Chapter 2: The Stormy Weather of Yan and Zhao Section 35

  Xiong Ba's troops only attacked once throughout the night. He seemed to have a tacit understanding with Tian Kai, who was defending the city, as one did not attack and the other ordered his soldiers to sleep soundly on the city wall. Although the battle in the direction of the south gate was extremely fierce, the alarm drums sounded loudly in Yuyang City, but Tian Kai sat on the city tower, unmoved.

  Xiong Ba received Murong Ji's order, and the look of shock on his face made Wu Bao, who was standing beside him, feel a pang in his heart, knowing that an unexpected change had occurred in the battle situation at Yu Yang.

  "Notify the cavalry immediately, withdraw to Changqingwei."

  "Yuwen Shang, lead the siege troops to retreat to Changqingwei at the fastest speed."

  "Wu Bao, assemble a thousand cavalrymen and follow me to Yuancheng's southern district to escort the retreating troops of Murong Ji."

  Suddenly, all sorts of different horn sounds rang out in various parts of the Xianbei army.

  Tian Kai stood on the city wall, and what he saw was no longer the familiar enemy formation about to start attacking, but the frequent mobilization of the Xianbei people preparing to withdraw. He saw a cavalry army rushing into the darkness in disarray.

  Tian Kai burst out laughing, he raised his arms and excitedly shouted: "The reinforcements have arrived. Our reinforcements have arrived."

  As the bugle sounded, the galloping iron cavalry suddenly came to a halt. Under the guidance of their respective war flags, they began to face north and reorganize their charging formation.

  Li Hong held a steel spear, standing at the forefront of the troops, silently gazing at the approaching Xianbei iron cavalry. He suddenly saw Xiong Ba's war flag. His heart began to beat violently.

  He turned around and shouted loudly: "Deploy the Goose Formation, prepare to meet the enemy."

  The two sides were five hundred paces apart. This distance was the best acceleration distance for the cavalry to launch an attack. Li Hong held up his long spear high. The black leopard raised its front legs, stretched its neck and let out a long whistle, making gestures to start a new round of galloping.

  The horned soldier saw Li Hong raise his long spear and hastily put the horn to his mouth, ready to blow the charge at any moment.

  Just then, Li Hong found that Xiong Chao's troops suddenly stopped.

  Li Hong burst out laughing. This bear is really clever.

  Li Hong's troops had been marching all night and were already somewhat fatigued. After the intense and brutal battle just now, the soldiers' physical strength had reached its limit. If they were to engage in another fierce battle with the Xianbei cavalry, even if they won, there would be hardly anyone left. This was a team that Li Hong had managed to assemble with great difficulty, and everyone had been living and training together for nearly half a year. He was unwilling to see them all perish in one battle.

  Xiong Ba was unwilling to fight again. He had only a thousand men and horses, and after the main force was defeated and morale was low, even if they fought one battle, it would be more defeats than victories. As long as he could block the Han pursuit troops for a while, he would have accomplished his mission. He guessed that the Han raiding troops must also be unable to fight again, so he decided to take a gamble. His gamble paid off.

  Li Hong slowly lowered the long spear he had raised high. He turned around and saw that the several horned soldiers behind him were tense, with a look of full attention as if they were facing a great enemy, and couldn't help but laugh. The several soldiers didn't understand why their superior was still in the mood to enjoy himself at this time, and looked at him one by one in confusion.

  "The adults are indeed prescient." Wu Bao saw that the Han army was indeed as expected by Xiong Ba, and did not take the initiative to launch an attack, and could not help but be deeply impressed.

  Xiong Ba smiled wryly and said slowly: "The leopard is right in front of us."

  Two midnight raids, both ended in crushing defeat. Suddenly, a surge of anger burst forth from Xiong Ba's heart. This Han youngster, who had once seemed like an idiot, was actually a deeply hidden mastermind. If he had known how formidable he was earlier, he would have killed him back then.

  Xiong Ba couldn't help but think of Murong Feng. The general was indeed a wise and discerning leader, repeatedly praising him in front of himself, yet why did he keep ignoring his existence? As a result, they suffered another crushing defeat.

  The black leopard fell silent. Past comrades-in-arms who fought side by side have now become enemies.

  He suddenly remembered Iron Wolf. If Iron Wolf were still alive, what would he think? Would he regret turning a fool into a formidable enemy?

