Xue Zuo's river-crossing vanguard has only one mission, which is to defeat the enemy's bank protection troops. Only by clearing the bank obstacles can the follow-up army successfully land.
Even if his army works hard, the reward is also the highest. If someone dies in battle, he will be rewarded with fifty pieces of cloth, twenty guan of money, and five acres of fertile land.
This is very generous for civilian guards. Whether it can be implemented is another matter later.
On the other side of the Liao River, the forests are high and deep, and the hills are constantly undulating. It is not suitable for heavy cavalry to rush into formation, so Xue Zuo's tribe only has platoonmen and bow and arrow teams.
He Chou chose this place to build a pontoon bridge to prevent Goguryeo's armored cavalry from charging into the formation.
He Shili, the last guest of Goguryeo (equivalent to a military general), did not expect such a situation. The Sui army coming from the other side was obviously in disarray. It was basically a team of ten people in a combat formation. It was scattered and scattered. It was clear that it could be done in one fell swoop. Defeated, but ended up being completely unbeatable.
On the other hand, on my side, all the shield players on the outside were shot through.
He Shili, who was in the center of the military formation, took the armor-piercing arrow from his subordinates and looked at it carefully. He saw a cold light bursting from the arrow, which was completely different from the Sui army's arrows he had seen before.
"This arrow breaks armor with a ferocity that is beyond description. Not only is the Sui army's arrow powerful, its armor and weapons are also brand new and different from the past," his general described.
He Shili's face was solemn. He built a strong wall on the bank and cleared the fields. He burned out several plains early for the army to form. At present, the six military formations were in full contact with the Sui army crossing the river, but the troops sent from six directions The military situation makes people feel heavy.
Relying on the advantage of their armaments, the Sui army had already crossed the river in large groups and was frantically attacking the shore defense line. They were originally waiting for work, but now they are struggling from left to right.
He Shili said in a deep voice: "Call the troops to hold on with all their strength and not to take a step back. Anyone who disobeys the order will be killed."
The composition of Goguryeo's army was relatively complex, consisting of Goguryeo, Xianbei, Mahan, Huiqi, Mohe, Fuyu, and Han soldiers. The main force was Goguryeo and Buyeo.
He Shili's men were mostly composed of Xianbei and Han people, and they fought fiercely. Especially the King of Goguryeo, Gaoyuan, issued an edict that this was a battle to defend the country. If they failed, the country would be destroyed, so their line of defense was to defend to the death.
What does it mean to defend to the death? You have to defend even to the death.
A Han general said at this time: "The general thought that it would be better to retreat slowly to Sanfo Village. The terrain there is flat, which is conducive to charging into the formation with heavy cavalry."
"Inappropriate," He Shili raised his hand to deny: "The enemy's army is massive, numbering two million. Although it is an exaggeration, according to the Sui Dynasty emperor's military practice, there are at least 500,000. Our army is at an absolute disadvantage. , Sanfo Village is conducive to formation, which may lead to a decisive battle, and the enemy has the advantage of armor, how easy is it to break the formation?"
Several generals in the tent looked unhappy at the moment. In the final analysis, the equipment of the Sui army was too awesome.
Although Yang Guang was promiscuous, the time of the march, the numbers of the troops, and the general managers were all disclosed to the outside world, but he did not disclose the magic weapons of the Sui Dynasty. As a result, Goguryeo suffered a big loss as soon as the two sides came into contact.
After crossing the river, Xue Zuo ordered the army to be organized, and each brigade formed a formation, proceeding step by step, supporting each other, while he himself unfolded a roll of maps and discussed with several generals under his command in the woods not far from the shore.
The map was drawn by Deng Hao. The locations of the six camps set up by Goguryeo on the opposite bank are all marked on the map.
A general said: "Sanfo Village is a good place for formation. Our army should send 3,000 people to attack in this direction. After opening up the route, General Manager Mai's follow-up army can form troops here to lead to a decisive battle. .”
Xue Zuo nodded: "The enemy's six military strongholds are quite similar to our Nine Curves of the Yellow River Formation. The Three Buddhas Stronghold is in the middle, and the remaining five strongholds are in a defensive position. It can be seen that this should be the main force of the enemy's army. If we attack them , Wuzhai will be saved."
Xue Zuo couldn't defeat Sanfo Village, because his troop configuration was not to attack the enemy, but to press forward to make room for the troops behind to land.
At the moment, apart from sending 6,000 men to keep pushing forward, the rest are guarding the shore to prevent the enemy from suddenly coming out and attacking the pontoon.
This is also true. There are constant enemy soldiers in the woods holding kerosene and attacking their bridge defense line in the hope of destroying the pontoon bridge.
Xue Zuo immediately ordered: "Order Zhang Wunu and Wang Tong to assemble in the direction of Wuyu Mountain, use all their strength to open a passage to Sanfo Village, report the military situation to General Manager Li, and wait for the next military order."
Zhang Wunu, Wang Tong, and Wu Yushan were all hussar generals in the military government. Their positions in the army were guards.
The three groups add up to more than 3,000 people, and the distance is not far at the moment.
After landing, relying on the advantages of armaments, the vanguard army fought very smoothly and had advanced for seven or eight miles. During this period, they continued to fight with the enemy and had obvious advantages.
As a result, there was a strange phenomenon in Goguryeo. Instead of hitting you with the sword and spear in your hand, you would pick up rocks and hit you.
Armor-breaking requires heavy objects, that is, heavy weapons such as hammers and axes. However, Goguryeo's coastal garrison only had 200 people equipped with these weapons, and it is unknown where these 200 people died.
It was already late at night, and the two armies had a tacit understanding not to use torches for lighting. They were completely blind. You don't know where I am, and I don't know where you are.
