Chapter 770: Take him by surprise and attack him unprepared!
Yunbing, Sanmenling
“Reporting to the commander, our three battalions of 5,000 soldiers have all arrived at Sanmenling. The camp is expected to be completed in an hour…”

After hearing his subordinates' report, Wang Zhide nodded slightly and ordered:
"Send a message to each sentry. In addition to building the camp, they must also dig three trenches one zhang wide and one zhang deep. Chevaux de frise and watchtowers must also be built. Scouts must be sent out ten li away. If there is any disturbance in the surrounding area, they must report immediately!"

"The Fengwu Army's cavalry may arrive at any time. All sentries must be on high alert! There can be no relaxation!"

"Tell them I'll be there to inspect in an hour. If anyone tries to cheat, don't blame me for whipping him!"

"Yes!"

After giving the order, Wang Zhide came to a small hill, which is the highest place in Sanmenling. He can overlook the surrounding situation and observe the progress of his men building the camp. Seeing the camp being built bit by bit, Wang Zhide felt much more at ease.

He had received the order from his cousin Wang Muzhi last night. Realizing that the matter was of great importance, he was worried that the cavalry led by Xun Ke would get ahead of him and directly cross Sanmenling to the vicinity of Jinyang, so he did not dare to delay at all. One hour after receiving the order, he led his men to set out from the garrison and rush over overnight.

Although there was no intelligence indicating that the Fengwu cavalry would definitely pass through Sanmenling, Wang Zhide and Wang Muzhi both believed that the Fengwu Army would come here. After all, if they bypassed Sanmenling, even the cavalry would have to walk a long way, and there were no large towns along the way and no sufficient food supplies...

An hour passed quickly, and Wang Zhide began his inspection. Seeing his soldiers busy and tense, he was very satisfied. In order to maintain the military advantage over the Fengwu Army, Wang Muzhi carried out a large-scale mobilization in Yunbing.

Although this brought a large number of troops to the Yunbing Army, the quality of the Yunbing Army was uneven, which caused trouble for many generals. They had to fight with the Fengwu Army while training these new recruits and teaching them the most basic things.

However, as Wang Muzhi's cousin, Wang Zhide still has some privileges. The 5,000 soldiers under his command are all veterans who have experienced several wars. They don't need him to teach them things like marching and camping.

"Sir, the brothers have been marching all night and are very tired. Now they are speeding up the construction of the camp. Sir, can you slow down the trenching?" Seeing Wang Zhide coming to inspect, one of his sentry chiefs, Liu Maoru, hurried over to say;
After hearing Liu Maoru's suggestion, Wang Zhide glanced at him and said:
"Are you bargaining with me?"

As soon as this was said, Liu Maoru quickly denied it:
"Your Excellency, your words are too serious. How dare I?"

“It’s just that the brothers are too tired. Just now, several of my brothers fainted from exhaustion. Do you want to let them have a rest…”

"Looking at the weather today, my lord, those bastards from the Fengwu Army probably won't come today. My lord, I promise to get them up and start digging trenches at the first hour of the morning tomorrow!"

Listening to Liu Maoru's words, Wang Zhide also looked around, and saw that these soldiers were very tired, and everyone was almost forcing themselves to work. Seeing this, Wang Zhide also felt that what Liu Maoru said made some sense, and after a moment of hesitation, he ordered:

"The trenches must be dug! But since everyone is so tired, let's just dig one today! As for the remaining two trenches, they must be dug before the morning of tomorrow. If they are not dug well, don't blame me for whipping you, Liu Maoru!"

As soon as these words came out, Liu Maoru nodded and promised:

"I understand, I understand. Tomorrow I will supervise the work myself and make sure the trench is dug for you before the morning. If it is not dug well, I will beat myself!"

After saying this, Liu Maoru was still thinking about the soldiers around him and shouted:
"You bastards, the commander only asked you to dig a trench, why don't you thank the commander for his sympathy?"

After Liu Maoru's reminder, the soldiers around him thanked Wang Zhide in unison. Amid everyone's thanks, Wang Zhide returned to his tent.

