knife

Chapter 225 Large Battlefield and Small Battlefield

Ding Ergou took a small hammer and tapped the armor plates until they were flat and even. Then he used a leather rope to string the disassembled armor plates together and attach them to the armor.

Hu Kan, with his arms bare, was sharpening his broadsword on a huge whetstone, cursing incessantly as he did so.

The garrison of the Andong Protectorate at Longgou Fort retreated without a fight, abandoning this strategic military location. As the Yuan army seized Longgou Fort, Tongquan Fort's position suddenly became awkward.

Retreat, and you'll be opening a wide road for the Yuan people.

If they don't retreat, the Yuan people can leave from Longgoubao; it's only a few dozen miles more.

However, Tongquanbao is highly likely to be besieged by the enemy.

Initially, everyone thought that with the loss of Longgou Fort, the Anxi Protectorate would most likely order the garrison of Tongquan Fort to retreat as well.

But the subsequent military orders greatly disappointed everyone.

hold fast!

Along with this military order came not only supporting troops, but also a huge amount of military supplies.

Tongquan Fort is now home to 4,800 people from four Zhechong Prefectures, plus the personal guards of Commanders Xia Zhi and Fang Xiaomao, totaling 5,000 people stationed there.

"What's the point of us guarding this place?" Hu Kan stretched out his thumb, touched the blade, and, not quite satisfied, began to sharpen it again.

“The commander’s order for us to stay here must be meaningful!” Ding Ergou said. “At least by staying here, we can attract some of the Yuan troops and prevent them from going all out to the south. Otherwise, if we give them a good thrashing from behind, they’ll suffer enough.”

Hu Kan sighed: "But this makes our battle much more difficult. You understand this, but do the Yuan people not? They'll definitely put in a lot of effort to remove this thorn in our side."

"Then let's make sure he can't pull it out! And we'll leave him with a huge hole!" Ding Ergou laughed. "Brother Hu, are you scared?"

"Pah!" Hu Kan spat. "Who do you think you are, a little brat, to lecture me? I'm not afraid of anything. I just thought my wife said she wanted to find me a concubine, and we'd get things done after this battle. But this battle looks like it's never going to end!"

“Once we crush this wave, this year will be over. Next year, it will be our turn to take a break. A whole year has passed, and you still haven’t had time to find a little one?” Ding Ergou said.

"Ergou, you said your wife is literate?"

“Yes!” Ding Ergou said with a hint of pride, “I set up a private school in my village and enrolled dozens of children. My wife is the teacher there.”

Hu Kan burst into laughter: "You little rascal, you're full of tricks, openly abusing your power for personal gain!"

“How is this an abuse of power for personal gain? Last time, Chief Clerk Mao of the Protectorate came to our village and made a special trip to see this private school. He not only praised it highly, but also gave us several dozen taels of silver on the spot to make the school hall more spacious and bright!”

"Ergou, are you nineteen this year?"

"Yes!"

"At nineteen, you've already reached the fifth rank of Qi Control. You're a promising talent. No wonder the higher-ups value you. If nothing unexpected happens, you'll definitely become a top-tier Xuan Yuan expert in the future. When you make it big, don't forget to give your old brother a hand!" Hu Kan said.

Ding Ergou chuckled: "Great! I'll buy your meat from your butcher shop every day!"

"Get lost!" Hu Kan raised his broadsword and smacked Ding Ergou.

Lü You walked over with measured steps.

It wasn't that he was putting on airs; it was just that, being as big as a mountain of flesh, it was really difficult for him to walk like a normal person.

Seeing their leader approaching, Ding Ergou and Hu Kan both stood up.

"Sit, sit!" Lu You took the small stool that Hu Kan handed him and stuffed it under his bottom. When he sat down, Ding Ergou clearly heard the stool creak painfully.

"Commander, what are our chances of winning this battle?" Hu Kan asked.

Lu You stroked his newly grown beard and said seriously, "That depends on whether it's a large battlefield or a small battlefield?"

"What do you mean?" Ding Ergou and Hu Kan asked in unison.

"The small battlefield is our Tongquan Fort!" Lü You said, "Needless to say, as you have all seen, things are not going well, and the Yuan people will definitely launch a fierce attack on us. So it is difficult for us to win on this small battlefield. But if we consider the entire battlefield outside the Great Wall, Tongquan Fort is just one link in the overall strategy. Even if we lose here, as long as we win on the big battlefield, then we have won!"

"But Commander, if we lose, many people will die!" Hu Kan murmured.

“If we lose the battle, even more people will die!” Lü You glared and said, “Even if you die in Tongquan Fort, as long as we win the battle, you can keep your wife, children, and butcher shop. But if we lose the battle, you'll lose everything. Everyone will have to become a herdsman or a land slave for the Yuan people. Which one do you choose?”

"Of course I'd choose the first one!" Hu Kan said hastily. "But it would be best if you could survive, Er Gou, don't you think?"

