A scout from the Xuzhou Army galloped over and ran in front of Pei Dun, Yuan Fu and others. He jumped down and knelt on the ground with a look of panic on his face.
"Your Majesty, the flag in front is not Dong Ping's flag at all, but the flag of Liu Yu, the leader of the Qingzhou thieves."
As soon as these words came out, the illusions of Pei Dun and others were completely shattered.
When they saw the flag in front of them that was not Dong Ping's agreement to surrender, Xu Governor Shi Simao also explained that it might be the flag of other Qingzhou Army generals who had been roped in by Dong Ping to surrender.
"You can see clearly and don't get any misunderstandings."
Sima Ao asked anxiously. You must know that it was he who had been urging Pei Dun, the governor of Xuzhou, to march. If he really went on an expedition and fell into the enemy's trap, then as the mastermind of the governor of Xuzhou, he would be fully responsible for his death. .
After hearing this, the scout said with a sad face.
"You can't be wrong. I see those flags clearly. They are the flags of the Qingzhou rebel army. There is indeed Dong Ping's flag. However, our son wanted to come up to talk to him, but he was injured by random arrows. Where is this? He seems to be surrendering anyway."
After hearing this, Pei Dun's face turned pale and almost bloodless.
Sima Ao gritted his teeth and said in a vicious tone.
"This matter is of great importance. Go and investigate further."
When the scout leader heard this, although he was reluctant, he did not dare to neglect it.
But as soon as the scout leader stood up, he was stopped by Pei Dun.
"No need, it seems like this is the thief's trick."
After Pei Dun finished speaking, he closed his eyes, let out a long sigh, and barely suppressed his emotions. He almost shed tears out of fear.
"Your Majesty, the matter has come to an end, let's explore it again. If there is any misunderstanding, wouldn't it be a pity." Sima Ao still refused to give up, perfectly demonstrating the tenacity of not shedding tears even if he saw the coffin.
Pei Dun was furious when he heard this.
"Why are you still probing? If you two hadn't worked so hard to seduce me, would I have been able to reach this point?"
Seeing that Pei Dun was already furious, Sima Ao shrank his neck and did not dare to say any more.
When Yuan Fu next to him heard this, Pei Dun was obviously blaming himself in his words.
Yuan Fu shouted angrily.
"Thief, you dare to cheat"
After saying that, Yuan Fu opened his eyes wide, looked at Pei Dun, and said loudly.
"Dao Jian, give me five thousand elite soldiers and watch me defeat the thieves here."
After hearing what Yuan Fu said, Pei Dun rolled his eyes and didn't answer the question at all.
Now Pei Dun is very disgusted with this Uncle Shi who is used to boasting.
With Yuan Fu's decrepit appearance, if he went into battle, the biggest effect would be to use an old bone to break the Qingzhou soldiers' blades.
"How many thieves are there?" Pei Dun stretched his neck and looked ahead, and then asked the scout.
The scout leader quickly replied, "It is estimated that there are nearly ten thousand, all of them are elite soldiers with strict formations."
"I see that the thieves have not spread out yet. This area is all plains, and I am not afraid of the thieves ambush and intercepting them. I decided to retreat quickly."
Pei Dun said to the generals around him with a look of joy on his face.
"The great kindness that the envoy said is ridiculous. This thief still wants to ambush our army. Now that the envoy has seen through the mystery at a glance, if the army withdraws at this time, the thief's plan will definitely be defeated."
After Sima Ao heard that Pei Dun was about to withdraw his troops, he immediately changed his stance and agreed.
At this time, there was still a long distance between the Xuzhou Army and the Qingzhou Bandits, and on this plain terrain, the Qingzhou Army did not initiate an encirclement. If the Xuzhou Army retreated south, the Qingzhou Bandits would not be able to intercept it.
Seeing that Pei Dun, the governor of Xuzhou, and Sima Ao, the chief governor, had already planned to retreat, the rest of the generals also spoke one after another, saying that if they withdraw their troops immediately, the Qingzhou thieves would not be able to intercept the retreat of the Xuzhou army.
As they talked, everyone began to laugh at the stupidity of the Qingzhou thieves. They used a fake surrender to trick the Xuzhou army here, but they were unable to ambush and encircle them at all. It was a plan that ended in an anticlimax.
At this time, someone in the crowd suddenly said loudly.
"Your Majesty, you must not retreat now."
Hearing this, everyone looked at the man.
Pei Dun also followed the sound and found that the speaker was Man Heng, the riding governor of Xuzhou.
Pei Dun was not happy when he saw that Man Heng, a cavalry commander of no more than fifth grade, opposed his decision in front of everyone.
"Man Heng, tell me why you can't withdraw your troops?"
Before Man Heng could speak, Sima Ao, the commander next to him, rushed out and scolded him.
"Arrogant Man Heng, you are a little cavalry commander, what do you know about military affairs?"
