(Happy Dragon Boat Festival!) Good luck! PS: Sincerely thank Sven for the reward, very domineering. Thanks to Pale and Shaw

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Chapter 198: Chinese New Year's Eve of War

The soldiers of the Sui Army, who are far away in the northwest prairie, are about to spend the first Spring Festival in their lives that they are not spending at home. Tomorrow is the Chinese New Year's Eve, except for the soldiers on duty, everyone else will find familiar friends to get together and chat. The difference between the Han people in the Central Plains and the Eastern Chu Mengyuan people is not only the difference in appearance, but also the difference in personality. Han people love home, and the words of their parents who are not far away have been passed down to this day.

The Eastern Chu people, on the other hand, were accustomed to traveling from south to north, and they regarded traveling and trading as their life. In their minds, home is just a word. The Mengyuan people lived in the grass, and they were accustomed to driving cattle and sheep to live a nomadic life. Even if they can't get out of the fiefdom of the tribe, a few thousand miles of grassland is enough for them to go back and forth.

The topics that the soldiers gathered to discuss were inseparable from what the people in their hometowns were doing at this time. Someone licked his lips and said that he really wanted to eat a bite of dumplings, and this sentence resonated with many people. Jiangnan soldiers don't have a particularly strong affection for noodles, but the northern soldiers have a love for dumplings that go beyond the scope of food. In their opinion, dumplings represent more than just a simple way to eat.

In order to make the soldiers feel a hint of the New Year, the generals even managed to find some red cloth and carefully decorate it in the barracks. I don't know where the quartermaster turned out some big red lanterns and hung them outside several large tents of the Chinese army, looking particularly kind.

The soldiers talked until it was almost dark and the meal was served, and then they were pleasantly surprised to find that each person could get half a pound of cooked meat for dinner today. For an army that went on an expedition and did not capture any cattle, sheep and horses, it was simply a matter of joy for each person to receive a full half a pound of cooked meat. You must know that these porks were transported from the customs thousands of miles away, and in order to supply the 700,000 troops, the manpower and material resources consumed by this meal were astronomical.

The great general Li Yuanshan patrolled his camp at night, and as the chief general of the northwestern part of the imperial garrison, he played a pivotal role in this war. And...... The biggest advantage of the Right Xiaowei compared with other guards is that Li Yuanshan has done his best to use all means to form a heavy armored cavalry of 2,000 people for the years of being a general.

The heavy cavalry of the right Xiaowei is the first heavy cavalry since the founding of the Great Sui Dynasty.

Equipped with armor, the sabers are invulnerable to guns and arrows, and when they charge, they can easily crush the enemy into powder like a heavy tank. This heavy cavalry of 2,000 people, each cavalry enjoyed treatment that was incomparable to that of other soldiers. Each of them had two servants of their own, and in addition to a tall and majestic warhorse, there was also a horse carrying personal belongings. After all, they could not wear at least forty pounds of heavy armor on their bodies all day, and their horse lances were far larger and heavier than ordinary soldiers' lances.

And the Jingbu battalion is the standard configuration of every guard, which is not outstanding.

But because the Right Guard was the northwesternmost army garrisoned, the number of soldiers was also greater than the number of soldiers in the hinterland of the empire. According to the military system of the Great Sui, there were 36,000 guards and 8,000 auxiliaries, and the total number of people in other military positions was less than 50,000. The right Xiaowei has the emperor's special purpose, and can recruit 12,000 more soldiers and 2,000 auxiliary soldiers.

In the entire Great Sui, the only army that can compare with the right Xiaowei and is larger is the left guard in the southwest. Therefore, some people in the DPRK have made an analogy, Li Yuanshan in the northwest and Luo Yao in the southwest are the two optimus primes in the west of the empire.

Li Yuanshan was ordered to be the vanguard of the Western Expedition, and his army was always at the forefront. But after a few successive battles, the loss of Right Xiaowei was not too big. The emperor's men and horses requisitioned from all parts of the empire were also controlled by several generals, and when they arrived on the battlefield, these soldiers and horses transferred from all over the country were the real vanguard, and no general would be stupid enough to fight his own soldiers.

