When Ang Lee arrived at the ruins of Old White Town, the sky was not dark yet. However, the sun was already slanting to the west. It was close to dusk. Not long after, when dusk came, the scouts of the Horse Gang began to appear in the surroundings.
Although these scouts were very careful and dismounted from their horses far away, Ang Lee's guards were equipped with binoculars. As long as they saw a small black dot moving in the distance, they would habitually pick up the binoculars to observe, so as to discover possible dangers as early as possible.
Therefore, when the scouts of the Horse Gang just arrived, they were already discovered by the guards. However, at first, they did not know that these people were scouts of the Horse Gang and thought that they were just passing by. However, when these scouts sneaked into the vicinity and peeped at the ruins of Old White Town, the guards realized that something was wrong. When they were just about to report, they learned that the Horse Gang was likely to launch a surprise attack at night. Then, they completely understood that these peeping guys were scouts of the Horse Gang and reported it to their superiors.
Only by knowing yourself and your enemy can you win a hundred battles. Since they already knew that the Horse Gang was scouting nearby, things were very easy to handle. They kept a close eye on these scouts of the Horse Gang and at the same time, sent a small number of guards to the surrounding commanding heights to investigate the main force of the Horse Gang. In this way, they could gain the upper hand.
Although the walls of Old White Town were dilapidated, the 18 guards all kept their eyes open. In this way, it was simply wishful thinking for the scouts of the Horse Gang to enter the ruins to investigate. In this way, naturally, they would not discover the intense preparation for war inside the ruins of Old White Town.
After investigating for a while, these scouts of the Horse Gang found that they could not get close to the walls, so they could only take turns to retreat. They probably went to report! In this way, the possibility of the main force of the Horse Gang coming in the middle of the night to launch a surprise attack was very high.
In a hidden ditch less than 15 miles away from Old White Town, the leader of the Horse Gang and many of his subordinates were quietly hiding. This ditch was deep enough that even horses could be well hidden. From afar, nothing could be seen. It was an excellent hiding place.
In the past, the Horse Gang would often hide here to avoid the search of the soldiers. When they encountered a small group of soldiers, they would suddenly attack from this ditch and catch the soldiers off guard.
At this moment, they were hiding here because they were waiting for the best time to attack. They planned to wipe out Ang Lee and his men in one fell swoop and then bury them under the yellow sand, so that the Tang dynasty's soldiers would never find the corpses of more than a hundred people, which would help them spread the rumor that they were buried under the yellow sand.
"Big Brother, the scouts have returned."
A small leader said excitedly when he saw the scout who was riding back.
Soon, the spies that were sent out arrived in front of the leader. They threw down their horses and came to report the situation.
"Tell me, what's the situation?"
The leader was a little nervous. If the information was wrong, things would be troublesome.
"Leader, there are soldiers guarding the three city gates and the city walls. There are four soldiers guarding each city gate, two at the bottom gate, and two at the top of the city walls. There are six soldiers on the city walls, and we only saw 18 people in total. Oh right, there is a tent outside each city gate. There seems to be no one inside. As for the situation inside, we can't go in, and we can't find out."
A Horse Gang spy reported.
"You can't go in? So, you know nothing about the situation inside."
The leader of the Horse Gang frowned and said.
The scout replied, "Leader, the guards are so strict. There are 18 of them and they are practically monitoring the entire abandoned city. We don't dare to get close at all. If they discover us, wouldn't we ruin your plan?"
"Big Brother, the guards are so strict. It seems that there is really a high-ranking official inside. Otherwise, it would not be so strict that even our spies can't get in."
"Big Brother, it seems that the information is right. This is definitely a high-ranking official of the imperial court. The guards are so strict. It seems that the high-ranking official will spend the night in Old White Town. This is a good time for us to launch a sneak attack!"
"Big Brother, if we launch a sneak attack in the middle of the night, we can definitely catch them off guard."
"That's right! They have prepared tents at the city gate. It seems that they are for the guards. After dark, these guards will probably take turns to guard the gate. The remaining half will go into the tents to rest. Most of the people inside must also be resting. There won't be many guards left. Let's rush in together and get rid of the guards at the city gate first. Then, we will kill our way in through the three city gates at the same time and wipe out all the guards. Let them go to hell when they are asleep. "
"Big Brother, we can finally vent our anger tonight. If something happens to such a high-ranking official, will the guards who are surrounding us be implicated? Will they be executed? "
"Who cares? We must kill to our heart's content tonight. If we don't shed some blood, the guards will think that we are easy to bully. "
The small leaders were all very excited, and they seemed very excited.
