Chapter 362 Blood Moon
That night, Zhao Fubi fell, and Gao Lan led his cavalry to break out alone.
Why did Gao Lan make this move?
Because in the daytime battle, he never found the enemy cavalry that faced him that day. At that time, Gao Lan wondered whether the reinforcements mentioned by the prefect Guo Dian had already arrived nearby, and those Taishan cavalry had been deployed. Went there to snipe the reinforcements.
After Gao Lan made this judgment, he decided to break out.
Of course he knew that after his breakthrough, he would definitely not be able to stay in the Julu Army. But Gao Lan believed that with his 500 cavalry troops, they would be useful wherever they went.
After choosing the direction to break out of the encirclement, Gao Lan also very cunningly chose the southwest corner, because the northeast direction was the direction of the Han army's reinforcements. Their arrival will inevitably attract the strength and attention of the Taishan Army, so the southwest corner in the opposite direction is naturally weak.
As for killing that Xiao Guo? In fact, Gao Lan didn't want to kill him. After all, Guo Dian treated him well, but who asked Xiao Guo to rush to death? What could he do? I can only send him all the way!
Gao Lan's judgment was correct. As he broke through to the southwest, except for a few thieves' crossbowmen at the sentry posts in the barrier who discovered them, no one else came to intercept them, but they actually let them break out.
So what exactly are the mobile forces of the Taishan Army doing?
Yes, they were indeed dispatched to the northeast by Zhang Chong, where reinforcements from the Han army arrived.
……
When Zang Min received Guo Dian's letter asking for help, what could he do?
He wanted to tell Guo Dian that Jushu of Xiangguo was an abandoned son, and you, Guo Dian, who went to save Jushu were just giving away!
Zang Min himself has been fighting for a long time, so he doesn't know Lu Zhi's plan. Lu Zhi's arrangement did not give much thought to guarding the northern part of Zhao State.
But it was too late for Zang Min to remind Guo Dian. By the time he received the letter, Guo Dian had already sent troops south.
This Guo Dian really fought against the Hebei Yellow Turbans too many times, and he really regarded the Taishan Army as such a bastard. In the Battle of Jize launched by Lu Zhi before, Zang Min also sent 2,000 soldiers south to assist the army. Although half of them were new soldiers, there were still thousands of soldiers who had been carefully trained by Guo Dian.
But wasn't it still defeated by a partial army of the Taishan Army?
Hey, now my beloved son is in that Guo Dianjun, do you think I can save him? Forget it, just think this is my last battle.
This is good, let the younger generations see that I am just old, but not bad!
Therefore, after receiving Guo Dian's letter at the end of February, Zang Min, the Prime Minister of Zhongshan, mobilized all the domestic troops. In addition to the four most elite battalions and 2,000 armored soldiers he had organized and trained, there were also 800 Wuhuan cavalry. The four major families in the country, the Liu family, the Zhen family, the Zhang family, and the Ren family, had a total of two thousand soldiers. After that, Zang Min transferred 800 Guan troops from Changshang Pass, as well as the Fengsui Post troops on the front line of the Old Great Wall in the north, and gathered another 2,000 troops.
This time Zang Min really wiped out the enemy and turned into an army. He mobilized all the armed forces within the country that could be mobilized, and also mobilized those that could not be mobilized.
For example, the guards at Changshan Pass cannot be mobilized, because it is the most important pass to prevent Hu Qi from Youzhou from marching south to Jizhou. In fact, it does not belong to the Zhongshan Kingdom's establishment, and Zang Min cannot mobilize it.
But this time in order to save his beloved son, Zang Min directly captured the troops at Changshan Pass and reorganized them into the army. In this way, after gathering eight thousand soldiers, Zhongshan Kingdom's military force can be said to be exhausted.
Obviously Zang Min placed all his bets on this one.
As for the Zhongshan Kingdom having no available troops in the future? Zang Min had already died by then, so what did it have to do with him.
Is there no wealthy family in Zhongshan who can see Zang Min's thoughts? That's really not the case. On that day, the exchange of sons and nephews between Zang Min and Guo Dian was a very private matter, and outsiders had no way of knowing. Therefore, all the wealthy families thought that Zang Min wanted to go south to aid Julu based on the overall war situation.
Although the wealthy families care about the rural families and regard them as their top priority. But there was nothing they could do when a powerful governor acted with some sense of justice. After all, there are many wealthy families in Zhongshan, but they are leaderless. How can they have the overall will to compete with the illustrious Zang Min?
The stakes were so high this time, so Zang Min naturally wanted to lead his troops to the battlefield in person. The powerful people in the country all know what Zang Min's health is like. It can be said that no matter whether he wins or loses this time south, Zang Min will most likely die on the battlefield.
Zang Min also knew this, so before setting off for the expedition, he had a coffin prepared for the warriors to carry with him.
