August 4th, noon.
While Dong Fang led his troops to block Youzhou's sudden cavalry return to the north in Xinshi, Zhang Dan's troops, who were pursuing straight from Sanhe Pavilion, had also marched to less than ten miles away from Xinshi.
But at this time, Zhang Dan also encountered the same problem as Dong Fang, that is, due to long distance travel, various departments were severely disconnected.
At present, Zhang Dan can only control the three battalions of the Chinese army and his guards, a total of less than 2,000 people.
Therefore, at that time, Zhang Dan's more urgent task was to establish a former enemy command post and get in touch with the battalion heads under his command.
However, the news returned by the sentry riders was not optimistic.
Zhang Dan sent out a total of ten five-man teams, but in the end he could only contact the leading captains who set out first. They were the two thousand people led by Xie Bitong. They have now moved to a place less than five miles away and will be able to come soon. Convergence.
Accompanying the Sentry Cavalry was Xie Bi's deputy, Xie Kun.
From Xie Kun, Zhang Dan learned about the situation and location of Xie Bi's troops.
In fact, Zhang Dan knew the reason for the current situation.
They set out from the eastern foot of Taihang Mountain, marched in heavy rain for two consecutive days, and could not walk in a straight path, which made most of the soldiers confused.
For example, Xie Bibu was clearly at the beginning, but he walked behind Zhang Dan.
The troops like Pan Zhang, Wei Zhou, Wang Zhang and others also lost their way and now they don't know where they are.
However, it is good news to find Xie Bibu.
So, while Zhang Dan was waiting for Xie Bi's troops to come closer, he asked his troops to make repairs on the spot.
These right-wing officers and soldiers hurriedly picked up dry food and drank cold water to restore their strength.
Zhang Dan also fell asleep leaning on the haystack amidst the noise.
I don’t know how long it took, but Zhang Dan was shaken awake and it was Luo Gang, the lieutenant of the Central Military Academy.
Luo Gang looked anxious and said:
"Commander, the sound of killing in the north is loud. Commander Dong has already started fighting with the thieves."
Zhang Dan woke up immediately. He jumped out of the baggage truck and immediately asked:
"Has Xie Bibu come closer?"
Luo Gang nodded quickly, and while running behind Zhang Dan, added:
"We're already approaching. Lieutenant Xie is on his way to the tent."
Zhang Dan ordered a guard and ordered directly:
"Don't let Xie Bi come to the Chinese army. Let him lead his troops directly across Zishui. We will directly surround them from above and below."
After receiving the order, the guard quickly mounted his horse, and then waded through the muddy water to convey the order to Xie Bi's troops coming from the west.
In order to maintain the surprise, Zhang Dan did not use the golden drum to gather troops. Instead, he released all the guards around him and directly gave the command.
Soon, the right army officials, who had not rested for long, packed their bags under the orders passed from person to person. The auxiliary soldiers also carried the armor of the main army and followed each team through the water in turn.
After the entire army crossed the river, Zhang Dan ordered the entire army to set up flags and identify themselves to Dong Guangmin.
But the arrival of Zhang Danbu did not bring victory.
Before he encircled Dong Fang's troops, Youzhou's sudden cavalry finally opened a passage to the north.
As soon as the passage was opened, Gai Tong took the lead in breaking out with his troops, and other troops also caught up. This passage is very narrow, and it is probably just a line of two cavalry.
So when the subordinates behind Dong Fang were tired and rushed to block the gap, the Youzhou Assault Cavalry was not actually able to break through many people.
After being surrounded on all sides, the remaining Youzhou Tuqi chose to surrender.
After the war, counting of the corpses left on the battlefield and the abandoned wounded soldiers showed that the Youzhou Cavalry had lost a total of 1,200 riders and 800 prisoners had surrendered. Six hundred more were captured in subsequent pursuits.
On the Taishan Army's side, Zhang Dan's troops suffered almost minimal losses, with only ten dead and eighty wounded. But the casualties of Dong Fang's rear army were not small.
They lost a total of 1,200 people before and after them, most of whom were besieged and killed in the three barriers in front.
But Dong Fang has reason to be proud. It was precisely because of his tenacious style that the operation to encircle and annihilate Youzhou's sudden cavalry was a complete victory.
In the end, except for the remnants of more than a thousand soldiers who managed to break through, the Youzhou Tuqi army that went south was completely wiped out.
……
The afternoon of August 5th.
When Gai Tong's followers rushed into Lunu, Lu Zhi finally learned of the fiasco in Xinshi.
After Gaitong broke through, he did not choose to continue north to meet Lu Nu and Lu Zhi, but moved directly along Zishui and moved eastward.
Gai Tong told Lu Zhi that he had an old relationship with the powerful people in Anping and Hejian, and planned to go east to recruit troops and then return to help in the war.
