I Xiaoxiong

Chapter 182 The Arc on the Map
The Huaihe Plain has always been the main battlefield of the war between the north and the south. The seasons in this area are quite obvious, with both open fields and rivers and waterways.

In autumn and winter, the land is firm and clean, and the open fields are suitable for cavalry to drive, which is conducive to the north to take advantage of cavalry field battles.

In spring and summer, the rivers are flooded, and boats and boats are criss-crossed in the rivers and lakes. Standing in the south, they can use their strengths in water warfare and city defense warfare.

Therefore, no matter in terms of timing or location, both sides have mixed advantages and disadvantages, so they are prone to fall into a kind of tug-of-war.

But now in February, it is between spring and winter, and the geographical advantage is not an advantage to either side.

Fortunately, when Fu Jinchuan set off from Yangzhou, the weather was suddenly cold and the wind was like a knife, making it much easier to walk.

And Fu Jinchuan is also rejoicing that if the rebels launch a surprise attack at a later date, the road to civilization will become muddy in March.

At that time, the speed advantage of cavalry marching will be wiped out because of the road.

Before Fu Jinchuan set off from Yangzhou, he had already planned the marching route, and asked the messengers to go first to prepare the military rations and fodder for the states and counties along the way.

This is the convenience of marching as a royal army, and the cavalry can move forward without any baggage.

Su Duan led [-] cavalry and headed north from Hezhou. Instead of going to Luzhou, he joined Chuzhou with [-] soldiers from Fu Jinchuan and the Longwu army with [-] cavalry.

When Su Duan entered Luzhou Governor's Mansion and saw Fu Jinchuan, it was already getting late.

"I pay my respects to the governor, and all members of the cavalry from the four capitals of Long Jie, Hu Yi, Shen Wu, and Shence should join me."

"Meet the Commander-in-Chief."

The four cavalry behind him, Du Yuhou, also clasped their fists in unison.

At this time, Fu Jinchuan was looking at the huge map hanging in front of him, as well as the latest military information from the front line, including the general deployment of the enemy's troops.

After seeing a few people coming, he nodded and said: "You don't need to be too polite, have you eaten?"

"Never."

"Then let's have a bite together. Come and prepare some meals."

Fu Jinchuan looked at the map, ordered casually, and then asked about the situation in the army.

Su Duan and the others answered Fu Jinchuan's inquiries one by one.

After the meal, several Duke Yuhou wanted to go back to the various ministries for inspection and arrangement, leaving only Su Duan, Longwu army envoy Wang Linhuai, and Fu Jinchuan's only staff member Zhang Gao on this trip.

Zhang Gao is good at military strategy and is proficient in formations. He is very handy for marching formations and setting up camps. With him, he can also handle many chores for Fu Jinchuan during the march and check for gaps.

"Now along the Feishui River, the rebels must be in control. It is very difficult for our cavalry to forcibly cross the Feishui River. As long as the enemy army guards the ferry along the river, our cavalry will not have the advantage of a boat, and it will be difficult for us to cross the river for a surprise attack."

Wang Linhuai pointed to the map and said what everyone was struggling with the most.

Su Duan said: "Then we can only take a detour. How about taking a detour in Luzhou, crossing the river from Luzhou and going north to make a surprise attack?"

Wang Linhuai said: "The rebel army has captured Luzhou, and this route must be under their control. In my opinion, it is better to detour to Bagong Mountain and let the Shouzhou defenders build a pontoon bridge and enter the city from the north gate of Shouzhou."

Su Duan retorted: "But our army is all cavalry. Entering the city is not conducive to the deployment of the army. We have to face the rebel camp head-on."

Fu Jinchuan heard the dispute between the two, and looked at the map in silence. At this time, Zhang Gao, the aide of the governor's mansion, said: "Whether you cross the river from Luzhou or Shouzhou, you must be under the nose of the rebels. It is difficult to make a surprise attack. It is better to rush all the way to Haozhou, cross the Huaihe River, follow the Huaihe River to Zhengyang, and let the defenders of Zhengyang build a pontoon bridge in advance, so that we can avoid the main defense of the enemy along the Feishui River, and Shouzhou From the west to Zhengyang, there are plains and wilderness, which are good for our cavalry to gallop."

After Fu Jinchuan heard this suggestion, he thought about it carefully.And Wang Linhuai and Su Duan were also staring at the map to carefully plan the trajectory of this marching route.

"But in this way, the distance will be longer, and it will take at least two days to arrive in Shouzhou late. I don't know if the Shouzhou defenders can persist."

