Chapter 487 Cai Mao: I am a river dragon, why fear a tiger!
Have to admit it.
Cai Mao was able to become the Grand Governor of Jingxiang not only because he was born in the Cai family, but also because he really had certain abilities in water warfare, had unique vision, and was good at training troops.
Under his leadership, the chief generals of the Jingxiang Navy began discussions one after another to find the combat characteristics, combat methods, and flaws of the Nanyang Navy, in order to find a way to defeat the enemy in the shortest possible time.
In about two hours, all the soldiers had formed a basic unified opinion!
Nanyang Navy has a large number of warships, about one thousand taels to three hundred warships, and a large part of the warships are converted from merchant ships. They can accommodate many soldiers, but their speed is relatively slow, and they do not have weapons such as crossbows.
.
Its large warships are called ballistae ships by the Jingxiang navy. This is concise and to the point, and directly addresses the characteristics of its warships. This kind of warship is relatively large and should be regarded as a command ship and main warship. It is good at ultra-long-distance attacks.
As for other small warships, most of them do not have very strong combat effectiveness. They are frigates, ballista ships, and cruisers and other functional warships, so they are not something to be afraid of.
...
Cai Mao glanced at the soldiers and said loudly: "You think, how can we win the victory? No need to be restrained in what we say. Even if we say the wrong thing, it doesn't matter."
Next, General Su Fei stood up first and said sonorously: "Grand Governor, I think that we should also gather all the warships in Jingbei. At least in terms of quantity, there cannot be too much difference."
"Currently, there are at least hundreds of warships in Jiangxia County, and the same goes for Nan County. If we take the water route, we can arrive in three to five days. If we add their warships, we will have more than 1,500 warships, which can fully compete with
decisive battle."
There was no shock on Cai Mao's face, and he just nodded: "To be honest, I have the same idea, but now that the war is coming, it may not be that easy to delay it for another three to five days."
"Degui."
At this moment, Kuai Yue on the side bowed his head and interrupted directly: "We can take a preemptive strike and write a letter of challenge to Sun Jian, inviting him to fight a decisive battle on the Han River in five days."
"Sun Jian has always relied on bravery and courage. We only need to use more cruel words. I think he will definitely agree, thus ignoring the problem of time."
Sun Jian had a well-known fiery temper, and would get angry at the slightest disagreement. This kind of person is most likely to ignore details and become impulsive when his mind is hot. Kuai Yue acted like this, which can be regarded as the right medicine.
Cai Mao was naturally aware of Sun Jian's bad temper. He nodded slowly and said with deep understanding: "In that case, I will leave this matter to Yidu. While sending someone to write a letter of war, he rushed to Jiangxia to inform Huang Zu and lead
All naval forces are here to support us."
Kuai Yue bowed his head and said: "Well, don't worry Degui, I can just leave this matter to you."
After solving the problem of insufficient troops, Cai Mao continued: "If you have anything to add, feel free to say it."
At that moment, another Deng Long stepped out and bowed his hand: "Grand Commander, the advantage of the Nanyang navy lies in the ballistae ships. If we can eliminate the ballistae ships regardless of sacrifice, we will definitely win a complete victory."
"kindness."
Cai Mao nodded and affirmed: "Yes, Nanyang's ballistae ships are indeed powerful, but I'm afraid it won't be that easy to destroy them."
"Judging from today's battle, most of the opponent's small warships are guarding the ballista ships. Presumably they must be responsible for the escort mission. It is obvious that the Nanyang navy also understands that their only advantage is the warships, that's all."
"In this case, how can we destroy the ballista ship?"
Cai Mao has also been worried about this kind of thing. After all, he understands the terror of the opponent's warship: "It should be noted that the opponent's ballistae ship has ballistae on all sides, arranged closely. If we want to attack, within a hundred steps, we must take the lead."
Withstand its attack."
The implication is that before we hit them, they can already beat you up, and once you hit them, it will be the lives of a whole ship of soldiers. Such losses will be very heavy.
Who would take the initiative to take on this task even though they know it is the most difficult task?
