Guiyi Fei Tang

Chapter 494 The Battle of Luxian (A long chapter of 10,000 words)
"Damn it, Huairou and Liaoxi in the north have both surrendered."

"Not only that, I heard that Yanle and Miyun in Tanzhou have also surrendered."

"What's the north? Huichang and Wuqing in the south have already been captured. The fire dragon last night was a sign that the government troops from the south were gathering in the north."

On the seventh day of the fourth month, with Li Quanzhong surrendering to Liu Jilong, the other three counties that were closer to Huairou all surrendered after being persuaded by Liu.

Faced with the defection of Li Quanzhong and the four northern counties, Zhang Gongsu suddenly lost his determination to fight Liu Jilong to the death.

While he hesitated, Huichang and Wuqing, which he had placed high hopes on, were also captured by Husiguang's army.

On the 14th, Husi Guang led nearly 10,000 troops to join forces with Liu Jilong, who then gathered 30,000 troops to besiege Zhang Gongsu in Luxian.

If that were all, the people inside and outside Luxian County wouldn't be so unsettled. The more crucial factor is that Liu Jilong sends people to the battlefield every day to shout about the imperial court's policy towards the surrendered soldiers of Lulong Army.

Upon learning that the imperial court would no longer forcibly seize the land of the soldiers and garrison troops, many soldiers and garrison troops in Lulong suddenly lost their previous suicidal thoughts.

For Zhang Gongsu at this moment, the change in people's hearts was undoubtedly the most fatal.

"Asshole! Asshole!"

Inside the Lu County government office, Zhang Gongsu angrily overturned his desk.

This action caught the attention of Chen Gongyan, who was in charge of coordinating military supplies in the Sixth Division.

Chen Gongyan walked into the Jieshifang and squatted down to pick up the military document that Zhang Gongsu had thrown on the ground.

As the contents of the military intelligence report were revealed, even though he was prepared, his pupils couldn't help but constrict.

Seeing his reaction, Zhang Gongsu suppressed his anger and said, "The officers and sergeants of Yuyang, Yutian, and Macheng rebelled, and all the men I sent were killed."

"Now our army only has the nearby Luxian, Gulu, Sanhe, and Lulong and Yuguan in Pingzhou."

Zhang Gongsu's words undoubtedly caused Chen Gongyan a little panic, but he quickly calmed down and bowed to Zhang Gongsu, saying:
“The soldiers in the army are unaware of these matters yet. If they knew that the counties had rebelled and surrendered to Liu Jilong, they would certainly have thoughts of defection.”

"If the commander leads his troops to confront Liu Jilong, takes advantage of the situation to defeat Liu Jilong, and pardons the rebellious generals, then Lulong can be restored to stability."

"Liu Jilong's previous intervention in Lulong was due to the unrest among the military officers in the town. If the military commander displays such methods, then Liu Jilong will definitely go south to deal with Chengde first, and then gather troops to go north to deal with our army."

Chen Gongyan's suggestion made Zhang Gongsu nod repeatedly, but after pacing back and forth, he still frowned and said:
"As seen on the battlefield, the government troops are brave and fierce. It will probably not be so easy for our army to defeat their 30,000-strong army with 35,000 elite cavalry and more than 10,000 new soldiers."

Seeing his reaction, Chen Gongyan stepped forward and said, "A generous reward will surely bring forth brave men. There are still over 100,000 coins and silk in the Lu County government office."

"If the commander distributes all this money and silk to the brothers, they will surely be loyal to the enemy."

"The commander should make a decision on this matter as soon as possible. If the brothers in the city know that the counties in the east have surrendered, then even if we give them more money and food, we probably won't be able to boost their morale."

Faced with Chen Gongyan's bluntness, Zhang Gongsu still hesitated. Finally, seeing Chen Gongyan's growing anxiety, he reluctantly stated:

"Does Lord Chen think that if I lead my troops to Lulong, we can station them there to confront Liu Jilong?"

Chen Gongyan had expected Zhang Gongsu to offer some brilliant insights, but he never expected it to be like this.

Seeing Zhang Gongsu's appearance, he couldn't help but get angry and raised his voice:
"If the commander abandons Luxian now, the army will lose Luxian, and the destruction of Lulong will be imminent."

"If we abandon Luxian today, we will abandon Lulong tomorrow, and Yuguan the day after. Will the General retreat to Yingzhou, or even Liaodong?"

"Has the General ever considered that if you lose your foundation and are left to wander in the wilderness, how will you achieve anything?"

"Moreover, you, General, know the temperament of the brothers in the army better than I do. If you were to wander in the wilderness, would the brothers follow you?"

"I'm afraid that by then, all the brothers in the army will hate the commander-in-chief and will be thinking of offering his head to Liu Jilong to claim credit."

Chen Gongyan's words brought Zhang Gongsu to his senses. He did not believe that the soldiers and garrison troops of Lulong would follow him and leave their homes.

