Even though Zhu Houzhao made the imperial edict to let Chen Xi abandon the three armies and flee on his own, it was too late to send it back to Yansui from Zhangjiakou Fort and notify Chen Xi himself.

June 24th, night.

Chenxi's troops were marching rapidly, and at this time they were less than twenty miles away from Yuxi River.

"...Sir, the scouts ahead have found out that there are ships docked on the river bank, about forty or fifty boats. In addition, a large number of Tartar soldiers were found upstream and downstream of the river, and no reinforcements appeared on the other side of the river..."

The army marched urgently, and Chen Xi attached great importance to intelligence spy.

Not only were the scouts who were originally responsible for scheming and transmitting messages, but even Ma Jiu began to shoulder heavy responsibilities, but the light cavalry he commanded was only responsible for the intelligence ahead, eliminating dangers and pointing out the direction for the army. At this time, all scouts could only detect about thirty miles around the army, because the Tatars had compressed the encirclement of Chen Xi's troops to this extent.

Chen Xi looked up at the sky. It was late at night and the moon was half hanging in the sky. The galaxy was brilliant. There were crows crying from time to time from the field. An atmosphere of slaughtering with a war was imminent.

Chen Xi ordered: "The ships are ready on the north bank of Yuxi River, so that the brothers can speed up their pace. Whoever can't keep up is a coward!"

The officers and soldiers were extremely tired after forcing their troops to force, but when they learned that there were ships carrying them across the river by the river, they all were excited and quickly accelerated their pace.

"If you arrive first, you can cross the river first, and if you arrive later, you can only cross the river later. Whoever lands at the end will be responsible for the rear of the palace!" Chen Xi shouted again.

"Get orders!"

There has always been a cavalry team around Chen Xi who is specially used to send orders. They are carrying small flags and horses and strolling around the army, shouting to let the three armies know about the military orders issued by Chen Xi.

After Chenxi sent the order, these people shouted back and forth: "The ship is ready. Whoever reaches the bank of Yuxi River first crosses the river first, and whoever goes to the back of the palace..."

Chen Xi was riding on the horse, but he was not very tired. There was a horse next to him approaching this side. He turned his head and saw that it was Hu Songyue and Tang Yin.

"Sir, the Tartars are less than thirty miles away from us, and now it's about twenty-four or five miles away." Hu Song jumped over and said to Chenxi Road, "There are a large number of Tartars coming here in the future. It's so dark that they can't see how many people are, but judging by their scale, they should be the main force of the Tartars."

Chen Xi nodded and said, "The central army led by Dayan Khan has arrived. They all add up to 70,000 to 80,000 troops."

Hu Songyue said: "The brothers behind me asked me to ask the Lord for my appointment, send someone to harass the Tartars, or lay mines on the ground and bomb them for a round, which will greatly dampen their aura!"

At this moment, the generals under Chen Xi were no longer mediocre. When Shen Xi did not issue a counterattack order, they had already taken measures.

Chenxidao: "Landmines can be buried, and it is always good to delay the enemy's march! But say hello to the brothers, try to be more quick and easy, and it is best to rotate to avoid the brothers burying mines and being caught by the Tartars... Now the ships ahead are ready, just arrange some mines to delay the enemy's march progress, and don't complicate simple things!"

"Yes, sir! But I suddenly remembered a question. Even if all the soldiers and horses arrived on the river bank, the Tatars chased each other too tightly and there was no time to build a pontoon bridge. If they used a boat to and from the ferry, there might be only one or two people who could cross the river in the end." Hu Songyue said nervously.

Chen Xi looked at Tang Yin next to him. It was obvious that this situation was not something Hu Songyue figured out by himself, but someone was giving advice from behind. Most of this person was Tang Yin.

Chenxidao: "If you can't build a floating bridge, you won't be busy building it. Let's stabilize the position first, and how much can we transport it... With the sharpness of how we are carrying firearms now, the whole army is lined up on the river bank to resist. What can the Tartars do to me?"

