When the Lingnan Army saw this, they realized that the imperial guards had indeed completely fled, and they finally felt confident and bold enough to pursue them with all their might.
Qiu Yizhi saw that although the imperial guards were fleeing in a disorderly manner, fortunately they were not slow and retreated safely, so he shouted: "Everyone, retreat!"
Everyone obeyed the order, quickly packed up their weapons, flags, drums, and retreated.
Seeing that the last 200-odd troops left on the battlefield were in order and their flags were up, and they did not look like they were fleeing at all, the Lingnan army became suspicious again and could not help but slow down their pace, not daring to pursue them closely.
The enemy did not try hard to catch up, but Qiu Yi's troops fled at full speed. After a few steps, they had already closed the distance with the Lingnan army, and in the blink of an eye they ran to the foot of the earthen hill where they were originally located.
The soldiers who were supposed to set up camp at the foot of the mountain following Cui Nan's order were still busy cutting down trees and building obstacles, but they saw the main force fleeing. Knowing that they had suffered a defeat, they were so frightened that they quickly put down their work and didn't know how to fight the enemy. They stood there at a loss like clay dolls or wooden men.
As soon as Qiu Yizhi arrived, he asked loudly, "Where is General Cui? How is the battle going on General Cui's side?"
Deputy General Cui Nan, who was in charge of this place, heard this and hurried over to report: "Your Highness Yi, there has been no news since General Cui left, and we don't know whether he won or lost."
After hearing this, Qiu Yizi immediately frowned - Cui Nan has always been famous for his offensive skills and always fought quickly. Now it has been an hour and a half since he set out, but there is still no news. He must have fallen into someone else's trap. Even if he didn't suffer a defeat like himself, he was probably trapped in a tough battle.
While he was thinking, he saw Lin Shuhan approaching under the protection of Yuchi Jiming and asked, "Sir, what happened? Did you lose?"
Qiu Yizi nodded and said, "The King of Lingnan is indeed cunning. Hangzhou City has been captured, and there are countless soldiers inside and outside the city. The situation on General Cui's side is unclear, and he must have been entangled by the enemy..."
Cui Nan and Qiu Yizi's large-scale mobilization this time was originally intended to defeat the Lingnan army in one fell swoop, but they did not expect the situation to take such a sudden turn for the worse. Even someone as wise and astute as Lin Shuhan was speechless.
The deputy general was horrified when he heard this, and asked hurriedly: "What should we do next? Please give us your instructions, Your Highness Yi!" Although there was some panic in his tone, he was still somewhat calm.
Qiu Yizi was alerted when he heard this. Thinking that there were at least 10,000 pursuers behind him, he quickly ordered: "The enemy has far more people than us and is chasing us here. Hurry up and order your soldiers to prepare to meet the enemy!"
The deputy general was also originally from the Old Youyan Dao. Although he had never fought directly under Qiu Yizi's command, he had more or less heard of Qiu Yizi's reputation and knew that this Prince Yi was resourceful and had never lost a battle.
Therefore, when he heard these words, he was very shocked and lost his composure. He paused and said, "Okay! Okay! I will ask my brothers to quickly build a camp and defend it in a dangerous place."
"Stupid!" Qiu Yizhi cursed in his heart, but said, "It's too late. Don't worry about the camp. Hurry up and order your soldiers to line up in front and prepare to meet the enemy. After these Lingnan soldiers are defeated, we will go to meet General Cui who is returning victoriously."
Although the deputy general tried to remain calm, he was actually extremely frightened and had no idea what to do. After hearing Qiu Yizi's order, he agreed without thinking and said, "Yes, yes!" Then he turned around and went back to make arrangements.
However, the soldiers left behind were tired and wounded soldiers who were temporarily unfit for use. Seeing these elite soldiers selected before flee in less than two hours, they were already somewhat shaken in their hearts.
After hearing the order, they nervously put down the tools for building the camp. Just as they were about to step forward to form a battle line, they saw the shouting and killing sounds gradually becoming clearer not far ahead. The enemy was rushing towards them like a tiger descending from the mountain, and they felt extremely guilty and timid.
