"General Meng, we have received news from General Li that our army captured Pingyu two days ago."
In the Qin camp in Yingshui outside Xiangcheng, General Yang Yuan handed over his hand to report.
Meng Wu nodded. When he heard the news of Li Xin's victory in the first battle, his face not only lost the joy, but became more solemn.
He stared closely at the point representing Xiangcheng on the map, and stretched out his finger to slightly slide over several surrounding cities.
[In view of the general environment,
"Have you found no trace of Chu's reinforcements yet?"
Another general, Pi, who was responsible for investigating intelligence, quickly replied: "General, our cavalry has explored fifty miles around Xiangcheng, but no trace of the Chu reinforcements has been found."
There was silence in the tent, and even Yang Yuan, who had just reported the good news, had a dark face.
He whispered: "General Meng, according to the information sent back by people in the past, many princes in the eastern and southern borders of the Chu Kingdom are gathering soldiers to prepare to support Xiangcheng. Calculating the time, there should be at least a few troops now. We’re near Xiangcheng.”
"Our troops besieged Xiangcheng. In addition to containing Xiang Yan, our purpose was to draw all the Chu troops over to cover General Li's surprise attack. There were no reinforcements from Chu for fifty miles around Xiangcheng. In this case, I'm afraid, Something’s wrong.”
Meng Wu nodded slightly and said in a deep voice: "Put the scouts farther away and explore all the way to Xinqi in the east to see the situation of the Chu army there."
"Open Xiangcheng's contact with the outside world again, and let people spread the news that Pingyu was captured by our army's partial division, which will disrupt the morale of the army. If they send people out, they must intercept them. I want to know the situation in the city!"
Meng Wu spoke slowly and issued a series of military orders.
His eyes were still fixed on the Xiangcheng point on the map. Now the Qin army was riding a tiger and it was difficult to get down.
Even if Meng Wu discovered that something was wrong, he would not be able to abandon Xiangcheng and go south, otherwise he would be easily pursued from behind by the Chu army in Xiangcheng, and the food route would also be easily cut off. As for dividing the troops and heading south, that would be too dangerous and would be easily defeated by the Chu people one by one.
All Meng Wu can do is continue to attack Xiangcheng and fight with Xiang Yan here.
…
South of Xiangcheng and east of Pingyu.
Sleeping hill.
War drums rumbled, and the black Qin flag fluttered in the wind.
Qin soldiers wearing armor and stomach, carrying crudely made bamboo and wooden ladders, climbed the four walls of the sleeping mound like ants.
Qiuqiu is located in the hinterland of the Chu Kingdom. It is just a small city. The city is no more than ten feet high, and there are less than a thousand soldiers in the city. They are divided into four walls, and there are only more than 200 guards on each wall.
Under the Qin army's surprise attack, in less than half an hour, Qiuqiu was declared to have fallen, and all the Chu people in the city became prisoners of the Qin army.
Li Xin walked into Qiuqiu City expressionlessly.
As soon as he entered the city gate, he saw the Duke of Chu kneeling at the city gate with a sword pointed at him by a Qin soldier, begging for mercy with a look of fear on his face.
"General, I surrender. Please spare my life, General."
The bed-in-law kept kowtowing, and there were tears everywhere on his fat face.
Li Xin frowned.
"Cut it."
"No, General, please spare my life. I am willing to do anything for General..."
Li Xin's stiff face softened a little as he watched his fat bedmate being dragged away.
….
Under the guard of short soldiers, he walked to the city wall and looked around.
He saw the Chu people in the city being driven back to their houses, and the Qin soldiers began to carry grain from the treasury in Qiuqiu. At the same time, the army outside the city also began to set up camp.
Li Xin had a cold expression and whispered: "Everything is as I expected. Both Pingyu and Qiuqiu were captured in half a day. The hinterland of Huaibei in Chu State has no defense or hindrance to my raid. Therefore, your Where does the worry come from?”
"What are you afraid of?"
Finally, Li Xin looked to the southeast.
Now that Qiu Qiu has been captured, we can walk hundreds of miles southeast to reach Hu Yi on the edge of Yingshui River. The Qin army can search for ships from Hu Yi and cross the Ying River. Once on the east bank of Yingshui River, Li Xin can
Contact the Chu generals in Juyang for support. At that location, continue traveling in the southeast direction, go straight to Xiacai on the edge of the Huai River, and cross the Huai River from there.
