For Fujiwara no Maro, he had watched long enough.
In the past few months, he had also personally supervised the battles and saw with his own eyes the warships and weapons of the Dasheng Navy, as well as their combat methods.
Just as Yoshimi Fu had said before, these Sheng troops were still using the old things left by Li Xiao more than ten years ago.
Don't these ignorant and backward people think that since Li Xiao defeated the Japanese army with this method more than ten years ago, they can win again and again just by copying it?
How stupid and naive!
Not to mention these incompetent troops, even if Xuan Ce's army and Li Xiao came in person this time, they would not be able to defeat Fujiwara no Maro again with just these old formations and weapons.
Dasheng has existed long enough, and it is time to change the owner of that vast land!
This time, he wanted to take back everything that he hadn't been able to get more than a decade ago... and make Dasheng pay with blood! After the matter was accomplished, he would personally go to Li Xiao's tomb to "pay tribute" and have a good chat with this old friend!
That night, Fujiwara no Maro summoned his generals and military advisors to discuss the next strategy for attacking Sheng.
Unlike previous guerrilla warfare, this time they need to lead a heavy force to attack, so it is crucial to figure out where the breakthrough begins.
There are many things that need to be considered. In addition to the strength of Sheng’s army’s defense, we must also consider the water conditions and whether the geographical location is advantageous. If withdrawal is necessary, whether the rear can be guaranteed, etc.
The Japanese army had already begun intensive preparations for gathering troops at their camp, and the lights in Fujiwara no Maro's tent were kept on all night.
On the other hand, the situation in Chang Suining’s army was quite different.
In the past seven or eight days, apart from handling the daily official duties that she had to handle and practicing martial arts every morning, Chang Suining only did two things in her time: eating and sleeping.
Chang Kuo took the lead in taking charge of all the miscellaneous tasks in the army. With everything in order, Chang Suining often returned to his tent and fell asleep when it was getting dark.
This continued for seven or eight days. Chu Xing saw it all and finally couldn't help asking Chang Kuo: "...Do you even have to learn this?"
If conditions permit, before a war, he would change his usual busy schedule and concentrate on eating, sleeping and recuperating. Isn't this the habit of His Royal Highness the former Crown Prince? Some people sharpen their weapons before a battle, while others flee before a battle. The former Crown Prince likes to catch up on sleep before a battle...
Sleep the most and fight the best battle - this was a joke that the late Crown Prince used to say.
The girl imitated the spear skills of the late crown prince and also copied the sword of the late crown prince. Even Liuhuo was brought to Jiangdu. Now the girl's warhorse is the descendant of Liuhuo... Now she even has to learn the habits of the late crown prince before fighting?
"What's wrong with learning a little? Why shouldn't we learn good things? Isn't it normal to conserve our energy before a battle?" Chang Kuo was handling military affairs, and without even raising his head, he said nonchalantly: "There is still a lot to learn in the future..."
After hearing this, Chu Xing was speechless, but the strange feeling in his heart became stronger and stronger.
Those who have been sleeping seriously recently are not only Chang Suining, but also the soldiers and sailors who have been training diligently every day regardless of rain or shine in the past six months.
In addition to basic defensive patrols, their training time has been reduced by half recently, and the diet of some elite naval forces has also been adjusted to ensure that they have sufficient physical strength while also keeping their minds clear and full of energy to the greatest extent possible.
Compared to the rigorous training in the past six months, everything has been almost relaxed recently, but no soldier has become careless or lazy because of this. On the contrary, without anyone telling them explicitly, they can sense the coming of a war from this "abnormality"...
Everything seems to be a peaceful rest, but in fact it is dormancy and accumulation of strength before the storm.
After the arrival of late autumn, it gets dark earlier and earlier.
On this day, when it was about to get dark, Chang Suining had just put down her official business. Chang Kuo, who was discussing matters with her, was about to leave with Lu Xiucai when Wu Jue suddenly came over.
Wu Jue was wearing a false bun and a gray Taoist robe. As he had become plump recently, his small eyes looked even smaller. He often walked around with his hands in his sleeves and a bulging belly. He did not look like a Taoist at all. Many soldiers who did not know the details thought that their commander had most likely met a swindler.
Moreover, this swindler was very greedy. He was caught several times when he secretly went to the mess camp to look for food.
At this moment, this greedy liar quickly stepped into the commander's tent, his eyes sparkling, and he lowered his voice and said, "...Commander, within three days, there will be a northwest wind on the Yellow Sea!"
Chang Kuo's face straightened, and he immediately asked, "How strong is the wind?"
Wu Jue: "Present, sensible, and controllable!"
