Chapter 333 Kill two birds with one stone!
At this point, Ye Mingsheng looked at Guo Zhiping and said in a deep voice:

"Commander Guo, your cavalry battalion has 2,500 cavalrymen, who are the main force in this first battle. Do you have the confidence to defeat them?"

Listening to Ye Mingsheng's question, Guo Zhiping said confidently:
"Sir, it takes a thousand days to raise an army but only a moment to deploy it. My two thousand brothers have been waiting impatiently for this moment. A few thousand bandits are nothing more than an appetizer to us. Half an hour is enough to end the battle!"

Feeling Guo Zhiping's confidence, Ye Mingsheng nodded with satisfaction, then looked at Xun Ke and Ye Tie and said:
“Ye Tie, Xun Ke, the two of you, lead your troops to encircle Qilipu from both wings. As I said before, don’t let anyone escape!”

"Our army is fighting a blitzkrieg this time. Speed ​​and suddenness are our biggest advantages! The enemy's forces are several times larger than ours. If the enemy is prepared, we will be in big trouble!"

In response to Ye Mingsheng's instructions, both of them looked solemn, bowed and said:
"We will follow your orders and will not let any enemy soldier escape from Qilipu!"

Looking at the firm belief in everyone's eyes, Ye Mingsheng nodded slightly and felt a lot more relieved.

The battle plan he had originally formulated with Gu Sansi, He Jingyun and others did not intend to deal with Ji Qiwei's grain transport team and directly launch a surprise attack on Zhensan Mountain. However, after learning about the specific situation of the grain transport team from Huo San, Ye Mingsheng changed his mind...

Ji Qiwei's grain transport team in Qilipu was escorting enough grain and fodder supplies to support an army of 30,000 for seven days, and he, Ye, only had 10,000 men now, so these things would be enough for his troops to use for at least half a month.

There is no need to worry about post-supply and food for half a month. This is a huge temptation for Ye Mingsheng!
As the saying goes, a cannon shot is worth a fortune!

War has always been a very expensive thing.
Ye Mingsheng originally expected the battle in Posuo Mansion to last only seven to ten days. If it exceeds this time, his logistical supply will be a problem. The firearms he is equipped with, such as the Po Lu gun and the Wei Yuan gun, will also suffer a certain degree of damage due to high-intensity use. As for other accumulated grenades, medicines and other consumables, they will also be consumed.

As for the problem of money and food, it is even worse. Once the battle lasts more than seven days, Ye Mingsheng will have difficulty paying the pensions and support for the soldiers. The food carried by the army will be exhausted, and then he can only rely entirely on transporting food from Fengzhou to Posuo Mansion. But in that case, Ye Mingsheng will fall into the same situation as Ji Qiwei...
If Zhen Sanshan could not be killed in one blow within seven to ten days, the battle would most likely turn into a war of attrition. Ye Mingsheng, who had little capital, and Fengzhou, which was poor and hungry, could not afford a war of attrition. Therefore, at that time, Ye Mingsheng would have no choice but to withdraw his troops.

If Ye Mingsheng can get logistical supplies from Ji Qiwei's grain transport team, it will greatly ease the logistical pressure on Ye Mingsheng and increase the sustainable combat time of Fengzhou Army in Posuo Prefecture. At the same time, it will also allow Ye Mingsheng to concentrate his forces to find an opportunity to kill Zhen Sanshan with one blow!
Of course, although the logistical pressure has been relieved, the general situation that the enemy is strong and we are weak has not changed. Therefore, what Ye Mingsheng wants to do most now is to concentrate his limited forces as much as possible, use the advantage of his surprise attack, not give Zhen Sanshan time to react, and strive to achieve success in one battle.

Under the command of Ye Mingsheng, at 1:15 am the next morning, 10,000 Fengzhou troops quietly entered the territory of Posuo Prefecture and arrived at the Qilipu area. In order to allow the soldiers to have better physical strength to cope with the battle during the day, Ye Mingsheng immediately ordered the army to rest and only sent a small number of elite scouts to investigate the surrounding situation.

Three hours later the sun rose, and Ye Mingsheng immediately ordered an attack. Guo Zhiping, Ye Tie, and Xun Ke's three battalions, totaling 7,000 soldiers, immediately launched an attack on the bandits in Qilipu...

These bandits who were summoned by Zhen Sanshan to harass and block Ji Qiwei's grain transport team were all focused on Ji Qiwei's grain transport team. They never thought that someone was going to blow their ass off behind them. When the cavalry under Guo Zhiping charged, this group of rabble immediately fled in all directions crying for their parents.

