As night falls, there is nothing visible in the valley, only piles of bonfires on the ground, like the reflection of the stars in the sky on the land.
The bonfires in the valley were placed forty or fifty steps apart, forming a huge square formation. He Huchen looked at the square formation left by Liu Chengzong after he retreated from a distance, with hesitation on his face.
He didn't know whether he should step into this phalanx, which seemed to be tailor-made for their tens of thousands of troops.
The river valley is just that wide, and the square formation surrounded by campfires occupies half of the middle. If they don't enter the campfire formation, they must divide their troops if they want to pass through this area secretly. Otherwise, the team will be too long and easily intercepted.
He Huchen was annoyed by this feeling.
He fought with Liu Chengzong. In Huanglong Mountain, although they lost in the end, the two sides were almost in a stalemate in a desperate fight, but Liu Chengzong hid a red barbarian cannon and fired it in the rain.
If he really wants the feeling of that battle, it is actually no different from fighting the Mongols outside the border or fighting the Shaanxi rebels inside the border. It just depends on whether he can fight on the battlefield. If he can fight, he will win, and if he cannot fight, he will lose.
But this time during the Hehuang campaign, He Huchen's tactics were wrong from beginning to end. It seemed that whether the battle could be fought or not had nothing to do with it.
He was no longer He Huchen, but He Lao Niu with a ring on his nose. It looked like his four hooves were growing on his own legs, but in fact it was up to him to go there.
Especially when I saw the bonfire formation left by Liu Chengzong in front of me, this feeling became clearer.
If the battle in Huanglongshan is still about you playing a card and me playing a card to compare the odds, then this battle is almost like Liu Chengzong flipping the table, pressing the hands of the general soldiers of the five towns to reveal their cards, and finally showing his own. The cards slapped them in the face.
To He Huchen, he thought the bonfire formation was an insult.
Actually no, Liu Chengzong had no intention of using the bonfire array to insult people. He just roughly estimated the space needed by the officers and soldiers, and put up a sign that could roughly observe where the officers and soldiers were, so as to guide the artillery attack.
The real insult was that Liu Chengzong left a pot by the bonfire in the middle of the phalanx. In the pot were three large cakes that he baked for the three generals.
The pot was placed so clearly that even the soldiers of the army did not dare to eat it when they found it. They were worried that Liu Shishi would poison the cake, so they had to report it. The officers who reported it did not dare to eat it. They reported it step by step, and finally reported it to Yang Qi and He Huchenna.
The two of them were wondering whether they could enter the bonfire formation. When they heard that there were three pancakes left in the middle, they were so angry that they blew their beards and stared. Yang Qi was about to lead his troops through the bonfire formation, but He Huchen stopped him: "Brother Yang, no!"
He Huchen felt that he was being led by the nose all the way, but now he suddenly came to his senses and said to Yang Qi: "He knows what we want to do, and we can't fulfill his wish!"
Yang Qixin, aren't you farting? Damn it, I don't even know what I want to do. How could he know?
Yang Qi really didn't know what he wanted to do, because He Huchen didn't let him do what he wanted to do.
He wanted to go east to save You Shilu, but he didn't want to go west at all. In fact, if he saved You Shilu and let him return to his hometown in Lanzhou, Yang Qi would be very happy.
It was He Huchen who insisted on going west to rescue his soldiers and held him back.
Asked where you were going, you went west. After going west, you entered the military meeting and fulfilled the enemy's wish... Yang Qi's face was filled with impatience and a strange look on his face: "Brother He, if it weren't for you, wouldn't the two of you have reached this goal before the war?" What’s the agreement? You, you, don’t harm your brothers.”
"What are you thinking? My son is going crazy because of his torment." He Huchen glanced at Yang Qi and looked at the bonfire formation and the darkness farther west: "He and I are at odds with each other, so what kind of agreement can we have?"
He Huchen was shrouded in the shadow of the enemy's progress, but it was because of Yang Qi's weird gag that he regained his confidence as a commander-in-chief.
Then he came up with an idea: "Liu Chengzong left a pot, which can confirm two things. The first is that he knew that we didn't eat, and the second is that he didn't know that You Shuai was in the east... He has only been leading the army for a few years, and he has fought several big battles. War, he can’t be sure of the situation in the east.”
Yang Qi was stunned when he heard this, and the feeling in his heart was immediately different.
To be honest, this battle was interesting. Although Yang Qi had served as the chief military officer for several years, he had not felt like commanding an army for a long time.
In this regard, Yang Qi's feelings were even stronger than He Huchen's.
The imperial court is using the commander-in-chief as a large guerrilla general capable of fighting.
However, due to the shortage of troops in Guyuan in the past two years, the quality of the newly recruited border troops was not good, and the command was not good. He did not even have the feeling of being a participating general. More often, he just acted as a battle commander who used the prestige of force to reverse the situation of the battle.
There are encounters everywhere and enemies everywhere. There is no huge duel and the mentality of the commanders on both sides, only the exhausting pursuit and encirclement.
