The Luokoucang battlefield is thousands of miles away, so let's take a look at the situation on the Meixian battlefield first.
As Chen Sangliang expected, on the afternoon of the 23rd, Xue Renguo's army, who had come from afar, joined forces with the Sui army's side division, Ma Sanbao. And set up camp, he personally led the army to fight under the city of Mei County. Ma Sanbao sticks to the city according to the order, confronts Xue Renguo firmly, and refuses to pay attention to Xue Renguo's provocation. He never thought that Ma Sanbao's deputy, He Panren, deceived Xue Jujun to be tired from afar, urged Ma Sanbao to fight, and even volunteered to lead the army to fight Xue Renguo himself.
He Panren was one of the important heroes of the Sui army's westward march to Guanzhong. Even Chen Sangliang respected him, and Ma Sanbao had to give him a little face. In addition, Xue Renguo was indeed a bit arrogant. He didn't even bother to build a camp and came to fight Ma Sanbao also felt that it was indeed an opportunity to wait for work with ease, so he agreed with He Panren to lead an army of three thousand out of the city to fight Xue Renguo.
As a result of the confrontation, Ma Sanbao and He Panren realized that they were the ones who underestimated the enemy. Xue Renguo, who was extremely powerful and extremely brave, clashed back and forth in the Sui army's formation, as if entering no one's land, and his armor was full of feathered arrows, which looked like hairy Hedgehog, still stupefied abruptly rushed through the Sui army's battle formation, and shocked the audience! During the uproar of the Sui army, Xue Renguo's generals Wu Shizheng and Hungan also took the opportunity to lead the army to attack. He Panren's army was defeated, and He Panren himself was stabbed by Xue Jujun's cavalry in the battle. In the city, Xue Renguo's army took advantage of the momentum and launched an attack on the city, trying to take down Mei County in one go.
Fortunately, the Sui army who rushed to the Meixian battlefield first did not idle a few days ago, and repaired the dilapidated city defense of Meixian to some extent. The Xue Renguo army, who had not had time to prepare siege weapons, wanted to use the ladder to climb and take the city. It was so easy, the condescending Sui Army soldiers relied on the advantage of the city wall to repel the attack of Xue Renguo's army after all, forcing the exhausted Xue Renguo army to give up attacking the city after dark and retreat to the Weishui River to sleep in the open.
Another incident happened that night that made Ma Sanbao vomit blood. Originally, after the scouts of the Sui army discovered that Xue Renguo's army had not established a strong camp and slept in the open, Ma Sanbao planned to take the opportunity to launch a surprise attack. However, there was a civil uprising first. Some people in Mei County, who could not bear the brutal rule of Emperor Sui Yang, set fire to the city in an attempt to open the city gate to welcome Xue Renguo's army out of the city. Although the prepared Sui army quickly suppressed these rebels, Ma Sanbao still Frightened into a cold sweat, the sneak attack plan was forced to abandon.
In the next few days, Xue Renguo's army attacked Mei County many times. Ma Sanbao and He Panren, who had suffered enough losses, did not dare to take any more risks. With enough siege equipment to attack the city, several attacks were repulsed by the Sui army. The Meixian battlefield finally returned to the balance of confrontation, but the Xue Renguo army clearly had the upper hand. Morale declined, and he was at a disadvantage on the battlefield.
The Xue Renguo army with a large number of cavalry did a good job in cutting off the Sui army in Meixian County from the rear. They stopped two Sui army messengers one after another. The situation of Ma Sanbao's army is not good. Li Jing, who has the closest blood relationship with Chen Sangliang in this world, also resolutely gave up his plan to cross the Weishui River in the north along the Sheshui River Estuary, and led his army to continue westward along the south bank of the Weishui River until it reached Xiazhai at the Wentang River Estuary. , Set up a camp thirty miles away from the city of Mei County.
Li Jing's decision puzzled all the generals of the Sui Army. Generals like Niu Jinda and Liu Shishan, who had seen Li Jing's use of troops before, were better off. It was a bit weak to do so, and together they remonstrated with Li Jing: "Vice Envoy Li (Chen Sangliang's temporary official position given to his cousin), our army has 20,000 troops, many elites, and there are General Ma and the others in Meixian County. , even if the cavalry is not as good as Xue Renguo's bandit army, the overall strength is still superior to him, why is it necessary to station troops at the mouth of Wentang River and confront the bandit army across Wen and Wei Ershui? Wouldn't it be too much to show weakness to Xue Renguo's bandit army?"
