According to the laws of large armies, once an army of this size chooses to move forward, there will be no possibility of retreat unless defeated.
Even if the enemy encounters stubborn resistance ahead and the army lags behind for a while, it may cause chaos in the military formation.
In other words, once the Tang army's counterattack started, it would move forward inexorably. At this time, the Goguryeo people had only two choices if they wanted to block the Tang army's offensive.
One is to maintain a solid defense, like what the Tang Army did before, waiting for the enemy's offensive to weaken before taking action. The other is to use a more violent offensive than the Tang Army to fight attack with attack.
Obviously, the Goguryeo army can only choose the latter now.
The timing of the Tang army's counterattack was very clever. It can also be said that Zhao Shixun, who led the army, seized the opportunity before the battle.
If the Goguryeo central army does not move, the Tang army will probably only win a small victory when they counterattack, defeating the Goguryeo front army. When they continue to attack the Goguryeo central army, the Tang army will face a similar situation to the previous Goguryeo army, but with a slight change.
It's just a role, there's still competition.
But the Goguryeo people were too impatient. It can also be said that the leaders of their army were too inexperienced to command a large army in battle. To be more precise, they did not have the ability to take charge of their own affairs.
This can be seen from the records of their battles with the Turks and armies of the Central Plains over the years. When the Goguryeo people faced off against the barbarian tribes scattered in Liaodong, they were often able to defeat them.
But once they fight against the Turks and the armies of the Central Plains, apart from relying on geographical advantages, they have little to say.
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On the other hand, the generals of the Tang Army had various strategies and tactics developed by their predecessors in the Central Plains as reference, as well as the daily drills of the army and the tempering of the wars they had experienced.
In terms of strategic and tactical literacy alone, they were already far away from the Goguryeo people.
In terms of decision-making and action ability before the battle, Zhao Shixun is no worse than the Goguryeo people. Moreover, like other generals in the army, he will not consider too many other issues, such as what will happen if the battle is defeated, and how to explain the damage if it is too great.
etc.
He only focuses on the war itself, and his lack of overall perspective is his shortcoming. But when a war really comes, he is worthy of the name of a strong general.
Famous generals have always been the soul of the Central Plains dynasty's military, and they are the ones everyone worships. However, among the army, people like Zhao Shixun are absolutely indispensable. They are the skeleton of the army.
Ordinary officers and soldiers with rich combat experience make up the flesh and blood of the army. Only when the bones and flesh are complete and led by a smart head can this be a formidable military force.
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Therefore, the Tang army's counterattack was not reckless, but a real opportunity to seize the opportunity.
It was at a time when the Goguryeo offensive was fading away and the follow-up troops were weak, but the Goguryeo central army had not yet arrived to provide strong support to the front army that was fighting and entangled with the Tang army.
A small disconnect is similar to what happened to the Goguryeo cavalry before. As long as it is grasped, the outcome of the battle is determined.
The shouts of killing were still deafening, as tens of thousands of people fought desperately on this not-so-short front.
However, the situation of the Goguryeo people began to become unfavorable. A large amount of blood was thrown out, but no gap could be broken, and the casualties increased sharply.
When the Tang army slowly began to advance forward, it expended too much energy and suffered heavy casualties. The already weakened Goguryeo people could no longer withstand it.
The Goguryeo soldiers in the front row fell to the ground one after another, while those in the back row were pushed back continuously by the Tang army's sudden offensive. When the blood flowing from their companions stung their eyes red, what aroused was not the courage of revenge, but boundless fear.
and cowardice.
When the Tang army counterattacked, there might have been a stalemate in front of the formation for only a moment, but Goguryeo's front army collapsed in the next moment.
First, some sporadic people turned around and fled, then like a chain reaction, groups of people followed the fleeing people, and then... the whole line collapsed.
Such scenes occurred countless times during the wars in the late Sui Dynasty, and there is nothing to say about them.
When two armies fight, the one with higher combat effectiveness and the more organized side will always taste the fruits of victory. Whether it is the army in the Central Plains or the army in Goguryeo, no one can escape this law.
When the Goguryeo people were defeated, they were not much stronger than the peasant army in the Central Plains. Their courage was gone, and they were like dogs that had lost their homes, fearing that they could not escape fast enough.
At this time, no matter how majestic the generals or experienced officers, they could not stop the retreating troops.
Even if everyone knew that when they fled, they would probably disturb the Chinese army behind them and turn a partial defeat into a total collapse, but when everyone was running frantically for their lives, not many people would worry about it.
The Goguryeo people had great fun...
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At this time, the entire Goguryeo army was within the range of the Tang army's archers and was being attacked by arrows raining down like raindrops.
