Huai River.
Together with Jiangshui, Heshui and Jishui, it is called Sidu. It is one of the most important rivers in China.
Its waters are turbulent and its banks are wide, making it difficult to cross without a boat or a boat.
"Marquis, I have sent people to cut down bamboos. Do you want to use these bamboos to build rafts for us to cross the river on bamboo rafts?"
Shejian walked over and asked softly.
Zhao Tuo still looked at the wetland across the river bank.
After a long time, he nodded and said: "Although the Huai River is wide, it is already past the flood season. After winter, the water volume in the river decreases and the water becomes gentle. We can use bamboo rafts to ferry people across, and we will definitely be able to cross!"
Zhao Tuo's voice was firm, because this was not a whim, but he knew that there had been such successful cases.
In Hengduan Mountain, the road is difficult to travel. The enemy has heavy troops and is pressing down on the Guizhou border. A warrior walks all over the world with his feet, and he crosses the Chishui River four times and emerges with surprise soldiers. Wujiang River is dangerous and difficult to cross...
The Red Army two thousand years later encountered an even more dangerous situation than this in the Wujiang River in the Guizhou border.
The Wujiang River flows rapidly, and there are no ships or bridges. There are even enemies on the other side of the river with artillery fire, looking down at them.
In such a critical situation, the army used local materials and used the light and flexible bamboo on the river bank to build rows of bamboo rafts. Then they braved the enemy's artillery fire and forcibly crossed the Wujiang River, and finally successfully completed the strategic transfer.
This living example has been imprinted in Zhao Tuo's heart since he was a child. This is why he vowed that his five thousand men could cross the Huai River.
There are bamboo forests growing on both sides of the Huai River. You can have as much bamboo as you want.
Although the Huai River is wider than the Wu River, due to the winter, the water is very gentle and gentle, making it far more suitable to cross the river by raft than the fast-flowing Wu River.
And the most important thing is that on the other side of Zhao Tuo, no enemy used artillery fire to intercept him.
The Qin army can take their time, even if they spend more time on trial and error, they will be able to cross the Huai River sooner or later.
It is the right time for the Huaihe River to flow slowly in winter; the two sides of the river here are wide open, and the bamboo forest grows here; there is no enemy to block it, and the soldiers under the command are united, which is harmony.
The time, place, and people are favorable, and the Qin army has all three, so how can it not cross the river.
After Zhao Tuo explained, Shejian also nodded.
After thinking for a while, Shebama said: "Then I will pick a few people who are good at water to try it out later. First, I will build a few bamboo rafts and let them cross the river. When they reach the other side, I will let them explore the terrain there. .”
"Well, it's safer this way, so I'll do as you say."
Zhao Tuo nodded. He saw Shejian looking tired at this moment. The clothes and armor on his body were covered with mud stains and filth. There was no trace of the majesty of the Qin Army's two to five hundred leaders. He looked like a man who had just emerged from the mud. old farmer.
Not only Shejian, Zhao Tuo turned his head and looked back and saw that near the river bank, the soldiers were either sitting down to rest according to their formation, or receiving orders to cut down bamboo forests.
No one talked, because everyone's face was full of exhaustion. Their faces were as black as coal, and their clothes were dirty and torn. If they didn't still hold weapons in their hands and wear armor on their bodies, I'm afraid they would have said so. Even thousands of refugee beggars would be believed.
Fortunately, it is winter. If it were summer with the scorching sun, everyone would probably smell bad.
….
"Thank you all for your hard work."
Zhao Tuo sighed lightly.
Traveling hundreds of miles this time is also a big challenge for this army. Because they were also traveling alone, with no logistical supply support, and the food each person carried was very limited. In addition, it was winter, everything was withered, and there were few fruits and vegetables in the forest.
Food must be eaten sparingly, so everyone's military rations must be carefully budgeted, mixed with the edible wild vegetable roots pointed out by the Chu guide, and boiled into thin rice porridge before they dare to eat it.
What pleased the soldiers the most was meeting Chu villages and towns on the way. Although Zhao Tuo would not massacre the village and silence everyone, he would not show mercy to a woman at such a time. He would rob when it was time to rob!
