Although they suffered a great defeat, Prince An's subsequent command was appropriate and the situation was reversed, so the loss of soldiers and generals was not too serious. Excluding the 50,000 defeated Pingyang troops, only about 170,000 of his own 200,000 troops were left.
But the situation was not much better. They lost 30,000 elite soldiers and almost all of Pingyang, making counterattack extremely difficult.
Even Yang Ze's army was stationed in Linxiang, eighty miles away, ready to attack the city at any time. Even though their morale was low, the soldiers had to stay alert and patrol.
But at this moment, Prince An's mind was not entirely on the above.
"What's wrong with you?"
Neither arrogant in victory nor impatient in defeat, Wei Xu acted calmly and steadily as usual, making proper arrangements for the defense. He was slightly surprised to see that Prince An was distracted.
Prince An frowned tightly, "Seeing is believing. Yang Ze's bravery and ability to lead an army are rare in this world."
It's really shocking. It's impossible for such a person to remain unknown for twenty years.
Unless, unless he had some compelling reason that forced him not to lie dormant before.
Or maybe, what he was famous for in the past was just...
Prince An's heart skipped a beat. With his age and the time of his rise to power, more importantly, his military talent and strength were rare in the world.
"Jinzhi, do you think this Yang Ze is him?"
"who?"
Wei Xu thought for a moment and asked, "King of Qi?" He raised his eyebrows slightly, "The youngest son of Queen Fu?"
"Yes, that's him."
Prince An finally spoke out what he had been suspicious about all day. The more he thought about it, the more it seemed like it was true: "Prince Qi was seriously injured and poisoned and fell into the river. He may not have survived. And this Yang Ze is fake. He happened to take office in Pingtao not long after the incident."
He once sent people to Pingtao to investigate, but the result was as expected: "Yang Ze" had wiped out all traces and there was nothing wrong.
All the coincidences, big and small, came together to form a stream, and Prince An became a little restless.
"Whether it is true or not, we can send someone to investigate. Or we can send a message to Yizhou to ask if our people have seen Yang Ze's true face. If they have, we can ask them in detail. If not, it doesn't matter. He has now left Yizhou openly, so there must be flaws."
Wei Xu gave very objective advice, saying: "At present, it is difficult to test the thousands of troops, so it is useless to think too much."
This is the truth. Prince An frowned and chewed the word "difficult to test" several times between his lips and teeth. He nodded: "Jinzhi is right."
…
The enemy's morale was low and they refused to attack. Prince An began to doubt Wei Jing's identity based on his intuition.
But Wei Jing knew none of this. He won a great victory and forced the enemy back to the border. With morale high, he led his army into Linxiang City, eyeing Juqiu covetously.
Han Xi rode his horse a few steps faster and said, "My lord, Shi Zhuo has been captured."
Shi Zhuo valued his life but was unwilling to give up his wealth, so he hid in Qi County in the east. Unfortunately, the 50,000 Pingyang troops were either killed in battle or fled, and are no longer alive. When Prince An retreated, he didn't even think of him and was caught red-handed by Fan Qing who led his troops to capture Qi County.
Wei Jing's eyebrows did not move, and he said coldly: "Kill him."
Although the words asking him to divorce his wife were arrogant and incomprehensible, in Wei Jing's mind, this person was doomed to die.
Zhang Yong was in high spirits, and cursed at the "old bastard" twice. Suddenly, he remembered something, and hurriedly reported: "My lord, not long after the battle started yesterday, Xu Cang led his army to help, but I was well prepared and did not meet him."
Xu Cang is a long-missed figure, but he is not unfamiliar. Wei Jing and others have long known that he is now under the command of Prince An.
But these have nothing to do with them. The only thing to pay attention to is to try to avoid meeting him face to face, so as to prevent Wei Jing's identity from being exposed too early.
Zhang Yong also arranged for his personal soldiers to follow him, so he avoided it in time.
It's okay as long as we don't meet.