But Xun Ke and Ye Tie, who had already promised Ye Mingsheng that the news would not leak out, would never give these bandits such an opportunity. While the cavalry was charging, they also completed the encirclement on both wings at the same time, leaving no fish to slip through the net!
The battle lasted for about half an hour. After killing a few bandits who were still resisting, about three thousand bandits wisely chose to surrender.

After annihilating these bandits, Ye Mingsheng originally thought that he would be able to take over Ji Qiwei's grain transport team as a matter of course. However, what surprised him was that this grain transport team, which had been trapped in Qilipu for a long time, seemed to be quite resolute and did not choose to surrender like the bandits.

Although somewhat surprised, Ye Mingsheng did not pay too much attention to these spent forces and immediately prepared to arrange for Guo Zhiping to capture them. However, just a quarter of an hour before launching the attack, Ye Tie brought a middle-aged warrior dressed in the uniform of a border army military officer to Ye Mingsheng.

Pointing at Ye Mingsheng, Ye Tie introduced the rough-looking middle-aged warrior:

"Commander Yang, this is our General Ye!"

After hearing Ye Tie's introduction and looking at Ye Mingsheng's calm expression, Yang Huai, the chief officer of the grain transport team, was somewhat surprised that Ye Mingsheng was so young, but he still saluted Ye Mingsheng respectfully and said:

"I, Yang Huai, the commander under General Ping Kou, greet General Ye!"

After looking Yang Huai up and down, Ye Mingsheng immediately scolded him:

"Yang Huai, do you still have respect for superiors and subordinates, and do you still have the laws of the court?"

Facing Ye Mingsheng's rebuke, Yang Huai's heart sank immediately. Since he was sent by Ji Qiwei to protect the grain transport team, a very important position, he must be Ji Qiwei's close confidant.

Of course he knew that although Ye Mingsheng and he were both under the banner of the Great Zhou, the two sides were actually incompatible. Meeting Ye Mingsheng was much worse than meeting those bandits...
Even so, the situation was stronger than the people. His soldiers, who had been besieged by bandits for several days, were simply no match for Ye Mingsheng's fierce army. In order to save the lives of his soldiers and to complete the order given to him by Ji Qiwei, Yang Huai mustered up the courage to take the risk alone and tried to persuade Ye Mingsheng.

And now Ye Mingsheng’s behavior has undoubtedly given him a wake-up call!
After quietly observing Ye Mingsheng's expression, Yang Huai considered his words, then bowed and said:

"Your Excellency's words terrify me. I don't know where your words come from. Yang has always been conscientious and law-abiding. I would never dare to be rude to you!"

Ye Mingsheng said coldly:
"Yang Huai, you keep saying that you dare not be rude to me, but open your eyes and look at what you are doing?"

"Your men drew their swords and drew their bows against our army. What do you want to do? Are you trying to rebel?"

Being accused of rebellion by Ye Mingsheng, Yang Huai suddenly didn't know how to defend himself. Although he and Ye Mingsheng both knew that he was just on guard against Ye Mingsheng, in this situation where he was at the mercy of others, Yang Huai obviously couldn't say this to Ye Mingsheng openly...

After a moment of silence, Yang Huai could only smile bitterly, then bowed to Ye Mingsheng and said, "General, I, Yang Huai, am loyal to the Great Zhou, and heaven and earth can bear witness to this. This is an extraordinary moment and an extraordinary move. I hope General Ye will forgive me!"

"Humph!"

Ye Mingsheng snorted coldly, and then said unceremoniously:
"I can see that, Commander Yang, you don't trust my Zhenwu Army. In that case, I will call back my troops now. You guys go to Sumugou to rescue your General Pingkou!"

"Go quickly! If you go too late, you won't be able to see your General Ping Kou!"

After hearing Ye Mingsheng's words and pondering for a while, Yang Huai immediately bowed and asked very sincerely:
"General Ye, we have been blocked by these bandits in Qilipu for more than five days. I don't know what the situation is like on the front line. I hope you can tell me!"

Seeing that Yang Huai had indeed fallen into the trap, Ye Mingsheng smiled slightly in his heart, but on the surface he still had a stern face and pretended to be unhappy and said:
"Yang Huai, you look like an old veteran. Don't you have an idea of ​​the situation?"

"Without your food supply, and Baihu Mountain being attacked for a long time, Ji Qiwei is already short of food and clothing. He is out of ammunition and food and is forced to retreat. He wants to join you, but the Sumu Valley in front is occupied by the bandits hired by Zhen Sanshan!"

