Chapter 91 Breakthrough
Those screams were made by several dog officers and soldiers who had rushed to the front of the formation and were stabbed and hacked to death by this guy's armored cavalry.
Most of the knights in the cavalry were making large circles on the edge of the battlefield, driving the defeated soldiers back to the open space in front of the pass. In the blink of an eye, several troops from Gangfeng Battalion came up and were mercilessly killing the exhausted officers and soldiers. Before they could meet up with the phalanx, the formation had already dispersed. Everyone was chasing and cutting down their targets. Every time they cut down one, the pursuers abandoned their weapons and searched the unlucky guy inside and out. Those who made money were smiling happily, while those who fought in vain often stabbed themselves in anger, stood up and looked around to find the next target... Regardless of whether they were officers, soldiers or bandits, these were the standard practices of all soldiers in that era on the battlefield. . What is slightly different from other troops is that no one strips off armor or cuts off heads - Gu Manzi's Gangfeng Battalion is the absolute main force, and its armor coverage rate is second only to the Marshal's Guards Battalion. Wait for the auxiliary troops. After cleaning the battlefield, their share is indispensable. As for the head, the commander will not talk about that here.
After all, it is the commander-in-chief, after all, it is the commander-in-chief's personal guard camp!
The Poxiao battalion did not join in the robbery. Under Guan Shengyun's order, each team quickly formed a solid square formation, passed directly through Zhang Ding's hollow square formation, and blocked the gate tightly, guarding against the appearance for some reason. reinforcements from officers and soldiers.
Gong Derun rode up to Zhang Ding, nodded slightly, and raised his right arm to summon the Zhenyong Battalion to return to work. The brothers from the Zhenyong Battalion gathered behind Gong Derun with exhausted footsteps. The injured were supported, and the dead and seriously injured were carried. Gong Derun frowned and looked at his subordinates sadly. He turned his head and was about to scold Zhang Ding for not feeling sorry for using other people's soldiers as cannon fodder when he saw the Pili Battalion behind him - the losses were not even a bit greater than his own. He shut up knowingly, got off his horse and came closer, and patted Zhang Ding hard with emotion.
At this time, Zhang Ding was still in a dream: Is this a victory? Why didn't the Dog Officer Army come out for reinforcements? It was clear that he was the one who just hit the main attack drum! ? Why was there no movement at this critical moment?
A burst of cheers woke Zhang Ding up.
The cheers came from the Thunderbolt Camp.
Following everyone's gaze and looking up, Gu Baisong led several mounted guards to gallop along the horse road and reached the key point. Everyone was dragging the defender's flags backwards in their hands, including the command flag, the deputy general's flag, and the Qian Commander's flag... Running back and forth on the Guan Wall, the Guanzi Commandery Flag that had been abandoned on the battlefield not long ago to lure the enemy to attack had already been picked up. At this moment, it was flying high above the Guan Tower, fluttering in the wind!
With the cheers of the Pili Camp, the battlefield boiled with cheers and shouts everywhere, and the loudest voices were actually the exhausted Pili Camp and Gong Derun's Zhenyong Camp!
Damn, I was fooled!
There are no reinforcements at all from the Dog Officer Army!
That tom was just played randomly by his mother!
His grandma's almost scared me to death!
The pressure-laden front row defense line was constantly redeploying manpower to guard against threats that did not exist at all, causing at least seven or eight more lives in the front row! Is it a big deal to scare yourself? If word spreads, everyone will laugh to death? Gu Manzi can't make fun of me for the rest of my life - but I still killed and injured so many men!
The furious Zhang Dingtie, with a livid face, strode out of the formation with a long knife in his hand. Every time he saw a guy lying on the ground begging for mercy, he slashed down with his knife...
Guan Shengyun, Gong Derun and others all watched silently, and even Gu Baihua didn't stop him - the losses of Pili camp were there: about seventy or eighty people lying motionless on the ground dead, fifty or sixty seriously injured, and the rest almost Everyone brings color. In this battle, Zhang Ding, who had always been stingy and cautious, really spent his money this time, and Zhang Gueryi needed to vent.
