The last three kingdoms

Chapter 1314 The Battle of Xiling

The Wu army's blocking was quite tenacious, and every time the Han army moved forward, it would pay a lot of casualties.

At the beginning Lu Kang recommended Zhou Chu to serve as the governor of Jingzhou and the governor of Xiling because he liked Zhou Chu's bravery, determination and thoughtfulness. The Han army fought decisively in the mountains north of Xiling, and fought a blocking battle.

In fact, mountain warfare is a strong point for the Han army, but the army Hu Ji recruited this time is not the Shu Han army that dominated mountain warfare back then. Some county soldiers were transferred to form the army for the southern expedition.

There is obviously an element of anger in it. In the imperial court, the pro-yin party including Zhang Zun belittled Hu Ji, which made Hu Ji feel angry. He is also a general of the Fuguo, Although he couldn't compare with Yong Wang Liu Yin, he was still in a detached position. He was ridiculed for being out of battle for a long time and not knowing how to fight, which made Hu Ji very angry.

If Liu Yin's old troops were mobilized during this Southern Expedition, it would be regarded as a triumphant return, and it would be an excuse for Hu Ji to rely on the power of King Yong, which is not his own ability.

What's more, Hu Ji was also worried about mobilizing Liu Yin's old troops. These generals knew how to obey others, and it was difficult for him to control them.So Hu Ji considered again and again, and decided to recruit the army himself.Hu Ji always believes that the combat effectiveness of an army can be improved by following the general's ability. An excellent general is the key to the success or failure of a battle. As for what kind of army, it is secondary.

But once he entered the actual combat, Hu Ji realized that he was wrong. Most of the soldiers recruited from the county were composed of the dismissed Jin army and newly recruited recruits. In terms of combat effectiveness, they were completely discounted, especially Fighting in the mountains was very different from the Shu army that Hu Ji was familiar with.

Although it is said that Hu Ji has hardly led troops these years, Hu Ji was also a well-known general in the Shu Han when he was young. At that time, the Shu army attacked the strong with the weak, and there was almost no hope of victory. , is still a delight to talk about.

If given time, Hu Ji may not be able to train the army in front of him and become an army capable of conscripting and fighting.But for this operation, there was too little time. The surrendered army at Xiling was waiting desperately, eagerly looking forward to the early arrival of the Han army. However, the Han army's transfer from Luoyang was a long way away, and it had already delayed a lot. Time, if it is delayed any longer, I'm afraid Xiling won't be able to keep it.

Therefore, this march is hasty in terms of time, but no matter how hasty it is, it will not shake Hu Ji's determination to move forward. He urgently needs to prove to the world that the Han army can still fight without King Yong Liu Yin, and will still fight It must be a victory.

It is a pity that things backfired. The more Hu Ji rushed to enter Xiling City, the more haste made waste. From Linju to Xiling in the mountainous area less than a hundred miles away, the Han army was strongly blocked by the Wu army, and it was difficult to advance.

The Xiling Incident occurred in March of the sixth year of Xingguo in the Ji Han Dynasty. Counting from the time when the governor of Xiling, Cen An, handed over the letter of surrender to Ji Han, in May, Zhou Chu led the Wuchang army to Xiling and launched an offensive against Xiling.In June, Hu Ji's army arrived late, and the two sides fought fiercely south of Linju.For two consecutive months, the Han army has only advanced forty or fifty miles, and there is still a considerable distance from Xiling.

It was autumn, with continuous autumn rain, bad weather and rugged mountain roads, which made the soldiers of the Han army miserable, but Hu Ji refused to stop, and strongly urged the already exhausted Han army to continue to mobilize. attack.

However, Zhou Chu did not stick to his defense. He commanded the Wu army to fight and retreat, and led the Han army into a low-lying land step by step.

It was rainy this autumn, and the water levels of the rivers rose sharply. Zhou Chu started a tug-of-war with the Han army, and at the same time built dams on the rivers to store water.

When the dam over there was filled with water, Wu Jun immediately gave up the position he had held for three days, retreated to a high ground behind, and built another line of defense there.

Hu Ji had exhausted all his strength in attacking this low-lying position, so after taking it, he was no longer in a hurry to attack, and ordered the army to stay in the low-lying ground that night, preparing to attack the adjacent high ground the next day.

The autumn rain continued that night. The depression where the Han army was located was where the rain accumulated. There was knee-deep water everywhere. In order to pick out a place where they could camp, the Han army also took great pains. painstaking efforts.

Hu Ji was also really exhausted. This battle had lasted for two months. Although the Han army was advancing slowly, every step it took was so solid, step by step, and extremely calm.

If it weren't for the bad weather, the Han army would have almost reached the city of Xiling. Unfortunately, such bad weather has seriously affected the progress of the Han army's attack. Hu Ji is not even sure when he will reach Xiling now. .

The now sluggish morale has hit Hu Ji who was once smug. He can only attribute the bad record to bad weather and bad roads. does not become proportional.

As the battle line gradually moved southward, Hu Ji's heart calmed down a lot. Anyway, it was a protracted war. With the current huge national strength of the Han army, it would only be a matter of time before Xiling was taken down.

Hu Ji had secretly calculated that it would be very difficult to take down Xiling with the current strength of the army alone. It would be extremely difficult to successfully achieve the goal of conquering Xiling. If he wanted to make the attack smooth and smooth, It is necessary to at least double the number of soldiers and horses on the existing basis. Perhaps the Han army after the increase can be more active.

Hu Ji quickly fell into sleep. In his dream, he dreamed that his camp had been reduced to a vast ocean, and there was not even a piece of land except water. Hu Ji himself fell into the water and struggled desperately. But no matter how hard he struggled, he couldn't see any hope. Hu Ji was so startled that he was sweating and woke up suddenly.

"It turned out to be a dream!" Hu Ji gently wiped the sweat off his forehead, and murmured secretly.

At this moment, there was a dull thunder-like roar, and the thunder was often intermittent, but this kind of roar was continuous, and the sound became louder and louder, as if there was a kind of earth shaking Hu Ji couldn't help but be horrified, and secretly cried out: "It's not good!"

(End of this chapter)