Daqin arrests alchemists, what does it matter to me as a qi refiner?

Guo Ye looked at Yang Ling, "Marshal, do we really have no other solution?"

Yang Ling smiled bitterly and said, "No, if it really doesn't work, we can only risk retreating to Bianliang and make a long-term plan. But we suffered heavy losses this time, and I'm afraid no one is willing to listen to our arrangements. More importantly, there are still so many soldiers here."

"Alas!" Guo Ye sighed, "Then let's do as the Marshal says."

"Thank you!"

After leaving the tent, Yang Ling immediately sent an envoy to the Hetao Plain to convey his orders.

As for the outcome of this order, that was not something he could control.

Two days later.

Yang Ling led his troops and slowly advanced towards the northwest, feeling very nervous.

Because Wanyan Sheng did not fight a decisive battle with him on the Hetao Plain as he expected.

Instead, the army that remained in the Hetao Plain was packing their bags, ready to set up camp at any time.

This made him feel very strange, and he had a vague feeling that there must be something fishy going on.

However, since things have come to this, he has no other choice.

I have no choice but to move on.

Yang Ling thought to himself, even if it was a fraud, I would have to admit defeat. It was my fault for underestimating the enemy and making a mistake, which led to the complete loss.

In the next few days, Yang Ling was on high alert, guarding against enemy raids.

Unfortunately, these days, his luck seems to have run out.

Apart from the occasional sneak attacks by small groups of enemy troops, there was not even the slightest sign of trouble.

This gradually relaxed Yang Ling's vigilance.

Seeing that they were about to reach the camp where Wanyan Sheng was stationed, Yang Ling finally couldn't bear it anymore and asked the guard beside him: "Why haven't you seen anything unusual in the past two days?"

"Don't worry, Marshal. I have just found out that Wanyan Sheng is leading his troops to gather their forces and prepare to cross the river and advance eastward. It is estimated that they will be able to start the battle of crossing the river soon."

"Oh? So fast? Why don't I believe it?"

"It is absolutely true. How dare I deceive you, Marshal?"

Yang Ling nodded to show his belief, then waved his hand and said, "Continue marching, don't worry about these trivial matters, hurry to the camp and report to the marshal."

The guard said, "General, aren't you being too cautious? We are only a few dozen miles away from Wanyan Sheng's lair. If there is any danger, we can just turn our horses around and run away."

Yang Ling shook his head slightly and said, "No, you don't understand. This is called retreating to advance, luring the enemy deeper."

He paused for a moment and explained, "Since Wanyan Sheng dared to defend the Hetao Plain alone, he must have made sufficient defensive fortifications. Even if we take a detour to Wanyan Sheng's lair, it will probably be difficult to win."

"But what if we just rush over there?"

"Charge forward? Wanyan Sheng has at least 200,000 troops stored in the Hetao Plain. How easy is it to win with our strength?"

"Then why do you insist on leading the enemy deeper into our territory?"

Yang Ling sighed slightly and said, "This is the only solution. Think about it, if Wanyan Sheng knew that we have arrived, he would definitely try his best to stop us. If we forcefully attack, there will definitely be heavy casualties. We cannot afford this price!"

"But if you lead the enemy deep into our territory, you can still retreat when necessary, right?"

"You don't understand!" Yang Ling said, "Our Yanyun Army is good at defense, but we also need the courage to attack. Over the years, I have never lost a battle. This time I want to give it a try."

"Try?"

"Yes, let's try." Yang Ling said firmly, "Just like when we fought in Shanyin, General Li Wenzhong made a desperate move and led 500 remaining soldiers to attack the Yellow River dike. In the end, he not only successfully broke through the city, but also defeated the enemy and made them flee in disarray."

"Marshal, do you mean that this time we should learn from General Li Wenzhong?"

"That's right!" Yang Ling nodded and said, "General Li Wenzhong's 500 remaining soldiers can exert tremendous power beyond the norm. Our Yanyun Army is extremely elite and will never be inferior. I hope to train my soldiers in this way."

"The commander is wise!" The guards praised: "Our Yanyun Army is a group of tigers and wolves, and is not inferior to anyone. This time we should practice with Wanyan Sheng."

"Well, I'm glad you understand." Yang Ling nodded and said, "Keep going!"

Three days later.

Yang Ling, Guo Ye and others came to the heart of the Hetao Plain.

