..Li Mi took advantage of the emptiness of the Central Plains and entered Xingyang and captured Luokou Cang in one fell swoop. China was shocked. Zhai Rang was regretful and led a large army to join Li Mi and elected the lord of Li Mi, respected as Duke Wei, and was willing to be the second lord of Wagang.51o.

More than 400,000 troops of Wagang were only more than a hundred miles away from the capital Luoyang. In the situation in Luoyang, the 100,000 troops of Wagang army immediately surrounded Guancheng County, the governor of Xingyang County. Yang Qing, the prefect of Xingyang, urgently asked Emperor Yang Guang for help...

Yang Guang was shocked by the Wagang army and issued an order to order the Henan Road ambassador Zhang Xutuo to lead 50,000 troops to attack Wagang, and he was appointed as the governor of Xingyang.

At this time, Zhang Xutuo also won consecutive battles and swept across the 12 counties of Henan Road, and was invincible. He and the Wagang army had fought several times to fight for Puyang, but they all defeated the Wagang army. Even Zhai Rang almost died at Zhang Xutuo.

Zhang Xutuo generously took the order and led a 30,000 army to kill all the way to Xingyang. The bandits fled to the wind.

That afternoon, Zhang Xutuo approached Guancheng County and ordered the army to set up a camp twenty miles east of Guancheng County.

It was the New Year of the 12th year of Daye, and the Sui army camp was quiet and peaceful. The soldiers had a holiday today, but were not allowed to leave the camp. The soldiers all rested in the tent, some slept, some gathered together to chat and talk about the scenery in their hometown.

Zhang Xutuo rode a horse to patrol the camp. The reason why he dared to let the soldiers rest was because he received information that the Wagang army had withdrawn the siege of Guancheng County and retreated back to Xingyang County. The surrounding area was twenty miles away, and there was no enemy army.

Zhang Xutuo is fifty-two years old today. His greatest hope in his life is to have a son, but God does not favor him. He has no son and only two daughters. However, his two daughters unfortunately died tragically, making him feel as if he had grown ten years old all of a sudden.

The grief of losing his daughter was deeply pressed in his heart, and he would not reveal it in front of anyone. In the eyes of the soldiers, he was the commander of strict and kindness, and he would rather have no money to support his family than to be wronged by the soldiers. In the eyes of the court officials, he was a foolish general who was inhumane and did not know how to adapt. He made such great contributions, but did not know how to boast about himself, and he would only ask for credit for the soldiers. In the eyes of Emperor Yang Guang, he was a powerful general who won many battles and was a loyal minister. He was a pillar supporting the Sui Dynasty. In the eyes of the people, he was also a clean official who hated evil and loved the people as his sons.

But no matter how everyone looked at him, no one had thought about his family. He had thought about his pain of losing his daughter, as if he had no family, no wife and daughter. Only some careful soldiers found that his hair was mostly white and found that his lonely back had begun to become a little hunched. Only then did they slowly realize the great sorrow buried in the coach's heart.

At this time, Qin Qiong came to Zhang Xutuo at some point, "Master, go and rest for a while! Hu Zhi is here to replace Master."

Zhang Xutuo smiled and asked, "Where is Shixin, why don't you see him?"

"He is in a bad mood, so I'll let him be quiet for a while."

Zhang Xutuo nodded, "Let's go!"

The two rode slowly.

"Shubao. You are forty this year!"

"Next year is forty."

Zhang Xutuo sighed, "Time flies fast! When you came to join me, you were less than 30 years old. Now you are a veteran, and I am old."

Qin Qiong pondered for a while and asked, "Master General, I heard that the court is going to split us. Is this the case?"

"It's not called splitting. It's the court that we are preparing half of our army to Hebei Road to deal with Dou Jiande. Maybe after the battle, I will go to Hebei, and then leave some generals and soldiers here to form three new troops to guard the twelve counties in Henan."

"Are there any humble positions among the three new army generals?" Qin Qiong asked in a low voice.

