Jiuxi

Chapter 735【Telepathy】

"Answer the questions you are interested in first."

Lu Chen changed the subject and said slowly, "Regarding how to break through Yaoshan Pass, this is a question I have been thinking about three years ago. Using gunpowder to dig holes in the ground to attack the city is only effective at the beginning. After all, no one has done this before, and the defenders will not take special precautions. But the enemy I am facing is not stupid. Qing Yugong imitated this method outside Yongqiu City, which shows that he has done in-depth research. What's more, Yaoshan Pass is built on hard soil. Even if you are not prepared, it will take years to dig out enough underground space."

Pucha listened in silence.

Li Bingxue, who was sitting opposite him, looked at Lu Chen. Unlike her previous coldness and sharpness, there was obvious admiration and appreciation in her eyes at this moment.

Lu Chen continued, "Although I led my troops to successfully attack Heluo three years ago, I knew that was only a temporary victory. The Great Qi court did not support me in recovering the old capital at that time, and would eventually withdraw. But I thought, if there is a first time, there will be a second time. Sooner or later, our army will come back. How can we conquer the obstacles along the way at that time? At that time, I stayed at Yaoshan Pass for a few days, traveled all over the areas inside and outside the pass, and finally noticed Yaoshan, which is north of this majestic pass."

Pu Cha finally couldn't bear it any longer and said bluntly: "General Lu, I just want to know how your people were able to jump directly from Yaoshan into the pass."

Lu Chen smiled and said frankly: "This is a secret. Maybe you can figure it out slowly like Qing Yugong did, but if I tell you directly, wouldn't that be collaborating with the enemy?"

In fact, Lu Chen didn’t know whether it would be useful at first.

He knew about the extreme sport of wing suit flying in his previous life, but he didn't know how to make a qualified wing suit. Fortunately, the distance between Yao Mountain and the pass was very close, and the vertical height was not exaggerated. In addition, the elite Seven Star Army led by Dong Mian all had martial arts skills and were accustomed to living in the mountains and forests. After practicing for half a year, they gradually mastered the tricks.

This is what Lu Chen said to Xu Zuo a few months ago. This was one of the plans he had made in recent years to recover his homeland.

Pucha was naturally dissatisfied with Lu Chen's answer, but he did not forget his own situation.

Even if Lu Chen said nothing, what could he do?

He suppressed his frustration and asked, "What about the Long Sword Army?"

Lu Chen said calmly: "This is very simple. As long as the soldiers are strong enough and their weapons are sharp enough, your armored cavalry are only flesh and blood after all, not immortal. It is not surprising that they were defeated."

Having said that, Pucha knew how difficult it would be to accomplish this.

Elite soldiers are easy to find, it’s just a matter of careful selection. An army of hundreds of thousands of people can always gather a few thousand people who meet the requirements. But when has there ever been a sharp blade in the world that can cut off both people and horses?

This time Pucha did not ask for trouble. He asked in a gloomy tone: "Since you have such a trump card, why do you have to wait until I send out the armored cavalry before counterattacking?"

He had reviewed the course of the battle last night, and his responses were fine for most of the time. Only two fatal incidents changed the course of the battle. One was the fall of Yaoshan Pass, which forced him into a desperate situation, and the other was that Lu Chen's long sword army defeated his most powerful armored cavalry in one fell swoop.

Lu Chen stared into his eyes and said slowly: "It seems that you are really unwilling. I think you must have the answer to this question in your heart. The heavy-armored infantry moves the slowest and has no ability to take the initiative to attack. They can only wait for you to attack. Looking back at the whole battle, you wanted to lure me into the game from the beginning, deliberately putting the Jing army at a disadvantage, and when I put in all the reserve forces, you can use the cavalry to complete the fatal blow. The problem is that your trap is too obvious. It is nothing more than the strategy used by Wu Yanshu in the Battle of Kaocheng. How can I easily join in?"

He paused, and then said honestly: "After all, you are not Qing Yugong or Wu Yanshu. You still lack the ability to grasp the timing of the battlefield. If it were them, they would not deliberately show weakness at the beginning, but let the two armies fight to a stalemate, and then gradually show signs of defeat, so that I would have a chance to join the game."

Pucha couldn't help but smile bitterly, with a look of desolation on his face, and nodded, "Indeed, you are not Han Zhongjie either."

"Okay, you should put your doubts aside."

Lu Chen narrowed his eyes and said solemnly: "Let's get back to today's topic. The reason I want to meet you and threaten you is that I just want to confirm one thing from you."

Pucha's heart suddenly became tense. He controlled his facial expression and asked, "What's the matter?"

Lu Chen said: "I want to know whether you want me to continue westward to attack Heluo."

Although he had a premonition before, Pucha was still shocked and asked deliberately: "Don't you want to?"

"Of course I wanted to at first, because most of Wu Yanshu's troops are now in the far south. If I lead my troops to attack Heluo, he must lead his troops back to support me. In this way, the crisis in Jingzhou can be resolved, but——"

Lu Chen looked at Pucha's evasive gaze and said slowly, "Before I met you, I had a hunch that maybe Wu Yanshu was not worried about my attack on Heluo, because that city is very strong and the defenders must have more thorough defenses this time. If I am delayed by the Jing army along the way and in Heluo, will Wu Yanshu be able to continue to attack Jingzhou? Besides, your emperor is not a foolish person. After knowing the results of the battle at Yaoshan Pass, he might let Qing Yugong come out again and lead his troops south to force me back."

