As many as seventy people attended the meeting at night. In addition to Liu Bei and Chen Chong, there were thirteen Han marquis and Sima, seven Xiongnu kings with their own surnames, six kings with different surnames, thirty-seven Guduhous, eight generals Baibo, and three Xiaoshuai Shuofang. The participants were all facing each other with swords and swords, but now they were safe in the same tent. Everyone sighed in their hearts: the love and hatred of enemies, friends and foes in the world are nothing but the lasting charm of bells.
There were so many people, so naturally there was no need to pay attention to priorities. One person and one horse sat in four rows. Chen Chong took out a piece of white cloth, used charcoal to trace the terrain on both sides of the bank, and then marked the distribution of the Han troops on the south bank. He hung it in the center of the commander's tent and asked Liu Bei to talk about the current situation.
Liu Bei pointed to both sides of Shaling, and after thinking for a while, he said: "The Xianbei people have captured the entire county of Dingxiang and are guarding the dangerous points, which is why they forced our army to confront each other here. The two armies face each other across the river. Our army is powerful, while the Xianbei army is outnumbered. , it seems that the situation is ours, but there are three disadvantages. First, although our army has a large number of people, we have wasted money and food, and cannot hold out against the enemy for a long time; second, Xianbei has a favorable geographical position, and we need to cross the river to attack the thieves, even though there are many people It is also difficult to gain the upper hand; thirdly, our army is a newly formed mass, while Xianbei is an experienced mass, so the coordination of the military formation cannot be achieved suddenly. These three disadvantages are enough to eliminate our numerical strength, but our army has to fight quickly. We I am troubled by this, and I wonder if you have any solution?"
Everyone discussed this all night, and there were suggestions of building embankments to open up roads, as well as strategies to lure the enemy deeper. But the most popular one was Dugu Liwei's strategy. Although he was defeated by Liu Bei in the Battle of Qixian, he was only a deputy general and his bravery was not as good as Guan Yu and Lu Bu. It was not a short-term fault. Everyone listened to his explanation: "Since our army has to cross the river to fight, we must fight for the lead without fear of bows, arrows and swords, but we can think twice about where we cross the river."
Everyone's faces showed approval. Dugu Liwei was very satisfied and continued: "I am based in Jiling, Shanan. I know the terrain on both sides of the river, so I stayed five miles west of here. There is Shaling Lake to the north of the river. Shaling Lake is located in the north of the river. To the west of the mausoleum city, it is seven miles long from north to south and about four miles wide from east to west, and is less than two miles away from the river. Our army can form a formation here to cross the river to attract Xianbei, and then separate a surprise force to cross the river from Shaling Lake. , as long as we occupy the dangerous position, if the enemy goes to rescue, our army will then cross the river from the front of the formation. If the enemy does not go to rescue, our army will cross the river from Shaling Lake. As long as our army successfully crosses the river, the Xianbei dogs will be exhausted after a long battle. , and how can we win if we are outnumbered and alone?”
Everyone nodded after what he said, and Liu Bei thought it was quite feasible. He thought that if he wanted to send elite troops to cross the river first, he still needed Taiyuan County soldiers to go first, so he first sought the opinions of the Han generals. Guan Yu, Zhang Fei and others usually licked blood from their swords, so they naturally agreed happily. Although Gu Yi and Ling Huyuan looked troubled, they also knew Liu Bei's difficulties and finally agreed.
So Liu Bei made the following deployment: Use 9,000 Taiyuan County soldiers as a surprise force to move to the left wing, and move 20,000 Tiefu soldiers and horses to the center army to support the left wing at any time. Liu Bei thought that the remaining Xiongnu tribes would be embarrassed to fight, so he stopped them. On the right wing, they made a big show of force to make the Xianbei people mistakenly think that the Han army would cross the river in the east. In fact, after the Taiyuan County soldiers successfully crossed the river, the right wing followed the Chinese army and finally crossed the river.
