Guiyi Fei Tang

Chapter 403 A Swift Devastation of Three Armies (A Long Chapter of 10,000 Words)
"The rebels of dogs and rats!!"

"You pig-dog bastards, I'm going to slaughter you all!!"

"Northeast dog!"

"Hu za—"

Below the city gate, more than a hundred Longyou infantrymen were trapped and could only form a straight line to protect themselves. Above them were Shence Army archers shooting arrows at them from the city wall, and in front of them was an endless line of Shence Army infantrymen.

Thousands of people surrounded them, a situation that even the phrase "ambush from all sides" cannot adequately describe.

"Lieutenant, hold on!!"

Thousands of soldiers from Longyou were blocked outside the breach and were now clearing the winches and crossbows blocking the breach.

Upon seeing this, the government troops on the horse path exchanged crossbow fire with the Longyou troops while simultaneously throwing down rolling stones and logs to reinforce the breach.

"what happened?!"

Seeing that his thousands of men had not yet broken through into the pass, Gao Jinda, who was at the rear, immediately had a bad feeling.

Liu Jilong reacted quickly. Although he didn't know what had happened ahead, he knew that the gap must have been plugged.

"Take two squads of cavalry and infantry, carry gunpowder packs, and go check if the breach has been resealed!"

"The last general takes command!"

The two brigade commanders dared not delay and immediately led their cavalry and infantry, carrying gunpowder packs, and galloped away.

At the same time, Zhang Wu switched his weapon to a hard bow, and while directing the troops in the formation, he also fired cold arrows at the captains and deputy captains of the Shence Army.

"Brothers, let these spineless Shence Army soldiers see what a real man is like!"

"Bam—"

Under Zhang Wu's command, more than a hundred soldiers from Longyou formed a circular formation with long spears as the vanguard and archers and blunt weapon soldiers as the flanks.

Under Wang Shi's command, thousands of Shence Army soldiers formed a straight line and surrounded the hundred-odd men from six sides, attacking them from both sides.

Zhan Feng, wielding a long spear, clashed with the Longyou army's vanguard, while his rear was constantly suppressed with arrows.

For a time, the battle was fierce. Wang Shi held a five-colored flag and waved it constantly to direct more than 6,000 Shence Army soldiers to encircle and suppress Zhang Wu's troops.

His face was growing increasingly grim as time went on, because the performance of the Shence Army on the battlefield was truly appalling.

With over six thousand Shence Army soldiers, mostly equipped with bright armor and brand-new weapons, Wang Shi, based on his past experience, should have mustered his courage and taken down Zhang Wu and his hundred-plus men in one fell swoop.

As a result, the two sides clashed and fought to a standstill.

"You dog..."

Wang cursed inwardly. Seeing this, he had no choice but to change the command flag, taking out a red one and waving it.

The flag bearers standing behind him waved their banners, and more than 6,000 Shence Army soldiers slowly parted to make way for him, while the elite cavalry of the Tianxiong Army, who had received military orders, were also ready.

With only a little over a hundred men, Wang Shi waved his command flag without hesitation, directing the elite Tianxiong cavalry to break through the enemy lines with long weapons, while simultaneously ordering the Shence Army to disrupt the Longyou army's formation.

The sound of clashing weapons rang in Zhang Wu and his men's ears, but despite their panic, they still managed to form a defensive formation and counterattack against countless Shence Army soldiers who attempted to break through their lines, thanks to their excellent skills.

"Brothers, don't panic! The brothers of the firearms unit will soon blast through those obstacles, and we'll be the first to scale the walls!"

"Look at these cowardly Shence Army soldiers! Even with thousands of them, they still can't take us down!"

"For this merit of being the first to reach the summit, all brothers with rank shall be promoted at least two ranks, and brothers without rank shall be promoted at least three ranks!"

"Brothers, think it over carefully. After being promoted three ranks, your military pay will be at least three times what it is now. Your family will start compiling a genealogy, with you as the head of the bloodline!"

"What we need to do now is hold on until the breach is blown open, and then everything I just said will come true."

"Kill, kill, kill—"

In the midst of the battle, Zhang Wu continuously encouraged the troops with words, while his bow never stopped, hitting several captains and even colonels of the Shence Army.

"Buzzing, rumbling..."

Suddenly, the sound of horses' hooves drew closer. Zhang Wu saw that the Shence Army had suddenly parted to make way for them, and that the elite cavalry of the Tianxiong Army, who were patrolling the perimeter, were galloping toward them. He immediately put on his bow and arrows, took out his wooden whistle, and blew it.

"Beep--"

"Second squad, groups one, two, and three, form a straight line, a wedge formation. At the whistle, advance. The garrison will take the lead and cover the second squad's retreat!"

As Zhang Wu's whistle stopped, he gave a stern order to command, but the three teams of Longyou troops were now divided and arrayed within the encirclement.

The second team of more than thirty men charged out of the circle with guns, all facing each other and back to back.

