North Altar County
Pei Zi Yun squinted his eyes and looked at the beach. The waves splashed against the sides of the boat. The sky was getting brighter, and the fields in the distance were green.
"Dock, anchor, gangplank, and disembark!"
The sound of a bugle horn broke the silence, startling countless birds. These birds flew up into the sky and flew off into the distance.
First, a small number of cavalrymen went down and quickly patrolled the surrounding ten miles to see if there were any enemies. Then, the sound of footsteps came one after another. The foot soldiers pressed on their hoods and stepped down, their bright red tassels glistening under the sunlight.
Pei Zi Yun looked at the terrain and looked up at the sky before waving his hand, "Set up a simple camp. Once we're ashore, we'll start cooking!"
"Yes, Dao Master." Pei Zi Yun's messenger shouted as he rode his horse to relay the order.
As soon as the order was given, the troops moved ashore. Smoke rose into the air as Pei Zi Yun looked around, "Men, bring me a map."
An officer retrieved the map and placed it in front of him, "Dao Master, we've arrived at North Altar County. This is Yukou Ferry."
As the lieutenant spoke, Pei Zi Yun looked at the map and gestured around North Initiative County. He then said, "North Initiative County has eight counties and one county. Have the scouts we sent out been able to find out what's going on? How's the communication with the county officials? "
An officer who was standing by the side handed over a hot towel. He had been prepared for this topic and reported, "We've already checked. There are ten thousand soldiers in the county, and five thousand scattered throughout the county. Enlightened Master, this county is huge, it won't be easy to attack."
"Who said I want to attack immediately?" Pei Zi Yun's face darkened as he listened attentively. He laughed coldly as he spoke.
Ren Wei was dressed in a green robe and wore a silk scarf as he stood beside Pei Zi Yun, listening quietly. He Qing Qing's first mission was to transport cattle and sheep. The second mission was to return to the island, and Ren Wei was among them.
As they spoke, a pot of rice was ready. Pei Zi Yun looked around, "Everyone, let's eat first. Once we've eaten, we'll set off immediately. When we reach North Altar County, I'll arrange for the next step of the battle."
He then turned to Meng Yao, "After you unload the rations, you can go back to Ying Prefecture and restrain the Ying Prefecture Navy. Make sure that they are unable to move, and do not allow them to interfere in the battle!"
"Leave a team behind. Count Zhongqin, protect His Highness and stay on the ship. Keep in touch at all times and transport rations. It won't be too late to move after I've conquered the county city!"
"Yes, Daoist Master!" The surrounding generals all stood up and responded loudly.
Prince Chengde seemed to have some objections, but when he saw Count Zhongqin's matter-of-fact expression, he swallowed his words.
Qibei County
General Dong Man stood on the watchtower and looked into the distance. He saw the smoke and dust on the plains getting closer and closer. The earth trembled slightly. Almost at the same time, flags appeared on the horizon.
Dong Man estimated that there were at least fifteen thousand people.
In front of the army was a group of cavalry. They were constantly observing the situation in the surroundings. Soon, the majority of the soldiers rolled over. Banners were waving as they slowly gathered five miles in front of the city.
Seeing that the soldiers were above ten thousand, the generals around Dong Man started sweating profusely. Although they had been rebelling for half a year, the imperial court had been pressuring them for a long time.
The most important thing was that although they claimed to have ten thousand soldiers, there were only a thousand true veterans. The rest were all new recruits. No matter how they fought, they had no idea how strong they were.
Dong Man's expression was still considered calm. When he looked closely, he saw that the imperial court's troops were in formation. Their discipline was strict, and the entire army was silent.
Just as Dong Man was observing, Pei Zi Yun was observing as well.
The city was tall, and the flags on the city walls were clear. Soldiers stood in great numbers on top of the city walls. Looking at the densely packed soldiers on top of the city walls, General Chen Yong felt a chill run down his spine. He stared at the city walls, and his expression was one of unease.
Chen Yong glanced at the lieutenant beside Pei Zi Yun, who was holding the imperial token and the imperial sword. He furrowed his brows and reported, "Your excellency, the soldiers in the city are well-prepared. If we were to attack by force, I'm afraid we would suffer heavy losses."
Pei Zi Yun looked at Chen Yong, his face expressionless. After a long time, he said, "Who said that I want to attack the city immediately? Send out my orders. Send out the scouts, and control the area within fifty kilometers."
"Yes!" The messenger ordered his men to send the message.
Looking at the huge army behind him, Pei Zi Yun then said, "Set up camp according to the standard. Dig a deep trench, and bury the entire army."
Following Pei Zi Yun's orders, another group of messengers went out.
"Bring me the map."
Beside Pei Zi Yun, a personal guard took out a map and placed it in front of him. The generals gathered around and looked at it.
"Come, let's arrange the battle." Pei Zi Yun placed the map on the ground and gestured to the surrounding officers to take a look, "According to our intelligence, there are ten thousand soldiers in the county. However, there is no need to be afraid. There are only a thousand veterans inside, but the city walls are sturdy and there is sufficient food. We only have twenty thousand, and it will be difficult to take them down. Even if we do manage to take them down, we will suffer heavy losses."
All the generals nodded their heads. Defending a city was three times more advantageous than attacking it. One of them said, "Our intelligence says that there are many fake officials who are willing to cooperate with us. Can we open the city through spies? "
Pei Zi Yun waved a hand, "Using spies to open the city and betray us is only possible when we have the upper hand. If not, we can only leak information and leave a way out for ourselves."
"Our army only has twenty thousand soldiers. We don't have the strength to cause the fake officials to open the city and betray us. Don't even think about it." Pei Zi Yun squinted his eyes, his pupils were dark. He then used his rod to point at North Initiation County, "That's why we cannot attack the city directly. Instead, we have to change the balance of power. We have to first take down the counties."
