Da Tang: Father, can I resign?

Chapter 342 A Two-Way Journey in a Certain Sense

A few days later, one morning, at the hour of Mao.

On the watchtower of Jinyang City.

Gollum~
The sentry guarding the watchtower was awakened by a thunderous noise.

"Who?!"

He looked around for a long time before realizing that it was the sound of his stomach growling.

Because he was hungry, he secretly took a nap while on guard duty in order to save energy. However, he was woken up by hunger not long after sleeping. It was really a black humor.

"When will this damn day end..."

The unfortunate soldier muttered and leaned weakly on his rifle.

I eat two meals a day, and both meals consist of porridge so thin that you can count a few millet grains.

This comfort meal not only temporarily deceives your stomach, but also exercises your bladder.

It really doesn't provide much nutrition.

Even maintaining basic vital signs is difficult.

"When was the last time you were able to eat a solid meal?

"Damn the imperial court, they are clearly cutting off the other side's food supply, but why are we also starving...

"What the hell was that?!"

The soldier was cursing the imperial court when he suddenly noticed a dark mass... "thing" vaguely appearing in the north.

In the dim light of the early morning, the sentry couldn't see clearly, so he rubbed his eyes and looked carefully.

It was like a dark cloud, advancing towards the city of Jinyang, close to the ground.

The soldier was almost suffering from night blindness from hunger and couldn't see what it was at all.

But he didn't need to see it clearly.

Based on his years of combat experience, he immediately sounded the alarm:
"Enemy attack! Enemy attack!!!"

Torches were immediately lit up on the city walls, and the sounds of busy and orderly footsteps rose and fell, occasionally mixed with the clanging sounds of armored soldiers.

Almost in the blink of an eye, the defenders were ready for battle in their respective positions.

Under Li Shimin's prior arrangements, the Tang army soldiers were on high alert, waiting for the desperate Ming bandits to arrive at their doorstep.

General Tian Ce has a brilliant plan, and the egg really hits the stone!

Li Shiji quickly climbed up the city wall and personally looked at the direction where the enemy was coming from.

Spring has arrived but not fully, and with the continuous clouds, the sun is rising very slowly.

The sky was dawning, and the light was in an ambiguous state where it was possible to see clearly but not likely to see clearly.

Li Shiji opened his eyes wide and could only make out some rough outlines coming from the north.

There were people, horses, and large equipment, suspected to be battering rams and catapults.

It really looks like a proper siege force.

"How many Ming troops have come? Can you count them clearly?" Li Shiji asked.

The sentry rubbed his eyes and reported honestly:

"I can't see clearly, but it looks like there are a lot of people..."

Ashina She'er pushed the little sentry aside:
"Let me take a look. I grew up on the grassland and can see far."

"Well, thank you, Zuo Pushe." Li Shiji took the initiative to make way.

Ashina She'er frowned, stared at the dark mass for a long time, wiped his teeth, and muttered:

"cunning……"

Li Shiji asked hurriedly:
"How many people are coming from the other side? Are they the main force of the Ming army?"

If the enemy's main force really pressed forward and tried to storm Jinyang City.

That means they are really desperate and struggling to survive.

Siege warfare has always been a difficult point in military strategies throughout history, both in China and abroad. Ordinary generals generally try to avoid forced sieges.

For a general as powerful as Tian Ce, the battle to capture Luoyang was the highlight of his military career, and he boasted about it all his life.

This is enough to show how rare a successful siege is.

"I don't know." Ashina She'er looked at it with great effort for a long time before he looked away and rubbed his eyes tiredly.

Li Shiji was stunned: "You can't see it either?"

Ashina She'er shook his head:
"The enemy has set up smoke in the army formation to deliberately confuse our vision!"

"It is just as Your Majesty expected..." Li Shiji's expression was full of surprise.

The Ming army suddenly took action, rushing over without any warning, as if they were going to use their skulls to ram the iron walls of Jinyang City.

This is enough to show that they have really reached the point where they are out of food and supplies and have reached the end of their rope.

