The air seemed to be filled with a suffocating pungent smell, and the entire valley mouth was already a sea of fire.
There were screams and wails.
Countless sidecars were set on fire, and thick clouds of black smoke billowed straight into the sky.
Debris and fragments flew everywhere, shooting out like sharp arrows.
The flames swept across, the scorching flames were scurrying around, tongues of flames sticking to the ground were licking the nearest objects, the smell was pungent, and thick smoke was blowing in the face.
Can…
Even so, Mi Fang and the sidecar formation did not retreat even one step.
Those crossbow arrows, facing the rain of arrows from the sky, continued to burst towards Wenpin's cavalry.
"——Dong...dong."
Cao Jun's knights formed a circular formation, and one of their outermost shields was shot through.
For a moment, densely packed crossbow arrows were fired wildly, and a whole group of Cao Jun's knights fell to the ground, wailing...
And their horses were frightened and fled in all directions.
The original circular formation suddenly opened a gap, and this gap quickly expanded and spread.
——"General, general...the enemy's vehicle formation won't give an inch, won't give an inch."
——"General, the enemy's vehicle formation unexpectedly moved forward facing the fire."
——"General, our fire arrows are about to miss!"
——"General, the shield formation of our brothers is almost unstoppable."
Unfavorable battle reports reached Wenpin's ears one after another, and the 'excitement' and 'bloodedness' on his face had long since dissipated without a trace.
What replaced it was deep confusion and astonishment.
Wenpin was confused, he was completely confused.
He realized that he was wrong. There are no weak soldiers under a strong general.
Guan Gong's men...is this Mi Fang so good at fighting?
For a time, all the rumors about Mi Fang, saying that he was a frequently defeated general, that his military strength and leadership were inferior... all of this echoed in Wenpin's ears.
Wenpin just wanted to say something bad, - your uncle!
Damn, these are all groundless rumors, they are all made up of three people, and they are all untrue!
A fierce light flashed in Wenpin's eyes. He looked at the mouth of the valley and the car formation.
These formations of vehicles, ignited by flames, seemed to stand there forever, constantly mocking any incoming enemy.
Finally, this fierce light seemed to freeze there.
The surrounding heat wave forced Wenpin's fierce light to dissipate. He turned his horse around first and said to the knights beside him: "Retreat! Retreat!"
The knights all looked miserable.
More than a thousand corpses were left behind, more than a thousand horses were wasted, and even the arrows and fire starters were spent so much. Should we retreat at this time?
You know, in ancient times... arrows and fire arrows were separated by a single word, and the cost of making them was very different.
The so-called fire arrows require tying coarse cloth and other flammable materials to the back of the arrows, then soaking them with grease, lighting them, and then shooting them with a crossbow.
Due to weight requirements, each arrow used in the fire arrow must be carefully processed, and the production cost is quite high.
This is also the reason why Cao Cao did not use fire arrows when the straw boat borrowed arrows...
It’s not that I don’t use it, it’s that I can’t afford it!
But now...
A big sum of money was spent, and it is not an exaggeration to say that it was a desperate move, but in the end it ended up running away in despair?
At this time, Wenpin raised his head and shouted loudly again.
——"Retreat, retreat!"
For a time, fast horses galloped back and forth throughout the army, conveying the order to retreat to everyone.
These Cao Jun knights... all gritted their teeth.
Especially Niu Jin, who clenched his hands into fists and roared loudly, "Hey...", the grief, anger and depression in his heart were written on his face and in his voice.
The military orders came like a mountain, and immediately...the knights turned their horses one after another.
The horses they sat on seemed to be psychic and kept snorting, as if to express their unwillingness, just like their masters.
——But if we don’t retreat, what can we do?
The fire arrows all missed, but the enemy's vehicle formation at the mouth of the valley still failed to break through.
To put it another way, even if they break through now, when they get to those two hundred ships, they can only look at the ships and sigh, unless they can spray "fire" from their mouths!
So...
