Chapter 234 Cao Mengde, what ability do you have to win the favor of King Hongnong!
Lu Bu fled westward, causing the defense line to collapse.
Although Liu Chong took his troops and horses to pursue Lu Bu.
But......
Guo Si knew it very well.
With the current strength of the army alone, it would be extremely difficult to break through the encirclement.
However, Guo Si would not accept his fate, and his anger did not allow him to accept his fate easily.
look back.
Staring at the soldiers and horses behind the broken bridge.
The fighting spirit in Guo Si's chest suddenly burst into flames like dry firewood hitting sparks.
It is indeed unlikely to break through the frontal siege.
But given the current situation, it is still possible to stick to the river bank and break through to another bridge deck.
In this way, as long as the bridgehead next door can be defended, Li Jue can lead his troops to come to support. With enough follow-up strength, it is really possible to break the siege.
Accept your fate?
snort!
I, a Xiliang native, will never accept my fate.
Otherwise, how could we go from the bitter cold of the border counties to the rich areas of the Central Plains!
Now that I have come here, I have to fight hard to change my fate!
puff!
Guo Bang killed a soldier with a knife, and the fierce fighting spirit was ignited in his chest, which couldn't stop churning.
He held the Huanshou sword high and shouted at the top of his lungs: "Brothers, although Lu Bu has abandoned us, how can we abandon ourselves? Hold on to your war spear, the Huanshou sword."
"Follow me!"
Guo Bang's voice was sonorous and powerful, and it spread all over the battlefield on the north bank of Xishui in an instant: "If you charge again, even if you die, you will die on the way to charge!"
"kill-!"
This roar.
It's like spring thunder bursting out of the mouth, and thunderbolts shaking on the tip of the tongue.
It also restored the morale that had collapsed in an instant.
Especially the soldiers beside Guo Si were infected by his fierce fighting spirit. They held their weapons high one by one and followed Guo Si's footsteps to launch the final charge:
"kill-!"
A single spark can start a prairie fire.
Guo Bin held the Huanshou Sword and charged and struck fiercely, breaking through more than ten steps forward in succession.
All the soldiers were shocked by his bravery.
A general will not hesitate to die, but a soldier must use his life!
Since we are already surrounded, why can't we fight again?
"kill-!"
The shouts of killing shook the sky and the earth.
Under the leadership of Guo Si, the soldiers and horses on the north bank burst out with overwhelming fighting spirit.
Whether it is a sign of a comeback against the trend, or a flash in the pan!
Anyway!
At this moment, the soldiers and horses led by Guo Si were like sharp swords, rushing towards the other bridgehead, and in just a moment, they rushed forward more than ten steps.
"Brothers, fight to the bridge next door, hold it, and buy time for the army to cross."
Seeing this scene, Li Min, who thought he was determined to win, was shocked.
He couldn't believe that Guo Bang, who was in a desperate situation, could actually unleash such a powerful fighting force.
Even though Li Min didn't have much practical experience, he learned a lot from King Hongnong along the way.
He understands deeply.
This arrogant arrogance must be suppressed in a short period of time.
Otherwise, it will inevitably affect one's own morale.
"Captain Zhang!"
"Where is Captain Zhang?"
Li Min shouted at the top of his lungs, looking around.
"The end will be here."
A voice rang out from the crowd.
Li Min followed the sound and went out.
But see...
Captain Zhang An is directing the battle and is very close to Guo Si.
Li Min was overjoyed and gave a sonorous order: "Stop this beast for me and kill it."
Zhang An had long wanted to kill generals and make meritorious deeds, so how could he let go of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity: "Don't worry, Sheriff, just leave it to the last general."
"Brothers."
Zhang An waved his hand fiercely, shouting at the top of his lungs: "Follow me to surround and kill this beast."
All the soldiers immediately shouted: "Kill -!"
At this moment, the battlefield on the north bank exploded with violence again.
The fierce battle made Li Jue, who was on the south bank, stunned.
He worked with Guo Si for decades and played an important role in Dong Zhuo's administration.
Although the two are the most powerful competitors and often quarrel and become red-faced due to their different views, in private, they have a profound friendship and an extremely close relationship.
