Tiger Guards

Chapter 671 Racing Through the Snow
It was midnight in Shandan Township.

The snow on the ground was more than a foot deep, and the scouts sent by Ma Teng only occupied the mountains on the north side of the valley plain, without launching an attack.

The scout team assigned by Yan Xing to scout here also tacitly avoided scouting to the north, instead scattering on the south side of the river valley plain to seek shelter from the cold.

After the Ren family's attempt to rescue Jicheng failed and they realized the extreme danger of the battle, the Ren family disbanded the allied forces and led their clan and followers westward.

When they passed through Shandan Township, they took away all the people, livestock, and supplies they could carry. The estates they couldn't take were set on fire and are now burned to the ground.

Even in such desolate ruins, it was worthwhile for Yan Xing to send scouts to search.

In the dead of night, the scouts packed their bags and prepared to retreat.

The Ren family fled, but they still managed to find many valuable items in the ruins of the Ren family manor.

Regardless of the outcome of the war, for this scout squad, returning home alive to reunite with their families is the only victory.

An old soldier with a round face and a slightly graying beard was feeding the horse feed, kneading the feed in his hands and breaking up the slightly frozen clumps.

The temperature here wasn't very cold when it snowed, and the melting snow water soaked the burlap sacks containing the fine materials.

If nothing unexpected happens, this thick snow, more than a foot deep, should melt away in three days at the earliest, and five or six days at the latest.

"Poor thing..."

A gust of cold wind blew by, and the old soldier sighed, saying to the boy feeding the horses beside him, "The Ren family fled west. Those who took the main road were killed, and those who took the side roads will probably freeze to death tonight."

The boy looked up: "Then how do we get to Cao Ren?"

"Trail."

As the veteran spoke, he tied the bag of concentrated feed tightly. He noticed that the other horses were almost finished eating as well. In fact, they had been fed hay and fodder continuously since midnight, and the concentrated feed they were now being given contained coarse salt.

He looked around and said in a low voice, "Hurry up!"

Other scouts responded one after another, each mounting their horses and leading spare horses laden with bundles of blankets, leather, copperware, and other miscellaneous items.

Perhaps due to the evacuation preparations that had been underway since midnight, or perhaps due to the cold and the somber atmosphere, the dozen or so people did not exchange many words.

Following the veteran leading the way, instead of taking the wide and easy official road, they turned south into the mountain gully.

The Longyou region is full of such crisscrossing mountain gullies. Although they are not conducive to the movement of large armies, small cavalry teams of a dozen or so people can still move freely.

Only the locals knew the routes of the various mountain valleys... but the turmoil in Liangzhou exacerbated the population movement.

It is quite normal for some officials and soldiers in the Xiliang and Hehuang rebels to be familiar with the terrain of Longyou.

The scout team embarked on a difficult journey home. Shortly after they left, a large army of carts, horses, and sleds came from east to west along the official road.

After the campaign against the Hu, the sled army had established universally accepted marching rules.

If a horse is injured, or a sled is damaged, or an officer is injured, the sled will be brought to the side of the road. After dealing with the problem on its own, it will join the rescue team and then wait for an opportunity to rejoin the team, or be temporarily assigned to the reserve team.

This leads to the disruption of the original battalion and team system when the sled army moves forward. Each battalion will be short-staffed when it arrives at the battlefield, but there will also be newly formed temporary battalions.

The hierarchical military rank system made it an instinct for the Jin army to reorganize and restore the organization of officers and soldiers who had fallen behind.

This phenomenon of constantly falling behind and having the rear fill in for the front... in Zhao Ji's view, has a kind of beauty in the self-sharpening of an armor-piercing bullet.

Outside the Ren family manor, the sled caravan proceeded in an orderly fashion, with only a few dozen people scouting the manor ruins and nearby villages.

The local population fled, either being coerced by the Ren family or forcibly conscripted by Ma Teng from the neighboring Zhongtao County.

Even if they discovered traces of the enemy scouts retreating south, the sled army could rely on the snow-covered official roads and, although they could pursue them along the rutted mountain paths, it was all for naught.