Thinking of this, he could only take a deep breath: "Send the order to open the warehouses, distribute all the money and silk to reward the three armies, and muster the troops at dawn tomorrow to engage Liu Jilong in battle!"

"The commander is wise!" Chen Gongyan breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that Zhang Gongsu had finally made up his mind.

He turned and left the yamen, and soon led his men to take all the money and silk out of the warehouse.

For the rest of the day, Zhang Gongsu and Chen Gongyan personally went to each camp and distributed the money and silk they had to the generals and soldiers.

Zhang Gongsu's move quickly won the hearts of many soldiers, but the hearts of soldiers won by bribery with money and silk were only temporary.

At dawn the following day, as Zhang Gongsu mustered 30,000 infantrymen from the city and led them out of the city, they joined forces with 8,000 elite cavalry and 7,000 garrison troops outside the city. They quickly left the fortifications such as the sheep and horse wall and the trenches outside the city and arrived on the plain to the west of the city.

Liu Jilong received the news as soon as Lu Longjun in Luxian County began to be mobilized.

"All out in force? It seems he's prepared to fight me to the death."

Facing the sand table, Liu Jilong raised his chin, his eyes revealing undisguised pride.

"Your Highness, our army has gathered 33,000 troops, including 18,000 elite cavalry, 5,000 infantry, and nearly 10,000 infantry from Lulong Town."

"There's no need to send infantry; victory can be achieved by using elite cavalry against both infantry and cavalry!"

Husiguang bowed respectfully, showing great confidence in the outcome of the battle.

Cao Mao was more conservative than him and took the initiative to bow and said, "Your Highness, Lu County has more than 40,000 troops, including 8,000 elite cavalry and 27,000 garrison soldiers, totaling 35,000 elite troops."

"If we add the nearly 10,000 new recruits in the city, their army may number as many as 45,000. We must not underestimate them."

In response to the two men's words, Liu Jilong nodded and replied, "Underestimating the enemy is certainly not advisable."

"The imperial edict appointed Geng Huan to lead 5,000 cavalry and infantry as the central army, Cao Mao and Hu Siguang to each lead nearly 10,000 cavalry from Lulong and Guanlong as the two wings, and nearly 10,000 infantry from Lulong as the vanguard. Zhang Jianhui was ordered to take command, and Chen Bingwen followed the order."

"Your subordinates obey!" The generals in the tent responded in unison, and then each took their orders and went into battle.

An hour later, as the sun gradually rose in the east, the two armies remained arrayed and facing each other on the plains west of Luxian.

The government army's elite cavalry was twice the size of Lulong's, while Lulong's infantry was three times the size of the government army's.

Since the army was a mixture of Han and Lulong troops, the quality of the two armies varied, and their formations were roughly the same.

For ordinary soldiers, the number of men exceeds ten thousand, so the difference between forty-five thousand and thirty-three thousand is not significant.

Liu Jilong led his generals onto the over four-zhang-high Lü Gong chariot, and soon they had a panoramic view of the entire battlefield.

Those who acted in unison with them included Zhang Gongsu, Chen Gongyan, and others in the Lulong army.

Both sides boarded Lü Gongche, using it as a command platform for observation.

"Your Highness, their infantry alone number no less than forty thousand, of which at least thirty thousand are armored soldiers."

As Cao Mao began to speak, Liu Jilong nodded in agreement, but then added, "Nearly ten thousand new soldiers in Luxian City, I estimate he's brought them all here to make up the numbers."

"These new recruits are useless; in fact, our army is of equal strength to theirs."

"Since we have come to attack, and they have already engaged in battle, what reason do we have not to fight?"

"By imperial decree, the vanguard shall prepare to engage in battle, while the left and right flanks and the central army shall await further instructions."

"Yes!"

After Liu Jilong issued the imperial edict, the generals dismounted from Lü Gong's carriage and led their troops away.

Although Zhang Jianhui was entrusted with the important task of commanding the vanguard by Liu Jilong, in reality, the vanguard was mainly under the command of Chen Bingwen.

Once the two arrived at the camp, Chen Bingwen calmly began to direct nearly ten thousand infantrymen to form a straight line, which would then press towards the Lulong army.

Lulong had been engaged in peacekeeping operations with the Xi and Khitan people for many years, so its soldiers should theoretically have some fighting ability.

However, when facing Chen Bingwen's command, the soldiers of Lulong Army were clearly not putting in much effort.

They moved with an incredibly slow pace, which made Chen Bingwen frown and turn to look at Zhang Jianhui.

Zhang Jian felt the gaze and quickly explained, "It wasn't ordered by anyone. It's just that in military operations, it's customary to issue advance payment for deployment and rewards, but our army doesn't have this tradition, therefore..."

"I understand." Chen Bingwen interrupted Zhang Jianhui, and then instructed his personal guards to report the changes in the vanguard to His Highness.

