The vast open plains stretch as far as the eye can see, with lush new fields as far as the eye can see. The knee-long grains swayed in the wind, and the plump but obviously green ears hung down on their pointed heads.
This year should be a bumper harvest...
On the evening of the eighth day of June, the Zhao army's vanguard led by Zhang Yuan had already crossed the river near Guanjin (Wuyi County, Hebei Province); by the morning of the ninth day of the ninth lunar month, the Zhao army's vanguard had already reached a point north of the Lijin River. A place called Pingxiang.
This place is located between Rao'an City and Wudi City, and it is the place where the Qi army must pass.
Zhang Yuan was leading a group of light cavalry at this time, galloping quickly in the grain fields that had not yet been harvested. The cavalry passed through a rather vast forest and reached the edge of the forest. Zhang Yuan took the lead in reining in the horses.
The sudden movement did not make the war horse make much noise. The horse's mouth was wrapped with a layer of cotton cloth, and even the horse's hooves were covered in the same way.
The cavalry soldiers behind him couldn't help but sigh when they saw the situation in the distance.
To the west of the woods, in addition to the flat and open fields and the tall seedlings filled with fresh green, there are also countless figures on the road. The pedestrians and bicycles are mixed in and out as far as the eye can see, as if they cover the entire horizon.
It was the Qi army's front troops marching in the distance. At this time, they were not aware of the peeping eyes in the woods on the hillside.
The general beside Zhang Yuan whispered: "According to the news from the Metropolitan Procuratorate, what we encountered should be the vanguard of the Qi army led by Tian Pan. The news said that this Qi army exceeded 30,000 people, but at a glance, it was smaller than the Qi army. Thirty thousand people would be much more."
'Tian Pan. Zhang Yuan chewed the name, but did not reply. He sat on the horse and stared deeply at the Qi army in the distance, looking carefully from left to right. The war horse beneath him seemed to be able to feel the strong murderous intention of its owner, and it also moved its hooves restlessly.
However, human vision is limited after all, and the Qi army's troops were far beyond Zhang Yuan's vision. But according to the news from the scouts just now, this Qi army should be mainly infantry, with only a few chariots and light cavalry.
And based on the observation just now, there are rivers of different sizes not far ahead. The river water should be the channels dug out from the Lijin River locally to irrigate farmland. The reason why Zhang Yuan, the general in charge of the army, knew this was that Zhao State was currently engaged in agricultural affairs and establishing canals for farming. Last year, he was briefly sent to the army to do "farm work".
In the past, the water level in the channel was no more than knee high, but it seemed that the water level had risen a lot due to the heavy rains for several days. He found that in addition to passing through the pontoon bridges set up as usual, several columns of the Qi army were wading across the river. .
Moreover, although the Qi army had a normal guard team, it was extremely disorganized. Some columns even dispersed. The accompanying generals did not scold them. A quick look showed that the army was not organized at all.
After all, they were in Qidi, so the general of the Qi army would not have thought that the enemy could come here, and it was just across the forest from them, just a few feet away.
Even the Qi army's scouts did not go deep into the forest to detect.
Zhang Yuan pondered for a moment and raised his finger to point to the river channel in the distance: "After the Qi army crosses this river channel, they still have to walk several miles south to reach the Chidao (official road) leading to Rao'an. It's only a major road. There are still large forests on the east and west sides..."
Zhang Yuan paused for a moment, his eyes suddenly fierce and said: "The victory in the first battle is ours! We will attack the Qi army from here!"
The eyes of the generals lit up, and when they heard about their military exploits, they all felt as if they were getting blood.
At least half of the middle- and low-level generals who followed Captain Zhang Yuan were promoted from the bottom in the past few years. Their characteristic is that they are not afraid of death, but are afraid of not having any military merits.
At this time, a voice behind him suddenly said: "I think the general needs to be careful! Da Sima's military order only requires the general to follow and monitor, and don't fight in despair. Besides, the Qi army has many generals and Tian hopes to lead the army. On the other hand, our vanguard We don’t have enough troops, so the general needs to be careful!”
