On the occasion of rebirth Zhou Sui

Chapter 401 Attacking the Dangerous Pass

As Yang Subao endured the humiliation and refused to leave, and Yang Guang planned to open a second battlefield, the situation took a turn for the worse for Cui Che.

He was unwilling to retreat immediately, nor was he willing to sit still and wait for death. After further discussions with Li Jing, Cui Che summoned the generals. He pointed to the map and asked everyone:

"Who can defend Gaobi Ridge for me?"

Gaobi Ridge was a dangerous location that was previously guarded by Xiao Mohe, a 70-year-old veteran under Yang Liang, but was broken through by Yang Su's leadership. It is located at the must-pass point from Linfen Basin to Taiyuan Basin.

At this time, Cui Che asked the general who could hold Gaobi Ridge, and his intention was very clear, which was to send the general to lead his army south, attack Gaobi Ridge, and block the supply channel for Yang Su's army.

There are three difficulties in this matter. The first is naturally that it must pass through Xihe County and other places quietly.

The second is how to capture Gaobi Ridge.

The third point is how to defend Gaobi Ridge under the fierce attack of the Sui army.

Although Li Jing and Cui Che formulated this risky battle plan together, he was not the right person.

To hold on to Gaobiling, one must be a brave general who has deep prestige in the army and can take the lead.

Li Jing was a newcomer and had not yet established his prestige among the Yan army, so he could not inspire the soldiers to fight to the death with him.

When Cui Che set his sights on Mai Tiezhang, everyone knew that Mai Tiezhang was the best choice in King Yan's heart.

Although Qin Qiong abandoned his official position and came to join the army, he fought with his generals one after another and gained the title of the most brave general. However, among the generals who followed Cui Che to aid Jinyang this time, the one with the highest prestige in the army was Ziping Ding.

Since the Five Religions Rebellion, Mai Tiezhang has been following Cui Che in all his expeditions.

Everyone's eyes also looked at Mai Tiezhang. Mai Tiezhang did not flinch. He strode forward and answered loudly:

"Your Majesty, the general is willing to go!"

Going south to Gaobi Ridge is certainly dangerous, but compared to King Yan's kindness to him over the years, Mai Tiezhang will never frown even if he goes through fire and water.

Cui Che looked solemn, without showing any trace of joy. He nodded solemnly and said:

"The ownership of Hedong depends on General Mai."

That day, Mai Tiezhang selected 3,000 warriors from among the 10,000 silver-saddled Khitans under his command, and took only 15 days' rations with him to leave the camp at night, bypassing the Sui army's camp, and headed towards

Go to Gaobi Ridge.

At this time, Yang Su was sitting firmly on the Diaoyutai in the camp, completely unaware that the crisis was quietly approaching.

Jinyang is only more than 330 miles away from Gaobiling. If it were different as usual, the cavalry could attack in one day and one night.

However, in order to conceal their whereabouts, Mai Tiezhang had to travel day and night. Fortunately, there was no shortage of mountains and forests along the way, allowing the army to hide during the day.

After three days of rapid marching at night, Mai Tiezhang bypassed Xihe County where Yang Yichen was stationed, as well as the dozens of miles long narrow passage, Queshu Valley, and arrived at the foot of Gaobi Ridge.

Li Jing, who was accompanying the army, said:

"Yang Su divided his troops along the way to besiege the city, and he had to confront the king in Jinyang, so he would not leave many soldiers to guard Gaobi Ridge.

"We also asked General Mai to divide Li's troops with a thousand men, and Li led his troops across Huoshan (today's Taiyue Mountain, Shanxi) and around to the south of Gaobi Ridge.

"Tomorrow Magong will make a big show of force in the north to attract the attention of the enemies on the ridge. Li will take advantage of the enemy's unpreparedness and lead an attack from the south. The enemy will not have time to react. Under attack from both sides, Gaobi Ridge will be captured!"

This is not the first time that Mai Tiezhang and Li Jing have partnered.

