Chapter 791
Poyang Lake Showdown! Chen 94 VS Zhu Chong 8!
The main battlefield at Poyang Lake.
Ten miles south of Kanglang Mountain.
The two armies were fully deployed in the morning light.
To the west, Chen Jie's central army of Han troops resembled a black mountain floating on water.
Three hundred warships were arranged in three lines, with the vanguard consisting of one hundred "sea eels" with iron-clad prows and flanks on both sides, resembling the fangs of a giant beast.
The central force consisted of a hundred large warships surrounding the flagship "Victory." The black "Han" character flag on the bow of the 33-zhang-long giant ship fluttered in the wind. The rear force consisted of a hundred supply ships and reserves.
To the east, Zhu Chongba's Wu King's army, in the central camp, resembled a crimson roc spreading its wings. It also consisted of three hundred warships, with the vanguard of one hundred "mengchong" ships arranged in a wedge formation, their arrowheads pointing directly at the enemy lines.
One hundred warships of the central army formed a square formation, with the flagship "Dingyuan" in the center. Under the large banner with the character "Zhu" on it, Zhu Chongba, wearing red armor, stood with his hand on his sword; one hundred horse ships of the rear army were ready to provide support at any time.
The two armies stood five miles apart, facing each other in silence.
On the lake, there were only the sounds of the wind, the water, and the fluttering of the battle flags. Nearly 100,000 officers and soldiers held their breath and dared not breathe loudly, for fear of alerting the other side and causing the war to develop out of control. Faced with such a large scene, the soldiers of both armies were afraid, terrified, and mostly dumbfounded!
Zhu Chongba raised his telescope, and the lens captured the figure in golden armor at the bow of the "Victory" ship.
At this moment, Chen Jie also held up his binoculars and looked at Zhu Chongba, who was wearing red armor, opposite him.
The two looked at each other through the mirror, as if they could see through the surface of Wuli Lake and see the raging fire of battle burning in each other's eyes, a fusion of uncontainable fighting spirit.
It's all for that saying: "If we fight to the death over Poyang Lake, whoever loses is a fake emperor!"
"Chen Jiu Si is quite composed today," Zhu Chong Ba said to Mu Ying beside him, putting down his glasses.
“He’s waiting.” Mu Ying pointed to the Han army’s vanguard formation. “Look, his vanguard formation is 30% tighter than yesterday, with the flanks slightly protruding forward—this is a variation of the ‘Crane Wing Formation,’ which can be used for both offense and defense. He doesn’t want to take the initiative to attack today; he’s waiting for us to make the first move.”
"Wait for what?"
"Wait for news from the western front." Mu Ying looked northwest, where Xu Da and Zhang Dingbian were fighting on the flank. "If Zhang Dingbian wins, Chen Jiu Si will take advantage of the situation and launch a fierce attack; if Xu Da wins, he will hold his ground."
Zhu Chongba was silent for a moment, then suddenly laughed: "Dream on. Then we won't let him wait. Order Hua Yun, the vanguard commander, to lead fifty warships in a feigned attack from the front. The central army will split into two routes, with Fei Ju leading the left and Lu Zhongheng leading the right, to flank from both sides. Let's see how big Chen Jiusi's wings can spread."
"promise!"
Mu Ying nodded and immediately relayed his deputy commander's orders.
At noon, the war drums sounded.
Hua Yun's fifty warships shot out like arrows. These ships were long and narrow, extremely fast, and had iron spikes on their bows, specifically designed to penetrate enemy lines.
Led by Hua Yun, they charged straight into the center of the Han army's vanguard, without flinching or dodging, like a sharp knife piercing the heart of the enemy formation.
"Good timing!"
"Put down the racket!"
The Han army's vanguard commander immediately ordered a counterattack, and one hundred sea-going warships lowered their batons, slamming them down like countless giant hands onto the Wu king's warships.
However, the Wu King's warships were small and agile, weaving through the gaps between the masts. Every now and then, a warship would get close to the enemy ship, and the soldiers would throw out grappling hooks and board the enemy ships to fight.
