Damn it, I'm in the garbage book I wrote

Chapter 640 A day in heaven is ten years on earth

The total distance of this march was nearly 600 li. The new army would advance to the outskirts of Handan City to besiege the city. Handan was currently under the control of Li Mi, who was in Ande County, the seat of Dezhou.

It's impossible for a large army to move without making a sound. The scouts ahead had already informed Li Mi of the new army's movements. He was no novice; he only needed to draw a few lines on the map to know the army's intentions.

Before him stood over 40,000 untrained new soldiers, while behind him lay Yang Ying's 400,000-strong army. Li Mi knew that Yang Ying was watching how he would submit this pledge of allegiance. Yang Ying would not make a move until he had decimated most of Li Mi's troops.

There was no other way. Although he knew what the other side wanted to do, the current situation did not allow Li Mi to make any further choices. Otherwise, he would definitely be attacked from both sides. The only way was to fight the new army.

In fact, he had considered rigging the match, but such a method of fooling fools would not fool Yang Ying. At present, there must be a lot of Yang Ying's spies in Handan City, and even his own army may have been infiltrated. This is what these people are best at.

"All officers!"

Li Mi took a deep breath, knowing that he could not avoid it, and since that was the case, he could not let others look down on him.

Upon hearing that the Grand Commander was about to make battle plans, the adjutants in the main tent all gathered around.

"Deploy a antler-shaped wooden formation at the Zishan-Gushan pass, along with two hundred crossbows to cover the mountain path, and set up rolling stones and logs to restrain their vanguard as much as possible."

"On the south bank of the Zhang River, Yangma City was built, with iron caltrops and horse traps laid. Three thousand five hundred crossbowmen were deployed on the city walls to prevent the enemy's light cavalry from advancing."

"The elite Mo Dao (陌刀) team, numbering 13,000 men, takes turns stationed in the barbican, clad in armor and equipped with shields, specializing in defeating enemy heavy cavalry."

“Upstream, a two-zhang-long dam was hastily built to store floodwater, so that when the enemy was halfway across, the dam would be breached to disrupt their formation.”

"Iron and wooden stakes were secretly driven into the downstream river channel to hinder the enemy fleet's progress and cut off their resupply."

Li Mi was setting up a battle plan in the room with his hands behind his back, while the officers around him were scribbling notes with pencils. They didn't even realize that they had come from Jiangnan Province to use these shorthand pens and methods.

"Chen Shoudao, you are responsible for forging the proclamation of reinforcements from the Hedong Jiedushi. Change the flags every day, and use the pretext of the Shuofang Army and the elite troops of Fanyang marching south to lure the enemy deep into your territory."

“Zhang Damao sent five hundred men disguised as refugees to spread rumors along the way that Turkic cavalry had already attacked Xuzhou.”

“Zhuofeng, you have set up a two-thousand-stone grain route from Handan to Linming Pass, and secretly built the Zishan Tunnel to ensure supplies. You must not let anyone find out.”

"Han Wen, mobilize two thousand elite soldiers to burn enemy supply wagons and convoys. They will destroy more than five hundred bushels of grain for me every day."

"The rest of the men should prepare for the siege, and bury oil canisters inside the barbican. After luring the enemy into the city, they should close the gates and launch a fire attack."

"If we fail to repel the enemy within fifteen days, we will organize suicide squads to carry fire flares and storm the enemy camp, open the city gates, and everyone will mingle with the rioters and flee north."

Li Mi narrowed his eyes. After all, he was a master of warfare. At this critical juncture, he had to prove his abilities so that both sides would respect him. If he could really drag the new army down to half its strength within fifteen days, he could force them to retreat to Xingzhou. Once they got there, it would be none of his business. He even hoped that the remaining new army could wipe out Yang Ying's troops stationed in Xingzhou.

At that time, Li Mi's status naturally rose accordingly.

Ten days is the time it takes for the new army to travel 600 li (approximately 300 kilometers). At this moment, Emperor Jingtai is sitting in his tent like a greenhorn, listening to generals of all ranks discuss strategies and tactics.

These people all came from the Fuhu Hall of Fuliang Academy. They were all in their early twenties, but each of them had excellent military skills. They were not only quick-witted but also proficient in all military skills. They were the backbone of the lower-level command talents in the new army.

"If we attack Handan now, the enemy will definitely set up an ambush at the Zishan-Gushan pass. There is only one narrow road that can be passed through there, and the mountains and fields on both sides are dense. If we force our way through, we will probably suffer losses."

"Is it okay to take a detour?"

