Chapter 4 There is an ocean in the east
Hundreds of elite horsemen rode on the plains between Jinmen and Fanyang.
The news of the invasion of the Hulan people spread, and the people living in the plains either took refuge in the city or in the mountains, although the Hulan people were still hundreds of miles away from here, but the Hulan people's rangers invaded like the wind, and they could reach as far as three hundred miles in day and night, except for those city walls and peaks that seemed to be towering into the clouds, and there was really no sense of safety elsewhere.
The ice and soil melt in spring, on the plastered plains, the grass is separated, and the fertile fields in the past are all deserted, Cai Hui looked at it and sighed. In the first two years of the great drought in the north, Youji relied on Jiangning's grain, and there was no big change, and now the drought has eased, but it is under fire, and the channels of Youji to various places, except for the sea route, have been blocked by the Hulan people, and millions of people in Youji will have to accept the rule of foreign people in the next few years or decades.
The source of the Laishui of the West Foot of Taihang, the water potential is very large after spring, galloping and roaring, and the soup passes away. On the Laishui not far from the cavalry, a huge fleet of ships stretched for several miles. Dozens of huge warships formed the front of the fleet, and the decks were full of sergeants with bright halberds. Most of the soldiers of the 3,000 water battalions on the battleship are members of the Changhe Gang, and it was two years ago that the Jun family secretly attached to Jiangning, and the gangs of the Changhe Gang also regarded themselves as Jiangning's people. Xu Ruyu went to Fanyang, and the water camp had the responsibility to respond, so Fang Su sent out this water camp that was quite reliable in loyalty and combat power, so as not to cause trouble.
Yongyang's sea ships were brought to Jinmen by Peng Muqiu, and the number was still limited, of which 100 were used as water camp war ships, and the total amount of the rest was only 200,000 stones. Xu Ruyu led the crowd to Fanyang, while Fang Su and Zhao Jingyun were busy transporting Jinmen's materials and personnel to Wuhu Island. Wuhu Island is still 800 miles away from Jinmen, 1,600 miles round trip, and the ship does not encounter storms at sea, and it also takes the best days' work. In addition to the necessary defense ships, all sea vessels are requisitioned to travel between Jinmen and Wuhu.
After the battleship formation, more than 200 ships were temporarily recruited. The boat on the Laishui River, the shape of the boat is much smaller than the boat on the river, the loading capacity is mostly 400 stones, 200 stones, 150 stones, that is, 400 stones, with 25 boats as a guideline, the total loading capacity is only 10,000 stones, and the Jinmen to Yongyang sea route is remotely transported, such a ship can not withstand the wind and waves for such a long time at sea, and most of them will disintegrate halfway through.
Cai Hui secretly thought to himself: It takes two days to take the land route from Fanyang to Jinmen, and during these two days, the Hulan Iron Cavalry may come at any time, but with these boats alone, there are only more than 20,000 people who can withdraw from the waterway to Jinmen. I don't understand why Xu Ruyu didn't transfer the ships to Fanyang, the Hulan people have no water camp, the water rises sharply after spring, the two sides of the strait are vast, hundreds of steps wide, and the boats are above the water, so naturally they are not afraid of the Hulan iron cavalry. As long as Fan Yang and his people are evacuated to Jinmen, and then they will guard Jinmen, and then consider the evacuation from Jinmen.
Xu Ruyu didn't want to be like this in his heart, Laishui out of Jinmen into the sea, there are still thirty miles away, that section of the water surface, the narrowest place is also three hundred steps, the boat travels on the water, not afraid of the bows and arrows on both sides, even if the Hulan people have a stone-throwing crossbow, the threat is not big, but Laishui goes down from Jinmen, the water surface is open, the flow speed slows down, and the river mud is silted, so that the river channels there are shallow. If the embankment is opened, the Laishui that rises after spring is introduced to other waterways, or another waterway is opened from the plains, the original old channel will become shallower, and Hulan can seal the Laishui waterway as long as he sinks the ship.
Chu Shi Zebo is ancient and modern, Xu Ruyu does not dare to despise it in his heart, if he is too greedy, he may let the Hulan people be trapped in Jinmen City and cannot get out.
This time is to persuade the king of Beijing to retreat to Jiangning, except for a small number of elite combat forces, most of the people accompanying him are the Gaomen clan of Fanyang, Xu Ruyu may not be willing to take these Gaomen disciples who only know how to smoke people's fat and people's ointment to Jiangning.
Hulan rangers were all over the Fanyang Plain, Xu Ruyu and others traveled all the way, and they had already encountered dozens of groups, all of them in groups of three or five, with seven or eight war horses, scattered in the plains, scouting the military situation.
