Chapter 218 Bringing Water
Yangzhou, Xunyang.

Since Cao Yuanjing and Li Yuanhui arrived in Yuzhang, the two sides have been in a standoff for more than a month.

The Yan army guarded the north bank, and Chaisang was isolated in the south.

The Wei army stationed its troops at the northern foot of Mufu Mountain, west of Chaisang City, and at Hukou on the northern foot of Lushan Mountain, forming a pincer attack on Chaisang.

Cao Yuanjing had no intention of attacking the city, because although Chaisang was isolated, it was impossible to deploy troops to surround and attack it.

The city can only be attacked from the west, which makes it very difficult.

If we attack the city by force, the losses will certainly be huge. By then, when the Yan army on the other side of the river is exhausted and attacks us, how will we respond?
Therefore, this time the Wei army surrounded the enemy but did not attack. The goal was very clear, which was to surround the enemy and attack the reinforcements.

And they were prepared for a long-term battle. The Yan army was also holding its ground.

There is nearly a year's worth of food and fodder in the left and right cities, and sufficient equipment to defend the city. If you don't fight, we can just fight together.

This kind of war in which both sides are waiting for an opportunity is not uncommon.

The Battle of Changping between Qin and Zhao lasted for several years. Guandu, Yiling, Chibi, Liu Bei's entry into Shu, Cao and Liu's conquest of Hanzhong, and so on.

It can take as little as a few months or as long as several years.

If the coaches of both teams are wise men, then the possibility of a quick victory is actually very small.

After all, there are very few geniuses like Bai Qi, Xiang Yu, Han Xin, Wei Qing and Huo Qubing who are as powerful as autumn wind sweeping away fallen leaves in battle.

Yes, it’s a divine general.

This is Li Yuanhui’s own definition, the T0 level among generals, and his second brother must be one of them.

But he knew that he did not have such talent, so his philosophy has always been to do what he should do honestly and not give his opponents any chance to take advantage.

Cao Yuanjing, Lu Gongren and others were amazed at how well Li Yuanhui, a young man, could hold his breath. But they also had few choices.

If you want to march north, you have to fight to the death at Ruxukou and then go to Huainan.

But now Li Yuanhui has built Ruxukou to be as solid as a rock and cannot be broken.

Therefore, they had to use Chaisang as a place to transfer Li Yuanhui away from the Ruxukou battlefield.

It is much better for both sides to waste time here than to attack Ruxukou head-on.

If Li Yuanhui could be defeated in a fierce battle, it would not be impossible to capture Ruxukou.

After all, this side is the main battlefield, which is relatively more advantageous to the Wei army.

However, Li Yuanhui kept his composure, but Cao Yuanjing was a little distracted.

After this period of confrontation, Lu Gongren also understood Li Yuanhui's mentality. It was a bit difficult to wait for the other side to take the initiative to attack.

He was the one who originally led the change of battlefield in order to mobilize the Yan army. Because only when the enemy moved could his side find an opportunity.

"The Art of War" by Sun Tzu says: Those who arrive at the battlefield first and wait for the enemy are relaxed, while those who arrive at the battlefield later and rush into battle are tired. Therefore, those who are good at fighting will attack others instead of being attacked by others.

To cause harm to others rather than to others. That is to hold the initiative in your hands.

So the Wei army took action.

In early July, Cao Yuanjing sent King of Chu Cao Cheng to lead 30,000 troops to attack Wankou.

In mid-July, General Miao Xianyun attacked Liyang.

Li Yuanhui remained unmoved.

The brothers Zhang Jian and Zhang Zhen'e were guarding Wankou, and those guarding Liyang were Zhu, Chang, Xu and others.

Li Yuanhui didn't think this kind of configuration could be easily conquered. Li Yuanhui even felt that he was the weakest link.

In fact, Wankou and Liyang are now able to cope with the situation with ease. They have only reported the fighting here, but have not issued any emergency military reports.

And the main force must have been brought to Yuzhang by Cao Yuanjing, which means that it was all a feint attack.

It's like trying to do something without any result.

Therefore, apart from sending orders to the commanders of each unit to be careful, he did not make any other arrangements. All his attention was focused on the island in the middle of the river between Chaisang and Xunyang.

Because he had carefully surveyed the terrain and determined that if he wanted to cut off the connection between Chaisang and Jiangbei, he must capture this island in the middle of the river.