The archers who were in the formation took their place.

The archers abandoned their bows and crossbows, grabbed long spears from the ground, and formed a defensive formation, ready to cover the retreat of the three groups of soldiers in the second squad.

At the same time, the Tianxiong Army divided its forces into several hundred, with several hundred elite cavalrymen charging towards the Longyou Army along the road cleared by the Shence Army.

A distance of several dozen steps can now be reached in the blink of an eye.

The imposing force of the cavalry charge caused the soldiers of the Left and Right Shence Armies to retreat, but the more than 30 soldiers from the three groups of Longyou Army in front of them did not back down and remained in their formation.

"Beep--"

Zhang Wu promptly blew the wooden whistle, and the vanguard soldiers immediately threw out their spears, while the second rank of soldiers shot arrows at the horses of the Tianxiong Army.

With just one volley of arrows, they immediately switched to long spears, plunging the butts of the spears deep into the ground, and aimed them diagonally at the Tianxiong Army's elite cavalry that were about to charge.

"Hiss!!"

The warhorses neighed and fell, throwing the Tianxiong soldiers off their backs and hindering the charge of the elite cavalry behind them.

What should have been a simple tactical assault turned into a disaster for the Tianxiong Army's elite cavalry. Dozens of cavalrymen were thrown to the ground, and the surrounding Shence Army soldiers scattered and retreated.

"Beep--"

Zhang Wu blew the wooden whistle again. At this time, the three groups of soldiers withdrew back to their formation, and Zhang Wu led more than a hundred brothers from Longyou Army to charge towards the Tianxiong elite cavalry whose speed was slowed down.

The Shence Army infantry attempted to pursue, but were blocked by the Longyou Army infantry.

More than a hundred men formed a line with spears, and as the spears pierced through, dozens of Tianxiong Army cavalrymen who had fallen from their horses were either impaled or trampled to death.

"Rumble--"

The familiar sound of a thunderclap rang out, and the winches, crossbows, and obstacles such as boulders and logs that had been piled up in the gap were blown to pieces.

The original narrow pass, which was only about 10 feet wide, collapsed a lot due to the second explosion, expanding to a width of 17 or 18 feet.

"kill!!"

"Woo-"

Shouts of battle and bugle calls rang out again, and the Three Stars Banner, representing "Longyou," burst out from the dust. Countless Longyou infantrymen rushed into the pass, and Wang Shi's expression changed drastically.

"Beep--"

The wooden whistle blew, and Wang Shi waved his command flag continuously, but the generals in the Shence Army were unable to react.

By the time they finally managed to form ranks and prepare to block the breach, the Longyou army that had rushed into the pass had already numbered in the hundreds.

Previously, their more than 6,000 men could not defeat the more than 100 men under Zhang Wu's command. Now, with hundreds or even thousands of soldiers from Longyou pouring in, Zhang Wu is like a fish in water and continues to command this vanguard.

Before the Longyou army, which had rushed into the pass, even heard the whistle, they had already reached the open area and begun to form ranks.

However, Wang Shi was experienced and skillful. While he was directing the Shence Army to form a wedge formation to block the gap and launch a frontal assault on the Longyou Army, he was also directing three thousand elite Tianxiong cavalry to launch a flanking attack on them.

Less than three thousand elite Tianxiong cavalry charged into the Longyou army, breaking through their still-unstable formation. Over a thousand Longyou soldiers were divided in two by the three thousand elite Tianxiong cavalry.

Although the Shence Army was slow to react, it was the first to receive orders and has now stepped up to the front.

Zhang Wu, who had just led his troops back to the main camp of the Longyou Army, was cut off by a flanking attack. He was not flustered. He had figured out the situation of the Shence Army. So he decisively began to wave his command flag and direct his troops to form a circular formation and guard the camp, while waiting for more and more Longyou Army troops to pour into the pass.

As expected, when the two hundred-plus Longyou soldiers beside Zhang Wu formed a circular formation to defend him, the Shence Army was unable to repel them and instead became locked in a stalemate with them.

This scene made Wang Shi's face turn ugly. He did not expect that the Shence Army, which had been trained for more than a year, could not even take down a few hundred infantrymen who had been flanked by cavalry.

Seeing Zhang Wu calmly directing the Longyou infantry to regroup and form a garrison, Wang Shi had no choice but to change his strategy, using the Shence Army's infantry and archers to harass and the garrison to encircle the enemy, supplemented by the Tianxiong elite cavalry's flanking attacks.

This time, however, Zhang Wu did not give him a chance. With the command flags flying in Zhang Wu's hands, the more than two thousand Longyou soldiers who poured into the pass quickly gained a foothold and their formation was very stable.

Upon seeing this, Zhao Qian, who was on the wall, decisively led dozens of his personal guards down the wall to avoid being cut off from the main force of the Shence Army by the Longyou Army. After mounting his horse, he entered the Shence Army and calmly began to command.

