Jiuxi

Chapter 283 281 [Basic Power]

In this era, three hundred miles is a very ambiguous distance.

If it were placed in the vast Yunshan Mountains where the Dashi tribe of the Seven Divisions of Shazhou lived, it would take at least twenty days to cross the mountains and ridges for 300 miles. If the terrain is replaced by the vast and flat Jiangbei Plain, the forced march of elite infantry only takes five days, and the cavalry can shorten the time by half.

From Raoyang, captured by the Qi army, to Heluo in the west, this area happens to be located in the Jiangbei Plain, and there is a flat and wide official road in between.

In other words, if we ignore the Yan army stationed along this journey, Lu Chen and his fine cavalry can reach Heluo City within three days.

There was a sudden rumbling, and people in Beiyan Hall were panicked.

Many ministers were discussing privately, feeling that it was impossible for the Huaizhou Army of the Southern Qi Dynasty to open a second front while attacking Dongyang Road, and they would also target Heluo City, which had towering walls and was well-defended.

Xiao Wangzhi only had a hundred thousand soldiers and horses in his hands. Even if he suffered very little losses in the previous battle, how many troops could he allocate to attack Heluo?

The Jingzhou Army is still blocked south of Moyang Road, and General Niu Cunjie can still deal with it, so the Huaizhou Army can only fight alone.

Even if Xiao Wangzhi suddenly goes crazy, ignores the Yan army on Dongyang Road, and instead takes all his troops and horses to travel hundreds of miles in a desperate attack on Heluo, how confident can he be that he can scale the city wall?

But in this world, you are not afraid of anything but the worst. No one can guarantee whether Xiao Wangzhi and Lu Chen will take this dangerous path.

Therefore, there is a lot of traffic outside Zhuoyuan these days, and the worried ministers of the Yan State, regardless of the strange looks from the world, come to see Her Royal Highness Princess Jingchao one after another, because they know very well that in the current situation, only the few stationed in the city can do it. Only Wan Jingjun was able to block the advance of the Huaizhou Army of Southern Qi.

Facing waves of worried Yan ministers, Qingyu Huaijin's response was almost the same.

"My lords, are you worried about Qi's army threatening Heluo?"

Everyone nodded in agreement.

Qing Yu Huaijin then said calmly: "Since you think that our elite troops can stop the Qi army, what are you worried about? Our main force of more than 30,000 people is in the city. If the Qi army dares to come, our elite troops can naturally stop it." Drive them back.”

Everyone couldn't help but look at each other, as if they suddenly came to their senses.

Yes, the main force of Jing's army is in the city. If Qi's army dares to come, can't these more than 30,000 Jing's troops plus tens of thousands of Yan's troops be able to defend Heluo?

What are you worried about?

When Qingyu Huaijin saw this, he smiled and said: "Everyone, my brother and I will stay in the city all the time, and I will do the same with the army. Even if you don't say anything, we will guard Heluo City. Everyone, please go back. The nearest people in the city are People's hearts are floating and rumors are spreading. I hope everyone can perform their duties and stabilize the situation in the government. Otherwise, if the Qi army does not appear outside the city, we ourselves will become chaotic."

All the ministers looked embarrassed and bowed slowly before leaving.

After sending away the last batch of ministers who came to the door, Qingyu Huaijin shook his head, raised his hand and pinched his tired eyebrows, then left the Xiangwan Tower and went straight to the Nuan Pavilion behind the main hall.

"...Little Prince, now the two Huaizhou armies are getting closer and closer to Heluo. At the same time, they are getting further and further away from the main force led by Xiao Wangzhi. Can our army go east to meet the enemy?"

Mou Lianghu looked solemn, and when he saw Qing Yu Huaijin coming in, he turned his head and bowed his head in greeting.

Qingyu Huaijin nodded and sat down quietly listening to their discussion of military affairs.

Qing Yu Zhongwang asked calmly: "Do you think Lu Chen led the Rui Shiying and Lai'an troops to advance carelessly?"

