Chapter 211: Only sneak attacks
Zhao Yulin boarded Zhou Ping's command ship, and this guy kept asking him, "Are we really going to Xiangyang?"
Zhao Yulin looked at Zhou Ping's excited expression and ignored him. He ordered the boat to start and went straight into the cabin.
In Tangzhou, the Mongolian commander Tachaer happily entered the city to accept the surrender. Hubili, who volunteered to be the vanguard officer, told him that an insider in Xiangyang had reported that they were expecting the army to go south to take over.
Damn, Tangzhou had just fallen into the pocket of the Mongolian army, and the rebel general in Xiangyang was already waiting for it to be occupied.
Tachaer drank the Song Dynasty matcha made by Meiji happily, and said with a smile that Xiangyang was important, but our navy was not as good as that of the Song people. He was afraid that he would not be able to get out after entering, which would be a good opportunity for the Song army.
This guy even got a bracelet. Why did this guy, Tachaer, give up halfway?
If we don't act quickly when faced with such a great opportunity, won't our original plan to capture Xiangyang in one fell swoop fail?
Hubili was anxious. He had originally advised the Khan of the grassland to let Guanzhong make a feint to delay the Shenwei Army in order to capture Xiangyang in one fell swoop and stab the Song State in the belly button.
As long as Xiangyang is occupied, it would be a great achievement if they can hold it. If they cannot hold it, they can definitely seize countless gold and silver treasures, because it is a water transportation hub.
Now that the army has arrived in Tangzhou and the insiders are calling, why not go?
This is just like the saying: We have already taken off our pants but are asked to stop. It is so uncomfortable.
Tachaer doesn't care about that.
This time, the Mongolian army moved south easily and robbed the counties and cities along the way without any damage. It was already a small gain, which was enough.
He is from the family of the eldest prince of Tian Khan and is on good terms with the family of the fourth prince. He wondered how this kid Hubli could have forgotten his feud with the Khan's family and was risking his life to capture Xiangyang and gain merit.
Hubili wanted more than just to be the heir to the Fourth Prince's family. He wanted to wear the yellow robe, ascend the throne and become the Great Khan. Of course, taking Xiangyang was for himself .
The two were still discussing and bargaining in the yamen when the secret report came again .
The secret letter from the Mongolian intelligence station in Zhejiang and Sichuan showed that the commander of the Shenwei Army was in Zhejiang and Sichuan, and that the Shenwei Army suddenly had two new numbers, the New Third Column and the New Second Column. Because Liu Qiguang of the Third Column was in the New Third Column, it was impossible to determine whether the Shenwei Army had established two new columns, or whether their Third Column had not left Xixia and just changed its flag to confuse people?
There was a lot of doubt on Tachaer's face. He felt that the Shenwei Army seemed to be targeting him this time, and he didn't want to send troops to Xiangyang.
He had known about Zhao Yulin's arrival in Xixia, and he suspected that Zhao Qi'er was here to deal with him. Later, the Shenwei Army was tricked into withdrawing the three columns to the north, indicating that the Shenwei Army would focus its attention on Luochuan. Only then did he move south and arrived in Tangzhou smoothly.
Now, Zhao Qi'er is causing trouble again. He has launched two newly-built columns with 40,000 to 50,000 troops. It's really amazing.
He showed the secret letter to Hubli, who was also shocked.
However, this boy was quite smart. He thought that the Third Column of the Shenwei Army must have left. Most likely, Liu Qiangguang himself was left behind, or his team and other troops formed a new column, because they also received intelligence from Guanzhong that at least 20,000 troops of the Shenwei Army passed through Lantian and headed straight for Luochuan.
Tachaer asked him how to explain the new Second Column of the Shenwei Army?
Hubili believed that Yang Xingyun was lacking in military deployment. At most, he could organize their county and state ragtag troops and raise a flag. The actual military strength had not changed, and was still the original 30,000 to 40,000 people. Together with their navy, it would not exceed 80,000.
Hubili's judgment was basically accurate, but the total number of troops of the Southern Group was only this number, but the military strength was quite powerful, definitely not comparable to the Haner Army that he mentioned that surrendered.
Although Tachaer had never fought the Shenwei Army head-on, it was an indisputable fact that the Shenwei Army had defeated the God of War Tulei, and defeated Kuoduan and Wang Shixian, so he naturally did not dare to underestimate them. Although his 50,000 rear guards were about to arrive in Nanyang, he was worried because they had all come down.
Intelligence showed that the new Third Column of the Shenwei Army went directly north to Luanchuan Town, which was a clear signal of advancing into Luoyang. Although the journey was long, after Tachaer led his main force to the south, this move of the Shenwei Army was like finding his weak spot.
Therefore, if the Shenwei Army seized the north to fight to the death, his defense would obviously have a loophole. He felt that in the Luoyang area, as long as the Shenwei Army dared to attack, it seemed that they could succeed anywhere.
Also, there was intelligence that his sworn brother Meng Gong was leading his troops from Huangzhou.
Ta Chaer knew very well how powerful Brother Meng was. He was a legend in commanding troops and fighting. If he really met him, he would not know what to do.
However, he still had a plan in mind and had kept a trick up his sleeve when he set out. He left 5,000 elite soldiers to guard Song County. If the Shenwei Army really wanted to attack the city, they would definitely be able to defeat it.
Tachaer was hesitating. Having already acquired so much territory, he did not want to move forward and take risks, even though Xiangyang was indeed a piece of fat meat to sit on.
The two men drank tea and discussed for a long time. Hubili became anxious. Now the gate of Xiangyang has been opened, and there are many crazy people inside who are eager to follow them to eat big chunks of meat, drink big bowls of wine, and rape women at will. Why not go?
Opportunities are really rare.
