Qin Official

"The rebels have noticed the true movement of our army and have left the Huiting camp and moved 40 miles west to Xingleshui?"

Li You was a little surprised when he learned the news.

In the past few years, although Li You had been overshadowed by his former subordinate Heifu and was not known as a good fighter, he was still a veteran soldier who had experienced twenty years of fighting. He had served as a county guard in Changsha for six years and was familiar with the country. County hydrology and geomorphology.

He knew very well that the dry season of the Xiangjiang River is from the beginning of September to the end of February of the following year. Now it is the dry season. It rained three times in the whole spring. The water level of the Xiangshui River dropped, the flow rate decreased, the river became smaller, and a large area of ​​the river bed was exposed. , once the wind blows, it will be filled with yellow sand, completely without the grand scene of "the river is full of blue and clear, and hundreds of boats compete for the flow" during the flood season.

But even so, the center of the Xiang River is still bottomless, and the current is turbulent. Without a boat, it is impossible to cross, let alone cross and defeat the enemy. Without waiting for a swim, most of the people crossing the river will be washed away by the current.

Therefore, this is obviously not the battlefield Li You expected.

The soldiers were deceitful, so Li You also used a little trick, which was to lead 3,000 Changsha County soldiers to the east bank of the Xiangjiang River on the main road from Changsha to Liting Camp with great fanfare. He also sent two envoys over to recruit them.

This makes people believe that those who are pressing forward and confronting the rebels across the Xiangjiang River are indeed the main force...

When three thousand suspected soldiers were overhauling their camp on the north bank of the bend of the Xiang River and adding more stoves, Li You quietly left, crossed the Xiang River by boat, and joined the real main force who came by the west bank trail!

Using suspicious soldiers to attract the attention of the rebels, then leading the main force to launch a sudden attack from the flanks, and finishing the battle in one battle, this was Li You's plan!

Unexpectedly, the "nobody" on the opposite side discovered his trick and moved to Xingleshui early to wait for Li You's arrival.

Seeing the enemy shadow on the other side, Li You was a little unhappy:

"To be able to detect my plan, either the scouts were far away and saw our army coming, or someone in Changsha County tipped off the rebels!"

Li You turned around and his eyes fell on the officers who followed Linxiang.

Heifu's infiltration into Changsha County is astonishing. In addition to ordering passing troops not to take a single shot from the people of Changsha, training doctors, going into various counties to diagnose and treat people's diseases, and distributing "Common Sense" to win people's hearts, he also arranged for a large number of Changsha County The disabled soldiers from their hometowns were rehabilitated and recommended as local officials. Over the past two years, the entire county had inextricably linked with the Southern Expeditionary Army.

As for Li You, most of his former subordinates were transferred away, and even the guides sent by the county captain were strangers.

Li You could no longer trust the locals, so he simply had them placed under house arrest in the army, and went to the Xingle River to observe the enemy's situation.

Xingle Water (Juanshui in Xiangtan County) is just a small tributary of the Xiang River. It originates from the Hengshan Mountain area and runs north to south. Because of the large drop, the water flow is slightly faster than the Xiang River. But its width is only twenty or thirty feet, and it is the second month of the lunar calendar, the last period of the dry season, so the water level is still shallow. Li You sent people down to try it. The deepest point was only a person's neck, and most places only reached the waist and abdomen. There was basically no need for boats, and the soldiers could swim across the water.

This water no longer acts as a natural barrier like the Xiangjiang River. The two armies are facing each other across the river and may fight at any time.

Li You was on the west bank. Looking back, he saw that his own army was very strong, with halberds like a forest, drums beating, and morale high.

The "rebels" on the east bank seemed to have just arrived, and they didn't even have time to set up their camps. They crowded in a mess on the river bank, and their flag was still the captain's flag with the word "Han" in it.

Chang Shi actually checked this man's resume in the Southern Expedition. It turned out that Han Xin was originally a gangster in the Chu region, but he had always been cowardly. Because he did not dare to draw his sword against the person who blocked the road, he knelt down and drilled into his crotch. The story became a laughing stock in the county and was widely circulated in Wuchang Camp.

How did such a hipster rise to a high position? According to rumors, he got away from the nepotism of Heifu, jumped from an inconspicuous pawn to a commander in another department, and made some achievements in attacking the Yue people.

