My younger brother Zhuge Liang

Chapter 80: Kill all the brothers of the Zao family, the family must be complete

Guan Yu's army pressed forward with great momentum, and the formation was neat and orderly, which made the rebels in Zuo Rong's camp feel a huge mental pressure.

Zuo Rong fought in three counties and wandered for four years. He encountered many enemies, but he had never encountered such a resolute and decisive advance of the entire army.

Even when they fought against Sun Ce two years ago, Sun Ce's troops were brave, but their discipline was not necessarily as good as Guan Yu's army.

In a moment, the front of the two armies were within the range of bows and crossbows.

The archers of Guan Yu's army stood in rows and took turns shooting arrows according to their practiced tactics. Suddenly, the arrows poured down like rain.

The archers of Zuo Rong's army also shot arrows almost at the same time, but after only two or three rounds, they began to become timid and evasive, and some even hid behind the rammed earth piles at the base of the camp wall, and just shot and threw arrows randomly outside, not even daring to show their faces and aim.

Zuo Rong saw this scene with his own eyes and was immediately shocked: "Stand up and shoot! Don't hide! Guan Yu's men don't even have a fence to cover them, yet they don't hide! Stand up and shoot! Our army will win!"

Unfortunately, there were too many cowardly soldiers, and how could Zuo Rong manage them all?

This was a long-standing hidden danger in Zuo Rong's military management, and it finally broke out today:
He also knew that there were too many new recruits and militiamen in his army, so when he organized long-range archers, he tended to let the militia serve as archers, and let the relatively elite county soldiers and monk soldiers strengthen the melee troops.

This operation is fine under normal circumstances, because melee soldiers need higher morale, face more direct bloody killings, and require soldiers with strong will.

As for the soldiers who were secretly firing from a distance, it didn't matter if their morale and discipline were a little low, because they wouldn't collapse unless they were rushed in front of them.

Everything has its pros and cons. Since Zuo Rong had made such arrangements in normal times, he will have to pay the price today.

He had no choice but to order a few trusted monk officers to immediately patrol the village wall with long swords in hand and make sure to kill a few militia archers who disobeyed military orders and refused to show their heads and aim, to establish his authority!
Unfortunately, such strong measures only caused small-scale chaos and more panic, making the rebels' long-range firepower even more chaotic.

After all, it was the three defeats in the previous major battles, plus the harassment and setbacks from Gan Ning several times after this expedition, in which they never got back on track. These "historical records" had depressed the morale of Zuo Rong's tribe to an extremely dangerous level.

Originally, Zuo Rong ordered his troops to go out and burn, kill and loot several villages and towns today. This was also a way to boost morale. Seeing so many spoils to share, the soldiers would be cheered up again.

Unfortunately, the looting troops haven't returned yet, which has resulted in a decrease in the strength of the central army. No positive bonus to morale has been added, but a lot of negative bonuses have accumulated.

After the momentum of the long-range shooting was completely suppressed, the shield-scratching hooks of Guan Yu's army suddenly became more efficient. After a while, they even broke through several layers of deer horns outside Zuo Rong's camp without any casualties.

Fortunately, Zuo Rong's army had already closed the gate of the camp, so they would not give Guan Yu the opportunity to rush in directly from the door.

After Guan Yu's army broke through several charge paths in the deer horn formation, some soldiers began to carry battering rams and rammed the gates and wooden fences. Countless soldiers holding shields and hooks began to climb the wooden fences and engaged in hand-to-hand combat with the rebel archers standing behind the wall.

The rebel archers immediately retreated in several places, not daring to engage in hand-to-hand combat with the enemy across the wooden wall, even though they were in a dominant position - the militiamen who were forcibly brought here had suffered multiple rounds of morale setbacks in succession, and this was what would happen if they were engaged in close combat.

Zuo Rong was furious as he watched from a high place, and immediately ordered the monks who were serving as the reserve to join the fight for the village wall.