Now, Guo Si launched a charge on the opposite bank, and charged in the opposite direction close to the river bank.
Such a suicidal attack immediately attracted Li Jue's attention, and in an instant, he understood the opponent's strategic intentions.
"Dry!"
The fighting spirit in Li Jue's heart also burned.
He turned to look back at the generals, without hesitation, and gave a sonorous order: "Brothers, follow me, change bridges, and continue to break through."
Canglang!
Li Jue unsheathed his sword.
At this moment, he decided to go into battle despite his injuries, opening up a new way of survival for the troops: "Kill—!"
The soldiers on the south bank quickly regained their composure and followed Li Jue's footsteps, heading straight to the east side of the bridge:
"General, let me take the lead!"
"You are injured, let me protect you."
"Let's fight out of Luoyang together!"
"kill-!"
"..."
Crowds of soldiers and horses swarmed toward the east side of the bridge.
According to the previous breakout strategy, charge on foot first, then open up a way out, and then cross the bridge on horseback.
Without Li Jue's control, the soldiers launched an orderly offensive.
now.
Mangshan mountainside.
Even Liu Bian himself couldn't help but marvel at him: "Xiliang Xiaoqi is really powerful. He can regain his composure in a short time, has a clear goal, and counterattacks quickly. It is indeed unmatched by others."
"yes."
Xun You took a deep breath, tried to keep himself calm, nodded lightly and said: "The soldiers and horses under Dong Zhuo's account are very experienced in actual combat, not to mention they are powerful generals like Li Jue and Guo Si."
"But it's a pity..."
Changing the topic, Xun You said confidently: "They have limited troops and are affected by the disaster of the broken bridge. It is absolutely impossible for them to fight as usual. It is just a fight between trapped beasts."
"As long as Li Min and Xu Qiu can defend the north bank, when Zhang Liao, Deng Zhi, and Han Dang attack from behind, and under attack from both front and rear, the Xiliang Xiaoqi will be defeated no matter how powerful they are!"
Liu Bianshen nodded in agreement: "That's right! The defeat has been decided, and the thieves are helpless."
At this moment, the voice of the Military Advisor Alliance sounded: "Li Jue and Guo Bang are indeed talented generals. This battle has allowed experts to see their leadership talents."
"Next, experts will re-analyze the characters based on their specific performance and strive to make the most fair and objective evaluation, without any distinction between standpoints."
Liu Bian thought: "Li Jue and Guo Si are indeed powerful. Even as an opponent, I somewhat admire them. It is rare to be able to counterattack under such circumstances."
Literary historical materials are scarce and difficult to be truly objective. They will contain some subjective consciousness of the author, which will lead to non-objective evaluations.
But in the live broadcast room, experts' analysis of any opponent is all based on historical materials and verified on the battlefield, and finally the most fair and impartial evaluation is obtained.
This battle truly subverted and reshaped experts' understanding of Li Jue and Guo Si.
From the performance of the two of them in this battle, we can more infer the actual combat effectiveness of Dong Zhuo's direct troops, and even think of what kind of strength Dong Zhuo had in Liangzhou in the early days and his infinite glory.
*****
Luoyang City.
The walls collapsed and the house collapsed, leaving it in ruins.
Although Zhang Liao could still copy the prosperity of Luoyang from the ruins, the comparison between these two events made him even more furious and wanted to kill all the Xiliang traitors.
Suppressing the anger in his heart, Zhang Liao tried his best to stay calm so as not to affect the subsequent command of the battle.
Originally, street fighting was the advantage of infantry. They could use complex terrain conditions, such as lanes, houses, windows, etc., to ambush Xiliang's knights.
But now...
The vast expanse of ruins looks more like slightly undulating hills.
This is actually more advantageous for cavalry combat. Not only does it have a very broad field of vision, it even reduces the possibility of encountering an ambush, allowing it to gallop more unscrupulously.
If Han Dang were here, he could have led the cavalry in a battle with absolute superiority. But now Han Dang is still at the east gate. In a short period of time, he can only rely on Zhang Liao to support himself.
"Damn it!"
