Gou was a member of the imperial family in the late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 353 Retreat

As some people realized that the situation was not good, especially when several leaders turned their horses around and fled, the collapse of the two cavalry units was inevitable.

Over there, Zhu Shenzui's central army, which had stabilized its position, sounded a warning horn, ordering them not to retreat but to hold out against the enemy's attack to buy time for the main force. However, they were already frightened out of their wits. As their comrades screamed and fell off their horses after being chopped down by Bu Shitu's cavalry, how could they dare to turn around and continue fighting?

They were eager to run as far as possible, leaving the battlefield as soon as possible to save their lives. As for Zhu Shenzhu's army, who would care about it? In their minds, this battle was completely lost, and it would be too late if they didn't run away.

In just a dozen breaths, the two cavalry units on the left and right wings were defeated on the spot. Everyone turned around and fled for their lives. Some people even threw away their weapons in order to run faster. They rode on their horses and whipped their horses desperately, wishing their horses could grow wings.

Moreover, these guys were also a little thoughtful when they ran. They did not run south, let alone east. Because the south was where Zhu Shenzhui's central army was located, running directly there would be courting death, and escaping in violation of battlefield orders, and going to the direction of the central army would definitely not end well.

As for the east, that was where Bu Shitu's troops were, and it was impossible to run into them head-on, and to the north was the Gray River, which was definitely impossible to cross, so the only way left for them was to run west.

Seeing the collapse of the left and right wings, Bu Shitu's cavalrymen were greatly encouraged and attacked and killed. Countless cavalrymen who ran slower were chased and shot along the way. Every moment, someone fell off their horse, died or was injured. Hearing the screams and cries for help behind them, those who had escaped in advance did not dare to look back, but continued to speed up their horses and run away, with only one thought in their minds - run! Run faster! Faster!
"What a bunch of bastards!" Burigude of the central army gritted his teeth in anger as he watched this scene. He never expected that it would turn out like this in just a few moments.

Although the central army retreated slightly due to poor coordination, Bu Shitu sent some troops to support the right wing that was facing collapse. But in fact, the number of troops Bu Shitu sent was not that large, and even the remaining cavalry on his right wing was slightly less than the troops on their left and right wings.

Judging from the strength of both sides, as long as they can hold their ground, even if they don't defeat the other side, they can still form a stalemate. When the central army on our side pushes back and cuts off the connection between the two sides, then victory will still be on our side.

But Burigude never expected that his left and right wings would collapse so quickly, the speed of collapse was simply amazing. As soon as Bu Shitu's reinforcements arrived, the situation on his side took a sharp turn, especially those leaders, who ignored the orders of the central army and abandoned the team and ran away. This run caused the entire army to lose its combat effectiveness and was completely destroyed.

Looking at this scene, Zhu Shenzui sneered in his heart. Although he had expected this situation to happen, he did not expect it to collapse so quickly and so tragically.

The left and right wings were already destroyed, and only his central army was still there. There was no need to continue fighting this battle. If he continued, he would have no chance of winning in one battle.

Immediately, Zhu Shenzui commanded his troops to begin to shrink, with the outer rangers providing cover, while the central army retreated, intending to leave the battlefield.

At this time, the main force of Bu Shitu in front was in high spirits and rushed forward excitedly. Seeing this scene, Zhu Shenzhui did not seem nervous at all, as if he had already expected this situation to happen.

With a wave of his hand, the troops that had just begun to retreat stopped and turned around to fight back.

At this time, Zhu Shenzui's trump card, which he had not used until now, was directly revealed. This trump card was his two patrols of new troops and the firearms they carried, as well as more than a hundred elite cavalrymen who had been trained for a long time.

Not to mention the new army, Zhu Shenzhui was very clear about how strong the new army based on the Qi family army was. Although there were only two patrols of the new army, their role was no less powerful than that of the cavalry, and with the support of elite firearms, they were even more powerful.

As for the more than one hundred cavalry, there is no need to mention them. This is also Zhu Shenzui's trump card. These cavalry are different from other cavalry. They are not ordinary herdsmen, but professional cavalry composed of young and strong warriors selected from the tribe. Moreover, their equipment is much better than that of ordinary cavalry. All cavalry are wearing armor, and even the horses under their crotch have armor on vital parts.

In addition to conventional horse-fighting weapons such as spears, bows and arrows, sabers, and maces, each of them also carried a Ming Dynasty three-barreled musket.

The three-barreled musket has always been a firearm equipped by cavalry. When the cavalry faced each other before a battle, they would first fire three rounds of the musket. After firing, the heavy three-barreled musket could be used as a hammer to hit people. It was extremely powerful if used properly.

Although the Ming army had this thing, its combat effectiveness was not strong. There were many reasons, including the poor quality of the three-barreled fire gun, or the training of the army. When the battle was about to begin, the cavalry panicked and fired prematurely, resulting in the fire gun not hitting anyone at all, wasting the best opportunity. In addition, the Ming army often lacked pay, resulting in no fighting will. How could they fight when they couldn't even eat enough? In this way, it was not surprising to lose the battle. But Zhu Shenzhui's cavalry was different. They were selected from the elite warriors of the tribe. With excellent equipment and sufficient training, their combat effectiveness was unimaginable.

