Temporarily stopping for a rest, Lou Jinpeng urgently inquired about the military situation of all parties.
"What's the news from Bei'an City?"
"General, everything is normal. The main force of Zhou's army is still trapped under the city."
"Where's Silver Spear Gaohu's partial army?"
"They don't have enough cavalry. They need to go all out to blockade the northern part of the county. They don't seem to be planning to join the war."
No, no, intelligence was clearly sent, but Lou Jinpeng only felt that the fog of war was surrounding him.
"Send the order, march quickly and return to the Tingshan camp." A feeling of powerlessness emerged in his heart, and he could even guess that he was now surrounded.
"Report! There are beacon smoke burning in the direction of Tingshan Camp."
"Report, the enemy's rangers are approaching from the surrounding areas, and our outpost is pushed back within 300 steps of the military formation."
"Report! An unknown army appears in the rear. Everyone is wearing black armor and has set up a demon-suppressing banner. It should be the demon-suppressing general coming in person!"
The vast plains and fields outside Bei'an City have become the place for a decisive battle between the two armies. The situation changes as the military spirits intertwine.
It is said that it is strategic planning, but it has evolved to the present, and it also requires a head-on confrontation with hard power.
In fact, in terms of numbers, the gap between the two sides is huge, and in terms of combat power, the gap between the two sides is even greater.
The main force of Lou Jinpeng's army was originally Sun Yucheng's auxiliary army. The quality of the outer town army was a few levels lower, and with the addition of 10,000 miscellaneous soldiers of various types, it was barely an army after integration.
There have been a lot of losses these days, and there are still 25,000 people left, all of whom are infantry. The cavalry is only enough to serve as sentinels, and the armor rate is less than 30%.
Zhou Bai's side pursues the policy of elite troops. Needless to say, the five thousand demon-suppressing army is the elite among the elite.
The other 10,000 people are also regular soldiers, composed of Cangbei veterans and garrison troops, and their combat strength is not weak.
The whole army is wearing armor, 10% is iron armor, 90% is paper armor and leather armor, the armor is sharp, and the arms are complete.
In this comparison of combat power, one side is like a wolf and a tiger trying to swallow up a whale in one gulp, while the other side is just stubbornly resisting.
Lou Jinpeng knows his men very well. It's okay to fight a smooth battle, but if we really want to fight the next tough battle, we must have the cooperation of the Yamen Army in Bei'an City.
However, the Bei'an Yamen army that was supposed to go out of the city to respond could not protect themselves, because they were also fighting, but they were just killing each other.
…
The county town is the ancestral home of the Sun family.
A few hours ago, Yao An hurriedly found Sun Geng and asked for immediate action.
Twenty thousand state troops have moved north and will use thunderous force to quell the unrest in Bei'an County.
Of course, all the news came from Yao An, so Sun Geng was inevitably a little hesitant.
"Master Sun, the Tian family has no family ties, and your Qianlong family cannot be influenced by emotions, otherwise it will be difficult to do great things."
"Tiger poison does not eat its seeds." Sun Geng's expression changed uncertainly, as if he had not made up his mind.
"What if Mr. Sun's son already knows about the transfer of destiny, what should you do?" Yao Anshun pointed out that there have been many patrols in the Sun family's ancestral home in the past few days, which is obviously a temporary transfer.
Sun Geng was dull for a moment, and finally asked the biggest puzzle in his heart: "I have a question, why does the imperial court or Governor Lei still believe that I will be loyal to the imperial court when they know that I am now carrying the dragon spirit?"
An ambitious tycoon in troubled times naturally has the determination he should have, but he just always doubts the state's motives.
"Lord Sun should be quite well-connected in the capital. Could it be that he doesn't know the most widely circulated saying, granting titles to princes to respect Zhengshuo."
"The imperial court does not need your loyalty, and is even willing to support you in establishing a small hereditary country of the Sun family, as long as you do not try to overthrow Daxu's orthodoxy."
"Governor Lei, I wish you could establish a county and then guard the borders of Dingzhou. The central government can respect Zhengshuo, and the state..." Yao An talked eloquently, and his various arguments were a little secretive, but reasonable.
After hearing this, Sun Geng no longer hesitated and immediately decided to take action.
At the same time, because Lou Jinpeng was about to send troops, Sun Yucheng, who no longer wanted to sit back and wait for death, also decided to take action against his father.
In the words of Bu Yuanzi, as long as he can establish a country and rule, a blessed land will be born in the underworld, the ancestors will be honored, and the family will only be proud of him.
As for Sun Geng, he can be granted a posthumous title, and he can still live forever like a god.
Filial piety or unfilial piety, human relations and family ties, are no longer important at this time...
However, Sun Geng was the first to launch an attack. Sun Yucheng was still caught off guard. Nearly half of his troops were instigated to rebel. For a time, most of the territory except Jiedu Mansion fell under Sun Geng's control.
Fortunately, Sun Yucheng knew the importance of military power, and the three thousand most elite soldiers in the Yamen Army were always under his personal control.