Gazing at the cavalry coming from a short distance away, Zhang Liao chewed it secretly.
Although the opponent's troops were not large, with only a few hundred cavalry, Zhang Liao still could not fight head-on, otherwise the damage would be huge.
He made a quick decision based on the opponent's galloping route:
"Zhang Zhen!"
"General, don't worry, I'll leave it to the last general."
Before Zhang Liao could give the order, Zhang Zhen rushed out quickly and shouted: "Brothers, follow me and rely on the favorable terrain to form a formation to meet the enemy!"
Zhang Zhennai is Zhang Liao's old subordinate.
He has been following Zhang Liao since he was in Bingzhou.
He understood every decision made by Zhang Liao.
I have gone through a lot of footwork and riding skills along the way. Zhang Zhen is good at this, so there is no need to go into details.
At that moment, Zhang Zhen led his troops and headed straight towards the direction from which the cavalry was coming.
His eyes scanned the ruins on both sides.
There is a spacious road in the middle and ruins of shops on both sides. There is a certain height difference, which is very suitable for blocking.
"Right here!"
Without any explanation, Zhang Zhen made a decisive decision and gave a sonorous order, holding the war spear high in his hand.
Then, a large number of shield soldiers emerged from behind and formed an array in front of them. In an instant, a simple shield formation defense line appeared and quickly extended to both sides.
Zhang Liao was extremely satisfied with Zhang Zhen's location selection.
At the same time, he continued to order:
"Deng Zhan!"
"exist."
"You lead the crossbowmen and stay behind, and choose the opportunity to provide crossbow support to suppress the cavalry charge."
"promise."
"Niu Yong!"
"exist."
"You and I will each lead an army, and we will circle around from the left and right wings and move to the rear at the fastest speed."
"promise."
Just when Zhang Liao was leading his troops to make a detour.
The cavalry led by Li Ying is about to reach the shield formation.
Although Xiliang Xiaoqi suffered a lot of losses in this battle, with the current strength of Zhang Zhen's command, it was simply impossible in Li Ying's eyes to stop the cavalry charge.
“Don’t overestimate your capabilities!”
Li Ying chewed it secretly and immediately gave a sonorous order: "Brothers, while his footing is unstable, follow me and charge!"
All the soldiers shouted in unison: "Kill—!"
A strong cry of death rang out.
Xiliang Xiao was riding on his horse, holding the war spear in one hand, trying to let it reach as far as possible.
If it were a steel shield array, it might be able to stop the charge of the cavalry, but the Tengpai hand in Zhang Zhen's hand was simply wishful thinking to stop the charge of the cavalry.
Li Ying didn't hesitate at all, and immediately charged into the shield formation.
But......
Just when it was only about twenty steps away from the shield formation.
Zhang Zhen ordered sternly: "Throw it!"
Phew! Phew! Phew!
In an instant, two iron pears were thrown in front of him.
Although the number is not large, there are at least a thousand iron pear in a military formation of hundreds of people.
They were scattered on the ground in no order, forming a simple iron pear array.
"not good!"
Li Ying's eyes were as wide as bells, and his face turned green with fright.
He couldn't believe it.
The opponent actually carried something like an iron pear with him. No wonder he dared to face the cavalry charge. It turned out that he had been prepared for it.
"stop-!"
Li Ying gave the order urgently and reined in the reins at the same time.
The next second, the roar of horses sounded one after another.
The brave riders in the front row jerked their horses like a conditioned reflex.
But no matter how urgent it is, for a war horse running at high speed, it still needs a braking distance.
Many war horses stepped on the iron pear, and the sharp edges pierced the cuticle of the soles of the hoofs and penetrated into the flesh. The pain caused the horses to tremble and become unstable. Many of the horses had their front hooves broken and fell down.
On the ground.
At the same time, the crossbowmen led by Deng Zhan were also in place. They quickly twisted their bows and set arrows, without having time to aim, and regardless of the essentials of their movements, they fired at the Xiliang Xiaoqi in a flurry.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
The arrows struck like an overwhelming force, immediately arousing a thunderous roar of people shouting and horses neighing.
The sudden change made the knight soldiers coming from behind frightened.
Look up.
