Goose Three Kingdoms

Chapter 534: Hard to Breathe
The fog gradually dissipated and the sky became bright.

But there are still rolling white clouds above my head, and the mountain wind is blowing. There are no coordinate objects in the sky, but when I look up, I can see that the clouds and fog are rolling to the south.

In the middle of the mountain road, in front of the Black Bear Chariot.

Seven or eight campfires had been lit, and the soldiers who had accompanied the troops sat around the fires to keep out the cold and dry their clothes and armor.

On top of the chariot, a black bear was eating braised horse meat, which had an indescribable strange taste.

They were all sliced, but he didn't even look at them. He would just take a slice and put it in his mouth to chew after he finished eating.

More than a thousand horses were scattered on the road. They were all food that needed to be slaughtered and smoked this afternoon. They were foraging and competing freely in the closed space. Some stallions were biting and losing their tempers over the female horses.

After swallowing the last piece of horse meat, Black Bear picked up the tea. As the hot tea went down his throat, the taste in his mouth was much lessened.

Seeing that he had finished eating, Fa Zheng, who was looking towards the mountain pass, turned around and walked over: "Your Majesty, Tian Yu is a man who knows military affairs. He will naturally understand our army's intentions and I'm afraid he will not fight back."

"Whether he comes or not, my goal can be achieved."

Black Bear held a teacup in his hand, his expression as calm as ever. Fa Zheng knew that this was the result of wearing a mask frequently.

There is no need to manage your facial expressions when wearing a mask, so when you occasionally take off the mask, you will appear dull.

Fa Zheng said again: "What we are worried about now is the troops in Hexi."

"There's nothing to worry about. Hexi has a system of 1,000 households. They can mobilize troops upon hearing the order. There's no need to gather them repeatedly."

The black bear spoke in relief, saying that if they wanted to break out, they could have done so a long time ago.

They repeatedly pulled the enemy in, hoping to capture prisoners from You and Ji states. After three to five years of reform and promotion, they would have reliable local forces to counterattack Hebei region in the future.

Although the Xianbei, Eastern Xianbei, and Wuhuan in the three eastern counties were very close to each other, their production and living methods determined that it was difficult for them to gather before August.

Unless relevant preparations are made very early, it is impossible to mobilize and assemble immediately when something happens.

Even so, even if the Eastern Xianbei and the Wuhuan in the three eastern counties have completed mobilization and even arrived near the battlefield... what's the use?

When fighting in mountainous areas, the battlefield is only so wide and the number of troops that can be deployed is always limited.

Not to mention the normal spoils of war in subsequent battles, just the slaughtered, smoked and stored more than 10,000 spare horses that accompanied us would be enough to keep us alive in the mountains until mid-September.

There is a high probability that snow will begin to fall here in mid-September; our troops did not carry winter clothes, but the captured clothes and leathers are enough to prepare warm clothing.

The only thing that needs to be paid attention to is the supply of fuel, which is not only used for heating at night, but also can be used by accompanying craftsmen to repair weapons.

Not to mention the worst-case scenario in the future, at the moment he believed that his Hexi garrison would be the first reinforcement to arrive.

If they did not arrive, it meant that the border fortress of Dai County was out of control and was controlled by the Xianbei people; it was also possible that the Hexi soldiers were waiting for other troops, such as reinforcements from Guanzhong, Pang De's Qiang volunteers, and Ma Chao's right wing Xiongnu volunteers. Even Ma Teng had 3,000 followers and about 3,000 to 5,000 servant knights who could be mobilized.

From the time he was forced to surrender to the Huns until now, every time he recruited Hun volunteers, he asked Liu Bao to lead about three to five thousand elite troops.

The purpose was to control the Huns in front of the army. If Liu Bao did not want to die, he would only mobilize the previous cavalry and would not expand the scale of mobilization.

This means that in the same amount of time, Liu Bao's mobilization efficiency will be faster than that of the Xianbei and Wuhuan people.

It was just unclear what Ma Chao would do. Black Bear never expected that the military command in Guanzhong could control and command Ma Chao.

While he was thinking, a group of Youzhou knights rushed out from the depths of the mountain pass. The sound of killing and shouting was faintly heard, but it soon dissipated.

