Overlord!

Chapter 39
The grass market was implemented for the first time and achieved remarkable results in Liyang and Shicheng counties.People who have been troubled by war for a long time and their livelihoods are declining actively participate in it and buy utensils that are in short supply at home.Rattan baskets, bamboo mats, and straw sandals woven by the common people, hand-polished pottery, woodware, furniture, and melons, fruits, and wild vegetables were all popular for a while.

The most important thing is the coarse salt sent to Caoshi by the military officials in Sun Ce's camp, which is worth thousands of stones.

Coarse salt is not what ordinary people can produce by hand in their families. Even those tyrants who gather thousands of people to smelt it privately cannot obtain table salt without geographical advantage.

Yuan Xiong was in charge of the coarse salt trade, and he personally reported to Sun Cehui: "The coarse salt in the camp has been snapped up in Liyang and Shicheng counties in the past few days. More than [-] pieces of ironware were exchanged in Shicheng County."

After listening to this, Sun Ce said with emotion: "The soaring price of grain is already so serious. In the peaceful world, the price of grain is no more than [-], and the lower is no less than [-]. Eight hundred yuan for a stone of salt is usually enough to exchange at least [-] stone or even [-]. Stone food, now only exchanged for a mere [-] stone."

Yuan Xiong nodded: "Nowadays the country is in chaos, the people have lost their homes, good fields have been left unused, and there are countless people who have tossed and turned into ravines. But this further highlights the benevolence and righteousness of the general in giving food and relief. I saw with my own eyes in Liyang that people from all over the world dragged their families with them. , Those who arrive in swaddling clothes will never stop on the road.”

Before Sun Ce could reply, Chen Wu suddenly strode to the front of the tent, cupped his hands and said, "General, there are heroes outside the camp leading thousands of troops to join us."

Yuan Xiong said with a smile: "The general opened a granary to release grain. He is already a famous man, and he is a hero from far and near. He will return home."

Sun Ce also stood up. There are heroes and sages who agree with each other, so he has to treat scholars with respect.

But recently, he really has a feeling that the world is at home.When the Duke of Zhou was alive, wise men from all over the world gathered. He washed his hair three times, and fed three meals a day.

After Sun Ce opened the granary to release grain, he was also a hero from far and near, and he led his people to join him.Every day, he receives a group of heroes, even green forest heroes, water bandits and bandits.

However, when Sun Ce walked out of the camp, he realized that the heroes who defected this time were quite different from the previous ones.

This time, the people who led the troops to seek refuge actually stayed in the water army camp at the foot of Niuzhu Mountain.

Cheng Pu, who was in charge of the capital's water army, approached and said to Sun Ce, "General, this hero led a thousand troops and came here with more than fifty ships of all sizes."

Sun Ce looked at the fleet lined with hundreds of sails on the river outside the naval camp, and said with a smile, "It's a hero from the river who has defected this time, please come into the village and tell me."

Soon a tall and fierce general entered the boat alone and approached the shore.

Seeing Sun Ce in a brocade robe, he jumped down before the boat stopped, strode up to Sun Ce, bowed his hands and said, "Wu Jun Lingcao, I pay my respects to General Sun. Hearing that the general raised his troops to quell the chaos, we will take the lead. Come here and do the work of a dog and a horse for the general."

Ling fuck!

Sun Ce raised his brows, this is a famous general of Soochow Wu!
There is no need to mention his bravery, and he is rated as a constant champion!

This is something that other generals and schools in Soochow, such as Huang Gai, Han Dang, Sun He, etc., have not experienced.

The title of champion is equivalent to Pang De in Xiliang and Huang Zhong in Shuhan.

But unfortunately, maybe Soochow has not been very lucky in this regard.The most capable generals in the army, the most brave generals in the world, will inevitably die in Liuya.For example, Sun Jian, Sun Ce, Xu Kun, and now Ling Cao.

