Outside Liucheng, 300,000 troops set up camp.

The white barracks stretched for dozens of miles on the plains of the valley outside the city like a winding dragon.

Liucheng is located near the border between the Tang Dynasty and Goguryeo, and it is already the real front line of the war between the two countries. After the army set up camp, the atmosphere suddenly became different.

Groups of scouts were sent out to camp, they crossed the Liao River, and silently blended into the territory of Goguryeo, Li Ji, Cheng Yanjin and other generals stayed in Li Shimin's tent day and night, and a group of people gathered together to discuss the matter of sending troops day and night.

Even Chang Tu's performance was unusual, Li Su personally saw some people wearing the costumes of ordinary people in Goryeo haunt the Chinese army camp, Chang Tu talked with them secretly for a long time, and then this group of seemingly ordinary people quietly left the camp and disappeared.

The atmosphere in the camp also became tense in vain, the soldiers were less cheerful and laughing during the march, many people stayed in the barracks silently, constantly wiping the swords and halberds in their hands, and the sound of Huo Huo's knife sharpening came from every barracks, and there was no movement other than that, and the solemn atmosphere was filled with an indescribable aura of slaughter, which made people feel extremely depressed and uncomfortable.

Li Su also tried his best to stay in his barracks and not go out, although the barracks were boring and boring, but the atmosphere outside was even more uncomfortable, Li Su was actually a person who hated war in his bones, not only disgusted with the severed limbs and terrible screams on the battlefield, but also disgusted with the suffocating and depressing atmosphere before the war, which made people unhappy.

…………

On the eve of the war, Fang Lao Wu was secretly instructed by Li Su to supervise Gao Suhui more tightly, but Gao Suhui has been very calm these days, she seems to have forgotten her identity as a Korean, forgetting that her country is about to face a blow from the most powerful empire in the world, she seems to have gradually adapted to the role of a maid, every day without waiting for Li Su's instructions, Li Su needs whatever she can do to serve him as well as she can, making Li Su feel extremely comfortable.

A very smart woman, I am sure that she should not have been exposed to this kind of subordinate work when she was in Goryeo, but she did it very well.

Except for not warming Li Su's bed, the others have done well enough. Li Su sometimes even has a wonderful illusion of stretching out his hand for food at home, if ...... How good it would be that this woman didn't have a ghost in her heart.

On the third day of camping outside Liucheng, news came from the front army.

A group of ten scouts and the scouts of the Goryeo army encountered each other on the east bank of the Liao River, and the two sides fought fiercely, each suffering casualties.

The living people desperately brought back the news, Goguryeo Mo left the Zhiquan Gai Suwen to send 50,000 troops, Chen soldiers on the banks of the Liao River, swords out of the sheath and arrows on the wind, waiting for the Tang army, obviously there is no sign of compromise and peace, this war can no longer be avoided.

Li Shimin immediately convened the generals to discuss, there is no way out for both sides in this battle, and they must fight!

The situation is a little tricky, although the enemy army is only 50,000 soldiers and horses, but they occupy a geographical advantage, waiting for work on the east bank of the Liao River, if the Tang army wants to conquer Goguryeo, it must first cross the Liao River, and the Goryeo army on the bank of the Liao River sharpens its knives Huohuo, waiting for the Tang army to cross the river and attack, if it crosses in a hurry, the Tang army will inevitably suffer heavy losses.

After deliberating until midnight, the monarch finally came up with a resolution.

Niu Jinda led a forward army of 50,000 people to go around to the upper reaches of the Liao River, crossed the river before the enemy had time to react, and then rushed to the lower reaches of the Liao River overnight, and took the lead in attacking the Goryeo enemy.

As soon as the discussion was decided, Niu Jinda immediately ordered 50,000 soldiers and horses to leave the camp and quietly and silently marched towards the upper reaches of the Liao River.

There was still a depressing silence in the camp, and in the second half of the night, the shouts of the generals suddenly came from the camp, and the 250,000 soldiers and horses left in the camp were all ready to go.

Li Su, who was sleeping soundly in the camp of the Chinese army, was also woken up, got up and put on his clothes and came out, and saw the figures in the camp, people roaring and neighing, and a group of soldiers wearing and holding spears rumbled in front of him in a neat procession.

Li Su squatted outside the barracks door, and the chatting voices of the soldiers were in high spirits.