  A red sun slowly rises, and the morning glow reddens half of the sky. All living things on earth bask in the golden sunlight, looking warm and serene. Crystal clear dew drops gently lie on the newly green tender leaves, enjoying the warmth of the rising morning sun.

  Li Hong led the cavalry back to the foot of Yiyang City and set up a large camp in a place far from the battlefield after seeing off Xiong Bao's troops.

  Li Hong and Xian Yu Fu, Yan Rou three people immediately rushed to the Yuyang City to visit Governor Liu Yu and Taishou He Yi.

  Liu Yu was delighted to grab Li Hong's big hand, praising him repeatedly, and introducing him to the governor of Yuyang, He Yi. He Yi was a famous Confucian scholar, with profound knowledge. He looked elegant and calm, like a great Confucian who had read extensively. In this regard, Liu Yu was far inferior to him. The majestic Governor looked every inch an old rustic villager.

  He merely nodded slightly, taking it as a greeting. To him, a small military officer, a former slave of the Xianbei people, a low-born martial artist, he didn't even bother to look at him straight in the eye, let alone greet him.

  Li Hong saw his arrogant expression and didn't pay much attention to it. As a low-ranking military officer, he indeed had no qualifications to socialize with the governor.

  At this time, Tian Kai walked in. Tian Kai was over thirty years old, tall and large but not robust, with a pale complexion. He didn't look like a military man, but rather like a scholar. After paying his respects to the two seniors, he immediately went to the right side of the table. Li Hong and Xian Yu Fu, Yan Rou three people hurriedly got up and bowed.

  Tian Kai Lian helped them up one by one with great difficulty.

  "Are you the famous Leopard?" Tian Kai patted Li Hong's shoulder with force, praising: "Indeed a good fellow, it's not as good as seeing for oneself."

  "In Youzhou, there emerged two renowned heroes. In Liaodong, there was the White Horse General Gongsun Zan, and in Beiping, there was the Black Leopard Li Hong. One black, one white, enough to make the barbarians tremble with fear at the mere mention of their names." Tian Kai turned his head to say to Liu Yu, who was sitting at the top seat.

  Liu Yu nodded repeatedly, smiling and saying: "The Wuhuan people of Liaodong and Liaoxi heard that the Xianbei state was attacking our great Han, all eager to move, intending to take advantage of the fire. Gongsun Dahan led his troops to garrison in Liu City, suppressing the Wuhuan people, also laborious and meritorious. Zimin this time led the army to lift the siege of Yuyang, with considerable merit, should be heavily rewarded."

  Li Hong hastily said: "The subordinate and Xianyu, Yan, in accordance with the adult's orders, worked together day and night to rush here, fortunately not disappointing the order. In the surprise attack, each soldier vied for first place, bravely killing the enemy, with great merit. If we talk about meritorious service, it should all be theirs."

  Liu Yu nodded in approval, "Zi Min is right. Whether it's the soldiers defending the city or those who came to support them, their merits are the greatest. Without their bloody battles, Yuyang City would have been captured by the Xianbei people. And the ordinary people of Yuyang City also paid a huge price and made sacrifices during the battle to defend the city. We should thank them sincerely."

  However, Liu Yu's tone suddenly sank, and he said seriously: "The siege of Yuyang City is only temporary. The surprise attack at dawn, although it heavily damaged Murong Ji's attacking army and annihilated two or three thousand people, but the troops led by Xiong Ba who attacked the east city retreated safely. Adding Xiong Ba's troops to the remnants of Murong Ji who escaped, minus the two or three thousand people they lost when they attacked the city a few days ago, their army still has six or seven thousand people, which is still a huge threat to Yuyang City. How do you all think the battle will develop from now on?

  "What's the situation now is that there is still no news from the direction of Lu Long Pass, and it's estimated that nothing has happened at Liu's place yet. Li's troops can still stay in Yu Yang for a while. However, the urgent messages from Ju Yong and Gao Lu are coming in like snowflakes every day. The protector general, Ji Zhen, has been defending Ju Yong city for over ten days, facing the fierce attack of the Xiongnu chieftain, Ti Du. The situation is extremely critical. Meanwhile, the relief troops from Dai Prefecture have been surrounded by the Tu Ba tribe's large army in Gao Lu city and are unable to move an inch. Looking at the overall situation, if we want to make a breakthrough, we must defeat one of the enemy's routes, so as to effectively restrain the other route's attack."