Lu Zhi knew that Gai Tong was worried about being defeated by military law, but if Gai Tong really pulled out another army from Hejian and northern Anping, he could threaten the Taishan bandits in the east.
So Lu Zhi endured this, even though half of the Youzhou sudden cavalry he relied on at this time had been lost, and now there were only more than 5,000 cavalry left.
After that, Lu Zhi did not make any announcement and held a banquet for the powerful and powerful of Zhongshan Kingdom tonight as usual.
In recent days, he has been banqueting powerful people from all over the world in Lunuguang. It was supposed to show off the power of Zhenbei Army, but he didn't expect that this moment would have a miraculous effect.
Now Lu Zhi decided to recruit these powerful tribes as another group of soldiers to defend Lu Nu with him.
In fact, Lu Zhi was very surprised and surprised at this moment. He didn't expect that the Taishan bandits would be so eager to fight and even take the initiative to intercept the retreat of Youzhou's sudden cavalry.
Obviously the opposing force is so weak, how can this little thief find the confidence to fight him in a decisive battle?
Lu Zhi asked his servants to continue preparing for the banquet, while he was thinking under the map screen:
"Now that the Taishan thieves have defeated my cavalry forward, there is not much difference in cavalry strength between him and me. At this time, once a decisive battle occurs, the number of infantry will become the decisive factor. Although the infantry of our Zhenbei Army is good, it is not what it is after all. Long. It seems that we still need to recruit Zhongshan’s halberd warriors to increase our chances of winning.”
Then he looked at the map again and thought to himself:
"Now the troops of the Taishan bandits have arrived in the Xinshi area, and it seems they are chasing me. And this place where I am in Lunu is not a good sign."
Lu Nu, Lu Nu, isn’t it that I, Lu Zhi, am a slave?
So Lu Zhi focused on an area on the map, where he had prepared a decisive battle.
But before withdrawing his troops, he had to ask these Zhongshan powerful men to hand over their troops.
When Lu Zhi thought about the banquet and returned to the atrium, the banquet was ready. But the powerful people present were no longer as relaxed as they had been in the past few days, and they were all whispering to each other.
Obviously, the news of Gaitong's defeat in Xinshi has spread. So this time the banquet was obviously a little different. These powerful people were looking forward to Lu Zhi's explanation or encouragement.
Naturally, Lu Zhi did not disappoint these people. He constantly emphasized his determination to defend Zhongshan and called on the powerful to organize together to defend his hometown.
Lu Zhi told everyone that now he is not fighting for anyone, but for himself. If he fails in this battle, he can still retreat to Youzhou, but what about you Zhongshan gentry? Do you want to abandon the tombs of your ancestors and go to Youzhou with him to enjoy the wind?
The powerful people in Zhongshan have been agitated now. They all agree with Lu Zhi. It's time to put aside their past grudges and fight with those despicable Taishan thieves.
The most powerful group among the powerful people in Zhongshan is the Liu Dynasty of the Han Dynasty. They are the Liu family of Anguo, the Liu family of Weichang, the Liu family of Wangdu, and the Liu family of Puyin. They are all the queens of King Jing of Zhongshan.
These royal families who have been rooted in Zhongshan for many generations have great energy in the local area. At this time of life and death, they did not lack the courage and courage to fight decisively.
Among them, the leaders of the Four Liu Dynasties took the initiative to ask for help after receiving Liu Zhi, and asked to lead troops to garrison in Dingting, an important place southwest of Zhongshan, where they could compete with the Taishan bandits.
Lu Zhi had no objection at all, and encouraged Liu Zhi to have a unique vision. He knew that Dingting was an important transportation place and could be the gateway to Lu Nu.
So he asked Liu Zhi to gather Zhongshan's powerful troops to go to Dingting first, while he dispatched troops from behind.
After Liu Zhi gained military power, he asked Lu Zhi to transfer the Hejian cavalry stationed in Anxi to him.
Lu Zhi was now in a dilemma.
In fact, he had somewhat forgotten about this wave of river cavalry before. Now Liu Zhi suddenly asked for it in court, which reminded him of this matter. This wave of cavalry was the side troops he asked the Hejian Kingdom to assist when he went south.
He didn't care before, but now he is a bit reluctant to let it go. Although I have never seen this group of cavalry and I don't know the combat effectiveness of these people, cavalry is cavalry after all, and there can never be too few.
But Lu Zhi couldn't act stingy. The powerful Zhongshan power had just acted so "generously", so he couldn't be stingy anymore.
So Lu Zhi nodded in agreement and sent 500 Hejian cavalry to Liu Zhi's command.
In this way, Liu Zhi was satisfied and rushed to Dingting with 3,000 powerful infantry, where he waited for the 500 Hejian cavalry.
After the hasty banquet was finally over, Lu Zhi also began to order the battalion leaders stationed elsewhere to gather troops.
