"Master Cen and General He have already sent troops to invade Annan."
Yan Guan said: "The Annan people have concentrated their forces, and there are no other deserters going north. This meets the conditions for breaking into Annan and joining forces with the Marquis of Xiping to capture Hanoi."
Zhu Xuan thought for a while and said: "Leave five hundred people to garrison Luzhou, and we will also send troops to attack."
Yan Guan asked worriedly: "Your Highness, will we take risks if we do this?"
"You also said before that I took a risk, but didn't I win Luzhou properly in the end?"
Zhu Xuan asked rhetorically.
Now they are going south to attack Annan, and Cen Rui and He Fu are still there, so they will not take any risks and are very safe. The White Lotus Sect has gone somewhere and does not dare to show up for the time being.
Without the threat of the White Lotus Sect, there was no one in Annan who could threaten their safety.
Yan Guan: "..."
This makes sense. He can't refute it. Zhu Xuan can indeed be very stable. Every time he encounters a problem, he can resolve it smoothly without any danger.
"We will send out troops tomorrow. First we will meet Master Cen and the others."
Zhu Xuan said directly.
the next morning.
They left 500 men in Luzhou to ensure that their retreat was clear, and then took the remaining soldiers south. At the same time, Yan Guan was asked to continue sending Jin Yiwei to act as scouts, and to maintain contact with Cen Rui.
Going south without encountering any danger, the army led by Zhu Xuan soon arrived at the north bank of Taojiang River, where the Annan people's defense line to the north was located.
On the south bank is the city of Annan, Dobang.
Annan's northern border defense line was also deployed on the north bank of the Tao River. It seemed that there were more than 50,000 people lined up on the bank, waiting in a tight formation, as if they did not want the Ming army to cross the river.
When the Annan people discovered the arrival of Zhu Xuan's Ming army, they immediately became vigilant. However, when they discovered that Zhu Xuan led only a few thousand men, the minds of those Annan soldiers became active.
The Ming army only has this few people, so they can't just let them control it.
Soon a group of 5,000 Annan soldiers came out of the defense line and tried to kill Zhu Xuan and the others.
"Your Highness, the Annan people have discovered us and are coming to kill us."
Wang Er said worriedly.
Cen Rui and He Fu haven't been able to come here yet. With a small number of them facing tens of thousands of Annan troops alone, if a fight really breaks out, they will basically be killed.
Their marching experience did have some shortcomings. Zhu Xuan reflected on himself that he should not show up immediately. He had forgotten some theoretical knowledge and ordered: "Retreat to the north first, and prepare for a counterattack at the same time."
They don't mince words and move quickly.
Hou Xian and Yan Guan still protect Zhu Xuan.
The other soldiers were commanded by Li Niu and Wang Er and retreated to the north.
When the five thousand Annan people who were sent out saw Zhu Xuan and the others retreating, they thought they were afraid of them. They immediately became excited, stopped testing, and chased after them, dreaming of wiping out Zhu Xuan and the others.
"Back off again!"
Zhu Xuan saw the enemy coming and gave the order slowly.
At this time, there were more than two thousand people who could follow him into battle. He was confident that he would have no problem fighting enemies twice as many as himself.
Not only Zhu Xuan, but also other soldiers are confident that they can fight.
The reason why Zhu Xuan retreated was because he was worried that Annan's 50,000 people would come out together. Only 5,000 people did not need to be afraid.
The direction they retreated to was part of the Lang Son Mountain System, which was the southernmost point. As they retreated to the north, they soon reached the mountains, where the conditions and location were almost the same.
"You can stop."
"We will arrange for someone to contact Mr. Cen. Next, we will be here, waiting for Mr. Cen to arrive."
"At the same time, prepare to counterattack, and the Tiger Crouching Cannon will go first!"
Zhu Xuan quickly made arrangements based on the experience gained from fighting during this period.
The soldiers hid in the mountains and forests, and under the leadership of Zhu Xuan, they occupied a high slope. They fired the Tiger Crouching Cannon on the high slope, adjusted the angle, and stuffed the ammunition into it.
boom……
The sound of three cannon shots echoed in the mountain forest. The shells and stones were splashed out and fell among the enemies. The Annan soldiers who were charging in the front row were beaten to the ground on the spot.
The Annan people were in a state of rushing up the high slope. The ones in the front row were knocked down and rolled down the high slope. They also knocked down the Annan soldiers who were following behind. However, the Annan soldiers did not stop and continued to attack.
The Annan people knew the limitations of firearms. As long as they fought in close combat and killed them, they would have no use for firearms. They rushed forward desperately in order to sacrifice some of their people and close the distance with Zhu Xuan.
The second batch of shells was quickly fired.
The sound of cannon fire echoed, and another group of enemies were defeated, but they did not give up and continued to climb up the hillside, getting closer now.
"shot!"
Zhu Xuan saw more enemies gathered and immediately gave the order.
The gunners from the Shenji Battalion quickly stepped forward and fired.
Ordinary soldiers, as well as more than two hundred archers, followed the gunners and drew their bows to shoot at the enemy. Arrows, bullets, and cannonballs flew towards the Annan soldiers who were about to attack.
Those Annan people did not expect that the counterattack of thousands of Ming troops would be so fierce. They were suddenly beaten so that they did not dare to attack again and all retreated.
They paused for a long time, as if they were discussing something, but Zhu Xuan and the others could not hear the content of the discussion, and after a while, they all retreated.
"The enemy has retreated!"
Li Niu shouted excitedly.
Zhu Xuan shook his head and said: "It's just a temporary retreat. There will definitely be an army coming to chase us. Be ready and dig a few traps to trap the enemy. Let's continue to hide in the mountains and forests. Do you still have any explosives?"
"have!"
Wang Er said.
The mountain system of Lang Son stretches across the entire northern part of Annam and is very large.
Once they retreat inside, they can do a lot of things and launch defenses. They won't be afraid even if the Annamites set fire to the mountains.
The soldiers received Zhu Xuan's order and quickly dug some traps near the mountains. They were almost ready. They retreated back to the mountains to prepare for the next wave of counterattack.
Before I knew it, it was afternoon.
Zhu Xuan led the team and hid in a mountain col.
"Your Highness, here you come!"
A scout ran back and said: "The Annan people will come again. Judging from the formation, there are about ten thousand people. They are approaching the position where we just evacuated. They seem to want to spread out, encircle us and trap us in the mountain."
"Want to surround us?"
Zhu Xuan looked to the other side of the mountain col. If he encountered a siege, there was still a place where he could leave. He then said: "Bring people here, bury our explosives here, and then follow me to the northwest." retreat."
"yes!"
Everyone said in unison.
The soldiers then set up an ambush, placing explosives around the col and laying a layer of hay on top.
The woods here are relatively dense, and the trees will be relatively humid. They prepared hay outside and quickly laid the ground. Everyone hurried to the northwest. At the same time, they also arranged for people to go out and lead the Annan soldiers here.