This was an expression often used by Wu Jue in the past. In his opinion, wind was divided into three categories. The "unworthy" ones were breezes that had no effect; while hurricanes or currents with changeable wind directions were called "crazy winds" that could not be controlled.
"Sensible and controllable" means that the wind direction and wind strength are just right.
Chang Kuo looked excited and subconsciously turned his head to look at Chang Suining who was sitting cross-legged behind a small table.
At this moment, an urgent report suddenly sounded outside the tent.
The urgent report quickly reached the tent.
"Commander-in-chief, deputy commander-in-chief, the Japanese army has once again led its army to attack our defense line. This time is different from the past. The Japanese army has assembled more than 10,000 naval forces to attack the Runzhou defense line in the south. The offensive is particularly fierce! The situation is dangerous, please give your instructions, commander-in-chief!"
Runzhou is close to the coast, south of Yangzhou.
Runzhou was also once occupied by Xu Zhengye, and the military and political damage was once severe. However, it was the fishermen in Runzhou who first discovered the traces of the Japanese army's actions this spring.
The Japanese army, which had been silent for many days, suddenly launched a fierce attack this time, heading straight for the defense line of Runzhou. It seemed that they could not take down the defense line of Yangzhou for a long time, so they decided to temporarily give up the more prosperous Yangzhou and land in Runzhou instead.
However, Yangzhou must not be lost, and Runzhou cannot go wrong either.
Although Chang Suining was the governor of Yangzhou, she was actually the marshal in the fight against the Japanese pirates. She once made a promise to the imperial court that she would never let the Japanese army invade the territory of Dasheng.
Therefore, this time the Japanese army intended to capture Runzhou. While the urgent news was sent to the Runzhou Governor's Mansion, it also came to Chang Suining. She would ultimately have to make the decision on how to defeat the enemy.
Chang Suining had already stood up from behind the desk and raised his hand to take the armor that Xier brought to him.
After months of planning, the wind has finally come and the enemy's patience has run out. Now that she has both of the things she was waiting for are in place, it is time to set sail and kill the enemy.
On the tall warship, the huge sails were blown up in the wind by the turning of the winch, and together with the general flag with the word "Chang", they fluttered above the boundless ocean. The ships set sail together, and the flags fluttered in the wind, as if reaching the sky.
After the boat had been sailing for half a day, a wind suddenly blew on the sea.
Although the current ship speed has been slightly improved compared to previous dynasties, it is still affected by the weight of the hull, seasonal changes in the sea area, and the terrain of dark beaches. The daily speed of warships is mostly close to but less than 100 nautical miles.
Therefore, wind direction has always played an extremely important role in water battles since ancient times. With the help of wind, the original speed of the ship can be increased by two to three times, greatly reducing the time of marching on the water.
Chang Suining personally led his troops to support the Runzhou defense line this time, and thanks to the help of the wind, they were able to arrive early.
Just as the urgent report said, the Japanese army's offensive this time was particularly fierce. By the time the reinforcements arrived, Runzhou's defense line was already in danger.
With the addition of reinforcements to the battle, the situation was temporarily stabilized.
However, the Japanese army did not retreat easily this time. Instead, they sent another 10,000 naval forces to attack. Under the attack of 20,000 elite naval forces of the Japanese army, the battle situation fell into crisis again.
Most of the Japanese people make a living by fishing, and almost everyone is familiar with water. Among these Japanese soldiers, in addition to ordinary samurai, there are also many Japanese pirates who have been conscripted. They often plunder at sea, and their familiarity with this sea area and their ability to respond on the water are far beyond the reach of ordinary people.
Among the Dasheng navy that was now fighting against them, only one or two out of ten had previous maritime experience, and most of the rest had only had time to train for half a year.
Half a year is the maximum deadline Chang Suining can strive for.
After ten days of hard fighting, the blood almost dyed the ocean red.
The Japanese army seemed to have made an unprecedented determination this time and was reluctant to retreat. They sent in reinforcements several times. When their comrades were killed, they threw the bodies into the sea and immediately replaced them. The roars of killing were deafening, and it seemed that they were determined to fight to the death.
It was not until a rain fell and fog rose on the sea that the Japanese army retreated temporarily.
Chang Suining stood on the deck, looking at the foggy sea. The blood mixed with the sea water formed a unique fishy and salty smell, which floated in the air with the fog.
All day long, the ships were counting casualties.
But no one dared to relax, and the soldiers on patrol and sentry were all watching the thick fog on the sea with vigilance. Behind the fog, water ghosts might appear at any time to seize the land behind them.
Over the sea without the protection of sunlight, night falls even earlier.
The rain has stopped, the chill creeps into the body, and the lingering mist is floating in the air, torn into different shapes by the wind.
