Although Li Xiuning's suggestion was perfectly sound, Qin Feng ultimately did not agree.
"Xiuning~!"
Reaching out to pat the worried Li Xiuning's shoulder, Qin Feng said sternly,
"You know the situation in Zhuo County right now."
"Let alone grain and fodder."
"The government granaries are practically empty."
"Unless we 'borrow' from those noble families, we won't get any supplies even if we go back."
"How about this..."
He paused, looking at Yang Yanqi beside him, and asked in a deep voice,
"Yanqi, if you were to lead an army alone, do you think you could handle it?"
"No problem!"
Yang Yanqi, who had been eagerly awaiting this, quickly patted her chest and assured him,
"My Lord, just give the order, and I will definitely complete the mission!"
"Excellent~!"
Nodding with satisfaction, Qin Feng turned his gaze back to Li Xiuning.
"Xiuning, what do you think about us dividing our forces now?"
"Dividing our forces?"
Looking at the simple map Qin Feng had drawn, Li Xiuning frowned and asked,
"My Lord, you mean we split into two paths and surround them directly?"
"That's right!"
Qin Feng pointed at the map, his tone serious.
"Based on the battle report Yi De sent this morning, their current location should be between Zhuo Commandery and Shanggu Commandery."
"We have nine thousand men right now. If we split into two and encircle them, what do you think are the chances of victory?"
"Around eighty percent!"
Despite the enemy having double their numbers, Li Xiuning still gave a confident answer.
Foreign tribes?
Ever since Emperor Wu drove the Xiongnu out of the northern desert, no one in the Great Han had taken the foreign tribes seriously.
However,
Even though they were not taken seriously, Li Xiuning added a caveat.
"My Lord, although the chances of victory are high, a head-on charge would still result in significant casualties."
"Then what is your suggestion?"
"Use fire!"
Looking at the positions of the enemy and their own forces on the map, Li Xiuning pondered with a frown.
"It's dry season now, and fire would be highly effective!"
"Fire attack?"
Hearing Li Xiuning's suggestion, Qin Feng glanced instinctively at the storehouse.
Huh?
There were quite a few fire arrows and oil?
Then what are we waiting for!
Without waiting for Li Xiuning to finish, Qin Feng waved his hand and interrupted,
"Xiuning, we'll use fire. I'll send some fire arrows and oil over later. You tell me how to implement it!"
"Oh?"
Seeing that Qin Feng could procure fire arrows and oil, Li Xiuning's spirits lifted.
"The simplest method would be for us to sneak over under the cover of darkness, douse the outer perimeter with oil, and then launch a barrage of arrows."
"Alternatively..."
"We could find a place to douse with oil, then have our cavalry feign a retreat, luring them into an ambush location, and then attack them with fire arrows."
"However, the difficulty with this plan is finding a suitable ambush spot."
"Hmm..."
After listening to Li Xiuning's suggestions, Qin Feng mused,
"Is it too risky to sneak up to their camp?"
"It is a bit!"
Li Xiuning did not deny this, nodding directly.
"If we are discovered early, it might turn into a direct confrontation."
"But if we can douse the camp with oil from the outside, it could also be like trapping a turtle in a jar."
"Still a bit dangerous!"
Qin Feng pondered for a long while before abandoning this plan, which held both risks and opportunities.
"How about this..."
"Yanqi will still split off and harass the Wuhuan army with Yi De, but don't engage too fiercely."
"Xiuning~!"
"Send out all the scouts from the army later and look for suitable ambush locations on the road."
"I will also dispatch another ten thousand infantry!"
"If we can't find a spot, we'll wait until dark and quietly approach while they are setting up camp. Even if we are discovered, we won't fear them!"
"Understood~!"
Hearing Qin Feng's instructions, Li Xiuning, despite her worries, respectfully agreed.
Because she understood.
If the battle could truly be concluded within two days, the supplies would barely suffice.
As for whether it was possible or not?
Who knew!
...
While Qin Feng was waiting for supplies and summoning new infantry.
On the other side,
Zhang Fei, who was engaged in a game of cat and mouse with the Wuhuan army, also received the news.
"Hiss~!"
"Lord Qin, Lord Qin brought nine thousand cavalry to reinforce?"
Hearing the scout's report, Zhang Fei almost fell off his horse.
Nine thousand elite cavalry?
What did that mean?
It was roughly equivalent to... a whole tank division!
Don't be fooled by the Wuhuan and Xianbei foreign tribes who could muster tens of thousands of cavalry at any given moment.
Their numbers were greatly inflated!
They were a nation where everyone was a soldier!
As long as a man could ride a horse, they were considered cavalry.
Although their fighting strength was not weak due to years of herding,
Civilians were still civilians!
No one could guarantee how well they would perform on the battlefield.
But the Great Han?
The Han cavalry were all undergoing formal military training.
After all,
The Great Han had always focused on infantry, and very few could become cavalry.
However, once they became cavalry, it meant a significant boost in combat effectiveness.
Just look at the men under his command!
With a thousand men, they had harassed twenty thousand Wuhuan cavalry for over ten days, eliminating over a thousand Wuhuan rebels.
And what about them?
They had only suffered injuries to a dozen or so brothers, and two had died.
Precisely because of this,
Upon hearing that Qin Feng was bringing nine thousand cavalry to reinforce, Zhang Fei immediately became excited.
"Where is Lord now? When will the attack commence?"
"Uh..."
Looking at Zhang Fei's excited expression, the scout said sheepishly,
"Commander Zhang, my Lord will send another contingent of cavalry to meet up with you and jointly harass those Wuhuan rebels."
"But there's one thing to note: do not let them get too scared!"
"Huh?"
Hearing this somewhat peculiar order, Zhang Fei's face was filled with confusion.
Continuing the harassment was one thing.
But not letting them get scared?
What did that mean?
Perhaps guessing Zhang Fei's bewilderment, the scout leaned in and whispered Qin Feng's plan.
This was also something Qin Feng had specifically instructed.
There was no other way!
In later generations, Lord Zhang was known for his recklessness.
If it wasn't explained clearly,
Qin Feng truly feared that he and Yang Yanqi would scare off the Wuhuan people together.
Neither of them were easy to handle!
However,
Much to Qin Feng's surprise, after hearing the plan he had devised, Zhang Fei offered a location.
At the border between Zhuo Commandery and Shanggu Commandery, there was indeed a place with narrow terrain.
"Then let's go take a look!"
After the scout brought back the information, Qin Feng immediately made the decision.
"Once the location is confirmed, I will have troops dispatched, to avoid the trouble of running back and forth!"
"..."
Li Xiuning, who had been somewhat worried, listened with a darkened expression.
Why did it feel like troop deployment was so easy with her Lord?
Were those soldiers already assembled and waiting?
Otherwise, there was no explanation!
After all,
In an era with extremely underdeveloped transportation and communication,
A large-scale troop movement of tens of thousands of men could take a month, or even more!