Da Tang: Father, can I resign?

Chapter 360: One Ming against five Tangs!

The spring breeze blew to Taihang Mountains, green leaves sprouted, and the bare forests regained their vitality.

In the dense mountain forest, a lost Ming army soldier was groping forward cautiously.

hum!
There was a sound of a rope being tightened under his feet, and before he could react, he had tripped over a hemp rope.

Boom!

He fell heavily to the ground with a dull thud, carrying a full set of armor weighing sixty kilograms.

Fortunately, the outer armor was thick enough, and he didn't even get a scratch after falling on the uneven stone ground.

After landing, the soldier did not get up immediately, but rolled to the right flexibly.

In the next second, a cold light flashed, and a sword was inserted forcefully into the ground where he had just been lying, penetrating an inch into the stone.

At the same time, several Tang soldiers jumped out of the bushes and surrounded the lone Ming soldier.

The force strength is eight against one, and it is a siege war, so the advantage is on Tang's side.

But those Tang soldiers did not dare to be negligent at all. They stretched out their axes, swords and spears from a distance to make various attempts, just like a tamer treating a tiger in a cage.

Whoosh!
A certain old man took out a crossbow from behind and shot an arrow at the head of the Ming army.

"oops!"

The power of the crossbow is still stronger than that of the bow. The arrow hit the helmet of the Ming army, creating a large spark, and the impact force made the soldier feel like he was punched in the head.

If you get shot in the head by a crossbow at close range, your head will be covered with bruises.

The Tang army looked helplessly at the arrows that bounced to the ground and broke in half, and looked at the Ming Superman standing in front of them intact, feeling helpless.

Not surprisingly, all of the Tang army's long-range means were ineffective against the Ming's new armor.

If you want to subdue this Ming Dynasty superman in front of you, you have to use a more direct approach.

"Brothers, come on!"

The eight men rushed forward, stabbing with guns, chopping with axes, and smashing with hammers, each using all their abilities to kill the poor lone soldier.

However, it’s no use!

No matter how hard they try, they still can't break the defense of that soldier!
Although the Ming army wore armor that was equivalent to half their own body weight, because of its reasonable design, the weight was evenly distributed throughout the body, so they were not clumsy in movement, and were able to flexibly avoid attacks on vital parts and occasionally find time to fight back.

The Tang army had no choice but to use the most primitive method, each man holding an arm or thigh, and using their physical bodies to trap the diamond-like Ming army.

The Ming army was not stupid either. They easily escaped from their armor, rolled on the ground, and fled down the mountain.

After a fierce battle, the score between the two sides was 0-0.

"Huh...Huh...Have you noticed that the equipment of the opponents has become more and more outrageous recently?"

The captain of the Tang army asked, panting.

The soldiers under his command were too tired to speak, they just grunted and nodded.

The Ming army soldiers nowadays are too difficult to kill.

The soldier just now was obviously a new recruit. He showed weakness several times during the counterattack, and fortunately, the tragedy of "eight against one and still being killed" was avoided.

But the combat quality of the new recruits is undoubtedly very good.

After falling to the ground, he did not get up, but rolled to the right immediately to avoid the attack launched by the enemy from his right hand.

Only through long-term systematic training can one develop such muscle instincts.

"Ha... Let's report this. Eight people have been working for several days without any results. We have to give the general an explanation."

The captain spoke while panting, not very depressed.

There were more and more cases where the Ming troops fought in vain or were even killed by the lone Ming troops.

The more you embarrass yourself, the less ashamed you become.

"Damn it, those Hebei turtles have really hard shells!"

A Tang army soldier cursed under his breath, but his hands were not vague at all. He quickly picked up a piece of "turtle shell" taken off by the Ming army.

"Hey, this arm armor is really strong." The soldier knocked on it and exclaimed in surprise:

“It’s actually lined with linen and felt!”

His comrades were shocked.

"Damn it, no wonder he was fine even after I hit him in the chest with a hammer! I thought you had internal injuries!"

"Despicable Hebei guy!"

Everyone started cursing at each other, but at the same time they moved quickly and efficiently to divide the armor left behind by the Ming army.

This amount of money is really worth a lot of money. It can save your life on the battlefield!
Imported goods are high-end.

Seeing his subordinates' ugly behavior of worshipping foreigners and fawning on the bright and powerful, the captain could not help but fly into a rage and roared:
"Don't grab it! Leave the helmet to me!

"Damn it, such a good armor, but the Hebei guy just threw it away. He is so fucking rich!"

…………

The intelligence of this eight-man team, as well as the intelligence on the various defense lines of the Tang army, flowed into the Jinyang City in the center of the basin like the surging Fen River.

"They're back so soon?"