The vanguard's fast horses quickly arrived at Lu Gong's carriage, and before long Liu Jilong learned from him about the changes in the Lulong Town troops.

"Are they trying to sow discord between me and me, so that I'll give in and pay them money?"

Liu Jilong scoffed lightly; he had already anticipated this, so he instructed the fast horse:

"An imperial edict is issued to Geng Huan, ordering him to lead his cavalry and infantry forward to supervise the battle. Anyone found negligent in battle shall be executed!"

"The last general takes command!"

Kuai Ma readily agreed and soon delivered Liu Jilong's military order to Geng Huan.

Without the slightest hesitation, Geng Huan immediately led 5,000 cavalry and infantry to approach the vanguard. After being a hundred paces away from the vanguard, he left 200 soldiers as a garrison to guard the horses, while the remaining 4,800 men formed a defensive formation at the front.

Most of the Han army's cavalry and infantry were veterans from Longyou, seasoned by countless battles.

Upon receiving the military order, they suddenly formed the Six Flower Formation, holding military spears and pressing behind the vanguard.

The surrendered soldiers of Lulong were well aware of the discipline of the Han army.

When they followed Husi Guang to attack Huichang and Wuqing, if anyone retreated, the veteran soldiers of Guanzhong, who were in charge of supervising the battle, would not care about the relationship between the soldiers and the generals, and would kill them with their swords.

Seeing the veteran soldiers from Guanzhong pressing forward, they quickened their pace, bringing the enemy and their own forces closer and closer.

Three hundred steps, two hundred steps, one hundred steps...

"Beep--"

When the two sides were only a hundred paces apart, they both blew their wooden whistles at the same time.

The crossbow bolts began to intertwine and collide in the air before falling into the enemy ranks.

Those who were unlucky enough to be shot by arrows would be dragged to the rear for treatment, but most people relied on their sturdy armor to keep advancing.

"Beep--"

When the distance was fifty paces, the archers who had been prepared in advance began to shoot arrows to harass the enemy, and the soldiers of the vanguard at the head of the column also began to calm down.

Faced with the ever-closer distance and the pain of arrows constantly piercing their bodies, both sides raised their guns and shouted, launching a charge when they were about thirty paces apart.

"kill!!"

"boom--"

"Uh-huh!"

"Kill the enemy! Those who break through the lines will be promoted three ranks!"

"Kill one government soldier, and you'll be rewarded with ten thousand coins!!"

In order to win, Zhang Gongsu spared no expense.

Even with the treasury already emptied, he still gave the soldiers and garrison troops of Lulong Town empty promises.

If he wins this battle, he can recruit the generals in the rear and use the money and silk from Lulong to reward the army.

If he loses, then he won't have to worry about it anymore.

"put!"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa..."

Although the Lulong army had methods of surface shooting, they did not train surface shooting skills in large batches like the Han army.

Therefore, the main conflict between the two sides was the use of arrows and the fighting between the vanguard teams.

Of the 33,000 government troops, fewer than 15,000 were Han soldiers, while the remaining 18,000 were surrendered troops from Lulong under Zhang Jianhui's command.

Liu Jilong was not saddened by the deaths and injuries of these people, because the more of them survived, the more detrimental it would be to the stability of Lulong.

In his eyes, Zhang Gongsu was commanding nearly 40,000 infantrymen to encircle him from the front and flanks, seemingly intent on swallowing up all 10,000 of his vanguard troops.

Liu Jilong did not react to this, but simply instructed the flag bearers beside him: "Order two thousand men from the left and right cavalry to retreat, and have Ma Yi and Gao Huai personally lead this cavalry to put on their armor and await orders."

"Yes!" the flag bearer replied, and then began to restore the command flag.

Upon receiving the order, Cao Mao and Husi Guang immediately dispatched two thousand elite cavalry from the Guanzhong Plain to the rear to don horse armor.

At the same time, Liu Jilong watched helplessly as nearly 10,000 vanguard troops were about to be surrounded, and then he calmly ordered: "The central army will advance and hold the enemy infantry in place."

"Yes, sir!" The flag bearer continued waving the command flag.

Geng Huan, who was keeping a close eye on the command platform, saw the flag signals being transmitted to his side. He waited in place for a moment until a fast horse brought more complete military orders from the rear, at which point he began to calmly give orders.

"Form a circular formation. If the vanguard is routed by the enemy, do not worry about their lives. Anyone who charges into the formation shall be executed!"

"Uuuuuu——"

As the bugle sounded, nearly five thousand cavalry and infantrymen, under the command of a new commander, formed a circular formation and moved toward the nearly ten thousand infantrymen in the vanguard.

"kill!!"

"boom……"

The sounds on the battlefield are nothing more than a few: the sound of flesh colliding, the sound of gun barrels clashing, the sound of armor clashing with weapons, and the screams and cries for help of those who have been hit hard...

These voices constantly intrude into people's minds, almost driving a normal person to the brink of madness.

