Chapter 146: Shoot and kill Cai Yang after the break
Chapter 146: Cut off the queen and shoot Cai Yang
As night falls, the melodious and continuous sound of horns in the distance spread throughout the wilderness.
At the east gate of Ren Jun's camp, more than 2,000 Shen Chen troops had to retreat and assemble again, and no longer continued to attack Ren Jun's east gate.
This gave Ren Jun a breather. His army was almost on the verge of collapse. Five thousand people were killed and more than a thousand were injured. More than a thousand people escaped and disappeared. Only two thousand people were left struggling to support themselves.
The flames reaching into the sky soared into the sky. The blazing flames in the camp were originally lit by Shen Chen in order to quickly defeat Ren Jun, but now they have turned into torches that illuminated his retreat path.
"Walk!"
Shen Chen gave the order to retreat and personally cut off the rear with Gan Ning.
The soldiers who still had the strength to carry the wounded soldiers on their backs and dragged their tired bodies slowly retreated back. Those who had no strength searched around for the remains of the Huangmenting soldiers and picked up the tags on them.
This is the unique mark of Huangmenting soldiers. There is a name and number written on the back of each tag. If someone dies in battle and cannot bring his body back, the tag will be used to represent his name.
Each soldier had reached the limit of his physical strength and was panting from exhaustion. Then he hurriedly walked towards the west gate of the camp.
After the soldiers all hurriedly evacuated, Shen Chen and Gan Ning led the three hundred personal guards and left with the last few crossbows. Ren Jun in the distance watched like this, the two sides looked at each other in the flames.
"General."
Ren Jun's left and right lieutenants, whose armors were messy and covered in blood, and whose buns were soaked with sweat, came over and said, "Why don't we take advantage of the situation and pursue us?"
"Pursuit?"
Ren Jun looked at Shen Chenjun who was slowly retreating in the distance, his eyes flickering.
"No."
Xun Yu on the side shook his head: "Listen to the sound of the horn, Han Hao is still several miles away. It is only because he is afraid that our situation is critical that he is making noise to scare away the enemy. If we pursue now, our army will be defeated."
"That's true."
Ren Jun nodded. He knew that the soldiers under his command had reached their limit. If they pursued them, they would be easily repelled by the enemy.
Xun Yu said: "Please ask the general to send someone to put out the fire."
"Extinguishing!"
Ren Jun immediately issued the order.
Xun Yu, on the other hand, rode his horse forward slowly, with Ren Jun following behind him, and the group inspected the entire camp.
The remaining two thousand soldiers dispersed to put out the fire, and about a hundred personal guards followed them until they arrived near the Ximen Camp, where they saw the torches of Shen Chen's army being lit from a distance.
"Let's go and have a look."
Xun Yu and Ren Jun left Ximen Camp and followed them all the way to the ditch.
They saw that Shen Chen's army had withdrawn to the other side of the ditch. The soldiers were winding along the road and retreating in the direction of Yingyin. At the end of the team, on the hillside where Shen Chen was commanding in the evening, there were people standing on horseback. .
The two sides were still looking at each other as before, across the ditch, about a hundred meters away. In the light of the torch, Xun Yu could vaguely see Shen Chen's blurry figure standing in the distance.
"General Shen!"
Xun Yu shouted loudly: "I admire the general, but I still ask the general to put his family and country first! Your Majesty has been wandering around for many years, and finally settled down in Xudu. He can no longer stand the travel."
Shen Chen shouted: "Xu Du is not the destination of the Han Dynasty, and Cao Cao is not a good minister of your Majesty. Cao Cao cannot be the master of the honor and disgrace of the Han Dynasty. Back then, the Han Dynasty had Huo Huqi, who was powerful in the north of the country. Now I, Shen Chen, should help the Han Dynasty. I want to bring peace to my family and bring peace to the people of Li! Your Majesty, please just say goodbye. What I, Shen Chen, have in my heart are the Emperor of Han and the people. I have nothing to talk about with someone like you who only cares about your family and doesn't care about the life and death of the people."
After saying that, he turned his horse's head and rode away.
In the distance, Xun Yu's robe was fluttering slightly in the wind, with a bitter smile on his face.
