knife

Chapter 466 Prestige
As the incense stick burned to its last flame, the last bit of flame scorching his fingers, Ding Ergou suddenly opened his eyes, sat up abruptly, shook off the ash from the back of his hand, stretched, rubbed his face, and made himself fully awake.

The advance of 20,000 infantrymen naturally included a vanguard for reconnaissance, a main force in the center, flanking cavalry for protection, and a rearguard. And he was the vanguard of this army.

The commander of the 20,000 infantrymen was Xia Zhi.

He was also Ding Ergou's former boss.

He was only a few years older than Ding Ergou, but he had always commanded the most elite infantry battalion of the entire Beiting Protectorate.

Of these 20,000 troops, the 5,000-strong Earth Battalion was the core, while the rest were all government troops.

Ding Ergou had fought several fierce battles with Xia Zhi, the most dangerous of which was the battle against Sha Liewen in Yuan'an County.

The heavy infantry of the Earth Battalion withstood the charge of the Northern Yuan cavalry.

In that battle, even Xia Zhi was seriously injured.

Back then, Ding Ergou was just a small squad leader; now, he is a captain leading three thousand men.

Speaking of captains like them, they basically all came from the three battalions of Heaven, Earth and Man.

Ding Ergou stood up and kicked his subordinates who were sleeping on the ground like dead dogs as he walked.

After the local troops were assembled, they were reorganized. These elite vanguard troops were all veterans who were skilled in battle and knew when to relax and when to be tense.

As the horn sounded, the entire camp erupted in excitement.

There's no need to cook or cook; the army's meals are all ready-made. All you need to do is boil water, cut off a piece of the dry rations, soak it in the water, and in a short while, you'll have a bowl of fragrant food.

The military rations were plentiful, containing not only various seasonings but also diced meats. After being soaked in water, a layer of oil floated on the surface. Without this layer of oil, they wouldn't be very filling.

No one dared to tamper with the military rations.

Everyone finished their meal in a few bites and then hurried off to tend to their livestock.

Although they were called infantry, everyone actually had a mount, which they brought from their own homes. It not only carried people but also their armor for battle.

At this time of year, grass is readily available, but if you want the livestock to have strength, you naturally need to add some grain.

Ding Ergou held his bowl, eating his porridge in big mouthfuls while checking everyone's equipment and taking the opportunity to see how everyone was doing.

He was not worried about an enemy attack.

Just yesterday, a large cavalry force had passed through this land.

Where tens of thousands of cavalry passed, not even wild animals were left behind.

The enemy's main force is now in Yandu, and the remaining small fry are too scared to provoke them.
Apart from necessary patrols and sentries, Ding Ergou did not establish a stockade, dig trenches, or erect fences.

Although this contradicts the rules for marching.

But as Protector Xiao had also said in class, "There are no fixed formations in warfare, just as water has no fixed shape. One who can adapt to the enemy's changes and win is called a god."

Ding Ergou felt that the most crucial element of this battle was speed. As long as the army could reach Yandu in time, all the other rules and regulations could be set aside.

Being overly rigid about every rule and regulation may prevent you from making mistakes, but it might also lead to problems.

He knew that failing to establish a camp according to military regulations yesterday would definitely be noted by the military commander, and his merits would be diminished after the battle, but he didn't care.

Sticking out his long tongue, he licked the gruel from the bottom of the bowl clean. When Ding Ergou put the bowl down, his eyes suddenly narrowed. In his field of vision, a man and a horse flashed by like a black lightning bolt. Why did that man and that horse look so much like the Protector-General?

impossible!
Ding Ergou's wife, Tu Jiaojiao, is helping with official business in the Protector-General's tent. The Protector-General is unwell and has stayed in the rear army this time, so he can't be here.

Just as Ding Ergou was wondering, the man and horse rapidly approached him from afar, arriving in front of him in the blink of an eye. Who else could it be but Protector Xiao?
Ding Ergou was stunned for a moment, then jogged forward. Before he could speak, Xiao Changche said, "We left in a hurry yesterday and forgot to bring supplies. Bring a bag of military rations, some water, and some beans!"

Ding Ergou immediately turned around and, a moment later, had taken what Xiao Changche needed. Just as he was about to speak, Xiao Changche had already turned his horse and left, leaving only one sentence in his ear: "Your wife told me that it's good to move around more when you're pregnant, so I'm going to Yandu to take a look!"

Upon hearing this, Ding Ergou shuddered, his face turning several shades pale.

Watching the dark figure disappear into the distance in an instant, Ding Ergou felt that no matter how Jiaojiao tried to explain herself when they got back, he would have to teach her a lesson, at least ten spanks!

Xiao Changche appeared suddenly and left very quickly. He only stayed for a short while, but he made the entire vanguard team excited.

To the army of the Beiting Protectorate, Xiao Changche was a god.

With her around, Beiting has never suffered a single defeat.

The thousands of people quickly formed ranks and, to the sound of bugles, followed closely in Xiao Changche's footsteps.

The Protector-General was in the lead.
All they had to do was follow Protector Xiao forward.

If you meet a god, kill the god; if you meet a Buddha, kill the Buddha.

For no apparent reason, morale suddenly soared.

"Captain, we need to hurry, or those cavalry will steal all the credit!" someone shouted.

“That’s right, those cavalrymen always look down on us. If we’re slow this time, they’ll have wiped out the enemy, and all we’ll be doing is collecting corpses and digging pits. We’ll be too ashamed to face them!”

"Hurry up, hurry up!" someone urged his horse and mule, wishing they could catch up with the large cavalry force ahead immediately.

However, they were half a day behind, and catching up with those cavalrymen who lived on horseback was no easy task.

The 20,000 cavalrymen were divided into two groups, with Quanxin and Zhang Quanyi each leading one group to launch an attack on Yandu.

Quan Xin was completely taken aback that Xiao Changche would entrust him with such an important task so readily.
After gaining a comprehensive understanding of the mission and its details, Quanxin realized that the key to this operation lay in the timing and duration of the intervention.

If you grasp these two points, victory will be as easy as taking candy from a baby.

Moreover, this forced march finally gave Quanxin a clearer understanding of the military system of the Beiting Protectorate.

An army under control

A general without discipline.

Any general who masters the military manuals of the Beiting Protectorate can successfully command an army under the Beiting Protectorate.

Undoubtedly, this military system completely eliminated certain ideas among military commanders.

In Beiting, the idea of ​​having an army and wielding power is nothing but a joke.

The sound of rapid hoofbeats reached his ears. Quanxin turned his head and saw a black horse rapidly approaching in the distance, accompanied by more than a hundred cavalrymen.

As the black horse drew near, the large contingent of cavalry suddenly erupted in thunderous cheers.

Now look closely, that's Xiao Changche.

The cavalrymen around Xiao Changche were clearly the scouts he had sent out to patrol the area.

Did Protector Xiao actually arrive here alone on horseback?

Thinking of the two old men in Protector Xiao's tent, Quanxin couldn't help but smile.

(End of this chapter)