Chapter 415: Liaoshui Cross Road

One day, the scouts were hiding in a tree in camouflage nets, watching the movement of the Goryeo military camp from afar. Suddenly, they found a group of Goryeo civilians with shovels, hoes and other agricultural tools in their hands, driven back to the camp from the outside by the Goryeo soldiers. Looking at the number of civilians, I'm afraid there are five or six hundred!

The scouts with the farm tools they held in their hands were puzzled and puzzled. What can these farming tools do?

Although I don't understand, the scout won't run to grab a civilian and ask. Finding people in a large camp of tens of thousands of people and then taking them away silently is too difficult to complete.

The next day, the civilians were again driven out of the camp and went in the other direction with their farm tools.

Seeing that the opportunity could not be missed, the scout hurriedly sent a few men to follow him.

When the scouts followed these Goryeo civilians all the way to their destination, they couldn't help but be surprised.

On the edge of a small river, about two feet wide, a dam made of wooden piles and earth took shape. On the edge of the river, more than 700 civilians are working to build a dam. And these five or six hundred new arrivals were also driven by the soldiers to join the ranks of labor.

Several scouts glanced at each other, but quietly backed away, sneaking down the river.

After walking for four or five miles, I saw the end of this small river, but it merged into the water.

Although there is a plain near this Liaoshui, there are still many small rivers and streams that directly or indirectly flow into the Liaoshui River to the east of the Liaoshui. Now that it is rainy in early summer, the water level of these small rivers and streams has also skyrocketed, but compared with Liaoshui, it is a big deal. Therefore, the Goryeo army was able to dam the river to store the river's water.

When the Tang army crosses the river, the dam will be broken and the water will be released, and a large man-made flood peak will be formed.

Having seen what the Goryeo Army was doing, the scouts knew that the matter was important and needed to be reported quickly. However, the current of Liaoshui is still very fast, and it cannot pass for the time being.

After several days of incubation, the water level of Liaoshui finally returned to normal. Taking advantage of the darkness of the night, the scouts still crossed the river. The reconnaissance of this river crossing was ended.

Back in the barracks. When Zhang Jian saw that everyone was coming back, he was about to impose military law on them for violating military orders, and reprimanded them with a heavy rod so that they could remember for a long time, but the scouts took out the results of their reconnaissance on the east bank of Liaoshui. This frees the flesh from suffering.

In fact, Zhang Jian was reluctant to scold these scouts, after all, they were all elites, and some of the scouts were temporarily transferred from Youzhou, and Zhang Jian also wanted to give Youzhou a face. Now, these scouts have taken out reconnaissance information, and they have also found Zhang Jian under the steps.

However, when Zhang Jian saw what was said in this information, his face couldn't help but change, and he hurriedly added the reconnaissance information to the military report and sent it to Li Ji.

Although a military newspaper was issued, Zhang Jian did not forget his mission, which was to launch a tentative attack to understand the combat strength of the Goryeo soldiers.

So, after preparing a large number of boats and shields, Zhang Jian began the first battle of crossing the river.

Under the cover of a large shield as tall as a man, the iron-clad soldiers rode their boats to the other side of the Liao River. In an instant, hundreds of boats set off at the same time. The boatman paddled quickly.

The Goryeo side has been waiting for a long time. Countless feathered arrows fell from the sky, countless crossbow arrows shot horizontally, and the arrows and shields collided with each other, making a clanging sound.

In less than a quarter of an hour, a large number of feathered arrows were stuck in the outside of the boat. Above the river, the feather arrows drifted downstream with the river.

In such a dense rain of arrows, the Tang army inevitably suffered casualties, and the shouts of the soldiers could be heard from time to time.

On the west bank of the Liao River controlled by the Tang army, the Tang soldiers also raised their bows and arrows and shot clusters of arrows without arrows. The purpose of these clusters of arrows is only to block the feathered arrows that fly towards them, and after colliding with the arrows of the Goryeo people in the air, they will reduce their force when they fall. Neither the Tang army nor the Goryeo army, across the wide Liao River, could shoot arrows down to the opposite bank. Shoot at most in the middle of the river.

