Chapter 68: Deploying Troops, Crouching Tiger

  Liu Ze smiled secretly, let alone ten years, in two more years the Yellow Turbans will rise again, and I'm afraid that not a single blade of grass will be left in Quyang Prefecture. He said: "This time we are sending troops across prefectures, we need Zhang Guishan to issue military orders, so as not to cause misunderstandings with Changshan State."

  The county magistrate nodded and said, "This is natural. Zhang Guo's military order is here, and the holder of this order can act at will. Moreover, Zhang Guo has already communicated with the Minister of Changshan, and Changshan has repeatedly failed to eliminate the bandits on Sleeping Tiger Mountain. This time, Zhongshan sent troops, and Changshan can enjoy the fruits of their labor. Furthermore, Zhang Guo personally appointed Gongzi as the General of the False Tooth Gate, leading the army to conquer. If this time goes smoothly and Sleeping Tiger Mountain is taken down, and Zhang Gongzi is rescued, I believe Liu Gongzi's official career will be bright."

  Although Liu Ze didn't care about being the General of Ya Men, now that he had this title, it was indeed much more convenient. He took over the military order and declined the wine party invitation from the County Magistrate of Cheng, hurrying back to Feng Huang Valley.

  In the hall, a group of rural gentry and wealthy families looked at each other in dismay. Zhang, the county official, plucked up his courage and opened his mouth: "County Magistrate Cheng..."

  The county magistrate snorted through his nose and turned to leave, leaving the group of people standing there foolishly.

  On the way, Liu Ze asked Jia Yu: "Wenhe, what do you think of this matter?"

  Jia Xun smiled and said: "The lord wants to use these mountain bandits to train his troops, doesn't he?"

  Liu Ze burst out laughing, this Jia Xun was indeed not famous in vain. His own little thoughts were clearly seen through by him. He said: "That's right, most of the soldiers in Feng Huang Valley haven't experienced real battles. I've been thinking of finding an opportunity to let them practice. After all, no matter how high the training intensity is, it can't compare to the effect of actual combat. Letting them experience the cruelty of war as soon as possible will allow them to survive better in this chaotic world. As for that traitor's son, if he can be saved, it would just be a favor."

  "Rebel?" Jia Yu was greatly perplexed, Liu Ze secretly smiled, Zhang Chun's rebellion was a matter of the fourth year of Zhongping, now he is the Minister of Zhongshan State. Liu Ze did not answer, and urged his horse to gallop forward quickly.

  Returning to Phoenix Valley, Liu Ze immediately deployed military operations towards Wohu Mountain. First, he asked Guan Hai about the situation on Wohu Mountain, but Guan Hai's main work energy was focused on internal management in Phoenix Valley, and he didn't know much about the surrounding areas. He only knew that Wohu Mountain was located within the borders of Zhen Ding County in Changshan State, about 120 miles away from Phoenix Valley. As for the specific situation of this group of mountain bandits, he wasn't clear. Liu Ze immediately asked Pan Feng to send out scouts to gather intelligence on Wohu Mountain, knowing that one must know oneself and the enemy to win every battle. Then, he ordered all personnel from the Earth Team and Heaven Team to assemble, equipped with war horses, armor, and weapons, ready to set out at any time. Wu An Guo and Pan Feng took orders and went to gather their troops.

  As soon as he heard that there was going to be a fight, Zhang Fei immediately became excited and quickly put on his dark armor, led out his horse, and was full of energy. Guan Yu was also fully armed.

  "Second brother, third brother, this time attacking Wocuishan is just a military exercise. Although there are thousands of mountain bandits on Wocuishan, they are just a mob. You two don't need to go into battle. Third brother will guard the main camp, and second brother will be in charge of transporting grain and fodder this time. Both are important tasks, no room for slackness." Liu Ze assigned tasks to the two of them.

  Guan Yu accepted the order without a word, but Zhang Fei was not willing to do so. He shouted loudly: "What? Let me guard the main camp? I won't do it! Why can't I go on the battlefield and kill the enemy? Brother, you'd better say something. In all the battles in the Western Regions, which one did I, old Zhang, lose face for you?"

  Liu Ze smiled and said, "Third brother, it's precisely because you're too good at fighting that big brother didn't let you go. Just a few mountain bandits were killed by your one round of charging, what can I use to train the troops?"

  Zhang Fei muttered: "Anyway, I don't want to stay in the big camp. Why not swap with my second brother? I'll escort the grain and grass, and you guard the big camp?"

  Liu Ze patted his shoulder and said seriously, "Third brother, big brother letting you guard the main camp is also to train your abilities. For a future general, it's not just about charging into battle, but also understanding strategy. Besides, do you think guarding the main camp is unimportant? Feng Huang Valley is our foundation, not just a training camp, but also a place with many workshops that are essential for our survival. If we were to lose Feng Huang Valley while on a distant campaign, we would have no retreat route left. Leaving you here to guard it is also something I've thought deeply about. With your abilities, if there were bandits from other areas coming to attack, you should be able to hold them off."

  Zhang Fei had no choice and reluctantly agreed despite his great unwillingness.

  Two days later, the scout returned and reported in detail the situation of Wohu Mountain. Wohu Mountain is located at the junction of Zhending County and Lingshou County, with a steep terrain, narrow from east to west and wider from north to south, resembling a sleeping tiger, hence its name. There is only one narrow path on the front mountain that can lead to the top, while the other three sides are cliffs tens of feet high, making it a strategic location where one man can hold off an army of thousands, no wonder the government troops had failed to take it after multiple attacks.