Sun Geng was unable to conquer Jiedu Mansion due to the infighting between father and son, and with neither side's extraordinary powers daring to intervene.
Soon, Sun Yucheng slowly moved back into the situation and launched a counterattack by virtue of his elite men and his status as Jiedushi.
The two sides came and went, relying on every street, and actually ended up in a stalemate.
You said that the governor and the imperial court support me, but I am the governor, so who can do anything to me?
It was just a scandal of internal strife between father and son, but it made the fortunes of both parties worse and worse, and the whole city became divided.
The fight lasted until sunset, each of them lost their troops and generals, and the blood of the Jiedu Yamen soldiers stained Bei'an City red.
"Commander, please send troops quickly! You have been deceived. The Zhou army outside the city is not the real main force..." At this point, Lou Jinpeng's messenger desperately entered the city.
"Fifteen miles southeast of the city outskirts, we were attacked by Zhou Bai. The enemy's fighting strength was overwhelming. The general could only lead his troops to resist step by step."
"If the war reaches the end of Xu, and you haven't led your army to attack the enemy's rear, then we can only break out at night, maybe we can retain some vitality..."
Lou Jinpeng's battle report was very detailed, but it made Sun Yucheng look pale.
The hero was not free to transport him. Seeing that the main force of the Zhou army had not moved outside the city, he wanted to capture Sun Geng vigorously and wait for the opportunity to move.
Sun Yucheng couldn't imagine how to handle the next situation. He asked unwillingly: "A thousand cavalry can cover the entire territory and block fifteen waves of your messengers?!"
The messenger said helplessly: "The enemy Taoist priest group did not directly participate in the war, but it patrolled the periphery and reported the situation, but it will not be affected too much by the military spirit."
He actually wanted to ask Sun Yucheng on behalf of Lou Jinpeng, where is our Taoist priest group?
When Wu Dingzhen came to the city, he welcomed him with great fanfare, so why didn't it have any effect?
In a desperate situation, Sun Yucheng called Bu Yuanzi and Lin Ren to discuss. Lin Ren boldly advised him to show his cards to Sun Geng.
From the perspective of luck, what advice can Bu Yuanzi give?
In the end, they had to regain military power and unite the dragon energy before they could fight to the death. Otherwise, leading thousands of defeated soldiers to attack the Zhou army would just be asking for death.
So Sun Yucheng led the troops into battle and personally charged and fought back to his ancestral home several times. As a result, Sun Geng not only had rebels in his hands, but also dead soldiers who had been raised by the Sun family for many years.
Seeing that the sky was getting darker, Sun Yucheng could smell the blood on the battlefield fifteen miles away, as if he had seen the day when Bei'an City was destroyed.
Unable to force him directly, he could only choose Lin Ren's suggestion and have a showdown with Sun Geng.
Sun Yucheng refused all the escorts. After getting permission, he returned to his family's ancestral home under the hostile and indifferent gaze.
Once upon a time, he was the destined heir of the Sun family, but now he has turned against him, and even the servants are holding swords against him.
In the huge family ancestral hall, only the father and son were left.
"Is my mother okay?"
"She lives in the back house and misses you very much, but don't worry, she doesn't know what's going on outside."
"Father, let's take action. From a century-old county to its current situation, there must be a sacrifice."
"Oh, why is this..."
No one knew what the father and son said after that. They only knew that it was Sun Yucheng who walked out last.
The low destiny of the entire Bei'an City stirred up, and traces of bright red blood blended into the earthy yellow dragon energy.
The nine-foot dragon snake screamed sharply toward the southeast, bloodthirsty and high-spirited, and the depression that had been suppressed by the dragon carp for several days disappeared.
"If I win this battle, you and I will share the glory and wealth. If we lose this battle, I will be buried in the earth with you!"
Sun Yucheng, wearing white mourning clothes, with bloodshot eyes, led the city's last intact and healthy more than 10,000 elite government officials, and walked quickly out of the city.
The last ray of sunset on the horizon dimmed, as if announcing the end of the southeastern battlefield.
However, no matter how anxious Sun Yucheng was, he wanted to join the battle immediately, but the Zhou army outside the city was the first hurdle he needed to cross.
The one who stayed behind in the Bei'an camp was Zhou Bai's personal guard commander Qu Zhi. He took the most elite 500 personal soldiers and organized young militiamen to act as the main force.
This is one of the reasons why no abnormality has been found in the city. Every time there are messengers or small groups of troops testing, Qu Zhi will resolutely annihilate them.
"Commander, what should we do? Sun Yucheng is personally leading the troops. It seems that he is going to join the battle on the frontal battlefield." The junior officers in the personal camp immediately approached Qu Zhi for advice.
"Sir, let's fight. We militiamen are not vegetarians. As for those who have not been trained, there is no need to go to the battlefield." A militia captain shouted that he wanted to fight.
Qu Zhi looked calm, shook his head and said: "The young men will withdraw first, leaving three thousand militiamen. The lord has already told us that we can weaken the reinforcements as much as possible."
"Let them pass, we will only hold on to the rear group!"
When Sun Yucheng saw that the camp was tightly closed, he didn't think much, and just happened to verify that it was an empty shell in disguise.