"I'm not showing weakness." Li Jing shook his head and explained: "Xue Renguo's bandit army has recently defeated our army's Meixian division, and their morale is high, and they stopped at the city of Meixian for several days. Going north will definitely hit Xue Renguo's arms. It is better to let Xue Renguo down than to let him be happy. First, rely on the Weishui strong camp to suppress his offensive, and wait for his impetuousness to show his flaws. Our army will take the opportunity to attack again, and we will surely win a big victory!"
The Qiu Shili brothers retreated suspiciously. Li Jing knew that they were not convinced yet, but he didn't care about it. He just ordered the army to build a solid camp while ordering the army to build a pontoon bridge on the Wentang River. , At the same time, send someone to contact Ma Sanbao, tell him the situation of his own army, let Ma Sanbao continue to stick to the city of Mei County, and wait patiently for the counterattack fighter to appear.
Of course, Li Jing, the god of war, cannot make too much deviation in his analysis of the enemy's mentality. As Li Jing expected, Xue Renguo, who was blocked in the city of Mei County, was indeed eager to fight, but Xue Renguo was not a brave man. Sui army reinforcements came west along the south bank of the Weishui River. Xue Renguo didn't take the initiative to send troops to intercept. It was not because he was afraid of dividing his troops, and it was not because he was afraid of being flanked by Ma Sanbao and Li Jing. Fight against each other and take advantage of his large number of cavalry. From a tactical point of view, Xue Renguo's choice was not only correct, but also very correct and smart.
It's a pity that Xue Renguo ran into Li Jing this time, stationed troops on the south bank of the Weishui River and erected a pontoon bridge on the Wentang River, which made Xue Renguo yelled and scolded Chen Sangliang's accomplices and lackeys for being cowardly and incompetent. Hiding in the city of Mei County as a coward, he dared not even cross the Wei River, nor did he have the courage to confront his own army face to face. Xue Renguo's two assistants, Wu Shizheng and Hungan, were also a little helpless. Ma Sanbao and Li Jing, who were passively avoiding the battle, had nothing to do. Adjust the mind of the strategy.
"Prince, this is not the way to go, we have to make a decision as soon as possible." Shizheng pointed out: "The old thief Li Yuan has been killed by the dog officer surnamed Chen, and his two sons ran north with the defeated soldiers. The Guanzhong battlefield is already isolated and helpless, and the officers and soldiers are not fighting, blocking our way. It is meaningless for us to continue fighting with them in Mei County. Even if we win, we cannot continue to advance. Instead of wasting time and food, Why don't we go back and take Yong County, force Dou Jing to let us enter the city, take Fufeng County and look down at Daxing, and wait until His Majesty's main force arrives, then consider entering Daxing."
Don't think that Xue Renguo has no brains because of his muscles, and don't think that Xue Renguo is an incompetent just because the historical records say that Xue Renguo is cruel, easy to kill and greedy. , Being a man is sometimes very courageous and courageous. After hearing the remonstrance from Shizheng, Xue Renguo nodded and said after a moment of calculation: "You are right, we sent troops this time too hastily and were not well prepared. It is really impossible to continue westward and take Daxing. Therefore, it is also the best policy to return troops to take Yong County—but we can’t do that yet.”
"Why?" Disobedient Shizheng was taken aback.
"The officers and soldiers will not allow us to take down Fufeng!" Xue Renguo pointed to the direction of the Sui army camp to the east, and explained: "Yong County is only two hundred and ninety miles away from Daxing. If our army takes down Yong County, we can do it at any time Threatening Daxing City, the officers and soldiers will definitely not allow this to be seen. If our army returns to the division to take Yong County, they will definitely pursue and stop it. If we are willing to open the city and surrender, then we will immediately face the enemy."
After all, Xue Renguo added another sentence, saying: "Don't forget, Mr. Dou Jin hasn't officially played the red and white anti-flag yet, and he is still a member of the army in reputation. Maybe defend the city and resist. Yong County is the prefecture of Fufeng County. The city is far stronger than Mei County, and it is also much harder to fight than Mei County. Therefore, if we want to return to the army to take Yong County, we must first kill the officers and soldiers in front of us. Go back to the teacher with peace of mind, and at the same time frighten Dou Jin's heart, it is more likely that he will take the initiative to open the city and surrender to us."