Wang Zhide was a little hungry when he returned to the tent, so he asked his men to prepare a meal for him. However, before the meal was served, the captain in charge of scouts came to report immediately:

“Commander, the three scouts who have been investigating the northeast should have returned in an hour, but they have not returned yet. Do you think we should send another group of scouts to investigate the northeast?”

Upon hearing the news, Wang Zhide's eyes suddenly lit up. He then looked at the map carefully. After half a cup of tea, he shook his head and ordered:

"No need to send out another batch of scouts. The three scouts under your command have most likely been killed by the Fengwu Army. They will be here soon!"

As soon as these words fell, a messenger outside the door hurried into the tent and reported:

"Commander-in-chief, thousands of Fengwu Army cavalry are coming from the northeast, and they are very fast!"

Hearing this, Wang Zhide immediately smiled and said:

"You've come at the right time! Speak of the devil and he will appear!"

"Send a message to all units, have them quickly enter the combat zone and strictly guard their respective positions! We must not let the enemy troops set foot on Sanmenling. Anyone who retreats without permission will be killed without mercy!"

"Yes!"

An incense stick later, the Fengwu Army rushed to Sanmenling and quickly launched an attack on Sanmenling. However, the 5,000 soldiers under Wang Zhide were well prepared. They relied on the terrain and the camp to resist firmly. Because they were the elite of the Yunbing Army, they were also equipped with a large number of Shenwu guns and Hudun cannons. The Fengwu Army cavalry had lost dozens of people before they even reached the camp.

Seeing this, Xun Ke immediately stopped the attack and withdrew his troops. Seeing this, Wang Zhide's face was naturally full of smiles····························
At the same time, the guards around Wang Zhide also began to praise Wang Zhide loudly.

"The Fengwu Army is just a bunch of cowards who only bully the weak and fear the strong. They only dare to bully the weak, but when they meet a tough guy like the commander, they become weak!"

"The commander-in-chief has frightened the Fengwu Army so much that they are now collapsing at the first blow and dare not fight against our army at all!"

"Commander-in-chief, your mighty power has put the Fengwu Army in a state of panic. After a few more battles, you will be promoted to general!"

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Amid the crowd's flattery, Wang Zhide was a little flattered and thought that he was really the nemesis of the Fengwu Army. He immediately waved his hand and ordered his sentry to seize the opportunity to kill. After a cup of tea, Xun Ke, who was a little distressed about how to capture Sanmenling, heard his men report that the enemy army had walked out of the camp to kill them. Xun Ke's men immediately suggested that Xun Ke annihilate the enemy troops who dared to pursue on the spot, but Xun Ke thought about it for a while and shook his head and ordered;
"Throw all the treasures our army has seized on the road, and throw some armor and firearms as well!"

After hearing Xun Ke's order, the subordinate immediately realized his idea and his eyes lit up:

"My lord, do you want to..."

Xun Ke smiled and nodded and said:

"Pretend to be more convincing, but don't let the enemy see any clues!"

"Sir, don't worry!"

As Xun Ke's plan was implemented, half an incense stick later Wang Zhide discovered that in addition to the sentry he ordered to kill, many of his other soldiers also followed him out. Seeing this situation, Wang Zhide was shocked and angry and shouted to his subordinates:
"Why did you chase so many people out?"

When faced with Wang Zhide's questioning, the subordinate knew that he could not hide it and told the truth:
"Sir, the enemy was completely defeated by our army, and they abandoned a lot of gold, silver, treasures, firearms and armor. The brothers haven't received their military pay for half a year, so they all wanted to make a fortune, so they all followed them!"

Upon hearing this, Wang Zhide immediately became furious and shouted loudly:
"You bunch of idiots, get them back! There's something fishy going on here!"

Although he was somewhat proud of having just repelled the Fengwu Army, he was not so arrogant as to think that he could completely defeat the Fengwu cavalry in that battle. Now the enemy actually started throwing gold, silver, valuables, firearms and armor. It was obvious that there was a problem!

