xymnovel Chapter 34 Observing the Enemy's Strength and Weakness and Arranging Formations According to Hi
Chapter 34 Observing the Enemy's Strength and Weakness and Arranging Formations According to Hi
Zhang Yan's more than ten units, totaling over ten thousand men, had just set out of the city when they witnessed a massive rout at the front lines.
The Han army moved through their own lines as if they were in an empty field, beheading several enemy soldiers as they emerged!
And the forward, Qu Shuai Du Chang, was once again defeated in battle.
Including Du Chang, these Changshan bandits have already lost two leaders!
The key point is that despite suffering such heavy losses, they inflicted negligible damage on the Han army, and didn't even get to see Liu Bei, the Han army's commander-in-chief.
Huang Long was an old man with graying hair and beard. He was known among the Changshan bandits for his maturity and prudence. But when he saw the vanguard collapse again and Du Chang beheaded, he couldn't help but waver once more.
He rode up to Zhang Yan and said, "General, Liu Bei is a formidable figure in Youzhou, a master strategist, and his troops are incredibly brave and strong. He should not be underestimated. Perhaps we should fortify our defenses and temporarily avoid his advance?"
Zhang Yan flew into a rage and shouted, "Haven't you heard what the astrologists say? I have a red aura surrounding me, and I have ten thousand soldiers with a formidable army. Why should I avoid their attack?"
"Pass down the order: command all units to deploy in sequence, bolstering our morale! The vanguard advances, followed by the main force; we will surely crush the Han traitors in one battle!"
Under Zhang Yan's resolute command, the dozen or so bandit groups from Changshan had no choice but to form ranks.
Although their ranks were not well-disciplined, even from the perspective of the Han army, their formation was remarkable and far surpassed that of other Yellow Turban armies.
This is also why Zhang Yan is determined to go into battle; he wants to strengthen his authority and further integrate his followers.
In this respect, Zhang Yan was extremely ambitious, which set him apart from the other Yellow Turbans. The other Yellow Turbans were a rabble, relying solely on their numbers.
Zhang Yan knew how to select young and strong men and train them into a troupe.
Historically, the Black Mountain Army was said to number a million, but every time Zhang Yan fought against Yuan Shao and Lü Bu, he would select tens of thousands of elite troops and thousands of horses. The allied forces of Yuan Shao and Lü Bu could not defeat him in open battle on many occasions, and in the end, both sides had to retreat.
Even those who could read auras were merely people Zhang Yan had specially trained to increase his prestige.
Regardless of Yin Dao's words, he would definitely go into battle today.
Otherwise, with over ten thousand men sitting in a lonely city, watching a mere few thousand Han soldiers surround them without daring to make a move, how would Zhang Yan then unite his troops and organize his soldiers?
If given more time, he might actually be able to train an elite force of several thousand men from among the more than ten thousand bandits of Changshan.
However, at present, among these dozen or so groups, there are still many unsavory characters scattered outside the city, covering the mountains and fields.
From the Han army's perspective, the bandits appeared as an endless, sweeping force across the land.
Liu Bei's expression turned slightly serious as he said to Guan Yu and Zhao Yun, "This bandit is quite different from the Yellow Turban rebels. He is rather strong and brave. I should blunt their momentum before we engage in battle."
Guan Yu slightly closed his phoenix eyes, stroked his beard, and snorted softly, "I see those people as nothing more than people who are just trying to sell their heads."
"Brother, that bandit just now tried to show off his brave generals and elite troops, only to be laughed at. I, Guan, will now show these mountain outlaws what true swagger and arrogance really means!"
Liu Bei nodded slightly and said, "Good! To use their own methods against them is a truly magnificent move, crushing the enemy army. As my second brother suggests, you can recruit strong and brave men from the army and select more than ten valiant cavalrymen to go with us, to bolster our morale."
Guan Yu clasped his hands in acceptance of the order, spurred his horse to the front of the Jing Sai iron cavalry formation, his red face and long beard making him appear incredibly majestic.
He slightly opened his phoenix eyes, sweeping them over the faces filled with emboldened courage, and said in a deep voice, "The bandits have come rampaging across the land, oblivious to their impending doom. I, Guan, wish to lead a dozen or so riders to raid their ranks, behead several, and return. Who is willing to come with me?"