Ren Jun said in confusion: "Your Majesty, this man has a blood feud with Duke Cao that cannot be resolved, so why bother talking to him?"
Xun Yu shook his head and said: "General, you don't understand. This man is extraordinary. I also have old friends in Jingzhou. When I learned about his words and deeds, I admire him very much."
After saying that, he raised his head and looked at the sky. It was summer and autumn, the stars were dotted at night, and the bright light shone on the whole world.
"Unity of knowledge and action"
Xun Yu murmured to himself: "Is it really possible for a young man to achieve such a saint-like mind? In a few years, I, a big man, may have another saint. Alas, if Cao Gong had not been there back then, It was foolish to slaughter Duke Cao of Xuzhou."
His eyes were full of sorrow.
Many of the Yingchuan aristocratic families went to Jingzhou to seek refuge. For example, Xun You went to Jingzhou to escape disaster in his early years, and Sima Hui also took his family south.
Shen Chen's words, deeds and reputation in Jingzhou have long spread to Xudu. His deeds and many of his expressed opinions are very admirable. From a literary point of view, Xun Yu strongly agrees with many of his opinions.
What a pity. The massacre of Xuzhou by Duke Cao was not only related to the massacre of Shen Chen's clan, but also because the crimes caused by this massacre were in huge conflict with the moral concepts expounded by Shen Chen.
Faced with this conflicting ideological concept, Shen Chen finally embarked on the road of resisting Cao Cao, and firmly believed that Cao Cao was only using the emperor rather than helping the Han Dynasty.
So now, the two sides have become incompatible with each other.
Xun Yu came to the end.
I can only lament that Mr. Cao is confused.
If Xuzhou hadn't been so angry and laid down millions of corpses, how could it be in such a mess today?
Xun Yu looked at the sky in the distance.
There is one of the brightest stars in the south, emitting a dazzling light like the rising sun, which seems to be shining on the entire Han Dynasty.
The night is getting darker.
After nearly half an hour, Han Hao hurried over.
He was indeed several miles away and saw the fire in Ren Jun's army camp. He was afraid that Ren Jun would not be able to hold on, so he made a noise and forced Shen Chen's army to retreat.
With the addition of this new force, it took a lot of effort to extinguish the flames in the camp.
Han Hao learned that Shen Chen was also exhausted and wanted to request a pursuit, but Xun Yu told him that it was too late to pursue him now. The enemy would definitely return to Yingyin before they did. They had no siege equipment and could not conquer the city, so they might as well let go They leave.
Just like this, more than an hour passed before Cai Yang's troops arrived in a hurry.
Knowing that Shen Chen's army was at the end of its battle, Cai Yang immediately led his troops to pursue him. Ren Jun and Han Hao tried hard to persuade him, but he did not listen.
At that time Xun Yu had already returned to Xudu.
Cai Yang was Man Chong's successor after his death. When he learned that Liu Bei and Shen Chen had jointly attacked Runan, defeated Li Tong and killed Man Chong, Cao Cao appointed him as the prefect of Runan.
Ren Jun is the general of Dian Nong Zhonglang, with a rank of two thousand stones, while Han Hao is the general of the guard army, and belongs to the generals of miscellaneous titles.
Both of them have lower status than Cai Yang, so they cannot order Cai Yang at all.
What's more important is that Cao Cao issued an order as early as the beginning of this year that anyone who captured Shen Chen alive or had Shen Chen's head would be rewarded with a hundred gold coins and be granted the title of Marquis.
Now Shen Chen has returned to Yingyin. The soldiers have suffered heavy casualties and are exhausted. Such a golden opportunity is presented to Cai Yang. If he doesn't take the initiative to pursue it, wouldn't he be a fool?
So Cai Yang secretly cursed Ren Jun and Han Hao for being idiots, while urging the soldiers to chase Shen Chen.
At this moment, Shen Chen's army was slowly withdrawing towards the west.
Compared with the speed when they came, the speed of returning was much slower. The soldiers dragged their tired bodies and walked hard on the official road.
