In a war of all armies, military intelligence comes first.

The Zhenjiang army and the rebels set up positions in the Huzhou area, preparing for a full-scale battle. The first to appear is an all-weather, multi-faceted military contest.

All of a sudden, the Zhenjiang Intelligence Department and the Pegasus Scout Battalion were all dispatched, from the front line to the rear, from the city to the villages and towns, from the pioneer battalion to the baggage team, from the general lieutenant to the cook and groom, all the information was constantly contacted, obtained, transmitted, and analyzed.

In the end, it was sent to Li Jiangyao and Xu Youchang.

The rebels were not idle. The spy elite tiger camp built by Lao Jianhua was almost mobilized to inquire about news and spy on intelligence in Yixing, Guangde, and Xuancheng, Changzhou and other places in the rear.

The brutal battle between the two sides between infiltration and counter-infiltration is one after another every day.

Since the confrontation on the front line, in just ten moonlit days, the Pegasus Scout Battalion and the rebel Tiger Battalion have fought more than 30 times on the vast battlefield, each suffering nearly 2,000 casualties. In the face of such high-intensity military reconnaissance, the armies of the two sides have almost no secrets to speak of, and it is difficult to guarantee that any movement and deployment will not be discovered by the spies on the other side.

Li Jiangyao was a little annoyed by this.

150,000 against 300,000, no matter how strong the combat strength of the Zhenjiang Army is, a direct frontal confrontation will inevitably bear a huge price of casualties, and this cannot guarantee a sure victory. In a battle with outnumbered enemies, only by using stratagems and confusing the enemy to lure the enemy can we seize the opportunity and defeat the opponent.

However, the Tiger Ben Battalion formed by Lao Jianhua is also an expert in military intelligence, and his martial arts quality is not weaker than that of Pegasus Scouts. The opposing sides are facing each other and not giving an inch, making it clear that they want to defuse the threat of Li Jiangyao's military strategy to the greatest extent and force the Zhenjiang army to be tough and tough.

Several times, he couldn't help but go into battle in person, leading the white-robed army and Pegasus scouts to comprehensively strangle the rebel Tiger Ben and regain the intelligence advantage on the battlefield.

However, the commanders of the army, including Xu Youchang, expressed their opposition one after another.

In this war, the elite of the rebels was exhausted, and there were many masters of martial arts.

In Xu Youchang's words, if you open up to fight, you will open up to fight, and you are not afraid of the opposite side with a clear knife and a clear gun. If you can't make a few spies and then put the coach in, the deal will be a big loss.

Li Jiangyao couldn't resist everyone, so he had no choice but to agree, and no longer moved the idea of personally participating in the scout battle.

In this way, the scouts on both sides of the enemy, you have been fighting back and forth for a long time, and there is no winner or loser. In the end, Li Wei felt that the time was ripe and began to make further new moves.

On the day of the beginning of autumn, the rebels dispatched 250,000 soldiers and horses from Huzhou City and advanced westward. When the army reached 30 miles, 50,000 people were separated from the ranks and set up blocking positions along the line of Fangshan, Badujie, Wutoujie, Zhangzishan, and Dahualing.

The remaining 200,000 main forces continued to the west and approached Guangde.

Li Jiong's train of thought remained unchanged, first defeating Xu You's troops in the west, and then turning around to face Li Jiangyao.

The enemy's strategic intentions were very clear, and the Zhenjiang Army immediately responded.

Guangde County is not large, the city wall is low, and there is no advantage in guarding, so Xu Youchang directly led his troops out of the city to meet the enemy according to the strategy discussed with Li Jiangyao before, and lined up in the ancestral hill east of Guangde to prepare for battle.

At the same time, the Zhenjiang army in Yixing was divided into two routes, Xiong Yunjie's Fifth Army attacked the rebels' mountain defense line, and Duan Jun's Ninth Army marched south along the Taihu Lake to attack the enemy's headquarters in Huzhou.

In addition, Li Jiangyao also issued an order to the Eighth Army, which had been preparing for a long time, and ordered it to set out from Changzhou as soon as possible, march 160 miles, and reinforce the Fifth Army to fight.

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"Daduhu, let's eat something first," Han Wenhao whispered, "The meal was hot twice, and now it's cold again." ”

Li Jiangyao stared at the map and asked, "Where have Xiong Yunjie's twelfth and thirteenth battalions arrived?" ”

Han Wenhao was stunned for a moment, turned his head to look at the side, and Sima Xiang, who joined the army, hurriedly responded: "The battle report just sent says that the right flank of the Fifth Army has captured Dahualing and is making a detour to the main peak of Zhangzi Mountain. ”

"What about the Eighth Army? When will they be able to go into battle? ”

"The vanguard of the Eighth Army has just arrived at Aconitum and it is estimated that the attack will not be launched until sunrise tomorrow. The follow-up troops are still on the way, and they will all arrive at the designated place tomorrow evening at the latest to replace Xiong Yunjie's department. ”

Li Jiangyao muttered, "It's too grinding", and then asked, "What's going on over there Xu Shuai, is there a new situation?" ”

Sima shook his head: "The latest news was sent in the afternoon, the first army has accumulated more than 5,700 casualties, and the sixth army has more than 10,000 casualties, and the battle situation is very stale......"

"Xu Youchang didn't say it, how long can he support it?" Li Jiangyao said in a deep voice.