Mou Lianghu hesitated and said: "Lu Chen might make such a mistake, and Xiao Wangzhi would certainly not be so rash. There might be a large number of troops hidden behind Rui Shi Camp and Lai'an Army, just waiting for our reinforcements to appear. Little Prince, The general is just worried that as the Huaizhou Army approaches step by step, the people in the city will be confused and difficult to suppress. Although our army has more than 30,000 soldiers and horses, there are more than a million residents in the city and countless noble families. If we really surrender The Huaizhou Army has provoked some people's thoughts, and there is fear of civil strife."

As the planner of the Leize Battle, Mou Lianghu has always been brooding. If he could have calculated one more step than Lu Chen and put all his troops into the battlefield, the final outcome was still uncertain.

After suffering a big loss, he would definitely not look down upon that young general of Southern Qi again. Now that the other party was marching westward with 20,000 troops, and getting closer and closer to Heluo, the evil tiger could attack with his toes. I know there must be a conspiracy here.

However, as he said later, if the Huaizhou Army is left alone and allowed to advance into Heluo, the biggest problem is that it may lead to direct chaos in the city.

Qing Yu Zhongwang nodded slightly, then turned to look at Qing Yu Huai Jin and asked, "Sister, what do you think?"

Qingyu Huaijin muttered: "Judging from the current situation, although there are undercurrents surging in the city, it can generally maintain stability. However, I also agree with General Moulianghu's judgment. If the Huaizhou Army's offensive momentum is allowed to go, People's hearts in the city will change very quickly, so I think it is necessary to take some targeted measures. As for how to deal with it, this is not my sister's skill, it is all up to my brother."

"Of course we have to deal with it, but I am very curious about one thing now. Is Lu Chen going deep alone?"

Qing Yuzhongwang's eyes were calm and his tone was gentle.

Mou Lianghu and Qing Yu Huaijin looked at each other with confusion in their eyes.

It is difficult to judge the enemy's true intentions, but at least one can follow the most basic logical standard, which is to see whether the other party can benefit from it.

Under the premise that the dignitaries of the Yan State and even the Jing Dynasty have given up on the Dongyang Road, if the Huaizhou Army only wants to defend against the Jing Army, then they only need to station troops in Ningling City and Fengfu City to guard the main road. If that is not possible, they can also send troops to Qingliu. Stationed on the east side of Kanto. In fact, Lu Chen's behavior of leading troops to attack Qingliu Pass was unnecessary in the eyes of Mou Lianghu. Perhaps the opponent was too cautious, lest the main force of Jing's army enter Dongyang Road again.

But then the Huaizhou Army continued to advance westward, which shows that Lu Chen wanted to lure the main force of the Jing Army to leave Heluo and fight them again in the wild. This is enough to show that there must be an ambush behind the Rui Shi Camp and Lai'an Army, otherwise he would There is no point in going in alone.

Furthermore, wasn't Lu Chen afraid that Jing Jun would get angry and fight out of the city? If he was not prepared at this time, the 20,000 elites would likely suffer heavy casualties.

Based on all the above, Mou Lianghu believed that Lu Chen could not go deep alone. He raised his eyes and looked at Qing Yu Zhongwang and said cautiously: "My young prince, Lu Chen has no reason to do this."

"That's what it looks like on the surface."

Qing Yu Zhongwang nodded slightly, and then said quietly: "But now I have a very strange feeling. Lu Chen and Xiao Wangzhi may have guessed what I was thinking."

Moulianghu was slightly startled, and Qingyu Huaijin asked, "Brother wants to go out and fight the enemy?"

Qing Yu Zhongwang shook his head and said calmly: "I have never thought about giving up Dongyang Road. As early as when I went south, I had already sent people to Ruyin secretly to inform Li Shouzhen that his mission was to crucify him in Ruyin. The city and other places can be strategically abandoned, but Ruyin cannot. As long as he can hold it for two months, I will report to His Majesty afterwards to plead for his merit."

After hearing these words, the other two people couldn't help but feel shocked.