Similarly, if you want to attack Xunyang, you also need Jiangxinzhou as a springboard.

This Jiangxin Island is currently garrisoned by Zhou Qiu's son Zhou Ao. A camp has been set up in the center with a garrison of 2,000 troops.

Lu Gongren's plan was to seize Jiangxinzhou to mobilize the Yan army's navy.

The Wei army was led by General Han Ling, the Guard General, and General Shen Shangfa, the Guard General. Han Ling's navy was responsible for attacking Jiangxinzhou, while Shen Shangfa's navy was responsible for blocking the Yan army's navy.

Cao Yuanjing himself also came to the Mufushan camp and watched from behind. The front general Li Xiong, the rear general Liu Changyan and other troops were all ready to go.

Han Ling was a general of the Wei army. He was also a salt smuggler. He met Cao Yuanjing in his early years and joined him after the uprising. He was more than seven feet tall, handsome, strong, and brave. He was always the first to charge into battle. He was good at using the clap blade, which weighed about 20 kilograms and was shaped like a three-pointed double-edged sword, which was the predecessor of the Mo Dao.

In the attack on Wuxian, twenty people were beheaded; in the battle of Danyang, eighteen people were beheaded; in the battle of Piling, thirty-five people were beheaded; and in the battle of Jingkou, seventeen people were beheaded, all of them were done by being the first to climb up the city walls.

The troops under his command are all good fighters and brave warriors.

Han Ling led three thousand people, all riding on small boats, to Jiangxian Island.

The Yan army had already discovered the Wei army's unusual movements through the watchtower, so they lit a beacon.

Li Yuanhui, who was personally supervising the battle in the camp along the river, immediately took Li Su, Qiao Xiaojie, Dou Xianjun, Dou Fengjie and others to the watchtower along the river to watch the battle.

Standing on a burial mound several meters high, Li Yuanhui watched the movements of the Wei army in the center of the river. It could be said that he could see the other party's thoughts at a glance.

After the war between the two sides fell into this form of confrontation, the situation of the war was actually very straightforward. Everything was laid out in the open, and there was no room for using clever strategies to defeat the enemy.

I'm here to attack, do you want to defend?

If you don't defend it, I will definitely take over Jiangxinzhou.

It's that simple.

"Who dares to go to Jiangxinzhou to rescue Zhou Ao's troops?" Li Yuanhui's eyes were as sharp as torches, staring straight at the battlefield ahead.

The generals behind him responded one after another, "I am willing to go." "I am willing to go."

In the Jianghuai Army, rewards and punishments were clearly defined. Li Yuanhui always personally inquired about the evaluation of military merits, and those who dared to violate military discipline were always severely punished. Those who made contributions were never stingy with rewards.

So when war breaks out, everyone bravely moves forward.

Li Yuanhui turned his head and glanced at the generals behind him, then said, "Sima Yu, General Wang. The two of you will lead your troops and wait for the navy to open up the road before landing on Jiangxin Island to assist Zhou Ao's troops."

The two of them responded in unison: "We will obey your orders."

Yu Zhongheng, the leader of Zhonglei Camp, was Li Yuanhui's good friend and close confidant.

The person General Wang was referring to was Wang Shiyan, a powerful man from Lujiang who was granted the title of Lang Jiang along with Li Su, Zhou Qiu, and Qiao Xiaojie.

Arranging these two people to go into battle together is equivalent to letting the direct lineage and the newly joined local warlords fight together, making achievements together and taking the blame together.

For a gradually growing force, checks and balances are very necessary.

Jianghuai currently has an army of nearly 100,000. The generals come from different backgrounds, including Li Yuanhui's relatives and friends, surrendered rebel bandits, local tyrants, and imperial generals.

Some of the elements are quite complicated. For example, Zhang Jian is not only a good friend, but also a relative and a powerful person.

The rebel bandits were also divided into several groups, and among the imperial army there were also Xuzhou and Yangzhou troops. With such a complicated background, it was natural that factions would be formed secretly.

How to balance the various factions and allow them to work together despite their own concerns is a test of the ability of those in power to keep balance.

We must not let the newly joined local warlords feel that you don’t allow your own troops to fight, and let us do all the dirty work.

Similarly, he couldn't let his direct subordinates in the central army think that all the military achievements were given to the new Lujiang tyrants.

So, come with me.

(End of this chapter)