Late Han Zhao Tang

Chapter 276 I will take back what I lost!

"Report!"

"Zhang Yu's troops withdrew yesterday evening!"

The scout quickly entered the tent and reported to Gongsun Zan.

"Okay!"

Hearing this, Gongsun Zan laughed happily and said to everyone around him, "You all said that Zhang Yu's army was too powerful and we couldn't fight them. Now Zhang Yu has run out of food and is retreating. This is God helping me. Let's see how I can defeat the enemy!"

Due to the low tolerance rate, Gongsun Zan did not dare to take risks, so he stationed his troops and confronted Zhang Yu across the Yishui River for a long time. Now that Zhang Yu withdrew his troops as scheduled, it really gave him a chance to defeat Zhang Yu.

Guan Jing frowned slightly and said, "Zhang Yu is a famous general in the army and is well versed in military tactics. If we withdraw the troops now, I'm afraid he will be prepared, so you need to plan carefully."

Gongsun Zan said confidently, "How can the troops retreat in an orderly manner? Moreover, the army was scattered when crossing the river. Now that Zhang Yu has crossed the Qingquan River to withdraw his troops, it will be the time for Zhang Yu to be defeated."

Guan Jing hesitated for a while and said, "I dare not say much about your military operations. I just think that you need to be careful in your military operations."

Gongsun Zan raised his head slightly and said to Guan Jing, "You are acting cautiously, but I have been fighting for more than ten years, defeating the Wuhuan, killing the Xianbei, slaughtering the Yellow Turbans, and repelling Yuan Shao. I have fought dozens of battles, and the mysteries of fighting are not something that outsiders can understand."

"It would be fine if Zhang Yu did not withdraw his troops. The day he withdraws will be the day he will be defeated by me!"

As mentioned before, Gongsun Zan's best tactic is to pursue the enemy when they are retreating. Therefore, Gongsun Zan's tactics remain unchanged, and he is ready to pursue Zhang Yu. However, in order to be sure of defeating Zhang Yu, Gongsun Zan carefully selected the battlefield and planned to launch a surprise attack when Zhang Yu's army was halfway across the river.

Seeing Gongsun Zan's temper, Guan Jing did not dare to say much. When it came to military strategy, Gongsun Zan would still listen to some opinions, but once Gongsun Zan had his own ideas, Guan Jing knew that he could not persuade him!
Gongsun Zan said in a serious tone: "Tian Kai, gather the elite infantry and cavalry in the army, and follow me to pursue Zhang Yu day and night. Now the army is of great importance and speed cannot be delayed, so we will leave the baggage behind and march. Guan Changshi will guard the camp in the army to provide support for the rear."

"As ordered!"

Looking at the civil and military officials who had received the order to retreat, Gongsun Zan had a stern look on his face and clenched the hilt of the sword in his hand. He had secretly sworn in his heart that he would defeat Zhang Yu, enter Youzhou, and severely punish Liu Yu's former subordinates.

As for Yuan Shao, he would take back what he lost little by little. In the past, Guangwu rose in Youzhou and swept across the world with Youzhou cavalry. He did not believe that he could not do it.
-
The Qingquan River originates from the Taihang Mountains, flows through Guangyang County, and reaches Yuyang County, where it merges with the Yishui River flowing to the northeast and finally flows into the Bohai Sea.

Zhang Yu withdrew his troops on May 3rd, and marched in a normal withdrawal manner, leaving the infantry behind to escort the baggage and the cavalry in front to clear the way.

On the morning of the fifth day, Zhang Yu led his troops to the Qingquan River. In order to cross the river, Zhang Yu decided to let the infantry build a pontoon bridge so that the army could pass in time.

Zhang Yu was stationed on the hillside. The tens of thousands of marching infantry and cavalry were not noticeable to him. He was always paying attention to the movements around him.

"Sir, the boat bridge has been built. Should we let the soldiers cross the river now?" Lu Fan rode forward and asked.

Zhang Yu narrowed his eyes and looked into the distance, wondering in his heart, why was there no sign of Gongsun Zan today? Could it be that Gongsun Zan had no intention of sending troops to pursue him?

"Cross the river!"

Zhang Yu was not sure if there were any scouts around. After thinking for a moment, he ordered, "Let most of the cavalry cross the river first, leave a few cavalry on the south bank, and then the infantry will cross the river in order!"

"promise!"

Seeing that Zhang Yu seemed worried, Xun You said, "Your Excellency, you may want to scatter the baggage behind, let the cavalry dismount and rest, and let the armored soldiers sit on the carts to rest. If Gongsun Zan's scouts see it, they will report back to Gongsun Zan, and when he uses his troops, they will first seize the baggage, and your troops can take the opportunity to prepare for battle."

"Gongda knows what I mean!"