When faced with this situation, the new recruits had no idea what to do. Even the Lulong Army, which had been maintaining peacekeeping operations for many years, couldn't help but panic at this moment.

In contrast, Geng Huan's nearly 5,000 men remained steadfast, calmly facing the enemy despite the continuous advance of the Lulong army.

Leaping and wielding a bow, under the cover of the spears of the vanguard, he continuously approached and charged forward with his strong bow and arrows.

The Lulong army surged forward like a tide, but they couldn't break through the Han army's formation at all. Instead, they died wave after wave in front of the Han army.

Compared to them, the vanguard responsible for holding off the largest number of troops was showing signs of weakness.

"Damn it, what are the people from the imperial court doing?!"

"Are you scoundrels trying to kill us all here?!"

As the number of dead and wounded gradually increased, and curses continued to pour from the front ranks, Zhang Jianhui broke out in a cold sweat. He glanced at Chen Bingwen, only to see him sitting firmly on his horse, unmoved.

Seeing Chen Bingwen's reaction, Zhang Jianhui could only wipe the sweat from his forehead and force himself to remain calm.

"Why isn't Liu Jilong mobilizing his troops? Does he intend to watch these tens of thousands of men die in battle?"

In Lu Gongche, Zhang Gongsu went from being anxious to being calm after gaining the upper hand in less than a quarter of an hour.

At this moment, Liu Jilong's 15,000 infantrymen were surrounded by more than 37,000 Lulong troops. Although Geng Huan's troops were still able to hold their ground, Zhang Jianhui and Chen Bingwen's troops were gradually starting to falter.

As long as the soldiers don't see any chance of victory, they will turn their attention to Zhang Jianhui and Chen Bingwen.

At that time, he could absorb these thousands of soldiers and form a greater advantage to fight against Liu Jilong.

Thinking of this, Zhang Gongsu couldn't help but smile, but his eyes remained fixed on the elite cavalry on the left and right flanks of Liu Jilong's troops.

These elite cavalry on the left and right flanks, at first glance, numbered nearly 20,000, but seemed somewhat insufficient.

Now that Liu Jilong has transferred two thousand elite cavalry, the number is even more obvious, reaching approximately fifteen thousand.

If they were to advance, I fear my eight thousand elite cavalry alone would not be able to hold them off.

"Order the three armies to have the foot soldiers prepare with strong bows and suppress the government troops' cavalry with foot archers."

"All units must prepare to capture horses immediately if government troops launch a flanking attack."

"Yes!"

Zhang Gongsu attempted to suppress the elite cavalry of the government army who would launch an attack later using foot archers, while Chen Gongyan, after receiving orders, dispatched a fast horse to command the flag bearers to wave the command flags.

Military orders were quickly relayed to the battlefield, and all units in Lulong Town were fully prepared.

The vanguard was constantly compressing the space of the government infantry in the formation, while the leaping soldiers were using foot archers to suppress the surrounded government infantry in the formation, and nearly a thousand tall horse catchers were ready with spears and long-handled swords.

"Um..."

"Help me, help me..."

"boom--"

"Hissing..."

On the battlefield, even the horses of officers and generals neighed due to the unfavorable situation, let alone the soldiers on the front lines.

They were under indescribable pressure, their eyes fixed on the endless enemy army before them, their menacing expressions and sharp weapons.

They seemed inexhaustible; one batch died and another was brought in, causing one's arms to ache and swell.

"The cavalry on the left and right flanks will be led by Hu Siguang of the right army, who will entangle the rebel cavalry with the Lulong cavalry, while Cao Mao of the left army will lead the Guanlong cavalry to launch surprise attacks on the rebels, thus relieving pressure on the vanguard and the central army."

"Yes!"

After the infantry fought fiercely against overwhelming odds for half an hour, Liu Jilong finally made a new adjustment on the eve of the collapse of the vanguard.

"Uuuuuu——"

"Boom! Boom! Boom..."

Under the north wind, command flags waved and bugles sounded in unison.

The general's order was delivered by fast horse. Thousands of laborers lined up behind the drum carts, then stepped forward in pairs. Each person held a drumstick and struck the drum ten times according to the frequency of the flag bearers waving their flags. Then the rest of the laborers took their turn.

Although it is only ten drumbeats, it requires a lot of physical strength.

The laborers conscripted in Lulong Town, while not exactly pale and sickly, lived a simple life, with no excess fat on their bodies.

Ten vigorous strikes on the drum were enough to make them sweat and their hands go weak.

Twenty drum carts were needed, requiring as many as two thousand laborers. In addition, laborers were constantly making flatbreads, ready to be sent to the battlefield at any time.

"Buzzing, rumbling..."

Suddenly, as the government troops' cavalry began to advance to the sound of horns and drums, Zhang Gongsu, who had been keeping a close eye on them, immediately devised a countermeasure.

"The cavalry moved forward, ready to entangle them."