If Chen Sangliang, Fang Xuanling and the others could hear Xue Renguo's analysis, they would definitely be surprised and look at Xue Renguo with admiration. However, for Xue Renguo's confidant, Shizheng, it was not surprising to hear Xue Renguo's unique insights, and immediately nodded and said: "The prince is wise, it is true, if we want to win Yong County, we must first take down the officers and soldiers in front of us." Get rid of it."
"You don't need to kill them all, it's enough to kill the new army." Xue Renguo said confidently: "The officers and soldiers in Mei County have already been feared by us, and their strength is not enough to restrain us from attacking Yong County. Pay attention to them."
"Then we might as well cross the Wei River by ourselves, and go east to fight a decisive battle with the officers and soldiers." The fierce general Hungan suggested: "The Wentang River is shallow and narrow, and we can directly cross the river. As long as we move fast enough, the officers and soldiers don't have time to build What a solid camp."
As soon as Xue Renguo heard it, he immediately ordered the army to build a pontoon bridge on the Weishui River, preparing to cross the Weishui River to the south, and took the initiative to come to Li Jing for a decisive battle. In the evening of that day, the scouts of the Sui army reported the movement of Xue Renguo's army to Li Jing. Not only was Li Jing not surprised when he heard the news, he applauded and laughed and said, "Sure enough, it's good to cross the Wei River. The terrain south of the Wei River is narrow, which is not conducive to cavalry and infantry. Our army exploits strengths and avoids weaknesses." After laughing, Li Jing ordered the army to build a strong camp overnight, and called Yu Le, the captain of the Baoguo Army sent to him by his nephew Chen Sangliang, and whispered nothing in his ear.
In the early morning of the next day, after Xue Renguo's army left 5,000 troops to monitor the Sui army in Meixian County, the main force successfully crossed the Weishui River and headed eastward. However, to the surprise of Xue Renguo and others, the partial division of the Sui army who had only arrived at the mouth of Wentang River yesterday Li Jing's department had actually established a fairly strong camp in a little over a night, and it was no longer so easy for them to take down Li Jing's camp quickly.
Fortunately, Li Jing seems to have made a big mistake, that is, he forgot to dismantle the newly built five pontoon bridges on the Wentang River while quickly withdrawing his troops back to the camp. Straight across the Wentang River. However, after crossing the river, Xue Renguo, who was still a little tender, was unknowingly overshadowed by the treacherous Li Jing—Li Jing didn't leave him enough space on the river bank to deploy his troops. Forming to the west of the Sui army camp, the former army had to be completely exposed to the cover of the Sui army's strong bows and crossbows.
It doesn't matter, if you can't line up in the west, you can also line up in the south, with your back to the south and north to the south of the Sui army camp. Sticking to the camp fence, he watched Xue Renguo wasting his efforts outside the camp with a smile, and no longer made any arrangements. Xue Renguo scolded until he was drooling, but he didn't see the Sui army going out to fight. In desperation, he had no choice but to order a direct attack and storm the Sui army's camp head-on.
With many enemies and a strong camp, he still adopts a defensive posture. If Li Jing can't win again, he will have to change his name to Zhao Kuo. Under his command, the offensive and defensive battle of the camp was as standard as a textbook. As soon as the attacking Xue Renguo army entered the range of crossbow arrows, they were immediately suppressed by the volley of hard crossbows from the Sui army. The army paid a heavy price and rushed to the range of the bow and arrow, and the archers of the Sui army crossed the two wings of the crossbow formation to cover the incoming enemy. The iron armored crossbow, and then retreated more calmly and rotated the swordsman to move forward. When the Sui army had fired three rounds of crossbow arrows, the cross-firing archers released five rounds of feather arrows to cover densely. The poor infantry of Xue Renguo's army just Finally touched the edge of the Sui army camp.
After suffering so many arrows and crossbows, Xue Renguo's attacking team was able to rush to the Sui army's camp. Of course, the casualties were not small, and the casualties were heavy, but their nightmare was not over yet. The spears were stabbed and smashed, and there were sneak attacks from cold arrows from the fence from time to time. It was miserable. No matter how fierce the attack was, the progress was slow, and the number of casualties continued to rise.
If it weren't for the Longxi soldiers who were fighting tall and powerful, they also had a spear-throwing tactic, which could throw arcs to hurt the enemy at close range. This battle would be a one-sided massacre. It was still difficult to unleash their full power. Many spear throwers were shot by Sui soldiers with bows and arrows before they even threw their javelins, and fell to the ground screaming to death. Xue Renguo's army, which was already insufficient in strength, was also unknowingly forced by Li Jing to fight a war of attrition.