"Yes, yes!" Ding Ergou nodded repeatedly.

"On the battlefield, those who die are all afraid of death!" Lu You snorted, stood up and said, "If you want to survive, try to win the smaller battles too! I'm just saying that the smaller battles might be lost, and there will be difficulties, but I'm not saying that we will definitely lose!"

Watching Lü You disappear from sight with his big butt swaying, Hu Kan looked at Ding Ergou with some confusion and said, "Ergou, tell me, when did our regimental commander start talking about these strategies and tactics so fluently?"

Ding Ergou rolled his eyes: "Our regimental commander is a bandit by origin, he can't read a single word. This must be from a pre-battle meeting, either Commander Xia or Commander Fang were speaking, and he's just copying what they said!" "I knew it! By the way, Ergou, have you noticed that our regimental commander has changed a lot in the past six months, from the inside out? I can't quite put my finger on it, but that's the feeling!"

"After we took down the Yan family last time, didn't our regimental commander get a small estate? He also took two wives, right? As a result, both wives got pregnant. I guess that's probably why. Before, he only cared about himself and his family didn't have to worry. He would fight if he could win and run if he couldn't. But that's not possible now. He can run away, but can his wives and children escape? Of course, they will fight to the death!"

“That makes sense!” Hu Kan nodded.

As they were talking, the sound of rapid hoofbeats came from afar. The two immediately stopped talking, stood up, and looked in the direction from which the sound of hooves came.

Finally, news has arrived.

Without a doubt, the enemy has arrived.

The two exchanged a glance and both breathed a sigh of relief.

Waiting is the most agonizing thing.

Once everything settled down and all the speculations came true, I wasn't nervous at all.

It's simply a matter of meeting force with force, dealing with whatever comes my way. If I can win, I'll destroy you; if I can't, then I'll just die.

Lenger was extremely annoyed, but also extremely helpless.

The struggle for the throne in the imperial court spilled over into the lives of countless people below.

Moreover, it makes absolutely no sense.

The capture of Longgou Fort was effortless, immediately tearing a large gap in the Qin army's defenses. In Lengge's view, under such circumstances, the Anxi Protectorate would inevitably withdraw the garrison of Tongquan Fort to prevent it from being surrounded and annihilated by the Yuan army.

However, the truth is that the garrison of the Anxi Protectorate at Tongquanbao not only did not retreat, but according to the latest situation, they continued to reinforce the fortress and transport in large quantities of military supplies and provisions, showing a posture of holding out to the death.

Moreover, the troops stationed here were Li Dachui's trusted confidants, Fang Xiaomao and Xia Zhi.

By placing one's confidant in such a position, the other party silently conveyed an attitude: they would never give up.

Faced with this situation, Lengge felt that the other side was merely engaging in a petty squabble, which was utterly meaningless. Furthermore, the Yuan people had no need to waste their manpower and resources attacking such a heavily fortified fortress. They only needed to send a small force to keep an eye on them.

The most advantageous course of action is to surround without attacking.

If the battle were to be decided on the main battlefield, wouldn't Tongquanbao be like meat on a felt board? Would there even be a need for a fight?
That's what he thought.

But Zhebie doesn't think that way.

At the military conference, Jebe strictly ordered Lengge to lead his troops to attack Tongquan Fort, and set a deadline for the capture.

If they cannot conquer it within ten days, then Lengge will be subjected to military law.

Lenger knew this was no joke; things that couldn't be done under normal circumstances could be done without restraint during wartime.

Lengge had absolutely no confidence in conquering Tongquan Fort within ten days.

He knew the perilous terrain of Tongquan Fort.

But what Zhebie said was irrefutable!
The Anxi Protectorate took only one day to capture Tongquan Fort. Now you have ten times the time and several times the number of Qin troops defending the fort. If you still can't take it, is that acceptable?
Lenger had nothing to say.

It feels like we've created our own trap.

He certainly knew how Tongquanbao and Longgoubao were lost in the first place.

But to take it back now, we have to fight a real, hard battle.

The fight must be fought.

My only hope now is that Xiao Changche and Li Dachui of the Anxi Protectorate can defeat this guy within ten days. If that happens, I will be safe.

If not, then we will have to fight tooth and nail to attack Tongquanbao.

Even if it means suffering losses, it doesn't matter.

We can't let Jebe cut off his own head because of this.

Everything depends on the situation on the battlefield.

The first five days of the attack were more about form than substance; it could be all bark and no bite. There was no need to fight desperately. If Jebe suffered a crushing defeat, then we could preserve our strength and retreat to Qingtongxia.

If the situation turns in Zhebe's favor in the next five days, then he will have to go all out.

The main force of the Yuan army was pouring into the direction of Yuan'an City through Longgou Fort, while Lengge led his 20,000 troops to approach Tongquan Fort.

(End of this chapter)