Late Han Zhao Tang

Chapter 125: Chanyu Banner

After Qubei led the soaked Xiongnu soldiers back to the camp, there was a sudden heavy rain. The Xiongnu camp was located near a river valley. Even though the army returned to the camp, many Xiongnu soldiers were still harmed by the accumulated water. Therefore, the Hu soldiers, who were tired all day, complained a lot.

Qu Bei listened to his men's complaints, tried to appease them with a few words, and then went to the tent with a depressed mood and wet all over to meet Xubu Chanyu.

Although the tent was built high up, a damp atmosphere could still be felt inside the tent. The blanket on the ground was soaked with mud and water. Qu Bei stepped on it and vaguely felt the mud and water being squeezed out.

"Yo!"

Seeing that Qubei had returned without success, Luan Timo Che said in a sarcastic tone, "I wonder if the Right Wise King, who led the elite troops of various divisions, has defeated the Han army?"

Qu Bei snorted coldly, feeling angry inside, but due to his failure today, he really didn't want to bother with Luan Timo Che.

Having gained the advantage of the argument, Luan Timo Che felt relieved and said, "I have long said that Zhang Yu should not be underestimated, but the Right Wise King did not agree. In the past two days of attacking the mountain, we have captured almost all the prisoners and suffered heavy casualties. This shows that what I said in the past was true. I only regret that you did not listen to me, which led to today's defeat."

Luan Timo Che's mind was not broad, he remembered the scene of being defeated by Zhang Yu and being laughed at by everyone. Now that Qubei was defeated by Zhang Yu, Luan Timo Che felt relieved and spoke with more confidence, at least it was not that he was weak, but that his opponent Zhang Yu was very strong.

Qu Bei's face flushed, he stood up and glared at Luan Timo Che, saying, "Because of the heavy rain, my army had to withdraw. We were not defeated by Zhang Yu, but returned in a draw."

Luan Timo Che sneered and was about to say something when he was interrupted by Xubu Chanyu.

Xubu Chanyu looked dissatisfied and said in a deep voice: "It doesn't matter if we lose the battle or it's a draw. It rained heavily today, and the mountain road is muddy and difficult to climb. Our camp is low-lying and will be harmed by the accumulated water. I wonder what you think?"

Shi Zhou Zhuxie hesitated for a moment and said, "Chanyu, I think it is better to withdraw the troops now."

"Withdrawal?"

"Exactly!"

Shi Zhou Zhuxie nodded and said worriedly, "I don't know when the rain will stop. Our camp is low-lying, and the soldiers can get through if they endure it. But if our tens of thousands of horses are soaked in water for a long time, the horses' hooves will be soaked and rotten, and we will not be able to fight."

War horses hate moisture and prefer dryness. If the horse's hoof is soaked in rain for days, it is easy to breed bacteria, which will cause the hoof to rot. Once the hoof is damaged, it is difficult to repair it, and the horse will lose its riding function and become a useless horse.

Xubu Chanyu nodded slightly and asked, "I don't know when the rain will stop. Our army has no hope of defeating the Han army quickly. Now, for the sake of the people in the army, I intend to withdraw the army. I wonder what the Right Xian King and the Left Guli King think?"

"I have no objection!"

The situation was in front of everyone. Qu Bei understood the current situation and lost the opportunity to quickly defeat Zhang Yu's troops. The Han army might have a steady stream of troops and supplies to support Zhang Yu. Even if he didn't want to withdraw his troops, he had to do so due to the weather and situation.

As for Luan Timoche, even Qubei agreed to withdraw his troops, let alone him.

Seeing that everyone had the same opinion, Xubu Chanyu said: "If our army retreats, I am afraid the Han army will pursue us. Please ask the Right Wise King to lead his troops to cover the rear."

"Okay!" Qu Bei replied.

How could Xubu Chanyu not know the importance of retreat, so he naturally entrusted the important task to Qubei.

That night, the Xiongnu tribes learned that they would retreat the next day. All of them were delighted. Their complaints about the casualties in recent days and the accumulated water naturally dissipated. They packed up their bags and prepared to withdraw the next day.

