Li Zhong stood at the top of the city, looking at the endless military camps outside the city, frowning and scolding: "Zhi Niang, what is this Wang Xiaolie doing? Baba ran hundreds of miles, and when he got outside the city, he didn't attack the city. What? mean?"
Cheng Hua, the deputy general on one side, said: "They have been at the city for five days. They have been camping five miles away and have never attacked the city. However, Wang Xiaolie occupies more than ten states and has an army of 100,000, which should not be underestimated. These days, their The cavalry spread widely and our men were driven into the city.”
Li Zhongdao: "Does this guy think that if we only stay around for a few days, we will starve to death? The big city of Junzhou has enough food to last us until the end of the year. I don't believe that Wang Xiaolie's army can surround us until the New Year!"
Cheng Hua said: "It shouldn't be possible. Whether it's from Xiangyang or Dengzhou, the distance to transport grain here is not close."
Li Zhong didn't answer and stared at the military camp outside the city for a long time. Seeing that everything in the military camp is in order, there is no clue. He turned around bitterly and said, "I don't believe Wang Xiaolie can keep surrounding him! Come on, let's go back and drink!"
When he returned to the government office, he ordered his subordinates to cook a fat sheep. He also selected several beautiful folk girls to accompany him and drank with his subordinates in the official hall.
At the headquarters of King Tutai Xiaolie, all the generals gathered together.
Wang Xiaolie looked at everyone and said in a deep voice: "It has been five days since the vanguard arrived at Junzhou City. Although we did not attack the city, we forced all the troops scattered outside the city back into the city. Clear the battlefield. The artillery arrived yesterday, and it's time for a decisive battle. Tomorrow, the Chinese army's first regiment will be the main force with artillery as the main force, and attack the east of the city. The second regiment and the third regiment will cooperate with the first regiment to ensure that after the city wall collapses , attack the city as quickly as possible. The cavalry should be prepared in advance. If the enemy breaks out to the west, pursue it immediately."
The generals promised.
Wang Xiaolie said: "Tomorrow, Youyuhou Tiancheng will arrive in front of Junzhou City and command the central army, front army, left army, artillery and cavalry to attack the city. The battle must be decisive and clean! Yunxiang is dozens of miles away. There are Wang Yan's troops and horses in the county seat, blocking Li Zhong's retreat. However, it is best for our cavalry to surround and annihilate the enemy at a distance of ten to twenty miles."
After speaking, Wang Xiaolie said: "Senior Wang will make detailed arrangements for the battle."
Wang Xiaolie returned to his seat and sat down, while Wang Ruohai stood in the middle. He said: "According to our reconnaissance, Li Zhong has about 6,000 soldiers in the city. Junzhou City is not big, and 6,000 soldiers are enough to protect the safety of the city wall. Now that we have cannons, we can no longer fight the same way as before. Thirty cannons were all arranged on the east side of the city to cooperate with the first regiment. Concentrate all artillery fire and bombard the middle section of the city wall. According to the drill, up to three cannons were enough to collapse the city wall. After the city wall collapsed, the first regiment organized A strong force, seize the gap in time. According to my estimate, this force should be about three hundred people. The rest of the force will quickly enter the city, and you must not hesitate!"
Zhang Chi on the side raised his hand and said: "Don't worry, Councilor! The general will definitely not delay the opportunity to fight!"
Wang Ruohai nodded and said: "For the first troops to enter the city, ignore the battle on the city wall and go straight to the state government office! There is no south city gate in Junzhou. Arrange another force of about 500 people to march west along the north city wall. , open the south gate. The attacking troops will stop at the Yamen and do not attack the west gate. Wait for the rebels to leave the west gate and chase them from behind. They must be fierce and fast!"
Zhang Chi crossed his hands and promised.
"When the first regiment fights against Lingzhou Yamen, the second and third regiments outside the city should not enter the city, but go directly around the city to pursue the deserters. After chasing the deserters, the cavalry will follow them and cooperate with Wang Yan in the west. Destroy the enemy!"
All the generals made a promise together.
Wang Xiaolie said: "Time is urgent, I won't care about your dinner. Everything is arranged today, and we will attack the city early tomorrow morning!"
