A group of carefully selected Yuan army exploration horses, starting from Yidu, either north or east. Chahan originally laid a lot of scouts on the southeast coast, and now with the addition, it is really as the guarantee of Guan Bao said: it can be called a "net of heaven and earth".

Although Haidong conquered Laizhou, the soldiers were in the right way, so it could not rule out the possibility that their reinforcements would continue to land in Wendeng. Therefore, there are two main surveillance areas for the Chahan military horse scouts, one is Laizhou and one is Wendeng. Although it is not possible to immediately understand the slightest disturbance, at least if there is a large-scale troop transfer operation in Haidong, it will be difficult to escape reconnaissance.

The farthest scouts were released two hundred miles away, ten miles and one station, relaying each other. Information large and small is like a tide, just like the scene when the scouts are released, and it continues to flow into the hands of the customs guards. It was sorted out by him, three times a day, and then reported back to Chahan.

In order to cope with the coming big war, Chahan slightly relaxed his offensive against Yidu. In this way, the army can recuperate. He originally prepared a new force,—— that is, only 10,000 people did not participate in the siege. Now the size of the rest has been expanded, and the number has been raised to 20,000. At the same time, Kuaima notified Jinan, Tai'an and other places, and instructed Wang Baobao, Yan Sixiao and others to be ready for war at all times.

At the same time, he changed his attitude of ignoring Zhao Guobu, and successively sent small-scale cavalry to take turns to carry out long-distance raids on his camp at the foot of Huashan. He did not attack them in a serious manner, but drove his troops over, showing off his strength during the day and exhausting the enemy at night.

He did this for two purposes.

First, no matter which one the Haidong reinforcements choose between the Savior of Laiyidu and the plagiarism of Jinan, the nearly 10,000 people in Zhao Guo's department are not a decoration, and they need to be exhausted first, at least to relieve some pressure first. Second, he is also showing deception. It is equivalent to saying to the Haidong reinforcements: "Ben Shuai already knows your plans, and you want to go to Jinan to copy Ben Shuai's back road." Therefore, the commander took precautions and waited for you. Let your horses come. ”

It is considered a kind of psychological warfare, which makes the Haidong reinforcements scratch their heads. There are two advantages, first of all, if the reinforcements really plan to go to Jinan first, seeing this situation, they will not dare to act rashly, or even change their plans on the spot, and if they change their plans, there must be loopholes. "The disaster of the three armies began with suspicion." Perhaps this is where Chahan's chance to win is here. Second, it would be better if the reinforcements were going to come to the Savior of Yidu first. Give them the illusion that the focus of Chahan's defense is in Jinan, paralyze it, and make them careless. "Fifty miles and fight for profit, then you will jump to the general." If this is the case, the destruction of the Haidong reinforcements is not far away.

Soldiers, murder weapons. There is no great or small thing in all things that go to war. Many of the decisive victories are not in the strength of the soldiers, but in the strategy of the coach. The so-called "time, place, and people". In addition to the geographical advantage, the time of day is related to the people and the psychology of people. Whoever can grasp the psychology of the enemy is most likely to win. The more detailed, the more you show your skills. Chahan's small move seems to be inconsequential, as if it is an idle chess game, but it actually contains his years of hard work and deep calculation.

At the same time, Chahan once again sent an envoy to Tianfeng and Tianfeng.

Last time, Tian Feng received a letter of surrender from Chahan, and when he was about to leave the city, he suddenly received the news that Guo Conglong had conquered Wendeng. Anyone with a discerning eye knows that as soon as Wendeng, Haidong's reinforcements will arrive soon. Therefore, he immediately changed his mind, collected his troops and returned to the camp, and retreated back to Dizhou. Continue to watch from the wall.

For Tian Feng, "anti" or "down" is not actually a problem. Qin lost his deer, and the world chased it. asked Liu Bang and Xiang Yu, even if Chen Sheng and Wu Guang were "rebelling" when they first started the army, in the end, was it still a simple rebellion? The ultimate purpose is nothing more than to ask the weight of Jiuding. If you want to get this deer, you have to win the championship, and it is not a problem to ask for all the compromises for a while.

Didn't Liu Bang also go to the Hongmen banquet, and didn't Emperor Guangwu ever curry favor with the enemy who killed his brother? In today's war, the heroes are fighting for "momentum", not "time". But the problem lies in the fact that few people can see what the "potential" is. So Tian Fenghu was hesitant. The heroes of the Chahan world are still understandable about this. Understanding does not mean indulgence, his first letter of surrender is already concise, and this second letter is even simpler, domineering, with only two sentences:

"Do you want to eat five tripods, or do you want to cook five tripods?"