At the beginning, Wei Yan also sent people to pursue, but the Hulan rangers were all one person and two horses, and when they saw someone coming to pursue, they galloped away, changed to two horses, saved horsepower, and could maintain a very high riding speed within twenty miles without reducing slightly. The pursuers were able to chase after them for a few miles, and when they were ten miles away, the horses under the seats were exhausted, and they slowed down. At this time, if there were fewer pursuers, the Hulan people gathered a few groups of rangers to turn back and counterattack. At this time, the men and horses sent to pursue had to turn their horses and flee back, but the Hulan rangers clung to the ground, often chasing them into the field of view of the team where Xu Ruyu was, and then left in a huff.
Counting several times, the Hulan people also saw the defects of Xu Ruyu's horsepower, more than a dozen teams of Hulan rangers gathered, and more than 100 people were attached to the near side of the cavalry, not daring to attack the team, but they divided people to entangle the scouts sent by the cavalry, and they were not afraid of Xu Ruyu's prestige.
The Hulan rangers are all elites selected from the army, even so, Cai Hui saw such a fierce Hulan ranger, his face was as ashen as dirt.
The Cai family and the Xun family relied on the natural danger of Yanshan to resist the invasion of the Hulan people, and naturally had an understanding of the fierce combat power of the Hulan people. However, for more than 100 years since the defeat of the last great invasion, Hulan has recuperated and risen again, focusing on expanding its power to the Bohai Sea, Baekje, and the western regions. The pressure on Koubian in the Central Plains was shared by the two heavy fortresses of Yanmen and Yuguan, and Hulan had 100,000 elites stationed in Yancheng north of Yuguan. However, these 100,000 garrisons controlled the vast area from Yancheng to the easternmost point of Baekje's entry into the sea, which stretched for thousands of miles, and the original tribes of Bohai and Baekje were fierce and stubborn, unwilling to lie in wait in Hulan and riot from time to time, so the Cai family did not bear much pressure from Hulan in the past few decades. On the border of Hulan Kou, all small groups of elite cavalry crossed the Gubei Pass and attacked in the direction of Fanyang, and the larger Kou attacked only a few thousand people. When Fanyang's elite soldiers were dispatched, the Hulan people who had entered the Kou passed through Yanshan to the north.
At this time, the Hulan iron cavalry crossed the Yanmen heavy fortress, and nearly 400,000 troops were added to Youji, including more than 100,000 elite cavalry, and the Cai family had no chance of winning the field battle except for guarding the city. The Hulan rangers are so dense on the outskirts of Fanyang City, thinking that the Hulan people have already controlled Ling Gucheng.
Within the field of vision, the two rangers chased and fought each other, Xu Ruyu looked calm, couldn't see the abnormality, tilted his head sideways, looked at Fan Wenlong, and said: "Wenlong, how do you feel when you watch the battle in Anyang and Yueyi?" ”
When Xu Ruyu left Jinmen, Fan Wenlong got a letter to greet him from Fan Yang and joined the cavalry in the plains. On the plains from Fanyang to Jinmen, the Hulan iron cavalry gathered and scattered without a trace, and the cavalry team not only did not dare to stay away from Laishui, but also prevented the Hulan organization masters from intercepting them halfway.
Fan Wenlong nodded and said: "I look at the Hulan Iron Cavalry, although the elite is difficult to stop in the world, it may not be able to stop the sharpness of the Yongyang bow and crossbow. When I was in Fanyang, Cai Yuhua once led me to see the special crossbow made by the foundation of Gentang, this crossbow has five bows and stretches, the arrows used, such as the thickness of the spear, can also be replaced by a spear, shoot 600 steps, shoot rockslides, if you use small arrows, a groove can hold dozens of pieces, this crossbow needs 30 sergeants, the foot camp is equipped with bed crossbows, crossbows, longbows and sharp weapons, Hulan iron cavalry will not dare to come from the front, and Hulan iron cavalry field battle is not afraid. The advantage of the Hulan cavalry lies in the long-distance attack, and the system of deputy horses can make the Hulan cavalry run for 300 miles day and night, and can also maintain considerable combat power. With the advantage of cavalry, the Hulan people can quickly throw troops into various places, and any defensive measures against the Hulan people will be full of loopholes, which is the real strength of the Hulan people. ”
Wei Yan listened and said: "If this is the case, Jiangning will have to compete with Hulan in Qingzhou, and I am afraid that it will only be effective if it establishes a defense depth of hundreds of miles." ”
