Fu Shanhe

Chapter 353 Taking advantage of the situation
Under the city of Anqing.

"General, the scouts just sent us a message that a group of rebels attacked the regiment's camp at night."

Qin Tianrui frowned when he received this news.

In recent days, he has been paying close attention to the movements of the rebels.

No signs of rebel reinforcements were found in nearby state capitals.

Logically speaking, the second- and third-line troops left behind in the local area are not capable of launching a night attack.

But reality told him that an elite enemy force was secretly lurking and was nearby.

"Pass the order down, have the night watchmen step up their guard to prevent a surprise attack by the enemy."

After a little thought, Qin Tianrui gave the order decisively.

The regiment was attacked and he could not help.

Going out to provide reinforcements in the dark would only cause more trouble.

Since the enemy chose to attack the regiment at night, they might have made arrangements along the way, waiting for them to take the bait.

Anyway, the regiment has a lot of soldiers, so even if we suffer some losses, it’s not a big deal.

……

"My Lord, the Jiangxi soldiers are not making any moves. Let's join the battle against the regiment army!"

In the dark night, Fang Yuxuan, who had been lying in ambush on both sides of the official road and feeding mosquitoes for half the night, finally received news.

Originally, he wanted to use a night attack to lure out Qin Tianrui's first town in Jiangxi and ambush him in the darkness.

Unfortunately, the other party was more cautious than he expected and was not fooled at all.

For the State of Wu, destroying a regular garrison of the Yu Dynasty was much more valuable than destroying tens of thousands of troops.

In the past wars, the regiment led by Bai Yifeng was either defeated or on the way to defeat.

Only when the situation is favorable can we win one or two battles occasionally.

The reason why he is still alive and well is not because his army is so powerful, but simply because he runs fast.

This is the advantage of irregular troops, they are not obliged to live and die with the city.

If you don't receive any salary from the court and find the situation is not good, you can run away.

The loss of cities and territories had nothing to do with Bai Yifeng, the minister of the ragtag militia.

"That's it!"

“The Pseudo-Dynasty is best at internal fighting, and it is normal for them to watch people in danger without helping, let alone at night when the situation is unclear.

Pass the order down, we will also join the battle against the regiment army and try to capture the butcher Bai Yifeng alive."

Fang Yuxuan gave the order with a hint of helplessness.

If they miss this opportunity, the two sides will have to fight head-on in the future.

Although he had an army of over 100,000 available this time, for the sake of secrecy, the vanguard consisted of only 10,000 troops.

With the troops at hand alone, the chances of winning in a frontal combat are not high.

Theoretically, the defenders in Anqing City would cooperate with him, but the problem was that Fang Yuxuan didn't dare to let the defenders leave the city to join the battle.

If the enemy has a conspiracy and seizes Anqing, we will be doomed.

……

Regimental camp.

"Brother... the enemy... the enemy reinforcements are coming!"

After hearing the news, Bai Yifeng's expression darkened.

The main reason why he was able to hold out until now was that he sent out his personal soldiers to attack and block the rebels.

At this time, there were enemies on all sides, which was undoubtedly fatal to the regiment with low morale.

Seeing that things were hopeless, the regiment's old tradition began to break out, and some generals simply fled with their troops.

"withdraw!"

Bai Yifeng gave the order indifferently.

As a long-distance runner, he has a keen sense of danger.

No one came out to dissuade them. If they couldn't win, they would run away. This was an old tradition of the regiment.

Everyone from top to bottom has extensive experience in escaping, and those who were slow to react have already become victims of the rebels.

……

The sky gradually brightened, and the bloody battle gradually came to an end.

"My Lord, the results of last night's battle were remarkable, at least tens of thousands of enemy troops were annihilated.

Unfortunately, the White Butcher's body was not found, and none of the regiment's high-ranking officers were saved."

Zeng Haochuan said indignantly.

The regiment is easy to fight but difficult to annihilate.

In the past few years, the rebel army had defeated the regiment army many times, and at one point Bai Yifeng was left with only dozens of personal soldiers.

Unfortunately, no matter how hard the fight went, this guy could always save his life from the rebels, and then gather his scattered old subordinates and regroup.

"That guy is a slippery creature, always slippery and elusive. It's normal that we can't catch him.

Pass the order down, quickly clean up the battlefield and evacuate this place!"

Fang Yuxuan gave the order expressionlessly.

Obviously, he was not satisfied with last night's results.

Although they succeeded in inflicting heavy damage to the regiment's army, they also suffered thousands of casualties, all of whom were elite troops.

There are only tens of thousands of people in the entire Wu Kingdom, which is far from comparable to ordinary troops.

The expected combat objectives were not fully achieved and the troops were exposed.

