Chapter 267: Oops, the food was burned

If the soldiers and horses are not moving, the grain and grass will go first.

No matter how powerful a general is, without food, he can accomplish nothing.

Since ancient times, there have been countless examples of battles that ended in disastrous defeat due to problems with food and fodder or because the enemy cut off their food supply.

Therefore, generals commanding troops in war must make the issue of food and fodder a priority. They must fight as many battles as they have food and fodder; showing off one's prowess is useless.

During a war, both sides will try their best to cut off the enemy's supply lines.

If faced with an expert like Cao Ze who arbitrarily cuts off other people's food supply, any commander would have to keep an eye on his own granary first.

Otherwise, it will be a great defeat.

And food and fodder not only refer to grain and fodder, but also many other things, such as arrows and medicines. If it is a battle in the desert, water is of paramount importance.

"Double Whips" Hu Yanzhuo, "Invincible General" Han Tao, and "Tianmu General" Peng Qi were all high-ranking generals. Taiwei Gao Qiu also offered them heavy rewards, so they did not have much to worry about.

Unfortunately, the logistics system of the Song Dynasty is really too poor.

Hu Yanzhuo had 3,000 cavalry and 5,000 infantry under his command, which were combat troops.

There are more auxiliary soldiers. One combat soldier is usually equipped with three auxiliary soldiers, who are responsible for transporting equipment and food, setting up camps, helping combat soldiers transport weapons and armor, etc. They will also serve as the main force for sieges (cannon fodder) during war.

Therefore, the army that Hu Yanzhuo led to suppress the bandits actually had more than 30,000 people.

To supply food and fodder to 8,000 combat soldiers and more than 20,000 auxiliary troops, tens of thousands of civilians are needed.

Because once the war starts, the soldiers' physical strength will be consumed all at once, unlike the usual intensity of training every five days.

Food consumption is staggering.

And the consumption of meat will also increase rapidly.

Good food is an important means of maintaining military morale. Not to mention the rewards for war and compensation for soldiers killed and wounded, as well as the loss of weapons, horses, and armor, a major war could completely wipe out the national treasury.

For Hu Yanzhuo's 8,000 soldiers, the court only provided money and food for the start of the rebellion. When they really arrived in Shandong, the food and fodder required by the local area were the real bulk of the cost.

Therefore, there is a saying that soldiers pass through like a comb.

The 800-li Liangshan Lake sparkles in the sun.

The huge Liangshan Lake is the gateway to the east of Shandong. When Hu Yanzhuo came to Shandong to quell the rebellion, the first thing he encountered was this huge lake.

Although Liangshan never raised the banner of rebellion, it refused to pay taxes and did not allow the government to set foot, which was almost equivalent to rebellion.

If Hu Yanzhuo wanted to pacify Shandong, he would not let go of this hill and bury such a big mine behind him.

Looking at the water, Hu Yanzhuo also felt troubled.

Before Hu Yanzhuo could get into trouble, Liangshan had already started to act.

Keep the enemy out and stop the disease at its beginning.

If we wait until Hu Yanzhuo attacks Liangshan, that would be the worst of the worst strategies.

The best strategy to defeat the enemy is to burn down "Wuchao".

There were Liangshan's spies throughout Shandong, and they could not hide the location where the army's food and supplies were stored.

The decisive battle is whether "Wuchao" can be burned successfully.

As long as the army's baggage is burned, Hu Yanzhuo will be unable to move for at least one month and at most three months.

As the saying goes, the first push is strong, the second is weaker, and the third is exhausted. Cao Jie's show of force to him has come to an end.

The large ships of Liangshan appeared and disappeared like ghosts. Sun Li led a group of soldiers to land on the north bank and approached Hu Yanzhuo directly.

At the same time, in Shouzhang County, Dongping Prefecture, a deafening roar suddenly sounded, like thunder. Then a huge fire broke out, and thick smoke rushed straight into the sky, which could be seen more than ten miles away.

