Jiuxi

Chapter 727 [Turbulent Waves]

Guyu obviously could not answer Wu Yanshu's questions.

He did not underestimate Lu Chen's skills and abilities. The other party's record in the past few years was an obvious fact. However, he felt that human power would always be limited, and Lu Chen was not a god who could go to heaven and earth, so he would not be able to turn decay into magic every time.

In his opinion, the current situation is very clear. The Southern Qi Jingzhou Army is at an absolute disadvantage, and Lu Chen wants to use the same trick to threaten Heluo again, and then force the main force of the Jing Army on the western front to return to rescue, so as to save Jingzhou from the crisis. However, Lu Chen obviously did not expect that under the continuous focus of Qing Yugong and Wu Yanshu, the Yaoshan Pass defense line was impregnable, and his plan could only fail.

In this way, the main force of Jing's army could attack Jingzhou with confidence.

Guiyou stepped forward and said cautiously, "Sir, perhaps Lu Chen can do nothing this time."

Wu Yanshu pondered in silence, staring at the sand table.

With Xinping City being recaptured by Jing's army, the situation on the western front has now returned to the beginning of the Qi army's expedition. Only Taikang City in front is still under the control of Qi's army.

In fact, Wu Yanshu now has a lot of strategic options. He can continue to besiege Taikang, or he can divide his troops into multiple routes to attack various places in Jingzhou.

After a moment, he slowly said, "I asked you to gradually abandon Taikang and other places in order to use Taikang as bait in the counterattack to attract reinforcements from all directions of the Qi army, and then fight them in the wild. At first, Liu Shouguang held on to Xinping and Taikang. I thought Lu Chen would make a feint to the east and attack the west, ostensibly attacking Yaoshan Pass, but actually dispatching troops to support Taikang. I have made preparations to besiege him here, just like the trap he set for the Prince of Changshan outside Yongqiu City."

Guiyou was greatly impressed and sighed, "It's a pity that Lu Chen didn't take the bait."

Wu Yanshu walked to the table, picked up the teacup and took a sip of the warm tea, then said slowly: "This may not be a bad thing, because the mission assigned to us by His Majesty is to break through the defense line of Jingzhou in Southern Qi. Since Lu Chen wants to attack Yaoshan Pass by force, let him do it."

Even so, he still couldn't be completely relieved. He turned to look at his confidant standing solemnly by the door and asked, "Are there any movements in Nanqi Teng County and Panlong Pass?"

In fact, he had asked this question early in the morning. His confidant did not dare to be careless and replied seriously: "Your Excellency, there is no information about the enemy's unusual movements at the moment."

Wu Yanshu nodded slightly.

Under the current situation, if the Dingzhou army wants to rush to the aid of Jingzhou, the fastest route is to cross from the south of Teng County or the northwest of Panlong Pass. This is also the key area that Wu Yanshu has been carefully guarding against.

Of course, there is a third way. The Dingzhou army can go south to Huaizhou and then cross the ancient road between the Shuangfeng Mountains. The problem is that this road is too long and cannot be done quietly. Lu Chen would not use such a stupid method.

"Call the commanders of all armies to come."

Wuyan Shu gave orders to his confidants, and about a quarter of an hour later, more than ten generals of the Jing army came to the central army's tent.

"Everyone, His Majesty has ordered us to break through the defense line of Jingzhou in Southern Qi within two months. Now our army has recaptured Xinping, and Taikang is a tough nut to crack. I believe that after observing these days, you already have a clear idea."

Wu Yanshu sat upright in the commander's seat, speaking in a slow and steady tone.

All the generals echoed.

Taikang City was originally an important town in the southwest defense line of the Jing Army. Now it has become a fortress that the Qi Army is determined to defend. Not only are there countless food and grass stored in the city and a large number of elite soldiers, but there are also auxiliary cities in the southeast and southwest outside the city as support.

Even though the morale of Jing's army is high now, it will be very difficult to break through this fortified city.

Wu Yanshu briefly described the situation at Yaoshan Pass on the eastern front, and everyone immediately understood the current situation.

He and Lu Chen were working on two fronts at the same time, and it depended on who could break through the other's weakness first.

If Lu Chen could cross Yaoshan Pass and take Heluo directly, Wu Yanshu would have to withdraw his troops to provide support. Once Heluo was lost again, the Jing army on the western front would be caught in a situation where it would be attacked from both sides.

If Wu Yanshu could defeat Liu Shouguang again and inflict heavy damage on the Jingzhou army, the road to the south would be smooth, allowing the Jing army's cavalry to gallop freely.

"As the saying goes, a living person cannot be suffocated to death by urine. Compared with the dilemma currently faced by Lu Chen and the Southern Qi Dingzhou Army, our army's tactics can be more flexible."

Wu Yanshu changed the subject and said calmly, "Since Liu Shouguang and the main force of the Jingzhou Army are determined to defend Taikang, then our army will bypass this city and advance across Jingzhou!"

Hearing these words, the generals were greatly encouraged and were eager to fight.

Wu Yanshu was very pleased with their enthusiasm and began to make arrangements in an orderly manner.

Military orders were issued one after another from the general's tent, and the battlefield on the western front suddenly became turbulent.

From the end of May, Wuyan Shu continued to lead his troops to confront Liu Shouguang outside Taikang City, while his fierce generals led the elite Jing Army to march south.

For a time, flags were unfurled and the war was in full swing.

There was a murderous atmosphere everywhere in Taikang City.

"Grand Commander, Yanwu City has fallen!"

Inside the hall, a captain strode in with a panicked look on his face, and without even having time to salute, he loudly reported.

