When the army was about to approach Xujiazhuang, a soldier ran back from the front on horseback.
"Sir, what's wrong, we found a tiger-shaped flag army in front of us, with three to four thousand people."
The soldiers who brought back the news were sentry riders sent out to explore the road.
Li Kaiyang said with an ugly face: "Sir, it seems that the Tiger Flag is not only the troop outside Xinping Fort, there is also a troop hidden in Lingqiu County."
"Explore again!" Zhang Huai ordered the sentry who came back to report the news.
The cavalryman serving as a sentinel waved his horse's head, turned around, and continued to go to the front to inquire about the news.
"Sir, since the Tiger Character Banner has been prepared for a long time, it is better to retreat temporarily to avoid its sharp edge. After the soldiers and horses from the main barracks catch up, we can wipe out the Tiger Character Banner rebels in Lingqiu County in one fell swoop." Li Kaiyang suggested.
As the deputy commander-in-chief of Datong Town, he knew everything about the Tiger-Character Banner soldiers' massive defeat of the Beibei army outside Xinping Fort, and he knew that the Tiger-Character Banner soldiers were not easy to mess with.
There is still a tiger-character flag in Lingqiu County. He no longer has confidence in destroying the tiger-character flag. Especially this time, there are less than a thousand officers and soldiers coming to Lingqiu, which is much worse than the tiger. The army of Beibei invaders defeated by Ziqi soldiers had thousands less cavalry.
Zhang Huai frowned and said: "Impossible, Liu Heng is just a businessman, and an army of several thousand people requires a lot of money just for the food and grass they consume every day. How could he be willing to spend so much money."
"Sir, the sentinels have determined that there are soldiers and horses with the tiger flag in front of them." Li Kaiyang reminded.
At this time, he hoped that Zhang Huai would agree to withdraw his troops.
He doesn't need to take much responsibility for the failure of the bandit suppression. After all, the governor and the commander-in-chief are responsible for it. He, the deputy commander-in-chief, will not be too guilty. In addition, he also has an uncle who is an official outside and has close ties with the Donglin Party. If we make good friends, the worst possible thing is to change places and continue to be the deputy commander-in-chief.
Zhang Huai shook his head and said: "No, the people who suspected the Tiger-Character Flag were here to spread suspicion. The people in front may not be the soldiers and horses of the Tiger-Character Flag. Don't forget, the Tiger-Character Flag has an iron yard in Dongshan, let alone There’s a shortage of miners.”
"Sir, what you mean is that the soldiers and horses in front are not the soldiers of the Tiger Flag, but the miners from Dongshan who were brought in to make up for the numbers?" Li Kaiyang said hesitantly.
Zhang Huai looked forward and said: "The people in the Tiger Character Banner should have known that the army came to Lingqiu to suppress the rebellion, so it is normal to get some miners to top up the numbers. I will never believe that the Tiger Character Banner still has soldiers and horses hidden in Lingqiu."
"Could it be that the soldiers and horses of the Tiger Flag outside Xinping Fort returned to Lingqiu?" Li Kaiyang said worriedly.
Zhang Huai shook his head and said: "Impossible, there are people watching over at Xinping Fort. If the soldiers and horses over there are really back to Lingqiu, it is impossible for me not to know about it. Someone has sent the news a long time ago."
"How about we stop the army first and wait for news from the sentries?" Li Kaiyang was still worried and suggested that the army listen.
Zhang Huai waved his hand and said: "No need, let the army continue to advance. If the real Dongshan miners are blocking the front, as long as the army approaches, they can be defeated in a single confrontation."
Li Kaiyang hesitated for a moment, but seeing Zhang Huai's firm tone, he had to give up the idea of continuing to persuade.
The officers and soldiers are getting closer and closer to the Tiger Flag army in front.
There were officers and soldiers in the middle who brought back the information and confirmed once again that there were three to four thousand soldiers and horses with the tiger flag in front.
