Late Han Zhao Tang

Chapter 319: Ten Days and Three Breaks (Two in One)

"Woo~"

The sound of trumpets resounded across the river. Under the leadership of Generals Cheng Pu and Zhang Xiu, two thousand cavalrymen of the Shanxi army lying in ambush in the woods rushed out towards Generals Fan Chou and Yan Xing who were marching in formation.

More than 2,000 cavalrymen galloped through rivers and forests with such momentum that from a distance it looked like mountain peach blossoms blooming. The scene of the charge was extremely spectacular.

"withdraw!"

Fan Chou reacted immediately and pulled the reins to his horse, calling on his infantry and cavalry to rush towards Qingshui City.

Seeing Fan Chou leaving without a fight, Yan Xing reached out and pulled Fan Chou's reins, and asked hurriedly, "General Fan, why are you retreating without a fight?"

"The enemy set up an ambush here, so they must be well prepared. Our troops are not in good order, and the enemy cavalry will attack us on both sides of the road. We will definitely be defeated!" Fan Chou said, "Besides, the cavalry under Zhang Yu are brave and fierce. The Han cavalry are good at fighting, and the Hu cavalry are good at shooting. When Zhang Yu defeated us in Guanzhong, he used his cavalry to attack us with great force."

Fan Chou had led troops to fight for many years, and he could judge the probability of defeat by the battlefield situation. Zhang Yu ambushed him with his fierce cavalry, and his troops had not yet formed a battle array. If the cavalry charged, his troops would be scattered. It would be better for him to withdraw quickly to avoid unnecessary losses.

Hearing this, Yan Xing looked intently at the Shanxi cavalrymen who were charging. After just a few glances, based on the battles he had experienced, he realized that the Shanxi cavalrymen were different from the cavalrymen he had seen before.

From the formation, the Shanxi cavalry marched in an orderly manner, just like the peach blossoms in bloom, scattered in twos and threes. However, looseness does not mean disorder. The cavalry, scattered like peach blossoms in bloom, can quickly gather when they are about to meet the enemy, with armored knights at the head and light cavalry on the left and right as auxiliary. When the armored knights are on horseback, they are not only stable, but also can drive the horses with both hands off the reins. Their superb riding skills are amazing.

Of course, the reason why Zhang Yu's cavalry could perform so well was not only due to meticulous training, but also because they were uniformly equipped with high-bridge saddles and double-sided stirrups, allowing the cavalry to maximize their combat effectiveness.

In addition to the formation, the Shanxi cavalry was even more ferocious in momentum. Led by the armored cavalry, the cavalry rushed forward recklessly, causing Yan Xing, who intended to stay behind to fight, to feel an uncontrollable sense of trembling.

No wonder Fan Chou fled wisely. The cavalry under Zhang Yu's command were indeed elite. The infantry and cavalry, who were still in a hurry to fight, probably couldn't even hold up the first round of charge and would most likely be driven away and disrupted by the enemy cavalry. The surrendered soldiers in the queue would probably take the opportunity to cause chaos, and he would probably be captured like Yang Qiu.

Strictly speaking, the cavalry led by Zhang Xiu and Cheng Pu were not the Bingzhou knights led by Zhang Yu, but the second army formed by Zhang Yu after he defeated the Guanzhong rebels. After the Guanzhong rebels were established, Zhang Yu treated them equally, not only did he not lack military supplies and armor, but he also unified the military's infantry and cavalry drills.

Although the original Guanzhong rebels were powerful, their military discipline was lax due to the problems with their generals. After Zhang Ji and Cheng Pu established the army, Zhang Yu had vigorously rectified the military discipline, which led to the cavalry that Yan Xing was worried about.

Seeing that the Shanxi cavalrymen only rode and shot when they were more than ten steps away, Yan Xing's scalp tingled. The enemy cavalry was well versed in the essence of cavalry tactics. Not to mention being unable to stop the charge, they probably couldn't even withstand the horse and archery.

"withdraw!"