In this way, Shouchun, the capital of Chu, is just around the corner!
"Zhao Tuo, I don't know what you want to do, but you will definitely regret it!"
"I look forward to seeing the expressions of you, Meng Wu and others when I accomplish my astonishing feat."
Li Xin murmured, clenching his hands into fists, and there were bulging veins on the back of his hands.
A short soldier came from the rear and whispered: "General, General Xin Wu has sent us military information. Our rangers found a Chu army more than ten miles south of Qiu Qiu and are marching towards here."
…
South of Pingyu, on the side of Ru River, is Xincai.
A battle has just come to an end.
Zhao Tuo stood on the chariot, looking at the Xincai city wall in front of him with his own black flag, his expression slightly relieved.
The battle was faster than he thought. Perhaps he did not expect that the Qin army would suddenly come from the north. Xincai City was almost unprepared. Under the leadership of Hei Butt, his subordinates of a thousand men captured it with a single charge. This city.
"Military Marquis, Xincai received a call from the King of Chu before and sent 5,000 men to the north in the direction of Qiuqiu to support the Chu army in Xiangcheng. Therefore, there are only a few hundred guards in the city."
Xiqigu came over and reported in a low voice.
Zhao Tuo nodded, no wonder Xincai was so easy to attack. In addition to the fact that the Chu people in the city were unprepared, it was also because Xincai's young and strong soldiers had been transferred away.
"Go north to support Xiang Cheng?"
Zhao Tuo narrowed his eyes slightly and cast his gaze north.
Going north from Xincai to Xiangcheng, you will definitely pass through Qiuqiu for supplies. Wouldn't you run into Li Xin?
A mere five thousand people, to Li Xin's Guanzhong elite, were like a piece of rotten wood that would break upon impact.
What really worried Zhao Tuo was whether there would be a large net spread out on Li Xin's route to the east, waiting for Li Xin to fall into it.
"Carry grain and fodder from the Xincai Mansion, let the soldiers eat and drink well, and after resting for half an hour, the army will set off immediately. A group of men and horses will be left to guard the city. By the way, it is still announced that our army will march eastward. Go to Hu Yi by the Ying River and meet General Li there."
Zhao Tuo issued military orders one after another.
Xiqigu was shocked and said: "Marquis, why don't we rest here for the night? We have been traveling for days and our soldiers are tired. If we encounter the Chu army on the road, we may not be able to fight."
Zhao Tuo looked at the sky and saw that it was still early before dark.
And what they need most is time.
….
Zhao Tuo murmured: "I'm afraid we won't encounter the Chu army. Our next enemies are not Chu people. Also, you need to find a few more guides from the city. They should be older and familiar with the area around Huai River." "
Under Zhao Tuo's order, the Qin army's efficient execution capabilities were brought into full play.
More than an hour after the capture of Xincai City, in addition to leaving a group of soldiers to garrison, nearly 5,000 people replenished the food they carried and set off immediately. They first walked several miles from the east gate of Xincai, and after staying away from the Chu people's sight, they immediately turned to the south. Soon we arrived at the side of Ru River, which flows in the southeast direction.
After a slight repair here, the Qin army quickly moved south along the road near Ru River.
South of Xincai, reaching the Huai River, there were no other Chu cities to stop their progress.
After a day and night of rapid march.
Zhao Tuo's troops arrived at a large river.
Huai River.
"After winter, the water volume of the Huaihe River dropped sharply."
Zhao Tuo looked at the water of the Huaihe River flowing in front of him, thoughtfully.
But he had no intention of leading his army across the river here. Without boats, it would be very difficult for these five thousand people to cross the Huai River.
"There will always be a way."
Zhao Tuo's eyes were firm.
Shejian came from behind and said softly: "The soldiers are exhausted. Although the stragglers have caught up, they no longer have the energy to continue moving forward. The soldiers must be allowed to rest."
Zhao Tuo said softly: "Thank you for your hard work, everyone."
, have a good rest today and start marching again early tomorrow morning. "
Shejian nodded. He did not leave immediately, but asked: "Tuo, after you and General Li separated their troops, you never told us the destination of our trip. Could it be that you wanted to cross the Huai River and lead us to attack Chu?" A city in the southern part of the country?"
"I can cross the river, but not now."
Zhao Tuo whispered, his eyes following the Huai River flowing eastward, looking eastward, as if he could see the tall capital of Chu State through hundreds of miles of Chu land.
Shouchun.
Dongjun taking off
