Chapter 268 I was surprised
The Mongolian army did not follow the old path and launched an attack in advance. Even Zhao Yulin was surprised. He was worried that his brothers would make mistakes in judgment and something would go wrong.
The military situation was urgent, so Zhao Yulin changed horses along the way and rushed on. When he arrived at Fengxiang Prefecture, the war had been going on for ten days.
Wu Yuqi told him that General Miao was commanding the army in Anhua and the situation on the battlefield was extremely dangerous.
This time the Mongolian army attacked very quickly, with 300,000 troops heading straight for Guyuan. The main force of 50,000 troops advanced rapidly like a sharp knife and penetrated Anhua. The left and right wings were equipped with 10,000-man cavalry, which constantly cut and encircled the enemy. When the battle started, the Shenwei Army was not used to it and was caught off guard by the Mongolian army.
At present, the battle line between the enemy and us has stretched to nearly two hundred miles.
Wanyan Chengmin defended Guyuan to the death and refused to leave. He was intercepted by the Mongolian army and surrounded in Zhenrong City .
One corps of the 9th Column was wiped out by the Mongolian army in Dalonggou, and another corps was suddenly defeated by the Mongolian army when it was moving north of Anhua City. Most of its troops were wiped out by repeated attacks by 20,000 Mongolian light cavalry. All of this was because they were scattered in small groups and moved slowly, so they paid a bloody price after being divided and surrounded by the Mongolian army.
At present, the enemy and our side are confronting each other in a huge battle zone covering an area of hundreds of miles around Guyuan and Anhua, with each side attacking and defending.
Zhao Yulin felt that the situation was very complicated.
The Mongolian army's rapid penetration is like a sharp knife, cutting the Shenwei Army into pieces like cutting a cake. If the enemy concentrates its forces to attack one place and we cannot provide support, we will most likely be eaten up by the Mongolian army bite by bite.
Logistics envoy Tan Yousan said that the vanguards of the Mongolian army were all using thunder bombs, and their attacking power had been greatly enhanced. Like us, they had entered an era of extensive use of firearms. The casualties of our brothers on the front line had increased sharply, and the commanders of each column were under great pressure.
He asked: What's the situation in Luochuan?
The staff report from the Central Army Headquarters: After Commander Lai blocked two waves of enemy attacks, the Mongolian army continued to harass and confront the enemy in front of the pass without making any major moves. However, after the Shi family army in Hebei joined the battle, they became familiar with our fighting style, and the enemy also had thunder bombs, so our defense task was very difficult.
Zhao Yulin suddenly felt angry and coughed violently, covering his mouth. Wu Yuqi saw blood flowing from between his fingers and asked distressedly, "What's wrong?"
Guard captain Geng Feihu said in a tearful voice that the young master was in Gulugou to teach Changji Nima martial arts, and he had used up all his internal energy and rushed here, and his old injury relapsed.
He took the robe handed over by Yuqi, wiped his mouth and said it was a small matter, no problem. He ordered Lai Chuanfang to take immediate action, use the full strength of the Eastern Group to capture Yan'an Prefecture in one fell swoop and advance to Lingzhou.
The chief of staff was stunned at first, then said with surprise that the young master had seen through the Mongolian army's intention to delay us in Yan'an Prefecture, so we would attack them from behind, which was a brilliant move.
Once we take over Yan'an Prefecture and march into Lingzhou, the game will come alive.
Wu Yuqi had already arranged for Shunfeng to pass the message. Zhao Yulin waved his hand and turned to go to the inner room to practice breathing exercises.
Lai Chuanfang of the Eastern Group soon received a secret order from the central military tent. When he saw that it was issued by the Third Young Master himself, he stood up immediately.
Lu Huacai asked him what was wrong in a daze.
Lai Chuanfang said that the third young master had arrived and ordered us to capture Yan'an Prefecture at all costs and attack Lingzhou.