Just when Bu Shitu was preparing to strike hard at the fallen dog and take the opportunity to defeat Zhu Shenzui's central army in one fell swoop, Zhu Shenzui revealed his trump card without hesitation.

As the fire of the Portuguese cannon and the tiger squat cannon sounded, Zhu Shenzui's new army began to counterattack, and his cavalry also took advantage of the situation to attack, cooperating with the infantry and other cavalry units to pounce on the enemy.

Bu Shitu's troops were stunned. The hundreds of cavalrymen in front had just rushed to Zhu Shenzhui's central army, and were thinking of rushing in all at once to win a great victory. But in the blink of an eye, the sound of artillery fire suddenly rang out, and the cavalrymen in the front fell down in an instant. The cavalrymen behind didn't know what happened, and rushed forward again without reacting, but were stopped by the new army again.

Using infantry to fight cavalry was Qi Jiguang's most powerful tactic, and using the few to defeat the many was also the only battlefield miracle that could be achieved before the invention of the machine gun.

Faced with the oncoming cavalry, the new army showed no fear and cooperated with each other according to the tactics. They first used chariots and wolf-whips to block the cavalry's way, then shot out long spears to the left and right in the gaps, with sword and shield soldiers cooperating on the side, and musketeers in the back raising their guns to gradually point at their names. In a few seconds, dozens of Mongolian cavalry were killed in the blink of an eye, as easy as chopping melons and vegetables.

That’s not all. Zhu Shenzui’s cavalry moved out from both sides to cover the left and right flanks of the new army, while launching a counterattack against the enemy’s cavalry.

As the three-barreled muskets opened fire at close range, the Mongolian cavalry fell like wheat with screams. Then the cavalry charged in a cross-direction, cooperating with each other without mercy. After two rounds, only a few of the more than 200 cavalrymen attacked by Bu Shitu escaped, and the rest all turned into a puddle of mud on the ground.

This scene shocked Bu Shitu. They had never thought that Zhu Shenzhui's central army would have such fighting power. If Zhu Shenzhui's central army was so capable, then with their troops, let alone 3,000 people, even if 2,000 people swept over directly, he would not be able to withstand it!
For a moment, Bu Shitu felt a little regretful. He regretted that he had just had thoughts that he shouldn't have had. Originally, Bu Shitu planned to take this opportunity to directly swallow up Zhu Shenzui's central army. As long as Zhu Shenzui's central army was destroyed, the Tengger tribe would no longer be a threat, and he, Bu Shitu, would be able to find an opportunity to annex the Tengger tribe to avenge his previous revenge.

Although the two parties had had private contact for a long time, Bu Shitu had never been a gentleman. The Mongolians valued interests. Gentlemen were something that only wise men had. Why would the Mongolians care about these things?
Genghis Khan once said that the greatest pleasure in life is to "kill all the enemies, rob all their property, watch their relatives cry, ride their horses, rape their wives and daughters..."

Bu Shitu is a descendant of the Golden Family, so naturally he agrees with what Genghis Khan said. Promises are promises, but all promises can be abandoned in the face of actual interests, not to mention that there is such a good opportunity now.

But Bu Shitu never expected such a result. When he saw the cavalry on his side lying on the ground in a mess, and Zhu Shenzui's central army not far away still lined up but did not continue to fight back, but instead took back the cavalry it had sent out and took a defensive posture, Bu Shitu sighed in his heart.

"Withdraw the troops..." Bu Shitu said to the generals around him.

"Great Khan!" Although Bu Shitu was not the Great Khan of the Mongols, he also regarded himself as the Great Khan in the tribe to express his disagreement with the position of Ligdan Khan.

"What? Didn't you hear the Khan's order clearly?" Bu Shitu glared at his subordinates, who quickly shut their mouths and dared not persuade him anymore. However, after a moment he couldn't help asking whether they should withdraw all the troops or continue to chase the cavalry who had just escaped?
Bu Shitu immediately sneered and asked, "Do you even need to ask this?" Zhu Shenzhui's central army did not fight, but that did not mean he would let the cavalrymen who escaped go. Of course, he would continue to chase them. However, he did not need to chase them too far. One day would be enough. Then he would turn back and march eastward, because there were still Ligdan Khan's troops in the east. He did not want to give Ligdan Khan an opportunity at this time.

When the dull horn sounded, Bu Shitu's main force stopped advancing and began to slowly retreat to reorganize their formation.

Zhu Shenzui was not surprised to see this scene. He commanded the central army to retreat steadily in the same way to widen the distance between the two sides.

When the two sides were far enough apart, Zhu Shenzui issued an order for a quick withdrawal. The front team of the central army became the rear team, and the rear team became the front team. They covered each other and withdrew alternately, giving Bu Shitu no chance at all. By the time the sun set, Zhu Shenzui's central army had completely left the battlefield and retreated safely.

(End of this chapter)