Under the cover of night, shouts of killing were heard all over the place, echoing continuously in the empty field in front of Yanmen.
The Longwu Army and the Zhao Wang Army, two elite troops belonging to the Great Zhou Dynasty, were engaged in a bloody battle at the moment.
Brothers are at war with each other and roommates are at war with each other.
In less than a quarter of an hour when Zhao Tianlin's Chinese army flag was revealed, the battlefield pattern changed dramatically.
Zhao Wang's army, which originally attacked the two battalions on the left and right of Longwu Army, began to concentrate its forces and attack the target under the command of trumpets and war drums.
The Longwu Army's central flag was their target.
More than 100,000 soldiers and horses began to surround the right camp of the Longwu Army.
As long as Zhao Tianlin is captured, this section of the Longwu Army will be completely finished. Qiu Fu knows this, and so does Zhao Tianlin.
So Zhao Tianlin left a way for himself.
There is a small earth peak on the northwest side of the Longwu Army's right camp. This mountain is not high, but it is difficult to climb. It is a natural defense, so Zhao Tianlin set up the right camp here to improve its defense capabilities.
Five miles behind this ridge, Zhao Tianlin hid seven thousand fine cavalry.
The most elite cavalry of the Longwu Army are here. Zhao Tianlin originally planned to fight a defensive battle. If the cavalry is placed in the camp, its role may not be as good as that of ordinary infantry.
Therefore, Zhao Tianlin asked the cavalry commander General Chen Qu to bring out 7,000 of the most elite cavalry. Firstly, they could protect the Longwu Army's retreat, and secondly, they could be used as a cavalry force.
An elite cavalry suddenly appears on the battlefield and can even change the entire situation of the battle.
The commander of the cavalry, Chen Qu, only held the position of Zhonglang General in the Longwu Army and had little reputation. However, his ability to command the cavalry was already demonstrated in the first confrontation with King Zhao's army.
"General Chen, the fighting is raging in front, why don't we stay still?!"
The deputy generals on the side were anxious. According to the information provided to them by Jinyiwei North Town Fusi, King Zhao's army had received a large number of reinforcements, which were elite soldiers from Yancheng. The current strength of King Zhao's army in Qiu Fu's hands is estimated to be at least 150,000.
On the other hand, although the Longwu Army also had reinforcements, they were only Bingzhou's second-line preparation force, all in reserve.
The combat effectiveness is incomparable to that of one of the Sixth Army of the Emperor like Long Wujun.
It can be seen from the battle situation of the two battalions on the left and right. After three hours of bloody battle, the army of the right battalion remained motionless. On the contrary, King Zhao's army lost troops and generals. But Zuoying has reached its limit, both in terms of morale and combat power.
Only in this way did Zhao Tianlin have to show his handsome flag in advance.
This is a conspiracy to boost morale and attract enemies.
Chen Qu looked at the faint fire in the distant sky and the shouts of death coming from all directions, and shook his head.
"Send orders to the entire army to recharge their batteries."
After Chen Qu finished speaking, he closed his eyes. It was not time for him to move yet.
…
The Zuoying of the Longwu Army faced an almost crazy attack by King Zhao's army. The soldiers of the Zuoying just now were on the verge of collapse.
Of the 30,000 troops and horses arranged here, 20,000 were the Bei Cao Army under Xu Wentao. Zhao Tianlin was worried about its combat power, so he specially exchanged defense areas with the 10,000 elite Longwu Army and his 10,000 Bei Cao Army troops.
Facts have proved that Zhao Tianlin made a good move. It is precisely because of the mixed elite Longwu Army soldiers that Zuoying can have such resilience and survive waves of successive attacks until now.
"General, the rebels have retreated!"
Although Xu Wentao's ability in military management and training is average, he is very brave in personal force. He entered the Yuanhua realm a year ago.
Just now, he led his own guards and withstood the frontal attack of King Zhao's army. It was also because the general took the lead that the fighting will of these second-line troops was inspired.
Xu Wentao was now covered in blood. He was also shot three times. Fortunately, they were all flesh wounds and not serious.
"All retreated?!" Although the enemies in front of Xu Wentao had retreated, Xu Wentao's eyes widened after hearing the news that the entire enemy army had retreated.
No wonder Xu Wentao was surprised. The timing of the retreat was really weird. According to the situation just now, the entire Zuoying camp would collapse in half an hour at most.
This is equivalent to cooking rice in a pot! When the rice was about to be cooked, he suddenly turned off the fire.
"What's going on?!" Xu Wentao touched his shiny bald head. He was not a disciple of Buddhism, but he led troops every day. He didn't like the trouble of bathing, so he simply shaved all his hair so that he didn't have to wash it.
Although he didn't know why, Xu Wentao began to issue military orders immediately.
"Instruct the entire army to immediately repair the camp, rescue the wounded, bandage wounds, inspect weapons, and re-establish defense lines in preparation for the rebels to attack again!"
