Super Cultivation System of the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 175 Marching Competition
Gao Shun looked at Liu He and probably agreed to this assignment.

He turned around and signaled to his deputy general, who then stood up and pulled out a map.

"The latest battle situation I got a few hours ago, yesterday morning, General Huangfu led his army to catch up with the Taiping Dao rebels, and the two sides fought fiercely for a day north of Gaodu County, Shangdang County. By nightfall, both sides had suffered losses. The enemy's food and grass were running out. Our General Gao judged that Zhang Jiao should have intended to plunder Gaodu City for supplies, but after this battle, the plan was interrupted, and they had to continue marching and change their target."

"Oh? We've reached Gaodu County so quickly!" Liu He was a little surprised.

Gao Shun did not say anything, but looked at Liu He instead.

Liu He understood what he meant and said, "General Gao wants me to guess where the Yellow Turban Army is going?"

"good."

Liu He looked at the map and said, "General Huangfu's army is located to the southwest. If the enemy wants to plunder supplies, they can only go east or north. However, there are towering mountains to the east. Although they can enter Wei County, Jizhou, which is the headquarters of Taiping Dao after crossing the mountains for hundreds of miles, the mountain road is difficult to travel, and it is easy for General Huangfu to catch up. What's more, they don't have enough food to support them to complete this long mountain road. Therefore, they can only go north."

Gao Shun had a blank expression on his face and did not express any opinion, so Liu He continued speaking.

"His army will go north and will first reach Xunshi County. However, the population of this county is only a few thousand. It is mountainous and has few rivers. It is a poor place with few people. Even if he turns the entire county upside down, he cannot gather enough food for his tens of thousands of troops. So he has no choice but to continue northward and enter the seat of Shangdang County - Changzi City to get supplies."

Liu He glanced at Gao Shun and saw that he still had no expression, but his eyes clearly revealed approval, knowing that he was right.

"I wonder how many troops Shangdang County has assembled now?"

Gao Shun's deputy general pointed to the map and said, "Shangdang County has 5,000 soldiers. The governor of Zhao will divide them into two places, with 2,500 soldiers deployed in Changzicheng and Huguan respectively."

"Stupid! Really stupid!" Liu He couldn't help but curse.

"The military force is already weak, and they are divided into two places. It seems that they are guarding two places, but in fact they can't defend either place. This person is going to make a big mistake!"

Gao Shun spoke for the first time: "What does County Magistrate Liu think we should do?"

Liu He did not hesitate to say, "We should immediately send someone with a fast horse to inform the governor of Shangdang to bring the garrison troops of Huguan back to Changzi City. As long as we hold this city, the enemy will fall without a fight once their food and grass run out. If Changzi City is breached and the enemy army gets enough food supplies, they will not be able to defend Huguan with only a few thousand garrisons. When the enemy army captures Huguan, they can use the natural barrier to resist General Huangfu's army and wait for reinforcements from Jizhou. At worst, they can go through Huguan and return to Weijun."

Gao Shun nodded slightly, and Liu He continued.

"After the great defeat at Gaodu yesterday, Zhang Jue must have retreated north overnight. His Yellow Turban Army is composed of infantrymen who lack training. Although their marching speed is not as fast as ours, the distance from Gaodu to Changzi City is only 220 to 230 miles. He is about to run out of food, so he will not dare to delay and will travel all night. In three days, he will surely be at the gates of Changzi City."

At this time, Guan Yu on the side said: "Our army has to travel more than 500 miles from Yangyi County, and it will take at least five days to arrive. I am afraid that the governor of Zhao will not be able to hold on for two days."

Liu He's army of more than 6,000 had only more than 200 cavalrymen, and the rest were infantrymen, while Gao Shun's side was all infantrymen. Even though both armies were well-trained, their marching speed could not be too fast after all.

"Alas, cavalry, oh cavalry, when will I be able to have a strong cavalry force of tens of thousands of people!"

Liu He sighed in his heart.

Even with the aid of war horses from the Zhang and Su families, Liu He has not been able to develop cavalry on a large scale due to various limitations such as personnel, training, and support costs. This has been a source of worry for him.

