Even Xiang Bo didn't understand. He hurried to the commander's tent and asked:
"General, our army has cut off the Qin army's food route and forced it to retreat. Why retreat at this time?"
Xiang Yan said nothing, but raised her head towards the information placed on the desk.
Xiang Yan actually wanted to test Xiang Bo to see if he could make the same inference as she did from the information.
But Xiang Yan was disappointed. Xiang Bo only glanced at the information, and then said bitterly:
"Xiang Luo is hateful. He keeps saying that he will hinder the Qin army. He doesn't want to but can't do it!"
"Ten thousand cavalry troops were defeated by three thousand black-armored troops!"
Then Xiang Bo changed the topic again and said:
"General, even if Xiang Luo were defeated, our army would not have to retreat."
"The Qin army came to the rescue with only 30,000 Liang troops."
"We're here just in time, I'll surround them together!"
Xiang Yan glared at Xiang Bo angrily, said "hum" without bothering to explain, and only replied:
"No need to say more, just go down and get ready!"
Xiang Bo wanted to say something else, but was stopped by Xiang Yan's eyes, so he didn't dare to say anything, raised his hand and stepped back.
Looking at Uncle Xiang's back, Xiang Yan couldn't help but sigh, secretly thinking how could Uncle Xiang be able to take on such a big responsibility in the future if he was so short-sighted?
This is also the reason why Xiang Yan let Xiang Liang lead the army alone while Xiang Bo followed him all the time.
Although these two sons have followed Xiang Yan for many years, they are very different from each other: Xiang Liang is careful, cautious and long-term, while Xiang Bo is short-sighted and does not know when he will be of great use.
What Xiang Yan didn't know was that it was Xiang Bo who would fare better and live longer in the future.
Twenty years later, Xiang Liang rose up and led troops to rebel against Qin, and was finally defeated and killed in Dingtao.
Xiang Bo was bribed by Liu Bang and rescued Liu Bang from Xiang Yu again and again. Later, he was given the surname Liu Feng and the title of Marquis of Sheyang by Liu Bang.
If Xiang Yan knew this, he would probably be so angry that he would kill Xiang Bo with a sword.
Not to mention that Xiang Yan's troops were puzzled, even his opponent, Meng Wu, was greatly surprised when he heard that the Chu army had withdrawn from Chengfu.
The Chu army clearly had the upper hand. As long as they continued to control those cities, the Qin army's tens of thousands of troops would have to withdraw to Ru River.
By then, Ru River will also be short of food and grass... One supply line will be unable to support the two armies in combat, and the supply line is still exposed to the Chu army's front. The Qin army will be like a lone army when facing the enemy on three sides.
This is also the reason why the Qin army divided its troops into two groups to attack Rushui and Chengfu respectively.
It is not impossible to concentrate all the troops to attack Ru River, but the Qin army goes deep into the Chu territory to fight. If they attack only one place, the Qin army's offensive route will be like going straight in alone and facing enemies on three sides, and it is very easy to be surrounded by the Chu army.
And if the troops are divided into two groups and attack simultaneously two hundred miles apart, not only can the two armies respond to and support each other, but they can also create a safe area in the middle for logistical supply operations. At most, the two armies only need to deal with enemies on two sides.
Therefore, once the Mongolian army was defeated, Yang Duan and his army in Rushui were left alone and had no choice but to withdraw.
However, just as the Mongolian army retreated southward, the Chu army interspersed and occupied the rear supply area, the Chu army retreated?!
Meng Wu said to himself:
"Could this be a trap set by Xiang Yan?"
The general said:
"General, maybe it's because the Liang Army came for reinforcements..."
Before the general could finish speaking, Meng Wu interrupted him and said:
"The Daliang Army only has more than 30,000 people and has not yet engaged in battle. Do you think they are magic soldiers and generals? How can they scare away the Chu Army?"
The general claimed so, and after a while he couldn't help but say:
"It is said that the Daliang Army defeated the Chu Army in Ruanqiao Town..."