Zhang Yuan frowned slightly. He turned his head and saw that the person speaking was a young general in his twenties. Zhang Yuan didn't recognize this boy for a moment, and after thinking for a moment, he remembered that this boy was Leliang, the son of the upstart Yuechi of the Zhao Kingdom.
Yuechi not only provided help in times of need, but also helped Zhao Guo capture Jingxing in one fell swoop. In the next six months, he also captured the Hengshan Ancient Road, which had caused headaches for successive monarchs of Zhao Guo. He was quite capable, and Zhang Yuan admired him very much. But why is the son he taught so ignorant? Zhang Yuan couldn't help but think.
But he was the son of Yuechi after all. Thinking of this, Zhang Yuan did not reprimand the other party for his ignorance. In order to prevent being discovered by Qi Jun, he first waved his hand behind him. The Zhao army generals slowly withdrew into the woods.
After the men and horses stopped, a young general behind Leliang suddenly bowed to Zhang Yuan and said: "Although the number of the forwards led by the general is not large, they are five thousand fine cavalry. The terrain here is spacious and flat, which is very suitable for cavalry operations. This is The geographical location is favorable; judging from the Qi army's structure, it is not well prepared. If a sudden battle occurs, it will definitely be chaotic. However, our army's momentum is overwhelming and its morale is high. This is due to the harmony of the people. The weather, the location, and the harmony, our army takes the second place, I think , can fight!"
"The Sword Comes"
Zhang Yuan was stunned for a moment, who was this kid? He said everything he wanted to say. Zhang Yuan looked at the opponent for a moment and then said: "Wu Yangjun has already crossed the river, which is only a few feet away. Da Sima has also arrived at Maiqiu, but the main force of the Qi army is fifty miles away. Even if we don't eat the fields, I hope that this Qi army can only hold back Tian Pan from going south. If he delays for a moment, he will be besieged by the army, and we will still have the first victory."
Lechi looked around at this time and saw that all the generals around him were looking at him. Lechi hesitated a little and said, "This servant is just..."
Zhang Yuan interrupted him, and turned to the generals beside him and said, "I am the vanguard general appointed by the king himself. Now that the opportunity is right in front of us, how can we be timid in fighting?"
The generals responded one after another.
Zhang Yuan immediately ordered to the generals: "Dedicate a thousand cavalry to stay here. After the Qi army passes, they will immediately launch an attack to the south to cover up the enemy. Then they will meet with me! The rest of the people will immediately follow me to the front to set up formations. We can’t let Qi’s army advance alone and gain peace!”
"Yes!" The generals responded one after another. A burst of dust suddenly rolled up at the edge of the woods, and the slight sound of horse hooves sounded nearby again.
A thousand men were divided among the forward troops, leaving only more than 4,000 riders. But when four thousand cavalry gather and run, the formation is also huge. In order to prevent his whereabouts from being exposed, Zhang Yuan detached two thousand cavalry from the back slope on the southeast side and, using the cover of the woods, arranged them on the west side of the official road that the Qi army must pass through.
Zhang Yuan first asked five hundred soldiers holding crossbows to ambush in a field half a man high, waiting for the Qi army to pass by.
At this moment, Zhang Yuan discovered that Lechi and the young general who had made extraordinary remarks were following him. He took advantage of the situation and asked, "What is your name?"
The young general was stunned for a moment, and then he clasped his fists and said, "This servant is Wei Wen Baijiang, Le Yi."
Zhang Yuan nodded, now most of Zhao's cavalry are from Daijun, and even his elite Qi forwards are mostly cavalry from Daijun. When he heard the other party's name, he thought that the other party was a member of Lechi's clan. Now that the battle was about to begin, he didn't talk too much. After all, after this battle, it was still unclear how many people would live and how many would die, and neither could this little hundred generals. Can survive.
However, Zhang Yuan remembered the name Le Yi.