The way Ling Cao died in battle in history is exactly the same as that of Sun Jian. Sun Jian rode alone on horseback, while Ling Cao marched alone on a light boat.

The light boat is not a warship, and it doesn't even have a cover, so Ling Cao was shot and killed by Gan Ning's elite on the way after he defeated the enemy's forward.

In any case, this is a water battle, a land battle, and a fierce general who overwhelms everyone.

Sun Ce helped him up, and said with a smile, "I don't like thousands of troops, but you are a strong general. You came at the right time. I am about to leave the camp and go north. I just need a good general to guard the river, deliver food and grass, and go with me." Our army advances by land and water."

Ling Cao didn't expect that he would be able to take on such a heavy responsibility as soon as he entered the camp, so he cupped his hands excitedly and said: "Fuck you!"

Sun Ce took him to Niuzhu Mountain, looked at the blue and mighty Yangtze River, and asked, "How did you trek all the way from Wujun to Danyang? Are you familiar with the Yangtze River waterway?"

Ling Cao was full of pride, and immediately replied: "General, since the world was in turmoil and heroes rose together, I used chivalry to gather together young people, gained more than a thousand people, and dealt with the land of Wu and Chu. On the surface of the Yangtze River, I travel several times a year, everywhere. The terrain is clear to the chest. Regarding the defense line of the Yangtze River, besides Niuzhu, the second important garrison is Shakouyan."

"Shakouyan?" Sun Ce had never heard of this place.

Ling Cao introduced: "This place is also known as Yangpu, where Lishui flows into the Yangtze River. Liu Yao's general Zhang Ying led his troops to garrison here to prevent Yuan Shu's navy from sailing down here."

Speaking of Danglishui, Sun Ce suddenly guessed where it was, and it should be the famous Danglikou in later generations.

Zhang Ying led the army to guard this place, which is a very wise deployment in military affairs.

The name Zhang Ying is not well-known in the history books, but he must not be underestimated because of this. He was just directly crushed by Sun Ce and had no chance to show his talent.

In fact, his military vision is very outstanding, otherwise he would not be able to stop the successive attacks of Wu Jing, Sun Ben and others.

In particular, Yangpu, the garrison site chosen by Zhang Ying, is a very important place in the military, and it coincides with Wang Jun, a famous martial arts general in the Jin Dynasty.

It was here that Wang Jun, the Longxiang general of the Jin Dynasty who presided over the entire Pingwu War, sailed down the river, broke through the entire Yangtze River defense line, and then renamed it Danglikou.

The so-called "Wang Junlou's boat went down to Yizhou, and Jinling's royal spirit was sadly lost. Qianxun's iron locks sank to the bottom of the river, and stones came out of a stream of flags."

Naturally, Wang Jun's talent needless to say, this is the famous founding general of the dynasty and the famous official of the martial arts temple who ruled the world.

Zhang Ying made the same deployment as him, guarding Yangpu, resisting Huaisi elite soldiers for many years, his military ability should not be underestimated.

Sun Ce said: "If Zhang Ying is not eliminated, it will be delayed for a long time. If he is allowed to build camps and fortifications in the local area, I am afraid that it will eventually become a trouble in my heart."

Ling Cao immediately suggested: "When I was on the river, I heard that the general's army was sweeping up the rebellion in Danyang. It was as powerful as a bamboo, and it shocked the east of the river. I knew that the main force of the general's army was in the south, and it would be difficult to move north in ten days. So I led the troops to help the battle. , Help the general defeat the enemy."

Sun Ce raised his eyebrows: "Do you have a plan to defeat the enemy?"

Ling Cao nodded heavily, pointing to the surface of the Yangtze River with pride and ambition: "General, Liu Yao first won Jiangdong, and the navy was not strong. The main force is here in Niuzhu Camp. I led my troops to investigate in Yangpu for several days, and determined that it was in Yangpu. There are not many water troops. Therefore, Zhang Ying used the method of iron chains across the river to guard this place, using several thick iron chains to lock on the Dangli River to prevent the water troops from going down the river."

