Chapter 512 Harassment and Advance
Shi Le made a plan and started taking action.
The Jin army still followed the original plan and was not impatient.
After encountering an attack by the Hun cavalry a few days ago, Yang Dan did not pay attention and continued to lead his army northward, heading straight towards Dangyin, and urged the following troops to follow quickly.
On the 24th, after several days of continuous harassment, Yang Dan's troops were attacked at night. A car array bombed the camp. The villagers of the Nanyang gentry were running around and screaming, which was taken advantage of by the Huns. , more than four hundred people were beheaded.
Fortunately, Yang Dan personally led the army to fight back. He was wounded twice and charged three times on horseback, finally driving the Huns back.
This time, he finally learned a lesson.
Even if you are surrounded by cars, not everyone can withstand it.
Or you may be able to withstand it for a while, but then suddenly collapse after being harassed for several days until you become nervous.
He honestly stopped north of Changsha Valley, no longer trying to be brave, but felling trees and setting up fences, waiting for follow-up reinforcements.
The Xiongnu sent a large number of rangers to attack the sheep soldiers who were out collecting firewood, leaving them without firewood and hot meals. With no choice, Yang Dan could only send out a group of cavalry to escort the woodcutter sergeant.
Looking at the exhausted soldiers under his tent, who looked like they had not had a good rest, he finally understood that it was not that he did not want to advance north, but that he could not advance north, so he had to take a good rest.
At this time, looking back at the Silver Spear Army, Yang Dan had to admit that those battle-hardened elite soldiers were indeed different. Under repeated harassment by enemy soldiers, they should eat and drink. Sleep and sleep without delaying anything.
The gap is too big!
On the 25th, Li Chong led his army to the north of Changsha Valley and began to take soil, finely sift it, and ram it to build the city.
Hu Wufuzhi came over from Neihuang again. After carefully sorting out what Li Zhong had done during this period, he couldn't help but be amazed: This man is like a piece of wood, strictly following orders, and being so meticulous that there is almost no trace of it. My thoughts are average.
Xi Jianze watched very carefully and even pulled several officers to ask questions. If it weren't for the fact that he was a lieutenant in the shogunate, those people wouldn't want to talk to him.
There are so many things to do, who can accompany you to chat here? I've delayed things, and the superiors are going to "reward" me with a whip. Can you help me get it?
Xi Jian seemed oblivious to their perfunctory attitude, but eagerly absorbed the knowledge of various marching formations.
To be honest, with his current level, commanding an army of tens of thousands of people would probably not turn out well.
I have never been exposed to such a large-scale army, have no professional knowledge in related fields, and have no experience in commanding a large army to fight. What is that but giving away people's lives?
His current ability to command a large army is really not as good as Li Zhong's, and his experience is far behind.
"The thieves are coming!" A roar came from the lookout tower, and soon the warning bell rang.
The auxiliary soldiers who were carrying soil in the distance shouted and fled back in confusion.
The Huns cavalry quickly caught up with them, riding with their bows and harvesting their lives easily.
The auxiliary soldiers fell one after another. After paying the price of hundreds of casualties, the remaining people hid behind the trench in shock.
General Liang Su commanded the infantry to enter the trench wall and pick up their bows and arrows.
The Huns reined in their horses from a distance and stopped approaching.
The camp gate was opened, and five hundred cavalry rushed out, fighting with the Huns in the wilderness.
Xi Jian and Hu Wufu looked at the battle outside in trance, and then withdrew their gaze after a moment.
Each side lost some men and troops, then disengaged, ending the battle.
This is the daily life of the Western Route Army.
The Jin army built a city on the same spot, while the Huns were spying not far away, waiting for an opportunity to attack.
There are always times when you are negligent and there are always areas that cannot be protected. This is what he had in mind. Killing your people, draining your morale, trying to break you down.
Hu Wufuzhi thought this was a bit scary, because people were dying every day.
Xi Jian felt that the Huns were too petty and did not invest enough troops, especially the lack of infantry, which greatly reduced the effect of the harassment.
With this method, the West Route Army cannot be shaken. I wonder if they have any other tricks.
******
The long motorcade left Shiqiao North City.
The roads that have been in disrepair for a long time are uneven and difficult to navigate. By the time the sun set in the west, they had only walked a dozen miles, which made the leading officer anxious and angry.
The dull sound of horse hoofbeats sounded in the east, and everyone in the convoy was startled.
Wancheng Shibing, who was responsible for the escort task, immediately started taking action.
While scolding the scouts for being useless and not knowing where they were dead, the officer whipped the sergeants and asked them to connect the baggage trains end to end and form a circle around the trains.
Some people took off simple antlers made from tree branches and placed them outside the car array.
Without the accompanying cavalry, they do not have such luxury. When the enemy cavalry attacks, they have to rely on themselves for everything.
There is only one way now, fight!