Seeing Fan Chou who had already retreated, Yan Xing no longer hesitated and quickly signaled his troops to withdraw to avoid losing his elite troops.

Seeing Fan Chou and Yan Xing turn around and retreat, their infantry and cavalry had no intention of fighting. The infantry threw away their armor and fled, and the cavalry turned their horses and fled, leaving the captured Yang Qiu's troops behind. The release of thousands of captured soldiers and horses slowed down the pursuit of the Shanxi knights.

Apart from leaving some troops to gather the captives, Zhang Xiu was young and belligerent, and Cheng Pu wanted to make achievements, so the two of them led the cavalry in pursuit, shooting with bows and arrows, stabbing with swords and spears, and hunting down the fleeing infantry and cavalry in Longshang.

The pursuit lasted from noon to afternoon for more than 20 miles, during which more than 2,000 captives were killed, and the infantry of Fan Chou and Yan Xing were almost wiped out. When they saw that it was getting dark, Generals Zhang and Cheng stopped pursuing.

"Shut up!"

Zhang Xiu pulled the reins, still unsatisfied, and said, "It's a pity that I failed to capture Fan Chou and Yan Xing. I only severely injured them."

Cheng Pu said with a smile: "Generals Yan Xing and Fan Chou cannot return to the camp, so they must flee south to Jixian and Shanggui to join Ma Teng's army. Your Excellency has predicted what they will do, so although they have escaped from you and me, they may still be defeated by your Excellency."

"You and I have rescued the captured Yang Qiu's troops and severely damaged the enemy's infantry and cavalry, which is already a great achievement!"

Zhang Xiu could not help but sigh deeply and said, "Although Han Sui had anticipated your plan to attack Qingshui, he was unable to foresee your plan to open up the southern route and contact Xu Gongming."

"go!"

When Zhang Xiu and Cheng Pu returned with their troops, Yan Xing and Fan Chou saw that there were no pursuers, so they reluctantly stopped fleeing and sent out cavalry to gather the scattered troops.

On the riverbank, Yan Xing and Fan Chou dismounted and sat down. There were only two thousand soldiers and horses accompanying them, scattered among the rivers and forests to rest.

Yan Xing looked worried and asked, "The road back to the camp is blocked. I'm afraid we need to find another way back to the camp."

Fan Chou poked the fire with a stick and said, "Ma Teng has surrounded Ji County, and his eldest son Ma Chao has stationed troops in Shanggui to hold Xu Huang back. Now it would be better to take the Qingshui Road south, get support from Ma Chao's troops, and then take the main road back to the camp."

After a pause, Fan Chou said worriedly, "Don't go to Qingshui City. The garrison commander Ren Wei is a local big family. If he knows that our army has been defeated, he might panic for no reason."

"it is good!"

Yan Xing nodded and said with emotion, "General Fan is right. Zhang Yu's troops are different from those under Yang Qiu's command. Yang Qiu's troops are lax and unprepared, with many old and weak soldiers and few elite soldiers. On the other hand, Zhang Yu's troops are mostly armored, and the soldiers are dedicated to their work. Although the soldiers of Longyou are brave, they are inferior in terms of armor and military discipline."

"The key to managing an army lies in its people!"

Fan Chou recalled, "When Dong Gong was alive, he was very sincere with his subordinates and gave them money and food as gifts, which made them work for him. Since Zhang Yu started his army, he has given his soldiers land and slaves if they made military achievements. How could they not work for him?"

Zhang Yu's territory was relatively stable, so many of the soldiers he recruited came with their families. In order to get people to join the army, Zhang Yu not only fully restored the county military system, but also provided many other policy benefits, such as tax reductions, slaves for military merit, and military pay, etc., which could make soldiers serve him.

Listening to Fan Chou's brief account, Yan Xing could not help but frown. He followed Han Sui, but he did not have such welfare benefits. Since Han Sui seized control of Jincheng County, he had severely persecuted the people of Jincheng, causing a large number of Jincheng people to be displaced, and even many people fled to the Hu tribe for refuge.

