The good news of the Chu army's attack on Chendu finally came.
But as sharp as Zhao Kuo and Li Mu, they saw something amiss from this good news.
Without him, this news came too suddenly. Suddenly it reached a point where both Zhao Kuo and Li Mu found it incredible.
Chendu is the most important fulcrum in the rear of the Qin Army, and it is also the most important gathering point for the Qin Army's military supplies.
If this place is lost, the more than 300,000 Qin troops on the front line will lose their food support in an instant, and they will be without food in less than ten days. This situation is probably not much different from that of Zhao Jun in the historical Battle of Changping.
I would like to ask, as a veteran of killing scenes, how could Wang Hao allow such a situation to happen?
You know, after Zhao Kuo took over Wei, he immediately asked Tian Dan to return to fill his position.
Zhao Kuo understood the importance of rear security. Wouldn't Wang Lu, who had also experienced the Battle of Changping and followed Bai Qi in planning the siege of Zhao's army, not know this? Wouldn’t Wang Lu, who single-handedly arranged for the Qin and Wei coalition forces to capture Zhi City, understand?
Moreover, with the combat power of the Chu army, even if it has an overwhelming military advantage, how can it be possible to capture Chendu overnight?
Even if there is internal support, I am afraid that it may not be able to win it without any blood in the hands of the tenacious Qin army, right?
What's more, how could the Qin army remain indifferent in the face of the Chu army's attack? Especially since the explosive military information that the Chu army captured Chendu has reached the Zhao army, why can the Qin army over there still be as stable as Mount Tai? There was no intention of withdrawing the troops.
It should be said that before, the army was trapped in the city of Xinzheng and might not have been able to detect the Qin army's movements at the first time. But now Zhou Qi and Zhao Weishu are camped outside. While forming a horn with Xinzheng, they also carried out a full-scale attack on the Qin army. aspects of surveillance.
But under such circumstances, the Qin army still made no move. Obviously, the Qin army was not elite enough to escape the twelve hours of uninterrupted surveillance by the Zhao army's scouts.
In the situation where Zhao Jun already had the advantage, Qin Jun's persistence revealed a little bit of weirdness.
Now that the Chu army suddenly occupied Chendu, the Qin army had not yet made any big move, which is even more strange.
The only possibility is that the Qin army was not surprised that the Chu army occupied Chendu.
From this, two possibilities emerge:
First, the Qin army had set up a trap waiting for the Chu army to exploit Chen Duli;
Second, the Qin army has joined forces with the Chu army...
If the first possibility is possible, it will not be a big problem for Zhao State. After all, no matter who wins or loses in the battle between Qin and Chu, it will have no impact on Zhao State.
Even if the Qin State destroyed the Chu State in a battle, the Zhao State, which had already occupied an absolute majority, would not have much impact.
But if it’s the latter situation, then the problem is really big!
However, most of the Qin army that had already rushed out was under the city of Xinzheng. It could not even reinforce Hangu Pass with more troops, let alone use tens of thousands of troops to set a trap for Chu. .
Obviously, the possibility of the latter situation happening is much higher than the first one.
Involuntarily, Zhao Kuo and Li Mu looked at each other in confusion as they looked at the map.
Obviously, both of them have thought about the possibility of Qin and Chu joining together.
However, neither of them wanted to believe that the two countries, which were still fighting to the death last year, and the two armies with blood feud, would suddenly unite?
"After all the impossibilities have been eliminated, the last possibility, even if you don't want to believe it anymore, it can only be the truth." Zhao Kuo sighed and murmured to Li Mu.
Hearing this, Li Mu felt as if he was struck by lightning. He knew very well what it would mean to the current Zhao State once the Chu State turned against them.
"However." Zhao Kuo continued to sigh and said: "No matter whether the Chu army has defected or not, we still warn the Chu army to be careful of the Qin army's trap. There are three purposes:
First, as allies, we must fulfill our obligations and not let the world pick out our problems;
Second, based on the response of the Chu army, it can also help us judge their merger;
No.
Third, if as we expected, the Chu State has defected, this reminder may allow the Qin army to relax their vigilance a little and buy more time for our army. "
Listening to Zhao Kuo's words, Li Mu felt that it made sense, and then he nodded in agreement and said, "Wei Chen will make arrangements now."
"There's no rush." Zhao Kuo waved his hand slightly and said, "It doesn't matter if this happens an hour earlier or later. The most important thing now is how our army should deal with it next."
"Yes." Li Mu nodded and agreed again.
And with Zhao Kuo's calm words, Li Mu's slightly impatient mood finally calmed down.
"Let's first see how the Qin and Chu coalition forces will attack." Zhao Kuo then said to Li Mu.
"Yes." Li Mu took a deep breath, then continued to look at the map, and said: "According to the intelligence, the Chu army should send troops around 150,000. This number is basically consistent with what my army reported in Shouchun. . But since the Chu army has defected, they must have come with the determination to fight to the death, so it cannot be ruled out that the Chu State will also send Shouchun’s 30,000 defenders in the future.”