Knowing their existence, the enemy will certainly take precautions.

The advantage of surprise is gone, and we will have to compete with the enemy in hard power under the sun.

……

After leading the team to flee for dozens of miles and making sure there were no pursuers, Bai Yifeng breathed a sigh of relief.

When he came to his senses and personally checked the team, Bai Yifeng was almost fainted from anger.

Yesterday there were as many as 40,000 troops, but now there are only a thousand or so with him.

Although most of the regiment's troops were only defeated and could still be gathered together, the enemy had to give them an opportunity.

In this military operation, they were alone and deep in the enemy's territory.

"Brother, Wen Yi didn't catch up. I sent people to search the area nearby, but couldn't find any trace of him.

or……"

Before Bai Yihao could finish speaking, Bai Yifeng interrupted him with a wave of his hand.

“Let’s put the search for Wen Yi on hold for now!
Gather the defeated soldiers immediately. Now that the enemy has taken action, they will not let us go easily.

If we are slow to react, this will be our grave.”

Bai Yifeng made a decisive decision.

He was also very worried about his son's disappearance, but a leader should never be too soft-hearted.

Although he was not a qualified commander, he read a lot of military books on the subject.

After fighting the rebels for several years, he had become hard-hearted.

"Brother, why don't you ask General Qin for help?"

Bai Yihao couldn't help but suggest.

In last night's battle, not only did we lose many soldiers and generals, but we also lost our own nephew.

In this situation, the first thing to consider is survival.

The isolated army penetrated deep into the enemy's rear, covering an area of ​​more than one hundred miles, and the only friendly troops were those led by Qin Tianrui.

When facing the only person asking for help, you must bow your head when it is time to do so.

"late!
If we follow the agreement and rush to meet Qin Tianrui in time, asking for help will be nothing.

However, we were too careless and deliberately slowed down our march, which offended people.

Among the many government troops, the soldiers led by Han Shui Hou had the strictest military discipline.

According to military law, those who fail to arrive on time will be beheaded.

If we come to ask for help at this time, Qin Tianrui might chop off our heads to enforce military discipline."

Bai Yifeng said helplessly.

There are too many people who want him dead, and it would be very dangerous without a large army to support him.

Cutting off his head would not only enforce military discipline, but also earn you some favors.

When it comes to his life, he dare not gamble with Qin Tianrui's integrity.

…The regiment’s top brass were worried, and Qin Tianrui, who received the battle report, was also secretly complaining.

Even if there is no expectation for the regiment, it is still an army of 40,000 and can play an important role in the siege.

As a result, they were defeated before they even reached the battlefield.

Without the help of allies, it would be very difficult to capture Anqing as the number one town in Jiangxi.

"Has the news been verified?"

"Did the White Butcher really suffer a great defeat, or did he want to avoid the battle and deliberately pretend to have suffered heavy casualties?"

Qin Tianrui asked doubtfully.

If a night attack is to be successful, it requires great operational skills.

First, you must be strong enough, and second, the enemy must be caught off guard. Both are indispensable.

It is difficult to succeed in a night attack against an experienced enemy general.

Although Bai Yifeng did not have any outstanding achievements, he had fought for several years and should have accumulated some experience.

"General, judging from the number of bodies left on the battlefield, the casualties of the regiment are more than ten thousand. It can't be a show."

The young general's answer directly extinguished Qin Tianrui's last hope.

This is not how the self-torture tactic is performed.

Considering the overall quality of the regiment, it would be strange if they didn't collapse after suffering tens of thousands of casualties.

The battlefield is in chaos and it is unknown whether Bai Yifeng is still alive.

"Pass the order down, all troops pack up and march to Luzhou Prefecture!"

Realizing that the plan to capture Anqing had failed, Qin Tianrui decisively chose to leave.

Since the rebels ambushed the regiment's troops halfway, it meant that the enemy was prepared.

If they wanted to retreat smoothly to Nanchang Prefecture at this time, they would inevitably be blocked by the enemy.

His mission this time was to mobilize the enemy forces, not to engage in a head-on confrontation with the enemy, so naturally he had to avoid their sharp edge.

We are retreating anyway, and we can still get back by taking the detour from Luzhou Prefecture to Huguang. Who knows, if we are lucky, we might even be able to take over Luzhou Prefecture.

……

The enemy had already escaped before the army had assembled, leaving Fang Yuxuan so angry that he had no place to vent his rage.

Pursuit was impossible.

The Wu army had just fought a battle with the regiment army and paid a heavy price.

In addition to casualties on the battlefield, there were also non-combat casualties caused by forced marches at night.

If they gathered together now, the several thousand soldiers under his command would not be enough to fight the enemy.

"Immediately send someone to inform the general guarding Luzhou to be on high alert and prevent the enemy from stealing the city."