"Yes, the firearms we brought are powerful. As long as the Tartars dare to attack, we will let them never come back!" Hu Songyue was excited and immediately conveyed the meaning of Chen Xi to Liu Xu, Wang Lingzhi and others who were in charge of the army behind him.

This time, Tang Yin did not follow Hu Songyue to the back of the team, but rode his horse to approach Chen Xi and then walked forward together.

"What's wrong, Brother Bohu, don't you go to the rear to see how far the Tatars are from us?" Chen Xi asked with a smile.

Tang Yin said annoyedly: "It's a good trick to make you hungry. Any trick you can use will be used by Shangshu Chen."

The war was in chaos and the sound of horse hooves was roaring. Even if you spoke loudly, it would be difficult to spread far away. No one cared about what Chen Xi said to Tang Yin, and even the messenger wanted to fall behind to avoid disturbing the commander's speech.

Chen Xi smiled and said, "Brother Bohu, you are wrong this time. Drawing cakes to fill your hunger is to talk about things that do not exist. There are indeed ships on the river now. Is that right?"

Tang Yin glared at Chen Xi: "There are ships now, but I believe that when the troops arrive, the ships will definitely be gone... When did you, Shangshu Chen, change your mind and bring these soldiers back to Yulin Cang City safely? This is simply a conspiracy set up by Shangshu Chen!"

Chen Xi looked at Tang Yin and said with a smile: "Fortunately, not every soldier has the mind of Brother Bo Hu, otherwise he would have been speculating in his heart, so my team would not need to be led... You just speculate on this kind of thing. Since the ships are already there, how could I cut off the soldiers' life?"

"Brother Bo Hu, don't think too much. If you don't want to go to the back of the team, you will speed up and move forward. You will always be faster than two legs. You can get on the boat and cross the river to wait to see if I have any conspiracy."

Tang Yin wanted to ride the horse forward like this, but when he thought of some of the methods Chen Xi used before, he did not do so.

"Don't look down on people, even if you know what you are planning, you will not expose you, nor will you escape first. If you do this now, let the soldiers have the motivation to rush to the river. That is your ability. When you arrive at the place, you burn the ship and cut off the soldiers' escape route. That is your ability! In my opinion, I am afraid that the Tatars will not only not burn those boats, but also keep them. It is like the three sieges in the siege of the city!"

Chen Xi had a quiet smile on his face, which was also the free and easy smile he had seen in the past few days.

"No matter what Brother Bo Hu said, I think you are laughing. However, it's good to have someone to accompany you to talk... At most, you can reach the river bank in one hour, and war with the Tatars is inevitable. At that time, I will command the battle in the rear. If Brother Bo Hu cares about his wife and children at home, it's better to cross the river early... I'm not going to squeeze you, everything is up to your heart!" Chen Xi said with a smile.

Tang Yin turned his head and didn't want to continue talking to Chen Xi.

"drive!"

Chenxi urged the horses to get off the seat and speeded up the pace. As for the people around him, they also accelerated their pace, but the march was always in an orderly manner.

...

...

At this time, less than thirty miles behind Chenxi's troops, the Dayan Khan Batumonk's troops had chased him, and he had already seen his eldest son, Tuluborot, who went on the expedition as a vanguard.

"Father Khan."

Just like Chen Xi and Tang Yin were having a conversation on the horse, the conversation between Tuluborot and Batumonk was also on the way forward on horseback.

The Dayan tribe knew that Chenxi's troops were about to arrive on the north bank of Yuxi River, so they did not dare to slack off at all. They also accelerated the march to prevent Chenxi from escaping.

Batumonk turned his head and looked at his eldest son and said, "A father knows the situation on the front line. Chenxi's troops are only about ten miles away from the river bank. The next step is that they want to cross the river through the boats that flow upstream from Yulin Acropolis to the ferry, but there is still no report of the Ming army attacking on the other side of the river!"

Tuluborot said: "Return to my father, I have sent 5,000 troops to cross the river first to block it. Even if Chen Xi's troops are lucky enough to cross the river, they will definitely not escape back to Passion!"

"Very good! It's not in vain for the trust your father has in you!"