"No, if we take a detour, we risk being surrounded by Dou Wende's troops from Xingzhou. If we are attacked from both sides, we will definitely suffer a bad outcome."

At this moment, a slightly dark-skinned adjutant crossed his arms and said, "If you ask me, you're overthinking it. A direct assault right now is definitely not an option. But what about a scorched-earth tactic?"

"Seconded."

"Seconded."

"Seconded."

"..."

Seeing their string of agreement, Emperor Jingtai looked completely bewildered. At this moment, the greenhorn Tuoba Jing asked somewhat embarrassedly, "What is scorched earth tactics?"

The man who had just spoken immediately turned around and bowed to Emperor Jingtai: "Your Majesty, the scorched earth tactic is one of the three major tactics of the new army. When encountering forests, we burn them; when encountering dangers, we clear mountains. Whenever there is a possibility of enemy ambush, we turn it into a scorched earth, where not a blade of grass can grow."

"Oh...that's a fierce move. What about the others?"

"Blitzkrieg tactics and guerrilla tactics."

Emperor Jingtai actually wanted to ask more detailed questions, but he still had some sense of pride, and he felt that asking too many questions would make him lose all his dignity. So he could only smack his lips and say, "Well, it is all recorded in military books. It is good to be able to learn and apply it flexibly."

After saying that, he sat back down and stopped talking, afraid that saying too much would only make people realize that he knew nothing.

In fact, the new army was a day and a half faster than Li Mifang had predicted. They arrived at the foot of Zishan Mountain in just eight days. However, crossing the mountain was obviously not feasible, but crossing the Zhangshui River was relatively easy. However, it was clear that the enemy had already set up defenses on the south bank of the Zhangshui River, just waiting to launch a major attack when they crossed the river.

However, the new army did not rush after arriving. The two groups faced each other across the river, and there were even loud voices challenging each other from the opposite side. However, the new army ignored them all and entered a defensive state within half an hour of arriving.

This left the generals of Li Mi's troops completely baffled. Did they come all this way just to sleep?
At this moment, Commander Shan Xiongxin was looking at the enemy camp on the opposite bank of the river through binoculars. He estimated that there were about five to eight thousand people on the other side, and judging from their defensive layout, they were only defending this section of the river.

"Your Majesty, there may be a trap here."

After putting down his binoculars, Shan Xiongxin said to Emperor Jingtai, "If they were truly prepared to prevent the river from crossing, they should have scattered their camps, built towers, and established high points. But they are only guarding this section of the river. In other words, they don't seem to be worried about the river crossing from other places."

"What should we do then?" Emperor Jingtai blinked curiously. "Should we change locations?"

“We won’t switch. They’ve probably already set up ambushes upstream and downstream. If we cross upstream, they’ll definitely flood the seven armies. But if we cross downstream, the current is too strong and it will expose our supply lines. Our army will cross here.” Emperor Jingtai bit his lip and pointed to the opposite bank: “But if we force our way across, how many people will we lose in the process? It’s not a worthwhile trade.”

"Your Majesty, don't worry."

Shan Xiongxin held up his hand, made a six in front of his eyes, and then laughed, "The enemy is about two hundred zhang away from our army, which is a good distance."

What a distance of two hundred zhang! It's enough to give anyone a headache... But Emperor Jingtai decided not to interfere with the commander-in-chief's arrangements. After all, when he left Jinling, Xia Daosheng had already instructed him, an outsider, not to interfere with the commander-in-chief's actions. You must know that Li Mi is no pushover; he is a piece of gold that has been forged through countless trials. To defeat him, you can't use conventional methods; you have to use unconventional tactics.

Shan Xiongxin then ordered the vanguard battalion to rest on the spot and wait for the arrival of the follow-up troops.

Their halt rendered Li Mi's ambush ineffective for the time being, and both sides entered into a pointless waste of time.

Five days passed.

The vanguard battalion of the new army had not moved for five days, and Li Mi was extremely anxious. He was unsure of what they were planning to do. They were stuck there, neither advancing nor retreating. If they found out about his deployment, things would get really bad.

The problem is that as long as they are stationed in open ground, they are on the defensive, and the terrain is advantageous to them. If Li Mi decides to launch a strong attack at this moment, then all his ruthless tricks will be used against his own troops.

Isn't this a classic case of inflicting 800 damage on the enemy while losing 13,500 of your own?

Then let's wait it out!
The first to run into trouble were the fleets traveling upstream. Many ships were caught on wooden stakes and unable to move forward. It was only then that Shan Xiongxin realized that there was indeed an ambush below. However, he was not in a hurry at all. After all, the New Army always had two or more backup plans for fighting. If one route was not feasible, they would simply switch to another.

