Night has come, the sunset finally disappears in the western sky, and a disk slowly rises in the eastern sky.
During the Mid-Autumn Festival, when the moon is at its fullest, the bright silver light falls on the earth. Along with the bright moon, there are also the bright silver stars all over the sky, and the sky is filled with stars.
On the official road east of Ziyun Mountain, the Han troops lined up in neat ranks, trotting all the way.
Ziyun Mountain is an L-shaped mountain range connected horizontally from east to west and vertically from north to south. The later Pingdingshan City is sandwiched between Longshan Mountain to the west of the mountain range and Baigui Mountain to the south.
The location of the Han army was the Ziyun Avenue connecting Xiangcheng to Pingdingshan City in later generations. On their right was Ziyun Mountain, and on their left was a wilderness plain with a trickling tributary of the Ru River, and overgrown forests and weeds.
Since the Yellow Turban Rebellion and the feudal lords fighting for hegemony, this area has lost many people. The most important thing is the subsequent confrontation between the north and the south. The people on the front lines of both sides were basically relocated, so that this area has long become a wilderness.
Tens of thousands of Han army units were almost spread out in a scattered manner in the wild. Each unit had about four to five thousand men, led by generals at all levels, forming seven or eight formations and running slowly.
The phalanx at the front of the team was relatively neat, while the two phalanxes at the back were much more scattered. The soldiers had almost no formation and were marching southward in groups.
There were a large number of scout cavalry cruising at the end of the team, blocking the enemy scouts from conducting reconnaissance and covering their movements.
Zhang Bao was in the scout team at this time. He held a torch in his left hand, put his legs in stirrups, and kept the horse walking slowly, and then kept looking back.
The sky gradually dimmed, and the city of Xiangcheng in the distance had long since disappeared, but Cao Jun still showed no sign of pursuing him. This made him wonder if there was something wrong with the prime minister's strategy, and the enemy was afraid and did not pursue him after all.
"I won't chase you if you want me."
Gan Ning's eldest son, Gan Gui, was tall and tall and was riding on horseback. He was two years older than Zhang Bao. Because Zhang Fei and Gan Ning had similar personalities and worked together all year round, the relationship between their sons and heirs was also very good.
At this moment, Gan Gui looked back at the dark horizon and said, "The Prime Minister's plan is too obvious. If I were an enemy, I would definitely suspect a trick."
Zhang Bao said with a smile: "The Prime Minister said that he wanted to use the enemy's ignorance of him to lure the enemy to pursue him. You said this because you already knew the Prime Minister's strategy, but the enemy did not know it. All the signs only show that the Prime Minister does not know how to use troops. Who would have guessed
Has the Prime Minister already made a plan?"
"That seems to be the reason."
Gan Gui thought about it, then looked back at the slightly chaotic rear formation in the distance, and couldn't help but sigh: "The Prime Minister is really powerful in using troops. We have 50,000 people. How did he manage to arrange everything in such detail?
Everyone and every general can be in order."
Zhang Bao said: "Even if the entire country is governed in an orderly manner by the prime minister, let alone tens of thousands of troops. The chaos in the army is caused by the disintegration of the troops and horses, the soldiers can't find the officers, and the officers can't find the soldiers. The prime minister even assigned tasks to
Every Sima and Qu Junhou can naturally let the soldiers perform their respective duties."
The two were chatting.
The long line of torches in the distance suddenly changed, and soon the sounds of officers' scoldings, the sounds of soldiers moving, and the sound of running and the clash of swords could be heard continuously.
It turned out that the troops at the rear were responsible for pretending to be a chaotic army. Due to long-term rigorous training, they unconsciously and instinctively began to rearrange themselves into neat formations. The team of four to five thousand people was actually relatively large, and suddenly it became neat and easy to be captured.
Discover.
Therefore, Zhuge Liang, who was watching on the chariot, quickly noticed this and sent messengers to disrupt the formation over there again, redistributing the formations of each song and even each team.