The Horse Gang leader frowned and said, "Tell me, why would such a high-ranking official spend the night in the ruins of Old White Town for no reason? We have been to the ruins more than once. There is nothing valuable in there! What is he doing in there? Moreover, isn't it strange that he is going to spend the night in there? "
The more crucial the moment was, the more nervous the Horse Gang leader was. He had to think about all the abnormalities in order to avoid falling into a terrible trap.
"Big Brother is right! Why would a high-ranking official of the imperial court have such a hobby? Spending the night in the abandoned city in the middle of the night. This seems really abnormal. Could it be a trap? "
"Big Brother, Second Brother, you are thinking too much! Since he is a high-ranking official of the imperial court, his thinking must be different from ordinary people. He must be tired of living in the palace for a long time. There is nothing wrong with staying in the ruins! "
"Big Brother, no matter what he is here for, he is already at our doorstep. It will be a waste if we don't eat it! Are we going to let him go? "
"If Big Brother is still worried, we can find a way to go in and see how many people there are and how many tents there are. Isn't that enough?"
"That's right! Big Brother, our men are deployed in all directions. As long as there are any abnormal movements of the guards, we will know in advance. Big Brother, you don't have to worry too much. "
The gang leaders said.
The Horse Gang leader thought for a moment and nodded. "Okay! Since we have made up our minds, we can't care so much. Immediately send people to closely monitor every movement of the guards. As long as the guards are slightly relaxed, you can find a way to enter the city and see what is going on inside. If everything is normal, we will kill all the guards tonight as a blood sacrifice for our brothers who have died in the battle. "
"Big Brother, when the time comes, we will break in from the three city gates and catch the guards off guard. The battle will end soon."
"Big Brother, hurry up and assign the task! How do we fight? "
The gang leader asked.
The leader hurriedly said, "Second Brother, Third Brother, the three of us will each lead 200 brothers and break in from the three city gates. We will finish the battle as quickly as possible."
"How can we let Big Brother take the risk himself? I am willing to kill the guards on behalf of Big Brother. Big Brother, you just need to wait here for the news. "
One of the leaders said.
"Yes! Big Brother, there is no need for Big Brother to do such a small thing. We can do it. Big Brother, you just need to wait here for the good news. "
The One-eyed Dragon Bandit Leader said.
"Boss, we will do it. You just wait here for the news! Unless the emperor comes in person, you should do it yourself. "
The leader of the Horse Gang was originally a little worried. Since his brothers had said so, he naturally took advantage of the situation and decided not to charge and break through the enemy lines himself. After thinking for a moment, he decided to leave 50 men and horses and let the three sub-leaders each lead less than 200 Horse Gang members to attack the Tang soldiers at night.
While the Horse Gang was thinking about how to destroy the guards of the Tang dynasty, Lao Guo was sweating in anxiety in Xiazhou City. When he received the news that Ang Lee had gone to Gu Bai City, he was already shocked and worried that he would encounter the Horse Gang. And the news he received at night scared him even more. It was too dangerous for Ang Lee to risk entering Gu Bai City, knowing that the Horse Gang had received the news.
But on second thought, he hadn't been able to wipe out the main force of the Horse Gang for three months. If he took advantage of this opportunity to wipe out the main force of the Horse Gang, it would be a good thing.
However, the only thing that made him uneasy was that it was Ang Lee who acted as the bait. If it were only his subordinates, he wouldn't even frown. But Ang Lee's identity was too special. If something happened to him, the consequences would be unimaginable. Therefore, Lao Guo couldn't make up his mind when making the plan to wipe out the bandits and rescue them.
