Bao Yuchun sat in his handsome tent, staring at the map in silence.
His current location is Duck Lake in the southeast of Nanzhao County, where 70,000 black armor elites and 30,000 navy light troops are hiding.
Ten days ago, the main force of the Zhenjiang Army led by Li Jiangyao arrived in Luanchuan County. Just as Bao Yuchun planned, the rebels' active retreat and the complex terrain on the Luanchuan Nanzhao front line successfully frightened Li Jiangyao.
The 300,000-strong army stopped at Luanchuan and did not dare to move forward easily.
At the same time, Ma Hongjie's troops left Yichuan and headed straight for Ruzhou. Bao Yuchun also used the strategy of luring the enemy deep into the enemy's territory, leading the Suzaku Army to advance rapidly.
The two lure the enemy deep, one is true and the other is false. The fake one was used to make Li Jiangyao suspicious, but the real one was specially prepared for Ma Hongjie.
Once the Suzaku Army was fooled and crossed Ruzhou and entered the Jiufeng Mountain area further south, Bao Yuchun's 100,000-strong army would immediately move north from Yahu Lake to separate the vanguard troops surrounding Ma Hongjie and create a perfect ambush for them. .
However, seeing that the war was about to begin, Bao Yuchun suddenly had an ominous premonition in his heart.
This is a pure intuition, without reason or reason, just a sudden inspiration for the general.
Could I have missed something?
With this question, Bao Yuchun sat in front of the map for a day and a night. At this time, he felt very tired, but he still did not dare to relax. He steeled himself and ordered his men to call the scouting deputy general.
"Are there any new reports from the Western Front? How is the Suppression Army?"
The deputy general responded with his hands raised: "I'm telling you, Commander-in-Chief, after Li Jiangyao's troops stationed in Luanchuan, they sent out multiple scouts to search Laojun Mountain, Baiyun Mountain and Erlong Mountain, and also conducted several reconnaissances on the Baihe River. In addition, There’s no movement.”
Bao Yuchun nodded and asked: "Are they keeping a close eye on their troops? Are there any shortages in each army and flag?"
"Our scouts lurked in the city in advance and organized surveillance in groups." The deputy general said: "So far, all six armies in Zhenjiang are here, and no one has left alone."
"That's not necessarily the case." Bao Yuchun snorted coldly: "As long as we take precautions, the enemy will also use deception to adjust the organization of each unit and disguise it. Our people are not familiar with the Zhenjiang Army, so they will inevitably be deceived."
The deputy scout heard this and said quickly: "I understand, I immediately reminded my subordinates to carefully verify the opponent's number and estimate the number of people in each department."
Bao Yuchun thought for a while and suddenly asked: "Are there any agents watching the path south of Laojun Mountain?"
The lieutenant general replied: "From Laojun Mountain to the south, all the way to Xixia County, there are our army's warning posts along the way. As long as the enemy takes a circuitous route from there, we will definitely be able to detect it in advance."
Seeing that his men were very well prepared, Bao Yuchun finally felt relieved. Running around and attacking is a common method of fighting. For the Zhenjiang Army who has experienced hundreds of battles, this is a familiar route, so he has to guard against it.
However, in order to reach their own flanks and rear, especially Xixia, Dengzhou, and even the Xiangcheng line, the enemy must trek through the vast western mountains, which is simply a nightmare for the cavalry.
Of course, Li Jiangyao could also send the infantry over the mountains instead, but in that case, the troops would not be able to carry out a rapid attack after they came out of the mountains.
If you control the river fleet, you will have enough time to intercept or rush to rescue if you find that the opponent's infantry is around.
Thinking of this, Bao Yuchun took a long breath and said to himself: "Okay, maybe I'm worrying too much. After all, he is just a child soldier in the martial arts hall, and he is still a classmate with that idiot Murong Xue. , presumably there is not much difference between the two."
The commander in chief of the Chinese army next to him stepped forward to help Bao Yuchun stand up and asked, "Commander, shall we set off?"
"Let's go!" Bao Yuchun waved his hand: "The ministries set off as planned and set up an ambush at the northern foot of Jiufeng Mountain, waiting for Ma Hongjie's vanguard to come and die!"
With an order, the 100,000 rebels hiding around Duck Lake took action. Some people rode warships upstream along the White River, while others got into the hilly areas not far away and headed north under the cover of the mountains.
Their destination was Jiufeng Mountain, seventy miles away to the north - the only way from Ruzhou to Nanzhao.
The army marched secretly in the night, and arrived at the preset ambush battlefield before dawn. Each battalion and team was divided into three directions, arranged layer by layer in the dense forest at the northern foot of Jiufeng Mountain, quietly waiting for the prey to take the bait.
The decoy troops responsible for attracting the opponent set off one step ahead and started a fierce battle with the vanguard of the Suzaku Legion that had just occupied Ruzhou.
The decoy soldiers and horses who were ordered to "only allow defeat but not victory" finally showed signs of collapse after three rounds of fierce attacks and turned around and fled south. Upon seeing this, the Suzaku Army pursued them without hesitation, as if they must annihilate all the rebels.
Bao Yuchun stood on the top of Jiufeng Mountain, looking at the dust rising on the plain in the distance, and couldn't help but secretly rejoiced: Ma Hongjie's vanguard team had about 30,000 troops. If he could swallow it up today, not only would the opponent's strength be greatly reduced, , and they will definitely become angry and confused because of this, and it will be easier to lead them away by the nose.