In short, he will die on the way to the expedition this time.
It was precisely because of Zang Min's "loyalty" that all the wealthy families destroyed their families and found it difficult to support his soldiers. After all, no matter how despicable and selfish people are, they also yearn for nobility. Of course, this nobility still belongs to others.
Those who work for everyone should not be allowed to freeze to death in the snow? That's impossible. It should be said that you can freeze to death, but you must sing praises, otherwise there will be no next "noble" person to earn wages for everyone.
But one thing is that Zang Min is still aware of his physical condition. Just following the army will kill him, let alone leading the army to fight.
Therefore, he promoted his adopted son Zang Yi as the false commander, commanding and dispatching the eight thousand soldiers of Zhongshan Kingdom.
The frontier army generals were influenced by Hu Feng so that they could raise false children. Zang Min had been at the border for a long time, so he naturally raised a group of fake sons to help him control the army. These people were either adopted from his family, or they were lonely in the clan, but these people were not valued by Zang Min, because they were all adopted for support and support. Parent-child.
But Zang Yi was different. Zang Min really treated him as his own son. But even if they are biological sons, they are still older and younger.
If the other adopted sons of the Zang family can be considered slaves, then Zang Yike is the great steward, but Zang Hong is the slave owner. This is the difference between up and down, inside and outside.
Among the hundreds of Zang clan members, Zang Yi's influence and ability are among the best. Even though Zang Min is now an eunuch living in Zhongshan, there are hundreds of people who followed him into Zhongshan.
The population and status of the family in this world are two sides of the same coin. Let's put it this way, the people who gather together the clan are not the local tyrants, but the families of officials. As for the fine people in Guizhou who usually work hard, their households only have five or six people. Once there are too many, they will be separated.
As a traveling official, Zang Min also has the responsibility to support his family. So even if he came to Zhongshan Kingdom, his whole family would still come.
As a leader among so many people, Zang Yi has naturally accomplished several great things.
One time was when he suppressed the Kuaiji Demon Rebellion under Zang Min, and he rose to prominence because of his outstanding performance. In the next ten years, he climbed up the ranks step by step in Zang Min's army and achieved outstanding military exploits. Every time he was injured, it was because he was charging ahead, so he was very popular among soldiers. So even though this person is strict and harsh, he is still very prestigious in the military.
His second major event was during the Northern Expedition a few years ago, when he protected Zang Min from the grasslands and returned to the Han Dynasty. Moreover, the direction in which he came back was unusual. He charged towards the heart of the Xianbei people. It can be said that all the generals retreated, while Zang Yi advanced forward alone.
After this battle, even the Han army was defeated. But Zang Yi also gained the reputation of "Zang Dubei" among the frontier troops.
But this time, Zang Min will rely on Zang Dubei's prestige to lead the army south to save his own son.
……
The army of the Zhongshan Kingdom gathered on the north bank of the Hutuo River on March 6. After joining the 2,000 northern beacon soldiers who came from the farthest distance, the army of 8,000 and the force of 10,000 people crossed the Hutuo River and headed south to Julu.
The journey from Hutuoshui to Julu is about 200 miles, and from Julu to Handan it is about 150 miles.
This 300-mile journey can be reached in about two days if the cavalry runs at full speed, but it will take ten days to move the army, but this is a theoretical speed. There are many rivers along the way, and it will take a lot of time for a large army to cross them.
Therefore, the Zhongshan Kingdom's army continued southward, and it was not until March 16th that it reached the outside of Julu City. After replenishing a batch of military supplies, Zang Min also obtained the latest information on the war in Zhao.
We know that the Julu Army has now besieged Handan, and we also know that the Taishan Army's troops have reached the front line of the Bai people. As for Xiangguo, it has long been surrounded by the Taishan Army.
So Zang Min didn't delay any longer, and even though he was already feeling a little unwell, he still urged the entire army to march faster. Because he expected that after the Taishan Army completed its sweep in the northern part of Zhao Di, it would definitely make a tentative interception in the direction of Julu. But on this day this year, it was very strange. It was only March and April but it was already extremely hot. The Zhongshan Kingdom's army was all from the north, and the Xianbei Wuhuan Huqi further north were not heat-resistant.
In this case, it was impossible to walk very far during the day. So Zang Min decided to rest during the day and travel at night.
The main force of eight thousand Zhongshan Kingdom was divided into sixteen battalions and lined up on the straight road from Julu to Handan. The sergeants stepped on the hardened road in a dull manner. Behind them were the army servants pushing the carts. Only the horses that were riding wildly snorted wantonly.
Night marching is very dangerous for any army. No general will easily attempt such a risky behavior without the necessary reasons.
In the dark night, not only the road is unclear, but also the direction cannot be identified. Even any noise in the dark night will stimulate the nervous spirit of the Zhongshan soldiers.