Su Duan had no objection to the route, but he had some problems with the time.

At this time, a military newspaper sent urgently from Yangzhou's family solved the time problem.

"Hahaha, God help me too. The Jingnan Army did not go to Jingchu with Cheng Hou, but was left in Huangzhou. When Chao County was in an emergency, Lei Bo led the Jingnan Army not to Luzhou, but went directly to Shouzhou City We went, and now there are 1 people in Shouzhou, and 5000 people in Zhengyang. With Lei Bo and the Jingnan Army here, let alone the [-]th, even the [-]th, the rebels will not be able to take Shouzhou. This is done!"

Fu Jinchuan arranged the military newspapers on the table, feeling excited.He had just received the news that Lei Bo led the army to Shouzhou. The main reason was that the messengers from Shouzhou did not meet the army, so they could only report to Yangzhou.

Yangzhou sent someone to inform Fu Jinchuan immediately after receiving the news.

Several people were also relieved half of their hearts when they heard it.After all, although Shouzhou had a high city and thick walls, there were only [-] defenders.It's hard to say whether I can keep it for ten days.But now that the number of troops has increased to [-], and they can become horns with Zhengyang in the west, it is not so difficult for the rebels to seize the city in ten days.

In other words, if there are no problems in the city, it is impossible to do it at all.

You must know that before the Southern Han Dynasty was unified at the beginning of the dynasty, Shouzhou Jiancheng, which was defended by the Southern Han defenders, was besieged for two and a half years. The reinforcements of the Southern Han Dynasty finally opened the door and asked to surrender because the defenders in the city ran out of food and the reinforcements could not continue.

As for Shouzhou, all the states on the Huaihe River looked forward to the wind and surrendered.From this point, we can also see the importance of Shouzhou in the confrontation between the North and the South.

"Captain, in addition, we need to send a small cavalry army to the east bank of Feishui, and walk along the river with great fanfare, pretending to look for a place to cross the river, so that the enemy will think that we will still cross Feishui. Therefore, we can relax our vigilance."

Zhang Gao continued to suggest.

Fu Jinchuan nodded after hearing this: "Okay, that's very thorough."

After the agreement, Fu Jinchuan immediately photographed the messengers in Haozhou and Yingzhou overnight.

For Haozhou under the rule, they were ordered to build a pontoon bridge leading to the north bank of the Huaihe River, and for Yingzhou, they were "asked for cooperation."

Yingzhou is already under the rule of Gyeonggi Province, and has no affiliation with Yangzhou Dudufu.However, when the army went out to march through the territory of Yingzhou, they had to ask the other side for assistance.

On weekdays, if Fu Jinchuan wanted to lead his army to Yingzhou, let alone assisting, he would have to refuse to enter Yingzhou by way of entry.

But in this situation, it is completely possible to act in a hurry, which is also allowed by the laws of the Jin Dynasty.

After all, it is wartime, and there are too many rules and regulations, how can we fight a war?
On the other side of Shouzhou City, after three days of onslaught, the rebel army suffered heavy casualties, and the offensive finally slowed down a bit.

Under the moat and walls, there are rebel corpses everywhere.

"General, I have also fought many battles and made many contributions. I have never escaped. The Northern Army gathered on it and prepared it long ago. Don't say that I can't attack, even if I go up, I will be killed. , as soon as our team climbed the ladder, kerosene was poured on it, and once the rocket was shot, the fire on their bodies could not be extinguished."

"Yes, General, please spare your life. There must be a way to die. I really can't climb up."

Some rebel soldiers knelt on the ground and said extremely miserable.

But under the military law, these rhetoric still failed to find a way out for him.

For the generals of the rebel army, the more they are at this critical moment, the more they cannot tolerate deserters.

"cut."

With a wave of Zhao Chengjun's hand, dozens of rebel deserters were beheaded, and their heads were hung at the gate.

In the central tent of the rebel army, a group of generals surrounded King Wu Zhao Deyu, clasping their hands together but bowing their heads.

"My lord, under the fortified city, if there is no heavy reward, there is no way to make the soldiers work hard." "Yes, my lord, there is no way to do it. I know that my lord cares about the common people in the world, but this difficult time must be overcome now." .”

In the end, Zhao Deyu sighed helplessly, then didn't speak, just nodded.

In order to mobilize the fighting spirit of the rebel army to attack the city, a new military order was announced to the whole army after all the generals consulted Zhao Deyu.

When the city was broken, the first one to climb to the top of the city would be named a general and rewarded with [-] yuan.

After the city was broken, the sword was not sealed for three days.

(End of this chapter)