The remaining 1,500 cavalrymen of Cao's army quickly retreated. In the valley, they meandered northward and embarked on their journey home.
It's the Mi family army's side.
Seeing the retreat of Cao's army, those members of the Mi family who were guarding the car array started roaring loudly.
——“Back off, back off!
——"The thieves have retreated!"
——"We'll hold on, we'll hold on!"
It is no exaggeration to say that the Mi Army has never won a battle since they followed Liu Bei.
From the beginning to the end, I was always "spurred" by the enemy, and then fled in embarrassment...
What follows is the regrouping of the defeated troops, and then they are "surprised" by the enemy again, and they flee in embarrassment again. Finally... they gather again, and everything is back to the original starting point.
They have become accustomed to defeat. They laugh at themselves as the "constantly defeated" army. They think that in this life... they have no chance of the word "victory".
The more such a legion is, when they actually win a battle, the resentment they hold in their hearts disappears in an instant.
——Feeling proud!
It’s really “feeling proud”!
——"Stand up..."
——"Our Mi family army has stood up!"
The old man who was already with the Mi family army was so excited that his eyes were red and he was choked with sobs. His last words were a bit unclear, "Finally... I finally made it to this day. I made it to this day to stand up."
Mi Fang also flushed with excitement.
This was the first time he felt that winning a battle felt so good and wonderful!
This feeling of "refreshment" reaching straight to the sky was something he would never forget!
Even this feeling is only slightly inferior to when counting money.
--call!
With a long exhalation, Mi Fang was also so excited that she couldn't help herself.
But he is the master, and he cannot behave like these tribesmen, who have never won a battle.
He needs to be calm, he needs to be calm...
"Ahem... As for that, what do you think?" Mi Fang shouted, "It's just a victory, it's not like that, it's not like that... It's just a small test of my skills by this general, just a civil servant... Hahaha, don't talk about it.
Come on, no problem!"
Mi Fang has already started to show off.
And have to admit it.
When a person is showing off, the admiring looks from around him are such a wonderful feeling...
…
…
To the north of Jiangxia, not far from Cao Jun's Miankou camp, there is a pontoon bridge. After crossing the pontoon bridge, there are still some shallow water flows under the bridge. Due to the dry season, the water flow is only as high as half a person.
At the end of the pontoon is a camp of the Guan Army.
The "Liannu" and "Part-carriage" of Guan Jiajun are stored here, making it an important place for ordnance.
Perhaps because it was night, the soldiers at the camp gate seemed a little listless, stretching and yawning constantly.
The hardship caused by the rush during the day made them unable to open their eyes at all.
On the other hand, in the long grass beside the pontoon, many ambushes and crossbowmen were waiting quietly in the night. The mist filled the air and everything was very quiet.
Guan Ping and three thousand Guan family troops were ambushing here, waiting for Cao Jun's night attack.
The entire camp seemed to have laid a dragnet, waiting for Cao's army to enter and burn the pontoon bridge, completely cutting off their retreat.
However, Cao Jun has not yet waited...
An urgent report came first.
"What?"
After hearing the scout's report, Guan Ping was shocked, "You mean, Wenpin didn't come here, but went to Fuhu Mountain... He was going to burn the two hundred warships of our Guan family army?"
"yes…"
The scout reported truthfully, "When we found out, Wenpin's cavalry had almost arrived at Fuhu Mountain. Now I'm afraid..."
Before the scout could finish speaking, Guan Ping stretched out his hand to stop him.
He swallowed subconsciously, thinking of the most terrifying consequences.
——Two hundred warships were all burned!
In this way, once the four-month dry season is over, it is no longer the father who takes the initiative, but Cao Jun!
——The offensive and defensive momentum has changed!
"Oops..." Guan Ping looked around at the ambushing Guan family troops here and said bitterly: "Commander Father had accurately calculated the Wenpin Club's night attack, but he miscalculated the location of the surprise attack... Oops!"
When he said these words, big beads of sweat fell from Guan Ping's forehead like rain, and he looked quite nervous.