"We are the first batch to cross the Liao River, the fire chief said, as long as we can cross it, and then immediately line up on the east bank of the Liao River, and withstand the Goryeo army's half-burnt incense hour, we are the first merit, after the brothers go back, each of them can be divided into ten acres of Yongye field, as well as two rewards, and three years of tax exemption......"

"How long is the half-burnt incense?"

"I don't know, it's very short anyway, just a moment of effort."

"What about after half a burnt incense? Who's going to help us top? ”

"Listen to the fire chief, we are the first batch, the second batch to cross the river after half a burnt incense is the Modao battalion of the former army, as long as the Modao battalion crosses the river and lines up on the east bank, even Da Luo Jinxian will not be able to cross the Modao array, and Zhun Bao will be stirred into a pulp, and this battle will be nine out of ten."

"Good thing! We must fight hard this time! Desperately crossing the river, desperately guarding the east bank, half a stick of incense, a few breaths of effort, our Tang Dynasty is invincible in the world, the top Goryeo army half burnt incense is not a problem, Yongye Tian and the reward Lao Tzu have decided! ”

"Haha, I heard that your family told you a rice fat aunt, can't you wait? Make a good contribution, go back to Houtian, have money, keep your aunt to live a good life, and have another baby in the coming year, all of you! ”

"Yes, it's worth it, it's done!"

The more he talked, the more excited he became, and in a few words of dialogue, hope and determination filled the hearts of every soldier, and turned into endless fighting spirit.

Li Su watched these fresh and bloody men pass by proudly, and his eyes flashed with a complex and incomprehensible light.

What awaits them is the incomparably glorious feats of war, or the desolation and tragedy of the horse leather shroud that died in battle?

Li Su suddenly wanted to do something for this group of cute and simple men, a little bit is good.

The soldiers walked over with a smile and a smile, but Li Su fell into a long silence.

After a long time, Li Su raised his head and looked at Fang Lao Wu on the side, and said, "Fifth Uncle, you have experienced a lot of battle formations, and you can be regarded as a veteran of the rest of a hundred battles, can you tell me that this battle tonight is reliable?" ”

Fang Lao Wu scratched his head and said with a smile: "I have fought for half my life, at most I am just a fire chief, whether to fight or not, how to fight, it all depends on Shangguan, grandpa, this matter is not for a villain." ”

"Just talk about it, if you say it wrong, you won't be punished, just tell me how you feel, Uncle Niu led the army to cross the river upstream, and then raided the east bank, our battalion will send troops to cross the river again, can we take care of the 50,000 Goryeo army?"

Fang Lao Wu hesitated for a moment, and said with a wry smile: "It's not good to say, the villain doesn't think it's very safe in this matter, General Niu led 50,000 horses to make a detour, it can't be unaware, right?" The two countries are at war, and I don't know how many Goryeo spies are ambushed outside near our big camp, and once there is any wind and grass in the big camp, the Goryeo army on the other side will soon get the news, not to mention that 50,000 horses and horses are mobilized out of the camp Such a big movement, General Niu intends to surprise them by surprise, I'm afraid it will be difficult to ......."

Li Su looked at the soldiers coming and going in the camp in a daze, and muttered: "Obviously it can't achieve the effect of a surprise attack, why does Your Majesty still send Uncle Niu to raid?" ”

Fang Lao Wu hesitated for a moment, and said: "Grandpa, it's not that Your Majesty deliberately made a mistake, there is no other way to do this matter, the Liao River always has to be crossed, the enemy army is ready on the other side, unless we immediately truce and retreat, otherwise no matter how many soldiers Chen on the other side, no matter how much sacrifice is paid, this Liao River must be crossed, the two armies have never been fair to the sword, this time we are inferior to the best, it is a real battle, and we have to." ”

Li Su understood.

He is also a person who has experienced war, he knows that there are not so many wits in war, and there are not no examples of outnumbered battles in history, but there are very few, and most of the time it is a cruel picture of two armies exchanging their lives with a knife and a gun.

After Fang Lao Wu finished speaking, Li Su didn't speak anymore, squatted at the door of the barracks and was silent for a long time, then got up and walked into the barracks silently.

There was a low table in the barracks, on which a parchment map was quietly spread out, indicating the cities, roads and mountains on both sides of the Liao River.

Li Su stared at the map, twisting his eyebrows for a long time, his fingers kept drawing back and forth on the map.