March 10th was the fifth day that Zhang Yu became the interim head coach.

The Xiongnu people endured a night of dampness, and at daybreak, they withdrew their troops one after another, while Qu Bei led the elite troops to cover the rear to prevent the Han army from pursuing them.

The retreat of the Xiongnu soldiers naturally could not be hidden from the Han scouts. When the Han scouts saw the Xiongnu soldiers leaving their camp, they hurriedly reported the news to the main tent.

Guo Yu, Wang Rou and Wang Ze received the news one after another and rushed to the big tent, but they did not see Zhang Yu, but only saw clerks such as Yu Yi and Li Jin.

"Where is Captain Zhang?" Wang Ze asked when he saw no sign of Zhang Yu.

Yu Yi smiled bitterly, cupped his hands and said, "Last night, your Excellency predicted that the Xiongnu would withdraw today, and when the sky was still dark, he led his cavalry to the battle."

Wang Ze's face was full of doubts. He complained, "He knew that the Xiongnu were withdrawing, but he didn't tell us. He led the troops to pursue them alone. How could Captain Zhang use troops like this?"

Seeing that Wang Ze misunderstood Zhang Yu, Yu Yi explained: "Your Excellency is not greedy for merit, but the military intelligence is confidential. He is afraid that if our army mobilizes a large number of troops, it may be noticed by the Xiongnu. Therefore, your Excellency leads the cavalry to pursue, and Yu Yi will explain to you."

Wang Ze looked unhappy. No matter what Yu Yi said, he had already formed a preconceived idea. He thought that Zhang Yu was worried that someone would steal the credit from him, so he did not tell them and took the lead in leading the cavalry to pursue the Huns.

Compared to Wang Ze's thoughts, Guo Yu trusted Zhang Yu more and asked, "Master Yu, does Captain Zhang have any other instructions after the pursuit?"

Yu Yi pondered for a moment and said, "My Lord, although our army relied on the mountain terrain to repel the Hu bandits, we are no match for the enemy if we use our military force on the plains. Now that the enemy has withdrawn, they must have left a large force behind. If you pursue them, you will surely be defeated. If you want to help, you can follow us."

Wang Ze sneered and said sarcastically, "Captain Zhang is kind-hearted. He warned the troops not to pursue, but he himself was not afraid of danger and led the troops in pursuit."

Yu Yi frowned, very dissatisfied with what Wang Ze said, but due to the difference in status, he couldn't say much at this time.

Wang Ze looked at Wang Rou and Guo Yu and said, "Now that the Xiongnu are withdrawing their troops, I want to pursue them. I wonder what plans my brother and Mr. Guo have?"

Wang Rou hesitated for a moment, thinking that Zhang Yu had shared the credit with him before, and he had never seen Zhang Yu as such a greedy person. And seeing that his brother was determined to pursue and gain merit, Wang Rou decided to stay in the camp.

"The camp must have someone left behind. If you two lead your troops to pursue, I would like to lead the infantry to guard Huangluling." Wang Rou said.

Wang Ze looked at Guo Yu and said calmly, "I want to pursue the Xiongnu. I wonder if Mr. Guo is willing to follow me?"

Guo Yu pondered for a moment and said, "I think what Captain Zhang said makes sense. It may be dangerous to pursue the Xiongnu soldiers now. Why not chase them and observe their movements?" Wang Ze curled his lips and said, "I will be the vanguard, and Mr. Guo can follow me."

"good!"

Seeing Wang Ze's tough attitude, Guo Yu had to cooperate with Wang Ze because he had relied on the cooperation of Yanmen Prefect Wang Ze in many official affairs in the past and now he had few soldiers in the county.

Not to mention that Wang Ze and Guo Yu led their troops to pursue the Huns, but Zhang Yu's troops did not chase the Huns ahead of him as Wang Ze expected, but led 800 elite cavalry to travel through the mountains.

The rain was getting smaller now, and the sky was hazy with drizzle. Due to the obstruction of trees in the mountains, the Han riders did not feel the drizzle from the sky, but instead felt the raindrops from the woods falling from time to time.