"Forget it, let's give it a try!"

Liu He gritted his teeth and said, "Yun Chang, you lead the cavalry, bring three days' worth of dry food, travel light, and set off immediately after dinner. You must arrive at Changzi City the day after tomorrow morning! The rest of the army, rest here for an hour, and then travel overnight, and try to complete the 500-mile journey within four days!"

After finishing speaking, Liu He turned his head and looked at Gao Shun: "What do you think, General Gao?"

Gao Shun rarely showed a look of surprise.

"Excellent, excellent."

Then he took out a command arrow from his arms and handed it to the deputy general.

"This is the governor's order. Send someone to take it and send a fast horse to inform the governor Zhao of the arrangements that County Magistrate Liu just mentioned!" "Yes!"

Liu He held Guan Yu's hand and said, "My second brother, please be careful when you go. It is really difficult and dangerous to hold out for a day with only 5,000 people against 50,000 people. After thinking it over, no one but Yun Chang can take on this important task. Remember, cavalry should prioritize mobility and focus on guerrilla warfare to prevent them from attacking the city with all their strength and avoid getting caught in a fierce battle!"

Guan Yu was moved: "Don't worry, big brother! If I can't defend the city, I will sacrifice my broken body for my country!"

"Okay!" Gao Shun suddenly shouted.

"Your loyalty and righteousness are unparalleled. I admire you so much! Let me use water instead of wine to toast General Guan!"

Gao Shun picked up a clay bowl, and his deputy general also took a clay bowl and handed it to Guan Yu.

Guan Yu originally looked down on Gao Shun as an outsider, but when he saw that he was also a man of character, his impression of him changed drastically. He immediately took the pottery bowl and drank it all in one gulp.

The soldiers of the Anmin Army quickly finished cooking. After everyone had their meal and fed the horses with hay, Guan Yu led more than 200 cavalrymen and galloped away to the south along the official road.

Liu He stood up, clasped his fists towards Gao Shun and said, "General Gao, such a long journey must be boring. I would like to make a bet with you. What do you think?"

Gao Shun looked at Liu He curiously: "What do you mean?"

Liu He smiled and said, "I have heard that the governor's subordinates always recommend General Gao as the most strict in military discipline. I am not talented, but I would like to compete with the general to see who can reach Changzi City first during this march."

Gao Shun was slightly stunned.

"It boosts morale, great!"

"Haha, I didn't expect the general to see through me."

Liu He's move was indeed intended to stimulate the competitive spirit of the soldiers of both armies and boost morale, but that was not the entire purpose.

At this time, Liu He already regarded Gao Shun as his own. No matter who Gao Shun worked for now, he had to find ways to poach this person.

But if Gao Shun wanted to get him to leave the governor's office and come to him as a mere county magistrate, given his character, he had to make him completely convinced.

Gao Shun's greatest skill is commanding the army and leading soldiers. Only if I can surpass him in this aspect will I have a chance of making him convinced of me.

Gao Shun asked, "What is the stakes?"

Of course, Liu He couldn't directly ask the other party to come and join his team if they lost.

"How about using the armor as a bet?"

Gao Shun took a look at Liu He's armor, which was finely sewn and very solid, much better than his own.

"Gao will not take advantage. If you lose, I will give you this sword and armor."

"Okay, it's a deal!"

Liu He laughed secretly in his heart.

Gao Shun had no idea that the armor Liu He was talking about was actually his own golden armor, which was so valuable that even if he had ten or a hundred sets, it would still be far from as valuable as Gao Shun's sword and armor.

There are three things that a military general regards as his life and will never give them to others easily: weapons, armor, and war horses. The reason why I made this request is actually to narrow the distance between the two sides invisibly.

As for this golden armor, if Gao Shun really came to me one day, given such a talent, would I be reluctant to make him a set of the same armor?
As the saying goes, "Speed ​​is of the essence in war", both sides did not delay for long. After a short rest, they bowed and said goodbye, and began to march quickly.

(End of this chapter)