Since the Eight Immortals crossed the sea, to Hu Chun's entry into Longshou Mountain to meet with Longgangu, the Anshi Rebellion in the world has been pacified. Mei Xiao, a general who had led his army to stop the rebels from moving south, and who had attacked Luoyang under Guo Ziyi, was a meritorious general. He was named the Marquis of Xihe, and although the war in Guanzhong has been calmed down, the disputes between the masters in the world have intensified. The immortal families on the eastern sea side of the Heavenly Court naturally did not participate in the battle between the world and the earth.

After Hu Chun entered Longshou Mountain. The Qing Emperor was talking to the Demon King Xu, but something happened to Mei Yi in the world. The body of the earth immortal was slashed. The consciousness is scattered and re-enters the cycle of reincarnation. How could such a thing happen? And we have to start at the beginning--

In the first month of the second year of Li Heng's self-proclaimed emperor and his father Li Long's base, An Qingxu killed his blind father An Lushan and usurped the throne of Emperor Dayan, at the same time. The rebel general Shi Siming attacked Taiyuan and was defeated by Li Guangbi. The rebels were hampered in the north, attempting to move south. The Turkic general Ashina Chengqing was sent to lead 20,000 cavalry across the Yellow River and invaded Xuzhou and Maozhou.

When Ashina Chengqing went south. Yongwang Li Lan has just arrived in Pengze, and he is still rectifying the Pengze Water Division, which has not been in the army for a long time. At this time, Mei Cheng led the Wuzhou army and the local people to fight north across the Yangtze River, and when he heard that Wuzhou sent troops, the nearby state capital seemed to have found the backbone. They sent temporarily mobilized military horses and people to support, but did not reach the Huai River after crossing the river. Mei Xiao had 60,000 troops and horses under his command, including soldiers from Wuzhou, Hezhou, Shuzhou, Runzhou, and Xuzhou.

Although Mei Xiaodi's troops were three times larger than the enemy, most of them were temporarily assembled without training, and he ordered a group of his subordinates who knew the art of war to spend a lot of energy on military drills, and selected those who knew martial arts and could ride and shoot, and reluctantly organized into a thousand heavy cavalry, eight thousand light cavalry, and three thousand Mo sword teams. 3,000 crossbowmen, plus 10,000 sailors. The remaining 30,000 people formed a phalanx of foot soldiers with swords, shields and spears.

This is already all the military forces that can be gathered in a hurry in the Jiangnan area. The rehearsal took less than a month. He has just mastered the command of the military flag and the golden drum. The advance and retreat between the various battle formations looked huge. But Mei Xiao knew it in her heart. It was impossible for this force to hold off 20,000 Turkic cavalry head-on in an open area. As long as the opponent charges. The formation ahead is in disarray. Most of the men and horses who have no combat experience in the back are likely to collapse.

After the hasty army. The rebels have advanced to the north bank of the Huai River. Mei Xiao also led his army across the Yangtze River and approached the south bank of the Huai River. The 60,000-strong army needs a huge amount of logistical support, and there are more than 100,000 people in the rear who raise and transport grain, grass and military supplies under the command of local officials. There is no shortage of money and food. It's just that it's complicated to organize and coordinate.

Military command is, of course, Mei Xiao. But the nominal leader of this army is Mei Yingxing, although Mei Yingxing is not very old. But there is the aura of the father's generation. At the same time, the backbone of the army came from the children of the Mei family. Only he can calm the scene and stabilize the morale of the army.