Army Sima Li Ying was hit by several arrows and died tragically in a pool of blood.
The opponent's crossbowmen have already begun to extend to both sides, obviously intending to occupy the high ground and launch arrows to kill them.
Although the heights of the ruins are only a few feet high, and there are natural slopes on both sides, the terrain is not difficult for the cavalry. However, after experiencing such a tragic surprise attack, they were frightened and could not avoid it. How could they dare to do it again?
war.
"withdraw!"
"Quickly retreat—!"
I don't know who shouted.
Xiliang Xiaoqi began to turn around one after another.
It was precisely because of this turning around that they strengthened their determination to retreat.
Because Zhang Liao, who was taking a circuitous route from the left, was already walking in front of them. As long as he reached the next intersection, he could circuitously outflank them and completely block them on this road.
"Quickly retreat, the thieves are making a detour."
"Everyone, retreat quickly and get out of the city!"
"Go out of the city and fight with him!"
"..."
Rumble~~
The sound of horse hooves rolled away.
Zhang Liao, who was riding his horse in a roundabout way, snorted coldly: "Huh, you are so vulnerable, I have to worry about it in vain."
Niu Yong caught up and stared at the Xiliang Xiaoqi who was escaping: "Damn it! All the military exploits you obtained are gone."
Zhang Liao smiled: "Don't worry, it won't be easy to end in the direction of the north gate. Let's rush there now and maybe we can have some soup."
Niu Yong nodded: "What the general said is true. Although we are the farthest from the North Gate, we will never be the last to arrive."
"Send the order!"
Zhang Liao made a decisive decision and gave a sonorous order: "Target the north gate and move forward at full speed."
Niu Yong handed over his hand: "No."
*****
Luoyang North Gate.
On the road leading to Shanglinyuan.
Lu Bu rode his horse at a gallop and looked back. He saw that the number of soldiers and horses following him was less than a thousand.
Although there were two to three thousand soldiers and horses crossing the bridge, there were actually not many soldiers and horses belonging to the wolf cavalry. Minus some soldiers without horses, it was lucky to have a thousand cavalry.
"Where is Song Xian?"
Lu Bu shouted loudly and looked around.
"The end will be here."
A horseman caught up from the side: "Lord, what's the matter?"
Lu Bu asked urgently: "Who among the military and Sima-level officers has crossed the bridge?"
Song Xian sighed: "Only the last general and Wei Xu crossed the bridge. Cao Sima was in charge of the rear army and failed to cross the bridge."
"Wei Xu?"
Lu Bu's tiger eyes swept around: "Where are they?"
Song Xian replied: "Liu Chong was in charge of breaking up the rear, and he was biting tighter. He might have wanted to ambush our army in Shanglin Garden. After all, his camp is here, and I think there are still some soldiers and horses left behind."
"snort!"
Lu Bu snorted angrily, his fighting spirit burning fiercely: "This general is worried that he has no place to vent his anger, but he actually wants to surround and kill my Wolf Cavalry? You are overestimating your own capabilities!"
"Send the order!"
Lu Bu gave a sonorous order: "The entire army forms a battle formation and charge quickly. Do not give the thieves a chance to react. We must kill Shanglinyuan as quickly as possible!"
"Lord!"
Song Xian, however, had a leisurely look on his face: "After we fight out, are we still going to defect to Dong Zhuo? Now Li Jue and Guo Si will undoubtedly die. If my lord turns to Dong Zhuo again, I'm afraid he won't end well."
Have to admit it.
Song Xian's concerns have some validity.
Lu Bu frowned and asked tentatively: "What do you think we should do?"
Song Xian gritted his teeth and seemed to have made a lot of determination: "Lord, don't you have King Hongnong's surrender letter in your hand? Why don't we go to King Hongnong?"
Lu Bu was slightly startled: "To seek refuge with King Hongnong?"
Song Xian nodded: "That's right! Now that Dong Zhuo has been defeated, King Hongnong will definitely return to the palace. Even people like Zhang Liao can become King Hongnong's partner, let alone you, my lord?"
hiss-!
Lu Bu took a deep breath and was slightly moved.