Before he finished speaking, more than ten riders at the front rode out at the same time. These were the most valiant and skilled soldiers in the army, all of them in full armor and armed with weapons, their courage and spirit soaring!
Furthermore, Zhao Yun and Cheng Pu, clad in armor and carrying spears, stepped forward and said, "We are willing to accompany Commander Guan!"
Guan Yu immediately raised his spear and shouted, "Follow me into battle to kill the enemy!"
The dozen or so riders at the front of the formation immediately spread their wings like geese and followed closely behind, galloping towards the enemy's defensive line.
At this moment, Zhang Yan's more than 10,000 troops began to roar forward. From a distance, yellow dust covered the sky and the noise shook the fields, creating a magnificent sight.
But when Guan Yu and his dozen or so riders charged out of the Han army's formation, the Changshan bandits at the forefront immediately became agitated.
In recent days, the image of this divine general has been widely circulated among the bandits of Changshan, who are clad in green robes and heavy armor, with a red face and long beard, carrying a spear and bow, and riding a yellow horse.
Du Qing, known among the bandits for his fierce bravery, was killed by this red-faced Han general with a single spear thrust.
Now, he's here again! And he's with more than ten riders, heading straight for the front without flinching or dodging.
"It's Guan Yu! Guan Yu is here again!" someone in the front line exclaimed in surprise, and the ranks immediately fell into chaos.
Zhang Yan even established a group of archers, composed of hundreds of hunters from the mountains, known as the Flying Deer Archers, who could shoot birds and beasts and hunt tigers and leopards.
But before they could even get close enough to form ranks, Guan Yu had already killed three men and charged into the formation!
Wherever his spear rose, no bandit could withstand a single blow.
The Jingse army's iron cavalry rushed in to reinforce the banner, sweeping away all resistance. Zhao Yun and Cheng Pu, in particular, were exceptionally brave, their spears flashing as they protected the flanks, making it impossible for anyone to get close!
In an instant, Guan Yu had charged deep into the enemy ranks, riding his horse through the gaps between the enemy units, and no one dared to come up and stop him.
Seeing this, Zhang Yan flew into a rage and shouted, "Order the Left Colonel to immediately stop these Han cavalry! Their freedom of movement is surely damaging to our morale!"
Upon hearing the order, Zuo Xiao was utterly shocked. He pointed at himself with disbelief at the messenger, "Me? Go and stop that red-faced Han general and the white-robed young general?"
That was a divine general who killed Du Qing with a spear and killed Du Chang and more than ten riders with a spear!
Its divine might is unparalleled; it is simply the bravest in the world!
He, the Left Colonel, asked himself if he was as brave as Du Chang. At least Du Chang was strong and tall, standing at eight feet, while he, the Left Colonel, was only seven feet tall and could only be considered wiry.
Du Chang was killed by a single spear thrust even when facing one enemy alone; how could he possibly stop these two divine generals?!
That's no different from sending him to his death.
He could only drive his soldiers and pursue them with several hundred elite troops.
But even his commander was timid, how could his soldiers dare to risk their lives!
Seeing Guan Yu and Zhao Yun leading their elite cavalry in the distance, it would be a miracle if they didn't scatter and flee.
How could they dare to pursue them relentlessly?
Therefore, they could only watch as Guan Yu, Zhao Yun, and others fought their way to the rear of the Changshan bandits' camp to observe their strengths and weaknesses and to know the true situation in each place.
Seeing that the enemy's men were fierce in appearance but weak in courage, Guan Yu shouted, "Return to formation!"
More than ten riders turned their horses around and charged back into the formation, their hooves kicking up a trail of dust, leaving only a dozen or so corpses of the Yellow Turban rebels in the midst of blood.
These cavalrymen were incredibly brave; they could even behead four soldiers amidst a vast army and bring them out of battle.
Upon seeing this, the Han army cheered, their morale soaring!
Guan Yu spurred his horse back to the central army and arrived before Liu Bei. Apart from a few bloodstains on his armor, his expression remained unchanged. On the contrary, the bloodstains only added to his imposing and dignified presence.
