The imperial naval fleet launched an unreasonable raid and successively broke through the three military port bases of Jiangling, Shishou and Hemingzhou, destroyed more than 300 rebel ships of various types, and burned countless grain and grass baggage. Bao Yu was immediately deceived. spring.
He had never expected in advance that Yang Li would be so powerful. He didn't pay attention to the battle that was about to break out downstream, and directly stabbed his own weakness with a knife, taking advantage of the lack of rebel troops to sweep across the upper reaches of the river.
If Zhu Hailin and others had not responded promptly and resisted vigorously, I am afraid that even Yueyang would have fallen into the hands of the opponent.
However, the nightmare did not end because of Yang Li's withdrawal.
The rebels who were waiting to ambush the imperial fleet at Cehu were in danger at the same time!
As soon as Bao Yuchun received the urgent battle report from upstream, the Qinglong Army near Ce Lake began to launch a fierce attack on the disguised rebel navy. Ce Lake occupies a small area, with only a narrow waterway connected to the river. The Qinglong Legion used trebuchets to attack rebel warships from a long distance, and at the same time scuttled temporarily recruited merchant ships and civilian ships in the waterway, preparing to completely block the waterway and catch turtles in the jar.
Bao Xinyan, who was in charge of leading the team, saw that the situation was not good and reacted immediately, leading his men to rush outward. He is a general with rich combat experience, and he has elite soldiers who have been following him for a long time. After a fierce breakout, Bao Xinyan finally broke out before the Qinglong Army completely blocked the Cuihu Waterway.
However, despite his quick response and proper command, he still paid a heavy price. More than thirty elite warships were eventually left behind in Ce Lake.
Originally planning to ambush and attack others, but now being plotted by the other party, Bao Xinyan was frightened and angry. As soon as he returned to the camp, he didn't even bother to deal with his injuries and ran straight to his uncle to ask about the whole story.
When he heard Bao Yuchun tell the whole story, he couldn't help but be stunned on the spot.
"Did Yang Li... suddenly become so smart?" Bao Xinyan found it difficult to understand this.
"I'm afraid there is an expert guiding me from behind." Bao Yuchun said depressedly: "I have a feeling that Li Jiangyao should be involved. Although the Zhenjiang Army did not appear, both Yang Li and Murong Xue were there. Take his orders secretly."
Bao Xinyan frowned: "According to what you say, then Li Jiangyao is not the commander-in-chief of the front line?"
Bao Yuchun nodded gloomily: "It's true but not famous. Li Jiangyao's status in the minds of the generals in the imperial court is increasing day by day, and more and more people are willing to obey his orders. This is expected sooner or later. Alas, I have been on the battlefield for many years, but I didn’t expect that I would be played with by a doll in the end.”
Bao Xinyan sighed and asked, "Uncle, what should we do next? What will be our army's next move, and what will King Jin explain?"
"Ye Rongcheng is probably having some fun again," Bao Yuchun shook his head: "This Operation Blackbird was originally meant to have the Xuanjia-type people cooperate and provide cover, while our navy played the leading role. But now the drama is gone. If you sing well, you will suffer heavy losses. Due to Lao Jianhua's temperament, he will definitely rely more on the army. I'm afraid our life will be difficult."
Bao Xinyan originally asked his uncle what he was going to do next, but Bao Yuchun unexpectedly vented his sorrow first and talked about the people and things of the Xuanjia system. It was obvious that this famous battlefield general was already a little confused.
Bao Xinyan had no choice but to advise: "Uncle, don't worry too much. To maintain the barrier of the river defense line and protect the safety of the entire south, we have to rely on our Kuohai Navy and you to take charge of the overall situation. In this regard, Xuan Xinyan has no choice but to advise. Army A is useless, King Jin and Lao Jianhua know better than anyone else."
Bao Yuchun nodded dejectedly: "You are right, the river defense line must be defended carefully, otherwise we will all be destroyed together. Yan'er, what do you think we should do next?"
Bao Xinyan replied without hesitation: "I suggest changing the previous defensive strategy and taking the initiative to attack! Uncle, blindly defending is not the answer. On the contrary, you will give up your greatest advantage."
Bao Yuchun was silent for a while and said coldly: "You mean to concentrate our forces to fight the opponent in a decisive battle across the river?"
"That's right!" Bao Xinyan said: "Previously, Lao Jianhua was worried about the main force of the imperial army crossing the river, especially the Zhenjiang Army, so he strictly ordered our navy to defend in sections and defend the waterway. This was originally contrary to the law. The fundamental law of water warfare violates the taboo of military strategists. Now that we have no way to retreat, we simply ignore his bullshit orders and give it a go!"
After listening to his nephew's words, Bao Yuchun thought for a moment again and hesitated: "Will this annoy him? After all, our supply support depends entirely on..."
"As long as we can win the battle, Lao Jianhua will eventually bow to us!" Bao Xinyan waved his hand and said loudly: "Uncle, don't hesitate any longer. If this continues, Yang Li upstream and Nie Xianzeng downstream will sooner or later defeat us. Eat it one bite at a time!”
Bao Yuchun thought to himself: Yan'er's words make sense. In several consecutive battles, the navy was defeated and lost troops and generals. The main reason was that there was something wrong with the overall strategy.
