Chapter 36: A Stalemate
After the iron-blooded army on the southern road failed to ambush Gucha, they retreated to the city to hold on. In the face of cavalry attacks, even the most elite infantry of the Predator will fall into a passive position.
The commander of the southern front sent a request for help to Bai Zheng, asking him to send 10,000 iron-blooded soldiers to support, and if there were really no soldiers to send, he would ask Xian Jinfei for instructions and mobilize Di Xianlan's iron cavalry.
After Bai Zheng received this request, a nameless fire ignited in his heart. Wei Zengqin led 30,000 elites to defend the Guanluo River, and now he has been attacking for more than ten days, Bai Zheng has not been able to break through the defense line of the Guanluo River, how can Bai Zheng send the iron-blooded soldiers as the main force to the south at this time.
"Let the men and horses of the southern road join us and concentrate our forces to attack here. Our large forces were together, and the enemy cavalry did not dare to make any moves. The Ukrainian general has already attacked Hedong, and the enemy will not hold out for long. It's almost September now, and as long as winter comes, without the natural danger of the Guanluo River, the enemy will definitely not be able to hold it. Bai Zheng weighed it, but still didn't make up his mind to ask Di Xianlan for help. He came to conquer Yanbei in order to surpass Di Xianlan, and now because the attack was blocked, he invited Di Xianlan back, how could Bai Zheng do it.
"But it's been almost two months since we went on the campaign, and if the battle drags on, I'm afraid it will be a big blow to morale. As long as General Di's 30,000 iron cavalry enters Yanbei, the enemy's rear will definitely be disrupted, and it will be easy to recover Yanbei at that time. One general suggested.
"We went on an expedition for two months, didn't we recover Hedong? If it weren't for the fact that the man surnamed Hu didn't listen to the command and caused me to lose 10,000 soldiers, how could I be in this situation. Don't say more, transfer the troops of the southern front, is it possible that without Di Xianlan, my iron-blooded army will not be able to win the battle? Bai Zheng said angrily.
The surrounding generals saw that Bai Zheng was no longer angry, so no one said anything. Bai Zheng is extremely talented, which is obvious to all, but when Di Xianlan is mentioned, it is like a different person.
In order to surpass Di Xianlan, Bai Zheng took all the credit for himself; In order to prevent being plotted, Bai Zheng trained a group of officers who promised him. General Hu's death made the people around Bai Zheng very cold. General Hu followed Bai Zheng for eight years, and he worked hard before and after the saddle, otherwise Bai Zheng would not have let General Hu lead 10,000 soldiers.
However, General Hu said that he would kill him, so that no one in Bai Zheng's officers dared to disobey him. Now that the attack on Yanbei has been blocked, Bai Zheng is in a very bad mood, and naturally no one among the officers wants to be unclear and ruined.
In the Chinese army camp of the Yanbei Righteous Army, Wei Zeng and several generals discussed how to deal with the Iron and Blood Army. The news that Gu Cha on the southern front had repelled the enemy army made Wei Zeng very happy, and it seemed that the iron-blooded army was not all iron-blooded soldiers who were not afraid of cavalry.
Sajiali in the north resisted the attack of Udeli, and now Zhang Ling has returned to Hedong with the main force, under the blow of the two armies, Udeli has given up the siege, but it is still impossible to drive Udeli back to Hexi.
"I don't understand why the enemy is attacking here since the enemy has already broken through the Guanluo River in the north. They went straight to the north to cross the river, and how could we stop it. Huang Yufei was puzzled.
"The enemy army has been coming step by step this time, first uprooting the large and small cities in Hexi in turn, just to prevent falling into the dilemma of being attacked from both sides. The enemy attacked in three directions in order to keep us from paying attention to each other, but in fact, the enemy's main direction of attack is still here.
"The enemy forces on the north and the enemy forces on the south are all acting to cooperate with the enemy forces in the center. The enemy can withdraw the men and horses of the north road and the men and horses of the south road, but it is absolutely not possible to talk about the men and horses of the middle road to be transferred to other places.
"The places where the people and horses on the middle road are guarded are all important places in Hexi, and it is because of the existence of the people and horses in the middle that although Cha Yi repelled the enemy troops on the south road, he has not been able to penetrate deep into the hinterland of Hexi. If the men and horses in the middle are transferred elsewhere, we will soon be able to attack Hexi and cut off the enemy's rear route. I don't think the enemy will give us such a chance. Wei Zeng analyzed.
"So that's the case, then we've been resisting them like this, and they will never be able to attack them. As long as there are no problems in the north, the enemy will definitely lose this time. Huang Yufei said.
"I have just received news that the enemy has transferred men and horses from the south road to us, and it seems that the enemy intends to break through here with his forces. The enemy came with more than 100,000 people this time, and there were more than 20,000 in the north, and we annihilated more than 10,000 of them in Hexi, which means that we will soon face an attack of more than 70,000 people. Wei Zeng said worriedly.
"Don't worry, general, we've been fending off the enemy for almost a month, and now the morale of the soldiers is boosting, and they are not as afraid of the Iron Blooded Army as they were before. As long as we make proper arrangements, it will not be a problem to hold back the enemy forces. Yu Chaogui said.
"I'm not worried about this. The enemy forces on the southern front have retreated, but the enemy forces in the north are still a threat, and we now have no spare troops to send to the north. Let's hope nothing goes wrong in the north. Wei Zeng said.