The answer is obviously no.
I'm afraid no one would be willing to take on this kind of death mission unless there is a way to deal with it.
Deng Long continued: "Grand Governor, if we attack from the front, we will naturally suffer a lot of damage. Not to mention the ballistae, even the surrounding frigates will be difficult to deal with."
"but......"
At this point, Deng Long changed the topic and said sonorously: "If we can send warships to contain its frigates, and then send sterns to ram it, supplemented by kerosene and other materials, we can definitely sink it."
"In addition, the Grand Governor can gather some water ghosts with good water properties, jump into the river, sneak under the ballista ship, drill holes in its bottom, and speed up its sinking."
"The water ghost went into the water?"
Chen Ying frowned, shook his head, and said softly: "When is it now? If you go into the water now, won't you let all the water ghosts freeze to death in the river?"
"no!"
Chen Ying said without hesitation: "Absolutely not! I don't agree!"
However, Deng Long's eyes were as wide as bells, and his attitude was very firm: "Yes, it is indeed not suitable to go into the water now, so the Nanyang navy would never have imagined that we would send water ghosts to dig through the bottom."
"Otherwise, how can you defeat such a big guy? You have to know that the opponent's ballista ship is surrounded by a lot of frigates. Whether our warships and stern ships can rush forward is completely unknown.
.”
"If you don't let the water ghosts go into the water while the two sides are fighting, how can we destroy the crossbow ship? If we don't destroy the crossbow ship, how can we win? Is it possible that you want to retreat to the Yangtze River?"
"Don't forget!"
Deng Long shouted hoarsely and shouted coldly: "The people gathered in Xiangyang now are all the elites of the Jingxiang Navy. If we can't even defend the Han River, how can we defend the Yangtze River?"
Chen Ying suddenly became wilted.
indeed.
If the current lineup can't beat Nanyang, then even retreating to the Yangtze River will be of no use.
Although the weather is a bit cold now, spring is about to begin and everything will revive. No matter how cold the river is, it is much better than losing Xiangyang. After all, more than half of our industry is in Xiangyang.
"But......"
Chen Ying took a deep breath and exhaled slowly: "In such a river, it may not be easy for the brothers to cut through the bottom of the ship. The east side of the river is cold, which affects efficiency."
Deng Long said solemnly: "No matter what, we must give it a try. If we cannot destroy the ballista ships, it will be more difficult and cause more casualties if our people alone want to win this battle."
"What Commander Deng said makes sense."
Before Chen Ying could speak, Cai Mao, the leader, directly continued: "That's right, if we want to win, we must kill the ballista ship. Even if we can't kill it, we must at least restrict its movements."
"If we cannot control the ballista ship, our army's casualties will inevitably increase. This will outweigh the gains. This is the moment of life and death for Jing Xiang. I hope you generals can go all out and stop looking for excuses."
"The water ghost issue must be resolved!"
As the Grand Governor, Cai Mao directly made a decision: "Let's do this. Each battalion will select some people with better water qualities from the army, and first train in the water stronghold and try it out in the water."
"No matter what, this process must be overcome. As long as the enemy ship can be penetrated, each person will be rewarded with a reward of 10,000 yuan, and the officer will be promoted one level, and the victim will receive a pension of 30,000 yuan!"
When all the soldiers heard Cai Mao's words, they all nodded.
There must be a brave man under a heavy reward.
As long as Cai Mao is willing to bleed, it will be too easy for the Jingxiang navy to find some water ghosts. What is not lacking here is soldiers with good water properties, and what is lacking is sufficient profit stimulation.
*****
Fancheng.
Sun Jian's camp.
Central army, big tent.
Sun Jian was sitting in the main seat, holding a letter of challenge in his hand, rolling his eyes up and down, and smiled: "The decisive battle will begin in five days, Cai Mao is very good at timing."
The man below held his head high and looked at Sun Jian: "Why, General, don't you dare? It turns out that the Jiangdong tiger is no longer a tiger, but a sick cat!"
