At noon the next day, Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan, who had finished most of their work, had lunch. They walked along the riverside for an hour, then took a bath for another hour. They found a house with good soundproofing, performed the rites, and fell into a deep sleep.
At around eight o 'clock in the morning, they woke up, washed up, and had lunch. At nine o' clock, everyone was in position and the military exercise began again.
Zhang Xiaobao returned to his command center and recalled the arrangement before resting. He passed down orders.
"Fourth division, third battalion, fourth battalion, pick up the pace and head east. Start the construction work at 225 Highland. Build two layers of hidden fortifications. After that, third battalion will attract the enemy's firepower. Fourth battalion will rest. When the first layer of fortifications is destroyed, continue the construction work."
The messenger ran out to pass down the order.
Zhang Xiaobao played with the binoculars in his hands. He looked up at the ceiling and continued to give orders.
"Third division, one brigade, one regiment, make a large number of scarecrows. Everyone take one scarecrow and cooperate with 225 Highland. Go to the left side of the highland and set up an ambush.
Every fifteen minutes, a team from each battalion will spread out and arrange the situation. Move in a small area. The rest of the team will move the scarecrows around them to create the illusion that they are alive.
Third division, one brigade, three regiments, go to the side of the first division, 313 Highland. Start the construction work and make a layer of cover. Make scarecrows with the same number of scarecrows. Leave one battalion to shake the scarecrows. The other two battalions hide on both sides of the hill. Prepare oil and other materials to start the fire and attack according to the direction of the wind. "
"First Division, Third Brigade, Fourth Brigade, take out your multi-layered bamboo armor and stand guard at Highland 737, which is twenty li from the first peak of Mount Huangshan. If the enemy forces attack, look down from the high ground and charge with one battalion.
Second division, second brigade, and first regiment, cooperate with the third brigade and fourth brigade of the first division to set up fortifications on the 737 Highland. Make rolling logs and chisel boulders. Second division, second brigade, and second regiment, hide at the back of the hill and choose the time to attack. "
"The 1st Brigade of the 2nd Division will be the reserve brigade. The 3rd Regiment of the 2nd Brigade will be the attacking unit. The 3rd Regiment of the 4th Division will be the attacking unit. With a distance of 300 meters, the whole unit will charge forward quickly without any regard for casualties. Lure the enemy to attack and expose the position of the troops.
Give one to each brigade of the second division, one to each brigade of the first division, one to each brigade of the first division, one to each brigade of the second division, and one to each regiment of the second division. Each combat unit will act according to the situation. The objective is to kill the enemy's effective forces, deplete the enemy's firepower reserves, and make it look like the main force is here. "
A series of orders were passed down, and Zhang Xiaobao was left with only a single large group of soldiers, which had been reinforced to a thousand.
Wang Juan, who was in the other room, had nothing else to do. She had already made the necessary arrangements. Now, she had to wait for the situation of the logistics team before she could make the next arrangements.
"Little girl, how much will we have to pay in order to kill twenty thousand of the enemy's vanguard?" The commander in Wang Juan's room looked at the sand table. He seemed a little nervous, or rather excited. He was finally going to fight for real.
"What's the rush? It's not twenty thousand, it's fifteen thousand. The other five thousand were taken out by the logistics team that was moving freely. With the main force and the sacrifices of so many logistics teams, how could we not take out fifteen thousand?
What I want isn't to eat up all of Zhang Shougui's soldiers, but to force him into the mountains of Huangshan. I'll leave him with around one thousand eight hundred people to defend the high ground and report to the enemy's central army that our main force is in the Huangshan region.
I'll give them a grinding battle. The commanders of our army on the other side of the forest fire area will definitely understand my intentions and constantly harass the enemy's central army.
When the time comes, I'll have Huzi lead twenty thousand of you through the forest fire area to the port of Hangzhou. We'll constantly throw in small groups of soldiers to prevent the enemy from comfortably entering the port to resupply.
Let's see how they'll defeat me. After transporting soldiers for such a long distance, the vanguard didn't first defend the shore, but instead wanted to launch a surprise attack on me. Do they really think I'm made of clay? "
Wang Juan coldly laughed.
