Chapter 564: Camp in the West of the City
It is said that Zhao Yun's surprise attack troops ran all the way in the darkness, passing through the countryside between Runan County and Yiyang County along the Huaihe River, and then turned southeast in Luoshan County, passing through the canyon between Mopan Mountain and Jinji Mountain, across the wide area. The irrigation shoal passed through Gushi County and rubbed against the edge of the West Jiuhua Mountain, and finally arrived at Lu'an County, which is only a hundred miles away from Hefei.
It was already daybreak, and Zhao Yun's regiment ran for more than 200 miles without encountering any resistance. They took a short break in the dense forest on the outskirts of Lu'an to get some dry food and water. After the reconnaissance cavalry returned, they reported on the battle situation near Jinzhai. Apparently it was the harassment troops arranged by Xi Zhicai that attracted a total of 80,000 ambushes from Li Dian and Xia Houyuan. If Cao Mengde's plan succeeds, Hefei's trap will swallow up countless Qinglong troops.
According to Zhuge Liang's established strategy, Zhao Yun's army must not have any delays on the way. They must rush to Hefei City as soon as possible and take advantage of the gap of only 5,000 garrison troops in the city to capture Hefei City in one fell swoop. After the surprise attack on Hefei was successful, Zhao Yun had to wait for reinforcements for more than a month, occupy the Hefei granary, and completely block Cao's army's grain transportation route. After the more than 200,000 Cao troops near the Lujiang River were without food, they had to fight Zhou Yu's troops in a war of siege and attrition. , and finally starved to death in the muddy swamp area between the Dabie Mountains and Chaohu Lake.
This seemingly impossible task has now been almost completed. There is no longer a Cao army on the route of Zhao Yun's army. In the last hundred miles, as long as Zhao Yun's army exerts its strength, the waterway can directly reach the moat of Hefei City using the Beifei River. The land road is flat and the cavalry can charge directly to the Hefei city wall.
Feishui is also used as fertilizer water and originates from Jiangjun Ridge between Feixi County and Shouxian County. The Feishui River is divided into two branches by Jiangjun Ridge. One flows to the northwest and flows out of Shouxian County and enters the Huaihe River after more than 200 miles. The other flows to the southeast and flows into Chaohu Lake after more than 100 miles. The Feishui in the famous Battle of Feishui in history is the Feishui in the south, and the Feishui also provides a natural source for Hefei's moat.
Zhao Yun's army used water, mounted their horses again, brushed against Li Dian's rear army, and entered the hilly area in the southern suburbs of Hefei without anyone noticing. Although it was only a few dozen miles away from Li Mancheng's army, the terrain was sheltered and Li Dian's troops were attracted by Shi Hui's Qinglong Army. Zhao Yun's surprise attack force still escaped the eyes of Cao Jun's reconnaissance cavalry.
At night, in a small mountain valley fifty miles away from Hefei, countless Qinglong troops were busy cutting down trees and making siege ladders and equipment. In this low chun forest, there were many taller cypress and pine trees, all of which were cut down by the Qinglong Army and used to make ladders. After tonight, in the early hours of tomorrow, it will be the scheduled time for a surprise attack on the city. Due to the lack of ships on the Beifei River, only a few boats of scouts could be sent into the moat. Zhao Yun had given up the waterway attack. The entire army had crossed the Beifei River and could only attack by land.
Although the cavalry is fast, it cannot cross the wide moat and high city wall. Therefore, Zhao Yun, Gao Shun, and Gao Lan have already decided to use the vacant West Camp outside the North City of Hefei as clearly pointed out in the intelligence. If we can deploy the siege forces in the West Camp before dawn, we might be able to use the speed of the cavalry to capture the city gate in one fell swoop when the north gate of Hefei City opens. If they failed, they would have no choice but to set up ladders nearby to attack the city.
Cao's army has always been stationed in the East Camp opposite the West Camp. It should be a temporary force specially designed to handle the grain and grass transportation lines. The number is unknown, but the total number of defenders inside the city and those outside the city will not exceed 8,000.