Since they don't dare to fight, they can save some time.
Unexpectedly, just as he led most of the Yamen troops to pass by in a hurry, Qu Zhi led his own barracks and cut off the rear troops like sharp knives.
There were only two thousand in number, and they were fighting with the Zhou troops pouring out of the camp. It was difficult for both sides to win or lose in a short time.
If Sun Yucheng chooses to turn back now, he will definitely be able to kill Qu Zhi, even defeat the camp, and achieve greater results.
However, the decisive battle that truly determines Bei'an County's ownership is not here.
"Commander?"
"No matter what, the whole army speeds up. The Taoist officer takes the lead and informs General Lou to hold on."
…
In the southeastern battlefield, flesh and blood flew everywhere, weapons were intertwined, and shouts shook the sky... The entire battlefield was filled with a strong and pungent smell of blood.
The only bright spot between the two armies is where their respective central army flags are located, which is the command center.
The soldiers participating in the battle rushed towards the opponent's fire, but they also tried their best to protect the fire on their side. When the fire went out, it meant the destruction of the Chinese army.
Speaking of which, the night has another advantage for Lou Jinpeng, that is, the darker the night, the less his soldiers can see the misery of their own side and can still stick to their posts.
"What? The commander just left the city?!"
The place where the Chinese army is located is heavily guarded, and every guard is a brave person personally selected by Lou Jinpeng, with murderous intent.
Originally, in this environment, the Wuding sect disciples who came to deliver the letter were extremely depressed and lacked their magic power.
Facing Lou Jinpeng, who was commanding tens of thousands of troops to fight just now, he was almost choked by the force of the killing army. How could he answer?
Fortunately, Lou Jinpeng had communicated with Bu Yuanzi and knew a little bit about this. He ordered the guards around him to spread out before letting the messenger reply.
"The city has just experienced a big change. The old commander and the commander-in-chief... now the commander-in-chief has boosted morale and may have the power to mourn the soldiers."
"Whether it's the Sun Family, the Jiedu Mansion, or our Wuding Sect, they're all here this time. You must hold on."
Before the messenger could finish speaking, the night birds flew away in fright, and messengers from all sides sent urgent military reports one after another.
"Report, the enemy general Gao Hu led the cavalry to penetrate three battalions in a row. The rear army's food, grass and baggage were destroyed, and the flanks were defeated!"
"The demon-suppressing army is pressing forward, General Sun is asking for support..."
"Report, there is a small group of elite enemy troops, wearing heavy armor, rushing directly into the Chinese army. General Sun, please take shelter for now."
Lou Jinpeng was furious and veins popped up on his forehead. If he wanted to take his head directly, he would be looking down on him!
No longer caring about the differences between immortals and mortals, he grabbed the Taoist messenger and said: "You have seen the situation. Report to the commander immediately and ask him to collect the body for me in less than half an hour."
"Where are the soldiers? Follow me to kill the enemy!"
Zheng Zheng, there was a sound of drawing a sword, he, Lou Jinpeng, was also willing to die for him.
The two armies each launched a charge and fought fiercely in fierce close combat, with people dying every moment.
However, most of them are Lou troops who are not fully armored. Their military quality is not high and their cooperation is poor.
In this kind of night fighting environment, if they are rushed by the elite of the demon-suppressing army, they will fall into fighting on their own, and then they will be strangled without the ability to fight back.
Zhou Bai stood on the temporary command platform, looking at the battlefield situation of successive victories, his heart was calm.
This is the gap between hard power and strategic planning. From beginning to end, Lou Jinpeng's every move was in his sight.
You said there was no good place to camp, but you chose to camp in Tingshan Mountain, disturbing the mountain god’s peaceful sleep.
That person is an old acquaintance. Seeing that Zhou Baichenglong is hopeful and the day of Canglan River's recovery is getting closer, he will naturally help with some less "important" help.
"Order, the whole army is pressing forward. Don't worry about the damage anymore. The real master is coming soon."
As the lucky dragon carp above his head became more and more restless, Zhou Bai drew out a command arrow and gave the order for a general attack.
"The general has the order, the whole army is on the move, kill!"
The sound of killing fills the field, and the military spirit boils. On this meat grinder-like battlefield, human lives are lost and luck is wasted.
Half an hour later, Sun Yucheng finally arrived with the highly motivated Yamen army, but what greeted them was not a scorching battlefield, but a neatly arranged demon-suppressing army.
The black armor is thick and murderous, like an army of evil spirits in this late night.
A Taoist officer accompanying the army jumped over the Demon-Suppressing Army and looked further into the distance. They saw that the mountains and fields were full of defeated troops. After all, they arrived too late.
"If I win this battle, I will be rich and noble together with you all!"
"The same goes for the real person. Don't hold back any means you have. I promise in front of all the troops that I will give you the imperial edict of Wu Dingmen."
Sun Yucheng licked his lips, then said with a ferocious smile: "Dragon Blood is back, Qianlong Fortune is at its peak, I don't believe we can be defeated!"
(End of chapter)