*****
At this moment, Zhang Shougui was truly regretting his decision. He especially admired the general who had set up the forest fire. The setting of the forest fire had been too crucial. The setting of the forest fire had turned what should have been a tactical action into a strategic containment.
"My vanguard's first brigade probably won't survive. Did Wang Juan really run over there? My division's arrangement in the Huangshan region should be effective. Have we still not gotten in touch with the central army? "
Zhang Shougui was still insisting on the military decision to go to the Huangshan region. The remaining fifteen thousand vanguard soldiers were to defend the Huangshan region, where they could attack or retreat.
After muttering to himself, he asked the messenger about the radio station team he had sent.
"Reporting, because the distance is too far, communications have not yet been restored. We also did not discover the enemy's first battalion tailing us. We only killed twenty-two people."
The messenger reported.
"Order Zhao Hanzhang to pick up the pace. I don't believe that the enemy won't put up any defenses here. Have Zhao Hanzhang force his way through and quickly find out what the enemy's unit at the foot of the Huangshan region is.
If the enemy is defending, let them attack the same way they did during the Sword Meet at Mount Hua. I don't want to have a small group of enemy troops constantly eyeing me. "
Zhang Shougui gave another order, and his request was very specific.
Zhao Hanzhang, who was leading the five thousand vanguard troops as the vanguard commander, looked at the sand table upon receiving the order. "Our army will form three horizontal lines. Each line will be one li apart. Advance quickly. Wind direction."
"Wind direction, due west. Level 4 to 5." The messenger reported the wind direction.
"Good wind. Find a high ground suitable for taking off. My vanguard's thirty gliders will all … no, send out fifteen to scout the ground."
Zhao Hanzhang was just about to say send out all of them when he suddenly remembered the hot air balloon team. They had taken off together and died tragically. Before they could even see the enemy, they had been blown down.
According to Zhao Hanzhang's request, the referees found a place suitable for taking off. Fifteen small models of gliders were set up.
Half a day later, Zhao Hanzhang received news that the enemy troops had hidden themselves and occupied high ground. They had even thrown down a few grenades, killing more than ten people.
"Report the enemy's depth and number of people." Zhao Hanzhang asked the messenger about the gliders controlled by fifteen people. It was impossible for him to arrange for fifteen people to actually take off, so he had to rely on the referees.
"Report, the enemy's number is unknown. Rough estimate is around fifty thousand. If our army takes a detour to Mount Huangshan, we can avoid the enemy's troops on the high ground. If our army wants to take the shortest distance, we will face them head-on and form a siege."
The messenger reported.
"How many?" Zhao Hanzhang was so frightened that he almost fell to the ground. "There are fifty thousand enemy troops at the foot of Mount Huangshan? Main force, send a telegram to the main camp. We've discovered the enemy's main force. Two high ground, one small hill, one plain, and one depression are at the center of the three points. The enemy's fifty thousand troops are defending. "
"Fifty thousand? Unless Wang Juan is an idiot, she wouldn't send fifty thousand troops to three points. And that one high ground isn't a high ground. That hill is more than a hundred meters high. She might have thousands or even tens of thousands of people there. Isn't she afraid that I'll flatten that hill? "
Even if Zhang Shougui was beaten to death, he wouldn't believe that Wang Juan would send fifty thousand troops to two high ground and one depression.
If Wang Juan really made such arrangements, then with her level, she wasn't suited to teach others military lessons. Even if the commanders in her family studied for another eighty years, they still wouldn't be able to reach their current level.
"Report back. Ask General Zhao if he would arrange such a defense when he clearly knows that the enemy has scouting methods. From now on, General Zhao's troops will act as they see fit. My troops will slowly approach. "Zhang Shougui was very dissatisfied with Zhao Hanzhang's action of sending a message without using his brain.
Zhao Hanzhang received the order. After thinking about it, he felt that it made sense. The main force was there. Even if Wang Juan wasn't there, the fifty thousand main force was definitely from the first batch of academy students. How could the first batch of people that Wang Juan brought out be so few? How could she expose her military strength so clearly?
