The author

Chapter 218: Swords of war and cavalry, as fierce as a tiger!
Disciple of the academy!

Li Guanyi was surprised. Apart from the three senior brothers brought by Master Wang Tong, this was the first time he saw a Confucian disciple from the academy. Looking at this young man, his internal strength seemed ordinary, but he was gentle and calm, his spirit was lively and powerful, he was wearing a cloth robe, with a sword on his waist, and his temperament was free and easy.

Yuan Zhi was also looking at this young general who was rising in fame.

He was sixteen years old, but had grown to be as tall as himself. He had black hair in a general's bun, sharp brows, a teardrop mole, and a strong bloody aura. He was wearing the Central Plains Heavenly King General's armor, which had many friction and sword marks.

Li Guanyi took a big step forward and grabbed Yuan Zhi's hands.

The young general laughed and said, "I am Li Guanyi, a disciple of Master Wang Tong. Come, come, Master Yuanzhi, please come in!" He was very strong and pulled Yuanzhi in. He personally served tea and said, "Master, you can defend the city for such a long time. Guanyi admires you."

"Tea, please!"

The ranger touched his nose, took a sip of tea, and praised, "It tastes good!"

"It's the same one my mom soaked in."

After taking a quick glance, I saw that it was indeed the tea dregs commonly used in my hometown, and I grinned.

Good fellow, the general drank such bad tea. He laughed and shook his head, then said: "General, you led the troops out, crossed nearly 20,000 miles of mountains and rivers, and in your first battle, you defeated the army of the nephew of the Chen State Taiwei. It is indeed a divine power. However, the general is in trouble at the moment."

Li Guanyi said in a deep voice:
"It is just as you said. Although our army has set out, we still don't have enough supplies. Dongdu City is a ferry city. Although the resources are not few, it is difficult to provide for more than 20,000 people including the captives. Once the food and grass seized from Chen's army are tight, we will be in big trouble."

Yuan Zhi smiled and said, "That's why I came here."

He drank a mouthful of rotten tea, not caring about these details at all, and asked: "General, what do you think we should do?"

Li Guanyi thought for a moment and said in a deep voice, "Go to the provincial capitals of the 18 states in Jiangnan."

"That's where the Murong family is located. It's a holy city of martial arts in the martial arts world. It's rich in resources and has many major chambers of commerce coming and going. It should be able to ease the crisis for the time being. However, if we leave Dongdu City, we are also worried that Dongdu City will continue to be invaded by the State of Chen. If we divide our forces, it will reduce our own strength."

"I am confused about this, please teach me, sir."

He stood up, dressed in military armor, and bowed.

Yuan Zhi didn't have time to swallow the tea in his mouth. He stood up, returned the greeting, and said:
"General, please sit down."

The young ranger began to feel a little unconfident.

He had traveled around and had seen the appearance of those nobles. They looked as if their eyes had grown on their heads. How could they be so easy to talk to? After thinking for a while, he said, "General, what you said is right. The Qilin Army is in a dangerous situation right now."

"Although the army is strong in will, it should only be at the level of a second-line corps. As long as the State of Chen gathers a large army and advances slowly with a large force and horses, and provides continuous supplies from the rear, the Qilin Army can be worn out."

"However, such a huge size is actually a weakness for both countries."

Li Guanyi asked: "Why is this so?"

Yuan Zhi said: "General, please take a look."

He stretched out his finger, dipped it in tea, and drew a picture on the table. He drew a geomancy map of the Eighteen Prefectures of Jiangnan, and said, "The Eighteen Prefectures of Jiangnan are the strategic points of the world. The terrain is like a square. To the north is Ying State, to the south is Chen State. Going upstream, you can reach Zhongzhou by turning the road."

"More than ten years ago, Senior Sword Maniac forced the Eighteen States of Jiangnan to break away from the State of Chen. After that, the Eighteenth State of Jiangnan became very powerful. However, since Senior Sword Maniac went into seclusion, the State of Chen and the State of Ying dared not directly invade the core area of ​​the Eighteenth State of Jiangnan."

“But it is also slowly devouring the land on the north and south sides.”

"The State of Chen established a city seat at Qushui and occupied Chunyang City. It deployed 20,000 troops at two large crossings, Lanjiangjin and Hengdangkou, and built many other cities, including Lieyang City and Fuling City. The State of Ying occupied several cities, including Yuecheng, Huiji, and Danyang, and had three corresponding large crossings."

