In the autumn of the third year of Qingguan, 90,000 Nanhuai troops and 50,000 Chu and Hunan troops faced off at Poyang Lake on the border of Nanhuai, Chu and Hunan.
Li Yaoyang was eager for revenge and marched very fast. In just five days, he marched all the way from Suzhou to Poyang Lake. The Nanhuai army is faster, and the Chu and Xiang army is even faster. They are located in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River and go down the river. When the sentinels from both sides learned about the other side, they stationed themselves on the east and west banks of Poyang Lake.
At night, in the Nanhuai Army camp, Li Yaoyang discussed countermeasures with a group of Nanhuai generals. Li Yaoyang sat in the main seat in the tent, with the second master Li Roncai, the third master Li Rongyi, the fourth master Li Rongneng and a number of generals sitting on both sides.
"Yang'er, this is a God-given opportunity. Our Nanhuai Army is best at water warfare. Now that we are confronting the Chu Xiang Army in Poyang Lake, it is a good opportunity to annihilate the Chu Xiang Army in one fell swoop! And it is already late autumn and winter is about to begin. Why not order The soldiers built warships, and in the late spring and early summer of next year, they will compete with Chu Xiang!" The second master, Li Rongcai, was the highest in seniority and put forward his opinion without hesitation.
"Still waiting until next year? Then why are we rushing here so quickly? We just want to make a quick decision!" Fourth Master Li Ronneng was impatient and quickly denied the second brother's proposal.
"It is true that soldiers are very fast, but the Chu and Hunan troops are not slow either. Just as we were about to enter the territory of Chu and Hunan, their 50,000-strong army arrived. Moreover, the Chu and Hunan troops faced us east and west, and we shared the benefits of Poyang Lake. , in my opinion, it is better to defend and wait for the attack. If we delay until the imperial edict is issued, can we still be defeated?" Third Master Li Rongyi was more conservative.
"Yes, Second Master's suggestion is feasible! We can't lose in a water battle!"
"Is Lu Zhan afraid of them? I don't believe it. We have to fight on land! We should fight tomorrow and avenge the prince as soon as possible!"
"The next priority is to attack the city, and the first priority is to attack the heart. We are so powerful that the longer we delay, the more beneficial it will be to us. Under pressure, the court can only lean towards our side. Don't forget, Nanhuai pays tribute every year. Take the lion’s share!”
For a time, there was a lot of discussion in the camp. Some supported the water war, some supported the urgent war, and some supported the delaying strategy. There were even some alienation schemes and honey traps, all of which were noisy.
"That's enough." Li Yaoyang sat in the main seat, and everyone was talking about it. "What the second master, third master, and fourth master said are all good, you might as well give it a try."
"The last general is stupid. The methods taught by the Second Master, the Third Master, and the Fourth Master are quite contradictory. How can I try them?" A bold general asked. Everyone nodded. Even the three brothers Li Rongcai were confused. , looked at Li Yaoyang, waiting for his thoughts.
"We will build warships tomorrow. We must not only build them, but also build them with great fanfare. It is best to let the Chu and Xiang armies on the opposite side see it. Not only the Chu and Xiang armies, but also Sichuan, Shu, Xigui, and the imperial spies. Come on, our fight-to-die attitude is here!" Li Yaoyang said, pointing to Poyang Lake on the map.
"Then Fourth Master's..." The bold general hesitated to speak, fearing that Li Yaoyang had not considered it and spoke out to refute his face.
Li Yaoyang smiled coldly: "Tomorrow I will lead three thousand cavalry and go north around Lushan Mountain to catch them off guard!"
Only then did everyone realize that Li Yaoyang wanted most of the Nanhuai troops to build warships to the east of the Nanhuai army to attract attention, while he led his light cavalry to sneak around and attack.
"This method... may be feasible. Yang'er is brave enough to defeat the three armies. This plan of building a plank road to attack Chen Cang secretly is also feasible. But... there are fifty thousand people on the opposite side, and only three thousand riders are there. Is it too risky?" The cautious Er Er Grandpa Li Rongcai saw the risks in the plan at a glance.
