Tiger Guards

Chapter 621: A powerful tool with little use
Gao Shun climbed the city wall of Guancheng, between Xingyang and Zhongmu, and looked around.

The flags on the city wall were sparse and old. The defeated soldiers of Zhang Yang's troops in Yanzhou had long since abandoned their armor and weapons and were now helping the old and leading the young as they walked westward around Guancheng.

There are too many marshes and wetlands near Guancheng and Zhongmu.

As late autumn approaches winter, the weather is cold, but the swamp has neither frozen nor dried up, making it a time when it is too cold to traverse.

The garrison of Guancheng kept the city gates tightly shut. Zhang Yang shouted several times when he broke through to this point, but to no avail. He could only continue his westward retreat with resentment.

As dawn broke, Gao Shun, having eaten and drunk his fill, appeared on the city wall to observe the situation outside the city.

To avoid alerting the enemy, Gao Shun was dressed in the haphazard armor of a low-ranking military officer, with a worn-out military robe over it. The most formal thing on his body was the lacquered leather helmet he wore on his head.

The pursuing cavalry outside the east city had already gathered many defeated soldiers and their families, but this was not Gao Shun's target.

At approximately 11:00 AM, the main infantry force of the pursuing troops surged forward, kicking up dust as they approached.

After observing the situation repeatedly, a sharp-eyed boy beside Gao Shun said, "General, there is a Liu-character battle flag on his chariot!"

Upon hearing this, Gao Shun turned to look at the man. The young man, with his round eyes and sunburned square face, nodded solemnly: "It is the Liu-character battle flag!"

Upon hearing this, the garrison commander of Guancheng, dressed in the worn-out armor of an ordinary civilian military officer, said, "General, their vanguard cavalry carries battle flags with the characters 'Liu' and 'Tian' on them, so they must be Liu Xuande's main force."

Regardless of whether it is true or not, given the frenzied pursuit from the other side, it must be an elite force.

Gao Shun nodded slightly and turned to look at his flag officer: "Wait for my order to prepare the red flag."

"Here!"

The flag officer acknowledged the order, bowed his head, and jogged to relay instructions to the flag soldiers crouching at various points along the city wall. Many flags had been laid down on the city wall, enough for them to choose from.

In the eastern suburbs, the fastest pursuers were the troops from Zhao, Changshan, and Zhongshan under the command of Liu Hui, along with the Youzhou cavalry under Tian Yu.

Because of the winding course of the chasm, the further west they went in their pursuit, the further they got from the chasm.

Between the pursuit route and the ravine lay swampy, treacherous terrain, making it difficult for scouts and cavalry to traverse.

As a result, Gan Ning's navy sailed down the Honggou Canal, scaring away Liu Dai's troops. When Liu Dai turned back, he did not inform Liu Hui, the newly appointed Imperial Guard General of Xudu.

And so, the new Imperial Guards, on which Liu Xie and Liu Bei had placed high hopes, charged straight ahead and crashed into Guancheng.

At this moment, Liu Hui approached Guancheng, about three miles east of it, and sensed something was wrong. He secretly took precautions: "The entire army halted and stood still. Send an envoy to this city to convey the imperial edict, ordering the surrender of the city and the uprising."

Liu Qi, the cavalry commander of Changshan State who had long served and followed Liu Hui, stepped forward and said, "Lord Hui, I fear the envoy will return empty-handed."

Liu Hui gently raised his right hand, holding the horsewhip, and slapped his left palm. He smiled smugly and said, "Zhang Yang's defeat before the battle even began shows that the rebel army is divided and the soldiers have no will to fight. Guancheng is a small city, and its army is just watching from the sidelines, which shows that the garrison commander and his officers and soldiers are not part of Lü and Zhao's faction. A few kind words of persuasion can also be an aid to the court."

Zhongshan native and Cavalry Commandant Liu Sheng nodded repeatedly: "Indeed, this is the principle of 'those who follow the right path receive much help.' The enemy of the court is the two traitors Lü and Zhao. Their officers and soldiers are innocent and unaware of the inside story. They should be pardoned and allowed to atone for their crimes through meritorious service."

All three Lius said so, and the followers who came with them also thought it made sense. After a day and a night of continuous pursuit, they had all quickly adapted to their identity as hunters, and this was a time of great excitement.