The soldiers recruited as scapegoats in the Shence Army varied in quality, but they were not without fighting ability.

The reason the battle turned out this way is mainly due to the generals of this new Shence Army.

These generals were all sons of powerful families who had been transferred from the original Shence Army for training. Although they were capable of training soldiers, their actual combat command ability was lacking.

Some generals were in their thirties or forties, yet this was their first time commanding the Shence Army on the battlefield.

As the saying goes, "A cowardly soldier is a coward, and a cowardly general leads to a cohort of cowards," and this is exactly the case.

They themselves dared not step forward to command as squad leaders, and could only rely on the vanguard to transmit military intelligence for remote command, so the soldiers under their command naturally could not unleash their full potential.

Upon Zhao Qian's arrival, he immediately selected two hundred men as deputy commanders to oversee the battle, and ordered these sons of the Northern Commandery officials to serve as the vanguard commanders.

Although the sons of officials and generals were unwilling, they still had no choice but to bite the bullet and come to the front of the ranks to command the battle against Zhao Qian, who was supervising the battle and wielding a long-handled sword.

Sure enough, as they took command at the front of the column, the morale of the Shence Army's vanguard gradually rose, putting more pressure on the Longyou Army.

Seeing this, Wang Shi immediately seized the opportunity and ordered the Shence Army infantry to head-on clash with Zhang Wu's Longyou Army.

"kill!!"

"tie--"

"Um..."

"Help me, help... oh my god!!"

"Mother! Mother..."

Spears flew in clusters, thrusting and stabbing, and many infantrymen on both sides were stabbed and felled. Except for the first three ranks of the vanguard, the rest raised their bows and crossbows to fire at the enemy on the opposite side.

The Longyou army undoubtedly had more crossbows than the Shence army, so after the two sides exchanged fire, the Shence army was severely suppressed.

Arrows pierced through the faceplates, and countless soldiers fell dead from the arrow wounds; it seemed that soldiers of the Shence Army were falling every moment.

Once these soldiers fell, they had no chance of survival. They were either trampled to death or killed by arrows. Before they could finish, they would cry out and twitch a few times and then die.

After several rounds of such exchanges, the Tianxiong elite cavalry could not find a place to attack, simply because Zhang Wu's command was so precise and his formation remained unshaken.

As more and more Longyou troops poured into the pass, Zhang Wu began to focus his attention on directing a portion of the Longyou army to launch a strong attack on the pass walls.

Wang Shi wanted to stop them, but the reality was that Zhang Wu only used three thousand Longyou infantrymen to restrain the Shence Army, which was twice their size, and was able to suppress the Shence Army while trying to capture the pass.

"If you dogs were any tougher, how dare this general bully me?!"

Wang Shi gritted his teeth and looked at the group of Shence Army soldiers who were all show and no substance. He had already sensed that things were about to turn bad, so he did not hesitate any longer and immediately ordered the three armies to retreat to the Luoshuidao camp in the rear.

"Beep--"

"Dang Dang Dang..."

The wooden whistle and the sound of the gong rang out one after another. Although the Shence Army suffered a counterattack and heavy casualties, they were able to retreat safely under the command of Wang Shi and with Zhao Qian leading elite cavalry to cover the retreat.

To avoid turning the retreat into a rout, Wang Shi reorganized his troops after withdrawing, and then cautiously retreated step by step to the rear waterway camp.

Seeing that something was wrong, the civilian laborers belonging to the government troops immediately rushed out of the camp and fled to the rear camp.

Seeing this, Zhang Wu did not rush to pursue. Instead, after successfully defeating and capturing hundreds of Shence soldiers on the city wall, he ordered the city gates to be opened to allow the army and laborers outside the pass to enter.

As the city gates opened, Liu Jilong, who was outside the pass, immediately led 5,000 cavalry and 6,000 infantrymen into the pass, leaving Gao Jinda and more than 1,000 infantrymen to protect the civilians and laborers who followed.

The battle lasted only an hour and a half from start to finish. After Liu Jilong led his army into the pass, he saw Zhang Wu, whose body was splattered with blood, walking quickly toward him. Zhang Wu then knelt down in front of him and bowed.

"General, I underestimated the enemy and advanced recklessly, resulting in the imprisonment of over a hundred brothers and myself. I beg you to punish me!"

Zhang Wu lowered his head in shame. Recalling what had just happened, he couldn't help but feel a chill run down his spine.

As the captain of the vanguard army, he shouldn't have been so far forward, but he was eager to show off, and as a result, he almost led more than a hundred people to be wiped out inside the pass.

Fortunately, Liu Jilong quickly took over command and sent men to blow up the debris in the gap; otherwise, their fate would have been uncertain.

Liu Jilong was satisfied with his reflection and nodded, saying, "The generals who were the first to charge were promoted two ranks, and the soldiers three ranks. You offset your mistakes with your merits and were only promoted one rank. What do you think?"