Behind the commander-in-chief's ship, dozens of light ships were quietly assembled under the cover of tall ships. Each ship was filled with soldiers wearing black armor and carrying swords.
Looking at the tall girl in the same black robe, Chu Xing looked particularly worried: "... Is the girl really going to lead the army on a night march?"
"Yes, Uncle Chu, I will leave this place to you and General Bai for the time being."
Chu Xing still didn't dare to let go: "Girl, you are in danger on this trip... and the sea is different from the land. Once your tracks are discovered, there is no way to hide. How can you do it with only 2,000 sailors?"
"It is precisely because we need to conceal our tracks that we should not lead a large army, but instead use small boats to travel at night." In the night breeze, the girl said confidently, "Besides, two thousand soldiers are enough for the place I am going to visit."
Chu Xing sighed: "But this move of yours is really too risky. If the general were here, he would definitely not agree..."
"No, my father will agree." Chang Suining looked at the surging sea and said, "The enemy is numerous and we are few. The enemy has strengths and we have weaknesses. Even if we just stand on this vast ocean, we are already taking a risk. Those wounded and injured soldiers will leave their lives here forever. As the commander-in-chief, I cannot let the dead die in vain, nor can I let the living die in vain."
The so-called unnecessary death refers to unnecessary loss.
Chu Xing finally fell silent.
According to the hierarchy of the Chang family, he was a subordinate and the girl in front of him was a daughter of the family. According to the military rules, he was a general and the girl was the commander.
Having said this, he had no room to stop it, both publicly and privately.
Two thousand naval forces were fully equipped and sailed in the night with the wind, but were soon swallowed up by the fog and disappeared without a trace.
In a war that is destined to be protracted, sending troops deep into the enemy's territory is an extremely risky thing to do. It will restrict oneself and be detrimental to the supply of materials to the rear.
Chang Suining was not so arrogant as to regard this sea area as her home ground. Every time she led her troops out to sea, it was like an advance into the sea by a looming enemy in her eyes.
On this vast and helpless ocean, the soldiers need a "foothold" as the most basic guarantee.
As far as she knew, Fujiwara had had this "foothold" from the very beginning, so the Japanese army's activities at sea were always extremely agile.
Whatever the Japanese army has, her soldiers must also have.
Since there wasn't any, she was going to grab one.
Not only did she want to grab it, she also wanted to grab the best one.
The place she chose was not only convenient as a foothold at sea, but also had other uses.
Sailing in the fog is not a good option, but on a life-and-death battlefield, there is no room for the best option.
Fortunately, Chang Suining was familiar with this sea area, and she was accompanied by Wu Jue, who was good at observing the weather and the position of the sky, so she was able to block most of the unknown dangers and disadvantages.
Two thousand people were as inconspicuous as ants in this vast and foggy sea.
But even so, someone still needs to move forward and explore the way forward.
If we go further, we will be within the patrol and surveillance range of the Japanese army, so we must be extremely cautious, as if snatching food from a snake's mouth.
The sea is vast, and even the Japanese army, as cunning as it is, cannot patrol in the night fog without any negligence.
The Japanese army was focusing on the defense line of Runzhou at the moment, and could not easily expect that two thousand Dasheng navy would go in the opposite direction of Runzhou and quietly head towards the northeast waters.
And in the process of exploring the way forward, Chang Suining and his team gradually discovered that something was wrong.
"…Strange, how could the Japanese army's surveillance here be so weak?" Yuan Xiang, who was following Chang Suining, lowered his voice and said, "I suspect there is a trick here."
Could it be that the Japanese army had set a trap, deliberately luring them in deeper, and then catching them all in one fell swoop? Chang Suining stood at the bow, staring ahead, and shook his head: "It shouldn't be a trick."
"Or rather, the deception is not here."
She looked back in the direction of Runzhou: "The patrol here is relatively weak because the Japanese army is gathering as many troops as possible, so the number of Japanese soldiers roaming around to monitor various places has been reduced by half."
"But there are only more than 20,000 Japanese soldiers in Runzhou, so it shouldn't be..." Yuan Xiang stopped talking halfway. After a moment, his expression was slightly shocked: "What the commander means is... the Japanese army pretended to attack the defense line of Runzhou, but it was just a feint to the east and attack in the west? The more than 20,000 Japanese soldiers in Runzhou are not the real main force they have assembled?!"
Yuan Xiang has always been keen on the understanding of military tactics, and every time at this moment, he would appear much smarter and more intelligent.
But Yuan Xiang had no time to admire himself because of this realization. He suddenly became extremely alert: "Coach..."
If the Japanese army really gathered a large force, where would they attack? ! (End of this chapter)
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