Including the first battle, the 5,000 men and horses led by Li Xiaozong, although they were under the banner of the Right Xiaowei, but the soldiers of the Right Xiaowei were really counted as a folding battalion.

"General, the first battle after the New Year is still handed over to us to fight...... This is a bit unfair, let's work hard in the front, and a few of them pick up ready-made cheap ones in the back! ”

Yin Poshan, one of the seven tiger generals under Li Yuanshan, said with some dissatisfaction.

Li Yuanshan waved his hand and said: "Your Majesty takes the right Xiaowei as the vanguard army, let's naturally rush to the front, don't just look at the losses, if this war is won, the vanguard army will get far more than the other horses." Have you forgotten Luo Yao? In the war of the empire to destroy the merchants, Luo Yao's left avant-garde has been at the forefront, and more than 40,000 horses have less than 15,000 left when they conquer Yongzhou, which is indeed a heavy loss. But what about now? The first emperor and His Majesty both felt that they owed Luo Yao, and they connived at him in every way, who knows how many people Luo Yao has now? ”

"Our right guard has fought this battle, and the loss of casualties will not be small, but the glory of those who survive will not be small, even greater than Luo Yao's left guard!"

Li Yuanshan said indifferently: "I have always told you to take a longer view. Even if you can't see it in ten years, try to see it in three years, in five years. The longer you look, the bigger your future. ”

"My subordinates understood."

Yin Poshan bowed his head.

Li Yuanshan shook his head: "You don't understand, I don't know your temperament best." It's not much easier for you to think about these things than it is for you to have a baby. Among the seven of you, the most calm is Xu Xiao. Looking at it now, Li Xiaozong and Xu Xiao are not much different. That's why I'll give him the vanguard of the vanguard army, not you. ”

"The general praises falsely, and his subordinates are ...... to be sinful"

Li Xiaozong, who was following behind, lowered his head and said.

"What are you guilty of?"

Li Yuanshan smiled: "The first battle was fought like this according to my will, if you are guilty, wouldn't I be guilty too?" ”

"But ......"

He paused and said, "The first battle after the year will be fought more beautifully." The prince flew the pigeon and passed the book, let us play more realistically, first fight a few victories to make Your Majesty happy, first rejoice and then be disappointed, Your Majesty's anger will be greater. Therefore, you must remember that in the next battle, you can fight as you want, and if you lose anyone again, I will pick your food guy first. ”

"Whoa!"

Several generals bowed their heads in response.

Li Xiaozong hesitated for a while and asked in a low voice: "General, please allocate another 5,000 men and horses to your subordinates, this time your subordinates will definitely fight beautifully." ”

"You're tired"

Li Yuanshan waved his hand: "Let Xu Xiao fight the battle below, and you can rest for a few more days." ”

Li Xiaozong's face changed suddenly, and there was a trace of resentment in his eyes. This hatred is as strong as the night that cannot be dissolved. It's fleeting, but it's exceptionally clear. Li Xiaozong covered up his dissatisfied expression by hanging his head and agreeing, but there was a fire in his heart that was burning more and more.

……

……

A dozen men in black nightcoats stepped on the moonlight shredded by the clouds, lowered their bodies and hurried as beasts in the grass. Not only did they cover their faces with black cloths, but they even wrapped their heads very tightly, revealing only a pair of bright eyes. These dozen or so people are like fish swimming in the sea, and the vast grassland like the sea is their home, so even if the night is getting thicker and thicker, their speed has not slowed down for a minute.

The black-clothed man at the head suddenly stopped in the middle of running, and then gestured. More than a dozen men in black immediately fell to the ground, lying motionless in the grass. In a short time, more than two dozen horses swept past not far from where they were hiding, and the black armor of the knights on horseback announced their identities.

It is the Ranger of the Great Sui.

This place is less than three miles away from the Sui army's main camp, and the Sui army's ranger patrols pass more and more intensively. The dozen or so men in black cautiously moved forward along the way, and after avoiding the group of rangers, their speed slowed down considerably.

