The Fenzhou Flag Guard Army is not a normal force.
Liu Chengzong could see clearly from the mountain that their troops were scattered but their morale was high. Even the movements of holding weapons were wrong, but they were not weak.
This is very different from the government troops they encountered before, whether they were flag troops or border troops.
This world no longer allows ordinary people to be strong.
They are thieves.
The complex mountain road made Tang Qi, the messenger, run a little slower, and Wang Wenxiu, the rear guard commander, was also a little confused about the order.
The orders given to the outposts before and after the war were to hide in the mountains. After the Fenzhou Guard Banner Army engaged Feng Yu in the west, they would then attack in the middle of the enemy's army, try to cut the enemy in half, and then squeeze the enemy from the center to the end. military.
But now he received an order from Liu Chengzong to launch an attack on the official army before Feng Yu arrived. Then the rear outpost changed from a auxiliary attack to a main attack. The problem was that their position was very bad.
One or two hundred people had already passed through the front line of the official army. The attack would force his 500 people to face the enemy's main force and form a semi-encirclement.
However, he could not care so much at this time. Wang Wenxiu immediately turned his attention and glanced at the mountain where Liu Chengzong was. He led his troops out of the mountain where they were hiding, quickly descended from the mountain road, formed a line, and pushed towards the army.
More than a thousand banner troops who were marching suddenly found the enemy on their flanks and were extremely panicked. However, the Hundreds of Hundreds immediately straightened up the troops, and then five Hundreds of Hundreds met the enemy in a horizontal formation to cover the battlefield, and two Hundreds of Hundreds led the troops. Surrounding creates opportunities.
In the hereditary garrison, the combat effectiveness of the banner army may not be very high, but they are very obedient to hundreds of thousands of households.
After all, generations of people have obeyed several families, and obeying orders has become a matter of course.
Suddenly, three heavy cannons that once belonged to Li Bei's troops were launched from the mountain platform. One of the cannons spewed out fire and smoke, pushing the two-wheeled artillery cart violently back.
Cao Yao was on a platform slightly higher than the gun position, lighting his pipe with half a match rope, watching the iron bullet bombard the formation from top to bottom, smashing a head in the crowd, and said to himself: "This and The bombardment at Hequ was too different."
He turned his head while holding the pipe, and puffed out smoke as he spoke: "Quickly reload, aim the three cannons at the enemy for a while, wait until the middle post is sixty steps away from the enemy, and then attack again."
Cao Yao actually didn't have much artillery command experience.
He used to be in the Beijing Army Firearms Camp and learned a lot about the operation of firearms, but the specific artillery command actually came after fighting side by side with Liu Chengzong.
Before this, the firearms he was most familiar with were the three-eyed blunderbuss and the Folang machine cannon.
Artillery is particularly difficult to train, especially Liu Chengzong's artillery posts... unlike the frontier army, they have a fixed ration of gunpowder, and the artillery consumes too much ammunition.
I got these three Ye Gong divine cannons from Li Bei. The cannons are good and consume ammunition.
One cannon shot once is enough for two hundred muskets to hit the cannon sentry once.
Throughout the winter, the battalion's artillery posts conducted live-fire training, and the artillery was loaded into a simulation, so the gunners are now very familiar with loading, but in terms of specific experience in firing, this is the second time firing.
Until now, Cao Yao has not understood these three cannons.
But regarding the timing of commanding the artillery team to fire, Hequ's breakthrough of Li Bei's front, coupled with the current bombardment from a distance, gave Cao Yao some ideas of his own.
This cannonball fired quite accurately. Basically, it had nothing to do with the gunner's skill, it just had to be a good shot.
However, the impact of a single solid bomb on the ground formation was extremely limited, and neither the guard army nor Luo Rucai's beggar team in front of them would cause a rout.
And mobilizing a large number of light artillery, hiding in our infantry line on the front or flank of the enemy's strong position, concentrating the artillery at close range, and bombarding one side with a mixture of live ammunition and loose ammunition can achieve greater results.
