Chapter 416: Peking Raid
Sima Yi really had a headache.
It has been quite a while since he has been at the border of Jizhou and Youzhou. He can clearly see what kind of temperament and abilities Gao Shun has.
Among the generals currently relied upon by Yuan Shao, Gao Shun's style is particularly special.
He didn't drink alcohol in order to prevent delays in the battle and misjudgments of the battle situation caused by drinking.
He did not expand his army on a large scale, and the only elite soldiers he trained were about 700 to 1,000 people.
With the commander in chief in this state, it goes without saying that the soldiers under him have very strict military discipline.
Ju Su originally wanted to respond to Yuan Shu's rumors and trouble, but he unexpectedly received such help. It can be said that it was a blessing in disguise.
It is so difficult to capture Gao Shun!
"Although General Gao has repeatedly intercepted General Lu, he has never made a move to advance alone when he has the upper hand. It is obvious that he knows very well that even if he can maintain an advantage in Jizhou, he will never commit atrocities in Youzhou."
"Besides, the other party is not fighting by relying on personal force..."
Sima Yi glanced at Lu Bu, and his meaning was very clear.
It was possible that Lu Bu got carried away and was captured by their method of luring the enemy deep into their territory, but it was impossible for Gao Shun to do so.
"Your Majesty's order is only to rush you here, not to officially launch a war against Jizhou. We cannot ignore the losses and use the advantage of numbers to use the encirclement method."
Lu Lingju nodded: "Of course."
She had no intention of seeking attention, nor did she intend to disregard the lives of her own soldiers.
Since she chose to consult Sima Yi instead of directly attacking Lu Bu in two directions just because she arrived with the Wuhuan cavalry, she naturally wanted a method that was more inclined to win by wisdom.
"With Ju Gongyu's vision, there is no need to consider any method of alienation. I think Yuan Benchu would not believe such tricks at this time. There is no need to consider feigning defeat or surrender."
Lu Lingju rolled his eyes. "I can think of this method. Do I need you to help me come up with this idea? Besides, our attack on Jizhou is just a natural outcome. If we use this method again, it will not only embarrass us students of Leping Academy, but also bring shame to your majesty. Of course, we won't do this."
"Okay, let's work on tactics."
Sima Yi thought this task was a headache, but he didn't intend to refuse it.
As the world is about to be unified, there are not many opportunities left for them to achieve great achievements.
He knew very well that his father stepped down from the position of Henan Yin to make way for him and his elder brother Sima Lang. He must not make any concessions just because he lacked the qualifications here and had Xun You, Tian Feng and others above him!
If this plan could really succeed and he could cut off another arm of Yuan Shao, it would undoubtedly determine whether he could be promoted later.
Lu Lingju seems heartless, but her desire for merit is no less than that of her father Lu Bu.
Perhaps His Majesty was impressed by her ambition, which is why he admires her so much.
Then of course he can't fall behind!
So when Tian Feng saw Sima Yi in the canteen of the military camp the next day, he saw that he looked exhausted as if he had not slept all night.
"What are you doing?"
Sima Yi placed a battle plan in front of Tian Feng. "Mr. Yuan Hao is from Jizhou. I would like to ask you some details."
Tian Feng stroked his beard and seeing the seriousness in Sima Yi's eyes, he couldn't help but sigh in his heart that the strength of Dayong was reflected in the strength and appearance of these young people, which were very different from those of the Han Dynasty.
The confidence in the continuation of the dynasty makes people more and more looking forward to seeing what Dayong will look like after the unification of the world.
But there is no need to say this at this time.
He casually opened the manuscript in front of him and saw that Sima Yi had written the battle location he had chosen on the first page.
"Peking?"
Sima Yi replied decisively: "Yes, I want to hold this battle in Peking.
It is Beiping County, not Beiping County.
Although Beiping County in Zhongshan State of Jizhou and Youbeiping County in Youzhou are both named Beiping, they are still some distance apart.
However, Beiping is the county closest to Youzhou in Zhongshan, Jizhou.
In a sense, there is some intricate connection between these names.
This city was built on the banks of the Xushui River, which merges into the Yishui River. It is also the second river barrier on the Jizhou-Youzhou front.
"You know why we have never considered Beiping as an attack target before. The upper reaches of Xushui are Taihang Mountains. There are spies from our side and the court in Yecheng on both sides of Taihang Mountains. Once there is any movement in this direction, it will be easier to be discovered than if we attack Yixian and other places as before."