At the bank of Liangshan Lake, Hu Yanzhuo had just received a report from a scout that more than a thousand bandits appeared ten miles away, and he could not help but be overjoyed.

He was worried that he couldn't attack Liangshan in the lake, but he didn't expect these bandits to come to his door on their own initiative.

After the great joy, he was also very angry.

A mere bunch of bandits actually dared to line up in front of him. He was a general who never showed his emotions, so he quickly sent out scouts and then three thousand cavalry and infantry to attack.

But before the two sides could make contact, someone suddenly came up behind them on horseback, shouting in fear: "General, it's bad! It's bad!"

"What happened?"

"General, Shouzhang's granary was burned, and seven or eight out of ten supplies were lost..."

"what?"

No matter how calm Hu Yanzhuo was, he could no longer calm down at this moment and shouted, "Where is Peng Qi?"

"General Peng was captured by bandits..."

Hu Yanzhuo's eyes were full of murderous intent. He rode his horse to a high ground and looked in the direction of Shouzhang County. Sure enough, there was a faint wisp of green smoke rising. Judging from the location and the movement, it was definitely there.

This was a great shock. All the soldiers and horses under his command cried out in unison, "General, if our food and supplies are lost, how can we defeat the enemy? We have no choice but to retreat!"

"Now that General Peng has been captured, the infantry will surely be defeated. If the equipment of the linked horses is taken away, we will have no room for maneuver."

The linked horses were heavy cavalry, so the armor they were equipped with naturally could not be carried with them, but had to be transported in the military camp by auxiliary soldiers.

They only wear it when they go into battle to kill the enemy.

Hu Yanzhuo retracted his gaze. Although he was so angry that his house was robbed by bandits that he gritted his teeth, he shook his head and said:
"Don't be alarmed, generals. The bandits are fighting in front of us. If we retreat, their cavalry will charge and we will be defeated. You two take half of the cavalry and quickly return to support us. Contact Han Xianfeng to defend the camp. I will lead the other half of the cavalry to cover the rear. If the bandits dare to come, I will break through the enemy formation and kill the leader!"

After saying this, he selected half of the troops and handed them over to his deputy general to send them back for reinforcement, while he led the other half and walked away at a moderate pace.

On the Liangshan side, Shouzhang County was set on fire, and a huge fire broke out.

In the camp outside the city, vanguard Peng Qi saw this and immediately led his troops forward.

All the heroes were of Tiangang fighting power. How could Peng Qi, a small general of the Disha cavalry, be able to fight against them? After a few rounds, they were disarmed and captured.

The group of soldiers captured the deputy vanguard "Tianmu General" Peng Qi in one fell swoop, took advantage of the surprise attack and quickly fled to Liangshanpo.

Sun Li stood on his horse with his spear in hand, looking at Hu Yanzhuo's elite cavalry from afar. He waited for the cavalry and infantry that attacked Shouzhang County to come back, but still couldn't find any flaws.

Chao Gai and the others laughed and said loudly: "That family of generals, we still stole their granary and captured their vanguards..."

The attack on Shouzhang County was a great success, but Sun Li's troops returned empty-handed. Deputy General Shi Wengong whispered: "If we had charged in earlier, we might have been able to capture the Double Whip Hu Yanzhuo alive."

Sun Li was from the regular army and had received personal instruction from Zong Ze. He had great experience. He shook his head and said, "Reporting to my brother, although Hu Yanzhuo only had a thousand men at that time, he was well prepared. If we charge in, we will definitely not gain any advantage."

"Don't worry about it for now, just follow the plan. No matter how strong Hu Yanzhuo is, he is only one person. How can he deal with the heroes like us in the mountain?"

"Yes!"

The burning of food and supplies was not a fatal blow to Hu Yanzhuo.

Then the local government will collect it.

However, the battle had not really started yet, and a deputy vanguard was lost.

This is a fatal blow to morale!

(End of this chapter)