"Brother!" Guan Yu clasped his hands in greeting and replied excitedly, "I have already reached the rear of the enemy's formation and observed its strengths and weaknesses."
"Its right flank is its sharpest point, composed of fierce bandits, whose armor and weapons are quite sophisticated, numbering about six or seven units, with a thickness of more than five li."
"The central army is where Chu Yan's main force is located. It has about two thousand men. Although the number is small, it is the most well-organized, with neat formations and a strict discipline."
"The left wing has the largest number of men, covering the mountains and fields, countless in number. But in my opinion, this is also the weakest point of the enemy army. They are all a motley crew, a disorganized rabble. But if we trample them with iron cavalry, they will collapse at the mere sight of us, and we can advance straight in. This will cause chaos in the entire army, and the front line will collapse."
Upon hearing this, Liu Bei nodded slightly. This was the advantage of having fierce generals and elite troops. The enemy knew nothing of my deployment, while I had a thorough understanding of their situation.
The so-called knowing oneself and the enemy will never end in a hundred battles.
In this format, as long as the commanding general has read military history books, he will know how to deploy troops.
Liu Bei then glanced at Guan Yu and Zhang Fei and calmly said, "Now that the situation between the enemy and ourselves is clear, we should emulate the Battle of Chengpu and form ranks to meet the enemy."
At Liu Bei's request, Guan Yu and Zhang Fei read more history books and military strategies, and naturally understood the situation of the Battle of Chengpu.
Guan Yu, in particular, stroked his beard with considerable arrogance. He loved reading the Spring and Autumn Annals, and recounted: "Duke Wen of Jin fought against the Chu general Ziyu at Chengpu. The Chu army was numerous, with Chen and Cai as the right wing, Ruo'ao's six soldiers as the central army, and Shen and Xi's troops as the left wing. Ziyu arrogantly declared: 'Jin will surely perish in a day.'"
"Duke Wen of Jin then led his elite troops to attack the right flank of Chu. The allied forces of Chen and Cai, with weak soldiers and timid generals, collapsed at the first encounter."
"After the Jin army defeated the right army of Chu, it joined forces with the central army and the left wing to attack the central army of Chu from both sides, and thus defeated Ziyu and established hegemony in one battle."
"Therefore, the Zuo Zhuan says: 'Use order to attack disorder, use sharpness to crush strength; first defeat their flanks, then their central army cannot survive alone.'"
Liu Bei nodded and said, "That's right, that's exactly the point. Third brother, you lead your troops, along with the righteous men under Gui Ting and Lu Shao, to retreat three miles and form ranks. This will slow down their right flank attack and prevent them from advancing quickly."
"Whether we can hold off the elite enemy forces in this battle rests entirely on your shoulders. Chu Yan's right flank has no less than five thousand men, while you and I have only eight hundred—can you possibly hold them off?"
Zhang Fei's eyes widened instantly, and he rubbed his hands together, excitedly saying, "I, Old Zhang, am most willing to go into these tough battles! Let alone five thousand enemy soldiers, even if there were fifty thousand, I'd make sure they couldn't advance an inch!"
Liu Bei then said, "I will personally lead five hundred infantrymen and archers to form ranks here and meet Zhang Yan in battle."
"Second Brother!" Liu Bei looked at Guan Yu and said, "Your mission is the most arduous. Lead the Jing Sai Iron Cavalry, the Wuhuan Cavalry, and the troops under Zilong and Demou, advance three miles forward, form ranks, and launch a fierce attack on Chu Yan's left flank."
Having finished speaking, he looked around at his generals, his spirits high, and said, "In this battle, we will use our weaker troops to confront the enemy's stronger ones, and our stronger troops to attack their weaker ones. Once the enemy's weaker flanks collapse, their entire army will be thrown into chaos. Then our stronger troops will sweep in, and even if the enemy has fierce generals, they will find it difficult to turn the tide."
"My lords, strive on! The day is now to achieve great things!"
As Liu Bei completed his deployment, the army was filled with the deafening sound of drums and horns, and red flags fluttered in the wind.
Zhang Fei quickly led his troops to the left and deployed in sequence.
