Chapter 941
: Fierce Battle in Anyang Mountains
Chapter 941: Fierce Battle in Anyang Mountains
At the end of Anyang Mountains,
The early summer wind brought a little warmth, and in the wilderness, it still swept across the land like the howling of ghosts and wolves. The Taiping Sect's army of more than 200,000 people was like a yellow earth dragon, winding northward, and the yellow flags fluttered in the wind.
suddenly,
The march suddenly slowed down, and only the sound of horse hooves could be heard coming from the front army.
"Report, Master Chu, there is a large army of the imperial court blocking the way in the open area ten miles ahead. They have already deployed their troops and it seems that they have been waiting there for a long time."
Almost instantly, Chu Yi Yue immediately raised his head and looked towards the north. Faintly, he could see a black line reflected on the official road!
He was shocked. Could it be that his strategy had been discovered? It didn't make sense when he thought about it. It took less than two days from leading the troops north to gathering the men. Even if the legendary clairvoyance and super hearing knew that he was going north, it would take several days to prepare. Not to mention that this place was only a day's journey away from Daliang City. It seemed that the imperial reinforcements had arrived first.
"Stop immediately and assemble the troops in a flying goose formation."
"Yes, Master Chu."
The messenger captain immediately responded loudly and rode away.
However, Zuo Feng's eyes fixed, and he immediately looked around alertly. There was an endless wilderness in the east, and the Anyang Mountains in the west were not densely forested. Even if there were ambushes, there would be no spring birds flying over them. That was to say, there were no ambushes in the dense forest opposite. The imperial army must have encountered them by chance, or the soldiers and scouts discovered the arrival of the army first.
"Master Chu, the imperial army came so quickly. Was it an ambush or a strange encounter? They assembled their troops first and we were a step slower. Should we fight or retreat?"
We were still at least ten miles away, so even if we walked we could still create some distance. We were just afraid that the soldiers would deploy their formations and slowly approach us, and in the end, there would be no escape.
After all, Daliang City is right behind him, and he can just leave, but what His Highness has asked him to do may be difficult to complete. If he wants to fight, how should he fight? Who will lead the troops on the other side, how many troops do they have, and what are the chances of winning? He can only wait and see whether he should avoid his attack or confront him.
"Commander Zuo, we must fight this battle. If we retreat, the imperial soldiers will follow us, and the results of the battles in Daliang City and Linshan County will be in vain. Fortunately, we discovered it first. If we were a day later, the imperial soldiers would arrive at Daliang City, and the hundreds of thousands of brothers in the sect would probably have no chance of survival."
Chu Yiyue thought about it several times in his mind, and then he firmly replied that instead of retreating timidly, it would be better to take advantage of the morale of the great victory and compete with the imperial army. It is still unknown who will win.
Just at this time,
The messenger in front came to report again;
"Report, Master Chu, the scouts ahead have reported that the imperial army heading south is about 200,000 strong, which is not much different from our army. In addition, the left protector has identified the reinforcements as soldiers from the Beijing camp in the Anhu camp. In addition, the commander's flag says "Prince Jin". The left protector asks, Master Chu, should we fight or not?"
"Oh, it's actually Jin Wang Zhou Ding. Does the court have no one else to use? Sending a young boy to lead the army must be a trick. What else is going on?"
Chu Yiyue was very suspicious. No matter how ridiculous it was, with so many military heroes in the capital, how could they dare to hand over the army to a young boy?
"Master Chu, we, the Taiping Sect, rose up in accordance with the will of heaven. How could we be afraid of the imperial army? I have found out that the imperial army is divided into two camps, the front and the flank. There are about 10,000 ambushed soldiers in the dense forest to the west. There is nothing unusual in other places. I am willing to be the vanguard."
The scout captain's face flushed, and he was full of vigor. Chu Yiyue nodded secretly, and the army's morale was high.
"No hurry, don't attack rashly. Since there is an ambush, it is not the work of King Jin. Go back and find Guardian He, Guardian Wei and others to discuss. Commander Zuo, what do you think?"
The dense forest on the west side of the stream is not dense enough to hide many people. Even if there are people hiding, they cannot escape the eagle eyes of the scouts. It is just used as a diversion. Their main force should be on the east side. Therefore, the army on the right must be sufficient. I wonder which one Commander Zuo will choose.
"Master Chu, the imperial army on the other side is just setting up a bewildering array. The King of Jin is not even twenty years old and has been kept in the palace. How could he have any experience in leading troops? If I were to say, the person leading the troops is none other than the Marquis of Luo Yun outside the pass, who is just using the King of Jin's skin.