"I know," Sima Yi said with a firm tone, even though he looked a little tired. "Besides, Beiping is also the place where the Han emperor set up the Iron Officer because of the surrounding mineral veins and water flows. The Iron Officer garrison has always been large in number. We are bound to be facing a situation that is easy to defend but difficult to attack."
Tian Feng asked: "Why did you make this decision?"
Sima Yi replied: "Since we don't want the Iron Officers to be assigned, we don't have to worry about the number of defenders. Besides, we have another advantage. We know why Your Majesty intends to delay the war until August, but Yuan Benchu may not know."
Tian Feng looked at the young man seriously for a while, read the plan he wrote twice, and then replied: "You can give it a try."
In order to cut off another powerful reinforcement for Yecheng and let them march southward with the mighty Central Army, this expedition is indeed worth a try!
When they heard about the battles in Qingzhou, Beihai and Donglai a few days later, they realized that their chances of success would increase even more.
Lu Bu touched the two pieces of paper in front of him, picked one up casually, and opened it, and saw that it did not say to turn back after being discovered by the enemy, but to wait until casualties occurred before retreating.
"It seems that even God is on our side!" He was immediately happy, "Let's go!"
But what he didn't see was that the other paper ball left in place was quietly put into Lu Lingju's sleeve.
Seeing Sima Yi looking at her with a speechless expression, Lu Lingju raised her chin and said, "What's so good about it? It's just a good omen. Isn't this a chance for you to show your talents?"
Sima Yi: “…”
Tian Feng patted his shoulder and said, "Okay, little military advisor, it's time for you to catch up. This young General Lu knows how to adapt, and he will have a good future."
Sima Yi is difficult to evaluate.
If he remembered correctly, Lu Lingju regarded His Majesty as her role model. So how did she learn this style? It was really a headache.
And if he heard correctly, after Tian Feng finally got rid of his Yuan Feng identity, he seemed less easy to bully. At this moment, he was clearly looking forward to the reunion of Jizhou's generals and counselors...?
He said, "Thank you for your good words," and immediately mounted his horse and followed closely in the footsteps of Lu Bu and others.
This was not a forced march, and the battle plan was also drawn up by him. Of course, he had to make sure that the operation to capture the leader of the Xianzhen Camp was foolproof!
Ju Shou, who was stationed in Gaoyang, never expected that Qiao Yan's soldiers were also dispatched in the direction of Quanzhou. After he urgently ordered Shen Pei to go to Bohai to take charge, it was not that side that showed unusual movements first, nor was it that Lu Lingju and Lu Bu joined forces and marched south directly, but they moved a large number of sand bags from Fanyang to the southwest to the bank of Yishui River.
The direction he was heading to was not Hejian County, but Zhongshan State!
Zhongshan was abolished as a state and changed into a county during the reign of Emperor Xiaoling, but perhaps because of the naming habit over the past three hundred years, people still prefer to call it Zhongshan State.
But the title is not important at the moment. What is important is the performance of the soldiers in the north.
"Thousands of sand bags are enough to temporarily block the flow of the river when the water flow is low in the past two years." Ju Shou's face became serious. "If Beiping changes its master, their actions in the upper reaches of Yishui and Xushui will no longer be restricted by us."
This is the art of blocking sand!
When the battle report from Donglai County arrived, Ju Shou was still sighing. Even if Xin Ping sent troops to respond in time, his situation would be quite passive the moment the other side directly chose to persuade the remnants of the Yellow Turbans in Qingzhou to rebel. After all, Xin Ping was not Han Xin, and it would be difficult for him to reproduce the glory of the Battle of Weishui in the past.
It was almost certain that half of Qingzhou would be taken away by this war which did not cause many casualties and affected a wide range.
How come this incident of soil bags blocking water happened in Jizhou?
Ju Shou didn't dare to find this coincidence funny at all.
Allowing the Dayong troops in Youzhou to gain control of the upper reaches of the Yishui and Xushui rivers means that they can deploy more sandbags and other items to provide a smooth path for large numbers of soldiers to cross the river as they move south.
This is very bad!
At present, they can still defend these two borders, but only because they can rely on the geographical barriers, making it difficult for the Youzhou cavalry and Bingzhou cavalry to be deployed on a large scale.
But if the natural barrier is broken, even with Gao Shun's elite troops as an iron wall, how can they resist the sweeping wave in the face of absolute manpower advantage?
Obviously not!