After slashing five or six people in a row, Zhang Ding ran out of energy. The knife got stuck in a guy's neck bone. He whipped it a few times before pulling it out. He staggered and almost fell. He leaned on the knife before he could stand firm.
Zhang Ding looked around the battlefield again.
In the distance, the Beishan Mountain is full of figures of officers and soldiers abandoning their helmets and armor, climbing on their hands and knees. Behind them are the auxiliary soldiers brought by the commander, with ropes on their shoulders and knives in their hands - well, After winning the battle, the unarmored auxiliary soldiers who usually showed respect to the soldiers became a hundred times more courageous at this time, chasing the genuine armored soldiers like frightened rabbits. You don't need to ask, you know that most of those guys can't escape: after fighting for a long time and wearing a suit of iron, how can they outrun the auxiliary soldiers who are light and unarmored? I don’t dare to really resist. It’s only a matter of time before I get caught!
The boats in the river to the south had dispersed. The gunmen stood at the bow and stern of the boats and calmly attacked the dog officers and soldiers who jumped into the river in a panic. The archers stood beside the boats and calmly headed towards the water. The guys struggling close by took aim, shaking their already sore arms with each arrow, talking and laughing among themselves, ignoring the cries for mercy in the river.
The officers and soldiers who were trapped on the battlefield and couldn't run away all lay on the ground and shouted: "I surrender! I surrender, Your Majesty, please spare my life..."
"ah!"
Without even looking at Zhang Ding, he knew that this was because of his infection, and the brothers in the formation who had just been threatened and frightened by those guys were taking revenge. They took the water hyacinth handed over by the friendly forces and drank it in large gulps. After recovering a little strength, they left the team to find trouble for the surrendering soldiers - arrows, cupping pots, asphalt, excrement, iron juice, lime, knives, guns, masonry... ...After enduring all kinds of fancy beatings for most of the day, it’s time to beat him back! In this era, there was no such thing as mercy. At best, if the enemy's captives seemed to have some strength, they might be put into the auxiliary barracks and treated as talking animals until they died; for others, their lives were like a piece of grass.
Although some people believe that "killing prisoners is unlucky," there are also a considerable number of generals who condone massacres intentionally or unintentionally - they hope to bring out a bloodthirsty army and thereby seize more wealth and heavier weapons for themselves. The right to speak.
Suddenly, a few wisps of green smoke came out of the pass.
"No, the dog officers and soldiers are burning military resources!" Guan Shengyun shouted and ordered: "Poxiao Camp, enter the city to defeat the enemy! Zhang Ding and Gong Derun, lead the people to put out the fire!" After speaking, he led the guard battalion at Guan Wildfire and other horsemen galloped into the gate surrounded by horse guards. General Gong Zhang, who did not dare to neglect, quickly rushed into the gate with his subordinates who still had some physical strength.
Another false alarm.
It was not the arsenal or the grain depot that caught fire. It was just a few thatched huts on the side of the road that were temporarily used as aid stations.
Hangu Pass is just a pass, not a city. The arsenal, grain depot and soldiers' dormitories are all in the fortress under the pass wall. The temporary reinforcement camps are spread out along the pass wall. There are only a few isolated ones along the road. Thatched huts were used by doctors to make medicines and soups. It doesn't matter if there is a fire. The worst thing is that it will be burned down and the fire will have no place to spread. It will neither stop the pursuers nor destroy the supplies.
Guan Shengyun looked at it in confusion. He couldn't figure out why the escaping defenders lit these fires that were harmless to humans and animals: Could it be that there was an internal agent in the dog army, and the reason for lighting fires and setting off smoke was to warn him to dispel his doubts quickly? Come in?
In any case, combined with the sound of the drum just now, and looking at the extent of the burning in front of you, it is obvious that the officers and soldiers left not long ago. Although all the combat objectives have been achieved so far, Guan Shengyun decided to expand the results.
