Elegy of Tang Dynasty

Chapter 550: Having more soldiers is just a waste of money
Yuxiang is a small county with low walls and weak defenses, and is not very safe.

The disastrous defeat upon their arrival caused Li Guiren and his remaining elite troops to lose their will to fight.

After nightfall, Li Guiren led all his troops and retreated quickly eastward to Jie County, dozens of miles away. He assigned 500 men to guard Wangguan Valley, the gateway to the east of Jie County, as an outpost and set up an ambush there.

We don't ask to annihilate the enemy, but only to gain a few hours of warning time.

It can be said that Fang Youde broke the backbone of Li Guiren's troops in this battle, and the entire army was filled with fear.

After finally settling down in Jie County and packing his luggage in the county government office, Li Guiren began to review the details of his disastrous defeat in the first battle with great doubt.

The more I think about it, the more incredible it seems.

He didn't think there was anything wrong with his response.

The enemy cavalry first crossed the river, then turned back and fled, luring the infantry on our side to pursue. When almost all of the infantry on our side were in the river, the enemy cavalry turned their horses around again and made a final killing blow!

This kind of operation... was simply unheard of. Before this, Li Guiren didn't even dare to think about it.

If you are not careful, you may fail to hit the enemy and end up collapsing first. The risk is extremely high when it comes to implementation.

Observe the terrain, choose tactics, attack decisively, command skillfully, and then take it down in one go!
Li Guiren couldn't help but take a deep breath. If he didn't think too much about it, he would think it was nothing. But the more he thought about it, the more he felt that the enemy commander was unfathomable.

What kind of monster is the commander of the battle on the other side? How can you fight a war like this? Can you give others a break?
"I'm so angry!"

Li Guiren simply overturned the table and knelt on the cushion, feeling helpless and furious.

Not as skilled as others and defeated inexplicably.

I can't use my strength, I can't use it at all! I feel so frustrated that I have no place to use my strength!

Li Guiren was so angry that his whole body was shaking, half from anger and the other half from the fear in his heart.

The person opposite is invincible.

He had lost the courage to fight against him. In other words, it can also be called "a common man losing his will."

If a general loses the courage to face a strong enemy, it means that it will be difficult for him to perform miracles on the battlefield in the future. Even a battle that he might have won may fail because of cowardice.

"General Li, what are you doing..."

Just as Li Guiren was sighing in front of the overturned table, Liu Longxian walked into the lobby of the county government office to report military intelligence. Seeing this situation, he dared not utter a word.

"I'm fine. Do you have any military information to report? Just tell me directly!"

Li Guiren coughed lightly to cover up his embarrassment, and asked Liu Longxian why he came. Liu Longxian was his trusted general, and Li Guiren did not want to show his displeasure in front of him.

"General Li, this is the military order from Marshal Huangfu, which has just been delivered."

Liu Longxian presented a letter sealed with sealing wax with both hands.

Li Guiren thought to himself that something was wrong. He opened the letter and saw that, as expected, what he had worried about had become a reality.

Huangfu Weiming said in the military order: He had led the main force of the army to capture Tongguan, and let Li Guiren's troops tie down the main force of the government army in Puzhou.

He could then lead his troops directly to Chang'an.

Of course, Huangfu Weiming didn't know about Li Guiren's disastrous defeat at Sushui.

"Marshal Huangfu asked us to contain the enemy troops in Puzhou. What do you think?"

Li Guiren handed the general's order to Liu Longxian with a helpless look on his face.

The so-called "diversion" is a euphemism. The real meaning is to let Li Guiren lead his troops to attack Puzhou City.

As long as you lead your troops to attack the city, won't the defenders in the city be tied down by you?
Huangfu Weiming was very good at the "art of language".

But Li Guiren doesn’t have the strength to attack Puzhou now!
In the previous battle, out of the 20,000 soldiers and horses, almost only one in ten of the infantry survived, but all the cavalry had escaped. Now there are only 5,000 cavalry left, each with two horses.

In total, almost three quarters of the people died.

With only 5,000 cavalrymen, are we going to attack the city with our heads held high?
What's more, the enemy can abandon Puzhou City, located east of the Yellow River, and then retreat to Puzhou Pass west of Puzhou Stone Bridge!

There is no point in harassing the outskirts of Puzhou. We have to seize the Puzhou Stone Bridge.

Li Guiren and Liu Longxian looked at each other, not knowing how to comment on this military order.

Huangfu Weiming's idea cannot be said to be unreasonable. He tied down the enemy troops all the way and headed straight for Chang'an. It seemed to be a well-organized idea no matter how you looked at it.

It’s just that the military situation changed too quickly, catching us off guard.

