At this time, the direction of the battlefield was very strange.
There was obviously no large-scale confrontation, and both sides were mobilizing intensively. In addition to marching, they were still marching, but it gave people a very tense atmosphere, as if a one-hit kill battle was about to begin at any time.
On April 23, more than 40,000 Huai troops were all over the north bank of the Huai River, from Linhuai to Xucheng, with a mighty and overwhelming momentum.
On the Bian River, there are many boats and sails. The boats have extremely deep drafts and are loaded with all kinds of supplies.
Yang Xingmi had long known that Shao Shude was operating nearby, so he promised a generous reward. The morale of the troops was high and they marched north one after another.
On the 24th, they recaptured the deserted Xucheng County, and Jia Gongduo led 4,000 men to garrison the city to protect its flanks.
Yang Xingmi's army waited for several days at the line from Xucheng to Bianshui, waiting for vehicles rushed from behind to be transported.
Unfortunately, due to limited strength, among the various vehicles sent over, there are very few sidecars that are specialized in restraining cavalry. Most of them are baggage transport vehicles, but they can be used as they are.
It is impossible to deal with large groups of cavalry without vehicles.
"Your Majesty, there is no reason for the Xia people to abandon the defense of Xucheng. According to common sense, they should hoard enough food, grass, equipment, repair the city defenses, and send troops to defend it." On the dock on the north bank of the Huai River, Gao Xu said: "If I attack the city in a large scale, then
The thieves hold on and consume our troops and morale. If we send cavalry to clash at the critical moment, we can win a big victory. If I let it go and don't attack, they can send troops out of the city, cut off the Bianshui River, and block my retreat. Just like this, I retreat without fighting.
It’s really strange.”
There are many ways to cut off the Bianshui River, such as putting on iron chains, setting fire to boats, etc., which are all well-known. Of course, this can only be cut off temporarily, such as blocking the river with iron ropes on both sides. This has been done since ancient times. The solution is
Cut it off or fuse it. The fire ship is more complicated. There is still a distance from Xucheng to Bianshui. It takes time to build a ship and transport it there. It is difficult not to be discovered. But no matter what, it is a threat and is buried in the rear.
The nails must be pulled out or prepared, which can consume or involve a lot of troops.
Giving up like this directly is undoubtedly attracting them to go deeper into Huaibei.
Yang Xingmi is also a veteran who has been fighting for many years. Why can't he see it? But he is still hesitant.
Shao Shude is active in the Susi area. Although his whereabouts are erratic, what if he is willing to come over for a decisive battle?
There are more than 40,000 troops here, and Shao Shude killed 30,000. The infantry's bugle is "Pengri", and the others are mostly cavalry, so they can still fight.
The second army of holding the sun and holding the saint is not worth worrying about, and its combat effectiveness is not as good as that of his old Huai army.
"Your Majesty, the war is fierce and dangerous. Who knows what the enemy's plan is?" Seeing that Yang Xingmi was silent, Gao Xu became anxious and couldn't help but persuade him: "I also ask your Majesty to sit in Linhuai and send your brave generals to the north. If you encounter Xia
The bandit brigade, it won’t be too late for the entire division to move northward.”
Linhuai County is near the Huai River, and Yang Xingmi is stationed here, so it is naturally safe. Gao Xu suggested this, making it clear that he was not optimistic about this northern expedition.
Gao Xu is an old man, and for his own sake, his opinions must be listened to. Yang Xingmi thought for a moment and said, "Then we will send the mountain troops north."
The Bashan Army was developed from Bashandu. At first, 7,000 Sun Ru soldiers surrendered, and then 3,000 Huai army troops were added. They were dispersed and then mixed together for several years. In places such as Run and Chang, there were two Zhejiang's Qianlibu have fought many times, with more wins than losses. They are now a strong team and one of the main forces in Lao Yang's hands.
The Yanei Army was similar, with six to seven thousand people returning from the north, supported by three to four thousand Huai troops and recruited Xuzhou warriors, with a strength of just over ten thousand. They fought in the south all the year round. They once fought in conjunction with Suzhou Governor Yang Shihou and defeated Gu Quan's military department. He also cooperated with the Luzhou soldiers and invaded Shouzhou several times, defeating Zhu Jing.
