Chapter 1252: Fight when you need to

Chapter 1252: Fight when you need to

On the battlefield, the Wei army had approximately 3,000 soldiers, but they were relatively scattered and did not form a formation with strong attack power. They only surrounded the Qi army and civilians to conduct various interceptions and intimidation attacks.

The Qi army had nearly 6,000 soldiers, most of whom were unarmed ordinary people. They formed an oval formation under the obstruction of the Wei army knights. The Qi army sergeants were spread out in this formation, and they were barely able to attack the Wei army knights to a certain extent. interception resistance.

Since these sergeants left the camp privately and did not carry too many sophisticated ordnance, and they also had to take care of the family members in the formation who had finally managed to get through, they were at a disadvantage overall.

The battle between the two sides was not too fierce. Even because the large number of people hindered the march, the Wei army sergeants involved in the siege had time to slow down, break away from the battle, and rest on the side to restore the strength of their horses.

After Gao Changgong saw this scene, he vaguely understood that the Wei army was deliberately slowing down the pace of the battle, presumably to use these soldiers and civilians to attract more Qi army soldiers to cross the river and join the battle. Although he didn't know what kind of killing moves the Wei army had hidden, he guessed that the Wei army on the other side did not only have the forces shown on the surface.

Because advancing all the way from Tumen Camp to here, the Qi army's war horses also used up a lot of physical strength. When he saw that the intensity of the battle was not too great, Gao Changgong did not order to cross the river immediately to join the battle and rescue, but ordered the soldiers Quickly adjust and regain your strength. The arrival of his group also gave a lot of comfort to the soldiers and civilians on the other side, and they were no longer as scared and helpless as before.

However, due to the arrival of this Qi army, the Wei army on the other side also began to strengthen its offensive. It no longer focused on interception as before. Several teams quickly formed, and then rushed into the Qi army's soldiers and civilians to charge and fight.

With the attack of the Wei army's cavalry, the still intact formation suddenly became chaotic. Many people fell under the Wei army's butcher's knife. An extremely serious stampede occurred during the escape, and a large number of soldiers and civilians fell on the ground. In the wilderness, it looks like pieces of grain have been cut down, which is very heart-wrenching to see.

"Your Majesty, the Wei army is too brutal. Let's go to battle!"

Several generals couldn't bear to see their own soldiers and civilians being massacred by the Wei army without the ability to fight back, so they came to Gao Changgong to ask for a fight.

Gao Changgong was extremely angry at this moment. He complied with the eagerness of the soldiers to fight and ordered his troops to line up across the river. He himself came to the front of the team with a horse in his hand. When most of his soldiers had already arrived, After crossing the north bank, Dang Ji waved his horse in the air and shouted: "Kill the thief!"

Thousands of elite soldiers of the Qi army rushed towards the battlefield with truly terrifying momentum. These soldiers had been restrained in the Tumen Camp before and were already filled with anger due to the Wei army's various provocations. Now they saw the Wei army killing their own soldiers and civilians with their own eyes, and they were even more outraged. Now they finally waited for the opportunity to join the battle. The enemy was surrounded by a real murderous aura. Some of them couldn't help roaring with extreme indignation while they were still running: "The Qiang thieves are here to take their lives!"

Seeing these Qi army soldiers rushing to the battlefield, the Wei army knights on the battlefield did not step forward to fight. Instead, they quickly rallied under the orders of their respective commanders, and then turned their horses and left the battlefield from the side.

"Coward! Rat! You only dare to bully the weak, why don't you dare to stop fighting?"

When all the officers and soldiers of the Qi army saw this scene, they started to ridicule and curse, venting their pent-up frustrations. There were also some who were not willing to let the Wei army evacuate under their own eyes, bypassing their own army and civilians and continuing to pursue the retreating Wei army. Kill it.

Gao Changgong still kept Duan Shao's advice in mind and did not dare to act too arbitrarily on the north bank. Although he was very unwilling to withdraw from the Wei army, he still shouted loudly: "First lead the generals and civilians across the river, and do not pursue the poor invaders!"

Under his restraint, the Qi army did not continue to pursue the Wei cavalry who had run away, but seized the time to escort the soldiers and civilians who had been entangled here and could not move forward quickly to the Hutuo River.

Gao Changgong personally led a team of elite cavalry to guard the side. At the same time, he kept looking at the surrounding area and sent scouts to patrol the vicinity, fearing that they would be ambushed by the Wei army.

The soldiers and civilians who were rescued also knew that the situation was critical, so they all sped up and headed south, not daring to waste time here.

