I am not Yuan Shu

Chapter 373 The Yonghe Company Divided into Seven Routes

Actually, Yu Jian's situation was relatively good, but He Lian's situation in conquering Yunzhong County was truly unlucky.

In fact, He Lian's forces were quite strong, with 10,000 cavalry and 6,000 auxiliary troops, carrying a large number of siege weapons. This was a force that Tan Shihuai had specially prepared for his son, with the aim of letting He Lian make military achievements and accumulate prestige so that he could inherit his position after his death.

The Xianbei people have gradually transitioned from electing leaders to hereditary leaders, but this process is still relatively recent and the regulations are not yet clear enough. Therefore, in addition to hereditary bloodlines, the personal prestige of the leader is also very important.

Tan Shihuai had sufficient ability and prestige, but that did not mean his son was the same. He Lian was not very outstanding from a young age, and Tan Shihuai was always worried that he would not be able to inherit his position well, so he specially arranged an opportunity for him to gain military merits and prestige.

Unfortunately, the governor of Yunzhong County was Lu Zhi.

Lu Zhi, the number two figure in Yixin Hui, is Yuan Shu's top general and the most capable commander.

In fact, Yuan Shu did not initially intend to appoint Lu Zhi as the governor of Yunzhong County. He felt that Lu Zhi was a capable commander who could stand alone and should take on more important tasks, such as commanding the infantry or serving as his deputy commander.

However, Lu Zhi himself volunteered to go to Yunzhong County to guard it.

The reason was that he wanted to gain some administrative experience and also wanted to better understand the customs and culture of the frontier, so that if the Xianbei people really came, he could better protect Yuan Shu at the front.

“Zijia, you have always been our umbrella, sheltering us from the wind and rain. But you are the leader of the Yixin Society. You can’t always be at the forefront. It’s time for us to be at the forefront for you.”

These are the words Lu Zhi said to Yuan Shu.

Yuan Shu sighed and agreed to Lu Zhi's request, appointing him as the governor of Yunzhong County, giving him the opportunity to demonstrate his talents.

After taking office, Lu Zhi implemented Yuan Shu's governance strategy. He did not personally handle everything, but he was diligent and conscientious, inspecting everywhere and urging various departments to complete the various construction tasks quickly and well, ranking first among the nine counties of Bingzhou.

In addition, he was also meticulous in military construction. He used his previous experience in training troops to build three thousand soldiers in Yunzhong County. He also dispatched five hundred personal guard cavalrymen assigned to him by Yuan Shu to train farm defense teams in various farms and to carry out a large-scale military exercise in Yunzhong County, making Yunzhong County very prosperous.

During Yuan Shu's military inspection of the nine prefectures of Bingzhou a few months earlier, Yunzhong Prefecture ranked first in terms of military preparedness, which was highly praised by Yuan Shu.

When He Lian led his army south, Lu Zhi had already arranged for 500 county soldiers to be stationed in Wuquan County and Beiyu County, two border counties, along with the young and strong men stationed in the cities.

In addition, five villages relatively close to these two counties were also fully armed and put into a state of first-level combat readiness, constantly on guard against attacks from the Xianbei.

He personally led 500 personal guard cavalry and 2,000 main force troops to garrison Yunzhong County, preparing to launch a proactive attack when necessary to buy time for the arrival of Yuan Shu's main force.

But He Lian was unaware of all this.

As the son of Tan Shihuai, He Lian grew up in the shadow of Tan Shihuai, so he was admired by thousands of people from a young age. He had a high opinion of himself and looked down on the Han people on the border, thinking that they were all his father's defeated opponents, his backyard, and his sheepfold.

More than three years ago, he also followed Tan Shihuai on several southward invasions of Bingzhou, watching helplessly as Tan Shihuai achieved victories and as the Han people fled in disarray, only to be killed or captured.

Despite Tan Shihuai's repeated warnings to him to be careful before setting out, as the Han army in Bingzhou was not what it used to be, he still led his troops south with pride, swaggering into Han territory and heading straight for Wuquan County.

Wuquan County is the northernmost county in Yunzhong Prefecture. When He Lian arrived, Wuquan County had already completed its scorched earth policy, and all 500 prefectural soldiers and 900 able-bodied men from the county had completed their military preparations and were ready to defend the city walls.

Without hesitation, He Lian ordered his 6,000 auxiliary troops to launch an attack, and the Han army in Wuquan County immediately launched a fierce counterattack.

Bows and arrows, crossbows, trebuchets, and catapults launched a series of attacks.

The auxiliary troops outside the city surged in, and the Han army counterattacked swiftly. The first battle was fierce and chaotic, lasting for half an hour. Only after strong advice from his subordinates did He Lian reluctantly order a temporary withdrawal.

