The mountain trails were covered with moss, the horse's hooves of the cavalry were striking the solid stone ground, echoing heavily in the valley, the mules and horses were carrying small field artillery, panting, neighing and struggling to move forward, and the pilots of the artillery brigade on the side waved long whips, throwing brittle whips in the air, shouting "sparse laws" in their mouths, carefully taking care of these heavy weapons.

Zhao Liangdong observed from afar, seeing that the vanguard had occupied the high ground on both sides and set up a guard position, so he threw the monocular to his own soldiers with confidence, and turned to Cui Weiya, "How long is Chenguang?!" ”

I don't know what to say about this sentence, but Cui Weiya has now gradually become accustomed to the way his boss speaks, nodded and replied, "General Huiyu, this place is called 'Qingshiyu', and there are still twenty-five miles of mountain road from Wangjiazhai," he stretched out his hand and pointed to the opposite mountain, "I have to turn over two mountains, and after the mountain is a flat land, it is the world of Wangjiazhai in the past, with a radius of about more than 20 miles, suitable for war horses, and there is a small river river washed out by the mountain torrent next to it, the water source is sufficient, and the grass can be raised, so the Mongolian army is heavily stationed here!" ”

According to rough information, the Mongol army stationed about seven or eight thousand iron cavalry here, and the main commander of the eight thorns of the Chinese army camp was also located here.

Zhao Liangdong thought for a while and said to Ni Yicheng, "Yicheng, you said that the camp of the Eight Thorns is located here, is the news accurate?!" ”

Because of the inaccurate relationship of the last intelligence, Ni Yicheng was greatly punished, and was almost cut off by Wang Shirong, fortunately, Zhao Liangdong left a life in his intercession, Rao is so, in addition to being severely reprimanded, the military rank was also demoted to captain again, because Zhao Liangdong interceded for him, he was very grateful, so he worked very hard to do things, and at this moment he heard Zhao Liangdong ask, he hurriedly bowed down, and said respectfully, "Back to the army, it took sixty taels of gold to pay for the traitor, and then he bought the traitor translation, The message is error-free, please rest assured! Seeing that Zhao Liangdong was indifferent, he hurriedly added: "Dare to use your head to vouch!" ”

Zhao Liangdong nodded and did not speak. As the vanguard of the Han army, the Fifth Army took the lead in advancing into Shanxi, in order to obtain a safe foothold for the follow-up general, he spent several months, first suddenly marched westward, Xiajing County, and won the people, and then cut off the wings of the Jungger East Route Army, to save the surrender frenzy in the northwest of Shanxi, and finally frustrated its spirit, using the tactics of guerrilla warfare and mountain warfare, step by step dragged the Mongol army into the quagmire of protracted war. The general's irascible anger and eagerness to fight created the most favorable situation for the final decisive battle.

According to the operational instructions of the General Staff, it should be time for the Fifth Army of the Han Infantry to carry out the "defeat of the enemy in front of you".

......There was a loud bang, the rumbling cannon suddenly sounded on the hill ahead, the thunder was faint, the dust was rising, countless horses' hooves knocked on the earth, making a huge echo in the mountains, and the water droplets on the treetops on both sides fell down, soaking the uniforms of the officers.

Zhao Liangdong looked calm, looked up at the sky, slowly took off his helmet, picked up a corner of his military uniform, and wiped off the droplets. The marching column on the mountain road seemed to have suddenly received a stern order, and the officer leading the team immediately rushed out of the queue and shouted loudly to the side, and the well-trained soldiers slowly accelerated rhythmically, slowly squirming like a machine, becoming more and more intense, and finally became excited and rushed forward together. The men shouted at the neighing of horses in the wide mountain road, the military rations carried by the mules were unloaded, and the artillery units hurriedly passed the guns and small shotgun guns and transported them to the front at a faster speed.

"Report ...... Report ——! "A cavalryman was riding his horse frantically on a rugged mountain road, and the soldiers on the road hurriedly flashed to the sides to make way for the messenger, and the cavalry rushed up the hill until fifty paces away, and then pulled the reins violently, jumped off the horse and touched the ground on one knee," Qi ...... General Qiyu...... Outpost engagement! He calmed down and said in a calm tone, "Brigade Commander Mu ordered a humble report, the two thousand cavalry stationed outside the Tartar soldier Wangjiazhai have come out of the camp, ready to block our road, and now the front of our cavalry brigade is engaged with them!" ”

In addition to commanding the cavalry brigade of the headquarters, Zhao Liangdong also allocated him two musket battalions, with a total strength of more than 3,000 people, and the strength was not weak.

"It's hard work, get up - did the Tartars go up the mountain?!" Zhao Liangdong asked.

