Three hundred and ninety seventh chapters calculations in vain
Liu Chong wanted to take the initiative to launch an attack, but it seemed that the logistics supplies were a little tight. If the confrontation continued, he would not be able to delay Yuan Shao.
No matter if it's a fight, there may be changes in Chang'an this year. The sooner the war in Xuzhou is ended, the better.
Yan Gang took a thousand Yue cavalry and went to Pei County that day. The next day, Luo Jun took the infantry and civilians to the Guangqi camp.
The Guangqi Camp is located a little further south than Chunyu Qiong's Soaking Camp. It is separated by the Surabaya River, more than ten miles away. It is okay for a small force to cross the river, but a large army will inevitably be attacked halfway across the river.
Liu Chong wanted the Anping Army to launch a strong attack first and cover his troops to cross the water. Liu Xiang was stupid and would only agree.
Therefore, he wanted to attack Guangqi County and mobilize the enemy's troops to rescue.
Chunyu Qiong had no choice but to save him. This was the node of his food route, and a lot of supplies were stored in the city. Once the city was lost, even if the logistics route was changed, it would be directly exposed to the Anping Army, and the situation would become very difficult.
On the second day of Luo Jun's feigned attack, enemy soldiers were lingering on the west bank of Surabaya, but there were mounted patrols on the east bank, so they did not find a good opportunity to cross the river.
On the seventh day of the feint attack, the moat of Guangqi was filled in. Chunyu Qiong was preparing to cross the river at many locations on the west bank of Surabaya. The defenders in the city also frequently launched counterattacks.
Liu Xiang felt that something was not right. His cavalry was watching eagerly from the side. If he divided his troops to cross the river, it would be easy for them to be defeated by each one. The defenders opened the city gate many times. Are they really not afraid of the cavalry charging into the city by force?
There is fraud here!
Xi Zhicai also thought so: "My lord, we should send more scouts south to investigate. The various strange things in the enemy's army may attract our army's attention and create opportunities for real reinforcements to enter the city."
"Zhi Cai's words make sense. Come here, send an order to Yueqi, divide 500 people into the south, and in units of ten, explore the enemy's traces in the lower reaches of Surabaya and in the direction of Liuxian County."
Further south from Guangqi, the east bank of Surabaya is the Weishan Mountains. Beyond Weishan is Yinping County of Donghai County. Guan Yu's troops are stationed there and the enemy will not come from that way. Liuxian County and Pengcheng downstream are both in Surabaya.
On the west bank, reinforcements are likely to be in that direction.
As expected, Yue Qiu found enemy troops crossing the river near Liu County, fifty miles away. Unfortunately, the enemy noticed our scouts and retreated directly, without giving the cavalry a chance to go south to destroy them.
Chunyu Qiong's feint on the west bank then stopped. Only the Guangqi defenders were still stupidly counterattacking the attacking troops below the city. The fighting became more and more fierce, and they even sent elite soldiers to burn down the siege equipment.
The infantry casualties on both sides were considerable.
The two thousand crossbowmen under the city made a great show. They formed a group of 300 people to assist each other. They used the three-stage crossbow tactic to fire crossbows and blocked the three city gates. Even if the enemy troops rushed to the front of the formation, there would never be a rain of arrows.
stop.
Thanks to the crossbowman's persistence, otherwise the soldiers of the Seven Kingdoms Alliance would have collapsed and would not have been able to wait for the support of Hu Qi.
The quality of the soldiers is clearly visible.
It's not bad, there are thousands of Danyang elite soldiers in Guangqi City, they fight fiercely, shout and fight vigorously, and are not afraid of life or death.
He rushed out of the city gate many times, defeated the enemy in front of him, and advanced deeper, trying to burn down the Jinglan and the ladder, forcing Liu Xiang to send Hu cavalry to support the battlefield below the city to prevent the entire army from collapsing.
The two armies fought until sunset before stopping.
Today's battle was very brutal. The casualties in one day's attack and defense were several times more severe than those in the previous days combined.
More than two hundred crossbowmen were killed in the battle, and the number of other infantrymen, civilians, and people who died in the battle plus those who were killed by the supervising team when they fled exceeded three thousand.
Morale hit rock bottom.
The Guangqi defenders also felt uncomfortable. Danyang's elite soldiers were dispersed by the Hu cavalry, and almost the entire army was wiped out. Hundreds of other soldiers were injured or killed, and their morale was also low, making it difficult to fight again.
Both sides were hurt and unable to fight, so they could only withdraw their troops and return to camp to lick their wounds.