Such exaggerated micro-manipulation ability shocked Zhang Bao and Gan Gui. They saw that in a short period of time, the soldiers became chaotic again according to the deployment.
However, if you look closely, you will see that the soldiers are only slightly uneven in formation. In fact, dozens or hundreds of soldiers in each team follow their commanders. Once the war starts, they can immediately take their positions and reorganize.
Come in formation.
This scene made the voices of doubt no longer exist. Tens of thousands of Han troops were spread across the wilderness. The front and end of the team were seven or eight miles long, and the long dragons of torches seemed to light up half of the sky.
Rumble!
Just as everyone was hurrying on their way, a low thunder was suddenly heard from the north.
The sound was low at first, but then got louder and louder.
The faces of all the Han soldiers suddenly changed, because everyone knew that it was not the roar of thunder, but the sound of tens of thousands of horses galloping.
"Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu!"
The desolate horn resounded throughout the wilderness. It was at the beginning of dusk, and the sky had not completely darkened. However, the night was still dark, and the bright silver light fell on the earth, allowing people to clearly see the situation one mile away.
The Han army at the rear had already seen countless figures appearing in the distant night from a distance, and they were rushing toward them at extremely fast speeds.
It happened that the Han troops in the two phalanxes were still changing their formations. When the enemy arrived, their formations did not change, which actually caused the false chaos to become real chaos, and all kinds of mixed sounds intertwined for a while.
On the war zone.
Zhang He, who was leading the cavalry in pursuit from a distance, naturally saw that scene from a distance. As a veteran on the battlefield, he could tell at a glance whether the enemy was really in chaos or not. Seeing that the enemy was really in chaos, he was overjoyed and ordered to continue the pursuit.
The distance between the two sides is getting closer and closer. Even though Zhang He did not intend to let the cavalry charge directly into the formation, but stopped on the periphery and used the traditional cavalry to fight the infantry, first shooting with crossbows, and then dismounting and fighting on foot, he still let the Han over there.
The army made a mistake while busy, and the general in the rear anxiously scolded the soldiers to assemble quickly.
"Prime Minister."
At this moment, among the troops in the center of the Han army, the general of this unit, Wang Ping, stood on the chariot and looked out. Under the light of the fire and the moonlight, he saw the enemy pursuing him and the rear army in chaos. He was startled and said: "We
There seems to be something wrong with the timing of the change of formation."
Zhuge Liang looked over with squinted eyes, shook his head and said: "No, it's just the right time. If the formation change has been completed, the enemy will probably see through it, and the chaos will make the enemy think it is really chaos."
"Then what should we do? Rush for reinforcements now? If we don't rush for reinforcements, I'm afraid the rear army will be doomed."
Wang Ping felt a little uneasy.
If the enemy is allowed to insert himself into the rear formation, if the rear formation is directly defeated and the pretended defeat turns into a real defeat, causing a rollback, it will inevitably affect the three armies.
Zhuge Liang thought for a moment and said, "Use wind array."
"Wind gust?"
Wang Ping was stunned.
What the world doesn't know is that Zhuge Liang has been training soldiers for Liu Bei as early as when he was in Jingzhou.
In the Battle of Pingting, Zhuge Liang took over the command, changed his formation several times, and resisted Cao's attack. He held on until Shen Chen defeated Zhou Yu, came north to help, and finally defeated Cao's army.
Therefore, the elite soldiers under Liu Bei have actually received training from Zhuge Liang and have a certain foundation in military formation.
Zhuge Liang studied Qimen Bagua and had a high understanding of military formations. This time he went north, he had temporarily arranged formation changes and made certain commands.
Among them, the wind formation allows the central army to spread out to the left and right, forming relatively thick wings, like a concave formation, separating the center, allowing the enemy to enter the formation and outflank it from the left and right sides.
But using this formation was tantamount to giving up the rear army, which shocked Wang Ping.