"If we can hold them off for another quarter of an hour, the vanguard and the central army will be able to break through their formation and defeat Liu Jilong in no time!"

Zhang Gongsu hurriedly gave the order, and after his military order was issued, more than 8,000 Lulong cavalrymen immediately began to move.

Only when the cavalry had moved halfway through did they realize that one of the two cavalry units of the government army was charging towards them.

"Beep--"

A series of piercing and rapid whistles sounded, and the Lulong cavalry, who were originally preparing to divide their forces to intercept them, quickly spread out.

Husi Guang had already thoroughly studied the tactics of the Lulong Cavalry in the past few days. Perhaps because they were located on the frontier and had long fought against nomadic and hunting peoples, the Lulong Cavalry mainly relied on mounted archery raids and group charges, combining the flexibility of nomadic peoples with the discipline of the Central Plains army.

Their common tactic is to scatter when encountering the enemy and regroup when the enemy retreats, but they can also launch an attack at critical moments.

It can be said that the Lulong Cavalry combined the advantages of both light and heavy cavalry, but in other words, the Lulong Cavalry was not the best in either category.

Commanding such cavalry was nothing special for Husi Guang. He blew his wooden whistle almost at the same time that Zhang Gongsu dispatched his cavalry, and also adopted a cavalry-spreading archery tactic to delay the more than 8,000 elite cavalry.

As the two sides drew closer, Zhang Gongsu's heart was in his throat.

"put!!"

"Hissing—"

"Uh-huh!"

"Boom..."

In an instant, the two elite cavalry charged into each other's loose formation, attempting to kill each other with powerful bows and arrows, while also quickly drawing their daggers to attack and parry.

In just a few breaths, quite a few cavalrymen fell from their horses, and countless more were thrown off their horses by arrows.

The two sides staggered their positions, then turned their horses around and continued to engage in close combat with mounted archery and short-range weapons, resulting in dozens or even hundreds of casualties in each engagement.

While the two sides were completely entangled, Cao Mao's elite Han cavalry charged into the range of the Lulong army's infantry.

"Fire arrows!"

"Beep--"

Thousands of arrows rained down from the sky, horses neighed as they were struck, and the cavalrymen on horseback quickly steadied themselves while trying to soothe their wounded horses.

Many cavalrymen's horses were hit in the head by arrows and fell to the ground, leaving the riders dazed and confused. The grass was torn up, revealing the soil underneath.

However, compared to their wounded state, most of the elite Han cavalry charged headlong into the Lulong infantry, who were flanking the government infantry.

The infantry of Lulong Army continuously suppressed and disrupted the advance of Han cavalry with arrows, but after withstanding several rounds of arrows, the Han cavalry finally charged to within fifteen paces of the front line.

In an instant, the Han cavalry released their grip, and while urging their horses to gallop, they skillfully drew their bows and aimed at the exposed part of the face, which was no bigger than the palm of their hand.

"Pfft!"

"Uh-"

In an instant, countless Lulong infantrymen fell with arrows in their faces, while many of them were lucky enough to only suffer slashes to their faces and were not killed on the spot.

The Han army's vanguard cavalry did not stop; they turned their horses around and withdrew from the battlefield, preparing for a second assault.

"Up! Up! The lines must not be broken!"

"Woo-hoo! Woo-hoo..."

Faced with the situation where the troop carriers were being shot dead, the rear ranks kept sending out leaping soldiers to take their place, but the Han army's cavalry was also pressing forward wave after wave.

The archers in the Lulong army began to focus on shooting the horses of the Han cavalry, and many Han horses were hit by arrows, causing men and horses to fall.

Even so, they dared not advance to kill these lone cavalrymen, fearing that their rash advance would cause their formation to falter.

After the Han cavalry charged in one round, they withdrew, and those cavalrymen whose horses had died also retreated, forming ranks as infantry.

Hundreds of corpses lay on the battlefield where the two sides fought, but the Han army's corpses were exposed on the plain, while the Lulong army's corpses were hidden in the formation.

Upon seeing this, Liu Jilong on the command platform immediately waved his command flag, ordering the Han cavalry to begin regaining their strength.

At the same time, the Lulong army, whose flanks were attacked, couldn't help but panic.

Judging from their movements, Liu Jilong quickly guessed where the nearly 10,000 new soldiers were stationed.

"The imperial edict ordered Cao Mao to lead his troops back to their original positions, while Ma Yi and Gao Huai led their troops into the formation and hid within it."

"A quarter of an hour later, the army prepared to launch a surprise attack from the southwest direction at the hour of Xu (7-9 PM)."

"Yes!"

Under Liu Jilong's orders, Cao Mao led his troops around most of the battlefield and returned to his own lines, while Ma Yi and Gao Huai took the opportunity to lead their troops into the enemy lines.