Almost simultaneously, the Wu King's army began to outflank the enemy on both the left and right flanks.
Fei Ju led fifty "eagle ships" to cut in from the left flank, specifically targeting the sails and rudders of the Han army's vanguard on the left flank; Lu Zhongheng led fifty "mother-and-child ships" to advance from the right flank, with the mother ships carrying the child ships, releasing the child ships when they approached the enemy formation, carrying suicide soldiers for a surprise attack.
Chen Jie watched all this through the telescope, his expression unchanged. He had seen this move before yesterday.
"These are Zhu Chongba's three tricks!" He put down his glasses and said to Sun Yong beside him, "A feint attack from the front, a real attack on the flanks, trying to tear apart my wings. Order the vanguard: the center retreats, the flanks spread out. If he wants to tear, let him tear. Let's see if he can tear faster or we can close in faster."
"promise!"
At a command, the flag was raised. The Han army's vanguard formation suddenly changed, and the central sea-going warships abruptly retreated, clearing a path and allowing Hua Yun's warships to penetrate deeper.
Meanwhile, the left and right flanks moved forward to encircle the Wu King's army, like the wings of a crane slowly closing, aiming to trap the flanking forces of the Wu King's army in the middle.
"We've fallen into their trap!" Hua Yun, seeing the Han army change formation aboard the flagship, urgently ordered, "Retreat! All troops retreat!"
Unfortunately, it was too late.
The speed of the Han army's two flanks far exceeded expectations, and in the blink of an eye, they had cut off the retreat routes of the Wu king's army on both flanks.
Fei Ju and Lu Zhongheng's fleets were divided and surrounded, and they were caught in a fierce battle.
Zhu Chongba, seeing this scene from the main formation, frowned.
"Order the central army to advance and provide support!" He drew his sword. "Also, order the rear army to split into two groups and encircle the Han army's flanks from the outside! Even if it means attrition today, we must rescue Fei Ju and Lu Zhongheng!"
"Yes!"
At noon, the battlefield was in complete chaos.
The lake, spanning five miles in circumference, became a giant grinding wheel of flesh and blood.
Thousands of warships were entangled together, their formations already disrupted, relying entirely on the generals' on-the-spot command and the soldiers' bravery.
On the left flank, Fei Ju's fifty eagle ships were surrounded by the Han army's eighty sea loach ships.
The eagle boats were fast, but the sea loach ships had battering poles. Eagle boats were constantly hit by the battering poles, their hulls shattered, and soldiers fell into the water. Those who fell into the water swam desperately towards their friends, but Han archers fired arrows from the ships, and a pile of corpses immediately floated to the surface of the lake.
Fei Ju personally led his flagship, charging left and right, ramming three enemy ships in succession, but his own ship was also badly damaged.
An arrow struck his left shoulder, but he gritted his teeth, broke the shaft, and continued to command.
His personal guards tried to bandage his wounds, but he shoved them away, his eyes wide with rage, and roared as if he wanted to devour someone: "Don't worry about me! Order the whole army: Form a circular formation and charge outwards! Anyone who retreats even half a step, I'll chop him down first!"
On the right flank, Lu Zhongheng's mother and daughter ships encountered an even more brutal encirclement and attack.
The tactics of mother-and-daughter ships rely on surprise; once their methods are discovered, their effectiveness is greatly reduced.
The Han army did not engage the smaller boats at all, but instead smashed them with batons and fired rockets. More than ten of the fifty mother-and-child boats were turned into fireballs, burning and sinking on the lake. The soldiers on board screamed and cried out as they were burned to death and swallowed by the lake!
Lu Zhongheng's eyes were bloodshot. He saw a small boat finally manage to attach itself to a Han army warship. Ten soldiers on the boat had just jumped onto the enemy ship's deck when they were riddled with arrows from all sides. Before dying, one of them lit the gunpowder canister in his arms and perished together with five Han soldiers.
They're all great, they're all great, but the enemy looks stronger!
