It only took less than an hour to defeat Xu Wenzhen's army, but cleaning up the aftermath lasted until late at night and was still not over. Although the Tang soldiers were numerous, their combat power was low, they were tired from marching, and were poorly prepared. The Han army concentrated their cavalry to attack them. Apart from the exhaustion of the attack, the battle was not difficult.
As for the results of the battle, they can be described as brilliant. Xu Wenzhen's army was almost completely wiped out. Although a large amount of food, medicinal materials, clothing, and ordnance accompanying the army were burned, the rest were all captured.
Xu Jun's soldiers suffered around 4,000 casualties. More than 1,000 of them died under crossbows when they were forced to use them as cannon fodder. The rest, except for a few who fled and disappeared, were all captured by the Han army.
In this Tang army, except for a small number of people who had been trained by Xu Wenzhen for a long time and had some fighting ability, the rest of them did not have a strong will to resist. The rest obediently became prisoners of the Han army. They were all disarmed, stripped of their armor, and dispersed to guard.
To clean up the battlefield and deal with the aftermath, Murong Yanzhao only had to give an order, and all the generals and commanders would arrange and deal with it. They won the battle and were very motivated. Seeing that the time was getting later, and thinking of the hard work of the soldiers in the attack, Murong Yanzhao directly ordered all battalions to rest and rest based on the Tang army's vehicle formation.
After making a habitual tour of each camp, comforting the wounded, and looking after the wounded, Murong Yanzhao finally found time to take a break.
"This Huai bandit's combat power is too low and they are simply vulnerable!" Following Murong Yanzhao, Han Tong said happily: "Your Majesty still pays too much attention to them. In my opinion, four thousand riders are enough to defeat them. There is no need for Du Yuhou to take action, the final general is enough!"
Murong Yanzhao glanced at Han Tong. Under the dark night, his face could still be seen glowing red, and he looked like he had wiped out all the barriers. It was obvious that he had fought hard in this battle, and this battle also helped to establish his position in the Forbidden Army.
Listening to his words, it was obvious that he was suicidal and arrogant. Murong Yanzhao said calmly: "This Tang army is not the main force, and its combat power is indeed insufficient. Our army also took advantage of the cavalry surprise attack. With this great victory, But it’s not something to be proud of…”
From Murong Yanzhao's words, Han Tong realized something. The arrogance on his black face was slightly reduced. Looking at his calm face, he cupped his hands and said: "I haven't won a big victory for a long time. I am so proud of this achievement!"
Seeing this, Murong Yanzhao smiled: "It doesn't matter! But Xu Wenzhen is quite skillful and can deal with the situation in an orderly manner! By the way, can we find him?"
Mentioning this, Han Tong said: "This man surnamed Xu is quite courageous. When the army was defeated, he gathered his own soldiers to fight against the trapped beasts. He would rather die than surrender. He died in the formation with his body not intact!"
"It's not that the Pseudo-Tang Dynasty didn't have loyal people. He Jingzhu in Shouchun, Guo Tingwei in Sizhou, and Xu Wenzhen here. It's a pity that the emperor of the Tang Dynasty didn't know how to use people!" Murong Yanzhao sighed.
"Of course it is! The false Lord of the Tang Dynasty is stupid and weak, how can he be my opponent to the emperor!" Han Tong slapped a dragon's fart in the air.
"Tomorrow morning, let the prisoners dig a hole and bury the Tang army together!" Murong Yanzhao ordered: "Then, escort the prisoners to seize them, and return them to join Your Majesty. Your Majesty's forces are weak after all. If Chen Juejun takes the risk, , the outcome is ultimately unpredictable!”
"yes!"
As early as that night, Liu Chengyou received the news that Murong Yanzhao defeated Xu Jun in a battle and won a complete victory. I was overjoyed when I heard about it and informed the entire army of the victory and sent it to the Shouchun camp. I slept well and had a good dream.
In the early morning of the next day, Liu Chengyou led his knights in front of the Tang army's Feishui camp and repeatedly shouted the news that Xu Wenzhen's army had been wiped out, trying to destabilize his military morale.
In the Tang camp, Chen Jue woke up on his own army couch and slept soundly. Hearing the noise in the army, he immediately shouted angrily: "Come here!"
"Here!" The principal was waiting outside.
"Why are there so much noise in the army? Don't you know that military orders are strict?" Chen Jue scolded.
"Shijun, there are Han cavalry outside the camp announcing that Xu Shijun in the south has been defeated by the Han army and Xu Shijun has been killed!" the principal entered the tent and reported.
"What!" Chen Jue was shocked. He stood up and put on his clothes in a panic, and said angrily: "Why didn't you inform me?"
The principal said cautiously: "I see you are sleeping soundly..."
Before he could finish speaking, Chen Jue was already furious: "How outrageous! How dare you delay such an urgent military situation? I don't know how to live or die!"
The principal was shocked and quickly knelt down to beg for mercy. Chen Jue ignored him and went outside to check the situation and asked: "Where is the Lieutenant General? Why do you suppress the soldiers and stabilize the morale of the army?"
"Xian Shijun, has gone to each camp to comfort..."
In a hurry, Chen Jue led some people to inspect the situation, and personally listened to the Han cavalry's propaganda and persuasion to surrender in the front camp. He also summoned the generals and schools to discuss the matter and concluded that it cannot be trusted.
In Chen Jue's view, Xu Wenzhen's army numbered more than 20,000 people and had a lot of weapons and equipment. Even if the Han army intercepted and killed them with light cavalry, how could they be defeated so easily and quickly, let alone be completely annihilated.
