On July 21, the first year of Tianyou's reign, after Fuyang was captured, Lu Huaizhong, the former enemy's commander, personally led the force and suddenly sent the main force of more than 40,000 infantry and cavalry of the second army northward towards Handan, the important town of Cizhou. Before that, they had been in Mingzhou The strategic army that was building siege equipment outside the city had actually divided its troops in advance. Yang Yi, the Marquis of Duyu, personally led 3,000 infantry and cavalry and captured Linming County.
The deputy envoy Feng Yin led 4,000 infantry and cavalry and defeated a section of the Fifth Academy Army heading north from Handan in the south of Linming County. The rebels did not dare to return to Handan, so they went directly west and broke into Wu'an.
Li Ke had few troops, and he still had a configuration of heavy front and light rear. The guards were straight with golden spears. The Huangjia Army in front of the hall and the Fifth Academy Army were all deployed in Cizhou. As a result, the Jinglue Army was inserted along the junction of Xingming Ci and Weizhou. By taking a detour to Mingzhou, there is the danger of being cut off by the entire army.
When the news reached Fukou Town, Li Keyong remained silent.
Li Cunxian, the commander of the Yier Army, and Li Luoluo, the commander of the Hengchong Army, looked uneasy and stared at Li Keyong, waiting for him to make a decision.
The enemy's strategic army is developing rapidly in the direction of Mingzhou, and the threat is getting bigger and bigger. Although it cannot immediately cut off the food route of the Fifth Academy Army, it will definitely shake the morale of the army. The most embarrassing thing is that Xingzhou does not have enough soldiers. to reopen the road. The only thing that can be used on the battlefield now is Li Ke's adopted son, who can use it to cross the two armies.
Li Keyong imitated it slightly.
If they continue to operate in Fukou Town and even Cizhou, the Jinglue Army will completely cut off the road from Xingzhou to Cizhou, and even capture Mingzhou. Then the enemy's main force will break through Cizhou head-on, or detour northward and completely encircle the Fifth Academy Army. The battle will end At this point, it can be said that the defeat is certain. The Fifth Academy Army cannot save it, and neither can Mingzhou.
If we lead the army to rescue Mingzhou, the traffic can still be maintained for a period of time, and we can even cooperate with the more than 10,000 troops of the Fifth Academy Army to defeat the Xia army that went deep into the direction of Mingzhou and fight one or two annihilation battles. The premise is that the direction of Cizhou is stable and contained. A large number of enemy troops.
Of course, there is another way, which is to abandon Fukou Town, move the entire army south to Cizhou, defeat the enemy's main force under Fuyang Fort, and reverse the entire war situation in one fell swoop. But Li Keyong still understands the Xia army's organization, and the sudden general, The Wuwei Second Army also has more than 10,000 cavalry who are good at charging and killing. Now they have silver spears, flying bears and other troops, so the chance of winning is very low.
What to do? Which strategy to choose?
"This battle..." Li Keyong pondered for a long time, and just as he was about to speak, he saw Gai Yu walking over in a hurry.
"Your Majesty." His expression was not very good. When Li Keyong saw it, his heart subconsciously rang. There had been too much bad news recently, and he was already a little afraid of hearing the military reports coming from various battlefields.
"What's the matter?" Li Keyong asked calmly.
"Your Majesty, there is a report from the direction of Zhaoyi County. A large group of thieves are coming." Gai Yu said, "There seems to be a change over there in Fuyang. There are scouts watching from a distance. The cheers from up and down the city are like thunder, and it lasts for a long time."
Why didn't the scouts get closer to investigate, but instead observed from a distance? Of course, the risk of getting closer was too great, and it was even impossible to get closer at all.
"Sir!" Li Keyong hadn't spoken yet, but Li Luoluo could no longer hold his breath. He looked ugly and anxious, and said, "Fuyang City must have been destroyed."
"..." Li Keyong wanted to say something, but nothing came out.
Cizhou City was destroyed? Is it that easy? It has only been a few days?