Yuan Zhi said: "So, Chen and Ying both avoided the area where the Murong family was, but they never slowed down their pace. This is not to blame others. Although the Murong family is famous, it can never be compared with big countries like Chen and Ying."

"Chen and Ying are both large countries with a radius of tens of thousands of miles. They have a profound foundation and a steady supply of logistical personnel. The Murong family cannot control a large area. The same is true for you, General. Although you have a strong military force now, you lack logistics."

"The opponent's follow-up momentum is endless."

"There are only 7,000 soldiers who can fight now. Although there are 10,000 captives, they will never surrender to you until you have a firm foothold."

Li Guanyi actually knew what Yuan Zhi meant. Even if the 7,000 soldiers were invincible, there would be casualties. The enemy had tens of thousands of elite troops in terms of supplies and logistics. If they were to deploy frontline troops and famous generals, Li Guanyi would definitely not be able to withstand it.

Even if they win, these seven thousand people will probably fight to no avail.

Yuan Zhi analyzed the situation over a cup of tea.

Li Guanyi said in a deep voice: "According to your opinion, what should we do?"

Yuan Zhi pressed the sword at his waist and said, "We have to fight quickly."

This young man, who traveled around the world after killing people at a young age, had a gleam in his eyes and said calmly:
"The news of the Qilin Army's victory has not yet spread, which is an opportunity. In my opinion, although Chen and Ying have strong logistical strength, a vast territory, and hundreds of thousands of armored soldiers, this is their strength, but also their weakness."

"Strong aftereffect, slow reaction!"

"Before they can react, this is our chance to win."

"Although he is strong, I can strike him when he is at his strongest!"

"General, with such an elite force, from Yuan Zhi's point of view, there is only one chance of victory!"

The young strategist spat out two words and said, "Move to another place!"

He stood up, and the young Confucian genius stretched out his hand, pointed at the ground, sketched back and forth, and said solemnly:

"We will cross the city eastward and first use our elite troops to seize the ferry crossing of the State of Chen. We will use the navy to transport troops and horses and move southward to occupy the waterway in the shortest possible time. We will then gather our forces, first seize Qushui, then occupy Chunyang, and level the city walls of the State of Chen. We will then take advantage of the situation and move northward to drive out the State of Ying."

"And then block all the ferry crossings."

"Although Chen and Ying are large, it is difficult to deploy too many troops here due to the situation."

"Controlling the waterways, even with only one-tenth of the troops, can strangle the enemy's throat."

"So, it was a situation of [sitting on the Yangtze River and occupying a position in the east of the Yangtze River]. At that time, the general had more than 18 states in the south of the Yangtze River. This place is the key point of the world and has been prosperous since ancient times. The other 17 states are all small and depend on this place for their development."

"The general can move out slowly and control the river basins and trade routes, which will be like a general outline."

"Then we can remotely control the remaining prefectures and cities, nominally occupying one prefecture, but actually occupying the entire land south of the Yangtze River."

"This is absolutely different from the narrow sense of the Eighteen Prefectures of Jiangnan where only the Murong family is located. The occupied land and terrain are extremely important and should all be controlled in our hands."

"According to the records from three hundred years ago, during the heyday, this vast land had 800,000 households, totaling more than 4 million people. It is not difficult to support a mere 30,000 iron soldiers. General, this is a plan to dominate the world."

"You are here not only for the sake of danger, but also for the one in a million, fleeting opportunity to fight!"

"Like a man in a sword fight, it has reached a critical moment of life and death."

"If you don't advance, you will die."

Li Guanyi: “…………”

No.

Pojun, you young strategists, as soon as you open your mouth you say you want to rule the world?
He began to wonder.

Are there strategists of this level everywhere in the world?

Will it randomly refresh in the corner?

Yuan Zhi bit the broken tea leaves. The young knight touched his stomach, which was full of tea. Coming from the same lower class background, he understood the focus of the young general in front of him. He grinned and said:
"You can keep your subordinates well fed and warm."

"In its heyday, the vast land could support 800,000 households."

"Don't even mention 30,000 soldiers. Even if it's 100,000 soldiers, we can hold out for a while if we grit our teeth."

"Okay, done!"

The young man stared at the scroll on the table. The generals of Chen and Ying didn't know yet that the reason why this young Qilin was planning to make a big move was purely because the logistics could not keep up. If he didn't find a place, he would starve to death.

Li Guanyi just wanted to get a strategist who was good at fighting.