After the fearless monks joined the battle, they finally turned around the disadvantage in close combat. But soon, Zuo Rong discovered a new change.

After a large number of their own melee soldiers were close to the wall and the enemy's crossbows were basically suppressed, the archers of Guan Yu's army stopped shooting in order to prevent accidental injuries, and began to run forward, even trying to shoot at the camp from the outside of the wooden fence.

If a famous general set up camp, he would usually try to build the wooden palisade a little higher and cut the top into sharp stakes to prevent climbing.

At the same time, earthen steps should be built on the inner side of the camp wall for archers to climb up, so that they can expose their upper bodies to shoot. Since there are no such steps on the outer side of the camp wall, even if the enemy approaches, they cannot shoot directly into the camp.

But Zuo Rong was obviously not such a talented general. He spent all his brains on how to coerce and deceive people. In order to save trouble and to have more archers ready to attack anytime and anywhere when guarding the camp, he built the wooden fence only five feet higher than the rammed earth foundation.

Such a plan meant that once the enemy archers approached the outer wall, they could shoot wildly into the camp - perhaps Zuo Rong had never thought from the beginning that his camp would encounter such a strong attack.

The suppression of long-range firepower was reversed in an instant. As Guan Yu's archers rushed to the outer wall one after another, it was finally the turn of the monks who were plugging leaks like a fire brigade in the camp, and they were subjected to intensive fire.

Zuo Rong finally felt a rush of blood to his head and knew that he could no longer rely on the advantage of defending the camp.

He just couldn't understand why the same county soldiers were cowardly and unwilling to fight when under his command, hiding whenever possible, and having some martial arts skills but unwilling to work hard.

After being captured and reformed by Guan Yu for only forty days, these county soldiers were completely transformed: when they were shooting with bows and arrows, they remained unshakable and did not retreat even when they saw their comrades being shot dead. When they were charging at the wooden wall with hooks, swords and shields, they dared to climb the wall even though there were so many enemies inside!
What was the difference between Guan Yu's military management and his own? Zuo Rong racked his brains but couldn't figure it out.

But he didn't have time to think about it. He gritted his teeth and made a last-ditch decision: "Open the camp gate! Gather all the monks to launch a counterattack! Go around and kill all the enemy archers who dare to stick to the outer wall!"

Since the camp wall has become more advantageous to Guan Yu's army, of course they have to choose to open the gate.

As the camp gate burst open, countless monks and fanatical believers with bloodshot eyes rushed out frantically, catching Guan Yu's heavy infantry who were originally banging on the door off guard.

Guan Yu's heavy infantry quickly dropped their battering rams and retreated, but in the chaotic fighting, dozens of them were trampled and hacked to death by the frenzied monks.

However, Guan Yu reacted very quickly. Seeing that the monks were risking their lives to counterattack, he immediately responded by sending his spears forward to block the enemy's entrance.

At the same time, let the Danyang soldiers holding sword shields or mace shields support on both wings to avoid the weak points of the monks' flexible movement, detour to the side and rear of the spear formation, and inconvenience in turning around when attacking the spear formation.

The monk soldiers were not good at fighting in formations. Their weapons mainly included long-handled swords, four-edged iron sticks, wolf-tooth nail sticks, bone copper hammers, and even axes. In short, they were all kinds of powerful weapons with great force.

These weapons were used with great force, but they were not as long as the spears. In the chaos, they just swung wildly, often breaking or blocking the spearmen's blades, looking for opportunities to strangle them. But more often, they were stabbed like a hornet's nest by the spears, and fell to the ground screaming unwillingly.

Unable to defeat the enemy in a head-on confrontation, the monk soldiers had no choice but to spread out to the wings and take a detour, where they then engaged in a fierce battle with the Danyang soldiers who came to support them. The scene was extremely chaotic.

