Chapter 34 Bad News
Chapter 34 Bad News
For Shao Xun, today's battle was not fierce, but it was extremely bloody.
It seemed the enemies had no other options and they all rushed up in a swarm.
Archers hardly need to aim, they just shoot randomly and rarely miss.
Ladder after ladder was leaning against the wall, and then was chopped down with knives and axes, or burned with fire and doused with oil, causing countless tragedies at the base of the wall.
The corpses from yesterday had not been cleaned up yet, and today they piled up again, to the point of hindering the attack.
The enemy soldiers spared no effort to save their lives, and as soon as one group died, another group would come forward.
Shao Xun's heavy sword was broken by the chopping. After taking out the ring-handled sword, he killed four or five people, and the blade was full of gaps.
The casualties of the defenders began to increase slowly.
By noon, the team leader Liu Tong was killed, Zhong Huaner was injured, and the group of people were defeated.
Chen Yougen led the supervision team to fire bows and crossbows, killing all the twenty or so people who had collapsed down the ladders.
Blood was all over the ground, the stench was overwhelming, and it shocked everyone.
"What a sin..." Wu Qian came forward with a group of children, collected the bodies one by one, and buried them in the backyard.
After fighting for a day and a half, they had suffered more than 200 casualties, an unprecedented heavy loss of life.
Some people are still persisting.
Some people began to doubt life.
Some people became deserters.
All kinds of things.
Shao Dubo's existence is crucial.
He united the army by leading by example, consolidated the position with his heroic bravery, and boosted morale with financial rewards.
Although it was only a day and a half, he still successfully integrated various teams with complex origins.
The servants of the wealthy families who were once only able to bully the common people have been tempered in blood and fire. Those who survived have lost their ruffian and slickness and have become indifferent and cruel.
The once honest private soldiers became more capable and skilled after paying the price of blood.
The deserters who had lost confidence slowly regained their long-lost courage after killing in a frenzy.
The two teams that have been reorganized by Shao Dubo for the longest time are now like pillars supporting the sky, brave and daring to fight.
Of course they had casualties, but when there were vacancies, they were simply transferred from other units. And these newcomers had no time to think about anything else on the tragic battlefield, they could only mechanically integrate into the whole, subconsciously obeying orders and fighting.
The battlefield has always been an excellent place for fusion and tempering, provided that one can survive.
"This man is nothing special." On the courtyard wall, Shao Xun slashed with his sword, cutting off the enemy soldier's neck.
"This man has fought in several battles, but he's still a little behind." He strolled up to another man, and when the enemy's knife became too old and he had no time to retreat to defend, he stabbed him with all his might, crushing his abdomen.
"I'm afraid this guy is going into battle for the first time." Facing a teenager who was only fourteen or fifteen years old with a light fuzz on his lips, Shao Xun glared at him and put on a menacing look, which directly made the other party flustered. Then, with a light stroke, he cut his throat with almost no effort.
Under the protection of his own soldiers, Yu Liang took great pains to stab an enemy soldier to death. After seeing Shao Xun's artistic killing movements, he was truly shocked.
Especially the last inexperienced young enemy soldier, who was unable to use even 10% of his abilities, and had his throat cut by Shao Xun in the most labor-saving way.
"The enemy retreated..." he swallowed and said.
"The last glimmer of hope." Shao Xun threw the ring-handled sword to Wang Que'er, replaced it with a heavy sword, and said as he looked at the enemy soldiers retreating like a tide.
"Why doesn't Du Bo let his troops pursue?" Yu Liang asked.
"If my men were all brave enough to fight, they would have chased them out by now. What a pity!" Shao Xun smiled and said, "But there is still a chance."
"What Du Bo means is..." Yu Liang asked in confusion.
"The first push is strong, the second is weak, and the third is exhausted." Shao Xun said, "Meng Chao has already lost half of his capital by fighting like this, and that is the most capable half. Doesn't he feel heartbroken? The attacks this morning were actually just because he was unwilling to give up and wanted to try again. In the end, he didn't succeed, but suffered heavy casualties. Now he has to seriously consider how to end it. There is no point in fighting any further unless there are reinforcements."
"This..." Yu Liang was shocked and asked subconsciously, "Will there be reinforcements?"
"I don't know." Shao Xun shook his head decisively.
If Meng Chao received reinforcements, he felt that Biyong would most likely not be able to be defended, and his own fate would not be any better.
This is a very sad thing, but also a very realistic thing.
As a time traveler, he cannot control his own destiny.
Life or death is just a matter of other people's thoughts.
With luck, he survived.
If you have bad luck, this trip will be in vain.
"Isn't Du Bo afraid?" Yu Liang asked.
"What's the point of being afraid?" Shao Xun glanced at him calmly and said, "In this life, people will encounter many life and death obstacles. Only by moving forward courageously can they have a glimmer of hope. If you do your best and still fail, it means that God doesn't favor you. If you die, you die, that's all."
Yu Liang was silent. She was only one year older than him, but she was so carefree, which made him admire her.
There are true heroes among the grassroots.
They have enthusiasm, courage and abilities that are beyond the reach of ordinary people, and in their time, they can often create amazing miracles.
This world is not a stage exclusive to children of aristocratic families.
Li Xiong, a Di people, captured cities and territories in Shu.
The shepherd general Ji Sang had a large army in Hebei.