Every time a wave of arrows falls, countless people will scream and fall to the ground. Others can only speed up their pace as much as possible, praying for the blessing of the Buddha in their hearts, and thinking about walking through this section quickly.
distance.
But before they reached the rear of the front army, the people in front had already been defeated, and groups of Goguryeo people fled back like crazy with fear.
The Goguryeo generals who led the Chinese army forward looked at the scene in front of them in horror, not knowing how to react.
In fact, no matter how they reacted, they could not change the situation at this time. The time left to them was too short, and they did not expect that the soldiers who were so brave before could escape like this.
The Goguryeo soldiers in the front row instinctively wielded their weapons against the defeated soldiers who escaped. No matter where the army treats deserters, it is the same way.
But there were too many people who fled back. The defeated troops were like the vanguard of the Tang army, driven by the Tang army. They ran into their own central army in groups, causing the Goguryeo central army to quickly become confused.
This is also the reason why Li Jing did not ask Chen Yuan and others to massively reinforce Zhao Shixun's troops. The combat effectiveness of the defeated troops was not much worse than that of the enemy.
The sound of the war drums behind the Tang Army's formation became louder, and the Tang Army's right wing quickly advanced amidst the urging of the war drums, because after they killed thousands of Goguryeo's light cavalry, when the Goguryeo infantry came over, their offensive was not as good as the others.
The direction is so violent.
As a result, their counterattack made the fastest progress. The shield bearers in front were replaced by sword shield bearers. The soldiers quickened their pace at the officer's orders, and then ran away.
They almost followed the defeated Goguryeo troops and rushed into the left flank of the Goguryeo people.
The chaotic formation of the Goguryeo people was unable to stop such a fierce and determined advance, and they were immediately defeated by the Tang army. In less than a cup of tea, the left wing of the Goguryeo central army was completely defeated.
Gao Wenqi, the cousin of King Gaocheng of Goguryeo, took the lead in escaping. As his generals retreated and quickly fled toward Pyongyang City, they immediately accelerated the collapse of the Goguryeo left wing.
The painful memories of the great defeat suffered by the Sui army here became clear in the hearts of the Goguryeo generals, and fear spread among the troops like a disease.
The nearly 100,000-strong army collapsed at once. This scene is difficult to describe. In the words of the Tang army generals after the war, the Goguryeo people fled like rabbits, which greatly reduced the Tang army's victory.
At that time, if you could look down from the sky, the scene would be very shocking.
The Goguryeo people fled back in groups, their shouts filled the sky, they killed each other and trampled on each other, killing countless people.
The nobles of Goguryeo have no shame at all. They always run away as quickly as possible without caring about their subordinates or anyone else.
Those who were thrown at the back, that is, the soldiers who rushed forward during the battle, were almost all tribesmen recruited by the nobles from various places.
When they move forward, they are cannon fodder, and when they escape, they have to "cut off the queen". Their role is similar to that of the remnants of the Northern Qi Dynasty.
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The Goguryeo people were defeated, and the Tang army was not used to such a fast pace. They could not keep up with the pursuit and only captured one of the Goguryeo people's tails.
Zhao Shixun and the generals of the Tang army were naturally unwilling to give up. They marched forward and chased for more than ten miles. Following the defeated troops of the Goguryeo people, they reached the base of the camp they had built.
The Goguryeo people fled here, and some of them fled into the camp. Most of them were still crowded outside, relying on the camp. In the chaos, they were fighting another battle with the Tang army.
Many of Goguryeo's defeated troops took advantage of this time and fled in other directions around the camp. The Tang army failed to kill them and took the opportunity to invade the camp and captured more than ten of them before giving up.
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The Tang army was victorious, and Liu Rengui's troops had arrived at this time. Under Zhao Shixun's order, they entered the camp to stabilize the victory for the already exhausted Zhao Shixun troops.
When it was getting late, the Tang army came to occupy the magpie's nest and stationed there, resuming the confrontation with the Goguryeo people.
At this time, the city of Pyongyang was extremely clear to the eyes of the Tang army.
Zhao Shixun was a little regretful that he could not lead his army into Pyongyang in one go like he did to protect his son.
Well, I have to say that his appetite is quite big. He didn't even think about why he failed to protect his children. He only saw other people's achievements.
This night was not peaceful. The Goguryeo people tried to counterattack several times. Although the scale was not large, the Tang army was harassed and could not rest well.
The battle lasted for half a day, and everyone in the army was very tired. The most distressing thing was that they were too close to the Goguryeo people, so sneak attacks could not cause too much trouble. They just had to endure the cold arrows shot by the Goguryeo people from time to time, which made the Tang army unable to guard against it.
But it was impossible for the Tang army to go back and set up camp again. The captured camps had been driven into the defense system built by the Goguryeo people like wedges. How could the Goguryeo people take it back?