Many candles were lit next to the central army tent, but the light was still dim. It was summer, and even though there were many soldiers and horses in the central army camp, the insects did not seem to be afraid of people. The insects outside the tent were chirping happily.
The group of people in the big tent were in high spirits, waiting to enter Youzhou city before the battle even started.
Guo Shao was also very tempted and said: If Xiao Siwen wants to leave the city, that would be great.
In Youzhou City, the Liao army can only have 20,000 to 30,000 elite soldiers for field battles at most; at this time, the Liao army really has nothing to fight. Guo Shao now has more than 100,000 elite infantry and cavalry soldiers in his hands. I am afraid that without sending out all the elite soldiers, the Palace Front Department can send two wing troops to defeat the Youzhou army.
Once the Youzhou defenders were defeated after leaving the city, the Great Zhou army could immediately occupy Youzhou. Under this situation, if Youzhou was occupied, the Liao army in the entire Hebei region would have almost no power to resist, and the surrounding states and cities would have to surrender without fighting. Most of the Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun could be recovered with a simple move. Everyone's eyes were shining.
Those looks were like the expression of a person who had been hungry for three months seeing a table of food and wine.
Wei Renpu took a deep breath in front of a group of people: I find it strange. What kind of medicine is Xiao Siwen selling
Guo Shao immediately looked at Wei Renpu. Wei Renpu's words really hit the nail on the head. It was really too strange.
But there was no question of underestimating the enemy or taking risks at this time. As long as the main force of the Liao army did not move south, there would be no risk for the Zhou army to fight recklessly with so many people in Hebei.
Guo Shao said calmly: If we can capture Youzhou without attacking the city, we can avoid many soldiers losing their lives on the battlefield.
This is what Guo Shao cares most about.
Wei Renpu pointed at the Youzhou topographic map beside him and said: The decisive battle will be held in the open area east of the city. I have two guesses. One is that Xiao Siwen wanted to lure the Great Zhou army to gather in the east of the city, and then he led his troops to abandon the city from the north and east to save his life; the other is that there was no hope of reinforcements, and Xiao Siwen knew that he would lose the city and the territory, so he threw in the towel and came to commit suicide.
Guo Shao pondered for a long time.
He thought that Xiao Siwen, the King of the Southern Courtyard, had a way to survive. Apart from surrendering, he might be able to survive, but he would definitely die. Youzhou was also very important to the Liao Kingdom. If they lost the garrison commander of Youzhou City, why would he not die
If Xiao Siwen had not kneeled down and surrendered to the Great Zhou, he would still be alive. Guo Shao really admired this man.
Moreover, how did Xiao Siwen survive
Since you are going to die, why bother breaking through
At this time, Wei Renpu's voice said: "I think that at five o'clock tomorrow morning, the elite infantry of the imperial army will be deployed in the east of the city, and the Wenyuhe cavalry camp will be moved east to the city of Youzhou, and deployed on both wings of the large array. Once the Liao army of Youzhou leaves the city, the central infantry will attack immediately; the cavalry on both wings will quickly break through to the front and back, looking for an opportunity to seize the east gate of Youzhou. If the city gate is closed, the army outside the city will be surrounded and the Youzhou army will be annihilated, and Youzhou City will still be within reach."
Wei's deputy envoy said something that made sense. Guo Shao's eyes were sharp, his speech was fast, but his words were very clear. As long as the Liao army left the city, taking Youzhou would be as easy as taking something out of a bag. Our primary goal is Youzhou. As long as the Liao army is willing to leave the city, we can do whatever we want.
In Guo Shao's opinion, Xiao Siwen was indeed doomed to die, but now there were signs that he was afraid that he was really greedy for life and wanted to make a feint to the east and attack in the west. The desire to survive is one of the greatest desires of human beings.
Guo Shao had a clear mind and said solemnly: To be on the safe side, the cavalry camp in the north should be moved to the east of the city to set up battle array. This will give Xiao Siwen the greatest hope and prevent him from being indecisive. When all the Liao troops left the camp, the two armies engaged in battle. The right wing of the Tiger Guards under Dong Zunhui quickly moved north to prepare for Xiao Siwen's breakout.
Your Majesty is wise
The ministers obey your order
That night, Guo Shao actually had some insomnia. But his insomnia was not due to worry. With the battle going on to this point, he really couldn't think of any reason to worry. He was excited and looking forward to it.
The next day, he got up before dawn because he hadn't slept well. Guo Shao asked Lu Chengyong to bring a basin of cold water, buried his face in the basin to wake up, and then put on his clothes and armor and hung his sword on his waist.
He drank a bowl of vegetable porridge and rode around. In the camp, the fire was still on, but it was already bustling and noisy. In the distance, a general shouted: "Eat half full, don't eat too much or you will lose your strength."
This was the order from Guo Shao when he led the army. He set up some very detailed rules. He was indeed a detail-oriented person. Because when you are full, the blood will be concentrated in the intestines for digestion, which will cause insufficient energy. Or, in folk terms, it is simpler: being full makes you lazy and hungry makes you anxious.
All the troops were ready, and they marched out of the camp in formation to the east. Each camp had a large flag, but the light from the torches was not bright enough to make it clear, so many messengers shuttled between the various formations to communicate the positions of the various troops.
Guo Shao also came to the battlefield with the army. The tens of thousands of soldiers were already a huge scene.
It was just dawn, the sun was far from rising, the air was humid, and there was a thin layer of mist in the sky. Guo Shao looked to the west and saw the shadow of the tall city tower of Youzhou City. In this hazy fog, the city tower looked even taller and more majestic, or it gave people the illusion that it was standing in the clouds.