Fang Lao Wu had been quietly staying behind Li Su, looking at Li Su's anxious and contemplative look, Fang Lao Wu's lips pursed a few times, and he didn't dare to disturb Li Su's thoughts, until Li Su's eyes suddenly moved away from the map, and then sighed gloomily, Fang Lao Wu said: "Grandpa, you have done your best, there is no other shortcut to this battle, the river crossing array has been like this since ancient times, all the way to the other bank bloody killing, gritting teeth and arrays to occupy every inch of land, waiting for reinforcements, there is no other way except to fight for your life." ”

Li Su smiled bitterly: "I thought I was smarter than the ancients, and I was able to come up with a shortcut, but I thought too highly of myself......"

Fang Lao Wu said with a smile: "Don't look high, in the villain's heart, the grandfather is the smartest person in the world, really, the villain has never seen anyone smarter than the grandfather, including those princes and ministers in the court, they are not as good as you." ”

Li Suyi said excitedly: "Don't say anything smart, if I am really smart, I can immediately come up with a way to make countless Guanzhong disciples not have to work hard......"

Fang Lao Wu said with a smile: "There is already a better way, grandpa, the earth-shaking thunder you created is a good thing, it must be a sharp weapon to cross the river, you think, all the troops are sent together, half-crossing, rows of earth-shaking thunder are overwhelmingly thrown towards the opposite bank, the Goryeo army has never seen your earth-shaking thunder, the first few rounds will inevitably blow up their father and mother, the enemy army will inevitably be in chaos, our army takes this opportunity to cross over, while crossing the river while throwing the earth-shaking thunder, just wait for our army to board the opposite bank, to ensure that there is no one within a radius of ten miles, grandfather, please relax, This crossing of the river will not cost many of our men and horses, and our whole army must remember your great kindness. ”

Li Su thought about it and reluctantly laughed twice.

Well, the earth-shaking thunder is indeed a good thing, if it is used when crossing the river, it can reduce many casualties to some extent, and I can be regarded as having an explanation for the soldiers.

In a slightly better mood, Li Su patted Fang Lao Wu's shoulder and said with a smile: "Fifth Uncle is quite good at comforting people, yes, the two armies will always die when they fight, so it's better for us to die less." ”

*****************************************************************

In the middle of the night, only a small number of troops remained in the camp, and the rest gathered on the west bank of the Liao River, quietly waiting for the signal of Niu Jinda to raid the Goryeo camp.

The weather is getting colder and colder, Li Su rode a horse, quietly parked in the crowd of civilian officials not far from Li Shimin, he is a casual rider, it stands to reason that he should be by Li Shimin's side at this moment, and his status as a county official is enough to accompany him, but Li Su is hiding far away, willing to hide in the civilian crowd, rather than join in the fun around Li Shimin, in the final analysis, Li Su is still a little resentful of Li Shimin, complaining that he did not adopt his own suggestions.

The 250,000-strong army lined up one phalanx after another on the plain on the west bank of the Liao River, and it looked dense and palpitating from a distance, shocking the heart.

The cold wind blew through at night, and Li Su couldn't help but shiver.

He was wrapped in a black bear skin and wrapped tightly, but Li Su still felt cold, looked up at the starry sky at night, and silently counted the hours, and then, Li Su suddenly felt a little anxious.

The agreed hour had long passed, and the Goryeo army camp on the other side was still calm, and Niu Jinda's headquarters obviously did not launch a surprise attack on time, and I don't know what was delayed on the way.

Compared with Li Su's anxiety, Li Shimin not far away was more irritable, and the green horse under his crotch seemed to feel Li Shimin's irritable mood, and the horse kept digging its hooves on the spot, shaking its head and snorting from time to time.

As time passed, Li Shimin's brows furrowed deeper and deeper, and finally he couldn't help but say, "What's the matter with Niu Jinda?" Why didn't the raid go as promised? He's delaying the fighter! ”

The tone that suppressed his anger made the generals around him froze.

Li Ji, as the coach, naturally had to be the first to reply, so he had to say: "Your Majesty, don't be impatient, I'm afraid that Lao Niu has encountered unpredictable things, and maybe there will be enemy troops in the upper reaches of the Liao River to intercept ......."

Li Shimin said coldly: "Even if the enemy army intercepts it, can't 50,000 horses break through their defense line?" If it continues like this, the sky will soon dawn, and once dawn, all our actions will be under the noses of the other party, and the battle to cross the river will be lost! ”

Li Ji's mood was also very worried, but when he heard this, he had to comfort: "Your Majesty is relieved, Lao Niu can be trusted, and the minister thinks that he should launch a surprise attack soon......"

