The sudden and shocking changes in the rear stopped the Song army's pursuit. Many people couldn't help but look back. After seeing that most of their military camps were destroyed by the flood, those who followed Sun Tu fought out. The soldiers who came from the camp were even more frightened, and at the same time they began to retreat in confusion.
Of course, what I was afraid of was that if I had not believed in General Sun's reputation and followed him out of the camp, I was afraid that I would have fallen into this flood. Even if they could struggle to escape to higher ground, with the military camp destroyed, if another Liao army took advantage of the situation and came to kill them, it would probably be completely over, right
But at the same time, many people also felt fear again in their hearts. No matter which army it is, the Chinese army camp and its commander play a reassuring role in their hearts. Even if these Song troops have obeyed Sun Tu's wishes and come out, they still care about the rear camp. Now that the camp has been destroyed and Tong Guan and other generals are not sure whether they are alive or dead, the blow to them is naturally extremely huge, so huge that Sun Tu's influence has been weakened to the extreme.
Some people were holding back, some were looking around, and some were secretly shrinking back... After all, the soldiers of the Song Army had been too miserable for hundreds of years. They didn't have the sacrifices of the proud soldiers who swept across the northern and western regions in the Han and Tang Dynasties. Sun Tu could inspire them with their courage once, but it would be impossible to boost the morale of the army in the face of such a major change and let them continue to pursue the Liao army regardless of the rear.
Sun Tu, who was at the front of the team, clearly felt this after glancing back. This time, he was powerless and could only shake his head and smile bitterly. If the Western Army can still maintain a certain combat strength, maybe he can still give it a try, but it is obvious that the Western Army has reached the end of its strength at this moment. It is the limit to be able to follow the reinforcements for a while. If you want to rely on tens of thousands of wounded and exhausted It is difficult for the strong to expand the results of the war.
This can only be determined by the two elders of the Zhong family who smiled bitterly and shook their heads not far away, and the Western cavalry who rushed back quickly from the front. Master Zhong said that they are best at using troops. If given the opportunity, how could they not fight for it? But sometimes when manpower is exhausted, it really can’t be forced.
Thinking of this, Sun Tuce immediately stepped forward and came to the two elders of the Zhong family: "I have met the two old generals." This was the first conversation between him and the two today.
The second elder also looked over, and the bitterness and shame on his face became more and more serious: "Qianli, you really led the army to rescue this time, otherwise I, the soldiers of the Western Army, might..."
"But I'm ashamed. The soldiers have been fighting for a whole day. They are already exhausted. I'm afraid they can't fight anymore..." Zhong Shizhong directly stated the problem at hand. Although Zhong Shidao didn't speak, the look on his face It's all said and done.
"The camp in the rear was attacked. Our army's morale has been unstable. We are afraid that we will give up and retreat." Sun Tu also sighed softly: "After all, it was just a mistake. I didn't expect that the Liao people had such an arrangement. , So that the success fell short!" He was indeed quite annoyed. He had finally managed to seize power in the army at all costs. He thought he could win in one battle, but in the end, such mistakes and changes happened.
"It's up to people to make things happen, and it's up to God to do it. As of now, we can only leave it at this." Zhong Shidao said seemingly comfortingly.
"Thousands of miles away, there is no need to be too upset. In this battle, we not only avenged our previous humiliation, but also had a chance to win. The Liao army's casualties were not lower than ours. We have achieved the set goal. It is not a waste to retreat at this time."
No gain. "Zhong Shizhong also advised earnestly. He was really afraid that Sun Tu would continue to order the pursuit regardless of his youth and arrogance.
In fact, Sun Tu was already aware of the current situation and would not be too pushy. He nodded immediately: "Then we will retreat. Our army will take the rear, and the Western army will go first!" Compared to fighting for a whole day, the troops were exhausted and suffered heavy casualties. The situation of the Western Army, the Northern Army and the Song Army, which had just entered the battle, was much better.
The two old generals did not show too much humility to this proposal, and immediately nodded in agreement. As orders were issued one after another and flags were waved, the Western Army quickly retreated to the rear.
As for the soldiers of the Northern Army, although they looked a little hesitant, they did not dare to act randomly before receiving military orders. Moreover, the Liao army was still retreating and no longer dared to advance, so they naturally felt relieved. It was not until the Western army had retreated a few miles away that Sun Tu gave the order to slowly retreat towards the rear.
The retreat of the Song army naturally fell into the eyes of Yelu Dashi and the two men in the Liao army camp ahead, which made the two of them feel even more upset. Because this time, they really missed a big victory. Just from the reaction of the Song army after the barracks was attacked by the flood, we can know that if they can seize this opportunity, they will definitely gain a lot. Victory, even if the Song army cannot be completely annihilated, it is very possible to drive them out for dozens of miles, or even let them retreat to Yanmen Pass and be unable to retreat.