Just as the fastest-reacting person was about to spur his horse forward to receive the envoy's mission, someone else was even faster, spurring his horse straight towards Guancheng, his voice carried on the wind: "I'll go!"

Seeing his subordinates so enthusiastic, Liu Hui couldn't help but smile and raised his eyebrows to observe Guan Cheng not far away.

Near the east gate of Guancheng, Gao Shun saw the enemy slowly beginning to form a battle formation, and immediately raised his right fist high: "Raise the flag!"

"Order! Raise the red flag!"

The flag officer shouted loudly and bent down to pick up the red flag first, raising it high. The officials and soldiers who were crouching all over the city wall got up and picked up the red flag.

In the blink of an eye, a red line appeared on the surface of the earthen walls of Guancheng. In the northwest of Guancheng, hidden among the dense reeds, the ambushing soldiers sounded their horns, and the accompanying drummers beat their drums rapidly. At the same time, they raised banners, which moved among the reeds, making it impossible to tell how many soldiers there were from a distance.

The reeds were thick, and the ambushers on the north side of the road were still moving about and pouring out.

Almost simultaneously, five or six miles southeast of Guancheng, ambushes emerged with flags raised; and in various places near and far, small groups of feints appeared with flags on bushes, graves, or mounds.

"Don't panic!"

Liu Huizhong, full of vigor, observed the various flags that suddenly appeared and moved on both sides: "Our army's formation is complete, what is there to fear from an ambush?"

Liu Qi shouted, "Beat the drums! Form ranks and engage the enemy! Reinforcements will arrive soon!"

Changing from marching to formation requires action points and careful operation and cooperation from officers and soldiers to complete.

Just as they were forming their ranks, the sudden change of the red flags on the city walls and the sudden raising and movement of battle flags in various places all disrupted the New Imperial Guards' formation from a column to a line.

Therefore, due to the distraction of the officers and soldiers and poor coordination, the efficiency of this new Imperial Guard's formation change became significantly hindered and slowed down.

Behind them, a heavily armed infantry unit marched discreetly, without any flags or drumbeats.

They quickly emerged from the depths of the reeds in teams of one hundred.

As the new Imperial Guards completed their formation, these ten heavily armed hundred-man squads also emerged from the reeds and quickly formed a hollow square with four rows of two columns.

On the wall above, Gao Shun remained silent, quietly watching the battlefield.

As his elite troops successfully cut off the enemy's retreat, lightly armed archers emerged from the reeds from all sides. Without any coordinated commands, they began to launch crossbow attacks on the new Imperial Guards of the Three Lius from the north and south.

These ambushers don't care about formations or volley fire; they often operate in units of several dozen men.

The new Imperial Guards did not passively endure the attack. The three Lius retreated back into their formation, with shield bearers in front and archers beginning to retaliate.

Just as the two sides were exchanging fire, Gao Shun raised his right fist again: "Raise the blue flag diagonally!"

The flag officer personally raised a large blue flag, placed it on the crenellations of the city wall, and held it diagonally to the east.

With the assistance of several guards, the large blue flag was raised and lowered repeatedly.

"Trapped in camp!"

"Strike the enemy!"

As the large blue flag was repeatedly raised and tilted, the ten hundred-man squads of the Trapped Camp shouted in unison, their steps resembling the sound of drums. There were no archers or crossbowmen firing their weapons; these burly soldiers advanced with shields raised, their formation tight.

Braving the crossbow bolts fired by the new Imperial Guards, they slowly approached, got close to the new Imperial Guards, and then merged into them.

As the Trapped Camp engaged the enemy, the scattered troops with crossbows also charged forward. Their tactics were more flexible; they attracted the attention of the New Imperial Guards by charging and shouting, but they did not engage in close combat. Instead, they would engage the New Imperial Guards in close-range shooting from a distance of twenty or thirty paces.

In less than a quarter of an hour of fighting, the Trapped Camp broke through the New Imperial Guards' formation from the rear.

At this moment, Tian Yu, who was at the forefront of the pursuit of the fleeing soldiers, withdrew after hearing the news. He was accompanied by only a few dozen riders. Most of the Youzhou knights who participated in the pursuit did not follow Tian Yu.

Now that they have seized so much, many people have even lost their will to continue serving the court because of the rich spoils, so naturally they will not follow Tian Yu to turn back.

Seeing how easily the new Imperial Guards were defeated, Tian Yu pointed his spear to the east and shouted, "Go!"

(End of this chapter)