If we look at the difference between the two, isn't Zhang Yu like the wise ruler in the literati's stories, more qualified to accomplish great things?
After a long silence, Yan Xing suddenly asked, "Why didn't General Fan surrender to Zhang Yu after his defeat in Guanzhong?"

Hearing this, Fan Chou sighed and said truthfully: "I am a warrior from Liangzhou. I killed Wang Yun together with Li Jue, and I killed Bingzhou soldiers in my army because of Dong Gong's death. Even if I want to surrender to Zhang Yu, I am afraid that Zhang Yu will not tolerate me. Besides, Zhang Yu can tolerate me, but Wang's disciples and children cannot tolerate me!"

"Why does Yanming ask this question?" Fan Chou asked.

Yan Xing looked at the flickering flames and said in a muffled voice, "Since the Qiang Rebellion, Longyou has been in turmoil. When the Yellow Turban Rebellion came, the world was divided. As the heroes scrambled for supremacy, I wonder where the wise leader of the world is who can bring peace to the world!"

Fan Chou smiled and said, "There are only a few people like Zhang Yu, Yuan Shao, Yuan Shu, Cao Cao, etc. It's fine as long as you and I can rule Longyou and live in peace!"

Compared to the old Fan Chou, Yan Xing was only in his twenties and still had ambitions to achieve great things. When he heard that a wise leader would emerge from among Zhang Yu, Yuan Shao, Yuan Shu and others, Yan Xing couldn't help but think a lot.

That night, Yan Xing and Fan Chou gathered the remnants of the defeated army, numbering more than 2,000 people. After daybreak, the two generals led their troops southward, intending to surrender to Ma Teng in Ji County.

Passing through the mountain forest trails, Yan Xing and Fan Chou led the remaining troops to Qingshui Road. At present, the two generals led the exhausted troops to the bank of Qingshui (now Niutou River), preparing to rest at Shanggui first.

In order to prevent Zhang Yu from sending troops across the Weishui River to rescue Ji County, Ma Teng arranged for his son Ma Chao to lead 3,000 soldiers to guard Shanggui, in order to prevent Xu Huang from occupying Shanggui and driving straight to the Weishui River to lift the siege of Ji County.

Shanggui has a favorable geographical location. It is located in the valley where the Weishui River and the Qingshui River meet, and the land is fertile. It is one of the few county towns in Longyou that can accommodate tens of thousands of households.

Historically, when Zhuge Liang attacked Longyou, Guo Huai controlled Shanggui, which not only ensured the smooth flow of the Weishui River for Cao Wei, but also provided Cao Wei with a steady stream of reinforcements. After Zhang He defeated Ma Su, Guo Huai sent troops to Lieliu City on the Qingshui River, opened up the Qingshui River directly to the north, and contacted Zhang He's army.

Zhuge Liang had no choice but to withdraw his troops when he lost control of Qingshui, Weishui, Fanxu and Guanlong. When the Cao Wei army poured into Longyou, Zhuge Liang was able to retreat safely and take away thousands of people from Xicheng, which indirectly demonstrated his superb military management skills.

Zhang Yu's expedition to Longyou and his confrontation with Han Sui in Lueyang were essentially for the same purpose, which was to control the road to Long. If the Long Road could be completely controlled by Zhang Yu, the defeat of the army on Longyou would only be a matter of time. At most, it would take two or three years, just like Liu Xiu's expedition to Longyou, to slowly erode Han Sui, Song Jian, Ma Teng and other Longyou generals.

The sound of horse hooves hitting the pebbles on the riverbed was particularly loud in the silence of the river.

"Shut up!"

The cavalryman leading the march seemed to notice something unusual and suddenly pulled the reins, stretching out his hand to signal the soldiers to halt their advance.

"what happened?"

Seeing the army stop, Generals Fan Chou and Yan Xing rode their horses up from the ranks and asked.