Guo Ye said: "Marshal Yang, the situation here is a bit strange. Wanyan Sheng should not surrender so easily."

"Yes, although Wanyan Sheng is cunning, he is definitely not stupid. How could he take the initiative to expose his position?"

"I suspect he might be cheating."

"It's a trick? What trick?"

"Think about it, does Wanyan Sheng really want to cross the river and march eastward this time?"

Yang Ling said, "Of course. Wanyan Sheng occupies the Hetao Plain, and there is a constant supply of food, salt, cloth, tea, and even cattle and sheep. If we don't cross the river and move east, we won't be able to survive at all."

"What is his purpose in doing this?"

Yang Ling frowned and asked, "Does he want to use us to help him cross the river?"

"I think it's possible. We are now cavalry, and we are very fast. Wanyan Sheng's main force is cavalry, and their speed is far slower than ours. It only takes half a day to catch up with them. In this way, we can seize the Hetao Plain."

Yang Ling sneered: "He has quite a big appetite!"

"He did this not only to gain hegemony for himself, but also to seek wealth and honor for his nephew Wanyan Chenglin. He did this to clear the way for Wanyan Chenglin!"

"What are you saying? Wanyan Sheng had already guessed that we would come? Is he stinging for law enforcement?"

Guo Ye nodded and said, "Wanyan Sheng is a smart man. I think he has already thought of a plan for this matter and will definitely not be led by us. He probably did this to lure us into an encirclement and take the opportunity to annihilate us!"

Yang Ling's face turned pale instantly, and he said, "If that's the case, aren't we in great danger?"

Guo Ye slammed the table and said, "Wan Yan Sheng is deliberately trying to kill us. I think we can't delay any longer and must change our strategy immediately."

"What should I do?"

"Don't rush to change your strategy."

"Uh?"

Guo Ye pondered and said, "Since Wanyan Sheng has set an ambush ahead, let's just act according to the script he predicted."

"Acting? Acting what?"

"Of course it's acting!"

"How to act?"

"Our current team is poorly equipped and our personnel are of poor quality. I estimate that if we rush forward rashly, we will probably be ferociously counterattacked by the enemy immediately."

"Then you mean..."

"Let's first find a place to set up camp and send out scouts to explore the surrounding environment. Then send out scouts to pretend to be us and pretend to attack Wanyan Sheng. This will confuse the enemy and make them mistakenly think that we have fallen into a trap and take the initiative to attack." "You mean, we should ambush here and lure the enemy?"

"Yes." Guo Ye nodded and said, "Our scouts are active here frequently. If they sense an ambush here, they will definitely choose to take a detour. In this way, they will miss the opportunity."

Guo Ye suddenly understood and said, "Great! It's really great! I admire you!"

Yang Ling smiled bitterly and said, "Brother Guo, you look down on our Liaodong Army. Although we don't have bows and arrows, we have a lot of bows. You think this is a small trick of yours and you think you deserve praise?"

Guo Ye smiled awkwardly and said, "I'm just saying this casually, please don't blame me, Brother Yang. I always feel that this method is a little inappropriate."

"What's wrong?"

"Brother Yang, think about it carefully. Wanyan Sheng will soon be able to detect what I just said. By then, our scouts will definitely be wiped out by them. By then, the enemy will definitely see through our intentions."

"So what do you think should be done?"

"My suggestion is that we pretend to attack first, then let the scouts quietly return to report the news, and then it will be up to you to decide whether to evacuate or counterattack. What do you think?"

"Hmm... I think this method is feasible!" Yang Ling nodded and said, "Don't worry, you know the combat effectiveness of our Liaodong Army. A few thousand rabble can't cause any trouble."

"Then do it!"

"But... this is not a easy thing to do. After all, we are launching a surprise attack this time. The enemy must be well guarded. A rash attack may not be effective."

"Don't worry too much about this. Our reinforcements are on the way and will arrive in two days. We just need to hold on for these two days."

"So when do we start the attack?"

"Just tonight."

Yang Ling pondered and said, "This won't work. The moon is too round tonight and the sky is too dark. It's not good for hiding!"

"Then what do you think we should do, Brother Yang?"

"How about this, we split into two groups. The second group will attack first. Each of our cavalrymen will be equipped with three crossbows, and then we will take turns shooting until the crossbow arrows are exhausted. If the enemy dares to pursue, we will shoot them with the powerful crossbows."

