I'm sorry, there were a few high school reunions yesterday. Everyone wasn't doing well and ended up drowning their sorrows in alcohol. I was scolded by my wife this morning. She said I'm courting death by drinking so much in my thirties …
Chapter 430: Three Strategies (1)
Are you f * cking kidding me? The second prince froze for a moment, then flew into a rage. We have so many veterans here, and we've been commanding the kingdom's armed forces to attack Veyronni Mountain Pass for more than a month, yet we still failed after suffering heavy losses. You've only been here for a few days and you say you have three strategies to take down the enemy's defenses. Are you saying we're all useless and useless? That all the nobles and veterans in the tent can't compare to you, right?
However, the second prince suppressed his anger and prepared to listen to Laurist explain his three strategies. As the king of the Andinac Kingdom, he still had this bit of magnanimity. Perhaps Laurist really did discover a weakness in the defenses that he had overlooked. After the commotion in the tent subsided, the second prince forced a smile and said to Laurist, "Is that so? Then we'll listen to the Duke of the North's three strategies …"
Laurist did not stand on ceremony. He pulled over a shelf with a map of the frontlines and pointed. "Currently, we're all blocked by this defensive position at Veyronni Mountain Pass. From the layout, this defensive position is actually similar to the one in the Flondor Duchy. It's mainly made of trenches and earthen walls. The difference is the terrain here. The defensive position is at Veyronni Mountain Pass, which is on the hillside. We can't use water to flood the trenches and drive the enemy away.
If it's just trenches and earthen walls, it won't be a problem for us. After all, we've already accumulated a lot of experience in dealing with trenches and earthen walls when we took down the Flondor Duchy's defensive position. Even if the Duchy of Handra added a lot of arrow towers at Veyronni Mountain Pass, they still won't be able to stop our attack. The only thing that poses a threat to us is the nearly hundred catapults on the slope of the mountain pass. Because of the high terrain, they negate the advantage of our catapults, chariots, and ballistae in long-range attacks. The entire defensive position is linked together, causing our attacks to fail time and time again.
Of course, if we don't care about casualties, we can still conquer this Veronny Mountain Pass. For example, we can also dig a trench and connect it to the defensive position. Through a continuous stream of attacks, we can deplete the enemy's defensive strength. Then, no matter how powerful the enemy's catapults and arrow towers are, the threat to the soldiers in the trench will be greatly reduced. The only thing to worry about is how many casualties we have to pay to capture this Veronny Pass. "
That's right, why didn't I think of digging trenches to connect them to avoid the threat of the trebuchets on the slope? Nowadays, the catapults were not very accurate. It was already good enough if they could hurl the stones. If they were to dig trenches on the hillside and launch an attack, it would be considered lucky if ten out of a hundred catapults hit the trenches. Moreover, the soldiers in the trenches would naturally not see their comrades who had been hit by the catapults being badly mutilated, so their morale would not drop too quickly. That way, the attack would not be stopped halfway.
Wait, Laurist seemed to have said that this attack plan was to use troops to deplete the enemy's defensive strength. The price of casualties was too high, so it should not be counted in the three methods he mentioned. Although the second prince did not mind sacrificing the lives of the soldiers to achieve his goal, in his heart, he felt that it was an honor for these soldiers to sacrifice for the great cause of the empire. After all, the White Lion Legion was a regular army of the kingdom. So far, they had already lost more than ten thousand people. It was always good to reduce the number of casualties.
"That, Locke, can the three methods you thought of not harm our troops?" the second prince asked with a smile.
"Uh …" Laurist was stunned by the question. "Well, it's not that it won't harm our troops, but it can reduce our casualties. The first method is more dangerous … "
"Dangerous? How dangerous? Tell me. " The second prince smiled and looked at the people in the tent. "War has always been dangerous. I believe that no one is afraid of any danger …"
"Yes, my first method is to launch a surprise attack." Leurist used his finger to point at the location of the trebuchets at Ferroni Pass marked on the battlefield map. "Since the biggest threat to us now are the trebuchets lined up on the slope of the pass, we'll destroy them first."
"Heh, it's easy to say. It's not that we haven't thought of destroying the catapults first. The problem is, how do we attack in front of them? Without attacking the defensive positions on the slope, we have no way of attacking the catapults. " The one who said this was an old subordinate of the second prince. He was the Golden Knight Lippred, whom Laurist had met in the swamp of Egret Lake to rescue Redi. He was now the commander of the White Lion Legion.