The vanguard army has the task of delaying the enemy, so it doesn't care whether it can collide with you or not. If we do, we'll fight. If we can't, I'll keep pushing forward.
Only those guarding the shore used torches to guard against sneak attacks.
Here in Tongding Town, Li Jing, who received the military report, immediately ordered the main force of Mai Tiezhang to cross the river overnight. According to Xue Zuo's method, he went straight to Sanfo Village and must gather in the wilderness outside the military village before noon tomorrow. Array.
Mai Tiezhang hurriedly went down to prepare his army and horses.
"Both ways of crossing the river are going very smoothly now. He Taifu deserves the most credit," Li Jing said with a smile to He Chou.
He Chou hurriedly humbled himself: "It's my duty, and if the crossing goes smoothly, I'll feel at ease."
The six camps on the shore of Goguryeo are the outermost barrier of Liaodong City. As long as they are captured here, subsequent armies can cross the river one after another and form a high-pressure situation on the surrounding mountain cities of Liaodong.
Historically, Mai Tiezhang suffered the disadvantage of not being able to cross the river, but if you let him cross the river, you can't stop him.
Li Jing was in the lobby, continuing to arrange the subsequent river crossing with the generals.
The two pontoon bridges, including the Tuwanxu Department, need to cross more than 200,000 people. It would take seven or eight days to cross without stopping.
"After General Manager Mai crosses the river, General Manager Xin, you have to cross the river along the way. Don't worry about anything. After crossing the river, divide your troops into four groups and go directly south, outside Xiuyan Niangniang City, Anshi City, Futu City, and Desheng City. Set up camp and wait until General Tuwan attacks Liaodong, then you must capture these four mountain cities as soon as possible."
Xin Shixiong nodded: "So how many days of military rations should I prepare for my departure this time?"
"Half a month is enough," Li Jing said: "The follow-up baggage is still on the way, and I will send it to you by then. It's better to march now."
One of the most critical aspects of army dispatching is the allocation of resources. There must be no less of this and no more of that. They must be arranged reasonably. Although the food and grass for the forward army are completely sufficient, most of them are still on the way.
As for all the military supplies, only Li Jing can deploy them.
Xin Shixiong's group had 28,000 men, and it was easy to defeat the four mountain cities. Originally, these four mountain cities were not for him to attack, but Li Jing was worried that Liaodong City would be in trouble, so he wanted to open a route south early.
At this time, an army report arrived from the other side. Xue Zuo's three groups, Zhang Wnu, Wang Tong, and Wu Yushan, attracted a large number of enemy troops. They were now in danger of being surrounded. Xue Zuo requested the main force to cross the river immediately for support.
And Li Jing had just arranged for Mai Tiezhang to cross the river.
"Nine bends of the Yellow River Formation are used by the Sun Formation to station troops and go down to the stronghold. They are combined into nine formations before they can be used. The Sanfo Village is where the Sun Formation is, and it is a place that must be saved. The six villages are arranged in nine bends, and the universe is invisible. A bit nondescript," Li Jing said lightly.
Pei Xingyan laughed at the side and said: "Stealing an army is just a ploy. The foreign countries don't know the essence of our Central Plains art of war."
"Don't be careless," Li Jing said with a smile: "Looking at the terrain, the enemy only has six villages, which is a last resort. Don't be underestimated."
Pei Xingyan hurriedly said seriously: "The general has learned a lesson."
As drums and horns sounded on the shore, Mai Tiezhang's troops crossed the river.
"The three of you each take charge of your headquarters. After crossing the river, go directly to where Wuyu Mountain and others are, and meet up as soon as possible. Before dawn the day after tomorrow, you must clear the way for my main force to move forward. You must do it," Mai Tiezhang said to his three sons. commanded.
The three brothers said at the same time: "The last general will take orders."
Yang Guang boasted about Mai Tiezhang taking his three sons to the front line at the court meeting, because this was an example, and Yang Guang wanted to set Mai Tiezhang and his son as role models in the military so that others could learn from them.
Learning is impossible. No one can learn from Mai Iron Staff. You are not leaving a heir to your old Mai family.
And what Yang Guang means is, you have seen that my whole family is working hard for me, and what about you?
It can be seen at a glance who is loyal and who is not.
Yu Wenshu also benefited from it, because he had a son who was also in the army. The difference is that Mai Tiezhang's son was in the vanguard, while your son was in charge of the central army.
A dead soldier is not a general. This is a traditional rule in the army. The death of a general affects the dispatch of the army, so he cannot die.
The wheat iron staff is a dragon and a tiger, and he is covered with armor. He can walk as fast as flying when crossing the river. Yang Guang intended to cultivate him, so he once jokingly called him "little long live" at the court meeting.
It means a smaller version of Shi Long live.
It can be seen that he and Shi Wansui are following the same path, both are desperate.
If the pontoon bridge is trampled by so many people, there will definitely be problems. Therefore, Yang Wanshi's role is to stabilize the pontoon bridge and not affect the march.
The long locks on both sides of the bank were pulled up. Although the pontoon bridge had drifted away, the guards were constantly driving wedges to stabilize the bridge.
It was Yang Yue who arranged such a cheap job for Yang Wanshi. It was not convenient for Li Jing to refuse. He had to take care of both the people in the army and the people in the court.
Leading an army in a war is really not easy at all. Being able to lead an army is one thing, but you also have to be a good person.
Therefore, the two essential skills of a general are to understand and control subordinates, which is even more important than knowing how to use troops. These two skills of Li Jing were taught to him by Yang Su.
Thanks to his teachings, Li Jing will take appropriate care of Yang Wanshi and Yang Yuanqing, but there is a limit, because understanding and liking them is the priority.
And his favorite is Prince Yang Ming. (End of chapter)