After a while, a scout who was sent to the north hurriedly returned on horseback, came to Gao Changgong, and said with a somewhat solemn expression: "Your Majesty, there are a large number of enemy traces in the northeast, about ten thousand people..."

Gao Changgong's eyes suddenly condensed after hearing this, and he thought so, so he ordered the people to speed up their advance, while the sergeants gathered near the previous battlefield to avoid being killed by the Wei army's ambush.

The distance of more than ten miles is not too far, but most of the people are on foot, especially since they carry a lot of belongings, so the speed of progress cannot be fast. Although there were sergeants nearby who kept shouting and urging, few people were willing to abandon their belongings and belongings to speed up. There were many people who smiled and defended the sergeants with a flattering face: "The Wei army is a cowardless person. See me six times." Zhou Erlang is such a hero, I don’t think I dare to provoke him again!”

But the actual situation was obviously not what these people said. The Wei army soldiers who had been driven away by the Qi army did not go far. They stopped more than ten miles away after evacuating here, and still looked southward with ulterior motives. Like a pack of cunning and ferocious wolves, they seem ready to come back and devour anyone at any time.

At the same time, the division and brigade that had been previously detected by the Qi Army's scouts also appeared in the sight of the Qi Army soldiers. The dark crowd seemed to number in the tens of thousands.

However, as they got closer to each other, they discovered that not all of these people were Wei cavalry. The largest number of them seemed to be ordinary people. And with such a large number of ordinary people in Dingzhou, Hebei, they could tell with just a little thought. Guess who they are.

Yes, these people are all family members of the local townspeople in Dingzhou. Because they are more accustomed to living together in towns, the Wei army can expel a large number of family members of the town soldiers as long as they conquer a town. If it had been for the Han people living among the villages and towns, there would not have been so many people gathered at one time.

When they saw the Zhenbing family members who were expelled by the Wei soldiers wielding butcher knives, the faces of Gao Changgong and the other soldiers became extremely ugly. The people they had just rescued had not yet crossed the Hutuo River, but the Wei army drove so many of them from nowhere. Should they save them or not?

"Let these men and women abandon their belongings and move forward at full speed. They are not allowed to stay on the way! Hurry, hurry up, otherwise the Wei army will come and kill them all!"

Gao Changgong saw that the Wei army in the north and the people who were driven south were getting closer and closer, and his patience had been exhausted. He knew that if it delayed any longer, the situation would only get worse, so he ordered the sergeants to drive away those people violently. The people who still refused to give up their belongings moved forward faster.

"Help me, help me..."

At this time, the people who had been driven from the north were gradually crying for help. All the Qi army officers and soldiers had expressions of indignation on their faces. Even without waiting for Gao Changgong's order, some officers had already galloped towards the north on their horses. .

When this happened, Gao Changgong also knew that it was difficult to restrain these extremely angry soldiers, so he could only take advantage of this hot fighting spirit to attack the Wei army, so he also led his sergeants to rush forward, and Arrange tactics on the way: "Don't be blocked by the people, attack the enemy's formation directly, don't fight with them, fight quickly, be careful not to stop!"

How many troops the Wei army allocated in Hutuo Hebei and what kind of arrangements they made were all shrouded in the fog of war. Gao Changgong had no intention of taking a closer look and disrupting all the enemy's arrangements. He just wanted to defeat them as quickly as possible. The officers and soldiers of the Wei army who had appeared in front of him quickly brought the soldiers and civilians back to Tumen Camp, because he knew very well that the longer he stayed here, the danger would increase exponentially!

This time, the Wei army no longer avoided fighting, but their formations gathered behind the Hebei people they had driven. When the Qi army entered the battle, it would inevitably have to collide with these people's formations, which would always have a certain impact on their morale. degree of wear and tear.

The Wei army has always been very strict in its military status, and the tactic of using civilians to form a barrier is rarely used. However, these family members of the townspeople who were expelled from the towns are not ordinary civilians. The strong men in their families may be among those of the Qi army today. The cavalry formations were all part of the Northern Qi armed group, so they were still different from ordinary people.

It is precisely because of this that these people were able to attract the Qi army here for rescue. If they were really ordinary Han people in Hebei, even if they were killed by the Wei army, these Qi army soldiers would only maintain a cautious wait-and-see attitude and would never risk their lives to come to the rescue.

Gao Changgong personally led his division and brigade to cut in from the side of the crowd. When he saw the Wei soldiers on the opposite side moving around the crowd to the rear, he first cursed in his heart, and then he no longer paid attention to the ordinary people rushing in front of the horse. He followed the shortest straight line and rushed towards the enemy, shouting loudly: "Shengmin, fall down quickly, don't stop the division and brigade from killing the enemy!"