"Thank you for your promotion, General Xie!" Zhang Wu hadn't expected to have such a chance. Liu Jilong laughed and said:

"Alright, it's still early. You leave those who are too weak to guard this pass, and the rest of the troops will immediately follow me on this expedition. Today, we must definitively settle the ownership of the Fuqiang River Valley!"

"Yes!!"

Zhang Wu quickly got up, then hurriedly made arrangements, and led more than two thousand infantrymen who had not exhausted too much energy, riding in a horse-drawn cart to chase after the government troops led by Liu Jilong.

The distance from the pass to the Luoshuidao camp is only five li.

Therefore, when Liu Jilong led his troops in pursuit, Wang Shi didn't even have a chance to count the dead and wounded.

However, the Shence Army was visibly missing many soldiers, which caused the soldiers' morale to plummet, and Wang Shi's face also turned grim.

He led his troops to retreat into the Luoshuidao camp, which relied on the Luoshuidao waterway and was easy to defend and difficult to attack.

Yang Gongqing led 4,000 Shence Army soldiers, plus another 4,000-5,000 Shence Army soldiers who had withdrawn, and less than 3,000 Tianxiong elite cavalry, totaling nearly 10,000 troops stationed there, with ample food and provisions.

Wang Shi was confident that he could rely on the camp to inflict more casualties on Liu Jilong.

However, Liu Jilong, after leading his army through the camp, completely ignored him and instead left 5,000 cavalry and infantry to block the three exposed gates of the camp, while he personally led more than 7,000 cavalry and infantry to attack Fuqiang County.

Seeing him abandon him and leave, Wang Shi's expression changed drastically. He hurriedly looked at Zhao Qian: "Has there been any news from the Pingchuan garrison?!"

“This…never…” Zhao Qian was taken aback, wondering why it was necessary to discuss the Pingchuan garrison at this moment.

But as soon as he answered, his expression changed drastically, and he couldn't help but think, "Do you think Liu Jilong will launch a pincer attack on Fuqiang, and the rebels in Sanyangchuan will advance on Pingchuan to cooperate with Liu Jilong in attacking Fuqiang County?"

"That's right!" Wang Shi said urgently, "Lead the army out of the camp to support Fuqiang City!"

Wang Shi's haste was not because he was worried about losing Fuqiang City, but because Yang Xuanji was inside Fuqiang City.

Yang Xuanji is a cousin of Yang Xuanjie, one of the Four Nobles. If he falls into the hands of the thieves, the entire Northern Division will go mad.

For this reason, they could only leave behind the original four or five thousand Shence Army soldiers who had been severely damaged by the Longyou Army, and transfer the four thousand Shence Army soldiers and three thousand Tianxiong elite cavalry stationed here from Yang Gongqing's hands.

As they led their troops out of the camp, Liu Jilong, who was originally preparing to attack Fuqiang, also received a report from the Tang cavalry.

"The commander and the government troops have come out of their camp to fight us!"

"Leaving the camp?"

Liu Jilong, on horseback, pondered for a moment. He was unaware of Yang Xuanji's presence in Fuqiang City and assumed that Wang Shi was preparing to coordinate with the city's defenders to attack him from both sides.

With his thoughts settled, he turned his horse around and said, "Since he wants to fight, then I will fight him!"

He rearranged his troops and advanced towards the Luoshuidao camp, which was two miles away.

Meanwhile, Yang Xuanji, who was filled with anxiety in Fuqiang County, also received news that Liu Jilong had captured the pass.

"What did you say?!"

Inside the county government office, Yang Xuanji learned of this and immediately urged his men, "Quickly, retreat to Luoshui Village!"

He gave orders to his men and walked out, cursing, "Wang Shi, that fellow, was so encouraging last night. He always boasted that Fuqiang was an impregnable fortress and that he would make Longyou suffer countless casualties. But now it has been breached in less than a day. What a dog-like scoundrel!"

For him, preserving his life was the most important thing, so he prepared to leave the city without hesitation and handed over the city's defenses to the military commander.

He led dozens of mounted attendants and tentatively headed towards the sewer.

As he rushed there, Liu Jilong led his troops to the outside of the Luoshuidao camp.

Behind them, the Wei River flows eastward in torrents; before them, soldiers emerge from the Qinling Mountains.

On the drum cart, bare-chested, burly infantrymen gripped drumsticks tightly, their eyes fixed on the central army headquarters in Longyou.

Liu Jilong sat on horseback, one in front of Zhang Wu and the other behind him, with more than ten mounted flag soldiers behind them.

His eyes were sharp as he scanned the government troops more than two hundred paces away.

There were fewer than three thousand elite cavalry, about four thousand Shence Army infantry, and several thousand support infantry in the camp.

With 12,000 men against a little over 10,000, they already had the advantage, not to mention that the Shence Army generals were all theoretical types.