He kept lobbying Tacaer to send troops to Xiangyang.
Tachaer became annoyed and said that it was getting late and they had to leave tomorrow. He gave him 20,000 vanguard troops and let him go first.
Hubili knew that speed was of the essence in war, so as soon as Tacaer agreed, he received the military order and went to organize and prepare.
As the sun sets, Zhao Yulin arrives at Laohekou.
He had just settled down when Zhou Ping came back to report intelligence: Li Boyuan, the commander of Xiangyang City, rebelled and took control of the city, and Zhao Fan, the governor of Yanjiang, had fled to Jingmen.
As he expected, the situation took a turn for the worse.
Zhao Yulin immediately wrote a secret letter and asked Shunfeng to pass it to Yang Xingyun.
Zhou Ping asked him nervously what to do?
Damn it! We haven't even reached Xiangyang yet and the bastards have already rebelled.
He burst out laughing.
Zhou Ping thought about how he lost his composure due to nervousness and actually swore in front of the Third Young Master. He immediately felt embarrassed like a primary school student.
Zhao Yulin asked him how many people he had who could climb up to the city of Xiangyang with bare hands. All the men were gathered together, and ten speed boats were prepared in front, and the navy immediately set off for Xiangyang.
Zhou Ping hurried out to get busy.
Just as they were about to set off, the guard led in a masked ruthless man. As soon as he entered the room, he took off the mask and called out "son-in-law".
Zhao Yulin knew it was his father-in-law Hu Yidao as soon as he saw it, and asked him in surprise why he came here.
Hu Yidao laughed and said that it was his good daughter Wu Yuqi who gave the order to protect her son-in-law.
He asked where his mother was. Why didn't she come along?
Hu Yidao glared and said that it was not enough that he had brought the eight great warriors under his command? Then he smiled and said that his mother-in-law was also pregnant, so he could only stay in Chang'an City to accompany his daughter Yuqi.
Oh my, this old guy is so powerful that he insists on giving Zhao Yulin, who is almost thirty years old, a younger brother or sister.
Zhao Yulin told him that the Xiangyang garrison commander had rebelled, and that time was running out, so they should talk as they walked . He led the way and hurried to the dock to board the ship heading south.
Behind them, the Shenwei Army Navy fleet followed closely behind, blocking out the sun across the river.
When Hu Yidao heard that the Song army in Xiangyang had surrendered to the enemy, he was so angry that he swore and cursed the government army for being incompetent. This made his brothers in the Shenwei Army on both sides a little embarrassed, because the Shenwei Army was also the Song Army.
Zhao Yulin asked his father-in-law to take a rest first, saying that it might be very tiring to reach the battlefield.
Hu Yidao said casually that he came down only to protect his son-in-law, and everything else had nothing to do with him. He picked up his sword and went into the cabin next door.
Zhou Ping was very excited and said proudly that his navy was finally put to use.
Zhao Yulin told him not to be careless, because the rebels in Xiangyang must have a fleet, and the Mongolian army would bring a navy with them when they came down from Tangzhou, so his task would be arduous. Even if we couldn't enter Xiangyang, the navy couldn't let the Mongolian army enter Xiangyang.
Zhou Ping's teeth were chattering. Just wait and see, he would beat the Northern Barbarians into a pulp.
Zhao Yulin was too lazy to talk anymore, so he said he was tired and went to take a nap on the couch. The guard immediately found a quilt to cover him.
After receiving the secret letter from Zhao Yulin, Yang Xingyun realized that the situation in Xiangyang was urgent, so he immediately ordered the troops to move eastward, storm Neixiang County, capture Zhenping County and feint to attack Nanyang. The New Second Column had already been preparing and immediately attacked Neixiang upon receiving the order.
He looked at Shunzhidi, who had a childish face, and heard that the Third Young Master wanted her to follow the New Second Column to make a feint to attract the enemy. The Young Master said that if the lady disagreed, she didn't have to go, because the New Second Column had only 10,000 troops, and the number would decrease as they moved forward.
Shunzhidi said with a firm look in her eyes that since it was the young master's military order, she would definitely go.
Yang Xingyun immediately instructed the guard captain Geng Feihu: Put on the third young master's military uniform, protect Madam Zhidi, and set off.
Half a column of the New Second Column, with 10,000 troops, raised the flag of 20,000 troops and marched straight to Nanyang.
Yang Xingyun was busy arranging the battle to block the retreat of the Mongolian army. Zhao Yulin reminded him that if Xiangyang was lost, the Mongolian army would definitely stay there. If it was not captured, they would definitely go back to Nanyang via Xinye, so he made such arrangements.
Gu Shan rushed to Luochuan in Guanzhong and delivered a secret letter from Zhao Yulin, saying that the enemy was probably conducting a tentative feint attack, and if we showed weakness, the enemy would gain an inch and a foot. He meant that if we found out that the enemy was short of manpower, we could launch the Battle of Yan'an Prefecture and defeat the enemy.
Several main generals were still discussing when General Cao arrived.
This veteran general who fought against the Mongols had the border on his mind. After Zhao Yulin wrote him a letter of report, he immediately became excited. He left his wife behind and hurried through Ziwu Valley to the battlefield.
Miao Gui quickly asked him to make a decision.
Lao Cao said that since his brother had made arrangements, they should just do as he told them. He was here to provide protection and backup for the guys, so they should fight with all their might.
Miao Gui and Lu Huacai also discovered the trick of the Mongolian army. After fighting for seven or eight days, they felt that the battlefield was very lively with flags waving, but it was just a lot of noise but little rain. It seemed that there were many blossoms and fires on the defense line, but the offense was obviously weak and there was no major breakthrough.
Several people quickly gathered together to discuss and adjust the deployment.