"As long as I lead the navy to surround the river, they must be worried that we will rush into Danglishui and cut off its eastern grain road. At this time, the general led his troops to appear from the south, even if there are only a few hundred people, threatening his Danglishui. Zhang Ying couldn't sit still and had to send troops to fight."

Hearing this, the corners of Sun Ce's mouth turned up, revealing a relaxed smile.

This deployment is very simple, but very deadly, even sharper than Wang Jun's army.

Is Ling Cao's talent far superior to Wang Jun's?
Of course not, he is just a brave general who has won the three armies, and he is far from being able to compare with Wang Jun, a famous general like Wang Jun.

The only reason why his deployment was more incomprehensible than Wang Jun's was that the main force of Sun Ce's cavalry had successfully broken through the Yangtze River defense line.

Danyang prefect Zhou Shang's change of flag caused an irreparable large hole in the entire Jiangdong's iron-like defense line.

As long as Sun Ce led his army to the south bank of Danglishui, cut off the iron chain that threatened Hengjiang from the land, and sank it to the bottom of the river, Zhang Ying on the north bank of Danglishui would fall into a desperate situation in terms of military tactics.The navy went down the river and could easily surround it in the camp next to the Yangtze River.

When the enemy's banners and flags are everywhere below the camp, and hundreds of sailors cross the river on the river, Zhang Ying's subordinates who are surrounded will deeply understand the despair of the overlord Xiang Yu in Gaixia.Without waiting for the army to attack, their hearts will be scattered.

This time, Sun Ce didn't have any pressing pressure, and could calmly besiege them for a month or two.

Insufficient food and grass are enough to defeat all the will of the defenders.

Seeing Sun Ce's expression like this, Ling Cao knew that his opinion had moved him, and immediately continued to persuade: "General, with the help of the navy, our army occupies a favorable position on the south bank of Dangli River, and we don't need to return from Danyang. Riding a thousand men on foot is enough to win."

Sun Ce held his sword and looked far away. Now the mountains and rivers in the south of the Yangtze River are green and the water is green. The spring breeze is blowing in front of him. He is also full of pride: "Yes! Just deploy according to your instructions, and advance by land and water. I will ride more than a thousand horses and go north to defeat Zhang Ying. .”

The soldiers in the Niuzhu camp have been reorganized for more than half a decade, and the three armies have replenished a large number of young and strong men from Fan Neng's surrender, powerful tribes, and recruits from the common people. The size of the army has now exceeded [-].The general school is doing its best to buy Yijia flags and banners.The Sima of each department is also performing martial arts lectures and training soldiers.In particular, it focuses on training the mandarin duck formation and the three-talent formation.

Because it involves the conversion of tactics, the progress of the reorganization and training of each unit is different.

Sun Ce decided not to bring Huaisi veterans of Chengpu's department and Xu Yi's completely new establishment this time.

In the end, the two units he chose to raise troops to the north were Jiang Qin's unit and Xu Kun's unit.

There are only three troops who have practiced the mandarin duck formation before, and they are the subordinates of Jiang Qin, Xu Kun and Zheng Bao.

In the Battle of Niuzhu, Zheng Bao's troops defended the Chinese army and suffered heavy casualties, so Sun Ce left them in the camp to rest for a while.

In addition to the 1000 or [-] disciples, Sun Ce also brought a whole three villages of crossbowmen!
After defeating the Niuzhu camp and capturing a large number of weapons, Sun Ce also had enough bows and crossbows.More than 600 soldiers who are good at bows and crossbows were selected from the soldiers and heroes.

The heroes who led their troops to seek refuge all held bows and crossbows. Many of them could draw strong bows and hit sixty-step targets with their arrows. Their shooting skills were much better than those of the archers in Sun Ce's army.