"Xie Junmen—" The cavalryman stood up and bowed, "When you return to the military gate, as soon as Lord Mu sees the dust stepped out of the Tartars, he orders the brethren of the musket battalion to go up the mountain with a strip (note: the one with the strip, that is, the guide), and when the lowly man comes, the musket battalion has already cut down a piece of wood and made antlers!" ……”

Zhao Liangdong smiled and nodded. His troops are different from Lin Feng's guards, because they are Qing army generals, he highly respects traditional tactics, although Lin Feng requires all musket units to "practice bravery, courage", and do not set up obstacles to fight the cavalry head-on, but the Fifth Army has not been very accepting of this point of view, under the supervision of Zhao Liangdong, the troops at all levels of the Fifth Army are still habitually set up bunkers on the positions during training.

“…… Brigade Commander Mu, fearing that there would be a change, also humbly implored the Lord to quickly order the artillery to march and join the musket battalion on the hill, away from the Tartar camp! Seeing that the general's face softened slightly, the cavalryman continued.

"Got it, go back and tell Mu Chengdong, guard the exit of the mountain road, don't pursue! The artillery brigade is coming soon! After the herald was ordered to go down the mountain, Zhao Liangdong turned around and smiled at Cui Weiya, "Brother Weiya, do you see it, I don't expect the Tartar soldiers to run this time, sure enough, right?!" ”

"Your Excellency is wise!" Cui Weiya smiled and complimented, "But the Tartars have eight or nine thousand troops, and we are only more than 10,000 people, even if they don't run, I'm afraid it will be difficult for us to eat them!" He thought for a moment, "If the fight is in a hurry, they still have reinforcements in the back!" ”

"Of course you can't eat it, there are 15,000 people in the Tartar army, and most of them are elite veterans, our appetite is smaller, and we can't swallow it" Zhao Liangdong smiled and shook his head, "Brother Wei Ya doesn't know, the Tartar soldiers are also selfish, they may not be willing to fight us to the death!" ”

"Selfishness?!" Cui Weiya was stunned.

"Hehe, of course-" Zhao Liangdong smiled, pointed ahead, and said, "Zamurhara is the general of the Khalkha Department of Northern Mongolia, in the second half of last year, Geldan went north to Uriya Sutai, defeated the Khalkha Department, and had to surrender the Junggar Department of Western Mongolia, and now the soldiers he brings are all their Khalkha children, you say, will he fight hard for Geldan and us?!" ”

Cui Weiya was stunned, and then asked, "What about Said's return soldiers?!" ”

"It's the same, this general has been in Gansu for a long time, and he knows a lot about the Hui army, and the Hui soldiers are easy to group, and they believe in the Hu Da cult, which can be regarded as brave and good at fighting, but they didn't come to Shanxi this time, it was Geldan who forced them to come, if there is a advantage and a good fight, then of course it is nothing, but if you want to fight with our Han Wang Division to the end, it will not be committed!" Zhao Liangdong said with a smile, "Said is not Geerdan's godson, if he really kills all the Hui disciples, how can he explain to the elders of the family when he goes back?!" ”

Cui Weiya thought so, nodded and said, "The general is reasonable, I often hear people say that the Tartar tribe has always not emphasized discipline and etiquette, and all departments respect strength, so if the Eight Thorns and Said have exhausted their strength, then even if they are a lackey for Junggar, they will not be able to do it?!! ”

"That's it!" Zhao Liangdong patted Cui Weiya on the shoulder and laughed, "Don't look at Geerdan's momentum now, in fact, it is very empty, the rules on the grassland are like this, the stronger the stronger, if you have the upper hand, all the departments will join you, and the soldiers will fight more and more, but as soon as you are slightly frustrated, the various tribes will go in different directions together, and go their own way, he Geldan is different from our Han army, even if he eats our fifth army, it will not be much trouble for the lord, as long as our territory is still there, and the people are still there, then there are soldiers and food, and you can fight with him for a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood!" - So this time, we don't want to eat the Tartar East Route Army, as long as we beat the Eight Thorns and Said in pain and fear, and beat them so that they are reluctant to fight for their lives with us, then we will win! ”

"Hehe, not bad...... Cui Weiya stroked his short beard under his chin, and agreed, "My lord Han King must also think so, refuse the enemy outside the country, and fight with the Tartars in Shanxi, if this time he wins a big victory in Wangjiazhai, presumably the Tartars will withdraw from Daizhou?!" If this is the case, our Fifth Army can also give orders to the Lord! ”

"Where will it be so easy," Zhao Liangdong shook his head, his smile gradually faded, and he said solemnly, "Brother Weiya, don't be impatient, the Tartar cavalry is elite, and our army is mostly infantry, so this style of play can only be a step by step, patiently grinding with them little by little!" He carried his hands behind his back and squinted his eyes to look forward, "In the battle of Wangjiazhai, the general estimated that he would be able to defeat five or six hundred Tartars - if he was lucky, he would defeat more than 1,000 people, use artillery to force them to give up Wangjiazhai, and then force them to retreat step by step, slowly drive them out of Wuniu Mountain, and when the grain road is cleared, we will confront them in Jing County again, and when the lord's army comes, the Tartars will have to retreat if they don't want to retreat!" ”