When he was in Wuzhou, there was a debate about whether to cross the river to meet the enemy. Ying Ning thought that the soldiers of Wuzhou could only defend themselves from the city. Crossing the river with a group of people who had never fought bravely was equivalent to death, and Mei Xiao pointed to the atlas and said: "The soldiers in Wuzhou alone naturally cannot meet the enemy." But now the states are in a panic. Huainan Province could not unite the whole army, and there was a shortage of people with lofty ideals to climb the heights. You can take the opportunity to gather soldiers and horses from nearby states. The great husband's achievements are at this time. ”

Ying Ning doesn't care who fights with whom in the world. It's just for Mei Yingxing. Pointing to the map, he said: "The Mei family in Wuzhou has 2,000 strong people in the army, you take them across the Yangtze River, once you lose, there will be no way back." Is this to emulate the overlord of Chu in a back-to-back battle?"

Mei Xiao shook his head and said: "Most of the Turks have long been out of fashion, relying on the rebels to make rebellion and cruelty, and this time they came south to plunder property, population, and military supplies. If you can't take it away, you will burn it and not leave it behind the enemy. If they are defeated, they will have a way out. It's nothing more than going back to the steppe. And the people of Jianghuai bravely have no way to retreat from their homeland. You don't know what kind of horror the wolf soldier will look like after the crossing. ”

Mei Yingxing, who had not spoken all this time, suddenly patted the case and said: "Cross the river! The combat power is not as good as the one, and then you will not gather the crowd to raise your fighting spirit." How can the battle be fought?"

Things turned out as Mei Xiao expected. Take the act of crossing the river to meet the enemy as a call. A large army was assembled in a short time. At least we can fight. Tingtao Villa received a letter from Yu Wenmo, the assassin of Wuzhou. He also sent a monk, Yu Wendeng, to rush to the army with his two nephews, Yu Wenlong and Yu Wenhu. Individual monks do not play a big role in front of thousands of troops, but they are suitable for transmitting messages, reconnaissance, guarding generals, and spying on military intelligence.

Mei Yingxing has never been on the battlefield but has also read military books, and after crossing the river, he once said to Mei Xiao: "There are clouds in military books." When the enemy crossed halfway, the forward was not firmly established. The beginning and the end can't be echoed, and the attack is the best. Should we send light cavalry to the banks of the Huai River? Attack while the other party crosses the river?"

Mei Xiao shook his head and said: "Ashina Chengqing has been in battle under An Lushan for a long time, how can he not know the art of war? The so-called half-crossing attack must have a favorable geographical position, and it is always best when the enemy is unprepared or has to cross, and when the enemy army takes the risk of attacking or retreating, our light cavalry combat strength is insufficient. Most of the military horses behind could not keep up at the same time. And they can't control when and where the other party crosses the river. Fatigue strikes far away and fears that the striker will collapse first. It can only be advanced by a combined army. Choose the right place to meet the enemy. ”

Two days later, the scout cavalry reported that Ashina Chengqing's army had crossed the Huai River in Haozhou, and the selected place had a wide field of vision on both sides of the river, which was not suitable for launching an ambush. At night, he sent people to cross the river to explore the surrounding terrain and enemy situation, set up a beacon guard and a dark outpost on a high place, gathered all the ferries in the vicinity in the morning, set up an arrow tower to cross urgently, and protected the beachhead on the south bank. Quickly set up a pontoon bridge. The cavalry did not dismount and quickly rushed across the river.

At this time, Mei Xiao's army had just entered the Haozhou border. It is still more than 300 miles away from the Huai River. It's really too late to meet the attack. If only light horsemen are sent forward. I'm afraid it's hard to win. If the morale of the front is lost. The later battles were difficult to fight, because these soldiers had never fought at all.

After the enemy soldiers have passed Huai. He went south along the canal, but did not take the waterway, but marched by land along the canal. It may be that the cavalry was more troublesome to get on the boat, and most of the Turkic soldiers were not familiar with water and were not used to riding on ships. Speculate on the direction of their march. It should be the capture of Runzhou.

Runzhou is the place where the Grand Canal dug by Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty connects the Yangtze River. Taxes, money, grain, tribute, and trade goods from the south of the Yangtze River were transported to the northern transit station. There is a lot of money and all kinds of materials hoarded there, and it is also the most densely populated. It gathers a variety of shops, workshops, and craftsmen.