A few monk soldiers broke out of the circle of melee soldiers and successfully rushed along the outer side of the camp wall to search and kill, driving away the archers of Guan Yu's army who were shooting arrows against the outer wall. However, they were soon intercepted by the arriving reserve troops of Guan Yu's army and a chaotic battle broke out.

The entire battlefield, from inside the camp to outside the camp, was in complete chaos, with bloody hand-to-hand combat everywhere.

Guan Yu had a stern expression, but he was very confident in his heart, for he knew that he would win - Zuo Rong had now, relying only on his last breath of courage, deployed all the monk soldiers and reserve troops of fanatical believers.

If we destroy these monk soldiers who dare to counterattack, the militiamen behind them will be nothing to worry about.

Moreover, although Zuo Rong claimed to have nearly 10,000 monks and fanatics, he had already lost some of them in the previous few days of fighting with Gan Ning. Now they are stationed in different camps. The total number of monks and fanatics in the central army camp will definitely not exceed 5,000. As long as this gap is completely torn open! Tear it apart! Zuo Rong will be finished!
"Bai Li soldiers, follow me and charge! Go around from the left and cut off the monks who rush out of the village gate!" Guan Yu finally gave the order, and then personally led more than 200 elite Bai Li cavalry to launch a charge.

As mentioned earlier, when Zhuge Jin came to Yuzhang, Liu Bei sent Chen Dao to him, who had three hundred Baiqi cavalrymen. Those were not actually combat troops, but personal bodyguards given to Zhuge Jin by Liu Bei.

This is also the only cavalry unit of the Yuzhang Han Army now. Only generals and officers and reconnaissance scouts have war horses to ride.

Due to the small scale, Guan Yu originally did not dare to use it much. Now that the final moment had come, he finally went into battle personally.

When the monks were fighting head-on with the spearmen and Danyang soldiers, two hundred elite cavalrymen suddenly attacked from the flank along the village wall. Their power was unstoppable.

Even though the main battlefield outside the camp gate was already crowded with thousands of soldiers and in great chaos, these two hundred cavalrymen could still completely defeat the enemy with little effort.

"Kill!" As the cavalry shouted, Guan Yu took the lead and rushed forward waving the Qinglong Sword, and no one could stop him.

Every time the sword was drawn, the short-haired head of a monk soldier or general would fly into the sky, or be cut in two with the head and shoulders.

Sometimes, after killing the target enemy, the blade's momentum may still be there, leaving a long, deep, horrific wound on the second enemy soldier, or causing scattered limbs.

The Bai Li cavalry behind Guan Yu also charged forward courageously, slashing with swords and stabbing with spears, and using the impact of horsepower to kill crazily like destroying dry weeds and rotten wood.

The monks were not skilled in martial arts, but relied on their bravery and fearlessness to fight for their lives. Their moves were all about attacking and not defending. This style of fighting made Guan Yu's killing more and more convenient, saving a lot of energy, and he didn't even have to knock away the enemy's weapons.

"These bandits are a bit like the Yellow Turban warriors we killed back then. The Yellow Turban warriors also fought with their lives for their own. When they encountered a truly powerful general with powerful weapons and swift attacks, the Yellow Turban warriors could not display their combat power and could only bully the demoralized army."

Guan Yu charged frantically, but he still had time to think. After he knew what he was doing, he could kill more smoothly and with more ease.

……

When Zuo Rong in the central army camp saw this scene, he finally felt completely desperate.

"How could Guan Yu be so brave? Why haven't the reinforcements from the left and right camps arrived yet? Guan Yu has been attacking for a quarter of an hour! Quick, the remaining monks, follow me, let's break out and take shelter in the left camp! Don't worry about this place!"

After all, Zuo Rong was a thief who had roamed through three counties, so he was quite good at protecting himself.

At this moment, he had decided to abandon all the cumbersome militiamen and escape with only his trusted men, not caring about anything else.

If Guan Yu really waited until he completely broke through the camp gate and started hacking and killing people in the camp, he might not be able to escape.