They robbed grain, rice, fruits, vegetables and meat, and even robbed Chu people of clothes and cloth, all to ensure the needs of the soldiers.
but
There were no large Chu cities on this route, and there were not many villages. In addition, the Qin army had nearly 5,000 people, so what they plundered would not last long. After walking hundreds of miles, most of the soldiers were still swallowing saliva and their stomachs growling.
But compared to the benefits of taking this path, this bit of suffering is nothing.
Zhao Tuo led his army southward and along the north bank of the Huaihe River. There were many benefits, the biggest of which was that he jumped directly out of the Chu army's encirclement.
According to Zhao Tuo's guess, in addition to part of the Chu army currently guarding Xiangcheng, the other part should be in the hinterland of Chu State, lying in wait on Li Xin's only path, waiting for Li Xin to crash in, and then Kill him and leave no trace behind.
That road is not guaranteed to lead to death, but it is definitely a narrow escape. The main force of the Chu army is calculated mentally and unintentionally, and Li Xin, who only thinks about the surprise attack on Shouchun, will definitely suffer a disastrous defeat.
If Zhao Tuo followed Li Xin, not only all the five thousand men under his command would be wiped out, but most of them would also be killed by the Chu people. Even his own life was in danger.
But now Zhao Tuo is taking the road on the north bank of the Huai River, where he basically encounters no enemies. Because all the Chu army's attention was attracted by Li Xin who was galloping in Huaibei, all the troops went towards Li Xin, but the line of Huai River was empty. Just like Xincai, which Zhao Tuo had conquered before, only two cities in one city. Three hundred people defended the city, which had no defensive power.
Of course, Zhao Tuo also paid great attention to the confidentiality of information. Except for senior military officials such as Shejian and Heiyi, ordinary soldiers in the army had no idea where they were going. The public claim was that they followed the Huai River and took a detour all the way to Hu. Yap.
The advantage of this is that it is difficult for others to see the true purpose of Zhao Tuo's trip. Even if some Chu people he met on the road escaped and mentioned the movements of this army to the Chu army, they would only say that they were in Wandering in Huaibei, no one would have guessed that this force without the support of a boat division would want to cross the wide Huai River.
Without a boat or a boat, how can I cross the Huai River?
"Crossing the Huai River!"
Zhao Tuo looked quietly at the direction of the Huaihe River.
Just downstream of the Huai River, less than a hundred miles away, Shouchun, the capital of Chu State, is there.
Surround Wei and rescue Zhao.
Attack them and save them!
This is why before the attack on Wei, Zhao Tuo went to Pinyang to ask Wang Jian how to save and reduce losses if our army failed on the battlefield and was pursued by the Chu army.
Wang Jian, who has always been steady, actually came up with a rather risky and radical strategy.
….
When the Chu army defeated the Qin army and chased them to the north.
After failure on the frontal battlefield, even if Zhao Tuo showed extraordinary bravery, he could not turn the tide on the battlefield with tens or hundreds of thousands of people, let alone change the outcome of defeat.
But if he could look beyond the battlefield and take a detour in advance to attack the empty areas where the Chu army must be rescued, he could divert the Chu people who were chasing Qin's defeated army, and at least divert some of the opponent's troops, allowing Li Xin to More Qin soldiers under his command escaped and ascended to heaven, perhaps saving Li Xin's life in danger.
Under the current situation, besides Shouchun, the capital of Chu, where else can the Chu army be saved?
"Li Xin used Meng Wu as bait to attract the Chu army, and he himself went as a surprise soldier to raid Shouchun."
"Li Xin is also my bait."
"I, Zhao Tuo, am the real surprise soldier!"
Zhao Tuo murmured, his eyes flashing with madness.
Not far away, under the command of Shejian, the Qin soldiers had already built the first batch of bamboo rafts and were pushed down the wide Huai River amidst shouts.
…
On the second day after Zhao Tuo led his troops across the Huai River.
Shouchun, the capital of Chu.
A light horse came from the north, bringing the latest news.
"The beacon has been lit in Xia Cai."
"Li Xin is here. He is capturing Cai and wants to cross the Huaihe River from there so that he can attack the capital of Bugu."
In the main hall of the Chu Palace, the King of Chu announced the news to the ministers in the palace with a livid expression on his face.
A gasp of cold air suddenly sounded in the hall.