Otherwise, they could have just stayed in Daizhou and waited for the Tang army to collapse first.

"Whoever can't hold on first will make stupid moves and fail at the last moment...

"As expected of your Majesty, you have calculated everything!"

he murmured.

The enemy's blind action gave the Tang army the opportunity to defend and counterattack.

As we all know, Li Shimin, the general of Tiance, is best at defensive counterattack.

The enemy Kuku's fierce attack was resolved, and when he was retreating, Li Shimin caught him by the tail and took him away in one wave.

This was Old Li's signature tactic, which was well known to his military colleagues of the same generation. There was no way Li Jing didn't know about it.

But since the enemy knows the military deployment habits of their strongest opponent, why would they foolishly send them up and give him the opportunity to launch a defensive counterattack?
Because we have to fight this way.

In the early stages of a war, Li Shimin would use insane logistical harassment tactics to force the enemy into a desperate situation where they would run out of ammunition and food, forcing them to fight to the death.

This is why even if General Tian Ce's opponents knew, they could only give him the opportunity to counterattack like fools.

Because there is no solution to the conspiracy!

Even a strong man like Li Jing is not immune to this!

"This is a great opportunity for battle." Ashina She'er couldn't help licking his lips.

Attacking a city is difficult, but defending it is relatively easy.

Generally speaking, you just need to defend the city gate, shoot some arrows, and wait for the opponent to give you your head.

"That's right." Li Shiji nodded to his old comrade.

"Next, we just need to follow your majesty's plan.

"Open the city gates and attack with all your forces!"

…………

"Go out of the city to meet the enemy? Is that true?"

"Is it your Majesty's order?"

"Your Majesty is getting old and confused..."

"Nonsense! The insects must have misheard your majesty's order!"

When they heard that they had to leave the city and confront the Ming army head-on, a lot of controversy broke out among the middle and lower levels of the Tang army.

It’s not that they are cowardly, but that’s not how you fight a city defense.

They are all experienced workers who have served under General Tian Ce for a long time and have some understanding of some basic strategies and tactics - after all, this is related to their own brains.

Defensive counterattack Defensive counterattack, you have to defend first, then counterattack.

In a siege, the defenders have to wait until the opponents have almost given away their heads and started to retreat before they can rush out to reap the rewards.

But now, General Li Shiji's order to attack...

If you have high emotional intelligence, you will find it unusual; if you have low emotional intelligence, you will find it stupid.

Because they had been hungry for a long time, everyone's stomachs were filled with nothing but air and resentment, so these elite Tang troops couldn't help but complain a few words.

But despite their complaints, they still lined up for the attack and resolutely carried out the orders from their superiors.

With the sound of chains clicking, the heavy Jinyang City slowly opened its unfathomable mouth like a giant beast from ancient times.

The North Gate of Jinyang, which had been closed for months, was opened wide.

"rush!"

At the command, the cavalry spread their wings like a roc and encircled the enemy from the left and right; the infantry in the central army descended from the mountain like a tiger and pressed forward in formation.

The army rushed forward.

The absolute main forces of the two superpowers, Tang and Ming, are about to engage in a head-on confrontation under the city of Jinyang.

Like Mars hitting the Earth, a tragic war is about to break out——

Just when the Tang army thought so.

The Ming army on the opposite side turned around and ran... ran... ran.

"Huh? So the Hebei guys and Liaodong bandits are so cowardly?"

While the Tang army was stunned, the Ming army turned around and ran back.

What kind of trick is this... The Tang army was frightened by the enemy's sudden counterattack and urgently changed their formation to meet the attack.

Unexpectedly, the next development surprised them even more——

This group of Ming troops who made a surprise counterattack did not confront the Tang army, but set fire to their own siege equipment.

Then he turned his horse's head again and ran away without looking back. He ran away... "Hiss? Eh?"

The Tang army was confused by the opponent's abstract tactics. After a long while, they suddenly reacted.

"Chase!"

However, these cunning rebels ran away very quickly.

Everyone rode a horse and whipped it, heading towards the Taihang Mountains in the east. They ran away in a flash.

