Chapter 578: 578 Return to the Royal City
Chapter 578 Chapter 578 Return to the Royal City
Tang Mo also felt that it was almost unnecessary to take care of the war in Qi State: "Now we just need to wait, they may start fighting themselves! Qi State is already in my possession, and it is only a matter of time before I win."
From the time they broke through the border defense line until they captured Nanye, the Tang army had actually achieved a strategic victory.
In other words, from the time when the Tang Army showed off its aircraft and tanks, which brought the war into a three-dimensional combat mode, and brought the war into the World War II era, the winner has been decided.
“What if the Dahua Empire intervenes?” Nangong Hong was still a little worried.
Tang Mo, however, was very confident in his own army: "If they intervene, we can eat as many as they come! I happen to need slaves in my mines and engineering team, and I can eat them if they send me 200,000 prisoners of war."
You must know that the disadvantage, or shortcoming, of the Tang army is that it has insufficient troops and cannot expand to the desired scale in a short period of time.
But it is different now. With the 5 divisions retreating from Beiling, plus the 1 division retreating from Yucheng and Bunas, the Tang Army already has the mobile strength of 6 divisions.
These troops were originally unable to be mobilized to participate in combat. But it's different now. As Alice's dowry, these troops have been completely integrated into the Tang State's command system.
With these troops, it is more than enough to defend the Chu State in the south or to withstand the offensive pressure of the Dahua Empire.
The five divisions from Beiling are not a ragtag army put together by farmers and slaves. They are elites trained by the instructors of the Datang Group.
They themselves have considerable combat effectiveness and are powerful beings that can crush the armies of other countries. It's okay to let them fight in the field, let alone guard the permanent defense line on the border.
Not just any country has such strong breakthrough capabilities and field combat capabilities as the Tang Army. Therefore, we only need to fill a fixed position with 20,000 people, and the attack of the Dahua Empire's 100,000 elite troops is no different from sending death.
“I thought we had no slaves in the Tang Dynasty.” Weiss laughed and complained.
Tang Mo was not embarrassed and laughed: "Hahahaha! It's true that there are none, but I'm not a good person. I can still use slaves from other countries."
"I know, I'm not a good person either." Weiss nodded and reiterated his position once again.
…
At the border defense line in the south of Qi State, an officer looked at the empty granaries and felt that today would be a very long day.
"We have no food anymore." He turned his head and looked at his leader. The general's face was pale. He knew what the consequences would be if the thousands of people outside knew that they had no food.
"Hurry up and send someone to notify...His Royal Highness the Grand Prince! Hurry! Let him think of a solution!" Finally, at his wits' end, he ordered his men: "Quickly reassure the soldiers and tell him that there will definitely be dinner."
Not far away, in the eldest prince’s headquarters, under dim lights, the famous Qi general Qin Xiong, covered in dust and dust, sat in front of the eldest prince and threw his feathered military cap on the table.
He took a deep breath, and then said to the eldest prince: "Your Majesty! Things have reached a very difficult point, and we need to rethink our strategies."
On the way Qin Xiong had already heard the news of the death of King Qi Jiang Xian. After much thought, he still sided with the eldest prince. This also means that life may not be so easy for Qin Xiong's family members who remain in the royal city.
"That's what I mean when I recruit the general back." Hearing Qin Xiong's "Your Majesty" call, the eldest prince's mood immediately improved.
He acted like a courteous corporal, reached out and patted the back of Qin Xiong's hand, and comforted him: "General, since you are on my side, I will naturally treat good people well. In the future, you and I will share weal and woe, and share wealth and honor." Enjoy!"
Qin Xiong doesn't dwell on these things. He knows that glory and wealth will come later, and the predicament in front of him is what he wants to solve.
So he opened his mouth and said to the eldest prince: "I heard that there is not much food left. We have to think of a way."
When mentioning this, the eldest prince obviously became irritated: "There really isn't much leftover grain. I transported all the rest together, distributed them uniformly, and then reduced the quota..."
"Your Majesty! This matter needs to be considered again." Qin Xiong was the leader of the army, and he knew some "bad military habits" that the eldest prince would not consider.
So he continued to explain: "Your Majesty! Please explain... What we can rely on now is the strength of our troops! If there is no army, everything will be over."
As he spoke, he stood up: "Your Majesty is withholding food and the troops are starving. Such soldiers cannot be driven and have no intention of fighting! In this way, we will destroy our own foundation!"
"Then... what should we do?" The eldest prince said it clearly. He also knew that if he did not have the 200,000 troops in his hand, he would lose the advantage in fighting for the throne, so he asked anxiously.
Qin Xiong hurriedly said: "Right now, the only way is to grab this road!" After saying that, he walked to the map and pointed the surroundings to the eldest prince: "There are still some civilians in the hinterland. After searching, it is estimated that they can be found in a few days. food."
