The strength of Longshui Town was only 3,000, and all of them were defeated troops in Changzhou.

The forbidden army was built by the empress, not only ordinary foot soldiers, but also heavy pawns, light and heavy cavalry, and archers.

The heavy cavalry is a heavy cavalry of the sky, with a total of 50,000 troops, which was not placed on the western front, but fortified in Shouzhou for a generation, beware of the Huya Tieben of the Zhenbei Army from going south. The light cavalry is the phoenix wing light cavalry, a total of 80,000 troops, currently scattered all over the western front, in fact, with the terrain of Shuzhong, the role of the phoenix wing light cavalry has also been weakened a lot.

The Heavy Pawn of the Forbidden Army is nameless......

It's not that it doesn't really have a name, it's just that this heavyweight has never appeared on the battlefield.

Kaifeng and Jinguancheng both knew that the forbidden army had such a heavy pawn army, but they didn't know what the name of this heavy pawn army was, they didn't know how many people there were, and they didn't know where this heavy pawn army was placed by the empress.

Regarding the number of infantry soldiers of the forbidden army, Kaifeng Zhao Zhen, Wang Kun and Jinguancheng Zhao Changyi have all been in Lin'an, and have contacted the household department through their own connections, and according to the household department's appropriation, it is estimated that the infantry strength should be about 300,000.

There are three major armies, which were given the names Tiance, Taiping, and Fuyao by the empress respectively.

If you delve into these three names, you will find the deep meaning of the name given by the empress, the heavens set the country, the world is too stable and prosperous, and you can see the world...... The heart of the empress is all in these three names.

As for the specific strength of these foot soldiers of the forbidden army, no one knows except for the empress, the minister of the Privy Council, and the secretary of the military department.

And the 3,000 defeated soldiers in Longshui Town belong to the Tiance Army.

Walking into the barracks, I was greeted by the negative emotions of the defeated soldiers, frustration, sadness, decadence, and worry...... Li Ruyu even saw fear in some of the younger soldiers.

Fear of the Western Army.

These 3,000 defeated soldiers are almost completely out of combat power.

Li Ruyu was deeply worried.

Even if Qin Yujing, the defender of Bishan, divides his troops to come to support, these 3,000 defeated soldiers will probably only lag behind, but will affect the morale of the reinforcements, and they must revive the morale of the defeated soldiers in Longshui Town before the reinforcements arrive.

After dinner, Li Ruyu didn't care about resting, called Xiahou Chi and Hua Xiaodao together, and invited the only three remaining generals to come over, but only two generals came, and one general didn't know why he didn't appear.

Six people gathered at the general barracks to discuss their next plans.

Li Ruyu was the first to attack: "Did the scout release it?" ”

Xiahou Chi's face turned red, the previous Changzhou city was broken because he suffered the loss of not letting go of scouts, otherwise he found Li Pingyang's army earlier, even if he couldn't hold it, he wouldn't have been defeated so neatly.

Hua Xiaodao replied first: "I have organized two hundred of the most elite soldiers to serve as scouts, and they are currently roaming in the area between Changzhou and Longshui Town, and news has returned. ”

Li Ruyu nodded, "What's the news?" ”

Hua Xiaodao looked at Xiahou Chi, after all, he was a deputy general, and he still had to respect the general.

Xiahou didn't care much and said, just say it.

Hua Xiaodao then said: "Longshui Town is located between Changzhou City and Bishan County, Li Pingyang wants to take Bishan, there are two ways, one is to choose to climb over Niutou Mountain, but time is not in her favor, and the other is to cross the Shiting River and go straight to Longshui Town, and then go straight to Bishan. ”

"In the past two days, the scouts in Changzhou City have been dispatched very frequently, and I think Li Pingyang will send troops in these two days, according to the focused analysis of the location of the scouts, I estimate that Li Pingyang will choose to cross the Shiting River and run to Longshui Town."

Li Ruyu's heart moved: "How is the situation in Shiting River?" ”

A subordinate general next to him immediately said: "When we retreated to Longshui Town, we also crossed the Shiting River, saying that it was a river, in fact, it was more like a small stream, all of which were pebble at the bottom of the river, about thirty meters wide, and the depth of the water was several meters, but the shallow part of the water was only thighs, and the army did not need any tools to cross the river, and it could not be used as a barrier at all." ”

Li Ruyu was a little helpless, "That is, from Changzhou to Longshui Town, and even to Bishan County, there is actually no danger to defend?" ”

Shuzhong is mountainous.

However, the mountains are not high, and the Great Liang has been committed to building official roads, which makes the traffic more convenient, and the so-called one-man pass is very rare.

Xiahou sighed, "That's true. ”

Li Ruyu looked at Hua Xiaodao again: "When will Li Pingyang send troops?" ”

Hua Xiaodao spread his hands, "I don't know this." ”

Li Ruyu was silent for a while, remembering the words of the former Junziqi of Longshui Town, and couldn't help but feel a touch of admiration for this guy with a strange person, Junziqi had long expected the predicament of Longshui Town.

