"General Fan, General Yu is pressed in front by the bandit army. Life or death is uncertain. Even the general manager is working hard to move forward!"
In the chaos, Fan Hu, who led his army back, never thought that the first person to stop him would be Zhang Qingte, who belonged to the same party. Moreover, this man spoke righteously and seemed to be really angry and confused. "There are only a few hundred thieves, why do we have to turn back the entire army?"
Fan Hu was furious. If the opponent was not a general, and had already fought hard today, but went out of his way to fight again, he almost wanted to chop the opponent with a knife.
"Captain Zhang." Fan Hu wiped the rain off his face and immediately suppressed his anger to explain. "Everyone in our army, except for the 4,000 soldiers from my headquarters who serve as soldiers for my second son, almost all of us are here. Now that we have been cut off and left alone, our whole army will be wiped out if we watch the rebel army making dumplings." ?!”
In the end, he still couldn't suppress his anger.
"General Fan, are you kidding me?" Zhang Qingte was still not afraid, but pointed back at him with sharp words. "The west side is full of crop fields. They are empty. You can leave as you please... That's not to mention. There are only a few hundred thieves. There are several miles of empty space on the left and right of the official road in front of you. Even if he wants to retreat back the same way, how can he Stop it?"
Fan Hu was stunned for a moment.
This is not to say that he was speechless by the other party, but that the other party was so stupid that he didn't know where to refute it, or even whether he should refute or explain it.
However, after realizing that the opponent was really not good enough, Fan Hu lost his temper and could only explain quickly:
"Captain Zhang... you don't know the information. It is said that the water in the west may be relatively deep, almost a swamp..."
"Can we walk in the swamp?" Zhang Qingte was still puzzled.
"What the hell!" Just when Fan Hu couldn't breathe, a general nearby rushed to the side and shouted angrily on the spot. It was Lieutenant General Wang who took charge of the army in Zhang Changgong's place. "One person can walk, but how can the army walk? Once the army leaves, it will definitely not be able to form a line. Then it will be the prey of the thieves who know the terrain! Do you think you led a few people to rob houses when you were a thief?"
Zhang Qingte was slightly startled and at a loss.
"The same goes for the rear." Vice General Wang was obviously angry and just continued to scold. "Although there are hundreds of thieves in the army, as long as we stand in the middle of the official road, we can escape, but the army will inevitably be delayed if it turns back... If there are tens of thousands of people, if the delay is not smooth, we will actually lose our lives to the pursuers behind us! What you said is just as stupid as when someone asked why they couldn’t abandon Yuncheng and march directly! An army is an army! People are people! An army retreating and marching is not the same thing as a person coming and going! "
Zhang Qingte seemed to be a little awakened, but he was still a little confused.
At this time, Fan Hu finally regained his breath and gave a reason that Zhang Qingte could understand: "Colonel Zhang, I won't say any of this, but just one thing. If this bandit army cannot be eradicated quickly, The rebel army will inevitably follow up continuously, and both the rear passage and the road in the swamp to the west will be completely blocked..."
Zhang Qingte finally nodded, but when he turned his head, he was stunned again.
Fan Hu followed the opponent's gaze and saw with surprise that in the crop fields to the west, a small but not small army was marching in parallel from south to north, with clear flags, fast movements, and no cover.
"you go!"
Fan Hu's face turned pale when he saw this, and without hesitation, he issued an order almost similar to Zhang Xuguo's. "Zhang Qingte, take your people from the west, find out how deep and shallow the water is, where you can walk and where you can't, and try your best to find a way! It's best to find a way for the rebels to support you, and stop them from advancing to support! "
Zhang Qingte finally stopped hesitating and immediately called his troops to head west and rush into the crop field.
At the same time, Fan Hu did not hesitate and continued to urge the surrounding reinforcements to move north... For a time, the Qilu Army, which was blocked by the Deposed Dragon Army, was roughly divided into two parts, the front army moved forward, the rear army moved backward, and then Inadvertently, a small group of troops were dispatched to explore the area to the west of the battlefield that was blocked by waist-deep crops.
It can be said that after Zhang Xingluo's successful raid, the officers and soldiers responded appropriately and there were no mistakes or omissions.
In fact, it was Xu Shiying who made the mistake.
Zhang Xing suddenly inserted himself into the back of the army. Because the number was too small, there was no immediate overall response. Only senior officers and commanders from both sides responded.