However, what Bao Yuchun didn't expect was that just as his decoy troops rushed into Jiufeng Mountain as if they were running for their lives, the Suzaku Army that was chasing behind them suddenly stopped, as if they knew there was an ambush hidden in the mountains and forests opposite.
Bao Yuchun couldn't help but feel a little puzzled by this situation.
It stands to reason that the terrain at the northern foot of Jiufeng Mountain is relatively flat and is not an ideal location for an ambush. Therefore, the opponent should not suddenly be on high alert for this place while pursuing a vigorous pursuit.
Unless... they already knew there would be an ambush here.
But that’s not right either?
Bao Yuchun secretly thought: In order to prevent the operation from being exposed, I also deliberately postponed the time of the operation. I did not lead the troops into Jiufeng Mountain until a few hours before the ambush started. How could Ma Hongjie's men accurately estimate the location of the ambush? Woolen cloth?
Bao Yuchun was puzzled about this problem. But no matter what, today's ambush battle must have come to nothing.
The key to laying an ambush is to hide in a strategic location and be unexpected. The opponent suddenly became alert. It was impossible for tens of thousands of soldiers and horses to be completely invisible in the mountains and forests. The Suzaku Legion only needed to send a dozen scouts to easily detect the traces of the ambush.
At this time, Bao Yuchun finally realized that the situation was not good, and quickly notified his subordinates to immediately retreat in batches and return to Duck Lake along the original route.
When he returned to the secret camp with the last troops, the bad news from the southern front also came.
The Ninth Army of Zhenjiang suddenly appeared in Xixia County, attacked the city and killed more than 1,800 people of the Xuanjia Army. It is now rushing straight towards Dengzhou!
Hearing the news, Bao Yuchun couldn't help but became furious, and repeatedly asked his subordinates, how on earth did the Zhenjiang Army get behind him? !
The deputy general was also frightened at this time and hurriedly explained that the Ninth Army of Zhenjiang was engaged in business in the mountains and detoured to the West Gorge, completely bypassing the surveillance network of the scouts and secret posts, so they were unable to discover their whereabouts in advance.
Bao Yuchun frowned when he heard this: Business in Dashan? There are high cliffs and dense forests, which are not suitable for cavalry to pass through. How can they detour from there?
However, just because it is not suitable for cavalry to pass does not mean that it is absolutely impossible to pass. As long as you are brave enough and willful enough, you can indeed reach Xixia County from the depths of the mountains, which is almost no man's land.
It is meaningless to dwell on these issues now. What matters is how to deal with them.
Bao Yuchun said in a deep voice: "How many people are there on the other side? Have you figured it out?"
"Looking at the flags, it should be the Ninth Army of Zhenjiang, about 46,000 to 50,000 people." The deputy scout replied: "All pure cavalry, extremely fast."
Bao Yuchun pondered and murmured: "Pure cavalry? They must all be light cavalry. Although 50,000 people is a lot, it won't cause a commotion. Come, let Xuanjia's fifth flag, sixth flag The fifth flag and the tenth flag immediately boarded the ship and went south along the Baihe River! The fifth flag assisted in the defense of Nanyang, the sixth flag went from Nanyang to the west and set up defenses in Zhenping County, and the tenth flag went from Nanyang to the south to defend Dengzhou. In two days Within, everything must be in place!”
The commander in chief of the Chinese army immediately responded loudly, turned around and ran out to convey the order.
Bao Yuchun unfolded the map, studied it carefully for a moment, and said: "The enemy's large-scale detour must be to cooperate with the actions of the main force on the front. Next, we must keep an eye on Li Jiangyao's side!"
Unexpectedly, before he finished speaking, a general ran in and reported: "Commander, Ma Hongjie's Suzaku Army has occupied Jiufeng Mountain, and the vanguard has arrived at Shahe River!"
Bao Yuchun couldn't help being slightly startled: "So fast? We just retreated and they chased Shahe?"
Another general said anxiously: "After Shahe, we are at Nanzhao County. There are less than 8,000 defenders in the city. What should we do? How about we go to reinforce it immediately? Duck Lake is only thirty or forty miles away from Nanzhao. The journey can be reached in a blink of an eye.”
Bao Yuchun shook his head: "Intelligence shows that Li Jiangyao and Ma Hongjie plan to join forces in Nanzhao County. If we go to defend there now, once we are bitten by the Suzaku Army, the Zhenjiang Army will soon press the border with troops and completely break it off." The survival of our army.”
The generals under his command nodded repeatedly: "That's true. We only have about 100,000 people, and now we have transferred the troops of the three banners. After all, we have less than 80,000 troops left. We may not be able to hold the Suzaku Army, let alone control the border. Those Western barbarians.”
Bao Yuchun waved his hand: "There is no need to hesitate! The whole army is ready and marching south together. We will retreat to Nanyang first. It is backed by the Baihe River and is not far from Xiangcheng. You can attack and retreat, and you can defend it. Dealing with Li Jiangyao and Ma Hongjie."
When the commander spoke, all the men immediately stood at attention, agreed in unison, and then quickly left the commander's tent. This time, it was no longer just the mobilization of troops from the three banners, but the rapid movement of the entire army.
Suddenly, the calm Duck Lake suddenly boiled. Countless sails were opened by sailors, and the huge fleet sailed southward against the setting sun.
