Li Jiangyao, dressed in armor and uniform, stood on a high hill and looked at the ambush battlefield in front of him from a distance.
The main force of the ghost-faced white-robed army has basically ended the fighting on the frontal battlefield at this time, and is preparing to divide its forces to pursue the remnants of the enemy who managed to escape.
Two days ago, he personally led these 17,000 elite soldiers and horses. Under the cover of the Kunpeng battleship, he secretly crossed the river overnight and arrived near Shijiu Lake covertly.
When Li Jiangyao gave the order to Xu Youchang, he had already judged that the rebels would definitely take a shortcut here and rush to Jinling for reinforcements.
Facts have proved that the situation is exactly as he expected, and the strategy of attacking the enemy and rescuing it has caught a big fish: Feng Tuo and his 40,000 main force came running non-stop and panting to die.
Ever since they eliminated the Turkic cavalry and marched into the Central Plains to quell the rebellion, the White Robes have had very few opportunities to participate in the war. Now, how can they be polite when they encounter these desperate people seeking death? As soon as the enemy entered the ambush position, the white-robed soldiers immediately launched a wave of charge, leaving Feng Tuo and the others unable to fight back.
After an hour of fierce fighting, more than half of the 40,000 people were killed or injured. The rest either crawled into the dense forest or jumped into the lake in order to save their lives.
Li Jiangyao ordered the Chinese officers not to pay attention to the fleeing guys, gather the troops back as soon as possible, and rush to the next battlefield.
The Whitecoats were well-trained and disciplined, and quickly regrouped upon receiving orders. After counting the number of people in each department, they found that after a big battle, our side's casualties were less than 2,000, which can be said to be a complete victory.
Li Jiangyao encouraged and mobilized the entire army before riding into the formation. Then he set off with the flag and led the entire army straight to Dangtu County, fifty miles away.
That place is a key node in Chidao and the only way from Xuancheng to Jinling.
If Ye Rongcheng wanted to lead his troops to outflank Xu Youchang's crossing troops from behind, he would definitely pass by Dangtu.
The sound of hoofbeats roared, and tens of thousands of white-robed troops let go of their speed and galloped through the mountains and jungles, like a white whirlwind whistling past. They traveled fifty miles at full speed and arrived easily before dawn.
At this time, Dangtu County had been captured by the Sixth Army, and Jigriz left 3,000 troops here for defense in order to coordinate and guard the retreat of the army. The Nulang soldiers guarding the city suddenly saw the commander-in-chief's handsome flag and white-robed army and cavalry appearing outside the city. They were suddenly surprised and happy, and hurried out of the city to greet them.
Li Jiangyao told them not to stay in the city anymore and to set off quickly to catch up with the Sixth Army. There would be a new mission next.
The captain who led the team quickly agreed, then excitedly gathered the team and hurriedly headed northeast.
When the Sixth Army garrison left, Li Jiangyao did not let the white-robed troops enter the city. Instead, he ordered them to plant flags on top of the city, including the mountains and forests to the north and south outside the city, which were also covered with flags.
The main force of the army was arrayed outside the city, sitting on their horses, eating dry food and resting, while waiting for the enemy to arrive.
It was nearly noon, and at the end of the galloping road in the distance, a huge army appeared vaguely. It was Ye Rongcheng's soldiers and horses. At this time, Ye Rongcheng had also heard the bad news that Feng Tuo's troops were attacked near Shijiu Lake last night and almost the entire army was wiped out.
However, he has not yet figured out which army can kill 40,000 rebels in one night. Xu Youchang? Or Du Jian?
It wasn't until he saw the illustrious military formation outside Dangtu County that Ye Rongcheng reacted in great surprise: Oh my God! Li Jiangyao also crossed the river? !
Although he had never fought against the ghost-faced white-robed army, the opponent's reputation had already spread throughout the country. How could the powerful ace force that could defeat the Turkic cavalry to a point where even the Blood Guards of the Great Khan did not dare to look down on them was like Yi?
A layman looks at the excitement, an expert looks at the door.
When Ye Rongcheng saw the formation and momentum of the white robe army from a distance, his heart suddenly became cold. Although the opponent only has a mere ten thousand troops, it is as strong as Yuanting Yue Zhi, which is enough for any battle-hardened general not to dare to take it lightly.
Looking at the head of Dangtu City and the nearby mountains and fields, there are figures everywhere with banners and banners. A rough calculation may suggest that there are more than 100,000 troops. This just corresponds to Li Jiangyao's identity: the commander-in-chief of the Zhenjiang Army has come with his main force!
The intention of the Zhenjiang Army was very obvious: Xu Youchang led his troops to attack Jinling, while Li Jiangyao personally took charge of Dangtu to block the rebels in the direction of Xuancheng from going to reinforce.
In other words, if Ye Rongcheng wants to save Jinling, he must first pass the test of Li Jiangyao and the White Robe Army.
But the question is, can he pass this level?
This time, in order to outflank Xu Youchang's retreat, Ye Rongcheng personally led an army of 180,000 people and chased him quickly along the Chi Road. Originally, he was thinking that since his side had the advantage of troops and the strategic advantage, he should be able to win with certainty.
However, Li Jiangyao's sudden appearance instantly shattered his confidence.
The Commander-in-Chief of the Zhenjiang Army has used countless victories to make clear to the world an iron-clad opinion: if you don’t want to live anymore, come and try the challenge!