Tian Feng can also be called a hero for a while, when he received the letter, he was sweating after reading these twelve words. He put this letter on the case, not far from the side, and there was another unfolded letter, which was sent by Deng She just again, and it was also very simple, and the words were euphemistic, which contrasted with Chahan's. It reads:

"Our reinforcements have arrived. I will start Yidu and look forward to going out of Dizhou. It's time for the clouds to turn over and rain. Don't want to send charcoal in the snow, but the petition is the icing on the cake. Reading "Historical Records: The Biography of Fan Sui Cai Zelie" recently, there is a sentence that touches me a lot, and I am willing to share it with the public. Yanyun: 'The virtue of a meal must be repaid, and the grievances of the eyes must be repaid'. ”

There are more than 10,000 people in Tianfeng, saying that there is not much to say, and there is no less to say. What's more, he still has a lot of scattered remnants of soldiers on Jining Zhulu, and there are a lot of miscellaneous together. For example, after continuing to go to the southeast, in a few days, he recruited thousands of defeated soldiers. The potential is high. Therefore, when the battle situation entered a critical moment, even Deng She, who was known for his loyalty and benevolence, finally couldn't hold back, although euphemistic, the threat contained in his letter was actually comparable to Chahan.

Tian Feng looked at Chahan's letter on the left, and then looked at Deng She's letter on the right, and was in a dilemma. It just so happened that Cui Shiying was there and asked, "What does the lord mean?" ”

Tian Feng pondered for a long time, and it was difficult to make a decision. Chahan's army is strong, but Haidong's past achievements are also extraordinary. Now that his reinforcements have arrived, on the one hand, there are the tired soldiers under the city of Jiudun, and on the other hand, the new army horses with high morale. Who wins and who loses? For a while, it was really unpredictable. He said, "Wait, wait." "Press two letters, and decide not to reply to anyone.

Guan Bao returned to camp the next day.

In the morning, a more important piece of information arrived from the direction of Wenden. He said that three or four horsemen went out of the city at night and went in a northwestern direction. At night, another military report came from the direction of Qixia. It is said that there are several horsemen from the southeast, and they are hurrying, and it seems that they are going to Laizhou. At noon the next day, news came from Laizhou, and the horses really entered Laizhou City. The synthesis of several pieces of information has attracted the attention of Guan Bao.

It is not surprising that there are people in Haidong Caiclay Prefecture, Wendeng and Laizhou. But the strange thing is that Laizhou Xinke should have sent good news to Guo Conglong. Why did Zhang Ji'er's good news not reach Wendeng, and the day after Kecheng, Guo Conglong sent people to Laizhou? Could it be that Guo Conglong was prescient? This is obviously impossible. Therefore, it can be concluded that before Wendeng's several horses left the city, they did not know that Laizhou had conquered, and they actually went not to Laizhou, but to find Zhang Lu'er. So what would be the circumstances that would motivate them to do such a thing? And the starry night is both, and he gallops more than 200 miles a day. Guan Bao made a judgment: If it was not an urgent matter within Wendeng, it must be related to the reinforcements from Haidong. He immediately sent the information and his personal judgment to Chahanshuai's account.

"What do you think it will be?"

"Either Wenden has changed. Either there is something wrong with the red thief reinforcements. ”

"Wenden has changed? What will change? ”

"The outside of Wendeng City is heavily defended, and it is difficult for the scouts of the last general to enter within thirty miles. It's hard to know what will change. The end will only be speculation based on facts. After saying that, Guan Bao added, "However, based on the analysis of the last general, I think that compared to Wendeng's changes, the possibility of something happening to the red thief reinforcements may be a little greater." ”

"Why?"