Zhang Yu nodded and said with a smile: "Tell Generals Gao Shun, Xu Chu and Xu Huang to dismount and rest. When I give the order, all the troops will march out to fight." "Yes, sir!"

After the scouts passed the order to each unit, the 30,000 infantry and cavalry stretching for nearly ten miles were divided into several groups in order. Some cavalry crossed the river first, followed by the infantry. The soldiers and horses that did not return to the river rested lazily as Xun You suggested, and even the scouts became slack.

Because there were only four pontoon bridges, each unit had to organize its troops and line up before crossing the river. And with 30,000 infantry and cavalry plus 50,000 livestock, it was unknown how long it would take to cross the river.

When Zhang Yu's army was crossing the river, the soldiers became slack, which was seen by the scouts under Gongsun Zan's tent, who quickly reported the situation to Gongsun Zan.

Twenty miles away, Gongsun Zan arrived with several hundred cavalrymen and immediately met the scout who had returned to report.

Gongsun Zan pointed his whip at the scout and asked, "What is the current situation of Zhang Yu's troops?"

"My lord, Zhang Yu's troops are crossing the river to withdraw. The troops of each unit are slacking off. The cavalry are dismounting to rest, the infantry are sitting on the ground to rest, and even the scouts' vigilance has been relaxed a lot!" said the scout.

"it is good!"

Gongsun Zan was overjoyed and said, "Zhang Yu's laziness in withdrawing his troops is an opportunity for us to use our military power!"

As he spoke, Gongsun Zan said to his men, "In the past, Zhang Yu made a feint to the east and attacked in the west, luring Zou Jing to lead his troops to rescue Ji County, but Zhang Yu ambushed Zou Jing's troops on the way and suddenly attacked them. Zou Jing's troops were unprepared, so he was killed by Zhang Yu. Now I must avenge Zou Jing and make Zhang Yu lose to me. If I can cut off Zhang Yu's head, Youzhou will be in my sight!"

"Mingsir, how are you going to deploy your troops now?" asked the deputy general.

Gongsun Zan said, "You and I will wait here for the infantry and cavalry. Let half of the enemy army cross the river first. When they relax and become tired, we can use the cavalry to break through the enemy formation and the infantry to sweep the rear and drive the enemy into the river!"

Gongsun Zan looked calm, but he was laughing in his heart. Ever since he first read military strategy when he was young, he knew the principle of attacking halfway across the river. Now, regardless of whether Zhang Yu noticed his whereabouts or not, as his troops arrived one after another, he could take advantage of the river separating the two armies to launch a surprise attack.

Attack when halfway across the river, the cavalry is trapped in the formation, now Zhang Yu is on the verge of defeat, I am afraid!
And he will be able to take advantage of Zhang Yu's momentum to threaten Youyan in the north and Heji in the south, making everyone in Hebei afraid of him!
"As ordered!"

As time went by, the 10,000 elite infantry and cavalry led by Gongsun Zan had arrived at the battlefield. Under Gongsun Zan's command, the cavalry marched first, while the infantry marched in formation at the back. The army of 10,000 infantry and cavalry was boundless, and even if the scouts were incompetent, they could see it at a glance.

Soon, Zhang Yu received news about Gongsun Zan's troop movements.

"My lord, Gongsun Zan has led a large army here with the intention of defeating us. So it is better for you to escape to the north bank and let the generals fight on the south bank according to the plan!" Guo Tu said worriedly.

Zhang Yu looked angry and said, "We have to defeat the enemy now. How can we be afraid of the enemy and retreat to the north bank? Moreover, if I go to the north bank, how can I encourage the generals to fight? So don't talk nonsense!"

Although Guo Tu had good intentions, he had angered Zhang Yu. In the battle for world domination, if he let the generals take the lead while he stayed behind to avoid risks, it would be difficult to inspire the morale of the soldiers, not to mention whether the generals would be convinced. Moreover, Zhang Yu had been preparing for a long time to pursue Gongsun Zan, and he was confident that he could defeat Gongsun Zan.

Zhang Yu rode out and used his whip to command the waiting cavalry, saying, "Raise the command flag, order Gao Shun and Xu Chu to lead the infantry to prepare bows and crossbows, and Xu Huang and Zhao Yun to lead the cavalry to wait for the military order!"

"promise!"

After that, Zhang Yu led his cavalry to retreat into the battle array. In order to prevent the flag from being ignored, the cavalry went to each unit to spread Zhang Yu's military order to everyone.

The sound of horses' hooves rang out as Gongsun Zan sent his cavalry to attack Zhang Yu's square formation. Xu Chu and Gao Shun, who were guarding the rear, hurriedly ordered their men to retreat behind the baggage carts and took out powerful crossbows and bows from the carts. Another group of infantrymen came to the front of the carts and formed a battle array with shields in hand.

ps: I’m not in a good state today, so the quality of the content I wrote is not high. Please forgive me!

(End of this chapter)