Datang: From exiled prince to eternal tyrant

Chapter 99
In the Battle of Anshicheng, the Shu army killed nearly [-] Goguryeo people and captured more than [-] enemy troops.

Originally, the Goguryeo army still had about [-] active forces, but if it really opened up and fought, it would be difficult for the Shu army to wipe it out for a while.

But Li Ke suddenly became violent and cut Yuan Gai Suwen in a row, which immediately defeated the psychological defense line of the Goguryeo army.

Especially when he picked up Yeon Gaesumun's head and showed it to everyone, the Goguryeo people were so frightened that their faces turned pale and their whole bodies trembled.

The Shu army threatened again, and the Goguryeo army was immediately defeated. They put down their weapons and raised their hands to surrender.

In this battle, the Goguryeo army was completely wiped out, and their plan to attack Tang in the south was completely destroyed.

All the generals of the Shu army were in high spirits. They marched hard, attacked the city cleverly, and defended the city desperately, and finally got the best result.

But then, they faced a huge problem.

How to deal with these 20 captives?

Li Ke's plan was to bring them back to Chang'an and hold a ceremony of presenting prisoners in front of the world.

Of course, he did not do this to show off his military exploits. He wanted to deter those foreign countries, so that the neighboring countries around the Tang Dynasty, large and small, would realize the terror of the Tang army, so that they would never dare to invade the border of the Tang Dynasty again.

However, such a large number of captives needs to be transported to Chang'an, but many people are needed to guard them.

But Li Ke has another important thing to do now. He wants to lead his troops to Changshan County to wipe out the armies of the other two countries and completely suppress the war in the northern border.

Turks and Xue Yantuo have more than 20 soldiers and horses, and they are mainly cavalry, and their combat effectiveness is extremely strong.

To wipe out these two armies would of course require a large number of troops.

Li Ke now only has about [-] elite infantry and [-] cavalry left in his hands.

If you want to use these 10 people to complete the two major events of destroying the coalition forces and escorting the prisoners at the same time, it is obviously impossible.

After thinking for a long time, Li Ke finally made a decision. He wanted to use the infantry of the Shu army guarding the northern border.

When he set off from Shu, Li Ke had sent 13 infantry to the northern border to defend the coalition forces from harassing the northern state capitals.

Now that the Goguryeo army has been wiped out, and the other two countries cannot achieve a big climate, then of course the 13 infantry can be drawn out to escort the prisoners.

These 13 infantry are stationed near Youzhou, and it is not difficult to transfer them here.

But time waits for no one, he has no time to wait for these infantry to arrive at Anshi City.

He left 2 infantrymen and suppressed these prisoners in Anshi City.

At the same time, he notified the 13 infantrymen stationed in the north, mobilized 8 men, and used warships to rush to Anshi City.Then all the prisoners were transported back to Shandong via warships, and then sent to Youzhou.

Wait until he finishes fighting the two groups of enemy troops, Turkic and Xue Yantuo, before dealing with them.

After arranging everything in the rear, Li Ke immediately rushed to Changshan County with enough food, grass and military equipment.

……

Changshan County, located in the southwest of Youzhou, is the intersection of the three armies going south.

The Goguryeo people went south from Shanhaiguan, while the Turks and Xueyantuo people went south from Yehu, Shuozhou, Shengzhou and other places on the north side of Youzhou. These routes finally intersected in Changshan County.

Changshan County has long belonged to the inner region of the Tang Dynasty, and these people should not have gathered here, but the disaster in Youzhou has already caused the surrounding areas to fall, allowing the troops of other countries to wreak havoc.

So at this moment, Changshan County has already become the sphere of influence of the Turks and Xue Yantuo's troops.

Li Ke estimated the route and decided to rush to Youzhou, rest and replenish his troops, and then rush to Changshan County.

Of the 13 infantry, only 8 were allocated to escort the prisoners, and 5 remained in Youzhou.

Li Ke now only has [-] cavalry and [-] elite infantry left.

The chariots that the elite infantry rode on can carry [-] troops, and there is still a load capacity for [-] troops.

He then mobilized 3 people from Youzhou to supplement the mules and horses into the infantry camp. In this way, he would have the combat power of 11 soldiers and horses, and he would have the strength to fight against Turks and Xue Yantuo with more than [-] horses.

As soon as he said it, Li Ke quickly sent troops to Youzhou, and the chariots sped fast, and arrived in Youzhou in a few days.

When they arrived in Youzhou, the army rested for a while, but Li Ke didn't stop. He wanted to arrange mules and horses to replace the combat ordnance.

The previous battle in Anshi City was a battle to attack and defend the city, which required a lot of heavy equipment.

But to fight in Changshan County, it was an ambush in an open area, and there was no need for these siege equipment.

So, he put down all the ballistas, ladders, kerosene and other weapons, and replaced them with lighter continuous-fire crossbows and short arrows.

These continuous bows and short arrows can ensure that the infantry under his command have the ability to kill the enemy on a large scale in a short period of time.

After preparing everything, he immediately dispatched troops to Changshan County.

Time was running out, and he led his generals to Changshan County without stopping. At this time, there was still one day before the Allied Forces of the Three Kingdoms converged.

Li Ke quickly ordered the army to disguise itself and wait for the Turks and Xueyantuo people.

"Your Highness, what are you looking at?"

In the big tent, Ma Liuzhi walked in,

At this moment, Li Ke was studying the surrounding terrain with a marching map.

He pointed to the marching map, which marked the route of the Turkic and Xue Yantuo armies marching all the way.

"These two troops attacked Changshan County from the north and northwest. The Turks went directly south, killed the wild foxes, and then went south to Changshan. Xue Yantuo marched east from Shengzhou, Dingzhou and other places to the The wild fox, and then joined the Turkic people, and then went to Changshan together."

He moved his finger to the "wild fox" area, which was north of Changshan County, about four hundred miles away.

This wild fox is located in the Datong area of ​​Shanxi Province in later generations, which is the separation point between the desert grassland and the Yellow River basin.

After thinking about it for a while, Ma Liuzhi nodded and said: "So, if they want to escape, they will definitely go north to the wild fox, and then separate and flee!"

"Correct!"

Li Ke said with a smile: "That's what I mean, let's make preparations early!"

He looked at the vast grassland behind the wild fox, and sighed: "If these people cross the wild fox area and go north to escape to the grassland, then it will be difficult for us to catch up with them..."

Ma Liuzhi was stunned for a moment, and then muttered: "This battle has not yet been fought, Your Highness, you have already started planning to pursue the opponent's escape route..."

Li Ke shook his head and said with a smile: "Isn't it necessary to consider the long-term in this marching battle..."

Li Ke thought very clearly that in the face of cavalry units like the Turks and Xue Yantuo, if he did not think carefully, he would not be able to completely beat them down no matter what.

As long as these people escape back to Mobei, within two years, they will definitely come back and harass the towns in the north.

(End of this chapter)