"Three thousand cavalry are more than enough. As long as I charge and kill a few times, I can scare the opponent's courage! Furthermore, Nanhuai war horses are scarce, and there are not many excellent cavalry. If you bring more people, it will be easier to attract the opponent's attention." Li Yaoyang Having mentioned Nanhuai's weaknesses is indeed an indisputable fact.
"Yang'er, fourth uncle will go with you tomorrow!" Fourth Master Li Rongneng was gearing up and seemed a little impatient.
The second master, Li Rongcai, stood up and stopped him: "Fourth brother, you can't go. You have an impatient personality. Both of you are impatient when things happen. No one can try to persuade the other. Third brother, thank you for your hard work. You and Yang'er can go there." Let’s go.”
"Okay...Yang'er, how sure are you?" Third Master Li Rongyi said in agreement, but he was still a little weak in his heart.
"100% sure!" Li Yaoyang said confidently.
"Now that it's decided, let's all rest early and recharge our batteries." Second Master Li Rongcai said to everyone, "Jiang Ping, Han Wu, you two have superb riding skills. We will go together tomorrow."
Just as the named second general was about to accept his order, Li Yaoyang raised his hand and said, "No, we'll leave tonight. I'm worried that something might change later." After saying that, Li Yaoyang looked at the second general, Li Roncai.
Second Master Li Rongcai had no choice but to nod: "Since you have made up your mind, let's do it tonight."
Everyone exited the camp one after another. Generals Li Yaoyang, Jiang Ping, and Han Wu also went out to order the troops, leaving three old brothers alone in the camp.
"Alas." Second Master Li Rongcai sighed and sat back on the chair.
"Why are you sighing, second brother?" Fourth Master Li Rongneng asked when he saw his second brother sighing.
The second master, Li Rongcai, said quietly: "I am old, a hero of the younger generation! But I always feel a little uneasy. If Xing'er were here, I would definitely be able to come up with a better plan."
Fourth Master Li Rongneng said with a smile: "Second brother likes to worry about things blindly. I think this idea is a good one. We can use the art of war everywhere. Don't always underestimate Yang'er. The elder brother's affairs have hit him hard. I thought that Yang'er only I know how to use force, but now I use wisdom, isn’t it a good thing?”
"I hope I'm just worrying about it." Second Master Li Rongcai comforted himself.
The continuous autumn rain has stopped long ago, but the weather has not cleared up. The dark clouds still linger. The large dark clouds cover the moonlight, and the surrounding areas are pitch black.
A group of cavalry left the Nanhuai Army's tent in unison, with Li Yaoyang and Li Rongyi riding side by side, followed by Jiang Ping and Han Wu, heading north.
…
Yi Xiaodao and Li Dingxing had just returned outside Su City when they saw Li Yaoyang's army leaving Su City in a mighty manner. When Li Yaoyang decided to go to war with Chu Xiang, he also realized that he had misunderstood Yi Xiaodao. However, he could not find Yi Xiaodao for a while, and when the front line was full of people, he withdrew all his scouts. Therefore, Yi Xiaodao and the two happened to witness the departure of the army.
The two of them followed the army at a distance without knowing what was going on. They asked questions along the way and learned that it was Chu Xiang's beggar gang who assassinated the King of Nanhuai. Li Yaoyang had gone to revolt to avenge his father. The two of them did not dare to neglect and hurriedly chased after them. However, Li Yaoyang led the army in a hurry. How could the two of them match the speed of the army? Yi Xiaodao was okay, but he suffered a lot from Li Dingxing. He ran all the way, chasing after him slowly, and in the end he was still half a day behind the army.
"Brother...brother ran too fast..." Li Dingxing gasped.
"It's human nature for the eldest son to be eager for revenge. Where are we... I'm afraid we're approaching Wancheng, right?" In the dark night, Yi Xiaodao couldn't figure out the direction. In fact, the two of them never knew where they were. At this time, all we have to do is chase the Nanhuai army behind us.
"It stands to reason... We have passed Wancheng... We should be... almost to Changcheng now..." Li Dingxing finally couldn't run anymore and stopped to gasp for air.