Seeing Wang Zhide's rage, his subordinates were also scared and prepared to withdraw their troops immediately. However, it was too late. Before their messenger could leave the camp, a soldier covered in blood came back and reported:
“Commander, something bad has happened! We were ambushed by the enemy, and many of our brothers were killed by the Fengwu Army! Sentinel Zhao asks you to come to our support as soon as possible. If you are too late, our army will be wiped out…”

As soon as these words came out, Wang Zhide felt so angry that his eyes went dark. Fortunately, his subordinates were quick-witted and prevented him from falling to the ground.

Although he was furious, Wang Zhide had not lost his mind yet. He asked his subordinates:
"How many people were chased out?"

After listening to Wang Zhide's words, the subordinate hesitated for a moment, but under Wang Zhide's gaze, he could only speak honestly:
"About 2,000 people!"

After hearing this, Wang Zhide was even more distressed. Although he didn't know how many more than 2,000 people there were, he only had 5,000 men under his command. The people who had chased out now were almost half of his men.

If there are not many people chasing after him, in order to prevent the enemy from ambushing again and attacking the reinforcements, and also to complete the task assigned to him by his cousin Wang Muzhi, he might choose to abandon the car to save the king, and give up this part of the troops to ensure that the task can be completed!
But it is no longer possible now. If we sit back and watch this part of the troops being annihilated by the Fengwu Army, the remaining troops in the camp will not be enough to complete the assigned task of stopping the Fengwu Army cavalry at Sanmenling.

So at this moment, Wang Zhide only has one choice - to take a gamble!
Thinking of this, Wang Zhide took a deep breath and preached fiercely:
"All troops, attack! Fight the Fengwu Army! Let these bastards know how powerful we are!"

...
...
Three days later, Dagu County
In the Yunbing Army's headquarters, a Yunbing Army lieutenant general reported to Wang Muzhi:

"Governor Jinyang sent a message that the area around Jinyang has been cleared, but no trace of the Fengwu Army cavalry has been found!"

Upon hearing the news, Wang Muzhi nodded slightly. He had been worried these days that Xun Ke would lead the Fengwu Army cavalry to attack Jinyang and cause panic among the people. Now that he received this news, he could finally breathe a sigh of relief.

After pondering for a while, Wang Muzhi seemed to have thought of something and asked the lieutenant general:

"How do the people of Jinyang react?"

In response to Wang Muzhi's question, the lieutenant general also told him everything:

'Some people were reluctant to leave their homeland, and some conflicts broke out because of this, but in the end we completed the task you assigned us!'

Although the lieutenant general spoke calmly, Wang Muzhi knew very well that the matter must be full of blood and tears. He couldn't help but sigh in his heart, but there was nothing he could do about it. In order to resist the offensive of the Fengwu Army, some sacrifices had to be made!

After adjusting his mood, Wang Muzhi continued to ask:
"Any news from Sanmenling?"

The lieutenant thought for a moment and said:
"My Lord, there is no news coming from Sanmenling..."

This made Wang Muzhi's eyes flash with doubt. No Fengwu cavalry was found around Jinyang, and no news was sent back from Sanmenling. So where is the Fengwu cavalry led by Xun Ke now? If we calculate the time, even if Xun Ke led his troops to bypass Sanmenling, he should appear around Jinyang!
Could it be that Xun Ke’s target is not Jinyang?
Don’t you want to harass your rear?

Looking at the sand table in front of him, Wang Muzhi couldn't figure out what Xun Ke was trying to do. Just as he was thinking hard, a guard immediately reported urgently:

"Sir, the main force of the Fengwu Army in Lingyuan County has launched a large-scale attack on Pingyun County!"

This statement immediately attracted all of Wang Muzhi's attention. He was still very confident about the defense of Pingyun County:

"This fellow Lin Huaiwu can't help himself. If that's the case, let's make him get a bloody head!"

Just when Wang Muzhi was thinking of repeating the same trick and replicating the last victory in Pingyun County, two hours later, the scouts on the front line sent him a piece of news that shocked him.
Previously, the Fengwu Army had tried hard to capture Pingyun County, which laid the foundation for the great victory. However, two hours after the siege, the Fengwu Army’s black dragon flag had been raised on the top of the city wall...

(End of this chapter)