Many manors along the way were still waiting for them solemnly. When they saw them leaving, they were in a majestic manner, and when they left, they looked like defeated generals. Many farmers in the manors became much bolder, and they all stretched their necks to watch on the manor. , some even threw stones at them.
Returning the favor were several crossbow arrows.
Whoosh!
It was nailed to the wall of the manor, and its tail feathers made a buzzing sound.
If he didn't take the initiative to attack them, Shen Chen could still think that the other party was a people who just wanted to defend themselves, but once he took the initiative to attack, they would be the enemy.
The farmers inside the wall immediately shrank their necks. It was only then that they realized that even though Shen Chen's army had failed to attack and did not reach the outside of Xudu City, they were still the most elite regular army!
On the way back, Shen Chen gave up his horse to a seriously injured soldier, and followed the team on foot. He was accompanied by three hundred soldiers, a new force from Yingyin.
When he was in Yingyin before, Shen Chen ordered some soldiers who had foot problems to return to Yingyang to rest, and then left 500 soldiers in Yingyin to guard the city as a way to retreat.
When the war was going badly, Shen Chen had a premonition that the situation might be bad, so he ordered the scouts and cavalry to return to Yingyin and bring 300 people to meet them. At that time, because the horses could not cross the ditch, the scouts did not participate in the battle, so they went back and brought them back smoothly. Reinforcements are coming.
At this moment, three hundred fresh troops were following the rear of the team, protecting the front troops from evacuating.
After a while, Gan Ning suddenly came back on foot. He did not ride a horse. Shen Chen was surprised and said: "Uncle Xingba, what's wrong?"
"It's okay, let's go for a walk together."
Gan Ning took off all the armor on his body, revealing his knotted arms. There was a six centimeter long wound on the inside of his left arm, which was temporarily bandaged with cloth. The jute cloth was soaked in blood.
On the wide post road, everyone moved forward in silence like a group of defeated soldiers. Shen Chen and Gan Ning said nothing more after these words.
After walking about two miles in silence, Gan Ning suddenly said: "Ah Chen, we have failed."
"yes."
Shen Chen sighed: "But this is not the end, just a beginning."
"what's your plan?"
Gan Ning asked.
Shen Chen said in a deep voice: "Return to Nanyang and connect with Zhang Xiu. Now Cao Cao has reached the most dangerous stage. He and Yuan Shao are still in the confrontation stage, so they can barely send some reinforcements to rescue Xu Du. Once the decisive battle begins, it will be us Last chance!"
This is also a question Shen Chen has been thinking about.
The first time I went to Xudu, it was in April and May. At that time, the wheat was harvested. Ren Jun, as the general of Diannong, immediately went north to transport grain after harvesting the wheat fields. As a result, there were only Xia Houyuan and Li Dian in Xudu at that time. Thousands of people were stationed there.
In addition, Li Tong and Man Chong needed to guard against the troops in Jiangdong and could not return to defend Yingchuan. Therefore, after he defeated Cao Hong and captured Ye County, Kunyang, and Wuyang, he could go straight to Linying and kill Xudu City.
But the oppression Cao Cao felt at that time was not that strong. Yuan Shao had just crossed the river not long ago and was rushing from Baima to Yangwu. The two sides did not confront each other on the Guandu front line.
Therefore, the first trip to Xudu was destined to fail, and Cao Cao had time to return reinforcements.
At that time, Shen Chen never thought that he could capture Xudu in one go, so he didn't feel any regrets. He could just wait for the opportunity after safely withdrawing his troops.
The second time he went to Xudu, he joined forces with Liu Bei to attack, and also trapped Xiahou Yuan and Li Dian's main force in Jianqiang, which was a very good opportunity. Unfortunately, Ren Jun's Diannong army became a wall, allowing This attack was unsuccessful.
But Shen Chen knew that he still had a third chance!
That is when Cao Cao and Yuan Shao formally launch a decisive battle. By the time the new millet is harvested in September, Ren Jun will inevitably go north to deliver grain and grass. Xiahou Yuan and Li Dian have very few troops. Even if Li Tong is added, they will only have more than 10,000 troops. horse.