Afterwards, Liu Bei asked Chen Chong for his opinion. Chen Chong nodded and agreed with him and said: "Xuande, you have made careful arrangements and handled things properly. You have arranged your troops in their proper places. If you can figure out the plan, you will definitely win a big victory. Just expect the enemy to be lenient and the leader can do it for you." Xianbei has been in charge of the country for several years, and he is also a hero of his lifetime. We cannot underestimate the sudden changes. If you let me temporarily lead the Baibo people and retreat behind the three armies, if things change suddenly, I can still deal with it calmly."
Liu Bei was inexplicable and thought to himself: The two armies are facing each other across the river. Our army crosses the river to attack them. Even if the vanguard is in danger, we also use the front troops on the left and right to rescue. Ting Jian, what can you do if you retreat behind the three armies? But he had always been convinced by Chen Chong. Since the offensive of the front army would not be harmed, he listened to Chen Chong's advice and let Chen Chong leave to coordinate with General Bai Bo.
Now that the plan was finalized, the Han army started operating according to the deployment. The next day, on the right day, Wang Luan Ti, Ou Tuoquan, Helian Fanmo, Su Jipu Nu, Dugu Liwei, Yuwen Qiwei and other 16 troops appeared. On the river bank, logs, mulberry and hemp were transported from the rear army, and rafts and walking boats were built on the south bank of the river. Some knights were also sent to the north bank to play drums in demonstration, which surprised the Xianbei people on the north bank.
The Bingzhou County soldiers secretly marched westward according to their organizational structure. After one group arrived at the location, the latter group set off quietly to minimize the noise. After all 9,000 people were in place, they still had to wait for the Baibo Army from behind to make rafts and send them. Only when everything is ready can you cross the river.
Before the war, Liu Bei frequently sent envoys to inquire about news on the north bank: "How many Xianbei people are there at Shaling Lake?" "A mere few thousand people." "How many Xianbei people are there on the other side of Outuo Spring?" "As far as the eye can see, there are banners everywhere. We can vaguely see Shan Yu's cap, numbering about 40,000." "Good! Good!"
Liu Bei was very happy, thinking that in this situation, as long as Yun Chang and Yide crossed the river, the war would be 70% sure. As well as trusting Chen Chong's wisdom, he also trusted the bravery of his two sworn brothers with life and death. Seeing that the situation was favorable to him, he immediately asked: "How are Guan and Zhang Sima preparing to cross the river?" The envoy came back and replied: " It will be ready tonight and we can cross the river tomorrow."
It was already April 22nd. Liu Bei weighed it up and made up his mind to say to the generals: "Then we will cross the river tomorrow night!" After making up his mind, he gave detailed instructions to his followers: "Let the Huotou camp have more troops tonight." Make some meat and send it to Guan Sima and the others. The two of them can often eat an ox a day and are invincible on the battlefield. This is the case for all soldiers. These days they live in the mountains and do not make fires. It is important to cross the river tomorrow night. Victory or defeat, the robe cannot lose its strength."
That night, the entire army rested and reorganized. Except for a small number of sentries standing guard on the river bank, the rest of the soldiers went to bed early to make final preparations for the next day's battle.
But what Liu Bei didn't expect was that there was still a group of cavalry passing through on the south bank of the river. They were led by Bu Dugen. When the Han army marched westward, Bu Dugen led 10,000 knights to sneak into the mountains and forests behind Jiling. In the middle of the war, Shan Yu's scouts sent a letter saying that the Han army was preparing to cross the river on the south bank. He immediately crossed the river at night from Jiling. The Xiongnu guards in Shanan mistakenly thought that the Xianbei people were confronting each other in Shaling. They even relaxed their sentries and gave in. Dugen climbed to the west bank without any hindrance.
When all the cavalrymen landed on the west bank, Bu Dugen suppressed the cheers in his heart. He encouraged several adults under his command: "The whole army can safely cross the river, but the Han army is unaware of it. God is really helping me! You should fight with me quickly. Let's decide, if we win this battle, the three counties of Xihe, Shuofang and Shangjun will be under our control! After achieving such a great cause, all the tribes will definitely return home, and when my brother regains control of Xianbei, it will be right before our eyes!"
