The Duke of Shu Han began guarding Jingzhou in place of Guan Yu.

Chapter 127 A great victory
Not long after Li Qiucheng left, Gao Ding saw that the soldiers who had set out first had already crossed the river.

They are arrayed on the western riverbank.

The soldiers all wore white fur ornaments, giving them a unique air.

It stands out conspicuously on flat ground.

However, it also clearly demonstrated their inferior troop strength.

For a moment, Gao Ding's already made-up decision wavered slightly.

Should we seize the opportunity and launch a battle?
What if we can win...?

pat!

A heavy thud came from the front lines, startling Gao Ding awake.

He immediately rode forward to check.

It turned out that a soldier in the front row had fainted on the ground.

His companions, who seemed to be on good terms with him, exclaimed in surprise when they saw the high-class guards draw their swords and step forward:
"Your Majesty, he slept too soundly this morning and went into battle without eating..."

Before he could finish speaking, a guard thrust his sword into the neck of the fallen man and covered the spurting red liquid with a cloth to prevent it from staining his armor.

Gao Ding then said coldly:
"Front-row soldiers, you must not turn around, retreat, or crouch... Have you all forgotten what I ordered?"

Upon hearing this, the soldier who had spoken immediately turned pale, shut his mouth, and turned his head away.

The others also straightened their backs, their legs trembling inwardly.

The dead man was quickly dragged out of the ranks by the guards, his armor removed, and then replaced by another strong soldier.

But robustness is only relative.

He still looked pale and thin, with not a single ounce of meat in his belly.

They couldn't even put on their armor properly.

Upon seeing this weak army, Gao Ding sighed deeply and abandoned his adventurous idea.

Soon, he began to feel glad he had made that decision.

Just as the white-haired soldiers of Naqu finished lining up their ranks, two more groups of soldiers from Naqu came to reinforce them.

Although the two newcomers did not have white hair to adorn them and their faces were not clearly visible, their ranks were perfectly orderly.

The military flag flew high, and the drums beat loudly.

Even the footsteps seemed to have a uniform and crisp quality, sounding like thunder from a clear sky.

They are clearly a group of battle-hardened soldiers!
This batch might actually be the elite troops of that General Lu on the other side!

On the contrary, the group of white-haired people in front was just bait!
If I had acted rashly and rushed in, I might have ended up here today!

With this self-comforting thought, Gao Ding made no further moves and continued to hold his ground.

Half an hour later, the enemy reinforcements also crossed the river and formed ranks.

Even from the rear of the north and south flanks, two unsettling plumes of smoke and dust emerged.

As for the Wolf Detachment and Li Qiucheng, who was sent to pursue them, they had both disappeared without a trace.

I don't know if they caught up or not.

However, haute couture can't afford to worry about that anymore.

He only knew that if he didn't run away, this time next year would be the anniversary of his death.

Finally, he ordered his men to launch a full-scale attack!

Suddenly, drums and gongs resounded from all directions, creating a chaotic and disorderly scene.

Under this chaotic command, the left, center, and right parts quickly formed a crooked diagonal line.

As expected from haute couture.

At least they managed to get out of there.

As soon as Gao Ding made a move, the officers and soldiers followed suit.

But the sound of the war drums was much more powerful and orderly than this side.

It immediately drowned out the clanging and thumping sounds from this side.

As they walked, Gao Ding even saw his own soldiers walking in time with the drumbeats of the opposite side.

Meanwhile, their own drums and gongs, in order to adapt to the rhythm of their own soldiers, were gradually brought to the same rhythm by the opposing side.

Those who know say it was a battle between two armies.

Anyone who didn't know better would think they were there for a harmonizing ensemble.

I was both annoyed and amused at the same time.

He had no other thoughts and immediately ordered the armored soldiers in the front row to charge, trying to slow down the enemy's advance.

But the effect is...

After Gao Ding saw someone fall down after running only a few steps, he became too lazy to enforce military law anymore.

He just kept urging the soldiers in the back to catch up.

In this situation, "keeping up" really just means moving forward.

No one really had the courage to face the well-organized ranks of officers and soldiers.

Under the influence of this subtle mindset, coupled with the completely distorted drumbeats.

