The Emperor of Chu came to the front in person, the flag fluttered, and behind him were only dozens of officials and generals, and no guards.
Han Ruzi sent the last hundred troops. After the army entered the battlefield, he ordered the drums and led the army of nearly 10,000 soldiers to move forward slowly.
Most of the Chu troops were infantry, and Han Ruzi sent a large number of generals to gallop in front of the team to keep the formation in order. In fact, the first line was basically veterans.
The battlefield looked very close, but he had to walk for a while with only his feet. Han Ruzi reined in the reins and tried to walk as slowly as possible. He turned his head and saw that the setting sun was bloody and the sky was getting dark again. He didn't want to fight at night anymore, but he was more Do not want to retreat before the enemy.
This is a battle of morale. If you don't mention it in one breath, it will decline again and again.
He didn't look back. On the way to the front line, he had seen many panicked and blank eyes. There were too many recruits. Many of them didn't even hold their weapons in the right way. They who have never been close to the battlefield, facing a strong enemy, can't help but feel fear, and being able to stick to their position and not retreat is their greatest morale.
A stone's throw away from the battlefield, Han Ruzi stopped, and the army behind him also stopped.
These recruits must not be allowed to enter the battlefield, Han Ruzi reminded himself again, whispered a few words to the general next to him, and the general went to give the order in person.
He can only send veterans on the front line, only a few hundred.
The sun went down, the light quickly weakened, and the battlefield suddenly became both distant and approaching, so far away that it was impossible to see the face, only the silhouettes of people were seen, and the screams of killing were close to my ears, and it seemed that a knife and gun would be stabbed in the next moment.
The sound of the horn on the opposite side suddenly became urgent, as if urging his troops to fight hard. Without hesitation, Han Ruzi immediately dispatched the front-line veterans, and at the same time ordered the remaining soldiers to take a defensive position.
The battle is very simple. The soldiers in the front row hold long shields and short knives in one piece, the soldiers in the back row stretch out their spears, and the soldiers in the back temporarily put down their weapons. .
The toughness of the enemy army was only short-lived. Before a small number of Chu troops joined the battle, the sound of the horn on the opposite side changed, and the enemy soldiers began to retreat.
But this is not a disorderly retreat, but a steady and steady fight. The soldiers look for each other, gather together as much as possible, and retreat together after gathering a certain number to join more soldiers.
The generals around the emperor were overjoyed, "The enemy army has retreated, and our army can take advantage of the victory and pursue it."
The most adventurous emperor became extremely cautious. After waiting for a while, when he saw that the enemy army was indeed retreating and the sun was about to completely fall behind the mountain, he ordered: "Retract."
The general was surprised, but he still carried out his will immediately and ordered the gong to be called to withdraw the troops.
It is usually more difficult to retreat than to advance. Even withdrawing troops takes a long time. Soldiers who are fighting are likely to ignore the voices behind, and have to be reminded by others around them to react.
Fortunately, the enemy troops retreated first, reducing many unnecessary entanglements. As the night grew darker, Han Ruzi personally supervised the retreat of batches of soldiers.
After a whole day of fighting, it was difficult to say who would win and who would lose, but whether it was a hundred armies or a small number of Chu armies, they all returned to their own camp with a proud attitude, only bowing their heads when they passed by the emperor.
The two days of fighting in a row have made the soldiers more and more confident, especially those hundreds of armies, who suddenly realized that the gods and ghosts, who were previously regarded as heavenly soldiers, were not as powerful as they imagined, and could be defeated completely. .
The Chu army in the rear gave up a few passages, but still maintained a defensive position.
Han Ruzi stood on the horse and watched, and his heart gradually became uneasy. Many generals came back and gathered around the emperor, but Fan Zangshan and Cui Teng had never been seen, and no one claimed to have seen them.
Han Ruzi sent a messenger to the front of the enemy line with three interpreters, and proposed to jointly clean up the battlefield and carry away their respective wounded so that they could fight again tomorrow.
The enemy readily agreed, and the envoy returned. Han Ruzi was a little surprised, but he didn't think much about it and withdrew to Yingfeng Village. According to the agreement, only a thousand soldiers were left to clean up the battlefield. , immediately sent to the stockade.
When the troops withdrew to their respective camps, it was already late at night. Han Ruzi summoned dozens of generals from the hundreds of troops, saying that he had seen their bravery, and simply encouraged a few words, implying that tomorrow would be the final battle, and that the Chu army would be fighting. All in the middle of the battle.
In the face of these aliens, Han Ruzi couldn't be too kind. On the contrary, he sat on the only chair. In front of and behind him were the guards of the Chu army in heavy armor and armed with halberds. .
The emperor was not angry at the indecision of the Baijia Army in the morning, they were already very happy.
The alien generals withdrew, leaving only two people to participate in the imperial meeting.
The plan for the attack on the entire line had already been drawn up, but it was revised overnight. The Baijia army suffered quite a few casualties, and the Chu army also changed.
From time to time, Han Ruzi looked up at the entrance of the hall. People often came in to report the situation, but there was no news of Fan and Cui. The emperor's guards only returned with seven or eight people, and they were separated from them a long time ago. 's whereabouts.