There are also two armies of Ningguo and Fengguo, each with ten thousand people. Like Bashan and Yameni, the Northern Returners mixed with the elite Xu and Huaiji troops. They were reorganized and went to the battlefield. They cooperated with Tian Yan to defeat Feng Hongduo in Shengzhou, and again in Taihu Lake. They defeated the Western Zhejiang Army and their record was not bad.
Of course, Lao Yang's favorite is the Black Cloud Long Sword Army.
The Heiyun Changjian Army is actually two armies, namely Heiyundu and Changjiandu. There were initially 5,000 people. Five thousand elite soldiers were carefully selected from more than 100,000 Sun Ru surrendered troops. They have strong combat power and military discipline. Extremely bad and extremely cruel. Sometimes Yang Xingmi felt that he couldn't control this beast, and it was the same as Li Hanzhi's beast soldiers. However, Lao Yang was richer and more skillful than Li Hanzhi, so he was able to conquer these people, with a little effort. Just restrain the military discipline and let them work hard.
Heiyun has more than 2,500 cavalrymen, Chai Zaiyong is the commander. Changjian has more than 6,000 infantry, and Li Jian is the commander.
These troops, together with the Yunqi Army, which has more than a thousand cavalry, are Lao Yang's main force and the core armed force he can control. Conquering the east and west and subduing the princes all depend on this.
After receiving the order, Yuan Zhen, the commander of the Bashan Army, did not hesitate at all and headed north with his vehicles that day.
They marched along the west bank of the Bian River, accompanied by the boat division carrying provisions and supplies, and headed straight for Hong County.
On the 25th, Yang Xingmi could no longer hold himself back and led more than 20,000 Huai army troops northward, keeping a day's distance from the Bashan Army.
Zhang Xun, the general of Xuyi Town, also crossed thousands of troops across the river to provide support at any time.
Everything seems to have returned to the Qingkou War in history: Yang Xingmi took 30,000 returnees from the north as the main force, accompanied by Zhu Jin, Shi Yan, and Li Chengsi's tens of thousands of cavalry, plus 10,000 to 20,000 local prefecture and county troops, to face Zhu Quanzhong. of 80,000 troops.
Time has passed, everything is so similar, and everything looks completely different.
******
In four days, Li Tangbin's troops traveled south for a full 140 miles, which was extremely fast.
Now they hit a roadblock.
There are always all kinds of bad things happening on the battlefield. Some are pure accidents, and some are inevitable.
Before Yang Xingmi headed westward, he ordered Tuoba Renfu's three thousand cavalry to cross the river from Chuzhou and go north.
Tuoba Renfu was not slow and went north after receiving the order. After receiving supplies in Lianshui County, Sizhou, he continued his march, and then unexpectedly encountered the Xia army at the junction of Shuyang and Lianshui.
It can be said to be an accident, or it can be said to be inevitable.
Scouts from both sides had discovered each other dozens of miles away, and ended up bumping into each other. It can only be said that it was a common choice.
Hua Wenqi, the deputy envoy of the Dragon and Tiger Army who served as the vanguard, continued to march for a certain distance without any fear, then found a suitable position and ordered the formation of the formation.
The auxiliary soldiers moved quickly and surrounded the baggage vehicles to form multiple circular formations.
The soldiers were armed with rifles, bows and rifles and were ready to fight.
The rotating soldiers and auxiliary soldiers sat on the ground, chatting and laughing.
Although the Dragon and Tiger Army are a mixed bag, they have rich combat experience. They first served for Liang Wang Zhu Quanzhong and were stationed in the southern border of Puzhou. They fought against Zhu Xuan and Zhu Jin brothers for a long time and fought frequently.
After taking refuge with the King of Xia, he fought many times with Yan Bao and Zhu Jin.
Such a unit would naturally not be too afraid of the cavalry. After all, they had been charged by Zhu Jin many times and knew what to do.
Tuoba Renfu rode his horse up a gentle slope, overlooking the overall situation from a high position.
There are four thousand Xia soldiers in total, half fighting and half auxiliary. They appear to be experienced and capable.
He felt that this battle was not easy to win.
With the protection of the baggage vehicles, the cavalry could not rush straight through and could only circle around the outside.
In fact, this is the situation on the current battlefield.
More than a thousand riders circled the car formation, turning left and right, but they could never find a place to enter. Some people could not restrain their temper and rushed forward to shoot. As a result, both the man and the horse were shot by rifle bows.
Like a hedgehog.
No one dared to take any more risks, and the two sides were stagnant.