If Marquis Luo Yun leads the troops and sets up an ambush, we must be careful in this battle. We have been walking for half a day, and although the distance is not far, the soldiers are a little tired. The officers and soldiers should rest and wait for the tired soldiers to tire themselves out, so we must not act rashly. "
He could fool others, but not him. The prince's secret guards were all over the military families. Although they were not aware of any disturbance, they never missed any important news.
There have been rumors in the capital for a long time that if Wang Ziteng was defeated, the court would definitely use Marquis Luo Yun to lead the troops south. This is a consensus among civil and military officials. The Prince of Jin is the eldest son of the current emperor and is deeply loved by the emperor. How could they dare to let him lead the troops south alone? It is nonsense.
But Marquis Luo Yun is known as the Human Shadow Tree. If he really were to lead the troops, it wouldn't be that easy. I wonder how Marquis Luo Yun plans to fight.
"Haha, Commander Zuo is still the one who can see clearly. The commander of the opposing court has set up a bewildering array. Perhaps the King of Jin is indeed in the array, but he will not lead the troops in the array. It is unnecessary to say that Marquis Luo Yun is so good at hiding.
Since the imperial army has deployed its troops, it is obvious that they have made careful arrangements. If we attack from the center, we will surely suffer heavy losses. We can only break through from the right wing. Commander Zuo, since we are going to fight, please do your best. "
After all, 100,000 new soldiers were under Zuo Feng's command. If they did not work together, they would surely lose the battle. Therefore, Sect Leader Chu gave a warning. Zuo Feng pulled the reins and laughed.
"Master Chu, don't worry. Although they are 100,000 new soldiers, they are also veterans trained by me. They have the weapons and armor of Linshan County and are stronger than those old soldiers in the Beijing Camp. But I am still a little hesitant about whether to fight or not, Marquis Luo Yun."
With a sigh, I suddenly felt my age. It is said that each generation is better than the previous one, but I was actually a little hesitant. It was really funny. However, when meeting a famous general, it is never too careful.
"Master Chu, can you be more careful and not fight today?"
As soon as this word comes out,
Beside him, He Qiang, the rear guardian of the Tianping Sect who had hurried over from the rear army, could not help but say;
"Commander Zuo, we have just started the war and we are going to stop now. Are we going to just stand here and watch as more than 200,000 of our brothers are frightened by a little kid?"
He didn't blame He Hufa for saying this. He also knew the purpose of going north. The city of Daliang behind them had not been taken yet. If they hesitated and the imperial army advanced, they would have to fight. Otherwise, the people in Daliang City would die in vain.
"Of course we can't just sit there and wait for death, Master Chu, otherwise we should set up camp first, stabilize our position, and then make long-term plans."
Unlike the quick-tempered He Guardian, the former Guardian Wei Siyuan was always steady. When he first arrived, he did not say a word. However, He Qiang was too impatient. How could he be so reckless when facing Luo Yunhou? Since he had already discovered the other party, why not take a step back and wait another day to take action?
After a few people interjected, the decision of whether to fight or not became even more difficult!
Behind the imperial army,
Zhang Jinyu stood on horseback and looked southward. The smoke and dust that had originally covered the sky and the sun stopped after a moment. It seemed that the enemy army had discovered them.
After waiting for a long time and seeing no movement from the enemy army, King Zhou Ding of Jin could no longer bear it and asked anxiously in the carriage:
"My Lord, we have already discovered the enemy, why are the enemy troops hesitating to move forward?"
Uh, this question, Zhang Jinyu shook his head helplessly, the people of Taiping Sect are not fools, the enemy has an ambush, it will be a problem if you rush over rashly, you should carefully organize the army and deploy the formation, that is to prepare for the battle, if you are just on the march, you can run away at any time,
"Your Highness, please do not be anxious. The people of the Taiping Sect are still investigating and testing. When leading troops to fight, one must guard against arrogance and impatience, and must not act on impulse. Their vanguard has formed a circle, less than ten miles away, but the middle and rear troops have not yet formed a formation. So, the leader of the Taiping Sect has not made up his mind."
In fact, I can understand what Master Chu is thinking. Even if I were to encounter this situation suddenly, I would still hesitate.
"How could this be, Lord? What if the enemy army didn't come?"
The Prince of Jin was worried about the city of Daliang, especially whether Wang Ziteng was dead or alive, as well as the Daliang City Jiedushi Lu Daiyuan. If the city was really breached, how could they break out of the city if they were blocked by the Taiping Sect bandits in front of them and escape.
"Your Highness, please do not disturb us. If the enemy army does not move, then we will do the opposite. We will press forward and force them to fight."
Zhang Jinyu glanced inside the car. Prince Jin was acting a little impatient, unlike before. He was so anxious. The emperor must have given instructions in the palace. He probably wanted to save Wang Ziteng and the others. That was about it. So now they had no choice but to fight.
