Chapter 173 Shi Suffering
In the sixth year of Guanghe, on the sixth day of March, at noon, outside Bo County.
The warm sunshine dispels the last bit of coldness in winter and shines on the world. But the warmth it brought to the world made their fight possible.
At this time, outside Bo County, Jibei State Prime Minister Chen Gui took advantage of the bright sunshine today and led his troops out of the stronghold, forming three armies along the east bank of the Wenshui River.
The former military commander of the Jibei Kingdom was Zhang Rong, the middle military commander was Li Chen, and the rear military commander was Zhou Feng. Then the fleet still stayed on the Wenshui River.
Chen Gui arranged this military order in consultation with many aides in the shogunate. At the cost of four hundred veterans of the rear army this morning, they finally figured out the formation of the Taishan bandits here.
The first is the thief general surnamed Wang in Bo County. Bo County is adjacent to the Wenshui River. It is not a typical square layout. It faces water on two sides. The tidal flats on both sides of the water are narrow, making it difficult to deploy troops and difficult to use as the main attack direction. There is a stronghold in the northeast that is suitable for attack, and a T-shaped flag is hung. In addition, less than three miles away from this camp, there is a Taishan bandit camp with two flags, "Dian" and "Guo".
It can be said that the thieves use Bo County as the Great Yuansou, the thieves surnamed Ding in the northeast will be the gateway to the north, and the nearby silt fields near the lake will be the barrier, and then the two thieves Dian and Guo will provide cover for wandering outside. Let's put it this way, the thieves have built a strip of defense zone that radiates for five miles, and they are the horns of each other, which can be attacked or defended.
What's even more uncomfortable is that the Taishan bandits formed an array like this, allowing Jibei Kingdom's superior forces to be deployed illegally. Behind them was Wenshui River, and in front of them was a wide area of silt fields, making it difficult to walk in the wet. Therefore, after Chen Gui discussed with his staff, they decided that the three armies would form an array with their backs to Wenshui River.
At this point, Chen Gui's original self-confidence has somewhat disappeared. After all, as long as he is not stupid, he knows that the Taishan bandits opposite him have rich tactical experience. But it's pointless to think about it so much when it's time to go into battle. Now that he has pressed all his troops forward, success or failure is no longer something he can decide.
Now, the three captains of the front, middle and rear have begun to dispatch their respective units according to the formation list drawn by the Chinese army. Before any large corps battle, the generals of each corps must go to the central army to get the formation list so that they know their positions and tasks on the battlefield. In this battle, the central army had orders to defend in a train formation on the left, in a straight formation on the center, and in a cone formation on the right.
The arrangement of such a military formation actually explains the mission of each legion. The right army's cone-shaped formation is naturally responsible for the main attack and penetration. Because most people are right-handed, the main attack direction is usually on the right, which is more conducive to using force. The reason why the center army formed a straight formation was to follow the right army to penetrate the enemy's army and then support the attack.
A straight line is a front with many people in front and few in the back. That means arranging four songs at the front to increase the impact surface, arranging three more songs in the middle, and arranging three more songs at the end to ensure the impact of the front and rear. Therefore, the straight formation is also called the rushing formation, for this reason.
Chen Gui's plan was that when the conical formation of the right army penetrated the enemy's formation, the enemy's formation would naturally concentrate its forces on the left to resist the impact from his right. At this time, the original thickness of the enemy's central army will be thinned. At this time, his central army's charging formation will immediately attack the sparse central army, which can overwhelm the enemy's formation in one fell swoop.
As for why the left army formed a vehicle formation, also called a circle formation, its purpose was naturally to defend. On the one hand, there is the Zhou Feng Department of the Left Army, which lost one veteran soldier in one morning. At this time, it is no longer enough to take charge of the attack. On the other hand, Chen Gui needed Zhou Feng to defend his left wing, because the formation he set up was centered around this left wing. When the right army charges and the center army charges again, the entire force will be concentrated on the front right side. If the thief breaks through from the left side, he will be in a deadlock with enemies from both sides.
Therefore, the key to this battle is that Zhou Feng's army must protect the left rear wing of the entire army. Moreover, he was keeping a firm eye on it, not letting any enemy get around him.
At this time, Zhou Feng's regiment looked at the formation list early and knew that their mission in this battle was to defend the left rear wing of the entire army. It would be a lie to say that you are not discouraged. Who wouldn’t want to take the lead in the charge and chase death to the north? But who gave them the original four tribes and 1,500 soldiers? But one elite unit was lost in one morning. What else can the rest do if they don't defend.
Zhou Feng is a good general who has participated in the Northern Xinjiang's defense against autumn. He knows that on the battlefield, no matter how many emotions he has, it is useless. There is only one thing, and that is to do everything he has to do well. Therefore, even though it was defense, Zhou Feng did it meticulously.
Along the Wenshui River behind him, Zhou Feng had connected carts and horses to form a semicircular cart city. The carriage was covered with huge wooden rafters, the shafts of the carriage were tied together with hemp ropes, and there were obstacles erected outside the carriage to stop the horses. In the chariot formation, the entire army has three divisions and six sections, divided into six groups of square formations for defense. The three songs in the left half circle are led by the general Liu Yan, and the three songs in the right half circle are led by the general Fan Yi. After all, Zhou Feng still didn't let his brother-in-law go back and let him serve his crime.
The six square formations in this vehicle formation also have scheduling. There are two hundred people in each formation, fifty people per line, a total of four lines. The first row is the long soldier row, either holding a big halberd or standing on the ground, and is responsible for resisting the enemy; the second row is the short spear group, with spears three meters long, and is responsible for collecting thorns; the third row is the short soldier group, both He wears short clothes and a sword, and is responsible for close combat. The last column is the crossbowmen of the fifty-man team, who are responsible for shooting outside.