The first battle about to erupt in Zhongtao City is the key. Even if Han Sui's troops are lying in ambush in the mountain gullies and paths to the south... lightly armed troops who can traverse such treacherous roads would have a hard time surviving in such heavy snow, let alone launching an attack. Han Shu led the vanguard straight towards Zhongtao. In the central army, Zhao Ji remained calm, but his breath condensed on his face-covering scarf and a pair of brown crystal sunglasses, forcing him to wipe the lenses.

He has no shortage of highly transparent crystals, but such crystals cannot be consumed or wasted at will.

There is only one lens grinding team in the entire Jinyang area. Their biggest achievement recently is to grind a single lens specifically for Zhao Yan, based on Zhao Yan's vision.

Zhao Ji's needs were relatively lower; he simply didn't like wearing them.

In such heavy snow, Zhao Ji had to protect his eyes.

Without these brown sunglasses, he would have to cover his eyes with a black veil.

Southeast of Zhongtao City, the sled army slowly approached. The light sleds gathered and then flanked the enemy, while the heavy sled vehicles that arrived began to assemble and line up in front, preparing to launch a mass assault.

At the same time, light cavalrymen rode forward on horseback, carrying spears, and used the spears to probe the snow-covered ground. Based on the probe results, they planted flags of different colors on the ground.

With these flags as guidance, the sled vehicles could avoid damage from rough terrain during their charge.

As the sky gradually brightened, the sun disappeared from sight, but the north wind blew, bringing with it swirling clumps of fine snow and ice.

Before Yan Xing could make an effective organization, more than two thousand heavy sleds converted from supply wagons rushed towards the battlefield from the north and east of his camp.

Yan Xing had only managed to dig a well yesterday that could barely supply the needs of people and livestock. Due to the difficulty in obtaining materials, the army's overall laxity, weak action, and lack of initiative, the outer camp was constructed low, crudely, and intermittently.
The reason why a large army fears a night attack on the first day of its expedition is that the troops are exhausted and the camp is not secure.

"Report! All teams have breached the base and are unable to hold off the enemy!"

This was beyond Han Shu's imagination. He did not expect that the first wave of chariot attacks would break through the rebel army's outer defenses on the northeastern two sides, which were five or six miles long.

Han Shu hurriedly asked, "How is the enemy's morale?"

The scout pondered for a moment: "There's no sign of determination on his part!"

Gao Yanglong, who was temporarily assigned to Han Shu's operations, asked, "Should we deploy the cavalry?"

"No, the heavy vehicles have already stormed the fortifications, while the light vehicles have not yet engaged the enemy. Let's wait and see, there's no need to be anxious."

Han Shu raised his hand to stop them, and at this moment, Zhao Ji's central army's light and heavy chariots and Tiger and Leopard cavalry also arrived on the battlefield, began to form ranks, and prepared to launch an offensive.

"Report!"

Before long, the panting scouts returned and loudly reported to Han Shu: "The heavy chariots have broken through the enemy's fortifications, and the light chariots have rushed in. The enemy troops are in chaos, and they are fleeing with no will to fight!"

Gao Yanglong's eyes widened in disappointment upon hearing this, because the battle plan did not include the idea of ​​annihilating Yan Xingqian's army.

They were to drive Yan Xing's routed troops to attack Han Sui's central army.

Sometimes, the morale-dampening effect and chaos created by the charge of one's own routed troops far surpasses the ferocity of an elite cavalry charge.

Even if Zhao Ji were to defeat Han Sui's central army by sending his current cavalry force, there would still be some losses that Zhao Ji would not want to see.

Only by using Yan Xing's routed troops to counterattack Han Sui's army could this special effect be achieved.

Upon hearing the battle report, Han Shu turned to his chief secretary and said, "Immediately report to the Grand Tutor that Yan Xing's fighting spirit is wavering and his retreat is already evident. Please provide guidance, Grand Tutor."

"Here!"

The chief clerk responded loudly, turned his horse and rode off, with a dozen guards urging their horses onward to follow closely.

Gao Yanglong watched the enemy leave, then looked out over the battlefield. At a distance of four or five miles, he couldn't see the details clearly at all. He could only see that as his own chariots moved, the enemy was unable to stop or disrupt their chariots' movement.

(End of this chapter)