The infantry of the Dragon and Tiger Army stood on the baggage vehicles, waving their spears, laughing and insulting loudly.
Tuoba Renfu's followers were not willing to be outdone and scolded him one after another.
This battle seems a bit funny.
"I'm most annoyed by these old guys who have seen so many battles." Tuoba Renfu sighed secretly.
After Yang Xingmi conquered Nantou, in order to prove his worth, he once accompanied the army on an expedition to Raozhou, Jiangxi.
During the battle, his cavalry encountered a Jiangxi infantry force of more than 3,000 people. They also formed a formation around the car. At that time, Tuoba Renfu only led his troops to charge forward, and the bandit army was shaken and took risks.
After approaching and firing, the enemy army was completely defeated, and the fight was so relaxing and comfortable.
But the stubborn Liu Zhijun was stubborn. Those infantrymen dared to laugh and insult them, not taking them seriously.
The deadlock lasted for a while. The Dragon and Tiger Army seemed to be impatient. The auxiliary troops took action and changed their formation. The circular formation turned into a long snake and continued to advance.
Under the cover of the car formation, the sergeants wore armor and strung their bows, keeping vigilance.
This style is no different from Liu Jinu's Northern Expedition army back then. It's just that they had more fun back then. The four thousand carts guarding the two wings were hung with curtains, and you didn't know what they were doing inside.
Tuoba Renfu's cavalry followed silently outside, and from time to time he sent people forward to provoke, but they were all driven away by rifle bows.
After walking for two hours, the car formation stopped again and the entire army rested.
Tuoba Renfu has already descended the high slope and is very helpless. If they are allowed to continue walking like this and run all the way to Qingkou, will you rush or not?
The scouts came back from the north and brought the latest news.
"Withdraw!" Tuoba Renfu swung his riding whip angrily and disappeared into the southern horizon.
Hua Wenqi stood on a carriage and sighed with regret.
The enemy cavalry did not come forcefully. If they dismounted and fought on foot, Hua Wenqi even had the confidence to defeat the cavalry with a single step. She was very proud and showed King Xia that the Dragon and Tiger Army could also fight, no better than the Tielin Army.
How much difference.
Wang Jingxuan, the Marquis of Yu, the capital of Yi Congjun, rushed over with two thousand cavalry. After learning that the bandit cavalry had retreated, he gave up the pursuit.
"It's a pity that we can't make a surprise attack to clear our mouths." Wang Jingxuan put away the iron gun and smacked his lips, feeling a little regretful.
"You still expect to attack for three hundred miles without being discovered by the bandits." Hua Wenqi said with a smile.
He and Wang Jingshen are also old acquaintances and have a good relationship with each other.
Wang Jingshen's Jiama Army was completely annihilated in Fugou, and he was captured. Unexpectedly, he was now at Yuhou, the capital of the Yicong Army, which made Hua Wenqi very envious - until now, he was still hanging around in the miscellaneous troops.
"How strong is the Huai army?" Wang Jingxuan asked.
"You are talking about Tuoba Renfu, right? His soldiers are better than before, but they are not much stronger." Hua Wenqi said: "The name of Qingkou Guardsman is Xu Wen. He used to be in charge of Black Cloud City.
They are considered to be Yang Xingmi’s confidants. I heard that they led the Fengguo Army to guard Qingkou, as well as some Tutuan countrymen, and I don’t know how many of them. The Fengguo Army is Yang Xingmi’s old army, but its combat power should not be as good as—”
"Why don't you join the horse army? If you have anything to say, just say it." Wang Jingzhen laughed and said, "This time we will attack the bandit camp and see how good they are. If you dare to fight with me in the field, you can take care of them all."
Traveling south all the way, we fought against the local troops in Haizhou and Xuzhou, and felt that their combat effectiveness was just that, not very strong. At first, the Huai army dared to go out of the city to fight in the field, making gestures, but later they mainly focused on defense.
He still has the ability to fight in the field, but it is not strong enough. He may win with more troops and fewer troops, but with the same strength and the same situation, Wang Jingxu feels that the Yi Congjun should be able to fight and win.
After Tuoba Renfu's little episode passed, the army accelerated its advance.
On the last day of April, Hua Wenqi's tribe arrived a few miles north of Qingkou and set up camp.
The decisive southward advance of more than 20,000 people from Li Tangbin's army was like a thunderclap, causing the entire Huaihe River to become silent.