When the leaders heard this, their panicked minds calmed down a little.
They were not as stunned as before by the news of the Han Army's arrival.
However, their hearts were still somewhat uneasy; being trapped in the mountains, no one knew if they would be breached by the Han Army and subsequently killed.
Feng Hu looked at the crowd, who still seemed a bit restless, and decided to give them a shot in the arm to completely stabilize their morale.
After organizing his thoughts, he continued!
"Everyone, don't panic. Although Liu Jin led a large army here to eliminate us bandits..."
"Do you know his main purpose?"
Everyone shook their heads upon hearing this. They had been in this northwestern border region for many years, with blocked information, so how could they know why Liu Jin had led his troops here?
Xu Wu, in the crowd, narrowed his eyes slightly, seemingly having some thoughts, but he did not step forward to speak, instead continuing to ponder.
Feng Hu saw the inquiring looks from everyone and said with a smile!
"I've received news that Liu Jin's expedition with his troops, attacking us, is just an appetizer. His main goal is to suppress the Huns."
"So, everyone, don't panic. Liu Jin will definitely not waste too much time with us. If he doesn't find an opportunity quickly, he will certainly withdraw his troops and leave, as his primary objective is still to deal with the Huns."
After hearing this, the leaders suddenly understood and all let out a heavy sigh of relief.
They had indeed been somewhat confused at first as to how Liu Jin could travel thousands of miles to eliminate them, these bandits. It turned out his goal was to suppress the Huns.
Upon learning this, everyone felt relaxed.
Even being surrounded by the Han Army on Langxu Mountain, they didn't feel afraid. The Han Army would surely be unable to do anything to them in a short time, and then they would certainly withdraw.
Feng Hu saw that everyone's morale had recovered and slowly breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, he had stabilized everyone's minds, and no unrest had occurred, preventing them from collapsing from within.
Looking at the leaders, he loudly commanded!
"From now on, everyone immediately lead your respective troops to guard the mountain passes. You must not let the Han Army come up."
"If the Han Army attacks any one point, all of us leaders must jointly send troops to support. Anyone who dares not to come, or who defects to the Han Army, this leader will surely kill them!"
His fierce gaze swept around, as if anyone who dared to disobey his orders would surely die.
The leaders all nodded in agreement, patting their chests and assuring him!
"Great Leader, rest assured, in times of crisis, we will naturally stand together and jointly resist the Han Army. There will definitely be no selfishness."
Feng Hu nodded, then waved his hand, signaling everyone to descend and lead their troops to guard their respective locations.
At the foot of Langxu Mountain, Liu Jin, riding a tall horse, arrived with several thousand Han Army soldiers, accompanied by his Generals.
At the foot of the mountain was a vast open space, and in front were towering mountains, clustered together, forming overlapping ranges and lofty peaks that stretched as far as the eye could see.
After observing for a moment, Liu Jin indeed felt a sense of awe.
The craftsmanship of nature was truly miraculous. Langxu Mountain, before him, was in a position that was easy to defend and difficult to attack, with dense forests interwoven together.
Especially with a sense of rushing downwards, it was a natural gathering place for bandits.
Tian Feng, beside him, frowned tightly and said!
"Reporting to Lord, this mountain range is indeed quite vast. We are unfamiliar with the paths, and if we just charge in, we are very likely to fall into an ambush, resulting in heavy troop losses."
"We still need to plan carefully and see if we can come up with a good strategy to breach Langxu Mountain."
Liu Jin nodded upon hearing this. This mountain range was indeed troublesome, and there were also foreign bandits, with various mountain strongholds interconnected. Rushing in blindly would easily lead to an ambush.
This scene was similar to the Shanyue people in the historical Eastern Wu region, gathered in the mountains and forests. Without a good method, it would indeed be difficult to eradicate them.
After a moment of contemplation, he immediately ordered the troops behind him to begin setting up camp a few miles away, first blocking the current path and trapping this group of bandits in the mountains.
He then ordered Zhang Fei to lead two thousand troops to patrol the surroundings, to prevent the bandits in the mountains from suddenly charging out, as they were new to the area.
Soon, the Han Army's camps were successively set up.
Inside the central army tent, Liu Jin sat in the main seat, while the other Generals and strategists sat on both sides.
Liu Jin held a battle report, which Guan Yu had just sent back. After reading it for a moment, a smile appeared on his face.
He said to everyone in the tent with a smile!
"Guan Yu has already occupied the horse farm, eliminated over a thousand bandits guarding it, and obtained a total of over six thousand horses."
When the Generals heard this, their faces were all filled with excited smiles.
Not only were the bandits deprived of their mobility, but they also gained several thousand horses for free, already having seized a natural advantage.
After a moment of excitement, Liu Jin slowly returned to normal, his tone becoming somewhat serious as he asked!
"Since the bandits no longer have cavalry, we don't have to worry about them suddenly attacking. What methods should we think of to eliminate this group of bandits?"
Upon hearing this, the Generals in the hall fell into deep thought. Although the bandits no longer had cavalry, like having their legs cut off, hiding in these mountains and forests, it was still very difficult to eradicate them.
After a long silence, no one could come up with a good strategy.
Liu Jin frowned slightly, his expectant gaze involuntarily turning towards Tian Feng and the others.
Tian Feng pondered for a moment, then stroked his beard and slowly said!
"Lord, in my opinion, why not let Sun Yi, from before, lead us into Langxu Mountain? With his understanding of this place, even if there are ambushes, he should be able to easily detect them."
Liu Jin nodded upon hearing this, still quite in favor of the idea.
Sun Yi was, after all, a leader of Langxu Mountain, and his understanding of the interior would naturally be more thorough than theirs. Having him lead them to ascertain the paths within this mountain range should not be a problem.
So, he ordered his personal guards to bring Sun Yi, from before.
After waiting for a moment, the tent curtain was pushed open, and Sun Yi walked in, accompanied by several personal soldiers. Seeing Liu Jin at the head, he bowed deeply with a fawning smile and said loudly!
"Marquis."
Liu Jin nodded slightly, a kind smile on his face, and asked!
"Now that my army has arrived at the foot of Langxu Mountain, how can we enter the mountains and forests to eliminate these bandits?"
Sun Yi paused slightly upon hearing this, then said slowly with a grave expression!
"Reporting to Marquis, Langxu Mountain is indeed quite complex. Those unfamiliar with it will certainly get lost, and may even fail to find the mountain strongholds."
"I do know some paths and can lead the army in. However, many paths and strongholds have already been occupied by the various leaders, making them easy to defend and difficult to attack. If we want to eliminate these bandits, we will still have to launch a forced assault."
