met free Chapter 100 Be prepared
Chapter 100 Be prepared
Li Mao lowered his head to organize his thoughts. The "combination of reality and illusion" mentioned in the small document submitted by the spy made him alert.
What exactly is the purpose of the various arrangements secretly made by the Wolf Army?
We must find out the truth as soon as possible, otherwise the entire northern border defense line will face an unprecedented crisis.
“This document is very important,” Li Mao whispered to the spy. “You risked your life to bring it back; you deserve a lot of credit.”
The spy nodded slightly, a hint of weariness on his face. "This humble servant dares not claim credit, but Your Highness, my knowledge is limited. The Wolf Army seems to be gathering strength, waiting for a good opportunity."
Li Jingqing joined the discussion at the right time, "Your Highness, if they are really making a plan, this combination of reality and illusion might be to create a false impression, making us mistakenly believe that a certain place is the main point of attack."
“That’s why our situation is even more difficult.” Li Mao frowned slightly, pointing to the marked area on the map. “They might launch a surprise attack from here, create chaos, and then launch a fierce attack from elsewhere.”
Li Jingqing nodded, "Yes, that's exactly their usual tactical style. They will try to disperse our forces as much as possible."
“But we must be clear on one point,” Li Mao continued, “that it will be dangerous once we fall into their plan.”
Just then, a scout rushed in and stood outside the tent, loudly reporting, "Your Highness, there is new intelligence."
Li Mao gestured for him to come inside.
The scout strode in, bringing intelligence that further illustrated the Wolf Army's frequent activities at several key points and in the surrounding areas.
"It seems they're trying to lure us into making a mistake," Li Mao muttered to himself.
"Your Highness, should we split our forces into several groups to guard against any unforeseen circumstances?" Li Jingqing suggested.
"No, doing so will put us at a disadvantage. We absolutely cannot move our troops around arbitrarily."
Li Jingqing asked with some confusion, "Then how should we allocate it?"
After a moment of contemplation, Li Mao said firmly, "We must find a way to disrupt their rhythm. First, we should create a false impression of strength to lure them into mobilizing more troops, and then concentrate our superior forces to strike a decisive blow."
Li Jingqing immediately understood Li Mao's intention: "Does Your Highness mean to create a false impression on the outside first?"
"That's right. As long as they believe that we are also diverting our forces, it will shake their main offensive force. Then we can seize the opportunity and act accordingly."
"Alright, I'll go arrange the operation right away." Li Jingqing accepted the order and turned to leave.
Li Mao sighed, looking at the map in front of him, his mind filled with many thoughts.
Surrounded by powerful enemies, and with a humiliating treaty signed under duress, peace is out of the question. This journey is fraught with danger; we must proceed with extreme caution.
The few people in the tent felt slightly tired, but they all felt a great sense of mission and dared not slack off in the slightest.
"Your Highness, why don't you calm down and rest a bit to recharge your energy?" Afu said, busy organizing the map.
Li Mao shook his head slightly, "We must see the situation improve before we can relax."
This night was destined to be difficult for Li Mao and the entire military camp.
Every general and soldier carried a heavy weight on their hearts.
Afu quietly walked to the side and placed the tidied map in front of Li Mao.
"Your Highness, shall we seek other assistance?" Afu suggested.
Li Mao shook his head. "Assistance is not out of the question, but we need to understand the core of this battle. We can't ask for help lightly. Let's do what we can first."
Just then, another soldier who had rushed back from the sentry post hurried in.
"Your Highness, it is said that the Wolf Army has amassed a large force in the central region, and they seem to be making new moves."
“The central region?” Li Mao’s brow twitched. “This is somewhat different from the original intelligence. It seems they may be deliberately trying to attract our attention, and their actual target may have something else in mind.”
"Then what do we want?" the soldier asked.
"Where is Li Jingqing?" Li Mao asked, turning his head.
Soon, Li Jingqing appeared at the door, clearly having just been dealing with other matters.
"Your Highness, your humble servant is here." Li Jingqing clasped his hands in a salute.
"The Wolf Army has concentrated its forces in the central region, but there has been no large-scale offensive; things are relatively quiet at the moment. What do you think that might mean?"
After a moment's thought, Li Jingqing said in a deep voice, "They might be waiting for us to show a weakness, or coordinating with troops from other directions. From a tactical perspective, they might be preparing for a surprise attack or a siege to catch reinforcements."
Li Mao nodded, agreeing with Li Jingqing's analysis. He knew that the commander of the Wolf Army was no ordinary person, and this arrangement must have a profound meaning.
“I think they might have other preparations,” Li Mao said confidently.
Then, Li Mao's eyes sharpened. "Jing Qing, immediately deploy a feint attack force to put pressure on the enemy. We'll pretend to be amassing troops in the central region to mislead them."
"Understood." Li Jingqing quickly prepared to mobilize the troops, aiming to create a visually impressive illusion.
“Afu,” Li Mao turned to him, “instruct the scouts to strengthen surveillance and closely monitor all subsequent changes in the enemy’s movement paths, especially those little-known secret passages.”
Ah Fu accepted the order and left; all the steps were now being carried out in full swing.
Even though it was late at night, the tents were still brightly lit, and the walls were covered with various deployment maps and plan markings.
Li Mao stared intently at the map, his gaze inadvertently sweeping over a note that had not been examined in detail.
"Jingqing," he waved to Li Jingqing, who was about to leave the tent, "is this canyon a key point of our defense?"
Li Jingqing turned around, confirmed the area Li Mao pointed to, and his expression instantly turned serious. "Yes, Your Highness. This place is treacherous, but if it falls into enemy hands, it will become a fatal flaw in our plan."
"Just as I thought." Li Mao frowned in thought. "Let's conduct another nighttime reconnaissance to see if there's anything unusual about this place."
In the blink of an eye, a new plan was quickly formulated.
Under the cover of night, another small team quietly went to the canyon to investigate, while the soldiers left behind continued to perform their duties and stand ready for battle.
As time passed, faint sounds of horses' hooves could be heard in the night, the sound of the reconnaissance troops returning.
The team leader entered the tent with clasped hands and reported the situation: "Your Highness, the canyon has been cleared and confirmed to be unharmed. We have also discovered some hidden roads behind the enemy camp, leading directly to our important strongholds."
"Now we can basically determine their purpose," Li Mao thought subconsciously.
“This road has always been a vital safeguard for us.” Li Jingqing also seemed quite surprised. “If it weren’t for the night raid, we would definitely have been ambushed by the enemy.”
“Yes,” Li Mao’s voice was steady and resolute, “Fortunately, you seized this opportunity.”
“Your Highness, the situation is now starting to turn in our favor.” Li Jingqing visibly breathed a sigh of relief. “The Wolf Army’s scheme has been exposed, and we can take this opportunity to counterattack.”
“That’s right, turning defense into offense should be the current strategy.” Li Mao nodded and said, “Next, we can expand the illusion in the central region and concentrate our forces to deal with this group of people.”
"Your Highness, we are fully prepared and ready to counterattack at any time," Li Jingqing said confidently.
"Alright, let's do it!" Li Mao looked at them and smiled slightly.
As the first rays of dawn appeared, a chorus of bugle calls resounded throughout the military camp.