Pretend to be cool and then run away to highlight the excitement.

What’s even more infuriating is that just as they were about to escape into the darkness of the early morning.

For some reason, these bitches slowed down again and started to flirt and seduce in front of the Tang army.

He still pretends to be cool after running, what a shame.

"It's too much to bully others..."

The Tang army had gone hungry three times a day and was already full of anger.

Now we are being bullied by the arrogant Hebei guys. This is simply outrageous. I can tolerate it, but I can’t!

"Hey! Where can you escape, thief?"

Just as the Tang army was about to pursue, they heard a series of urgent gong sounds from their own camp, urging them to return.

Actively open the door to welcome the enemy, and then give up pursuit?
The outrageous operations on both sides burned up the CPUs of the grassroots soldiers.

Just when they were confused, there was another burst of urgent drumbeats, urging them to attack.

"Don't chase these fleeing soldiers, they are bait! Don't go into the mountains! March north quickly! To Shuozhou!"

The officers' roars rose one after another, and they tried their best to pull the troops that were scattered towards the mountains in the east towards the north.

The Tang army soldiers were completely unable to do this.

What the hell is going on up there?!

Isn’t the main force of the enemy in Daizhou? Why would they cross Daizhou and turn around to attack Shuozhou?

Where is Shuozhou? There is an entire Ming army base camp between them and Jinyang!

Roads suitable for large-scale marches must be strictly guarded and controlled by the Ming army!
Isn't this asking everyone to charge into the enemy's camp?

The Ming army came to Jinyang city and sent heads thousands of miles away, but they refused to accept them and instead rushed to send their own heads to Gang County?

What are the top executives on both sides doing? Are they giving and receiving gifts to each other?
What's in Shuozhou? Li Shiji's mother?

They really don't know what's going on in the gourd above.

Could it be that the command system has been infiltrated by the Ming army's spies?
"What are you still thinking about? How are you going to explain to His Majesty the Emperor if you missed the chance to fight?! If you like Taihang Mountain so much, I will kick you all up the mountain to feed the insects!"

The officer shouted and threatened.

The soldiers looked at each other and shrugged helplessly.

All right, let’s just take Shuozhou. Even if our entire army is annihilated and the country changes hands, don’t blame us for our poor performance.

You asked for this.

Although their stomachs were empty and filled with nothing but complaints, the Tang army was still the Tang army.

Even though they were full of confusion, they still carried out their superiors' orders without hesitation, leaving behind the Ming "ruled army" that fled to the mountains and forests in the east, and marched rapidly towards Shuozhou.

…………

At the same time, Ming Dynasty.

The main forces of the Ming army stayed in the base camp in Gang County and did not go south to fight Jinyang.

They were busy packing up supplies for the march.

They are ready to moisten.

Run to the north and go to Shuozhou.

Instead of eating nine meals a day and eating cold wind every day here in three days, it is better to go to Shuozhou in the north to replenish my blood.

It is farther away from the Tang army's front line, and Li Shimin's evil claws will never be able to reach the supply line there!
Finally we can get some food, brothers!

Since this winter, the officers, soldiers and civilians of Gang County have been living no better than homeless people hunting in the wild.

A total of 80,000 strong young men were trapped and died in a small county town, with supplies almost cut off. What does this mean?
Don’t forget that the local people also need food!
Although the Ming army prepared supplies for the winter in advance, and although the winter was a bit hard, at least no one starved to death.

But after the winter, the enemy blockade still showed no signs of slackening, and the people here still had to eat every day!
If we continue to be trapped here, a humanitarian crisis will break out sooner or later.

It's time to abandon the Daizhou position and retreat northward.

But what if we were pursued by the Tang army during the retreat?
This is the situation most likely to result in the annihilation of the entire army.

But never mind, Lord Li Wei must have made adequate countermeasures.

No matter what, it's better than staying here and doing nothing but starving!

There was a bustling bustle inside and outside the barracks.

In the military tent, several generals were sulking and their faces were red.

"Our army was defeated before we even had a chance to fight a proper battle..."

Su Dingfang murmured.

