Late Han Zhao Tang

Chapter 369: Zhang He's Plan to Achieve Success

As soon as Zhang Yu's military order was issued, Generals Li Song and Hao Zhao set out on the same day, and according to Zhang Yu's military order, they met in Zhan County on March 5.

In Zhan County, Li Song and Hao Zhao met in the military camp to discuss how to rescue the city.

"According to the spies, a few days ago a deserter from the Ji army came to surrender. He was originally a member of Zhang He's army, but because of a failure in transporting grain, he was insulted and punished by his superiors. He was afraid of being punished by military law, so he entered Bing from Qingshankou and was taken in by our palace and city."

Inside the big tent, Li Lang, the general of Queyu City, reported to Li Song, Hao Zhao and other officers, saying: "According to what the deserters said, Yan Liang's army stored food in Yuanshi, and the defending general Zhang He went to Gaoyi to collect food, so Yuanshi is now empty."

"Yuanshi?"

Li Song and Hao Zhao looked at each other, and both saw a good opportunity to use military force from the intelligence.

"Bring the map of Changshan County!" Li Song said.

The soldiers rummaged through the boxes and drawers, took out the map of Changshan County from the bamboo tube, and posted it on the list.

"What's the terrain like around Yuanshi?" Li Song asked after pondering for a moment.

Li Lang pointed at the map and said, "Yuanshi is located to the north of Qingshankou. The distance between the two is less than 100 miles, and it is also more than 100 miles away from Puwu. It is adjacent to the mountain valley. It can be reached in less than two days by both infantry and cavalry."

Hao Zhao pointed at Yuanshi on the map and said, "Puwu is close to Jingxing, with a city built on the mountain. It is connected to Zhending in the east and Yuanshi in the south. According to the deserter, the Ji army's supplies are provided by Yuanshi. If we can attack Yuanshi by surprise, we will be able to cut off Yan Liang's food supply."

"It's not just that!"

Li Song stared at Zhending on the map and said with a smile, "Yuanshi is closer to Zhending. If we can burn the military supplies and advance to Zhending, the siege of Puwu will be lifted. The Ji army will know that their retreat is cut off and they will be worried about our army's support inside and outside. They will be afraid and flee. We will take advantage of the situation and attack them, which will greatly defeat the enemy army."

As he spoke, Li Song looked at Hao Zhao and asked, "Does Bo Dao have any opinion?"

Hao Zhao hesitated for a moment and said, "Your Excellency will leave Fukou soon. If our army leaves Jingxing, we will be able to relieve the siege of Puwu. However, it would be risky to attack Yuanshi from Qingshan Valley Road. So it is better to go to Shangai first, wait for the remaining troops of Heishan and Zilong to join us, and then march east with the whole army."

Li Song said sternly, "Wealth and honor are sought in danger. The attack on Jizhou today is not only related to your Majesty's gain or loss of Hebei, but also to our future positions. If we can defeat Yan Liang this time, it will greatly boost the morale of our army and also make military achievements, which will please you."

"Besides, speed is of the essence in war. Anyi is nearly a thousand miles away. If we wait for Zilong's elite cavalry, it will take five or six days at the slowest, or three or four days at the fastest. Now we don't know the situation of the battle in Puwu, how can we wait for Zilong here and miss the opportunity?"

Although Li Song was Zhang Yu's elder brother-in-law and was appointed General Du Liao, the same rank as the Four Expedition Generals, he still had something in his heart that he longed for, such as whether he could help his nephew to make further progress. After all, although Wang Ji was Zhang Yu's legal wife and Wang had a lot of power under Zhang Yu's command, he was better than Wang in commanding troops. If he could make military achievements and bring glory to Li Suyi, his nephew would have a chance in the future.

Hearing this, Hao Zhao was moved. Compared with many generals, he followed Zhang Yu very early, but because he had been guarding Shangdang and guarding the gate of Shanxi for many years, he had rarely made military achievements. If he could defeat Yan Liang this time, it would be a great achievement. After all, advancing from Jingxing Road might help to break the siege of Puwu, but it was not outstanding. Only if he had achieved victory could he be rewarded according to military regulations.

After a little consideration, Hao Zhao said, "You are the commander-in-chief appointed by the Lord, so I will follow the general's opinion."

"good!"

Li Song was overjoyed, and he looked at Li Lang and said, "You have made great contributions by reporting the military situation. I will burn Yuan's food supplies and defeat Yan Liang's troops, and then we will work together to reward you for your achievements."

"Thank you, Li Duliao!"

Li Lang said happily: "If Du Liao wants to send troops from Qingshankou, they may need to pay attention to the terrain of the valley. The valley is deep and secluded, and the hills are complicated. It is inconvenient for soldiers and horses to pass through. I can arrange someone who is familiar with geography to be the army guide."

"it is good!"

Li Song and Hao Zhao decided to burn the food to break the siege, so they led their troops from Zhan County and planned to go through Que and Qingshan Pass. Zhao Yun set out from Hedong, which was eight or nine hundred miles longer. Even if he traveled day and night, his cavalry was still three days late.

When Zhao Yun arrived at Zhan County, Li Song had been away for more than two days. After learning that Li Song and Hao Zhao had left Qingshankou to relieve the siege of Puwu, Zhao Yun sent a detailed report to Zhang Yu, and he continued to lead his cavalry in pursuit. When Zhao Yun arrived at Queyu, he had shortened the distance between him and Li Song to two days' walking distance.