Zeng said that the biggest turning point in Longshui Town was how to take advantage of the shame of defeat.

So he said softly: "Lao Xia, Hua Xiaodao, and your two generals, the defeat of Changzhou, not the disadvantage of the soldiers, it is actually caused by your carelessness to underestimate the enemy, and it is inevitable that you will be held accountable by the Privy Council in the future. ”

Xiahou Chi was gloomy.

I didn't care about the details of whether his surname was Xiahou or not.

Hua Xiaodao was relatively calm, he knew that there was still a chance to atone for his crimes, and the same was true for the two generals, but he didn't have much confidence in his heart, Li Pingyang's battle made everyone's hearts have a shadow.

Li Ruyu continued: "Therefore, if you want to live, you can only atone for your sins, and now the opportunity is right in front of you. ”

Xiahou was surprised, "What chance?" ”

Li Ruyu smiled, "Zhao Changyi's battle on the side of Yuzhou has played with attack instead of defense, and the Junzi Banner has given Li Su such a hand in Yongchuan, so the defeated troops in Longshui Town can also follow suit." ”

Hua Xiaodao's face shook up: "You mean ......"

A subordinate general immediately came to his senses: "Li Pingyang knew that we had just been defeated and retreated to defend Longshui Town, and our troops were greatly damaged, and I would never have imagined that we would take the initiative to attack, and she was also in a hurry to go south to take Bishan County and then force to Yuzhou City. ”

Li Ruyu nodded, "That's what Junzi Qi means." ”

Another general was a little puzzled, "But Vice General Li, you have also seen it, our group of soldiers is scattered, and in such a situation, we can have a few percent of the combat strength, but I am afraid that it will be a situation of death." ”

Li Ruyu smiled, "It's okay, everyone should work hard to stabilize the morale of the army." ”

Xiahou Chi was still worried: "But we only have 3,000 defeated soldiers, Li Pingyang has 20,000 troops, although there are battle losses after attacking Changzhou City, but there should be at least 178,000 troops, 3,000 strikes and 178,000, there is no chance of victory." ”

Li Ruyu took a deep breath, "This situation will not occur. ”

Junziqi said that if Li Pingyang turned over Niutou Mountain to take Bishan, then the 3,000 defeated soldiers in Longshui Town could harass near Niutou Mountain, after all, where there are mountains, Li Pingyang's light cavalry could not exert mobility.

If Li Pingyang went straight to Longshui Town, these 3,000 defeated soldiers could only choose to wait for reinforcements to come and the other party would be hard shocked.

But Li Ruyu didn't plan to do this.

Li Ruyu, who has read the military books over the years, has a bold idea in his heart - if this plan is successful, if the reinforcements sent by Qin Yujing are smart enough, his plan is enough to put Li Pingyang in a desperate situation.

Xiahou Chi and Hua Xiaodao glanced at each other, and the two of them directly ignored the two generals, and then they both saw the intention in each other's eyes.

So they said in unison: "I want to listen to the dispatch!" ”

Li Ruyu smiled.

The two generals looked puzzled, but they suddenly ...... As the low-level generals of the Tiance Army, how could they not know the various stories of the Empress's Sword, and even more so that the old pawns who went south before Guanyucheng were actually the joint handiwork of Li Ruyu and Junziqi.

Xiahou Chi and Hua Xiaodao boasted about it.

Of course, when they boasted about this incident, the protagonists were basically how the two of them bravely broke the enemy army all the way, scared the military general surnamed Huo in Jinzhou to sacrifice the city, and scared the Xuzhou defender Hao Zhao to avoid the battle......

That night, Xiahou Chi and the other four people acted separately to visit the wounded soldiers to boost the morale of the army and prepare for the upcoming dispatch.

Li Ruyu had nothing to do, so he patrolled the barracks at night.

……

……

Bonfire crackling.

Countless soldiers rested in their tents or by the campfires.

The negative emotions of the defeat in Changju enveloped the entire military camp.

In a quiet corner, there was a young man with his legs crossed, a grass in his mouth, chewing for a while, looking up at the starry sky, and there was no trace of frustration in him.

His name is Xu Xiao.

Xu Xiao is twenty-three this year, out of the Han family, his parents died early, he has left his homeland over the years, suffered countless hardships and countless crimes, and finally mixed up with a low-level official position as a general in the Tiance Army, and never thought of a big defeat.

But Xu Xiao is not worried about the future.

He always felt that the rebellion in Shuzhong and the north would be pacified sooner or later, and there would be a greater prosperity at that time, and he always felt that he was the hero who pacified one of the forces, and if he could, he was willing to pacify the rebellion in the north.

Kill Zhao Zhen and punish Wang Kun.

Xu Xiao wants to be a hero.

He had been preparing for that moment for many years, and to this day, he remembers that event.

At the age of sixteen, Xu Xiao went to the Zhenbei Army to join the army.

failed to get his wish, and when he left, he met a middle-aged man dressed in black, who seemed to be a rich man, but there was no entourage around him, and he seemed to have just come out of the Zhenbei military camp, and it was estimated that he was a person from the Kaifeng government.

