Chapter 1657: Zhang Hua's anger, the generals' slump
Chapter 1657: Zhang Hua’s anger and the generals’ dejection
People's joys and sorrows are not the same, just like the moods of Bingma and Zhang Hua in the Song Dynasty today.
Both armies of the Song Dynasty won a complete victory. Although they suffered some losses, the total number of casualties was only three or four thousand. However, the two armies sent by the other side had as many as seven thousand prisoners. They took advantage of the chaos.
Only more than two thousand defeated soldiers fled back.
Looking at Tuoba Ye who was returning with two thousand defeated troops in embarrassment, it took Zhang Hua half an hour to come to his senses.
"You mean, there are 20,000 soldiers and horses on both sides, and now you are the only two thousand defeated soldiers left?
Yeluqi died directly in the battle?"
Zhang Hua gritted his teeth and asked word by word.
At this moment, Tuoba Ye was in an extremely embarrassed state, with injuries on his body, and he was running away in the dark night. Not only was he frightened, but he even ran in the wrong direction several times. It took him nearly two days to find the right direction to escape.
Return to base camp.
There were more than a thousand soldiers and horses beside him, and he met some remnants of Yeluqi's soldiers on the way. Only then did he realize that Yeluqi was actually more miserable than him.
Although he knew that there would be no good things to gain if he went back, he could only bite the bullet and come back to meet Zhang Hua.
Fortunately, he was also a party general and had some friendship with Zhang Hua, so he probably wouldn't be killed out of anger.
"Commander, the last general was defeated miserably. On the way back, we encountered Yeluqi's defeated troops. After questioning, we found out that the other group of troops had also been defeated!"
As he said that, he knelt down and said, "It is a serious crime for a general to lose his troops and horses. Please punish me, Commander-in-Chief!"
Zhang Hua kicked Tuoba Ye to the ground, "You bastard, punish me... I have injured a total of 20,000 elites this time. If I had not asked you about your battlefield experience, I would have killed you directly now!"
"Come here, pull down, fifty military sticks! For the remaining captains of thousands, the centurions have eighty military sticks!"
Tuoba Ye and others quickly prostrated themselves again, "Thank you, Commander-in-Chief, for not killing me!"
They were defeated so miserably that they deserved to be chopped down directly. Now they were punished with dozens of military sticks. Although it was uncomfortable, they finally saved their lives.
Zhang Hua was too lazy to pay attention to these people and ordered a few soldiers to return to the tent to inquire about the entire battlefield!
When everyone in Tuoba Ye was punished and returned to the Chinese army's tent to express their gratitude, they saw Zhang Hua sitting alone in a daze! He had already learned the story of the entire battle between the two groups of soldiers from the defeated soldiers, but he still couldn't believe it.
Are there any problems with Tuoba Ye and Yeluqi's use of troops?
There is indeed a problem.
But after all, it is nothing more than a charge of underestimating the enemy and being careless.
Even if he knew about the two men's use of troops, he would not raise too many questions.
After all, 20,000 elite soldiers were unable to fight back against the opponent's 30,000 troops. Zhang Hua could not believe this.
Whether it was the cavalry or infantry of the Song Dynasty, their elites far exceeded Zhang Hua's expectations!
Moreover, Shen Tang's use of troops is not very fancy, but it is extremely practical! Shen Tang uses this aspect brilliantly to attack the enemy unprepared.
In addition, it can also be seen that Shen Tang has strong confidence in his troops.
Before the battle, an ambush was set up on the retreat route, which meant that Shen Tang was confident enough to defeat his troops.
Tuoba Ye and the other two underestimated Shen Tang and even more underestimated the soldiers and horses of the Song Dynasty.
Otherwise, why would there not be any exploration horses on the way back?
Because they never thought that they would be defeated, and even if they failed, they would not be defeated so miserably.
If an escape route is arranged in advance, at least thousands more soldiers and horses can come back.
"What do you think of Song Jun!"
Zhang Hua asked coldly.
Tuoba Ye and others were silent for a long time, and then gritted their teeth and said, "Commander, Song Bing is awesome!"
"All the soldiers of the Song Dynasty are light and strong, and they look well-trained at first glance! Our cavalry commander understands that, but almost the same number of soldiers attacked the opponent's infantry formation, but they were unable to tear apart the formation! Even though there were heavy shields
It’s because of that, but it’s enough to show how powerful they are!”
"Moreover, these troops are not new recruits, at least most of them should be veterans who have seen blood!"
"The Song Army is not afraid of death. As long as they are not beheaded, even if they still have breath, they will grit their teeth and continue to fight. In this regard, our elites may be inferior!"
"Their horses are not ordinary southern horses, but fine horses from the north! No matter in terms of speed or endurance, they are not inferior to our cavalry. If the same number of people fight head-on, it will probably be a lose-lose situation..."
Tuoba Ye and others narrated their understanding of the Song Army on the battlefield from different angles, which also gave Zhang Hua a clearer understanding of the Song Army.
"How damaged are they?"
Zhang Hua asked again.
"At this point, our troops were defeated so quickly that we didn't have time to take stock.
However, I am afraid that the number will not exceed five thousand at most, or even less!"
"call!"
Zhang Hua let out a sigh of relief, "Now, our camp still has about 50,000 soldiers and horses. If I, the commander, send troops to fight Shen Tang to the death, what will be the outcome?"
As soon as these words came out, all the generals changed their expressions! Although there were many soldiers, they were not elite, and most of them were new recruits who had never experienced fierce fighting.
If calculated, the combat power of these tens of thousands of soldiers and horses may not be stronger than the previous 20,000 elites.
It would be fine if the battle was going with the wind, and they would just have to rely on the large number of people to crush them, but once they encountered resistance, they would probably be in danger of escaping.
"Commander!"
Tuoba Ye broke into a cold sweat and said, "As a general, he will not be inferior to that of Shen Tang, but the soldiers and horses under our command are not elite troops. Although there are many soldiers, the victory is evenly divided."
Even so, everyone could hear that Tuoba Ye did not think his side could win.
"Haha..." Zhang Hua smiled dryly, "If the other Song armies are as elite, then where should we go?"
It was only then that the generals remembered that the 80,000 Song troops marching northward were not the only ones in Shen Tang's 20,000 to 30,000 troops.
If all the remaining 50,000 troops and horses were like this, even if their troops and horses were doubled, they would never be a match for the Song army.
But now, the Song army has blocked their retreat, and Shen Tang's Chinese army is entrenched on the side, watching eagerly. Isn't it true that there is no way to go from heaven to the earth?
"Okay! Please step back first!"
After all the generals left, Zhang Hua leaned tiredly on his chair and closed his eyes to rest! Originally, he thought that after defeating the Jin Kingdom's Western Route Army, there would be no rivals in the southwest of the Jin Kingdom.
But I didn't expect that the soldiers and horses of the Song Dynasty would come out halfway, and they were much more powerful than the Jin Kingdom's West Route Army!
When did the Song Dynasty become unfamiliar to me?
"Commander, you are ready to eat. Should you bring it over directly or..."
The guard's voice made Zhang Hua open his eyes, and he waved his hand, "Get the pen and ink here!"