Chapter 376 Let’s do it
The whole unloading work lasted until the evening of the 27th.
In the past few days, Shao Xun has been planning the march route in Nanyang Palace.
He has seen the canal boats. One can carry 4,500 grains. It is not small in this era, but it is not too big either.
The key is the formation problem. It is impossible to cram so many infantry and cavalry in and take them away.
Food can make full use of space, but people cannot.
With food, equipment, soldiers, and troop carriers to operate the ship, one ship can only carry a hundred or ten people, and it needs to be modified. After all, this is not a professional warship.
More than seventy ships can only take away all the Silver Spear Army, not even the auxiliary troops.
The Yi Cong Army, the Xiaoqi Army and the Liangzhou Army, which consisted of thousands of people, were not enough. However, they were the main force - the infantry was of too little effect to intercept the Xiongnu's retreat.
If you do not carry infantry and only carry cavalry, the number will be reduced sharply.
Horses are not very trustworthy on boats. They often need more space and cannot carry many people.
After much thought, we can only divide our forces.
Another thorny problem is that due to successive wars, there are actually not many horses and mules in Luoyang City.
Shao Xun brought over two thousand cavalry, with a total of less than 3,200 horses, plus hundreds of mules, many of which were captured along the way.
Normally, the soldiers lead their horses on foot, and their speed is the same as that of infantry...
The two thousand horses under Bei Gongjun are not much better, and the entire army has three thousand war horses and riding horses. .
The heroic cavalry army is poorer than a man with only one horse.
This kind of cavalry really has no mobility, and its speed is much faster than that of infantry.
Horses are a tool that cannot be obtained as quickly as it is consumed. It is really too scarce, which restricts the formulation of plans.
Shao Xun scratched his fingers back and forth on the map, frowning and thinking.
Gotta do it!
If it doesn't work, he can only use a few horses and fewer people, or simply change the route and let the cavalry withdraw from his action plan.
War is a serious matter, and all you can do is keep making choices.
At the end of the day, it would be nice to win in the ugliest way possible.
As for winning in the most soul-stirring, most violent aesthetic, and most heroic way, that is something that is rare. A soldier is lucky if he can do it once or twice in his life - he is lucky, he is already in Gou Xi experienced a thousand-mile dash.
Thinking of this, he sat down and seriously thought about the next battle plan.
While thinking, his eyes were always fixed on a certain point on the map.
It’s up to you.
On the early morning of September 28, the large group of people left Luoyang.
At that time, the formation of vehicles was driving on the south bank of Luoshui River. The sun was shining in the armor and the flags were covering the fields.
The cavalry led their horses on foot and guarded the outside of the car formation.
The river was empty, not a single boat.
The task of transporting food has been completed, so naturally these things are no longer needed.
Hongnu Rangers actually don’t dare to get close.
One is because they have fewer people, and the other is because this army is really difficult to deal with. They are simply asking for a fight if they get close. After all, those crossbows are not decorations.
Furthermore, they have so many cavalry. From time to time, he mounted his horse and charged for a while, driving them away.
As a result, when the march arrived and they set up camp in the evening, these Huns' horsemen dispersed in a hurry, and even gave up their night harassment, which was meaningless.
The march continued the next day.
At noon, the number of Huns cavalry south of Luoshui suddenly increased.
This is actually understandable.
Now the entire Luoyang battlefield has fallen into a complete stagnation. Only the Silver Spear Army is still marching, which naturally attracts all the attention.
The Huns called their friends and mobilized all the rangers they could find, trying to fight the Jin cavalry guarding the outside of the car formation.
The Jin army also went uncharacteristically and took the initiative to attack. The cavalry from both sides came and went, fighting repeatedly in the wilderness, and each suffered injuries.
That night, the army camped on the south bank of Luoshui River.
At this time, on Jiuqudu, a few miles north of Luoshui, a fleet traveled at night and quietly sailed eastward.
The march continued on the third day.
The battle between the cavalry on both sides became more intense.
The Huns brought in a lot of cavalry, trying to take advantage of their numerical advantage to run away in a relatively open field and shoot at mid-range.
In short-distance close combat, the Jin cavalry has the advantage.
In mid-range cavalry and shooting battles, the Huns cavalry have the advantage.
The two sides fought really hard, each showed their special abilities, and the show was exciting.
During the break, the infantrymen of the Silver Spear Army even crowded the vehicles and cheered loudly.
Not to mention the applause for our own cavalry's good performance, when some Xiongnu rangers performed difficult cavalry shooting skills, these guys actually applauded, and the face of the brave cavalry general Wang Hu turned black!
In the evening of that day, the army had arrived twenty miles west of Gong County and set up camp.
The Huns dispersed far away, firstly to prevent the Jin cavalry from making a sneak attack at night, and secondly because it started to rain in the evening. They would hunt for chickens tomorrow and return to the camp to rest and settle down.
Shao Xun jumped up and said with a smile: "God help me."
Under his order, five hundred carefully selected cavalry led their horses and headed north at night .
After the cavalry left, a total of 3,600 silver spear soldiers in six buildings were fully armed. Under his leadership, they disappeared into the vast rainy night. The boat went down the river very fast, and soon sailed out of Jiuqudu and entered the Luoshui River.
When the first ray of sunshine rose in the sky, the fleet was approaching Luokou.