After completing everything, nearly 10,000 cavalrymen began to approach the battlefield in the southwest direction. Upon seeing this, Zhang Gongsu immediately realized Liu Jilong's intention and hurriedly ordered a change of formation.

However, no matter how he changed his formation, Liu Jilong was able to direct Cao Mao's army to follow the new soldiers' movements based on their direction.

Two quarters of an hour passed quickly. The government troops in the formation that had received reinforcements did not collapse, but the Lulong army had exhausted a lot of energy due to the constant changes in formation.

Seeing this, Chen Gongyan quickly suppressed the command flag that Zhang Gongsu had raised: "If we continue to change formations like this, the brothers will run out of energy!"

His words made Zhang Gongsu realize what was happening, and he quickly looked towards the battlefield. He saw that the military formation on the battlefield was gradually becoming loose, while tens of thousands of cavalrymen who were constantly exchanging arrows and cavalry were entangled in the distance.

Cao Mao's nearly 10,000 elite cavalrymen were watching them intently. If the Lulong army continued to exhaust itself, Cao Mao could easily lead his troops to break through their lines.

"Order the elite troops of the front and middle armies to prepare for a pincer attack. Let them try to launch a strong attack with mounted archery. When the two armies attack from both sides, we will surely leave behind a lot of enemy soldiers."

"it is good!"

Zhang Gongsu nodded suddenly, and then continued to wave the command flag.

The Lulong army's formation stopped moving. Seeing this, Liu Jilong decisively waved his command flag, and shortly after that, Cao Mao led nearly 10,000 elite cavalry to charge into the Lulong new recruits' formation.

"Buzzing, rumbling..."

The charge of nearly ten thousand cavalrymen was nothing short of earth-shattering.

Even seasoned heavy infantrymen trembled at the sight of such a scene, let alone these new recruits who had been training for less than two months.

Even though they had put on heavy armor, their stamina had been depleted by seven or eight tenths in the past two quarters of an hour of changing formations.

Faced with the charge of nearly ten thousand cavalry, they felt their whole bodies trembling and their hands gradually becoming weak.

Just then, horse catchers wielding broadswords and clubs arrived from both sides and immediately formed a battle formation.

"Frontline troops, hold the line! Stand your spears straight!!"

The officers in the ranks shouted themselves hoarse, waving their command flags incessantly.

The flag bearers responsible for relaying military intelligence ran back and forth, while nearly 10,000 elite cavalrymen of the Han army had already rushed to the front of the battle.

They all took out their longbows and, as always, assumed the stance of mounted archery.

Few of the new recruits were skilled archers, and the army had few bows and crossbows to begin with, so they did not create a barrage of arrows to suppress the Han army.

"Buzzing, rumbling..."

As the sound of hooves grew louder, the surrounding sounds became indistinct, and everyone felt sweating profusely, especially the vanguard soldiers in the front ranks.

Their faces were covered in sweat, and their eyes were fixed on the ever-growing Han cavalry.

Faced with such pressure, they suddenly opened their mouths and shouted: "Kill!!"

"Pfft-"

Countless arrows rained down, and these vanguard soldiers were shot dead on the spot before they could even see the enemy's faces clearly.

"Up! Up!"

After successfully charging forward, the Han cavalry immediately turned their horses around and retreated to the left and right. Their repeated charges quickly wiped out the remaining troops in the area.

The officers of the Lulong Army were urging the leaping soldiers to charge forward with their spears, but before they could finish speaking, the elite cavalry of the Han Army began to retreat, and what appeared before them were heavily armored cavalry.

"kill!!"

"Bam—"

Two thousand heavy cavalrymen charged into the vanguard of the Lulong army before the Lulong army's cavalry could engage them.

The vanguard's defensive line was breached in an instant, and the horse catchers froze as if they had seen a ghost, not daring to step forward to catch the heavy cavalry.

Two thousand heavy cavalrymen, wielding lances, were like an unstoppable stone mill, crushing the soldiers of the Lulong army like wheat under a millstone without any hindrance.

These new recruits probably never imagined that they would face the onslaught of heavy cavalry less than two months after joining the army.

Vanguard, Central Army, Rear Army...

The defense line of nearly 10,000 new recruits was pierced as easily as paper. The heavy cavalry of the Han army directly broke through this defense line and encountered the troops of Geng Huan, Chen Bingwen and others.

"Form a straight line to protect the heavy cavalry on the left and right!!"

In an instant, upon seeing their own heavy cavalry, Geng Huan and Chen Bingwen simultaneously waved their flags to give the order.

They consciously began to act as the flanks of the heavy cavalry, covering their continuous attacks.

At the same time, Cao Mao's elite cavalry, which had retreated, turned their horses around and followed the gap created by the heavy cavalry, changing their lances to charge into the enemy formation.

"No! This is impossible!!"

"Where did the government troops get their heavy cavalry?!"

On Lü Gongche, Zhang Gongsu watched as the government army's heavy cavalry, after breaking through the enemy formation, quickly completed the tactic of advancing alongside the infantry, seemingly about to break through the formation of nearly 40,000 infantrymen.