A trace of sadness flashed in Zhang Xutuo's eyes. Originally, he recommended Qin Qiong as the chief general of the Henan Road East Army and stationed in Qi County. However, the list of the Ministry of War did not have Qin Qiong's name. Zhang Xutuo also knew that the problem was. Just because Qin Qiong's father was an official of Northern Qi, it was precisely for this reason that he repeatedly asked for merit for Qin Qiong, but was repeatedly rejected. In the sixth year of Daye, he was the commander of Qi County. In the twelfth year of Daye, he was still an Yingyang Lang general and had not been promoted.

Qin Qiong sneered, "I know, the people from the Ministry of War have looked at my hometown again, right?"

Zhang Xutuo sighed, "It may not be necessary. The official appointment has not been completed now. It's just some rumors. After this battle, I will go to Jiangdu to meet the emperor himself. If I still refuse to promote you, I will resign and stop."

Qin Qiong was silently moved. At this time, he remembered something again and said carefully: "I heard that Yang Xuangan rebelled this time, and Yuan Qing did not lead his army to Guanzhong to meet."

Zhang Xutuo understood what he meant, and he smiled, "You can't understand the child's mind. I know him very well. His ignoring his father does not mean that he is loyal to the Sui Dynasty. If there is only one person in the Yang family who can make him loyal, it is his grandfather. But I have figured it out that it is also my blessing for Zhang Xutuo to have such a promising apprentice."

Zhang Xutuo remembered the situation when Yang Yuanqing threw it into an ice hole for the first time when he was a child. The child's stubbornness still vividly remembered it. I wonder what Yang Yuanqing's child would be like. Will he throw his son into an ice hole like himself? Thinking of this, Zhang Xutuo's mouth showed a knowing smile.

...........

The next morning, Zhang Xutuo led his army to continue to march westward. At noon the next day, 30,000 Sui troops arrived 30 miles away from Xingyang County. The Wagang Army also deployed 150,000 heavy troops in Xingyang County to prepare to fight Zhang Xutuo.

In the large tent of the central army in Wagang, Zhai Rang was as anxious as an ant on a hot pan. Li Mi said he would come, but now, Zhang Xutuo has already arrived at the city and Li Mi's shadow cannot be seen.

Zhai Rang was defeated by Zhang Xutuo three times. He had a deep fear of Zhang Xutuo. Zhang Xutuo's 50,000 elite soldiers were famous all over the world. He always fought more than a few times and was invincible. Lu Mingyue's army of more than 100,000 were defeated by Zhang Xutuo's army of more than 10,000, Lu Mingxing's army of 100,000, Zuo Xiaoyou's army of more than 10,000, and Hao Xiaode's more than 100,000 were defeated by Zhang Xutuo with 10,000 or 20,000 troops. He was defeated by him three times his troops.

Thinking of Zhang Xutuo's 30,000 elite soldiers, Zhai Rang felt a sense of fear. If Li Mi did not come again, he would be ready to withdraw his troops back to Gong County.

Just then, a soldier came to report, "The envoy of Wei is here."

Zhai Rang felt disappointed. Why was it the messenger rather than Li Mi himself? He held back his anger and said, "Let the messenger come in!"

After a moment, the two of them came in. One in front was Li Mi's confidant Wang Bodang, and the other behind him was wearing a wide-edged hat and covering his face.

"Who is this person?" Zhai Rang pointed to the person behind and asked strangely.

The man behind took off his hat. But it was Li Mi himself, who scared Zhai Rang. He was both surprised and happy, "Why is Mr. Wei like this?"

"Shh!"

Li Mi shrewd and whispered: "Don't let people know that I'm here, it's better not to say anything to your own people."

Zhai Rang nodded and ordered his personal soldiers, "No one is allowed to come in!"

Then he asked Li Mi. "Duke Wei came to defeat Zhang Xutuo?"

Li Mi nodded. "Don't let Zhang Xutuo know that I brought me. I have sent someone to pretend to be here on Gong County. We will not arrive tomorrow night, so we must defeat the enemy today."

Zhai Rang was overjoyed, "Did Duke Wei have a plan to defeat the enemy?"