Ren Wei listened attentively as he looked at the map.
"What's the meaning of attacking a county instead of a county?" The generals around him were puzzled, and didn't know what to make of this. Pei Zi Yun then said, "It's easy at first, but difficult at the end. Have you seen a snowball before? It's difficult for us to take down an army of ten thousand soldiers. Even if we do manage to take them down, we will suffer heavy losses. But how do we deal with a county that only has a few hundred to a thousand soldiers? "
Chen Yong then said, "That's easy. But will the rest of the army support us?"
"That's the net I've set up for a rainy day." Pei Zi Yun laughed coldly as he paused before pointing his rod at the counties and said, "Now, the Imperial Court is in a defensive position. The counties that Ji Bei Hou belongs to are all under pressure. There's no way they can send reinforcements."
"The only place that can send reinforcements is the capital."
"But there are only ten thousand soldiers in the capital. Although we've recruited fifty thousand new soldiers, can we fight them?"
"If they really leave the city, I shall fight them to the death!"
Ren Wei was an intelligent man. Although he was an Elementary Scholar and couldn't speak, he understood immediately. His heart was filled with admiration.
Suppressing them from all four sides was to restrict the movements of the various counties. It was the same for the navy as well.
Since the enemy couldn't move, they could take them down one by one.
"Chen Yong, you shall lead ten thousand soldiers to defend the city." Pei Zi Yun instructed.
"Yes!"
Chen Yong stepped forward to receive his orders.
"You shall build a camp of thirty thousand soldiers, and prepare food for them. We must ensure that no one in the city knows what's going on." Pei Zi Yun then said, "But even if they find out, it doesn't matter. There are only ten thousand soldiers in the city. Most of them are new soldiers. You have ten thousand soldiers, and that's more than enough. If you can't control them, you shall be punished according to military law."
"Yes!" Chen Yong replied loudly, "I have men, food, and elite soldiers. If I fail again, you shall punish me according to military law!"
"Zou Hu, pass down the order. Our soldiers from the three counties around Qi Bei County are to bring their siege machines to attack the city. There must be at least ten thousand of them."
"Yes!" Another general replied.
Pei Zi Yun paced a few steps and laughed coldly, "Besides my main army, I've also taken control of the three counties. Just the military expenditure alone has cost me two million taels of silver."
"Furthermore, I haven't included the money and rations from the various counties. Every day we fight will cost us tens of thousands of taels of silver. Hence, the Imperial Court can't afford to wait for too long. We have to take things one step at a time, and make every second count."
"Tonight, I shall personally lead ten thousand men to attack the eight counties of Yi Shui and Lu Shan. Inform the officials of the eight counties that the Imperial Court's army has arrived. If they don't want to be executed as traitors, it's time for them to act as spies."
"I don't have the absolute advantage in the county, but in the counties, I have ten times the number of soldiers. If they don't surrender, kill them."
"Yes!"
These people looked at each other and replied loudly.
Yi Shui County
There were people patrolling the city walls of Yi Shui County. The Magistrate invited General Li Yue to come over. Li Yue was puzzled. He stepped forward and felt a chill on his body. He didn't know when the sky had turned cloudy, but it was raining.
At this point, he had already arrived at the restaurant. He waved his hands, and the soldiers on his left and right went inside.
Delicious food had already been served. Seeing Li Yue enter, the Magistrate welcomed him.
"Magistrate, why did you invite me today?" Li Yue did not take a seat, but looked at the Magistrate and asked. The Magistrate was someone who had pledged allegiance to the Marquis. Some of them were still in their original positions, but most of them were former subordinates of the Marquis.
"General Li, I am worried. I heard that the Imperial Court's army has arrived, but we don't know where they are now. It's frightening." The Magistrate looked at the General and said, his face full of worry.
Staring at the Magistrate, General Li laughed coldly, "Everything is under the control of the Marquis. Who are you to worry about these things?"
Before he could finish his sentence, a horn sounded from afar. The cup in Li Yue's hand fell to the ground. Someone knocked on the door and shouted, "General, bad news, bad news."
"What's the situation?" Li Yue asked angrily.
The soldier ran over, his face full of fear, "General, there are tens of thousands of soldiers surrounding the city. From the top of the city, there are too many of them to count!"
"What? Quick, quick, let's go to the top of the city. " Li Yue shouted as he ran up the city wall. When they reached the top of the city wall, the Magistrate and Li Yue looked down and their faces turned pale.
The soldiers who had arrived earlier stood in formation. They were disciplined and orderly. Li Yue was an experienced soldier, and could tell that there were at least ten thousand of them. "Although there aren't tens of thousands of them, there are at least ten thousand of them!"
At this point, a cavalryman came out and stopped a hundred steps away. He shouted towards the city wall, "Listen up, the Imperial Court's army has arrived. Your county is small, and you have less than a thousand soldiers. Surrender now, and you will be spared from death. You will be able to atone for your crimes."
"If you don't surrender, you will be labeled as traitors if you mobilize your troops. Not only will you be destroyed, you will also bring disaster to your family. Think carefully, or you will regret it!"
"The Imperial Court will give you an hour to make a decision. When the time comes, don't say that I didn't warn you."
After he finished speaking, the cavalryman retreated.
The people on the top of the city wall looked down and saw flags fluttering in the wind. Groups of soldiers were lined up, ready to set off. Not far away, the craftsmen who followed the army could be seen assembling shields and scaling ladders.
Compared to the clamor, the army in the middle of the city was unmoved. Apart from the neighing of the warhorses, the rest of the army was silent. An unfathomable aura emanated from the army, causing everyone's hair to stand on end.
"This is a strong army!" Everyone's faces turned pale, and their bodies trembled.
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