But the person who was fished out was a genius who possessed direct strategic capabilities.

Yuan Zhi looked at the young general in front of him. After coming out of the academy, he strolled all the way to the Eighteen Prefectures of Jiangnan. After confirming the geomancy of this place, he immediately chose Dongdu City. He knew that this place would definitely be attacked, and he was also sure that Li Guanyi and others would most likely appear here.

I just didn't expect that this young general would be so heroic.

Not inferior to his father...

Yuan Zhi thought.

In fact, one of the important reasons why he came here was that Li Guanyi was not from a noble family or a court army, so they did not place such a strict emphasis on background. Yuan Zhi lowered his eyes and looked at the general in deep thought, and suddenly thought of his youth.

When he was in his teens, he was even younger than this young man.

He took the sword and killed the bully on a rainy night.

However, it was the bully who killed his friend first and occupied his fields and property. At that time, he tried his best to collect evidence and sent the bully to jail, thinking that he could comfort his good friend's soul in heaven, but the bully was still released without guilt.

So the young man at that time was silent for a long time.

He sharpened a piece of iron and nailed it between two wooden boards to make a sword. He killed the bully with such a blunt knife as if cutting flesh. He stabbed him thirty-two times and blood was gushing out. When he went back to tell his mother, her eyes were red with tears. Only then did he realize that his high-spiritedness had implicated his mother.

But my mother still gave him all the money in the house. When the police came, my mother held the door with her back and told him to run away. How could that weak woman have so much strength to hold the door?

Yuan Zhi remained silent for a long time, then he lowered his eyes.

Mother is relatively safe because she has her uncle with her, but he has a record of killing people. No army in the world would want such a strategist. But over the years, he could never forget his mother's red eyes from crying. Perhaps, only in such an army can he have a place for himself.

He is not some murderous peasant.

The iron piece on his waist is a sword, a gentleman's sword, a symbol of uprightness.

He would become a counselor, hold an official position, and then return home in glory.

Tell mother that he is her son, and not some law-breaking thief!

The individual quality of the Qilin Army is that of a second-line corps, but their fighting will is stronger than their own combat qualities. Under the leadership of famous generals, they can unleash extremely powerful power.

At this moment, the young strategist exhaled, smiled gently and said:
"General, it's getting late today."

"We'll talk tomorrow."

Yuan Zhi saluted again, turned around and walked out of the general's tent, but after taking a few steps, he was grabbed by a hand with great force on his wrist. The young strategist was startled for a moment, turned around, and saw the young general taking a step forward with shining eyes and his right hand pressing on his shoulder.

"Sir, please don't leave. The situation today is still too broad."

"Come on, tell me in detail."

Yuan Zhi was stunned. During the time when he was on the run from murderers, he had already developed a personality that was carefree on the surface but actually vigilant. He subconsciously declined, "No, I haven't eaten yet..."

Li Guanyi turned around and shouted, "Lei Laomeng!" A rough voice said, "Boss, what's wrong?"

The young general grabbed Yuan Zhi and went back. The young scholar was no match for a battlefield general like Li Guanyi. He was dragged back. Li Guanyi shouted, "Sir, you haven't eaten yet. Didn't you hear me?!"

"Bring a bucket of rice, and a few dishes, a bowl of braised pork, a bowl of stewed pork ribs, and some vegetables, hurry up!"

"Is there any more monkey wine?"

"Give me some!"

"Got it!"

Yuan Zhi didn't know whether to laugh or cry, so he just sat back.

On this day, the young general kept Yuan Zhi busy discussing strategy all night.

Yuan Zhi saw with his own eyes the quality of the Qilin Army, and how they did not hurt civilians or torture prisoners, so he came out. Li Guanyi's attitude was so good that he unconsciously told him all his strategies, including how to switch battles, which city to attack first, how to attack, and how to advance.

There is only one key word - [speed]!
The so-called art of war, after all, is to appear at the most critical and deadly place when the enemy least expects it and at the most unexpected place. This is what is meant by knowing yourself and your enemy, and you will win every battle.

And based on the situation over the past decade.

Neither the State of Chen nor the State of Ying had ever expected that the Murong family would dare to counterattack. The cities of the two countries had one characteristic in common, that is, they were strong in attack but weak in defense. They had only one goal, which was to train their troops in the vast land of the 18th State of Jiangnan.

【speed】!
【Extreme Speed】!
Before anyone could react, the enemy was at the gate!