Among them, Xu Shiying saw Zhang Xing's success and couldn't wait to order the entire army to dispatch, leave the fortifications, and use an offensive posture to suppress the officers and soldiers. However, Zhang Xuguo made a prompt decision and ordered the main force of his headquarters to go forward to meet the enemy before most of the middle-level and grassroots soldiers realized that their retreat was cut off, and even joined the battle himself.
Moreover, the battles in the previous half afternoon have proven many times that the Deposed Dragon Army, which had broken away from the fortifications, was no match for the Qilu Army.
Therefore, in the biggest and most intense confrontation since the beginning of the war, the Dragon Army was completely at a disadvantage, and because at this point in the war, both sides were so exhausted that they lost very quickly and suffered extremely heavy losses. In the chaotic battle, the troops who were the first to engage in the battle in the middle did not wait for Xu Shiying's retreat order, and then retreated in embarrassment... I can't say whether it was a good thing or a bad thing. In the previous half-day battle, these soldiers had learned to retreat when the battle was lost. fortifications.
Even the officers and soldiers would instinctively stop in front of the fortifications.
"Butler! Butler!"
During the chaotic battle, Yu Baimei looked at the front where his troops were rushing forward like a tide, while the deposed dragon army could only leave countless corpses and turn back in embarrassment. Not only was he unhappy, but he became more serious and serious. After observing the battlefield, he immediately noticed a better fighter opportunity, and then simply abandoned his horse and took to the air. After a few leaps, he came to Zhang Xuguo and shouted with all his strength. "The rebel army was defeated too quickly in the middle, but the two wings were not affected and were still moving forward to outflank... Our soldiers stopped in front of the fortifications. Why not lead them to attack both sides along the fortifications, and in turn encircle the two wings. How about completely crippling the enemy in front of you?!"
"Okay!" Zhang Xuguo just took one look and immediately realized that what Yu Baimei said was true, and immediately agreed. "You take people to the east to fight Shang Huaizhi, and I'll go to the west to fight that man named Niu!"
After saying that, he turned the horse's head and led his troops to turn around.
Yu Baimei ignored him and pulled off his horse a cavalryman who was supposed to be Zhang Xuguo's personal guard, and headed eastward, calling his own soldiers along the way to follow him.
"Quick! Wave the flag!"
Xu Shiying failed to attack and was in a state of embarrassment. At this time, standing on the earthen base, he saw that the officers and soldiers counterattacked extremely quickly, and then split up and rushed to the two wings. He was also shocked and immediately followed the order. "Let Monk Niuda come back! Come back quickly!"
On the earthen base, the yellow flag representing the withdrawal was swaying vigorously, and the corresponding gong sound also sounded in the formation, which immediately attracted the attention of the attacking generals on both wings.
Among them, Niuda was in the west, along the water, and Shang Huaizhi was in the east, along the Lishan Mountain. From the beginning, they were responsible for outflanking and biting during the counterattack. When they heard and saw the withdrawal signal, they naturally became familiar with the route and quickly turned back.
But unfortunately, they were defeated too quickly this time, and Zhang Xuguo and Yu Baimei each tried their best to mobilize the troops, but they seemed to be a little too late.
Zhang Xuguo and Yu Baimei personally led the team, cutting to the left and right sides at all costs, just like two axes. Suddenly they gave up attacking the shield in the middle, and then attacked the two hands that were stretched out recklessly. Chop each one into pieces. Before they could react, the two generals were isolated from the fortifications. In the central fortification area, the Dragon Army was still in the ebb stage of retreat and could not be commanded at all. Xu Shiying could only watch this scene in stunned silence.
To be precise, two acts.
Niu Da and Shang Huaizhi were both heartbroken, but they could only force the troops to withdraw. But how could Zhang Xuguo and Yu Baimei, who had long been aware of the overall danger, let them go back? The government and army brigade had already squeezed in on both sides, trying to completely surround the two groups with more than a thousand men each. Moreover, the effect is remarkable.
Here on the west side, following Niuda's urging, the tribesmen struggled to go back and tried to return. However, the army turned around, and the front was blocked and the flanks were besieged. Naturally, the queue deformed. Many sergeants were caught off guard and stepped directly into the connected fortifications. In the muddy water.
In the panic, Niu Da, who had already fallen into panic, trembled, then without hesitation, waved the spear in his hand and shouted: "Don't accept the challenge, go directly to the swamp to the west! No more armor! Use the weapon as a crutch and go west quickly Let’s run away! They don’t dare to chase, and they can’t catch up!”
