In order to conceal the whereabouts of the army, Man Dahai sent out very few scouts.
but...
He was very clear that there were Ming troops further north of Wujiafen.
There were not only soldiers guarding the fort, but also Li Dingguo's 10,000 cavalry and more than 3,000 infantry under Li Guo and Li Laiheng.
All this information was told to him by people sent by Jirgalang.
The news about Jirgalang came from Wu Sangui.
In order to deliver the message to Mandahai in the shortest time possible, Jirgalang temporarily set up a large number of post stations and post soldiers on the outskirts of Liaoze.
After receiving this news, Man Dahai did not take Li Dingguo to heart.
In his opinion.
Li Dingguo did not have as many troops as him, so he was definitely no match for him.
Besides, the task given to him by Jirgalang was to launch a surprise attack on Dalinghhe Fort, cut off Wang Yongji's food supply, and besiege the fort and attack its reinforcements!
There are several fortresses to the north of Wujiafen.
Although the city wall was damaged, it was still able to withstand the attack after temporary repairs.
There was no need for him to waste time and manpower there.
The most crucial thing is that once the fortress there is attacked, the whereabouts of his army will be exposed.
The surprise attack on Dalinghhe Fort would become meaningless.
On the march.
Wu Shoujin, leader of the Han army of the Zhenghong Banner, came to Man Dahai and suggested, "Your Majesty, I think Li Dingguo will be a disaster sooner or later. Why don't we kill him first to avenge the Gushan Beizi (Nikan), and then rush to attack Dalinghe Fort."
"Revenge must be taken, but there is no need to make a special trip. Li Dingguo will come to us himself." Man Dahai said with a smile.
"Delivered to my door?" Wu Shoujin was confused.
He thought for a while but still couldn't figure it out, so he bowed and said, "Please explain my doubts, Your Majesty."
"Besiege the fort and attack the reinforcements!" Man Dahai was full of confidence. "After we surround Dalinghe Fort, Wang Yongji will definitely send troops to support it. Li Dingguo is the closest to Dalinghe Fort, so he will be the first one to be sent there. In this way, isn't it like delivering it to our doorstep?"
Wu Shoujin suddenly realized: "Your Majesty is a master at using troops. I admire you."
Boom boom
Amid the sound of horse hooves, the 40,000-strong Jiannu army disappeared on the distant horizon.
The first person to discover Man Dahai's whereabouts was Li Dingguo.
The scout immediately reported: "Report, tens of thousands of Jiannu gathered at Wujiafen, and then rushed to Dalinghebao in the west."
Li Dingguo was a little surprised.
First of all, he didn't expect that the Jiannu had gathered so many troops in the east.
Secondly, I didn’t expect that the other party’s target was actually Dalinghhe Fort!
That’s the Ming army’s heartland!
This kind of direct attack tactic requires not only great courage, but also intelligence support.
Dalinghhe Fort was the bridgehead of the army that pacified Liao.
All the food and supplies that Wang Yongji brought deep into the grassland would be transferred from there.
How did the Jiannu know?
Guess?
It is possible.
The geographical location of Dalingh Fort determines the strategic significance of this city.
Li Dingguo did not have time to think about it and issued the first order: "Inform the Governor immediately, the sooner the better!"
After the post soldiers left, he began to think about how to use troops.
In fact, he received a request for help from Tang Tong yesterday.
But he didn't move.
It's not that we didn't help, but that we didn't give orders!
After entering Liao.
Large-scale mobilization of troops requires Wang Yongji's order.
Wang Yongji has his reasons for doing this.
The higher the position, the farther one can see, and the more strategic his military deployment will be.
For the sake of the overall situation, Wang Yongji will not pursue victory or defeat on a single battlefield.
If it can bring about an overall victory, he will even do it at any cost.
"Why hasn't your Excellency given the order yet?" Gao Wengui couldn't wait any longer and reminded.
"What order?" Li Dingguo asked back.
"Of course it's an order to pursue the Jiannu and rush to support Dalinghhe Fort!" Gao Wengui was a little surprised.
In his opinion, the Jiannu had already attacked his home, so when would he send troops if not now?
"Go after the Jiannu?" Li Dingguo smiled. "The Jiannu have 40,000 troops, plus Li Guo and his son and the nearby garrison soldiers. We only have 14,000 people at most! 14,000 against 40,000, how can we fight?"
"Even if we can withstand the attack of 40,000 Jiannu, don't forget that there are more than 10,000 Jiannu cavalry outside Jinzhou City. They can bypass Jinzhou at any time and attack from both sides with the Jiannu in Dalinghe Fort."
"This..." Although Gao Wengui realized his recklessness, he was still a little worried: "If something happens to Dalinghe Fort, the Ping Liao army will be affected. At the very least, the morale of the army will be unstable, and at worst... there will be a rout!"
"Don't worry," Li Dingguo said calmly, "Based on my understanding of Ma Shiyao, he will definitely stay in the city to defend it instead of going out of the city to fight the Jiannu in the field."
"As long as we hold on for two days, we will receive the military order."
"Hmm?" Gao Wengui scratched the back of his head. "Wouldn't it be the same if we waited for the military order before sending out the troops? It's still 14,000 against 40,000!"
"No," Li Dingguo smiled mysteriously, "The Jiannu must have made preparations to surround and attack the reinforcements, so we have to do the opposite!"
Just as Li Dingguo expected.
Ma Shiyao was almost scared to death when he heard that tens of thousands of Jiannu were heading straight for Dalinghhe Fort.
His first thought was to ask for help from Tang Tong in Jinzhou and Liu Fangliang in Songshan.
But after thinking it over, I gave up the idea.
The enemy situation north of Jinzhou was unclear, and Tang Tong was in enough trouble himself, let alone supporting him.
Liu Fangliang from Songshan cannot be relied upon either.
He had only three thousand soldiers under his command, so it would be useless even if he arrived at Dalinghhe Fort.
At that time, not only would they suffer a defeat, but they would also lose Songshan, causing Jinzhou to lose its flank.
The only ones they could count on were Li Dingguo and the main force of the Liao army in the east.
But the Jiannu came from the east.
The same direction as Li Dingguo.
Did Li Dingguo retreat without a fight? Or did he surrender?
Thinking of this, Ma Shiyao dared not think about it anymore and could only pin his hopes on the main force of the Ping Liao army.
He shouted, "Order all troops to climb up the city wall and hold on until help arrives!"
In ancient times.
Fighting outside the city when the enemy attacks is not the preferred strategy.
The defensive advantages brought by tall city walls are enormous.
Fighting outside the city means giving up the advantage and fighting on the same level as the enemy.
However, defending the city also has its disadvantages.
First, you will be surrounded by the enemy and have nowhere to escape after being defeated.
If there is not enough food in the city, there will be a food shortage.
In addition, the strategy of retreating to the city and defending would seriously undermine the morale of the soldiers.
In the eyes of the soldiers, the enemy had already reached their doorstep, and hiding in the city was tantamount to showing weakness.
In simple terms, it means giving in!
When two armies are fighting, the debuff of cowardice will continue to affect the defenders.
The combat power can be imagined.
The advantage of fighting outside the city is that it can boost morale and disrupt the enemy's siege plans.
in addition...
Even if you are defeated, you can turn around and run away without being left with no way to escape.
Ma Shiyao knew that he was no match for the Jiannu, so he chose to defend the city to the death.
Being surrounded is not scary, what is scary is having no reinforcements.
And he...has tens of thousands of reinforcements!
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