After comprehensive consideration, Chen Jue relaxed and said to the generals confidently: "I have predicted that this must be a move by the Han army to disturb the morale of our army. When you return to the camp, you should inform the troops to appease the soldiers and secure the camp. Camp. Don’t pay attention to the former Han cavalry, if anyone approaches, shoot them with your bow and crossbow!”
Xian Shilang, on the other hand, opened his mouth. After hesitating for a while, he still said: "Even if this matter is not true, how long can you persist in the face of Han Qi's robbery and murder?"
Chen Jue frowned and said helplessly: "Now, I can't care about Xu Wenzhen anymore. I can only hope that he can persist longer or retreat in time!"
Chen Jue's tone was clearly self-comforting. When the Han army took action, he already had a premonition that Xu Wenzhen's army was in danger. If they form a formation, they can still protect themselves and resist for a period of time. If they retreat or even die, it will give the Han cavalry an opportunity to hunt and kill at will.
In fact, Chen Jue regretted it at this time. It was still not safe enough. It was enough to rescue Shouchun and make some moves out of Hefei to make the Han army afraid. Why go so far north...
Under Chen Jue's instruction, the Tang Army general followed his orders to refute the rumors and appease the soldiers, which naturally had some effect. However, in the afternoon, when the Han cavalry came north escorting the loot, the entire Tang army camp was silent.
Following Liu Chengyou's order, Murong Yanzhao led the army and took a long detour to Tangying. The two cavalry troops, Tieqi and Longjie, were on the side, just like a victory parade. After hearing the news, he came to take a look. Looking at the long queue of prisoners and capture teams, Chen Jue clenched his fists and felt his old face feel hot and painful...
"Mr. Chen, the Han army is too arrogant. The last general is willing to lead a group of soldiers and horses out of the camp to attack them!" A Tang army general asked for a fight.
Chen Jue refused without hesitation. At this point, the morale of the generals of the Tang Army was even more bruised, morale plummeted, and people's hearts were floating. Many generals who still had ambitions complained that they were too frustrated.
It is said that one general is incompetent and the three armies are exhausted. How can he resist the Han army if he is so afraid of the enemy?
In the Han camp, when they learned that Murong Yanzhao had returned victoriously, the emperor Liu Chengyou called the general to greet him personally at the camp gate.
"It's just a small victory, why bother your majesty to welcome it personally!" As usual, Murong Yanzhao was very humble and observed the etiquette of a minister.
"You deserve it! You deserve it!" He personally helped him stand up, and Liu Chengyou also showed his respect to the hero.
Although he had known from the battle report that many prisoners were captured in this battle, Liu Chengyou could not help but be surprised when he looked at the large and small carts of food and weapons lined up in front of the camp: "How many supplies did the Tang army carry this time?" Do you need it? You want to see Hua Zhen’s eyes, our fortress is probably going to be filled with it!”
Han Tong said: "This is still a gain after losing 20% or 30%..."
After returning to the camp, Liu Chengyou personally listened to his report on the details of the battle, and he naturally praised him. At the same time, Xu Wenzhen, who would rather die than surrender and sacrifice himself for his country, was not stingy with words of praise.
At the same time, as soon as Xu Wenzhen was captured, Liu Chengyou could free up his hands to calmly control Chen Juejun. Regarding the next combat strategy, Liu Chengyou had already considered everything and had everything under control. At that time, Liu Chengyou ordered a thousand cavalry to patrol around, and the entire army rested on the spot to prepare for the annihilation of Chen Juejun.
As for the Tang Army, under the leadership of Chen Jue, they implemented a "steady defense" policy. In this situation, Chen Jue and others realized that when they set out to go north and away from Hefei, they were already at a disadvantage. As for forming a stronghold and sticking to it, it was just a helpless move.
Of course, if we can really rely on the food and equipment accompanying the army to hold on for a longer time, we may really pose some threat to the Han army. However, when the initiative in the war was handed over to the Han army, how long the Tang army could hold on was a big question.
Moreover, there is a saying that Chen Jue was consistent from beginning to end, maintained his original intention, and resisted stubbornly. At least in terms of tactics, he still caused some trouble for the Han army.
If you want to break down the fortress of more than 50,000 people, you can't just rely on words, it will still take some effort. In Shouchun, he had already stationed troops for two and a half months. He had no desire to waste Chen Juejun's troops and wanted to defeat him quickly.
During the two days of rest and recuperation, Liu Chengyou accepted Murong Yanzhao's suggestion and separated the captured soldiers and civilians of the Southern Tang Dynasty from Jiangbei.
It was promised that everyone would be registered in a register, and as long as they performed meritorious service for the Han Dynasty, after the war, they would be rewarded with official positions, nobles, money, food, and land. In this world, there are always leading parties, but seeing the strength of the Han army, many people were tempted. Coupled with the coercion and inducement of the Han army, more than 3,000 auxiliary soldiers were recruited in a short period of time.
Liu Chengyou was very generous to these people who were willing to serve and knew current affairs. He appointed several commanders on the spot and rewarded them with official positions in the state and town, which calmed their minds. The purpose of these surrendered troops is to attack the stronghold.
On the twentieth day of the first lunar month of the fifth year of Emperor Qianyou's reign, Emperor Liu Chengyou of the Han Dynasty personally led a large army and formally launched an attack on Chen Juejun of the puppet Tang Dynasty who was stationed on the banks of the Feishui River. Because he established a stronghold near the water, Liu Chengyou transferred another army from Xiacai and Shouchun. A naval force came to help.
As soon as the navy arrived, the Tang army was attacked from both sides. The Han army attacked fiercely in two days and broke through. Chen Jue, the puppet general of the Tang Dynasty, was captured alive. The military envoy Xian Shilang and dozens of other generals surrendered. In this battle, the Huaide Army newly established by the Han Emperor suffered heavy casualties, with only a thousand people left.