On March 9, Zhang Yu led a large army from Anyi with nearly 60,000 soldiers and horses, and the momentum was overwhelming. When Li Song and Hao Zhao led their troops to Qingshankou, Zhao Yun was only a day's walk away from the two generals.

On March 10, Li Song and Hao Zhao led their troops out of Qingshankou and marched 40 miles. When they were less than 40 miles away from Yuanshi, they captured a scout of the Ji army and learned that food and grass were in Yuanshi. The two continued to move forward. At the same time, seeing that Li Song and Hao Zhao had fallen into the trap, Zhang He was overjoyed and led his troops to meet them without hesitation. The two armies met at Liugong Bridge.

Compared to Zhang He who had planned ahead, Li Song, Hao Zhao and their troops were caught off guard and could only form their battle line in a hurry.

Under the banner, Li Song and Hao Zhao discussed the military strategy.

"The enemy's main force is here. I'm afraid our plan to leave Qingshan has been discovered by the enemy."

Li Song looked serious and said, "At present, our army has traveled hundreds of miles, intending to fight for victory. But now the enemy is well prepared and is using its escaped troops to wait for our exhausted army. At present, I am afraid that we will lose more than we win. If we use the army, we need to send the elite soldiers to lead the way, and the old and weak to follow, to see if we can defeat the enemy."

Hao Zhao looked at the Jizhou army and said worriedly, "The Jizhou army has excellent armor and soldiers, and the soldiers are in formation. It may be difficult to win if we fight against them."

"According to Bodao's opinion, should we lead the troops to withdraw to Qingshankou?" Li Song asked.

"It's already difficult to retreat!"

Hao Zhao pointed at the army formation and said, "If our army flees without fighting, the enemy will chase us and we will be defeated. However, if we fight the enemy and lose, it will be difficult to stop the momentum and we will be defeated. Our army depends on the gains and losses of Shandong. If the losses are too great, Shandong will not be of any use to you. Therefore, in my opinion, you need to act cautiously and try your best to preserve the army!"

Li Song hesitated for a moment and said, "We don't know the depth of Zhang He's troops at the moment, and we may have ambushes around us, so we can't use our troops easily. However, if we withdraw our troops, we may need to be careful of the enemy's pursuit."

After a pause, Li Song said, "Our army has more cavalry than the Ji army. We might as well use the cavalry to challenge them and see if the enemy formation is shaken. If the enemy formation is stable, you and I need to withdraw and order the cavalry to cover the rear."

Li Song and Hao Zhao were in an awkward situation. They encountered Zhang He's troops hastily. Their soldiers were exhausted from traveling and were not prepared for a battle. They did not know the situation of the Jizhou army, and did not know whether Zhang He had a backup plan. However, based on Zhang He's behavior, the two could confirm that Zhang He had noticed their movements, so he led his troops to stop them.

Facing Zhang He's blockade, the two wanted to fight but couldn't, and wanted to retreat but couldn't, so they had no choice but to follow Hao Zhao's suggestion and try to save their troops. Therefore, Li Song thought again and again and decided to use cavalry to test Zhang He's troops. If they could shake the enemy's formation, they might have a chance to win the battle; if they couldn't shake the enemy, they could only withdraw their troops to avoid too much loss.

"In that case, let Zhao lead the cavalry to lead the battle."

"I will lead the infantry in formation so that I can give orders accordingly."

"promise!"

Seeing that Li Song had made all the arrangements, Hao Zhaoze had no objection and left with a bow.

Soon, under the call of Hao Zhao, a thousand cavalrymen were selected and divided into two groups to attack the Ji army from the left and right to see if they could cause chaos.

Seeing the cavalrymen rushing and shooting from the left and right, the prepared Ji army formed a spear formation and used archers. Facing the cavalry's powerful charge, the soldiers in the formation remained awed and showed no sign of retreating. On the contrary, due to their thorough preparation, the archers fired arrows densely, making the Bingzhou cavalrymen dare not approach.

"Whoosh!"

Arrows rained down like rain. Hao Zhao rode in front, but he could not get within a few dozen steps of the battle formation. He could only lead his cavalry to shoot from a distance. However, the arrows were weak and could not penetrate shields and armor. The casualties on the infantry of the Jizhou Army were pitiful.

"kill!"

Seeing that the Bingzhou cavalry was unable to defeat the infantry formation, Zhang He waved his military flag in the formation, signaling the cavalry on both wings to press forward and drive away the Bingzhou cavalry.

At this time, the Jizhou cavalry, who had been waiting for a long time, rushed over. Hao Zhao was afraid of being surrounded by Jizhou's infantry and cavalry, so he did not dare to fight with them. Instead, he used cavalry archery to engage with them and slowly retreated into the distance.

"withdraw!"

Seeing that the cavalry could not provide any assistance, Li Song knew that it was difficult to win the battle, and he could only order the troops to retreat in time.

It is easy to advance, but difficult to withdraw!
Zhang He boldly led his troops in pursuit because of his preparations, while Li Song could only withdraw his troops to cover the rear to avoid being detained by Zhang He.

(End of this chapter)