"Your Majesty, actually..." Li Cunxian, the envoy of the Yier Army, hesitated for a while, and then said: "Cizhou is isolated and helpless, and its troops are weak. It will fall sooner or later. Although the five-day city will be defeated, it will be faster, but it is not impossible. If the scouts
What he said is true, Fuyang should have been lost."
Li Keyong said nothing.
In fact, he knew in his heart that the fall of Fuyang was inevitable. But if Fuyang was gone, what was the use of all his troubles in Fukou Town? What was the meaning? The battle was fought like this, and so many people were lost.
What is the value of soldiers and horses?
"Your Majesty." Gai Yu took a deep breath and admonished: "Even if Fuyang is not lost, Mingzhou is in danger now, and this battle cannot be fought. It is time to make a decision."
Li Keyong was speechless for a long time.
He had actually believed the news that Fuyang City had been destroyed, and this blow to the head also made him sober up a little.
From the moment the Xia army marched north, the Jin army was passive at all times, fighting blindly and suffering heavy losses. Although there was a serious shortage of troops, the mistakes in its own tactics also existed objectively.
Unwilling to admit defeat and reluctant to abandon the unfavorable defense of the three states, Xing Ming placed his hope on unreliable allies, and ended up going further and further down the wrong path.
If the strategy is wrong, the more troublesome the tactics are, the more serious the mistake will be.
Li Keyong has been using troops for many years, and he thinks he shouldn't be at this level, but in actual operation, it's like a young boy arranging troops who doesn't know how to use troops.
Ridiculous, ridiculous! Li Keyong sighed, looking extremely lonely.
"I have sent an order to Shi Jun. Huang Jiajun in front of the hall abandons Fukou Town and retreats to the Taihang Mountains. I will cut off his rear."
There are two retreat routes for Huang Jiajun in front of the hall. One is to go north to Wu'an, join the defeated troops of the Fifth Academy Army, and then go west into the Taihang Mountains; the other is to go directly west, pass the newly built Huguan, and retreat to Shexian County.
.
Going north is too risky, and going west is the most suitable. You can enter the mountainous area in a few steps. If the thousands of Xia soldiers nearby pursue, Li Ke will use his cavalry to harass them and slow down their pursuit speed. The Xia army will follow up with the cavalry brigade.
Even if we come here, we can't leave the yellow army in front of the hall. In the mountains, we're not sure who will do what.
"Send an order to An Jinquan. The Fifth Academy Army abandons Handan and retreats to Wu'an and then to the Taihang Mountains. I will come and cut off his rear."
Yes, Lao Li is still very busy. Yi'er, it seems that the Hengchong Second Army will split into two groups and put out fires everywhere.
But the retreat of the Huangjia Army in front of the hall is very easy, but the retreat of the Fifth Academy Army has a "billion points" problem. The distance is long and the situation is complicated, and it is very likely to run into the Xia Army.
Of course, there is a positive side. The Xia army has just captured Fuyang. This is the siege with the highest casualties among all forms of warfare. The morale of the troops has been affected and they are also very tired. They will probably have to rest for a day or two. This gives
gave them a chance.
"That side of Xingzhou -" Li Keyong pondered for a moment, and finally said: "Follow An Jinjun to evacuate people and property, and evacuate the important ones first. Destroy those that cannot be evacuated, and do not stay to aid the enemy."
Xingzhou also only has three to four thousand state soldiers. They cannot play a decisive role in this huge battlefield. They can be considered powerful if they can resist for a period of time.
Cizhou has been lost, Mingzhou is in danger, and Xingzhou will be difficult to keep in the end. It's not that Li Keyong couldn't understand the joints, it was just that he couldn't accept it before. Now he has made up his mind, his mind is extremely clear, and he is not sloppy in making decisions.
.
