Tang Dynasty Bandits

Chapter 182 White Horse Saburo
Zhu Wen knew that even without his help, Shang Rang would definitely be able to defeat Gao Maoqing, the ambitious but incompetent governor of Jiangxi.

But now our army and Shang Rang's troops have lost contact. After Shang Rang's victory, he will need several days to clean up the battlefield, pursue the fleeing enemy, and re-establish contact with our side.

Gao Yan rushed over to intercept them, but most of his men were local barbarian recruits who lived in the mountains and could traverse them as easily as walking on flat ground. If Shang Rang led his army to attack from both sides, they would quickly flee into the mountains.

Gao Yan's Changwu Cavalry were also quick to retreat.

Previously in Lin'an County, Qian Liu led twenty elite soldiers in a surprise attack on Shang Rang's 5,000 troops from a mountain cliff, killing one battalion commander and more than 200 others. This incident was widely publicized by the government army, causing Shang Rang to lose face. This time, Shang Rang devised a plan to defeat the enemy, thus regaining his lost reputation.

Zhu Wen could guess that if Gao Yan retreated calmly, he would surely spread the word that Gao had defeated a large number of enemies and utterly crushed Zhu Wen, and that the so-called chief strategist Zhu Liangyu, who had defeated Xue Shuai and Yan Shuai, was nothing more than that.

Denigrating the enemy and praising oneself is a basic strategy for building momentum.

If Zhu Wen did not want Gao Yan to create this momentum, he had to defeat Gao Yan's troops, who were fortified at strategic passes and on the two mountains, within a few days.

“If it weren’t for you, Tian Si Niang, I wouldn’t be in this situation,” Zhu Wen said to Tian Jun beside him from the camp’s general’s tent.

"Why is it my fault?" Tian Jun pouted, unconvinced.

"The land of gentle pleasures is the graveyard of heroes." Zhu Wen sighed, "It's all because you, you four-legged snake, are too tempting. You cling to me every night, making me have no time to think of any strategies."

When Tian Jun heard Zhu Wen call her a four-legged snake, she immediately used the pair of dragon horns on her helmet to nudge it, but the force she used was not very strong.

But on second thought, Zhu Wen's words made sense. These words of showing affection didn't really mean to blame her.

Tian Jun was indeed a bit clingy. Ever since they made their relationship public to the army, she would sneak into Zhu Wen's tent every night, clinging to him and being affectionate, and even wanting him to hold her while she slept.

Zhu Wen was by nature somewhat lazy, and with a beautiful woman in his arms, he inevitably neglected his military duties. Therefore, he entrusted the strategy for this campaign to Shang Rang, who was also a strategist among the common soldiers.

Tian Jun blushed slightly: "Then what should we do?"

"I should get serious," Zhu Wen said leisurely, and began to draw on the table with charcoal. With just a few strokes, he sketched out the general situation of the battlefield.

This valley runs east-west, with a higher elevation in the west and a lower elevation in the east. Gao Yanjun set up camp on the west side, and the front of the camp was blocked by several layers of huge stone and wooden fences, completely cutting off the valley road, making it easy to defend and difficult to attack.

On the north and south sides of the valley, a considerable number of barbarian tribes lay in ambush. They also built wooden field fortresses along the mountainside to prevent Zhu Wen from launching an uphill attack.

Faced with such a tight trap, if Zhu Wen hadn't been quick to react and break out of the encirclement after being ambushed, but instead had chosen to fight his way through the enemy's fortifications, he would likely have been worn down by Gao Yan's momentum, and then his defensive counterattack would have caused the entire army to collapse, resulting in losses far exceeding the fifty-odd men lost yesterday.

When describing the shape of the hillside, Zhu Wen frowned slightly.

Attacking the fortress on the hillside from below is just as dangerous as attacking Gao Yan's camp from the front; both could result in being attacked from multiple sides by the enemy.

It is also difficult to scout out the specific terrain of the hillside.

Clearly, Gao Yan's plan was that if Zhu Wen underestimated his opponent and stubbornly insisted on fighting to the death here, he would severely damage or even destroy Zhu Wen's forces in this battle.

If Zhu Wen had continued to adopt a cautious approach and waited for Shang Rang's troops to finish resting and arrive, Gao Yan would have been able to retreat calmly with the reputation of defeating Zhu Liangyu, the chief strategist of the rebel army, without suffering any losses.

Even the numerous fortified camps were built by those seemingly tireless barbarians, without expending any of Lei Shuai's army's strength.

These mountain tribes always fought fiercely near their hometowns.