Lu Huacai stood up suddenly and said excitedly that he had been looking forward to this day for a long time. Why should we bask in the sun every day with 60,000 troops under our command?
Lai Chuanfang told him that Yang Xingyun had already released the Third Column and that Gu Shan was still on the way, so we should not wait any longer and should immediately launch the Battle of Yan'an Prefecture.
Yang Xingyun already had an army of over 100,000 under his command. When he saw the war breaking out in Guanzhong, he knew that the Mongolian army had moved its main force there, so he immediately transferred the 3rd Column to the Eastern Group and let Liu Qiangguang lead the new 3rd Column to take over the defense of the Xiaohan Road.
These are Zhao Yulin’s soldiers. They know the importance of the situation and will take the initiative to support each other.
Zhao Yulin felt much better after a night's rest.
Wu Yuqi supported him and leaned on his shoulder without saying a word. Zhao Yulin told her not to worry, that he just walked a little too fast and he would be fine after two days of rest.
The woman couldn't stop shedding tears, and said with heartache that there were so many people at home, what would she do if something unexpected happened?
He coughed twice and said it was okay, just two days of rest would be enough.
He told Yuqi the story of Changji Nima's heroic battle, and told him that Changji was not only our relative, but also a great hero in the hearts of the Tibetan serf brothers. We must let the Tibetan brothers know that the Han people really regard them as relatives.
Zhao Yulin went out for a walk in the yard. It was only June, and the Mongolian army marched south in large numbers, catching Gao Jin off guard.
However, he thought that the Mongolian army was not having an easy time. They had just passed the winter and the grass had not yet grown, so their skinny horses would definitely not be able to hold out for long on the southern expedition.
The Mongolian army is located in an extremely cold place in the north. They are afraid of heat but not cold. The weather is getting hotter day by day.
Moreover, the Mongolian army's cattle and horses had been grazing all the way here, and there were probably not many grass roots left along the way, so they had to rely on continuous attacks to obtain supplies.
Once it is discovered that the Shenwei Army has the possibility of cutting off Lingzhou's food supply, the army's morale will be shaken. Therefore, Lai Chuanfang must be ordered to attack hard and advance into Lingzhou.
At this time, there was a commotion outside the government office.
A guard came in to report that General Wanyan Chengmin's mother had come with her family members and wanted to meet the commander.
Fengxiang Prefecture is so small that everyone knew Zhao Yulin had arrived within two days.
Zhao Yulin and Wu Yuqi went out and saw a large crowd of old people and children standing at the door. Wu Yuqi said that they were all family members of the generals of the 9th Column. What were they doing?
Wanyan Chengmin's mother was fully armed and requested the commander to allow her family to form a backup team to fight the enemy in order to lift the siege of Guyuan and rescue the 20,000 troops that were besieged.
The families of the surrounding generals were shouting and petitioning to go into battle and kill the enemy.
Zhao Yulin knew that this was the method of saving that she, as a mother, came up with in a desperate situation when she knew her son was surrounded and in imminent danger.
He covered his mouth and coughed twice, saying that fighting was for adult men, how could the elderly and women be allowed to go out to fight? The Central Army Headquarters was trying to figure it out, and he would personally lead the troops to attack and bring back all our brothers from the Ninth Column.
When everyone heard the Third Young Master promise to personally lead the charge to rescue the group, they immediately cheered, and quite a few young men and women were willing to follow him into battle to kill the enemy.
Zhao Yulin walked into the crowd, touched this kid's head, pinched that kid's arm and said with a smile, "Those with thin arms and tender flesh are still young. Go home and eat more rice to grow stronger so that you can defeat the enemy. Remember this."
Zhao Yulin waved his hand and told everyone to go back, as he was also going to set off.
Neither Wu Yuqi nor Feihu let him go.
Zhao Yulin said that he was still a strong man, and his brothers were all fighting on the front line, so why did he have to stay in Fengxiang?
Besides, now is a critical moment. A defeat on the front line will inevitably endanger Fengxiang Prefecture.