Instantly remove those defenses and guards, there is no need to expend too much manpower to occupy the city. The key is to expel them, because once the strategy is not completed and the waters are not completely controlled, even if the city is captured, it will be taken away due to the continuous support of the two countries.

Seven thousand people can't defend anything!

As long as we completely control the transportation waters, we can be ten times as powerful as one.

The deterrent power of these seven thousand people is no less than that of seventy thousand.

Water transportation, especially in this area, is the most important point in war, just like bones and meridians.

Is he a Qilin, or is he qualified to compete among the four?

On the second day, Li Guanyi seemed tireless and went directly to discuss Yuan Zhi's strategy with many generals of the Qilin Army. General Yuwen Tianxian remained silent for a long time and did not express his opinion.

Others such as Ling Pingyang praised it highly.

On the afternoon of the second day, the Qilin Army prepared again. Ling Pingyang, Fan Qing, Zhangsun Wuchou, Yuwen Tianxian, Yuwen Hua, Lei Laomeng and other generals all led their troops in awe. Li Guanyi praised them one by one according to the previous rules, and suddenly said: "Everyone, we are here today."

"One more thing, sir, please come forward."

Yuan Zhi, who originally felt he had nothing to do and was reminiscing about the taste of the braised pork he had yesterday, was stunned.

He was a free and easy-going person, so he just walked forward.

He also bowed casually to the more than 10,000 Qilin soldiers.

He smiled in a carefree and casual manner.

When he was young, he killed someone and fled for more than 3,000 miles. He met Gongyang Suwang, and because of his strong character, he was brought into the academy. In three years, he became the most outstanding disciple of Confucianism. Later, he also studied the art of war and became the core of the academy.

In the eyes of ordinary people, his experience is no different from legends.

Even facing such a situation, you can still wave your hands and smile freely.

I even thought to myself, no wonder the old saying goes, when there are tens of thousands of people, there is no end in sight.

The 7,000 Qilin Army soldiers and 6,500 logistics troops were all lined up.

The scarlet battle flags fluttered, and the atmosphere was solemn and murderous. It was not the kind of solemn atmosphere that could be felt from a sand table simulation. The prisoner team over there was also there, as well as the sword troops of the Murong family and the common people of Dongdu City, all watching not far away.

So majestic.

Yuan Zhi thought in his heart.

The young general in armor stood there and invited Yuan Zhi to step onto the platform that had been built yesterday. Then he turned around and suddenly took out a seal wrapped in scarlet silk and held it in both hands.

The young strategist was stunned. He still had a smile on his face, but his mind was buzzing.

Looking at the general who was as handsome as a unicorn in the eyes of everyone, striding towards him, holding this object in both hands.

He said in a deep voice: "Although today's ceremony cannot be considered as a ceremony to seal the altar and pay respect to the general, please accept it, sir."

Li Guan bowed and placed the seal in Yuan Zhi's hand.

He then held up a sharp sword and said, "This sword was forged by me personally at the instruction of my ancestor during a march among the mines. Only five swords have been made, and this one is named Junfeng."

"Sir, please use this sword."

The young strategist, who was just a knight-errant, was stunned. He opened his mouth and felt a little dazed. He almost instinctively took the seal and took the sword forged by Li Guanyi himself. The young general who had fought thousands of miles and became famous turned around and said to the more than 10,000 Qilin soldiers in front of him:
"From today on, Mr. Yuan Zhi will be the chief strategist of our Qilin Army."

"Commanders, please do not be disrespectful!"

Li Guanyi has a very high reputation in the army.

The Qilin Army looked at the dazed young strategist and took a half step forward together.

They looked solemn, with their hands clasped together, tapping the armor on their chests in unison.

Sombre and chilling.

The voice was calm and solemn: "Greetings, sir!!!"

As majestic as a wave.

So, three cheers!
Tens of thousands of people shouted, and the famous general bowed at the altar, with the military token of the army commander hanging on his waist and a sword in his hand.

The fame that the Confucian disciples longed for came upon him almost instantly. The opportunity to display his talent was right in front of him. Yuan Zhi opened his mouth and decided to leave his hometown to study. It was more like killing a bully and running away than to say that he was studying. His mother cried with red eyes that day, and it is still vivid in his mind.

Yuan Zhi was in a trance, looking at the calm gaze of the general in front of him.

"You, do you trust me like this?"

Li Guanyi said cheerfully: "Don't doubt people when you employ them, and don't employ people you don't trust."