Wei Jing nodded. Things had changed and people had changed. He was not moved at all when he heard about his old friend. He just listened and immediately arranged defenses in various places. He also sent out a large number of scouts, one to monitor the enemy and the other to find out the terrain near Juqiu City and look for opportunities to attack.
In general, Wei Jing has firmly controlled the situation and has the upper hand. He is very confident that he can drive the opponent out of Pingyang in the next battle.
It's just that Prince An's strength has not been greatly damaged, and the 170,000 troops are gathered at one point. It is not easy to find the opportunity to fight, so we need to be patient.
Right now the two sides are in a stalemate and no one is moving.
The stalemate lasted for a few days, and Wei Jing became less busy. Whenever he had some free time, he missed his wife.
Alas, I can’t go back to pick her up this time.
Well, he could write a letter and ask her to meet him in Linxiang!
Now, it can be said that Pingyang County has fallen into Wei Jing's hands. Various post-war tasks needed to be carried out immediately, including taking over the government affairs of the government office, posting notices to reassure the people, recruiting deserters to surrender, etc.
Zhuang Yan, Shao Qing and others also left Tanggu Road soon after, but this time, Wei Jing was unable to go back to pick her up as he had promised.
I can't meet him in person, but I can still meet him up.
This time, there were quite a lot of cities captured, and Shao Qing and others divided them up, with each person responsible for almost one city. He quickly wrote a letter and asked his wife to come to Linxiang.
Linxiang actually has himself, Ji Huan and others, so there is really no need to send special people. Shao Qing felt helpless and amused when she received the letter, but she was also thinking about him, so she didn't hesitate and went straight to Linxiang after receiving the letter.
Having suffered a loss, Wei Jing was cautious and did not go to greet him personally, but sent Han Xi to go. After that, he looked forward to it. When he calculated the time, it was almost time. He stood up and said, "We will discuss the remaining trivial matters tomorrow. Let's go now."
As he spoke, he took two steps at a time and was out of the study in the blink of an eye.
Zhang Yong was puzzled: "Sir, what's wrong with the lord?" Why is he walking so fast suddenly?
Ji Huan slowly packed up the documents on the desk, glanced at him sideways, said nothing, shook his head and left.
"Hey, hey sir..."
Why are both of them like this? Zhang Yong, who was despised for his thick nerves, scratched his head, thought about it and couldn't understand it. Forget it, he let him go too.
…
Wei Jing ran out of the government office gate and followed Shao Qing.
He personally led the horse and helped the man down.
The couple missed each other terribly after not seeing each other for half a month. They smiled at each other for a moment, then walked side by side to their house. Wei Jing said, "Ah Qing, I couldn't go back to pick you up."
"Can't I do it myself?"
He spoke apologetically, and Shao Qing looked at him with a smile: "My husband is really amazing. He took Pingyang in just half a month."
Wei Jing really likes her praising him, Shao Qing is well aware of this. Of course, she is not just saying this to praise him, and her pride is evident in her tone.
He is truly remarkable.
"Really? Do you really think so, A-Qing?"
Wei Jing was overjoyed. No matter how many words others said about planning and winning battles thousands of miles away, they were not as good as this one. Especially Shao Qing's undisguised proud expression made him extremely happy.
He felt very happy, and they had been separated for half a month, so the sex incident that night was urgent and fierce. Shao Qing remembered that he was there to handle government affairs, so she kicked him several times, and he finally restrained himself a little.
Afterwards, he diligently helped her wash and groom herself, and touched her smooth, white, tender belly. He said, "It would be great if we could have a daughter first."
The couple often discussed this topic, and Shao Qing was not surprised to hear it. He raised his eyelids and glanced at him, and said lazily: "Don't you like your son?"
She also lowered her head and touched her belly: "But I'm not pregnant yet?"
My period just ended a few days ago.
They had not used any contraceptive measures for more than half a year, but still had not gotten pregnant. However, Shao Qing was not worried because Yan Ming had come to check their pulse and said that they were both in good health and that they just needed to relax and the baby would come naturally.
