Chapter 434 Victory in Jingbei
Just as Liu Feng expected, Kuai Yue went south along the Han River. The army meandered along the way for more than ten miles, and could only travel forty miles a day. He was in no hurry to rush to Jingnan.
But secretly, Kuai Yue had already sent Cai Mao to command a part of the elite navy, and cooperated with the two generals Huang Zhong and Wenpin to disguise themselves as merchant ships and sail southward. They traveled day and night. It only took them fifteen days to enter the Yangtze River, which was only a short distance away from Baqiu. Two hundred miles.
At the speed of a boat, two hundred miles only takes one day and one night. Even if you rest at night, it only takes two days to arrive. At this time, the reinforcements of the Jingnan Army had just arrived at Baqiu. They thought that the Jingbei Army was far away in Jingling, and it would take at least ten days and a half to reach the city of Baqiu.
Zhang Cheng, Ou Xiong, and Xiong Shang were caught off guard and were attacked by Cai Mao to break the city.
Zhang Cheng was beheaded by Huang Zhong on the battlefield, and Xiong Shang was captured by Wenpin. Only Ou Xiong and his remaining soldiers broke through the encirclement and escaped all the way back to Linxiang.
More than 700 of the 6,000 county soldiers, 2,000 young and strong, and 8,000 Jingnan soldiers were killed, and most of the remaining soldiers were captured. Only about 2,000 remaining soldiers fled Baqiu with Ou Xiong.
The news spread back to Linxiang, and the whole city was shocked.
Zhang Xian fainted in public, so Huan Jie had to step forward and handle many affairs on Zhang Xian's behalf.
Huan Jie sent Zhang Xian back to the rear palace and called in the doctors to take care of him. At the same time, he announced that Linxiang was on war preparation and closed all the major city gates, leaving only the south gate for people to enter and exit.
At the same time, strengthen the guards everywhere, increase the patrol team in the city, and enhance the security force of important facilities such as arsenals and grain depots. Although his military command ability is not good, Huan Jie's ability in these internal affairs and logistics work is still very good.
Thanks to Huan Jie's efforts, the entire Linxiang settled down again.
After Linxiang City was secured, Huan Jie personally came to look for Sun Ce.
"Brother, why are you here?"
Sun Ce was extremely surprised by Huan Jie's visit. At this time, Huan Jie was the Dinghai Shenzhen in the city. Even if he wanted to see him, he could just send someone to summon him instead of coming to the door in person.
It was just that Sun Ce underestimated Huan Jie, but the latter saluted him solemnly: "Bo Fu, I was the one who waited wrongly before. This time I came here to ask you to come out and help me. I will advise the Ming Mansion. The military authority has been transferred to you. Please guard Linxiang and protect the people of Changsha from Liu Jingsheng.”
Sun Ce's heart was pounding. He didn't expect Huan Jie to be such a big temptation.
Sun Ce also thought that Huan Jie and others would give in, so he hesitated whether to listen to Liu Feng's words and evacuate Linxiang. But he really didn't expect that Huan Jie would play such a big role and dare to trust him with his wealth and life.
As for Zhang Xian, as long as Huan Jie has this idea, Zhang Xian will most likely agree. He is so obedient to Huan Jie. Even the raising of troops for rebellion is subject to Huan Jie's orders, and the military command authority may not be too much.
Sun Ce pondered for a moment and then said: "Brother, how dare Ce'an have such an idea..."
Before Sun Ce could finish his words, Huan Jie interrupted him: "Bo Fu, are you still complaining that I didn't support you in military discussions before?"
"How is this possible."
Regardless of whether Sun Ce has it or not, this matter must not be admitted.
Huan Jie solemnly said: "Brother, I already know that I was wrong. This time I will obey my brother, and I ask my brother not to refuse any more."
The situation dictated that Huanjie should not take such a low profile. Sun Ce's previous strategies had already proved his foresight. Sun Ce had already warned Zhang Xian, Huan Jie and others before Baqiu was attacked.
At that time, Sun Ce thought that Kuai Yue had many good plans and would not lead his troops southward. It is likely that they used most of them as bait to select the elite and raid Baqiu.
But Zhang Xian and Huan Jie did not take this seriously. Although they adopted Sun Ce's suggestion and sent orders to Baqiu, Zhang Cheng and other generals, asking them to defend carefully, the final result was that Baqiu was defeated in one day. Only two thousand remnants of the eight thousand army were left.
Sun Ce sighed, but his heart was still moved.
Being able to command the Linxiang army to hold off the opponent is a much greater feat than leaving Linxiang in despair now.
Sun Ce has great ambitions. Although he has been convinced by Liu Feng, it does not mean that he does not want to be granted the title of a marquis and a general. As a warrior, if he wants to be granted a title of a marquis and a general, doesn't he have to rely on military merit?
"Okay! Since my brother has praised Sun Ce so much, Ce must do his best!"
Hearing Sun Ce's words, Huan Jie was immediately overjoyed: "Xian brother, just don't worry, Foolish brother will fully support you."
Sun Ce nodded, and then said: "Brother, there are two urgent matters now. We must take care of them first."