This person's name is Fu Xun, and he was a former counselor in Liu Biao's account.
"snort."
Sun Jian glanced at Fu Xun below. Not only was he not angry, but he was very calm: "Such a low-grade method of provoking generals is full of loopholes. Cai is really stupid to send you here!"
Fu Xun suddenly panicked and didn't know how to respond.
When he was confused, his superior, Sun Jian, waved his hand and said softly: "Well, it will be five days from now. I just need to prepare some things."
"You go back and tell Cai Mao and ask him to mobilize all the troops and horses as much as possible. This way, I will not have to run to Jiangxia and Nanjun after taking Xiangyang."
Fu Xun was stunned: "You...could you...could you have already guessed it?"
Sun Jiandan smiled: "Why, is this kind of thing difficult to guess? Five days is enough for Jiangxia's navy to come to Xiangyang. If possible, I can wait a little longer and let Jingnan's troops come as well."
"this......"
Fu Xun hurriedly shook his head and waved his hands: "That's not necessary. Let's do it in five days."
Sun Jian only thought it was ridiculous and said softly: "Okay! Five days is five days. You go back and tell Cai Mao to wash his neck and wait to be slaughtered. His death will be in five days."
As a last resort, Fu Xun could only bow his hands and bow before leaving.
The moment he left the big tent, everyone in the tent was laughing wildly, and the sound floated out of the tent. It was like a thousand swords piercing the heart, but Fu Xun could only bite the bullet and leave in a hurry.
General Huang Gai grinned wildly and pinched a strand of beard under his chin: "Haha, have you seen it? The face of the man named Fu changed. He was probably so ashamed that he jumped into the river and committed suicide halfway."
"Jump into the river and commit suicide?"
Zhu Zhi, the fierce general next to him, exclaimed: "That's just right. The fish and turtles in the river have been hungry all winter, and they have to eat him until no bones are left. Let's consider him as a sacrifice."
"Wouldn't this be an advantage for him?"
Another young general Pan Zhang followed up and said: "Let me tell you, after he returns, he will first return to Cai Mao, make Cai Mao angry until he is half dead, and then jump into the river to commit suicide, or he will be tied up by Cai Mao and thrown into the river to feed the fish. Then
That’s good.”
"Hey, you kid..."
Sun Jian turned his head and glanced at Pan Zhang, nodding his head: "Ruthless enough!"
Pan Zhang looked up to the sky and laughed loudly: "This is how you have to deal with them, otherwise you won't have a long memory."
"Hahahahaha!"
Suddenly, the whole room burst into laughter again.
Sun Jian waved his hand to signal everyone to be quiet. He glanced at the civil and military forces in the room and said softly: "Generals, the decisive battle in five days will affect Jing Xiang's ownership. We must use our strongest combat power to show His Majesty our strength.
"
"Although there is still Yangzhou, whether Yangzhou will become an enemy of the imperial court after this battle is another matter. We must regard this battle as our last battle."
"Before, Meng De, Xuande, and Wen Yuan were doing meritorious service. Your Majesty kept us in hiding for three years. Now is the time for us to make meritorious deeds. You must remember to go all out, do you understand?"
All the soldiers raised their hands in unison: "Here."
They had been looking forward to this moment for three years. Now that they finally had the opportunity, they naturally had to do their best to live up to this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
The following days.
Sun Jian began to send people to organize the warships and distribute the Fire Thunder. Everything that should be installed was installed. Everything that should be explained was explained clearly. He even did not miss the time at night. He had to lead all the soldiers to carry out tactical deductions.
.
Although they had conducted tens of millions of tactical deductions before, it was only on paper after all, and they became more and more slack in the later period. But now, the battle is right in front of them, so they naturally have to go all out to ensure that there will be no mistakes.
"That's it for today."
The last day of military combat drills was over. Sun Jian glanced at the generals and said loudly: "You will go back early and have a good rest. Early tomorrow morning, we will defeat Cai Mao and capture Xiangyang."
All the soldiers raised their hands in unison: "Defeat Cai Mao and capture Xiangyang!"