But the current situation didn't give him much time to be nervous at all.
——Follow the authority in emergencies!
"Should I report this news to my father? Is there any reply from my father?" Guan Ping asked next.
"I think General Guan must have received news of the attack on Fuhu Mountain at this moment." The scout said truthfully. "On the other hand, General Zhou Cang, General Guan Xing, and General Guan Suo were in ambush. They immediately withdrew from the ambush after hearing the news.
We need to lead our troops to Fuhu Mountain to rescue those warships! When the last general arrives, the three generals are already ordering their troops."
"General Zhou did the right thing!" Guan Ping nodded heavily, "The current situation cannot be allowed to change. If we wait for the father's command, it will be too late. The top priority is that I also need to remove the ambush and go to support Fuhu Mountain immediately. The two sides
There are more than a hundred warships, this is the lifeblood of our Guan family army, we can save as many as we can!"
There was a sense of urgency in Guan Ping's words, and he had already ordered his deputy general to order troops.
For a time, the long grass beside the pontoon was crowded with people.
I never thought that at this moment...
——Ta-ta-ta.
——Ta-ta-ta.
The hoofbeats of several horses quickly resounded on the pontoon. Guan Ping suddenly became alert and quickly signaled the ambushing soldiers to hide again and not to make any sound.
As the horse got closer and closer, Guan Ping saw clearly that the person riding the horse was none other than his third sister, Guan Yan and Guan Yinping.
"Third sister..."
Guan Ping shouted loudly, and Guan Yinping found the place where Guan Ping was ambush, and couldn't help but secretly thought.
——"As expected of the big brother, such a hidden ambush!"
Guan Yinping quickly got off his horse and rushed to Guan Ping.
Guan Ping asked quickly: "Third sister, are you going to talk about the attack on Fuhu Mountain?"
"yes!"
Guan Yinping's reply once again aggravated Guan Ping's suspicion.
It must have been my father who ordered Third Sister to inform me, my second brother, and my fifth brother... to abandon the ambush immediately and rush to Fuhu Mountain to rescue the ship. It was urgent to save the ship.
Thoughts on this…
Guan Ping was the first to say: "I was about to give the order for the ambushed troops to gather and quickly rush to Fuhu Mountain to rescue the ship!"
As he spoke, Guan Ping signaled again.
Unexpectedly, Guan Yinping quickly stopped him, "Brother, Commander-in-Chief's order is that no matter what news he hears tonight, even if Commander-in-Chief is trapped in a tight siege and narrowly escapes death, he must not act without permission, let alone rush for help!"
"My sister has already informed General Zhou, my second brother, my fifth brother, and the rest of my father's words... They have also given up their plan to rush to Fuhu Mountain to aid!"
--ah!
Guan Yinping's words shocked Guan Ping.
He quickly asked: "Commander Father, why are you doing this? Don't you want those more than two hundred warships?"
"Brother has misunderstood."
So, Guan Yinping told him when the boss Bo Liaohua sent the urgent message;
What did the fourth brother Guan Lin say in the emergency;
After my father saw the urgent message, he had already led his cavalry to Fuhu Mountain in advance.
In addition, Guan Yinping also emphasized that "My father has recently read "Sun Tzu's Art of War" and has gained a lot of insights. He is well versed in the principle of 'proclaiming to attack the east, but actually attacking the west'. Another letter from the fourth brother was sent in advance. Today's
The situation...it is still unclear whether Fuhu Mountain is 'east' or 'west'!"
"Therefore... Commander-in-Chief Father decided to let him rescue Fuhu Mountain. The eldest brother, the second brother, and the fifth brother will ambush here as usual... The grain and grass in the army camp, the carriages, the crossbows, the wooden cows and the lost horses are very important and cannot be lost."
this…
After hearing this, Guan Ping immediately understood.
If it is really an attack in the east and west, then perhaps Wenpin's real target is not the warship, but as always - these ordnance!
"Gudong..."
Guan Ping swallowed and thought carefully about the situation here.
