Ava was officially established in the tenth year of the Western Wu # Dragon and Phoenix (1364 AD), four years earlier than the founding of the Ming Dynasty, located on the south bank of the Irrawaddy River, its east is the tributary of the Irrawaddy River, the Tanga River, and the south and west are the moats connecting the Water Tange River.

Ava City is surrounded by water on all sides, which brings an unfavorable situation to the Ming army's attack, but the Shuitange River is not wide, Mu Qiyuan forcibly requisitioned nearby civilian boats, and it took two days to cross the Shuitange River and attack Ava from the east.

According to the interrogation report, there were still 10,000 Burmese troops in the city, and the defender was Qingfeng, a famous general in Donghu who was good at defense.

After the civil officials who had fled back from Bing Ul Lun reported to Qingfeng that the Ming army was attacking Bing Ul Lun, he sent a patrol detective to the battle around Ava and Bing Ul Lun, and on the other hand sent a reinforcement of 3,000 men to Bing Ul Lun.

However, the message brought back by the rangers shocked Qingfeng very much, and the Ming army only took one morning to break through Binulun, and the three thousand defenders in the city were all wiped out.

The whereabouts of the reinforcements sent by Qingfeng to Bin Urun are still unknown, especially if this support army is west of Bin Urun and has experienced a major battle, but the cause and result are not known for the time being.

The 3,000 reinforcements did not return to Ava, so it was very likely that they would be annihilated by the Ming army, and Qingfeng gave up his plan to recapture Bin-Ulun.

From Bin Ullun to Ava, the terrain was already diving, and the Ming army could reach Ava in a day or two.

Qingfeng hesitated, Da Ming is worthy of being the upper kingdom of the Celestial Empire, the momentum of the Ming army's attack is so fierce, Ava, can you still hold it?

It was Qingfeng's hesitation that allowed Mu Qiyuan to cross the Shuitange River smoothly, if Qingfeng lay down an army in the west of the river and take the initiative to attack when the Ming army crossed halfway, even if the Ming army could cross the Shuitange River, it would suffer heavy casualties and morale.

Mu Qiyuan, who had already crossed the Shuitange River, did not rashly attack the city, he was waiting for Chen Zizhuang in the back and Lin Chengxiang in the north, what he wanted was to besiege the city and annihilate the Donghu army.

The ranger sent a message to Mu Qiyuan, Lin Chengxiang's twentieth army was still a day's way away from Ava, and Chen Zizhuang's seventeenth army, which was the most Mu Qiyuan's rear army, would also need a day or two to cross the Shuitange River.

Mu Qiyuan didn't know if Qingfeng would take the initiative to go out of the city to fight, he sent rangers to Beicheng on the one hand, and prepared for a decisive battle on the other.

Qingfeng in Ava City, I don't know how many soldiers the Ming army has, when to start attacking the city, he is good at defense, Ta Long asked him to guard Ava City, he does not seek to annihilate the Ming army outside the city, and make contributions to Donghu, as long as he can hold Ava City, he will be satisfied.

The offensive of the Ming army made him a little worried, this time the Ming took the initiative to attack, whether it was the main force of the Ming army, he was a little uncertain.

Both sides spent the first day waiting for each other.

The next day, Lin Chengxiang's vanguard had reached the north bank of the Irrawaddy River, and they sent people to ask Mu Qiyuan if he could cross the river from the Irrawaddy River.

Mu Qiyuan was worried that the Donghu army in the city would set up an ambush by the river again, or wait for the Ming army to attack halfway, so he sent Liu Zhenyu's 55th Division to detour to the northeast of Ava City to cover Lin Chengxiang's crossing of the river.

However, Qingfeng did not go out of the city to attack the Ming army, and tens of thousands of Ming troops successfully crossed the Irrawaddy River and assembled on the north bank of Ava City, while Chen Zizhuang's 17th Army also crossed the Shuitanga River.

Ava City is surrounded by the 100,000 Ming Army, and Ava at this time has become a lonely city, it is a piece of fat on the side of Mu Qiyuan's mouth, which may be swallowed at any time.

Lin Chengxiang and Chen Zizhuang took the time to see Mu Qiyuan.

"I've seen the Commander." Although Lin Chengxiang was the army commander, Mu Qiyuan was the commander of the temporarily formed Third Army and his immediate boss, so he took the initiative to salute.

"Lin Junzuo is welcome," Mu Qiyuan returned the salute with a smile, "The itinerary of the Northern Route Army is much farther than ours, but it only arrived in Ava one day later than me, it seems that the Donghu Army did not cause you any trouble along the way." ”

"No, Commander," Lin Chengxiang and Mu Qiyuan both belong to the Yunnan Army, and they have conquered Wusizang together, and the two are relatively close emotionally, "The defense in northern Burma is very empty, except for Ruigu, where there are 3,000 defenders, there is basically no regular army in other places, although our 20th Army has expanded the search range, there are not many Donghu troops, and wherever the Ming Dynasty goes, the Donghu miscellaneous army is fleeing from the wind." ”

There is nothing wrong with underestimating the opponent's strength, but we must pay attention to the opponent's strategy, if we develop the habit of arrogance, sooner or later we will turn our heads, Mu Qiyuan reminded: "I am too, except for the three thousand defenders in Binwulun, the gateway to the east of Ava, there are only dozens or hundreds of defenders in the rest of the place, but we can't underestimate the enemy, and we haven't met the main force of Donghu yet." ”

"The commander is right, only by destroying the main force of Taron will we be truly victorious." Lin Chengxiang is not a person who is easy to be proud of, otherwise the Ming Dynasty is full of talents, and it would not be his turn to be the commander of the Twentieth Army.

