RPAGF Chapter 275 A moth flies into the flame
Chapter 275 A moth flies into the flame
The next day, the 3rd Cavalry Brigade of the 131st Company, led by Guan Yu and Jian Yong, along with an additional logistics engineer battalion and 40 special forces soldiers, left the main force and traveled by day and night, heading southeast.
Two days later, upon learning that 5 Chinese cavalry had been lost, Chen Er laughed and said to Palau, "Palau, your fire attack plan was excellent, and its execution was even more outstanding. Not a single hidden soldier was discovered by the enemy patrol. I've noticed that you've performed exceptionally well since joining the army; you're truly exceptional. What exactly did you learn in China?"
"Sir, it's nothing! During my time studying Chinese in Luoyang, I read many Chinese military classics and was deeply inspired. The strategy of fire attack is found everywhere in Chinese military books, but no army on the grasslands had ever used fire in battle, so no one thought of it. This time, the fire attack was successful."
"It was also due to the Chinese vanguard's carelessness and their haphazard camping that led to their complete annihilation. If it were me, I would never have camped all around the lake; I would have stationed several units around the basin's perimeter to monitor the surrounding area," Palau said with a smile.
"Well, although many disappointing children are tempted by the wealthy life in China and never return, I am deeply gratified to see young people like you with firm minds willing to return to serve the country! Do you have any suggestions for our Yellow River defense line?" Chen Er said with a smile.
"Yes, I have thought of a way. I saw a defensive device for dealing with cavalry in the military books of the Chinese, called caltrop. This device has four iron spikes evenly distributed on a small iron ball. Its principle is that no matter how it is placed, three spikes will always grip the ground, and the remaining one will be vertically upward."
“As long as the horses step on it, it will surely pierce their hooves. Although the horses are now shod with horseshoes, caltrops are still sharp objects. With the weight of the horses, stepping on them will still pierce their hooves. At that time, the Chinese cavalry will fall over and lose their formation. We won’t even need to do anything!” Palau nodded and said.
"What is that? Why didn't you say so earlier? Show me what it looks like!" Chen Er's eyes lit up as he complained to Palau.
"I only thought of it this morning when I woke up," Palau replied, leading Chen Er out of the main hall. He then took a handful of damp soil from the garden and kneaded it into a rough model of barbed wire for Chen Er to see.
Chen Er examined the model from all angles for a while, then placed it on the ground. Sure enough, no matter how he positioned it, three points touched the ground, with the remaining spike pointing skyward, ready for the enemy to come and die. Overjoyed, Chen Er immediately ordered all the blacksmiths in the army to forge this armor.
However, after the order was given, Chen Er suddenly frowned and said to Palau, "Gao Shun's army is less than 200 li away from Xichuan. The vanguard will be on the other side of the river in less than two days. We have few blacksmiths and little wrought iron, so we can't make many caltrops. They would be a drop in the ocean on the grassland and wouldn't be of much use."
Palau shook his head and laughed, "I don't intend to leave these barbed wire caltrops on the grasslands across the river for the Chinese infantry to clear. We'll place them in those places where you can easily ride across the river, and sink them to the bottom. That way, it will be difficult for the Chinese army to cross. Our defensive pressure will be greatly reduced. After all, the fighting power of the Chinese Empire's soldiers is very strong. If they manage to cross the river, we probably won't be able to stop them."
Chen Er beamed with joy, patted Palau on the shoulder, and exclaimed that there was a worthy successor.
On February 18th of the 11th year of Emperor Yuan, the vanguard of Gao Shun's army, which was no more than 50 kilometers away from the main army, arrived at the north bank of the Xichuan River. They exchanged fire with the archers of the Wuxi Flying Army on the opposite bank for two hours, inflicting hundreds of casualties on the enemy. After that, they set up camp along the north bank of the river and waited for the arrival of Gao Shun's main army.
A day later, Gao Shun led his 24-strong northern army to the north bank of the Xichuan River, where the Wuxi Feijun Kingdom and the former Xiongnu people met. He set up camp a kilometer away from the river and confronted the 20-strong northern garrison of the Wuxi Feijun on the opposite bank.
In the days leading up to the arrival of the Chinese vanguard, the Wuxi Flying Army worked day and night on the south bank to forge tens of thousands of iron caltrops and throw them into the shallower parts of the riverbed. On average, two to three thousand iron caltrops were sunk to the bottom of the river at every crossing point, densely packed, waiting for the Chinese cavalry to walk into the trap like moths to a flame.
Chen Er deployed 200,000 troops along the Xichuan River, which naturally borders the Xiongnu, and arranged 100,000 infantry along an 80-kilometer front, from the Bisak Mountains upstream to the grasslands and marshes downstream.
Five locations with direct river crossings were each defended by a large camp and 2 soldiers. The remaining 5 infantry were stationed at Xichuan Fort, while another 5 cavalry patrolled the south bank to reinforce areas heavily attacked by the Chinese army and provide support to the infantry.
Just as the Chinese Empire and the Wuxi Flying Army, with an army of 44, were facing off across the river in Xichuan, the last heavy snow of late winter suddenly began to fall.
A heavy snowfall halted the impending Battle of Xichuan River. Soldiers from both sides retreated to their tents to warm themselves by burning charcoal. Apart from a few patrolling soldiers braving the cold wind and trudging through the snow, the banks of the Xichuan River on the Chahar Grassland were unusually calm, completely devoid of the hustle and bustle that a battlefield should have.
The last heavy snowfall of winter on the Chahar grassland lasted for three days, only gradually stopping on February 22nd. Although the Xichuan River was frozen, the ice was less than 5 centimeters thick. Forget about cavalry charging; even a person standing on it would sink into the water. Gao Shun's army was naturally unable to cross the river to fight. The two armies occasionally exchanged fire across the river, maintaining a hostile stance. Well-prepared, neither side suffered many casualties, waiting for the river to thaw so the Chinese army could launch a major offensive.
Guan Yu led 5 cavalrymen away from the main force, and with his engineering battalion and logistics troops, they traveled two to three hundred li a day. Along the way, they captured and blockaded several small nomadic tribes of the Xiongnu. On the 16th, they entered the northern mountains of the Bisak Mountains, but were blocked by continuous heavy snow. They had to stop their march and set up camp in the valley to rest.
At noon on the 22nd, the heavy snow stopped. The army's engineering battalion and Guan Yu's cavalry brigade, who had been resting and recuperating for three days, took their own logistics personnel, hoes and shovels, and left the camp. Under the command of special reconnaissance soldiers, they cleared the snow along the way, dug roads, and continued to advance towards the mountain.
They painstakingly crossed the Bisak Mountains and forded the Xichuan River within them, launching a surprise attack from behind the Wuxi Flying Army and breaking through their Xichuan River defenses, which had been in place for over a decade. (These defenses had been in place for over ten years to defend against the southward incursions of the Xiongnu.)
After King Kokoyitu retreated to Jerosburg in western Dayuan, more than 15 relocated people and 10 cavalrymen poured in.