Pucha was extremely confused at the moment and didn't dare to show any emotion on his face.

"These are just my guesses. I have thought about this problem over and over again. For Wu Yanshu, the best outcome is that I am blocked outside Yaoshan Pass, so that he will not have any worries. Taking a step back, even if I capture Yaoshan Pass, as long as the Jing army can defend Heluo City, Wu Yanshu still has room for choice. From the beginning to the end, his target has been Jingzhou of our dynasty."

Lu Chen spoke calmly, and then said: "After discussing this issue with you just now, I can finally confirm that if I bet all my treasures on Heluo, I am afraid Jingzhou will fall into a desperate situation." Pu Cha forced a smile and said: "It's best if Governor Lu can think this way."

Lu Chen also smiled and said, "Your biggest flaw is that you were captured alive. I have studied your life. Your military attainments are not as good as Qing Yugong and Wu Yanshu, but you are the deputy commander of the Loyalty Army and a trusted confidant of Emperor Jing. A person like you is willing to lead the troops in person to cover the rear, so how could you sit back and watch yourself being captured? I heard General Li talk about the situation yesterday. You had plenty of time to commit suicide at that time."

Pucha lowered his head and brows, and said in a hoarse voice: "Who in this world is not afraid of death?"

"There are indeed many people who are afraid of death, but you are definitely not one of them, otherwise you would not stay to cover our retreat."

Lu Chen suppressed his smile and spoke as sharp as a knife: "You were captured on purpose, and then deliberately interfered with my judgment, so that I would charge straight towards Heluo City, and finally waste precious time so that Wu Yanshu could calmly attack Jingzhou. If I am not mistaken, there are enough soldiers hidden in Heluo City to hold on, and Wu Yanshu will symbolically withdraw a troop to support, delaying my advance as much as possible, right?"

"If you succeed in the end, General Pucha will have made up for his mistakes. This will help you gain the Emperor Jing's forgiveness to the greatest extent possible, and your family's fate will not be endangered by this defeat."

"That's why I said that you put yourself in the game and are still thinking about the legacy and the overall situation at this time, which makes me admire you."

After hearing what Lu Chen said, Li Bingxue couldn't help but look at Pucha again, with a bit more solemnity in her eyes.

Pu Cha said coldly: "General Lu is so confident, how do you know that I am not deliberately playing tricks to discourage you from attacking Nanjing City?"

Lu Chen said calmly: "If Heluo is really short of troops, you should not be the last one to leave, but should withdraw to take charge of the overall situation. General Pucha, I recognize your determination and methods, but what happens next has nothing to do with you. I will abide by the previous agreement and let you continue to live, but if you are determined to die, I will not stop you."

At this moment Pucha's hands finally began to tremble slightly, and his face turned extremely pale.

He stared at Lu Chen, as if he was looking at a demon from the Netherworld.

Even when Qin Zilong and others carried him out of the general's tent, he still turned his head to look at the young man and said bitterly: "Lu Chen, you can't keep winning. One day you will die under my sword!"

Of course, Lu Chen would not take this curse in despair to heart.

He stood up and walked to the map, staring at the huge and tangled battle line, his brows gradually furrowed.

Li Bingxue stood quietly beside him with a complicated expression on her face.

After a long while, Lu Chen turned around and asked, "Do you think I'm scheming? Are you afraid?"

Li Bingxue shook her head and said softly, "You only use this thought on the enemy, how can I be afraid? Since you have guessed the enemy's intention, what are you going to do?"

"He Luo still needs to fight, or at least make an attacking gesture."

Lu Chen gave an answer that Li Bingxue didn't expect, and then said calmly: "My original plan was to take Yaoshan Pass first and then attack Heluo. On the one hand, I forced Wu Yanshu to withdraw his troops to reinforce, and on the other hand, I surrounded the point and attacked the reinforcements to annihilate the enemy's manpower as much as possible. But from the current situation, the second half of this plan must be modified, because the opponent may have hidden a killer move that I didn't expect. They are determined to take Jingzhou, and they are even willing to take risks with Heluo. It is obvious that they want to lead me by the nose."

Li Bingxue looked at the exhaustion that could not be concealed between his eyebrows and said distressedly: "You should rest for half a day first. Your health is more important. There are still endless things to do later."

"I haven't practiced martial arts in vain. How can I relax at this moment?"

Lu Chen smiled gently, then continued to look at the map, lost in thought.

Li Bingxue couldn't bear to disturb him any further and walked over to help him add more tea.

After a long while, Lu Chen heaved a long sigh and said slowly, "The Emperor of Jingguo and Wu Yanshu want me to get nothing. Neither side will get any good results. This situation is indeed more complicated than I thought, but there is a way to break it."

Hearing these words, Li Bingxue's eyes lit up.

Lu Chen turned around and said to the people outside the tent: "Gather all the generals to discuss the military affairs."

Qin Zilong's loud voice was heard outside.

"Follow the order!"

(End of this chapter)