Wei Jing didn't care about it: "Why rush? The opportunity will come when it comes."
He hurriedly explained: "I am very happy about my son, just like my daughter."
The reason I specifically mentioned my daughter was all because of Zhang Yong.
Zhang Yong received a letter yesterday saying that his wife had given birth to a little daughter for him. He had several sons, but finally he had a daughter. He was overjoyed and talked about it for a long time. Wei Jing had heard about it and after thinking about it, he also felt a little itchy.
After being questioned by Shao Qing, he felt that his idea was wrong, and reflected seriously, and said: "I taught my daughter to read and write, and I taught my son to ride and shoot arrows. In short, our children are all good."
A dim candlelight illuminated his dark pupils. There was a light in his eyes when he said this, and the gentle smile on his lips could not be concealed.
Shao Qing's heart felt soft and warm, and she kissed him with a smile.
Wei Jing immediately returned the kiss, and they separated breathlessly. He then thought of something else and hurriedly discussed with his wife, "Ah Qing, if we have a child in the future, is it possible to adopt him under my brother's name?"
He definitely did not want his elder brother to have no descendants, but the current system of adoption was fundamentally contrary to etiquette and law, and the youngest son would no longer inherit the couple's bloodline.
Therefore, Wei Jing felt that he owed his wife a lot.
Shao Qing didn't care about these things. It was just a name. Could her son be taken away in this situation? Besides, she was not unprepared for the situation in Wei Jing's family.
Even so, he did not make a decision on his own, but discussed it with her seriously, even pleading with her. Shao Qing held his hand and said softly, "If we have a young son, we will adopt him to our brother; if not, we will adopt our young grandson. Is that okay?"
Good, great!
Wei Jing felt so touched that he hugged his wife and kissed her again and again: "Ah Qing, you are so nice."
…
The husband and wife reunited after a short separation, and were inseparable at night, but had to be busy with their own business during the day.
The next five or six days were still very peaceful. Shao Qing asked about the battle situation, and Wei Jing said that they had to wait for the most appropriate opportunity to fight.
She understood immediately that attacking a city is more difficult than defending it, and if one wants to drive out the enemy at the lowest cost, timing of battle is crucial.
In fact, when Wei Jing said he was waiting, he really meant it. He had already spotted an opportunity that was bound to appear and was waiting patiently.
King An has an army of nearly 200,000 stationed in Juqiu City. The amount of food and grass consumed by these 200,000 troops in one day is astonishing. When King Pian'an came, he marched quickly and the entire army only brought a few days' worth of food.
The existing food reserves in Juqiu City will definitely not last long. We won’t have to wait long before we have to transport food and fodder from the rear to the front line.
Most of the passes in the southeast of Pingyang have fallen into the hands of Wei Jing. Prince An has no choice for the grain transportation route. Unfortunately, this grain route is full of mountains and rivers, making it easy to set up ambushes.
Wei Xu said directly that the grain carts were heavy and difficult to move, but the enemy's rocket attack was very easy to succeed. Their side was at a disadvantage and was facing a strong enemy like Yang Ze, so he suggested that King An be prepared for both situations.
It would be great if the subsequent counterattack was successful, but if not, we would have to preserve our strength to the maximum extent and withdraw from Pingyang.
Victory and defeat are common in the military. It would be foolish to insist on one's own way and get caught up in them.
Prince An's face turned black and blue, and he finally called his generals and advisers to discuss the matter.
The grain reserves in Juqiu City were finally insufficient, and Prince An ordered the transportation of grain and fodder from Hanshou County.
To avoid ambushes and to make transportation easier, the food and fodder were transported in small batches. But after being raided and burned three times in a row, Prince An's army had to retreat.
…
"The front troops are disbanded, and the rear troops are tightened. Prince An is indeed planning to lead the army back to Jingzhou if he cannot win."