Whether from a strategic point of view. Or just want to raise troops and plunder. Runzhou is a must-attack place for the rebels.

After hearing the news. Mei Xiao ordered the advance to be stopped, and the whole army retreated fifty miles, setting up camp in front of the official road. The grain, grass and baggage were transported to Tianshui County, the rear of Dazhai, and while retreating, three hundred pro-soldiers who were good at lurking were quietly left along the way. Unconsciously, they disappeared one by one into the dense forests, river ditches, and reeds.

They have scouts, and each other has scouts. It is impossible to conceal the march of such a large army, and the other party must know their movements. However, when the 60,000 army heard that the enemy was retreating, they "lost" 300 people on the road one after another, which would not attract special attention, and these 300 people were all the children of the Mei family's cronies, and they changed into civilian clothes to dress up as woodcutters, hunters, and fishermen. Bring three days of dry food. Scattered in the dense forests and reeds in the southwest of the official road. After these people are scattered, don't talk about the enemy. Even Mei Yingxing couldn't find it all out herself.

A day and a half after the enemy crossed the Huai River. They reached a distance of thirty miles from Mei Xiao's army, and met almost no decent resistance along the way, each of them with more than one horse. Most of the military supplies were based on looting. Therefore, the march was extremely fast and highly mobile.

20,000 cavalry marched on the official road. It is divided into three armies: front, middle and rear. Stretching for twenty miles, the front was approaching the enemy camp.

Scout returns. The Don army left the city and camped. Outside the camp, a battle formation has been set up. The Turkic forward general Ashina Robi ordered the front army to slow down and close the formation. Lined up in a charging formation. At the same time, he sent someone to report back to the commander of the Chinese army, Chengqing.

The rebels obviously did not take the Jiangnan soldiers and horses in front of them into account. is not afraid of encounters, and Mei Xiao's soldiers are a little nervous. Many people in the large array were sweating with their swords and hands, so it was said that at this time, they should take advantage of the fact that the opponent's foothold was not stable and the battle formation was not completely opened, and they should send heavy cavalry to attack along the official road. But Mei Xiao did not move.

I don't know if it's because I'm afraid that my army will be released and won't be able to retract, or if I'm waiting for a better fighter. Dimei Xiao, a banner of the Chinese army, has been looking into the distance.

There was a trumpet on the horizon. This was followed by the sound of horses' hooves galloping. The ground trembled faintly. The vanguard of the enemy formed several battle formations three miles away, and galloped over. The charge accelerated to the full power of the Iron Horseman, and smoke and dust could be seen in the distance.

There was silence in the array. Hearing a loud sound, a young man behind him may have been too nervous, and the shield in his hand fell to the ground, and he quickly picked it up again, and then he had to do something. The southwest wind that had been blowing suddenly became stronger, Mei Xiao raised his hand, and the Chinese military flag waved left and right twice. The drums of war beat. The bow was wound, the knife was unsheathed, and three thousand Mo swordsmen lined up. With the rhythm of the war drums, step forward and lead the Chinese army.

The sword array was followed by three thousand saber crossbowmen. Archers with arrows and crossbowmen with winding. Pointing diagonally to the sky as commanded. Another hundred crossbowmen rode at the end of the line and watched the battle formation ahead, as long as anyone fled to the enemy and disrupted the formation. Shoot it with an arrow in no time.

The light cavalry was spread out on both sides of the Chinese army. The bag can be flushed out at any time. Sword, shield and spear infantry were arrayed behind the cavalry. A thousand heavy cavalry assembled on the left side of the battlefield. Stay away from the canal land, so that there is the largest open area to impact. Thunderous war drums rang out. It seems to shake everyone's nerves. The nervousness of the generals faded. The rhythm becomes more and more exciting as you step neatly.