Sun Jian waved his hand: "Step back."
All the soldiers said in unison: "Here."
Immediately.
He bowed and left the tent.
Sun Jian let out a sigh of relief, feeling relieved and feeling more confident.
At this moment, he is eager to try, and is almost confident that he will win tomorrow's decisive battle.
Early the next morning.
The rooster crows the dawn, and the morning glow fills the sky.
On the calm river surface, there was a dark cloud, like dark clouds, all filled with warships.
The middlemost four-story battleship on the river near Fancheng.
On the deck, Sun Jian stood proudly, holding a telescope and looking at the Jingxiang navy opposite.
As expected, hundreds more warships arrived at noon yesterday.
Today, the Jingxiang navy has more than 1,800 warships in dozens of formations. Even Sun Jian couldn't help but be envious of the huge navy.
You must know that this is just the navy in Jingbei. If the navy in Jingnan is added to it, it will probably reach a scale of 3,000 warships, which is also a piece of cake.
"It seems that this battle has at least gathered all the strength of Jingbei."
Sun Jian glanced at the enemy navy, slowly put down his telescope, and turned to glance at Zhou Yu: "Little General Zhou, what do you think?"
Zhou Yu looked extremely indifferent and smiled at Sun Jian: "General, are you planning to test me?"
Sun Jian marveled at Zhou Yu's intelligence and nodded slowly: "It really means that. If you have any opinions, just say so."
Zhou Yu was too lazy to talk nonsense and said bluntly: "Although from the current point of view, the opponent's formations are lined up in a row, it seems that there is no formation at all, but if you look carefully, you can vaguely get a glimpse of their tactics."
"oh?"
Sun Jian was surprised: "What kind of tactics is it?"
Zhou Yu bowed his head and said, "General, please take a closer look."
Immediately.
Zhou Yu raised his hand and pointed forward: "The commander's flag in the middle is Cai's flag, which proves that it is Cai Mao's command ship. The surrounding defense forces are very tight. There are three floors inside and three outside, all of which are frigates. This can also prove that this is Cai Mao's command ship."
a little."
"kindness."
Sun Jian nodded affirmatively: "That's true, but so what?"
Zhou Yu continued: "On both sides, although there is a fleet of Cai Mao's cronies, its strength is obviously relatively weak. Instead, there are 200 million Chen Ying and Su Fei. The fleet is relatively heavy and has many stern warships."
"Judging from its configuration, it is clear that a roundabout approach from both wings will be used to clamp down on our main warships and ultimately achieve the effect of defeating the enemy."
"certainly......"
Without waiting for Sun Jian to question, Zhou Yu immediately added: "This is just the current formation. In the war, Cai Mao will most likely adapt his tactics temporarily."
"Especially because our secret weapon has not yet been used. Once it is used, Cai Mao will inevitably adjust his strategy. Our strategies and tactics are also facing changes, so we still have to adapt to changes. That is the right way."
Sun Jian's eyes were bright and shining with a strange look.
When he heard his son mention Zhou Yu's abilities before, he was a little unimpressed.
But now, after hearing Zhou Yu's analysis of the enemy's formation and his emphasis on adapting to changes at all times, I have been deeply impressed by Zhou Yu's ability.
That's right.
The young man in front of me is indeed a qualified general.
Although he has little military experience, his military strategies are not inferior to any of his generals.
If His Majesty the Emperor hadn't appointed him as the commander-in-chief of the Yuanyang Army, even Sun Jian would have recommended him to the imperial court and then recruit him into his own ranks.
"You are very good."
Sun Jian looked at Zhou Yu with great interest and said softly: "Cai Mao's formation does make use of both wings, but this will definitely not be his final strategy."
"I think back then, when I was in Changsha, I knew something about Cai Mao. He was proficient in water warfare and was extremely good at moving forward step by step and fighting steadily. The formation method in front of him must be a deception."
"But you are right about one thing."
Sun Jian let out a long breath and looked at the thickened areas on both sides: "Chen Ying, Su Fei is indeed Cai Mao's main force. Since he arranged these two guys here, he must have the intention to arrange them here."
