(Happy Dragon Boat Festival! Good luck! PS: Sincerely thank Sven for the tip, it is very domineering. Thank you Wanwan and shawn921 for the tip, thank you.)
Chapter 198: New Year¡¯s Eve of War
The soldiers of the Sui Army far away on the northwest prairie are about to spend the first Spring Festival in their lives that is not spent at home. Tomorrow is New Year's Eve. Except for the soldiers on duty, everyone else has found their acquaintances to gather together and chat. The difference between the Central Plains Han people and the Eastern Chu Mengyuan people is not only the difference in appearance, but also the difference in personality. The Han people love their families, and the saying about their parents traveling far away has been passed down to this day.
"The people of Dongchu are accustomed to traveling around, and they regard traveling and doing business as their life. In their minds, home is just a word. The Mongolian people lived by grass, and they were accustomed to driving cattle and sheep to live a nomadic life. Even if they can't leave the tribe's fiefdom, the pastures of several thousand miles are enough for them to wander back and forth.
The topics that soldiers gather to discuss cannot be separated from what people in their hometown are doing at this time. Some people licked their lips and said they really wanted to take a bite of dumplings. This sentence resonated with many people. Soldiers in the south of the Yangtze River did not have particularly strong feelings for pasta, but soldiers in the north loved dumplings more than food. In their view, dumplings represent more than just a kind of food.
People came and went in the camp with a radius of more than 20 miles. In order to let the soldiers feel a sense of the New Year, the generals even found some ways to find some red cloth and carefully decorated it in the military camp. I don't know where the quartermaster dug out some big red lanterns, and hung them outside several large tents of the Chinese army. They looked particularly friendly.
The soldiers kept talking until it was almost dark and it was time for dinner, and then they were surprised to find that everyone could get half a catty of cooked meat for today's dinner. For an army that went on an expedition and did not capture any cattle, sheep, or horses, it was worth cheering that each person could get half a catty of cooked meat. You must know that these pork were transported thousands of miles from the pass. In order to supply an army of 700,000 people, the manpower and material resources consumed by this meal were astronomical.
General Li Yuanshan inspected his camp in the night. As the northwest-most general of the empire's garrison, he played a decisive role in this war. And the biggest advantage of Youxiao Guard compared with other guards is that Li Yuanshan has spent all his efforts and methods as a general over the years to form a heavy armored cavalry of 2,000 people.
You Xiaowei's heavy cavalry is the first heavy cavalry since the founding of the Sui Dynasty.
Equipped with armor, the war horse is invulnerable to bullets and arrows. When charging into battle, it can easily crush the enemy into powder like a heavy tank. In this heavy cavalry of 2,000 men, each cavalry member enjoys treatment that is unmatched by other soldiers. Each of them has two retinues that belong only to them. In addition to a tall and majestic war horse, there is also a horse carrying personal belongings. After all, they couldn't wear armor weighing at least forty pounds all day long, and their horse harnesses were much larger and heavier than those of ordinary soldiers.
"The Jingbu Battalion is the standard equipment for every guard soldier, so there is nothing outstanding about it.
But precisely because Youxiaowei is the northwest-most army stationed there, the number of soldiers is larger than the number of soldiers in the hinterland of the empire. According to the military system of the Sui Dynasty, each guard had 36,000 soldiers and 8,000 auxiliary soldiers. Counting other military personnel, the total number was less than 50,000. The Youxiao Guard has a special decree from the emperor and can recruit 12,000 more combat troops and 2,000 auxiliary troops. In terms of total scale, one Youxiao Guard has almost one-third more troops than the other guards.
For the entire Da Sui, the only war team that can be compared with You Xiaowei is the left avant -garde in the southwest of the garrison. So someone in the court made an analogy: Li Yuanshan in the northwest and Luo Yao in the southwest are the two Optimus Primes in the west of the empire.
Li Yuanshan was ordered to be the vanguard of the Western Expedition, and his army was always at the forefront. But after several consecutive battles, the loss of Right Xiaowei was not too great. The troops and horses that the emperor recruited from all over the empire were also under the control of several generals. On the battlefield, these troops and horses recruited from various places were the real vanguards. No general would be stupid enough to use all his hands. soldiers.