This was the third report of defeat he had reported in six days.

Since the Battle of Kaocheng, the soldiers of Jingzhou Army have not heard any good news. First, the Xinping City that they had conquered with great difficulty was recaptured by Jing Army. Then, the enemy did not continue to attack Taikang, but instead began to attack the western section of Jingzhou's defense line.

The atmosphere was extremely solemn. Liu Shouguang, the Grand Commander of Jingzhou, stood beside the map and marked the location of Yanwu City.

Seeing this, Yuan Xingqin, the general commander of the brave camp, said, "Grand Commander, the strategic intention of the Jing army is very clear. They know that a strong attack on Taikang City will knock out a lot of teeth, so they changed their target to our army's defense line in the west."

"Yes."

Liu Shouguang looked solemn and said slowly, "We lost three cities in just a few days. The Jing army's counterattack is indeed fierce."

Although Yuan Xingqin still held the position of deputy commander in name, his influence in the army was becoming increasingly weaker as Han Zhongjie was bedridden recovering from his injuries.

The reason is very simple. The defeat in Kaocheng not only resulted in the loss of the main elite troops of the Jingzhou Army, but also half of the soldiers of the Beijing Camp. This time, Han Zhongjie and he only brought a total of 40,000 Beijing troops, and now he has only more than 10,000 soldiers and horses that can be mobilized.

Even so, Yuan Xingqin still said worriedly: "Grand Commander, do we need to adjust our military's response strategy?"

Liu Shouguang still looked at the map and said in a deep voice: "General Manager Yuan, the order of the Duke of Shanyang is very clear. Since we have lost Xinping City, we must hold on to Taikang."

Yuan Xingqin was stunned.

A slightly sharp voice sounded in the hall: "Ahem, Grand Commander, I don't know much about military affairs, so I dare not speak rashly. But if we sit back and watch the Jing army continue to wreak havoc, I'm afraid it's not appropriate, right?"

Hearing this voice, Liu Shouguang did not have any special reaction, but people like Fan Wendi and Zhang Zhan couldn't help but frowned.

Liu Shouguang was silent for a moment, then looked at the man and said, "Master Yuan, if you have anything to say, just say it."

Yuan Yuji knew that except for Yuan Xingqin, the generals in the hall did not welcome him very much, but he was entrusted by the emperor, so he could only bite the bullet and say: "Grand Commander, judging from the current situation, the Jing army is clearly trying to delay your main force, and then defeat our army one by one and clear our strongholds outside Yongqiu City. By that time, even if our army can defend Taikang, it will not be able to protect Yongqiu."

Liu Shouguang said calmly: "Yuan Shaojian's words make sense, but how can our army respond?"

Yuan Yuji was speechless for a moment.

Liu Shouguang continued, "Now our army is short of manpower and can no longer take into account the overall situation as before. We can only make some choices. I agree with the judgment of the Duke of Shanyang. In the current disadvantageous situation, our army can only hold on to strategic points such as Taikang and Yongqiu and cannot follow the pace of the Jing army. Only in this way can we wait for a turning point to appear."

"This……"

Yuan Yuji's face looked a little ugly, and he asked again: "When will the turning point appear?"

"I don't know."

Liu Shouguang simply shook his head, and then said bluntly: "Yuan Shaojian, please go back to the capital to report to His Majesty that the border soldiers will be loyal to the emperor and serve the country, and will not dare to slack off in the slightest. Please rest assured, Your Majesty."

Yuan Yuji's expression changed slightly. How could a man like him not hear the intention to drive him away in the other party's words?

This time, the emperor specially asked him to rush to Dingzhou to convey his imperial edict. On the one hand, it was to show his importance to Lu Chen, so as to prevent the other party from harboring resentment and not working hard. On the other hand, it was to let him convey some instructions to Liu Shouguang in person.

What the emperor was most worried about was that Lu Chen would use this battle to seize control of the border army, so he asked Yuan Yuji to remind Liu Shouguang that as long as he could stand firm as the Grand Commander of Jingzhou, the border army structure would not change too much.

However, what Yuan Yuji did not expect was that Liu Shouguang could no longer tolerate having him, a eunuch in the palace, by his side.

Due to the current situation, Yuan Yuji did not dare to offend Liu Shouguang, and could only smile and say, "Okay, I will convey your message truthfully. I hope the Grand Commander can report the victory as soon as possible."

After this person left, the atmosphere in the hall seemed to become much more relaxed.

Liu Shouguang looked at Yuan Xingqin and said, "General Manager Yuan, please leave the city immediately and lead your troops to garrison in Gushi City, northwest of Yongqiu."

Yuan Xingqin was slightly stunned, then reacted. Under the sharp gazes of the other generals, although he was somewhat reluctant, he could only bow his head and said, "I obey your orders!"

Fan Wendi and the others all secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Liu Shouguang, however, still looked solemn as usual.

The military meeting ended immediately.

Liu Shouguang returned to his residence, looked at the young man standing solemnly in front of him, and said slowly: "Go back and tell Lord Lu that I already know his plan and will execute it meticulously."

The young man said calmly, "Yes, Grand Commander."

Liu Shouguang hesitated for a moment, then said, "Please tell Lord Lu that Jingzhou can be in tatters, but it must not be left open. This time I will not listen to others, and will only follow Lord Lu's lead. I only hope that he can turn the tide and prevent the people of Jiangbei from suffering."

"Grand Admiral, please rest assured."

The young man smiled slightly, and finally showed some sharpness: "My master said that the enemy will be defeated in this battle!"

"That's good."

Liu Shouguang nodded and let out a long sigh.

(End of this chapter)