Just as Zhu Wen was pondering a strategy to defeat the enemy, Ge Congzhou's bright and loud voice came from outside the tent: "Brother General, may Congzhou come in?"

"It doesn't matter."

Ge Congzhou did not come in immediately: "Congzhou brought a brother named 'White Horse Sanlang,' who said he would help the generals defeat Gao Yan's plan."

Zhu Wen was taken aback, and a slightly dark face suddenly appeared before his eyes. "Is that Wang Sanlang from the Left Army Camp?"

"Exactly."

This was a young man of only sixteen or seventeen, not much older than Ge Congzhou. He had joined Zhu Wen's Luoyandu in Quzhou, arriving on a white horse with his own exquisite full set of armor and saddle, along with five or six capable attendants.

It would seem strange that a dark-skinned, unattractive young man would be dressed in a silver saddle, a white horse, and frost-covered armor.

Zhu Wen clearly remembered that when this young man charged into battle, the knights spontaneously gathered behind him, shouting and following him into battle.

This young man, born with the air of a chivalrous knight-errant, "a silver saddle on a white horse, swift as a shooting star," and possessing charismatic leadership qualities, was someone Zhu Wen intended to speak with even without actively seeking an audience. However, due to his passionate romance with Tian Jun, he couldn't find the time.

"Quickly invite Brother Wang in," Zhu Wen said loudly. "Such a talent deserves to be welcomed with utmost respect."

Wang Sanlang and Ge Congzhou entered side by side, bowed with their hands clasped, and greeted General Zhu with a hearty smile and a touch of nobility: "Wang Shenzhi of Guang Prefecture greets General Zhu."

The robe behind him was pure silver with a flowing halo, clearly made of very fine satin.

Wang Shenzhi, the White Horse Third Brother, gazed at the map hastily drawn by Zhu Wen. He continued, "Greetings, General Tian. The two of you are both young and beautiful, your beauty complementing each other perfectly; truly a match made in heaven."

That was a very skillful way of putting it. Tian Jun was strong-willed, and if Wang Shenzhi had addressed her as "Madam" upon their first meeting, it would have been somewhat disrespectful. Therefore, he continued to call her General Tian, ​​and added a compliment that the two were a perfect match.

Although Tian Jun didn't pay much attention to the intricacies of interpersonal relationships, she still found Wang Shenzhi's words incredibly pleasant to hear, as if they were coated with honey.

"Since you are from Guang Prefecture, why did you join my army in Quzhou?" Zhu Wen asked.

"To be honest, I come from a merchant family. Although my family is located in Huaibei, my ancestral home is in Fujian. I have been traveling between the two places to do business since I was twelve years old, for four or five years now."

"On this business trip, I heard that those mountain barbarians who were previously relatively well-behaved have suddenly become rampant, robbing and killing merchants. Caravans of up to a hundred people often end up with not a single horse returning." At this point, Wang Shenzhi showed some apology: "I have just taken refuge under the command of General Yu. After finishing this business, I plan to return home by sea."

Judging from Wang Shenzhi's words, he did not want to serve Zhu Wen for a long time.

Zhu Wen discerned that this young man was probably unwilling to be subordinate to others and likely wanted to wait until the world became more chaotic before raising his own forces to become a regional warlord. He wasn't annoyed, and smiled, saying, "So you're too embarrassed to have my army help you with the escort, that's why you're rushing to offer your advice?"

"Indeed." Wang Shenzhi's gaze fell on the charcoal pencil in Zhu Wen's hand: "Could you lend me that pencil, General?"

Zhu Wen casually tossed the charcoal pencil to Wang Shenzhi.

Wang Shenzhi caught it and walked forward steadily, carefully drawing on the map.

He drew much slower than Zhu Wen, taking about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn before he put down his charcoal pencil and solemnly said, "Please take a look and see how well it is drawn."

The mountains and rivers, the forests and rocks, the winding paths and trails were all clearly depicted in Wang Shenzhi's painting.

Wang Shenzhi stood to one side with his hands clasped together, saying nothing more.

He could have drawn up a plan to defeat the enemy as well.

Knowing when to conceal one's talents is undoubtedly a sign of a very clever young man.

After seeing the map completed by Wang Shenzhi, how could Zhu Wen not have a strategy in mind?
Zhu Wen clapped his hands and said, "You have made a great contribution to defeating the enemy this time."

He was now completely confident and didn't take Gao Yan seriously at all.

"Afterwards, the main army will enter Fujian, and I will also do my part," Wang Shenzhi said solemnly, bowing with his hands clasped.

(End of this chapter)