The cavalry pointed to the quiet forests around the river and said hesitantly, "Generals, the river is quiet, not a single bird can make a sound, and the forest is as still as water. I wonder if there are ambushes!"

After hearing this, Fan Chou laughed loudly and said, "How could Zhang Yu have expected that our army would go to Ji County via Qingshui? Moreover, he had already sent troops to ambush us at Lishui, so why would he send another army to ambush us here?" Fan Chou denied it repeatedly. In his mind, although Zhang Yu was strong, it was impossible for him to predict the direction of his march. Moreover, Fan Chou was unwilling to admit that if Zhang Yu sent an army here, he would have no choice but to escape over the mountains and ridges.

Although Yan Xing was no longer as confident as before, he did not believe that Zhang Yu could still predict his whereabouts. He said, "Zhang Yu's military strategy is superior and as skillful as a ghost, but he is not a god. How can he predict my whereabouts?"

When the two generals were questioning, there was a sound in the forest and a figure could be vaguely seen moving.

Yan Xing's expression was slightly gloomy. When he was about to send people to the mountains and forests to investigate, he heard the sound of a horn that made people avoid it.

"Is Zhang Yu a god who can set an ambush here?"

Yan Xing was so frightened that he lost his voice and suddenly spoke out his inner thoughts: "Now the remnants of our army have been ambushed, and our army will be destroyed here!"

"Woo~"

When Yan Xing was shocked that Zhang Yu led his troops here, a large banner symbolizing Zhang Yu was raised from the forest, and two thousand cavalrymen led by Zhang Yu and Zhao Yun appeared one after another.

However, they saw that the ambushing troops were all composed of cavalry. Zhang Yu and Zhao Yun led the cavalry to block the front road, while Wang Ling led the cavalry to block the back road. There was clear water on the left, and the troops of Yan Xing and Fan Chou were blocked on three sides, with only the rugged mountains on the right side left to move forward.

"kill!"

Soon, Zhao Yun commanded the cavalry to charge, and the enthusiastic sound of horse hooves roared. Wang Ling, the commander in chief, raised the flag to signal the troops to press forward, and the cavalry marched slowly in a horizontal formation.

Seeing this, Yan Xing, Fan Chou and the remaining troops under their command were all filled with fear. They had fled here in defeat, and now they had no energy left to fight against the ambushed troops.

"Zhang Yu uses his military skills like a god!"

Fan Chou exclaimed, and said to Yan Xing: "Our troops are exhausted, and the enemy is gathering strength. We may be defeated here. If we sneak through the mountains and ravines, we may be able to escape!"

Before, Yan Xing was in high spirits and might have dared to compete with Zhao Yun, but now he had been ambushed twice in a row. Yan Xing was exhausted from traveling for days and had no intention of competing with Zhang Yu's elite cavalry. He just wanted to escape back to the camp.

At the same time, Zhao Yun led a hundred heavy cavalrymen and hammered into the chaotic ranks of the Longyou Army. A large number of cavalrymen followed behind him, using bows and arrows, swords and spears to assist in defeating the enemy.

The charge of armored cavalry is beyond the reach of ordinary armored cavalry. Armored cavalry can be done by those who are good at riding, shooting and fighting. The armored cavalry are all tall men, riding tall horses, wearing two layers of heavy armor, and they hit the tired Longyou army like a hammer, directly breaking them apart.

The cavalry led by Wang Ling used bows and crossbows to shoot at the fleeing people, making the enemy soldiers in the rear team cry for their parents and all of them dropped their weapons and surrendered. The few who were unwilling to give up fled over the mountains and across the ridges.

Looking at the desperate situation, Zhang Yu stopped his horse on the hill and let out a long breath. Finally, he captured the elite troops from Longyou.

He began to ask Yang Qiu to go south to fetch clean water, with no other intentions, just to test Yang Qiu and open up a clean water channel for him. Han Sui sent Yan Xing and Fan Chou to raid and rescue, and suddenly defeated Yang Qiu, which Zhang Yu did not expect.