  "Does the general mean for us to attack and defeat the enemy that is attacking Yuyang first?" Tian Kai asked.

  "Yan Zheng (Tian Kai's words) is right. After discussing with He Daren for a long time, I think that the enemy who attacked Yu Yang was on the verge of victory but suffered a crushing defeat, their morale must be low. If we want to completely reverse the situation in the entire Youzhou battlefield, the breakthrough may be the current Murong Ji and Xiong Ba." Liu Yu stroked his goat beard and said slowly.

  "Although the military strength of both sides is uneven, we have no choice but to do so. If we want to rescue Ju Yong and Zhuo Lu, we don't have enough troops, and distant water can't put out a nearby fire. At present, the only way is to defeat Murong Ji and Xiong Ba in the shortest time possible and seek survival in danger. If we wait for Murong Ji and Xiong Ba's troops to recover and join forces with the reinforcements from Guangping, Yuyang will be attacked again. You are all commanders, and at this difficult moment, you should find a way out of the predicament for Yuyang." He Yi said calmly.

  "Now, the remaining troops in Yuyang are only over 1,500, plus Lord Li, Lord Yan and the reinforcements from Lucheng and Yongnu, totaling less than 5,000, with only over 2,000 cavalry. When Murong Ji and Xiong Ba's 6,000 to 7,000 troops arrive on the plain, they will all be cavalry, we have no chance of winning at all, let alone they also have Li Kui as a backup. Sir, this is not a matter of whether there is a way or not, but it is fundamentally impossible." Tian Kai said with a bitter face and in a low voice.

  He Yi's face sank and she stopped talking, silently thinking about her troubles alone.

  Liu Yu turned his head to look at Li Hong and the other two. Xian You Fu was frowning tightly, at a loss for what to do. Yan Rou's large hand gently stroked the edge of the table, again and again, with a bewildered expression on her face.

  Li Hong took out the silk map from his bosom and carefully spread it on the table, examining it closely.

  "Subject, is there anything you can do?" Liu Yu asked.

  Several people in the house immediately fixed their eyes on Li Hong's face.

  "According to the scouts' report two days ago, Lü Bu's troops have left Guangping and are marching down along the Baochuan River. Once they join forces at Changqing, there will be 12,000 to 13,000 men. This is roughly the same number of soldiers as when they first attacked Puyang. With so many people, if we engage in a fierce battle, it would naturally be suicidal. If we continue to defend Puyang City, even if we manage to hold on, we will not be able to fundamentally change the course of the war in Youzhou, and eventually, it will still end in defeat."

  "It is hoped that they will suffer a heavy defeat, and the possibility of retreating without attacking is almost non-existent. The northern Tuoba tribe and the Ugan's detachment are besieging Juyong, Gaoling, and the two armies will merge in Yuyang soon. Guangping City has been taken by them, and the problem of grain transportation has been solved. Murongji was only defeated once, although he was injured but his strength is still there, he still has the opportunity to make a comeback. It's unthinkable for the Xianbei people to give up such a good opportunity and abandon it halfway."

  "So what's your solution?" He Yirong cut him off bluntly, asking sternly.

  Li Hong nodded slightly and smiled, saying: "Providing food and grass for a cavalry army of over 10,000 people is not an easy task. Xiong Ba's first capture of Guangping was to establish a safe transit station for the long grain transportation line."

  "Are you planning to attack Guangping and cut off their supplies?" Tian Kai asked immediately.

  "But our troops are too few in number and we don't have the strength to attack Guangping," Yan Rou continued.

  "The idea of the people is very good, we don't need to attack Guangping at all, just frequently attacking their grain and grass transportation teams can make the Xianbei people passive and force them to withdraw." Xian Yu said.

  "But this method takes too long. Once the city of Juyong is breached, the enemy will swarm in and Yiyang can be occupied by the enemy at any time." He Yi coldly smiled and immediately denied it.

  "Son of the people, do you have a way to defeat the enemy in the shortest time?" Liu Yu also didn't think much of this method. He saw Li Hong looking at everyone with confidence and self-assurance all over his face, and continued to ask.

  "There is." Li Hong said loudly.