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Feathered dispatches were sent from the border pavilion, and beacon fires were lit in Xianyang.
The army was stationed in Guangwu and troops were divided to rescue Shuofang.
Yan Qiu's muscles are strong and his enemy's formation is refined and powerful.
The emperor drew his sword in anger, and the envoys stared at each other from a distance.
Geese fly in a line along the stone path, and fish fly in a line across the flying beams.
The flutes and drums convey thoughts of the Han Dynasty, and the flags and armor are covered with frost from the Hu people.
The strong wind blew up the blockage and the sand and gravel flew into the air.
The horse's hair shrinks like a hedgehog, and the horn bow cannot be drawn.
In times of crisis, the loyalty of ministers is revealed; in times of chaos, loyal and honest people are recognized.
Sacrifice your life to repay your lord and die for your country.
The mighty Wei River flows from near Lintao, bringing with it the bloody wind of Longyou, roaring like a wave. On the north bank of the Wei River, two thousand elite cavalrymen followed the emperor, galloping westward, with dragon flags fluttering, yellow dust everywhere, and a bleak sky.
Messengers came frequently from the front, and feathered dispatches rushed forward. Qin Mu was wearing golden armor, riding a fine horse that could travel thousands of miles with black clouds and snow, and Niumashan was holding a dragon flag and galloping behind him. Zhu Yijin, Li Shi and others could not suppress their excitement, and they wanted to rush to the battlefield immediately to relive the glorious days of following the emperor in the bloody battlefield.
Lady Hong was dressed in red, with a red cape, and looked heroic. She rode a peach blossom horse and protected Qin Mu closely on his right side. Her son was given the name "Jing" by the emperor, which means to stabilize the country and bring peace to the nation.
Although her son was less than one year old, she entrusted him to the care of the empress and accompanied the emperor in person. Hong Niangzi was happy to do so. Returning to the Northwest where she had once fought, Hong Niangzi's heart was filled with emotions and she could not calm down for a long time.
The Wei River was the source of prosperity in the pre-Qin period. That black iron stream started from here, conquering the world and sweeping across the vast land.
Now the emperor of the Qin Dynasty wanted to follow the Wei River upstream to its source, so that the might of the Qin Dynasty could once again sweep across Longyou, Hexi, and even the entire Western Regions. Behind the dragon flag, iron hooves clanged, and black armors were like clouds. Every Qin army officer was excited to be able to follow the emperor in person.
The emperor rose from southern Jiangxi and swept across the country. With his outstanding military achievements, it was a great honor to be able to follow the emperor in his personal expedition.
But Qin Mu himself was very calm in his heart, and even felt a heavy pressure. He knew very well that although the soldiers regarded him as a god, he was not.
This campaign was different from the previous ones. In the past, when we conquered Jianghuai and swept the Central Plains, we had the advantage of time, place and people. But this time, it can be said that we had no advantage in time, place and people.
Tens of thousands of fierce enemies set off wars everywhere, and all of them were cavalrymen who came and went like the wind. They came from the plateau and desert, and had the best of both time and place. If things went wrong, the myth of his invincibility as the emperor would be broken, which would deal a heavy blow to his prestige and be extremely detrimental to his rule over the world.
When they were about to reach Qinzhou, another emergency report came from Lintao Prefecture. At the same time, Gushri Khan Bailutuhu sent another general, Temur, to lead 3,000 troops to attack Jin County (Yuzhong County) in the east and approach Tianding (Dingxi City). He also asked his son Dayan Oqier to divide 3,000 troops to attack Gaolan in the north.
Under the banner of the sky-shattering flag, Qin Mu hurriedly summoned Sima An and others. They spread out the map on the grass beside the Wei River and discussed countermeasures together.
Gu Jun'en, the left assistant minister of the Ministry of War, pointed to the map and said, "Your Majesty, Lanzhou has a special location. To the south, it leads to Lintao, Taozhou, Minzhou, and Sichuan. To the east, it passes through Jinxian, Tianding, and Gongchang, and is the main road from Xijing Chang'an to Lanzhou. To the north, it is Gaolan, Jinglu, Jingwei, and Hetao. To the northwest, it is Zhuanglangbao, which Dayan Ozier is attacking. This is the key point for Lanzhou to connect to Liangzhou and enter the Hexi Corridor. Finally, to the west is the main road to Xining, which has long been controlled by Bailutuhu. In this way, the main road from Lanzhou to the outside world has basically been cut off by Bailutuhu."
Yu Shangyou continued, "Yes, judging from the direction of the enemy's attack, its purpose of capturing the outskirts of Lanzhou and turning Lanzhou into an isolated city is obvious. What is worrying is that if the troops attacking Gaolan to the north succeed, Bailutuhu will be able to unite with Qitate in Hetao, completely cutting off the connection between Guanzhong and the Hexi Corridor, leaving the entire Hexi army isolated in a foreign land."