But Zhang Yu quickly reacted and planned to make an effort to open up the Qingshui Road by targeting the troops of Fan Chou and Yan Xing. And considering that Fan Chou and Yan Xing had two ways to return to the camp after their victory in Qingshui City, one was to return to the camp by the original route, and the other was to go south to Shanggui and return to the camp.

So Zhang Yu arranged for Cheng Pu and Zhang Xiu to take a shortcut to stop the two, while he led Zhao Yun and Wang Ling to rush to Qingshui day and night to encircle and annihilate Generals Yan and Fan. One ambush was enough to defeat the two generals, not to mention that the two generals had to go through two sieges.

"Your Excellency is so wise that you were able to cut off the enemy's retreat route and lead your troops to surround and attack them here."

Jia Xu laughed and said, "The elite troops sent by Han Sui will be buried here. When the Long Road and the Weishui Road are connected, the enemy will be afraid and retreat."

"Although Yan Xing and Fan Chou are brave, they are not a concern. Let's see if we can capture them now!" Zhang Yu said, "And now we have to take advantage of the momentum of defeating them to force Ma Chao to retreat and Ren Wei to surrender. This is the most important thing now."

When Zhang Yu stopped his horse to watch the battle, Yan Xing did not want to get entangled with the Shanxi cavalry on the chaotic battlefield, so he used his spear to push away Zhao Yun's spear and fled to the mountains under the cover of his personal cavalry. Fan Chou was much more cunning. When Zhao Yun led the armored cavalry to break through the battle formation, Fan Chou had already led his troops to escape to the mountains and forests.

In less than half an hour, before Zhang Yu could personally fight in the battlefield, the two generals Yan Xing and Fan Chou abandoned their troops and fled. More than a thousand soldiers were killed or captured by Zhang Yu. The battle was easily resolved with not many casualties.

Upon learning that his old rival Fan Chou had fled, Zhang Yu laughed and scolded him, "Lao Ge is slippery. He fled to Chencang when he was in Guanzhong. I wanted to use him to appease the people, but he fled west to Jincheng. Now, after we defeat Han Sui and capture Fan Chou and Lao Ge, let's see if he can still escape!"

"Fan Chou is brave but lacks strategy, so he is not to be feared!" Jia Xu said, "Yan Xing is a brave general under Han Sui, and is comparable to Pang De, a fierce general under Ma Teng. If you can subdue Yan and Pang, all the brave men in Longyou will surrender to you."

"Although Ma Chao, the son of Ma Teng, is young, he is very brave. If we can subdue the Ma family, kill the Song family, and pacify the Han family, Longyou will be pacified!"

Looking at the soldiers accepting the surrender of the Longyou troops, Zhang Yu said calmly: "First, let the defeated soldiers take the news to Shanggui, announcing that Yan Xing and Fan Chou were defeated by our army, so that the defending general Ma Chao will be frightened. And order Cheng Pu and Zhang Xiu to go south and join our army to Shanggui."

"If Shanggui is occupied by our army, Qingshui will have no choice but to surrender, and the Ma family will flee!"

Although the county seat of Hanyang County was Ji County, the most important city in terms of military geography was Shanggui.

Shanggui controlled the key waterways of Qingshui and Weishui, and was the key point to Long. However, the river valley of Jixian was wide, which could accommodate more people than Shanggui, and in terms of transportation, Jixian was well connected and convenient for connecting with other counties in the county.

On July 15, Ma Chao, who was stationed in Shanggui, gathered a group of defeated soldiers, saying that they were troops under the command of Generals Yan Xing and Fan Chou, who had fled south to Shanggui after being defeated in their attempt to rescue Qingshui City. The two generals then crossed mountains and ridges to escape back to the camp.

Not only that, Ma Chao received even more explosive news that Zhang Yu was personally leading the army in this battle, and now he was leading his troops south to besiege Shanggui.

On the 16th, the vanguard Zhao Yun, in accordance with Zhang Yu's military order, did not go to the city of Shanggui, but set up camp at Maiji Mountain, ten miles west of Shanggui.

