Chapter 1182: strategic retreat
Chapter 1182 Strategic Retreat
Chapter 1180: Strategic retreat
Wang Mang knew very well that if Yang Lin was defeated and the Southern Allied Forces were isolated and difficult to support, they would surely end sooner or later. Although he wanted to save Yang Lin, he was unable to do anything.
Just when Wang Mang thought he was completely in a dilemma, a letter from Chen Qingzhi, who was far away in Hedong, once again gave him the confidence to persevere.
In the confrontation with Xue Rengui, although Chen Qingzhi repeatedly fell into a disadvantage, he was not crushed like Wang Mang, and the casualties of his army were not too great. Therefore, against the background of Wang Mang, Chen Qingzhi seemed extremely rare and valuable.
Chen Qingzhi was the only general who had not suffered a big loss in the confrontation with the Qin army. Wang Mang had to pay attention to his advice.
Chen Qingzhi stated in his letter that the annihilation of Yang Lin's army was a foregone conclusion. Even if Yang Guang captured Hangu Pass, he would not be able to save him. Moreover, he did not think Yang Lin could capture Hangu Pass. After all, Li Cunxiao, the best general in the world, could not. There it is.
Since the fall of Hangu Pass, Yang Lin has become a turtle in the urn. The outcome of the entire army's annihilation has long been doomed. It is just a matter of time.
So, instead of thinking about rescuing the Liang army that is doomed to defeat, it is better to think carefully about how to get out of the chaos in Sizhou.
Although the troops of the Allied Army of Merger were larger than that of the Qin Army, their combat power was far inferior to that of the Qin Army. This can be seen from the fact that the 120,000 Allied Army of the Southern Liang were overwhelmed by the 50,000 Qin Army.
Without the Liang army to check it, the Qin army could use up to 100,000 troops, not to mention nearly 20,000 Bingzhou Langqi among them. This force was definitely not something that the Bingnan coalition could resist.
Although there were few cavalry in the Qin army, when Qin Jian participated in the alliance of princes, he brought 30,000 Bingzhou wolf cavalry southward. This cavalry also became Qin Hao's trump card.
After experiencing the battle against Dong, the Wolf Cavalry also suffered heavy casualties, but still had nearly 20,000 combatable cavalry. In addition, Qin Hao supplemented it from the prisoners of the Liang Army, which also gave the Qin Army more The number of cavalry was restored to 30,000.
After Yuwen Chengdu has reorganized the 40,000 Liang army, there will be another 10,000 Xiliang cavalry among the 40,000 reorganized army. By then, the Qin army will have 40,000 cavalry in Sizhou.
However, for the Bingnan Alliance Army, whether the Qin Army has 40,000 cavalry or 20,000, the difference is not very big, because no matter whether it is 40,000 or 20,000, they have nothing to do.
The Southern Allied Army also has cavalry, but the number is too small and the combat power is not strong. They are no match for the Qin Army. If they go out to fight out of the city, they will definitely lose.
Hanoi and Hedong are flat terrains. For Bingzhou Langqi and Xiliang Iron Cavalry, it is like a back garden, where they can always come and go whenever they want.
Although the Union Army can use the city walls to defend, there is no point in just sitting and waiting for death. After all, the Union Army does not have sufficient food and grass, and once the food reserves are exhausted, they will face the same ending as Yang Lin.
For the current Bingnan coalition forces, there is no chance of winning against the Qin army on the Heluo Plain. It is better to preserve their strength, withdraw from Sizhou, and return to Bingnan.
Bingzhou is mountainous and most of the terrain is dangerous. Only by occupying favorable terrain can the Bingnan Allied Forces continue to fight against the Qin army.
Wang Mang knew what Chen Qingzhi said, but after all, he was only a general, not a lord. Among the millions in Hanoi and Hedong, it was not just a matter of giving up.
However, Wang Mang finally decided to retreat, and what made Wang Mang determined was another point mentioned in Chen Qingzhi's letter, that is, it is not easy for the southern coalition forces to withdraw from Sizhou now.
