In the famine, others ate Guanyin soil, but he had space to build a farm.

Chapter 197: Empty Camp Plan

Sun Ting's strategy was indeed cautious and wise. He set up camps separately for the cavalry battalion brought from Kyoto and the troops and horses gathered locally, which not only ensured the safety of the elite troops, but also avoided the chaos that might be caused by the local troops. This layout not only showed his careful consideration as a commander, but also reflected his strict management of the army and his emphasis on the lives of soldiers.

At this moment, Sun Ting was sitting in the central tent of the cavalry camp, but a complex emotion surged in his heart. He thought of the old friend, the brave general he once looked up to. Now, the old friend has passed away, but Sun Ting is going to meet the old friend's son. He was both excited and nervous. He was looking forward to seeing the shadow of his father in this young man, but he was also nervous about whether this young man could shoulder the responsibility of his father.

At the same time, in the camp of the local army, the soldiers set up tents according to their respective origins, and the camp was busy and orderly. However, under this calm surface, Sun Ting saw potential problems. Although the local army was large in number, their training levels and combat experience were uneven. This uncertainty made Sun Ting more determined in his strategy. He must ensure that his elite troops can play a decisive role at the critical moment.

As night fell, Sun Ting stood outside the central army tent, looking at the starry sky and thinking. He knew that the current Dakun Dynasty was no longer as powerful as before. Those civil officials only knew how to force the purchase of land and find ways to extort money from the people; the local military commanders either ate empty salaries or had no combat experience. Otherwise, a drought would not have caused chaos in several counties.

The reason why Sun Ting was so anxious to find Yuan Quan and others to fight to resolve this matter this time was that he was worried about the Northeast. You know, since Emperor Chongming killed Yuan Chong, he has been trying his best to maintain the Northeast. After all, the situation in the Northeast is that the generals of each city are independent and suspicious of each other. If he, the Minister of War, had not been trying to maintain it, I am afraid that he would have been defeated by the blind army one by one.

"Emperor Chongming is obviously a diligent monarch! Why is the Dakun Dynasty getting worse day by day! The treasury is getting emptier day by day! Even launching a war against the barbarians, the treasury can't support it! There is such a severe drought in the west and several counties have been affected!..." Sun Ting, the Minister of War, is very clear. In order to maintain the huge military expenditure in the Northeast, Emperor Chongming even took out the money from his own treasury. This has never happened before in the Dakun Dynasty. The emperors of the Dakun Dynasty only tried to make money from their own treasury, and did not use it.

Just as Sun Ting sighed, someone on a hill not far from them hid from their sight and rode a horse quickly towards the military camp outside the northwest city. These people were the scouts sent by Yuan Quan. Soon, Yuan Quan received information about the camping here.

"This Sun Ting is really different from those civil servants who have never been to the battlefield! He actually knew to set up two camps separately! In this way, it is useless for us to use the local troops to create chaos!" Tang Hai couldn't help but sighed when he heard it. You know, this kind of temporary and poorly trained army is very easy to get into chaos. A chaotic army of 5000 or 5000 people is simply not something that elite soldiers can control. So separating the two camps can at least ensure the safety of the people.

"So if we want to ambush on the way, we have to plan carefully. With Sun Ting's caution, he will definitely send out scouts!" Yuan Quan said with some regret. Although he had never dealt with Sun Ting, he knew from watching him march and set up camp that he was a scholar who knew how to lead troops in battle.

"In this case, we may only have one chance to ambush and attack. If we fail once, we won't have any chances later!" Tang Hai said after thinking for a while.

"Sun Ting is cautious by nature. If the sneak attack fails, we will naturally have no chance in the future. Besides, he brought 5000 elite cavalry. If we have a head-on confrontation, we really have no confidence!" Tang Hai nodded.

"I have a risky plan! We have 3 troops that can be dispatched now! Although their combat effectiveness is not as good as those elite cavalry! But as long as we trap the elite cavalry in that valley for a while, these 3 people will be enough to deal with the 2 or so local miscellaneous troops!" Tang Hai looked at the map and told his plan at this time.

