Transmigration begins with archery training

The Western Qi troops still need to be fortified at the entrance from Yanzhou to Mingzhou, so it's impossible to transfer them all. However, they have enough troops; currently, they can mobilize about 120,000 men at will.

Once those 20,000 people are eliminated, the outcome will be decided!

"Yes!"

Xiang Tian accepted the order and went to relay it.

"Your surname is Jia?"

Dong An looked at Master Jia and said, "Your Mr. Liang is a good commander; he's a talented general."

"That is!"

Master Jia said, "Our commander is a rare man chosen by the gods."

“I hope he’s a man of his word,” Dong An said in a deep voice. “Don’t forget what you promised me.”

"Don't worry, Lord Dong! Of course we wouldn't forget that even if we went back on our word, the Western Qi Kingdom would not agree."

……

Two hundred li outside Yangchun Prefecture, in the wilderness, the troops split up and marched.

Chen Sanshi brought over the map.

Yu Song and the others formed a circle around him.

Only Xu Wencai, a common soldier, was present.

Lu Shuhua and Xie Sishu felt it was even more unreliable.

"Commander Chen, are you crazy! This is a matter of life and death, how could you drag an old scholar into it!"

"He is General Fang's friend!"

Chen Sanshi invoked the endorser's name, saying, "General Fang once talked with Xu Wencai for three days and three nights. Do you think he would be useless?"

The others indeed had no further objections.

"Xu Wencai, you go first!"

Chen Sanshi gave the other person a chance to speak.

"Thank you, sir!"

Xu Wencai bowed respectfully, then, without flinching, picked up his feather fan and spoke eloquently: "After dividing our forces here, I predict that within seven days, General Sha and his men will be able to capture Yangchun Prefecture, which is sparsely defended. The grain and fodder they have collected along the way will be enough to sustain them for a while."

"but!

"Soon, at least 50,000 troops, along with two to three Xuanxiang Realm warriors, will be sent to attack the city. Even if they cannot take it immediately, they will suffer heavy losses every day. Therefore, the only way to survive is for you to lead us away, sir."

"Next, what we need to do is take advantage of the fact that all the enemy's forces are concentrated in Yangchun Prefecture, cross the Hongze River to the east, and take Qingbo, Jiankou and other four counties in one fell swoop as temporary resting places, and then seize the opportunity to move south!"

"Only by heading south into the Great Wilderness can we avoid being pursued by too many troops from Mingzhou. This will allow us to be reborn, and we might even have the chance to encounter the imperial army in the Great Wilderness before turning back to wipe out the enemy forces!"

That concludes the general outline.

No one refuted it, but no one applauded it either.

In their view, it was nothing more than a hasty escape, and they might be wiped out at any time.

"Well, let's do it this way."

Yu Song finally made the decision: "In these counties, the highest-ranking inspector is no higher than Lian Zang. Taking them down should be no problem. As for whether the southward expedition will be successful, we'll see!"

"Let's go, let's go!"

"Quickly, everyone follow!"

Three days later.

The group encountered no enemy troops along the way and arrived smoothly at the banks of the Hongze River.

But soon, a serious problem was presented to them.

How do I cross the river?

There are no large ships here, and very few small boats. They can only cross the existing pontoon bridges, but what about their warhorses?

Today, their left flank, though scattered, numbers over 3,800.

Among them, there were a total of 2,500 warhorses.

These Marcos were unable to cross the pontoon bridge.

"What about the warhorses?!"

Xie Sishu asked, "These pontoon bridges were crudely built by the common people. People have to walk on them with great care. They simply cannot support the weight of warhorses. We simply do not have the time to rebuild sturdy pontoon bridges! We were fine before, but at most in a day or two, the enemy will discover our movements and come to pursue us!"

Chen Sanshi gave a two-word answer: "Release them!"

"Release them? You're kidding me!"

"Commander Chen, do you know how precious these warhorses are!"

"Moreover, they are the key to our marching speed; you are destroying everyone's means of survival!"

"This 'reliance' is ruining our lives! Let it go, let it all go! Everyone cross the river on foot!"

Chen Sanshi paused for a moment: "If there is a need again in the future, there may be a way to find them!"

"Commander Chen, what do you mean by that?" Yu Song asked, puzzled. "Do you think these horses are going to just stand there and wait for everyone?"

Chihiro!

Chen Sanshi shouted.

"hiss--"

Chihiro looked up and let out a cry.

The rest of the men, their warhorses responding one after another, even disregarding the soldiers' commands, gathered around the white horse.

"This……"

Everyone looked astonished.

What kind of strange beast is this white horse? How can it control their warhorses?

"Dismount! Pack the provisions onto the horses' backs and let them carry them!"

Chen Sanshi shouted, "My white swan horse will lead your horses to find a place to hide. If needed, it will come back to help!"

"This is incredible..."

Xie Sishu couldn't help but lean closer, wanting to take a closer look, but almost got kicked: "You..."

He wanted to get angry but didn't dare.

"Chihiro, come here."

Chen Sanshi stroked the horse's head and said softly, "I appoint you as the Grand General of the Imperial Horses. You must work hard, understand? Be sure to hide well and don't get caught. When you come back next time, I will reward you with spirit grains."

Chihiro nodded, let out another neigh, and led more than two thousand horses away, truly like an army, and soon disappeared from sight.

"..."

Even Chen Sanshi himself was somewhat shocked.

"Cross the river!"

Yu Song gave the order.

After crossing the river on foot, more than 3,000 people traveled day and night and soon arrived outside several county towns.

The entire eastern garrison had long been transferred away, either heading south or west to besiege the main force of Liangzhou. These cities were extremely vulnerable, with only a few dozen constables and yamen runners left. There was no one to guard them, and when they saw the enemy, they were first shocked, and then immediately opened the city gates and surrendered.

They continued south until they finally stopped to rest in Jiankou County.

A march may seem like a short distance on a map, but in reality, it can be hundreds or even thousands of miles. Without horses, even martial artists have limited energy and blood. If they don't stop to rest after a long march, it could be fatal.

Since crossing the river.

Fifteen days have passed, and they have suffered almost no casualties, only exhaustion.

"Chirp—"

The gyrfalcon landed on my arm, bringing the latest intelligence.

Outside Yangchun Prefecture, an army of 70,000 men besieged the city and launched fierce attacks every day. Over the days, the number of soldiers had dwindled from 18,000 to 15,000, suffering heavy losses. Although the city walls of Yangchun Prefecture were strong enough to hold out for a while longer, the city was still able to hold out.

However, the fastest reinforcements would not arrive for another twenty days or so, and they would be the Yanzhou army, entering from the westernmost part of the Mingzhou map. Not only would they be thousands of miles away from the east, but they would also need to fight the Western Qi Kingdom first.