"Poxiao camp, follow up and pursue! Order the cavalry to follow quickly! Gangfeng camp is in the center to provide support, while Zhenyong and Pili camp search for the remaining enemies and clean up the battlefield!"
Qi Xiaoguang and others left Hangu Pass and galloped towards Luoyang, followed by all the defenders, Guan Peizhong personally holding the rear.
Sun Fugui didn't go far before he was overtaken by the bruised and bruised Golden Drum Troupe.
According to military law, the penalty for losing the golden drum flag on the battlefield is "to be killed by the whole team." However, the military law did not say what to do if it was snatched away by one's own friendly generals - obviously the adults who formulated the military law did not expect that Lieutenant General Kou would be so good at playing. The team officer was tricked twice by Vice General Kou in less than two hours. In order to save his life, he ran over to the commander crying with aggrieved face. The dried blood stains mixed with snot and tears were wiped by the sleeves, and everyone in the Golden Drum Team looked like a big-faced person. It was a pity that the gongs and drums were all taken away, otherwise it would look like a theater troupe from a distance.
Sun Fugui, who really had nothing to say, waved his hands to send them away, and then heard the drums beating enthusiastically.
Everyone looked at each other in confusion. No one could guess what Kou Zhizhang was doing, so they stepped up and walked quickly towards Luoyang.
After only about two moments, the soldiers who accidentally looked back discovered the black smoke coming out of the pass. Fear spread, the queue was in chaos, and many people squeezed forward desperately. Fortunately, the palace guards have always been led by Sun Fugui Guan Peizhong, and their military discipline is very good. Hundreds of flag officers wielded whips, knives and sticks, and spent a lot of effort to suppress the commotion.
Hearing the commotion in the rear team, Qi Xiaoguang, Sun Fugui and others also looked back. Qi Xiaoguang asked Sun Fugui: "General Sun, how long do you think Kou Zhizhang (note that Qi Xiaoguang did not use Kou Zhizhang's epithet "Qin Si" here, and his tone was obviously very contemptuous) can last?"
Sun Fugui replied: "Master Kou, this is hard to say. If everyone fights to the death and uses it properly, there will definitely be no problem if the time is right."
Qi Xiaoguang asked curiously: "One hour? Just with a dozen or less than twenty people?"
Sun Fugui said: "Yes, sir. If it is the last general who leads the army, he may be able to withstand it longer. The key is to block the door and fight. After all, the door opening is not very wide. Pull some horses stuck in front of the sword cart to block the thieves outside the door. No matter how many people there are, they can't squeeze in. They are crowded from behind and have to dodge the spears coming at them. Those in the front row are even less able to use their strength. The defenders can save a lot of effort by placing the spears on the horses. There are three or four wooden boxes placed behind them. It would be safer if the archer stood up to fix the leak - he shot from a distance of three to five feet almost facing the door, and every arrow was accurate. Besides, who wouldn't be afraid of being pointed at by a sharp arrow? If you feel tired, change people. You can't. You can continue to rotate like this for a long time until the person is completely exhausted. It is difficult for a thief in armor to climb over the Juma, so he will knock over the one in front of him. Only when the pile of dead bodies is high can he climb over. Moreover, there can be more Juma. Pull a few lines and resist step by step. Don't be afraid if the thief climbs the wall from the ladder. There are only two horse paths under the wall. Pile some firewood and burn it. No one can get through until it is burned. Just send two people to keep throwing firewood in. , as long as you want."
Upon hearing this, Qi Xiaoguang pointed to the black smoke behind the door with surprise and asked, "Did Kou Qinsi light a fire on the horse path?"
Sun Fugui looked towards the direction of Guancheng for a while, shook his head and said: "It's not like that. The fire is too small to stop people. If it is what the general said just now, the fire should be much bigger now. The general also I don’t know what this guy is doing.”
The two were talking in front, and when they were walking at the end of the team, Guan Pei, who had just suppressed the commotion, heard the sound of horse hooves, and many voices shouted: "Get out of the way, get out of the way!". Just when they saw who was coming, this group of people had already rushed forward and walked straight into the team, causing a commotion.