Wu Yuqi helplessly called You Xianzhong to make arrangements and the couple went to the front line together.
As soon as they arrived in Longzhou, the garrison troops of the 9th Column reported that a fierce battle had just taken place. A small group of enemies had actually sneaked in under disguise. They suffered heavy casualties in the hasty battle and had just wiped out the enemy.
Feihu thought the situation on the battlefield was too dangerous, so he asked him to coordinate and dispatch the troops in Longzhou.
Zhao Yulin glared at Feihu and told him to keep going.
After daybreak, we continued on our journey and arrived in Huating County in the afternoon where we met Miao Gui.
As soon as Miao Gui saw him, he said that the Mongolian army was very powerful this time. They broke through three of our cities one after another. Although the brothers fought desperately and destroyed the baggage, which did not leave any benefits for Hubili, the Jiuzong was still shocked.
Zhao Yulin said that Mongolian troops in disguise appeared in Longzhou. What happened?
Miao Gui reported to him: This time the northern barbarians have learned their lesson. They made the Han army wear our military uniforms while marching, making it difficult for the troops guarding the pass to detect them. Fortunately, the guarding troops at the back had strict sentries and changed the passwords every day, which allowed the enemies to reveal their tracks.
It was because of Gao Jin's carelessness that he encountered the disguised Mongolian soldiers head-on and was hit in the face with a scimitar by the Mongolian soldiers.
Zhao Yulin hurriedly asked about the injury.
Is it okay?
Miao Gui said that the military newspaper said it was nothing serious, but he just hadn’t seen the person yet.
The two men came to the command room, and Miao Gui told him that Gao Jin was commanding the battle in Anhua. Now the main force of the Mongolian army has surrounded Guyuan and marched into Anhua. There are enemies everywhere in Zhenshun and Pingliang. The Mongolian army is using a 10,000-strong light cavalry to make roundabout maneuvers, which has put us in a panic.
Zhao Yulin felt that the Mongolian army's fighting style this time was very flexible. They would attack wherever the enemy was weak. Miao Gui and his men became a fire-fighting team, being led by Hu Bili.
Miao Gui assured him that although the Mongolian army was coming in full force, our brothers would hold their ground until the end. Up to now, they had not yet broken through Wanyan Chengmin's Zhenrong City.
Zhao Yulin nodded and asked him what to do next?
Miao Gui said that the Mongolian army would definitely not be able to get through Pingliang and Anhua. He and Gao Jin believed that if Hubili still wanted to go south, the most likely option would be to go through Tianshui in Qinzhou. Guo Chongma had already advanced to Huichuan for defense. He asked the central army to send a letter to Hao Xiaoming to advance eastward and attack Zhuanglang for a counterattack.
Zhao Yulin felt that the overall deployment was good, but he felt that the military strength was a bit dispersed.
He said that the Mongolian army is approaching in large numbers this time, and their soldiers' combat effectiveness and weapons have made great progress, so we cannot take it lightly.
Miao Gui immediately reviewed and said that they had underestimated the enemy in the previous stage and had adjusted their deployment to launch a march and fight with a large troop group.
Zhao Yulin nodded, looked at Guyuan in the northwest and said worriedly that they would have to use their brains to relieve Wanyan Chengmin.
When he saw the swaying old lantern, he suddenly thought of the hot air balloon and asked if the Heavenly Army had ever been dispatched.
HOW DOES IT PERFORM?
Miao Gui's face turned cold and he told him angrily: No.
He said that the sky army was too precious. A squadron of nine hot air balloons arrived, and the squadron leader wanted to fight in the sky, but the military supervisor would not let him fly.
Miao Gui said very dissatisfiedly: The military supervisor was appointed by Master Lu, who is very arrogant. He said that the southeast wind has been blowing these days and the wind is too strong. The balloons cannot fly back after the bombing and may fall into the enemy-controlled territory and be wiped out.
Therefore, he demanded that flying be strictly prohibited.