Yes, there is only war. It is no longer possible to withdraw to Shiqiao North City. It is more than ten miles away. Will they let you go?
It is more reliable to break through the blockade and reach Changshagou. After all, it is only about ten miles away.
At the moment of thinking like this, the enemy cavalry was already more than a hundred steps away.
They first circled the baggage convoy, seemingly looking for weak points.
Looking down from the sky, the long convoy was broken down into three small car formations arranged in a Z-shaped formation, forming the horns of each other.
On the periphery of the car formation was a cloud of dust rising into the sky. The Hun cavalry was looming in the fog, shouting and shouting.
This is their usual tactic.
I don’t know who initiated the order. In an instant, both sides fired arrows.
The baggage train transporting food did not have the luxury of crossbows. There were less than 300 bows in the team of 3,000 people, while the Huns cavalry had a full four to five thousand people.
They took turns approaching, shot and then left.
Arrows fired back at the car formation.
For a while, arrows rained down like rain. The people on the Xiongnu side were overturned on their backs, and there were screams in the chariot formation.
After shooting for a while, the number of infantry archers in the car formation was too small and they were at a disadvantage. The casualties were far more than the Huns' cavalry archers, and they gradually became exhausted.
The Hun officer who led the team was overjoyed and sent up another team that had finished their rest.
Their horses were not very fast, but they were very close to each other, and they were constantly picking up their bows and nocking arrows as they circled. The arrows were densely packed, shooting the infantrymen in the vehicle formation until they screamed in agony.
The shield hand tried his best to cover it, but how could it be completely covered?
Casualties continued to occur, and it seemed that they could only parry, but had no power to fight back.
Suddenly, the car formation at the front collapsed.
The sergeants composed of Guanxiwu Fort residents shouted, rushed out of the car formation, and fled in all directions. But they were soon overtaken by the Huns and shot to the ground one by one.
Part of the Huns cavalry dismounted, holding their sabers and iron swords high, and rushed into the completely collapsed front line, slashing and killing them.
Some people began to pour oil on the baggage train and then set it on fire.
Smoke rose into the sky.
The pulling horses, donkeys and mules were making a lot of noise, running around and bumping into each other, and the scene was chaotic.
The main force of the Huns was greatly demoralized and continued to stare at the remaining two car formations, spinning in circles and shooting arrows, constantly harvesting lives.
At this moment, the sound of horse hooves sounded in the distance again.
"Woo——" As soon as the horn sounded, the Hun cavalry who was resting not far away got on their horses and went forward to be on guard.
The Huns who were circling around the car formation and shooting arrows slowly gathered back.
The new cavalry showed their true colors.
They held high the banner with the word "Qiao". They turned out to be the rebel cavalry patrolling back and forth along Changsha Valley and Stone Bridge. There was a clang sound in the Xiongnu formation, and thousands of people gathered slowly and lined up on a high slope.
After a moment of confrontation, they suddenly moved away and disappeared into the wilderness.
Qiao Hong came on horseback and gathered some of the defeated soldiers.
The infantry also quickly opened the vehicle formation and went out to put out the fire.
A battle to disturb the grain road started in a hurry and ended in a hurry.
After Qiao Hong inspected the battlefield, he couldn't help but secretly cursed: Less than thirty miles away, these Guanxiwu fort residents couldn't stand it anymore. Compared with the Silver Spear Army, they were no better than the Silver Spear Army.
In addition, there are too few archers.
All members of the Silver Spear Army can shoot arrows, and at most one-tenth of the residents of Guanxiwu Fort can shoot arrows, maybe less than that. If you are so weak, people would dare to rush up with your bow and mount around you and shoot at you.
In the final analysis, it is a question of strength.
"Don't leave today, camp on the spot." Qiao Hong pointed his horse whip and directly ordered these people to move up, saying: "I have sent people to Changsha Valley to ask for help, and I will escort you and others north tomorrow."
The officer leading the team was disgraced and speechless.
The intensity of the fighting in the Northland is really not comparable to that of Wang Ru and Du Tao. He is really convinced.
More than ten years ago, he followed Zhang Fangdong into Luoyang and encountered Xianbei, Wuhuan, and Huns acting as mercenaries.
The Huns at that time were not as organized as they are now.
It turns out that everyone is making progress, but he is standing still.
After sighing softly, he took his soldiers to comfort the wounded.
Wait until Changshagou and see if you can order a sidecar to come over.
But I just thought about it. It was a chariot. It was expensive to build and was not prepared for grain transport teams like them.
Furthermore, after seeing the scene where the entire army collapsed just now when they could no longer withstand the pressure, he also suspected that even with side cars, the people under him might not be able to hold on to the car formation.
In the end, everything depends on the person, they still need experience.
******
On June 28, Shi Le returned to the mansion after inspecting the city defense repair site.
The staff followed closely behind, still discussing the situation of the war as they walked.