"As for what..."
Sun Jian frowned and shook his head.
"Just type it out."
Before Sun Jian could finish speaking, Zhou Yu interrupted directly.
"snort."
Sun Jian snorted lightly and said with a smile: "That's right, no matter what his intentions are, as soon as the war starts, they will be exposed! Send the order, beat the drums to cheer, and move forward at full speed."
The ordering soldier bowed and raised his hands: "Here."
The next moment.
Winter! Winter! Winter!
Dongdong—!
In an instant, the golden drum shook the sky.
Then, strong shouts of killing resounded across the sky, and the neatly arranged warships slowly started to move towards the Jingxiang navy on the other side of the river, speeding all the way without any fancy.
"snort."
Staring at the neatly arranged Nanyang navy, Cai Mao couldn't help but snorted jokingly: "As expected, the Nanyang navy has no tactics to speak of. It just has extra ballistas, which is not worth mentioning."
However, Kuai Yue on the side frowned, took a deep breath and said: "Grand Governor, we'd better be careful. You should know better than anyone else the strength of Jiangdong Tiger Sun Jian."
"Even if he doesn't have any fighting skills to speak of, he can't be easily dealt with just by his fierceness. What's more, now that he's been reinforced by a ballista ship, he must be extremely crazy."
Cai Mao naturally knew Sun Jian's strength. When they were in Changsha, the two had many interactions: "Don't worry, he is a reckless man, so there is nothing to be afraid of."
"On this point, I, Cai Mao, will let Sun Jian understand who is the real king of water warfare. The Jiangdong Tiger will always be just a sick cat in front of me, Cai Mao."
Say it.
Cai Mao subconsciously clenched his fists, the muscles at the corners of his lips twitched slightly, and the hatred in his heart was beyond words: "Here comes someone."
At that moment, the ordering soldier stepped forward, bowed and cupped his hands and said: "Grand Governor."
"Send the order quickly and act according to the original plan without making any mistakes."
"Here."
The next second.
Woo! Woo! Woo!
Woohoo—!
The long trumpet sound of the Jingxiang navy sounded.
However, he saw that his own warship slowly started to move, and the central vanguard force surged forward like sharp arrows, far ahead of the fleets on both wings. The overall shape showed a sharp arrowhead, like an infantryman missing the front.
If an ordinary opponent saw this scene, they would definitely think that the opponent was going to take a forceful attack and take the initiative to start a decisive battle with the main force of the Nanyang Navy.
But actually...
This is just Cai Mao's deception.
The middle part was originally the main battleship group, with flags scattered all over it, blocking the sky and the sun, and blocking the enemy's sight.
Now, with the rapid attack of the main battleship group in the central part, the Nanyang Navy's attention must have been attracted by the main battleship group of the Jingxiang Navy, and therefore it will inevitably ignore the various movements behind it.
The movement of the battleships behind it was Cai Mao's real killer move. While the battleships in the front row were speeding, the battleships in the rear were already lined up and moving slowly towards the two wings.
Kuai Yue glanced at the speeding warships on both sides and said in a long voice: "Degui, Sun Jian's ballistae ships are relatively scattered. If you do this, it may be a bit difficult to destroy them."
"rest assured."
Cai Mao was full of confidence, patted his chest and said: "Sun Jian is a ferocious tiger, and the mountains and forests are his battlefield. But I, Cai Mao, am a dragon, and the rivers are my battlefield."
"Only when a knife is revealed will you know how sharp it is. What's more, today's opponents may not even know that we have knives."
Kuai Yue always felt frightened and uncertain.
He exhaled and tried to keep calm while focusing his eyes on the river, carefully observing the other party's movements.
However......
Cai Mao was calmly directing the battle:
"The warship sets off and uses the fastest speed to close the distance between the two sides."
"..."
"The frigate tries to slow down as much as possible and maintain a certain safe distance."
"..."
"The left and right wings will continue to expand outward, extend our working area, and create opportunities for outflanking."