In Jinyang Prefecture, Li Shimin slapped his thigh suddenly, raised his head and counted with his fingers, then slapped his thigh again:
"They're back so soon?"

Ashina She'er, who had been accompanying the emperor for many days, had become able to decipher these "people's language" skillfully.

This "they" refers to Li Jing and his troops.

"Your Majesty is wise, but Li Jing's troops were completely defeated not long ago, and they barely survived by hiding in the mountains. I'm afraid they've come back so soon..."

Not very realistic... Ashina She'er swallowed the second half of the sentence.

"General Ashina is right." Guo Xiaoke echoed:
"Although the last Shuozhou victory did not cause a devastating blow to Li Jing's troops, their losses must have been considerable. It will not be easy to restore combat effectiveness."

Damn, are all the soldiers in the Ming Dynasty supermen?
You lost yesterday, but you have to go to work today?
Yes, I know that Ming Dynasty is rich.

But fighting a war must also follow objective laws!

Li Shimin listened to the opinions of his two confidants, flipping through the documents in his hand, and asked:
"According to your estimation, how long does it take for a remnant army to rest and recuperate before it is not considered a 'successful defeat'?"

Guo Xiaoke thought without hesitation:

“Take our elite troops as an example. They should rest for at least three days after a major battle, and another three days if they lose.

"If the entire army is disbanded, it will take at least ten days to reorganize. It will take a month to restore the offensive capability."

"This is the most urgent situation." Ashina She'er added.

"At least one month..." Li Shimin tapped the table and threw the document in his hand to them:
"Then where did the Ming army that appeared outside our defense circle come from? Did they fall from the sky?"

The two generals took it respectfully, and Guo Xiaoke explained:

"The enemy attack in Taihang Mountain may come from the remnants of the troops remaining in the deep mountains, rather than a large-scale enemy action."

Li Shimin was too lazy to refute him, and just raised his chin towards the clerk:
"See for yourselves."

The two of them looked carefully and were both surprised.

These are first-hand battle reports sent back by outer scouts, and the highest-ranking reporter is a ninth-rank lieutenant colonel.

How could a small official like him become so powerful?
Upon closer inspection, their faces began to turn red and their buttocks began to shift uncomfortably in their seats.

According to intelligence feedback from the front line, the attacks were indeed mainly concentrated in mountainous and forested areas, and were indeed scattered.

It’s just that this “dispersion” is a bit too frequent and doesn’t seem like the spontaneous behavior of guerrillas at all.

Obviously there is a unified organization behind this.

“Knowing yourself and the enemy ensures victory in every battle, and intelligence is the most important thing in war.

"You don't listen to what the soldiers on the front line say, and you only believe what the adjutant whispers in your ear. How can you understand the real situation on the battlefield?"

When talking about war, Li Shimin's attitude was extremely serious.

Ashina and Lao Guo were both filled with shame.

But besides feeling ashamed, they couldn't help feeling puzzled.

Damn, are the soldiers of the Ming Dynasty really supermen who never sleep and don’t need to rest?
It's only been a few days since we were driven into the mountains. Can we fight a mountain war now?
"But you are right about one thing."

Li Shimin changed the subject:
"Li Jing's troops came back, but they didn't come back."

The two close generals could not understand this piece of folk language.

Li Shimin did not explain to them immediately, but looked at the third favorite general present.

"Cheng Yaojin, tell me what you found when you were leading your troops on the front line."

Cheng Zhijie woke up from his autism and moved his mouth vaguely: "Yes, sir."

The current strategic deployment of the Tang army is to focus on Jinzhou and prepare a part of the sentry troops in Shuozhou that can be mobilized at any time, which can not only expand the depth of the battlefield, but also concentrate the troops into a fist.

As an old reckless man who is brave in battle but lacks strategic thinking, Cheng Zhijie has been active on the front line in Shuozhou in the north since the retired emperor's large army retreated to Jinzhou. He just returned to Jinyang to report on his work last night.

After only fighting on the front line for a few days, Lao Cheng became withdrawn.

After he came back, he spoke obviously less than before and his voice was much softer.

"Duke Lu, what exactly happened on the front line?"

Ashina and Guo Xiaoke asked.

Cheng Zhijie's eyes were dull, his lips moved, and he murmured:

"New recruits, all new recruits, one of them can beat five of us..."

"What new recruits?" Generals Heng and Ha looked at each other.

"Ugh……"

Li Shimin sighed:

"During this period, Li Jing harassed the outer perimeter of our defense circle, using only new recruits."

"New recruits?!"

The two were surprised.

Even according to the adjutant's second-hand report, the Ming army soldiers were elite soldiers and generals who "although the bandits had no lofty ideals, they fought extremely bravely and our army had to temporarily avoid their sharp edge."