"I don't mean to command the soldiers to attack." Laurist smiled. "Organize a small team. For example, His Majesty, Duke Fisablun, the Munster Swordmaster, me and Redi. That makes five swordmasters. Then find ten Golden Knights to carry kerosene. A party of fifteen should be enough. I have seen the enemy's defensive arrangements at the end of the Broken Cloud Mountain Range. They are only targeting large forces and are not strict against small teams of ten.
As long as we sneak around their defensive line, we can reach the slope where the catapults are. I believe that the enemy cannot block the surprise attack of five swordmasters and ten Golden Knights. Once the catapults on the slope of the mountain pass catch fire, it will be the signal to attack. Attack from below. With a pincer attack from both sides, you will definitely be able to defeat the Handa Principality's Crimson Dragon Legion and occupy the Weyronni mountain pass … "
"I object!" The Munster Swordmaster, who was the personal bodyguard of the second prince, stood up for the first time. "Duke Norton, if you want to take the risk, I will not object. But His Majesty cannot go. His Majesty is responsible for the safety of the kingdom and bears the heavy responsibility of unifying the Empire. He cannot so easily attack the catapults from behind enemy lines. If anything happens, you will be the greatest sinner of the kingdom. His Majesty cannot take this risk! "
Loriste shrugged. "Then pretend I did not say anything."
What does it have to do with me? If the second prince does not go, will Duke Fisablon go? As the personal bodyguard of His Majesty, will you go? Only Redi and I will go. If you don't even care, why should I be so proactive? There are nearly a hundred catapults up there. Without five swordmasters, would they be able to handle it? Loriste thought so.
However, the second prince was a little tempted. Loriste's idea of ambushing the catapults was to his liking. However, there was a problem with the person chosen. Even though he had become a swordmaster, the second prince was not willing to take the risk himself. Even though he was famous for his ambush tactics and was hailed as a new generation of military experts, those ambushes were usually done with confidence. It was not like Loriste's idea, where he had to risk his life by charging at the front.
The most ideal way was for Loriste and Duke Fisablon to volunteer to take on this heavy responsibility while he commanded the army to attack from both sides. However, the second prince understood why Laurist suggested for him to go personally. As the king of the Andinac Kingdom, if he didn't take the lead, Duke Fisabulon and Laurist wouldn't be willing to carry out this mission. These two dukes weren't obedient, and in their hearts, his status as the king wasn't much higher than theirs …
"Erm, Loke, let's put aside this ambush tactic for now. Tell me about the other two methods." The second prince thought for a while and decided to listen to the other two methods first before slowly discussing.
"Alright, Your Majesty. My second method is to split our forces and take a roundabout route." Loriste took a pen and drew an arc on the Nibaraku River.
The second prince was disappointed. "Loke, we have already tried this roundabout route. Duke Fisablon lost a lot of his troops because of it. The four central duchies are very vigilant against this river, and we cannot use this strategy to break through the enemy's defensive position. "
Loriste shook his head. "Your Majesty, this roundabout route is different from your plan of going downstream to the back of the defensive position and disrupting the enemy's formation to break through the Venonese Mountain Pass. This roundabout route is to go straight to the Delamark province of the Handa Duchy. It is not to coordinate and attack the Red Dragon Army defending the Venonese Mountain Pass, but to destroy the entire Delamark province where the capital of the Handa Duchy, Hans City, is located. This way, the enemy will not have the strength to defend against our attack."
"Is, is there any difference between this and Duke Fisablon's proposal?"
"Of course there is a difference." Loriste pointed to the map of the battlefield and said, "Your arrangement at that time was to hope that Duke Fisablon's reserve army would go downstream to the border between the Delamark and Westwood provinces. There, they would gather their forces and counterattack from the back, catching the enemy off guard and allowing our attack force to break through their defensive position and occupy the Venonese Mountain Pass. But have you forgotten that if you were able to come up with this idea, the four Grand Dukes of the central Four Duchies are all veterans of the battlefield and have a wealth of experience. How could they leave such a large gap for us to break through from the Nibaraku River? It is necessary to be prepared. "
"But didn't you say that we should also split our forces and take a roundabout route from here?" This unconvinced tone belonged to the commander of the reserve army under Duke Fisablon's command. He was also a Gold Knight, called Howson or something. He was a rather straightforward person.
Loriste replied with a smile, "The purpose of splitting our forces and taking a roundabout route is different. I don't want the detour route to counterattack Westwood province, but to continue forward and wreak havoc in the Delamark province. We will destroy the enemy's fertile fields, attack the villages and towns there, burn their granaries and weapons workshops, and turn the entire Delamark province into scorched earth. In this way, the Handa Principality will no longer have the capital to resist our attack. As for the garrison corps deployed at the front line, they will definitely panic when they hear the news from the rear. Once the soldiers surrender, they will no longer be able to block our way. "
"But how are you going to break through the enemy's defenses on the Nibaraku River? Here, at the bend of the river, not only have they set up three chains to block the river, but there is also a regiment stationed there. Catapults and ballistae are arranged along the river. How do you want to break through this blockade? "The Second Prince asked.
