Chapter 262 The army approaches the city and is hard to contain when it returns.
On the second day of February in the twelfth year of Emperor Qianyou's reign, on this extra day, after two days of marching, King Fu Yanqing of Wei led an army of more than 80,000 people and finally arrived at Yunzhong City.
At this time, the Liao army in Yunzhong, led by Yelu Talie, had already sharpened its troops and repaired its armor and was ready. Outside Yunzhong City, there was a white field, and the originally densely populated Liao army camps were basically burned.
The place was smoky and scorched, and there were still traces of fierce battles and the hoof marks of the cavalry.
After Yang Ye led the army and followed Shi Yanchao to the north and contacted Fu Yanqing in the rear, Kang Yanze was ordered to lead the remaining 5,000 Dingxiang troops to continue advancing towards Yunzhong City and serve as the outpost of the army.
However, after arriving at the city for the first time, Yelu Talie immediately sent ten thousand horses out of the city, hoping to take advantage of the Han army's unstable foothold to launch a surprise attack. Speaking of which, Yelu Talie and the Dingxiang army were old rivals.
The absolute main force in the army, the Dingxiang Army had a great reputation, so all the tactics that were not used on Shi Yanchao were used on him.
The Dingxiang army, both generals and soldiers, had enough experience in dealing with enemy cavalry attacks. Although the Liao army attacked with thousands of cavalry, they did not panic. Under Kang Yanze's effective command, they formed a formation to fight against the Liao army.
The army inflicted casualties.
However, what was not expected was the determination of the Liao army in this surprise attack. The Liao army who stayed in Yunzhong, under the leadership of Yelu Tarlie, had a somewhat desperate temperament, which was reflected in the burst of energy on the battlefield.
It's quite impressive. From the very beginning, Yelu Talie gave a death order, and from the very beginning it was a life-threatening three-sided siege.
When the horse's momentum was restrained, they dismounted and fought on foot, advancing without retreating. Facing the Liao army's crazy killing, although it caused a lot of casualties to the Liao army, the casualties of the Dingxiang army would inevitably increase, and there was a sense of surprise.
The Liao army wanted to trade lives for lives, but Kang Yanze did not want to fight head-on, so he chose to fight and retreat at the same time, moving to the camp where the Liao army stayed outside the city, hoping to use the camp fence to curb the mobility of the Liao cavalry.
However, this choice played into the plan of the Liao army. In those camps, there were piles of hay and grease sprinkled everywhere, and Yelu Talie secretly ambush the dead soldiers in them. When the Han army retreated into them, they immediately ignited a huge fire.
It suddenly rose up and quickly swallowed up the camp. This immediately put the Han army into an embarrassing situation.
Kang Yanze was a decisive Han general. Although he regretted his negligence, he remained calm when faced with the chaos and quickly organized two battalions of elite soldiers to launch an assault on the Liao army.
The fire surrounded the Han army, which also frightened the Liao cavalry. They did not dare to get too close to fight, and only shot with bows and arrows. Seizing this opportunity, Kang Yanze personally led his men to stand out and clear an open space, while the Han army behind them followed closely.
Of course, in this process, the Dingxiang Army suffered heavy casualties. Later, under the leadership of Kang Yanze, the Dingxiang Army, backed by raging fire, once again formed a formation to resist twice the Liao army's attack. Yang and Kang trained
The Dingxiang army also showed great resilience, relying on crossbows, hard shields, spears, and swords to block the attack.
The two sides fought fiercely for more than two hours, and both sides suffered heavy casualties. Because the Han army was designed by the Liao army, although it was forced to gain some space by Kang Yanze, it was always on the passive side. Although the Liao army was fully prepared and spurred by military orders,
But facing the strong resistance of the Han army in the Turtle Formation, all tactics of detour, outflanking, and division were useless.
In the end, he was gradually drawn into the exhaustion of positional warfare. Finally, when he learned that Fu Yanqing's Chinese army was approaching and reinforcements were coming, Yelu Talie decisively chose to give up the attack and ordered to retreat to the city.
Yelu Talie was wily and resourceful, able to gather the troops' morale, and also understood military strategies. The reason why he designed these was not to cause heavy casualties to the Han army, but to undermine the morale of the Han army and at the same time enhance the confidence of his soldiers.
When it was discovered that both sides were in a state of exchange, they gave up decisively. The time to really exchange lives was far from coming. Although the Liao army was not good at offensive and defensive in city warfare, it was only relative to field warfare. When supported by solid city defense,
And with strict command, how much can its combat capabilities be weakened?
The Liao army took the initiative to give up the attack, which made Kang Yanze relieved. He quickly led the remaining troops to retreat south, joined the corresponding Han army, and stationed on the spot to wait for King Wei's army.
Therefore, when Fu Yanqing led the army to arrive, he couldn't help frowning when he looked at the smoke and fire in front of him. Although he knew that most of the Liao army had withdrawn, out of the desire for stability, coupled with the march
Due to exhaustion, Fu Yanqing did not approach Yunzhong City, but chose to build a stronghold near the water near a hilly area seven miles away.
As soon as the commander's tent was set up, Kang Yanze came to ask for an audience. When he saw Fu Yanqing, he knelt down and bowed down, with a look of shame on his face: "The general is ineffective in fighting, please punish King Wei!"
Fu Yanqing also knew something about the situation of the war. Fu Yanqing still admired the chief and deputy military envoys at Yanmen Pass. He glanced at Kang Yanze, paused at the bandage on his body, and asked directly: "How many people were lost?"
"Nearly a thousand casualties!" Kang Yanze said in a heavy tone, blaming himself: "If the general had not been negligent and mishandled the enemy, this would never have happened!"
