Chapter 362: March into Elm Forest
The little girl was delighted by the touch of Zhao Yulin's tongue, and she obediently hugged his head and rested.
Humans are not plants or trees, so who can be heartless?
Zhao Yulin knew that Hulan had secretly fled to the Central Plains twice just to find him. After all, it was fate after all. Although he was very aware of the huge age gap, the physiological factors of men took the initiative, and he had already been defenseless against Hulan.
He was not thinking about how to bring Hu Lan into the house, but was struggling with how to hide her. Now was not the time to welcome her into the house in a high-profile manner.
However, Hulan was straightforward and would get angry immediately. The eldest lady had a bad temper and was too simplistic in thinking about things, which made him very embarrassed. Zhao Yulin was in a dilemma and really couldn't do anything about her.
In Chengdu, Ma Ling'er and the others were also talking about Zhao Yulin.
When the man is not at home, Ma Linger is the mistress of the house . Several women are gathered together eating Shaoxing girl's red wine from Jiangdong.
Ma Ling had some resentment towards the Wang family because his brother died in battle at the Yibin wharf. He refused to eat lychee green tea again and chose Shaoxing Nv'erhong instead.
This rice wine has a low alcohol content and a bright wine red color. It looks very beautiful in a crystal glass. Several women were urging each other to drink, and they were already a little tipsy.
Wu Yuqi said that Shunfeng Division received the news that Hubili's sister actually sneaked to Dingxi to entangle Ge'er. Oh, what an injustice. This little girl likes our Central Plains culture. A few years ago, the Khan of the grassland wanted to marry her to Beihai, so she fled to Fengxiang and was saved by Ge'er.
Yangjin traveled through time from the future. Although she was a Tibetan, she had been influenced by monogamy. It was okay for Zhao Yulin to marry a wife before her, but she also accepted him marrying Zhao Feiyan.
Now another Hulan appeared, a woman from the Mongolian Empire, and she was in a bad mood. She was drunk and jealous, and said angrily that he was a playboy and she must punish him severely when he came back.
The women were surprised to hear her talking with gritted teeth, and Wu Yuqi asked her what a playboy was.
Yangjin drank a glass of wine and said that Zhao Yulin fell in love with every girl he met and was a playboy.
Only Chen Chen was carefree and didn't think about these things. She asked with a smile how to cure it? I'm afraid that after Brother Yulin comes back, everyone will rush into the house and say "um, ah" in joy.
Several women immediately pointed at her and laughed.
After Zhao Yulin met with Lu Huacai, Feng Guiqi and Du Baiyue in Yan'an Prefecture, he explained his combat intentions and asked them to make their own arrangements and take immediate action.
Feng Guiqi laughed and said that he hadn't talked to the Third Young Master for a long time and felt very suffocated. He felt relieved when the Third Young Master came.
Zhao Yulin smiled, picked up the cup and drank tea, and asked him if it was that exaggerated?
Feng Guiqi complained to him that he had not seen the young master for several years since he had been hiding in a remote mountain area in Lanzhou. It was Hua Cai and his friends who had the advantage of being close to the young master that they had more opportunities.
Zhao Yulin asked us to stop talking about those sensational words and tell him what to do now?
Feng Guiqi pointed to the map and said that the brothers had discussed that they would do something bigger this time. He asked Zhao Yulin to look at a large elm forest at the foot of the Great Wall in the northwest of Suide Prefecture, where there was a convenient passage in and out of the desert.
Du Baiyue began to explain to him that during this period they had personally gone to the front line for reconnaissance and combined with past intelligence analysis, they concluded that the elm forest northwest of Suide was the main gathering point for the Mongolian army to enter and exit the Great Wall. Lingzhou in the front set and Linzhou in the back set had to support each other, and this place was also an important transportation route.
This place is more than 200 miles away from Suide. The enemy focuses on Yanzhou and Xiazhou, and there are no strong forts. They plan to take down that village and then take down Hengshan Village.
In this way, the key points for the Mongolian army to enter and exit the Great Wall were blocked, making it more difficult for the Mongolian troops to support each other, and the north of Yan'an Prefecture was stabilized.
Zhao Yulin slowly said that the original idea was to capture Yanzhou and Xiazhou, creating a threat to Lingzhou, forcing the grassland empire to be cautious about staying behind and not dare to move south in a big way.
They thought that although they failed to capture the town at the foot of the Great Wall, it would be good to block the enemy's passage to the south. However, they had to follow up with the construction of passes and forts to ensure their survival.
Zhao Yulin asked: This journey is nearly two hundred miles, and we have to complete the delivery of logistical supplies and the repair of the Great Wall, as well as the task of building the pass. It is a heavy burden.
Lu Huacai excitedly asked the young master, "Is this true?"
They planned to have two columns and 40,000 people to build roads and villages, and even everyone would go into battle to repair the Great Wall and keep the northern barbarians outside the Great Wall.
Zhao Yulin smiled and said cheerfully that they were very determined. The countermeasures collectively discussed by the brothers were of course the best and it was approved.
Lu Huacai immediately started working. The patrols on the road leading to the elm forest suddenly increased, and the scouts spread out to both wings, continuously expanding the scope of reconnaissance.
There was no change on the official roads leading to Xiazhou and Yanzhou. The patrols and garrisons of the Shenwei Army remained the same.
In the north, the night in Linzhou was a bit cold, and Prince Kuoduan was leaning against the stove, reading official documents and secret letters.