Pei Dun glanced at Sima Ao, waved his hand in disgust, stopped Sima Ao's barking, and said.
"Man Heng, tell me."
Man Heng took a breath, walked to the front, and said.
"Your Majesty, our army has marched for nearly two hundred miles. The soldiers are already tired and sleepy. Now that they see the traitor army, they immediately turn back. I am afraid that rumors will spread among the army. The morale of the army must be shaken. I am afraid that when the time comes, all the troops will be defeated." If you scramble to take the lead, your retreat will turn into a rout."
The Xuzhou army is basically composed of sons of good families who were recruited by Pei Dun, the governor of Xuzhou. These people have little military experience and are all new recruits. In addition, the soldiers are resentful about being forcibly recruited into the army. It is indeed very likely that they will retreat. From chaos to rout.
Pei Dun thought for a while and realized that this was indeed a possibility, so he asked.
"Captain Man, what do you think should be done?"
Man Heng said with some anxiety.
"Your Majesty, there are only tens of thousands of thieves now, but our army has more than 30,000. As long as the morale of the army is stable and the forts are built immediately, the thieves will not be able to do anything to our army for a while. When our army slightly weakens the vigor of the thieves, the sergeants will recover. With some physical strength, if we retreat slowly by then, we will definitely be safe."
Pei Dun was greatly disappointed when he heard this. He thought Man Heng had some clever plan.
"Wouldn't building forts make the soldiers more tired? Wouldn't it be more difficult to wait until the thieves surrounded them before breaking out and retreating?"
Sima Ao retorted with contempt.
"Chang Shi, our army has three times the leeway. When the time comes, as long as the army's morale is stable and they want to retreat, how can a mere 10,000 bandit troops stop them? Just be afraid, these soldiers are all new recruits and have almost no battle experience. , if we retreat, it will be extremely easy to turn into a rout."
Man Heng still insisted on his opinion.
At this time, other generals continued to question Man Heng's suggestions.
"Captain Manchu, you said that the new recruits of our army are not familiar with war. If you build a camp and stay in a siege, wouldn't you be waiting for the thieves to be wiped out?"
As soon as these words came out, everyone immediately agreed.
Someone ridiculed Man Heng. Since Man Heng felt that the new soldiers could not fight, they should retreat immediately. There was no point in waiting for the thieves to attack.
Others immediately said that the sergeants under their command are not just for free. Everyone is looking forward to going through fire and water for Pei Shijun. As long as the commander gives the order, whether to fight or withdraw, the mission will definitely be completed. This is definitely not what Man Heng said. A weakling who can't fight.
Pei Dun listened to the crowd and felt excited, feeling slightly proud of himself.
He then thought that yes, the sergeants under his command were all from good families who brought sufficient food and supplies. They also had sophisticated weapons and armor equipment from the state arsenal, and had months of battle formation training. Although they were not elite soldiers, they should be It's not the trash that Man Heng said, even retreating on its own.
Of course, even if he regained confidence in his army, Pei Dun was unwilling to clash head-on with the Qingzhou bandit army, because Pei Dun himself was probably the most timid among the more than 30,000 people, and he was afraid of death.
Therefore, it is absolutely impossible to forcefully kill the Qingzhou thieves here without withdrawing the troops.
"A small fifth-grade cavalry governor dares to make lies. I want you to be loyal, so I won't argue with you."
At this time, Pei Dun felt that Man Heng was even disgusting, and when he came back to Xuzhou, he must drive him away.
"Your Majesty, our army is well-armed. As long as we stabilize the morale of the army and give the soldiers some training, they will be able to retreat unscathed. It would be really dangerous to retreat in such a hasty manner." Man Heng seemed not to have heard Pei Dun's words and continued. He argued loudly.
"You are such a bastard, don't say too much, otherwise I will question you on military law."
Pei Dun said angrily, and Man Heng quickly restrained his opinions and did not dare to say any more.
At the same time, the Qingzhou Army in the distance.
Liu Yu and Dong Pingping's trusted generals were waiting for all the soldiers in the army to be in place.
Because they had to avoid detection by the Xuzhou Army's scouts, the Qingzhou Army always put their weapons down on the ground when they were hiding.
"Old Pei Dun, do you want to camp there and hold on?"
Li Feng learned that after Pei Dun, the governor of Xuzhou, discovered the Qingzhou Army's conspiracy, the entire army stopped advancing.
"I don't think so. It must be the Xuzhou Army who came from afar. They are exhausted and are resting and preparing to escape."
Liu Xun immediately expressed a different view on this matter.
Later, the Xuzhou soldiers on the opposite side confirmed this statement.
A large number of Xuzhou soldiers began to retreat in order. On the vast land, more than 30,000 people began to retreat southward in the shape of a huge shuttle.
"These Xuzhou soldiers look to be in good order." A Qingzhou military general saw it from a distance.
Liu Yu had also seen that when the Xuzhou army retreated, the formations used were quite orderly, and the soldiers were also in an orderly manner.