The two whispered to each other, and suddenly there was a chaotic sound of horses' hooves, and soon, a scout knelt down on one knee in front of Li Shimin, and said: "Your Majesty, on the east bank of the Liao River, the east bank of the Liao River is coming to report quickly, General Niu's department was intercepted by the enemy when crossing the river upstream, and the opponent has about 10,000 men and horses, and General Niu ordered to forcibly cross the river, and the department suffered more than 2,000 casualties before crossing the river. ”

Li Shimin's face softened slightly, and he waved his hand to order the scout to retreat, and there was a trace of blood on his face.

"Lao Niu is indeed a good general, there are only 2,000 casualties when he forcibly crosses the river, it's hard for him!" Li Shimin stroked his beard and said slowly.

Li Ji said: "Your Majesty, we should prepare." ”

Li Shimin nodded, Li Ji turned his head and waved to the herald behind him, the herald got the order, and the fast horse galloped towards the large army array, with a low roar, there was a small commotion in the large army array, and then there was a low boom, and the whole army entered a state of combat readiness.

Li Su, who was not far away, also suddenly became nervous, and the familiar feeling of facing thousands of troops and horses in Xizhou City quietly surfaced in his heart, Li Su exhaled deeply, and forced himself to suppress the suffocating feeling deposited in his heart.

War is just around the corner, who can be calm? Experiencing it does not mean that he is not afraid, no matter how many times he experiences this kind of thing, Li Su cannot eliminate the fear in his heart, the difference is that he can withstand the weight of this kind of heart and not make it float.

Fang Lao Wu on the side seemed to see Li Su's uneasiness, so he stepped forward and said softly: "Although Grandpa can rest assured, the villain and the brothers swear to protect Grandpa to the death, not to mention that Grandpa is a noble figure, Your Majesty will never let Grandpa charge into battle, the villain estimates that it should be the army that will occupy the opposite bank and break through the Goryeo army camp, and Grandpa and these civil officials will finally cross the river." ”

Li Su nodded, the gentleman did not stand under the dangerous wall, he never thought of charging into battle, there was no way to grit his teeth in Xizhou back then, this time there were 300,000 troops in front of him, and no one could take his turn to charge into battle.

Thinking about it, Li Su couldn't help but turn his head and look at his more than 100 subordinates.

The tribesmen were dressed in armor and helmets, their swords unsheathed, and a chilling murderous aura permeated their surroundings, and Li Su even smelled a rusty and unpleasant smell of death.

As soon as his scalp was numb, Li Su felt a layer of cold sweat break out on his back.

This...... Is that the true face of the man who survived a hundred battles? On weekdays, they are not in shape in front of them, but once they encounter a real battle formation, they show their hideous fangs and turn into hungry beasts, waiting to be devoured at any time.

As if sensing Li Su's inspecting gaze, the subordinates looked at him, and then saluted him with their swords in unison, although they did not say a word, Li Su could feel their determination and ability to defend themselves to the death.

What a group of brave men!

Li Su suddenly felt that it was the greatest luck in his life to be able to harvest this group of veterans of a hundred battles, and at this moment, a strong sense of security arose spontaneously from the bottom of his heart.

They are a group of people who can trust their lives.

…………

Time passed slowly, and half an hour later, there was a faint shout of killing on the other side.

Soon, the camp of the Goryeo army on the opposite bank burst into flames, and the shouts of killing became more and more intense.

Li Shimin, Li Ji and other generals suddenly perked up, and an excited light gradually rose from the depths of their eyes, reflecting the blazing fire on the opposite bank.

Without waiting for Li Shimin's order, Li Ji immediately turned around and shouted: "All the soldiers listen to the order!" ”

Rumble!

The soldiers in the large army array put their legs together, and the armor and iron blades collided with each other, making a loud noise.

Li Ji's eyes flashed with murderous intent, he drew his sword and pointed obliquely at the sky, and shouted: "First batch, prepare to cross the river!" ”

In the phalanx army, a group of soldiers wearing cloth clothes and not iron armor came out of the ranks, ran quickly to the Liao River, then bit the sword in their hands, jumped into the icy river with a thud, and began to swim towards the opposite bank.

It is winter, the Liao River enters the dry season, the water is not deep, the deepest is only up to the neck of a person, this is also the only good news in a series of bad news, do not need to go through the trouble of cutting wood to build a raft to cross the river, directly from the water to walk through.