Faced with such an enemy force, Liu Jilong looked at the young Zhang Wu and asked, "Zhang Wu, if you were in charge of the army, how do you think you should fight?"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Wu quickly bowed, thinking that this was the commander testing him, and then hurriedly said:
"In my humble opinion, the infantry should form a three-tiered straight line, with the vanguard pressing forward to break through the formation, followed by a flanking attack by cavalry and infantry."

"These Imperial Guards are a bunch of cowards. This humble general congratulates the Commander on acquiring 10,000 armored vehicles and achieving a great victory!"

Although Zhang Wu was only twenty-five or twenty-six years old, he had made a living by boating in Yuzhou with his family in his early years, and had seen all kinds of people. He had also heard all kinds of flattery when he was young.

Later, Shannan West Road became increasingly chaotic, and with the imperial court raising taxes three times, his boatman Aye could no longer make a living, so he took him to Longyou.

Because his father was a skilled boatman, his whole family was settled in Pandi County, Wuzhou. His father made a living by operating boats in a shipyard, while his three brothers joined the army one after another.

Although he joined the army late, he distinguished himself in the campaign against the Tuhun tribe in Fusi City and was promoted. Later, he was promoted to the rank of general and stationed at Gudaoshi Fort.

Looking back, just four months ago he was only a minor general, but now he has been promoted one rank, and after the war he will at least become a prefectural governor or a deputy governor.

"What you said is indeed correct, but it's not enough..."

After listening to Zhang Wu's words, Liu Jilong took out the five-colored command flag from in front of the saddle and calmly waved it.

As he waved his flag, the flag bearers behind him began to wave their banners. With the flag signals being relayed, the seven thousand Longyou infantrymen began to form a battle formation and advance head-on in a wedge formation.

"Uuuuuu——"

"Boom! Boom! Boom..."

Bugles and drums sounded in unison, and seven thousand infantrymen from Longyou formed ranks. Three thousand men formed the vanguard, two thousand formed the central army, and two thousand formed the rearguard. As they began their attack, Liu Jilong continued to calmly wave his command flag, and the flag bearers continued to relay messages. Of the five thousand cavalry and infantry, one thousand remained as the central army, while the remaining four thousand formed the cavalry and divided into left and right flanks for a surprise attack.

"Order the vanguard crossbowmen to fire when they are 150 paces away from the enemy, and the archers to fire when they are 60 paces away from the enemy."

"If the enemy comes within twenty paces, the vanguard will advance first. Archers and crossbowmen will abandon their bows and crossbows, and each will first put on their arms, take up their swords and spears, and wait for the vanguard to break through the formation."

"If the enemy's formation is solid and the vanguard cannot penetrate, then the archers and crossbowmen should rush in with swords and clubs to fight. The cavalry, the leaping troops, and the surprise troops should not move."

"If the vanguard is pressed by the enemy, the leaping troops, surprise troops, and cavalry will rush forward to attack upon hearing the whistle, while the vanguard will return to their formation to regroup and advance slowly."

"Each regiment shall select a number of horse catchers. If the enemy launches a flank attack with elite cavalry during the battle, the vanguard shall intercept them. The horse catchers and the horses to be caught shall be executed on the spot."

Liu Jilong's voice was calm and steady, and the twelve flag soldiers waved their flags in response.

In an instant, all the armies and regiments began to carry out military orders, and the 12,000 soldiers operated in an orderly manner, just like a precisely functioning war machine.

Faced with this war machine, the Shence Army soldiers, who were initially just nervous, suddenly broke out in a cold sweat.

Not only them, but even the elite cavalry of the Tianxiong Army gripped the reins tightly. Zhao Qian and Yang Gongqing exchanged glances, their eyes wide with shock, and could only turn their gaze to Wang Shi, whose face was solemn.

At this moment, Wang Shi's expression was extremely solemn. He waved his command flag, and eight flag soldiers behind him followed his command flag, waving their flags and conveying flag signals.

The difference between Wang Shi and Liu Jilong can be seen simply from the number of bannermen.

Eight flag soldiers effortlessly received and waved the flag signals amidst the fluttering Wang Shi's command flags, while the twelve flag soldiers from Longyou, facing them, were completely focused, not daring to blink for fear of missing any of the military orders conveyed by Liu Jilong.

"This Liu Muzhi..."

Wang Shi is already fifty-eight years old, and he rarely encounters anything that excites or frightens him anymore.

Previously, when Liu Jilong only led elite cavalry, he could not discern the difference in the strengths and weaknesses of the two sides' troop deployments.

But now that the two are fighting in a formal and dignified manner, the difference between them immediately becomes apparent.

Before the two armies even clashed, Wang Shi had already gained a decisive advantage.

This was under the condition that Wang Shi's army had elite cavalry, while Liu Jilong could only use cavalry and infantry as elite cavalry, and the three armies were not complete.

Even so, Liu Jilong remained calm, but Wang Shi had already used all his skills.

As the two commanders' flags fluttered, the two armies drew ever closer together.