"F * ck, it's fake, it's all fake. Let's not care about the other two highlands for now. Go and destroy that small hill for me. Scouts, rush up there. Use 20 gliders and fly up there for me to see. My 2nd Brigade, occupy that small hill for me first."
Zhao Hanzhang cursed and gave the order.
Twenty gliders took off. A regiment of 1500 people, pushing a few cannons, moved towards the small hill. The scouts also followed.
Not long after, the aerial scouts returned with news that they had discovered the numbers of two battalions. The estimated number of people was 1000. They also determined that some of them were fake.
"Two battalions, 1000 people? That's the configuration of a regular army. It's not Zhang Xiaobao's logistics troops. He always likes to have 700 people in a battalion. Could it really be a regular army? There are even fake people? Scouts, rush up. Gliders, continue to investigate. "
Zhao Hanzhang judged based on the numbers and numbers. He felt that he understood Zhang Xiaobao better and was willing to create an independent battalion. For example, the eight battalions of Fan Metro Cavalry that he had given to Wang Juan actually had 1000 people in each battalion.
"Report, our scouts have heard gunshots. No one has returned after half an hour." The messenger ran in and reported loudly. At the same time, he put a few models that represented smoke on the sand table.
"General Zhao, our 20 gliders have disappeared. Smoke billowed on both sides of the high ground. They are being carried by the wind and are floating towards our army."
"I … I … Oh my god, they are playing this again. Is it because if my aerial troops fly a little lower, they will use smoke? According to this, my 20 gliders are gone? "
Zhao Hanzhang was very depressed. He thought that the other party's method was too despicable. Of course, he didn't know that even if Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan's aerial troops wanted to fight, the ground troops would still use smoke.
Even if the smoke couldn't make the aircraft come down, it would make the aircraft unable to aim and guide. The ground troops would use smoke and all kinds of burning debris to make the aircraft attack the personnel. They could only use their eyes to estimate the approximate position of the enemy and then manually lock on.
If there was a country that didn't have such technology or even surface-to-air missiles, then they could only wait to be beaten. When a group of tanks moved, when the aircraft looked down from the sky, it was a sea of smoke. The radar's heat reaction light spots were everywhere.
Since it was useful at that time, how could Wang Juan not use it now? Even if the aircraft flew high and couldn't be smoked, the aircraft wouldn't be able to see the situation below clearly.
"Orders, the artillery troops will cover. Second Regiment will charge. I'm really convinced. After fighting for so long, it has become like this again." Zhao Hanzhang felt very sullen. Before coming, he had thought of countless battle tactics and strategies. In his mind, he could simulate how the other party would suffer and how great the losses would be.
In the end, when they really met, what air and ground cooperation, what special forces attack, what mobile firepower net coverage, and so on, they couldn't be used.
The other party dug a trench, released smoke, guarded the small hill, and the teams on both sides of the hill cooperated with each other. The only thing he could do was to advance with artillery fire and the attacking team followed.
"First Regiment, attack the team on the left of the hill. Third Regiment, attack the team on the right. Don't get close. Be careful of the smoke." Zhao Hanzhang was qualified to be able to guess the other party's shameless methods. When the glider was smoked down, he considered whether the other party would use smoke to cover and fight hand-to-hand.
*****
"Your Majesty, we should strengthen security measures. On the ground, using smoke to deal with air troops is too useful. Even if Shuiyun is sent here, she won't be able to make any useful judgments when she sees the smoke below.
We can't let anyone spread this. Otherwise, when Cuckoo leads the army to war in the future, how many good men will the Tang Empire lose? Which child isn't born to their parents? "
Empress Wang saw the situation of the battle on the sand table in the center and immediately realized the effect of smoke. Whether there was no wind or no wind, the attacking side couldn't expect the air troops to have much of an advantage unless they flew very high from the beginning. Although they could avoid the attack, they couldn't complete the reconnaissance mission.
Li Longji's reaction wasn't as intense as Empress Wang's. He nodded and said, "Attack with smoke and throw spears against the wind. It's been like this since ancient times. Even if the secret isn't leaked, others can figure it out. It's Zhao Hanzhang's own stupidity. If he changed his position and Cuckoo attacked, he wouldn't be so restricted.