"promise!"
"Instruct the scout team to go out immediately to investigate and find out the military situation!"
Xu Wentao felt that King Zhao's rebels could not retreat without reason, and they must figure out what happened.
Taking advantage of this gap period, Zuo Ying immediately became busy. Even Xu Wentao himself took off his armor and bandaged the gunshot wounds on his body with medicine.
At the same time, there are also dedicated personnel in the army to reduce casualties and losses.
After a while, the results came out. In this afternoon and half of the night's fighting, Zuoying's 30,000 soldiers and horses lost 12,000 lives and more than 8,000 people were lightly or seriously injured. Xu Wentao now has less than 10,000 capable soldiers.
"Qiu Fu is really a lunatic. How can he fight like this!"
Although he did not know the enemy's casualties, Xu Wentao knew that the rebels' casualties would only be more severe than theirs.
Xu Wentao is not a famous general, but he also knows that this kind of offensive and defensive tug-of-war will only be used when attacking major strategic targets. But here is only 30,000 troops of Longwu Army. With this kind of tactics, even if he wins, In the end, the gains outweigh the losses.
Just when Xu Wentao was confused, the scouts sent out returned.
"General, check it out!"
Upon hearing this, Xu Wentao immediately stepped forward and asked, "What's going on?!"
"It's Marshal Zhao. The flag of the Chinese army has been shown over at Marshal Zhao! The rebels in Prince Zhao's Mansion are concentrating their forces to besiege Marshal Zhao at this moment."
On this current boundary, the most valuable strategic target is naturally Yanmen.
Then, for Qiu Fu, the second most valuable target was not the 70,000 Zhou Ting soldiers and horses, but Zhao Tianlin's head.
The veteran Zhao Tianlin has followed King Kaiping, King Qiyang, and King Zhongshan in the north and south since the Taizu era. Counting Xizong, Zhao Tianlin is a veteran of the four dynasties of the Great Zhou Dynasty.
He is not only senior in the military, but also has high prestige. In the battle to defend Jinyang, he killed enemy generals in formation.
In the subsequent battle to destroy the Jin Dynasty, although Yang Qingyuan destroyed the main force of the Jin Dynasty, and although two armies advanced simultaneously, the nominal commander was still Zhao Tianlin. This was the result of the destruction of the country! Therefore, Zhao Tianlin was granted the title of marquis and was hereditary.
At the same time, Zhao Tianlin was also one of the founders of the new Longwu Army and the second in command after Cao Xueyang.
People like Zhao Tianlin are the flag of the Zhou army. Whether they can be killed or captured, it is enough to cause serious damage to the morale of the Zhou army.
Moreover, after Zhao Tianlin was captured, the remaining soldiers and horses were just stragglers. Even Yanmen Pass would be shocked by Qiu Fu's military might, and the morale of the army would be turbulent.
It has to be said that although Qiu Fu is fierce and reckless in his military use, his military sense is still very sensitive.
"General Xu! What should we do?!" The middle-level generals present looked at Xu Wentao, and one of them, Colonel Zhaowu, asked what everyone present was thinking.
Friendly troops are in trouble and remain as motionless as a mountain.
This kind of situation is naturally impossible among the Zhou army. Even if there are personal grievances, it is a matter of private settlement and will not hinder military affairs.
What's more, there are so many generals brought out by Zhao Tianlin, including Xu Wentao himself, who served under Zhao Tianlin for more than a year before he was transferred to the local area as a captain. How could he not save him even if he died?
"General Xu, the old commander is now being besieged by hundreds of thousands of rebel troops. We can't just sit idly by!"
The words of the other captain were echoed by everyone present.
"Yes! General Xu!"
"General Xu! We must send troops to rescue!"
…
Similar voices are heard all the time.
Why doesn't Xu Wentao think so? ! But he is now the commander of the left camp of the Longwu Army. He not only represents himself, but also represents the remaining 10,000 soldiers.
At this moment, there were more than 8,000 lightly and seriously wounded people in the Zuo camp. The lightly wounded were fortunate enough to be able to move freely, but their combat power was damaged, but what should we do with the seriously wounded? !
In addition, it is also necessary to consider whether this is Qiu Fu's strategy of encirclement and reinforcements.
If Qiu Fu's purpose was to lure him out of Zuoying's camp and then annihilate him, then sending troops to rescue him would have played into Qiu Fu's plan.
Even if Qiu Fu really attacks the right camp and doesn't care about him at all, what can he do with the nine thousand troops in his hands? !
As a commander, you need to make judgments and choices.
"General Xu!"
"Send troops!"
"General Xu, if you have any concerns, I am willing to lead my three thousand troops to rescue!" The man who spoke was the former captain of the Longwu Army, who was sent to the left camp by Zhao Tianlin to assist in the defense. At this time Seeing that Xu Wentao was hesitant, he even said this.