After arriving in the study, Shi Le sat at the top and reached out to take the military report sent by the servant.
Well, he couldn’t read, so he handed it to Zhang Bin again.
After Zhang Bin read it, he explained: "On the 25th, General Liu raided the Jin people's grain team in the north of Shiqiao, killing more than a thousand people and burning hundreds of carts of grain."
"Twenty On the night of the 6th, General Wang sneaked across the Qishui River and raided the Jin people in the north of Chaoge, killing more than 300 people but failing to burn down the grain trucks. "
"Today, General Kong raided the Jin people's grain trucks in the north of Changsha Valley. The team killed more than a hundred people, and because the rebel cavalry was dispatched, they withdrew."
After hearing this, Shi Le was a little happy, but also a little dissatisfied.
Raiding grain routes is originally one of the most important functions of the cavalry.
But these times, although the casualties were very small, they could not kill less than 1,500 Jin soldiers. It was a great victory, but it did not completely cut off their transportation of food and grass to the front, which made him a little dissatisfied.
Building a city within thirty miles has shortened the life of Liang Dao artificially.
Some food transport teams that are not strong in combat may be defeated in one blow, but some people are not defeated in one blow. As long as they can survive for a day or two, they can rush into the city and get a chance to breathe.
Even, after holding on for a few hours, he received reinforcements and escaped.
He was actually a little dissatisfied, because the result of the battle should not be just this.
But that’s about it.
Wang Yang, Liu Zheng, Kong Dou and others are actually working very hard. However, in order to deal with his harassment tactics, Shao Thief would rather spend a lot of time building a city than guarding the grain road, which is really difficult to chew.
Thinking of this, he glanced at the people in the room again, suddenly smiled, and said: "Well done! If you harass for a long time, it will always be effective. Diao Changshi, you can send people to various forts. , Let’s make it clear to them. Many people can become the Lord of Wubao because of the fierce fighting, so don’t worry about it.”
Diao Ying responded immediately. .
“The cavalry has been victorious one after another, and the infantry should also have some results. Let’s urge Ji Bao.”
“Liang Zhenyuan has to urge him too. When is the time? "Stay still."
"Guangping, Zhao, Julu, Changshan and other counties stepped up to deliver food and grass."
Shi Le gave the order in an orderly manner, feeling quite relaxed.
When the staff saw it, they slowly calmed down.
"By the way, where is Shao Xun?" Shi Le asked again.
Zhang Bin took out an official letter and said: "When the king patrolled the city, a military report came back from Changle. Shao Xun attacked the city for three days and pulled it out. He will march to Anyang tomorrow at the latest."
It's close. Got it! That person is close again!
Shi Le took a deep breath and said: "Send the order, Ji Bao immediately stops advancing southward and retreats to Anyang."
"Yes." Zhang Bin wrote it down silently, without giving any more information. suggestion.
Shi Le glanced at him, slightly disappointed.
Then he smiled bitterly, what else can I suggest? Once Shao Xun was allowed to rush to Anyang, the cavalry could easily run away, but Ji Bao's infantry could not. They were completely flanked by Shao Xun and Li Chong from the north and south, and the dogs were beaten behind closed doors.
The staff who were still whispering stopped talking now.
The atmosphere in the room was slightly solemn.
The harassment, food deprivation, and ambush are all good, and the results are justifiable, but the problem is that Shao Xun is still approaching Yecheng step by step.
You can't block him. Every day that passes, the initiative is lost, but the room for maneuver becomes even smaller.
Don’t believe it? Why were Jibao's infantry recalled urgently? Aren't you just worried about being trapped between Anyang and Dangyin, surrounded by many people?
Some people even began to wonder whether such harassment was useful.
Shao Xun is thick-skinned and thick-skinned. If you throw stones at him from a distance or even stumble him a few times, can you stop him?
Wait for him to walk up to you step by step and give you a punch. Can you withstand it?
Shi Le had a panoramic view of everyone's expressions.
But he didn’t know what to say for a moment and could only look at Zhang Bin.
"Your Majesty, Liang Zhenyuan should send troops in the near future." Zhang Bin cupped his hands and said.
"Well, that's right." Shi Le said with a smile: "As the saying goes, if he sends troops, the situation will be greatly improved."
Liang Fuxun, the governor of Jizhou and General Zhenyuan, has actually sent troops. , but he went to Leling.
After Shao Xun crossed the river and went on an expedition to the north, the land of Jizhou was turbulent, and many people killed officials and rebelled.
Shao Xu, a native of Anyang, raised an army in Leling, and everyone responded. However, they turned against him, and Liang Fuzhen went to suppress Shao Xu.
There are quite a few people like Shao Xu. They are a nuisance and must be eradicated as soon as they are found.
Whether he can go south is really hard to say.
But of course he can't tell the truth. For now, he still needs to boost morale to wait for changes.
(End of this chapter)