"If Geng Chongmei knows about the situation of the party, judging from its current trends, it is unlikely that he will compete with us head-on. If our army shows its banner and moves south with vigor, it may hold Sheep's Head Mountain, or even retreat south, and resist our army according to Zezhou. ”

"Therefore, according to the humble opinion, our army will make another sudden march, and before it can fully react, it will take him by surprise, and attack the north of Sheep's Head Mountain with lightning speed, and occupy the initiative on the battlefield!" Xiang Xun explained to Liu Chengyou.

"In this way, wouldn't we give up to the enemy with the advantage of waiting for work, and our army will become a tired soldier?" Liu Chengyou expressed concerns.

Xiang Xun obviously had some consideration, and continued: "From Shangdang to the north of Yangtou Mountain, it is less than fifty miles, the terrain is gentle, the road is smooth, His Highness will send an army as the vanguard, and the rapid march will take an hour and a half, and there will be enough time to rest and recover. ”

"Moreover, the concern of the lowly is not how to defeat them, but how to keep them. The purpose of sending the vanguard south is not to attack the enemy, but to watch them and not let them escape easily! As for His Royal Highness, since he led the Chinese army, he can steadily march south! ”

After listening to Xiang Xun's thoughts, Liu Chengyou lowered his head and pondered for a while: "If the vanguard goes south to the north of Yangtou Mountain, it will be observed by the enemy." If they attack with all their strength and want to break through my vanguard army first, what can they do? ”

Hearing this, Xiang Xun's face was still full of confidence: "If Geng Chongmei should do like that, not to mention the difficulty of the night attack, as long as he dares to attack, he will abandon the defense of Sheep's Head Mountain." When His Royal Highness's rear army arrives, you can take advantage of the situation to cover up and kill ......"

"You're bait!" Liu Chengyou said.

"However, this bait must be an army that can fight a tough battle, and after a rapid march, it can withstand at least an hour in the face of a possible siege of several times the enemy!" Xiang Xun had a hint of caution in his expression.

"Which army do you like?" Liu Chengyou asked. Asking this, it basically means that Liu Chengyou accepted Xiang Xun's style of play.

"Presumably, Your Highness already has an answer in his heart!" Xiang Xun said.

"yes!"

If it is said that the army and battalion under the jurisdiction of the Longqi Army can win Liu Chengyou's trust and entrust the arduous task, only Ma Quanyi's First Army, after all, from the beginning of the initial rectification, the First Army was taken care of by him.

"However, even if it is discovered that our army is heading south, it is still unknown whether Geng Chongmei is determined to take the initiative to attack at night. If he is bent on stability, then when our soldiers knock on Sheep's Head Mountain, he will not have much room to turn around. If it advances, our army will carry it; If they retreat, our army will take advantage of the situation to pursue; If we hold each other and fight for a long time, the winner will be our army......"

Under Xiang Xun's nodding, Liu Chengyou had a feeling of sudden enlightenment, stretched out his hand and rubbed his clean chin a few times, and then said quietly: "Now it seems that this battle, no matter how it is fought, our army will win!" ”

"It's just a baht!" Xiang Xun chuckled.

Thinking about it carefully, in this battle, from all aspects, Liu Chengyou's side has a winning position.

It has occupied the party, can raise the strength of the counties of Luzhou, and is backed by Hedong, and can be supported at any time, the army is not weak, the troops are not inferior, and the people's hearts are also more attached. In contrast, Geng Chongmei can be described as a lone expedition, there are not many soldiers, and the use of baggage is not reliable, and its logistics supply line may be cut off at any time.

If Geng Chongmei had been stable from the beginning and simply stayed in Zezhou, then Liu Chengyou might have nothing to do for a while. But since he went north and entered the territory of Luzhou, no matter how cautious he behaved in battle, he had fallen into passivity.

In contrast, Liu Chengyou's choice is much greater. Thinking of this, Liu Chengyou suddenly felt that although his superficial plan to lure the enemy was unsuccessful, it finally led Geng Chongmei north, and it was not useless at all, thinking about it like this, his mood was much better.

Taking advantage of the early night, Liu Chengyou resolutely convened all the generals and colonels in the tent and held a military meeting to explain Xiang Xun's ideas for discussion. It has been approved by most people, especially Guo Rong.

After unifying opinions, Liu Chengyou decisively ordered to hand over the important task of vanguard to Ma Quanyi. And Ma Quanyi, as always, took it without hesitation.