Liu Bei assigned him over a hundred archers and crossbowmen, and even Tian Yu joined the battle. In addition, his own elite troops formed three ranks, a small formation, but their momentum was not to be underestimated.
Zhang Fei, in particular, rode alone, spear in hand, standing before the enemy lines. He already possessed the same heroic spirit as Zhang Yide at Changban Slope, who roared, "I am Zhang Yide! Come and fight to the death!" and intimidated Cao Cao's army.
Liu Bei, sword in hand and bow on his back, stood in the center of the formation. The largest number of archers and crossbowmen in the Han army were under his command.
He intended to use the arrow formation to teach these Changshan bandits a profound lesson, to let them know what a magnificent arrow formation was, and what it meant to not challenge a righteous banner or attack a dignified formation.
At this moment, Guan Yu had already led all the elite troops out on the right flank, with thirty-six Jingse Iron Cavalrymen at the front, all wearing heavy armor, their black armor gleaming in the sun.
Three hundred Wuhuan cavalry followed closely behind, all of them carrying horn bows and two quivers of feathered arrows on their saddles.
Zhao Yun personally led over three hundred Xuanjia Iron Cavalry, spreading out like wings.
Cheng Pu led several hundred elite soldiers and was positioned behind them.
This force of less than a thousand men was Liu Bei's core asset and his sharpest weapon!
And they have lived up to Liu Bei's investment of a great deal of money in building all of this.
As soon as the army advanced, a fierce storm ensued.
Under the onslaught of the Jingse Iron Cavalry vanguard, hundreds of horn bows were unleashed simultaneously, arrows flying like locusts, and dozens of bandit soldiers fell instantly!
Dozens of bandits fell, which didn't seem like many.
But when they stand together, they are a densely packed mass.
If a team of 100 people loses dozens of people in an instant, nearly half of their combat strength is lost, and they can be said to have completely collapsed.
What's even more terrifying is that these iron cavalry seem to have no intention of hesitating or stopping, and the three armies are advancing without hesitation.
Arrows rained down in the face of battle, and the screams of the bandits rose and fell.
Unfortunately, the bandits here were the most cowardly of the Changshan bandits. They were civilians whom Zhang Yan had coerced after conquering Zhen Ding, and many of them had never seen bloodshed.
On their very first battle, they encountered such a fierce and overwhelming attack. Of the hundreds of men in the front lines, more than a hundred fell in an instant, which quickly caused widespread panic, and dozens of people instinctively fled in fear.
Especially when they saw a large number of knights in gleaming armor charging forward, about to charge into the enemy lines, these men had no courage to resist the iron cavalry. When more than a hundred men began to turn and flee, the enemy formation was completely thrown into chaos.
Guan Yu immediately roared and charged into the enemy ranks.
As the spear rose, a bandit wielding an axe was sent flying more than ten feet away. The yellow horse was unstoppable and crashed straight into the enemy ranks.
Three hundred heavy cavalry surged in from behind like a torrent, their iron hooves trampling and their spears thrusting, none of them able to withstand their onslaught.
This cobbled-together rabble truly demonstrated its utter fragility and vulnerability.
Where the Han army's iron cavalry trampled, the earth crumbled and collapsed.
Zhang Yan seriously underestimated Liu Bei's Han army!
Three hundred of the most elite Xuanjia Iron Cavalry charged forward; even the Yellow Turban Warriors would need at least three thousand foot soldiers to stop them.
How could this hastily assembled rabble withstand such a heavy cavalry charge?
Their front ranks collapsed, and their rear ranks retreated in terror, trampling each other. In less than a quarter of an hour, the left flank of the front line was completely destroyed by the Han army, and hundreds of fleeing soldiers fled in terror.
While the left flank of the Yellow Turban army collapsed, the right flank was completely unaware of what was happening. After all, with tens of thousands of troops deployed and the battlefield nearly ten miles apart, they were still advancing according to Zhang Yan's orders, fiercely attacking Zhang Fei's forces.
Even with the current battle line distribution, the Han cavalry is already six miles behind the Yellow Turban's right wing elite. As long as the Yellow Turban's left wing collapses, the cavalry can drive straight in, and the enemy will inevitably be surrounded and swept away!