Of course, Niuda had a horse, but he didn't need to take off his armor and just stepped onto it, setting an example of how to escape.
The deposed dragon soldiers around him who were his subordinates suddenly woke up, turned around and walked towards the swamp.
The water used to connect the fortifications was not deep, and there was no mud underneath. Many soldiers were so panicked that they didn't even take off their armor, but they were able to march hard in it... Zhang Xuguo's headquarters, who followed closely behind, saw the hunting heart and couldn't help it. Live and chase into it.
When Zhang Xuguo saw this scene, he unexpectedly did not stop him, but looked forward to it.
But soon, the expression of the military commander changed from expectation to disappointment, and even panic. The water was not deep, and it could not be called muddy. However, the area of water on the west side of the battlefield was far greater than imagined, and it collapsed into There were close to a thousand people in Mizuze's deposed dragon army, and they were all obviously still trudging through the water. A few officers on horseback had even walked hundreds of steps, and the splash under the horses' hooves was still very obvious.
Soon, the excited chasers quickly lost their organization and mobility, and turned into a difficult trek, and then retreated on their own.
Zhang Xuguo's eyelids jumped in the rain. He immediately asked his troops to shout and formally ordered the troops to turn back. He no longer looked at the defeated army under the banner of "ox", because he had verified what he was worried about. That's not all. If from the fortifications to the point where the rebels suddenly appear to cut off the retreat, the entire west side of the battlefield is covered with such a deep swamp area, then the trouble will be even greater!
However, judging from the arrangement of the bandit army and the details of Sima Zheng's previous intelligence description, it is likely that this is how they arranged it.
In other words, most of the main force of the Qilu army should have been trapped in a large pocket several miles long and several miles wide by the fortifications and the bandits' surrounding troops.
This pocket is too big, so most of the grassroots soldiers have not felt it yet.
But it doesn't matter, as the blockade on both ends becomes tighter, as the sky gets darker, and as they get more and more tired, the soldiers who have only eaten breakfast will gradually panic, and then they will attack the trap set by the rebels, that is, the west Fleeing in the swamp... if only one-third of the people can escape, our army will lose its organizational ability, and the bandit army will take advantage of the situation to launch a general attack.
When the time comes, let alone the person in this pocket, he will not be able to escape even if he falls into the swamp.
In other words, if you really get to that point, what if you run away? After this defeat, what details can delay the death of this Qilu disciple army that he created?
On this side, Zhang Xuguo was frightened, but on the other side, his beloved Yu Baimei achieved the greatest military exploits and gains so far in this battle.
The leader of the deposed dragon army on the other side was Shang Huaizhi. He came out along Mount Li and was also cut off and divided. In addition, his troops were already weaker than Niuda. In fact, allowing him to lead his troops to attack by relying on Lishan was the result of his deliberate request for admitting that his troops were weak, but at this time it became the most fatal point - - Niuda's troops could escape into the swamp, but it was difficult for his Shang Huaizhi troops to go up the mountain.
How can the troops climb up the mountain that just collapsed and almost caused a mudslide?
Of course, one person can also climb up. With the eight extraordinary meridians and the six meridians, Shang Huaizhi can climb up the mountain by himself. But he was reluctant to give up. He was afraid that the headquarters would collapse immediately after going up the mountain, and he would lose his biggest capital.
So, he launched a literal desperate resistance, and then was discovered by Yu Baimei.
By this point in the battle, Yu Baimei had already been beaten to death. How could he let go of such an opportunity? He first led his troops to a distance of more than a hundred steps under the opponent's flag, and then, regardless of the danger, he used his Condensation Pill cultivation, leaped in the air, held a spear, and advanced straight forward, but he did not advance too much, but only advanced two or three times. In ten steps, he would be killed, and it would be convenient for the bodyguards and subordinates to rush in from behind to respond.
Repeatedly, more than ten people were killed, and the deposed dragon army was frightened, and they were directly forced to stand in front of Shang Huaizhi, who had no way to retreat.
Shang Huaizhi had no choice but to bite the bullet and fight. However, from his cultivation level to the battle situation to his morale, he was not as good as his opponent. How could he win? The two horses were approaching, and Yu Baimei from the opposite side was stabbing him with a spear. Shang Huaizhi just dodged, but when he got up, he was hit in the ribs by the backhand of the spear, causing him to lose his weapon in pain.
Yu Baimei was so good at killing that he didn't want to capture him alive at all. He filled up his true energy again and stabbed the opponent with his spear, directly piercing the hook of the armor on the opponent's waist and going deep into his belly. Then he stirred up Shang Huaizhi's body with all his strength. His internal organs were rolled into pieces and then thrown off the horse.