Just as Zuo Rong was quickly getting ready to run away, he suddenly heard shouting coming from the side and rear, getting closer and closer.

Zuo Rong was so flustered that he could not tell the direction. He just vaguely felt that the sound came from behind. He subconsciously shouted in surprise: "But have the reinforcements from Zuoying arrived? Let the militia go up and hold them off! All the monks, follow me!"

However, just a few seconds later, several junior officers with blood all over their faces came crawling in front of him, crying and complaining: "Buddha, it's bad! The reinforcements from the left camp haven't arrived yet. It was Gan Ning who came down from the North Peak and killed us!"

Zuo Rong felt a buzzing sound in his head, and his eyes went dark. He almost fainted.

Gan Ning, after seeing Guan Yu's entire army charging into battle to establish his authority, couldn't wait to go down the mountain to expand the results of the battle!
But with Gan Ning's interference, it would be impossible for him to escape to the left camp. Gan Ning had stabbed him in the left waist with a sharp knife. If he rushed over like this, he would definitely run into Gan Ning and be captured.

"Follow me and turn around to flee to the right camp! Go to the right camp to board the warship and cross the Pengli Lake to break out!"

Zuo Rong originally did not want to escape to the right camp because there was a big lake on the right or east side. If they went there, the army would be doomed. Only a few soldiers who had time to board the ship could escape, and the losses would definitely be greater than if they broke through by land to the left.

But at this point, I am lucky to be alive, so I don’t care about the losses.

However, even with all the trouble and delay caused by Zuo Rong, how could the ordinary soldiers in the central army camp not see that their commander was in a panic and wanted to abandon them?
More and more soldiers collapsed in an organized manner, fled, and knelt down to surrender. Guan Yu had completely defeated the monks who were blocking the door, and then his cavalry charged straight into the camp and charged back and forth, with no one able to stop them.

After Guan Yu personally entered the camp, he just glanced around and noticed a large group of monks and soldiers surrounding a group of people fleeing on one side. He immediately realized that it was Zuo Rong.

After all, Guan Yu had cavalry, and dozens of Bai Li soldiers were always following him closely and had not yet separated.

The monk soldiers who were guarding Zuo Rong's army fled on foot, but were caught up by Guan Yu before they reached the right camp.

Those defeated soldiers who were unfortunate enough to be stuck between Guan Yu and Zuo Rong could only be killed instantly. Then more and more defeated soldiers realized this and fled to the left and right to avoid the charge route of Guan Yu and the Bai Li soldiers.

Zuo Rong's army was like waves breaking apart. Except for those monks who were stabbed to death in the back or hacked to death, no one could block the sword for Zuo Rong.

"You bastard, die!" After killing dozens of monks, Guan Yu chased after Zuo Rong and stabbed him in the back of the head. The blood from the neck caused his head to fly up two feet and rolled more than a dozen feet away.

"Brother!" Another mournful cry came from the front. Guan Yu looked in the direction of the sound and noticed that it was the reinforcement troops coming from the enemy's right camp.

They had originally approached Zuo Rong and were only a hundred steps away. They were about to meet him, but the enemy general watched Zuo Rong being beheaded in front of him.

Guan Yu narrowed his eyes and swung his Qinglong sword. The Baili soldiers continued to charge forward without slowing down.

"You evil general! Since you call him brother, just go down and accompany him!" Guan Yu killed more than a dozen blind monks who were blocking the road, rushed straight to Zuo Da, and sent the last of the four brothers of the Zuo family on his way.

It wasn't that Zuo Da was hacked to death from behind while escaping. At least he faced the enemy head-on with a weapon, but it was of no use.

It was nothing more than having his arm chopped off by one blow, and then his head being chopped off by the second blow, that's all.

After the Zao family was wiped out, the remaining monk soldiers finally collapsed, and the militia knelt down in surrender.

A family must be neat and tidy.

(End of this chapter)