That's when it happened. Ban let out a loud roar. With the impact power of piercing the clouds and breaking through the sky, it spread for dozens of miles. Nearby, several horses neighed in fright, and threw the knight off their backs.

Band's roar rang out, and the opposing cavalry could already be seen on the horizon, and at that moment, a puff of smoke rose from the left side of the enemy's field, followed by another plume of smoke. All the way into the distance. - The rebel vanguard rushed out, but the middle and rear armies were in disarray.

I need to introduce the terrain here. The water system north of Tianchang County is well developed along the canal. Along the way, there are countless large and small lakes such as Chengzi Lake, Hongze Lake, Baima Lake, and Gaoyou Lake. Everywhere was overgrown with reeds, and only the official road along the canal could pass the cavalry. And outside Tianchang County, there is an open area suitable for the battle of the army, and Mei Xiao is waiting here.

Mei Yingxing left the three hundred people. He hid in the reeds on the southwest side of the official road, scattered and lurked for about 30 miles, and the southwest wind was blowing for the past two days. On the other side of the official road is Gaoyou Lake, and the roar of Abandi is heard. At the same time, they started a fire, igniting the nearby mountains and forests and reeds.

Grass is dried in early winter. The fire spreads by the wind. Burn in the direction of the official road. There was smoke billowing everywhere, and the fire attack was Ying Ning's idea, which had three effects: one was that there was smoke rising from the thirty-mile road, and the enemy army did not know what ambush was, so he would be distracted and panicked. It is impossible to gather all the forces to fight against Mei Xiao in a short time.

Second, because there were woods and reeds in many places next to the official road, fireworks struck, and the army had nowhere to retreat. On the other side is Gaoyou Lake. If you hide in the lake, you can't burn to death. Third, even if people can avoid the fireworks and not be chaotic, the war horses will inevitably be frightened by the fireworks and scatter and flee, and as soon as the war horses are in chaos, the army formation will be chaotic.

Dozens of miles of roads can't be all reeds and mountain forests. But as long as the Turkic army is messed up, there will be a chance to take advantage of it! This move is ruthless enough, and it really works.

It is common sense to march and fire attack. The Turkic military horses were on guard along the way, and when there were dense forests and large reeds on the side of the road, they also marched in batches to speed up. No trace of the enemy was found. But who would have thought that the other party would be a mile away. Hundreds of places along the road were set on fire at the same time? There were dozens of villages along the road, although the common people fled. But the houses are all in the countryside.

The greatest threat is not fire, but smoke drifting in the wind. The horses were so smoky that they couldn't open their eyes, and they neighed and scurried around, and the leaders of the army shouted loudly to their subordinates. It was not easy to gather the army formation and assemble a little away from the fireworks, but the whole army was in disarray, and only a few hundred of the 20,000 cavalry were actually burned to death. Thousands of people were trampled to death after falling off their horses, and thousands of people were drowned in Gaoyou Lake in a panic. The remaining 10,000 people did not form an army in time to participate in the war.

Only the forward Ashina Robbi led 4,000 cavalry to the open area as planned, and fought head-on with Mei Xiao's 60,000 army, and the two armies just clashed. Just listen to the thunderous cheers in the opposite array. When I looked back, there was smoke billowing out of the sky.

Morale is a strange thing. Even if the Jiangnan soldiers and horses are useless, the Turkic cavalry is brave. 60,000 people bullying 4,000 people who have no backup for a while, who will not be able to cheer up? There are many ordinary people. When you run for your life in fear, you may run faster than anyone else, but when you wield a knife and gun in one go. When he slashed the first time in the midst of the earth-shattering shouts, he forgot to be afraid. And then when he trampled the first enemy under his feet. It seems that he has become a fearless warrior again.

The first battle of Mei Xiao won a big victory. He singled out Robbie with his own shot. Four thousand enemy troops suffered casualties. In the afternoon of this day, the Turkic commander Chengqing gathered his troops and horses to kill, and the real fierce battle began.