In the end, he decided to fight the Taishan bandits first. No matter what plans he had later, the premise of everything was that the Zhenbei Army still had the courage to draw his sword and point at the Taishan bandits.
If all the Taishan thieves are facing the enemy and flee north, then forget about the morale of the army.
But even if Lu Zhi wanted to fight again, he had to gather the scattered battalions back together first.
To be honest, it's not easy.
But one thing about Lu Zhi's Zhenbei Army was outstanding, and that was that it was very efficient in issuing orders to each battalion head under his command.
This is due to the fact that Lu Zhi has a smart and capable army.
As a great scholar in the north, Lu Zhi had thousands of disciples. Many of these people were descendants of powerful military families in the North. They were already good at riding and shooting, and had natural advantages in articles, expressions, and connections.
They were eager for military glory and willing to follow their division, so many defected to the Zhenbei Army. Lu Zhi also specially gathered these people into a camp, named "Junzi Camp".
For ordinary military orders, Lu Zhi only needed to dictate them orally, and then write them down by the staff secretary, and then pass them on to the soldiers under the tent. These people are articulate and speak the local accent, so after arriving at each ministry, they are also responsible for conveying the response orders of the battalion generals of each ministry.
However, there are many generals in the army who are unruly. In an emergency, the commands of ordinary guards cannot convince these strong generals, so at this time, it is necessary for the officers and soldiers of the Junzi Camp under Lu Zhi's account to convey the military information.
At this moment, Lu Zhi dispatched the troops to various ministries. These were the officers and soldiers of the gentleman's camp.
Each of them led three fast horses, holding talismans and orders, and galloped at a speed of twenty miles an hour.
Obviously, Lu Zhi also wanted to gather troops as soon as possible and then go south to support Liu Zhi, so he used the Junzi Camp as soon as he came up.
……
At this time, Li En led three northern horses and galloped down the straight road. The journey was smooth and smooth.
He comes from the Li family of Fan Yang, and it is said that his ancestor Li Shi was his descendant. But Li En himself didn't know whether it was true or false. But even if we have seen this ancestor's name in the family tree, it still cannot change the fact that Li En's family is poor.
In fact, Li En's father is very famous. He is a famous musicologist in the North, named Li Yan. His father later moved his family to Zhuoxian County, whereupon Li En became a disciple of Lu Zhi.
But soon, Li En's father died in prison because of something. Li En's situation began to look bleak.
Lu Zhi's sect has three sects and nine sects, but among the inner sect, the top and bottom are clearly defined, depending on the background, footwork and knowledge. But Li En has nothing, so his status can be imagined.
Therefore, it was Li En who had the most difficult task of delivering the order this time.
He wanted to take military orders to Captain Wei Duan who was stationed in Tang County in the north.
Infantry Colonel Wei Duan's unit of 2,000 men was the farthest unit from Lu Zhi's army. In order not to miss the deadline, Li En could only change horses but not people, and traveled continuously for several days.
As for horse racing at night, Li En didn't dare. If you miss the mark, no one will know if you die in this place.
So, after his thighs were bleeding, Li En finally entered Wei Duan's camp.
When Li En met Wei Duan for the first time, he was impressed by this majestic general.
Wei Duan glanced at Li En's bloody shirt, nodded appreciatively, and then took the military order from Li En's hand.
Just when Li En thought Wei Duan would immediately order the dispatch of troops, he heard Wei Duan say:
"I understand, Captain. It's hard for you to travel on the road. Go to the military tent next door to rest."
Li En didn't understand, but he could only follow the Euphorbia soldiers who came in and leave the tent.
After that, the two Euphorbia warriors found a clean tent and gave Li En some water and millet to feed him. Although Li En was full of doubts, he was too tired and fell asleep as soon as he touched the mat.
I don't know how long it took before Li En woke up.
At this time, the military horn sounded low outside the tent, which was the horn to gather troops.
Li En hurried out of the tent and saw many officials dining leisurely outside. They seemed to have not heard the horn, and just laughed noisily.
Li En was very dissatisfied with their military discipline and was about to step forward to scold them for gathering troops.
I saw two soldiers who were obviously officers walking over, obviously very drunk.
Li En couldn't help but said:
"Didn't you hear the call to gather troops? According to military law:..."
One of the military officials laughed loudly, pointed at Li En and said with a smile:
"Where did you come from? You're talking about military law with us. Didn't you know that the rallying horn has been blowing for half an hour?"
After saying that, the man ignored Li En's criticism and turned to his colleague:
"It's still early, why don't you go get some sleep?"
But the military officer said very philosophically:
"What's the point of sleeping? I might not be able to sleep for a long time in two days. What a waste of sleep now? Come on, let's continue drinking?"
After saying that, the two military officials hugged each other, smiled, and found a place to drink.
Looking at all this, Li En was filled with shock. Is this the world-famous Northern Army Infantry Battalion?
shock!