Li Mi smiled coldly. "This man is extremely arrogant. He has ordered a 50,000 army, but he only brought 30,000 people to deal with our 400,000 army. His conceit is obvious. Even if you don't use surprise soldiers, I can use 400,000 troops to siege him to death. But this time, I will use surprise soldiers to deal with him. I asked no less than a hundred soldiers who had fought against him, and I already knew his fatality."

Zhai Rang asked quickly: "Where did Mr. Wei come up with the plan?"

Li Mi smiled proudly, "Brother, don't ask, I have already arranged it. Just let the army fight with him. It's good if you win, but if you lose. Then it's time for me to show up."

...........

There is a famous temple in the southeast of Xingyang County, called Dahai Temple. The temple has long been destroyed by the war, leaving only ruins and dense forests around it. The battlefield was set up on the once fertile arable land.

At this time, on the vast field south of Dahai Temple, golden drums were made, killing sounds shook the earth. The flags were like clouds and murderous aura soared into the sky. Zhang Xutuo's 30,000 troops were arranged into three square formations to attack the dense Wagang Army. At this time, the Wagang Army had no lineup. Dozens of generals served their own troops, and relying on their military strength advantages of five times the Sui Army, the Sui Army launched a fierce attack from all directions.

No matter how the Wagang Army attacked, the Sui Army maintained its three square formations and unswervingly rushed towards the central army, as if three lions were trapped in the wolf pack, and their target was to target the wolf king.

This experience that Zhang Xutuo summed up from hundreds of battles shows that the bandits have almost no training and no formation. More importantly, a large bandit is usually composed of countless small bandits, which leads to the fact that the bandits are surrounded by mountains and each bandits, and when they fight, they are each in formation and have no unified command.

He only needs to concentrate his troops to defeat the central army of the bandits, and the bandits will be defeated on the whole line. This has always been the case since a hundred battles.

Li Mi may not be like this, but Li Mi is not in Xingyang. Zhang Xutuo received scout information. Li Mi led 30,000 troops to Xingyang County on the way. This army should be commanded by Zhai Rang.

Zhang Xutuo and Zhai Rang fought three battles, and Zhai Rang's army was no different from other riot bandits, and Zhai Rang's central army had only more than 50,000 people.

Zhang Xutuo looked coldly at the Zhai Rang Central Army flag that was vaguely seen in the distance. The opponent's formation had begun to shake. The time for a full-scale attack came. Zhang Xutuo resolutely ordered, "Blow the heavy drum! Three square formations combined to attack the Central Army."

"Dong!Dong!Dong!" Fifty heavy drums sounded at the same time, and three red flags on the command platform were waving. The drum sounds and flag verbs told the Sui army that the three armies would unite and attack the enemy's central army in an all-round way.

The three square formations of the Sui army began to change. Gradually, the three square formations merged into a formation, and two 5,000 cavalrymen rushed out from the left and right wings and rushed straight to the two wings of the enemy's central army.

Although the Wagang Army was very powerful on the battlefield, most of the soldiers had no chance to attack the Sui Army. In fact, Zhai Rang's 50,000 central army was struggling to support the repeated attacks of the 30,000 Sui Army, and gradually showed signs of collapse.

In the north of the battlefield, in a forest next to Dahai Temple, Li Mi led 5,000 cavalry to ambush here, waiting for Zhang Xutuo to appear a fatal habit.

Li Mi watched the changes in the battlefield coldly. He had already seen that Zhai Rang could not do it. Less than two hours after the war started, Zhai Rang's army gradually could not support it. The battle without rules and formations would always be a mob. The chaos of the Wagang Army made Li Mi make this judgment.

At this time, Li Mi suddenly understood a truth. The reason why all the bandits were repeatedly defeated by the Sui army was that they did not establish an official hierarchy system like the Sui Dynasty, each with its own formation, and its power was not concentrated. The same was true for Zhai Rang. He was too indulged in his subordinates, so that he could not restrain everyone during the war today, and no one followed his command. Li Mi must not make such a mistake again. The Wagang army must belong to him, Li Mi alone.