Two hundred steps, one hundred and fifty steps, one hundred and twenty steps...

"put!"

"Beep--"

As the command flags of the two vanguard leaders were raised and wooden whistles were sounded, thousands of crossbow bolts were fired, colliding and intertwining in the air.

Some collided and fell, but many more shot into the enemy ranks.

At this distance, crossbow bolts could only serve as a distraction, but the Longyou army's formation remained intact, and they advanced steadily.

In contrast, the Shence Army was in disarray, and Wang Shi's expression changed.

The difference in the quality of the soldiers on both sides was too great. A thin layer of sweat slowly appeared on Wang Shi's forehead. His intense concentration was causing him a headache.

One hundred steps, eighty steps, sixty steps...

"put!"

"Beep--"

The same scene unfolded as the archers of both sides began firing arrows to disrupt the enemy, and the Shence Army remained at a disadvantage.

"General!"

"I saw it."

Zhang Wu, who was standing next to him, suddenly spoke up, and Liu Jilong calmly responded, because the two of them had spotted the direction of Fuqiang, where dozens of cavalrymen were rushing towards the Luoshuidao camp along the foot of the Qinling Mountains.

"No wonder they took the initiative to attack; it turns out there's a big fish in Fuqiang County."

Liu Jilong continued working with his hands, but made a light mocking remark about the state army's situation.

If Wang Shi were to lead his troops to garrison the camp, Liu Jilong would have to go to great lengths to capture him, and perhaps hundreds or even thousands of people would be killed or wounded.

As a result, in order to save this big fish in Fuqiang County, Wang Shi actually took the initiative to meet the opponent, which saved Liu Jilong a lot of trouble.

"General, should I lead the troops to capture him later?"

Zhang Wu was eager to try, but Liu Jilong shook his head and said:
"No need. The only people who can get the Wang family to provide support are those eunuchs from the Northern Division."

“These eunuchs are important to them, but not to us.”

Liu Jilong was speaking the truth; indeed, it was possible to capture the eunuchs of the Northern Division and use them as bargaining chips.

The problem is that he has no intention of ceasing hostilities with the imperial court. He has only occupied a small part of Shuofang and most of Qinzhou. If he stops now, how can he face the brothers who died in the past?

As for exchanging eunuchs for ransom, that was even more unnecessary.

Once he captures Sanchuan, he can lead a large army out of Longshan and into Guanzhong. At that time, the most valuable land and people in Guanzhong will be preserved, and he will not need to waste his energy on a ransom of tens or hundreds of thousands.

"Enter!"

Liu Jilong waved his command flag, and the two vanguard teams came within ten steps of each other.

The two sides slowly approached each other, and then their spears clashed as they tried to stab each other's vanguard soldiers.

When the quality of ordinary soldiers was compared, the Shence Army's vanguard was like an egg hitting a rock, with countless vanguard soldiers being knocked down and stabbed.

Liu Jilong waved his command flag again, and the thousand vanguard soldiers in the front row transformed into twenty squads, forming a sharp formation that broke through the government army's straight line and carved out countless "gaps".

The Shence Army infantry in the front ranks began to retreat in fear, while the infantry behind them stopped in their tracks.

"You dog from Northeast China, taste your father's golden mace!"

"Northeast dog..."

"Bam—"

The Longyou army continued its advance, and the fallen Shence soldiers were trampled and dragged into the Longyou formation. Before they could even beg for mercy, they were struck in the face by golden maces.

The flesh was torn and ripped apart, and yellowed teeth and tartar flew out with blood, splattering all over the ground.

"Ugh!!"

"Help, help me—"

The piercing screams echoed across the battlefield, sending chills down one's spine.

The battle had barely begun when the Shence Army's vanguard was in dire straits. Wang Shi had no choice but to issue a command, ordering the Tiaodang and Zhudui to advance in succession to help the vanguard stabilize its position.

Seeing this, Liu Jilong immediately waved his command flag, and the two cavalry units on the left and right began to advance slowly.

Wang Shi also knew that he had lost the initiative, and unwilling to be outdone, he waved his command flag. Zhao Qian personally led the elite Tianxiong cavalry out of the battle, attempting to launch a surprise attack on the left and right sides of the Longyou army formation with the help of Tiaodang and Zhudui.

Thousands of troops galloped forward, but Liu Jilong remained unmoved, continuing to order his cavalry to advance slowly.

Zhao Qian led three thousand elite cavalry of the Tianxiong Army at breakneck speed, charging towards the flanks of the Longyou Army like a swimming dragon.

He had expected the Longyou army to defend it fiercely, but there was no reaction from either flank.

He felt something was amiss and quickly led his elite cavalry in a charge to kill and wound the soldiers of Longyou and weaken the left flank.

Upon seeing this, the soldiers in the formation switched to bows and crossbows and launched a counterattack with foot soldiers against the elite cavalry led by Zhao Qian.