Those who had time to avoid the lying down people were relatively lucky. Some of the more unlucky ones were inevitably trampled to the ground or directly knocked away by the horses because they were right in front of the charging team. The result was no different, just broken tendons and fractures. , vomited blood and died.

War is inherently cruel, and the so-called mercy is just that the stronger side is willing to go through a little more trouble after the victory is locked. Before that, the only goal of the soldiers participating in the war is to win, and any obstacle that prevents them from achieving this goal will Everything must be swept away!

Including the unarmed people in front of them, even if they include the parents, wives and children of the Qi army soldiers who are charging at this time, they are not allowed to stop and take care of them before killing the enemy.

In addition to the thousands of scattered Northern Qi civilians, there were more than 3,000 Wei soldiers behind the crowd. At this time, they also formed cavalry squads that were convenient for separation and fighting. They were waiting for the arrival of the Qi soldiers behind the crowd.

"Death to the thief!"

There was a Qi Army sergeant who was the first to rush out of the crowd and fight to the front, waving his horse spear, leaping on his horse and stabbing the Wei Army knight not far away. The anger gushing out of his chest seemed to be concentrated on the shimmering spear front. It makes this sharp edge seem to contain great power, capable of breaking mountains and rocks!

However, his spear was still more than ten feet away from the enemy cavalry, but a powerful arrow came from the opposite side and pierced the warrior's face. Immediately, the Qi army sergeant was roaring to kill the enemy as if the god of death had come to the world. He fell off his horse and died.

The surging anger and fighting spirit can certainly make people have super performance in the battlefield, but it is not only the Qi army soldiers who have the fighting spirit to fight bravely at this time. It should be noted that the last time blood was shed on this land was the thousands of Wei army soldiers who were lured to the city of Dingzhou and ambushed.

At this time, there were relatives and friends of the soldiers who died in the battlefield. They also had deep hatred in their hearts and had been preparing to kill the enemy and take revenge. Now that the Qi army soldiers have finally been lured out of the Tumen camp, they naturally poured hatred and anger into the swords and guns in their hands and stabbed directly at the enemy.

"Press it over, don't let the Eastern bandits rush out of the formation!"

This time, the Wei army soldiers did not flee when they met the enemy, but rushed forward to confront them head-on, and they also blocked the Qi army formation in the panicked crowd in a rather vicious way, and restricted the Qi army formation's changes and advance and retreat through the fleeing people.

Although there were only a few thousand people here, they all fled after being shocked, making the area within a few miles full of running and howling figures. Even though the crowd was no longer enough to affect the cavalry's advance and retreat, the chaotic sound of howling also greatly disturbed the Qi army soldiers fighting here, affecting their performance in the battle, and they began to shrink and retreat under the attack of the Wei army.

"The Qiang thieves, don't run!"

Although the overall situation on the battlefield was at a disadvantage, Gao Changgong was still majestic. He and his horse were one, and the horse lance in his hand was flying like a dragon. Wherever he went, the enemy either avoided or died, and few could fight against him. His personal soldiers also followed behind him, becoming the most fierce and best performing team on the battlefield.

However, because of the outstanding performance of this team, it also attracted the attention of the Wei army on the battlefield. Since the Wei army now has the overall initiative, the deployment of troops is more flexible, so several teams gradually approached this team in the process of interweaving and attacking the enemy, as if a rope was gradually tightened around it.

Gao Changgong naturally also realized that his team was locked by the enemy, and it was not as easy to charge as before. He immediately ordered his soldiers to throw whistling arrows into the sky and call on the Qi army on the battlefield to gather around him.

It’s not that he is afraid of the enemy, but the cavalry battle is inherently fast-paced. Once the enemy team shrinks and encircles in order to lock on his team, it will lose a certain degree of mobility. As long as he can withstand the enemy’s stranglehold, it will naturally give the outer soldiers a chance to besiege the Wei army formation. With the cooperation of inside and outside, a beautiful counterattack can be completed.

At this time, most of the Wei army generals on the battlefield were young and strong. Li Ya and Han Qinhu were already veterans. Others such as He Ruobi and Yang Zheng were brave in battle, but they still lacked experience. They came to Gao Changgong's position mainly to capture and kill the enemy generals, and did not pay much attention to the rapid changes in the local situation on the battlefield.

"The formation is too tight, disperse and expand the enemy formation, leaving only two teams to encircle the front and back!"