Fu Yanqing also sighed. A thousand casualties were indeed nothing compared to a battlefield with hundreds of thousands of soldiers. However, for the Dingxiang Army, it was a big trauma. You must know that since the Northern Expedition, in the
The Yunshuo area had been fighting fiercely with the Liao army for so long, and had experienced several fierce battles. The number of casualties among the Dingxiang army was only over a thousand soldiers.
"You don't have to blame yourself. I also know what happened during the war. If it were me, I might make the same choice. The command of the Liao army is very cunning, and they have made a lot of preparations to deal with our army.
After putting so much effort into planning, it is not easy for you to be calm in times of crisis, respond decisively, save the soldiers from danger, and avoid more losses!" Fu Yanqing has rich experience in the battlefield, and with an understanding attitude, he slowly
Come on.
Hearing this, Kang Yanze was greatly moved, bowed his head and saluted again. Then he said: "Although most of the Liao army retreated, there are still many soldiers and horses left in the clouds. Although their specific strength is unknown, the general estimates that it is at least 20,000.
In addition, they moved all the soldiers and civilians in the city out. After the final inspection, all the young and strong people in the clouds were forcibly moved to the north. The remaining approximately 20,000 old, weak, women and children were abandoned in the original Liao camp.
Inside, there were many casualties in the fire..."
In terms of casualties, they are still the old, weak, women and children. On the cruel battlefield, they are like duckweeds, either scattered or crushed.
Hearing what he said, Fu Yanqing immediately frowned. From the series of movements of the Liao army surrounding Yunzhong, he had a strange feeling. After coming back to his senses, Fu Yanqing asked again: "Where are Shi Yanchao and Yang Ye? Are they there?
No news?"
Hearing this, Kang Yanze shook his head and said solemnly: "There has been no military news yet!"
Fu Yanqing immediately lowered his face and said solemnly: "Send people to explore the north, we must find out their situation!"
"This Shi Yanchao, who let him chase him alone!" Fu Yanqing took a deep breath and was a little angry: "The Liao army escaped, obviously well prepared, how could we give him a chance to easily chase and annihilate him! This is using the Han Ban Cavalry
The elite will take risks and achieve his achievements?"
Seeing that Fu Yanqing was angry, several Han generals present did not dare to answer the question. Fu Yanqing quickly calmed down and ordered: "Send all the cavalry out, and be sure to bring back Shi and Yang's army!"
"yes!"
"Also, keep an eye on Yunzhong City and investigate the enemy's situation in depth!"
"yes!"
When Fu Yanqing was annoyed by Shi Yanchao's pursuing army and sent troops to support him again, Shi Yanchao, who was pursuing aggressively, got into trouble as expected.
At first, taking advantage of the dawn, he led his army to advance quickly, following the traces of the Liao army's brigade along the road, chasing after them. It was almost a thoroughfare, and by evening, they had caught up to the Jiaoshan area south of the Great Wall.
There, they finally caught up with a part of the Liao army. In addition to the Liao cavalry at the rear, there were also some young and strong Hu and Han people who were slower on their feet. Without any hesitation, Shi Yanchao attacked and scattered them.
Because the sky was getting dark, Shi Yanchao originally did not want to continue to advance north and wanted to rest on the spot. However, from the prisoners' mouths, he learned that not far ahead was the location of Emperor Liao's command, and that Emperor Liao was in the rear division and had strong troops.
not much.
After receiving this news, Shi Yanchao was so excited that he could not control himself. He immediately ordered to continue the pursuit. Of course, Shi Yanchao was not completely brainless and did not consider anything.
He had thought about it. The Liao army retreating north had heavy baggage, many miscellaneous soldiers, and heavy burdens. This was an opportunity to pursue the attack. In addition, the area around Jiaoshan and the Great Wall was hilly and mountainous.
Passing through this area, the marching speed is even more restricted. There may be a lot of troops behind the Liao army, but in this environment, it is difficult to spread out. In addition, it is eager to return north, so it is not difficult to chase them. The most important thing is
, the Liao Emperor's Luan was riding behind, this attraction was too great.
Therefore, Shi Yanchao ignored Kang Zaiyu's dissuasion and forcibly led his men through Jiaoshan. He also broke the Liao army's blockade at the entrance of the Great Wall at night and pursued them in depth. Along the way, he also gained a lot.
However, the hot pursuit of his troops had of course reached the ears of the Liao Emperor early. After some deliberation, he immediately judged his intentions. So Yelu Wuzhi personally arranged for him to go to a valley at the north entrance of the Great Wall.
Inside, he set up an ambush and succeeded in one fell swoop.
Although Shi Yanchao used his brains, he ignored too many things. The Liao army at the rear was an elite force and was not weak in battle. Although they were eager to return home, if you tried to stop them, you would naturally be regarded as a life-or-death enemy. In addition,
, For the pursuit of the Han army, the monarchs and ministers of the Liao Kingdom had long been prepared to deal with it. The easy and smooth pursuit and annihilation process further reduced Shi Yanchao's vigilance.
Therefore, when the Liao army ambushed, even the elite Han army soldiers would inevitably fall into chaos. Even if Shi Yanchao and Kang reacted quickly when they met again and gathered their troops to fight, they could not avoid falling into a vicious situation of being attacked from both sides and surrounded by enemies on all sides.
.
What's even more dangerous is that the Han army was cut into two sections, with the head and tail completely unable to see each other, making the battlefield a cut and surrounded situation. The poor Han army soldiers marched north for more than 70 miles, walked through mountains, and crossed the Great Wall.
Their physical strength was very exhausted. Under such circumstances, facing the deliberate attacks of doubled Liao troops, a large number of unnecessary casualties occurred in the first place...