Batumonk's comment on his eldest son was very high, "This time, we must not burn the Ming army's ships on the Yuxi River. As long as their men reach the bank of the river, there will inevitably be people who are afraid of death to seize the ships. At that time, the Ming army will be in chaos. At that time, as long as our troops attack forward, they will collapse!"

"Yes, Father Khan!"

Turuborot respects Batumonk very much, and also believes that the strategy formulated by his father is very suitable.

Just at this moment, a quick horse suddenly came over here. When he approached, the man shouted: "Khan, the ships of the Ming army on the Yuxi River suddenly caught fire! Tianyou Khan..."

Although the upper class in the army knew how to fight to reduce their own losses, for ordinary soldiers, they did not understand what it means to fight trapped beasts, nor did they understand the principle of siege three or one when siege the city. They only knew that the ships on the river were just the last hope for the Ming army to escape back to the pass. As long as those ships were burned, the Ming army would have no way to go to heaven and no way to the ground.

Hearing this news, the Tatars were extremely excited, and the riders were full of energy and howls "Oh" but for Batumonk and Turuborot, their faces were not so good-looking.

"how so?"

Batumonk had admired his eldest son's arrangements before, but after learning the news, he could only think that his eldest son had broken his plan and immediately glared.

Tuluborot said aggrievedly: "Father Khan, I have never sent anyone to burn the Ming ships, or even to interfere with their transport of ships on the river. How could I send someone to set fire? Could it be that the national teacher Susuha and his third brother Bals came over and did these things?"

When Batumonk saw Turuborot's expression, he felt that his son was not lying. He glanced at the staff next to him and asked loudly: "Where are the national teacher and Bales now?"

"Returning to the Khan, the National Army and the Third Prince's troops were marching northeast of our country. It was less than ten miles away from us. It was impossible to cross the central army to the south." The staff member replied.

Batumonk's face suddenly twitched, and he shook his head and said, "I understand, the one who burned the ship must be the Ming people... Yes, it was Shen Zhihou who ordered this. He wanted to fight us to the death on the north bank of the Yuxi River! Why is he so crazy? He doesn't know how to seize it if he gives him a chance to escape?"

"Impossible, father, if he chooses to stay, he has no other choice but to die. And with his ability, he is enough to escape our search and return to Yansui. What is the need for him to do so?" Tuluborot seemed incomprehensible.

"Fight on the back...fight on the back!"

Batumonk said to himself, "In the history of the Han people, there was a very magical general named Han Xin. He created and invented the battle against the enemy. It was to inspire the fighting spirit of the soldiers and put them to death and live! We always thought it was a strategic mistake for the Ming people. Could it be that? Chen Xi had planned all this long ago?"

...

...

The Tatars learned that the time when the boats caught fire on the Yuxi River was even earlier than in the Chenxi army.

When Chen Xi learned about the situation, the former soldiers and horses were less than five miles away from the river bank. They found with their naked eyes that the fire on the river soared into the sky, and were shocked and immediately conveyed it to the commander Chen Xi through the fast horse.

"...Sir, something happened on the river. The boats on the river were set on fire, but there was no Tatar on the bank of the river, but I don't know why!"

When Ma Jiu personally brought his men to Chenxi, the central army of Chenxi was only seven or eight miles away from the river bank. Judging from the current speed of travel, it took another half an hour to reach the river bank.

This sudden news was almost a fatal blow to the entire army. At least the messengers and guards around Chen Xi were helpless and desperate and looked panicked.

Chen Xi was still calm and waved his hand and said, "I don't care about anything else for the time being. I immediately ordered the army to prevent the Tatars from raiding. I will go to the river to see it in person!"

In this situation, Chen Xi responded decisively, while instructing Wang Lingzhi and others to be responsible for the cover of the rear army, he led Ma Jiu to the north bank of Yuxi River.

When Chenxi quickly arrived at the riverside, the boats on the river had basically been burned into skeletons. There were no signs of a large number of Tatars on both sides of the Yuxi River, and there was no one on the opposite side.

Ma Jiu asked nervously: "Sir, I have not seen Yansui Town send reinforcements to help."