Since ancient times, there have been two most important roads from Guanzhong to the Hexi Corridor:
One is the route from Chang'an to the west, through Fengxiang (Baoji), Qinzhou (Tianshui), Gongchang, Tianding, to Lanzhou. In fact, this is the route Qin Mu is taking now. This route basically goes west along the Wei River.
Another road is from Chang'an through Jingzhou, Pingliang, Guyuan in the northwest, crossing the Yellow River at Zhongwei in Ningxia and heading west to Liangzhou.
Now Bailutuhu sent troops to attack Gaolan in the north. If they captured it and continued to move north, they would be able to reach Shouxia Zhongwei (Zhongwei City), which is the junction of the Hexi Corridor and Hetao, thereby cutting off another long passage leading to the Hexi Corridor in Guanzhong. They could also come into contact with Qitate in Hetao and form a situation of mutual assistance.
The situation is not optimistic, but Qin Mu also sees hope in it: "Bailu Tuhu's massive attack shows that he is aiming for great things. I am afraid he wants to take over the entire Longyou. This is exactly what I hope to see."
Yu Shangyou was slightly stunned after hearing what Qin Mu said, and secretly sighed in his heart, for the same thing, they first saw the crisis, while the emperor first saw the opportunity.
Of course, as subjects, they cannot give up a city or a pond easily, otherwise the impeachment from the imperial officials and censors alone will be enough for them to bear.
But as an emperor, he has the whole world under his control, so he can stand at a higher angle and see farther. He doesn't have to worry about being blamed for the loss of a city or a pond.
Qin Mu then added: "On the other hand, it also proves that Lanzhou is still stable and there is no danger of loss for the time being."
Sima An nodded and said, "Your Majesty is right. If Lanzhou could be attacked, Bailutuhu would not have to go to such great lengths. But then again, Bailutuhu dared to attack from all sides, which also proved that Ma Wannian of Lanzhou was no longer able to fight back."
Li Yuan said: "Your Majesty, no matter what, we still have to defend the Ningxia Zhongwei line. The Lanzhou line has been cut off by the enemy. We must keep a lifeline for the Hexi Corridor. Otherwise, the morale of the Hexi army will be in chaos, and Li Dingguo will be defeated in the end."
Qin Mu thought for a moment and said, "What Elder Li said is very true. Where do you think we should dispatch troops to strengthen the defense of Jingyuan and the Qingshui River to Ningxia Zhongwei?"
Sima An said: "If Your Majesty is unwilling to use Gao Yigong's troops, it seems that the only option now is to transfer Qin Yiming's troops stationed in Xijing and the troops stationed in Pingliang and Guyuan to the north."
Li Yuan said with some worry: "In this case, Xijing will be too empty. What if Su Jin's defense is slack and Qitate breaks through the Shuofang defense line and goes south? Looking at the Guanzhong area, there will be no soldiers left."
Qin Mu thought about it and it made sense. Although Qi Ta Texian wanted to manage Ningxia first, no one could rule out the possibility that he would take a risk and break through the Shuofang defense line to go south to make a fortune.
If he really broke into Guanzhong, the situation would be in chaos. You must know that the food and grass of the several armies ahead all rely on transportation through Guanzhong. Once Qitate enters Guanzhong, he will definitely choose to attack the Qin army's food route first.
To ensure everything is safe, Qin Mu said, "In that case, let's leave Hui Deng with 5,000 soldiers to stay in Qinzhou and make moves depending on the situation."
"That's very good." Li Yuan praised repeatedly.
After arranging all these, the topic finally returned to Lintao Prefecture. Should we abandon this strategic town and let Bailutuhu's army go south? Or should we urgently send reinforcements to block the enemy to the north of Lintao Prefecture
According to Qin Mu's previous deployment, he would let Lintao hold out for a while before withdrawing his troops and abandoning the city, in order to lure the enemy deep into his territory and create an opportunity to encircle and annihilate Bailutuhu's main force.
Sima An said: "Your Majesty, it seems that the previous battle plan needs to be adjusted urgently. With Bailutuhu attacking from all sides, it may not be difficult to annihilate all of his troops, but it will be difficult to annihilate all of his tens of thousands of troops."
This is also the reason why Qin Mu began to hesitate whether to give up Lintao.
Previously, Bailutuhu's main forces were concentrated. Once Lintao Prefecture was abandoned, they would definitely rush south to attack Taozhou, Gongchang, Minzhou and other places.
As the saying goes, you can't catch a wolf without sacrificing a lamb. If Qin Mu could use the prefecture of Lintao in exchange for the opportunity to completely annihilate Bailutuhu's army, he decided to give up Lintao in exchange for long-term stability in the entire Longyou and Hexi.
But now that Bailutuhu's forces have been dispersed, even if we give up Lintao, we may not be able to trap his main force. So giving up Lintao is not worth it.
But if we don’t give up Lintao, what can we use as bait
Qin Mu was caught in a dilemma for a moment. This is how war is, plans often cannot keep up with changes.
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ps: I was going to resume updating twice a day today, but there was a power outage today. I had already coded this chapter, but I had to go to an internet cafe to re-code it based on my memory. How sad!
.(To be continued..)
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