When the sky was getting brighter, the roaring Xuanfu cavalry group had without any suspense defeated the Beijing cavalry that blocked them. Both sides were not at the same level in terms of number of troops or combat effectiveness, so like this
The result was no surprise.
The retreating Jingying cavalry quickly fled eastward. In the darkness, it was difficult for the Xuanfu cavalry to intercept these fleeing enemy troops, so they could only continue to advance eastward at their own pace.
With the failure of this intercepting cavalry, He Huchen also knew that his defense system on the stone bridge no longer had much meaning, and there were also reports from scouts that Xuanfu troops were building pontoon bridges at both the east and west ends of the stone bridge. It is estimated that after dawn
, the Xuanfu army was able to cross the river on a large scale through the pontoon bridge.
Once the Xuanfu army crosses the river from both wings, it will form a pincer attack on the headquarters stationed at the south end of the bridge. Although the bridge is only two miles away from Gonghua City, considering the combat effectiveness of Zhao Keming's department, He Huchen cannot count on Zhao Keming's department.
He could not even expect Zhao Keming's troops to defend Gonghua City if they could go out of the city to provide reinforcements.
Under this situation, He Huchen had to consider shrinking his troops as soon as possible and retreating to Gonghua City.
But now as soon as we retreat, the Xuanfu army at the north end of the bridge will immediately press over. If this short two miles is not handled properly, it will become a fatal trap. A retreat will turn into a rout and a war loss.
The biggest thing is often the retreat.
But now we have to retreat. The Xuanfu cavalry has already begun to march towards the bridge. Maybe half an hour, maybe an hour later, they will appear on our flanks or rear, and even cut off our return...
The idea that he could defend until noon was instantly thrown out of He Huchen's mind. The huge gap in strength cannot be made up by one or two tactical victories. If his unit encounters what happened in Shiqiao last night,
After two disastrous defeats, it was definitely a rout and they could no longer organize an attack. However, for the Xuanfu Army, it was only 10% of its strength and had nothing to do with the overall situation. How many more times could it endure such defeats.
"Sir, we need to retreat. If we don't retreat, we may be too late. The Xuanfu army will cut off our retreat, and we may not be able to leave." Liu Jichang stood next to He Huchen and carefully observed the north end of the bridge.
After encountering the attack of the Crouching Tiger Artillery, the Xuanfu Army did not dare to assemble at the north end of the bridge. Instead, they withdrew their troops to a distance of 300 steps. However, hundreds of cavalry could still be seen in formation. This was in preparation for the withdrawal of their own troops.
, they will swoop over.
Obviously, the Xuanfu army was also aware of the difficulties faced by the Jingying camp. Once the cavalry crossed the river, the Jingying camp at the bridgehead might be attacked by cavalry from the flanks and rear. The only way for the Jingying camp was to retreat, and they had to
What they did was to take advantage of the retreat of the Beijing camp and launch a pursuit.
"Well, I know, it's time to withdraw." He Huchen was a little regretful, but he couldn't accept it. The two battles had brought out the majesty and morale of the Fifth Army Battalion. Now they can stand tall and say that they will face the Xuanfu Army the same way.
Don't be afraid, you can still defeat them.
"Then let's evacuate according to the plan." Liu Jichang also nodded, "As long as we hold Gonghua City, even if the Xuanfu army can bypass Gonghua City, they will never be able to comfortably advance eastward without uprooting Gonghua City, and they will not dare to
!”
He Huchen and Liu Jichang both had a clear understanding of this point. The tens of thousands of troops involved in the follow-up logistical support, how could they hand over such a huge weakness to the enemy, and when facing the Jizhen army in front, the armies of both sides
When there is a confrontation or even a war, when the Gonghua City capital camp comes out, won't it become a pincer attack?
Therefore, as long as Gonghua City is withdrawn, it will be a victory, and He Huchen is confident that he can defend Gonghua City for one day.
The key now is to successfully bring these five thousand soldiers back to Gonghua City.
Fortunately, the dozens of camp vehicles confiscated can play some role. After all, it is only two miles from Qiaotou to Gonghua City. He Huchen ordered Liu Jichang to pull out all the camp vehicles of Zhao Keming's department and headquarters that had entered Gonghua City.
, coupled with the large number of camp vehicles confiscated, several semi-arc vehicle barriers were set up along the line from Gonghua City to the bridge.
Maintain such fortifications and adopt a steady retreat to achieve the retreat step by step.
When Niu Jizong learned that the Beijing camp on the other side of the bridge had begun to withdraw its troops, he rushed to the bridge as soon as possible.
The sky was getting brighter at this time. For fear of being attacked by the squatting artillery on the high ground on the other side of the river, the Xuanfu army kept a hundred steps away from the north end of the bridge. However, even so, they could still see the high ground on the other side of the river.
The squatting tiger cannon on the ground has disappeared without a trace. It is obvious that the opponent has taken advantage of the night to evacuate.
