As early as May when the Han army was mobilized, Sun Quan, the self-leading cavalry general and Yangzhou pastor, led his troops from Moling to Shouchun. One hundred thousand soldiers and horses gathered in the Chaohu and Huainan areas, often patrolling between the Huai River and the Surabaya River in boats, and the momentum was not small. However, what is intriguing is that despite heavy rain and rising water, the time and place clearly changed in a direction favorable to the Wu people, but Sun Quan did not take any action. Instead, he stayed in Shouchun for a long time to watch the development of the situation in Huaibei.
The reason for this is actually not difficult to discern. Although Xuzhou is a strategic location directly reaching the Central Plains, this is from an offensive perspective. For the Sun Wu regime, which aimed at separatist rule, it was a bit tasteless, and it would be a pity to abandon it if it was tasteless. After all, as early as ten years ago, Liu Bei and Chen Chong had advocated ceding Xuzhou to Sun Ce in order to secure a good alliance. However, Sun Ce concentrated on the south and had no intention of participating in the struggle between the two heroes. He only retained Huainan and then transferred the land of Huaibei to Cao Cao. Aiming to maintain the balance between east and west in the Central Plains. But after all, he is small and broad, but his intentions are powerless. Three years ago, Cao Cao was defeated in Linzi, and Sun Quan had no choice but to take over Huaibei again. From this perspective, it should not be overestimated how determined the Sun Wu regime will be to hold on to Xuzhou.
However, although the Wu people did not have the determination to hold on, they could not sit back and watch Xuzhou lose to the Han army. Especially for Sun Quan, who inherited the rule with wisdom and wisdom, the occupation of Xuzhou was the easiest and most successful expansion since he came to power, and it was also an important political capital for him. Giving up the territory so easily was not necessarily wrong in terms of strategic decision-making, but it was a major blow to Sun Quan on the political level. Therefore, he had shown off his power in Huaibei several times before, and his intention was very simple, which was to force the Han army to give up attacking Xuzhou and instead go to deal with the Liao bandits in Mobei and the Liao people in Haidong.
If he really had to abandon Xuzhou, Sun Quan also hoped that the frontline soldiers would take the initiative, and he would then follow the trend and withdraw the Huaibei Army to Huainan. In this way, one can reduce one's political responsibility.
But as a result, the Wu people were at a complete disadvantage in terms of specific war deployment. After the Han army began to mobilize formally, first Sima Yi defeated the Wu army in two on the tenth, and then Guan Yu set up traps on all sides of Huaibei. On the fifth day, he drove all Wu's Huaibei regiment out of the city and forced them to flee south. The route Liu Ye chose from Quyang and Haixi to Huai was also blocked by Zhao Yun in advance.
On the morning of the fifth day of August, the two armies met west of Dayi Mountain. The Wu army numbered about 30,000 people and the Han army numbered about 40,000 people. The two armies were of equal strength. So Liu Ye sent two thousand elites to try to break out of the encirclement head-on, while former Han general Zhao Yun led more than a thousand elite cavalry to fight with him. During the fierce battle, Zhao Yun killed eight warriors in a row. The Wu people were frightened and retreated. When Liu Ye saw this, he did not dare to fight anymore, so he had to garrison Dayin Mountain with most of his troops, set up camp here, and then asked Sun Quan of Shouchun for rescue.
After the messengers ran away, various departments of the Han army also went south one after another. First Guan Yu's headquarters, then Guo Huai, Du Ji, Sun Zi's troops, plus Zhao Yun, Huang Quan and other troops who had previously confronted Liu Ye, nearly 100,000 Han troops surrounded 30,000 Wu troops, and then behind the Wu camp Deer antler wooden fences are built on all the external passages. The strategic intention is very obvious, which is to make it difficult for the Wu army in Huaibei to fly.