He turned to face this Cui Weiya, "Ben will be a rough man, he hasn't read any books, when he was in the Qing army, General Tuhai once told me, 'Those who make good use of soldiers have no great achievements', this is very reasonable, so Ben will always keep it in mind," he looked at Cui Weiya and said meaningfully, "Cui Juncheng should also remember!" ”

Cui Weiya was startled, and hurriedly bowed down and said, "General Xie teaches a lesson, remember your humble duties!" He raised his head, with a smile on his face, and was about to say a few words of compliment, when suddenly the horse's hooves sounded sharply at the bottom of the mountain, and several loud voices shouted to give way, and he couldn't help but look back in astonishment, only to see a group of cavalry dressed in the uniform of the guards, rushing from the rear.

"Where are General Kou Bei Zhonglang and General Zhao Liangdong?! ——"The officer of the Guards led by him shouted all the way, running straight towards the mountain, and Zhao Liangdong's personal guards on the side did not dare to stop him, and the officer drank the war horse from a hundred steps away, rushed over, and fell to the ground, "I have seen General Zhao in my humble position!" ......" Yan reached into his arms, took out a small bag of oilcloth, presented it above his head, and reported loudly, "King Han's confidential military report, begging the general to check it!" ”

Zhao Liangdong took the oilcloth package, ordered the messenger to get up, and said with a smile, "The envoy please get up—come and prepare a meal for the envoy!" ”

Waiting for the reporting officer to go down the mountain, Zhao Liangdong turned around, unwrapped the package with the wind, the mountain breeze was cold, the oilcloth bag had not been away for a long time, still with the sweat, and the hand was warm, the officer was fast all the way, and the sweat on his body soaked the oilcloth half-wet, Zhao Liangdong slowly opened it, but it was just a short note:

Brother Liangdong:

There have been changes in Horqin, the army has been slowed down, and the Shanxi generals are self-dictated and cautious.

The place of payment is the initials of the King of Han and the seal of the king, and there is a line of vermilion lacquer on the outer cover of the letterhead, "100,000 urgent, the Guards, the Fifth Army, and the Ordnance and Grain Statistics Yamen Civil and Military Attaché Zuo and Ben." ”

No reinforcements?! Zhao Liangdong's heart sank suddenly, his face was as cold as ice, his back to everyone was silent for a long time, and the officers behind him looked at each other, but they didn't know what was going on.

After hesitating for a long time, Zhao Liangdong suddenly turned around, his face was full of anger, he waved his hand to the officers, and said sharply, "Everyone, this general will only be able to take over the lord's order-" He glared, slowly swept over the faces of the officers, and said angrily, "The lord asked why the Fifth Army has not been able to consolidate Jing County for a long time, and why the lords of the Fifth Army have been unable to repel the Zhun Geer East Route Army for a long time?!" ”

Cui Weiya and the others were startled, hurriedly knelt on the ground, and said in unison, "I am incompetent and incompetent, and I have the trust of the lord!" - Please punish the sin! ”

"It's also X hairy ......" Zhao Liangdong's face turned red, he was furious, and spit out a series of foul language, scolding his subordinates so much that they couldn't raise their heads, "Now Zhao Guangyuan has come over with his first army, and it is only a hundred miles away from here...... Bah!! I fuck my mother's ancestors......"

Cui Weiya and the others crouched on the ground, exchanging glances left and right, and then they understood, it turned out that the lord could not believe in the combat power of the Fifth Army, and the Mongolian general Zhao Guangyuan was coming over with a large team of men and horses to grab the merit, Zhao Liangdong had worked hard to find an opportunity to fight with the Tartar soldiers in the past few months, ready to turn over and return to the basics, but he didn't expect that the old hen would become a duck in a blink of an eye, and all made wedding dresses for others, no wonder he was so angry.

"Cui Juncheng, do the math, when will Zhao Guangyuan arrive at Wangjiazhai?!" Zhao Liangdong said angrily.

Cui Weiya silently calculated, bowed his head and reported, "General Hui, if there is no difference on the road, the iron cavalry of the First Army will be able to rush to the battlefield tomorrow morning at most!" ”

"Want to pick peaches?! Not so cheap!! Zhao Liangdong snorted and said loudly, "Pass on my general's order, all departments immediately speed up and gather men and horses in Shantou in front of Wangjiazhai - the army rested for an hour, slaughtered all the cattle and sheep with the army, one pound of meat and two taels of wine per person, and immediately attacked with all their strength after eating!" ”

With a "......" sound, he violently pulled out his long knife and cut the small tree in front of him in two, "Everyone, the reinforcements will arrive soon, the Tartars' death is coming, let's show the fifth army to the big guys, don't let the brothers of the first army see the jokes," he said viciously, "In today's battle, Xu Jin is not allowed to retreat, where the Tartars flee, we will chase them wherever they go, the Tartar army is from the eight thorns below, whether it is officers and soldiers or horsemen, not allowed to get away with a !! ”