Zhuge Liang said solemnly: "Use the wind array to make the rear army retreat south, lure the enemy into an ambush, and hold them back."
"yes"
Wang Ping hesitated for a moment and had no choice but to comply.
Since it was already dusk, almost night, and his vision was reduced, Zhuge Liang could not use the five-color flag and could only communicate through the horn.
After a while, the melodious sound of the trumpet came. The generals of the central formation and the two flanks of the Han army who had been prepared for battle heard the sound, hesitated a little, and immediately acted according to the deployment.
Soon the Chinese army dispersed, revealing a huge gap. The chaotic rear army was already fighting with Cao's army. After several rounds of arrows from Cao's army, the Han army fled in panic. From fake chaos to real chaos, they panicked and didn't choose their way out. He rushed towards the formation.
If Zhuge Liang did not change his formation, then his central army would suffer. Once the rear army formed a rollback, the 50,000-strong army would be overwhelmed by the enemy's 20,000-plus cavalry in an instant.
But at the critical moment, Zhuge Liang changed the formation without hesitation, and dispersed the three troops in the middle, about 10,000 people, so that when the rear army retreated, they retreated directly to the central open space, without threatening the main formation. Safety.
Zhang He over there obviously didn't realize that he was still charging into the chaos. At this time, most of Cao's troops had already dismounted and were fighting on foot, chasing the defeated Han army into the central formation. No one noticed the Han army in the chaos. The two wings were silent and slowly enveloping them.
In an instant, there were constant fighting and shouting. More than 20,000 cavalrymen were entangled with more than 30,000 Han troops, and they were inextricably killed.
In the darkness, there were constant shouts, shouts, and the sounds of weapons being struck.
Zhang He led dozens of personal guards to pursue the Han army. After defeating a small army formation composed of more than a hundred Han soldiers, he wiped his face and looked around.
At this time, I saw that the sky had completely darkened, and countless torches formed a long dragon under the night. There were enemy and enemy soldiers running away or fighting everywhere. The Han army seemed to have no formation, and it seemed that it was engaged in a fierce battle with Cao Jun.
"General, this doesn't feel right."
A guard looked from a distance and found that the Han army had actually achieved counter-siege, and said to Zhang He: "Their formation is not in such chaos that it will lead to defeat."
Zhang He naturally discovered this, frowned and said: "The Han army is elite and should not be underestimated. Let's see if we can withdraw first and wait for the reinforcements from General Xiahou to arrive. Then we can win."
As he spoke, he turned his horse's head and prepared to go back and evacuate the encirclement first.
But when he gathered the attacking soldiers everywhere and retreated, he found that the encirclement on both wings of the Han army had begun to close and the retreat was cut off.
Only then did Zhang He realize that something was wrong, and quickly sent out a signal, asking all ministries to concentrate on him immediately.
However, the Han army and the Wei army were fighting together, and it was obviously impossible to escape from the battlefield in a short period of time. Therefore, after being surrounded by a counterattack, the Wei army quickly fell into a disadvantage.
At this point, the two sides are actually still in balance.
Because Zhuge Liang's rear army was also defeated by Zhang He's army, the Han army suffered more losses than the Wei army on both sides.
But after Zhuge Liang's army collapsed and the two wings contracted the encirclement, the situation suddenly reversed and it became difficult for Cao's army to break through the encirclement from the inside.
Fortunately, Zhang He also deployed cavalry on the outside. Working together internally and externally, he wanted to force a breakthrough from the north and rush out.
This led to a bitter struggle.
The fighting lasted from the beginning of dusk to three quarters of dusk, which lasted only half an hour. It happened that Xiahou Ba led another part of the cavalry to rush over for reinforcements and joined the battlefield without stopping.
This was all the cavalry of Cao's army, about 40,000 people. They launched a surprise attack from the flank and broke the Han army's outer encirclement at once.
After Zhang He rushed out, he reunited with Xiahou Ba and began to counterattack again.
