Two hours later, Lei Yuan also received the news.
Now Lei Yuan is in charge of Jiaozhou and controls nearly one million soldiers and civilians. He has lost more than 2,000 elite soldiers, but it is not unbearable. As a warrior, he has long been used to hearing the news of the death of soldiers. However, He Song's death in battle has shocked his mind.
He Song was the close confidant of the young general Lei Xiu. Many of his subordinates were Lei Xiu's old subordinates. When Lei Yuan was spending leisurely on the mountain, he was quite awe of him. Later, Lei Xiu died in battle, and He Song reluctantly became one of Lei Yuan's earliest supporters. But ten years later, he often climbed the battle formation first, and was loyal from beginning to end.
In recent years, He Song has become the most senior of the martial artists from the Lei family of Lujiang. His identity has become increasingly important, and he has a vague meaning of representing the old people in Huainan. Among the old subordinates of Lei Xu, Lei Xiu and his son, he has a strong appeal.
Lei Yuan is outside the Zuo General's Mansion in Cangwu County. There is a lifang, in which the house is specially used to reward close officials of the Lei clan. He Song's family lived here, and the size of the house is second only to Guo Jing.
He Song died in battle, and the blow to his soldiers' fighting will and morale is immeasurable.
Lei Yuan felt even more, and a feeling of emptiness suddenly appeared in his heart.
Back then, his father Lei Xu's capable subordinates had almost withered by this time.
It was only ten years ago. Not only Lei Xu's subordinates, but how many people are left after the twenty entourages recruited by Lei Yuan back then? In this chaotic era, any battle was won by the soldiers for their lives, and it was accumulated by the soldiers' corpses. Of course, they can say that they lived a vigorous life, and a real man should do this.
But as the head coach and the leader, how could Lei Yuan be indifferent?
In the back row, some soldiers who were good at He Song couldn't help but show sadness.
Lei Yuan's face turned pale, he clenched his fists and stood for a moment.
"When you came, did Chengyuan run into Cao's army?"
The messenger said: "My general defeated the front of Cao's army, but... when I came, I saw the main force of Cao's army. I will not hide it from the general. There are masts and oars on the water, and long sails cover the sun, and countless soldiers will be numbered."
Lei Yuan nodded, went down to stroke the messenger's arm, and said in a harmonious voice: "I understand, go down and rest. I have me in everything, don't worry."
Turning around, he wanted to say something to Ma Zhong, but snoring came from not far away.
It turned out that Lei Yuan's troops were moving all the way, and they had only slept for less than an hour for two consecutive nights. Many soldiers were still complacent and persistent, ready to respond to Lei Yuan's orders at any time to continue the march. However, Chi Li Ningta couldn't support him. He was holding several of his own weapons and lay on a raft with his eyes half open, and he snored.
Yan Yu was sitting next to Chi Li Ningta. Although this young man was not short, he looked like a child compared to Chi Li Ningta. Seeing Lei Yuan's eyes swept, he pushed Chi Li Ningta repeatedly, wanting to wake him up.
Lei Yuan waved his hand at him, indicating that there was no need to be troublesome.
Looking around, the soldiers on the boats and rafts were actually exhausted.
At this time, the sky was gloomy and the sun was dark. The cold wind on the water surface blew, carrying a bloody smell that came from somewhere. The boat where the soldiers were located shook slightly on such a water surface.
In the distance of the water, there are half of the trees or reeds that are not in the water, either tall or short, swaying with the wind. Further away, black smoke rises and sinks into the dark sky.
Lei Yuan took a deep breath and exhaled it hard.
The generals around him looked at him eagerly.
Neither Guan Yu nor Lei Yuan had expected that Cao Cao could bear such huge losses and remain determined to retreat, nor did he expect that after such a terrifying flood, the Cao army would have the ability and determination to continue to move south.
This misjudgment made them lose their initiative and instantly fall on the verge of failure.
Guan Yu told Lei Yuan that the Jingzhou army could take Xiangyang and the situation of the battle would change again after taking Xiangyang. The premise was that Lei Yuan needed to block the road to the north of Cao's army and persist for three days.
Lei Yuan felt yesterday that he should be able to hold on for three days.
After all, it was a 140-mile journey from Xinye to Xiangyang, and Wancheng was even further away. Cao's army rushed over for a long distance, and it was difficult to intercept it halfway. It was difficult to win, but it was delayed for three days, so it was not impossible.
But now, He Song's death in battle made him suddenly realize that no matter how hard he tried to gather his troops, the soldiers could not complete the integration before the main force of the Cao army arrived. If he ran north like this now, it would be a tactic to add fuel to the various troops on their side, which kept the small number of troops attacking the masses.
It is said that He Song's troops only lasted for one hour. Now that Ding Feng is ahead, how long can he last?
At this time, Lei Yuan's troops were about twenty miles away from Ding Feng's troops. This distance was very awkward. Once Ding Feng was defeated, he would probably not have time to wait for support. If he took the initiative to retreat, it would be impossible to get rid of Cao's army.
What's more, Cao Xiu's troops are still near Lumen Mountain. What's more, all the soldiers on his side are exhausted, and Chi Li Ningta is so terrifying. Where can ordinary soldiers get the power to fight?
A thin layer of sweat emerged from Lei Yuan's forehead.
The identity of a time traveler brought him a very high spirit. So when the flood had passed, he felt dissatisfied and felt that the result of the battle was not as great as in his memory; so he was extremely unwilling and unwilling to accept it; so he chose to support Guan Yu's opinion, hoping that his side could overcome difficulties through subsequent efforts and seek greater victory.
The problem is that the current situation is very clear. Perhaps because Cao Cao himself was in Nanyang, the determination and strength of Cao's army exceeded previous expectations.
It is absolutely impossible to delay them by ordinary means.
Although the soldiers of the Jiaozhou Army were brave and good at fighting, each of them was Lei Yuan's robes and the foundation for stabilizing the entire Jiaozhou. Lei Yuan would not even let them die meaninglessly.
If the Cao army cannot delay the southward advance of Cao's army, Guan Yu will definitely not succeed in Xiangyang. This entire battle can be said to be over. Not to mention the strategic goal of attracting Cao's army, tens of thousands of people retreated against the enemy, and the subsequent losses are immeasurable.
Is it really only... to listen to Deng Fan?
This kid was too brave. When he went north with Ren Hui, he proposed a dangerous plan. At that time, Lei Yuan agreed, because Lei Yuan could afford the cost of Ren Hui and Deng Fan's divisions.
But the day before yesterday he sent an urgent message, and the main force of Chen Cao's army was approaching, and then proposed a new strategy.
This letter almost made Lei Yuan laugh.
The previous plan was gone without any success. Why did Deng Fan have such spirit and then become more and more dangerous? Did he think that the Jiaozhou Army had a solid family and was not afraid of losses at all? Therefore, Lei Yuan did not reply, but directly recalled Ren Hui's troops to give a small warning.
But now it seems that if the times are forced, a bold plan cannot be achieved?
Lei Yuan took a deep breath again.
He took a relaxed attitude and said to Ma Zhong: "The last time I fought against Cao Cao on the battlefield was ten years ago. At that time, the main force of the Cao army was so powerful that the Lujiang Lei clan had to tie his head to his belt to his life. Now..."
Ma Zhong replied in a deep voice: "In extraordinary times, you can only use extraordinary planning."
Chapter completed!