"General, let's retreat!" The lieutenant then came to Lu Zhongheng's side, trying to drag him away!
"Where to retreat?" Lu Zhongheng cleaved the incoming arrows with his sword, his eyes bloodshot, and shouted, "Enemy ships are all around us, we can only fight our way forward and carve a bloody path!" In the central army direction, Zhu Chongba personally led his main force forward to launch a counterattack against Chen Jie's central army.
This is a true head-on collision, warship against warship, pole against pole, arrow against arrow.
Although the two flagships, Dingyuan and Desheng, did not directly board each other, they were both within the range of each other's ballistae and cannons. Giant arrows of cannon fire constantly swept between the two ships, falling into the water and creating towering columns of water.
At this moment, amidst artillery fire and crossbow bolts!
Chen Jieli stood at the bow of the "Victory" ship, his golden armor gleaming blindingly in the sunlight. He also held a long sword in his hand, but it remained sheathed; he simply watched the battlefield coldly. His personal guards repeatedly urged him to retreat into the cabin to avoid the arrows, but he seemed not to hear them.
"Your Majesty, the left flank has defeated twenty of the Wu King's eagle ships!" a general reported.
"The right wing destroyed fifteen enemy ships!"
"The Hua Yun unit of the vanguard has begun its retreat!"
Good news kept coming, but Chen Jie showed no joy on his face. He raised his telescope and looked at the main camp of the Wu King's army.
In the mirror circle, Zhu Chongba was also standing at the bow of the ship, looking up through the mirror. The two looked at each other through the mirror and saw the same thing in each other's eyes: fighting spirit!
This was not a battle to be won easily, and Chen Jie knew it, as did Zhu Chongba. The two sides were evenly matched in troop strength, warships, and general abilities. In the end, it would be a battle of ruthlessness, endurance, and who would give out first.
This is a stalemate!
As time went on, the battle remained deadlocked.
Although the Wu King's army suffered heavy losses on both flanks, they were not completely annihilated and were still fighting a bitter battle.
The central army and the Han army fought fiercely, with both sides losing 30% of their ships. The lake was littered with broken wood, tattered flags, and corpses, and the water was stained dark red with blood, gleaming eerily in the afternoon sun.
Chen Jie's "Desheng" had been hit by more than a hundred arrows, and the superstructure had caught fire three times, all of which were extinguished. Zhu Chongba's "Dingyuan" was in no better condition; a large hole had been punched in the port side by a cannonball, and it was leaking water. The craftsmen were working hard to repair it.
"Father, should we withdraw our troops for now?" Mu Ying asked in a hoarse voice. Although he was wearing armor, his robe sleeves had been torn in several places by stray arrows, making him look quite disheveled.
Zhu Chongba was about to speak when he suddenly stopped. He turned to look northwest, where three plumes of smoke rose on the horizon.
The black smoke shot straight into the sky, a shocking sight against the azure backdrop.
Immediately afterwards, fleeing soldiers came in hastily from the northwest in small boats, the Han army flags on the boats were askew, and the soldiers had abandoned their helmets and armor.
Almost simultaneously, fleeing soldiers also arrived from the southeast—this time it was the army of the King of Wu, with even more dilapidated ships and fewer men, many of whom were wounded.
Two groups of routed soldiers arrived at the edge of the main battlefield almost simultaneously, bringing the same message:
"General Xu Da has been defeated! Zhang Dingbian has routed the right wing of the King of Wu's army and burned more than eighty ships!"
"Commander-in-Chief Zhang Dingbian has achieved a great victory! Xu Da's remaining troops have retreated to Xieshan!"
The sound drifted on the lake breeze, and though it was not clear, the four words "Xu Da has been defeated" struck the hearts of every soldier in the Wu army like a heavy hammer.
"what!"
Zhu Chongba swayed and had to grab the gunwale to steady himself. He couldn't believe his ears. Xu Da had been defeated. His ever-victorious general, the one who was well-versed in the "Military Manual of Yue Fei," had been defeated. How could this be? How could this be!