"Uncle Tang! Do you mean that we should bring everyone over there? And solve the armies in those places in one stop?" Yuan Quan was also frightened by this bold plan.

"That's right! We don't have much advantage against them, especially when they have cavalry. We are still at a disadvantage overall! If they get in touch with the army in the Northwest City, they will be in danger! As for our negotiations, we can't attack the city in a short time! We can only find a way to eliminate them!" Tang Hai said his plan. He would still attack at the location of the canyon. He would first trap the cavalry in the canyon for a while. Then he would use the absolute advantage in numbers to kill the other troops.

"If that's the case, we will be left with an empty camp! If the army in the city finds out and chases us, we will be attacked from both sides!" Yuan Quan hadn't figured it out yet. If they pulled everyone up, they would really have no way out.

"This is our only chance! If Sun Ting brings those 5000 elite cavalry to this flat terrain, we will not be able to defeat them at all! This is also the reason why the Northeastern Army has not been able to gain an advantage in the battle with the barbarians!"

"The advantage of cavalry can only be brought into play if there is a large space! If we trap them in the canyon, at least for a short period of time, their cavalry advantage cannot be brought into play!" Tang Hai analyzed with a smile.

"Today we are going to use the empty camp plan!" everyone said with a smile at this time.

"Then we will lead our troops out tonight! But we must leave a few hundred people to guard this camp! At least let those people in the city know that everyone in the camp is still alive!"

As the night deepened, the soldiers in the military camp outside the Northwest City had already fallen asleep, with only a few soldiers on night duty patrolling. In Yuan Quan's tent, the lights were on, and everyone sat around, discussing the plan to be implemented.

"Uncle Tang, are you sure we can succeed by doing this?" Yuan Quan looked at the map with a frown. He knew that if this plan failed, they would be attacked from all sides, and the consequences would be disastrous.

"We have no way out, we have to succeed." Tang Hai said firmly, "Although Sun Ting's cavalry is elite, as long as we can successfully trap them in the canyon for a period of time, our 30,000 troops will be enough to wipe out those local troops. Moreover, I have sent people to spread the news in the city that Sun Ting's cavalry has arrived, so that they will not easily send troops, leaving us more opportunities."

"Okay, then let's proceed according to the plan." Yuan Quan made up his mind. He knew this was their only chance.

Late at night, Yuan Quan's army began to move quietly. They quickly gathered together, leaving behind a few hundred soldiers pretending to be resting in the camp, while the rest quietly left the camp and headed towards the canyon.

At the same time, Sun Ting's cavalry battalion was also conducting intensive reconnaissance work. Their scouts shuttled through the night, always alert to the surrounding movements. However, they did not find any abnormal actions of Yuan Quan's army.

When the first ray of sunlight broke through the clouds and illuminated the earth, Yuan Quan's army had already arrived at the entrance of the canyon. They quickly set up their positions and waited for the arrival of Sun Ting's cavalry.

Sun Ting had been waiting for the news sent by the scouts. When he was marching, he had to fully understand the situation ahead.

"Report to Lord Sun! The enemy has been stationed in the camp outside the West Palace! I observe that everything is normal in the camp! It seems that the enemy has no intention of fighting with us!" The reconnaissance soldier reported.

"It seems that a heroic father may not necessarily be a heroic son! Although Yuan Quan has won a few victories at the beginning, the main reason is that the local army training has not kept up! This time I will let him taste the power of a truly elite force! Order the whole team to set off immediately!" Sun Qi became more and more confident. This confidence, of course, came from the more than 500 people.

Soon, Sun Ting's cavalry camp also arrived near the canyon. They saw that there were troops stationed ahead and immediately became alert. However, when they found that the enemy had a large number of people, Sun Ting did not attack rashly, but ordered to stop advancing and observe the situation.

At this moment, deafening shouts of killing suddenly rang out from both sides of the canyon. Yuan Quan's army launched a fierce attack from both sides. Although Sun Ting's cavalry was elite, they could not play their advantages in the narrow terrain of the canyon. They were trapped in the canyon by Yuan Quan's army and fell into a bitter battle.