Fa Zhengze rode to the vicinity of the mountain pass to observe, and saw that Taishi Wengong's troops did not pursue the defeated troops in depth, but were instead roughly cleaning up the battlefield. He could not help but breathe a sigh of relief.

The mountain pass is a vital point for the Youzhou rebels. If it weren't for the mountain road, it would be unsuitable for large groups of people to travel.

Although blocking the mountain pass now cannot stop the rebels from transmitting military orders, it can increase the distance and difficulty of their military orders traveling back and forth, and indirectly undermine the morale of the rebels.

Fa Zheng observed for a moment, then turned around and led his cavalry to retreat. Remounting the chariot, he bowed and said, "Your Majesty, the enemy's retreat must be a test."

"It can only be a test. After all, it's not Tian Yu who died."

Black Bear looked like he was thinking: "But you want to persuade me to withdraw?"

"General Taishi has been fighting day and night, so his troops must be tired."

Fa Zheng calmly advised: "Now that our goal has been achieved, please withdraw your troops and return to the camp to rest your soldiers and horses."

“I don’t want to overwhelm them either.”

Black Bear poured a cup of brewed tea for Fa Zheng and said, "I once heard a story about a straw that broke the camel's back."

The people around were puzzled, and Wei Kang, who was accompanying them, had already picked up a pen and was ready to start taking notes.

Then the black bear said, "I didn't know what a camel was at that time. I only saw its image. I had never seen a live camel, but I heard that it was stronger than a cow. So I wondered how a straw could crush a camel. It turned out that the camel was carrying countless straws until the last straw fell on it and it could no longer bear it. This is true for camels, the people, and the rebels."

He turned his head and looked at the mountain pass in the northeast direction, squinting his eyes: "I am now putting straw on Tian Yu. I hope he can hold on and not collapse easily. If he collapses when he needs to, it will also be a credit."

Among the people around him, even Yang Xiu felt that his Grand Marshal had received the education of a direct descendant of the royal family.

Not to mention the appearance and temperament, just the educational thought alone is not a normal education for scholars.

Besides, among Emperor Gaozu, Emperor Shizu and other accomplished emperors, how many of them followed the rules?
Fa Zheng listened and nodded slowly, then asked, "Your Majesty, tonight?"

"Well, Xiaozhi's consideration makes sense. Besides, Tian Yu is not an incompetent person. If we invade his camp again tonight, we will inevitably suffer losses."

What they are doing is harassing and interfering, which is actually wearing down the collective morale of the rebels.

The night attacks disrupted their rest, and the ordinary officers and soldiers were under great mental stress due to long-term torture.

Only safe and sufficient sleep can relieve this high-pressure state.

The middle and high-level officials and backbone members of the rebels are determined to defend their status and wealth, so they are more resistant to fighting and have stronger resilience.

But it is different for the lower-level soldiers. They do not have wealth worth sacrificing their lives to protect.

Since ancient times, Yan and Zhao have been home to many brave and heroic warriors. Most of these heroes come from the lower classes, where their living conditions are poor, so they generally have no idea of ​​retirement and a peaceful life until the end of their lives.

They all live a carefree life while they are young and strong, and then end their lives heroically or absurdly before their physical strength declines and they begin to suffer.

But this does not mean that they like to end their lives at will. They are all the same people. Why would they seek death when they can live a good life?

The camel was crushed by the grass because its body could not hold on, not because its will could not hold on.

The story of the black bear is only half told. While torturing Tian Yu, it is also torturing the collective mentality of the rebels.

So we need to change the location, fight piecemeal, and eliminate the small strongholds around the enemy.

Just as he made up his mind, several scouts came galloping from the other side of the road, the mist soaking their armor and their cloaks sticking tightly to their bodies.

The scout dismounted and walked stiffly to the front of the car, shouting excitedly: "Report! The enemy burned the three small camps in the southeast and fled!"

In the car, Hei Xiong and Fa Zheng looked at each other, and a dozen people around them looked at each other.

Gao Jun, who was standing in front of the carriage, said to the scout, "You've worked hard. Go warm yourself by the fire, eat some food, and have a good rest."

"Here!"

After the scouts left, Black Bear finally reacted: "I understand. My attack was so swift and fierce that they mistakenly thought I was going to attack Tian Yu. Let's retreat, gather the horses, and withdraw the troops back to the camp."

(End of this chapter)