Most of the nearly [-] crossbowmen under Fan Neng's troops survived and surrendered to Sun Ce after the war.

This caused the scale of Sun Ce's crossbowmen to expand rapidly.

The gunners and crossbowmen strengthen their long-range projection ability before and after the mandarin duck formation, which is the standard combat method of the mandarin duck formation.

With the help of these three elite archers and [-] mandarin duck soldiers, there are already [-] frontal infantry in total.

This is the elite selected by Sun Ce from the three armies, equipped with excellent armor and equipment, and using the most suitable battle formation for the hilly terrain in the south of the Yangtze River.

It should be easy to smash [-] enemy troops head-on. If they can't be defeated, they will be ashamed of the generous salary provided by Sun Ce!
And Sun Ce has high hopes for them, and can defeat 6000, 9000 or even 5000 people.

Li Shimin once said boldly: "I have a thousand soldiers, but I can hit tens of thousands of Hu Qi."

Sun Ce also has great ambitions, and hopes that his infantry will not be weaker than him, or even better.

Of course, just like Li Shimin likes to use cavalry, Sun Ce also brought a large number of cavalry. In addition to fifty rangers, there are more than 40 Xuanjia cavalry!

These mysterious armored cavalry are all burly warriors with a height of more than seven feet and seven inches.Compared with ordinary apprentices, they are extraordinarily large in both height and size.

Especially after wearing Xuanjia, they look even more majestic in appearance. More than 40 cavalry rode tall horses in two rows, and their scale and volume seemed to be larger than the two garrisons.

The momentum of their charge was overwhelming, and no one dared to stop it.

The advantages of using elite soldiers and strong generals compared to bloated and huge troops have been fully demonstrated after this troop dispatch!
If it is a large-scale ordinary army, it is the ultimate to be able to march fifty or sixty miles a day.If the speed is increased, there will be a great risk of defeat by force.Those who seek profit for a hundred miles are generals.

However, Sun Ce's troops put all the supplies, food and grass on the boats. The elite soldiers and strong generals moved quickly, and they marched for more than [-] miles in half a day!

This speed has crushed all the armies in the world.Xia Houyuan, who is best at forced marching under Cao Cao's command, is just known as: "Xia Houyuan, the captain of the Dianjun, five hundred in three days and one thousand in six days."

Throwing away the bragging, it was just as fast as the general marching speed of Sun Ce's soldiers.

The distance of more than 50 miles was too short for Sun Ce's army. They dispatched troops at dawn and arrived at Yangpu at noon.

When Zhang Ying's scouts discovered the traces of Sun Ce's army and sent back the military information, it was too late for Zhang Ying's soldiers to send troops to stop them.

They were still in the process of gathering and marching, and Sun Ce's army had already rushed to the riverside.

Zhang Ying's defenders on the south bank of Dangli River were all surrounded by earth forts on the high slopes by the river.

Jiang Qin led his personal guards to investigate the enemy's situation, then quickly returned, and said to Sun Ce: "General, the Hengjiang iron chain is set up on the cliff behind the high slope by the river. But Zhang Ying set up an earthen fortress on the high slope, depending on the scale. At least two to three hundred troops can be stationed."

Sun Ce rode his horse to the front of the whole army and looked towards the riverside. If there was no war, the scenery here would be magnificent and pleasant.

The green hills on the banks of the river are majestic and towering. The Yangtze River and Dangli rivers flow turbulently under the mountains. The scenery along the bank of the river is a gorgeous chapter in countless poets' poems.

But the traces of the war are deeply imprinted here.On the north bank of the river is Zhang Ying's large-scale military camp, and on the high slope on the south bank of the river is a heavily guarded earthen fortress.

Sun Ce didn't have the elegance to appreciate the beautiful scenery at all, and directly waved his hands and ordered: "Kill the defenders for me, and take this fort!"

(End of this chapter)