There's nothing we can do; the losses are just too great.

This county town was not unfamiliar to the Xianbei people. Although Lian himself had never been here, many veteran Xianbei tribal leaders who accompanied the army had been here and seen it with their own eyes. Therefore, he felt a little unfamiliar with Wuquan County, which had been renovated and had high and thick city walls.

To them, the city was like a completely different city, having undergone plastic surgery, and its counterattacks after being attacked were far more powerful than before.

Not to mention the crossbow bolts with even longer range and greater power, which could threaten Xianbei archers from a great distance.

What is it that can throw out such large stones?
Huge boulders soared into the air and crashed down on the heads of the auxiliary soldiers, smashing them one by one. Many soldiers were smashed in the head, bleeding profusely, and some were even smashed into a bloody pulp. The scene was extremely disgusting and nauseating.

This battle shattered the confidence of the entire Xianbei army leadership, including Helian, who couldn't understand why things had turned out this way.

How did the Han people, who used to only know how to flee and resist in a panic, suddenly become so powerful?

With its powerful defense and strong guard, it felt like the Xianbei had run headlong into a rock, leaving them covered in blood and forced to retreat repeatedly, too afraid to advance.

This is so wrong!

He Lian was very puzzled by this.

He asked the veteran Xianbei military leaders around him about the situation, but they were also completely baffled, feeling that the resistance they were encountering far exceeded the resistance that the Han people had been able to mount in the past.

Even if they couldn't breach the city walls, these Han people wouldn't fight back. Instead, they would hide inside the city like cowards, only daring to show their faces after looting all the surrounding farms and leaving. They certainly wouldn't take the initiative to attack.

Now, having circled around but unable to find an easy target, all the Han Chinese are either in the city or within the walls, with banners flying and archers and spearmen everywhere. Their only response to the Xianbei invasion is to fight!

And it hurts terribly!
The situation appears to have changed.

Several veteran officers and the company commander recounted the warning Tan Shihuai had given them before they set off.

"The Chanyu said that Governor Yuan Shu of Bingzhou has done a lot for Bingzhou over the years, building cities, farms, roads, and training troops. Didn't the Han merchants who came to trade also say that the whole of Bingzhou has changed its appearance? Now it seems that what he said is true!"

He Lian frowned deeply, feeling extremely displeased.

This time, he finally got the chance to lead an army on his own, and it was the perfect opportunity to demonstrate his abilities and establish his prestige.

At this critical moment, his advance was halted by the Han people's city walls. How could he tolerate this? "No matter how the Han people change, they are still sheep. Hiding in the city is cowardice! We have more troops and are stronger than them. We have no reason to fear them! Issue my order: starting tomorrow, continue the siege! Do not stop! Keep attacking!"

In He Lian's view, he had 6,000 auxiliary troops with siege capabilities, and they were not Xianbei people, so the advantage was completely on his side.

He would have to be careful with ordinary Xianbei people, not wanting to lose too many. But the auxiliary troops were not Xianbei, but Buyeo and Goguryeo people. If they were wiped out, so be it. He could just keep capturing them. It was better than losing Xianbei people.

People die in wars anyway, it's no big deal!

So he waved his hand, and starting the next day, the Xianbei army began to besiege Wuquan County again, with the Xianbei in the rear and their auxiliary troops in the front.

The auxiliary troops braved a hail of arrows and stones to lead the main attack, while the Xianbei people provided some support by shooting arrows at the Han troops on the city walls.

Although Wuquan County had been reinforced and strengthened, it was still a small town with only about 4,000 inhabitants. The number of soldiers was also small, and the 6,000 auxiliary troops who besieged it were finding it quite difficult to fight for a long time.

However, as the saying goes, having a high vantage point makes for an unstoppable advance. Having city walls is definitely an advantage over not having them, not to mention that the Han army inside the city has all sorts of excellent equipment. They not only beat the auxiliary troops badly, but the Xianbei people who gathered together to shoot arrows were also riddled with bullets from crossbows and catapults.

The losses are far from small.

However, the Xianbei people did not treat human life as human life, and they were indeed numerous. The number of people needed to besiege a county town was limited, and most of the soldiers were just eating for free in the military camp.

Based on the idea of ​​maximizing human resources, He Lian felt that it was a waste to keep the soldiers in the barracks eating for free. So, with another wave of his hand, he dispatched two thousand auxiliary troops and two thousand Xianbei cavalry to attack Beiyu County, which was closely connected to Wuquan County.

Having conquered two cities in one go, He Lian felt he still had a significant advantage.