He could feel it, because of Liao Hua's urgent letter and because of the fourth brother's words. Although the situation was unclear now, at least their eyes were clear and they could roughly predict the enemy's actions. At least every one
The possibilities are clear to them.
To be able to do this on such a night is already extremely precious.
This is equivalent to the fact that although the situation is somewhat headwind, because of Guan Lin's reminder, the "vision" is bright, and these illuminated "visions" give Guan Yu and Guan Ping enough time to make
More accurate judgment and response.
After a brief pause.
Guan Ping suddenly suggested: "No, I still need to send a troop of troops to rescue Fuhu Mountain. Not only me, but the second brother and the fifth brother should also send a troop to rescue."
this…
Guan Ping's sudden words made Guan Yinping's beautiful eyebrows frown deeply for an instant, "Didn't the second brother hear his father's instructions clearly? If...if the second brother, third brother, and fifth brother all rush to rescue, then the enemy
What if the army surprises the stronghold and plunders the weapons?"
Guan Yinping was extremely nervous, and her voice subconsciously raised, "Second brother is like this...doesn't he let down fourth brother for his words and hard work?"
"Third sister misunderstood." Guan Ping quickly explained, "I mean, if Cao's army's purpose is to 'make an attack in the east and attack in the west', and wait for our army to get rid of the ambush to plunder the army's supplies, then why don't we take advantage of his plan and cooperate with him?"
"Haha." Guan Ping laughed, "How could Cao Jun's eyes see clearly in such a dark night? How many ambushes have we eliminated? How many soldiers have we supported? As the saying goes, if you don't see a rabbit, you won't let go of the eagle... As a brother, I only need
If we send people to pretend to rush to Fuhu Mountain, then the enemy will definitely come here to attack at night? They will definitely fall into a trap!"
Guan Ping's words were even more solemn.
"If I can't win such a great victory for my brother, then I'm sorry that my fourth brother came all the way to deliver these words, isn't it? Thank you, my third sister, for making another trip to tell Brother Zhou and An Guo about this plan.
Yes! If you ambush tonight, you will definitely gain something!"
call…
Guan Yinping exhaled heavily.
At this moment, she completely understood.
Because of what the fourth brother said, all possibilities of the enemy are under control.
It seems that the positions of hunter and prey have been reversed.
The real "leading the snake out of its hole" and "making a sound in the east and attacking in the west"... From this night, from this moment, it has just begun.
…
…
Xiangyang City, in the government office.
The spies hurried in and reported to Man Chong, "We have just received news that the ambushes on the pontoon and on the outskirts of the Guan army's stronghold in Tanggu have been removed! All soldiers and horses are rushing south, seemingly heading towards Fuhu Mountain."
As soon as these words came out, Man Chong was surprised and happy. "It's not as General Wenpin expected. Where are the two generals, Lu Chang and Zhao Yan?"
"——The end will be here."
Immediately, two upright and mature men stepped out.
Lu Chang has a Chinese character face and a heroic appearance.
Zhao Yan is wearing an orange-red hat, his hair is spread out, and he has full beard.
Speaking of which, these two were both famous generals of Cao Wei.
Lu Chang was originally the governor of Zhangling. When Liu Biao's son Liu Cong joined Cao Cao, Lu Chang also joined Cao Cao and was appointed "General Henghai" by Cao Cao.
It is recorded in the history books that if the army cannot defeat the enemy's country, it cannot invade its neighbors!
If we follow the original trajectory of history, his most glorious moment was when Guan Yu flooded seven armies, captured him, beheaded Pang De, and besieged Cao Ren in Fancheng. Lu Chang was stationed in Xiangyang, but he was not captured by Guan Yu.
As the saying goes - "Guan Yu, the general of Huishu, is rampant and becomes a bandit. He often guards against him, but Yu cannot defeat him!"
Another person, Zhao Yan, was even more impressive. He took refuge with Cao Cao in the first year of Jian'an. He successively made meritorious service and served as the chief registrar of Sikong.