  There are approximately 3,000 to 4,000 people on the mountain. The leader of the bandits is surnamed Zhou, but his first name is unknown. Their main weapons and equipment are mostly large knives and long spears, with a small number of archers. Most of their clothing is made of hemp cloth, and they have almost no armor. This information was mainly obtained from the periphery, as the blockade at the entrance to the stronghold was very strict, and the scouts were unable to penetrate deep into the enemy's camp.

  Liu Ze inquired about the situation of the three cliffs again. The cliffs on both the south and north sides were not only over 30-40 meters high, but also extremely steep, making it impossible to climb. Although the western back mountain was equally steep, its overall height was only over 10 meters, and there were two very small gentle slopes in the middle that could be used. If it were an ordinary person, they would naturally not be able to climb up, but if it were a master who had received special training, they might have a chance to make a move. Liu Ze laughed loudly: "It's said that you can't touch a tiger's butt, but today we're going to go and take a look."

  To be frank, Liu Ze didn't take this group of mountain bandits seriously and simply regarded them as a rare opportunity to train his troops. However, strategic underestimation does not equal tactical underestimation. Although the mountain bandits on Sleeping Tiger Mountain were a motley crew, they had an obvious advantage in numbers.

  Liu Ze first consulted Jia Xu's opinion. Although Liu Ze had not yet appointed Jia Xu as his strategist, Jia Xu, who was receiving a salary of 2,000 dan, naturally did his best to provide advice and make plans for Liu Ze.

  Afterwards, Liu Ze ordered Guan Hai to lead 1,000 infantrymen and Wu An'guo to lead 200 cavalrymen, departing from Fenghuang Valley via the main road, passing through Tangling Shou and heading towards Wohu Mountain. All infantry and cavalry wore armor, with most being archers. Although there were many warhorses in Fenghuang Valley, considering that this time they were attacking a mountain stronghold, where cavalry played a minor role, only 200 cavalrymen were dispatched, mainly for peripheral defense and mobile reinforcement tasks. The main force of the attack on the mountain was primarily composed of long-range attack troops, archers. Liu Ze's intention was clear: the enemy relied on the terrain to defend themselves, and in order to avoid heavy casualties among his own soldiers during the attack on the mountain, he chose to use long-range attack troops to effectively strike at the enemy while preserving his own forces, especially when the enemy did not have many archers.

  Of course, this is a public road, and the other route is led by Pan Feng with 200 people secretly taking the small road, approaching the back of Wohu Mountain. All the members led by Pan Feng are from the Heavenly Squad, many of whom are rock climbing experts. They carried a large number of flying claws and ropes, wearing soft leather armor, in addition to willow leaf knives, daggers, flying darts and other weapons, Liu Ze also specially equipped them with over 100 steel wire crossbows that had just been produced by the blacksmith shop.

  These crossbows were made in imitation of the bronze crossbows used by the Han dynasty army, but adopted high-quality steel wires for the bowstring. They were also single-soldier three-stone crossbows, with a range increased by 30% compared to the bronze crossbow, faster shooting speed, stronger penetration power, and only half the weight of the bronze crossbow. The mobility of strong crossbowmen using steel wire crossbows was greatly improved, and they could even rival archers.

  However, Liu Ze still had some regrets. The most famous crossbow of the Three Kingdoms period was Zhuge's repeating crossbow, which could fire ten arrows at once and had infinite power. Unfortunately, it was lost in later generations. Liu Ze searched through the Ghost Valley Encyclopedia but couldn't find any manufacturing techniques for Zhuge's repeating crossbow. It seemed that he would have to wait until Zhuge Liang came out of retirement before he could see this powerful crossbow again.

  Liu Ze equipped his Heavenly Squad with these latest-style weapons, and the requirements for them were also quite strict: climbing up from the back mountain to Wohu Mountain, launching a surprise attack on the mountain bandits, and rescuing Zhang Gongzi who had been kidnapped by the mountain bandits.

  Guan Yu's task was to escort the grain, while Zhang Fei was in charge of guarding the main camp. Guan Yu's task was relatively easy, as the distance from Fenghuang Valley to Wotou Mountain was only over a hundred miles, and the amount of grain supplies for over a thousand people was not too large, so it would be enough to just take some precautions against potential bandits in Wotou Mountain or nearby. After more than a thousand main forces went out, there were not many combat personnel left for Zhang Fei, and the rest were all non-combatants or technicians from various workshops. But with Zhang Fei's presence, those mountain bandits who attempted to come and commit crimes would probably have no return. This was something that Liu Ze was completely at ease with.

  Everything was ready, with Wu An's 200 cavalry leading the way. Liu Ze and Jia Xiu followed with Gan Hui's 1,000 infantrymen to launch a campaign. The large army marched towards Wohu Mountain in an imposing manner. Along the way, they passed through Xingtang and Lingshou. Although there were government troops and checkpoints, Liu Ze had Zhang Chun's personal military order in his hand. It was likely that officials from Xingtang and Lingshou had also received orders from their superiors not to intercept this strange army that suddenly appeared within the county borders. They marched unimpeded all the way to Wohu Mountain.

  Before Liu Ze could set up camp at the foot of the mountain, a loud drumbeat came from within the mountain stronghold, and a group of cavalrymen rushed down the mountain. It was likely that those mountain bandits had already received news that an army was approaching, and upon inquiry, they found out there were only over a thousand men, so they didn't take Liu Ze's troops seriously, and all came out to attack, wanting to catch Liu Ze off guard. All that could be seen on the main road was dust flying everywhere, and the sound of killing shouts shook the sky, but it was unclear how many cavalrymen had rushed down from the mountain.

  Guan Hai, as the vanguard officer, stood with his horse and spear at the entrance of the path. Seeing the mountain bandits swarming towards him, he didn't show any signs of panic. With a loud and clear voice, he shouted: "Unmoving like a mountain! Spears like a forest!"