The young general Xie Cun returned safely, and he was not lightly tired. It was not his advantage to be in charge. He took a rest for a while before coming to participate in the meeting. As soon as he came, he made many suggestions, "Tomorrow will be the outcome of the battle. To defeat the enemy army, you must be prepared to pursue and encircle it. Since you must win, you must win a big victory, and you cannot let the enemy army escape back to Shenxiong Pass and join forces outside the Great Wall."
There was also a large army outside the fortress, which was facing off against the main force of the Chu army led by Chai Yue.
After listening to the interpreter, the generals of the Baijia Army were very excited, and said a lot of words, the interpreter said: "They said that most of the troops outside the Great Wall are also from Western countries, so it's not a problem. After the victory here, they will go to persuade them to surrender. , 9 out of 10."
Some modifications have been added to the translation, but the meaning remains the same.
The gods and ghosts are victorious in a hundred battles, and because of this, a single defeat can make the former servant army doubt him.
Han Ruzi accepted Xie Cun's suggestion. Among the generals, Xie Cun was the only one who understood the emperor's intentions best. On the one hand, the imperial meeting was a real formation of troops, and on the other hand, it gave confidence to the hundreds of troops.
The Chu army always did not participate in the war, after all, it would raise some doubts, and the emperor hoped that the battle would be over on the third day.
The plan was almost made, everyone retired, and they still had time to sleep for an hour or two.
Han Ruzi didn't sleep, sitting in the hall reading the official documents sent from the rear, and at the same time waiting for the news that the battlefield was being cleaned up ahead. Two eunuchs accompanied the emperor, constantly trimming candle wicks, replacing torches and charcoal basins.
The hall was empty, and the chill was still getting more and more obvious.
There were a lot of footsteps outside the hall, and Han Ruzi looked up and saw Wang He hurried in, knowing that the matter was finally settled.
Wang He was covered in blood, and just as he was about to kneel, he was stopped by the emperor, "Wang Du Wei Ping's body."
Wang He cupped his hands and said: "The two generals Fan and Cui were seriously injured. On the way back, I will report to Your Majesty first. The ministers have neglected their duties and failed to keep the two generals safe. Please forgive me."
Han Ruzi breathed a sigh of relief, got up and came to Wang He, cupped his hands and said, "The guards are not soldiers who are charging forward, I knew this earlier, but sending the minister to protect Fan and Cui on the battlefield is really hard for a strong man, Captain Wang Du. It worked without fail.”
Remain majestic to the generals of a hundred armies of different races, but don't have to bluff to the people around you.
Seeing the emperor bowing his hands, Wang He was taken aback. Hearing the emperor finished speaking, he was even more surprised. He wanted to kneel again, but was supported by the emperor, "Don't be too polite, how many guards are coming back?"
"There are about 30 people, and there are more than 50 soldiers of the military guards." Wang He replied that the emperor's guards suffered heavy losses, with more than half of the casualties.
Han Ruzi sighed, "Captain Wang, go and rest."
Wang He stepped back, grateful.
Han Ruzi paced back and forth in the hall, and after another quarter of an hour, the soldiers finally carried Fan Zangshan and Cui Teng back.
Fan Zangshan was injured the most. He was still in a coma. He was immediately sent to the barracks. The imperial doctor saw him. Cui Teng was better, but he injured one leg and could not stand up. He could only sit and still hold the wooden box in both hands , the box was tied with a thick rope and hung around the neck.
"Why did Your Majesty withdraw? If you keep fighting, you will be able to capture the ghosts tonight."
Han Ruzi smiled and shook his head, "You only know how to attack, but you don't know how to protect yourself. You don't have the style of a general."
"I don't want to be a general for a long time, and I have to tell your majesty the truth. I didn't kill a single enemy, and I just followed General Fan on horseback and charged."
Cui Teng's martial arts are ordinary, and he has to hold the wooden box with both hands. He can't do anything except rush. His leg was also crushed when he fell off the horse. He was also injured in many places, and it was all because of the desperate protection of the emperor's guards that he did not fall into the enemy's hands.
Han Ruzi asked Cui Teng to rest, and went to visit Fan Zangshan himself. The imperial doctor had just bandaged the wound and whispered to the emperor: "General Fan has been injured too much and is too heavy. Maybe he can survive, but it will be difficult to think about going to the battlefield. already."
Han Ruzi sighed that the Chu army was empty and had to use Fan Zangshan excessively, "Don't worry about the battlefield, saving General Fan is your greatest credit."
"Yes, Your Majesty, Wei Chen will do his best."
Han Ruzi didn't sleep all night.
The battle on the third day started relatively late.
After waiting for more than an hour, the hundred armies marched forward, and the two sides shot arrows at each other across a long distance. No one was willing to risk a large number of casualties.
Nearly noon, the Chu army began to detour to the enemy's side and rear according to the original plan.
Shortly after noon, the Chu army had not yet reached the position, and the enemy army began to retreat. At first, it was orderly, but it didn't take long for it to show signs of chaos.
The generals in front did not have time to report to the emperor, and immediately ordered the pursuit.
Han Ruzi saw the changes in the front line on the watchtower, and was a little confused, suddenly woke up, and blurted out: "Da Chanyu has escaped!"
Han Ruzi regretted it too late, and if the god and ghost Dan Yu escaped, I don't know how long this battle would last.