Xu Ruyu sighed: "Hundreds of miles of in-depth defense, how many troops need to be invested, even if you can defend the Hulan people, Jiangning will also be quite tight." If you can't win, then retreat, Hulan with the help of cavalry and abundant war horses, can quickly put troops, in the hinterland of the Central Plains, where the water system is dense, I Jiangning can also use warships to Hulan to put troops on the back and abdomen. In fact, after fighting in the hinterland of the Central Plains, Jiangning couldn't prevent Hulan's cavalry, and Hulan couldn't prevent my Jiangning's water camp. ”
Fan Wenlong knew the details of Xu Ruyu's construction of a base in Wuhu, and sighed: "When Wenlong was watching the battle in Zhaoyi, he saw that the Hulan cavalry was a second-horse system, and the soldiers rode a horse, and there was a horse by his side for transfer. Wen Long knew in his heart that it was impossible to build an effective defense against such an iron horse that could not penetrate everywhere, and even if he did it reluctantly, such a defense system would only deplete Jiang Ning's financial resources. If this is the case, Jiangning is declining, Hulan is becoming prosperous, and Jiangning and Hulan are fighting, and there will be no chance of winning. Only by taking the initiative to attack and strategically taking the offensive can this imbalance be reversed. Wenlong is often worried in his heart, the Hulan Iron Cavalry gallops vertically and horizontally, although the Jiangning Infantry Battalion is not afraid of the field battle, but the Infantry Battalion cannot compete with the cavalry, if the Hulan Iron Cavalry avoids it and does not fight, my Jiangning Infantry Battalion cannot do anything about it. Although fighting in the hinterland of the Central Plains, Jiangning does not have an advantage, but the sea route on the eastern front allows me Jiangning to have a strategic advantage, and I can use the sea route to put the army on the prairie behind Yanshan. Thinking about it this way, Wenlong is very much looking forward to fighting Hulan. ”
Mei Yingxue was silent for a moment and said, "Rong Yanmen can't catch up with you after all." ”
Wei Yan laughed and said: "Rong Yanmen's insight is not within the scope of Mr. Yi's "Balance of Power Policy", and my old lieutenant also knows that if the south uses troops to the north, he will not go out of the eastern, central, and western roads, and the west road will stop at Hanzhong by taking the road from Chengyu to Hanzhong; The middle road goes north along the Han River and ends at Xiangyang; The east road goes north along Huaishui and Jinshui and ends at Bianzhou. The middle road and the west road can be combined under the city of Xiangyang, so Rong Yanmen takes the middle and west roads to the north to restore, and abandons the east road. If he can have the insight of Mr., he will come to capture Yue County first. ”
Xu Ru smiled foolishly and said: "The reason why Jiangning was able to rise was due to the competition with Puji, if I can't see the benefits of sea power, I will be ashamed of my ancestors." Outside the land, is the ocean, the ocean is wide, I don't know the margin, in the old dynasty, there is a ship from Yuhang to the east, lost the way on the way, biased to the north, a few months to a large island, the island name Dongying, its land is wide, greater than the Yue County, turning a few years, leaving the island to the west, crossing hundreds of miles of sea area, actually to the north of the region of Baekje, the east of the island is still a vast ocean, it is conceivable that there are still big islands in the ocean, the ship from Quanzhou to the south for more than two months, there is a big island named Luzon, its land is wide, times the Yue County, the south of the island, is the vast ocean, across the ocean to the south, Or they may be able to find new land. There is still a big country in the south of Nanzhao, and there are heavy forests and dense obstacles between Nanzhao, and there is no way to go around, but it can be reached around the southern end of the zero Ding Yang. For thousands of years, the threats to the Han court are all from the northwest land, so they do not pay attention to sea power and river power. ”
Wei Yan said: "Han Ting expands the territory, expanding to the west and north, where the land is poor and the weather is cold, if you have to remove the threat of the northwest, there is no need to spend so much effort, Jun Shui told me that Luzon Island is as warm as spring in winter, if there is a choice, I am willing to exchange with Chef Wei, and then I can lead the water camp to the sea and go to Luzon to spend the cold winter." ”
Fan Wenlong glanced at Xu Ruyu obliquely, and saw that his expression was calm, unmoved by Wei Yan's words. However, the theory of sea power allowed Xu Ru to get rid of the shackles of the thoughts of his ancestors. Donghai, Yuejun, Nanmin several battles, Xu Ruyu said that every battle must be defeated, but from him can see the traces of Xu Xing and Wu Chu with troops, but this trip to the north, Xu Ruyu not only has a breakthrough in the martial arts, but also more important is to find a new way for Jiangning, change Jiangning's strategic disadvantages, this insight, has surpassed the ancestors and Jiangning people a lot.