The segmented defense method made it difficult for his Kuohai Navy to fight independently. Not only was it difficult to use their combined strength, but they were also exhausted and extremely passive, which gave Li Jiangyao and the others opportunities again and again.
On the other hand, Ye Rongcheng's Xuanjia Army succeeded in a series of attacks with only one surprise attack, instantly boosting their morale.
This just shows that the best defense is to concentrate on attacking proactively. However, if you listen to Lao Jianhua's conspiratorial arguments and engage in suspicious tactics, you will only be laughed out of the enemy in the end.
And Yan'er is right in saying that only by winning the war will his position in the south be more stable, otherwise the situation will become even worse.
Thinking of this, Bao Yuchun raised his head and asked, "Who do you think we should focus on hitting first?"
Bao Xinyan responded: "Since Yang Li has attacked many of my water strongholds, let's attack him first and immediately launch a counterattack to destroy Yiling in one fell swoop, so that the enemy will know that the Kuohai Navy is not someone to be trifled with!"
Bao Yuchun stood up and came to the map, staring at the river: "Are you sure?"
"80% chance of winning!" Bao Xinyan said loudly: "I already know him very well. As long as we concentrate our superior forces, we will definitely win!"
"Okay!" Bao Yuchun made up his mind: "Gather the fleets from all over the place! From now on, I will no longer defend and take the initiative to attack! Kill the imperial navy first, and then turn around and defeat Li Jiangyao's Tenth Army. By that time, It’s me who has the final say in Dajiang!”
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The great victory achieved by the imperial navy surprised the imperial capital. What was originally a cautious defensive battle was turned into a powerful sweep across the river by Yang Li, once again making Li Bing feel that the rebellion could be suppressed.
He ordered the Ministry of War to heavily reward the meritorious soldiers, and also specifically praised the Ministry of Household for providing a large amount of supplies to the navy in a timely manner, ensuring the success of the continuous raids, which made Wei Zixuan not know whether to be happy or worried.
At the same time, Li Bing also issued a special order to Yang Li, encouraging him to continue working hard to capture Yueyang as soon as possible and once again severely damage the rebels' water power.
However, Yang Li, the naval commander who had made great achievements, was not happy. On the contrary, this taciturn young general felt that tremendous pressure was approaching Yiling.
The Intelligence Department of the Zhenjiang Army sent the latest news. The rebel fleet has begun to mobilize frequently. Various signs show that Bao Yuchun is unwilling to fail and may intend to completely change his previous style of play and make a desperate move to launch a decisive battle.
And the enemy's first choice target is him.
In terms of Bao Yuchun's strength, once he decided to fight hard, he no longer needed any tactical deception. As the saying goes, if one force defeats ten societies, any strategy will be greatly ineffective, leaving only a solid fight.
Yang Li knew very well that the combat power in his hands was not yet able to compete with his opponents. Even if the two sides exchange one for one, or even two for one, the rebels can completely destroy the Yiling fleet.
The haze of failure once again enveloped the imperial navy.
During the crisis, Yang Li thought of Li Jiangyao again. He quickly wrote a letter and sent someone to the front line of Luzhou to ask for advice on how to deal with the enemy.
Li Jiangyao was also studying the new changes in the rebels at this time. After Bao Yuchun's uncle and nephew suffered a heavy loss, they decided not to implement Lao Jianhua's request to defend strictly and instead wanted to concentrate their forces to find opportunities to fight, destroy the court's water power in one fell swoop, and regain absolute control of the river.
This situation is both reasonable and unexpected.
The Intelligence Department responded that Lao Jianhua was very opposed to Bao Yuchun's idea, but Bao Yuchun insisted on his own opinion despite all opinions. He would rather have an unhappy quarrel with Lao Jianhua than launch an attack.
As a result, Lao Jianhua had no choice but to give in temporarily and agreed to give the navy a try.
Therefore, Yang Li's worries should soon turn into reality.
The current news is that except for the rebel fleet in the Jinling area that has not moved and continues to stay in place to monitor Kunpeng's Tenth Army, the rest of the Kuohai Navy's main forces are all gathering upstream, and the total force may exceed 1,500 ships. .
News came out from within the enemy that Bao Yuchun would personally serve as the commander-in-chief and direct the battle in this battle, while his nephew Bao Xinyan would serve as the vanguard of the entire army, leading the direct battleships under his command to launch a surprise attack.
The uncle and nephew join forces and are determined to win.
"Jiang Yao, what are your plans?" Xu Youchang put down Yang Li's letter for help and asked in a deep voice.
Li Jiangyao did not answer him in a hurry. Instead, he stared at the map and pondered silently.
Nie Xianzang, who was sitting aside, hesitated for a moment and tried to ask: "Do you want us to prepare reinforcements to assist Yang Li and Wen Lie?"
Xu Youchang looked at Li Jiangyao's back, shook his head and said, "I'm afraid not. There are enemy warships in Jinling, and they won't let you easily go upstream to join the battle."
Nie Xianzang also understood this truth and nodded silently.
At this time, Li Jiangyao suddenly said: "I'm afraid reinforcements will not help. If they go, they will only give Bao Yuchun an opportunity in vain. In my opinion, it is better to take advantage of the trend and have a preview of the battle across the river. What do you think?"