"Duke Wei, the Wagang army was defeated!" Some personal soldiers exclaimed in a low voice.

Li Mi also saw that the Wagang Army’s commander flag had collapsed and began to be defeated on a large scale. Li Mi turned around and whispered: “Waiting for my order to attack!”

...........

On the battlefield, Zhai Rang's central army collapsed and the army was defeated. Zhang Xutuo waved his sword and shouted: "Chasing and beheading Zhai Rang, rewarding 5,000 taels of silver, and being promoted to three levels!"

The Sui army chased for more than ten miles, killing the Wagang army corpses everywhere and blood flowed into a river. But at this moment, a habitual loophole of Zhang Xutuo that Li Mi discovered appeared. Zhang Xutuo's command center had more than 500 people, but did not follow the army to chase him. Instead, they surrounded the command tower and waited for the army's battle report. Zhang Xutuo was in the team, with only his five hundred personal soldiers around, and the 30,000 army had been hunting for more than ten miles.

Seeing the opportunity approaching, Li Mi shouted loudly: "Kill!"

The elite troops of the Five Thousand Wagang were led by Li Mi to emerge from the woods. Zhang Xutuo saw the ambush that suddenly broke out. He was shocked and immediately shouted: "Three armies gather!"

Five hundred personal soldiers immediately gathered into a square formation, but the five thousand cavalry of the Wagang Army were extremely rapid and rushed out from both sides, cutting off Zhang Xutuo's back and forth, and the team gathered together to surround Zhang Xutuo.

Zhang Xutuo roared and led his army to break through. He waved his knife to slash. A general of Wagang was slashed away. He turned around and cut off the two cavalry in half. Zhang Xutuo was extremely brave and slashed left and right, killing the heads and flesh and blood. He killed a path of blood and escaped from the siege. But when he turned around, neither his five hundred personal soldiers nor the general Jia Wuben could rush over.

These five hundred personal soldiers followed him for many years and regarded him as their father. He only heard screams from his personal soldiers. He roared wildly, "Do away!"

He chopped dozens of people in a row and broke into the siege again. His five hundred personal soldiers were already divided into piles by the Wagang army. Zhang Xutuo broke into the siege, found more than a hundred people, rushed out from the other side, and rescued the siege. At this time, he saw Jia Wuben leading dozens of people surrounded by more than a thousand cavalry, and were killed one by one.

Zhang Xutuo's eyes turned red, and he shouted like thunder. For the second time, he entered the enemy formation and rescued Jia Wuben and the remaining dozen personal soldiers.

Seeing that Zhang Xutuo was extremely brave, Li Mi couldn't help but be furious and winked at Wang Bodang. Wang Bodang took an arrow and aimed at Zhang Xutuo's war horse. The bow string was loosened, and a wolf-tooth arrow shot out like lightning, and an arrow shot into Zhang Xutuo's war horse's eyes.

The war horse neighed with a bitter gust, raised its front hooves high, overturning Zhang Xutuo to the ground. Li Mi was overjoyed and immediately ordered, "Don't kill, surround him!"

Thousands of war horses ran quickly. In a moment, Zhang Xutuo surrounded him, with thousands of weapons pointing at him. Zhang Xutuo pulled out his Lengyue sword, stood up, covered in blood, and looked coldly at the thousands of cavalry surrounding him.

Li Mi pointed at Zhang Xutuo with a sword and smiled proudly: "Zhang Xutuo, why don't you surrender yet?"

Zhang Xutuo raised his head and laughed, "How happy is it to be able to die on the battlefield for the generals!"

He knelt down to the south, kowtowed three times, and shouted sadly: "Your Majesty, I am Zhang Xutuo, I cannot serve Your Majesty. I hope to be the minister of the Sui Dynasty in the next life and defend the Sui Dynasty!"

Zhang Xutuo poked his heart with a backhand...

Thousands of Wagang cavalry looked at Zhang Xutuo's body silently. A gust of wind blew up, blowing a broken red flag of the Great Sui Dynasty, covering Zhang Xutuo's body.

....To be continued...
Chapter completed!