And his most glorious moment was the battle in Hefei, where Zhang Babai defeated Sun Shiwan.
During this period, there were many disagreements between Zhang Liao, Li Dian, and Le Jin. It was Zhao Yan who used persuasion and guidance methods to eliminate and resolve the conflicts, and then he was promoted to the governor of the army and transferred to Jingxiang to resist Guan Yu.
Although Zhao Yan looks rough in appearance, he is actually a general with an extremely delicate mind.
It’s no exaggeration to say…
After Cao Ren fainted, Cao Chun died, and Wenpin and Niu Jin went off to battle, in Xiangyang City...the only ones Man Chong could use were these two.
Man Chong immediately ordered, "Everything is in General Wenpin's plan!"
"Now... the Fuhushan warship is burned down, and the two Guan Army camps have abandoned their ambush and rushed to rescue them. They are bound to be empty. I ordered you two to lead 3,000 troops each to surprise the pontoon. The two Guan Army camps in Tanggu must be attacked.
Take the side carriages, the crossbows, the wooden oxen and the stray horses among them, and if possible, burn the enemy's food and grass!"
Following Man Chong's instructions.
Lu Chang immediately accepted the order...
Zhao Yan felt something was wrong, "Manfu Lord, wait a minute..."
Zhao Yan interrupted Man Chong's instructions and asked the spy, "Have you seen clearly, the two enemy camps at Fuqiao and Tanggu...how many soldiers and horses were dispatched to rescue Fuhu Mountain?"
this…
This sudden question made the spy a little confused. "It's too dark tonight to see clearly, but...listening to the footsteps, I think there are more than two thousand people."
"In other words, you didn't witness it with your own eyes." Zhao Yan continued.
this…
The spy didn't know how to answer, so he looked at Man Chong as if asking for help.
Man Chong said: "Boran came from Hefei and witnessed Zhang Wenyuan's feat of defeating a hundred thousand Jiangdong Army. Why are you so cautious here? General Wenpin suddenly attacked Fuhu Mountain and burned Guan Yu's warship.
In panic, the enemy troops will inevitably withdraw their ambush to rescue the warship! This is completely in line with common sense, how can it be false?"
Zhao Yan showed his delicate side, "Hearing is false, seeing is believing, not to mention... One hundred thousand Jiangdong soldiers? Can it be compared with 30,000 Guan family troops? They are not worthy of carrying shoes! Our opponent is Guan Yu... Any oversight
It is possible that Xiangfan will fall into complete passivity!"
Speaking of this, Zhao Yan made a stern suggestion: "The top priority is that the Lord of Manfu should send out scouts to investigate clearly and make sure that there are no ambush around the enemy stronghold. At that time, it will not be too late to attack and plunder ordnance!"
Man Chong was anxious, "When we find out more... General Wenpin's ship will be burned in vain!"
Immediately Man Chong ordered, "General Wenpin has repeatedly warned that this batch of ordnance is of great importance. Since General Zhao has objections, well, you will guard Xiangyang City, and General Lu Chang and I will each bring three thousand troops to rob the camp."
Yes, I am determined to get this batch of ordnance!"
After blurting out these words, Man Chong hurriedly walked out of the government office angrily.
Lu Chang glanced at Zhao Yan and quickly followed him out, and the other civil and military officials also filed out.
An official who was close to Zhao Yan couldn't help but ask Zhao Yan.
"General Wenpin laid this plan, and now everything is under control. Why do you say such discouraging words? Don't you know that Xiangfan needs a victory so much now?"
this…
Zhao Yan looked at Man Chong's leaving back with worry. He gritted his teeth and said solemnly, "It's because we need a victory so much, so... we can't afford to lose!"
"You just think too much."
"I do hope it's just that I'm overthinking it."
Over here, Zhao Yan is still feeling emotional.
Over there, the gate of Xiangfan is open again.
Man Chong and Lu Chang each led three thousand horses toward the pontoon bridge and galloped away from the two Guan army strongholds in Tang Valley.
——This game of chess has just entered the second half!