Chapter 141: What Plan Shall We Make?

After a brief silence, Xianyu Bao suddenly remembered the instructions Lei Qing had left before departing. He turned to Mr. Hao, whose expression remained calm, and asked, “Mr. Hao, the Boss left instructions to discuss a major matter with you. How do you think we should handle this situation?”

Mr. Hao’s face also showed a hint of gravity. “General Zhou, how long will it take for the enemy to reach Yehe Town?”

“The enemy is not marching quickly, but moving in a concealed manner. Their speed is not fast, clearly intending to catch us off guard. Based on their marching speed, they are currently about two hundred li away from Yehe Town. However, they might accelerate at any time and could attack us by stealth next night.”

“Next night?” Mr. Hao stroked his beard, his gaze growing heavier. “General Xianyu, please immediately arrange for the best riders to send requests for help to the two nearest friendly forces.”

“The two nearest friendly forces are the Iron Cavalry Regiment Six stationed in Mobei Town, about eight hundred li away, and the Iron Cavalry Regiment Four in Longxi Town, over six hundred li away.” Xianyu Bao knew the deployment of their own forces inside out and said solemnly, “Both regiment commanders and I have some personal connections. If everything goes smoothly, our request for aid will reach them by next night. However, even if they march immediately and ride night and day, it will take at least five days for them to arrive. Mr. Hao, a large group of cavalry travels much slower than a single rider.”

The terrain in the northwest was open and sparsely populated. The distance between villages was often tens of li. The distance between towns was even greater.

After saying this, Xianyu Bao immediately asked Mr. Hao to write two letters for aid. He handed them to his most trusted Personal Guards, instructing them to go and seek help.

“The enemy forces are huge.” Mr. Hao did not relax his brow just because the aid letters had been sent. The enemy would arrive at Yehe Town and launch operations as early as next night. However, the reinforcements would take at least five days to arrive.

This meant they would have to hold out for at least four days in a highly disadvantageous situation.

But the problem was, the walls of Yehe Town were weak. They could hold out against a small number of enemies, but facing a sweep by one thousand five hundred cavalry, it would be extremely difficult to resist with the current manpower.

Although the Black Flag Regiment had not stopped recruiting soldiers, the total number was only slightly over five hundred, with a large portion being new recruits. Only about two hundred could be considered elite.

But these were not what worried Mr. Hao the most. If he were the commander, he would definitely not give up the Horse Bandits’ cavalry advantage to besiege Yehe Town. Even if they won, the losses would be huge. Instead, they would try every means to lure or force the Black Flag Regiment garrison to leave the town for a field battle.

So, to force the Black Flag Regiment to fight in the open, the simplest method would be to openly attack those villages with weak defenses, slaughtering village after village, to see how long the Black Flag Regiment would hunker down.

If the Black Flag Regiment continued to hunker down, even if reinforcements arrived and drove back the Horse Bandits, the Black Flag Regiment’s reputation would be completely ruined. They would have no place to stand in the northwest, and no matter where they went, people would point their fingers and curse them.

Moreover, most of the soldiers under the Black Flag Regiment were from the northwest. How could they stand idly by and watch the Horse Bandits massacre villages?

However, once they set out, they would be forced into a field battle.

This was a stratagem that could be easily thought of. Mr. Hao believed that the leader commanding one thousand five hundred Horse Bandits would definitely not be so stupid as not to think of this.

“General Xianyu, send three scouts to gallop in a net-like search toward Northern Yan City. With extremely good luck, they might meet Lord. Even if they do not meet him, they must go to Northern Yan City to inform Lord.” Mr. Hao issued another order. He also knew that Lord was besieging Zhen Jimu in Northern Yan City and could not return so quickly. But even so, he had to do this.

If Lei Qing, the leader of the Black Flag Regiment, were there, it would have a significant impact on morale.

At the same time, Mr. Hao unfurled a map of the area near Yehe Town. Now that he had accepted Lei Qing as his Lord, he was wholeheartedly preparing to make a name for himself by following Lei Qing. Lei Qing trusted him greatly and valued him highly. He did not want to see the foundation Lei Qing had entrusted to him just a few days ago burned to the ground.

Whether defending strongly or attacking strongly, given the disparity in military strength, both were poor strategies.

“General Zhou Han, you immediately deploy the scout brigade to closely monitor the enemy’s every move. It is best to find out who their leader is and what their purpose is.” With half-closed eyes, as strategies flowed through his mind like water, Mr. Hao instructed, “I hope to receive the latest intelligence every hour. I hope that before Lord returns, we will see a great victory.”

It seemed that Mr. Hao’s calmness and confidence infected everyone. Zhou Han, whose spirit had been somewhat drooping, perked up. “Mr. Hao, please rest assured. I will definitely complete the mission.”

