Chen Qing quickly received the eagle letter from Hu Yun. The reaction of the court was as he expected. He would forget about a small victory. It seemed that he would have to really beat them up before they would understand what it means that the strong is king.
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Chen Qing did not hesitate any longer, and immediately led one hundred thousand cavalry to the south again, killing Jingxiang in a mighty manner.
At this time, Zhang Jun's army numbered 300,000, with strong soldiers and horses, and sufficient food and grass. Although the imperial court removed him from the post of Qinghe County Prince, he proclaimed himself King of Huai, and his army was called Huai Army.
Zhang Jun also divided his troops into three groups and ordered his trusted general Zhang Zongyan to lead an army of 100,000 to guard Shouchun and strictly guard Jianghuai. He also appointed his son Zhang Ziqi as the commander-in-chief of the Nanhuai Army and led an army of 100,000 to guard Jiangnan West Road.
They gathered in Yangzhou and prepared to cross the Yangtze River and fight to the south of the Yangtze River.
In the big tent, Li Yecheng was giving instructions to Yang Shi, "His Royal Highness King Yong asked Zhang Jun to combine Zhengqi with Qi to attack Zhenjiang Mansion head-on, and then send a naval force to sneak into Taihu Lake as a surprise force to attack the Song Army's logistics at the critical moment.
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"What does King Yong mean that this strange army entered Taihu Lake from Wuhu?"
"Exactly! But I need to remind you that this surprise force should be used at critical moments, and then launch a surprise attack when the main force of the Song Army is dispatched."
"I see!"
At this time, Zhang Jun's personal soldiers outside the tent issued an order, "Your Majesty, please go to the commander's tent to discuss the military situation quickly!"
"I'll come right away!"
Yang Shi put on a coat and hurried to the handsome tent.
At this time, Zhang Jun was also standing in front of the sand table, thinking silently. He got the information that Wu Ga led 20,000 troops to be deployed on the front line of Zhenjiang Prefecture. The entrance of the Jiangnan Canal was in Zhenjiang Prefecture, making it a battleground for military strategists. Otherwise, he would be in danger.
When tens of thousands of troops move south, the most important logistics cannot be guaranteed.
Although the news of the annihilation of Luo Shengping's 20,000 troops reached Zhang Jun, he remained unmoved. His entire mind was focused on attacking Zhenjiang Mansion.
Yang Shi hurriedly walked into the handsome tent, bowed and saluted, "See you, Your Majesty!"
"Well done, sir. Please give me some details on how to capture Zhenjiang Mansion?"
Yang Shi came to the sand table and said with a smile: "I have been thinking about this issue for the past two days, and I have some preliminary ideas."
"Say what you think!"
Yang Shi said calmly: "The idea of humble position is to take two steps. The first step is to seize Zhenjiang Mansion."
Yang Shi picked up the wooden pole and pointed in the direction of Jiangning Mansion and said: "I don't have to land directly at Zhenjiang Mansion. Instead, I can land at Jiangning Mansion first. While landing at Zhenjiang Mansion, Jiangning Mansion's landing troops will sneak attack Zhenjiang City."
"Good! What a sneak attack on Zhenjiang City!"
Zhang Jun was greatly impressed and asked: "What about the second step?"
The second step is that after we capture Zhenjiang Prefecture, the prince sends a fleet as a surprise force from Wuhu through Lishui into Taihu Lake and lurks in Taihu Lake. Once Zhenjiang Prefecture is lost and our 100,000 troops go south, the imperial court will definitely send the main army north to fight and fight.
Chuji may be in Pingjiang Prefecture, and our surprise troops will attack from Taihu Lake to attack and burn the opponent's logistics and grain ships, seriously affecting the opponent's morale and causing the enemy to be defeated without a fight."
"I understand, this is a wonderful combination of good and strange strategies that can be implemented!"
Zhang Jun thought for a while and then said: "Actually, I'm a little worried about Huangzhou and Qizhou. There are no soldiers there, and Chen Qing has deployed heavy troops in Jingxiang, so I'm afraid."