Chen Xi nodded slightly and said, "I had expected this to happen. Although the ship was sent over, there were not even people guarding the river bank. How could we expect them to send people to join us across the river?"

Ma Jiu asked, "That adult, what's going on next?"

Chen Xi looked back and saw that it was already midnight. Former military officers and soldiers arrived at the river bank one after another. Those who used their strength to reach the Yuxi River thought they could cross the river in the first group, but they were discouraged when they saw the flames on the river and had the urge to jump out of the river and swim directly across the river.

Chen Xi looked solemn and ordered: "There are many soldiers in the army who are good at water. If they are not stopped in time, they may become deserters. Now there will inevitably be a large number of Tatars on the other side of the river. Even if these people cross the river, they will definitely die."

"Please show me."

Ma Jiu has remained calm now and has gone on a lot of battles with Chen Xi. He is not as scared of death. In his opinion, coping with various difficult environments is also the basic quality of the general.

Chen Xi shouted: "I ordered the three armies to prepare for the river bank, and the soldiers were not allowed to escape privately. Now the front army has become the rear army, and immediately go forward four miles to build defensive fortifications!"

When Chen Xi issued the order, Ma Jiu discovered that there seemed to be something different on the river bank, because there were bundles of sacks on the river bank, and they only needed to be filled with soil and piled up to become good fortifications, just like someone had prepared here in advance.

Before Ma Jiu could think too much, he immediately took Chen Xi's order to tell the troops everywhere.

Just when Shen Xi led the guards to patrol the river and prohibited people from jumping into the river and absconding, Jing Yue, Ma Ang and others came from the front army. They also rushed to ask Chen Xi for instructions after hearing that the ships on the river caught fire.

"Sir, now we don't even have a way out. Many people in the army are landslides. What should I do?" Ma Ang looked panicked. He was from the north and could not find the North if he was in the water.

Jing Yue is from the south. Even if some of the Fujian and Guangdong army did not know how to water before, they had been specially trained later. With his water nature, it was not difficult to pass the one-mile-wide river in front of him.

The two of them came down from the horse's back and saw the scene on the river, they both seemed quite depressed.

Chen Xidao: "When is it still the time to think about crossing the river? Since the Tartars have set up this fire, there must be follow-up actions. The entire army will temporarily establish a defensive position on the river bank, and then send people to Yulin Cangcheng to request reinforcements... We have so many firearms, but are we afraid that the Tartars will not succeed?"

Ma Ang took the order and left, while Jing Yue felt something was wrong and did not leave immediately.

Chen Xidao: "Lao Jing, do you remember the situation when we fought pirates in the south? Now we can't follow the usual path. We must seize the time to build a defensive position on the river bank. You can take responsibility, and then call Lao Hu and Liu Lao Er and others. They have a good idea of ​​building defensive fortifications!"

Jing Yue asked nervously: "Sir, why don't you cross the river first... There are extra sheepskin bags in the army, and you can quickly assemble several sheepskin rafts. We will find someone to escort you over."

Chen Xi patted Jing Yue on the shoulder and said, "Old Jing, who do you think I am? Since you have chosen to take you out, you must live and die together, never give up, and it is worth it even if you die on the spot after a bloody battle. But if you are a deserter, even if you live, life is worse than death!"

"grown ups……"

Jing Yue was moved when he heard this, his eyes were filled with tears.

Chenxidao: "The number of people arriving on the river bank will increase in the next step. We cannot let deserters appear in the army. We must stabilize the situation on the river bank. Only when there are no deserters can we ensure that we will not be defeated and stand firm and wait for assistance."

"Sir, do you have any other instructions?" Jing Yue said.

Chen Xi pointed to the north: "The Central Tatar Army is only less than twenty miles away from us, and with the Tatar cavalry surrounding us, the war is about to begin... The Tatars will most likely take advantage of our foothold and launch a raid. You will first bring two thousand musketeers and set off the first defensive position before you debut. After all the troops enter the defense circle, you will immediately start to arrange large-scale horse traps, caltrops, horse-resistance and mine-burning, and everything will be done according to the previous training!"

"Yes, sir!"
Chapter completed!