Zhu Chongba looked incredulous. The messenger said, "During the battle, the forces were evenly matched. Who would have thought that the wind direction would suddenly change midway, turning our upwind position into our downwind position? The battle situation changed instantly. Zhang Dingbian seized the opportunity, took the chance to expand his gains, and defeated Commander Xu!"
"The wind has changed?"
Zhu Chongba never expected that the reason for his failure would be the timing of events!
Heaven is not protecting me, Zhu Chongba!
He looked northwest, where the smoke of war had not yet dissipated, leaving three menacing black streaks in the sky, looking so ferocious and terrifying!
"What? Xu Da lost? Hahaha~ Xu Da lost!"
Upon hearing the news, Chen Jie was first taken aback, then burst into laughter, the sound echoing across the lake and causing the surrounding soldiers to cover their ears.
After laughing, Chen Jie was still not satisfied. He then channeled his inner energy and shouted across the river:
"Zhu Chongba! Did you hear that? Xu Da has been defeated! Your right-hand man has been cut off by my Zhang Dingbian! Haha, the number one general in the world has fallen to my Dingbian!"
"And today you will also lose along with your Xu Da. Let's settle this once and for all. Whoever loses is the fake emperor."
He drew his commander's sword and pointed it eastward:
"All troops, listen to my command! Banner forward, press forward, press forward for me! We will not retreat until Zhu Chongba is defeated today!"
Upon seeing their King of Han so brave and charging forward with his banners, the Han army's morale soared, and their offensive suddenly became fierce.
The Wu army was stunned by the news of Xu Da's defeat and was momentarily caught off guard. Xu Da was the Wu army's war god, and his defeat dealt an unprecedented blow to the morale of the entire army. In an instant, the army's morale collapsed, and their formation became loose.
Zhu Chongba watched all this, took a deep breath, and slowly drew the sword from his waist. The sword reflected the sunlight, its cold gleam dazzling.
"Give the order to the entire army." His voice was hoarse, but unusually calm. "Form square formation and retreat towards Xieshan. Take all the wounded and dead with you. As for the warships that cannot be taken... burn them and leave them for the enemy."
"King Wu!" the generals exclaimed.
"Execute the military order." Zhu Chongba said decisively, "Today's defeat is my fault. But I am not dead yet, so this battle is not over. Retreat to Xieshan, regroup, and in the future... we will fight Chen Jiusi to the death again."
He glanced one last time at the "Victory" ship to the west, and at the golden-armored figure laughing wildly at the bow. Then he turned away, never to look back.
The Wu army began its orderly retreat, displaying remarkable discipline despite its defeat. The Han army pursued with great effort, but was held back by the Wu army's rearguard.
As the sun set, the remnants of the Wu King's army retreated into the Xieshan Water Village.
The Han army pursued the enemy to within three miles of the stockade, but seeing the strong walls and numerous crossbows and cannons, they ceased their pursuit.
Poyang Lake gradually fell silent.
Only the still-burning wreckage, the floating corpses, and the blood-stained lake water testify that a decisive battle that determined the fate of the world had just taken place here.
But the war is far from over.
Zhu Chongba stood on the watchtower of Xieshan Water Village, watching the continuous lights of the Han army's water village to the west for an entire night.
He knew that from today onwards, the battle for Poyang Lake would enter its most difficult and brutal phase.
But he cannot back down, he cannot lose.
Because behind him were Nanjing, Huaixi, and countless brothers who followed him in conquering the world, and the vow to "drive out the barbarians and restore China".
At this moment, Chen Jie had led his army straight to the front of Xieshan Water Fortress. Standing on the bow of the "Desheng" ship, looking in the direction of the water fortress's watchtower, he shouted to Zhu Chongba: "Zhu Chongba, things have come to this, are you still going to be a coward?"
"I'll give you one last night of rest. Tomorrow at noon, let's settle this with a battle at Poyang Lake, and let's prevent further casualties!" (End of Chapter)