The entire army quickly twisted into an unusually slanted and jagged diagonal line.

Specifically, it turned south towards the river called "Wenjingshui".

If this scene were seen by some enthusiasts of diagonal tactics in later generations...

They might exclaim in surprise that the true Carthaginian lineage is in the Han Dynasty. Or perhaps Hannibal Barca's descendants secretly traveled along the Silk Road to the Han Dynasty, marking the beginning of tactical exchanges between East and West.

But it's a pity.

Gao Ding had neither the ambition to swallow up eighty thousand with fifty thousand.

There is also no military organization capable of defeating a stronger enemy with a weaker one.

They also lacked any heroic spirit of going forward without hesitation.

In fact, the reason why the military formation twisted so unusually was...

It was all done under his deliberate direction.

Using this slanted line that had completely veered off course, he finally managed to bring his three thousand soldiers to his front as he had wished.

Then, without looking back, he spurred his horse straight to the Wenjing River.

They had long ago planned to use water escape techniques.

After all, as a genuine southern barbarian, riding horses and fighting are more important than anything else.

He's actually better at swimming.

puff.

The moment he fell into the water, Gao Ding instinctively turned his head to look at the battlefield.

At this moment, the front ranks of the two armies were engaged in battle.

No surprises.

His armored soldiers were instantly overthrown and fell to the ground.

The soldiers who were supposed to provide support from the rear couldn't get through and scattered on the spot.

Or they might kneel down and surrender on the spot, only to be trampled to death because they were blocking the path of their comrades or the enemy.

"Dog shit!"

Seeing this, Gao Ding couldn't help but curse.

He scolded his subordinates three parts and himself seven parts.

These idiots don't even know to run to the sides before surrendering.

Did I just expect them to confront the officers and soldiers head-on?
"What a load of dog shit!"

He cursed again, took a deep breath, and plunged into the water.

……

The battle began swiftly and ended just as quickly.

That afternoon, Ma Su tallied up the losses and gains of his men and horses in various battles.

Specifically, our side suffered only double-digit casualties.

However, most of them were not direct combat losses.

It was because so many enemy soldiers surrendered on the spot that a dozen or so unlucky ones tripped over their feet and fell in front of the enemy lines.

It should be noted that the attack formation is very dense, with soldiers standing shoulder to shoulder.

Moreover, once the process begins, it cannot be stopped for even a moment in order to maintain the neatness of the formation.

So whether it's enemy troops or your own people, once you unfortunately fall, you can only pray for good fortune.

Of course, such losses are ultimately rare.

In contrast, the enemy suffered nearly a thousand casualties.

Then about 1,500 people surrendered on the spot.

The rest scattered and fled back into the mountains.

Aside from not being able to capture the moment in person, it's a slight regret.

Today was undoubtedly a resounding victory.

Or it was a strategic-level great victory, where a weaker force could win a decisive battle!

After this battle, there were no more large-scale bandit groups in Shu County.

Of course, Ma Su has already realized what's happening.

In reality, our side only appears "weak" in terms of the number of kills.

The actual combat strength comparison is completely reversed.

However, Ma Su had always been fond of military strategy, and he would always think more deeply about things he couldn't understand.

Why were the three thousand barbarian bandits so easily defeated by less than two thousand government soldiers, even though they all had two hands and two legs?

It should be noted that the Wang and Ma tribes were unable to directly participate in this battle due to timing issues.

The main force on the front line consisted of less than a thousand men from Miwei's own troops.

The rest were all veterans from Zitong who were temporarily brought in to make up the numbers.

General Mi Wei was busy writing military reports to the capital, while Military Judge Guan Xing was overseeing the surrender of troops.

After looking around, Ma Su finally approached Ma Dai, who had been the most active player in the battle.

Ma Dai stated frankly:
"Before the war started, I saw that the Southern bandits were powerful, and I felt uneasy."

"But when I saw my elder brother's command, I remembered what my cousin (Ma Chao) had told me about his dealings with the Qiang and Hu tribes in the northern frontier. Then I knew that today's battle would be a close call!"

Ma Su's spirits lifted: "I'd like to hear the details!"

(End of this chapter)