Chapter Eighty-Five: A Thread of Clue

  Save the miserable! Everyone clicks on it conveniently!

  Zhang Cai didn't mind Li's intense gaze, and with a bitter smile said: "If Lord Li wants to draw a map of the lands beyond the Great Wall, there's no need to have someone sneak into the merchant caravan, it's too much trouble. If Lord Li needs it, Zhang Cai will definitely draw the terrain he knows and present it with both hands. Although Zhang Cai is just a commoner, greedy for wealth and beauty, afraid of death, this humble person still doesn't dare forget his own identity, this humble person is a descendant of the Huaxia people, with the blood of Yan and Huang flowing in his veins, but that place... isn't!"

  As she spoke, Zhang Cai's eyes gleamed brightly, her waist straightened, and she pointed towards the north.

  Li Zhong's expression was solemn, his hands clasped together in a fist, and he bowed deeply to Zhang Cai, saying: "Li Zihui represents the people of Yanmen to thank Mr. Zhang."

  Li Chong really underestimated Zhang Cai, which is not his fault. In the late Qing dynasty where Li Chong lived, traitors who sold out their country emerged one after another, and Li Chong was indeed afraid! However, Li Chong forgot that this is now the Han Dynasty, where even Confucian scholars can shout: "Those who offend the mighty Han will be punished no matter how far away they are!" Here there are corrupt officials and bandit heroes, but there are no traitors who sell out their country.

  Whether it was the cruel Dong Zhuo, or the arrogant Gongsun Zan, the brave Ma Teng, or even the weak Liu Yu, none of them had ever made a move to betray the interests of the great Han. In their hearts, the Han people were still superior to others.

  After sending Zhang Cai away, everyone immediately gathered around the map and examined it carefully.

  The map drawn by Zhang Cai is extremely simple, with only rough mountains, rivers and routes that can accommodate large troops, the rest are the gathering places of various Xianbei tribes, but everyone knows that nomadic peoples have no fixed abode, so the accuracy of this gathering place is open to question.

  Li Chong looked up along the Qiangyin County and saw Nan Chi at a glance.

  Nan Chi is now Huangqi Hai, located in the territory of Har Right Wing Front Banner, Ulanqab League, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. In the Three Kingdoms period, it was a large lake with a length of over 100 miles from east to west and more than 40 miles from south to north. The lake was abundant with fish and shrimp, and the surrounding grasslands were rich in pasture, making it an ideal place for cavalry to station.

  "I guess this is where the Khitan army is stationed. What do you think?" Li Chong drew a circle on the south pool and said slowly.

  Cheng Yu nodded in agreement: "It's very likely that Nan Chi is indeed a good place for the garrison."

  Tai Shi Zi also smiled and said: "If I were the commander, I would definitely station troops here to let soldiers and war horses rest."

  Seeing Cheng Yu and Taishi Ci both agreeing with his judgment, Li Chong said: "In that case, tomorrow we will rush to Qiangyin County and go to Nan Chi for inspection."

  The next morning, Li led 5,000 troops to Qiangyin County. Five days later, the 5,000 soldiers arrived in Qiangyin and Li and his men did not have time to rest before leading 500 soldiers to Nan Chi for inspection.

  This was Li Chong's first time outside the Great Wall, where everywhere was lush green grass, and from time to time wild rabbits and yellow sheep flashed by in the distance, adding a touch of vitality to the prairie. The eagles circling in the sky occasionally let out high-pitched cries, echoing through the clouds.

  If it weren't for the distant green hills rising and falling in a continuous line, constantly changing shape, making people feel the difference in their field of vision, Li Chong would have suspected that he was walking in place.

  The sky is vast and the fields are endless. The wind blows and the grass is low, revealing cows and sheep! This is a unique landscape of the northern border grasslands.

  Riding horses at full gallop, before a day has passed, they feel as if they are already by the side of Nanchi Lake. Even when they are still several miles away from the lake, people can already hear the joyful cries of water birds.

