Chapter 316: Use the right combination to win by surprise (Part 2)
Fangcheng Mountain has been famous since ancient times.
Guochao Du's pre-annotation of "Zuo Zhuan": "Fangcheng Mountain is in the south of Ye County, Nanyang."
Nanyang here refers to the entire Nanyang Basin, not Nanyang County or Nanyang Kingdom, just For example, Hedong sometimes refers to the entire Bingzhou (opposite to Hexi), rather than Hedong County.
During the Spring and Autumn Period, the State of Chu regarded Tongbai, Funiu and many mountains in between as its northern territory.
In the middle of this natural defense line, there is a gap: Fangcheng Pass.
So, the people of Chu began to build a city to the north of Fangcheng Mountain, and asked the prince to build it to connect to the north.
Today, nearly a thousand years have passed, and Fangcheng Mountain is still the most important traffic pass between Nanyang and Luoyang, or the only dangerous place.
On the ninth day of October, on both sides of Fangcheng Mountain, large armies gathered with murderous intent.
The north of Fangcheng Mountain belongs to Ye County, and the south belongs to Duyang - these two counties are both Nanyang National Counties in Jingzhou.
Ye County was occupied by the Yamen Army in September.
After Li Zhong defeated Li Hong in Wuyang and Ye County, he went all the way south and set up his camp on the Fangcheng Pass, overlooking the entire Nanyang Basin.
Such a crucial place was occupied by the army. Hou Tuo, who was stationed in Wancheng, suddenly felt like a light on his back and was very uncomfortable.
But he didn't have the energy to take care of this place at first, because there were still many remnants of the government and troops in Nanyang, and they needed to be cleared one by one.
In addition, it took time to negotiate with the powerful local nobles, so it was delayed. Li Hong was strictly ordered to lead the remaining soldiers to counterattack the Fangcheng Pass in an attempt to capture it.
Li Hong has already lost his courage and his strength has been greatly reduced, so naturally there will be no results.
After the work was almost finished, as Li Hong complained repeatedly and the intention of the army to move south became more and more obvious, Hou Tuo finally left Wancheng, led the main force to Duyang, and camped in the south of Fangcheng Mountain .
Actually, he didn’t want to fight Shao Xun. But if someone wants to beat him, he has no choice.
Shao Taibai's reputation was still very high. Hou Tuo did not dare to neglect him. He sent out all his elite soldiers and generals, determined to decide life or death in a battle.
Today the sky is a little gloomy and the dew is a little heavy. Outside the official and military camp on Fangcheng Mountain, the flags are hanging there feebly.
Maybe it's a good sign? Hou Tuo thought to himself.
Suddenly, war drums were beating in the mountains, and more than two hundred horsemen galloped out of the camp, down the gentle slope to the pass, and galloped in the wilderness.
The first man is wearing golden armor and looks majestic.
A general followed behind him, holding a gun in his left hand and several reins in his right hand.
Hou Tuo watched silently.
He knew that the general usually rode the most powerful war horse, and the soldiers around him would bring a few extra free-running horses for him to ride in the formation.
The most outrageous thing is that some generals who were born as scholars brought twenty empty horses into battle. I don’t know why they were afraid of this - twenty horses. That was not to change horses for the purpose of fighting. Mostly used for escaping.
The golden-armored general in front of me seems to be a serious warrior. Judging from his riding posture, the route he planned while traveling, and the places he stopped to observe along the way, it was all a choice made by an expert.
Houtuo continued to watch.
In the camp, there are already cavalry generals leading people out.
Hundreds of cavalrymen divided into two groups, outflanking them in a roundabout way, with great momentum.
On the camp wall, there were even more people beating drums to cheer and shouting loudly.
Hou Tuo felt the blood all over his body.
This is the battlefield, where men fight wantonly and shed their blood.
The golden-armored general immediately gathered his men and retreated.
Seeing this, our cavalry shouted loudly and accelerated their horses to move forward.
The golden-armored general took his time and made a half circle, then began to slow down and turn the horse's head.
More than three hundred cavalry outflanking the right wing pursued and were blocked by a small forest. The two or three hundred cavalry on the left wing continued the pursuit without stopping.
Hou took off his clothes and felt a little bad.
Sure enough, the golden-armored general led his troops and turned the horse's head, then went directly around the outside, the bow strings in his hands ringing continuously.
The soldiers who followed him also fired continuously.
They don't shoot people, they specialize in shooting horses, and their archery skills are very accurate. They obviously practice them all year round.
The battlefield was full of people and horses, and it slightly blocked the route of the subsequent cavalry charge, and the formation was slightly chaotic.
The golden-armored general put away his riding bow and waved his big hand, and more than two hundred knights accelerated their speed and rushed towards him.
Like a sharp knife, it cut open the soft abdomen in an instant, making it dripping with blood.
Blood dripping in a physical sense!
Hou Tuo looked around and saw that the opponent's cavalrymen were holding bright armor, and most of them were holding thick horse sticks. After rushing over, the big sticks were either swept or picked, and almost nothing was closed. enemy.
The man on the left is tall and as strong as an ox. Set off by his exaggerated figure, the not-so-dwarf war horse turned out to be as big as a donkey, which made people laugh.
But the person facing him couldn't laugh.
This man's horse is thicker than the average person, and when he swings it, it makes a rapid sound of breaking through the air, and every time he swings it, he will knock down one or two people.
Many of the cavalrymen he knocked off their horses had bleeding from their mouths and noses, obviously suffering heavy blows.
Ma Shu has the effect of a wooden raft, which can only be attributed to his natural power.
The man on the right had his eyes wide open with anger. When he charged, his roar was like thunder, which was heart-wrenching.
Someone was stunned in front of him, and was picked up by Ma Shan and thrown to the ground.