The atmosphere in the scene became more difficult to control.
Although many deputy generals and captains were still urging to send troops, Xu Wentao calmed down. The more times like this, the less urgent it is!
Xu Wentao has a clear positioning for himself, until he has nothing to do with the word "general".
As a local defense general, he is qualified, but if he is to fight in the field with veteran generals such as Qiu Fu, Li Yuan, and Wang Cong... then it will probably be a nine-day battle.
Seeing that the general was silent and lowered his head in deep thought, all the generals also became quiet. They are not fools. In military matters, one cannot rely solely on passion.
"How many cavalry are there in the army? How many horses?!" Xu Wentao raised his head and asked.
On the side, a military chief in a scribe's robe but covered in blood said, "General, our army still has 1,800 horses and 1,200 cavalry."
The soldiers here are all cavalry from the local garrison, and their combat power cannot be compared with the cavalry from front-line field troops like the Sixth Army of the Emperor.
The equipment is also much inferior. The war horses are not fat and strong, and they do not have leather armor. The knights also wear leather armor and carry ordinary hard bows.
The cavalry of these local garrison troops were originally used to suppress bandits, so naturally they could not be the same as the frontline troops and front-line troops.
"That's enough!" Xu Wentao said with a high-five, "Then let's take a gamble!"
"Generals, obey your orders!"
Everyone who was still a little messy immediately stood in solemn silence.
"This general is determined to abandon the left camp and fully support Marshal Zhao! The original soldiers and horses of the left camp are divided into three parts. Where is Chang Jun, the commander of the hussars?!"
"The general is here!"
A young general carrying a green dragon halberd stood up. Although this man was only twenty-three-four years old, he had good martial arts skills. He was already connected to all eight meridians. He could reach the realm of condensing Qi and transforming Yuan in half a year at most. Yuan Hua Jing.
He was not from the Sixth Army of the Emperor, but a good young man that Xu Wentao had cultivated by himself.
"You and I have a thousand cavalry with no specific goal. You lead your troops to roam the battlefield, looking for opportunities to relieve the pressure on General Zhao!"
"yes!"
Xu Wentao then looked at the other generals in the army, "Other gentlemen, follow me to gather the remaining troops and attack the enemy's camp!"
As soon as these words came out, all the generals present were shocked.
They didn't expect Xu Wentao to have such courage. But I have to admit that this is indeed a bold but feasible plan.
Now all the attention of King Zhao's rebels is attracted by General Zhao's right camp. Even the soldiers and horses who attacked their left camp have all been withdrawn to besiege the right camp. How strong can their defense be? strength? !
However, the risks of this plan are still high.
Although the enemy camp is estimated to be empty, they may not be able to defeat them in a single battle with the soldiers and horses in their hands.
Once the soldiers and horses attacking Zhao Tianlin's right camp from the front retreat, they will immediately be surrounded by counterattacks. At that time, there is only one way to annihilate the entire army.
"Zhao Linian, Zhong Yaqi, you two take the wounded soldiers in the army and retreat towards Yanmen Pass."
Zhao Linian and Zhong Yaqi are the two youngest captains in Youying, and Zhao Linian is the grandson of Zhao Tianlin.
Zhao Tianlin was nearly eighty years old and had three sons, but they all died for the country.
He has two grandsons, and one who fought bloody battles to defend Jinyang and died of exhaustion. Zhao Linian is his only bloodline.
"I want to follow the general and attack the enemy camp!"
When Zhao Linian heard that Xu Wentao wanted to lead his troops to evacuate, he immediately stood up to oppose it. What's more, his grandfather is currently fighting a bloody battle with the rebels. How can he retreat? !
The blood of the Zhao family's men is full of righteousness, loyalty, and bravery. How can they escape without fighting? !
Xu Wentao knew that Zhao Linian would definitely object, but he had already thought of an excuse.
"Li Nian, among the generals here, you are the only one who has been in Yanmen and is the most familiar with the route. The burden on your shoulders is very heavy. It is up to you to evacuate these eight thousand injured brothers. Besides, although you two are good at martial arts, , but I lack actual combat experience. This is a battlefield and is not something to be trifled with. As the leader of the Zuo camp, I naturally have to take everything into consideration!"
Xu Wentao's reasons were sufficient. Even if Zhao Linian was of high status, he could not object to such a "reasonable and well-founded" military order.
"Yes! General, take the order!" Zhao Linian took the military order and went with his friend Zhong Yaqi to integrate the wounded soldiers and prepare to evacuate.
Seeing Zhao Linian leave, Xu Wentao breathed a sigh of relief. The only flesh and blood of Mr. Zhao cannot be cut off here.
After taking a deep breath, Xu Wentao raised his iron spear and said, "Brother, if a man is dead or a bird is in the sky, he will not die for tens of millions of years. Come with me and attack the enemy camp!"