Although the number of scouts here is small, it is the most elite combat power in Jiangning, but it has been entangled for a long time, and the horsepower consumption is too large, and it is impossible to get rid of the entanglement of the Hulan rangers for a while. Wei Yan was helpless about this, sent a helping hand, and within nearly five hundred steps, the group of Hulan rangers scattered in a hurry, and on the plains, it was very difficult to catch up with the Hulan rangers who were on the air to ride and transfer.
Wei Yan gritted his teeth, and wanted to catch up with the galloping horse after five hundred steps, only a few people here can do it, although Wei Yan's cultivation is deep, he is not good at light body techniques, and he can't ask Fan Wenlong or Mei Yingxue to make a move for the disturbance of a few Hulan rangers, and he spat hatefully, and his saliva can actually break the grass stem.
Xu Ruyu laughed and said: "The Hulan ranger is here to scout the military situation, the two have nothing to do with it, I don't let you chase it, but you said that you have broken Jiangning's prestige." At this time, they saw the shortcomings of our lack of horsepower, and in turn harassed our scouts. Later, when it was spread, Hulan's hundred horsemen actually drowned Jiangning's five hundred elite horsemen, but Jiangning lost his prestige. ”
Wei Yan said hatefully: "Mr. is here, but he has come up with a way." ”
Mei Yingxue glanced at Xu Ruyu, and said to Wei Yan: "You go and tell the leader of the enemy cavalry that he has drowned General Qingfeng for nearly half a day, and it is already a great achievement to retreat at this time, is it possible that General Qingfeng will personally take action to achieve his prestige?" ”
Wei Yan smiled and said: "Even if he has a prestige, he will also mourn after death, and he doesn't want to enjoy it." He didn't look at Xu Ruyu, Tiler reins, rode his horse over there, and at a distance of four or five hundred steps, he raised his breath and transmitted: "You are entangled, my family is annoyed, at this time the merit has been completed, my family is very willing to ask you to retreat." ”
The leader of Hulan was slightly stunned, glanced at this side, put his finger into his mouth, whistled, and the more than ten sentinels who were entangled with the scouts dispersed when they heard the sound, and suddenly galloped back to the hundred-man team together, and changed horses to ride. The leader of Hulan raised his voice and said: "Helan Luoyun has heard of General Qingfeng's prestige outside the Sai, and it seems that it is not enough. ”
Xu Ruyu's heart moved when he heard this, and he secretly thought: The Helan clan is the head of the four tribes of Hulan, but he doesn't know what the current young man named Helan Luoyun has to do with Helan Rongruo.
Fan Wenlong pouted and smiled, and said, "Do you want me to sneak over?" ”
Fan Wenlong is not confident that he will take Helan Luoyun down among the hundred Hulan elites, but as long as he is entangled for a moment, it is enough to make Helan Luoyun regret it for the rest of his life.
Xu Ruyu glanced at Mei Yingxue and said, "He is probably Helan Rongruo's nephew, deceive him like this, Helan Rongruo is only afraid that he will not have a good face, let him go." ”
Mei Yingxue snorted coldly and said: "Between Jinmen and Fanyang, the Hulan people only have rangers, and Chu Shize intends to make way for the Cai family to survive, you are not just shy to bully a frivolous young man." ”
Xu Ruyu said: "You can also see so. ”
"What's so difficult about this, now in Fanyang, the Cai family can control only a few cities, and the plains are all the world of Hulan iron cavalry, we have been out of Jinmen for a day and a night, and the Hulan army on both sides should get the news, if the Hulan people really want to destroy the Cai family, they will naturally send troops to prevent us from entering Fanyang."
Xu Ruyu sighed and said, "I went to Fanyang to help the Hulan people weaken the will of Fanyang's army and people to resist, and Chu Shize naturally won't stop me." ”
Xu Ruyu entered Fanyang, not to help the Cai family defend the city, but to take the Cai family to Jiangning, the news spread, but the blow to Fan Yang's military heart was fatal.
Fan Wenlong said: "There are no reinforcements outside Fanyang, tens of thousands of soldiers are guarding several cities, and they are surrounded by nearly 400,000 Hulan troops, and they can't escape defeat. If you want to hold on, it is better to move the elite soldiers to the deep mountains and jungles, so as to avoid the civilians in the city. ”
Fan Wenlong went north from Qingyi, knowing Hulan's murderous style, attacking the city for a few days, and taking the city will burn and kill and plunder the city for a few days, if the siege is heavy casualties, the city will be slaughtered and angry. After the defeat of the Northern Tang Dynasty a hundred years ago, Hulan began to attach importance to the infantry system, at this time the infantry camp was complete, equipped with various equipment used to attack the city and plunder the wall, the Cai family wanted to hold the city, but it was also difficult.
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