The barbarian Zhang Chang successively conquered prefectures and counties in Jingzhou.
There are countless forces inferior to them.
Troubled times are coming - no, troubled times have already arrived - at this time, everything will be redefined.
What is real wealth? It is worth thinking about it.
Unconsciously, Yu Liang's three views were slightly shaken.
******
Shao Xun did not expect that the opportunity he predicted would come so soon.
At a place called Shiqiao outside Jianchun Gate, arrows and stones were flying everywhere. The Ye soldiers who were attacking in an overwhelming manner retreated in a panic and rushed towards their own camp in a disorderly manner.
General Ma Xian just died in battle, why are you waiting here?
At this moment, the rhythmic sound of horse hooves hitting the ground was heard in the distance.
Rushing in the front was a group of knights in distinctive armor. From afar, they could see that both the men and horses were wearing heavy armor and holding halberds. They were the armored cavalry of the Youzhou Tuqi Commander!
They lowered their veils, held their halberds at an angle, and followed the fleeing soldiers at a leisurely pace. When the time was right, they slowly increased their speed, held their halberds horizontally, and crashed directly into the chaotic enemy formation like a high-speed chariot.
More than a thousand armored cavalry demonstrated amazing power. They were like a sledgehammer, smashing the Hebei people dizzy.
The spearman threw away his spear and turned away.
The archers had no courage to shoot and they mixed in with the fleeing soldiers in a daze, fleeing for their lives.
Some Hebei cavalry wanted to step forward to stop the enemy, but were stopped by their own fleeing soldiers. The situation became chaotic and some were even pulled off their horses and sat on the ground cursing.
The Xianbei, Wuhuan and Xiongnu cavalry recruited by Sima Ying at a high price quickly circled around the two sides, trying to use their mobility to kill those terrible armored cavalry.
But behind the Tuqi Du of Youzhou, there were thousands of cavalrymen with long halberds led by Wang Hu, the general of the central army of Luoyang. They were not as bulky as the armored cavalry, but on the contrary, they were light and fast, and they stopped the charging Hu cavalry head-on.
The Xianbei cavalry were not so bad. Many of them were spear cavalrymen and had more contact with the Jin people in Youzhou. They were very familiar with the tactics of the Central Plains cavalry. Therefore, they fought back and forth and did not lose the upper hand for a while.
But the Wuhuan and Xiongnu cavalry were in a miserable state.
They mainly relied on horseback archery, and when they faced the enemy head-on, they were immediately scattered by the cavalry with halberds, and countless of them screamed and fell off their horses.
Someone was riding a horse and trying to escape, hoping to gain some distance before shooting an arrow. However, when he turned around, he found someone chasing him with a halberd in hand.
He had no advantage in speed, and not everyone could perform the skill of shooting from behind. His accuracy was not good enough, and he did not dare to turn around and shoot from the front. So he could only sigh and flee into the distance.
After the Hebei cavalry was suppressed, there was no suspense in this battle.
The light and heavy cavalry of the Luoyang Central Army attacked in turns, and the infantry took advantage of the situation to press forward. The Hebei army quickly collapsed, leaving their armor and weapons behind for more than ten miles. It was not until they encountered the Luoyang Imperial Army, which had previously defected, that they were able to stand firm.
But the heavy losses have already been incurred.
This battle was not just a matter for Ma Xian's army. All the armies suffered varying degrees of impact, with countless casualties and routs. Without counting carefully, thirty to forty thousand casualties were unavoidable, and the even larger number of routs would have taken a longer time to accommodate.
As for the generals, it was definitely not just Ma Xian who died. Just looking at the fallen general flags, you can tell that there were no less than ten of them, which can be said to be seriously injured.
The news of the disastrous defeat outside Jianchun Gate spread everywhere at the first opportunity.
When Meng Chao got the news, he couldn't describe his feelings in words.
You say you are happy, but the whole army was defeated and countless people died. How can you be happy?
You say he is sad, Lu Ji suffered a defeat, lost his troops and generals, and his fate is worrying, but he seems quite happy at the same time.
In short, he was stunned for a long time, and only reacted after another wave of his own attack was repelled by the Biyong defenders.
What I should consider now is how to get out of this situation!
After Sima Yi's great victory, would he launch a full-scale counterattack? It is very likely.
It would be very dangerous for them to stay in the south of the city. They must leave as soon as possible to avoid being surrounded and annihilated.
"Block the news. Anyone who dares to talk about the defeat at Jianchun Gate will be killed without mercy!" Meng Chao made a prompt decision and issued the order.
"Also, send those Handan soldiers to attack again."
"The rest of you, pack your bags. No, don't pack them. Reorganize your troops as quickly as possible and retreat towards Pyeongchang Gate."
"General, do you want to wait until night?" someone asked.
"I'm afraid we can't wait any longer." Meng Chao glanced at the top of the wall and sighed, "How far is Jianchun Gate from here? We can't take the risk. Retreat immediately."
"promise."
The order was quickly passed down. At one moment, drums rumbled, and five hundred Handan soldiers, driven by their officers, launched the last wave of offensive of the day with their heads down.
Inside the Mingtang, the defenders who were resting quietly lined up and waited for the order to retreat.
This battle seemed to have entered its most intense stage, but it finally came to an abrupt end at the climax.
(End of this chapter)