Luo Shixin pondered for a long time and asked the scout again: "How many troops are there and how well are there?"

"Report to the general, we found two armies in front and behind. There were more than 20,000 people on one side of Raoyang County and about 40,000 people on the other side. They were heading towards Hejian County. The marching speed was extremely fast. They were equipped with uneven equipment, including leather armor and two gears, but more were leather armor."

Li Hai'an, the deputy general next to him, became a little excited, "General, there are only more than 20,000 people in Raoyang County, maybe this is our chance."

Of course, Luo Shixin knew that this was an opportunity. If it were in the past, he would have led the army to kill him without hesitation, but now he cannot do so. He was appointed as the princess general of Hengshan. He must have the awareness of the chief general. Luo Shixin shook his head, "The general manager did not give me such an order. He just ordered me to put pressure on Dou Jiande."

"But...."

Li Hai'an was a little unwilling to accept it: "If we can wipe out the enemy completely, it is also a kind of pressure. The general should be happy no matter what, and will never blame the general for his good deeds."

Luo Shixin sighed, "General Li, my past thoughts are the same as you. I always feel that the more enemies I kill, the better, but I regret it now. Look at the fertile land around us, there are dozens of miles of people. We have been passing by, and destroyed villages everywhere. If we continue to fight like before, Hebei will become a grassland."

"But the army does not fight, is it still called an army? The enemy will not kneel down and surrender."

Li Hai'an was a little dissatisfied with Luo Shixin's kindness. When the enemy killed the Sui army, he was not so kind. "I don't agree with the general's words. Ci doesn't control the army. If he has a kind idea, then what else can the general manager fight against Hebei? Didn't Dou Jiande do a good job? Rest and organize the army to farm, and it is not as tyrannical as Wei Daoer, so just let Dou Jiande rule Hebei. Hebei will not become a grassland."

Li Hai'an was originally a general of the Tang army and was one of Li Shuliang's capable generals. After Li Shuliang's army was reorganized, he was also named as the Asian general. He was originally stationed in Shangdang County. This time he attacked Hebei, he was transferred to serve as the deputy general of Luo Shixin.

Li Hai'an is honest and he can't hold back any dissatisfaction in his heart. He must say it out. Luo Shixin worked with him for a winter and had a rough understanding of his temper.

Although Li Hai'an's tone was full of dissatisfaction, Luo Shixin was not angry, and smiled and explained: "I'm not saying that we don't fight, I just want to say that the general manager has his own thoughts. The strategic focus of the Sui army is not on Hejian County, but on Zhuo County. He did not let me attack Dou Jiande's army, so we cannot act without authorization. If we want to launch such a large-scale battle, we must report to the general manager in advance. This is why he personally sits in Hebei and commands the overall situation, because he is worried that Qin Qiong will not be able to control the overall situation."

Although Li Hai'an was unwilling to give up, he also understood that Luo Shixin's words were justified. It was impossible for the general manager to know that there were 100,000 troops in Hejian County, but he did not order them to annihilate them. Instead, he just asked them to put pressure on them. They must be considered. They really could not act without authorization.

Li Hai'an couldn't help but feel a little apologized and felt guilty for his dissatisfaction just now. He asked, "What should we do now?"

Luo Shixin looked to the north and thought for a moment: "It may be that I was wrong in judgment. Wang Fubao put an army of 20,000 people in Raoyang County may be just bait. His real purpose is not to snipe us. He is likely to lead the army northward to Shanggu County. Force the general manager to withdraw his troops and do not care about the temptation of Raoyang County. We must put the battle situation in Zhuo County first and must block Wang Fubao's army's attempt to go north for the general manager, and at the same time cut off the food route of Dou Jiande's army."

Half an hour later, Luo Shixin led an army of 30,000 toward Gaoyang County in the northeast. Gaoyang County was the only way for Wang Fubao's army to march into Shanggu County, and it was also the center of the food road for Dou Jiande's 100,000 troops.

...........

On the third day of the confrontation between Zhuo County, Dou Jiande did not launch an attack on Zhuo County, but moved the camp three miles south of Zhuo County, no longer facing the Sui army. In this way, his army formed a "Pin"-shaped confrontation with the Sui army and Luo Yi's reinforcements. He was in the south, the Sui army was in the west, and Luo Yi's reinforcements were in the east.

In the big tent, Dou Jiande stood in front of the sand table and pondered for a long time. This time, his strong insertion into Youzhou seemed to be extremely risky, but once he succeeded, the benefits he gained were also extremely generous. He would get five thousand heavy armored cavalry. In recent years, although he had purchased a large number of war horses from the Khitan and the Turks, his cavalry was still very weak. He had to get this powerful Youzhou heavy armored cavalry so that he could compete with Yang Yuanqing's elite army.

In order to break the current confrontation, Dou Jiande has ordered the general Wang Fubao to lead 40,000 troops to attack Shanggu County and force Yang Yuanqing to retreat. As long as Yang Yuanqing withdraws back to Shanggu County, he will take Zhuo County as quickly as possible and then retreat quickly.

The purpose of Yang Yuanqing, another Sui army in Hengshan County, who was worried about, deploying troops in Hengshan County was obviously to restrain himself. Now that his army is heading north, will the Sui army in Hengshan County attack its own nest?