This was the first time since the Chu State moved its capital to Shouchun that enemy troops came to the Huaihe River and threatened the Chu capital.
The psychological pressure caused by monarchs and ministers can be imagined.
Songyang Jun Jingzhao glanced at the palace, cupped his hands and said: "Your Majesty, don't be anxious. If there is no accident, Shangzhu State should lead our Chu army to follow behind Li Xin at this time. When Li Xin crosses the Huai River, his troops will arrive at Shouchun City. At the next moment, the Shangzhu Kingdom will also cross the Huaihe River and attack from its rear. In this way, the Qin army can be blocked in Huainan and all of them will be wiped out!"
"This is a good strategy. As long as the Qin army crosses the Huai River. There is a strong city in front and a large army chasing behind. Once the Qin army is defeated and blocked by the Huai River, no one can escape. They will definitely be annihilated by our army here!" No one in the Qin army can escape from this battle!"
Some Chu Chen echoed, his face full of joy.
However, the face of the King of Chu was still extremely ugly.
"Thirty thousand people... Then Li Xin has thirty thousand people! The guards in Shouchun City had previously transferred a group to Xiangcheng, but now there are only more than ten thousand people." The King of Chu whispered.
Jing Zhao's eyelids twitched, he knew what the king was worried about.
He hurriedly said: "Your Majesty, our Shouchun City has high walls and is well guarded by more than 10,000 people. Li Xin's 30,000 chariots and cavalry... No, he must have suffered losses along the way. At most, there are more than 20,000 people. Without logistical equipment, Under such circumstances, it is impossible to conquer Shouchun! Don't be anxious, your Majesty. If it is not possible, you can also recruit the young and strong Chu people in the city. You will definitely be able to recruit another ten or twenty thousand people. With such a number of people defending the city, Shouchun will definitely be defeated. No problem."
After hearing this, King Chu's face softened slightly, but his heart still did not let go.
Too dangerous!
Let Li Xin's 20,000 to 30,000 men pass through the Huai River, and let the Qin army approach Shouchun City.
As soon as he thought that the Qin people with spears and halberds and ferocious faces were outside the capital where they lived, and would attack Shouchun at any time, King Chu Chu was so frightened that he could not relax for a moment.
….
That's the Qin Army!
The Qin army is said to be invincible in the world!
The old capitals of the Chu State, Yan, Ying, and Chen, fell to the Qin army's war horses one after another. It was so miserable and helpless.
But now, he actually wants to send the Qin army across the Huai River and down to Shouchun City for the so-called total annihilation.
[The problem of slow update of new chapters has finally been solved. Download huann. here and view the latest chapters of this book on multiple sites at the same time. 】
What if?
What if Li Xin is really brave and invincible and captures Shouchun before Xiang Yan arrives?
What if there is an unexpected situation on Xiangyan Road and we are unable to return assistance in time?
just in case……
As long as there is a problem anywhere, he will become a prisoner of the Qin army, and Shouchun will also fall into the hands of the Qin people.
This is really dangerous!
The King of Chu's face turned blue and white in turns. Just thinking about the possibilities made his palms sweat and his body felt a little weak.
In the palace, Jin Xia, a close aide of the King of Chu, knew exactly what was going on when he saw the king's face.
He stood up, cupped his hands and said: "Your Majesty, I believe that the Qin army must not be allowed to pass through the Huai River and let Li Xin's troops reach the city. Otherwise, even if we win this battle, it will insult the prestige of our Chu country. We should send troops to the south bank of the Huai River immediately. Set up a formation to intercept and block the Qin army north of the Huai River."
"Then Li Xin cannot cross the Huai River, and the morale of the army will be in chaos. Shangzhu will lead an army to attack from behind, and the Qin army will be defeated. In this way, our Chu state will not only win, but Shouchun will not be in any danger."
Songyang Jun Jingzhao was shocked and shouted: "How can this be so? If we don't let the Qin army cross the Huaihe River, how can we annihilate them all?"
Jin Xia ignored Jing Zhao's words at all. He just stared at the king's couch and finally smiled when he saw the king of Chu holding his cud.
Jin Xia also smiled.
Annihilate the Qin army?
Does your Majesty want to completely annihilate the Qin army?
Dongjun taking off