He regressed.
But as He Huchen said, "He's not sure about the war situation in the east," Yang Qi got goosebumps all over his body, as if the war instinct that had been dormant for a long time was awakened in his heart, causing him to open his mouth slightly and look up at the stars in the sky.
Him: "Eat."
He Huchen nodded heavily and laughed: "Yes, eat!"
On the dark roof on the other side of the battlefield, Liu Chengzong looked at the brightly illuminated bonfire square. Huang Shengxiao's artillery had already stationed at the preset position. Calculating the time, Marshal Sanzhen should have arrived at the bonfire. He was wondering why he hadn't Where's the movement?
Then he saw bonfires slowly burning on the north and south sides of the bonfire square. Instead of entering the bonfire square, the officers and soldiers lit their own bonfires to light up the dark sides of the battlefield.
Liu Chengzong asked himself in his heart: Are they not planning to attack?
Immediately, he rejected this conjecture in his mind. From the time when the army entered the bunker to now, they had no time to eat, so they must be very hungry.
But then, in the darkness to the east of the bonfire square, vague lights emitted from several scattered places, making it difficult to see clearly.
He looked through the binoculars and found that it seemed that the officers and soldiers were lighting a fire and setting up several large pots to prepare for cooking.
This can't help but make Liu Chengzong regret the withdrawal of the two thousand Guyuan troops... The purpose of withdrawing the siege was to find better opportunities to eat up the main force of the official army, but at present, it seems that if the official army has food to eat, I am afraid they will not be in a hurry to attack.
If he had known this earlier, he would have eaten those two thousand people first at the cost of a direct battle with the army.
"Basang, let your people go first, no, half the battalion, let half the battalion sleep first." Liu Chengzong gave the order to Basang in the landlord's compound as the headquarters, and then sent someone to convey the same order to Huang Shengxiao : "Two artillerymen have to sleep together. This battle is expected to start tomorrow."
His entire army was trapped in darkness. It was surrounded by villages where the Japanese and Mongolian soldiers had taken refuge earlier. The soldiers had lived here for more than a month and knew the terrain very well. In each battalion, only the officers set up simple lanterns in the courtyard. , emitting dim light.
This light is difficult to detect from a hundred steps away, and the entire battlefield exudes a man-made atmosphere of terror.
Darkness is inherently stressful, not to mention the presence of enemy troops. The slightest movement of wind and grass is enough to make everyone panic.
However, this kind of pressure was not only exerted on the enemy's hearts, Liu Chengzong was also shrouded in pressure.
Fan Sanlang climbed up to the tile roof and looked eastward. All he felt was darkness. Even the light from the bonfire seemed to be covered with a thick layer of fog. He couldn't see anything clearly. She said, "Commander, please go in and have a sleep. I'm here." From above, if the enemy moves, they will call you."
Liu Chengzong laughed easily and shook his head slowly.
How strong does his heart have to be to be able to sleep in this situation? Unless he is allowed to ride a horse and lead his army to the west, and he can sleep on the horse for a night, he will not be able to sleep even tomorrow night as long as the battle is not over here.
Liu Chengzong said: "Go to sleep. I may squint for a while in the second half of the night. Then you can come up and take my place."
Fan Sanlang knew that he couldn't be persuaded, so he nodded slightly and was about to go down when he suddenly heard a scream in the distance resounding through the valley. The strange voice of the Mongolian soldiers suddenly echoed in the darkness, and a black shadow passed across the middle of the battlefield. The bonfire formation pulled huge black shadows towards the east.
Almost without any words, anyone could feel the commotion this sudden change brought to the army.
Liu Chengzong shouted to the drummers and flag bearers in the courtyard: "The Chinese army is not moving, watch the lights!"
The nervous drummer had already lifted his drumsticks, and his raised hands slowly fell down after hearing the words. The flag bearer quickly hung two lights on the flag with a beam, and slowly raised the flag in the courtyard.
Two bright lamps were erected over the courtyard, and then two lamps were hung one after another in the surrounding courtyards. In the darkness, the armored warriors looked up at the nearest courtyard and saw the two lamps lighting up as scheduled. The commotion was also visible to the naked eye. The speed subsides.
Liu Chengzong, who was standing on the roof, breathed a sigh of relief, and then he picked up his binoculars and looked at the battlefield. It was too far away and too dark. He could not see anything. He could only see something like a pot set up on the vague bonfire of the enemy's camp. It was still the same. appearance.
A moment later, Youtang Cavalry came galloping along the road with a lantern in hand and a yellow flag in hand, and reported: "Commander, there was a small group of enemy troops on the south road who wanted to come over, but they collided with the soldiers of the fishing camp and were driven away. "
Liu Shishi's nervousness calmed down, and he waited for a moment before laughing out loud. He ordered the Tang soldiers to tell the Mongolian generals on the western front line of the bonfire to be careful of the enemy, as there might be another attack soon.