When Zhou Feng arranged the chariot formation, he saw the entire army's flags fluttering, and the soldiers and officials were well fed. It could be said that they were impregnable.
By this time, the horns of the Chinese army were sounding, and dozens of green flags were waving. Zhou Feng looked at the dust in the southeast and knew that the right-wing army in the southeast had already set off.
Indeed, when each legion moved to its respective position according to the formation list, the outpost soldiers of each army were already crisscrossing the battlefield. They must promptly report the terrain, situation, and roads ahead to the army behind them. Each flag bearer carries a five-color flag on his back. He raises a yellow flag to signal when he sees a ditch or pit, a white flag when he sees a road intersection, a black flag when he sees a water stream, a green flag when he sees a forest or swamp, or a red flag when he sees a wildfire. Then the various military departments responded to the corresponding five drum sounds to express their knowledge.
The Zuo Army Corps in Jibei Kingdom marched for three miles, lying in the wet silt fields, and finally saw an enemy stronghold standing in the wilderness, with a "D" flag flying high on the stronghold.
At this moment, Ding Sheng was building a pergola on the wall of the village, looking at the enemy soldier with muddy legs and feet in front of him. To be honest, Ding Sheng was not too panicked because he had no intention of leaving the stronghold to attack.
He Ding Sheng is not stupid. Contrary to what many people think, they all think that Ding Sheng is the kind of person who is outspoken and outspoken, which is a joke to say the least. But in fact, Ding Sheng sees opportunities better than anyone else. Why does he still win the favor of his boss even though he repeatedly takes the lead in assassinations? It's because he gets it right every time.
So when someone in the army compared Heifu and Ding Sheng and said that they were the two fools in the army, Ding Sheng sneered:
"Hmph, that Mr. Hei is really stupid, and I, Ding Daqi, am just a hypocrite. You guys know nothing."
So when Ding Sheng led his 400 troops to station outside Bo County, he knew clearly what his mission was.
If at the beginning, he was the only one outside and Wang Zhang was in the city, he would have to take the initiative. Because if he were to sit in the stronghold here, the enemy army could use its superior strength to divide its troops, surround him on the one hand, and directly attack Bo County on the other.
But as Dian Wei and Guo Liang arrived in Bo County with a thousand reinforcements and established a stronghold in the northeast, Ding Sheng's mission changed, which was to defend the military stronghold. As the midfielder of the Dian, Guo and Wang Zhang tribes in Bo County, as long as he sticks to it, the soldiers of the three divisions can support each other. Once this place is lost, the Taishan Army in Nabo County will be cut off from the middle and defeated one by one.
If the Mingmen of Jibei Kingdom’s Expeditionary Army is Zhou Feng’s tribe on the left wing, then the Mingmen of the Taishan Army is Ding Sheng’s tribe. Now it depends on which of these two divisions is defeated first.
In the wilderness opposite, the right-wing regiment of Jibei Kingdom, holding a large banner with the character "Zhang" high, stood under the scorching sun. Then the sentry horse continuously reported the situation to the Chinese army and waited for news from the Chinese army.
But as time passed by, an hour had passed. Before the Chinese army could signal the attack, there was a loud killing sound from the Chinese army.
At this moment, many Jibei soldiers from the Right Army Corps were already slumped on the ground. Although the sun is not shining brightly in March, I have walked three miles since noon and am waiting here. The longer I wait, the more sleepy I feel. If I hadn't known that I was still on the battlefield at this moment, I would have been snoring loudly.
Suddenly, a Tanma carrying a red flag and three arrows stuck in his body came galloping from the direction of the central army. As soon as he arrived, he passed the military order to Zhang Rong, the commander of the right army: the central army was attacked, and the entire army was ordered to return for reinforcements.
This made Zhang Rong completely confused. Shouldn't he be the main attacker? Why did you suddenly come back for help? Did the thieves General Dian and Guo take the initiative? But even if you take the initiative to attack, the Chinese army with two thousand soldiers, large and small, can't stop the opponent?
Zhang Rong is not a direct descendant of Chen Gui, the Prime Minister of Jibei, but a former giant Ye Zeshui bandit who was recruited. At that time, Li Qian of the Cheng family used a strategy to unite the giant wild bandits and water bandits. He, Zhang Rong, did not like this man, so he took his brothers out of the water to seek refuge with Teng Yan, the then Prime Minister of Jibei. However, he was later killed by the eunuchs, and he had no choice but to After that, it was transferred to the power of King Jibei. But after Chen Gui took office, he began to flirt with him again.
Looking at the thieves and enemies in the small village not far ahead, Zhang Rong was determined not to return to the army. As long as he can make contributions in this battle and earn an official position, then he and his old brothers will no longer be rootless duckweeds. But he saw the hemp rope tied around his waist again, and remembered what Chen Gui said at the Chinese military meeting in the morning:
"The local thieves were stubborn and wreaked havoc on the prefectures and counties. In an instant, war broke out. The Japanese soldiers invaded Bo County. Only one county official was left, and the whole county was empty. The rest fled north one after another. On the Wen River, the boats had no time to rest, and Bo The county magistrate was able to defend his territory loyally and defended the city for three days. After the city was broken, he still used a rope to hang himself. Now I will give a rope to each of the generals. I only have one sentence, this battle is not going well, and this rope will go. Put it on your own neck.”
Zhang Rong thought about it again and again. After all, his fear of Chen Gui overwhelmed his desire for fame, so he raised his troops and returned to the army. The troops, who had already fallen asleep, received the order and knew that they had to go back the same way and had to walk on the muddy road, and they all complained.
There is no way, the soldiers and soldiers are like cattle and horses, urging them to advance and urging them to retreat, few people care about their suffering.
(End of chapter)