flstandardbreds Chapter 114: Was the Han army outmaneuvering them again?
Chapter 114: Was the Han army outmaneuvering them again?
Guan Xing has also been busy lately, actively deploying troops and preparing for the upcoming general offensive.
Unfortunately, they had too little money. Even after Ji Jie, who was stationed in Wushang, was transferred here, they still only managed to scrape together less than seven thousand.
It was indeed difficult for such a small force to attack tens of thousands of Wu troops, but there was no other way; there were too many places to defend and the manpower was too strained.
Xie Chong has taken Wang Tao to Shanyin, Meng Jun is going to defend Shan County, and Ning Huan is far away in Da Mo and will not be able to return for a while. The only troops he can use are Gan Xun's and Ji Jie's.
Without Ji Jie, Wushang became a ghost town. If Meng Jun couldn't defend Shan County, Wushang would be finished, and so would he.
In other words, both sides are gambling at this stage of the war, and it's now a matter of who can win faster.
Therefore, upon receiving Ning Huan's message, Guan Xing dared not delay and immediately ordered his army to launch a general attack on the Wu army directly in front of him.
But before the final assault, we have to clear the traps they dug themselves; they have to fill the holes they dug themselves.
These days, the Han and Wu armies have been facing off across the traps, and both sides have been intentionally or unintentionally slacking off, reducing the original seven or eight li trap area to about three li, which has reduced the workload of the Han army by more than half.
On the official road, outside the Han army camp.
Guan Xing gave a brief pre-battle pep talk, then drew his sword, pointed ahead, and roared, "Attack!"
At Guan Xing's command, Gan Xun took the lead and led his army to charge forward carrying bamboo rafts. When they reached the trap, they threw the rafts out to cover it and quickly retreated, leaving the position for the people carrying the rafts behind.
The Han army has dug too many traps these days. There is simply not enough time to cover them with soil. We can only temporarily cover them with bamboo rafts and clean them up after the battle.
While Gan Xun was covering the trap, Deng Hong was not idle either. He led the assault team into the mountains with Ning Huan, preparing to circle around to the rear of the Wu army and launch an attack.
Such a large commotion by the Han army naturally did not escape the notice of the Wu army.
Today, Wu Jun, just like yesterday, used the pretext of clearing traps to take advantage of the chaos, lazily sitting on the ground basking in the sun. When the mood struck him, he picked up a shovel and shoveled a couple of shovelfuls of dirt, which was considered a way of repaying General Zhang Cheng's kindness.
Suddenly, a Wu soldier noticed the unusual movement and asked, "What's going on with the Han army? Why aren't they retreating but advancing rapidly, and they're even laying traps?"
Wu Jun got up to check, and Zhang Ming, a captain who had been sleeping soundly in the back, also rushed over when he heard the shouts. He pushed through the crowd to the edge of the trap, and when he saw the Han army's movements, his face changed drastically. He hurriedly shouted, "The Han army is attacking us! Return to camp immediately and set up defenses. We must not let the Han army get through!"
Before leaving, Zhang Cheng also made arrangements based on possible variables, instructing Zhang Ming to keep a close watch on the Han army in front and defend Zhuji City to prevent the Han army from breaking out of Zhuji and cutting off his retreat.
Just as Zhang Cheng had predicted, the Han army attacked. Although Zhang Ming dared not be negligent, he was not too panicked.
He had a full 7,000 men by his side, and a sturdy camp had been built behind him. It would be no problem for him to hold off the Han army for three to five days. After three to five days, he could retreat to Zhuji. The two lines of defense could buy Zhang Cheng at least seven or eight days, which would be enough time for Zhang Cheng to rush back to rescue him.
The idea was good, but he forgot that if he could think of it, would Guan Xing not?
He had been advancing these past few days, growing further and further away from the rear camp. At this moment, he was nearly five miles away from the camp, and it would take him at least a quarter of an hour to get back. That quarter of an hour could be fatal, because the Han army's assault team had already reached the camp ahead of him.
Deng Hong led his assault team and followed Ning Huan, who was familiar with the terrain, to the mountain outside the Wu army camp. While hiding behind a tree and observing the Wu army camp, Deng Hong asked urgently, "How many Wu soldiers are in the camp?"
Ning Huan replied, "Less than five hundred."
Deng Hong asked in surprise, "So little? That's impossible, isn't it?"