"Yes." Zhao Kuo also nodded, and continued Li Mu's words: "Therefore, the number of the Chu army should be around 180,000. If it continues to increase, the Chu army will inevitably carry out large-scale recruitment, which is impossible in the short term. Completed. For the time being, we can consider it as an army of 180,000."
Even though the two of them were mentally prepared for the 180,000-strong army, they still couldn't help but feel shocked. This number is indeed disappointing.
Especially in this situation that was supposed to be going well, it suddenly took a turn for the worse. If Zhao Kuo and Li Mu hadn't been veterans of the battlefield, they would have collapsed by now.
"Okay." After adjusting his mood slightly, Zhao Kuo pointed to the map and continued: "There are only two ways for the Chu army to join the battle:
First, continue all the way north from Chendu to Xinzheng, join the Qin army, and try to defeat our army from the front with the advantage of military strength;
The second one is to move to the northeast, from the Wei-Chu border to Huaisi, and join forces with the Qi army to strangle our army's Tian Dan headquarters. Then he sent his troops eastward, inserted into the territory of Wei, and attacked our army from behind. This forced our army to abandon Yingchuan and return to Shangdang. "
"It would be good if the Chu army goes directly north." Li Mu shook his head slightly and said: "Even if an army of 500,000 people presses the border, with our current army of 300,000 people, Xinzheng may not be unable to defend it. Even if Xinzheng cannot be defended, our army can still defend it. Retreat to Luo City or even Zhi City, use the solid city to consume the opponent's troops, and use space to exchange time."
"I'm afraid that the Chu army will all rush into Huaisi County." Zhao Kuo also sighed softly: "General Tian Dan over there only has 70,000 troops, and more than half of them are insufficient in combat strength. He will delay the Qi army for 14 An army of ten thousand is already at its limit."
"Judging from the fact that the Chu army deliberately exposed and occupied Chendu, Qin Chu probably wanted to lock our eyes on the Yingchuan line." Li Mu then raised his head and looked at Zhao Kuo. ..
Zhao Kuo also raised his head in time.
"The Chu army's target is Huaisi County." The same judgment came out of their mouths at the same time.
"If it were me, I would also pick the weaker Huaisi County to attack." Zhao Kuo sighed lightly and had to face this situation he least wanted to face.
"Indeed. Attacking Huaisi County is not only the easiest plan to succeed, but also the most beneficial plan to Chu State." Li Mu also added: "Almost immediately, Chu State will be able to expand its territory, regardless of the final war in Yingchuan County. No matter what, Chu State will certainly not suffer any loss."
Soon, as the two complemented each other, Qin Chu's intention was clearly on the paper.
However, after knowing the intentions of Qin and Chu, the two of them did not feel relaxed at all.
Even if the 180,000-strong army were pressed into the frontal battlefield, the two of them would not be able to bear it, let alone the 180,000-strong army being pressed onto the remote battlefield in Huaisi County, let alone that battlefield, all the troops could not stand it. The military already occupies a huge advantage.
320,000 people fight 70,000 people. If anyone had replaced them, this battle would not have been possible!
The key is that today's Zhao State's only mobile troops are still far away in Hedong, and may even have marched towards Hexi.
Waiting for Zhao Kuo to return from Hedong
After Sun Gu's troops were transferred back, not only Huaisi County, but also Dong County and the newly conquered Wei territory were all occupied by the Chu army.
In an instant, deep despair enveloped Zhao Jun's two dozen giants.
"Will the troops be divided?" Zhao Kuo asked still unwilling to give up.
Even if only tens of thousands of people are sent northward, it can reduce the pressure on some fields and maybe give them a glimmer of hope.
It's a pity that when faced with this problem, Li Mu shook his head and denied it without even thinking: "Probably not. Although Qin and Chu are allied, Chu State must not trust Qin State, so it is impossible to break up its own troops. This may be This is also the reason why Chu State must occupy Chendu first."
"Yes!" Zhao Kuo nodded: "It is true that starting from Chu territory and detouring through Chendu is not the fastest way. Occupying Chendu may be one of the bargaining chips for the Chu army to defect."
"Can we start from the distrustful relationship between Qin and Chu?" Li Mu listened to Zhao Kuo's words and immediately came up with an idea.
"If Qin and Chu join forces, there may be some use. But when the Chu army goes to Huaisi, every city they capture will probably be captured by Chu. In this case, there is no way to make a plan." Zhao Kuo also shook his head. Denied.
"What about driving a wedge between Chu and Qi?" Li Mu raised the idea again.
"I'm afraid that won't work either." Zhao Kuo still shook his head: "The opponent's troops on the eastern front are too sufficient. They are sufficient enough to attack Huaisi County and Dong County at the same time, and attack Hejian County and Jibei County at the same time. What's the point of estrangement? They don't have to cooperate, and there is no conflict of interest."
"Yes, the opponent has too many troops, and our army has too few troops." Li Mu also shook his head helplessly.
"It's still a question of troop strength." Zhao Kuo slapped the desk hard.
...