“General Zhou, be careful. Your scout brigade is the eyes and ears of the Black Flag Regiment. Without you, the Black Flag Regiment would become blind and deaf. This battle would be a definite loss.” Mr. Hao stroked his beard, looking like a worldly sage, and encouraged, “Since Heaven luckily allowed you to discover the enemy early, it shows that the will of Heaven is on our side. I can guarantee that as long as you complete the task excellently, we will not only win this battle but win it greatly.”

Zhou Han trembled, a sharp light exploding in his eyes. He bowed solemnly and left. “Mr. Hao, my reputation as Zhou Han the Raven is not for nothing. Among all the scouts in the Iron Cavalry Regiment, if I rank second, no one dares to rank first. Farewell.”

After watching Zhou Han leave, Mr. Hao opened his eyes halfway and began to calculate. In recent days, while handling matters such as arranging pastures and farms for Lei Qing, he had walked over all the terrains within Yehe Town’s sphere of influence.

He also knew that after he followed Lei Qing, war would inevitably occur in Yehe Town sooner or later. Therefore, he had kept it in mind and pondered over it. It was just that Mr. Hao did not expect this battle to come so quickly.

If it had come two or three months later, Mr. Hao was confident that the Black Flag Regiment could take the initiative and attack the large group of Horse Bandits on its own.

All terrains favorable for war wandered through Mr. Hao’s mind. He excluded and compared them one by one. Having studied military strategies thoroughly, he was very clear that in the current situation, once they fell into a passive position, it would be a disaster for both Yehe Town and the Black Flag Regiment.

The only glimmer of hope was to completely take the initiative into their own hands. The enemy forces were large. To lead them by the nose, they certainly could not use brute force.

“General Cheng Xiao, please take the trouble to divide your forces into more than ten groups immediately and go to every village for mobilization. Strive to concentrate most of the villagers here to set up camps within two days. Tell the villagers to only bring valuable items and some grain, and hide the rest on the spot. If they suffer losses from the Horse Bandits, the Black Flag Regiment will compensate them.” Mr. Hao suddenly opened his eyes and pointed to a place on the map.

Cheng Xiao looked and was slightly stunned. “Mr. Hao, this is a branch range of the Baiyun Mountains. The nest of the Gold-rank One-Horned Tiger is nearby. It might not be safe, is it?”

“Don’t worry about this. Within our entire Yehe Town jurisdiction, there are thirty to forty thousand villagers. Once gathered, the population will be dense and the momentum mighty. I remember this area is full of scattered rocks and gullies, with deep spring pools and water sources. It is an excellent place to hide from Horse Bandits, tens of li away from the Gold-rank One-Horned Tiger. As long as the villagers do not provoke the Gold-rank One-Horned Tiger, given the nature of Demonic Beasts, they will not provoke tens of thousands of people.” He did not say one thing: Demonic Beasts usually hunt to satisfy their hunger. Even if the Gold-rank One-Horned Tiger went to hunt humans, how many could it eat in just a few days?

“Mr. Hao, why not concentrate all the villagers and fight to the death with the enemy? Among tens of thousands of people, there must be several thousand strong men and women, enough to drive back the Horse Bandits.” Cheng Xiao was cautious by nature and asked in confusion.

“They are villagers, not warriors.” Mr. Hao frowned slightly. “If we relied on villagers to defeat the bandits, what use would the Black Flag Regiment be? Besides, by your method, even if we defeated the enemy, so what? Many, many villagers would die. Losing the hearts of the people would also mean losing the cornerstone of the Black Flag Regiment’s foothold in Yehe Town. However, after you organize and settle the villagers, you can call for volunteers to see if a temporary armed force of several hundred people can be organized. On one hand, it can maintain order and security; on the other hand, if necessary or when victory is secured, they can be sent to the battlefield.”

“Cheng understands. I will go execute this order immediately.” Cheng Xiao also took the order and left at once. He also knew that Mr. Hao’s move was quite clever, deceptively simple. It neutralized the enemy’s initiative and forced them into a passive position.

Even if they wreaked havoc in Yehe Town, for how many days could they wreak havoc? The reinforcements of the Iron Cavalry Regiment would arrive at any time. For that large group of Horse Bandits, what they lacked most was time.

However, arranging for everyone to move to the assembly point within two days was quite difficult. They were not soldiers, and there were many old, weak, women, and children. Fortunately, Lei Qing was currently in Yehe Town with good prestige, and the villagers were most afraid of large groups of Horse Bandits. Mobilizing them to retreat should not be difficult.

Even if a small number refused to leave, as long as they found a good hiding place in the villages or towns, they were unlikely to be found by the Horse Bandits.

Following Mr. Hao’s orders, one after another, the entire sphere of influence of Yehe Town began to rumble into action.

At the same time, more than two hundred li away from Yehe Town, a large cavalry force was advancing toward Yehe Town at a leisurely pace.

Helian Bo the Vulture and Zong Wuji the Poison Eagle surrounded a burly, robust man who resembled a fierce beast. The man’s upper body was almost naked, revealing bronze-colored skin and bulging muscles with great explosive power.

Especially his eyes, which showed a fierce and indescribable madness.

……