Shooting and wounding frontline officers, messengers, and loud noises can temporarily disrupt the enemy's command. The smoke of artillery fire can further obscure our infantry assault, thereby breaking the formation.
Glancing at Liu Chengzong beside him who was concentrating on observing the battlefield, he didn't say anything.
I just made up my mind to suggest to Liu Chengzong in the next battle that the artillery posts carry twenty light cannons and mix with any sentry to the front line to see if they can repeat the effect of breaking Li Bei's army formation.
Soon, the two armies were about to engage in battle in the valley.
The formation adjustment of the Guard Army was completed. It was changed from a column facing west to two horizontal columns facing south and back to north. The front horizontal column was composed of five hundred households, which stretched out a long width.
The rear column was composed of three hundred households, and all the vehicles were assembled to form a square formation, with the central army, baggage, oxen and donkeys protected in the middle.
On the left and right wings in the middle of the two horizontal formations, a hundred households from each side slowly moved forward, and at the same time, there were also cavalry units from each hundred households beside them.
The cavalry on the left wing was leaving the battlefield to the east. It must have been that the army discovered Liu Chengzong's command position due to the shelling, and was waiting for an opportunity to attack up the mountain.
But this is in vain. Liu Chengzong's mountain top can only be reached from a long distance to the east.
The gunner at the front of the front line started shooting. The muffled sound of the gun echoed in the valley, and thin smoke floated in front of the formation.
Someone in Wang Wenxiu's front team was shot and knocked to the ground. The sergeant then opened a gap to avoid it, and then closed it again.
The soldier who was hit didn't wait long and struggled to get up from the battlefield. It seemed that there was something wrong with his left arm. He couldn't lift the spear anymore, so he pulled out his sword and trotted to follow the team. Fill the position at the back of the team.
The officers and soldiers had completed their formation changes, Liu Chengzong turned around and said: "Dancing the white flag, from east to west."
Behind him were several servants holding large flags of various colors standing on the ground. The servants holding white flags came out of the queue after hearing the words, holding the flag high, and ran from east to west on the edge of the mountain platform.
Cao Yao used two cannons to bombard the enemy formation. Amidst the roar of the cannons, at the mountain pass to the east, an outpost led by Yang Yao rode out of the mountain road on mules and horses, and galloped towards the left wing of the army.
Wang Wenxiu's rear sentry engaged the officers and soldiers, and the two formations collided with each other. Three-eyed blunderbuss and fire cannons fired puffs of gunpowder smoke in front of the two formations. From time to time, small-caliber field artillery blasted in front of the formation.
The army's right-wing cavalry tried to surround Wang Wenxiu's left wing, but was killed and wounded several horses by two gushing cannons.
The cavalry rushed ten steps forward. Wang Wenxiu's left team did not move. There were many cracks in the gaps between the spears and long swords. The three-eyed gunmen and fire gunmen came forward from the gaps and fired in turns.
The imperial cavalry abandoned more than ten corpses and retreated out of range.
The cavalry team on the left wing of the official army was racing eastward when they suddenly saw a large group of mules approaching from the front. They were panicked for a moment. The entire team was quickly forced to a stop in a short period of time, and then turned around and returned to the headquarters at a speed faster than running.
Halfway back, the officers and soldiers dispatched a cavalry from the Chinese army. After a few short shouts, the cavalry turned around again and rushed towards Yang Yao's mule team.
At this time, the distance between the two sides was only 200 steps. Many soldiers from Yang Yao's outpost had already switched to war horses while riding, and rushed forward to meet the official cavalry. The two cavalry came together, like two flames colliding. Together, sparks fly.
Some were chasing with spears and slashing with swords, while others were riding horses with bows and shooting recklessly.
Yang Yao's mule team bypassed the fighting area and continued to advance.