"Baihu Mountain has sent out tens of thousands of people to block the front. Now Ji Qiwei is trapped under Sumugou, attacked from both sides. He is dying. In order to stay alive, Ji Qiwei sent someone to tell me to save him!
"Ye was prepared to lend him a hand because we are both generals of the Great Zhou. But now it seems that it is no longer necessary..."

At this point, Ye Mingsheng glanced at Yang Huai's panicked expression and deliberately said:
"Okay, now that I have rescued your troops, Commander Yang, you can go to Sumugou to help General Pingkou. There is no need for me to do anything unnecessary here!"

As soon as Ye Mingsheng finished speaking, he instructed Ye Tie who was standing beside him:
"Pass the order down, tell all the troops to pack up and prepare to return to Fengzhou!"

"Yes!"

Ye Tie also cooperated with Ye Mingsheng in acting. He nodded and walked out of the tent. Listening to the conversation between Ye Mingsheng and Ye Tie, Yang Huai's expression changed several times. Just when Ye Tie was about to step out of the tent, Yang Huai said:
"Commander Ye, wait a minute!"

After calling Ye Tie, Yang Huai immediately knelt down at Ye Mingsheng's feet and said:
"I am guilty of disrespect and deserve death. I beg you, General Ye, to save our general for the sake of our comrades in arms in the Great Zhou Dynasty!"

Although he didn't really trust Ye Mingsheng, Yang Huai thought carefully about what Ye Mingsheng said and found that his words were logically clear and in line with the direction of the development of things, so he didn't dare to gamble...

After all, if what Ye Mingsheng said was true, since the bandits in Sumugou were able to stop Ji Qiwei's army, their strength must be over ten thousand, and he only has more than a thousand men now, not to mention the baggage and food that need to be transported. Even if the entire army rushed to rescue Sumugou, it would be like a mantis trying to stop a chariot or an egg trying to hit a stone.

If he wanted to open up Sumugou and catch Ji Qiwei, he had to rely on the Fengzhou Army under Ye Mingsheng. If Ye Mingsheng ran away now, resulting in the annihilation of Ji Qiwei and the 30,000 Liaoyang Army, Yang Huai would be doomed to die!
Looking at Yang Huai kneeling on the ground with pleading eyes, Ye Mingsheng sighed in a fake manner, spread his hands and said helplessly:

"Commander Yang, I really want to save your General Ji, but you clearly don't believe me, so what's the point of me being here? Wouldn't that be annoying?"

Listening to what Ye Mingsheng said, Yang Huai knew what Ye Mingsheng wanted. He instinctively wanted to refuse, but when he thought of Ji Qiwei in a desperate situation, he hesitated. After a moment, Yang Huai finally made a decision. He gritted his teeth and said with difficulty:
"As long as you are willing to come to our aid, General Ping Kou, I am willing to give you all the food and supplies that my troops are carrying!"

Ye Mingsheng was very happy to see that he could get these supplies without having to sacrifice a single soldier. If a real battle came, although Yang Huai's troops would definitely not be a match, there would definitely be some loss of supplies in the fight.

Moreover, if Yang Huaining set fire to the grain in order to die with honor, Ye Mingsheng might have fought this battle in vain and gained nothing...

So it’s better not to fight if you can!
Although the goal had been achieved, in order to avoid arousing Yang Huai's suspicion, Ye Mingsheng declined several times. It was only after Yang Huai's strong persuasion that he accepted the baggage and food with great reluctance.

"Commander Yang, don't worry. Even if I risk my life, I will rescue your General Ping Kou from Sumugou!" After taking Yang Huai's food and grass, Ye Mingsheng waved his hand and assured Yang Huai confidently:
Although Yang Huai felt very painful to give so much baggage and food to Ye Mingsheng, he felt a little comforted after hearing Ye Mingsheng's assurance. He also bowed to Ye Mingsheng very sincerely and said:

"This is a great thanks to General Ye for your kindness. Our General Ping Kou will definitely be grateful to you!"

"Easy to say! Easy to say!"

Ye Mingsheng clapped his hands and laughed. After he finished speaking, he seemed to remember something and said:
"I wonder how many soldiers and horses Commander Yang still has?"

Hearing Ye Mingsheng's question, Yang Huai hesitated for a moment and chose to tell the truth:

“Reporting to General Ye, my army originally had a battalion of more than 2,500 people. They have been trapped in Qilipu these days and suffered heavy casualties. Now we only have 2,000 people who can fight...”

Upon hearing this, Ye Mingsheng's eyes flashed with a gleam of light and he ordered:

"Although I am confident that I can catch General Ji, my Fengzhou army is still sparsely populated. In order to rescue General Ji faster, you should act together with my army. What do you think, Commander Yang?"

(End of this chapter)