The ship finally came to shore. These ships vary in size, from large ones that can carry more than 20 people, to smaller ones that can carry only four or five people. According to a rough calculation, there were more than 1,500 Tang troops who crossed the Liaoshui.

Rushing to the opposite bank, the more than 1,500 Tang troops were like tigers descending from the mountains. After all, when crossing the river, it was devastated by the rain of arrows, and everyone's hearts were holding their breath.

"Kill-" The Tang army rushed into the formation of the Goryeo army and began a fight.

These Tang troops are all elites, plus they are all wearing iron armor and have super defensive power, and they actually broke through the Goryeo army formation for a while and killed back and forth in it.

However, it didn't take long for the sound of horses' hooves to be heard. But it was the Koreans who sent out the cavalry.

The Goryeo infantry, which was entangled with the Tang army, quickly retreated, and the cavalry rushed up and drove the Tang soldiers into the river.

There was no way to face the onslaught of the cavalry, and the Tang army could not help but gradually retreat until the river. And those Goryeo crossbowmen began to fire arrows again.

Faced with this situation, the Tang army, which had crossed the Liaoshui, had no choice but to board the ship again and retreat. Seeing the Tang army retreating, the Goryeo army had no intention of continuing the pursuit, and let the Tang army return to the west bank.

In this battle, the Tang army lost 186 people.

As soon as Li Shimin arrived in Youzhou, he received this military report. After taking a closer look, I couldn't help frowning.

This wide water lies between Yingzhou and Liaocheng, which is indeed an obstacle! If you cross the river by boat, you will face the suppression of the Goryeo army, and if you build a bridge, not to mention the time it will take, if the Goryeo comes to destroy it, it will also be a very headache.

After pondering for a while, Li Shimin decided to put the matter aside first, after all, he had to see it with his own eyes before he could make a decision. And he is still in Youzhou, and he can't see the actual situation, so it's not easy to make a decision. However, he still ordered to record the scouts who crossed the Liao River to reconnoitre.

This is to commend them for reconnoitring the east bank of the Liao River regardless of life and death. Not only did he draw the topography of the mountains and rivers in this area, but he also detected the damming of the Koreans. This really deserves to be commended.

After Li Shimin arrived in Youzhou, the two armies merged in one place, replenished supplies, and rested for three days, and then began to march in the direction of Yingzhou again. At this time, the size of the entire army reached 100,000 people.

The army marched all the way, endlessly, thousands of troops, mighty. Its momentum is strong, and the wind and clouds are changing.

Seeing the appearance of the Tang Army, the leaders of the Turkic, Xi, Khitan and other servant armies couldn't help but look at each other.

When the army arrived outside the city of Yingzhou, the governor who stayed in Yingzhou took the officials out of the city to greet him.

Li Shimin took some civil officials who were tired from the road to rest in Yingzhou City, and the army still set off towards the Liaoshui camp in the east.

After resting in Yingzhou for a day, Li Shimin took the minister's light cavalry to catch up with the brigade.

When he arrived at the Liaoshui camp, Zhang Jian led his generals out of the camp to greet him, and was about to welcome Li Shimin and the generals into the camp, but Li Shimin suddenly said to Zhang Jian: "Go, you Aiqing will go to Liaoshui with me to have a look!" Zhang Aiqing, lead the way ahead! ”

Li Shimin took more than 30 generals and the eldest grandson Wuji and other civil officials, under the leadership of Zhang Jian, to the edge of the Liaoshui, looking at the surging Liaoshui, Li Shimin was silent.

"This is the most suitable place to cross the river within 100 miles of the upstream and downstream! However, there were nearly 50,000 Goryeo soldiers guarding the opposite side. These people are the loyal henchmen of Yuangai Suwen, and their combat effectiveness is not bad! Seeing Li Shimin looking at the other side of the Liaoshui, Zhang Jian hurriedly explained.

After observing silently for a long time, Li Shimin waved the whip in his hand: "Let's go, go back to the camp and discuss how to cross this Liaoshui!" ”