Back then, Goguryeo and the Khitans sent troops to plunder western Liaoning. Cui Che followed the strategy of besieging Wei and rescuing Zhao and sent troops to plunder the Khitan tribes.

During the retreat, Li Jing was left behind to assist Mai Tiezhang in ambushing the Khitan pursuers who were returning for reinforcements.

Mai Tiezhang did not hesitate to respond to Li Jing's request. He agreed directly and detached a thousand Khitan cavalry from his command to follow Li Jing over Huoshan Mountain and march along the steep cliff. At the narrowest point, only one person could pass.

It's okay to sneak across this small road, but it's very difficult to use it for transporting grain and grass, and grain trucks can't pass it at all.

On the fifteenth day of the first lunar month of the first year of Daye (AD 605), the Lantern Festival was originally a festival worthy of celebration. However, a thousand Sui troops who stayed at Gaobi Ridge suddenly discovered that a group of Yan army cavalry appeared in the north of the mountain.

'Could it be that the marshal was defeated?'

Questions appeared in the mind of Qian Jie, the Sui army guard.

Yang Su has never been defeated in the past, but considering that his opponent in this battle is Cui Che, whose reputation is even greater than his, it seems that failure is not impossible.

But Qian Jie immediately put this ridiculous idea behind him. Even if it was a big defeat, how could he not escape without breaking his troops? This was clearly a sneak attack on Gaobiling by the Yan army.

The Yan army's cavalry in the north of Ling Dynasty had dismounted and acted as infantry to attack the mountain.

Qian Jie immediately mobilized the garrison on the ridge to defend against the invading enemy from the north. He had a thousand garrison stationed under his command. Not to mention that there were only 2,000 Yan troops under the ridge at this time, even 20,000. He was confident that relying on the dangerous position of Gaobi Ridge

The terrain holds.

However, just as the defenders' attention on the ridge was attracted by the Mai Iron Staff and they were fighting fiercely with Yan's soldiers who were attacking from the north, a deafening shout of death suddenly sounded from the south, which made Qian Jie turn pale.

Just as he was about to command the army to turn back and resist, Li Jing had already led a thousand soldiers to attack Gaobiling, and Mai Tiezhang also took advantage of the situation to increase his offensive.

As Li Jing expected, the Sui army was caught off guard. Under the double attack between Li Jing and Mai Tiezhang, the Sui army was defeated. More than 300 people were killed. The guard Qian Jie was chased and killed by Mai Tiezhang, and all the rest were captured. Yan

The army captured Gaobiling in one fell swoop.

Mai Tiezhang quickly separated some of his men and horses and brought all the horses that had been left behind to the mountain.

When attacking high ground from the bottom up, cavalry is inferior to infantry. The cavalry, which has less impact, is a cumbersome living target.

However, charging from top to bottom can increase the impact of the cavalry in some places with gentle slopes.

Besides, when things are really at the end of their rope, they can still kill horses to satisfy their hunger.

While Mai Tiezhang sent people to urgently repair the fortifications, he also personally asked Li Jing how to deal with these Sui army prisoners.

In a few days, Yang Su received news that he would go south to attack Gaobi Ridge. It was impossible for Mai Tiezhang to dedicate manpower to guard these prisoners, and he had to prevent them from causing trouble.

Li Jing muttered:

"There are only 700 surrendered soldiers on the left and right. If we kill them, it may damage the king's reputation. It is better to drive them all to the south and let them go."

Mai Tiezhang immediately acted on Li Jing's suggestion and released all the 700 captured Sui troops.

As for whether some of them will go around Huoshan and report to Yang Su, Mai Tiezhang can't control it.

Mai Tiezhang and Li Jing were preparing for a fierce battle at Gaobiling. They not only repaired the northern fortifications, but also did not relax the defense on the south in order to prevent the Sui army from launching a simultaneous attack from the south.

In fact, after the Sui army surrendered and was released, they all fled to Guanzhong. It was the convoy transporting grain that found Gaobiling had been captured by the Yan army and was impassable, so they sent people to Xihe County via a small road to report the news.

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(End of chapter)