Jiuxi

Chapter 715: 713 [The Sea is Turbulent]

The straight-line distance from Ruyin to Qingliu Pass is about 360 miles.

The army's marching speed was not fast, averaging no more than forty miles a day.

On April 19, the army arrived at Gaoyuan Prefecture, which is already the western border of Dingzhou. Going further west, they will enter the real border area, which is only sixty miles away from Qingliu Pass, the core of the western defense line.

Meng Qingshou, the prefect of Gaoyuan, had already received Xu Zuo's written instructions, and personally led the officials of the government office to welcome the army outside the city, and prepared food and fodder for the army.

Seeing the soldiers setting up camp in an open area, he respectfully asked, "Sir, there is already a place for us to stay in the city."

Lu Chen looked up at the elegant middle-aged prefect and said with a smile, "No need, I will rest in the barracks."

Meng Qingshou was also a knowledgeable and interesting person, so he stopped bothering them and bowed before taking his leave, going to arrange matters concerning rewarding the army.

He thought the army would just rest for one night and continue to march westward the next day, but when the sun rose the next day, there was still no movement in the military camp outside the city. Meng Qingshou was puzzled, but he did not dare to ask the young county lord about his decision. Fortunately, the soldiers stayed in the military camp honestly and did not cause trouble to the people in the city.

At noon, on the temporary parade ground in the northeast corner of the military camp, three thousand infantrymen from the Ruishi Battalion were lined up like a forest.

Each of them was armed with a specially made long sword, and under the leadership of Captain Bao Meng, they practiced combat tactics with their commander.

The way of advancing the battle formation is very simple. Each infantryman will leave relatively ample space in front, behind, left and right. They will advance and retreat together, wielding long swords. The simple, powerful and uniform chops are so awe-inspiring that they are terrifying.

On the earthen platform, Lu Chen gazed at the three thousand sturdy and brave soldiers who had been carefully selected, and a feeling of relief gradually welled up in his heart.

He turned to look at the female general in military uniform and asked, "How is it?"

Li Bingxue's eyes sparkled, and she whispered, "Very strong."

"Where is the strength?"

"The biggest advantage of cavalry is that they can attack in a roundabout way, looking for opportunities to break the infantry's position and thus gain a chance of victory. Generally speaking, a large infantry formation is not afraid of the impact of cavalry. Chevaux de frise, spear formations, and chariot formations can all resist cavalry. The problem is that these are very passive means, and at most can create a stalemate with the enemy cavalry. The sword formation formed by the soldiers of the Sharp Warrior Battalion... seems to allow the enemy cavalry to break through easily, but in fact it can cause extremely terrible casualties to the enemy."

As the commander of the Feiyu Army, Li Bingxue has been accustomed to living on horseback for many years. He is well aware of the advantages and disadvantages of cavalry, and therefore can better recognize the uniqueness of the 3,000 infantrymen in front of him.

Looking around, one can see that the infantrymen of the Rui Shi Battalion are all strong and sturdy, and one can feel their powerful strength from their bulging arms.

The special swords in their hands were about ten feet long, and the blade was nearly four feet long. The fine iron used was forged by the famous craftsman Zhang Hua. At the suggestion of Liu Yuan, the chief clerk of the Governor's Office, a new method of forging steel was used, and it was quenched with Hengjiang water, making it extremely sharp and tough.

Lu Chen smiled and said, "I hope to give the Jing Army Cavalry a surprise."

Li Bingxue asked with a puzzled look: "If that's the case, why do you want to stay here?"

“Sometimes patience is a very beautiful virtue.”

Lu Chen's answer was brief and to the point. He asked Bao Meng to continue to lead the soldiers of the Sharp Warriors Battalion in training, and then said to Li Bingxue, "Let's go."

The two returned to the central army's tent, and soon they saw Yang Jingxuan coming in, exhausted. He saluted and said, "Greetings, Lord, Commander Li."

"sit."

Lu Chen signaled his personal guards to serve tea, and then asked, "Do you have the latest information about the Western Route Army?"

Yang Jingxuan nodded and said, "That's why I'm here. Eight days ago, Marquis Yongyi and General Yuan led 60,000 troops to Kaocheng, while Commander Liu was still stationed in Taikang. If Kaocheng can be taken, it means that the Jing army's defense line must be further contracted, and the West Route Army's goal can be set at Tongbai."

"Please wait a moment."

Lu Chen turned to look at Qin Zilong and said, "Bring the sand table here."

"Yes, my lord."

Qin Zilong agreed, then quickly walked out, bringing with him several personal soldiers to fetch a simple sand table.

Lu Chen walked to the sand table and marked several important cities on the western front one by one, such as Taikang, Xinping, Chou'an, Guining, and Kaocheng, which was currently under attack and defense by both sides.

Tongbai City, more than 60 miles northeast of Kaocheng, is the core of Jingjun’s entire defense line in the southwest of Heluo.

The strategic goal of the Western Route Army was very clear from the beginning, which was to break through the Jing Army’s defense system south of Heluo, thus depriving Heluo City of its barrier.

To this end, Han Zhongjie and Liu Shouguang formulated a seemingly clumsy strategy, taking over one city after another and advancing steadily forward.

Lu Chen said slowly: "Han Zhongjie and Liu Shouguang led 60,000 troops to attack Kaocheng. Is there any specific information on the deployment of troops?"

Yang Jingxuan replied, "My Lord, half of them are soldiers from the Beijing Camp, and the other half are elite troops drawn from the Guangji Army, Anping Army, and Yingze Army of the Jingzhou Military Governor's Office."