Qing Yu Zhongwang stood up and walked to the west wall. He raised his hand and drew a line on the map hanging on the wall. He went east from Heluo City and passed through Shenze City, Anxian County, Yaoshanguan and Gongshang along the official road. City, Raoyang City, Qingliuguan, and then enter Dongyang Road.

After he drew this line, he turned around and said: "From the beginning, I have been showing weakness to the enemy, causing Xiao Wangzhi to misjudge that I would abandon Dongyang Road. When he devotes most of his troops to attacking Ruyin City, I will Lead the main force to advance eastward quickly along this road, directly to the decisive battle between the main force of Ruyin and Xiao Wangzhi. At that time, we should cooperate with the inside and the outside, and I will be at least 60% sure to overwhelm the enemy."

Mou Lianghu made a quick calculation in his mind and said hesitantly: "My lord, our army currently has nearly 20,000 infantry and more than 16,000 cavalry in the city. Is this a little insufficient?"

"Don't forget, we still have a troop of troops north of Dongyang Road."

Qing Yu Zhongwang raised his hand and pointed on the map, and said calmly: "In order to guard against the Seven Star Army in Baotai Mountain, when Li Shouzhen retreated the 20,000 Yan Army to Ruyin, we sent 5,000 infantry to the east line of Fengqiu. .”

Mou Lianghu did not forget these five thousand people, but he subconsciously thought that these troops had to stay in place to frighten the bandit army in Baotai Mountain. Now he obviously realized that Qing Yu Zhongwang planned to complete his victory in one battle.

Qing Yu Zhongwang continued: "But Lu Chen led his troops to continue to advance westward. He seemed to have seen through my thoughts and set a difficult problem for me. So now I want to know whether he is bluffing or whether he is fully prepared. Wait for me to lead the troops to fight."

Mou Lianghu then said: "My young prince, maybe we can test the enemy's strength."

This is the proper meaning of the title. More than 30,000 Jingjun troops were stationed in Heluo City, but they would not be too frightened to move by a mere 20,000 Huaizhou troops.

Qing Yu Zhongwang nodded and said, "I have the same plan. You immediately mobilize three thousand cavalry and head east between Gongcheng and Raoyang. Don't fight the Qi army. Just keep an eye on their movements."

Mou Lianghu stood up and said: "The last general takes orders!"

After he retreated, Qing Yu Zhongwang looked at the worry on Qing Yu Huaijin's face and said with a smile: "Don't worry, I have my own concerns."

"Well, brother can definitely defeat the enemy."

Qingyu Huaijin responded softly.

When the subjects of the Yan State were uneasy, three thousand Jingjun cavalry left Heluo City eastward. One man and two horses rushed forward quickly and arrived to the west of Gongcheng in the afternoon of the next day.

The next morning, these three thousand elite cavalry appeared outside Raoyang City. They looked at the Qi army flag flying above the city from a distance, like a group of silent beasts staring coldly at their prey.

On top of the city wall, Duan Zuozhang said calmly: "Brother Lu, Qing Yu Zhongwang probably can't sit still."

Lu Chen smiled slightly, a cold look flashed in his eyes, and said slowly: "He wants to test our strength, so let's continue to advance."

Duan Zuozhang said excitedly: "Okay!"

In the afternoon of that day, the Huaizhou Army continued to advance westward. Jingjun's three thousand cavalry did not dare to attack and harassed them, so they had to retreat westward to the outskirts of Gongcheng.

The Ruishi Battalion cavalry and the Jingjun cavalry were facing each other tit for tat. A large number of elite spies from the Weaving Department, under the personal command of Su Yunqing, covered the front line. They did not give the Jingjun cavalry and the Procuratorate's detectives any chance of investigation. It seemed that the Ruishi Battalion and the Lai'an Army were hiding in the rear. Holding an ulterior secret.

The fog obscures the sky and the sun, making it difficult to distinguish between true and false.

At this moment, Heluo City was enveloped in an almost suffocating atmosphere.

(End of this chapter)