"It's very simple. I'm not going to go downstream from the Nibaraku River. Instead, I'm going east along the river. Although the other side of the Nibaraku River is a large area of virgin forest, swamps, and wilderness, we won't get lost along the river. As long as we pass through the enemy's defensive blockade at the bend of the river, the entire hinterland of the Delamark province will be under our vanguard. Nothing will be able to stop our attack … "Loriste said.
The Second Prince was dumbfounded. "But, but won't our strategy of splitting our forces and taking a roundabout route be discovered by the enemy?"
"So what if they find out? Look, the Nibaraku River is the border of the Delamark province. Even if the enemy finds out that we split our forces and take a roundabout route, what can they do to us? Cross the river and attack us? We'd love for them to do so. We can march openly on the other side, and the enemy will have to station troops along the river to guard against us. The Nibaraku River basin is so long that the enemy will have to station countless legions to guard against us. It's simply impossible. On the other hand, our forces can cross the river at any time and launch an attack … "
Loriste said proudly, "No matter how the enemy responds, as long as our detachment crosses the river and heads east, the enemy will panic like chickens and dogs. Even if we don't cross the river, the enemy will be tied down by us and send two or three legions to follow us across the river to prevent us from crossing. We can even keep the enemy busy with just one cavalry legion. Don't forget that the four central duchies don't have any decent cavalry. They won't be able to catch up to us. "
At this moment, everyone in the tent understood that Loriste's strategy of splitting our forces and taking a roundabout route was not to ambush the enemy, but to purposely let the enemy discover their tracks in order to mobilize and tie down the enemy's defensive forces. Once the enemy finds out that we have a legion on the other side of the river, they won't dare to be negligent. They won't be willing to let us cross the river to attack their empty hinterland. Then, the most likely scenario is to follow us along the river and go wherever we go, just as Loriste said. Lollister was right. We were cavalry, and we could move quickly. On the other hand, the enemy was an infantry legion. Even if we walked back and forth along the river twice, the enemy would definitely be overwhelmed by us. Then, we could easily cross the river and harvest their heads.
The second prince was very tempted and asked, "Locke, then can we use a light cavalry legion to carry out this strategy?"
Loriste thought for a moment and replied, "Your Majesty, it's best to have the Norton Family's Flying Tiger Legion and Phillip's Pegasus Legion carry out this plan together."
"Ah … Why?"
"Because a single light cavalry legion crossing the river won't pose much of a threat to the Delamark province. The enemy only needs to fortify the city walls and clear out the wilderness to make the light cavalry legion useless. On the other hand, the Flying Tiger Legion is much more of a threat than the light cavalry legion, whether it's in the field or attacking those cities. Perhaps we can work together and find opportunities to wipe out a few enemy legions in the field. "
The second prince nodded. What Loriste said made sense. But just as he was about to agree, his heart skipped a beat. He remembered the report he received from the three provinces of the Falk Duchy at the beginning of this year. He remembered how furious he was at that time, and when he realized that he had been tricked by Loriste, he finally suppressed his anger.
The report was very simple. It was a report of what Loriste had done in the three provinces at the end of last year. Although it wasn't clear how many people Loriste and the others had migrated, at least they had migrated more than double the original number. After that, he found out that many noble territories had been swept clean. A rough estimate showed that the population of the three provinces of the Falk Duchy had been reduced by about half.
The second prince remembered how angry he was when he read the report, but he had to swallow the bitter pill. No matter what, it was already too late. The people had already been migrated, and Loriste wouldn't be able to return them. Furthermore, Loriste had saved his face by not touching the people on the Falk Duchy's household register. The people who had been swept and migrated were the people in the noble territories, which weren't under the second prince's control. Even if Loriste blamed him, he could still push the blame away.
Now that Laurist was volunteering, what was he planning? Was he planning to do the same thing again in the Delamark province? The second prince was simply afraid of being taken advantage of. The more he thought about it, the more suspicious he felt. After all, the spoils of war of the lords under him belonged to them during the war. The second prince was afraid that when the Handa Duchy was destroyed, he would get an empty land, and Loriste could totally capture all the people in the Delamark province and say that it was his spoils of war …
No, he couldn't let the Flying Tiger Legion go. Even if they were the most suitable candidates to carry out this detour. That was what the second prince was thinking, but his face didn't show it. "Locke, don't you have three ideas? What's the last one? "
…
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