"In addition, send an envoy to Zhenzhou and tell Wang Rong that after the Xia soldiers captured Xingzhou, they bordered Chengde Town. With Shao Shude's attitude of occupying Yunei, Chengde will never survive. In this critical opportunity, we should work together to help
, Let’s fight against the powerful enemy together. I hope you will send the generals on the battlefield to lead the army to support one or two." Li Keyong finally said. Zhaozhou is to the north of Xingzhou and Jizhou is to the northeast. They are both the territories of the German army. If Shao Shude's former
If the threat seems a bit far away, this time it has really hit home, and it is bound to cause a violent backlash within Zhenzhou.
Li Keyong didn't want the German army to be the scapegoat. He just asked them to send troops south to provide some support. Anyway, that's it. It's up to Wang Rong whether he will listen or not.
After the order is issued, a messenger will go to deliver it.
Li Ke ordered Li Cunxian to lead three thousand volunteers to herd horses nearby to monitor the Xia army, and then led the remaining volunteers and Hengchong troops to the northeast to meet the Fifth Academy Army.
****
It's already dark.
In Anyang City, Shao Shude was paralyzed on the bed, reading history books leisurely.
Li Yixian gently put away the bowls and chopsticks, then brought a pot of tea and poured it on gently.
These tasks can be done by any person assigned to them, but Li Yixian has always done it himself and earned a lot of money due to his performance.
"Where are Lu Huaizhong's troops?" Shao Shude's voice came from the bed.
"This meeting should have arrived in Taicheng Town and Zhaowang City area." Li Yixian replied.
Taicheng Town is located forty miles northeast of Fuyang. It is said that it was a summer resort built by King Zhao during the Warring States Period. It is also a place where you can enjoy singing and dancing. It belongs to Handan County. Beside the city are the tombs of Lian Po and Lin Xiangru.
Zhao Wangcheng is the former site of Handan, the capital of Zhao State during the Warring States Period. It is not far from Taicheng Town. Nearby are the tombs of Le Yi and Zhao Jianzi. Not far to the northwest of Handan, there is also the tomb of Zhao She. Duanduan is a good historical and cultural attraction.
"Marching all night, you are really brave." Shao Shude said with a smile.
He said this very calmly and not nervous at all, because he could afford to lose.
Historically, Zhu Quanzhong should have felt this way when he hit this level.
Their biggest enemies are always internal, not external. Poor internal operations will affect all aspects, lead to a decrease in the military's combat effectiveness, and lead to military failure. This is the most dangerous thing.
But at this point, he also parted ways with Zhu Quanzhong. History told him that Zhu Quanzhong's path was a dead end, and he did not want to try it.
"The bandit army was deployed improperly. They were invincible in the battle formation and their morale was low. Lu Dutou is also a veteran on the battlefield, so I expected nothing wrong." Li Yixian said.
Shao Shude didn't want to give Lu Huaizhong a formation map and tell him to deploy this way and line up his troops that way. Lu Huaizhong wouldn't tell him how to march or how to set up the formation.
But Shao Shude has been on the battlefield for half his life, and he is as familiar with military affairs as reading lines on the palm of his hand. He can judge the details on the battlefield through just a few words.
The main force went straight forward, unexpectedly entering Bo Handan, outflanking the enemy's forces, and cutting off the enemy's return route. The cavalry was spread out over a large area to ensure that the enemy would not be able to get close without knowing it.
Xing Mingci is basically on the plains, so it is best to fight this kind of battle, both sides have clear cards, and there is no suddenness.
Now Shao Shude has a big king and four twos, so he plays the bright cards whenever he wants.
"Is there any movement over there at Wei Bo?" Shao Shude asked again.
"According to the news in the morning, the rebels seem to have known about the battle in Cizhou. There is a constant flow of ships along the Yongji Canal. The rebels have hoarded a large amount of food and grass in Naihuang. They seem to have a plan." Li Yixian replied.
"This makes me take a good look at them." Shao Shude smiled and said, "Let's wait for the battle of Xing Mingci to end, and then we will take care of Wei Bo later. Pack your things tonight and follow me to Ye County tomorrow."