If Li Guiren and his men followed this military order, it would be like looking for a sword on a boat. But if they did not listen to Huangfu Weiming, it would be considered arbitrary and taboo.

How to deal with it is really a headache.

When you work for someone else, you will often encounter such annoying things.

"General Li, the enemy's commander is very powerful, and we only have so few men left. I'm afraid... we are not strong enough to defeat them.

I am not trying to boost others' morale. Our army has been severely damaged. If we face the enemy again, I am afraid we will be wiped out.

Now is not the time to be a hero!"

Liu Longxian sighed and said.

Still holding me back? I am holding you back!

He wanted to curse at Huangfu Weiming in front of him, but unfortunately the other party was not here. It was pointless to complain to Li Guiren, so it was not worth mentioning at all.

The old man in Puzhou City led a strong army that defeated their main force in the first battle. If anyone disagrees, come and fight him!
Liu Longxian cherishes his life very much and he doesn't want to commit suicide. In his opinion, being brave in battle and deliberately giving away one's life are two completely different concepts.

"That's the truth, but how do I respond to Marshal Huangfu?"

Li Guiren asked with a worried look on his face.

Don't say Liu Longxian doesn't want to fight, he doesn't want to fight either! Even if he wants to fight, the morale of the army has collapsed now. It is estimated that the legs of the soldiers on his side will be weak when they meet next time.

"General Li, how about this? We send someone to deliver a letter to Marshal Huangfu, promising to delay the Puzhou garrison.

Then they took a detour to cross the Sushui River and sent out a small number of cavalry to harass the outskirts of Puzhou, changing shifts every few hours.

This is called restraining without controlling, and marching without attacking. The army was ready to retreat at any time in Jie County.

This way, we can get the job done and preserve our strength at the same time, so why not do it? "

Liu Longxian came over and whispered a suggestion to Li Guiren.

"Wonderful!"

Li Guiren nodded and agreed with it.

If Huangfu Weiming entered Chang'an, everyone would reward him according to his merits. Who would still pursue the mischief of Li Guiren, that wily guy, who was slacking off in Puzhou?

If Huangfu Weiming did not enter Chang'an, it was because he had been defeated and had to retreat to Luoyang. At that time, Huangfu Weiming himself would be in a difficult situation, so how could he possibly investigate Li Guiren's previous tricks?

It must be that big things are reduced to small things, and small things are reduced to nothing. Otherwise, if Li Guiren is forced into a corner, what will happen if he joins other generals in mutiny?
So Liu Longxian's "fishing strategy" may seem old-fashioned and unoriginal, but it is actually a good strategy to delay and wait for changes. Laying down is often a bad strategy, but it is also a good strategy. Delaying and waiting for changes, who knows when the situation will turn around?
Thinking of this, Li Guiren immediately wrote a reply letter and sent someone to send it to Tongguan. Then he reorganized the scout team, divided them into groups of fifty, and went to Puzhou in batches to conduct reconnaissance and harassment operations. A new group of people was replaced every two hours, day and night.

While Li Guiren and Liu Longxian were discussing countermeasures to deal with the war by delaying and waiting for changes, Fang Youde in Puzhou City was not idle either.

In the lobby of the Puzhou government office, all the generals gathered. Fang Youde sat on the main seat in the lobby with a calm expression and a majestic presence without being angry.

After the Battle of Sushui, no one questioned his authority anymore.

Everyone knows their own business. The superb tactical execution and imagination demonstrated by Fang Youde in this battle far exceeded those of them who claimed to be veterans of many battles.

In a word, I feel inferior to others and don't even have the desire to challenge others.

This is how it is in the military. No matter what your appearance, nationality, temper, or background is, there is only one reason why the officers and soldiers obey you: that is, you can win battles, and you can win battles continuously!
Whoever can win the battle and bring everyone along will be like a god in the army, and his words will command the support of everyone.

It is even more effective than the emperor’s edict!
“I just received news that Huangfu Weiming has led his troops to break through the unmanned Tongguan Pass and now seems to be heading for Huayin.

What do you think? "

No one answered, as no one wanted to embarrass themselves in such an occasion.

Seeing that no one spoke, Fang Youde continued:

"The situation on the battlefield changed very quickly, and I did not expect the Hebei bandit army to be so weak.

I wanted Li Guangbi to defend against the bandits coming from Tongguan. We would defeat the bandits in Puzhou first, and then focus on dealing with the bandits coming from Tongguan. Unexpectedly, Li Guiren's troops retreated early because of the disastrous defeat.

Now I have ordered Li Guangbi to move to Huayin to garrison, but he only has 5,000 soldiers and I am afraid he cannot hold out for too long.

What good strategies do you have to defeat the enemy?"

He looked around at everyone and saw that everyone was looking down, and he immediately understood everything.