"Okay. Your Majesty will decide."
The King of Jin seemed to be relieved, and then he fell silent.
"Ningbyon, blow the horn, and the entire army will advance slowly in formation, including the ambush troops in the west. Since we are going to fight, we should fight with momentum."
"Yes, Lord Marquis."
immediately,
A desolate horn sounded, and the generals of all the troops suddenly looked behind the central army formation and raised a red flag. Then, the captains at all levels stood tightly in front of the formation to command. The entire army formation was advancing slowly and tightly, heading south.
Zhang Jinyu turned around and ordered;
"Captain Ji, you all escort His Highness' carriage and return to the camp to wait." "Yes, Lord Marquis."
Ji Yunhui's face darkened and he waved his hand. The entire team turned around and retreated to the camp. Without the burden around them, Zhang Jinyu raised the corner of his mouth and looked at the Taiping Army in front of him. They were already in a panic. This time, let's see what the leader will choose.
On the southern official road,
The Taiping Religious army had not yet set out when the scouts from the front came to report:
"Report, Master Chu, all the imperial troops are marching forward in battle formation. The ambush troops in the west are also marching south in battle formation. Master Chu, please give the order."
Sect Leader Chu sighed slightly. It seemed that Marquis Luo Yun didn't want to let him go. It was said that Marquis Luo Yun was invincible in battle and invincible in attack. It was still unknown whether it was true or not.
"Commander Zuo, it seems that we have to fight this battle. I have decided to meet Marquis Luo Yun here. How do you think?"
"Ahahaha, since Patriarch Chu has made up his mind, I will be too lonely if I don't accompany Patriarch Chu. Patriarch Chu, please give the order."
Zuo Feng's face straightened, knowing that he had nowhere to retreat. Even if he wanted to retreat, it would be difficult for hundreds of thousands of troops to turn around in a short time. This would only cause him to lose his composure, so he might as well give it a go.
Seeing that Commander Zuo did not retreat or hesitate, Chu Yiyue finally calmed down and ordered,
"Okay, in that case, let Commander Zuo fight the troops on the eastern flank. I will send former Dharma Protector Wei Siyuan to lead 50,000 Taiping Guards to encircle the right wing and provide Commander Zuo with an opportunity. I will be responsible for watching the main front formation. As for those ambushing on the west side, send other people to contain them."
To say that an opportunity is provided is to warn Commander Zuo that he should give it a try. The opportunity is on the east side, not in the main formation. It depends on whether Commander Zuo will take it over. After all, in a battle formation, officers and soldiers are still stronger.
"Haha, don't worry, Master Chu. Since I have agreed, I will not ignore it. The 100,000 county soldiers are proficient in battle formations. I will directly press the main army in the front. The Master will have 50,000 guards and go around to the back. How do you think we can defeat them in one battle?"
"Okay, in that case, come here, tell the left protector to change the formation and attack the main formation of King Jin. Let the Five Elements Flag Master Cui Jiping lead 10,000 guards across the river and head straight for the ambush on the west side. Order the right protector to lead 50,000 guards and cooperate with the left commander to encircle the right wing and decide the outcome in one battle."
Chu Yiyue narrowed his eyes slightly and looked towards the imperial army in the north, which was slowly approaching. He immediately sounded the horns and drums in the army.
In an instant, the troops led by Zuo Ling, the vanguard of the Taiping Army, immediately changed their formation to a fish-scale formation, in the front. The Taiping army behind them was divided into two groups, forming a T-shaped formation. On the left was the main force of the Taiping Army, and on the right was the Zuo Feng army of 100,000. Behind them, there were 50,000 elite guards of the Taiping Army on standby, and another 10,000 guards led by the flag owner had already begun to cross the river and form a battle array.
When the army was ready, the imperial army had already gone halfway and was in sight. Zhang Jinyu also went to the front of the enemy's formation and carefully observed the changes in the enemy's formation.
"My Lord, the Taiping rebels have set up an offensive formation. Are they planning to counterattack with an attack?"
Ning Byeon looked ahead in disbelief. The distance was so close that they could see each other's soldiers clearly, even their facial expressions.
"What's the big deal? The Taiping Sect has experienced a series of wars, and its momentum is already strong. It's impossible for them to defend. If they defend for too long, they will lose. The best strategy is to attack instead of defend. It seems that the leader of the Taiping Sect, Chu, is worthy of his reputation."
It was rare for the Marquis to praise him. Ning Bian followed closely behind him, holding a long sword in one hand.
"Ningbyon, pass the order, archers, prepare, get into range, don't hold back."
