Song Xiu

Chapter 90 From back to front, utterly routed.

Tens of thousands of Han troops retreated along the official road outside Lucheng.

The official road was winding and circuitous.

The long column of Han soldiers marching along the official road resembled a giant python, twisting its weary body as it returned to its lair.

In order to return to the Northern Han territory as soon as possible, Liu Ji'en, under the guise of "paving the way for the army," personally led more than 10,000 elite troops at the forefront of the procession.

In Liu Ji'en's mind, the farther away he was from the Song army, the safer he would be.

At the rear of the column were the supply troops, whom Liu Ji'en considered "worthy of death."

Under the supervision of some Han soldiers, a large number of laborers, scorching under the blazing sun and sweating profusely, hauled the army's supplies.

The weather was too hot, and some of the elderly laborers had not eaten enough for several days, so they fell to the ground before they had gone very far.

When their cries of pain spread, they were met not with words of concern, but with beatings.

"Do you want to kill us?"
Get up now!

Amidst the whipping, shouts filled with concern rang out from time to time within the ranks.

If given a choice, these Han soldiers would not want to take on the task of supervising the laborers.

The tens of thousands of Song troops' stance of being poised to attack but not yet launching an attack filled every Han soldier with apprehension.

The agonizing anxiety within me intensifies under the scorching heat of the outside world.

At this moment, every member of the Han army is on high alert.

If that string snaps, who knows what terrible things might happen.

After being whipped several times, the fallen laborer trembled as he struggled to his feet.

As the laborers got up and were about to continue pushing the cart, they noticed something strange.

Several Han soldiers in front of them, holding whips, suddenly opened their mouths wide and their eyes widened.

A look of terror spread like a spiderweb, quickly covering the faces of the Han soldiers.

Their expressions were completely different from their fierce and menacing demeanor just moments before.

The reason for this change was that a terrifying scene was unfolding in the increasingly dilated pupils of the Han soldiers.

First, a vast expanse of smoke and dust appeared in the distance.
As the cloud of smoke drew closer, the Han army saw several figures appearing and disappearing within it.

Upon closer inspection, it turned out that all the figures were wearing their own military uniforms.

The dramatic change in the expressions of the Han soldiers aroused the curiosity of many laborers.

But just as the curious thought crossed their minds, the shrill cries of the Han soldiers in front of them exploded right next to their ears:

"Those are the main camp's garrison?"
The Song army has breached their camp!

The shriek was like a sharp blade, instantly severing the taut string in everyone's hearts.

Ordinary soldiers do not understand advanced military strategy.

They only focus their attention on the superficial comparison of strength.

Before the main army left the camp, several thousand men were left behind to guard it.

And they hadn't been gone long when their large camp, guarded by several thousand men, was so easily breached.
How formidable must the Song army be!

As soon as the Han army's shrill cries subsided, everyone present became restless.

Many laborers turned around sharply after hearing the shrill whistle.

Upon seeing the approaching black tide, the laborers were terrified.

Sensing the rapidly approaching danger of death, a chaotic and disorderly state was quickly engulfing this Han army supply corps.

Most people's first reaction is to want to escape.

However, in this chaotic state, tens of thousands of people were crowded together in one area, pushing, trampling, and wailing.

In that short time, who could escape?

In desperation, cries of terror echoed from the rear of tens of thousands of Han soldiers.

"Tens of thousands of Song soldiers are coming! Tens of thousands of Song soldiers are coming!"

As this terrifying rumor spread, the morale of the largest supply corps completely collapsed.

It's beyond saving.

Fortunately, the mutual trampling did not last long.

The thousands of defeated soldiers behind them had caught up and fearlessly charged into their ranks.

The fierce charge violently broke apart the originally crowded formation of the supply train.

The crowd of thousands of fleeing soldiers, at this moment, resembled a sharp arrow with its own suction force.

As the arrow tip swiftly pierces through the crowded supply train, the shaft also continuously absorbs new members from the surrounding area.

The tens of thousands of baggage troops had long wanted to escape.

When people are in danger, they tend to follow the crowd instinctively.

The supply troops, either forced or voluntarily, joined the fleeing crowd.

Then, moving from back to front, one group followed another, and more and more supply trains and soldiers could hardly stop this momentum.

If we're going to escape, we'll escape together—that's the safest way!

With the addition of a large number of supply troops, the number of defeated soldiers, which originally numbered only a few thousand, has now reached tens of thousands!

The tide of fleeing soldiers had reached a point where it was beyond control.

The massive rout, like a plague, was spreading rapidly toward the python's belly at an unimaginable speed after it had devoured the python's tail.

Located in the heart of the giant python were more than 10,000 regular soldiers from the Han army.

More than 10,000 regular soldiers were commanded by several generals.

During the march, one of the more astute generals sensed something was amiss. A distant rumble of thunder could be heard.

The moment the thought crossed his mind, the general burst out laughing.

With the sky clear and blue right now, how could there possibly be thunder?

I suppose I was being a bit paranoid.

But shortly after making fun of himself, the general frowned.