His eyes widened in disbelief at what he was seeing.

He tried to command his cavalry, searching everywhere but couldn't find them at all, because his elite cavalry had been entangled by Husiguang and were far away, unable to return to their aid in time.

"Withdraw! Yes! Withdraw the troops immediately!"

Zhang Gongsu immediately gave the order, and the flag bearers on his left and right waved the command flags continuously.

In such a chaotic situation, apart from the generals on the outer perimeter who could see the flag signals, the other generals were busy dealing with the Han army's infantry and cavalry tactics.

The infantry covered the flanks of the heavy cavalry, who were only responsible for breaking through the enemy lines. Whenever the Lulong army attacked, the infantry would form ranks and fight them to the death.

As the heavy cavalry charged past, elite cavalrymen armed with bows and spears charged from behind, and countless Lulong infantrymen were killed by these spears.

"Escape!"

"The battle formation has been breached! If you want to live, run!"

In an instant, the first to riot were undoubtedly the nearly ten thousand new recruits who had been training for less than two months.

After their formation was broken, they were unable to regroup, and now they were being suppressed by the Han army's elite cavalry with powerful bows.

Having never experienced such warfare before, they collapsed after suffering fewer than a thousand casualties.

Cao Mao seized this opportunity and immediately led his elite cavalry to charge at them, disrupting their formation and driving them to attack the Lulong army on the left and right.

The Lulong Army, already exhausted from constantly changing formations, now faced with their comrades charging into battle, could only swing their swords at them in order to protect their position from being broken.

What was originally a situation divided into two, suddenly became a situation divided into three after nearly 10,000 new recruits collapsed.

Faced with this situation, the two thousand heavy cavalry, relying on the fact that their horses had not yet run out of power, continued to launch attacks on the infantry of the Lulong army from the flank.

With only their flank forces, they were simply no match for the charge of two thousand heavy cavalry.

The entire battlefield was in chaos, with each unit of the Lulong Army fighting independently.

A small number of troops who saw the flag signal began to retreat, but most were left on the battlefield by the Han army.

The situation that was originally an encirclement has turned into a situation of being divided and surrounded. The nearly 40,000 infantrymen are leaderless and can only be manipulated and driven by the Han army.

One force scattered and was driven by Cao Mao, Geng Huan, Chen Bingwen and others to attack another force, but was subsequently routed by Ma Yi and Gao Huai with heavy cavalry flanking attacks.

The generals repeatedly used this tactic, and no matter how Zhang Gongsu commanded the army, he was unable to revitalize it.

In the end, apart from the few thousand armored infantrymen who retreated behind the barricades, the remaining 30,000 infantrymen were all killed or captured by the Han army...

The moment the central army's banner was cut down by the Han cavalry, Zhang Gongsu felt a darkness before his eyes, and his legs went weak, causing him to collapse.

"Marshal! Marshal!!"

Chen Gongyan and the others frantically helped Zhang Gongsu up, but no matter how they pinched his philtrum, they couldn't wake him up. In the end, Chen Gongyan had to take the lead and send Zhang Gongsu into the city first. Then, they regrouped the thousands of troops that had been withdrawn and held their ground by relying on the barricades, sheep and horse walls, and other defensive fortifications outside the city.

"General, they have been defeated. Should we accept their surrender?"

Cao Mao led several dozen cavalrymen back from the battlefield, and, slightly out of breath, boarded Lü Gongche, bowed, and inquired about Liu Jilong.

Upon seeing this, Liu Jilong glanced at him, then looked at the Lulong army soldiers who should still number over 20,000 on the battlefield.

"Keep going until they surrender on their own!"

Liu Jilong could not possibly capture and kill all of these people, because their families were all in Lulong, and doing so would certainly cause the people of Lulong to resent them.

But if they died voluntarily on the battlefield, rather than being captured and then killed, then the people cannot blame them.

The casualties on the battlefield could only be blamed on Zhang Gongsu and on their own stubbornness.

"Yes!"

Cao Mao was slightly alarmed. He felt that his prince seemed to have become much more bloodthirsty since he came to Hebei.

However, he was only slightly startled, because he quickly realized what was happening.

His Highness's actions were not due to a bloodthirstiness, but rather an attempt to suppress the prevailing trend of subservience among the various garrisons in Hebei.

However, this process will take a long time, and we are probably only at the beginning now.

"So-and-so surrenders! So-and-so surrenders!"

"I surrender! Please don't kill me!"

"I surrender too! I want to surrender..."

The fighting on the battlefield continued, and the Lulong soldiers, who were completely surrounded and collapsed, began to surrender with tears streaming down their faces.

Those who abandon their weapons will not be killed!

Those who surrender will not be killed!

As some people began to surrender, many calls for surrender also emerged on the battlefield.

