Gu Yufan and his party encountered the Lingnan Navy led by the Duke of Qi when they reached the Ningzhou region.
Duke Qi was unaware of the current situation in the capital, nor did he know that Gu Yuzhi had received orders and was rushing to Jiangnan.
Upon seeing the Chu flag flying on the warship, the Duke of Qi instinctively felt something was wrong. Before Gu Yufan could react, he ordered his men to quietly dive into the water and carefully investigate.
Half an hour later, the scout finally returned, panting heavily, and said, "Lord Duke, I have investigated carefully, and the other side is indeed the Jiangnan Navy, and the Prince of Chu is also in the army."
He wrung out the water from his clothes and took a deep breath: "Lord Duke, according to my judgment, the army led by the King of Chu has a conservative estimate of 120,000 men."
"I roughly counted them: there were twenty large ships, fifty medium-sized warships, and a hundred small warships."
Although small warships can accommodate fewer people, they are flexible and convenient, just like the vanguard in land warfare. Therefore, half of the small warships of the Jiangnan Navy led the way, and the other half brought up the rear of the formation.
"The large warships were surrounded in the very center. I believe that the King of Chu was on one of the large warships."
The Duke of Qi didn't speak, but waved his hand, and the scouting soldier quickly went down to rest.
Having spent an hour underwater, and being easily spotted by small boats, the scouting soldiers were already exhausted.
After the soldiers withdrew, the Duke of Qi hurriedly summoned his generals to discuss the battle: "The enemy has hundreds of thousands of men and twenty large warships! Most of their elite troops are definitely deployed on the large warships."
The generals nodded in agreement, and the Duke of Qi sketched out the distribution of the enemy's warships on a piece of paper with a few strokes: "In terms of numbers, we are definitely at a disadvantage."
"But in terms of ships, ours are clearly superior!"
The warships of the Lingnan Navy had all weathered storms at sea, and the materials used in their construction were far more robust than those of the Jiangnan Navy.
"Not only are our ships superior, but our soldiers are also more experienced. So, in order to make up for the huge disparity in numbers, I have decided to launch a surprise attack on them tonight!"
Duke Qi thought to himself that perhaps Gu Yufan thought the same thing, so tonight, it would be a test of who would come out on top.
The generals naturally understood the Duke of Qi's meaning, and they began to discuss the surprise attack that night, hoping to scare the enemy out of their wits at their first encounter!
Entering the water at night makes it less likely to be noticed, so they first sent soldiers with good swimming skills to sneak into the water and launch a surprise attack, taking out the soldiers on the enemy's light and small warships and trying to cut off the small warships' communication with the rear as soon as possible.
The generals all volunteered, recommending soldiers from their own ranks. After the candidates were selected, the next step was to proceed.
The Duke of Qi led the discussion until the moon rose above the treetops, at which point everyone hurriedly went down to set up defenses.
Duke Qi wanted to intimidate Gu Yufan, but Gu Yufan arrogantly believed that since Gu Yuchen's decree had not yet been issued, Duke Qi should still bow respectfully to him. Therefore, when the naval commanders proposed to launch a surprise attack on the enemy that night, Gu Yufan refused without hesitation.
"I am a prince, while the Duke of Qi is merely a duke. He must kneel and pay his respects to me!"
He said with extreme arrogance, "Didn't we send our people to Lingnan to investigate? The Duke of Qi only brought a mere 50,000 men. How could they compare to our 140,000-strong navy?"
Gu Yufan sat leisurely in his chair, ignoring the unpleasant looks on the faces of the sailors: "I will give him one night to consider it."
"If the Duke of Qi does not come to apologize to me privately before sunrise tomorrow, then we should not be polite to them!"
Gu Yufan was spoiled since childhood. He was not good at literature, let alone martial arts. He could fool ordinary people, but in front of a real navy, his level was simply not enough.
He had only a superficial understanding of formations and combat techniques.
They were only thinking that they had an overwhelming victory in terms of numbers, and that no matter how brave and skilled the Duke of Qi was, it would be useless!
The generals exchanged glances, clearly displeased with Gu Yufan's arrogant decision.
Some wanted to offer advice, but fearing the same fate as Chief Secretary Ling, they had no choice but to keep quiet.
Gu Yufan glanced around the canal and pointed to one of the men, saying, "This place is relatively close to Ningzhou. Tomorrow morning, you will lead a battalion of men to pass through Ningzhou. Also, please inform the prefects of Ningzhou and Yunzhou to send their city guards to provide support."
He pointed with a sneer at the map of the canal, at the location of the Duke of Qi and his men: "One battalion, plus the city guards of two prefectures, cutting them off from behind shouldn't be a problem, right?"
The general being pointed at frowned deeply: "Your Highness, a battalion plus the city guards of two prefectures amounts to no more than five thousand men, while the opposing navy numbers in the tens of thousands... "
Gu Yufan frowned and said, "The reason for flanking them is only to prevent them from fleeing in defeat. The pressure is all on the front. They're just a few defeated soldiers. You think you can't stop them with a few thousand men?"
Upon hearing this, the general's expression changed: "Your Highness, the city's garrison is not skilled in naval warfare. Besides, this humble general is only passing through Ningzhou; there is no battle involved..."
Before he could even finish the word "boat," Gu Yufan raised his hand to interrupt him: "Then what do you suggest we do? If we don't go to the rear to stop them, and they get defeated and escape, who will be held responsible?"
"If we don't have warships, surely we have civilian ships? Let the prefects of Ningzhou and Yunzhou requisition civilian ships."
Gu Yufan sneered, "Then requisition the merchant ships of those merchants!"
"I have protected these merchants for so many years, it is time for them to repay me!"
The general opened his mouth but couldn't say anything. He just stood there with his eyes down until the meeting ended. Once he was on the deck, he slammed his fist on the railing.
The generals following behind were also extremely troubled. One of them whispered, "Why don't you all come to my room for a drink?"
Another person said, "What do you mean by 'a little drink'? We're on the verge of disaster, ready to be launched at any moment. How can we drink now!"
The man gently pulled her hand, saying, "Just a little drink, just a little drink!"
This is clearly using drinking as an excuse to make a point.
The generals went in separate groups. After the room door closed, there was a moment of silence, followed by a chorus of complaints.
From bringing women to the battlefield, to his lack of understanding of tactics, his failure to know the importance of striking first, and his reckless command of sending a battalion of naval forces to intercept the enemy's rear.
The generals in this room were all from the Jiangnan Navy, so they naturally didn't hold back as much when they spoke as private soldiers.
As everyone knows, the King of Chu's fortunes have been declining ever since he lost the Mobei market.
Moreover, when faced with trouble, the King of Chu seemed to lose his mind. He first frantically chased after the King of Wen's men, and then killed Chief Secretary Ling.
The more they talked, the more alarmed they became, secretly speculating that if the King of Chu were to ascend the throne, their lives would likely be difficult as well…
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