He had been on the battlefield for many years, so he naturally knew the best strategy to wipe out the bandits and send troops. But this best strategy couldn't guarantee Ang Lee's safety. If something happened to Ang Lee, even if the problem of the Horse Gang was all solved, he wouldn't get any credit. On the contrary, he might be punished. But if he rushed directly to Gu Bai City, the Horse Gang would definitely know the news earlier. In this way, Ang Lee's safety wouldn't be a problem, but the perfect opportunity to wipe out the Horse Gang would also be lost. That would be a huge waste of Ang Lee's good intentions. After reading the letter, he had understood Ang Lee's intention. But he really couldn't make up his mind. Even though he knew that Ang Lee was very powerful, accidents always happened on the battlefield. Once an accident happened, it was easy to imagine how serious the consequences would be.
Lao Guo had absolute trust in his subordinates. He believed that they would never collude with the Horse Gang. Therefore, he didn't hide this matter from his subordinates. Instead, he told them the truth.
"General, Assistant Minister Li can't have an accident in our territory. We can't afford the consequences. Go to Gu Bai City immediately. We can't waste any time."
"Yes! General, we can take our time to wipe out the Horse Gang, but Assistant Minister Li can't have an accident. Otherwise, we'll all be responsible. We can't afford the consequences. If His Majesty knows about this, he won't let us off easily. "
"General, there will be plenty of chances to wipe out the Horse Gang. They will be wiped out by our army sooner or later. There's no need to rush to use Assistant Minister Li as the bait."
Several subordinates didn't agree with Guo Ziyi's plan. Obviously, it was too risky. They were worried about accidents, which they couldn't afford.
Lao Guo looked at his subordinates helplessly and said, "Of course there are risks in this plan. But it's also Assistant Minister Li's idea. He came to Summer Province this time, nominally to inspect the coal mine, but actually to wipe out the Horse Gang. In order to wipe out the Horse Gang, he even used himself as the bait. If we fail to live up to his painstaking efforts, I'm afraid …"
"General, we've seen the strength of the Horse Gang. The wound on my neck was caused by a saber. Assistant Minister Li only has about a hundred guards with him. How long can such a small number of soldiers and horses defend a ruined city that has been abandoned for hundreds of years? Can they really hold on until our reinforcements arrive? What if they can't hold on for long? It'll be very dangerous. "
"General, please think twice! I've fought with the Horse Gang for many times. They're ferocious and not easy to deal with. I'm afraid Assistant Minister Li has underestimated them. "
"General, please think twice. But we'll absolutely obey your orders."
Several subordinates expressed their opinions.
Guo Ziyi thought for a moment and said, "What all of you said is very reasonable. However, since Assistant Minister Li already knows that the mounted bandits are about to launch a sneak attack, I believe that he will be fully prepared and will not allow the mounted bandits to succeed so easily. This general believes in Assistant Minister Li. Everyone, please don't try to persuade him anymore. We'll act according to Assistant Minister Li's strategy. "
After that, Lao Guo and his subordinates began to discuss how to quietly transfer the troops to the vicinity of Gu Bai Town, and then attack the Horse Gang from both inside and outside.
Quietly transferring the troops to the vicinity of Gu Bai Town was the key to annihilating the Horse Gang. Because the Horse Gang had too many spies. If the movement was discovered by these spies, they would inform the Horse Gang in the mountain in advance. Then all of Ang Lee's plans would be in vain. When the Horse Gang smelled something wrong, they would definitely retreat quietly, and all of their efforts would be in vain.
"General, there are too many spies in the city. If we transfer the troops on a large scale, we'll definitely be discovered by the Horse Gang's spies. It seems that we have to transfer the troops outside the city. In this way, we won't be discovered easily."
"That's right! General, as long as we don't set fire at night and leave quietly in batches, we won't be noticed by the Horse Gang's spies. Moreover, the troops outside the city are patrolling every day, regardless of day or night. Even if we're discovered, it'll be difficult to arouse the Horse Gang's suspicion. "
"There must be a large number of Horse Gang's spies on the road leading directly to Gu Bai Town. It'll be difficult for our troops to avoid being discovered. If we want to reach Gu Bai Town secretly, we have to take a detour."
Several subordinates said.
Guo Ziyi thought for a while and said, "You're right. If we don't move the troops in the city, we'll transfer the troops from outside the city. The Horse Gang has at most a thousand men, and we only need eight hundred men to fight against them. You three go out of the city separately and transfer two hundred soldiers from your camps. Take the shortcut to Dejing County. I'll lead the two hundred soldiers to join you, and then take a detour to Gu Bai Town."
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