"In the past few months, Lü Fengxian has repeatedly invaded our Jizhou territory by retreating after suffering casualties or avoiding confrontation. We have almost become accustomed to his style," Gao Shun heard Ju Shou say after receiving the message and coming before him. "But this habit is actually not good!"
"On one hand, the Protector of Wuhuan is meeting up with Lü Fengxian, and on the other hand, Donglai in the direction of Qingzhou and half of Beihai are about to change hands. This war is no longer a joke and is about to break out at any time."
Ju Shou also once thought that with Lu Bu's arrogant style, it would be possible to praise him more highly and then find an opportunity to take him down, just as Xin Pi intended to do back then.
But if there was enough time, the general would not have fallen into the current situation because of the loss of Yan and Yu states and the publication of the manifesto, and they still had the possibility to try. Now they can only consider how long they can hold off this catastrophic disaster.
"What does Mr. Gongyu want me to do?" Gao Shun asked.
Ju Su replied, "I will personally supervise the defense of Gaoyang's northern line, and I will not make any mistakes in the next few days. I want you to go to Beiping immediately and dispatch the Tongguan garrison to join your forces. Before the two Generals Lu reach Xushui, they will be intercepted!"
The speed with which Qiao Yan's troops attacked the city in a few years made Ju Shou dare not harbor any hope at all.
If the final decisive battle has already begun with the actions of Qingzhou, and the Youzhou troops on the other side of the river have been planning for this battle for many years, how can he guarantee that the defenders of Beiping will be able to hold the city?
Gao Shun must be sent on this trip to stop the other side's plan of cutting off water from the upper reaches of the two rivers and breaking the dikes before it even begins!
Although Gao Shun felt something was wrong, he still believed in Ju Su's judgment.
He immediately led his soldiers and headed straight for Zhongshan State.
Because the journey from Gaoyang to Beiping is farther than that from Fanyang to Beiping, it only gives him a slight advantage because there is no river obstruction. Gao Shun did not dare to make any stops on the way, and he just wished he could reach Beiping in an instant.
Fortunately, when he entered the city gate of Peking, the defenders there told him that the pace of the march on the opposite side was slowed down by the sandbags used to block the flow of the river, and that they had just crossed the Yishui River not long ago.
In order to allow the rear troops to catch up and the soldiers carrying sandbags to make up for their consumed energy, they set up another camp on the south bank of Yishui River. Their slow advance made the defenders in Peiping feel a strong pressure.
"We tried to stop their front army before they completely crossed the river, but they had so many cavalry that we had no way to stop them."
The cavalry performed particularly well during the raids and harassment, not to mention the cavalry under the command of Lu Bu and Lu Lingju.
Gao Shun knew very well that this could not be blamed on the incompetence of the defenders in Peking.
They were able to detect the enemy's actions in time, deliver the information to Ju Shou, and also make attempts to intercept the enemy, which was considered a competent job.
Fortunately, Peking was south of Xushui, and they still had one last chance.
As for the enemy's soldiers who crossed the river first, Gao Shun was confident that he had the ability to stop them head-on!
As long as Beiping is not lost, they still have the confidence to defend it!
But almost at the same time when Gao Shun arrived in Beiping, Lu Lingju had already reorganized his troops. According to Sima Yi's arrangement, after attracting the attention of the defenders in Zhongshan in the camp south of Yishui, he led them towards the upper reaches of Yishui overnight.
Near the source of the Yishui River, she crossed the Xushui River silently and waited for the opportunity to attack.
This is a very special team.
As the troops waded through the water to organize themselves, she touched her waist.
In addition to the spear in her hand, there was another secondary weapon hanging there.
This iron weapon is about four feet long. It is not shaped like an ordinary sword, but more like a slender bamboo joint with a four-sided outer edge, which means it has a square cross-section.
Although it was not sharpened, Lu Lingju had already clearly understood the ability of this weapon from the earlier test of its armor-piercing performance at close range. A cavalryman with great strength could smash a person to death through his armor when swinging it!
In the past, due to the high cost of iron in digging wells during droughts, it was not built on a large scale, but now it is possible! A batch of this item was produced last year when the Bingzhou Iron Officials gradually resumed the production of weapons and sent them to various places.
But how many teams can actually rush to their cavalry? When the problem can be solved with a horse lance or a spear, carrying an extra load like this would be a waste of the soldiers' physical strength.
But at this moment, facing this battle that must break the camp, this thing should also appear.
It's called a mace.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