Yang Shi smiled slightly and said: "I told the prince before from my humble position that Chen Qing has no good intentions. He is using the prince. Before he uses the prince, he will not attack the three states along the Yangtze River in Huaixi. The prince can
no need to worry!"
Zhang Jun pondered for a moment and said: "The key is how long will he use me?"
"I feel that the capture of Lin'an should be the dividing line. Once the prince's army captures Lin'an, Chen Qing will immediately turn against him!"
Yang Shi's analysis touched Zhang Jun's heart, and Zhang Jun seemed to be reassured. He immediately ordered the commander-in-chief Li Heng to lead 30,000 troops to Yangzi County in Zhenzhou, preparing to cross the Yangtze River from Yangzi County to the south.
The night sky was clear, and 50,000 Western Army cavalry arrived at Huangmei County at the junction of Qizhou and Shuzhou. In front of them was a vast lake. This is a large lake on the north bank of the Yangtze River, called Leichi. Its area is about the same size as Poyang Lake on the south bank of the Yangtze River.
, only thirty miles away from the nearest point of the Yangtze River, a river connects Leichi and the Yangtze River.
After crossing the Yangtze River from here, the south bank of the Yangtze River is Hukou County to the east of Poyang Lake. Zhang Jun's 100,000 troops are currently concentrated in Nanchang County, preparing to face the 70,000 troops led by Han Shizhong.
Although Zhang Jun had an army of 300,000, he only left 100,000 troops in Jianghuai. These 100,000 troops were all stationed in Shouchun and Hefei. All Zhang Jun's money and food were concentrated in Shouchun, Hefei, and Shouzhou.
Heluzhou was also the center of his garrison.
As for Huangzhou, Qizhou and Shuzhou in the west along the Han River and the Yangtze River, they were basically in an undefended state. Zhang Jun was persuaded by Yang Shi and he knew that even if they were fortified, they could not stop the west.
It would be better for the army to attack without setting up any defenses.
At this time, one hundred thousand-stone ships sailed into the Lei Pond and were already waiting on the north bank. Fifty thousand cavalry began to line up to board the ships. It would take three trips for one hundred thousand-stone ships to transport all fifty thousand cavalry across the south bank of the Yangtze River.
These 50,000 cavalry are still under the command of Liu Qiong as the chief general, Tang Qian as the deputy general, and five superiors including Lu Gui, Li Fuxing, Yue Yun, Zhang Xian and Xu Qing, each commanding 10,000 cavalry.
Hukou County is located on the east bank of Poyang Lake Port. It is a small county with only a few thousand people. The county seat has a large Yangtze River dock, which is mainly used for civilian purposes, while the military dock is in Dehua County on the west bank.
There was no army stationed at Hukou. At this time, the magistrate and several county officials rushed to the dock. They had just received news that a huge army had begun to dock.
Wu Yonghui, the county magistrate, did not know the enemy's situation and thought it was Zhang Jun's army, which made him very nervous, fearing that Hukou County would suffer a disaster.
Several county officials were brought before Liu Qiong, who asked: "Who is the county magistrate?"
"Yes!" Wu Yonghui quickly raised his hand and walked out.
Liu Qiong said: "We are the Western Army and need to use Hukou County as a logistics supply point. Is there any open space in the county?"
Wu Yonghui exchanged glances with the county officials, and they all breathed a sigh of relief at the same time. It turned out to be the Western Army, so there was no need to worry.
Wu Yonghui wondered: "General Qi, Hukou County is a small county with a population of several thousand, and it is about three miles from east to west, north to south. If a few thousand troops can barely accommodate it, it will be a bit difficult to accommodate tens of thousands."
Tang Qian said from the side: "The county is too small. We will set up the military camp outside ourselves so we won't bother them."
Liu Qiong could only nodded and said: "Then I won't bother you. We won't stay here too long. If you don't want to become the enemy of the Western Army, then please remain silent. Do you understand what I mean?"
How could everyone not understand? They quickly said: "We must keep it a secret!"
The 50,000 cavalrymen of the Western Army immediately set up camp in the south of Hukou County.