I don't understand. Why do we have to attack? Can't we just go around it? There aren't many supplies on the hill. Can a hill of more than 100 meters be considered a high ground? What's the point of attacking it? "
Empress Wang thought about it and retorted, "Your Majesty, that's three battalions. If we don't attack, why don't we just go around it and let them attack from behind?"
"If we attack from behind, we have to go down the hill and gather. Otherwise, if we spread out, we'll be attacked one by one. A brigade will leave a regiment in front to interrupt the attack. The other two regiments will turn around and attack from behind under the cover of artillery fire.
Did you see how Kong Lu charged through the layers of defense? Once we reach the flat ground, cold weapons are like steamed buns, meat buns that are specially used to feed dogs. With a single charge, three battalions will be wiped out.
When fighting against Cuckoo, we can't fight according to conventional means. Look at Xiao Bao's logisticians. They're built from the ground up. If you don't attack, I'll dig down and endure cannon fire time and time again. If you charge, I'll use the trenches to engage you in close combat.
Rather than saying that they're native troops, it's better to say that they're the hot-blooded heroes of Great Tang. They're guarding a place and are willing to fight to the last man. With such an army, I don't want to send them out to invade. No matter how well they fight, there will definitely be casualties. My heart aches for them. "
Li Longji thought back to a certain day a year later when Xiao Bao and Cuckoo gathered their troops and logisticians to go on an expedition to Duoduo. His mood instantly turned sour. He couldn't bear to send any Great Tang soldiers to their deaths.
Zuzan Chide had already experienced Wang Juan's viciousness. Even now, he still had a shadow in his heart. He felt sad for his men who died in the battle for Tubo, but he also felt proud of the soldiers that Wang Juan led.
The troops that were initially scattered were reorganized by Wang Juan. After that, they were promised compensation in the name of the Zhang Clan and Wang Clan, and their fighting strength increased exponentially.
Now that he thought about it, he should have just surrendered back then. At that time, fewer Great Tang soldiers would have died.
Thus, when he heard Li Longji's words, he also felt sad. He persuaded, "Your Majesty, for the happiness of more people in Great Tang, we must fight. However, logisticians must follow up. For example, artillery fire.
This subject admits that it is difficult to fight a civil engineering team. However, Cuckoo said that for the safety of a single Great Tang soldier, she is willing to throw down millions of artillery shells.
This subject will issue a military order. If Cuckoo's team attacks, the logisticians will pass through this subject. This subject cannot allow the speed of transportation to double. This subject will carry the artillery shells myself. Otherwise, this subject will send my head to the capital. "
Everyone was moved by Zuzan Chide's words. Only Wu Huifei had a different opinion.
At the side, she said, "Your Majesty, this subject thinks that Xiao Bao won't let Great Tang's soldiers risk their lives. This subject remembers that Xiao Bao and Cuckoo told Your Majesty that in the past year, they were training their soldiers and using other methods to weaken Duoduo.
Back then, it was Your Majesty who gave the order to attack Tubo. They were developing well in Shuzhou, but you insisted that they organize the logisticians. In the end, they became the main force.
Xiao Bao spent most of his energy on organizing the logisticians. When they reached Tubo, he found the time to scheme against others. However, Xiao Bao won't let you cause trouble now. He must have made preparations. "
"Let's not talk about the past. We don't feel good about it either. Back then, we didn't do anything bad. We just wanted to give credit to Zhang Family and Wang Family. Who would have thought that when they reached Pengzhou, they would still advance despite knowing what was ahead?
You're saying that Xiao Bao wants to make the first move and cooperate with Cuckoo's army so that Great Tang won't have to sacrifice as many soldiers? "
Every time Li Longji thought about what happened back then, he felt a lingering fear. However, it was also in that battle that Cuckoo showed her talent, Xiao Bao strategized, and Shui Yun roared in the sky. Otherwise, who would have known their true abilities?
As they were speaking, Zhang Xiaobao came over and heard the general idea. He said, "A real man doesn't talk about the embarrassment of the past. What we're talking about now is bragging and not mentioning a single word about being beaten and bullied. That … may I ask, are we allowed to use special weapons?"
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