As the number of casualties continued to increase, Xue Renguo's quick temper gradually began to flare up. He cursed his subordinates for their incompetence, and even killed two of his own deserters on the battlefield. Seeing this situation in the Sui army camp, Li Yuan was overjoyed. , hurriedly called Liu Shishan, who was in command of the cavalry, and whispered in his ear, Liu Shishan was overjoyed to receive the order, and immediately went down to make arrangements.
The battle lasted for more than an hour. After Xue Renguo changed the attacking team for the third time, the cavalry of the Sui Army who had made sufficient preparations suddenly left the camp from the east. There were only about 500 people in number, but they made an arrogant detour The right wing of Xue Renguo's cavalry, who came to charge the right wing of Xue Renguo's cavalry, was angry at the disadvantage of attacking the camp. As many as 3,000 cavalry went to meet Liu Shishan.
Only Liu Shishan, who is five hundred riders, is stupid enough to fight head-on with Xue Renguo. As soon as Xue Renguo's cavalry attacked, Liu Shishan turned around and ran away with the cavalry, and even ran directly to the east. Xue Renguo would not miss such an opportunity. The ace cavalry just followed closely, and was led away from the camp battlefield by Liu Shishan in an instant.
Soon some of Xue Renguo's subordinates suspected that this was a trick to divert the tiger away from the mountain, and quickly reminded Xue Renguo to be careful not to stay too far away from the main force of the infantry, but Xue Renguo ignored it at all because of his fast horse and trust in the command ability of the army. He kept turning around in front, yelling and provoking, which made Xue Renguo chase after him like crazy, and was soon led away by Liu Shishan for more than 20 li from the battlefield.
The enemy's trump card cavalry was successfully lured away, and the enemy's chief general was also lured away from the battlefield. Of course, Li Jing laughed the most happily in the Sui army camp. After calling Qiu Shili and Qiu Xinggong brothers, Li Jing They were ordered to lead 3,000 infantry out of the camp from the east gate, and continue to detour back to attack the right wing of the main infantry of Xue Renguo's army.
The Qiu family brothers who were eager to make meritorious deeds happily accepted the order, but because Xue Renguo's army calmly strengthened the defense on the right wing after the cavalry left, and arranged the exhausted soldiers from the previous rotation on the left wing with a small space, the Qiu family brothers did not Dare to underestimate the enemy, and cupped his hands to Li Jing and said: "Vice Envoy Li, after the last general launches an attack, please send an army in the front to contain the frontal force of the bandit army, so that the last general will be more confident."
Li Jing smiled, and said with a smile: "Of course I will send troops from the front, but I will not send troops from the front until you have defeated the central army of the bandit army."
The Qiu family brothers looked up in surprise, not knowing what kind of medicine Li Jing sold in the gourd, but Li Jing smiled again: "Before our army attacks directly, I also have reinforcements for you, and when you attack, your reinforcements will appear behind the enemy! "
"Behind the enemy?" The Qiu family brothers were first startled, and then subconsciously quickly looked behind Xue Renguo's army—the south of Xue Renguo's back was the Zhongnan Mountains with high mountains and dense forests.
"No wonder you deliberately didn't leave an open space on the east side of our camp, the deputy envoy. So you have been preparing to lure the bandits to set up camp with their backs facing Zhongnan Mountain!" The brothers of the Qiu family suddenly realized, and overjoyed, Qiu Shili asked doubtfully again: "But Deputy Envoy Li, when did our ambush be arranged in Zhongnan Mountain? Why didn't we see our troops mobilized before?"
"Forget that we have an army with few troops but a very strong fighting force?" Li Jing asked back with a smile.
Some white shadows flashed quickly in their minds, and the Qiu family brothers suddenly realized again. Overjoyed, they saluted Li Jing solemnly, and then rushed down to lead the troops to fight. After Li Jing nodded with a smile, he ordered to the soldiers beside him: Wolf smoke, send a signal for the Nationalist Army to attack."
At the same time, Xue Renguo's cavalry had been led away from the battlefield by Liu Shishan for 30 miles, but Liu Shishan's army, who was fully prepared to go into battle with light clothes, was still turning around and yelling, "Son Xue Renguo, if you have the ability, come over and fight me to the death! Come on! Come to me if you can!"