Yelusha's retreat speed was not slow, and they were all cavalry with strong maneuverability. However, with his movement, the five attacking Han cavalry did not let go. In particular, the veteran Guo Chongwei participated in the imperial meeting in Changping City and knew the overall strategic situation. The withdrawal of the Liao army did not have any confusing effect at all and was directly seen through.
Therefore, while sending people to report the Liao army's intention to retreat and call for troops to attack, Guo Chongwei did not hesitate and led his cavalry to pursue them in a guerrilla attack. Several other generals, including Liu Guangyi, Cui Han, Tian Renlang, and Tian Chongjin, seemed to be the best among the Han army generals. Upon seeing this, they also changed their tactics and led their men to pursue them.
The five Han cavalry were like five hungry wolves, biting Yelusha's tail and causing great trouble for his retreat. In a head-to-head confrontation, these Han cavalry are definitely no match for the Yelusha tribe, with the Youpishi Army as the main force, and may even be easily defeated.
However, restricted by the actual situation, Yelusha wanted to retreat in compliance with the military order, which gave Guo Chongwei and others a loophole and was greatly delayed. Really unable to bear the bite, Yelusha simply detached a force to intercept the pursuit of the Han cavalry and led his own brigade to retreat north.
In this regard, Guo Chongwei and other generals would not allow him to succeed easily. They decisively gathered their troops and forcibly got rid of the Liao army's rear division, and detoured directly towards most of Yelusha. Of course, in this process, a huge price was paid, and there were heavy casualties. When Yelusha came back to bite him, there would be another unrelenting struggle.
Yelusha also had a temper, and was very annoyed by the unscrupulous entanglement of the Han army. He simply turned his horse's head and concentrated his troops, hoping to completely maim and defeat Guo Chongwei's thousands of soldiers and horses.
Yelusha also knew that these thousands of Han cavalry were entangled in such a crazy way to buy time for Changping's remaining infantry cavalry to pursue. Therefore, he did not want to completely annihilate Guo Chongwei and others. That was unrealistic. He only wanted to inflict heavy damage on them so that they would lose their ability to entangle.
But as a result, Guo Chongwei and others were under greater pressure. Although there were still more than 4,000 troops, they spent a lot of energy in the previous attacks and continued to pursue and fight hard. They also faced the powerful Liao army. blow.
Therefore, under the heavy attack of Yelusha's army, they were almost defeated. However, Guo Chongwei and others' fighting will was still firm, and they forcibly endured huge casualties and fought hard with the Liao army.
In fact, Yelusha's goal was achieved. In this frontal confrontation, the Liao cavalry had more power and stronger combat power. Although Guo Chongwei and other generals had a strong will, it was difficult to make up for the disparity in absolute power. Not long after the fierce fighting, they were defeated by the army led by Yelusha, suffering heavy casualties.
Similarly, Guo Chongwei's goal was achieved, and he blocked Yelusha's retreat, preventing him from easily escaping north to join the main force of the Liao army at the south entrance.
Because Gao Huaide organized his troops and attacked quickly, after Yelusha defeated Guo Chongwei and other generals, before he had time to regroup, a large number of Han cavalry were already approaching. In this regard, Yelusha had no choice but to continue fighting.
As the morning dawned, the wind and frost fell, a fierce battle unfolded in the plains of Yannan. The Liao cavalry had a large number of troops, but their intention was to withdraw, and they were exhausted after a long battle. The Han cavalry was outnumbered, but they were more rested and intended to entangle and contain them.
Gao Huaide had fought against Yelüsha before, and now he was fighting against Yelüsha again. After inspection, he found that this Liao general was not easy to deal with. He had great combat experience and combat acumen.
Although they wanted to retreat, they did not retreat north blindly, which would only cause the Han army to attack wantonly. Relying on his large number of troops, he divided the Liao army into two parts. One part was entangled with the Han cavalry, while he personally led the Pishi army to contain the attack from the side.
Gao Huaide had no choice but to divide his forces and refuse. However, this gave Yelusha the opportunity to defeat the Han army several times in a row, but he was defeated but not defeated.
The intention of the Han army was still to contain it, waiting for the Chai and Zhao armies to move north. Yelusha also understood this, so as soon as he defeated the Han cavalry, he led his army to retreat northward.
Gao Huaide was not discouraged and adjusted quickly. He quickly tangled his troops and pursued again. Tens of thousands of cavalrymen on both sides were cruising and fighting in this way, and the battlefield continued to shift to the northeast during the cyclical fighting.