Li Ya noticed that the soldiers here were too dense, which affected the movement of each other's charge and killing. He hurriedly shouted loudly and led his troops to the side to expand a corner.

"The thief general, don't be so arrogant!"

He Ruobi saw that the enemy general was brave and well-armed. He knew that he was not an ordinary general. For a young man who wanted to create great achievements and make a splash, he naturally had a great influence, so he kept riding behind Gao Changgong and tried to fight him.

However, the horses on the battlefield jumped at a rapid speed. Occasionally, they would be several feet away from each other. If both sides did not want to bite each other, it would be extremely difficult to keep fighting.

At least in Gao Changgong's mind, this excited young general of the Wei army was not worth interrupting his own combat rhythm to kill him. After a contact battle that failed to kill the opponent directly, he was too lazy to continue to entangle, and led the team to attack in other directions to keep the team's high-speed impact movement.

After a battle here, Gao Changgong intended to lead the team out of the crowd, while the Wei army continued to pull the Qi army northward to distance them from the Hutuo River.

There were more than 3,000 people on both sides. After the battle lasted for half an hour, the rhythm was not as fierce as at the beginning, and the physical strength of the people and horses was declining rapidly, but because the entanglement between them was too deep, it was difficult to get out of the battle for a while. It was not until the Qi army's reserve division joined the battlefield that the Wei army soldiers withdrew and stopped on a slope a few miles away.

At this time, more than ten miles north of the battlefield, the Wei army soldiers who had not participated in the battle before gathered again and drove a group of northern Qi people into the suburbs. After seeing this scene, Gao Changgong's mood suddenly sank, and although the soldiers around him were also indignant about the behavior of the Wei army, they were not uncontrollable at this moment after experiencing a fierce battle.

Obviously, the Wei army wanted to use these Dingzhou people to lure and attract more Qi troops to the north to fight. Gao Changgong originally wanted to quickly pick up the previous group of soldiers and civilians and return, but after seeing the Wei army's actions, he knew in his heart that it would be difficult to evacuate easily. Not to mention that the Wei army on the opposite side would not let them return easily and would definitely try their best to stop them. Even if they could break through and retreat to the Tumen camp, the situation here would spread in the camp, which would only make the morale of the troops in the camp more uncontrollable.

"After all, I still inevitably stepped into the quagmire..."

Thinking of Duan Shao's repeated warning not to attack easily before leaving, and Gao Changgong's promise, but in the end he still couldn't hold back. Once he came out, it would be difficult for him to return.

Here he led the division and brigade to rest for a while in the countryside on the north bank. Looking back to the south, he saw another group of people coming north. From a distance, the size of the group must have been close to ten thousand.

Seeing the reinforcements heading north to support them, the surrounding Qi army officers felt at ease and had steady smiles on their faces. However, Gao Changgong was not too optimistic. At present, he was not the only general in the camp who decided whether to attack or not, but whoever led the troops in the south undoubtedly violated the instructions of King Pingyuan before leaving and dispersed more troops.

Although the Wei army that appeared in the field of vision now had only five or six thousand men, he had no idea whether there were other personnel arrangements besides this. Moreover, their current position is already between Dingzhou City and Tumen Camp. In other words, the time it takes for the Wei army from Dingzhou to come south and the Tumen Division Brigade to arrive here is about the same.

The arrival of reinforcements from the south will not actually bring any advantage or sense of security. Instead, it will further increase the possibility of them encountering the main force of the Wei army in this area. Although Gao Changgong was not afraid of a fierce battle with the Wei army, the previous battle also made him feel that the Wei army was indeed a difficult opponent. Some of the generals' bravery on the battlefield and subtle grasp of fighter opportunities were not inferior to him.

In addition, the Wei army may drive the people closer to the battlefield at any time and disrupt the morale and formation of the Qi army soldiers. Therefore, Gao Changgong also recognized Duan Shao's previous proposition and believed that it was not appropriate to leave the advantageous terrain of Tumen Camp and rush. to engage in battle with the enemy.

But now it seems that this realization seems a bit late.

At this time, the Wei army no longer intentionally drove away the family members of the soldiers, but instead began to shrink and gather in the wilderness to form a large-scale battle force. As for the hurried people, they did not need to be expelled at the moment. They subconsciously ran towards the location of the Qi army, hoping to obtain rescue and shelter.

Gao Changgong also ordered the nearby soldiers and horses to assemble, and more than 6,000 people gathered in the plains. He sent a small team to lead the people to the side and then southward. He led the army on the side of the soil. The troops were stationed on the slope to guard against another sudden attack by the Wei army.