There was no general rout of the entire army as Liu Yu had imagined before.
"The solemn formation cannot be defeated forcefully," Dong Ping said.
Indeed, for this kind of retreat, the troops that can still retreat in an orderly manner according to the deployment are often well-trained troops. If a frontal attack is launched, it will be difficult to achieve excellent results.
"Hmph, you have to give it a try to find out if you are really capable." Liu Yu still had doubts about the strength of these Xuzhou Army soldiers.
Immediately, under Liu Yu's order, the Qingzhou Army moved forward as a whole and launched a pursuit. Especially hundreds of cavalry, they quickly crossed the gap between the two armies and began to pursue and attack from both wings.
The Xuzhou cavalry, which was covering behind the Xuzhou Army Palace, was quickly defeated by the Qingzhou cavalry, which was more skilled in bow and horse and had a larger number.
When the defeated Xuzhou cavalry swept past the two wings of the Xuzhou infantry like the wind, the Xuzhou infantry, which had been able to withdraw in an orderly manner, finally wavered.
Seeing the pursuing Qingzhou cavalry getting closer and closer, many Xuzhou infantrymen became commotion. The officers among them had to stop their retreat alternately and command their soldiers to form an array to prepare for the impact of the Qingzhou cavalry.
However, when these Xuzhou infantry formed a military formation, the Qingzhou cavalry dispersed far away to harass and attack other Xuzhou infantry.
During this period, the heavily outnumbered Qingzhou Infantry was getting closer and closer.
However, the Xuzhou soldiers and friendly troops retreating ahead are getting further and further away.
Under such torture, the Xuzhou Infantry at the rear finally could no longer hold on.
The thousands of Xuzhou infantry troops who were at the rear suddenly dispersed in a rush. Everyone rushed to flee south, hoping to hide behind the friendly forces in front and let other friendly forces cover them behind.
As the Qingzhou infantry pursued closer and closer, the sound of trumpets and drums in the Qingzhou bandit army, like a mantra to urge people to die, was clearly transmitted to the rear of the Xuzhou army.
When the Xuzhou infantry, who were at the end, all gave up resistance, abandoned their formations, and began to flee south, hoping to save themselves by outrunning the friendly forces, the Qingzhou cavalry, which had been pursuing them, seemed to smell the smell of blood. Like hungry wolves, they immediately gathered together.
These hundreds of Qingzhou cavalry did not immediately rush to kill the fleeing Xuzhou soldiers. Instead, like shepherd dogs, they forced and drove away the rebel soldiers from behind, allowing them to attack the Xuzhou soldiers who were still arrayed and ready to defend.
The uneven generals in the Xuzhou Army immediately exposed their respective levels. Although a handful of generals restrained their men and maintained the array, most of the Xuzhou Army began to give up orderly defense and retreat. In the blink of an eye, It turned into a chain-like rout.
In this way, the Xuzhou Army ran far away without military discipline and order, and only a part of them stayed behind to retreat in an orderly manner. Facing these minorities, even the strongest soldiers, when the Qingzhou Infantry Army arrived from behind , and after a siege, they were all wiped out.
The Xuzhou Army, which had been trekking for several days, soon turned into a disorderly rout.
The pursuing Qingzhou Army was waiting for work and had sufficient physical strength. They were not eager to attack immediately. Instead, they followed behind at a close distance and occasionally used cavalry to attack the small group of Xuzhou infantry who resisted. The larger Xuzhou Army then It was left to the Qingzhou Infantry who arrived later.
After chasing for nearly ten miles, the Xuzhou Army, which was already exhausted, finally lost all its military spirit and morale.
A large number of Xuzhou soldiers began to abandon their heavy armor and long weapons, just to reduce any burden when escaping.
When Liu Yu led the Qingzhou Army in pursuit, he discovered more and more abandoned armor and heavy ordnance on the ground.
"It's indeed time. Send the order and pursue at full speed."
Liu Yu knew that after a long-distance pursuit, the Qingzhou Infantry still had some final reserves of physical strength, but the Xuzhou Army had completely lost control, and now it was time for the final general attack.
"My sons, all come to me and capture the prisoners."
Liu Yu took out his horse and called to his bodyguards and nearly a hundred young soldiers behind him.
Soon, nearly a thousand Qingzhou soldiers on horseback took the lead and launched a real attack on the Xuzhou army, which had been exhausted of physical strength and morale.
Most of the Xuzhou soldiers had no ability to resist at this time. Except for those who surrendered, the rest of the Xuzhou soldiers had collapsed on the ground and gasped for air. Only a handful of "Scuds" continued to run away. .
Just like the outcome of the Songshan pursuit battle in later generations, the Xuzhou Army, which had the numerical advantage, had completely become the meat on the Qingzhou Army's cutting board.
Pei Dun, the governor of Xuzhou, truly lived up to his consistent performance as a "high-ranking scum".