Fang Yuxuan suppressed his anger and gave the order.

Although Luzhou Prefecture has high strategic value, it is not the main battlefield and there are not many defenders there.

If the enemy steals the city, it will be a big trouble.

The Liaodong Army’s fierce attack on Xuzhou does not mean that they can only attack Xuzhou.

Once they turn their guns around and join forces, the situation in the Jianghuai region will be completely out of control.

With Luzhou Prefecture as a springboard, Anqing, Yangzhou and other places were exposed to the attack of the government troops.

Since ancient times, to guard the Yangtze River, one must guard the Huai River. If the Yangtze and Huai River regions were lost, Nanjing would become precarious.

Whether from a political or military perspective, the Wu State could not give up Luzhou Prefecture.

"My Lord, you don't have to worry too much.

The city of Luzhou is strong, and even if the enemy wants to take it, it will be difficult to do so in a short time.

Taking advantage of this opportunity, let's kill off the remaining White Butcher's troops first to make our record look better.

It won’t be too late to pursue the enemy once the battle here is over.”

Yuan Baifeng persuaded gently.

The enemy's sudden escape was completely beyond their expectations, making it impossible to carry out subsequent plans.

Fortunately, we crippled the regiment's army and saved a little face, otherwise we would not be able to go back and give an explanation.

"Ok!"

"Pass the order down and wipe out the remaining troops of the regiment with all your strength."

Fang Yuxuan regained his rationality and gave orders again.

If you can’t catch the big fish, you have to eat more small fish.

It is impossible to judge the difference between the regiment army and the regular army of the Yu Dynasty by looking at the heads.

When filling out the battle report, just a slight modification of the data can result in a big victory.

However, this requires killing more regiment soldiers to make the battle report more realistic.

If we can't gather enough heads, we can only kill innocent people to make up the number.

The latter is a high-risk job.

The Wu State only has such a small territory. If it doesn't manage it well, what can it use to fight against the government army?

……

Nanchang City.

As the battle report had not been received for a long time, the atmosphere in the command center became increasingly solemn.

It turned out that those officials who opposed sending troops also became active at this time.

They used the art of language to the extreme, and all kinds of yin and yang words gave Li Mu a lot of knowledge.

"Admiral Li, have you received any news about the First Town in Jiangxi?"

Marquis Wuyang asked with concern.

It is a big deal when a town of soldiers loses contact.

As the governor-general in charge of military affairs of four provinces, he only had eight regiments of soldiers under his command.

As the commander-in-chief of the army, he felt the pressure when faced with the various indecisiveness of his subordinate civil servants.

“We have not received any news from the First Town in Jiangxi, but we have received news from the regiment.

According to the captured deserters, on their way to Anqing to join the forces, they encountered a night attack by the rebels and the regiment was directly dispersed.

The rebels are now trying their best to wipe out the remnants of the regiment. If the news is true, the regiment must have suffered heavy losses this time."

Li Mu replied calmly.

Live to see people, die to see corpses.

He had a rough idea of ​​the kind of people he brought with him.

Qin Tianrui's abilities are still qualified, so it is no problem for him to be a general.

Even if they suffered losses on the battlefield, the entire army would not be wiped out so quickly.

Sometimes no news is the best news.

If there had been a complete victory, the rebels would have publicized it long ago, and it would have been inconvenient to help the enemy keep it secret.

"Should we send reinforcements to help us? If we run into the main force of the rebels, we can take care of them."

Marquis Wuyang asked tentatively.

He read an unusual message from Li Mu's calm expression.

His intuition told him that Li Mu was planning something again, otherwise he would not be so calm.

As a boss, he also had to save face and was too embarrassed to ask directly.

“Governor, we don’t even know where the First Town is right now. Even if we send reinforcements, we don’t know where to find them.

It’s better to wait a little longer. Maybe there will be news after some days.

In my opinion, the First Town should either continue to move down the river to look for an opportunity to fight, or head directly north to Luzhou."

Li Mu explained immediately.

Bearing the pressure of reviving his family, Qin Tianrui has the greatest ambition compared to most of the generals under his command.

If other generals encounter unexpected situations and are unable to complete their mission, they will most likely turn around and return.

If it were Qin Tianrui, his first reaction would be to turn the tide and take the opportunity to make great contributions.

The regiment's army was defeated and could not take Anqing Prefecture, so they tried to seize other strategic locations.

Regardless of whether he can succeed or not, he will not be satisfied without trying hard.

In order to take back the family business, Qin Tianrui is willing to take risks, so Li Mu naturally has to create opportunities for him.

No one can predict what war will be like.

In addition to the battle of wits and courage between the two sides, it also depends on their respective luck.

(End of this chapter)