Before the rebellion, Shang Huaizhi was the captain of Jiyin County. After the rebellion, due to a mistake in seizing Jiyin County, he was still given to the big leader. After his death, his troops were shocked at first, but they worked hard on their own, but soon, this When the momentum passes, they will be completely at a loss and collapse in panic. They may abandon their weapons and surrender, or turn around and go up the mountain.
However, those who abandoned their weapons were mostly killed by the officers and soldiers with swords. Those who tried to go up the mountain slipped down in nine out of ten and were easily executed by the officers and soldiers at the foot of the mountain like slaughtering cattle and sheep.
This successful siege did not stop until Zhang Xuguo's new military order was delivered.
Not surprisingly, the new military order asked Yu Baimei to command the army and take advantage of the opportunity when the two wings of the Dragon Army were divided, driven out and eliminated to immediately launch a new round of assault on the two wings of the forward fortification area in an attempt to break through.
But this time, the result was no different from before, and precisely because of this, it was a bit surprising.
Xu Shiying's face turned blue, and he only held his chin to watch nervously. When he saw from a distance that the officers and soldiers were once again at a disadvantage in the two-wing fortification area, he suddenly remembered something, and hurriedly turned around and ordered: "Immediately ask the rear generals to transfer, Press forward the 4,000 men who retreated before Duke Li, and strengthen the central army. You can go there in person!"
The leader of the personal guards on one side immediately saluted and went to execute it.
But soon, Xu Shiying continued to give instructions as if it was a matter of course: "If someone or something delays the reply at the general station, you can go directly to the southeast corner of the military camp behind you to find Huang Junhan. Just say it’s my military order and King Xiongtian’s, and then ask him to take people to the military stronghold to find the four thousand soldiers, and try to bring as many people as possible!”
The guard leader was stunned for a moment, but nodded quickly and left in a hurry.
In the rain, Zhang Xuguo, who had also been observing the battle carefully, was in a daze. It was not until Zheng Biao reported back in embarrassment and informed him that the area behind him was indeed vast that the water was vast. Then he came to his senses and turned back to look to the north... To be honest, the battle situation over there is not clear at the moment. All we can see is the chaos and congestion of returning troops. It is conceivable that Fan Hu has not been able to drive away the bandit troops that have crossed through until now.
But Zhang Xuguo doesn't blame Fan Hu.
Because the rebel army must have sent its most elite troops to intersect, and Fan Hu's support troops turned around in a hurry after walking halfway. In addition, with mountains on one side and swamps on the other, the troops must have been in chaos because of this turnaround.
It was hard to say whether they could organize an attack before the opponent's second wave of reinforcements arrived. Unlike here, they were always in the rhythm of fighting.
At this thought, Zhang Xuguo, whose beard was full of water, looked at the fortification area ahead. Compared with what was behind him, it was hard for him to accept that after losing two elite members of the Horns, the Deposed Dragon Army could still withstand the attack. An assault by one's own troops?
This is not right!
The Deposed Dragon Army was so strong, why were they cut off, dispersed, and surrounded and annihilated before?
There are numerous fortifications, and the troops correspond to the fortifications... Reinforcements are coming up so soon?
"General Manager! My General Yu, please give me your instructions. Do you want to go back and reorganize?" A war horse that was covered in mud and blood even in the rain came up. The knight was panting like the horse and had no time to salute. Fen Li came to ask.
To be fair, General Manager Zhang was really shaken at this moment, but soon, as a dense rain fell, the old man from Guanxi suddenly shook his head, and then issued a military order: "Tell General Yu to continue moving forward and maintain suppression. , I immediately followed him, broke through from the middle, and asked him to coordinate the frontline troops, and try to seize one section while also sending troops to the center... The leader of the rebel army named Xu is more cunning than Li Shu. He must be defeated in the front. While the general was hacked to death, the troops in the center were moved along the trench to the two wings!"
The knight was stunned for a moment and quickly turned around.
Unexpectedly, as soon as he turned around, the war horse staggered and slipped to the ground. The knight was also pinned down, and the man and horse combined their forces to let out a strange and shrill wail.
Obviously, the accumulation of marching, rain, fighting, mud, and possibly countless long-distance raids in the previous year could no longer hide the fatigue of the officers and soldiers.
"Go! Tell General Yu what you just said! The rest of you, follow me and do it again!"