At this time, Liu Bei still had many troops. As long as Shen Chen himself could return to Kunyang to let the soldiers rest for two months, and at the same time go to Rangcheng in person and contact Zhang Xiu to send troops together, then things would turn around.
"Report!"
While the two were talking, more than ten scouts were galloping towards them from behind.
Yingyin was only about ten kilometers away from Xudu, so Shen Chen set up two scouts every three miles and asked the scouts to wait where they were to observe whether there were any soldiers in the rear.
At this moment, they had walked for more than three hours from Ren Jun's camp. Normally, they should have arrived at Yingyin City long ago. However, because the soldiers were exhausted and marched slowly at a speed of two to three kilometers per hour, they only walked for about five hours. Three-thirds of the way.
Now that the scouts are back, something has naturally happened. Shen Chen immediately said: "What's the matter?"
"The enemy's pursuit is coming."
The scout replied: "It's twelve miles behind."
"Twelve miles?"
Shen Chen frowned and said, "Their pursuit speed is very fast."
Gan Ning waved his hand and said: "Yingyin is not far ahead. Let's go back as soon as possible. They can't catch up with us."
Cai Yang arrived one and a half hours later than Han Hao, and there was a time difference of more than three hours. Even if Shen Chen drove slowly at a speed of two or three kilometers per hour, they would be back in Yingyin in another hour.
Even if Cai Yang's traveling speed was twice that of Shen Chen, it would take at least three hours to catch up with them. But by that time, Shen Chen's army had already returned to the city.
However, Shen Chen thought: "Our army is still in the hinterland of Cao Cao. Most of the soldiers are injured and need to return to Kunyang immediately to rest and recuperate. We cannot stay in Yingyin for a long time. If the pursuit of the army delays the time, it will be detrimental to our army, so we must defeat it." them."
"How many troops did they come?"
Gan Ning asked.
The scout replied: "Looking at the torches, there are about two to three thousand people."
Shen Chen looked around and said: "I have three hundred soldiers, which is enough. Uncle Xingba, You and Colonel Shen will retreat to Yingyin. I will lead three hundred people to intercept them."
Gan Ning said lazily: "How can I be left out after Duanhou? Let Shen Mi and Deng Zhao go. Let us uncles and nephews come. If something happens to you here, I won't be able to explain it to Youshuo when I go back."
Deng Hong was a well-rounded man, had many friends in Jingzhou, and managed his relationship with Gan Ning very well.
To a certain extent, Gan Ning was able to obey orders. In addition to the bet that Shen Chen made with him, which allowed Gan Ning to see that Shen Chen was a man with outstanding vision, there was also the deep friendship between him and Deng Hong as a bridge. .
That's how people are.
Sometimes when you get to know someone, if he or she displeases you in some way, then no matter how good that person is, you will still look down on him.
If he pleases you and there are no major problems with his character, the relationship will definitely be the same.
Deng Hong and his wife made Gan Ning very comfortable when dealing with him. They gave each other gifts during various holidays every year and often invited him for outings.
Therefore, Gan Ning was more concerned about Deng Hong's attitude.
After all, Deng Hong asked Gan Ning to take care of Shen Chen when he went to war. How could he let his friend's grandson get into trouble on the battlefield?
Hearing Gan Ning's words, Shen Chen was very moved and said, "Thank you, Uncle Xingba, then let's give the pursuers a head-on blow!"
As he spoke, he immediately began to arrange an ambush.
After the order was issued, all the bows and crossbows of the entire army were gathered into the hands of the three hundred fresh troops, and the last few arrows were left behind.
Taking advantage of the darkness, they extinguished the torches and found a woods beside the road.
As soon as they entered, there were black magpies flying inside, and a large number of birds soared into the sky, frightening their feathers into flocks.
But no one cared.
Because the enemy is still far away from them, by the time the enemy arrives, the birds will have already calmed down.
The movement caused by three hundred people would not be too big. Everyone was lurking on the side of the road, hidden in the woods, silently waiting for the pursuers to arrive.
After a while, the birds circled in the air for a while. When they saw that there was no movement in the forest, they returned to their nests and continued to rest.
The surrounding wilderness seemed to have become quiet. Except for the occasional howl of wolves and the dying chirping of cicadas in summer and autumn, there were not even a few frogs croaking in the fields in the wilderness ahead.