After Sun Quan received the letter, his expression changed drastically. He could accept withdrawing from Huaibei, but he could not accept the loss of 30,000 soldiers in one day, so he immediately held a military meeting to relieve the siege. At this time, his staff in Shouchun included Lu Su, Lu Meng, Zhang Zhao, Bu Zhi, Gu Yong, Zhu Ran, Ling Tong and others. They all advocated not to confront the Han army head-on, but to make use of their strengths and avoid their weaknesses, and to criticize the arrogant and denounce the weak. Therefore, the navy can be led north along the Surabaya River to capture Xiapi and Pengcheng. Although it may not necessarily break the city, it can threaten the Han army's retreat route and force Guan Yu to relieve the siege.
So Sun Quan personally led his army upstream from Suiling, intending to go straight to Pi. As a result, when passing by Xiaxiang, they found that Sima Yi had pulled up iron cables on both sides of the Surabaya River and built pontoons to prevent ships from moving forward. Sun Quan thought that Sima Yi could not support the ship alone, so he ordered Ling Tong to light a fire on the bow of the ship and melt the iron cables, and then ordered the pontoon bridge to be demolished. After four days of busy work, the waterway was finally cleared. As a result, not far behind, the navy was forced to stop again. It turns out that Sima Yi also laid a lot of plum blossom piles in this section of the river. The wooden piles were deep or shallow, so that the ships would run aground if they were not careful.
The Wu people walked and walked in this water area, demolishing and building. After ten days, they only traveled less than ten miles, but the dry season was just around the corner. Once the dry season arrives and the ships cannot sail in the Si River, the Wu people's naval advantage will gradually disappear, and the Han army's cavalry will completely dominate the battlefield. At this point, the generals already knew that the plan to force the Han army to withdraw through waterways would probably be impossible to implement. So what should we do now? Go to Dayin Mountain and fight the Han army head-on? No one is sure.
It was Lu Su who said to Sun Quan: "Tens of thousands of soldiers are trapped in a tight siege. If we abandon them all without firing an arrow, I am afraid that the lord's people will lose their hearts and the foundation of the country will be greatly damaged. If we don't fight today, we will suffer in the future." No one dares to fight. It’s time to make up your mind, we can’t just surrender!”
Sun Quan finally made up his mind. Then he led his troops back into the Huai River and stationed his troops at Huai Pu. He used this as an advance base and then entered Huaibei from the swimming point. Youshui and Zushui intersect at Haixi, and Haixi is now occupied by Zhao Yun. As long as Haixi can be retaken, the Wu people can break into Zushui with their navy, and naturally relieve Liu Ye.
It's just that now, it's September, the weather is getting colder, and the water level in Huaibei is gradually dropping. The Wu people's tall ships have completely withdrawn from the battlefield. Only the stern boats and walking boats can still sail in the river. Under this situation, the infantry battle has ended. It has become the inevitable and only choice.
In order to ensure victory in the first battle, Sun Quan personally held the battle, with Ling Tong and Jiang Qin as the forwards, Zhu Ran and Lu Meng as the center troops, and himself and Lu Su, the rear guard, marched toward Haixi with more than 80,000 people. But Guan Yu just set up his general's tent in Haixi. When he heard the news that Wu's army was out, he couldn't help laughing and said to the generals: "Wu'er has entered my urn." He immediately ordered 60,000 soldiers and horses to swim in the meander of the river. They formed a formation and waited for the Wu army to arrive.
The two armies met at noon on the sixth day of September. At that time, the sun was high in the sky, emitting a dazzling light, but the body did not feel the heat. After all, the autumn tiger had long passed, and the sea breeze from dozens of miles away blew over. People seemed to be able to smell the cold and wet like thin ice, but it was even more so. I could smell the uncontrollable murderous aura on both sides.
At this time, the Han army was in the north, and 20,000 cavalry troops were already fully armed in the front line. Under the scorching sun, their fine armor was shining brightly. The Han army's military strength was completely blocked by the front army, and the rear arrangement could not be seen. Only endless flags were flying in the air. This majestic scene was so overwhelming that those who came could not breathe.