The government troops began to accept the surrender, while the Lulong cavalry, who were still engaged in battle in the distance, immediately and decisively retreated to the ancient Lu County in the east after seeing their defeat.

Husiguang led his troops in pursuit for several miles until they ran out of horsepower and finally stopped, then retreated to their main camp.

It was only noon, and less than four hours had passed since the battle began, yet there were already tens of thousands of corpses on the battlefield.

"Accept the surrender and clean up the battlefield."

"Yes!"

Faced with the battlefield piled high with corpses, Liu Jilong stepped down from Lü Gongche without changing his expression, while Cao Mao began to direct the flag soldiers, ordering them to clean up the battlefield and tally the dead and wounded.

Husiguang, who had returned, also joined the team cleaning up the battlefield, which continued from afternoon until dusk.

Outside the city, a large pit covering several acres was dug out, and all the soldiers of Lulong Town who died in battle were stripped naked and buried in it.

Their weapons and armor were captured, while the soldiers who died in battle were recorded in the register.

Before it got dark, Cao Mao led him to Liu Jilong.

"In this battle, our army lost 2,755 brothers, 472 were disabled, and the cavalry lost more than 3,300 horses, captured 579 horses, and still has nearly 10,000 brothers who can fight."

"Zhang Jianhui's side suffered over 5,700 deaths and over 600 injuries, leaving fewer than 10,000 able to fight."

"Our army killed 18,276 enemy soldiers and captured more than 15,022 prisoners."

"From what I saw on the battlefield, several thousand people fled into Luxian County, and another five thousand cavalrymen fled to the ancient Luxian County."

Liu Jilong took the document and flipped through it, not finding the deaths and injuries surprising.

The Han army was too small in number, and the quality of the Lulong army was uneven. It is not surprising that the two armies suffered a total of nearly 10,000 casualties.

However, the fact that nearly a quarter of the Han army had been killed or wounded still made Liu Jilong feel uneasy.

“Our soldiers who die in battle will receive a pension of one hundred strings of cash each, and their children can also be enrolled in government schools.”

“Each soldier who died in battle under Zhang Jianhui’s command will be given thirty mu of land as a form of compensation, and the same applies to the disabled.”

"Yes!" Cao Mao bowed upon hearing this, and Liu Jilong continued:
"The army will rest for three days. Those who surrender voluntarily within three days will not be killed. Their land will be collected and distributed equally, and they will be released back to civilian life."

"If Zhang Gongsu does not surrender within three days, our army will attack the city and kill all the soldiers in Luxian City."

Previously, Zhang Gongsu commanded more than 40,000 men, so Liu Jilong naturally offered generous terms.

Zhang Gongsu now commands only ten thousand men, and there are only a few thousand in Luxian City, so Liu Jilong naturally has no need to offer him generous treatment.

However, this only applies to the garrison of Luxian. As for the thousands of cavalrymen who fled to ancient Luxian, Liu Jilong still intends to recruit them according to the original conditions.

Having learned their lesson today, they should know the consequences of stubborn resistance.

After Liu Jilong finished making the arrangements, Cao Mao began to persuade the garrison in Luxian City to surrender, as Liu Jilong had instructed.

At the same time, Zhang Gongsu, who had been brought back to Luxian County by Chen Gongyan, slowly woke up.

When he woke up, he wished it was all a dream, but listening to the discussions outside the hall, he knew he had truly lost.

"Cough cough..."

He coughed a few times on purpose, and the murmurs outside the main hall immediately ceased, followed by a knock on the door.

"Has the General awakened?"

"Um……"

Zhang Gongsu stood up to respond, and then Chen Gongyan and several guards walked into the hall.

Several of the guards looked rather grim, and Chen Gongyan hesitated to speak.

Seeing their reaction, Zhang Gongsu knew exactly what these generals were thinking, and he hurriedly asked, "How many soldiers do we have left?"

"Only six thousand brothers escaped back..."

As soon as Chen Gongyan finished speaking, hurried footsteps sounded outside the hall.

A colonel barged into the hall. In the past, Zhang Gongsu would have been furious, but now he had no right to do so.

"General, esteemed generals, this is a letter of surrender sent by Liu Jilong's cavalry to the camp outside the city."

Before the colonel could finish speaking, a henchman snatched the letter, opened it, and turned ashen-faced after reading it.

Seeing his reaction, the others snatched the letter, their faces quickly turning grim.

Because of Zhang Gongsu's momentary lapse in judgment, tens of thousands of troops were routed, and their treatment upon surrender plummeted.

The generals' expressions remained unchanged, and Chen Gongyan quickly gave Zhang Gongsu a meaningful look.

Zhang Gongsu sensed Chen Gongyan's meaningful glance. Although he was unwilling, he cherished his life even more.

At that moment, he felt only bitterness in his mouth, and he forced out these shameful words through his teeth.

"Tell Liu Jilong that someone has surrendered..."

(End of this chapter)