Today's "micro-management" in the Battle of Shushui really intimidated those brave generals in the Western Army.

With such a "jewel" in front of them, others will definitely not lower themselves to become bricks!
"Marshal Fang is a master at using troops. We are dull and stupid. If we speak out our unpresentable ideas, we will only be laughed at. Marshal, just tell us where to attack. I will not hesitate!"

Gao Xianzhi gritted his teeth and clasped his fists in salute and complimented.

The meaning was very clear: Marshal Fang, you are the best, you can beat anyone you want and beat them however you want, so we don't have to lose this person.

“Dress the scarecrow in military uniforms and armor, and put more flags on the city walls.

Use the night to head south to Fenglingdu in batches."

Fang's German speech amazed everyone.

Gao Xianzhi wished he could swallow back what he had just said.

Brother, Grandpa, what are you doing in Fenglingdu?

All the generals present were speechless after hearing Fang Youde's words. Of course, this was also Fang Youde's habit, his thinking was always different from others.

The people on our side would not guess it, and the enemy would be even less likely to guess it.

"Marshal, what are we going to do in Fenglingdu?"

Gao Xianzhi asked doubtfully.

I have to say, this place is a strategic blind spot!
In other words, this is the place that Huangfu Weiming gave to Li Guiren and asked him to control. But Li Guiren is now unable to control it.

The other side of Fenglingdu is the only way from Guanzhong to Tongguan. This only way is very narrow and is located west of Tongguan, so it is easy to be overlooked.

Many generals, after passing through Tongguan, will develop a mentality of "everything is fine", believing that the enemy can no longer do anything to them and that Guanzhong is within their reach.

Fang Youde did not answer Gao Xianzhi directly, but waved his hand gently and said: "Back then, Cao Mengde used his troops at Fenglingdu and defeated the princes of Guanxi. Today, I also want to use my troops here."

After hearing this, Gao Xianzhi and others showed a thoughtful look and confirmed that Fang Youde was not seeking death on purpose.

"The road is long, dangerous and narrow. It is like two rats fighting in a hole. The brave one will win."

Fang Youde mentioned it again.

Now all the generals who had a little bit of common sense understood what he meant!

Sure enough, Marshal Fang had made all the arrangements.

Letting Li Guangbi guard Huayin was equivalent to blocking the west side of the rat hole. Forcing a crossing from Fenglingdu to the other side of the river and forming a battle line on the narrow road west of Tongguan (even looking for an opportunity to capture Tongguan) was equivalent to blocking the east side of the rat hole.

Huangfu Weiming had a large number of troops under his command, but they were stuck in a long and narrow road, with no food or fodder outside and tired soldiers inside. They could not capture Huayin City in an instant, and they could not retreat back to Tongguan or even Luoyang.

The narrow road also made it impossible to deploy a large number of troops to annihilate the enemy.

How to fight this battle?
I have to say, Fang Youde's move of crossing the river and stabbing from behind was really brilliant!

Gao Xianzhi and others all wanted to set up an ambush near Huayin County, and then retreat after defeating Huangfu Weiming. As for the other party's comeback, that was a matter for the future.

Fang Youde is even more vicious. He wants to capture Huangfu Weiming and his elite troops in one fell swoop!
As for whether it is possible for Huangfu Weiming to escape from Puzhou to Hedong?
This possibility is not small, but even if he can withdraw from Guanzhong, he will be badly injured. It is not easy to retreat an army of tens of thousands.

During Huan Wen's third northern expedition, he lost tens of thousands of elite soldiers because of his disorderly retreat.

"It seems that everyone should understand."

Fang Youde held the hilt of his sword, looked around at everyone and asked.

"Please give the order, Marshal Fang!"

All the generals in the lobby of Puzhou government office shouted in unison.

"Okay, now let's go make scarecrows. Make as many as you can. I'll help you make them!

Make preparations and leave Puzhou City as quickly as possible.

Our tactic is to fight back no matter how many ways he attacks us.

Hao Tingyu, go to Huayin City and tell Li Guangbi.

Ten days, I only want him to defend the city for ten days. Since the enemy army began to attack the city, he only needs to defend the city for ten days. After that, even if Li Guangbi escapes back to Chang'an, I will ask for credit for him, and ask for the first credit!

If he lets the enemy break into the city before he can hold out for ten days, he will be beheaded!"

Fang Youde said in a grim tone, no mercy!

Hao Tingyu was so frightened that he clasped his fists and saluted, saying, "Please rest assured, Marshal Fang, I will definitely pass on your message!"

"Well, you can help Li Guangbi and add more strength to the tiger."

Fang Youde nodded slightly and said.

ha?
Hearing this, Hao Tingyu secretly groaned in his heart.

(End of this chapter)