But now, they gave up halfway. Not only did they fail to take advantage of the opportunity to win, but they also suffered extremely serious casualties. It can be said that from a strategic point of view, Yelu Dashi's overall plan has completely failed. This made him angrily hit the wall with his fist, and said with hatred: "It's just a little bit worse. If the flood could have entered the Song camp earlier, this battle would not be the outcome now!"
"Dashi doesn't have to be like this. At least we can't be considered defeated in this battle. If it weren't for your plan, it would really be irreversible." Yelu Xiongge hurriedly expressed relief. What he said did come from the bottom of his heart. As long as he thought about the previous changes, he was suddenly frightened.
"Your Majesty, there is no need to comfort me like this. Although this battle was not completely defeated, it was still a defeat. After this battle, the situation between the enemy and ourselves has been reversed, and the initiative has completely returned to them. It was my miscalculation that led to this result. , so if the imperial court wants to blame, I will bear the responsibility!" Yelu Dashi immediately took the responsibility and said.
"No, you have done your best. It is my responsibility as the coach. If we could have launched the offensive earlier and put the initiative in our hands, this battle would not be what it is today."
After the two talked about it, they couldn't convince each other in the end, so they could only put things aside for the time being and go to the military camp to welcome the return of their soldiers.
This battle indeed caused heavy casualties to the Liao army. Just the battle with the Western Army had cost them an extremely heavy price, and the subsequent arrival of reinforcements from the Song Army caused them to retreat hurriedly, causing countless casualties along the way. When they returned to the military camp, they Everyone looked heavy and downcast.
Especially Yelu Chen, whose face was full of guilt. As soon as he saw the two generals, he dismounted and knelt down: "The last general went out unfavorably and returned in defeat, so he is willing to be punished."
Yelv Xiongge immediately stepped forward and helped him up: "You don't have to be like this. If you are really wrong, it's me, the coach. You and your soldiers have tried their best. Dashi Linya and I are watching. in sight
middle. "
Yelu Dashi had also cheered up at this time, looked at the dejected soldiers in front of him and said loudly: "Your previous performance has been seen by both the king and me. You have been loyal to the country and have not committed any crime. And this battle We are not really defeated. Now that the Song Army’s camp has been destroyed, the casualties will only be higher than mine. There will be a big battle next, and we still have a chance to win! I believe that as long as our Daliao soldiers work together, , the final victory will definitely belong to us!"
Even though he was upset and was blaming himself just now, Yelu Dashi was extremely confident at this moment and tried his best to cheer up the soldiers. Yelvxiongge also understood what he meant, and immediately spoke up, finally comforting everyone, and this restored some of the morale that was about to hit the bottom.
It was not until the soldiers entered the camp and several important generals returned to the central army tent that some uneasiness and confusion appeared on their faces: "Yeluchen, the key to this battle is that reinforcements suddenly appeared in the Song Army's central camp. "Come out, do you have any clues about this? Also, who is the general leading the army?" Yelu Dashi quickly asked what he was most concerned about.
Yeluchen's heart was moved and he quickly replied: "The general is also deeply confused about this matter, because based on previous judgments, the main force of the Song Army did not dare to act rashly, and the same was true when fighting until dark. But suddenly, the Song Army But they were killed, and there was not much structure in the formation. It seemed that the Song soldiers decided to send troops spontaneously, rather than the arrangements made by Tong Guan, the commander of the Song army." As he spoke, he recalled the events in the previous battle. The more he talked about the changes, the more doubts he had in his heart.
This matter indeed revealed too much strangeness, and after thinking about it carefully, Yeluchen said even more strangely: "As for the flags, although there are many, none of them are the flags of the main generals of the Song Army..."
"Is this happening?" Yelu Dashi couldn't help but stand up and pace around, mumbling: "Based on my understanding of the Song Army, they hardly have such courage. Since this matter was not ordered by Tong Guan, how could it happen? What? Was there a sudden mutiny in the Song army camp?"
"Mutiny? Right in front of the two armies?" Yelu Xiongge couldn't believe his ears.
Yelu Chen, on the other hand, was a little moved after hearing this: "It's possible that the last general had seen the Song army's camp. Before they sent out troops to fight out, there did seem to be something strange. It's just because they were far away, so they didn't I can see clearly..."
"The problem must be that in this chaos, someone in the Song army saw the secret of the war, so they launched a mutiny at all costs, and then led the troops to fight out, ruining my overall plan!" Yelu Dashi gritted his teeth and said: "I can't believe that. Now, there is such a person in the Song Army, who could he be!"
Speaking of this, he suddenly felt something in his heart, and a certain person's name had surfaced: "Will this person ruin my overall situation? Sun Tu..." He still remembered that it was mentioned in the letter from Xiao Yanping Feige. Sun Tu and Jiji have already arrived at the front line, but can such a new guy in the army really have the courage and ability to stage a mutiny on the battlefield
But in any case, this is an idea, and it may be an entry point to solve the current dilemma. Thinking of this, Yelu Dashi has become calm again, it seems it's time to do some testing!