Xu Shuai didn't say. He simply told the heralds to tell the Metropolitan Protector that the First and Sixth Armies would hold the line until the main force arrived. ”

Li Jiangyao stood up, paced back and forth in the tent for a few steps, and then returned to the map, thinking about it, and said, "Is there no movement in the direction of Huzhou?" ”

Sima Ying, who joined the army, said: "Bao Yuchun was left by Li Jiong to guard Huzhou, with a strength of about 50,000. For General Duan's surprise attack, he never held out, and would rather lose the strongholds and fortresses on the outskirts of the city than send people to meet him. The Ninth Army was all light cavalry, lacking siege equipment, and there was no way to deal with the turtle tactics of the rebels. ”

Li Jiangyao patted the map: "Immediately send someone to inform Duan Jun and change the strategy!" Don't be in a hurry around Huzhou, go west, go around behind the rebel mountain defense lines, and attack their supply lines and troop lines! ”

"Obey the order, and go to the command." Sima agreed to join the army, turned around and walked away quickly.

Han Wenhao glanced at Li Jiangyao cautiously, and was about to remind Dadu to eat again, but he didn't expect the curtain to be lifted, and two people walked in from outside.

"Brother Jiang Yao, don't come unharmed."

"Humble position, see Dadu Protector!"

Li Jiangyao looked up, and was immediately surprised and delighted: "Brother Shen! Yuan Bin! Are you back? ”

As he spoke, he stepped forward quickly and reached out to shake Shen Lie's hand.

Shen Lie said apologetically: "Jiang Yao, I didn't complete the task well, I'm ashamed." ”

"Who said that?" Li Jiangyao pulled Shen Lie to sit down, and said with a smile: "Brother Shen first balanced the forces of the DPRK and China, avoided the spy Wei Zixuan from causing trouble in the court, and then completely destroyed the conspiracy of the rebel spies, and finally successfully captured important people like Wu Ling and Rui Ji, which can be described as a lot of gains, I thank you It's too late." ”

Shen Lie shook his head and asked, "Have you heard about the situation in the imperial capital?" ”

Li Jiangyao motioned to Han Wenhao to pour water for the two, and at the same time responded: "I have heard of it." How? Did you know that? ”

"Yuan Bin and I heard some gossip on the road, and it was very evil." Shen Lie sighed: "Alas, if I knew earlier, I wouldn't be in a hurry to leave the imperial capital, so I would still have the opportunity to grasp first-hand information and help you." It seems that I am really getting older, more and more desperate for my life, and more and more timid. ”

Li Jiangyao waved his hand: "You can't say that." You and Yuan Bin left the land of right and wrong in time, but I was relieved. Otherwise, you have to worry about your safety. What are you afraid of when the imperial capital is turned upside down? You're okay, it's the most important thing to me. ”

These heartfelt words moved Shen Lie and Yuan Bin greatly, and Shen Lie couldn't help but sigh with emotion: "Shen Mou was lonely and arrogant all his life, but he didn't expect that he was nearly half a hundred years old, and he was fortunate to make a good brother of you, God treats me well!" ”

Yuan Bin also said: "Thank you for your concern." Life and death are small, and I will not hesitate to protect most of the people! ”

Li Jiangyao nodded solemnly, and asked instead: "Brother Shen, the emperor is a matter, what do you think?" ”

"If half of the rumors from the outside world are true, then Shen is enough to assert that there was indeed a coup d'état in the imperial capital!" Shen Lie analyzed solemnly: "I have been in charge of the Northern Ya Reverse Scale Division for more than 20 years, and I am known as the Living Yama King, but I have not dared to sweep away nearly one-third of the court ministers in a month, and there is no evidence. Obviously, this is a complete political strangulation, targeting all the important officials who can threaten them, except for the ministers of the queen's line! ”

Li Jiangyao pondered: "What do you mean, this is Cheng Wen plotting to usurp power?" ”

Shen Lie nodded: "Eight or nine is not far from ten." According to the rules of the Holy Tang Dynasty, the courtiers should come forward to cooperate with the imperial family and temporarily handle government affairs on behalf of the emperor. However, this did not happen. On the contrary, the emperor's decrees continued to be promulgated to the outside world, and he himself was isolated from the rest of the world, rarely meeting with his foreign ministers. This cannot but make us suspect that someone has taken control of Li Bing and manipulated the political situation in his name. ”

Yuan Bin continued: "The so-called person is of course the queen. ”

Li Jiangyao bowed slightly: "In this way, the situation in the imperial capital is serious. Coincidentally, the Imperial Capital Branch of the Intelligence Division had to evacuate or dormant due to various crises before, so it was unable to understand the specific situation there in time, and there was no way to provide assistance to Lao Dong and the princess. ”

Shen Lie said in a deep voice: "I'm also worried about them. Especially Master Dong, he is in charge of the military department, holds real power, and has always had a close relationship with us, so it is easy to become a target for Cheng Wen. By the way, Jiang Yao, has the military been affected in any way? ”

"At present, it is mainly the Suzaku Legion that has encountered problems." Li Jiangyao said: "Gong Chengze was ordered to take over half of Ma Hongjie's troops and go west to conquer Bashu, which made the war against Xie Bao more and more difficult. ”

Shen Lie frowned, and said worriedly: "Since Cheng Wen dares to move the Vermilion Bird Army, then the Qinglong Army and the Xuanwu Army will definitely be difficult to escape. Once Li Xi is taken hostage, it will be Murong Xue's bad luck next. ”

Li Jiangyao was slightly stunned, and couldn't help asking, "Huh?" Why isn't Brother Shen worried about the Zhenjiang Army being affected? ”

"You are knowingly asking," Shen Lie smiled bitterly: "Don't say that the queen is just a mere queen, even if it is the emperor himself, she can't move your descendant army." Jiang Yao, let's hurry up and discuss how to help your good brother Murong Xue. ”