In just a short while, the thunder, which had been faint, became increasingly clear.

This change also caught the attention of other generals.

After exchanging glances, several generals on horseback looked back into the distance.

Looking around, they discovered countless gray figures appearing on a distant hill.

As the endless gray figures rushed down the hill, they quickly converged into a vast and boundless crowd on the official road.

Upon witnessing this scene, several Han army generals were already pale with fright.

Then the boundless crowd surged toward their army like a flood bursting its banks.

The surging force terrified the generals, who shouted at the top of their lungs:

"Array, array!"

The generals sounded anxious and terrified.

Tens of thousands of people rushed across the land, raising clouds of dust and causing the earth to tremble slightly.

Then, cries and curses came from all directions, rushing into the ears of tens of thousands of Han soldiers like a raging tide, causing their faces to contort in shock.

To the more than 10,000 Han soldiers, what was approaching from afar was not an army, but a raging flood capable of tearing everything apart.

A massive black torrent was closing in, and in it, some people were covered in blood, some were hacking at each other, and some had ferocious expressions.
Faced with the threat of death, people sometimes transform into beasts.

Upon witnessing the diverse and desperate scenes of people fleeing for their lives, tens of thousands of Han soldiers couldn't help but gasp in unison.

Many Han soldiers' fingers trembled as they gripped their weapons.

These 10,000-plus Han soldiers, who could be called the nation's elite, had their own pride.

They are not afraid of normal combat.

Can the current battle situation be considered normal?
Attacking them were ferocious beasts with bloodshot eyes!

The overwhelming sense of pressure from the massive, fleeing tide of soldiers ultimately forced these tens of thousands of Han troops to take the inevitable step.

"Run away!"

It's unclear who shouted that first.

When that cry of "Run!" was uttered, it was like a spark hitting dry tinder, instantly igniting a raging fire in the hearts of more than ten thousand Han soldiers.

The raging fire in their hearts burned away the last bit of fighting spirit of these tens of thousands of Han soldiers.

At first, only a small number of people fled for their lives.

However, led by this small group of people, the formation of more than 10,000 Han soldiers shattered in an instant, like a mirror falling to the ground.

Many Han soldiers, when they first fled, still unconsciously gripped their weapons.

But when they saw some of their comrades throw away their weapons and remove their armor, and their escape speed suddenly increased, the others followed suit.

These tens of thousands of Han soldiers were different from auxiliary troops and supply troops; they had a strict organizational structure.

Therefore, the direction in which these tens of thousands of Han soldiers fled was quite uniform.

This prevented tens of thousands of Han soldiers from being swept away in the chaotic retreat.

Coupled with their survival instinct, these tens of thousands of Han soldiers fled in a frenzy, making it impossible for the retreating troops behind them to catch up for a time.

No matter how desperately they ran, the tens of thousands of Han soldiers found that they could never shake off the torrent of fleeing soldiers behind them.

The ever-present sense of crisis behind them left tens of thousands of Han soldiers utterly devastated.

Fortunately, after a period of running, the outline of the Funiu Mountains came into view.

With the Funiu Mountains in sight, the tens of thousands of Han soldiers fleeing for their lives were filled with excitement.

Many of these tens of thousands of Han soldiers were survivors of the Battle of Gaoping.

They were not unfamiliar with the great rout.

They knew that even the strongest military formation would be unable to withstand the onslaught of tens of thousands of fleeing soldiers on flat ground.

If you don't want to be taken away by this torrent, simply running away is not a long-term solution.

Only by finding a treacherous location to rely on could they possibly stop the ever-approaching torrent of defeated soldiers behind them.

Within a radius of a hundred miles, only the Funiu Mountains in front of us possess such precipitous terrain.

Upon realizing this, the fleeing tens of thousands of Han soldiers couldn't help but quicken their pace once more.

At the very front of the column, Liu Ji'en led another force of over ten thousand Han soldiers, who had arrived outside the mountain path of Funiu Mountain.

Just as the military commanders were preparing to arrange for the soldiers to enter in an orderly manner, a deafening shout came from behind them:

"Tens of thousands of Song soldiers charged in, and the entire rear army collapsed!"

After the chilling shouts echoed beyond the Funiu Mountains, the more than 10,000 Han soldiers saw a large number of their comrades fleeing from the rear.

Given the circumstances, it had become impossible for the Han army to enter the Funiu Mountains in an orderly manner.

Urged on by the officers and soldiers at all levels in a panic, more than 10,000 Han soldiers rushed into the deep valley of Funiu Mountain in a chaotic rush.

Just as the 10,000-plus Han soldiers at the forefront rushed into the Funiu Mountains and had not yet had time to regroup, a large number of Han soldiers who were fleeing at breakneck speed also charged in directly.

More than 20,000 Han troops quickly poured into the mountain pass, which directly caused a very serious consequence:
The mountain path was packed with people, making it impossible for the Han army to regroup and form a new formation.

No matter how many infantrymen there are, once their formation has collapsed, they are nothing more than pigs and sheep waiting to be slaughtered!

(End of this chapter)