The two sides were facing each other from a distance and did not continue the fierce battle. After all, the previous battle had also consumed both sides quite seriously.

Seeing that the Wei army on the opposite side did not charge down again, Gao Changgong slowly breathed a sigh of relief and sent a message to the group of troops coming from the rear, asking them not to rush to join the battlefield and first occupy a castle on the north bank of the Hutuo River. It is used to rest and rehabilitate the people.

With nearly 10,000 people in front and behind, it was impossible to withdraw all of them back to the Tumen Camp before nightfall, and it would be easy to cause trouble by just leading these people back to the Tumen Camp. After all, there were nearly 10,000 people.

Because of the existence of these people, it was difficult for Gao Changgong to lead his troops to withdraw rashly, and he could only continue to maintain a confrontation with the enemy in Hutuo Hebei. If we didn't see it before, it wouldn't matter if we didn't save it, but now these people are right in front of us. It would be absolutely unacceptable if they were left alone and brutally slaughtered by the Wei army!

It can be said that as the first team left the Tumen camp, the subsequent rhythm entered the control of the Wei army and it was difficult to get rid of it easily. And Gao Changgong finally understood why Duan Shao was always worried and hesitant. At the moment, he only felt that an invisible king was hiding under his hood. He could sense it, but it was difficult to get rid of it.

In the evening, the Wei army with many soldiers and horses came directly to the south. They did not attack Gao Changgong's troops, but went straight to the southeast until they arrived at Zhending City, more than ten miles downstream. stopped.

Because Zhending City was an important road, it had been conquered and destroyed when the Wei army went north. Only some ruins were left. Now it is used as a temporary camp by the Wei army. It is similar to the Qi army on the north bank. A triangle was formed between the occupied castle and the Hutuo River ferry.

Because of the presence of nearly ten thousand people, Gao Changgong did not dare to rashly launch an interception attack on the enemy. He just watched the enemy enter the ruins of Zhending City, feeling a little depressed. However, one of his generals saw the Wei army arriving at this ruined place. The people behind the city looked happy and stepped forward to offer their advice: "Your Majesty, the Wei army has entrusted a large force and left the city in ruins. The defense is crude and it is difficult to hold on. If we can mobilize all the people to attack it, we may be able to completely annihilate it!"

After Gao Changgong heard this, he couldn't help but feel moved, but he also doubted that Wei Jun was really arrogant and arrogant enough to put himself in danger without defense?

"Send scouts to search northward carefully and make sure not to miss anything. If you notice any enemy activity, report it immediately!"

At present, there are more than 15,000 Qi troops arriving on the north bank of Hutuo River, and Duan Shao's ban has been broken repeatedly. At present, this Wei army has entered the remaining city of Zhending on the north bank of Hutuo River in a grand manner. If another group of troops is mobilized from the camp, it is very possible to quickly encircle and annihilate this Wei army. Of course, the premise is that the Wei army has no other troops. layout.

Even though he knew that this might be Wei Jun using his body as bait, the bait was too rich and tempting. There were seven to eight thousand elite soldiers of Wei Jun and a larger number of horses. If they could take this opportunity to eliminate them, then It is enough to reverse the current situation in Hebei! Naturally, the Wei army was not equipped with all cavalry, and these seven to eight thousand elite soldiers of the Wei army must have accounted for at least half of the total cavalry of the Wei army in Hebei.

Gao Changgong was still a little uneasy before, but now he couldn't help but feel full of enthusiasm. Although he was cautious in sending scouts to further investigate the movements of the Wei army in the north, in fact he had already decided in his heart that even if the Wei army backed up the troops, Already coming south, as long as Li Boshan does not lead the main force southward, he will also try to mobilize the troops of the Tumen Camp to wipe out this Wei army division brigade in the remaining city of Zhending before the Wei army arrives here!

There is no such thing as a certain and dangerous war in this world. As long as one goes to the battlefield, there is a possibility of defeat and death.

However, there are not many opportunities to reverse the overall situation and restore the entire decline with just one battle. Maybe the conservative attitude of Tumen Camp before really paralyzed the Wei army. They did not think that the soldiers in Tumen Camp had the ability to do so. He had the guts to go out in a big way, so he behaved in such a arrogant way...

In any case, if he doesn't give it a try, Gao Changgong feels that he will feel regret for the rest of his life. If this is really a trap by the Wei army, it is nothing more than an advance of the inevitable decisive battle, and when a battle has to be fought in the future, there may not be such an advantageous situation and good expectations as now. If we don't fight now, what's the point? hour?