At midnight, a heavy snowstorm broke out.
Tian Qing led eight hundred elite soldiers and quietly left the stronghold through a small path behind the mountain.
They wore their fur coats inside out, white facing out, making them almost invisible in the snow.
With cloth wrapped around their hooves and gags in their mouths, they approached the Northern Di camp silently.
The Northern Di people truly did not expect the Yin army to dare to attack their camp.
After days of fierce fighting, they were exhausted, and most of them, except for the sentries, had already fallen asleep.
Tian Qing stopped three miles outside the camp and observed carefully.
The Northern Di camps were set up against the mountains, stretching for several miles, but the layout was loose—this was the custom of the grassland tribes, with each thousand households setting up their own camps without any subordinate to each other.
"Divide into four teams, two hundred men each," Tian Qing said in a low voice. "One team will attack the central army and capture the leader; one team will burn the grain and fodder; and the other two teams will startle the warhorses."
"Remember, do not linger in battle; retreat as soon as you have gained an advantage. Meet at Flying Fox Pass at midnight."
"Yes, sir!"
The four groups of people scattered into the wind and snow like ghosts.
Tian Qing personally led a team and rushed straight to the central command tent.
They bypassed several tents, dealt with two groups of sentries, and finally saw the largest golden-topped tent—Wuzhu's royal tent.
The area outside the tent was heavily guarded, with dozens of personal guards standing with swords at their sides.
"General, shall we force our way in?" the deputy asked.
Tian Qing shook his head and took out a ceramic jar from his pocket: "Use this."
The earthenware jar contained flammable oil.
Tian Qing brought three canisters, originally intended for burning grain and fodder, but now he had a better purpose.
"Throw the balls in a scattered manner, and then leave after you've thrown them all."
Ten assassins quietly approached and simultaneously threw out pottery jars when they were thirty paces away from the main tent.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
The earthenware pot shattered, and black grease splattered all over the top of the tent.
Almost simultaneously, the rocket was launched.
"boom!"
The golden-topped tent instantly turned into a fireball.
"Enemy attack! Enemy attack!"
The Northern Barbarian camp was in an uproar.
Meanwhile, flames also soared into the sky in several other places—the grain and fodder camp and the stables caught fire one after another.
The frightened warhorses galloped wildly in all directions, destroying countless tents.
In the chaos, Tian Qing led his team to evacuate.
They came quickly and left quickly; by the time the Northern Barbarians realized what was happening, they had already vanished into the snowstorm.
When they returned to Feihu Pass, the four groups reunited, and after counting their numbers, they found that they had only lost about twenty men.
"General, your plan is brilliant!" The soldiers were overjoyed.
Tian Qing showed no joy. Gazing at the towering flames in the distance, he murmured, "This can only hold them off for a day or two. The real battle is yet to come."
He guessed right.
The next day, Wuzhu flew into a rage.
The king's tent was burned, 30% of the grain and fodder were lost, and thousands of warhorses were scattered in panic.
More importantly, morale was severely damaged.
"Tian Qing...I will tear you to pieces!" Wuzhu gritted his teeth.
But before he could launch a retaliatory attack, devastating news arrived.
"Report! Urgent news from Youzhou! Han Zhong's army has breached Youzhou City! General Li Sheng... has committed suicide in service to his country!"
Wuzhu was struck dumb.
The fall of Youzhou meant his flank was exposed. If Han Zhong were to advance westward from Youzhou again, joining forces with Tian Qing to attack from both sides...
"Father, what should we do?" Ulun's face turned pale.
Wuzhu remained silent for a long time before slowly saying, "Issue the order... to withdraw the troops."
"Withdraw the troops? But Li Jingang promised Yanbei..."
"What use is the Hetao region if we're all dead?" Wuzhu laughed bitterly. "Tian Qing has won. Tell the boys to go home."
On February 12th, the Northern Di army retreated northward in panic.
The Battle of Feihu Ridge ended in a complete victory for the Yin army.
Standing on the beacon tower, Tian Qing watched the smoke and dust recede into the distance and finally breathed a long sigh of relief.
"Governor, a letter from Military Governor Han." Li Mao presented the letter.
Tian Qing opened it and found only one sentence: "Youzhou has been captured, Hedong is safe."
He looked southeast, a smile appearing in his eyes.
General, Hedong is safe and sound. The next step is to await your command, and tens of thousands of soldiers from Hedong will cross the river and head south to the capital!
......
Let's go back to February 15th, thirty miles outside Youzhou City, at Han Zhong's camp.
Inside the central command tent, the charcoal fire crackled and popped, but it couldn't dispel the chill of early spring in Hebei.
Han Zhong stood in front of the huge sand table, his fingers gently tapping on the model of Youzhou City.
Wang Ben, Liu Pan, Cao Jun, Tong Gu, and other generals from Hedong stood on both sides of the sand table, their fighting spirit high.
For the past two years, generals from Hedong and other regions have been on the defensive.
They defended key locations such as Daizhou and Luzhou, resisting the continuous attacks from Fengtian armies from Hebei and Yanyun.
Now, the situation has shifted from offense to defense, and we've moved out of Hedong!
"How many troops does Li Sheng have left?" he asked.
Tong Gu reported, "About 30,000. Of these, 10,000 are local troops from Youzhou, and 20,000 are the elite troops from the capital who defeated the Tartars under Yang Yan's leadership. However..." He paused, "their provisions probably won't last more than half a month."
"Half a month..." Han Zhong pondered, "What about Xiong Dayong's side?"
"Xiong Dayong has completely controlled the key roads of Xiangzhou, and Li Bao's 50,000 troops are stuck in Yecheng and cannot advance an inch."
Tong Gu's eyes flashed with admiration. "General, this move is truly brilliant. By having Xiong Da use this opportunist to restrain Li Bao, we can concentrate on attacking Youzhou."
Han Zhong shook his head: "Xiong Dayong's man is questionable; whether he can be used or trusted is another matter. Tell the military supervisor to keep a close eye on him. If he makes any unusual moves once Youzhou falls..."
He didn't finish speaking, but Tong Gu understood what he meant.
The tent flap was lifted, and a young general strode in, his armor still covered in snow and mud.
"My lord, the vanguard has reached within ten miles of the north gate of Youzhou. Li Sheng has refused to leave the city, and the city walls are heavily guarded."
This is Han Zhong's nephew, Han Fang, who is twenty-six years old, brave and skilled in battle, and has already accumulated merits to the rank of captain.
Han Zhong nodded: "Well done. Order the entire army to set up camp twenty li outside the city today. There's no need to rush to attack the city; let's surround Youzhou first."
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