This makes people even more confused: "He is not the nephew of the Wei family, so why does he get so much attention?"

Recalling that more than ten years ago, his subordinates often came in and out of women's houses, and even broke into the city and raped Chu women when they couldn't restrain themselves. Hei Fu was the only one who kept to himself and did not approach women. Li Youruo realized something and burst into laughter:

"It turns out that Han Xin is not only a hip husband, but he also wants to flatter Long Yang, the black man, who wants to share his love!"

"Han Xin's eloquence is certainly not bad." Li You's subordinates also smiled meaningfully.

In short, as for Han Xin, as long as you hear his story, the label of a coward is indispensable. Although Han Xin's rapid move of camp surprised Li You, he still did not regard this person as an opponent. He only thought it was easy to hear, even if he fought Winning is boring.

After all, he is a veteran. Although he despises it in his heart, he still has a lot of arrangements. Seeing that it is getting late, Li Yousui ordered:

"Let the scouts go to the upper reaches to investigate, send out sentries widely, and monitor along the river. The army will find a high place to camp, and we will fight with them tomorrow!"

However, just when Li You and his subordinates were laughing at Hei Fu for pretending to be a famous general and making the same mistakes as Wei Linggong and Wei Anli, they heard horses neighing from outside, and even military officials hurriedly came back to report:

"General Li, the rebels are forcing their way across the Xingles River!"

…

The sky is getting dark, and the east bank of Xingle River has been illuminated by torches. It seems that there are more than 10,000 people there, and they are still making noise. People keep trying to enter the water, testing the depth of the river little by little.

"A moth flies into a flame?"

A Sima is a bit funny. Even if the army has iron discipline, it will be washed away by the current when crossing the river. Landing from the river is like climbing a mountain to attack from above, which is extremely disadvantageous to the attacker, not to mention they have many powerful bows and crossbows. , the rebels have almost no chance of winning, aren't they driving the soldiers to death?

"Perhaps the rebels were lucky and saw our army arriving for the first time and had not set up camp yet, so they wanted to catch us off guard!"

Li You's Sima and leaders were eager to fight and beat the rebels hard. This was a fruitless effort.

But Li You's long history felt something was different: "General Wei is a famous general. Those who are promoted to captain by him are probably not ignorant and stupid people, and they may be deceitful!"

Although Li You was a little unhappy, he still asked the entire army to be on guard by the river. Sure enough, the people on the other side hesitated and took a few steps in the water. When they saw that Li You was within shooting range, they stopped moving forward. , just shouting in the water...

"It's really a scam!"

Li Youmao said with his hand: "Han Xin is smart. He is following the example of the general's tactics, bluffing with partial divisions, pretending to be the main force, using more torches and flags, and pretending to cross the river to attract our attention, while the main force sneaks in at night. Sneak across to the upper reaches and outflank our army."

After a while, the scouts arranged by Li You to explore the upper reaches of the Xingle River came back and confirmed that there was a rebel army of thousands of people. They used the cover of the woods along the coast to sneak seven or eight miles upstream to the south and were trying to cross the river...

At this moment, Li You had two choices. One was to let the army rush over and eat the suspected soldier in front of him.

Second, attack the rebels ten miles upstream!

Even though the other party was just a nobody, Li You was not an adventurous person. After thinking about it, he said:

"The Art of War says, if a guest comes from across the water, do not greet him in the water, but attack him with only half his strength to gain advantage."

He made up his mind: "Let the elite chariots and cavalry march southward with light equipment! Attack halfway across the river and severely damage the rebels!"

…

There are no cities on both sides of the Juan River, only villages inhabited by Yue and Pu people. Everywhere is green water and green mountains. The mountains are full of pines, firs, and bamboos. The water is rich in fish, and there are fields of lotus leaves and lotus flowers in between. The water flows gurgling. flow.

But today, two Qin armies were at war with each other, which broke the tranquility of the river.

Li You sent his chariots and cavalry ahead, and led his army to the south. He could see several miles ahead. The fire covered both sides of the Xingle River. Not only his own side set off torches, but the rebels who were sneaking in secret also lit fires when they saw their whereabouts exposed. .