The army formation was still quite far from Youzhou City, leaving enough space for the Liao army to go out of the city and form a battle array. The troops were waiting while forming their battle array.
After a long time, they suddenly saw torches in the distance. Immediately someone reported: The Liao army has left the city.
Guo Shao breathed a sigh of relief. No matter what tricks Xiao Siwen played, he wanted Youzhou.
There were more and more fires in the distance, and a large number of Liao army infantry and cavalry poured out of the city in groups. The Liao army really wanted to fight a decisive battle. Guo Shao sat on his horse, watching the scene in front of him calmly and expectantly.
After a long time, a horse suddenly came galloping from the north, heading straight for the tallest square yellow flag of the Great Zhou Army. The knight jumped off his horse and said anxiously: Your Majesty, the west gate of Youzhou is wide open, and the Liao cavalry has rushed out of the city.
Guo Shao was stunned after hearing this. This matter was expected, but also seemed unexpected.
Xiao Siwen really wants to break out
At the west gate, the Liao army's cavalry swarmed out with the sound of horse hooves, completely breaking the tranquility of the early morning, and large groups of horses rushed diagonally to the northeast.
Xiao Siwen rode out of the city and looked at the scene in the wilderness. The Zhou army's siege works were more than half a mile away from the city wall; because they were too close, they would be attacked by the heavy weapons on the city wall. The circumference was much larger than that of Youzhou City, estimated to be fifty miles. The Zhou army surrounded the city from three sides on a fifty-mile front. Even if there were 200,000 troops, they could not deploy heavy troops everywhere.
And their elite troops were gathered in the east of the city. Xiao Siwen believed that if they concentrated their elite cavalry and heavy forces to break through a line of defense, they would almost certainly succeed. As long as they were fast enough and were not surrounded by Zhou cavalry, it would still be possible to escape.
The Liao cavalry rushed forward with all their might. The Youzhou army was trapped in an isolated city, and they knew that there was no hope for reinforcements, so their morale was extremely low. However, once they were about to break out, their morale was high. After all, everyone was fighting for their lives.
Xiao Siwen shouted: Youzhou is no longer defensible, the Liao army will attack from two directions and fight to the death with the Zhou army
The generals just rushed forward, fighting to the death as long as they could break out of the encirclement. Everyone knew what was going on, and they were determined to hold the king hostage and run north.
The exciting iron horses roared and charged at lightning speed, and the blood of the battlefield was ignited again.
But Xiao Siwen couldn't be happy. He looked at the hazy road ahead. First, there were the siege fortifications of the Zhou army, and then he would face the pursuit and blockade of the cavalry. The grassland farther away was also a dangerous and thorny road ahead, which made him feel very heavy.
He looked back at Youzhou, this ancient city, leaving behind too many family members who could not be taken away, and the prestige of the Liao Dynasty that could not be taken away.
Bang, bang, bang. In the night sky, the sound of strings rang out densely, and a faint rain of arrows was flying. Teams of knights ran and shot arrows in front of the earthen walls and wooden fences. Fires shone everywhere, and shouts were heard everywhere.
A group of cavalrymen dismounted and carried away the chariot guns in front of a village gate. Behind the wooden railings of the village gate, rows of archers took turns shooting arrows. There was a village gate every other section of the fortification. The Zhou army built this fortification mainly for attack rather than defense, so there must be a place for easy entry and exit.
There was a wooden arrow tower inside the village gate. When Xiao Siwen looked up, he clearly saw two archers standing on horseback, desperately drawing their bows and shooting arrows downwards.
The Liao cavalry rushed to the gate of the village desperately under the rain of arrows. Many of them were shot and fell off their horses. The horses neighed and knelt on the ground. It was a tragic scene. But the Liao cavalry continued to rush to the gate of the village. Some of them shot arrows from inside, and some of them held iron bones and smashed the gate fiercely.
Another soldier climbed to the top of the village gate, and suddenly he let out a scream. He was stabbed in the abdomen and fell down. He curled up on the ground and shouted for his mother.
Xiao Siwen looked around and saw that the earthen walls and fences were covered with people.
At this time, a rider came galloping and shouted: "My king, we have captured the gate to the north. Please leave first."
After hearing this, Xiao Siwen spurred his horse and left. Abudi, who was beside him, followed him loyally, holding the Iron Bone Sword. Even the Han official Fan Zhongyi put on armor and followed Xiao Siwen to the fire pit of the north.
Xiao Siwen rode his horse to the gap and saw the gate of the village open. The Liao cavalry was pouring in. A group of Zhou infantry rushed up without knowing whether to live or die, but were immediately divided and dispersed by the cavalry. The iron swords and spears were raised high and killed, causing screams everywhere.
The Zhou army guarding the second line of defense was even thinner, and they were unable to gather their troops in a hurry. Even if they did, the Liao army could still evade them with their maneuvers.
Xiao Siwen led a large group of cavalry and charged forward, unstoppable. In front and behind the cavalry, the cavalrymen shot arrows and crackled, and any living thing close to the cavalrymen was shot into sieves by the cavalrymen who rushed by quickly.
But to break through the defense line, they still had to fight the Zhou cavalry on the vast plains in the north. Only by passing the victory gate could Xiao Siwen be considered to have passed the first gate of hell.
He looked back again, this was one of the many times he looked back. Youzhou City was surrounded by a vast expanse of fire. Perhaps this was his last look at the city.