However, these days there have been frequent reports of supply trains being harassed, but the trains are well protected and have not been able to succeed, losing less than 30% of their provisions.

Even so, it was enough to show that Li Mi's men were indeed capable. After this incident, even Emperor Jingtai knew that Li Mi had some tricks up his sleeve. Now, he could even stand peacefully in the camp, drinking tea and reading books, quite leisurely.

In fact, many people don't know what this emperor is here for, and they have to protect him carefully all day long. But the problem is that the new army's flag is now the Five-Clawed Dragon Flag, and he is the theoretical commander-in-chief. If his subordinates criticize the commander-in-chief, they will be dragged out and dealt with by military law. So everyone treats this old man more as a mascot, and the main military matters are discussed with General Shan Xiongxin.

Five days later, the supply train finally arrived, but Shan Xiongxin was not waiting for the supply train, but for the Shenji Battalion that arrived with it.

The Divine Machine Battalion, the Divine Machine Battalion—without it, they probably wouldn't even be able to cross the river.

When the Shenji Battalion began unloading the supplies from the cart after cart, Emperor Jingtai finally got a clear look at all of them.

It turned out to be a cannon...

He recognized the thing, and he even said proudly, "Back in the day, when Daosheng first made these things, he demonstrated them to me. I thought they were just so-so, clumsy and noisy. But he said that was just the beginning, so I didn't say anything. He gave me money and manpower whenever he wanted. I just don't know how they are now."

Shan Xiongxin cupped his hands and said, "Your Majesty, Your Majesty will be able to conduct a test tonight."

"Very well, very well, but don't disappoint me."

Even though he acted as if "what's so special about this thing?", when the soldiers of the Shenji Battalion were assembling it, he even stood by with a bowl in his hand, watching them assemble it, for fear of missing any detail.

After the cannons were assembled, they were still on wheels. He was curious at the time: why did they need to be pulled by boats, carts, horses, and oxen when they were already on wheels? Why not just have two horses carry them over?
But when he learned that the cannon actually weighed nearly five thousand catties, he remained silent for a long time...

Yes, that's true. You really can't work with these things without taking them apart.

When these twelve grotesque behemoths, still reeking of oil and iron, appeared before the emperor who had spent his life indulging in pleasure, all he could do was sit on a stool, lost in thought.

He couldn't remember what the commander of the Shenji Battalion next to him was saying; only one sentence remained in his mind: "With just three cannon shots, a thousand men can be scattered."

The dispersion here wasn't about scattering, but about being torn apart. He knew that the captain might be exaggerating, because Xia Lin himself had said that one shot would kill about a hundred people, but even so, it was enough to shock him.

He had never actually led troops, but he had read military books. His strategist was Li Jing, the military genius of the Great Wei. Li Jing once said that the feudal lords of the past were all good in every way, except that they loved to boast. They would often have armies of 100,000 or 200,000 men clashing together. However, more people were trampled to death than died in battle. A battle of 10,000 men was already considered a major war.

However, even if there are 10,000 people, it's just a matter of these guys firing ten rounds in a row. At their rate of fire, it only takes a quarter of an hour.

It felt like his worldview was being challenged. Emperor Jingtai suddenly didn't want these dozen or so big guys to bar their fangs and roar, because their roars would not only tear apart the enemy in front of him, but also destroy the imperial majesty that had been built up over thousands of years.

"Artillery battalion, form ranks!"

The flag signals indicated the positions, and a dozen cannons began adjusting their positions. The term "position" was something Emperor Jingtai had only just heard.

"Your Majesty, please insert this into your ear. Before you fire the cannon, please open your mouth."

Emperor Jingtai didn't understand, but he did as he was told. He at least had some respect for steel. He had learned his lesson from impulsiveness and arrogance before. After all, he also had a gun that he hadn't fired much, and the first time he fired it, he was terrified.

"Distance 230, sight scale 30, 820 mils to the right, charge #4, high explosive instantaneous fuse, adjust!"

The gears rattled and clicked as they pulled on the cannon. Emperor Jingtai immediately opened his mouth, his eyes fixed on the cannon in front of him.

"Correction complete!"

"Three shots salvo, prepare!"

The artillerymen immediately began loading ammunition. Looking at the iron lump that required two people to lift, Emperor Jingtai couldn't help but swallow hard.

"Ready!"

At this moment, flag signals began to wave, and everyone entered the launch preparation phase. Then, Shan Xiongxin hurriedly stepped forward to block Emperor Jingtai, but Emperor Jingtai shook his head and pushed him aside.

"put!"

(End of this chapter)