Huan Jie hurriedly asked: "Even if Bo Fu speaks out, Jie Ding will do his best."
Sun Ce laughed with satisfaction: "The first thing is to immediately withdraw the troops and horses stationed in Yiyang and Wangcheng, so that they can safely withdraw to Linxiang. If the Xiang River has been blocked by the Jingbei Army, then withdraw by land."
Seeing Huan Jie's confused look, Sun Ce had to add an additional explanation: "Yiyang must have more than 6,000 soldiers and horses to pose a threat. Now there are only 3,000 soldiers and horses, which is of no importance at all. It is purely idle and scattered, so it is not as good as It will be useful to withdraw this army to Linxiang."
Huan Jie was immediately embarrassed and silent. Isn't this the mistake Huan Jie, Zhang Xian and others made?
At that time, he thought he was taking care of Sun Ce's face, but if it weren't for the suggestion Sun Ce made at this moment, how would he know that Sun Ce was extremely dissatisfied with it.
"What's the second thing?"
Sun Ce continued: "The second thing is to free up a barracks to receive Baqiu's defeated army, and prohibit his troops from leaving the camp until they are reorganized and stabilized, so as not to spread panic among their troops and dampen the morale of Linxiang troops."
Huan Jie suddenly realized it and immediately agreed: "Bo Fu, please be at ease. I will definitely rely on you in this matter."
Immediately, Huan Jie gave a few instructions to his cronies, asking them to draft the official document, then stamp it and send it to Yiyang and Wangcheng. In addition, people were sent to meet the defeated troops of the district heroes. After entering the city, they returned directly to the camp and were not allowed to go out without orders.
Seeing Huan Jie act like this showed his sincerity, and Sun Ce felt a little more at ease.
Next, Sun Ce put forward some outlines for defending the city, and also adjusted the defense deployment.
Huan Jie agreed to this one by one, without exception.
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After Cai Mao occupied Baqiu, he did not follow Kuai Yue's orders and continued to advance towards Wangcheng, in order to cut off the reinforcement channels to Linxiang from Wuling County and the left counties of Changsha County.
The reason for this situation was not that Cai Mao disobeyed Kuai Yue's military orders, but that he was worried that if he rushed into the army rashly and encountered Linxiang's reinforcements, he would be alone in the attack. At this time, in addition to the 4,000 elite troops of Cai Mao's headquarters, there were also 6,000 people from Huang Zhong and Wenpin, totaling 10,000 troops.
It is true that the defeat of Baqiu did not result in much loss of troops, only hundreds of casualties. However, after dividing the troops in Baqiu, the number of troops that could continue to move south was only seven or eight thousand, while Linxiang still had an army of 40,000.
What Cai Hao now wants to do is to give up when he is ready. He has attacked Baqiu City and has opened the way to march into Linxiang. He is undoubtedly the first contributor. There is really no need to take risks anymore. At least Cai Hao doesn't think so. With just ten thousand people, we can defeat Linxiang.
If he obeys Kuai Yue's order and continues to march, and is cut off by the Jingnan army when attacking Wangcheng, or attracts a counterattack by Linxiang's heavy troops, then he will win first and lose later, and all his previous efforts will be wasted.
There is another key point. Cai Hao's opinions were unanimously supported by Huang Zhong and Wenpin, which also gave Cai Hao the confidence to violate military orders, not to mention that Cai Hao himself had the ability to terminate power at the last moment.
While Cai Mao was resting in Baqiu, he sent a message to Kuai Yue who was in the rear, and on the other hand he sent a message to Lu Bu back to Xiangyang. This also gave the Jingnan Army in Yiyang and Wangcheng the opportunity and time to withdraw to Linxiang.
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"Uncle, Governor Cai reported back that Baqiu has been taken, but the Jingnan Army has already reacted. He was worried that the lone army would go deep and be taken advantage of by the enemy, so he stayed in Baqiu City to reorganize his army, collect food and supplies, and wait for the arrival of backup."< br>
Kuai Qi held the silk book in his hand and hurriedly walked into the tent.
Kuai Yue frowned slightly, reached out and took the silk book and read it. After reading it, he sighed.
Although Cai Mao's actions did not suit Kuai Yue's liking, he could understand him. More importantly, it was impossible for him and Cai Mao to fall out over this.
Cai Mao was loyal to Liu Biao and Jingzhou if he was willing to obey his orders and lead a small number of elites to attack long distances. Judging from the results, this seemed to be very easy and feasible.
Check out the 16-9 book bar and see the correct version!
But Cai Mao had no idea before setting off. He purely relied on Kuai Yue's judgment and speculation about the enemy, and he also made plans to return to Shizhou Ling if the sneak attack failed.
Seeing Kuai Yue holding the report and not saying anything, a trace of worry flashed across Kuai Qi's face. He stepped forward and pretended to help Kuai Yue organize the papers. He carefully advised: "Uncle, Mr. Cai is on the front line and must know more about the situation than I do." Moreover, two generals, Huang and Wen, also wrote in support of Cai Gong’s decision, which shows that Cai Gong did not judge the matter in this way alone.”