The shadows of distant hills could be vaguely seen in the vast plains. After waiting for nearly an hour, countless dots of fire suddenly appeared at the end of the road.
"Hurry up!"
Cai Yang was riding on horseback. He had a strong back and strong waist, holding a long sword in his hand, urging the soldiers to move forward.
In fact, the soldiers were also very tired. After all, they had traveled more than thirty kilometers to Xudu. They had not rested from afternoon until dark, and their feet were extremely sore.
Although Xia Houyuan and Sima Yi marched faster than them, and Shen Chen's army also traveled about 80 kilometers in two days to attack Xudu, which was only slightly worse than Xia Houyuan and Sima Yi, but they marched in one day, while Cai Yang marched in a hurry.
In other words, they can complete the journey that others take in one day in half a day, so Cai Yang's army will be even more tired. Even if they are elite soldiers brought from Cao Jundu's front line, their combat effectiveness will still be reduced a lot.
certainly.
Even so, they were not like Shen Chen, who fought for more than 20 kilometers from Yingyang to Yingyin, then from Yingyin to Baliqiao, walked another ten kilometers, and fought for another three hours. exhausted.
Therefore, if the two sides faced each other head-on, since Shen Chen's army's crossbows were at their lowest point and their strength was exhausted, Cai Yang's three thousand elite Cao troops would really be able to annihilate Shen Chen.
What Cai Yang never expected was that Shen Chen would have the guts to ambush him when he was close to the end of the road.
now.
In the dense forest, Shen Chen and Gan Ning clenched their bows almost at the same time and pointed the arrow tips at Cai Yang.
Not only the two of them, but also the three hundred soldiers silently raised their crossbows.
Cai Yang is really too conspicuous.
He was wearing armor and swaggering at the front of the team.
There were people holding flags high behind them. Under the long torchlight behind them, the big "Cai" flag was clearly visible.
Due to lack of physical strength, Cao Jun's soldiers were slightly out of touch, and their formation was not very neat.
Cai Yang reined in the horse, turned around and shouted: "Hurry up!"
I haven’t finished what I said next.
"Buzz!"
He heard a sound like the vibration of the wings of a swarm of bees, and three hundred bows and crossbows were fired, hitting him like meteors in the dark night.
"Ding Ding Dang, alas!"
The first one to fall to the ground was Cai Yang's war horse, which was shot into a hedgehog.
Then the armor and helmet on Cai Yang helped him block most of the arrows, but at least ten arrows still hit his unprotected feet and calves.
There are several types of armor in the Han Dynasty. Some have high collars like Xuantie armor to protect the neck, and some have skirt-like greaves underneath to protect the knees. But almost all armors do not protect the body. Lower legs and feet.
Some of the arrows even hit Cai Yang's face.
All that was heard was screams, because not only Cai Yang was seriously injured, but the guards around him were also covered in arrows, and fell down instantly.
"Kill!"
Countless bows and crossbows were fired in the dense forest, and Shen Chen's army only had more than a thousand arrows left, all of which were used up.
When they ran out of arrows, the soldiers threw their crossbows on the ground, drew out their swords from their waists or picked up their halberds, spears, swords and shields, and like ferocious jackals, they attacked Cao Jun.
But Cao's army was already in chaos, panicking at the front and rear. The soldiers were defeated and fled back one after another. They had no will to fight at all.
Shen Chen and Gan Ning led 300 men to charge and kill them. Cao's army completely collapsed and fled back.
Less than ten minutes later, Cao Jun's soldiers were running around everywhere in the wilderness. Shen Chen and Gan Ning did not continue the pursuit. They went back to clean the battlefield, picked up some weapons and equipment, and then went to see Cai Yang's body. .
I saw that his left foot was full of arrows, and the really fatal ones were the ones shot at the door facing him, directly piercing Cai Yang's cheeks and eyes. One of them even had the word "Morning" engraved on it!
Shen Chen's archery skills these past few years have not been in vain!
Don't worry, everyone, isn't this the second attack on Xudu? The third attack will soon shock China, so why are you anxious?