It was already dawn when Chai Rong and Zhao Kuangyin led the army and followed the traces of the battle to catch up. The two sides had already started a fierce battle next to a maple forest about five miles southeast of the south entrance. After approaching the Liao army at the south entrance, Yelusha seemed to have enough confidence. Under Gao Huaide's relentless pursuit, his anger became even more fierce. He simply let go of his hands and feet, fought with Gao Huaide, and firmly gained the upper hand.
After Chai Rong and Zhao Kuangyin arrived, they observed the battlefield situation and without much hesitation, they directly led the troops into the battle. More than 40,000 Han troops were divided into two huge military formations, with Chai and Zhao each leading one.
Zhao Kuangyin led his men and forced the Yelusa army to relieve Gao Huaide from his predicament. When the Han army conducted coordinated infantry and cavalry operations, Yelusa soon fell into a bitter battle. After all, he could not control all the Liao troops like an arm, and gradually became exhausted under the oppressive fighting of the Han army. Although the Pishi army was capable and caused a lot of casualties to the Han army, they were not invincible after all. They had a head-on collision with the powerful soldiers of the Han army, and their heads were bruised and bloody.
The Liao army was gradually losing ground. In the fierce confrontation, some tribal cavalry began to collapse. If it hadn't been for the strong support of the Pishi army led by Yelusha, they would have been defeated.
The messenger asking for help quickly rushed to the south entrance and reported the hostage to Yelu House.
There was no idleness at the south entrance either. The withdrawal of the Liao army had already progressed to a certain extent. The injured soldiers were transferred first and retreated towards Juyong Pass. The nearly 20,000 Liao troops from the south had already detoured to the north and began to pass through the mountain pass.
The Liao troops on the east and west sides also got rid of the entanglement of a small number of Han troops in Nankou, and successfully retreated to the north, gathering in formation. Under such circumstances, An Shenqi finally took action. Han Chongyun, the Marquis of Fengguo Army, led a carefully selected 7,000 soldiers to attack the Liao army face to face. He and the generals led the remaining troops. In a tight military formation, Xu Tu slowly advanced to support.
Although the Han army at Nankou is a tired army, there are 40,000 to 50,000 people after all. With so many Han troops, even at the end of the war, under strong mental stimulation, the energy they can explode cannot be underestimated, and the non-Liao army can not be underestimated. .
The Liao army also expected it and formed a formation in the north to prepare for the Han army's attack. It was fate to say it. The previous day and night, despite the casualties, the attack was still unable to break through the Han army's camp and annihilate it. Now that the Han army took the initiative to attack, the Liao army did not have much desire to devour them, but felt that it was in the way.
The battle between the two parties finally broke out at the south entrance.
After receiving Yelüsha's request for help, Yelu Cong couldn't help but said: "I have told Yelüsha several times to withdraw his troops and not to get entangled with the Han army. Why did he still fight to the death with the Han army and get into this dangerous situation?"
Compared with Yelu Cong's accusation, Yelu Wuzhi was more fair. He sighed: "The Han army must be chasing after them, and Yelusha has no choice but to fight! Yelusha's 40,000-strong army cannot make any mistakes, and the Youpishi army needs it even more. Get rescued!"
"Send Yelusha to rescue the siege!" Yeluwu demanded.
Yelu Cong also agreed. In their opinion, any other army could suffer heavy casualties or even be destroyed, but the Pishi Army could not. This is not just a matter of face, the Pi Shi Army is the most solid force for the Emperor of Liao to rule the country and suppress the various tribes and states. If there is a big loss, it will inevitably cause turmoil.
Previously, the 40,000 mobile troops gathered in Yelvuzhi were used for this purpose. After receiving the order, Yelusea quickly led his army southeast to rescue Yelusea.
When the 40,000 Liao troops attacked, even though Chai Rong, Zhao Kuangyin, and Gao Huaide were in charge, and the Han soldiers fought with all their strength, it was still difficult to stop the Liao army as they wanted to retreat. They could only gather troops and pursue them. kill.
In the end, the battlefield was completely moved to the south entrance, and the Han and Liao sides fought fiercely with hundreds of thousands of soldiers each. The Liao army occupied the mountain pass and resisted while withdrawing. The Han army was divided into several groups. Although they fought independently, their goals were clear and they were entangled to the death, making the Liao army wary of attacking and unable to leave. Of course, the main combat force of the Han army was still in the Changping armies. An Shenqi's army was large in number but insufficient in strength, but it still played a certain restraining role.