Zhang Xuguo, who was obviously a master of pill condensation, did not even waste a moment to move the horse away. Instead, he immediately ordered his own bodyguard to go forward to deliver the order, and then drove the horse forward himself.
The members of his unit, from the captain to the team general, to the team leader, to the chief, were activated at every level. The organizational structure of the army and Zhang Xuguo's prestige played a role. Thousands of people cheered up again and headed south to depose. Longjun fortified area launched an attack.
Xu Dalang watched this scene from a distance, his heart pounding, and he didn't even dare to look back to see if reinforcements were coming from behind.
Just as Xu Dalang accepted the biggest test since the war began, Zhang Xing also encountered an unprecedented wave of attacks from the government and soldiers, but he seemed a little numb.
Of course, it could be that he was calm and composed, or he could be scared out of his wits.
In any case, if you look carefully, you can see that Zhang Xing is actually sitting firmly on the horse, holding the Jinglong Sword, releasing his true energy, and maintaining this obviously formed true energy formation.
So far, no one has come to him.
So far, the four attacks by the three small and one large soldiers, including an obvious flanking attack, have all ended in vain due to the strangulation of the surrounding guards and gang elites.
Jiawugen is further north, but it is also the closest place. He has already realized that this should be the kind of military formation that has been mentioned countless times in history books, novels, and poems. The so-called true energy formation of practitioners combined with capable soldiers Build a powerful military formation!
A real military formation!
Theoretically, of course, one can rely on multiple attacks to deplete the true energy reserves of the Ningdan or above masters who are in charge of the formation, and then they can attack calmly... This is the case in many battles.
But if you want to break it in a short period of time, what you need is a master of condensation to personally lead the team and charge into the formation.
As soon as he thought of this, Jia Wugen immediately called his personal guards: "Go to General Fan's banner across the way and tell him that the thieves are from a serious Zhenqi army. There should be masters of Ningdan or above who are stationed here. It is very likely that Zhang San, the Dragon Slayer, is here in person; then Tell him again that General Fan 2 and Miss Fan 4 already know about the situation here and are anxiously waiting for his orders... If there is any order, they can speak quickly before the rebel reinforcements have gathered."
After receiving the order, the personal guards set off immediately, bypassing the red flag with the word "deposed" in front of them, preparing to see Fan Hu - just as Zhang Qingte said, there were only a few hundred people in Zhanghang, although they were in power, but they were far away. It is far from enough to cover the road and complete the comprehensive coverage.
In the rain, Jia Wugen took advantage of the height advantage to watch his personal guards pass by, and then looked at the entire battlefield from a distance. His eyes were wandering, as if he was looking for something, but he seemed to have known for a long time that he was unlikely to find it. .
Therefore, after only looking at it for a moment, he withdrew his gaze and looked to the west side of the battlefield - there, a Jia-character flag similar to the flag above his head caught his attention. Behind the flag were more than a thousand tribesmen. .
The second wave of reinforcements that the thieves had circled behind arrived, and they had already begun a fierce battle with their own side in an attempt to join the large formation in the middle of the official road.
"Do you want to send the four thousand defeated troops who were withdrawn earlier?" On the general platform in front of the deposed dragon army's stronghold, Wei Xuanding, who was already soaked, glanced at Dan Tonghai who had already set off from the Shuize Trail, and then tried his best to ask the person coming. "Can they still fight? How many people were lost at the front? How is the leader Niu and the monk?"
The messenger shook his head and kept saying: "I don't even know. In short, this is a military order from my leader. Please send troops from the rear quickly!"
"Is this included in the original plan?" Wei Xuanding was sweating profusely, and then looked at the people around him.
The people around him, including Li Shu, were all silent.
The messenger no longer hesitated, just handed over his hand, and then left in a hurry, heading straight to the rear military camp.
At the same time, the shouting of killing suddenly intensified again in front, making everyone fall into surprise and uneasiness.
After a while, Xu Shiying looked at the "Zhang" banner that had quickly advanced four simple fortifications in a short period of time, and directly clenched the handle of the knife, because he had already seen the white-bearded general under the banner who dismounted and attacked. Both sides Only three layers of simple fortifications remained.
Of course, the other party also saw him.
"Whether it's a dragon or a snake, it depends on this time."
A thought came to mind, and Xu Shiying, who had wanted to yell or scream, calmed down inexplicably, and simply sat directly on the earthen base, but his upper body was straight - come on!
PS: Good night everyone.
(End of chapter)