This scene greatly panicked the officers and soldiers. Although the seven hundred households in front and Wang Wenxiu fought back and forth, the formation still wavered. The Chinese army's vehicle formation dispersed, and the two hundred households formed an array to the east. .
The last people left behind in the Chinese army mounted vehicles on their oxen and donkeys, ready to drive westward at any time.
Liu Chengzong looked down at the battlefield. The cavalry team, which had failed to attack Wang Wenxiu on the right wing of the army, received new instructions and gave up the attack. Instead, it ran westward to explore the way for the Chinese army.
I don’t know what kind of inner struggle the officers of Fenzhou Guard made. Just when the cavalry was just exploring the road to the west, the Chinese army’s chariots and horses were untied again, the vehicles reorganized into a square formation, and the entire front began to shrink.
Liu Chengzong realized that his intention to drive the army westward was too obvious. Since the rear road was blocked, the army had no reason to believe that the road ahead was safe.
It was time to let Yang Yao attack later.
But it didn't matter. Feng Yu led his headquarters and Cao Yao's two hundred gunmen, slowly approaching from west to east.
The government and army vehicle formations gathered for the second time, and the distance in the middle spread out a little, making the vehicle formation larger, and the guard formation slowly shrank toward the center.
Some people wanted to escape. Those from the east ran to the west, and those from the west ran to the east. Everywhere they looked, the enemies were slowly pressing on them. In the end, they could only withdraw into the car formation one by one.
This was exactly what Liu Chengzong wanted. He didn't want these people to escape. He had no intention of defeating the whole plan from the time it was formulated.
He wants to annihilate them all, surrender or die.
But obviously, this group of officers and soldiers did not want to surrender, at least for the time being.
The five troops outside were still fighting, so the flag troops in the vehicle formation took off their picks and shovels and dug soil to fill the gaps in the vehicle formation.
Liu Chengzong frowned and handed the binoculars to Cao Yao: "Are you planning to defend to death?"
Wang Wenxiu below was still in a stalemate with the enemy. Yang Yao's cavalry had defeated the official cavalry, captured dozens of cavalry, took off their armor and weapons, and left more than ten people to guard them, and then headed towards the official and army chariot formation again.
His mule team dismounted more than a hundred steps away from the chariot formation, formed an infantry formation, approached with bows, and fired two rounds of arrow rain, but the effect was not great, and one person was injured by a cannonball.
Instead, he retreated and divided his troops to outflank the front line of the officers and soldiers.
This greatly reduced the pressure on Wang Wenxiu's troops, and he then personally led his troops in front of the formation to coordinate Yang Yao's attack, easily defeating the leftmost one of the five official troops. The guard army that was under attack began to collapse after several people escaped from the formation and fled.
Crashing, once started, is hard to stop.
In a very short period of time, the five formations of the Fenzhou Guards in Liu Chengzong's eyes were beaten from left to right by Yang Yao and Wang Wenxiu.
On the far left, the military formation was overwhelmed by Wang Wenxiu's personal assault. Immediately, Yang Yao raised his sword and fought on foot. Following the footsteps of the defeated army, he crossed the second formation and went straight into the belly of the third formation, beheading hundreds of households. The defeated army surrounded the fourth formation. , the fifth formation collided with the face of Feng Zhen, who was like an iron wall.
What greeted them was three intense volleys of gunfire, and large clouds of gunpowder smoke rose in front of the formation.
He heard Cao Yao clapping: "My musketeers!"
There is an army of guns and cannons in front of you, and there is a ferocious god behind you.
The five flag troops were in a dilemma. Just as they were about to retreat north into the chariot formation, Yang Yao's cavalry galloped between the chariot formation and the defeated army, leaving behind a row of trembling arrows on the chariot formation. .
Like the ebb and flow of the tide, the disorganized banner troops laid down their weapons in large numbers and became their prisoners.
When Zhang Zhan saw the front line surrendering in the car formation, he jumped up in anger and cursed his mother.