Including the first battle, the 5,000 men and horses led by Li Xiaozong, although they were under the banner of You Xiaowei, the actual soldiers of You Xiaowei were only one attack camp.
"General, the first battle after the New Year is still left to us This is a bit unfair. We are working hard at the front, while they are taking advantage of the situation behind!"
Yin Poshan, one of the Seven Tiger Generals under Li Yuanshan, said with some dissatisfaction.
Li Yuanshan waved his hand and said: "Your Majesty uses the right Xiaowei as the vanguard. We will naturally rush to the front. Don't just look at the losses. If this war is won, the vanguard will gain much more than the other troops. Have you forgotten Luo Yao? During the empire's war to destroy the Shang Dynasty, Luo Yao's left wing was always at the forefront., when more than 40,000 troops captured Yongzhou, less than 15,000 were left, and the losses were indeed heavy. But what now? Both the late emperor and His Majesty felt they owed Luo Yao and indulged him in every possible way. Who knows how many men Luo Yao has now? "
"Our right guard has fought this battle, and the loss of casualties will not be small, but the honor for those who survive will also not be small, even greater than Luo Yao's left guard!"
Li Yuanshan said calmly: "I've always told you to take a longer view. Even if you can't see ten years from now, try to see three years from now or five years from now. The longer you look, the more likely your The future will be greater.¡±
"My subordinates understand."
Yin Poshan bowed his head and said.
Li Yuanshan shook his head: "You don't understand. I know your temper best. It's not much easier for you to think about these things than to give birth to a child. Among the seven of you, the one with the calmest temper is Xu. Xiao. Looking at it now, Li Xiaozong is almost the same as Xu Xiao, so I will hand over the vanguard of the vanguard army to him instead of you."
"The general is so flattering that his subordinates are ready to be punished"
Li Xiaozong, who was following behind, lowered his head and said.
"What's your crime?"
Li Yuanshan smiled: "The first battle was fought like this because it was done according to my wishes. If you are guilty, don't I also be guilty?"
"but¡¡"
He paused and said: "The first battle after the new year should be fought beautifully. Prince Fei Ge sent us a message, let us act more realistically, first fight a few victory battles to boost your morale to make His Majesty happy, first be happy and then be disappointed. Your Majesty's anger will be even greater. So you must remember that in the next battle, fight how you want. If you lose someone again, I will kill your guy first."
"Here!"
Several generals bowed their heads and responded.
Li Xiaozong hesitated for a while and asked in a low voice: "General, please allocate another five thousand troops to your subordinates. This time, I will definitely fight well."
"you are tired"
Li Yuanshan waved his hand: "Let Xu Xiao fight the next battle. You can rest for a few more days."
Li Xiaozong¡¯s expression suddenly changed, and there was a trace of resentment in his eyes. This hatred is as strong as the night that cannot be melted away. Although it was fleeting, it was extremely clear. Li Xiaozong concealed his dissatisfaction by bowing his head in agreement, but there was a fire burning in his heart.
¡¡
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A dozen people wearing black night clothes stepped on the moonlight chopped up by the clouds, lowering their bodies and walking as fast as wild beasts in the grass. Not only did they cover their faces with black cloth, they even had their heads wrapped tightly, leaving only a pair of bright eyes exposed. These dozen people were like fish swimming in the sea. The vast and vast grassland like the sea was their home, so even if the night got darker and darker, their speed did not slow down at all.
The leading man in black suddenly stopped while running, and then made a gesture. A dozen men in black immediately fell to the ground and lay motionless in the grass. Not long after, more than twenty war horses passed by not far from where they were hiding, and the black armor of the knights on the horses announced their identities.
It is the wandering horse of Sui Dynasty.
This place is less than three miles away from the Sui Army's camp, and the Sui Army's ranger patrols pass by more and more intensively. The dozen or so men in black moved forward cautiously, and their forward speed slowed down a lot after avoiding the group of rangers.