Bu Dugen has always been famous in Xianbei for his stability and wisdom. Now he wears an iron armor with white wild goose feathers on his head, black armor tied with red rope, and a yellow-red brocade robe. The raised stand-up collar makes him even more powerful. , all the generals saw his excited expression, and their hearts were inspired by the boldness of this war action, and they all said in unison: "How dare you not obey your orders!"
They held high the yellow-red galloping flag, and suddenly held up torches. The team of ten thousand people suddenly formed a long flaming dragon on the dark ground. They rode their horses around the river bank and plunged straight west into the mountain ravine. They walked for twenty After confirming that no one knew their traces, Bu Dugen led his army to speed up and suddenly rushed northeast for seventy miles. Just before dawn, they stepped onto the last ravine to the west of Shalingdu. .
When the leading troops went up the mountain, Bu Dugen ordered all the knights to extinguish the fire. Under the deep blue sky, he looked at the layout of the Han army two miles away. The Han army camp was silent, except for a few sparks of fire along the river. Obviously, most of them were The Han army was still sleeping.
This was an excellent opportunity for a surprise attack. Upon seeing this, Bu Dugen ordered the generals and reminded: "Since our army has reached the back of the Han army, we can drive the Han army to the bank of the river and cover them all with the river water. We must not wait for a while. I was too excited to kill, but I missed the best opportunity." All the generals nodded in agreement.
So the commander blew the horn on the east side, and the sound of the horn resounded through the morning light. The Xianbei knights cheered and descended the slope from the top of the mountain. The distance of two miles only took a moment. The Hun soldiers in the military camp were awakened by the sound of horns, but they were still sleepy and confused. The antlers of the rear camp were weakly arranged, with only a few hundred Hun guards. With almost a charge, the defense of the rear camp was easily broken through.
The rear camp was where the Yuwen Ministry was stationed. Yuwen Qiwei hurriedly put on his leather armor, took out his long spear, and splashed cold water on his face. He then rode on his horse and called the soldiers while looking for the Xianbei people, but it was obviously too late. The Xianbei people had rushed into the depths of the rear camp, less than a hundred steps away from him.
The person leading the Xianbei knights here is Lord Suotou Tuoba Jiefen. He was the son of Tuoba Lin. He was valued by his father for his fairness and bravery. Therefore, Tuoba Lin was inferior to him in advance. Both of them were highly valued by the leader. Tuoba Jiefen saw that Yuwen Qiwei was tall and had a good figure. Many soldiers asked him for help and knew that he was the leader here. They immediately drew their swords and stepped forward to challenge him.
Yuwen Qi Wei Hun did not expect that the situation was so bad. When Tuoba Jiefen rushed towards him, he was not ready for a fight, so he could only turn his horse and flee backwards. However, Tuoba Jiefen had already picked up his speed, and there was a distance between the two. The line became shorter and shorter. Tuoba Jiefen saw that the distance was enough, and he immediately swung his sword at him. Yuwen Qiwei had no choice but to use a stick to deal with it, but he picked up the wrong weapon in his haste. The stick was made of pine wood. After it was made, Tuoba Jiefen chopped it into two pieces.
Seeing that Tuoba Jiefen was about to be hacked to death with the next blow, Yuwen Qiwei concentrated his wits and smashed the stick on Tuoba Jiefen. Tuoba Jiefen was caught off guard and was hit by two poles, blinding his vision. When he couldn't help it, he was kicked by Yuwen Qiwei on his horse. He fell to the ground and injured his foot. Only then could Yuwen Qiwei escape.
But even if Yuwen Qiwei survived for a while, the entire rear camp of the Han army was in chaos. The soldiers were unorganized and were surrounded and slaughtered by the Xianbei people. The Xianbei people threw torches at the camp and burned into a sea of fire under the gradually whitening dome.
The sentries on the river bank had no idea what was going on in the rear camp. The situation in front of them had attracted all their attention: the Xianbei Chanyu on the north bank held high his flag, countless soldiers pulled out rafts from the camp and put them on the river. The Xianbei people were actually trying to cross the river first!