Led by these two men, the opponent's cavalry was so brave that it overwhelmed their left wing in an instant, then went around to the back of the right wing, followed the same pattern, and charged again.
Hou Tuo's face was extremely ugly.
It is not easy to train cavalry. The hundreds of horsemen under his command were mostly miscellaneous people from Guanzhong who had followed them to Nanyang to beg for food. They were not bad at all, but they were overwhelmed in one encounter. What should he say?
Of course, he can see it. The reason for this result was not only the gap in combat power between the two sides, but also the fact that the other side's general felt so good on the battlefield, as if he innately knew how to choose the battle location, seize the opportunity to fight, and use reasonable tactics.
He is a natural cavalryman, perhaps from a family of Forbidden Army generals.
Hou Tuo suddenly wanted to kill him. But when he saw his own cavalry retreating one after another, he sighed and gave up this unrealistic view.
"Hold the fortress, there will be no fighting today." Hou Tuo gave the order angrily.
“As ordered.” The generals responded one after another.
Morale has dropped slightly. It is really not suitable to fight again today. We need to make some adjustments and restore morale before talking.
On the opposite side, the general in golden armor has not left yet.
Sometimes he rides his horse and gallops, sometimes he dismounts and observes, and points at the people around him, which is very arrogant.
Everyone just pretended not to see it, out of sight and out of mind.
This battle is indeed difficult to fight. The group of people in front of them seemed to be much more difficult to deal with than the Jingzhou Army.
******
After Shao Xun returned to the camp, Li Chong and others immediately surrounded him.
"Send people to attack the bandit camp in the afternoon." Shao Xun threw away his horsewhip and said: "Xiangcheng Dingzhuang went up first, the auxiliary troops followed, and the Yamen army attacked last."
"Your Majesty, The number of thieves is no less than 10,000, and although their morale has suffered a slight setback, it will not be a problem to hold on to the fortress. If they charge and attack like this, the casualties will probably be high," Li Chong warned.
Jin Zheng glanced at him, with a hint of ridicule in his eyes.
How can anyone not die in a war? The young men, the auxiliary soldiers and the like are weak in battle, and they don't feel bad even if they die no matter how many times they die.
Li Zhong is such a mother-in-law, why should he fight?
"This is not the first time you have become a general." Shao Xun said earnestly: "Not everyone is willing to fight with you. Sooner or later, you will encounter hard things. Li Hong is in your hands. After suffering two losses, Hou Tuo was frightened and would definitely attack first to see how willing the thieves were to fight." "No." Li Chong immediately sent people to prepare. .
Shao Xun sat down and looked at everyone.
These generals under him basically come from the bottom.
Limited by qualifications and talents, some people will not be able to move up after reaching a certain level and will slowly fall behind.
Some people are not bad at learning and have decent talents, so they can follow and not fall behind. But they haven't gotten used to being generals yet, and haven't gotten used to seeing soldiers' lives as numbers.
Love your soldiers like your own children in normal times, but be ruthless and ruthless when fighting. Only by doing this can you be considered qualified.
I don’t want numbers, I just want XX. This is a true portrayal of war.
"I just received news that two days ago Shan Jian sent his troops north and was defeated by Wang Ru in Yiyang. Yan Yi took advantage of the situation and led his troops to advance. Shan Jilun was afraid and had abandoned Xiangyang and settled in Nantunxia. Mouth. This guy ran very fast, but he abandoned the Han and Mian lands and allowed Wang Ru to plunder them." Shao Xun said.
Tang Jian has hung a map on the wall.
Shao Xun pointed at the map and said: "The Huns may go south at any time. The top priority is to quickly quell the unrest in Jingzhou and return the troops to the north."
Everyone's eyes fell on the map.
Nanyang has been occupied by Hou Tuo.
Shunyang is the only county town left.
Yi Yang is in Wang Ru’s hands.
Now Xiangyang was occupied by Wang Ru and Yan Yi. Looking at the decline of Shan Jian and Wang Cheng, Nanjun and Jiangxia may not be able to withstand it. The unrest in Jingzhou has a tendency to expand.
Currently, some barbarians are ready to take action, seeming to respond to the refugees in Kansai, revolt again, and capture cities, just like Zhang Chang's uprising.
"Since Hou Tuo serves Wang Ru as his master, he must have asked for help. No one can say whether Wang Ru will go north." Shao Xun said: "If a decision is not made for a long time, the Xiongnu army will definitely send I will divide my troops to attack Yuzhou and respond to Wang Ru. In this way, I will be attacked from both sides, which may not be good."
"I don't want to waste too much time in Nanyang. A quick victory is the key to this battle! "
"The general is here."
"You will supervise the battle in person in the afternoon. If anyone refuses to patrol, he will be killed without mercy."
"As ordered."
"Tang Jian."
"The general is here."
"You find a few people with flexible legs and feet, take the Lejia guide, and go to Nanyang and Juiyang. Send this letter to Lucai.”
"As ordered."
"Jin Zheng."
"The last general is here."
"In the afternoon, you will lead six silver spear troops and form an array outside the bandit's stronghold. The anti-thief army came out."
"Yes."
"After receiving the order, prepare yourself. Don't let me down," Shao Xun waved his hand.
The generals dispersed one after another.
Junhou made it very clear. The longer it is delayed, the more complicated the situation will be.
In this southern expedition to quell the chaos, they can only fight quickly, but not sustain it for a long time.
What a pity for the Jingzhou Army. If they could still fight and march north from Xiangyang to confront our army from the north to the south, it would be easy to annihilate the bandits. But they abandoned Wancheng first, and then Xiangyang. The land of Han Miang was completely lost, which was a huge disappointment.
This battle can only be fought by them alone.
(End of this chapter)