On the one hand, we have to deal with the attack of more than 100,000 Han troops, and on the other hand, we have to successfully withdraw the troops. This is an almost unsolvable problem. Retreating too quickly will cause a big rout. If you stay too long, if Murong Yanzhao's army arrives, it will be a sure defeat.
The only good thing is that the road back is not cut off. As time goes by, the autumn sun gradually rises, and the anxious mood gradually fills the mind of the commander of the Liao army.
As of Si Shi, there were still more than 100,000 Liao troops still fighting the Han army at Nankou, and most of them were elites. But these people were completely entangled by the Han army and did not dare to retreat lightly.
"Your Majesty, we cannot let the Han army entangle us like this. We must break the situation. Otherwise, when the Tanzhou Han army arrives, the entire army will be in danger." Yelu Cong questioned Yelu Wu.
"What do you think?" Yelu Wuzhi looked at him.
Yelvcong pointed at An Shenqi's army on the left wing of the Han army and said directly: "I will lead an army of 20,000 to raid the Han army at Nankou and defeat them head-on. The Han army's position will inevitably be shaken. At that time, the king can look for opportunities and gradually retreat to Juyongguan!" "
From Yelu Cong's eyes and tone, Yelu Wuzhi felt a sense of determination. He was going to cut off a strong man's wrist.
Noticing the expression on Yelu Wuzhi's face, Yelu Cong said sadly: "This initiative to attack was planned by me. It failed to succeed because of my incompetence in commanding the battle. Now that the army is in danger, it is even more my fault for my laziness. I am ashamed of myself. As for the three armies, we have no shame to see His Majesty's countrymen again, so we can only fight for the king to have a good opportunity to retreat. I hope that the king can save more vitality for the Liao Dynasty!"
Yelu Cong's words made Yelu Wuzhi very emotional. He didn't say anything more, he just cupped his fists and solemnly responded: "I dare not give up until my death!"
Soon, Yelvcong ordered his people to raise his banner, and with the Iron Kitten Army as the vanguard, he gathered 20,000 troops and counterattacked towards An Shenqi's army. An Shenqi, on his side, knew how small his army was and was already overwhelmed, so he fought smartly, just to entangle and contain him.
However, when faced with Yelu Cong personally leading his troops to launch a near-desperate attack, although he responded actively and resisted hard, he was still overwhelmed. This cannot be blamed on the incompetence of the Han army in Nankou, but after the battle has reached this point, we can no longer blame them harshly.
Although the Han army at Nankou was overwhelmed, the Han generals were unwilling to give up. They gathered their scattered soldiers and wanted to fight. On Chai Zhaogao's side, after An Shenqi was defeated, he unanimously chose not to care. Instead, he led his men to stare at the majority of the Liao army in front of the south entrance, wanting to nail them.
Seeing that he could not attract other Han troops, Yelucong made a decisive choice and divided his troops into two groups. One group continued to pursue An Shenqi's army, and he personally led the way to capture firewood and Zhao's flank.
Since then, we can no longer ignore it. With Yelu Cong's help, Yelu House finally found an opportunity and arranged for people to retreat. Throughout the entire retreat, Yelu Wuzhi was always at the front of the rear, personally directing the battle.
As the Liao army continued to withdraw into the mountain pass, the Han army became anxious and changed accordingly. Gao Huaide led the army to deal with Yelu Cong, who was like a mad dog, while Chai Rong and Zhao Kuangyin led the army to hold on to Yelu's house hostage. .
They entangled and pursued them all the way to prevent the Liao army from retreating. During this process, Yelu Wuzhi continuously arranged to mobilize troops to intercept and gain time to retreat. Although they were defeated by five waves of rear divisions in a row, they retreated more calmly.
From the south entrance to the Juyong Pass, the corpses of both Han and Liao sides almost filled the road, dyed red with blood. In the end, after paying a huge price, Yelu Wuzhi led the army to withdraw into the pass. Zhao Kuangyin wanted to lead the army to attack the pass, but the Liao army's preparations for the pass defense failed.
When the Tanzhou army arrived at the south entrance, the Chai Zhao Han army had already chased into the valley road, and it was still a cavalry force. When the main force arrived, only the Liao army led by Yelucong was left at the south entrance.
For them, the angry Han army rushed forward like a pack of wolves and wiped them out. Yelucong died in battle, and the remaining 5,000 Liao troops who followed him surrendered.
The battle at Nankou ends here.