Under Shao Xun's order, one ship after another dropped anchor - the anchor at this time was made of stone, which can be seen from the word "簇".
It took a long time for more than 4,000 horsemen to get off the boat and set foot on the soft river bank.
Shao Xun turned over and mounted a horse and ordered: "Let's go!"
******
The rain stopped on the first day of October and the sun was high. According to.
Early in the morning, Lu Zhuyan angrily drove everyone out and took out the hay to dry.
The grass has stopped growing a long time ago, and the horses eat more and use less.
Actually, he has recently ordered the horses to be mixed with grain, for no other reason than the shameless Shao thief is here again!
He led his troops to march along Luoshui. Isn’t the goal obvious? He came straight to Chenggao, obviously intending to attack from both sides with the Hulao Pass defenders.
Shan Zhenxi has sent people to ask for help, and has gradually evacuated people from Guancheng and moved to Chenggao County.
There is not much food and grass in the city, but it is not a problem to support it for a month or two.
Can Thief Shao wait under Chenggao City for so long? I'm afraid I can't wait.
After breakfast, Lu Zhuyan rode a horse for a while.
The ground was a little muddy and soft, making it difficult for the horses to run. But it’s not a big problem. It’s a sunny day today, so a little sunshine will be enough.
After dismounting, Lu Zhuyan listened to the scout's report again. After learning that Shao Xun's troops were still sixty or seventy miles away from Chenggao, he felt relieved.
This distance, under the constant harassment of the cavalry, can be walked for four days, which is considered fast.
What's more, they also dug up a lot of roads and tried every means to delay the Jin army. It was normal for them to come over in five or six days.
Anyway, it is a day if it can be delayed. The longer it is, the better.
“Be careful!” Lu Zhuyan immediately became angry when he saw a herdsman scattering hay on the ground. He hit his head and face with a riding whip until blood dripped. After being persuaded by others, he He kicked the man over and walked away.
The shepherd slaves staggered away as if they had been granted amnesty and continued working.
The others looked at him with sympathetic eyes and sighed.
At this moment, several knights who were on guard outside ran back, shouting as they ran.
Everyone looked at him with doubtful eyes.
It rained last night and the mud is soft. Are you risking your life by running like this?
Some people with clear heads also reacted: This is an enemy attack!
They immediately looked at the big tent where the nobles were.
Lu Zhuyan had just checked in and had a small drink. When he was slightly tipsy, he saw two cronies rushing in.
He stared angrily, and when he was about to be scolded, he heard words that almost turned him to stone: "There are Jin cavalry coming."
Where did the Jin cavalry come from?
Lu Zhuyan stood up suddenly and left the tent.
As I walked, I was still thinking: If there are Jin cavalry coming, then they must be Shao Xun's people, but they are surrounded by people, how can they escape? Furthermore, the soil is soft today. Even if one person and two horses walk sixty or seventy miles, it will still take a whole day, and the horse power is not enough. How can we fight?
How ridiculous!
When he walked outside angrily, he saw a large group of cavalry swarming over more than 200 steps away, charging straight towards him.
He is stupid.
The ground was trembling. When the figure of the enemy rider was getting closer and bigger, Lu Zhuyan reacted and shouted in a hissing voice: "Quick! Mount your horse to meet the enemy!"
The cronies dispersed in a hurry, looking for their herdsmen and slaves, but it seemed a little too late...
The distance of two hundred steps was approaching in an instant.
When Lu Zhuyan got on his horse and raised his horn bow, a thick horse pole was already heading straight for his chest.
He subconsciously leaned on the horse's back and avoided this dangerous blow. But before he could be happy for a long time, another horse pole came from the side, directly picking him up and throwing him heavily to the ground.
“Bang!” Lu Zhuyan fell to the ground unwillingly.
From the chest to the back, a hideous wound was stained red with blood, gurgling outward.
Hundreds of Jin cavalry poured into the Xianbei camp, charging and killing the enemies running on the ground happily.
Shao Xun ran up from behind, his horns and bows sounding repeatedly.
Every time he shot one or two times, someone always screamed and fell to the ground.
Cai Cheng guarded him tightly, slashing with his saber repeatedly, blood staining the ground red.
"Quick, collect the horses, don't let others take them away." Shao Xun ordered loudly.
“No!” Cai Cheng named several people and asked them to go and deliver the order.
There are probably thousands of Xianbei in this camp, and there are even more—Jin slaves?
When the five hundred of them rushed forward, the whole thing exploded, and there was a chaotic flow of people everywhere.
Someone has already seized the horse and escaped.
But more horses are still grazing, or are imprisoned in temporary fences. These horses are their primary target and cannot be missed.
Soon, after the five hundred riders made a circle, they gradually began to branch off, with dozens of riders heading straight for the Xianbei people's horse pastures, stables, and fences.
A Xianbei man fled on horseback, but no one cared about him, whether he wanted to leave or not.
Some people kneel down and beg for surrender, but no one cares about them. Just kneel down on the ground again.
If anyone wants to take away the horses, he is seeking death. If I don’t tear off your head, I’m good-natured!
After charging for a while, the figure of the Silver Spear Army soldier appeared on the western horizon.
Shao Xun breathed a sigh of relief, it’s safe!
(End of this chapter)