The leading man climbed up a high slope, lay down in the grass and looked at the brightly lit Sui army camp not far away. In such a deep night, the lights that stretch for twenty miles are like a shining lake wave. The ups and downs of the camp are the waves of this great lake.
¡°The flag owner said that the Sui people¡¯s New Year¡¯s Eve is as important as our Lent, and it¡¯s true you see"
The leader of the men in black pointed at the Sui army camp and said: "Although it seems that the defense is still tight, the moving torches in the camp are patrolling soldiers, and there seem to be a lot fewer soldiers than before."
The man in black next to him sneered lowly and said: "Master Qian Fu, the Sui people have the nerve to claim to be the nation that knows the best about war. Look, there are red lanterns hanging outside the big tents of the Chinese army. , This is extremely idiotic. It seems to be telling us that those tents are the residence of the Sui army commander. "
The leading commander is called Agudamu, and he is a capable general under Mandu Wolf in Nirvana City. Although he is young, he has profound cultivation and a cold and ruthless temperament, and he kills people without blinking an eye.
¡°It¡¯s a habit that¡¯s hard to change.¡±
Agudamu whispered: "The general once sneaked into Fangu City disguised as a herdsman and knew the habits of the Sui people. Every New Year's Eve, the Han people would hang up red lanterns in front of their homes."?They also eat a food called dumplings and set off firecrackers. Just like how we celebrate Lent, Sui people are almost undefended on New Year's Eve. Their soldiers also have to drink wine and eat meat. Even criminals in prison will get wine and cooked meat. Especially on New Year's Eve, they are the least alert. "
"This time, even if we can't win completely, we will always be able to catch the Sui people by surprise."
Another man in black said.
Agudamu shook his head and said: "Don't be careless. Even though the Sui people have many habits that are difficult to change, what you see in front of you are real soldiers, and there are too many of them."
¡°Ten thousand sheep cannot stop a wolf from attacking.¡±
A man in black smiled and said: "Just wait, tomorrow night we will let those Sui people have a taste of the scimitar."
Agudamu hummed, pointed to the front and whispered: "Go forward a hundred steps and see if you can see more clearly. Spread out and choose a good place to hide. When the hourglass is gone, return here to assemble immediately, and we will rush back to report to the young flag master and the general before dawn. "
"Huha"
The men in black responded in a low voice, then each chose a direction and dispersed.
Agudamu did not move and remained on the high slope.
On another high slope less than 150 steps away from him, there were several people with their bodies tied with dead grass lying in the grass. The hats on their heads and their clothes were all camouflaged, so even if they walked up to them in this night, they couldn't be easily spotted.
One of them put down his clairvoyance, lowered his voice and asked a petite man next to him: "Master Qianhu, do you want to capture one of them and bring him back for torture?"
The person known as Qianhu shook his head slightly, and habitually picked a piece of fur grass and held it in his mouth: "Let them watch as much as possible, and before leaving, inform the rangers to catch a few. If you let them go so easily, On the contrary, they will be a little suspicious. We just keep an eye on whether anyone is approaching the camp, and arresting people on the battlefield is not the responsibility of the Ouchi Guards."
Listening to her talk, she turned out to be a woman.
"Here"
The person who asked the question responded and raised his clairvoyance again to look at the high slope opposite.
Nv Qianhu, who was lying on the grass, looked up at the moon that was half covered by clouds, and chewed the piece of furry grass with her lips moving slightly. The grass is withered and yellow, so there is no bitter taste.
She felt sweet as she thought of the young man far away in Chang'an City. That guy knew how to use weeds to camouflage him at a very young age, wear clothes of different colors in different environments, smear some ugly colors on his face, and even stay motionless in one place for a whole day. It won't budge even if it's spread in pants. He said it was a means of survival. She looked down on him at the time, but later she gradually realized that these means were really useful.
Having changed into grass-yellow clothes, they would not be noticed even if they were hiding in the grass during the day. Relying on this color camouflage, people from the Ouchi Guards Office approached Mandu Banner's camp many times.
What is he doing now?
She is thinking.
There was no shadow of him in the moon, but she was so fascinated by it.