He swore loudly that when he returned to Fenzhou Guards, he would kill all the family members of this group of people. He soon realized that this was not the time to say this, and turned to encourage his subordinates: "There are still 700 people from Chen Qianhu on the North Road. The enemy is The army is exhausted, but we can definitely turn defeat into victory!"
The three hundred households in the car formation swallowed their anger and responded in unison, calling on the flag army to dig trenches in the car formation and make a desperate defense.
But as if he heard his shout, the white flag on the mountain waved again, this time from west to east, and then from east to west again, pausing for a moment and doing it again.
During the battle, Yang Yao had a brief conversation with Wang Wenxiu and handed over the task of gathering the prisoners to Pao Ze.
He left as quickly as he came, and in a blink of an eye he led his troops away from the battlefield, once again mounted his little mule and embarked on the journey eastwards.
For a moment, the battlefield was extremely quiet, and the sound of gunfire and artillery could no longer be heard. Only two troops, Wang Wenxiu and Feng Yu, sent out dozens of people to suppress the prisoners who lost their armor, and then slowly surrounded the more than 300 officers and soldiers in the car formation within the firing range. outside.
"Go and tell the baggage sentry to ask the medical craftsman from the other side of the mountain to come over. Then send someone to Yatou Mountain, send some auxiliary soldiers with picks and shovels, and then ask how the ladder is doing."
Half of the officers and soldiers surrendered, which made Liu Chengzong feel much more relaxed. He sighed and looked to the north. Now it was time to see if Zhong Hu's central sentry could block the more than 700 officers and soldiers.
Liu Chengzong had an answer to this question in his heart. Although the number of officers and soldiers was slightly larger, their mentality was not as good as Zhong Hu's.
The two mountain roads were not far apart, but one was wider and the other was narrower. They could hear the sounds of fighting on this side.
Zhong Hu knew why they were fighting, but the partial division of the army did not know. As long as Zhong Hu made a slight resistance, the army would find a way to withdraw when they saw that they could not break through in a short time.
In the event of a sudden attack, it is safest to join the large army.
Of course, in the same way, if there is a fight over there, you can hear it here.
There were two troops in the valley, one surrounding and the other defending. A moment later, there were ethereal shouts from a distance, mixed with the sound of gunfire and artillery firing.
This was obviously bad news for the officers and soldiers in the vehicle formation, because Chen Qianhu's troops did not carry artillery.
The prisoners who were about to move also settled down amidst the thunderous sound of cannons in the distance.
There is no way back to heaven.
They can't see the progress of the war, but they can make a rough guess in their minds based on the distance of the sound.
The sound of the fighting was originally far away in the west. After a while, it gradually stopped and moved to a closer position in the north.
Chen Qianhu failed to break through the enemy's obstruction and was pursued during the retreat, resulting in a second battle.
After a while, the battle was farther away again, but this time it was to the east, and it didn't last long before it stopped.
Liu Chengzong looked at the mountain and smiled. It seemed that Yang Yao, like himself, had learned something in this battle.
Obviously the outpost did not rush too far to the west, but just stayed at the mountain pass to wait for work, allowing the officers and soldiers who were fighting and retreating to run over and then back. Then they found that the road here was also blocked.
Not long after, several horsemen came running from the far side of the valley. Someone shouted from the bottom of the mountain: "General, thousands of households of the officers and soldiers on the North Road were shot to death by Commander Yang, and the rest have surrendered!"
Liu Chengzong nodded to indicate that he understood, and ordered Yang Yao to bring the prisoners over.
However, before Yang Yao came over, the chariot formation broke into internal strife. After a while, a man from a hundred households took off his armor and disarmed his weapons, took the head of the commanding officer of the Fenzhou Guard Zuo Command out of the formation, and surrendered on behalf of the three hundred banner troops.
Liu Chengzong laughed on the mountain, then stopped his smile and shook his head slightly at Cao Yao: "They are not thin, but when I see them not thin, I will think of all the deserted villages."