"Yes, we can only gain a firm foothold in Donghu if we eliminate the main force of Donghu," Mu Qiyuan saw that Chen Zizhuang didn't say a word, and took the initiative to ask him, Chen Zizhuang is his subordinate for the time being, but he belongs to the Guangdong Army, and he doesn't know much about Chen Zizhuang, "Chen Junzuo thinks about the next war like this?" ”

"The commander is right, the real decisive battle has not yet come, I have three questions," Chen Zizhuang saw that Mu Qiyuan had been watching him, knowing that he was waiting for him to continue, "First, can we surround Ava City without fighting, and wait for the Donghu army to come to help, we can set up an ambush and destroy the living forces of Donghu; secondly, if we attack the city of Ava, can I have my Seventeenth Army as the main attacker; Thirdly, once the city of Ava is broken and the defenders of the city are going to surrender, will we be surrendered, and if so, what will happen to these wounded soldiers? And how to deal with the people in the city? ”

Mu Qiyuan thought for a moment, "It is indeed a good idea to only encircle Ava City and lure the Donghu army to come to the rescue, but now that Talong is still in the big city, it will be too late to reinforce for a while, and there are not many Donghu troops nearby, we can't wait here for a long time, this kind of strategy, if it is placed in Baigu, it may be more effective, Baigu is the capital of Donghu, it is the city that Talong will save, and it is more likely that Talong will return to the army." ”

"As for Chen Junzuo's request to attack Ava City, I agree in principle, I don't know what Lin Junzuo thinks?" Mu Qiyuan knew that Chen Zizhuang wanted to make a contribution.

Chen Zizhuang's 17th Army is just a response, that is, responsible for garrisoning the various cities occupied by the Ming army, consolidating the rear of the Ming army, as time goes by, the Ming army occupies more and more cities, and the remaining troops in Chen Zizhuang's hands will be less and less, and when the Ming army and the Donghu army are decisive, maybe he himself will be stationed in a certain city, so he will take the initiative to attack Ava City when the troops in his hands are complete.

"The subordinates agreed." Lin Chengxiang didn't think as much as Mu Qiyuan thought, but since Mu Qiyuan agreed, he had no reason to object.

"Okay, then the siege of the city, there is the Lao Chen military seat," Mu Qiyuan turned to the third question, "We are now deep into Donghu, there are enemies on all sides, so the Donghu army that threatens us must be resolutely eliminated, besides, now the food of the Ayutthaya has not yet been transported, and the army has not been withdrawn, and the food should not be able to be transported for a while, and our food is not surplus, if we leave these prisoners, we will consume a lot of food, which we cannot afford." ”

"Thank you to the commander and Lin Junza, my subordinates understand what the commander meant. Mu Qiyuan's meaning was very clear, Chen Zizhuang understood, and he was still very happy with the siege task he had won.

"As for the people in the city, if they are not against our Ming army, don't hurt them for the time being, if they have unfriendly words and deeds towards our army, compare them with the army of Donghu, and resolutely strike at them." Although Mu Qiyuan does not have a penchant for killing people like Mangui, he can't be unwary of fighting outside the country, and he can't forgive himself if he hurts the soldiers because of his kindness.

"Commander, my subordinate has another idea." Lin Chengxiang pondered for a long time and felt that it could reduce the fatigue of the soldiers.

"Lin Junzuo, please speak." Mu Qiyuan did not object to the speeches of his subordinates, and the more fully prepared he was before the battle, the greater the possibility of victory.

"Commander, the Donghu army in each city is not very numerous, and there is no need for 100,000 troops to concentrate on attacking the city, can you let the soldiers take turns to fight?"

"What does Lin Junzuo mean is to let the other soldiers get enough rest and prepare for a decisive battle with the main force of Donghu?"

"Yes, Commander, that's what my subordinates mean." Lin Chengxiang felt a little strange, it seemed that Mu Qiyuan had already thought of this problem.

"Actually, I have also thought about this question, firstly, Ava is the most important city in the north of Donghu, and the regular army of Donghu is in the city, and the combat effectiveness should not be weak, we must completely annihilate them, consume the living force of the Donghu army, and we must besiege the city; Second, our army has experienced too few battles, so I deliberately let the soldiers practice more and accumulate more combat experience, so that they can become the long-fought army of the Ming Dynasty as soon as possible. ”

"My subordinates understood." Only then did Lin Chengxiang understand Mu Qiyuan's true intentions.

"However, Lin Junzuo said it very well, after taking Ava, I will try to let the soldiers take turns to fight, so that the soldiers will not be too tired, and the real decisive battle has not yet begun." Mu Qiyuan also affirmed Lin Chengxiang's suggestion.

Lin Chengxiang put forward his own opinion: "Commander, or let the army disperse to fight, strive to take a large area of Donghu as soon as possible, and force Talong to withdraw his troops." ”

Mu Qiyuan did not agree this time, "The army must not be too dispersed, otherwise it will be difficult to concentrate for a while, if we take Ava, Ta Long may not be able to stay in Da Cheng, according to the ranger report, Ta Long has already learned that the Ming army has entered Donghu, and he has already shown signs of returning to the army." ”

"My subordinates understood." Lin Chengxiang gave a military salute to Mu Qiyuan.

Lin Chengxiang and Chen Zizhuang were about to say goodbye and return to the camp, when one of Mu Qiyuan's personal soldiers came in, he whispered a few words to Mu Qiyuan, and when he saw Mu Qiyuan nodding, he quickly walked out of the Chinese army's tent.

"Two military seats, Your Majesty has a holy decree arrived, first look at the content of the holy decree, and then it's not too late to return to the camp." Mu Qiyuan couldn't guess the content of the holy decree, the war had just begun, and the decisive battle with the main force of Donghu was still far away, and he didn't know what kind of order the emperor was going to give now.