The middle-aged man in black talked to Xu Xiao very casually.

After knowing that Xu Xiao wanted to join the Zhenbei Army, the middle-aged man smiled and asked Xu Xiao why he wanted to join the army.

Xu Xiao thought for a long time before he said, the Daliang army should not only have Yue Pingchuan and Di Xianggong, but also have a place for me Xu Xiao!

The middle-aged man in black sighed, "You envy those two?" ”

Xu Xiao shook his head, "Don't envy, what they can do, I Xu Xiao can also do." ”

The middle-aged man in black chuckled, as if he saw himself when he was young, and said happily: "Then can you bear the heavy pressure they are bearing, not to mention Di Xianggong, just say that Yue Pingchuan, who is sitting in Kaifeng, and the north rejects the Northern Barbarians, I am deeply afraid that one day the Northern Barbarians will ride through the sixteen states of Yanyun to confuse the Great Liang River, look at Lin'an in the south, and be afraid of being jealous of the empress, so that the Yue family will follow in the footsteps of the Han family." ”

Xu Xiao was silent for a while before he said: "If you want to wear a crown, you must bear its weight." ”

The middle-aged man in black said meaningfully, and walked more than ten meters before turning around and saying: "There is something I still want to say to you, of course, just listen to it, after saying goodbye today, forget it." ”

The middle-aged man in black said that the king of troubled times is easy to get, but it is difficult to be a minister in prosperous times. You only see their glory in the high places, but you cannot understand the cold in the high places.

Xu Xiao didn't understand at the time.

It wasn't until many years later that Xu Xiao, who was a soldier in the Tiance Army, heard that the prince of the Yue family led a gale to the south and finally died in Xizhao Mountain, that he really understood that sentence.

But Xu Xiao still yearns for the cold in the high places.

It's just that countless times, Xu Xiao will think of the back of the middle-aged man in black when he left.

There is loneliness.

But the body is straight, like a spear, supporting the heaven and earth in the north.

Xu Xiao knew who he was.

The cuffs of the black clothes, the embroidered python, the teeth are flying!

The king of the north of Daliang Town, Yue Pingchuan.

Thinking of this, Xu Xiao shook his head and sighed and said, It's a pity that you are dead, no matter how much I do, you can't see it, even if I eventually become a person like you, and then laughed at himself and said that if you don't die, how can the Zhenbei Army be cold.

It's a pity......

A voice suddenly came from behind him, "Have you seen Yue Pingchuan?" ”

Xu Xiao turned around and saw a young man in a dirty white robe...... Well, he should be considered a young man, standing behind him, with a sword at his waist, looking at himself indifferently.

Xu Xiao smiled, "I've seen it." ”

After a pause, he said with a serious face: "It's Lord Yue." ”

Li Ruyu sat down next to Xu Xiao and said softly, "I've seen it too." ”

Xu Xiao stared at Li Ruyu and continued to look up at the starry sky, "I know you have seen the battle of Xizhao Mountain, and you also took his spear, it can also be said that the death of Prince Yue, your sword was also stained with blood." ”

Li Ruyu was surprised, "You know me? ”

Xu Xiao laughed, "In the evening, someone entered the camp and said that it was the deputy general of the Cloud Piercing Army. ”

Li Ruyu nodded, "It's me." ”

Xu Xiao sighed, "If you want to boost the morale of the army, and then take the initiative to send troops tomorrow and tomorrow, then you may be wrong, these three thousand defeated soldiers have already been killed by Li Pingyang, Xiahou Chi and Hua Xiaodao, they don't have that ability." ”

Li Ruyu was surprised again, he even saw that he had taken the initiative to attack?

Became interested in this person, "How do you know I want to take the initiative?" ”

Xu Xiao sighed and didn't explain.

They are all smart people, isn't it a waste of time to say these things?

Li Ruyu was silent for a while, "Yue Pingchuan has never lost a battle in his life. ”

Xu Xiao nodded, "I know." ”

So from this point of view, I, Xu Xiao, is not as good as Yue Wangye, after all, Changzhou City was defeated, although I am only a general, but in my military career, this is an indelible stain.

Li Ruyu continued: "You can erase this stain. ”

Xu Xiao sighed noncommittal.

Li Ruyu stopped talking, just sat with Xu Xiao, looking at the starry sky side by side, time passed minute by minute, the camp gradually quieted, and many soldiers had returned to the camp to rest.

Xu Xiao suddenly asked, as if he was asking Li Ruyu, and as if he was asking himself, "If Lord Yue is in Longshui Town, what will he do?" ”

Li Ruyu knew that this was a question that didn't need to be answered, and got up with a smile, "What's your name?" ”

"Xu Xiao."

"General Xu Xiao?"

"Hmm."

"Give you a thousand soldiers and horses, can you revive the morale of the army?"

"A thousand is too little."

"It's only three thousand, how much more do you want."

"The more the merrier."

Li Ruyu was speechless, and then unconsciously said that there would be a day.