Foot archery was far more powerful than mounted archery, and many of Zhao Qian's elite cavalrymen were killed or fell to the ground.

The soldiers on the battlefield roared, the horses neighed, the drums and horns echoed through the valley, and the Wei River surged on both banks...

For a time, the battle was extremely intense, but Liu Jilong still did not command the four thousand cavalry and infantry to attack.

Liu Jilong's composure caused Wang Shi's anxiety to gradually increase.

"Lord Wang, Vice Envoy Yang has returned to the camp. Let's withdraw our troops immediately!"

Yang Gongqing, who was standing nearby, couldn't help but offer Wang Shi some advice, but he didn't know that Wang Shi also had his own difficulties.

In military strategy, it is easy to send out troops but difficult to withdraw them; it is easy to advance but difficult to retreat. Moreover, he was facing an opponent like Liu Jilong.

Liu Jilong's four thousand cavalry and infantry did not move, waiting for him to withdraw his troops.

If he dares to withdraw his troops, he will definitely not fare well.

"The rebels are now holding our army firmly in their grip. If we were to retreat, it would likely result in a rout."

"At that time, they may not only suffer heavy losses, but they may even be completely wiped out and lose their way through the waterways!"

Wang Shi gritted his teeth and spoke. Although Yang Gongqing was also the deputy commander of the Right Shence Army, he really didn't know as much about battle as Wang Shi.

He could only remain silent and wait for the result, while Wang Shi kept breaking out in a cold sweat, simply because the Shence Army's performance was truly terrible.

After a year of training, even with the combined efforts of Zhanfeng, Tiaodang, and Zhudun, they still couldn't suppress the opposing Zhanfeng team of two thousand.

If Liu Jilong were to send in the troop and the garrison as well, wouldn't these four thousand people be completely wiped out?

Thinking of this, Wang Shi gritted his teeth and could only keep waving the command flag, signaling the three armies to retreat ten steps at a time.

He dared not directly order a retreat, so he could only use this method to stabilize the Shence Army.

However, he overestimated the Shence Army, because after he issued three consecutive orders to retreat ten steps, a riot suddenly broke out in the Shence Army.

"Damn it, why are we retreating in ten-step-at-a-time increments?!"

"Can't the troops be withdrawn all at once and returned to the camp?"

"Those bastards on the other side aren't even human; they're not afraid of death!"

"Damn it! Anyone who dares to disobey military orders again will be punished by the deputy squad leader!!"

"Woo-"

The Shence Army's riot was only momentary, but Liu Jilong seized that moment firmly.

As the horns sounded, the jumping squad, who had been suppressing the enemy with crossbow bolts, immediately put away their bows and crossbows and charged forward with blunt weapons.

The vanguard teams in Longyou also went all out, launching attacks in groups.

"Bam—"

"Uh-huh!!"

"You bastards, you're all insane!!"

"You dog from Northeast China, taste how powerful your father is!"

"Ha ha ha ha……"

The charge of the Longyou vanguard disrupted the rhythm of the Shence Army. Hundreds of soldiers in the front ranks were knocked down and trampled by the vanguard. The vanguard, wielding a golden mace, leaped to the front and, taking advantage of the Shence Army's broken spear formation, rushed into the formation and smashed the blunt weapons.

"not good!"

Wang Shi's pupils constricted, and before he could even give the order, the army's formation nearly collapsed.

"Zhao Qian!" Wang Shi immediately waved his command flag, and Zhao Qian hurriedly led his elite cavalry to attack the flank of the Longyou army.

At this moment, the soldiers on the left flank of Longyou seem to be charging forward. This is a good opportunity for cavalry to flank the enemy. If executed well, it can instantly split the Longyou army in two.

But as soon as Wang Shi gave the order, he realized something was wrong: "Stop! Order Zhao Qian to withdraw his troops!!"

Wang Shi hurriedly spoke, and the flag soldiers quickly waved their command flags, but Zhao Qian had already led his troops to charge towards the flank of the Longyou army.

"kill!!"

"Buzzing, rumbling..."

The massive army charged in, and the Longyou army, whose formation had become loose, was like a lamb to the slaughter, about to be split in two.

However, when Zhao Qian led his troops to the left flank, the Longyou infantry, who were still running, stopped abruptly and plunged the ends of their spears into the ground beneath their feet, aiming them at the elite cavalry.

It's not difficult for one person to do this, but it's difficult for hundreds of people to do it in unison.

"Fell into a trap!"

These three words flashed through Zhao Qian's mind, and then he watched helplessly as countless elite cavalrymen crashed into the thicket of spears.

The five rows of guns in front and behind meant that even the strongest cavalry charge could not break through this defense.

Countless elite cavalrymen were killed amidst the hail of spears, but at that moment, more than a hundred soldiers from Longyou, wielding long-handled swords, charged out of the hail of spears.

"Watch out for the horse catcher!!"

"Pfft..."