If the Bingnan Allied Forces want to withdraw from Sizhou, they must withdraw before the Qin Army can deal with the Liang Army. Otherwise, if the Qin Army's cavalry is no longer restrained by the Liang Army, once they drive straight into the Yellow River and directly cut off their retreat, they will not be able to retreat. The Confederate Army really couldn't leave even if they wanted to.
With this thought, Wang Mang has already made a decision in his mind. No matter how difficult it is to withdraw from Sizhou, he must withdraw. If he stays in Sizhou, he will die sooner or later. If he returns to Bingnan, there is still a glimmer of hope.
The princes of Bingnan still have tens of thousands of troops in Bingnan. Coupled with Sizhou's 120,000 troops, the Bingnan coalition relies on its huge military advantage and dangerous terrain for defense, so it may not be unable to block the Qin army's attack. What's more, even if Hanoi and Hedong were abandoned, the losses suffered by the Southern Allied Forces would not be huge.
When entering Sizhou, the Union Army had only 60,000 troops, but when they returned, they had 120,000 troops.
Even if the 20,000 Chen Zhang mercenaries and the 20,000 Baibo mercenaries are removed, there are still 80,000 left, which is 20,000 more than the strength before coming.
The mercenaries of Chen Zhang and Bai Bo also suffered heavy casualties in the confrontation with the Qin army. However, the first thing Wang Mang did after expanding his army again was to make up for their losses. Only in this way can he ensure that he conquered the south. The alliance does not collapse.
Although Wang Mang decided to withdraw from Sizhou, he would not just give Qin Hao a free advantage. There were millions of people in Hedong and Hanoi, and he decided to leave Qin Hao in a mess.
That’s right, after raiding aristocratic families, Wang Mang extended his claws to ordinary people.
Before withdrawing his troops, Wang Mang ordered the seizure of all rations from the people under his rule on the grounds that the war was approaching, and then distributed them uniformly.
The people were naturally unwilling to hand over the grain, but under the coercion of the army's swords and guns, they did not dare not to hand it over. A small number of people were dissatisfied and chose to resist, and naturally they died under the suppression of the army.
For a time, the people in the two counties were crying and howling, and countless people cursed Wang Mang.
After Wang Mang successfully collected the food, he packed up all the food and grass and retreated. However, Wang Mang did not give up and left three days' rations for the people.
In fact, Wang Mang could have left no food at all, but in this case a large number of people would starve to death, and his reputation would also be completely ruined.
If Wang Mang really didn't want to take advantage of Qin Hao, he could implement the scorched earth strategy and kill all the people in Hanoi and Hedong. In this way, Qin Hao wouldn't be able to take any advantage at all.
But Wang Mang's heart was not ruthless enough after all, and massacring the city was so unconscionable that Wang Mang could not do it, nor did he want to do it.
But Wang Mang still didn't feel much burden in confiscating the surplus grain in the hands of the people and letting millions of people in Hedong and Hanoi consume the Qin army's grain and grass.
The Southern Alliance soldiers are so numerous that if they retreat together, the Qin army will not be able to stop them even if they want to.
Su Lie and Xue Rengui did not have many troops in their hands. They were also afraid that this was a trap to lure them out of the city, so they did not stop them at first. By the time they reacted, it was already too late to stop them.
Leaving the devastated Hanoi County behind, Wang Mang took all his troops and rushed all the way to the south bank of the Yellow River, where ships for the north crossing had been prepared in advance.
On the south bank of the Yellow River, in front of Mou Ferry.
Wang Mang looked at the soldiers who were constantly carrying supplies and the boats that repeatedly traveled to and from both sides of the Yellow River. He couldn't help but sigh: "This is just a strategic retreat. I will come back."
I would like to thank the leader Bai Xiaosheng for the reward. Liu Xiang has nothing to repay, so I can only increase the intensity of updates to express my gratitude. I will do my best to update in the second half of the month!
(End of this chapter)