers, but quickly rushed towards the Zhao army's camp. When the five hundred generals of the Zhao army saw this, they shouted: "Go to the warehouse, go to the warehouse!" They took the lead and ran towards the granary. The archers also followed, running towards the granary.
Without any obstruction, the Qin army entered the Zhao army's camp and followed the archers towards the granary. At the same time, someone picked up a few burning dead branches from the fire pit of Zhao Jun's camp and lit the camp fence; they climbed up to the lookout post and lit the lookout post.
The thousand men who received the report will report the enemy's situation and lead another battalion for reinforcements. The fighting soldiers who were left outside the camp also turned around and tried to rush into the camp. Those Qin troops who had not entered the camp struggled with Zhao troops outside, blocking their advance, disrupting their formation, and buying time for the soldiers in the camp. When even the lookout posts were lit, the Qin army outside the camp relaxed slightly and allowed the Zhao army to enter. He also followed into the Zhao camp and flanked the Zhao army with the Qin army inside the camp.