The man at the head climbed a high slope and crouched in the grass to look at the brightly lit Sui army camp not far away. In such a deep night, the lights that stretched for twenty miles were like a lake wave shining with brilliance. The undulating tent is the waves of this great lake.

"The flag owner said that the Sui people's Chinese New Year's Eve is as important as our fasting festival, and sure enough...... You see......"

The black-clothed man at the head pointed to the Sui army camp and said, "Although it seems that the defense is still tight, the moving torches in the camp are patrolling soldiers, and it seems that there are a lot fewer than before. ”

The black-clothed man beside him sneered in a low voice and said: "Master Qianfu, the Sui people still have the face to claim to be the people who know the most about war, you see, there are red lanterns hanging outside the big tents of the Chinese army, this is simply idiotic to the extreme." It's as if telling us that those tents are the residence of the commander of the Sui army. ”

The leading commander is called Agudam, and he is the right-hand man of the Mandu Wolf in Nirvana City. Although he is not very old, he has a profound cultivation and a cold and ruthless temperament, and he kills people without blinking.

"It's a habit that's hard to break."

Agudamu said in a low voice: "The general once infiltrated Fangu City as a herdsman, and knows what habits the Sui people have. Every Chinese New Year's Eve, Han people hang red lanterns in front of their homes. You also have to eat a food called dumplings and set off firecrackers. It's like we're having a fast holiday, and on Chinese New Year's Eve, the Sui people are almost defenseless. Their soldiers also had to drink wine and eat meat, and even criminals in prison would be given wine and cooked meat. Especially on Chinese New Year's Eve, their vigilance is the lowest. ”

"This time, even if you can't win all of them, you will always not run when you are caught off guard by the Sui people."

The other man in black.

Agudamu shook his head and said, "Don't be careless, even though the Sui people have many habits that are difficult to change, what you see in front of you are real soldiers, and there are too many of them. ”

"Ten thousand sheep can't stop a wolf from attacking."

A man in black smiled and said, "Wait, tomorrow night we will let those Sui people taste the taste of scimitars." ”

Agudammu snorted, pointed to the front and whispered, "Press a hundred steps forward to see more clearly." Disperse, everyone chooses a good place to hide, when the hourglass in your hands is gone, return here immediately to assemble, before dawn we have to rush back to report to the young flag master and general. ”

"Hooha"

The men in black whispered, and then each chose a direction and dispersed.

Agudammu did not move and remained on the high slope.

On another high slope, less than a hundred and fifty paces away from him, lay in the grass a few men covered with dead grass. The hats on their heads and their clothes were disguised, and even if they walked up to them in the darkness of the night, they couldn't easily spot their presence.

One of them put down his clairvoyance, lowered his voice and asked a petite person beside him, "Lord Qianhu, do you want to capture one and come back and torture it?" ”

The person known as Qianhu shook his head slightly, and habitually picked off a hairy grass and put it in his mouth: "Let them look as much as possible, and inform the rangers to catch a few when they leave." If they were let go so easily, they would be a little suspicious. Let's just keep an eye on whether anyone is approaching the camp, and the matter of arresting people on the battlefield is not under the care of the Ouchi guards. ”

Listening to her, it turned out to be a woman.

"Whoa"

The questioner answered, and once again raised his clairvoyance to look at the high slope opposite.

Lying on the grass, the female Chido looked up at the moon that was half obscured by the clouds, and gently squirmed her lips and chewed on the hairy grass. The grass has withered and yellowed, so it does not have a bitter taste.

She thought of the young man who was far away in Chang'an City, and her heart was sweet. That guy, at a very young age, knew to camouflage with weeds, wear different colors in different environments, smear some unsightly colors on his face, and even stay motionless in one place for a day, urinating in his pants without moving. He said that it was a means of survival, and she looked down on him at the time, but then she slowly realized that these means were really useful.

Dressed in withered grass and yellow, they hide in the grass during the day without being noticed. Relying on this color camouflage, the people of the Ouchi Guard repeatedly approached the camp of the Mandu Banner.

What is he doing?

She was thinking.

There was no shadow of him in the moon, but she was so fascinated.