Ye Rongcheng still wanted to live, so he did not rush to take any offensive action. Instead, he ordered all the troops to set up defensive formations on the spot, with Chi Road as the main axis, gradually laying out to the north and south, and being on high alert across the distance.
The cautious look of the rebels fell in Li Jiangyao's eyes, and he gradually felt relieved. To be honest, there are only more than 10,000 white-robed troops in hand now. Although they are all powerful warriors, it would be unimaginable to stop the all-out attack of hundreds of thousands of enemies.
The only thing that can be used is the empty city strategy.
The key to this operation is to scare Ye Rongcheng on the opposite side in order to buy more time for Xu Youchang.
Thinking of this, Li Jiangyao said in a deep voice: "Send the military order, all advance five hundred steps!"
As the bugle whistled, more than 15,000 white-robed troops mobilized their horses and walked forward slowly. The entire formation was as powerful as a rainbow.
"General, the enemy is moving! The ghost-faced white robe is approaching us!"
When Ye Rongcheng heard the reminder from his subordinates, he quickly put his hands on his eyes and looked from a distance. Sure enough, the Xinjiang Army on the opposite side moved forward slowly and slowly, gradually closing the distance with the rebels.
"Be on alert!" Ye Rongcheng shouted: "Let all archers be on alert. Once the enemy enters the shooting range, shoot immediately without asking for instructions!"
Following his words, more than a dozen messenger horses galloped away. Not long after, the six large phalanxes of bows and arrows located in the east were buzzing. Nearly 20,000 archers bent their bows and nocked arrows at the same time, pointing diagonally at the sky, ready for battle at any time.
However, as soon as they opened their stance, the white-robed army over there stopped moving.
The distance of five hundred steps has been reached, and the order is forbidden.
The transition between movement and stillness of soldiers and horses in Zhenjiang is simple, clear, efficient and neat, and at the same time it also shows a calm demeanor that has experienced hundreds of battles. The entire formation stopped solemnly, and the entire army still maintained a perfect state of both offense and defense, making it difficult for the enemy to judge their next thoughts and purposes.
Ye Rongcheng squinted his eyes and observed for a long time, and suddenly murmured: "No! They are trying to lure me to attack!"
After hearing this, a deputy general next to him also nodded and said: "The general is right. The white-robed army advanced slowly at first, and then stopped abruptly. In the art of war, it is indeed a combat rhythm that lures the opponent to attack first. But usually Troops with a little less determination and experience will usually be unable to help but take the initiative to send troops to fight at this time."
Ye Rongcheng sneered and said: "Li Jiangyao underestimated us too much. When the Xuanjia Legion dominated the world, he was still a young boy in the martial arts hall of the imperial capital. Want to mess with my mind? I'm dreaming!"
He turned around and shouted: "Pass my order, secure the oars and shields at the forward position, and put the archers on full alert. All units will stay where they are, and no one is allowed to fall into the trap and go into battle!"
Another general couldn't help but wonder: "General, the enemy deliberately displayed their flags in the mountains and forests without any intention of concealing their combat power. Could it be that they were setting up a false position and bluffing?"
Ye Rongcheng shook his head: "You are thinking too much. The more Li Jiangyao does the opposite, the more it shows that he has no good intentions! Since the other party can eat Feng Tuo's 40,000 troops overnight, then the military strength will never be There will be few. At this moment, I am only showing tens of thousands of people. Where will the rest be? Of course they are hidden in the city and mountains and forests! Li Jiangyao deliberately showed his flag, hoping that I would suspect that he was playing tricks and then launch an attack with his army, but You just fell into his trick of luring the enemy deeper!"
After hearing the general's analysis, his subordinates all nodded in agreement, saying that now that they have left the Xuancheng defense line, the entire army lacks support and cover, so it is indeed better to be cautious.
In this way, the 180,000 suspicious rebels took up position in front of more than 10,000 white-robed soldiers, motionless. There is a posture of clinging to it until the end of time.
In comparison, the generals and captains of the main rebel force unanimously and clearly believed that their own safety was more important than anything else. Without clarifying Li Jiangyao's intentions, it would be safest and wisest for the entire army to stand still.
As for Jinling, which is about to be attacked in the lower reaches of the river, they can only ask for their own blessings.
However, the bewildered Jinling defenders were still bewildered at this time.
They did not see the Xinjiang-suppressing army mentioned in the Xuancheng Kuaima bulletin. The city guard sent out dozens of scout teams one after another. They all came back and said that not even a hair on Xu You was found within a fifty-mile radius of Jinling. The more than 100,000 menacing troops crossing the river seemed not to have entered their defense zone at all!
The rebel scouts did not neglect the investigation, nor did they deliberately lie.
Xu Youchang, deputy commander of Zhenjiang, did not enter the territory of Jinling. At this moment, he was leading the soldiers of the First Army, the Second Army, and the Sixth Army under his command, running rapidly.
And the path they took was exactly where Li Jiangyao beat Feng Tuo last night - the dense forest road near Shijiu Lake!
Hundreds of thousands of soldiers of the Xinjiang Army walked through the tragic ambush battlefield. Countless soldiers and horses hurried past the corpses of the rebels who were complacent, and went straight to the Xuanzhou defense line located a hundred miles away.
The task assigned to them by the Imperial Guard is to launch a general attack on the enemy's base camp Xuancheng before dawn tomorrow!