Because the main force of Cao's army arrived soon, with the arrival of Xiahou Ba at this time, Cao's army was already at an advantage. When the main infantry arrived, their chance to defeat the Han army was right in front of them.
At this moment, Zhuge Liang was still scanning the entire battlefield situation.
After the wind formation changed, they failed to encircle Cao's army and were rushed out by them. The battlefield was scattered with soldiers and horses fighting between the enemy and ourselves. However, the Han army was not defeated because Cao's army had not put such great pressure on them.
It's just that the two sides have entered a stage of entanglement.
Seeing this situation, Zhuge Liang did not change the formation, but only ordered the central army to gather in again, reorganize the defeated rear army, and return to the battlefield.
As the situation changes significantly, the difficulty of temporary readjustment also increases exponentially, so there is no need to make further changes.
During the night, the two sides fell into a fierce battle.
Gan Jing, an old man with a white beard but still strong muscles in Ziyun Mountain, quietly watched the messy battlefield below.
As the commander-in-chief of the left wing of the Han army, he has always strictly abided by Zhuge Liang's military orders.
Never attack before there is a signal.
Just waiting like this was still anxious. He was like an ant on a hot pot, sweat falling from his forehead. He stared at the battlefield and said to Pang Tong beside him: "Shang Shuling, should we do something?"
"Need not."
Pang Tong was also looking at the battlefield. He couldn't see anything clearly from a distance, he could only see countless fire dragons waving.
Many people even threw away their torches during battles in the wilderness, causing fires in the wilderness. Flames rose everywhere on the battlefield for more than ten miles, making the whole situation even more chaotic.
"Then how long do we have to wait?"
Gan Ning asked.
Pang Tong raised his head and glanced at the sky. It was already midnight, and the weather was good today. There were no dark clouds, and only the moon as big as a disk hung above his head, illuminating the earth as if it were daytime.
Further to the north, there were cavalry running back and forth from time to time. It was obvious that Cao Jun's scouts were constantly communicating changes in the battlefield situation to the main force in the rear.
"It won't be long, just wait."
Pang Tong comforted Gan Ning and said: "Now Cao's army is entangled with us. It is difficult for both sides to leave the battlefield quickly. When their main force arrives, they will definitely attack as soon as possible. We will attack from the flanks and cooperate with General Zhang's cavalry.
Can defeat Cao's army."
"All right."
Gan Ning responded helplessly and could only continue to watch the changing situation on the battlefield.
On Zhuge Liang's side, he continued to invest in reserve forces to withstand Cao's attack. The two sides were almost victorious. In some places, Cao's army had the advantage and the Han army was defeated. In other places, the Han army had the advantage and Cao's army was annihilated.
A melee involving nearly 100,000 people is not a complete defeat in a small defeat involving a few thousand people, but a criss-crossing and constant tug-of-war on a battlefield that lasts for more than ten miles.
Cao Wei's side was obviously very satisfied with this situation, because their mission was to entangle the Han army until the main force from the rear arrived.
This is exactly the same as when Cao Cao's cavalry chased Shen Chen.
However, the Han army was not defeated immediately because it was beyond Cao Jun's expectation. In fact, Xiahou Ba and Zhang He already felt something was wrong at this time.
After all, they attacked because they believed that Zhuge Liang lacked military experience and could not shoulder the heavy responsibility of commanding the three armies.
But since the opponent's general is a fool, why can the Han army persist for so long?
But this thought only passed by for a moment.
Now that the two sides are entangled in the situation, they don't have much time to calm down and think, so they can only bite the bullet and continue to attack.
After another two hours, at the end of the rooster's crow and the beginning of the new year, the sky gradually became brighter.
On the northern horizon, countless figures appeared.
The main force of Cao's army is here!
Cao's army on Zhang He's side and Xiahou Ba's side was already exhausted. When they heard about this, they were refreshed and immediately stepped up their offensive.
However, little did they know that Zhuge Liang was also in high spirits and issued a new order.