Kuai Yue put down the silk book and glanced at his nephew.
Kuai Qi quickly lowered his head, but heard Kuai Yue sigh.
"You don't have to worry about Cai Degui. How can I really punish him?"
Kuai Yue thought for a moment and then ordered: "Draft an order for me and ask Cai Degui to send people to investigate Luocheng and Yiyang counties. If there is an opportunity, take these two cities. If you can retain the defenders of the two cities, Let’s remember Cai Degui’s great contribution.”
Kuai Qi raised his head in surprise and looked at Kuai Yue with some confusion.
Kuai Yue understood that his nephew could not understand his operations. Thinking that Kuai Qi was already the best disciple of the next generation of the Kuai family, Kuai Yue took the opportunity to teach him: "Before, I asked Cai Degui to drive straight in and then attack Wangcheng. , because of me It is expected that no one in Jingnan will be able to lead the counterattack. Ba Qiu, the Jingnan army will be frightened. How can they dare to go out to Linxiang to attack our army? It is a pity that Cai Degui is too cautious and does not dare to take risks. "
Kuai Qi suddenly understood where his uncle's confidence came from.
Baqiu's victory just proved that Kuai Yue's judgment on the Jingnan Army was accurate, but Cai Mao did not dare to expand his advantage, which was a great opportunity.
Kuai Yue continued to teach: "Now that Baqiu City is broken, Jingnan will definitely be shaken. People in various counties and cities will be unstable, and Linxiang will not dare to disperse its troops anymore. Taking advantage of this moment, I asked Cai Degui to capture Luocheng and Yiyang first. The two key points are to clear the way for our army to retreat, and at the same time to take advantage of part of Jingnan's military strength. Although it is not as good as the gain from marching into Wangcheng, it is worse than being safe."
Kuai Qi continued: "So that's the case, then it wouldn't be an exaggeration to record a great contribution to Mr. Cai."
Kuai Yue laughed and nodded with a childish sense of relief: "Go ahead, give me the seal after you finish writing, and send it to Baqiu as soon as possible."
"Yes, Grand Governor."
Kuai Qi responded quickly and turned to write on the desk beside him.
After finishing writing, when Kuai Qi came with the order to find Kuai Yue's seal, the latter suddenly asked: "Is there any movement over there in Yangzhou? Is there any new news from Uncle Fang?"
Kuai Qi was stunned for a moment, and replied after a moment: "There is no movement in Yangzhou, except that a fleet of several thousand people arrived at Chaisang Port and was stationed in Chaisang City. This fleet has more than 200 large and small warships , including twenty to thirty boats, and the rest are small boats.”
"Well, you have reported this before."
Kuai Yue nodded: "I have an impression. Is there any news from Uncle Fang?"
Kuai Qi quickly replied: "Uncle Fang has sent people to Jiangxia twice in a row. He asked Governor Huang to keep an eye on the river and ordered warships coming from the east not to cross the Fankou line. Xiakou is also used as the boundary, but there are some boards crossing the boundary. , kill without mercy.”
Fankou is located in Echeng County, Changjiang, and is the first solid line of defense in Jiangxia. Not only is there a large water fortress here, but hundreds of large and small warships are stationed here all year round, as well as five to six thousand elite amphibious soldiers.
As for Xiakou, it is the mouth where the Han River flows into the Yangtze River. The Han River was called Xiashui in ancient times, and the mouth of the river was called Xiakou. This is also the Hanyang area of Wuhan City in the future. On the opposite bank is the Xiakou City built by Sun Quan on Snake Mountain decades later.
Now Xiakou City is not only guarded by Huang Zu himself, but also has assembled most of Huang Zu's elite troops and warships. This can be said to be the last solid line of defense against Yangzhou, and it is connected to Xiangyang by the Han River, so reinforcements can be easily sent through the Han River.
Therefore, Liu Biao set Xiakou as the boundary. If there was any mistake, Huang Zu would be punished. This was also because this place was too important.
If Fankou is lost, Xiangyang can still reinforce Xiakou, but if Xiakou is lost, Xiangyang can only be beaten passively.
Another extremely terrifying result is that once Yangzhou captures Xiakou, it can separate the entire Xiangyang front and gain strategic initiative.
As we all know, the Nanyang Basin is divided by Nanyang and Xiangyang, each occupying half.
The Xiangyang Basin is divided into two parts by Xiangyang and Suizhou, and is divided by the natural Green Forest Mountain (later known as Dahong Mountain), forming the Xiangyang (Han River) channel on the left side of the mountain, and the Suizhou (Jinshui River channel) on the right side of the mountain. ).
Since ancient times, Xiangyang's status has been much higher than that of Suizhou. This is because the Han River is connected to the Nanyang water system in the north and can be passed freely. Whether you are going from the north to the south or from the south to the north, you can rely on the Han River, Mianshui River, Feishui River, etc. Rivers transport supplies.
However, although there is Jianshui in the Suizhou Channel, the birthplace of Jianshui is in Tongbai Mountain. It is hundreds of miles away from other water systems in the Nanyang Basin and has no connection at all.
(End of chapter)