Ning Huan replied, "Logically speaking, at least one-third of the troops should be left to guard the main camp, but don't forget what Wu's mission is: to pretend to be the main force to attract our attention and buy time for Zhang Cheng."
"The more people you pretend to be the main force, the better. Otherwise, how can you fool us? Zhang Ming is already putting on a brave face. If he leaves all his troops in the camp, what will he use to attract our attention?"
Deng Hong exclaimed excitedly, "Why didn't you say so earlier? Everyone, charge with me!"
After saying that, he rushed down the mountain like a wild horse, and the assault team followed closely behind. Some of the smart ones even used the bamboo rafts as skateboards and slid down the mountain directly on the rafts, faster than Deng Hong.
Although the speed is fast, it is very tiring because the uneven mountain road causes the bamboo raft to sway left and right. If you are not careful, you will not only be thrown off the bamboo raft, but some unlucky ones will even crash into trees.
Of the three bamboo rafts, only one managed to slide successfully to the bottom of the mountain. The team members quickly lifted the raft and rushed towards the enemy camp.
The enemy garrison changed their expressions upon seeing this and rushed to intercept them without thinking. However, they were just weaklings left behind and were no match for the crazy assault team.
Two assault team members who slid down the mountain first carried the bamboo raft to the front of the camp. They threw the raft onto the deer antlers, stepped onto the slope made of the raft, and jumped directly into the enemy camp. Then, without fear, they charged towards the Wu army that was coming towards them.
Two soldiers took the initiative to charge into battle against hundreds of enemy troops—it's thrilling just to think about it.
Wu Jun was frightened by the two men's frenzy and didn't dare to step forward for a moment. The two men, however, ignored this and continued to charge, creating chaos to buy time for Deng Hong.
Deng Hong lived up to expectations, quickly descending the mountain and leaping into the camp on a bamboo raft. He sternly ordered, "First platoon, three men per group, seize the arrow tower; second platoon, deal with Wu's troops inside the camp; third and fourth platoons, follow me out of the camp to meet Zhang Ming."
After saying that, he accelerated and charged towards Wu Jun, breaking Wu Jun's already chaotic formation into pieces. He then circled around and charged towards the camp gate, leading two detachments of more than two hundred men to attack Zhang Ming.
Zhang Ming wanted to hold the camp to buy time for Zhang Cheng, while Deng Hong wanted to block Zhang Ming to buy time for Guan Xing. Surprisingly, their goals were the same.
Zhang Ming was also rushing forward, and was now less than 300 meters away from the camp. When he saw Deng Hong rush out of the camp, he was completely stunned.
How come the Han army has outflanked us again?
Those damned Han soldiers have no sense of martial ethics.
Without thinking twice, Zhang Ming immediately shouted, "Form ranks to meet the enemy! Fire arrows! Fire arrows!"
At his command, arrows rained down on Deng Hong.
Deng Hong remained calm, as the assault team members were equipped with wooden round shields. Before the arrows even arrived, they quickly formed a shield formation, blocking all the arrows.
Ordinary arrows couldn't penetrate the shields. Deng Hong slowly advanced against the shield formation, while Zhang Ming stood frozen in place, unsure whether to move forward or backward.
If they advance, they will engage Deng Hong in close combat. If they cannot defeat him in a short time, they will be finished once the Han army catches up from behind.
If he retreated, there would be even more Han troops behind him. Zhang Ming tragically realized that whether he advanced or retreated, it seemed like he was going to die anyway. So what was there to say? He had to fight.
Without thinking twice, Zhang Ming roared, "Charge! They only have two hundred men. We can drown them with our spittle! Charge!"
After saying that, he took the lead and charged forward. Deng Hong also led his troops to meet him. The two sides clashed fiercely like two mad bulls.
Meanwhile, Guan Xing was also speeding up. Guan Xing originally thought that he would encounter fierce resistance from Wu's army when passing through the trap. He thought that even if Wu's army dared not step into the trap area, they would leave some men to shoot arrows to block him. But to his surprise, Wu's army turned around and ran away without even fighting. They ran away...
This was a truly unexpected and delightful surprise. The trap area that originally needed to be completely leveled now only required the laying of a passage two or three zhang wide, saving more than half the time.
Without the Wu army's obstruction, the Han army quickly cleared a bamboo raft passage about two zhang wide in the trap area. Guan Xing took the lead and led the army to charge towards the Wu army on the bamboo rafts.