However, Zhang Huai did not believe that the soldiers and horses in front were soldiers of the Tiger Character Banner. He only believed that they were miners brought by the Tiger Character Banner from the Dongshan Mine to fill up the numbers.
Of course, this is also related to the fact that he has no escape route.
There were bandits in Lingqiu, and as the commander-in-chief of Datong Town, he could not escape his responsibility. If he could not successfully quell the rebellion this time and make meritorious service, he would not only lose his position as commander-in-chief, but he might also be imprisoned.
"Sir, we are about to encounter the soldiers and horses of the Tiger Flag. It is still too late to retreat." Li Kaiyang whispered, trying not to be heard by others.
Zhang Huai glanced at him and said: "If you dare to deceive the army again, I will have you captured now."
Li Kaiyang shut his mouth tightly.
At this time, there was no need for the sentinels to go to the front to inquire about the situation. They could see the soldiers and horses lined up on and on both sides of the official road.
"The people in the tiger-character flag are indeed traitors, and they even have a banner." Zhang Huai looked at the tiger-character flag banner on the breakthrough ahead with a cold look on his face.
"It seems that Liu Heng has already had his objections." Li Kaiyang echoed from the side.
Tiger Flag is just a business name and is not qualified to use the banner at all. Only important ceremonies of the army and the court are eligible to use the banner.
Zhang Huai turned his head and shouted to the two generals a little further away: "Chen Qianhu, Wang Qianhu, you two lead the cavalry to charge into the battle. When the soldiers and horses with the Tiger Flag are defeated, go and give the general the big banner." Capture the people below."
Although he couldn't see clearly from a distance, he knew that the person who could stand under the banner must be an important figure in the Tiger Flag.
"The general will take your orders." Two thousand households agreed.
Soon, a cavalry team consisting of several hundred cavalry rushed towards the tiger-shaped banner army in front.
The ones rushing to the front were the two thousand households of King Chen.
Boom! Boom! Boom...
Not long after the official cavalry rushed out, there was a loud rumble in the air, like thunder.
"What sound!" Zhang Huai was startled.
Without waiting for anyone to explain, wherever he looked, he saw iron balls appearing in mid-air, hitting the officer cavalry in front.
Screams came from the official cavalry. The cavalry that was charging suddenly lost fifty or sixty cavalry, and a vacant position suddenly appeared in the full cavalry team.
"Sir, it's a cannon. The Tiger Flag has cannons!" Li Kaiyang shouted loudly.
In addition to the sound of cannons, there were screams and the sound of horse hooves. Without shouting loudly, it would be difficult for people on the side to hear clearly what was being said.
Zhang Huai, who was riding on horseback, swayed, his face turned pale, and he murmured to himself: "This is impossible. There is no way that the tiger-shaped flag also has cannons. The cannons are all in the hands of another army."
"Sir, please order our cavalry to withdraw quickly! If they are bombarded by artillery for a while, they will all die." Li Kaiyang said eagerly.
There were also his own soldiers in the official cavalry team in front.
The cannons were fired continuously, more and more official cavalry were bombarded, and more and more people died. The remaining official cavalry no longer had the courage to continue charging, and fled towards the ground on both sides of the official road. .
Zhang Huai bit his lip, his face was as pale as paper, his teeth kept chattering, and he couldn't say a word.
"My lord, please retreat quickly. There are at least twenty or thirty cannons heard from the cannons. The people below have no courage to fight anymore. If we don't retreat, once the soldiers and horses with the Tiger Flag come after us, we won't be able to leave." Li Kaiyang said. He said with an anxious face.
Unfortunately, Zhang Huai was frightened by the sound of gunfire and the tragedy in front of him, and did not hear Li Kaiyang's words at all.
When Li Kaiyang saw this, he ignored the overstep and ordered privately: "Retreat."
Most of the people around were infantry. After hearing the order to retreat, they all retreated towards the way they came.
"kill!"
At this moment, a troop of soldiers and horses came out from behind a hillside in the rear.