"The combat capability is not a problem." Lu Chen gave a fair evaluation, and then said: "The Western Route Army has stretched the battle line to more than 300 miles, which forces the Jing Army to divide its troops to guard the key points. At the same time, we rely on our superiority in manpower to attack Kaocheng, which can indeed make the Jing Army lose sight of the big picture. In this way, although Han Zhongjie and Liu Shouguang's use of troops did not catch the enemy by surprise, they were calm and rigorous."

Li Bingxue interrupted, "Then what do you think their chances of winning are?"

"It depends on how determined Wu Yanshu is."

Lu Chen raised his finger and pointed to Tongbai City on the sand table, and said thoughtfully: "If it were me, I would not place the final battle in Tongbai, it would be too dangerous. Kaocheng is surrounded by mountains on both sides, and only the east side has an open area for the Jing army to defend and counterattack. This is the most suitable place to win. Once Kaocheng is captured by the Western Route Army, Tongbai will no longer have a barrier to protect it, and the plains along the way will be open and it will be difficult for the Jing army to make any moves."

Yang Jingxuan said: "The secret agents of the Textile Bureau lurking in Heluo City risked their lives to report back that Wu Yanshu has led tens of thousands of troops south to Tongbai."

Lu Chen nodded slightly and asked, "Is there any movement in the north?"

Yang Jingxuan looked ashamed and shook his head, saying, "My Lord, the Weaving Bureau's power in Jingguo's capital is relatively weak, and the long distance makes it difficult to transmit information. There is no new information yet. However, I have sent a message to my subordinates in the north. As long as there is a large-scale mobilization of troops in Jingguo, the news must be sent back no matter how much it costs."

Lu Chen looked at the tiredness between the eyebrows of this peer and said in a slow tone: "You have done well enough. You should take care of yourself. I don't want to see you get sick from overwork. If that happens, I won't be able to explain to Lord Qin."

Yang Jingxuan said with admiration: "Thank you for your consideration, sir. I will take my leave now."

Lu Chen agreed, and after he left, he said softly: "Although you didn't say it explicitly, I know what you are thinking. Do you think I am deliberately delaying?"

Li Bingxue was startled and asked, "Why do you say that?"

"You asked me before why I wanted to stay here. Actually, the answer is very simple. I want to wait until the outcome of the war on the Western Front is decided before making a decision."

Lu Chen stroked the sand table with his hand and said slowly: "The emperor wants to exclude me this time. If I force the initiative to advance, I will definitely not get any benefits afterwards, because the results of the battle on the western front are not clear, and some people can justifiably put the blame on me. I hope the western army can win, but if they lose, I must wait for the emperor's will before sending troops. Only in this way can I ensure that the efforts of the Dingzhou soldiers will not be in vain."

Li Bingxue asked curiously, "Then why did you lead your troops to the border in advance?"

Lu Chen said frankly: "Because of Xu Zuo."

"Xu Zuo?"

"Xu Zuo is not a loyal person who only believes in his own principles. If I want to impress him and gain his support, I have to be loyal enough. Otherwise, he will always look at me with suspicion. It only takes a moment to decide whether to act or not, but it can affect Xu Zuo's position. Only by changing his attitude can I make the people of Dingzhou as united as one."

"I understand. You deliberately slowed down the march along the way and stopped here for a while. By the time you brought the army to Qingliu Pass, the outcome of the battle on the western front would have been decided. Xu Zuo is not familiar with military affairs and will not think that you are delaying intentionally. He will only be grateful that you are doing this for the public good, but -"

Li Bingxue blinked, tilted her head and asked, "Why are you telling me this?"

Lu Chen said, "Yang Jingxuan's uncle was the one who recommended Qin Zheng to the Sutra Weaving Department. Before Qin Zheng resigned, the emperor wanted to dismiss Yang Jingxuan, but I had someone advise the emperor to save Yang Jingxuan. Yang Jingxuan didn't know that the emperor not only wanted Qin Zheng to resign, but also wanted to kill him. Fortunately, Prime Minister Li stepped in, so Qin Zheng didn't get sick and die suddenly. This is why I did this. The emperor is not trustworthy, and I won't be stupid enough to work for him again."

"I see."

Li Bingxue couldn't help but frown slightly, then said softly: "Actually, I want to ask you, why do you tell me your true thoughts?"

This time it was Lu Chen's turn to be stunned. He thought for a moment and said honestly, "Because I think there shouldn't be any secrets between us."

Li Bingxue couldn't help but remain silent.

After a long while, she whispered, "Don't worry, I have never doubted you, not now, and not in the future."

Lu Chen held her hand and said gently, "Let's work together this time to deal with those fierce enemies."

Li Bingxue didn't break free after all, and nodded, "Okay."

……

Of course, Lu Chen stayed in Gaoyuan City not only to wait for the results of the battle on the western front. He had a lot of things to plan in advance. In the past few days, messengers continued to carry his military orders to various parts of Dingzhou to make further mobilization and instructions to the various troops.

It was early May when he led his army to Qingliu Pass. Duan Zuozhang, the commander of the Lai'an army stationed there, came out to greet him in person.

The next day, Lu Chen summoned all the generals to discuss military intelligence. However, just as he started, Qin Zilong walked into the hall with a panicked messenger.

"Your Excellency, I am Gongsun Ran, a lieutenant under the command of General Liu, and I have been ordered to come here to report urgent military information."

Hearing this man's words, the expressions of all the generals in the hall became serious.

Lu Chen nodded and said, "Go ahead."

Gongsun Ran raised his head and said with a pale face: "My Lord, our army suffered a great defeat in Kaocheng and suffered heavy losses. Marshal Han, the Marquis of Yongyi, was shot by a cold arrow in the chaos and has been unconscious ever since. His life is in danger!"

As soon as these words were spoken, the whole room fell into dead silence.

(End of this chapter)