"Your Highness, I am willing to go south with General Ma!" After deciding on the dispatch of troops, Guo Rong took the initiative to ask for help.

Looking at Guo Rong, a trace of subtle doubt flashed in Liu Chengyou's eyes, and after only thinking about it slightly, he agreed: "If you go with me, the more relieved I will be!" ”

Soon, the troops inside and outside Shangdang City followed suit, just like the night three days ago, step by step. Ma Quanyi and Guo Rong led the soldiers of the First Army to take advantage of the night to go south as soon as possible. This time, he was fully equipped and equipped with sufficient ordnance and weapons, and Liu Chengyou also specially allocated carriages and horses for him.

The first army set off, and Liu Chengyou led the army behind. In this process, the soldiers and horses in Luzhou went a little wrong and dragged a little back, after all, they did not conduct targeted night training like the Longqi Army.

......

The night is hazy, covering the earth and blurring people's vision, but the stars and moon in the night sky are particularly bright, guiding the way forward. Between the not wide and smooth paths, a fiery dragon winds southward, like a stream of water surging endlessly.

All the officers and men of the First Army were solemn and hurried in an orderly manner. Before leaving, Ma Quanyi convened the whole army to give a lecture, explained the importance of this trip, and inspired the soldiers with "Your Highness's kindness, repay today", so the soldiers basically had a generous mood to go to the sword mountain and the sea of fire at this time.

Ma Quanyi walked in front, holding a torch in his hand, walking with the crowd, and his war horse was used to carry arrows, which could save the physical strength of the soldiers. Guo Rong followed suit and walked beside him, glancing at Ma Quanyi, who had a solemn expression, and praised the young general's style.

The distance from Shangdang to Sheep's Head Mountain, forty-three or four miles, is really not far, and there is no obstacle in the middle, so the march is very smooth. In fact, halfway through the journey, it had already been discovered by the scouts of the Liao army, and Han Tong gathered all the cavalry and desperately entangled and killed them in order to respond.

After the two-day "field of view battle", the cavalry formed by Liu Chengyou suffered more than 30 casualties, and the losses were nearly 20%. The Liao army is mainly an infantry army, but it is not that there are no cavalry, and there are a lot of waiting horses, and they are quite strong.

However, it is precisely under such disadvantages that Han Tong led people, and in that cruel competition, he could not fall behind, which also proved that Liu Chengyou suddenly promoted this "newcomer" as a rider and did not see the wrong person.

Less than five miles north of the Liao army garrison, the first army stopped, occupied a high slope, and then under the leadership of Ma Quanyi, it was not time to rest, and was divided into two parts, one part of which was defended by the frame as a royal guard, and the other part was set up on the fence with local materials.

This highland was also selected by Hantong for Ma Quanyi in advance, and it is not a high risk, but it is always a place worth relying on. And it is north of the Liao army garrison, the most suitable place for garrison, and Han Tong's military vision is not bad.

The hour passed in the middle of the night, and Geng Chongmei's side was awakened in his sleep, and when he learned that the Longqi Army was coming, his sleepy spirit was suddenly stimulated and woke up.

"On the party's side, it's really just an appearance, trying to lure me in. That Liu family child, his mind is so deceitful! After thinking about it, Geng Chongmei sighed, and there was some jealousy in her tone.

Liu Chengyou didn't know that he thought that his strategy was crude and full of loopholes, and in Geng Chongmei's place, the "evaluation" was not low.

"How many people came?"

"I guess there are more than a thousand people!"

"Jie Shuai, that Hedong army is too arrogant, it came at night, and dared to set up a village under our noses!" The tooth general who came to report suggested: "If you take advantage of its unstable foothold, send troops to kill it first!" ”

Geng Chongmei hesitated directly about this suggestion, he still didn't understand the intention of the Hedong Army's move at the moment......

After hesitating for a while, Geng Chongmei finally chose to maintain stability, waved his hand and said: "The night battle is not good, send orders to all battalions, give me a stable camp!" ”

By the time the sky dawned, a simple and practical defensive fence had been erected on that high ground, opposite the Liao army camp not far away. And the officers and men of the First Army have alternately rested for a round.

"This Geng Chongmei, really don't dare to attack?" Looking at the Liao army camp in the south, Ma Quanyi, who had already taken a nap, muttered. There was some disappointment in his tone, but in Guo Rong's ears, he felt a little "cheap and good".

When the sky dawned, Liu Chengyou led the Chinese army to maintain his physical strength and came quickly. Looking at the flags in the north slowly approaching south, Geng Chongmei didn't dare to act rashly.