  Everyone's spirit was shocked, and they unanimously urged their war horses to speed up, wanting to see what Nan Chi looked like.

  "How beautiful!" Li Chong involuntarily exclaimed, gazing at the sparkling lake surface. The lake's surface was like a mirror, with the setting sun casting a warm glow, and waterfowl flying in unison - this was the scenery of Nan Chi.

  Arriving at the lakeside, everyone first dismounted their war horses and let them drink water. Only then did they gather firewood, catch fish and cook rice.

  After eating a delicious Nan Chi Crucian carp (it is said that the crucian carp of Huang Qi Hai has been served at state banquets, I haven't had it before, let's imagine), everyone went to bed early.

  The next morning, Li Chong sent out 500 soldiers and himself held a telescope to observe the surroundings for any signs of stationed troops.

  It has to be said that Li Chong's luck finally improved a bit after a string of bad luck, and soon discovered several wooden pillars standing by the lake.

  Li Chong hastily led Taishi Ci and others over, not daring to ride horses for fear of destroying the traces on the ground.

  Arriving in front of several wooden pillars, Li Chong only discovered that several wooden pillars were buried in the ground in a circular shape, with several tattered ropes on top. It seemed to be the pillar of a large tent. "This must be the commander's military account, take a look around and see if there are any other marks." Taishi Ci said with confidence, and ordered his soldiers to check around.

  The soldiers under his command responded with a sound, and went in all directions. Before long, someone came back to report that they had found traces of marching and cooking. Li Chong hurried over to take a close look, and the soldiers had discovered a pit about one foot deep, with charcoal ash still at the bottom.

  Before long, several soldiers discovered the traces of a cooking pit. Li Chong immediately put his mind at ease, this must be the trace left by the troops. He didn't know if Kui Tou would take this route, but even if he didn't, Li Chong planned to station his army in Nan Chi and ambush Kui Tou, setting up the battlefield outside the Yan Men border.

  The geographical location here is excellent. Not only is it close to Qiangyin County, with convenient supply of grain and grass, but also in the very center of the Yanmen border, making it easy for east-west reinforcements.

  Next was the dispatch of scouts to reconnoiter the enemy's position, which didn't require Li Chong's attention as Tai Shi Ci would take care of it. Another issue was whether the 5,000 troops from Qiangyin County should be stationed at Nan Chi or not. After some deliberation, Li Chong thought it was better to err on the side of caution and decided to have the troops from Qiangyin County hurry over to join forces.

  In less than ten days, the scout brought an unfortunate message. What Zhang Cai said was true, and Kuai Tou was indeed going to send troops out of Yanmen Gate. He had also spread the word that he would cut Li Chong's body into ten thousand pieces, and Tai Shi Ci, the accomplice, would not be able to escape either. According to the scout's estimate, by the beginning of July at the latest, Kuai Tou should have arrived.

  Now that it's certain that the enemy will send troops out of Yumen Pass, we should discuss how to respond.

  There are two situations for everyone to discuss. The first one is relatively simple, which is to choose a new route of march for the vanguard, there is no choice but to intercept the vanguard with a hard head and fight a prairie battle, and the loss will be unavoidable.

  The second is that Kui chose to rest in the south pool, and Li Chong can ambush Kui and minimize losses.

  The external forces that can be borrowed in war are nothing more than "water and fire". Water is not to be thought of, and the crowd guarding the South Pool is useless. Even if it's a divine magic wand that can summon wind and rain, Zhang Jiao won't be able to drive water with his spells, let alone ordinary people like Li Chong.

  Using fire is a good choice, by July the grass should be dry and suitable for burning. If not for the unfavorable wind direction, in July's night when the north wind blows, Li Chong can turn Wei's 3,000-strong army into roasted rabbits with just one fire, fleeing back to their main camp in disarray.

  Unfortunately, the location of the garrison is on the east side of Nan Chi.