Guo Ye shook his head and sighed, "With so many of us, it will be hard to hold out to the end with only three powerful crossbows. Absolutely not."

"Then what do you think we should do?"

Guo Ye frowned slightly and said, "How about this, I will transfer another 400 archers from the Divine Eagle Valley to assist us in the battle."

"This way, we will have less pressure."

"This is not enough." Guo Ye fiddled with his waist badge and said, "This waist badge of mine is the token of the Divine Eagle Valley. With it, I can mobilize all the troops in the Divine Eagle Valley. When the time comes, it will be enough to resist the enemy forces that are several times larger."

"Then we have made a happy decision."

……

After Yang Ling and Guo Ye had discussed it, they led 5,000 elite vanguards to the west side of the river bank.

When they were about five miles away from the river bank, they stopped and prepared to set up camp.

At this moment, suddenly bursts of shouting and killing were heard in the distance, and it turned out that the enemy was attacking.

Yang Ling secretly called himself lucky, and said: "Fortunately we set up camp in advance, otherwise, we would be trapped by now and unable to escape!"

"Brother Yang is right, but we have found a treasure this time." Guo Ye pointed to the depths of the forest in the distance and said, "Look! There are flashes of fire over there, which clearly shows that there are villages or cities guarding the city. If we rush over now, we will definitely be able to rescue the elderly, the weak, women and children."

Yang Ling was pleasantly surprised and said, "Then let's go quickly."

As he took a step, he suddenly said, "Wait a minute, I remember our scouts had explored the area and found only wilderness nearby. How could a village suddenly appear? Is there a trick?"

Guo Ye explained: "We, the Liaodong army, have lived in the northern desert for so long that we may have forgotten that this is the territory of Tubo. How could such a coincidence happen?"

"You mean... someone is deliberately creating confusion?"

"It's almost certain! We will know if our scouts are really in trouble after we try it out."

"What do you have in mind?"

Guo Ye said: "This is easy. Look over there."

He pointed to the east and said, "Look in that direction again."

Yang Ling looked in the direction Guo Ye pointed and saw a forest there.

Guo Ye continued, "The location of that forest happens to be the only way for us to fight the enemy. If the enemy really pursues us later, they will advance along this route."

“What’s the point of this?”

"Of course there is! Think about it, if this forest is really an ambush site, why didn't the enemy ambush us in the forest? Isn't this superfluous? So, the enemy didn't ambush us at all. They just used this village to cover up their target."

"Well, that's true." Yang Ling frowned and said, "But the question is, how can we confirm that this forest is not an ambush site?"

Guo Ye shook his head slightly and said, "I don't know either."

"No way, even you don't know?"

"Yes, I only know that this place is only about six or seven miles away from our camp. Unless the enemy's scouts are idiots, they will never set up an ambush point so far away."

"Well... then I know what to do."

"How to do it?"

"Since the main force of the enemy is not here, we don't have to pay attention to them. Just follow the original plan. However, we can send people to sneak into the village to gather information."

"Do you have this ability?"

"Hehe, although I'm not good at deploying troops, when it comes to reconnaissance and spying, I can't compare to those brothers in Condor Valley."

Guo Ye said: "Well, you take 500 people and sneak to the village entrance. Then, stand sentry at the entrance and observe the enemy's movements."

"As ordered!"

Yang Ling took the order and left, and the remaining three thousand people began to set up tents and make bonfires.

Guo Ye stood there imagining the appearance of the enemy army, and the more he thought about it, the more he felt something was wrong.

According to common sense, if the enemy was really lying in ambush nearby, they should have sent people to guard in the woods to prevent anyone from escaping.

As for camping on the river bank, that's pure nonsense.

Who can guarantee that there are spies in the woods? If thousands of arrows are fired at him, he will be shot to death or scared silly. It would be strange if such a fool could become a general.

So, it was simply a brain-scratching move for the enemy to camp on the river bank.

The only possibility is bait.

However, this bait is too obvious. Even the eyes are not hidden. It is exposed to everyone's sight.

Isn’t this too exaggerated?
What kind of background do these Tibetan barbarians have that they dare to risk their lives like this?

Yang Ling's methods were quite powerful. After only half a quarter of an hour, he returned and said, "Reporting to Brother Yang, there is no ambush in that forest." (End of this chapter)