At the edge of a high mountain, there were several riders standing. The rider in the middle was Wei Jing. He lowered his eyes to glance at the enemy army surging like a tide below, and he raised his lips lightly.
The so-called evacuation of the front army and the tight deployment of the rear army could not be discovered at all on flat ground. But standing on the high mountains, you can see everything at a glance, and nothing can be obscured.
Just as Wei Jing expected before the war.
He smiled coldly: "Send the order, follow the previously agreed strategy and march immediately!"
Although his major battle strategy was to expel King An, if he got the chance, he would certainly try his best to annihilate the enemy.
…
Prince An made a feint and immediately issued an order to split his troops into two groups according to the original plan, retreating quickly from Fupan Road and Zhiyang Road respectively.
He and Wei Xu were traveling separately, and he led an army of 90,000 to retreat quickly to Fupan Road.
It went very smoothly. After walking for half a day, they had already repelled the pursuers. When the messenger came back with a report, King An turned around and looked at him with a gloomy face: "Send the order, move forward at full speed!"
No matter how smooth the process was, it would have been a retreat. Fortunately, if we continued to move forward for a few hours, we would have left Pingyang.
At this critical moment when the soldiers could not help but breathe a sigh of relief, there was a sudden "boom" of loud gongs and drums, and flags were suddenly raised on the tops of the hills on both sides. Shouts of killing shook the sky, logs and rocks rumbled down, and the enemy army like a tide followed to attack.
An ambush? !
This Fupan Road is not an easy one to travel on. If one turns back to Jingzhou, it is only a mediocre option. Before that, King An had secretly sent out several waves of scouts to survey the area.
But Yang Ze set an ambush on Fupan Road.
Prince An gnashed his teeth.
Arrows rained down and shouts of killing shook the sky. Their side immediately fell into a disadvantage. The trusted general Wang Tong immediately took off his black cloak and put it on Prince An.
Prince An was originally wearing a bright red cloak, which made him a sitting duck. Wang Tong acted promptly and promptly, and Prince An's position was not exposed. He whispered, "Your Highness, we will protect you and retreat a little."
At this time, if Prince An's army retreated back to Pingyang County, it would be very dangerous, so the only option was to move forward. The enemy must also be very clear about this, so the interception and ambush in the front are the most powerful.
The enemy's elite troops rushed down like a tide, and arrows pressed down like locusts. Generals such as Xu Cang knew that they could not delay any longer, so they quickly gathered their soldiers and launched a fierce attack to break out.
The battle was extremely brutal, but Prince An had an army of 90,000 men, and the enemy could not maneuver in this confined area, so they would definitely be able to break through in the end.
Therefore, Wang Tong protected Prince An and retreated slightly at the first moment, so as not to be affected by the front and be able to rush out at the first moment after breaking through.
Prince An was so angry that his chest exploded, but he had to be careful and hide behind Wang Tong and his trusted guards. He knows some martial arts, but he is still lacking when it comes to killing enemies on the battlefield, let alone such a dangerous situation.
After fighting hard for more than an hour, most of those who fell were his own soldiers. Looking around, his face became increasingly gloomy.
He raised his eyes and looked coldly around the hillside above, and suddenly, Prince An's gaze fixed.
In the lush forest, there were a few flags looming. The midday sun was scorching, and that position reflected a dazzling silver light.
Silver light?
Prince An immediately thought of the invincible "Yang Ze" who was suspected to be the Prince of Qi.
He immediately widened his eyes and looked intently.
But the distance is actually not close, and the faces of the people cannot be distinguished. The shadows of the trees are swaying and the silver light is dazzling. How can I see it?
But Prince An still stared at her intently, his eyes were filled with tears because of the stinging, but he never looked away.
Finally, a thin cloud floated by and blocked the sun. When the man moved, the silver light faded.
It was a very small figure, with only the upper body visible and half of the face so blurry that it was impossible to make out the outline, but vaguely it seemed to overlap with the profile of the person in my memory.
"ah!"
Prince An was startled and leaned back so hard that he almost fell off his horse.
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