"Didn't the general send Jiang Luqing to the north? Jiang Luqing's kid has always been bold and careful, and with him, he will definitely be able to win by surprise and defeat the enemy. Mr. Qi has also been recruiting troops, and the soldiers who have been killed and injured in our past month or so have been completely replenished. Now veterans lead new recruits, and the combat effectiveness of the army has also improved rapidly. Tens of thousands of newly formed troops will soon come to support us, and we will not have to be afraid of the Predator Army at that time. So the general has nothing to worry about. Yu Chaogui said.
"That's right, my Yanbei talent is no worse than the iron-blooded army. With the right arrangement, defeating them won't be a problem. These days, the defense is strengthened, and the enemy must not be allowed to cross the Guanluo River one step. Now that the autumn harvest has begun, as long as the autumn harvest is not destroyed by the enemy, and there will be food and soldiers in the future, there will be nothing to worry about. We only need to defend for another month now, and the tide will definitely be tilted in our favor. Go down and make arrangements, and don't slack off at this critical moment. Wei Zeng said.
The generals of the Yanbei Righteous Army received the order, and they arranged their own defenses and left.
Just as the offensive and defensive battle on the central battlefield continued, Jiang Luqing had already reached Sagali's troops.
"You mean that there are no reinforcements coming in right now. Wei Zeng's main forces were delayed by the enemy; Ding Zhuang, mobilized by Mr. Qi, is still busy with the autumn harvest. If so, how can we drive the enemy back to Hexi? Sagaree said with a frown.
"Yanbei has a population of only one million, and maintaining an army of 60,000 people is already a great burden on us. If we send Ding Zhuang, who has recently been recruited, to be sent immediately, then this autumn harvest will inevitably be greatly affected. At that time, all the grain will rot in the ground, and our efforts for more than a year will be in vain.
"General Wei has fended off the enemy in the middle lane, and Miss Sa has also held back the enemy in the north lane. Therefore, Mr. Qi made a decision to let us resist the enemy army for a month, and he would lead people to harvest all the grain. In just a month, a large number of new forces will arrive, and the situation will inevitably turn around. Jiang Luqing explained.
"Why don't you send the recruits right away? Concentrate our forces to drive the enemy back to Hexi, won't we be able to calmly arrange the autumn harvest? If it drags on like this, I'm afraid there will be problems. Sagaree still said puzzled.
"The strength of the Iron Blood Army is too strong, and there is a rich An Yun to ensure the supply of grain and grass. These are not comparable to our Yanbei. If you want to defeat the Iron Army, a quick battle is impossible. Last month, General Wei and Zhang Ling took 60,000 men and annihilated 10,000 enemies with great effort. How can we defeat the 100,000 Iron Blood Army so quickly?
"Therefore, the only way to deal with the Predator is to rely on a drag. The battle for Hexi had broken the enemy's disposition, and the enemy's plan for a quick victory had failed. As long as we can delay for a long time and the morale of the enemy is in question, we will have a chance of victory. If you want to drag it out for a long time, food is the key. Jiang Luqing continued.
"I don't know much about these things, and I can't go wrong with Mr. Qi. However, Zhang Ling's side was urging him to recapture Hedong. If we don't move, I'm afraid that the alliance with Zhang Ling will have problems. Sagaree said.
"Naturally, troops are to be sent out. Otherwise, let the enemy gain a foothold in the east of the river, and it will be difficult for us to do it. Jiang Luqing said.
"How to send troops? As soon as I arrived, they attacked me, and with the help of a technique taught by the goddess, they were able to repel them. Zhang Ling's reinforcements arrived, and we tried to attack several times, but each time we failed. The enemy is defending against my tactics, and I can't do anything about them now. Without more reinforcements, they simply couldn't repel them. Sagaree shook her head and said.
"The enemy is the old Qin soldiers of Wu Deli, the old Qin soldiers have strong combat ability, everyone is good at shooting, and they are not inferior in melee killing. To deal with the old Qin soldiers, it is naturally not possible to attack strongly. But the old Qin soldiers are also human beings, as long as they are human beings, then they must be able to defeat. Jiang Luqing said.
"If you have any good ideas, just say them. Wei Zeng and Mr. Qi are both optimistic about you, and I think you have some skills. If it's a good idea, I'll do it. Sajiali saw Jiang Luqing's look of being a bamboo in his chest, and hurriedly said.
"It's just twelve words, covering people's eyes and ears, bluffing, and unprepared to attack the enemy." Jiang Luqing said.
"Can you elaborate on that, I know you like to play pantomime. But I'm not Wei Zeng, so I won't appreciate you because of this. Sagaree said.
"Ahem, I heard that Miss Sa's men are very good at capturing the enemy's exploration horses. As long as we make the enemy deaf and blind, we can bluff and make the enemy fearful. As long as the enemy is afraid, it will inevitably reveal flaws, and it will not be difficult to repel the enemy when the time comes. However, these require Zhang Ling's cooperation, and how to do it is better to wait for the ward to make a decision. Jiang Luqing was a little embarrassed when he heard Sa Jiali's words, but he immediately regained his composure and said the plan.
Sa Jiali was a little dissatisfied because Jiang Luqing still didn't explain the matter, but she still had Zhang Ling in the ward and invited him to discuss the matter together.
Soon the two sides were at a point where the two armies met, and an attack on the Oudhi began.