It’s the end of August in a blink of an eye. After a period of turmoil, everything in the mountain is gradually getting back on track. Under Cao Ergou's rigorous training, the Pili Army loomed as a powerful army. Especially in the field camp, not only are the troops neat and disciplined, but they are also quite skilled in the operation of artillery and grenades. Due to production capacity reasons, the Perak Army currently only has more than ten Tiger Crouching Cannons and Mother-and-Child Cannons, and cannot yet equip two companies. But seeing that the weather in the mountains was getting cooler day by day, and the leaves on the top of the mountain were gradually turning from emerald green to red, Ouyang Xuan decided not to wait for the artillery to be equipped, and was ready to take action against the Wanjiaping bandits.
The reason why he was eager to attack the Wanjiaping bandits was because Ouyang Xuan wanted to clear the mountain road before the autumn grain harvest and stock up as much grain and necessary living supplies as possible, so that the Pili Army and the people under its rule could prepare for the upcoming harvest. to support the Mongol invasion. After going to Qiongzhou to buy salt, Zhu Tiaozi also organized several small-scale trading teams to go out. However, the hidden trails were difficult to travel, and he could only sell and buy light and valuable goods. As a result, daily necessities needed in the mountains were still in short supply. The trading team warehouses have accumulated a large amount of ordinary mountain goods and industrial and mining products such as iron ingots and agricultural tools.
The news of the attack on the Wanjiaping Bandits excited excitement within the Perak Army. The Xiong Ben gang committed many evil deeds, and many soldiers of the Perak Army had suffered greatly from it. Moreover, during this period, the soldiers in the field camp were trained too hard by Cao Ergou, and they were holding their breath and wanted to take out their anger on the bandits. The commanders of the Perak Army all knew that the mountain road was narrow and the attack surface was only a few meters wide at its widest. No matter how many people there were, they could not spread out and could not use the human sea tactic. Therefore, when Ouyang Xuan decided to use only two companies, no one had any objections, but the company commanders began to secretly compete over who could take on the task, and they all privately asked Cao Ergou for a fight. Cao Ergou couldn't bear the disturbance and was in a dilemma, so he passed the problem to Ouyang Xuan and asked him to make a decision. Ouyang Xuan saw that the morale of the army was available, so he decided that Cao Ergou would lead the first company to be responsible for the main attack, and the remaining four companies would draw three squads each to temporarily form a reinforced company, which he would personally lead and use as a reserve team. This result made the first company commander Chen Hu feel proud. Although the other four company commanders were not satisfied, they could still accept it.
Only when you know the enemy can you win a hundred battles. During this period of time, the Pili Army has not relaxed its reconnaissance of Wanjiaping. Cao Ergou sent a large number of capable personnel to conduct reconnaissance around Wanjiaping. The Xiong Ben gang was also infiltrating and spying on Liuliba. The spies from both sides encountered repeated encounters, and many small-scale battles took place. Generally speaking, the Perak Army scouts equipped with grenades had a great advantage and successfully suppressed the bandits' spying activities. However, the Pili Army's reconnaissance could only stop at the new stone fortress built by the bandits next to the T-junction. They were unable to get close to Wanjiazhai for reconnaissance, and could only watch from a distance.
Beside the mountain road leading to Wanjiazhai, the bandits originally had several wooden watchtowers, but they were burned down during the last attack by the Mongolian Hundreds, and they were all rebuilt this time. The bandits obviously learned their lesson and changed the watchtower from wood to stone, greatly improving its defense. The Xiong Ben Bandits are not idiots. Their newly built stone fortress at the T-junction was built quickly and firmly, and the location was also very particular. Although the area is only one acre square and the wall is only more than five meters high, it is located on the hillside at the intersection of T-shaped roads leading to Wanjiaping and Liuliba roads, overlooking the two roads below from a high position. The roads in and out of the mountain and to Wanjiazhai were tightly blocked, and it was quite a formation where one man blocked the way and ten thousand people could not open it. The Pili Army also collected sporadic information about the Wanjiaping bandits from other channels, but did not find out about the military defense situation. They only knew that Xiong Ben forcibly recruited some people to join the bandit, and also destroyed the gate and wall of Wanjiaping. Reinforcement.
The newly built fortress of the bandits is indeed a tough one. It showed strong defensive power as soon as the battle started, almost breaking the teeth of the first company led by Cao Ergou. The bandits placed two light trebuchets in the fortress and formed a fire blockade on the more than 200-meter mountain road near the T-shaped road, leaving the Perak troops marching along the narrow mountain road unable to hide. A round of flying rocks Then he hit several Perak Army soldiers. The impact force of the densely packed rocks thrown by it from a high position was extremely powerful. Although it could not shatter the iron-bark wooden shield of the Perak Army, it still broke the arm of the shield holder. There were even flying rocks that made the shield holder roll over and over again, including people. With a shield, he fell into the turbulent flow of the Wenjing River below the mountain road.
Seeing that the situation was not good, Cao Ergou quickly ordered the entire company to retreat beyond the range of the trebuchets and bombarded the fortress with artillery. However, because the mountain next to the road blocked the shooting range, the direct-aiming mother-child cannon could not be used. Although the bent tiger cannon can hit the fortress, the mountain road is so narrow that only one cannon can be placed to attack, and due to its low power, the projectiles it fires can only leave shallow bullet marks on the fortress wall. Sporadic and sparse shelling could not affect the continued firing of the trebuchets, which made the bandits even more arrogant. Seeing that the artillery was not powerful, Cao Ergou chose strong soldiers to hold shields and rush through the trebuchet blockade. They rushed in under the dense rain of arrows and prepared to throw grenades into the fortress. However, they were trapped dozens of meters away from the front of the fortress. Obstructed by the trenches, he had to retreat.
In the following time, the Perak Army organized several more attacks but failed. Seeing that it was getting late but he was stuck on the mountain road and could not move forward, Cao Ergou was anxious but helpless and decided to wait until Ouyang Xuan arrived before making any plans. He has sent someone to report the news of the obstruction to Ouyang Xuan in Liuliba. Brother Xuan is now leading a squad, traveling lightly on the way. Ouyang Xuan only led one class, not only because he was in a hurry, but also because the mountain road was really not spacious, and it would be useless to bring more people.
At dusk, Ouyang Xuan reunited with the first company. After observing the battlefield situation and listening to Cao Ergou's detailed report, he issued the first order: all personnel retreated five miles away. Except for the security personnel, the rest of the personnel rested on the spot, extinguished the torches and remained silent. . Everyone thought that the order to remain silent and alert was logical, but extinguishing the torches was a bit strange. You must know that there is a roaring river under the mountain road. Although the light of the torches is weak, it can ensure that everyone will not slip and fall into the river. Regarding the people's confusion, Ouyang Xuan, who has always advocated democratic discussion and collective efforts, did not explain much. After everyone settled down, he directly issued the battle plan to Cao Ergou. On the one hand, it was not suitable for discussion on the mountain road at night, and on the other hand, it was also unrealistic to ask people from the Southern Song Dynasty to discuss a good way to attack the enemy with artillery. This is not because Ouyang Xuan is smarter and wiser, but because he has accumulated more than a thousand years of experience.