The Lingnan Army on the opposite side had just won a great victory and their morale was at its peak. When they saw the crooked formation of the imperial guards, their confidence was boosted. They took a short breath and then rushed over like a tsunami.
Qiu Yizi knew that he could not be discouraged at all when he suffered a defeat, otherwise it would be a disaster. Therefore, he raised the sword in his hand high, shouted: "Brothers, follow me!" and rushed straight towards the enemy's vanguard.
His charge was so sudden that even Zhao Chengxiao, who was following closely, was startled and rushed out to protect Qiu Yizi.
The eighteen bandit soldiers who followed Zhao Chengxiao down from Funiu Mountain saw their leader Zhao alone protecting Qiu Yizi and about to engage in a gunfight with the enemy. Their murderous intent was aroused and they followed him out without thinking.
The two hundred militiamen from Shanyin County had all received great kindness from Qiu Yizi. Seeing that their benefactor was not afraid at all, they no longer had any fear of death and cheered up and rushed out.
Most of the leaders of the imperial guards were from the old Youyan sect. Seeing the indomitable spirit of the soldiers in front of them, which was quite similar to the style of the old Youyan army, the long-lost bloodiness in their hearts was finally aroused. They picked up their weapons and rushed into the enemy camp.
The morale of the rest of the imperial guards was finally aroused, their eyes turned red, and they followed suit and charged out.
At this time, the two armies were in a melee, and they no longer cared about any formations or tactics, let alone any conspiracy or stratagem. Even the crossbowmen under Qiu Yizi's command put down their crossbows and used swords and shields to fight the enemy in close combat.
The battlefield was turned into a chaotic mess by tens of thousands of soldiers from both armies - the eyes were filled with the blood-red color of flying flesh and blood, the ears were filled with the hoarse shouts of killing, the nose was filled with the disgusting smell of blood, the skin was filled with the greasy feeling of blood and water, and the mind was filled with the ruthless thought of putting the opponent to death.
At this time, no matter how sophisticated the tactics, how tight the formations, or how secret the strategies are, they are all useless. All you can rely on are the weapons in your hands, the determination in your heart, and daily training.
The Lingnan Army first captured the city of Hangzhou by surprise, and then defeated the Imperial Guards by luring the enemy deep into their territory. Now they have reached the camp of the government troops which has not yet been completed. They have been winning great victories all the way and their morale is high.
The Imperial Guards launched a desperate counterattack, with generals leading the way. Their determination to fight to the death was no less than that of the Lingnan Army.
However, the Imperial Guards were even stronger than their opponents because they had 218 elite soldiers under Qiu Yi who were fighting side by side. They were equipped with extremely fine Japanese swords, had been through hundreds of battles and were fearless. They also had martial arts personally taught by Yuchi Jiming, a top-notch master in the martial arts world. With their tacit cooperation, they could be said to be able to defeat ten enemies with one.
On the battlefield, the war was fierce and dangerous, and any slight change would completely tilt the balance of victory to one side. In today's bloody battle, the two hundred men under Qiu Yi were like the indispensable weights on the scale, gradually tilting the victory to the side of the Imperial Guards.
Seeing that the Lingnan Army on the opposite side was gradually falling into decline, Qiu Yizi, who was feeling lucky that he could barely defeat the enemy, had begun to think about what to do next, but then he heard a cannon shot behind him, followed by a deafening shout of killing.
Qiu Yizi was startled when he heard this, and hurriedly retreated from the vanguard to the rear guard under the protection of the troops. However, he was terrified when he looked into the distance - a large army had appeared behind the imperial guards, and there was no telling how many people there were all over the mountains and plains. The flags they held were all bearing the words and colors of the Lingnan Palace.