One hundred horse catchers, each nearly six feet tall, raised their long-handled swords and slashed fiercely at the elite Tianxiong cavalry on horseback.

The armor plates dented, and hundreds of elite cavalrymen fell off their horses. Meanwhile, the horse catchers took advantage of the Tianxiong elite cavalry's limited strength and continued to cut down all the elite cavalrymen in the chaos.

"Withdraw! Withdraw!"

"Buzzing, rumbling..."

Seeing that Liu Jilong had trained more than a hundred tall horse catchers, Zhao Qian immediately turned his horse around and tried to retreat to his own camp.

Before he could act, a dull, rapid sound of horses' hooves came from his right flank.

At this moment, four thousand cavalry and infantrymen launched an attack, crashing fiercely into the Tianxiong Army from the right flank.

"Hissing—"

The warhorses were neighing in agony, and countless Tianxiong soldiers were being stabbed off their horses by the spears of the cavalry and infantry, while the Longyou cavalry were closing in on them.

"Retreat! Retreat!" Zhao Qian could only hurriedly lead the elite cavalry capable of breaking through the encirclement and escape before the Longyou army could completely surround them.

As it turned out, he was right. As soon as he led his men to withdraw, the cavalry of Longyou, together with the leaping and horse-catching men, completely surrounded the elite cavalry of Tianxiong Army.

Wang Shi watched this scene unfold, his eyes wide and his chest heaving.

Yang Gongqing's face turned deathly pale. Even though he knew nothing about battle command, he could see that every unit of the government army was in disarray.

"Wang Shaobao, what should we do now?!"

Yang Gongqing asked anxiously, and Wang Shi, seeing this, looked at Yang Gongqing with difficulty: "Withdraw..."

"Retreat!!" Yang Gongqing immediately turned his horse around and fled towards Luoshui Camp without stopping.

Seeing Yang Gongqing flee into the water and into the camp, the banner soldiers and garrison instinctively wanted to follow, but seeing Wang Shi stop his horse in place, they couldn't help but urge, "Young Guardian, let's retreat quickly!"

"Young Master, we still have four thousand brothers and twenty thousand soldiers at Luoshui Village and Shanggui. We still have a chance!"

"That's right, Junior Guardian, let's withdraw our troops!"

Wang Shi was surrounded by words urging him to retreat, but at that moment he only felt dizzy and his brain was filled with ringing.

"Young Guardian, retreat!!"

Zhao Qian led several hundred elite cavalrymen who had broken through the encirclement to Wang Shi and dragged him away to Luoshui Village.

"Damn it, they've retreated!!"

"Withdraw! Withdraw!"

"Brothers, let's retreat!"

The vanguard troops, unaware of the changing situation, abandoned their comrades who had fought against Longyou and fled in droves as soon as they saw Wang Shi leading the great banner away.

"Blow the whistle..."

Under the great banner, Liu Jilong's cloak billowed and the banners behind him fluttered, but he slightly raised his chin and waved the five-colored command flag in his hand with a cold look in his eyes.

"kill!!"

In an instant, the battle situation collapsed like an avalanche, with thousands of Shence soldiers fleeing in disarray, abandoning their armor and weapons.

A military officer from the Yang family of the Northern Army was running wildly when he was overtaken by fierce soldiers from Longyou who were chasing him from behind.

As the two sides drew closer, the fierce soldiers of Longyou raised their golden maces and brought them down, instantly denting the eunuch's son's iron helmet and skull into a bloody pit.

"Those who kneel will live!!"

"Those who lay down their weapons and kneel shall live!!"

In the midst of the battle, many of the pursuing Longyou generals shouted, while the exhausted Shence Army soldiers immediately collapsed into a mass.

Seeing them fall, the soldiers of the Longyou Army immediately stopped chasing them and instead pursued the Shence Army who were still risking their lives to escape.

As the soldiers of Longyou were pursuing the enemy with frenzied abandon, a muffled thunderous sound of hooves suddenly came from the direction of Fuqiang.

The soldiers in Longyou immediately stopped their pursuit and gathered together on high alert.

Hundreds of cavalrymen approached the battlefield from afar, and as they drew closer, the banners representing "Longyou" gradually became clearer.

"General!" Before An Pohu even showed himself, the shout had already reached Liu Jilong's ears.

He glanced to the side and saw An Pohu's spear tip carrying a severed head as it approached him.

"General!" An Pohu dismounted, his body covered in blood.

He swung the spear, and the severed head was instantly flung onto the grass, where it rolled twice before coming to a stop.

An Pohu planted his long spear to the side and took out an official seal from his bosom: "The seal and head of Yang Jizhong, the commander of the Left Shence Army in Pingchuan, are here. Fuqiang has been surrounded by our army. Please give your instructions, Commander!"

Liu Jilong took the seal, looked at the one-sided battlefield in the distance, and laughed heartily:
"Alright, from now on, the Fuqiang River Valley belongs to Longyou!"

(End of this chapter)