Although the winter was tough and his stomach was growling with hunger, he missed more than once the peaceful life as a patrol officer in the capital.

But when it came time to retreat to a safe rear area, Lao Su suddenly felt extremely lost.

Do you want to be a coward for the rest of your life, or be a hero for just one minute...

"Daizhou is the front line of the battlefield and has great strategic significance. How could it be lost just like that? Then why did we spend so much effort to fight for it in the first place..."

Xue Rengui muttered to himself along with Lao Su.

Daizhou is a strategic __cpLocation, controlling the middle of the Fen River Valley.

In fact, any section of the Fen River Valley is a strategic location.

It is really depressing to see the country being handed over to others without a major battle.

"You two should just keep quiet. This decision was made by Li Jing, the Duke of Wei, after consultation among the generals present.

"The entire army is now making final preparations for evacuation, and the decoy troops have already been dispatched. It is impossible to turn the pancake over again."

Li Dao Zong scolded.

Although he could understand the feelings of the two men, it cost the Ming army a lot to resist Li Shimin's counterattack and maintain the front line in Daizhou.

But the situation is stronger than the people. The mere 80,000 troops here cannot defeat the entire Tang Dynasty.

"What are you always mumbling about, 'strategic __cpLocation, strategic __cpLocation'? His Majesty Li Ming often says, 'If we lose everyone, we lose everyone'. Do you know that?

"If all our 80,000 men are killed, what's the point of guarding so many strategic locations? They can still be solved with just a breath of the Tang army!"

Hou Junji, the initiator of this strategic shift and the "Idea King", did not tolerate the two complaining people and began to educate them in a hoarse voice.

Yes, Hou Junji’s plan was not to go to extremes and fight to the death against Jinyang City.

Instead, they pretended to fight to the death for Jinyang City and used a small number of death squads to attract the attention of the Tang army.

At the same time, the main force retreated to Shuozhou.

Old Su and Xiao Xue were educated into silence.

Indeed, what Hou Junji and Li Daozon said is absolutely true.

The whole winter of hardship was a cruel torture for all the Ming army.

Not only were the soldiers consumed by the urge to become diet immortals, but the generals were also frequently experiencing intermittent fasting.

They've been starving for the past few months...

The food they stored in Daizhou at the beginning of the war was basically eaten up by the soldiers and civilians there after one winter, leaving them with nothing to eat.

Although Li Ming took into consideration the face of nobles such as generals and marshals, he did not force them to share the same hardships as ordinary soldiers and follow the same dietary standards.

However, when his subordinates were all starving, even the most hard-hearted Hou Junji could not bear to let them enjoy the good life alone.

Even if you have no compassion at all, you have to pay attention to the impact and not force a mutiny in the army.

Finally, the nightmare life of endurance is coming to an end.

Finally, I can leave Daizhou, this dangerous place, and go to Shuozhou in the north to eat rice.

If I keep wasting time here, I'm going to get depressed.

No matter whether it was Lao Hou, Lao Li, Lao Su or Xiao Xue, all the generals felt a sense of relief from the bottom of their hearts.

It also alleviated a lot of the depression caused by not being able to bear the retreat.

"In the end, I still couldn't outlast the opponent."

Li Jing sat in the upper seat and spoke calmly, without any trace of annoyance in his tone.

Hou Junji was in a good mood as his opinion was accepted, and he took the initiative to respond:
"As long as the green mountains remain, there will be no shortage of firewood. We should have retreated long ago.

"It is much more important to protect these 80,000 main forces than to protect this barren Daizhou!"

Shanxi is far from being a barren place, but having endured hunger and starvation here for a whole winter left a deep impression on me.

"It is indeed imperative to return to Shuozhou and retreat in order to advance."

Li Jing said slowly, and then changed the subject:
"But what if the enemy pursues us?"

Hou Junji patted his chest loudly:
"Impossible, absolutely impossible!

"My plan will definitely fool them!

"Who can see through my plan and organize a large army to march north to Shuozhou ahead of time to intercept my army? Unless a god descends to the world!"

(End of this chapter)