There were constant warnings from Lingzhou and other states to the south that the Shenwei Army of the New Song Dynasty had been dispatched. There were early reports that Hao Xiaoming's troops stationed in Lanzhou had immediately sent cavalry deep into the desert to rob after Zhao Qier's inspection, pushing the front line thousands of miles to the rear of his empire.
Now, Gao Jin's group stationed in Lingzhou has also started to move, and actually swallowed up his two counties of Yingli and Mingsha in one bite.
The Yan'an Prefecture in front of him was also in trouble. The news these days was that the Shenwei Army was mobilizing troops and sending out scouts frequently, with the intention of crossing Hongshi Gorge and marching into his Linzhou.
Kuoduan saw Zhao Yulin walking along the border and fanning the flames everywhere, and began to suspect that the Shenwei Army was about to launch a large-scale attack. On the one hand, he wrote a memorial to his father and reported it to the King of the Desert. On the other hand, he judged that the Shenwei Army was going to seize Lingzhou or Yanzhou and began to prepare for war.
He was mobilizing troops to strengthen the defenses of Lingzhou and Yanzhou, but a team of cavalry hiding in Suide came back to report to him that a part of the Shenwei Army had entered the elm forest in front of Hongshi Gorge and built a camp.
After Kuoduan asked the scouts to mark it on the map, he was shocked to find that it was indeed a dangerous place, right at the gorge on the edge of the ancient Great Wall. It was the convenient and necessary route for his scouts and caravans to enter Yan'an Prefecture.
Although the road is primitive and dangerous, it is the fastest way for troops to reach the border.
At present, he still has Hengshan Village and is not afraid of the Shenwei Army controlling it. But if the Shenwei Army takes over Hengshan Village, his army will have no way to move south.
The commander-in-chief Tu Hai said carelessly that he was afraid of birds, so he would lead his troops to get it back.
However, the expansion calls for not acting rashly.
Because he knew very well how powerful Zhao Yulin was, Zhao Qier would not send troops unless he was sure.
He even worried that Hengshan Village was in danger. This time, the Shenwei Army was not going to attack Lingzhou, but to capture Hengshan Village to block his way south.
This is not a good thing. Once the Shenwei Army blocks these two passes, it will take a long detour to go south, let alone west to rescue Lingzhou.
After thinking about this, Kuoduan ordered Tu Hai to immediately take 20,000 troops to support Hengshan Village and make sure it was defended.
Tu Hai followed Kuoduan and started out as a slave soldier, growing step by step to become a leading general. All of his military achievements were earned by cutting with a sword. He was definitely a fierce and ruthless general under his command. He immediately led the army to set off.
However, this guy received an urgent military report halfway through his journey that Hengshan Village had been lost and the Shenwei Army had just occupied it.
Damn, the Divine Might Army arrived too quickly.
Tu Hai was angry.
Damn it, he was ordered to go to the battle and he didn’t delay for even a minute, so how come Hengshan Village is gone?
The spy reported to him: There is news that the Shenwei Army has deployed their red cannons, and they started fighting as soon as the troops arrived, without even saying hello. The Shenwei Army is bullying, they set up cannons to bombard the village gate, and their hot air balloons also threw thunder bombs from the sky at the village, so it is impossible to defend.
Tu Hai was so angry that he screamed and ordered his men to rush to help and recapture Hengshan Village.
The two lieutenant generals also rose from the ranks as soldiers and had fought against the Shenwei Army several times. Of course, they knew how powerful they were. Going to Hengshan Village now would be tantamount to suicide. Maybe Zhao Qier was weaving a bag to wrap them in dumplings.
They immediately dissuaded Tu Hai and told him that just because the Shenwei Army had taken the initiative this time, it didn't mean they could always take the lead. There was a group of thieves making trouble in the elm forest near the Great Wall, so we should attack the Shenwei Army.
They had just set up camp there, so where was the solid castle?
We can go up and beat them up like chopping melons and vegetables and kill them, take down Elm Forest and then march into Hongshi Gorge to guard the gorge entrance. Then we can freely enter Guanzhong to eat rice and rob women.
Tu Hai was a general after all . He calmed down and thought that it made sense. Hengshan Village was far away, and it was too difficult to recapture the castle that had been occupied by the Song army. The military rations and drinking water he brought with him on this expedition were limited, and they were fighting across grasslands and deserts. Without water supplies, wouldn't they die of thirst in the desert?
However, his team was close to the elm forest, and if they rushed in, they could lie down by the river and drink water, easily getting drinking water and fodder.
Tu Hai immediately gave orders and moved into the elm forest.
It was really hard to march in the desert, the sun was shining brightly in the sky and the ground was steaming. The water on everyone's back was getting less and less, and it was really panicking.
When these soldiers heard that they had to move into Hongshi Gorge to grab water, they immediately became excited. They all knew there was a river there with water flowing. Although it was almost early winter, there must still be a trickle of water.
Therefore, everyone had the mentality of looking to the river to quench their thirst, and rode their horses and advanced quickly.
As he was about to pass through the dilapidated Great Wall and see the gorge, a scout ran up to him and said that the Song army had occupied the commanding heights at the gorge and set up cannons there.
Tu Hai was still surprised when he heard about the cannons.
Damn, the weapons of the Shenwei Army are becoming more and more advanced.
He also had a Huihui cannon, but it was not really a cannon, it was just an enhanced version of a catapult. The Red Cannon of the Shenwei Army fired shells to harvest lives.