"But...what's the use of a few days...?" The eldest prince was already a little timid when he heard this. If King Jiang Xian of Qi was still here, sending troops to rob civilians of their food would definitely be a recipe for death.
"Your Majesty! With these few days of food, we can go all the way east! Go grab the food of the second prince!" Qin Xiong gave his answer in a sinister tone.
You must know that only the third prince and the eldest prince were cut off from the grain route. The second prince also had a railway supply line! Therefore, the troops of the eldest prince and the third prince were short of food. On the second prince's defense line, the troops left behind were quite well fed.
As long as you retreat eastward along the defense line, you can grab the food for the troops left behind in the Second Prince's defense area, so you don't have to worry about food shortages.
Thinking of this, the eldest prince also suddenly understood: "Yes! We can steal his food! But..."
When he said this, he became worried again: "Are we going to give up all the defense zones in our hands?"
"No more! No more! If we go slowly, we might be surrounded directly!" Qin Xiong had retreated from the front line. He naturally knew how strong the Tang army in Luozhen was.
We were leaving late. The armored troops of the Tang Army from Luo Town were pressing over us, but they couldn't leave even if we wanted to. The Tang Army's field supply capabilities were much better than those of the Qi Army. It was entirely possible for the troops to rely on unreliable road supplies. Stay on the offensive.
The prince continued to ask: "But what if he orders the troops to resist?"
"Then fight!" Qin Xiong made up his mind. He was afraid of the Tang army, but not the miscellaneous troops in the hands of the second prince. Especially since he was attacking along the defensive line, he didn't need to attack the enemy, so he was still sure of victory.
"General Qin, I am now without a master. I am in chaos. I am afraid that my younger brother will arrive in the royal city first and be supported by others and sit on the throne first. What should I do?" The eldest prince asked again worriedly.
Qin Xiong smiled and said: "The Tang army's troops who raided the late king's manor may not be targeting the late king, but probably the Donghe Bridge!"
“What?” The eldest prince’s eyes widened as he seemed to grasp the life-saving straw.
"The manor where the late king is located is extremely hidden, and the Tang army may not know it." Qin Xiong speculated: "That force is likely to capture the Donghe Bridge! Their purpose is to block our troops returning for reinforcements, and then capture the royal city! "
“Oh…” The eldest prince felt a sudden realization.
"So, this Tang army should be near Donghe Bridge now. If they don't retreat, they will have no way to retreat!" Qin Xiong explained: "Therefore, it seems that your brother's return to the royal city will not go smoothly."
“We are chasing the second prince behind us, but what is standing in front of us is the army of Qi. They may not really dare to fight your majesty with all their strength! But what is standing in front of the second prince is the Tang army. Can the second prince win?”
The eldest prince already had a smile on his face: His 1st Army and the 3rd Prince's 3rd Army were unable to break through the Tang Army's defense line. What more could his second brother's 2nd Army have?
"So... it's possible that we made it all the way to Beiyuan, and the second prince was still blocked at the Donghe Bridge?" The eldest prince looked at Qin Xiong and asked with a sinister smile.
"That's right! Your Majesty! When we chase all the way to Beiyuan City, the royal city may have been occupied by the Tang army at that time. You are sitting in Beiyuan, but the second prince is in the wild..." Qin Xiong continued.
"Haha! Okay! Hahahaha! Okay, okay!" The eldest prince reacted, stroking his hands and said, "Just do what you said, general! Let the troops collect food on the spot!"
"Yes! Your Majesty!" Qin Xiong quickly lowered his head, then summoned the commanders and began to issue orders.
The Qi troops retreated near Luo Town, and then suspended almost all attacks on the Tang army, which immediately relieved the pressure on the Tang army.
Supplies began to become abundant, and the frontline troops received more food and ammunition, as well as enough oil.
The Tang Army paratroopers stationed at Donghe Bridge finally arrived at the forward troops of the 4th Armored Division in the morning of this day. With the cover of tanks, the paratroopers captured the bridgehead on the other side of the bridge and took complete control of the bridge.
At the same time, the forward troops of Qi's 2nd Army, which returned to defend the Royal City, also arrived at Donghe Bridge and launched an attack on the Tang Army near Donghe Bridge at noon.
It’s just that their exploratory attack was quickly defeated. Although there was no artillery support, the paratroopers were covered by tanks. The Qi army came from a long distance, and the artillery also fell behind and failed to follow, so there was no artillery support.
With only infantry firepower on both sides, the attacking Qi army was obviously unable to seize the position. So they could only stay where they were and wait for follow-up troops to follow up.
At this time, the second prince, who was anxious to return to the royal city to seize the throne, learned that Donghe Bridge had been occupied by the Tang army.
(End of this chapter)