When the generals left, Wang Ruohai said: "Commander Jies, are we not going to the front line?"
Wang Xiaolie said: "I'm not going. Stay at Tutai and see how the army is arranged when they fight. It is inevitable to win this battle. What's more important is to see the appearance of the army and whether everything is in order. . We are different from what we were three years ago. There is no need for an enemy like Li Zhong to send out such a large army. Everyone is here to see what the army looks like now."
Li Yanxian on the side hesitated for a moment and asked: "Jie Shuai, should I go to the front line? I have been leading the drill for so long. In this war, I always feel bad if I don't go to the front line."
"What's wrong?" Wang Xiaolie said firmly. "You are a member of the headquarters, and you are also responsible for handling affairs. When I am away, you will be in charge of the establishment of the department. In normal times, you should not have gone to the Chinese Army. It's just that this exercise is special, so I went Lead the army. If this battle is well practiced in the past few months, you will no longer need to be in the Chinese army."
Li Yanxian said yes and didn't know what to say. From the beginning of Jianyan, Li Yanxian has been leading the battle at the forefront. Now changing roles, it really felt a little weird for a while.
Arriving outside the city, Tian Cheng assigned detailed tasks to each regiment, and each commander returned to his own army. Tian Cheng stayed with Zhang Chi's army and directly commanded tomorrow's siege battle. Towards evening, the Song army began to push artillery to the front line.
In Shipan Village, west of Junzhou City, Wang Yan was sitting under a tree, drinking alone. A soldier rushed into the yard, crossed his hands and said: "Zhenfu, I just came back from Junzhou City. I heard from the general there that we will attack the city tomorrow, and everything is ready! Zhenfu wants to discuss with Zhizhi, It seems impossible. Look at the military camps outside Junzhou City. I don’t know how many troops there are. How could they stop?"
Wang Yan was surprised. He threw the gourd in his hand on the ground, stood up, and stamped his feet. Said: "How could this be? The policy only said that the army has arrived outside Junzhou City and will attack the city soon, but it did not say that the battle will begin tomorrow!"
The small school on one side said: "Zhenfu, is Zhizhi interested in Junzhou? This place is close to Xiangyang and is on an important road. Wouldn't Wang Jieshuai be jealous of it? I heard that there are tens of thousands of troops coming. If they capture it, , what should we do if we don’t leave? Privy Zhang sent a letter asking us to pay close attention to the movement of the establishment. In other words, the court does not trust Wang Jieshuai. "
Wang Yan heard this and said angrily: "What are you talking about? Zhizhi and I met in Kaifeng Mansion, how close we are to each other! No matter what, he will not come to occupy my territory! Don't mention this kind of thing again in the future!"
After saying that, he turned around twice on the ground. He said to the soldiers: "It's our fault that we came in a hurry and didn't inform Zhizhi. You immediately go to see Zhizhi and say that I have led the army to a place twenty miles west of Junzhou City. Please tell Zhizhi how to cooperate tomorrow. Military order!"
The soldiers crossed their hands and promised. Not daring to delay, he went out and rode eastward on horseback.
The principal said: "Zhenfu, we are a vassal town and we only obey the orders of the imperial court. Even if we appoint an envoy on the southwestern route of Beijing, we don't have to obey his military orders. This time, Li Zhong came too quickly and asked Xiangyang's army for help. Why bother? Do you follow his military orders?"
Wang Yan sighed. Said: "How can we not listen to what the situation is at this time and that time? Not to mention that Wang Xiaolie's official position is higher than mine now. He is the only one who can send an army of 100,000. There are few opponents in the world, so I must listen. Over the years, Wang Xiaolie has It's rare that Xiao Xie always sticks to his place and doesn't do any harm to the territory around us. If I don't lower my profile, what good will it do to me if I offend him?"
Wang Yan was filled with emotion when he recalled that in Kaifeng Mansion a few years ago, Wang Xiaolie had only a few hundred people and had to help him train his troops. Who would have thought that just a few years later, Wang Xiaolie would be able to recruit 100,000 troops, occupy more than a dozen states, and become a powerful force?
