Tang Dynasty Mingyue Song Dynasty Pass

Chapter 799 Outside Shaozhou City

Shaozhou, located at the throat where the Qinshui River and the Xishui River meet, is not only the solid north gate of the Xingwang Palace, but also a strategic location. Its importance is self-evident.

Liu Xiong was well aware of the importance of Shaozhou to the Southern Han's defense line, so he sent his fierce general, Commander-in-Chief Li Chengwo, to lead an army of 100,000 to defend the city to the death.

As soon as this news came out, the entire Southern Han was shocked, and everyone's attention was focused on the upcoming decisive battle.

Upon hearing the news, Shaozhou Governor Dou Feng personally led the city garrison out of the city to welcome Li Chengwo. He was filled with gratitude for Li Chengwo's leading a large army to help, and almost shed tears.

"General Li, please lead your troops into the city. We are willing to fight alongside you and defend Shaozhou together!" Dou Feng spoke sincerely and full of expectations.

However, Li Chengwu did not show the slightest enthusiasm as Dou Feng wished. He was indifferent, with an arrogant look between his eyebrows. "Who said I was going to enter the city?"

Li Chengwo's voice was cold but firm. Now, he commanded a hundred thousand soldiers and held the high position of General Zhenbei. The best troops of Southern Han were all under his command. With his overwhelming power, it was natural that he could not conceal the cold and arrogant aura from the inside out.

Dou Feng was surprised when he heard this, and asked doubtfully: "If General Li does not enter the city, how should the defense of Shaozhou City be arranged?"

Li Chengwu smiled contemptuously, with a sly look in his eyes. "Hmph, the art of war says that attacking when the enemy is unprepared is the best defense! This time, I will personally lead the most elite war elephant army of our Han country, which the Wu army has never seen. Once we confront them head-on, we will surely defeat the Wu army with a thunderous force. At that time, my 100,000-strong army will attack from the rear and flanks at the same time, like a tidal wave, and the Wu army will undoubtedly be defeated. When that time comes, the enemy army will be defeated, and I can lead my troops to pursue and kill Su Chen, Pan Mei and other enemy chiefs, so as to boost the prestige of our army and protect the peace of our Han country!"

After hearing this, Dou Feng felt that this plan seemed too risky, but it was difficult to find a flaw for the time being. Seeing Li Chengwo's confidence, he couldn't help but waver a little, confused in his heart, not knowing what to say next.

Seeing that Governor Dou Feng was speechless after hearing what he said, Li Chengwo couldn't help but feel proud, as if the dawn of victory was already flashing before his eyes.

"Governor Dou, you take your men back to the city first and prepare wine, cattle and sheep for the welcoming banquet. Our army will set up camp at the foot of the Lotus Peak outside the city of Shaozhou, and wait in battle array for the arrival of the Wu army. When the decisive battle comes, our army will fight the Wu army outside the city, and you need to lead the Shaozhou headquarters to provide support inside the city and ensure logistical supplies. If this move succeeds, it will be a great achievement." Li Chengwu's words were full of unquestionable majesty.

Dou Feng knew that his official title and power were not as good as Li Chengwo's, not to mention that the other party had a hundred thousand troops and the power of life and death granted by the emperor. Although he had doubts in his heart, he did not dare to disobey the order and could only nod and agree.

"I obey your command!" Dou Feng responded respectfully.

Afterwards, Dou Feng led his men back to Shaozhou City.

Along the way, he was uneasy, always feeling that something was wrong. Would the Wu army, which had been advancing southward with unstoppable force, really be frightened by the elephant formation and suffer a great defeat here? He was filled with doubts and uneasiness, but he could not express it.

.........

Su Chen and Pan Mei led a large army with great momentum, approaching the territory of Shaozhou step by step.

During the march, the scouts responsible for gathering intelligence hurried over and promptly conveyed to the two generals the news that Li Chengwo had led an army of 100,000 and the terrifying elephant formation to the outside of Shaozhou City and stationed there.

Su Chen took the information, read it carefully, and gently handed it to Pan Mei beside him, with a faint smile on his face, as if everything was under control.

He turned to look at Pan Mei and asked calmly, "The Southern Han court's trump card, the elephant formation, has finally been put to use."

The name of Southern Han was actually given by later historians in order to distinguish it from the Han Dynasty established by Liu Bang. Therefore, the Han Kingdom in Lingnan was called Southern Han, and the Han Kingdom in Jinyang was called Northern Han.

But Su Chen has been referring to the Lingnan Han Kingdom a lot lately, and the generals are all familiar with it, so they all started calling it that. Pan Mei nodded and said, "Please rest assured, General Su. When I went south, I sent people to collect information about Lingnan. I know that the Southern Han court does have an elephant army that uses elephants to charge into battle. For this reason, we brought the Shenbi crossbow and the heavy three-bow crossbow cannon, which are specifically designed to deal with the elephant formation."

Su Chen had discussed this issue with Pan Mei before, so he was not surprised. He remained calm and ordered the three armies to continue moving forward.

He was familiar with history and knew that in history, the commander sent by the Northern Song Dynasty to destroy the Southern Han was Pan Mei, and that Pan Mei used a heavy three-bow crossbow to defeat the Southern Han's elephant formation. This time, it was a repetition of history.

However, Su Chen was still watching cautiously to avoid any uncertainties that might affect the outcome of this historical event. He did not interfere too much because he did not want to disrupt the course of this history.

Su Chen continued to appoint Pan Mei as the commander of this operation to deal with Li Chengwo of Southern Han. This not only gave Pan Mei the opportunity to make great contributions, but also enabled him to control the situation more securely. After all, the historical result was that Pan Mei defeated Li Chengwo.

An excellent leader does not need to do everything by himself, but needs to know how to delegate power, trust and rely on his own generals and officials. Su Chen is well aware of this. He is committed to winning over Pan Mei and giving him full respect and reverence, which is not only a recognition of Pan Mei's ability, but also an important part of consolidating his leadership position.

Two days later, the 100,000 Wu troops finally arrived ten miles outside Shaozhou City. They did not encounter any Southern Han troops along the way. It can be seen that the people of Southern Han did not hold out much hope of ambushing the Wu army, nor did they want to take any extra risks.

They quickly set up camp, dug trenches, set up arrow towers, and built a solid defense system. The army rested here temporarily, recuperating and waiting for the decisive battle with the Southern Han army.

.........

In the Southern Han camp, Li Chengwo had already received news of the arrival of the Wu army.

"Well, this battle is finally about to begin. It's time for me, Li Chengwu, to go down in history. Defeat the Wu army and kill Su Chen. I, Li Chengwu, will be remembered in the history of famous Chinese generals!"

Li Chengwu had a sneer on his face, full of confidence. He was very confident in the elephant formation because he had led the elephant formation to defeat the Annan army a few years ago, and he had never failed in the Southern Han area.

This kind of armored elephant is much more powerful than the northern war horses. Because elephants are tall, thousands of armored elephants charge together, and the momentum is like a landslide or tsunami. Ordinary war horses cannot resist it at all and will be frightened and flee.

"The general is mighty!"

"The Han army will win!"

"Let Wu Jun never return!"

The deputy governors and du yuhou around him also laughed out loud.

Li Chengwu nodded, and then said: "Send someone to deliver a declaration of war to the Wu army camp. It is scheduled to be a duel at the foot of Lianhua Peak in three days. Whoever loses will be defeated!"

"Yes!" Youdu Yuhou accepted the order.

Li Chengwu smiled and looked outside the tent, his eyes revealing murderous intent and arrogance.