Yuan Shao's reinforcement plan failed, Liu Xiang besieged the city for reinforcements, and his plan to attract Chunyu Qiong to divide his troops also failed.
On the contrary, the feint troops from both sides came forward, and they were beaten to pieces, with eggs shattering on the ground.
"If Yuan Benchu fails to increase his troops, there will inevitably be new moves. How do Zhicai think he will respond to the current war?" He really couldn't guess the enemy's subsequent moves. It is difficult to deal with an opponent like Yuan Shao.
Xi Zhicai pondered for a moment: "Looking at the enemy's actions today, I am extremely afraid of our cavalry and do not want to fight in the field, fearing that they will not forcefully reinforce Guang Qi.
From Liuxian County to Paoshui Camp, at least fifty miles of grain roads are exposed in front of our army. According to the opinion of the officials, it is possible to build camps along the way for transportation."
"Are you building a camp step by step? This project is not small. At least three camps can resist the cavalry raiding the grain transport team." Liu Xiang thought it was unlikely.
Even if the fifty-mile stretch from Liuxian to Buoshui could be solved, the one hundred and twenty-mile stretch from Pengcheng to Liuxian would still be under the threat of cavalry.
Taking steps step by step cannot be achieved in a short period of time.
After thinking about it for a long time, I didn't have any ideas. Let's just capture the city and see how the enemy responds.
"The morale of the defenders in the city has collapsed. If we add more force, the city will be destroyed. Zhicai sent a message to Liu Chong, asking him to temporarily switch from offense to defense, and first mobilize 5,000 infantry to capture Guangqi."
Guang Qi, two hundred miles east of Surabaya, became the world of cavalry. Not only would Chunyu Qiong's grain road be threatened, but they could also go south to raid Pengcheng at any time, and they could even advance southeast to attack the army confronting Guan Yu.
Continuing to attack the city is to seize the initiative in the battle and force Yuan Shao to respond. If there are fewer reinforcements sent, they will be eaten by the cavalry. But if more reinforcements are sent, troops from other places will have to be mobilized, allowing Liu Chong and Guan Yu to discover the flaw.
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"I don't know how you will respond, but the battle situation must follow my rhythm." Liu Xiang muttered in a low voice. Relying on the combat power of the cavalry, he wanted to seize the initiative in the war.
There was no obstacle in sending a message to mobilize troops, and Liu Chong replied that troops would be sent for reinforcements early tomorrow morning.
This reaction was not bad, but the generals of the Anping Army who were discussing military affairs in the Chinese army's tent were not very satisfied and would leave time for the enemy to cultivate.
"Send troops tomorrow morning, march for a day, and attack the city the day after tomorrow. Can't you even march at night? The quality of the soldiers is too poor. The infantry in the camp is also useless. The morale of 25,000 people was beaten by a mere thousand Danyang soldiers.
It's so sad that there are so many deserters, they should all be taken out and killed."
Cui Yi was very dissatisfied with the infantry. He disliked them all the way. He had this feeling since the time of Lu.
"There are many new recruits, most of them are civilians, and their treatment is poor. Don't compare them with our infantry. The two thousand crossbowmen are still pretty good." Liu Xiang advised.
In fact, he also disliked it, but he couldn't show it openly.
The night passed quickly. Guangqi's garrison stayed in the city timidly, with no intention of leaving the city. The loss of Danyang soldiers yesterday made them lose all will to fight.
Just when Liu Xiang was thinking about how to harass the defenders at the foot of the city, so that they would not be able to rest and recover their morale, so that they could attack the city tomorrow.
The scouts reported that the camp on the south bank of the water was empty. Chunyu Qiong took advantage of the night to retreat.
It was unexpected. I really didn’t expect to retreat. The war situation had just begun to decline. So we immediately retreated and adjusted our troops. Was it to re-establish the defense line? Are you so decisive?
"Send additional scouts to track the enemy's movements and be sure to find their exact location." Yesterday's arrangement was about to be overturned and he had to start over. He turned around and returned to camp, instructing his attendants to summon Xi Zhicai, Cui Yi and others to discuss military affairs.
"The enemy is retreating, and their intentions are unclear. If you have any ideas, feel free to tell us."
When Cui Yi heard the enemy retreating, he stood up with a loud sound and said in a hurry: "My lord, Chunyu Qiong retreated at night, so he will not be able to go far. It will not be difficult for our army to catch up. We can take advantage of the enemy's fatigue and cripple them."
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Ke Bineng stood up immediately, with high fighting spirit, clasped his fists and asked for orders: "Lord, my troops are willing to be the vanguard."