After a few days of fighting, he found that there were still quite a few people staying in the military camp eating for free, and human resources were not being maximized. So he once again made a big move and arranged for 5,000 troops to besiege five villages around the two county towns in five routes.

He heard that these farms called Liangzhuang had plenty of grain and supplies, which were scarce for the Xianbei people during the winter, so he decided to plunder them to replenish his already meager logistical supplies.

Some of his subordinates felt that it was too risky for He Lian to divide his small force into seven routes, but He Lian believed that he was extremely brave and there would be no problem at all.

So he divided his 16,000 troops into seven parts, each fighting its own battle and each responsible for a different objective.

If we had to pinpoint any benefits, we couldn't say there weren't any.

The seven Han army garrisons that could have supported each other are now forced to defend themselves and can no longer support one another. For the Xianbei, this is indeed an advantage.

However, the battlefield is not just this small area; the scale of the battlefield is very large. The 16,000 men in the Helian army are considered a large army in this small area, but if you look at the entire Yunzhong County and even Bingzhou, they are not considered a large army.

In Lu Zhi's eyes, this was indeed not a large army.

However, when Lu Zhi learned that He Lian's army had split into seven routes to besiege the city and Liangzhuang, he was stunned and couldn't understand what this guy was up to.

It's understandable for you to divide your troops into two or three groups, but you have less than 20,000 men and you've divided them into seven groups. What kind of strategy is that?
You don't actually think there are no other armies in the entire Yunzhong County, do you?

You don't think my remaining troops will just stand by and watch us die, ignoring your attack, do you?
Am I that kind of person?

Lu Zhi found it incomprehensible.

Moreover, due to the relatively close distance, while Helian was launching its attack, the reinforcements arranged by Yuan Shu had already begun to advance towards the five northern prefectures.

General Zhang Quan led 3,000 troops from the Duliao Camp and 4,000 Xiongnu cavalry to support Shuofang County.

The Southern Xiongnu Chanyu Tu Te and General Sima Jiang Wei led 6,000 Xiongnu cavalry to support Wuyuan County.

In Yunzhong County, Yuan Shu dispatched 5,000 Tianxiong cavalry to provide reinforcements, commanded by Zang Min, the Prefect of Taiyuan.

Yuan Shu left 5,000 cavalry and 5,000 infantry as reserves in Taiyuan.

The remaining 20,000 cavalry and 15,000 infantry were personally led by Yuan Shu, who joined forces with Xia Yu, the governor of Yanmen County, to march north and meet the Xianbei Chanyu Tanshihuai who was attacking Yanmen County.

So while Lu Zhi was having some trouble understanding He Lian's thought process, Zang Min had already arrived in Yunzhong County with 5,000 Han cavalry. He met up with Lu Zhi without any obstacles and learned about He Lian's actions from Lu Zhi.

He didn't quite understand either.

"Fortified cities are difficult to breach. Either retreat or leave troops to guard them while the main force continues south. Why divide the troops to attack more fortified cities? And why divide the troops into seven routes?"

"I can't understand it either. I even sent people to investigate their rear, and they had no backup plans or ambushes around them. It doesn't seem like they were deliberately trying to lure our troops into an attack."

Lu Zhi stroked his beard and frowned, saying, "Lord Zang, regardless of their plans, the Tianxiong Army's five thousand elite cavalry have now arrived, and our army is ready for battle. Why not take advantage of the fact that the Xianbei's forces are scattered by the cities and villages, and concentrate our main force to defeat them one by one?"

Zang Min knew about the close relationship between Lu Zhi and Yuan Shu.

Therefore, although the two of them are of equal status, both serving as prefects of the same prefecture, the closeness or distance of their relationship is still evident.

Zang Min was a politically astute man. He didn't intend to order Lu Zhi around, but rather to follow Lu Zhi's advice.

Now that Lu Zhi had made a suggestion, he naturally had nothing to say and indicated that he would follow Lu Zhi's arrangements.

Therefore, Lu Zhi decided to lead 7,000 troops, including soldiers from Yunzhong County, northward to fight the Xianbei people and try to defeat this Xianbei invading army in the area of ​​Wuquan County and Beiyu County.

He didn't think that the sheer number of Xianbei people was a problem. Judging from their battles with several cities and villages, their fighting strength hadn't changed much in the past few years. Even the auxiliary army that had breached Youzhou City seemed weak and powerless in the face of Bingzhou City.

The Xianbei people's poor performance gave Lu Zhi confidence.

Therefore, Lu Zhi appointed Huang Zhong, the cavalry captain of the Tianxiong Army, as the vanguard, leading a thousand elite cavalry to clear the way, while he and Zang Min led six thousand main force soldiers closely behind.

(End of this chapter)