A steady stream of information was passed back from the scouts who reported back. Zhao Yun saw that although the number of ladders was insufficient, it was already past midnight, so he gave an order, and the men took their titles, and the horses picked up their bells. The army walked for more than thirty miles in this way, crossing In the Sankang Gang area criss-crossed by Bay Branch, the dark silhouette of Hefei City is on the right side of the troops, and under the small hill is the dark West Camp without a trace of light.
Descending from the hill, they pried open the fence surrounding the West Camp. After Zhao Yun's troops entered, they quickly dispersed into the deserted tents. The war horses were also hidden in the tents to feed some fodder.
This camp in the west of Hefei City was originally a hiding place for Li Dian's troops. Cao Cao used it as a surprise force to block the passage between Lu'an and Jiangxia at any time. According to Cao Cao's strategic layout, he is determined to win both Lujiang and Jiangxia on the Yangtze River this time. At least he can capture one of them, control the troop dispatching ports on the Yangtze River, train powerful sailors, and travel along the Yangtze River.
After five strong troops suppressed Lujiang, Huang Zu surrendered successfully. Cao Cao personally led the army, gathered Xiahou Dun and Xu Chu, and headed straight for Jiangxia. The defense of the passage from Hefei to Jiangxia was left to Li Dian and Li Mancheng. Cao Cao was still uneasy, so he secretly deployed Xia Houyuan's heavy troops in Macheng to ensure that even if he himself was defeated, he would be able to escape to Fei.
Cao Cao originally planned to leave no stone unturned, and he also attached great importance to the security of Hefei City. Unfortunately, in order to completely suppress the Qinglong Army and Jiangdong Army in Lujiang County and Jiangxia County, he used too many troops on the front line. Forget it, Zhao Yun's troops can travel a long distance from Wancheng and pass through Runan County to implement the plan to surprise Hefei. Although Zhao Yun's troops for the long-distance attack were no more than ten thousand, everyone was an elite. Even if they stayed up for three days and three nights, their combat effectiveness did not weaken at all.
Zhao Yun's regiment entered the West Camp without any danger, and sent reconnaissance cavalry to the East Camp on the other side of the road to investigate. Although there were lights in the East Camp, there was no movement. Zhao Yun arranged for two thousand crossbowmen and one thousand cavalry, led by Gao Lan, to ambush inside the fence of the West Camp to deal with Cao's army in the East Camp.
The darkness before dawn finally came, and the 5,000 cavalry and 2,000 siege troops of the Qinglong Army began to assemble in the darkness. The cavalry was naturally led by Zhao Yun. The riders were fully armed and stood beside the horses, trying not to make any noise. Two thousand siege troops were handed over to Gao Shun's trap camp, and they were all lying neatly on the edge of the ladder. Everyone was waiting for Zhao Yun's order to set off.
The sound of gongs on the top of Hefei Beicheng City could be heard in the distance. This side of Beicheng was not the focus of Cao Jun's defense. There was a large camp garrisoned outside the city, so it was not the focus of defense. As the sky was getting brighter, the Dongda Camp opposite was still lifeless. The soldiers guarding the city had already climbed to the top of the city. After a sound of winches, the suspension bridge outside the North City had slowly begun to descend.
The scouts who entered the moat along the Bei Fei River last night had been waiting for this moment in the sparse forest outside the site. They quickly lit a pile of cow dung as a signal bonfire outside the city. Dried cow dung contains a large amount of crude fiber, which forms fine fibers after burning. The thin wisp of black smoke was very obvious in the gradually brightening sky, but it did not arouse the suspicion of the soldiers at the top of the city.
The suspension bridge slowly landed on the other side of the moat, and then the city gate gradually opened. A few soldiers walked to the end of the suspension bridge and set up barricades to guard it. At this moment, there was less than a small group of guards under the city gate, and there were only a few watchmen on the top of the city. The sky was still gray, so the best time to attack had finally arrived.
If you want to know what happens next, listen to the explanation next time.