Although the Tiger Crouching Artillery Team has withdrawn, the flag on the bridge is still high, which means that the Beijing Camp is still stationed on the opposite side. In addition, after the camp truck was seized by the opponent, it is again across the other side. You can only roughly see a large number of Beijing Camp behind the camp truck.
Soldiers are stationed there, which means that if you want to cross the stone bridge, you will still be hit by enemy artillery fire.
For a while, Niu Jizong couldn't tell whether the other party really planned to withdraw their troops, or whether they wanted to use this opportunity to seduce him, and also wanted to use their superior firepower to deal a blow to his own side.
In this case, one could either use the camp truck as a base to advance again, but this would be too time-consuming. It would take time to find the troops to organize dozens of camp trucks again. Niu Jizong was worried that if the other party was just bluffing, he might prepare the camp truck formation soon.
The other party will take the opportunity to evacuate.
But if you just use the shield as a cover to launch an attack, you may encounter a failure.
"Yunlu, what do you think?" Guo Yungui was seriously injured and his brother Guo Yunlu was put in charge of the department. Niu Jizong turned around and asked.
"If the Kuching troops have crossed the river, it is impossible for the Beijing camp on the opposite side to hold on any longer. It is inevitable that they will withdraw to Gonghua City. The only uncertainty is whether they plan to set a trap to ambush us again during the evacuation.
Their firearms are so powerful that they are far more powerful than any firearms I have ever seen..."
In fact, Guo Yunlu didn't want to take risks at all. He encountered a misfortune at night, even his brother broke his arm, lost hundreds of elite troops, and his morale was severely damaged. However, the coach called his name, and it was obvious that he wanted to send him
If someone tries again, I'm afraid it won't help to push the blame and it will only make the coach dissatisfied.
So he simply took the initiative and said: "Commander, why don't you let me send someone from the humble position to try again, get a few campers over, we can bring more shields, and a small group of people can go over and give it a try, and then we will know what the other party is up to.
.”
Guo Yunlu did not want to repeat the attack like Li Daming's department. The loss was too great. A small-scale test of one or two hundred people would be a loss. He could bear it, so he simply put forward suggestions first.
Niu Jizong was not very satisfied, but that was all he could do. Everyone had witnessed the tragic situation last night, and no one was willing to let his subordinates die. It was good that Guo Yunlu was so upright and willing to take on this burden.
"Forget it, Yunlu, just arrange for someone to try to rush immediately and see the other side's reaction." Niu Jizong nodded.
Under the cover of more than a dozen campers, two hundred people launched an attack from the bridge again, but they encountered fierce firecrackers and snipers from the beginning.
The heavy fire cannons on the high platform fired almost like a roll call, which put the Xuanfu army, who lacked cover at the top, into a painful and passive beating process from the beginning.
Before two hundred people could advance to the south end of the bridge, more than forty people were shot and wounded. The situation was much better than the previous time, but the result was also not optimistic. The remaining more than a hundred people soon arrived at the bridge head.
Encountered the siege by the Spear Team, the remaining dozens of people had to flee back to the north of the bridge in panic.
It can't be called a trap, but the opponent was indeed prepared. This gave Niu Jizong a big headache and made Guo Yunlu relieved. More than a hundred people were killed and injured in exchange for no further investment. Just waiting for the troops crossing the river to launch an attack could be regarded as comfort.
He Huchen also noticed this. This kind of surprise attack by a small group of troops was actually a test. If he didn't fight back in the strongest and most ferocious way, it would probably be a large-scale charge later. He was not afraid of the opponent's attacks.
A large-scale charge, but once they are dragged down, the Xuanfu army that crosses the river by boat or pontoon bridge will bite the entire army, and it will be difficult to escape. This is what He Huchen is most worried about.
As soon as the Xuanfu army retreated to the north of the bridge in embarrassment, He Huchen issued an order to retreat immediately.
The Eagle-billed Gunslingers quickly evacuated the high platform, and then returned directly to Gonghua City. At the same time, the Spear Teams and Fire Gunslingers gathered around also began to cover alternately, evacuating from the camper formations one by one, and quickly followed the remaining passages.
Evacuate towards Gonghua City.
The people on the north side of the bridge also responded quickly and immediately discovered the unusual movement in the south direction of the bridge.
Niu Jizong immediately ordered Guo Yunlu to organize his troops to cross the bridge again and launch an attack.
Although Guo Yunlu was also aware of the strange movement in Qiaonan, he had just encountered a hunt and now he had to regroup for the attack. He was somewhat reluctant in his heart. However, he also knew that this was not the time for fighting, so he immediately organized an attack.
, but it seems that we need to be much more cautious during the specific advancement process.
When the team advanced across the bridge and encountered no resistance until the mud wall, Guo Yunlu realized that the Beijing camp had really withdrawn, and it was only then that he began to actively pursue the pursuit.
At this time, the Kuching cavalry of the Xuanfu Army coming from the west also discovered the rapidly retreating Jingying army and were overjoyed. This kind of retreating army knows that the morale of the army is the most chaotic, and the cavalry is often the most capable.
When he exerted his power, he started to attack from the flank without any consideration.
But without thinking, he was kicked on the iron plate.