According to first-hand reports from the front lines, the Ming army officers and soldiers were like Chinese supermen. No swords, spears, axes or halberds could harm them. It was common for "one Ming army to be equal to five Tang armies" to happen.

And these super soldiers, you said, are all new recruits?!

The two of them immediately broke out in cold sweats.

The Ming Dynasty still has new recruits with such high training quality. This news is much more terrifying than "Li Jing's troops completed rest and recuperation in five days."

The Tang Dynasty had overdrawn its national strength, and the Tang army was hungry. It took great effort to finally win a battle and defeat Li Jing's troops.

As a result, you now say that the other side has formed a new army with equally powerful combat capabilities and even better equipment and supplies?
They finally knew why Cheng Zhijie became autistic.

This is like fighting against a bottomless pit that will send out troops endlessly!

Who wouldn’t be autistic?

The national strength of the Ming Dynasty is so terrifying.

Can't win...

This kind of crushing game can't be won at all...

"As the war drags on, the gap in national strength will become more and more obvious on the battlefield, which is within my expectations.

"Whether it's equipment, training, manpower, or logistics."

Among all the people present, His Majesty Li Shimin looked the most relaxed.

"Now, who among you still doubts whether Ming can send out a third or even a fourth army to attack us from the south?"

The generals lowered their heads and kept silent.

As the war progressed, they gradually discovered that the Ming Dynasty they were fighting against did not seem to be a country.

It was a monster hidden in the fog.

At first glance, it seems ordinary, but as you get to know her better, Daming gradually reveals her terror and power.

Unfathomable, unfathomable...

"Oh, what are you afraid of? You didn't see through it, but I had already calculated his move."

Li Shimin curled his lips lightly:
"So I ordered Li Shiji to garrison Puzhou.

"The Puzhou River is wide, but the riverbed is very steep. There are only a few landing sites, and they are difficult to hide.

"That place can't be conquered just by having more soldiers."

With General Tian Ce backing them up, the generals felt a little relieved.

"Everyone, take your positions and prepare for battle. Cheng Yaojin, please go to Shuozhou again."

As His Majesty announced the end of the meeting, the three generals left with trepidation.

Li Shimin sat alone in his study, muttering to himself:

"That little kid, that insignificant little kid locked up deep in the harem, actually accomplished such a great thing...

"Yes, absolutely!"

He slowly stood up, holding on to the wall, and looked out the window.

The Fen River flows quietly southward until it merges into the Yellow River.

"Does it start in Jinyang and end in Jinyang?
“History is such an irony.”

Li Shimin's mouth corners are outlined.

“This battle has been delayed for so long, it’s time to end it.

“That boy did a great job and deserved what he got.

"But before that, he still has one last hurdle to overcome."

…………

In Puzhou, Li Shiji looked worriedly at the Ming army warships showing off their might on the Fen River.

He had two tasks, one was to stop and delay the Ming army from advancing northward.

For reasons known to all, this mission has failed.

Another mission was to cut off the Ming army's supplies.

The mission was halfway completed and supplies were indeed cut off.

But it was the Tang army's own troops that were cut off.

With several Ming army warships guarding the river, the Tang army's supply ships could not get close to Puzhou City at all.

Not only the supply ships, but even the civilian ships, merchant ships and fishing boats in Puzhou City were blocked.

It can be said that the blockade order of "no sails allowed to be launched" has been achieved.

Just in a way that Li Shiji didn't want to see.

The situation is quite embarrassing now.

Although the straight-line distance between Puzhou and the mainland of the Tang Dynasty is short, there is the Yellow River between them, so supplies have to rely on water transportation.

If the water route was blocked, the Tang army stationed there would have only two options to avoid starvation:

Let the local Puzhou people and the Tang army comrades in the north suffer and share their food.

"The larger the garrison, the more supplies it consumes..."

Li Shiji felt a pain in his forehead.

Was it because the boomerang hit him on the head?

He held his forehead with his hand and gritted his teeth as he watched the Ming ships shuttling back and forth on the Fen River.

Although the Fen River was blocked, there were still many ships coming and going, and it was very lively.

In addition to warships, there are also many civilian ships for transport.

But those were all ships belonging to the Ming Dynasty, transporting supplies to the Ming Dynasty’s frontline soldiers.

The blockade was only unilateral against the Tang Dynasty.

As long as you are a good citizen of the Ming Dynasty, you can pass through freely.

"If the Fen River is completely lost, the supply to the Shanxi front will also be cut off. If we want to get supplies, we can only go through the Hetao and cross the Yellow River from the northwest...

"This is something the Tang Dynasty cannot afford."

Li Shiji talked to himself expressionlessly.

"Fortunately, the land is still controlled by our army. Those Ming warships cannot dock and cannot stay here forever.

"We just have to wait for them to come back for supplies and loosen up the Fen River."

(End of this chapter)