Meng Wu replied without thinking:
"More than 30,000 people defeated 10,000 Chu troops. How can we call it a great defeat?"
No wonder the Meng Wuhui thought so.
The information Shen Bing sent to Meng Wu was an understatement, giving a rough overview of the situation.
It was impossible for him to say how the Black Armored Army defeated the large number with a small number and what tactics they used in this battle... If he said so, it would be a naked show off.
So Meng Wu didn't know much about Xiang Yan.
So the Mongolian army retreated and could neither advance nor advance.
Retreat, the Chu army has already withdrawn. If it retreats further south, wouldn't it make the Daliang army laugh?
When I entered, I was worried that this was Xiang Yan's trick, so I fell into a trap as soon as I entered.
Just when Meng Wu hesitated, he heard the spies entering the camp and shouting excitedly:
"General, reinforcements have arrived, it's the Black Armored Army!"
Meng Wu walked out of the tent and saw thunderous cheers outside, and soldiers of the Qin army kept waving in the distance.
Meng Wu looked along the soldiers' gaze, and sure enough, he saw a dark cavalry army coming on horseback a mile away. Who else could it be if it wasn't the black-armored army?
The black armored army is getting closer and closer, and the sound of horse hooves is getting louder and louder.
Meng Wu thought that the Black Armored Army would stop and join them, but he didn't expect it to directly bypass the Qin Army's camp and continue north.
Just when Meng Wu was wondering, he saw two horses riding into the camp. The riders skillfully reined in their horses and stopped, then jumped off their horses and ran to Meng Wu, reporting:
"General, my subordinates are here to plead guilty on the orders of the captain."
"The war situation is urgent. The captain is leading the army to pursue the enemy in the hope that we will meet in the future. General, please forgive me."
After reporting, the two cavalrymen hurriedly mounted their horses and chased the large army, looking worried that the Chu army would run too fast and not be able to catch up.
Only the Mengwu army was left stunned.
What's going on?
Xiang Yan's army probably numbered more than 100,000 people. How dare the three thousand horsemen of the Black Armored Army come forward to chase him?
Is this too long-lived?
Meng Wu was stunned for a while before he came to his senses.
This is not possible!
He, Meng Wu, still had 60,000 men under his command... During this period, Meng Wu attacked the city and Rushui, and was then pursued by the Chu army. The 100,000-strong army had been reduced to only 60,000.
Three thousand black-armored troops have the courage to pursue the Chu army. How can I, Meng Wu, with an army of 60,000, just sit there in a daze? Still worried about whether it is a trap by the enemy and dare not pursue the enemy?
So without thinking much, Meng Wu immediately ordered his army to go north to pursue the enemy.
After the army departed, Meng Wu also said to his generals:
"Three thousand cavalry dare to go forward and chase the enemy. Chen Duan underestimates the Chu army!"
"How can we not suffer losses if we underestimate the enemy and rush forward in a hurry for quick success?"
"This black-armored army said it was here to rescue our army, but I'm afraid it still needs our army's rescue."
However, the slap in the face reality soon came...
The Mengwu army that followed them saw dead bodies and prisoners along the way. Although some were not considered prisoners, they were hundreds of Chu soldiers who were trapped by dozens of black-armored soldiers and were unable to move.
This is the benefit of the Black Armor Army’s cavalry shooting to the infantry:
If the infantry formed a shield formation, the black-armored army would indeed be helpless against them.
But the black-armored army didn't need to do anything to capture the infantry. They only had to keep a distance and run around the infantry. If the infantry relaxed a little, they would catch up with the larger army... The black-armored army would mount their horses and fire arrows.
In desperation, the infantry had no choice but to form a shield formation. As a result, they could not move or fight, so they could only wait for the Mongolian troops to come up and capture him.
Only then did Meng Wu realize that perhaps Xiang Yan's army was really scared away by Shen Bing.