Darkness will amplify people's uneasiness. After the Tang soldiers returned, Liu Chengzong sat on the top of the hill in the landlord's compound and took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down and thinking about why the enemy would try to break through at this time.
There are two possibilities. The first is normal operation. Find out where the front line is in the dark before the meal to prevent the army from being attacked while eating. The second possibility is that the fire to make food is an illusion, but the enemy wants him to see it. They were making a fire to make food.
This was used to make him relax his vigilance, which was a precursor to a night attack.
Liu Chengzong thought for a moment and decided to overturn his meaningless guess. No matter what they were going to do, they were definitely right to continue harassing them.
He sent someone to call Tang soldiers and ordered them to give orders to Xie Erhu: "It is not polite to come and not go back. Let the cavalry prepare to harass. Even if they actually eat, they will not be allowed to eat well... Find out the size of the official army."
However, he did not take back his order to let half of the soldiers in Basang and Huang Shengxiao rest.
Although the temporary doubts about him in his heart have not completely subsided, Liu Chengzong does not think that Yang Yao's offensive in the east has been hindered. On the contrary, the operation in the east should be very successful.
Because if the government troops pursue Yang Yao in a large scale, no one will dare to station in the earthen fort, let alone pursue westward.
The strength of the troops in the east is now at least 5,000. Counting the more than 1,000 Guyuan soldiers released, Liu Chengzong believes that the strength will not be less than 6,000.
In this way, even if the officers and soldiers have food to eat tonight, they don't know what is going on in the east. The officers and soldiers in the three towns must be out of touch. Otherwise, they will not eat here. If the logistics and supplies can be delivered, they should go back to the bunker to eat.
"I see!"
Liu Chengzong was talking to himself on the roof, and when he looked eastward, his eyes became confident. His slightly wavered determination became extremely firm again: "You are... bluffing."
There was no need to wait for the Mongolian soldiers to find out. He immediately ordered the Tang soldiers: "Quickly tell General Wang that he will sleep on the horse tonight. The infantry training camp must arrive at Mijiatai before dawn. I need them to devote themselves early tomorrow morning." battle."
Just as the sound of hooves sounded outside the headquarters, and the sound of killing came from the darkness beyond the bonfire array, Xie Erhu's men moved.
Ever since he saw the training horse camp, Xie Erhu had been struggling in his heart. Although his 6,000 soldiers in the fishing camp were carefully selected before the war, compared to the training horse camp, they still looked like a group of stragglers.
However, this night battle was a good opportunity for him to prove himself. After all, his Mongolian cavalry was far behind professionally, but in the gathering and dispersion of skirmishing, he believed that the Mongolian soldiers had an advantage.
But this battle was much messier than he imagined.
He Huchen stood in the military formation. The first westward penetration battle had just ended on the left wing. He was expected to be discovered, but he did not expect that Liu Chengzong would place the Mongols so close to the bonfire formation.
The cavalry soldiers tasked with the infiltration mission were hit by hidden arrows almost as soon as they crossed the light of the campfire, and even before they left the area illuminated by the fire.
Fortunately, the fighting outside was quite noisy, but it did not pose a threat to his Ye BuShou... Ye BuShou handed him the enemy's projectile weapon, which was a wooden arrow with a wooden shaft and no arrow feathers.
According to the soldier, the arrowhead was not wood, but bone, teeth, or sharpened stones. However, it seemed that it was not tied tightly and stuck in the soldier's cotton armor. When he pulled out the arrow, it fell off. The outside was dark and he did not pick it up.
Anyone who hears such a report will smile. What could be more satisfying on the battlefield than the enemy using weapons three thousand years behind us?
This also slightly dissipated the tension caused by the darkness in He Huchen's heart.
He lowered his head to look at the iron pot disguised with armor and wood, thinking about when Liu Chengzong was most relaxed tonight, when he heard the rumble of horse hooves again on the left wing, while at the same time there was a sound of arrows whizzing past on the right wing.
However, he already knew the weakness of the Mongolian soldiers' equipment, so he was not worried about it. He just asked the soldiers to stabilize their positions, and if anyone approached, he would use the three-eyed blunderbuss and the Fran machine cannon to greet them.
After a while, the horses' hooves began to circle in the darkness outside the military formation. The Fran cannon was filled with powder, and from time to time, it fired back in the direction of the arrows shot out in the darkness.
When the Sanzhen officers and soldiers thought that this situation would last for a long time, suddenly a strange scream rang out from the Mongolian army formation, and then the layers of cavalry seemed to retreat like a tide, and then approached again.
Just when He Huchen thought this was another harassment, the sound of galloping horse hooves broke through the safe distance. In the darkness, a column of horses quickly approached the southeastern formation from behind the military formation, and then the sound of gunfire sounded like exploding beans.
The sound was obviously different from the three-eyed gun. It was not an officer's gun.
Zhong Bao, who had been gathering cavalry in Nanshan since sunset, galloped and fired in a corner of the battlefield. He put rows of muskets into the official formation, sliced off a corner straight and diagonally, and retreated eastward again, disappearing into the darkness.
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