As for the Wu army in the south, although they had already formed an array, they were traveling by the water after all. The entire army's array had been stretched into a long line, but they were extremely cautious. When moving forward, they lined up with vehicles on the left wing and leaned against the river bank on the right wing. , although there were no big ships on the river bank, there were a series of fighting ships, and the fleet of boats stretched for several miles, which could meet the Wu army on land at any time. Although this arrangement was conservative, it was enough to render the Han army's most commonly used hammer and anvil tactics useless. Therefore, the Han army did not launch an attack immediately, but waited for Wu Jun's action. After all, Wu Jun was the attacking party now.
This was also the first time for Sun Quan to observe the Han army at such a close distance. His staff all said that the enemy's formation was so tight and there were so many cavalry that a direct attack would have little chance of victory. It would be better to send an elite soldier in front as bait to lure the enemy's formation. Changes, it is not too late to send rear troops, even if the disadvantage is unfavorable, they can retreat and fight again. Sun Quan had some hesitation in his heart, but after hearing this suggestion, he immediately agreed and ordered Ling to lead two thousand strong crossbowmen to attack the front line of the Han army.
The Han army was much more mobile than the Wu army, so Ling Tong did not make unnecessary maneuvers, but instead attacked the Han army head-on along the river. As the drums of the exciting march began to beat, the front line of the Han army began to loosen up. The men and horses gathered in rows, forming a medium-sized square formation. They moved along the river, stepping forward step by step. The huge lineups of the two armies were like a stone, smashing into the lake without hesitation, and soon caused ripples in the Han army.
Since the two armies were very close, it didn't take long for the Wu people in the front to enter the archery range of the Han army. But the Han army did not rush to shoot arrows, but spread slightly to both sides, hoping to lead the Wu army into a deeper situation. But Wu Jun had no such intention. After they stood firm, they still crowded together, and then used powerful crossbows to fire at the Han army. Knowing that most of the Han troops were covered with thick armor, Wu Jun deliberately lowered the crossbow arrows and aimed specifically at them. Once an arrow is released from the horse's belly, dozens of horses will often fall to the ground whining. After three rounds of arrows are released, they will continue to move forward.
But the Han army was obviously not discouraged by these rounds of firing arrows. When they saw that something was wrong, they all dismounted and formed a formation, with several rows in front and behind extending their long spears forward. The gleaming thorns were lifted up layer by layer, like countless iron thorns growing out of the ground. The cold light among them was so vast that it made people shudder.
At the moment when the two armies finally came into contact, the Han army's generals let out a hoarse roar. The Han soldiers holding spears all fought forward. They rushed to the almost stationary formation of the Wu army and stabbed them wildly with their spears. . Taking advantage of this opportunity, the Han troops in the rear row all nocked arrows and drew their bows, and began to shoot aimlessly into the distance. Many Han troops in the middle bent down and attacked from below with short knives, directly entering the ranks of the Wu army. Inside.
At this time, a confrontation took place directly between flesh and blood. It is also the most direct game between the Eastern and Western armies in the past few decades, using will to test will and using death to force death back. The attacking Wu people had never seen such a tactics before. The battle line between the two sides only maintained for two moments. The Wu people during the battle felt unspeakable fear and began to be squeezed back by the Han army unconsciously. Even though Ling Tong continued to supervise the battle and forced the soldiers forward, these efforts were in vain in the face of the Han army's triple offensive. Many people died, and then some Wu people began to retreat, and the maintenance of the formation soon became almost impossible.
Sun Quan watched this scene helplessly, and then he realized how big the gap between the two armies was. He quickly sent people to pick up Ling Tong when he came back, and then said to Lu Su distressedly: "How can the swimming fish come ashore by themselves? Any bird can bully them." At the same time, he ordered the entire army to retreat slowly, using all the elites. Behind the palace, avoid the approach of most of the Han army.
But the Han army had no intention of pursuing them. When they saw the Wu people retreating, they just kept laughing and watching quietly from a distance, while the Wu people gritted their teeth and did not dare to step forward. Obviously, after just one brief confrontation, most of the Wu army had lost the courage to fight on foot with the Han army.