Qiu Yizi really couldn't understand. He had rushed here from the Wenzhou camp south of Hangzhou City, but he didn't encounter any Lingnan troops along the way. If such a large force set out from Lingnan Road, it would definitely pass through Wenzhou, and would definitely fight a bloody battle with the imperial guards stationed in Wenzhou, and there would definitely be battle reports from the imperial guards. But there has been no news from Wenzhou City in the past few days. Could it be that such a large force fell from the sky or emerged from the ground
Thinking of this, Qiu Yizi rubbed his eyes quickly. The Lingnan army, which seemed like a phantom, did not disappear from his sight.
Qiu Yizhi finally sighed and said to Zhao Chengxiao: "Brother Zhao, call off the battle, we have lost..."
Zhao Chengxiao was also a man who knew military affairs. He knew that it was already very difficult for his own militia and the imperial guards to repel the enemy troops coming out of Hangzhou City. They had no way of competing with these new forces behind them. If they attacked by force, it would be like hitting a rock with an egg.
But since he followed Qiu Yizhi, he had fought in the east and west, in the south and north, against the imperial court, against the Japanese pirates, against the heroes, and against Lingnan, and he had never failed. Today, seeing that the defeat was inevitable, he was indeed unwilling to accept it, and almost cried, and asked with a sob: "Sir, is there no other way?"
Qiu Yizhi shook his head and said with a wry smile, "Victory and defeat are common in the military. There has never been a general who always wins and never loses. This time, General Cui and I were too aggressive and fell into the trap set by the King of Lingnan. It is not unfair that we lost."
After hearing this, Zhao Chengxiao burst into tears. He waved his hand reluctantly and asked the "Black-necked Toad" who was in charge of delivering messages to strike the gong.
The mournful and long sound of the gong hovered over the battlefield, making people's hearts more nervous with each beat.
Upon hearing such a sound, the two armies, which were still fighting bloody battles, stopped fighting tacitly. They put down their weapons and looked at each other, feeling lost as if they had just had a nightmare.
Qiu Yi ordered his men to gather the remaining soldiers and told them not to move. He himself, under the protection of his personal soldiers and local militia, put on neat and tidy clothes and armor, arranged the troops into formation, mounted his horses, raised the flags, and headed calmly to the south to reinforce the army camp in Lingnan.
When they were about a hundred steps away from the enemy, Qiu Yizhi raised his hand to signal the troops to stop, and shouted forward: "Please speak to the opposing commander!"
Another cannon shot was heard in the Lingnan army, followed by the beating of war drums. There was a commotion in the formation but no sign of an attack. Instead, a passage appeared in the middle, and countless ceremonial guards came out of the passage, surrounding a general riding on a tall horse and coming to the front of the formation.
Qiu Yizi looked carefully and saw that the man was of burly build. He was wearing a scarlet silk battle robe, a gilded animal-faced jacket, and a golden phoenix-wing helmet. Although he was nearly fifty years old, he was energetic and handsome. He was none other than Zheng Gui, the King of Lingnan.
Qiu Yizi was relieved when he saw him. He bowed to Zheng Gui and said, "It turns out that the Prince of Lingnan has come in person. Your Majesty is still as skilled as ever. It is not shameful for me to lose to you!"
King Zheng Gui of Lingnan was in high spirits after winning a great battle, so he replied: "My dear nephew, you are very good at using troops. You almost turned the tide of the battle several times. I didn't want to come forward, for I was afraid that I would not be able to win if I led the whole army to attack!"
Qiu Yi said: "Your Highness, you are too kind! It is natural for people who are inferior to others in skills. We are prisoners now, but the soldiers under my command are all imperial soldiers and serve their respective masters. They have not offended Your Highness in any way. Please do not embarrass or abuse them. As for me, whether to kill or chop me up is entirely up to Your Highness."
The King of Lingnan laughed loudly: "Great! You are straightforward, a real man. I think my brother is really short-sighted, so he gave you a seventh-rank county official position. Why don't you follow me? I will also recognize you as my adopted son, and you will be on an equal footing with my son. When the world is pacified in the future, I can make you the Grand Marshal of the Army!"