"A good general will be drawn into the ranks. Guo Conglong went from being a pawn in front of the horse to becoming a thousand households now, all from his military exploits. It is not an exaggeration to call him a good general. The last general also heard that he was injured, and he was in a dangerous position, talking and laughing and hurting the enemy, and retreated, which can be described as brave and strategic. The small city of Laizhou, although it has changed three masters in a few months, may be unstable inside, but with his elite soldiers to suppress it, it is estimated that it can be safe in a short time. Therefore, the last general thinks that there is a greater possibility that something will happen to the Red Thief reinforcements. ”

Laizhou was first Wang Shicheng's old land, then returned to Deng She, and then was Guan Baoke, and soon Guo Conglong recovered. The "three masters of Lianyi" mentioned in Guan Bao's mouth are from here. Chahan bowed his head and then asked, "If something happens to the Red Thief reinforcements, what will happen?" ”

"In the end, I thought that there were no two possibilities. Or the red thief reinforcements will arrive in advance, so Guo Conglong went to inform Zhang Ji'er, and by the way, he learned about the battle situation in Laizhou and made plans for the landing of reinforcements. Or the arrival of the red thief reinforcements will be delayed, so Guo Conglong Xingye traveled and hurriedly sent someone to tell Zhang Ji'er. Mentally prepare him. ”

"Will it be sooner or later?"

"The Red Thieves have captured Laizhou, obviously paving the way for the upcoming reinforcements. Before the end of the year abandoned Laizhou, he had burned down all the coastal ports and laid eyeliners in them. Whether the Red Thieves reinforcements will be advanced or postponed is difficult to analyze with the current intelligence. Only when the ports along the coast of Laizhou send intelligence can our army know. If the Red Thieves step up the repair of the port, it will be in advance! ”

"Let's go and find out."

Guan Bao came out at the order.

……

In the city of Laizhou.

Zhang Xiao'er slowly unfolded Guo Conglong's letter. Different from Guan Bao's guess, Guo Conglong's letter sprinkled hundreds of words, and not half a word was about reinforcements. Zhang Ji'er looked at it and said to the left and right: "The wise people in the world see the same thing. Long Yuan was in Wendeng, but he also guessed that the Tartars might defeat and abandon the city and lure our army into an ambush. sighed, "It's a pity that the battle the day before yesterday is not comparable to Conglong." ”

If he had fought the day before yesterday and he had been side by side with Guo Conglong, no matter how clever Guan Bao's tricks of setting up an ambush in the north were, it was expected that the reinforcements would not have been fooled. It was also not the first time that the army and horses arrived, and before they had time to confront Chahan, they were defeated first, losing nearly 1,000 Pyongyang elites. The generals of Pyongyang in the hall were ashamed when they heard this.

Speaking of the war the day before yesterday, Zhang Xiao'er remembered something and asked, "Haven't you found the corpse of Xu Pingzhang yet?" ”

"Nope."

"How will Ben be with the main bus generation!" His face turned gloomy and peeked at the generals. The people of Pyongyang are all terrified. Although he lost hundreds of elites, on the bright side, Zhang Ji'er also took advantage of this to establish his prestige in the Pyongyang army. Sighing worriedly, he pretended to be a strong fighter, soothed with kind words, and said to the generals: "Gentlemen, please be forgiving. This will be the commander-in-chief, and the responsibility for the defeat is not you. Regardless of whether Xu Pingzhang lives or dies, this matter has its own responsibility. Our reinforcements are coming, and we are fighting hard. What is a momentary setback? The lord has always had clear rewards and punishments. My generation of boys, born and died, in the ensuing bitter battle, can be guilty and meritorious! ”

The generals were awe-inspiring, and they all agreed.

……

From the surface of complicated things, extract all kinds of related or seemingly unrelated clues, so as to summarize the enemy's movements and make correct judgments. It's a difficult job. Most people can't do well without outstanding insight and analysis. Guan Bao sent people to Laizhou because Guo Conglong judged that there was something wrong with the reinforcements in Haidong, although this was a mistake in judgment, but his overall direction was not wrong. On the fifth day, a military newspaper arrived at the coastal port of Laizhou.

Zhang Ji'er divided his troops and stabilized the situation around Laizhou in three days, annihilated many local youth troops that were not taken away by Guan Bao, purged all county towns, and extended the warning range to 80 miles away, and put all the ports that could be used for landing into firm control. From the fourth day, the people were recruited and the emergency repair of the port began. It is true that the customs protection burned down the port, there is a foundation, and it will be repaired very quickly. It doesn't need to look good, it just works.

"Zhang Ji'er has already started the emergency repair of the port."

"Only now are the repairs started? It seems that your previous judgment was wrong. There was no sign of early arrival of Haidong reinforcements. So, will it be delayed? ......, did that Zhang Gangster do anything else except rush to repair the port? Chahan pondered and asked Guan Bao for advice.