It rained heavily yesterday and the land in the mountains was muddy. Fortunately, there were plants and trees that retained water so we didn't get trampled into a quagmire. But because of the rain, the ground was inevitably slippery when we marched.

"Wow~"

Zhang Yu was walking while leading his horse. As the ground was soft, half of his foot slipped. Fortunately, the long spear in his hand supported the ground and held up Zhang Yu's body, preventing him from falling.

Zhang Feng helped Zhang Yu lead the horse and asked in confusion, "Brother, why are we chasing the Hu people along the mountain road instead of the river valley road?"

Zhang Yu found a high point and stopped, looking at the hundreds of people accompanying him, and asked, "If you lead your troops to withdraw now, will you be on guard against our pursuit?"

"meeting!"

Zhang Feng said without hesitation: "When the army retreats, the troops are not in good order. If the enemy leads a surprise attack, they will surely win."

Zhang Yu smiled and said, "Since even you know how to guard against the pursuers, if the Xiongnu are not stupid, how could they not be prepared?"

Zhang Feng frowned and asked, "Then can our army succeed in the surprise attack by taking the mountain path?"

"Ha ha!"

Zhang Yu kept the secret, laughed a few times, leaned on his spear, and quickly caught up with the marching troops. Zhang Feng stayed where he was, full of doubts.

Hao Zhao patted Zhang Feng on the shoulder and said with a smile: "If you can know the thoughts of the Lord, wouldn't you be the Lord?"

Zhang Feng looked at Hao Zhao, who was smiling, and asked, "Bo Dao, do you know what my brother thinks?"

Hao Zhao smiled and said, "This is easy. The Xiongnu are on guard against our pursuit, and our army wants to pursue them, so we have no choice but to sneak through the mountains."

Zhang Feng rolled his eyes at Hao Zhao and said, "I know what you said. But as you said, the Xiongnu are on guard against our pursuit. How can our army pursue them and win?"

"The Art of War says, 'Attack the enemy by surprise and take them by surprise.' That's all!" Hao Zhao pondered for a moment and said, "The specific method depends on your arrangement!"

Zhang Feng saw that he couldn't get any information out of the matter, so he gave up the idea of finding out and focused on getting on his way.

The land was slippery, the trees were overgrown, and there was constant rain in the forest, which made the marching Han cavalry soaked all over. However, since they saw Zhang Yu leading the march, not many people complained.

In order to march quickly and reach the destination, Zhang Yu seldom let his subordinates rest. Instead, he kept asking the soldiers to speed up their march. Fortunately, the horses helped the soldiers carry armor and weapons. Although everyone was tired from marching, they were still able to persevere.

They walked from morning to noon, ate some Hu pancakes and dried meat at noon, and then set out again. When they set out at noon, the sky was not good and the rain gradually became heavier, but the Han cavalry march did not slow down.

I don't know how long they walked, but near dusk, the marching column stopped again.

"what happened?"

Seeing that the marching troops in front had stopped, Zhang Yu asked.

Shi Yi turned back from the front and reported to Zhang Yu, saying, "Your Excellency is still more than ten miles away from Sanchagou!"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Yu immediately asked, "Are there any Hun troops moving?"

"Have!"

Shi Yi nodded and said, "The Xiongnu soldiers are camping at Sanchagou now!"

"it is good!"

Zhang Yu looked at the cavalrymen who had stopped and said, "Order the soldiers of each unit to rest in the forest for a while. Each unit should keep an eye on their subordinates and make sure they are not discovered by the Xiongnu scouts."

"promise!"

Soon, Zhang Yu selected Lu Bu, Zhang Liao, Kobe and others to accompany him to explore the Huns' camp.

Under the leadership of Shi Yi, the group stopped in an open space halfway up the mountain and looked at the Xiongnu army in the valley.

"Your Majesty!"

Zhang Liao had sharp eyes and spotted the white banner among the other banners. He shouted, "The banner of the Xiongnu Chanyu!"

Zhang Yu looked over and his eyes narrowed slightly!
(End of this chapter)