Not long after, Qi Xiaoguang heard something wrong again behind him. There was a lot of noise and complaints. Looking back, he saw a dozen knights struggling to squeeze through the team. The leader was a man in a green hat. Who else could it be if he wasn't Lieutenant Kou?
Qi Xiaoguang, whose face turned pale for a moment, sighed heavily, turned around and continued moving forward. Not long after, Kou Zhizhang and others caught up and followed Qi Xiaoguang. Kou Zhizhang said triumphantly: "Your Excellency, the general just beat the drum to demonstrate. This was a plan of suspicion. At this moment, the thieves are heartbroken, so our army will naturally become more courageous. The general is worried about your safety, so he came to protect you. !”
Qi Xiaoguang had just "hummed" and was about to humiliate Lieutenant General Kou for changing into civilian clothes so quickly, when Sun Fugui, who was shocked, shouted: "You beat the drum and didn't send anyone out? "
Kou Zhizhang said calmly: "Send people? Is there anyone else there? Aren't everyone evacuating to Luo Mansion?"
Sun Fugui pointed in the direction of Hangu Pass and said in surprise again: "Did you set the fire?"
Kou Zhizhang chuckled and said, "Of course! When we retreated, we set fire to the thatched huts by the road. Can we hold off the traitors for a while?"
Sun Fugui shouted: "Monkey, you protect a few adults and quickly evacuate to Luo Mansion. The others stay with me to resist the enemy!"
Qi Xiaoguang asked hurriedly: "General Sun, what are you doing?"
Sun Fugui hurriedly said: "Sir, this is a reminder! The officers and soldiers who were fighting hard thought that there were reinforcements, so they would take a rest. When the reinforcements came up, the thieves would definitely accelerate their attack. They must rush to deal with the enemy outside the pass before the reinforcements arrived. Our army! That fire is a life-threatening talisman! The thieves would have doubted whether our army would set up an ambush inside the pass. They would have hesitated for a while before entering the pass, and would have sent scouts to search carefully after entering the pass before pursuing... This That's good! It's too late to explain, so hurry up and leave!" After saying this, he reined up his horse and turned around and shouted, "Pass my order, the palace guards occupy both sides of the official road to prepare for battle, the rest of you run away!"
The team that was originally winding on the official road had been turned into a mess by Kou Zhizhang from end to end. Sun Fugui's personal guards had to ride horses along both sides of the official road and try hard to find a place where they could lower their hooves and shout and pass the message. After giving the order, some got stuck in the crowd, simply got off their horses, climbed to a mountain wall about ten feet high and ran backwards. Now it was even more chaotic. People were squeezing, pushing, and shouting. The narrow official road soon became almost blocked and blocked.
Kou Zhizhang's face turned pale and he murmured: "I will go to explore the way for you." After saying that, he slapped his horse and whip, and left Juechen with more than a dozen personal guards.
Sun Houhou glanced at the backs of Kou Zhizhang and others with hatred, spat heavily on the ground and said, "Those who were raised by the Jiri! Sir, you guys should leave quickly."
Before he finished speaking, a huge chaos broke out in the team - the people who were walking in an orderly manner first saw a group of cavalry coming from behind and squeezed past, and then Sun Fugui's soldiers shouted and ordered to stop. , prepare for battle to meet the enemy... Among the thousands of people, there are both royal guards and soldiers from Luoyang Guards, as well as Dingzhuang civilians from the two places. People who do not belong to each other are mixed together. No one knows what is happening, but everyone Everyone knows one thing: not only has Hangu Pass been lost, but the thieves are also chasing us! The officers, soldiers and civilians speculated, feared, and talked in whispers. The rumors became more and more exaggerated. Finally, someone shouted, "The enemy is attacking," "The thieves are catching up," and "Run for your life." One after another, people were pushing, trampling, and crying, and the team was completely out of control.