Abnormal noises from time to time, as well as some giant trees falling on the roadside, would force the army to stop and check and confirm repeatedly. Although this kind of caution is a necessary style of a good army, it ultimately makes the army exhausted.
Weary and frightened, it was natural that from time to time a sergeant would fall behind in the dark and try to run back to his hometown. Therefore, Zang Min didn't need to do any calculations to know that the attrition of the troops at this time must be very serious.
Since marching in the dark is so dangerous, why does Zang Min do it? Is he really an old fool?
no!
There are all kinds of disadvantages to marching in the dark, but he has the final say in temptation. The dark night gave the army a protective color, allowing the Zhongshan National Army to lurk near the Taishan Army, and then take advantage of dawn to attack the entire Taishan Army.
Under normal circumstances, a battle at dawn can directly determine the outcome of the war.
Now, after another ten days of marching, on March 26, they finally arrived less than twenty miles away from Handan.
So far, the Taishan Army has not been able to find any trace of them, which is undoubtedly good news.
It was just dark that night, and the troops of Zhongshan Kingdom marched for another hour, passing through a wide grassland. The aroma of green grass mixed with earth, coupled with the stench of the army, lingered in the minds of the Zhongshan soldiers.
That's all the smell memory of the night.
The sun still sets slowly according to the scheduled time. The huge temperature difference between day and night forms a layer of white mist on this boundless grassland, making this dark night more profound and mysterious.
The Zhongshan soldiers continued to advance through the mist, and then stopped at an unknown stream. They were now less than six miles away from Handan City and could no longer go forward.
Going further, you will encounter the sentinels of the Taishan Army, and then the whereabouts of the Zhongshan National Soldiers will be exposed.
At this time, orders from the Chinese army to various ministries no longer used flags and drums, and were all delivered one by one by the soldiers. The Chinese Army has just issued the latest military order to the commanders of the sixteen battalions:
"The whole army rested for two hours."
As a result, the tired sergeants either sat on the ground and took a nap, or chewed the dry biscuits handed out, and some went to the stream to fill up with water.
These are veterans, and they know that when they go to the battlefield, a mouthful of water can often mean their lives.
After each camp set up sentries to keep vigil, they began to rest one after another. Two hours was enough for everyone to regain their energy.
……
The moonlight was bright, shining on this grassland, and it was quiet.
The Zhongshan soldiers have fallen asleep.
But what they didn't know was that in the wilderness four miles away from them, there was a place that was brighter than the moonlight.
It was the coldness of countless swords and spears, and the cold light of armor everywhere.
At this time, in this wilderness, Zhang Chong personally led a total of seven battalions: "Flying Leopard", "Flying Elephant", "Flying Bear", "Tianwei", "Tianxiong", "Tianwu" and "Tiande" Three thousand five hundred elite assault cavalrymen just stopped here with their heads in their mouths and their horses in their mouths.
When Zhang Chong appeared here with the assault cavalry group, it meant that the Zhongshan National Army's action had failed, and they had long been exposed to the eyes of the Taishan Army.
That's right, not long after the Zhongshan soldiers passed through Julu and headed south, Li Hu led the flying dragon cavalry to cruise near Julu.
How could the Zhongshan Kingdom's march of nearly 20,000 people be concealed? There were ruts and excrement along the way, not to mention that the fleeing troops who had fallen behind were intercepted by Li Hu.
From these people, Li Hu mastered all the information about the Zhongshan soldiers. After that, he ordered Mao Shao and Le Jin to lead 20 cavalry and 40 horses to Handan at full speed to give this important information to Zhang. rush.
So, there was this scene in front of me.
At this time, Zhang Chong was wearing his special mirror armor, which was shining and reflecting in the moonlight, as if it was a crown placed on the heads of the entire army.
Xi Shen, the commander of the Flying Leopard Army beside him, asked for instructions in a low voice:
"Shuai Qu, should we attack now?"
Xi Shen has been cautious in his words and deeds since he was transferred to the Flying Leopard Army. Apparently he had already learned from Duman that his previous secret peace treaty with the Han army in Jiyin County was a taboo.
To be honest, he really didn't know if the generals could unite the troops, but this diplomacy could not be done independently. After being reminded by Duman, he became panic-stricken. But later he found out that Qu Shuai seemed to have nothing to do with him, and he felt relieved.
But after all, there was a burden in his heart, so Xi Shen was eager to fight at this moment.
Zhang Chong kept looking at the moon in the sky. When Xi Shen came to ask, he smiled:
"Don't worry, the enemy is sleeping now, let them sleep a little longer. After all, they have traveled for such a long time, let them rest more."
After finishing speaking, Zhang Chong also said to Xi Shen:
"A Shen, do you think the moon is beautiful today? I just don't like the color. It looks like a blood moon!"
(End of chapter)