At this time, the Chief Secretary Kong Deshao quickly walked into the tent and reported in a low voice: "Prince, urgent news came from Gaoyang County. A Sui army of about 30,000 people occupied Gaoyang County yesterday afternoon."

Dou Jiande was shocked. This was obviously the Sui army in Hengshan County. He immediately found Gaoyang County on the sand table. This was exactly the only way to go north to Shanggu County. Dou Jiande took a breath. The Sui army obviously discovered their attempt to march into Shanggu County and wanted to intercept Wang Fubao's army. In this way, his plan to force Yang Yuanqing to retreat west was vain.

Dou Jiande was a little anxious in his heart. He could not have stayed in Zhuo County for too long. The food and grass he carried could only be supported for seven days. The Sui army occupied Gaoyang County and also blocked his food route.

Dou Jiande couldn't help but irritate himself and punched the sand table hard. With a 'bang!', Gaoyang County made of wood was smashed into pieces. He suddenly turned around and ordered: "Order Wang Fubao to defeat the Sui army in Gaoyang County within three days. If it fails, let him come and see him!"

Kong Deshao was startled and hurriedly stepped forward and advised: "Don't calm down. With the elite and equipment of the Sui army, General Wang's 40,000 may not win. If it fails, it will endanger the safety of our city."

"What do you think you should do? Now our food and grass can only last for five days. Could it be that I will give up and run away just to join in the fun?" Dou Jiande yelled in anger.

"The function of the prince understands the urgent need to obtain heavy cavalry, but what the prince is afraid of is that in the end, the heavy cavalry did not get it, but instead it would lose its troops and generals, which would not be worth the loss. Prince, you need rationality!"

Kong Deshao has always opposed Dou Jiande's dispatch of troops to Youzhou, but Dou Jiande was too determined and his opposition was ineffective. He had to wait for the opportunity in silence. This time, the Sui army occupied Gaoyang County, which made Dou Jiande suddenly passive, and Kong Deshao knew that his opportunity had come.

He continued to persuade: "What Bei Zhi is most worried about is that Yang Yuanqing and Luo Yi jointly deal with the prince. Now Luo Yi's army is still holding troops, and Yang Yuanqing's army is also holding troops. Bei Zhi suspected that they had reached a secret agreement and were preparing to jointly attack us. Now the Sui army took Gaoyang County is a signal, indicating that Yang Yuanqing is not doing anything. He has been manipulating behind the scenes. Could it be that he would not have thought of joining forces with Luo Yi?"

Kong Deshao's incisive analysis made Dou Jiande feel powerless. He finally began to realize that he had made a strategic mistake and should not rashly interfere in the battle in Youzhou. Now it is a bit difficult to make a fortune.

Dou Jiande looked at the sun in the sky with his hands behind his back. He was not a bandit like Wei Daoer, but a talented and stubborn person. Although he took the wrong path because of his greed for a moment, after he regained his rationality, he would realize his mistakes and try to correct them.

Dou Jiande sighed, "Maybe you are right, but if you withdraw your troops hastily, you will definitely be jointly hunted by Yang Yuanqing and Luo Yi. I am now in a difficult situation."

Kong Deshao was waiting for this sentence of Dou Jiande, and he immediately said: "As long as the prince decides to withdraw his troops, he has a plan to help him retreat safely."

Dou Jiande was overjoyed, "Tell me quickly, what is the plan?"

.........

The defenses in Youzhou City are clearly divided. Hou Mo and Chen Yi's army are responsible for the East City and North City, and Xue Wanjun's army is responsible for the guards of the West City and South City. There is no exchange between the two. Although Luo Yi has always tried his best to mediate their relationship, it has little effect and is just ignoring each other.

Xue Wanjun was about thirty years old. After more than ten years of military career and official training, he was no longer the sunny young guard beside Prince Zhao more than ten years ago. His scheming began to become deeper and his power began to become strong. Although their brothers supported Luo Yi to become the chief supervisor of Youzhou, it did not mean that they became Luo Yi's iron-core confidants. When Youzhou was facing life and death, they also had their own ideas. Xue Wanjun advocated surrender to the Tang Dynasty. He had a very good personal relationship with the Tang Dynasty prince consort Chai Shao. Chai Shao also promised him a generous position, but his brother Xue Wanche advocated surrender to the Sui Dynasty. They had old friends with Yang Yuanqing, so they should be reused.

The two brothers have always had a stalemate, but there is one thing they agree that neither of them will act without permission until the brothers reach a consensus.

At this time, Xue Wanjun was also very anxious. His brother was besieged in Zhuo County. The situation was unclear. Now the situation was getting more and more tense, but they could not contact each other.

Xue Wanjun stood at the top of the city and looked at Zhuo County from afar, his heart full of worries. What should he do next?

At this moment, on the official road in the distance, two cavalry rushed towards the city, and Xue Wanjun's personal soldiers shouted: "General, it seems to be a sending army!"

Xue Wanjun also saw that the two cavalrymen were very fast, as if they had an important mission. He was a little uneasy. Did something happen?

After a moment, the two cavalry rushed to the city and shouted loudly: "We are here to find General Xue at the order of the prince. Where is General Xue?"

Xue Wanjun leaned out of the city and asked, "What's wrong with me here?"

A cavalry raised a golden arrow, "The prince has an order and ordered General Xue to go quickly to support Zhuo County. The situation in Zhuo County is critical!"
Chapter completed!