As we got closer, we heard sounds coming one after another. Mixed in with the roar of the water, there were the high-pitched shouts of people, the intersection of weapons and metal, and the screams of others, and it was hard to tell who was who.

Finally, when he got closer, Li You was able to confirm that his side had a big advantage in this battle.

However, they saw that thousands of rebels on the other side had nearly crossed the river, but they were blocked by the approaching cavalry. A burst of arrows were fired at them. Although they did not kill many because of the distance and the light, the opponent saw that their intentions were revealed, and those standing in the river People were in chaos.

On the other hand, the chariots and cavalrymen who arrived early had already dismounted to meet the enemy, entered the river, fought with the enemy, and moved further and further into the middle of the river. There were still more than a thousand people on the bank holding swords and spears, arrayed near the river, on guard. .

When the enemy saw Li You's army arriving again, the thing actually made a crisp sound of "Dang Dang Dang!"

"General, it's Ming Jin!" the military judge shouted.

"Enter when you hear the sound of drums and retreat when you hear the sound of gold. The sound of gold means withdrawal. Upon hearing this sound, the rebels who crossed the river began to turn around and walk towards the east bank as if they had been granted amnesty!

"The rebels are defeated!"

Li Youjun shouted, the rebel formation became more chaotic, and even the people on the shore began to retreat.

The two thousand people in the river were so desperate that they could not be let go so easily. He followed closely behind and chased after him.

Li You also wanted the whole army to attack and rush over, but Chang Shi was still calm and quickly advised: "General, it's better not to take risks. If we win this small victory, if we delay it for a few more days, the rebel army will fall apart."

However, his opinion was opposed by Sima and the leaders: "How can he be released when he can obviously accomplish his feats in one battle? If he is allowed to return to Lingnan, it will be even more difficult to deal with."

Li You was still hesitant, but most of his subordinates were urging him to cross the river to pursue him. After thinking about it again and again, seeing that the rebels were about to board the east bank after leaving hundreds of huge corpses, Li Youcai ordered:

"Han Xin, you are a coward, so let's go and take his head!"

He drew his sword, and at this moment, he felt that he had reached the pinnacle of his life:

"Cross the river! Chase!"

…

"Captain Han, all our troops have withdrawn to the shore, and the enemy troops have entered the water!"

On the east coast, Han Xin was not completely confused after encountering setbacks as Li You imagined.

On the contrary, he squatted in the army and silently observed every move on the other side. When he heard that Li You's army finally couldn't resist the temptation of counterinsurgency in a battle, he began to cross the river to pursue the defeated troops, and then he stood up!

"Great kindness!"

Seeing the fish enter the urn, Han Xin waved his hand and said: "Set up the lantern! Tell Captain Tao that the dike can be breached!"

Behind the military formation on the east bank, Mohist Azhong looked at the thousands of living beings coming across the river. He sighed, lit the paper lantern in his hand, raised it high, and released it. hand……

The lamp is made of bamboo strips, and is made of flexible bamboo and linen paper. As the cloth is ignited, the air in the cage expands and becomes lighter due to heat, and then slowly rises...

One, two, three... one after another swaying and floating into the sky, the lights flickering, like rising stars.

This was a new invention that General Wei asked Azhong to make after the war. It was used to transmit military signals at night. Everyone in the camp called it the "Mo Lantern" or "Heifu Lantern".

But Heifu gave it a name seriously.

"Ying Huo Lan..."

What it brings this time is not blessings and wishes, but destruction and death!

Seeing the bright lights rising into the sky, Li Youjun on the west bank of Xingle River raised his head with an expression of surprise. This was a strange sight they had never seen before.

But Han Xin on the east bank, Li Cang, who was raising suspicions downstream, and Xiao Tao on the bank of the dam upstream, all read out what Heifu had said.

"The lamp is high, the army will be overthrown and the general will be killed!"

Xiao Tao went into the water, and the upstream dike blocked by thousands of sandbags was dug out, and the river that had been suppressed for a long time was freed. They were filled with white waves, whizzing down from the upstream, like a group of galloping horses, rushing towards Li Youjun who was halfway across the river. And go!

…

ps: My hands are a bit raw and my coding is a bit slow. The second chapter is due before 12 o'clock.