"I believe in sir's strategy."

On the ink-colored armor, the scarlet Kirin battle flag rolled and tumbled. Yuan Zhi held the object in his hand, opened his mouth, exhaled slowly, bowed, and said in a deep voice: "Leave it to me... I will not let you down, General."

He paused, and said in a deep voice: "I will definitely live up to your trust, my lord."

Li Guan laughed.

On that day, the chief strategist of the Qilin Army, Sergeant Yuan, was in charge of the plan.

After resupplying in Dongdu City, they left most of the supplies here. Then, they only carried ten days' worth of food and went downstream, crossed the river and moved to fight. On the second day after Chen's army received the news, the Qilin Army appeared in full force at Lanjiangjin and Hengdangkou.

Ling Pingyang led an army and Fan Qing was his deputy general.

Yuwen Tianxian led an army, with Yuwen Hua as his deputy general.

Yuanzhi sits at the central axis.

He didn't even need to use his most proud military formation. He used the basic qualities of the world's greatest talents, coordinated with the Qilin Army, and the most critical and deadly fighter plane -

[For more than ten years, the Murong family has basically just been on the defensive]

[These troops have not had any experience in defending a city for more than ten years, so they have long been unfamiliar with warfare.]

Because these ferry crossings had never anticipated the large-scale army attacking the city, when the State of Chen was building the ferry crossings, they had never imagined what means the Murong family, a mere aristocratic family in the martial arts world, could have. As a result, they were defeated by the Qilin Army in just a few days.

Hou Yuanzhi came up with a strategy.

The State of Chen was on guard, and when the State of Ying relaxed, they crossed the river and left.

They moved their battle upwards and captured the three ferry crossings occupied by Ying State.

In just over a month, the Qilin Army had occupied all the ferry crossings and waterways in the eighteen states of Jiangnan. Until this time, the news of the Qilin Army's arrival in the eighteen states of Jiangnan had not completely spread to the outside world. However, the news that appeared at the same time was already delayed.

The situation of blocking the river and dominating the east of the Yangtze River has been established.

The reinforcements from the State of Chen and Ying had just arrived at their sphere of influence, but found that they could no longer go downstream.

On this day, the Qilin Army occupied the last ferry-like city and completely blocked the upstream and downstream. Only then did Yuan Zhi breathe a sigh of relief. He smiled and told the general that the Qilin Army had finally gained a firm foothold.

After that, even if the reinforcements from Chen and Ying arrived, we would block the ferry.

There was nothing he could do.

As he spoke, he saw the young general, who was only sixteen years old and was about to become famous all over the world, standing on the city wall, his palms pressed against the wall, looking at the setting sun in the distance, his eyes gentle and peaceful. When he turned around, the golden sunset fell on his body, his black hair was slightly raised at the temples, there was a teardrop mole at the corner of his eye, and he smiled and said:
"Sir, have we established ourselves firmly in the world?"

Yuan Zhi wanted to say that even if they could stop, they would only bring the situation in the Eighteen States of Jiangnan into a stable state, barely block the waterway, and allow the Qilin Army to survive. There was still a long way to go before they could bring this place under control.

A large number of elite naval forces need to be trained.

This will take a long time, so it is impossible to win quickly, and it is impossible to maintain the momentum of swallowing up thousands of miles like a tiger. This is also what Yuan Zhi is worried about. After all, this place is small, and it is impossible to swallow up this thousand miles of land in one breath. Once the two countries recover, it will be a dangerous place.

But he couldn't create warships and sailors that could sail up and down the river, so he had to give up his plan for a quick battle, which was not so good news.

But at this moment he just said gently: "My lord, it is so."

Li Guan laughed.

He turned around, and strode down the city under the setting sun, walking further and further away.

"Jiangnan Biography": The Qilin Army crossed the river and fought, and they were defeated wherever they went. No one dared to confront them, and the army was disciplined and the people loved them. Guan Yi was a beautiful person, liked to laugh, was generous and listened, and was good at using people. Therefore, all the scholars and people who saw him were devoted and willing to die for him.

………………

At the same time, in the 72 linked villages above and below the river.

Five naval battleships are on display here.

Someone outside rushed in shouting, the sound almost breaking the sky. Someone shouted and cursed, but the next moment he also started screaming, and a group of people rolled in and crawled.

The Angry Scale Dragon King finally learned about Qilin's battle report.

(End of this chapter)