Yi Xiaodao also stopped quickly: "Second Young Master, it's not easy for you either... When have you ever experienced such hardship..."
"Have you ever suffered...this kind of pain? I...can't even think...I dare not think...that I can run...so far." Li Dingxing rolled his eyes at Yi Xiaodao angrily. The two of them dined and slept in the open all the way. Li Dingxing only had some scattered silver with him, and he ran away long ago. It was Yi Xiaodao who collected food along the way, but the food was very ordinary to Yi Xiaodao, but it was difficult for Li Dingxing to swallow it. So much so that Li Dingxing often wondered whether Yi Xiaodao was deliberately trying to get revenge on him for being tricked into the Nanhuai Prince's Mansion.
"That's..." Yi Xiaodao pointed to a group of torches in the distance and asked Li Dingxing.
"It's Big Brother... Hello... Big Brother!" Li Dingxing recognized the uniform of the Nanhuai Army and shouted. However, the Nanhuai Army had just lit the torches and was marching at a faster pace. Tens of thousands of horse hooves made a sound on the ground, blocking Li Dingxing's shouts from the cavalry formation.
Li Dingxing was a little confused: "Brother...where are they going..."
Yi Xiaodao looked at the cavalry team going away and asked, "Could it be...are they planning to attack at night?"
"Night attack? How can you go with a torch..." Li Dingxing finally took a breath, but before he could finish his words, he couldn't help but let out an "ah" and fell into the mud with one foot.
Yi Xiaodao grabbed Li Dingxing and pulled him out, saying: "This place is close to Poyang Lake. The ground is muddy and there are swamps. It would be really difficult to go without a torch..."
"Big brother... Big brother is going to make a sneak attack. To the north of Poyang Lake is Mount Lu. Big brother wanted to bypass Mount Lu to make a sneak attack on Chu Xiang, but it happened!" Li Dingxing reacted and shouted, "No!"
"What's wrong?" Yi Xiaodao asked.
"Lushan Mountain is located in the northwest of Poyang Lake. The Chu Xiang Army is on the west bank of Poyang Lake. Lushan Mountain is within their range. People will definitely be guarding highlands such as Lushan Mountain. My eldest brother is still lighting a torch at night. That is simply telling the enemy that the night is coming. Attacked!" Li Dingxing said while holding Yi Xiaodao.
Yi Xiaodao quickly comforted Li Dingxing and said: "Don't worry, I'm not sure yet whether the eldest master is going for a sneak attack. Let's talk about it. Even if he is going for a sneak attack, it's already dawn even if the cavalry rushes over. If we catch up, maybe we can stop it. Young Master!"
Li Dingxing and Yi Xiaodao quickly chased the cavalry in front of them who were gradually moving away. The poor two chased the army all the way from Nanhuai without stopping for a moment. Fortunately for Yi Xiaodao, he had traveled long distances from Wancheng to the capital before. Although the speed was not very fast, he had brought Xiang Lian'er and He Yue'er with him. Now he and Li Dingxing are traveling together. Li Dingxing looks weak, but he is a martial arts practitioner after all, and he still has some foundation. The arrow wound shot by the two scouts in Nanhuai has almost healed while running along the way.
Li Yaoyang was in front, Yi Xiaodao and Li Dingxing were behind, chasing each other for most of the night.
Li Dingxing couldn't run anymore and sat down on the ground: "Yi Xiaodao, you... you hurry up and chase... Brother, don't worry about me... I want to rest..."
Yi Xiaodao looked at Li Dingxing who was slumped on the ground and understood that he had indeed reached his limit. However, Yi Xiaodao was really worried about leaving Li Dingxing here in the middle of the night. There are not many ferocious beasts in this swamp, but there are still a lot of poisonous insect pythons. Li Dingxing has no experience in the wild, which is really worrying.
"Hey, brother... stop. Yi Xiaodao, help me... get up." Li Dingxing looked at the torch in the distance, felt happy, and quickly motioned for Yi Xiaodao to pull him up.
The two of them supported each other and rushed towards the torch.
