Xuanxia

Chapter 976 The Best Strategy
"Master Fu, there are so many people! They are all blocking the front! There are also people behind us! They are surrounding us!"

Lai Qianfeng rode his horse and came over. When he was about ten steps away from Fu Qingzhou, he jumped off his horse lightly and rushed over like a gust of wind. Finally, he sat steadily next to the boiler in front of Fu Qingzhou and said excitedly, "I estimate that there must be tens of thousands of people!"

Fu Qingzhou smiled and said, "Don't worry, eat first."

Lu Chengping, who was standing by, handed over a bowl of meat soup.

Lai Qianfeng uttered a "hmm", took the bowl and began to eat voraciously.

Fu Qingzhou glanced at Lu Chengping.

"Master Fu, you won't let me take command again, will you?"

Lu Chengping's face turned bitter: "I am a military advisor, not a general!"

"With a feather fan and a blue scarf, you can destroy the enemy's masts and oars in the midst of laughter and conversation! This is what I mean by talent." Fu Qingzhou said with a smile: "I don't know the art of war, I just need to go into battle and kill the enemy. I'll leave this kind of command work to you."

As he spoke, he patted his chest. There was obviously a thick book in his lapel, and it made a dull ping-ping sound when he patted it. "I don't even have time to read this book."

"Master Fu, I was wrong..." Lu Chengping's face became even more bitter.

"Okay, tell me what you think first."

Fu Qingzhou waved his hand: "We have occupied a hilltop now. They are afraid of our heavy cavalry charge and dare not attack us, but being surrounded like this all the time is not a good thing..."

In the past few days, they have traveled more than 500 miles from Baishan City all the way eastward. Along the way, they have broken through seven large and small armies of the Xishuo Army and robbed all the food and grass of a logistics team. They are now less than 300 miles away from their destination, the Hexi Corridor.

"The worst option is to charge with heavy cavalry to clear the way."

Lu Chengping sighed and said slowly: "We have killed and wounded countless Xishuo soldiers along the way these few days. They are also afraid of death, so they will do their best to stop us. We still have hope of breaking out, but there will inevitably be some casualties."

Fu Qingzhou said nothing and just lowered his head to drink his porridge.

"The middle strategy is to capture the thief and the leader."

Seeing that he did not respond, Lu Chengping knew that the next plan would definitely not work, so he continued: "With your ability, Master Fu, you can sneak into the enemy camp at night, kill some of their generals, capture some, and then set a fire. The enemy's morale will be disrupted. If we charge at night, the enemy's formation will be in chaos, and it will be the best time for us to break out."

Hearing this, Fu Qingzhou raised his head and said "Oh?" in surprise: "Is this still a medium-term plan? This is what I thought... Do you have a better idea?"

"Master Fu, our purpose of advancing into Shu is not to kill the enemy, but to lure the enemies who are besieging your friends here first, right?"

Lu Chengping smiled and said, "There are only tens of thousands of people here right now. Maybe your friends haven't been affected at all."

Fu Qingzhou's eyes lit up when he heard this, and he stroked his chin: "Continue."

"My idea is..."

Lu Chengping carefully considered his words and slowly said, "Go down and kill a few at night, set a fire, and then... come back."

"Come back again?"

This time it was not Fu Qingzhou who spoke, but Lai Qianfeng. He widened his eyes and said, "Why did you come back? Are you still being surrounded by people?"

"Yes." Lu Chengping said seriously, "Shu has many mountains and the wind is unpredictable. If we follow the middle strategy and set fire to the enemy and then break out, our brothers may suffer heavy casualties, especially the heavy cavalry... Their iron armor easily conducts heat, so fire attacks are very dangerous for them."

"But if you don't send heavy cavalry, and only use infantry and light cavalry for a quick attack, go quickly and come back quickly, we will stay on this hilltop and chop down all the grass and trees. The fire won't reach us, and our brothers will naturally not be killed or injured."

"After they send more people to rescue your friend, Master Fu, we will find a way to break out."

Listening to him, Fu Qingzhou frowned slightly: "Mr. Lu, I think I understand what you mean - if we pretend that we can't break out, we can only consume each other. As long as they suffer heavy casualties, they will naturally be more afraid of us and will send more people, but..."

"We don't have enough food and supplies, what should we do?" This is a very realistic problem.

Fu Qingzhou was not worried at all that the Xishuo army would besiege them to death, but people still had to eat. Although they had rushed along the way and robbed a lot of things, their non-stop running, whether it was people or horses, consumed a huge amount of food and water.

Although they are now temporarily and safely occupying the hilltop, they only have enough food and fodder to sustain the entire army for two days.

"I'm hungry."

Lu Chengping said calmly.

"Are you hungry?" Fu Qingzhou was stunned.

This time, Lai Qianfeng grinned: "Hey, this is a small matter."

"It's a small matter?" Fu Qingzhou's eyes widened: "Starving soldiers is not a good thing, right?"

“It’s a small matter indeed.”

Lai Qianfeng said seriously: "Master Fu, the Northern Yi grassland is much more desolate than this. When we fought on the grassland in the past, there were many times when we didn't even have grass to eat. It was common to go hungry for a few days."

"Yes, it never rains in the Northern Yi." Lu Chengping said with a smile, "Although it is summer here, the weather is not that hot. It still rains from time to time. With water to drink, everyone can survive."

Fu Qingzhou was shocked.

So, the so-called best strategy is to keep everyone hungry?
"We still have enough food for two days. Let's cook the soup and porridge thinner and eat sparingly. It's enough to fill us up. There's no problem." Lu Chengping smiled and said, "What do you think? Master Fu, in the end, it's still up to you to decide."

Fu Qingzhou touched his chin.

They were hungry, pretending to be able to hold on, pretending they couldn't break out, and then killing more enemies to trick more Xishuo troops into coming...

This place is less than 300 miles away from the Hexi Corridor, so it is indeed very easy to lure the Xishuo Army over there...

"Let's solve two problems first."

He finally spoke: "First, if we attract more people, we will be hungry by then, and our fighting power will certainly not be as good as it is now. How can we break through then?"

"Second, how do I know that my friends are no longer besieged by the Xishuo army?"

Hearing this, Lu Chengping frowned again.

"Well, you don't have to worry."

Fu Qingzhou smiled and said, "Your plan is very good, you can continue to implement it, but I want to add one more trick."

"What do you mean?" Lu Chengping's eyes lit up.

"Ha ha……"

Fu Qingzhou raised his head, looked at the already dark sky, and said with a smile: "I'll take care of this. You guys go cut down trees first and prepare for the fire attack tonight."

A hint of doubt flashed across Lu Chengping's eyes, but he still stood up, bowed, and answered yes.

Lai Qianfeng also took the order and left.

Fu Qingzhou sat alone next to the boiler and turned to look at the soldiers from the Zhou Battalion who were having dinner around him.

"I wonder if these soldiers from the northern border can act..."

(End of this chapter)