"Yes, Lord Marquis."
As if receiving an order, the Taiping Cult army, after getting into position, actually began to move slowly, like two black lines approaching each other.
Zuo Ling, the left guardian at the front, looked solemnly at the soldiers rolling down the official road. It was obvious that their armor was different in style and much thicker.
"Everyone, raise your shields, raise your spears, and move forward slowly."
In an instant, the Taiping sect members in the front row suddenly changed their formation, raised their spears and shields, and the imperial guards on the opposite side did the same.
The two sides approached,
He Xiaocheng saw the right opportunity and shouted immediately;
"Bowmen, get ready. One hundred and fifty steps. Shoot in a concentrated manner. Release."
A dark cloud rose in the center of the formation, covering the sky and the sun. Arrows arrived in an instant and landed in the Taiping Sect's army formation, killing and wounding many people. Screams were heard everywhere. At the same time, Tang Zheng, the leader of the Five Elements Flag in the Taiping Sect's central army, immediately shouted,
"Archers, get ready, one hundred and thirty steps, release."
There was also a buzzing sound, and arrows rose up and fell into the imperial army. Unfortunately, most of the imperial army's armor was heavy and lacked lethality. Only a few people were hit by arrows and fell to the ground screaming.
Seeing that most of the arrows were useless, Zuo Ling drew out his long sword and shouted in a voice as loud as a bell;
"Brothers, raise your shields and go forward, and kill him without leaving a single piece of armor."
"The Taiping Sect is destined by heaven, and the world will be blessed. Kill them!"
After a loud slogan was shouted, all the Taiping Sect guards rushed over like crazy, holding long spears, closely arranged, with the spear tips flashing cold light, like a dense forest of steel.
When Zhang Jinyu saw this, his face changed and he immediately shouted,
"Arm yourselves in formation to meet the enemy, put down your shields, and let your archers release their arrows."
The imperial army stopped immediately and formed a battle formation, while the crossbowmen behind them continued to shoot. Although they had some success, it was a pity that the Taiping sect thieves, with fanatical eyes and high morale, rushed over fearlessly.
As the two commanders waved their flags, the drums of war roared, resounding through the sky like thunder.
The Taiping Sect's Zuo Ling vanguard army had already advanced in an orderly manner. When the two armies met, splashes of blood splashed across their territory. The front row of soldiers fell down in large numbers. He Xiaocheng's eyes turned bloodshot. In just a brief encounter, the front row of imperial guards were all gone in a single breath. Those were his old brothers.
"Chen Shang, have the javelin throwers shoot at close range and kill them, quickly!"
"Yes, Commander,"
Chen Shang's face flushed red, and he wanted to charge in with his sword, but when he saw the commander had given instructions, he turned back to the central army.
"Javelin throwers, ready, fifty paces ahead, release."
A small piece of spears rose up,
The projectile landed in the enemy's formation at close range, and almost instantly, it cleared a gap in the crowd, giving the brothers of the imperial guards at the front a chance to catch their breath.
In the west, although the number of people was small, the battle between the two armies was still fierce. The Taiping rebels did not deploy their troops at all. Instead, they relied on the dense forests and trees to hide and avoid arrows. They rushed in with swords and knives like wasps. Their formation seemed loose, but it was full of murderous intent. They used small groups of soldiers to flexibly intersperse.
When General Xuanwei Li Zongbao saw this, he decisively ordered the crossbow troops to change their target and shoot towards the other side of the river.
"Everyone listen up. After three rounds of projectiles, abandon the crossbows, draw your swords and cooperate with the spearmen to surround and kill the enemy."
After nearly three rounds of projectiles, Li Zongbao immediately led his troops and slowly retreated to the river bank to form a battle array. At this time, the Taiping Sect's bandits had already arrived in front of the battle array. The spearmen in the battle array held their spears and stabbed fiercely. The Taiping Sect's bandits in the front row screamed and fell to the ground, but the people behind them were fearless and continued to rush over. The shouts of killing and the sounds of weapons colliding were intertwined. As the number of people increased, the formation was broken up and they could only fight hard.
Especially in the front row, many brave warriors of the Taiping Sect used the flexibility of their long swords to cut off the spear shafts, and then swung their swords to kill. For a moment, the battlefield was covered with blood and flesh, and the blood flowed into the stream, dyeing the river red. There was even more sadness and desolation.
"Quick, break through the formation of the officers and soldiers and go around them."
Tang Zheng had a cold face and commanded his elite troops to start outflanking from behind. The officers and soldiers had nowhere to retreat. Xuanwei General Li Zongbao had a fierce look on his face and drew his sword.
"Brothers, fight out!"
"Kill!"
(End of this chapter)