Maiji Mountain spans Qingwei in the north and borders Liangdang in the south. It is the most dangerous and steep mountain west of Shanggui. If it is occupied, the road between Ji County and Shanggui can be cut off.

Seeing this, Ma Chao realized that Zhang Yu wanted to cut off his food supply, and he was immediately worried. After all, he only had 3,000 soldiers and horses under his command. He had more than enough to defend the city against Xu Huang, but he might not have enough strength to fight him outside the city.

That night, Ma Chao led his troops to attack Zhao Yun, hoping to defeat him while Zhao Yun was still unstable. However, Zhao Yun was cautious and under the guidance of Jia Xu, he repelled Ma Chao's attack that night.

Seeing that he could not win, Ma Chao was worried that Zhang Yu would block him in Shanggui, so he led his troops to evacuate Shanggui overnight.

On the 17th, Xu Huang's troops entered Shanggui City. Zhang Yu led his troops to Maiji Mountain, had a conversation with Xu Huang, and ordered someone to send a letter to Ma Teng, persuading him to lead his troops to surrender.

On the 18th, Zhang Yu was worried about the Qinting camp, so he led his troops back to Qinting via the clear water channel.

When they arrived at Qingshui City, Zhang Yu sent people to persuade Ren Wei to surrender, informed him of the current situation, and guaranteed that his life would not be in danger after surrendering.

Ren Wei thought carefully and saw that Shanggui had been broken, and the two generals Yan and Fan had fled, and the situation was no longer in Han Sui and Ma Teng's favor, so he led his people to surrender to Zhang Yu.

Taking the wartime situation into consideration, Zhang Yu appeased Ren Wei, upgraded Qingshui to a county, appointed him as the county magistrate of Qingshui, and stationed him in the city.

On the 22nd, after ten days of running around and deploying troops, Zhang Yu took advantage of the mobility of his cavalry and fought for more than 600 miles, defeating Yan Xing and Fan Chou and capturing three to four thousand elite troops. He forced Ma Chao to leave and occupied Shanggui. He subdued Ren Wei and unblocked the three roads of Guanlong, Qingshui and Weishui.

The opening of the three important roads made the situation much better for Zhang Yu and gradually unfavorable to the rebels in Longshang.

Seeing that Longdao was unblocked, Han Sui wanted to attack Zhang Yu, but due to the strong fortifications of Qinting, he could only confront Zhang Yu. Compared with Lueyang, the direction of Jixian had changed due to the unblocking of Shanggui.

Because Zhang Yu led his troops to Shanggui, Ma Teng was worried that the enemy from Shanggui would respond to the troops in the city, so he transferred Pang De and Ma Chao to station at Weishui to block Xu Huang's troops.

Taking advantage of this opportunity, Man Chong sent troops from Xicheng, bringing with him the civilians of Xicheng, and added more stoves along the way, making the appearance of having tens of thousands of infantry and cavalry, which made Ma Teng worried.

Considering the large number of reinforcements and the fact that Ji County could not be taken, Ma Teng knew that the situation was dangerous, so he gave up the siege of Ji County, withdrew his troops to Weinan Pavilion, and adopted a defensive posture.

Thanks to Xu Huang's containment, Man Chong's troops were able to lift the siege of Ji County first. So according to Zhang Yu's old advice, Man Chong was made the main general and Xu Huang was made the deputy general. The two generals stationed their troops in Ji County and confronted Ma Teng who was stationed at Weinan Pavilion.

As the siege of Ji County was lifted and the three roads were cleared, Zhang Yu's troops gradually turned from passive to active, while Han Sui and Ma Teng had lost the advantage of the Longshan Mountains. Therefore, compared with the previous confrontation period, Han Sui was more anxious to fight Zhang Yu.

Zhang Yu, who already had an advantage, led his troops to retreat and nourish their strength, waiting for news from Shi Yi.

(End of this chapter)