"There was nothing out of the ordinary. It is just to strengthen martial law and loot the people's grain stocks. ”

"Let's go and find out."

Guan Bao came out at the order.

……

Outside Laizhou.

Zhang Ji'er personally supervised the repair of the port. He had given a military order to Wenhua State, and he would definitely not delay the arrival of the second batch of reinforcements because of his relationship. Extrapolating the time, there are only three or four days left for him. The task is heavy. Fortunately, the process of pacifying Laizhou was quite smooth, and there was no too much delay. He asked the 100 households in charge of the emergency repair: "How many hours do you need?" ”

"In three days, it will be completed."

……

On the eighth day, Guan Bao received another piece of information from Wendeng.

By bribing the fishermen off the coast of Wendeng and blending in with the scouts on a nearby island, he found that Guo Conglong had gone out of the city many times in recent days and came to the beach. Just like the last time Zhang Ji'er arrived, the guards were rearranged around the seaside port, and fishing boats were recruited. From the last experience, it can be seen that the Haidong Navy Division has a lot of warships, but because they are too big, they cannot dock. The collection of fishing boats should be a preparation for the reception. On the one hand, Laizhou rushed to repair the port, and on the other hand, Wendeng made preparations for the response. Taken together, these two aspects seem to overturn the conclusion that the reinforcements from Guanbao Haidong would land from Laizhou.

"In the end, I think that Wendeng's move is for no more than two reasons."

"What are the two reasons?"

"Or maybe the Red Thief reinforcements are scheduled to land in more than one place in Laizhou. Or Guo Conglong is setting up a suspicious formation, intending to confuse our army's judgment. "Wendeng is far farther away from Yi than Laizhou, and if the Yuan army believed that some of the Haidong reinforcements would land at Wendeng, then it is obvious that their judgment of when the Haidong reinforcements would launch an offensive would also be misguided.

Chahan still didn't say a word, and said, "Let's go and explore again." ”

……

Continuing the life and death of the ancestors, Guo Conglong already knew. There were hundreds of foot soldiers left behind by the ancestors in Wendeng to help defend the city. In order not to cause the mood of the army to fluctuate, Guo Conglong pressed the news and did not send it. His actions of setting up sentry posts along the coast, collecting fishing boats, and so on were actually all discussed with Zhang Ji'er a long time ago. Both of Kanbo's inferences are actually correct.

The three holes of the cunning rabbit, you can't bet the treasure in Laizhou, what if there is a change in Laizhou? Or maybe when the second batch of reinforcements arrived, the port had not yet been repaired. Wenden could then be used as a backup port. If there is nothing wrong in Laizhou and the port is repaired in time, then this preparatory move will not be in vain, and it can also be used as a "suspicious array".

……

The hourglass drips sand, and the flowing water passes away. The stars have changed, and the ninth day has come.

In these days, Guan Baofan received information of all sizes that could be piled up more than a foot high. However, even if all this information is taken together, it is not as important as the news he received on the evening of the ninth day: the arrival of Haidong reinforcements in Laizhou. The sails are in the sky, and the distance is like clouds. The momentum is prosperous, shaking the southeast. According to rough estimates, there are more than 200 ships in size, stretching for dozens of miles on the sea.

On the day of arrival, a document signed by Haidong Deng She and Wen Huaguo, almost at the same time, spread throughout the coast in all counties, villages and towns under the control of Zhang Bang Haidong.

The scout copied a few of them, and wrote: "The soldiers of the east of the sea beat the drums of the Central Plains." With the power of the three provinces, you will hunt Qilu. The mighty heroes came to the north, not only to save me and benefit the capital. One hundred thousand tigers were conquered in the south, with the intention of taking the head of Chahan. Since ancient times, the Hu people have no luck for a hundred years. Let's see whose world is in the domain of tomorrow! ”

If you only say that it is for the sake of saving the capital, it is inevitable that people will fall behind in momentum. It is very encouraging to say that he came to take the head of Chahan. On the thirteenth day, the military report arrived. Wendeng Guo Conglong, led more than 1,000 riders, and joined forces with Laizhou. On the fourteenth day, the Laizhou army and horses went out of the city together, and the soldiers were divided into two routes. One tends to benefit the capital, one goes to Jinan.

Both armies stretched out their formations, and the sky was full of smoke and dust from a distance. There are two handsome flags in the army, and the word "Wen" is written on them.