Seeing that Lu Bu had no objection, Song Xian continued the whole ship: "My lord, just imagine, it has only been more than half a year since King Hongnong escaped from Luoyang. What kind of elite soldiers can he have under his command?"
"If the lord surrenders at this moment, he will be a rare and powerful general for King Hongnong. King Hongnong will definitely regard the general as a treasure, even more than Zhang Liao and Sun Jian."
"After all, when General you were at Dagu Pass, you single-handedly fought against two powerful generals under King Hongnong. Since King Hongnong wanted to help the Han Dynasty, how could he miss such a powerful general like my lord?"
Lu Bu took a deep breath and raised his head confidently.
He has absolute confidence in his own bravery.
Moreover, Song Xian was right. He had a surrender letter from King Hongnong, which proved that King Hongnong was interested in him.
"this......"
Lu Bu hesitated.
Of course, he also had his own confusion: "I, the general, initially ignored King Hongnong's letter of surrender. Now that I am surrendering in poverty, will King Hongnong tolerate me?"
"this......"
Song Xian frowned, unable to answer.
After all, failing to surrender last time was already a rejection for King Hongnong.
Now he is on the verge of death, but he is still trying to survive.
It's really hard to say how King Hongnong will deal with it.
"I don't know what will happen next."
Song Xian shook his head regretfully.
"Let's do this!"
However, Lu Bu made a decision: "After we have completely broken out of the siege and regained our freedom, we can come and surrender. If King Hongnong refuses, we will return to Guanzhong."
"There is a way forward and backward."
Song Xian nodded and agreed deeply: "That's very good."
Lu Bu cheered up: "In this battle, we must show off the majesty of our wolf cavalry, so that King Hongnong will know how powerful we are, which may be beneficial to his submission in the future."
Song Xian nodded: "Don't worry, my lord, we will do our best."
drive-!
Hurry up.
Lu Bu took the lead and rushed to the front.
The wolf riders behind him were all excited, following Lu Bu, galloping all the way.
Soon, we arrived near Shanglin Garden.
The roads all around were blocked by horses and blocked by tree branches, so we could only move forward.
Lu Bu was not afraid. He knew that Liu Chong's camp was ahead, but he still charged forward bravely, regardless of everything.
As expected.
Then he galloped for a while.
Ahead, a majestic camp appeared in front of us.
At the end of the field of vision, panicked soldiers were responding, and the gates were gradually closing.
drive-!
While Lu Bu clamped down on the horse's belly, he put away his war spear, took out his precious bow from under the saddle, twisted the bow and nocked an arrow, adjusted his breathing, and aimed at the soldiers who were closing the door.
Whoosh!
The arrow missed like a star and came whistling.
Inside the gate, the soldier who was pushing the door fell down in response.
"ah!"
The soldiers beside him were horrified.
Look up.
Lu Bu's war horse was at least a hundred steps away from the camp gate.
Is it possible that Lu Bu has the ability to defeat Yang with a hundred steps?
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Before the stunned soldiers could react, two more streams of light came one after another, one from the left and one from the right. The two soldiers fell down in response, and it took only a few breaths of time before and after.
"This...this..."
The soldiers who were closing the door were stunned.
He stared, sweating all over, and his body was shaking like chaff. His mind sent a signal to escape, but these two legs seemed to be poured with lead water and could not move at all.
that's all......
He watched helplessly as a bit of cold light flew towards him like a stream of light from a hundred steps away.
But in his mind, there was a feeling that he could not dodge or avoid. He could only let the whistling stream of light hit the door, and he fell down on the spot, dying.
Xiyuxu—!
The red rabbit horse raised its head and neighed, as if provoking the soldiers in the camp.
Peng!
Lu Bu knocked open the gate with a spear, rushed in at high speed on his horse, opened and closed the spear in his palm, and successively took away the lives of those who came to surround him from all sides:
"I am Lu Bu, anyone who stands in my way will die!"
A roar like thunder exploded in the camp.
Lu Bu moved his horse through the enemy army, and the spear in his palm flew like a gust of wind, stabbing his heart, throat, or face, in short, all the vital points, killing him with one move, without any delay.
He originally wanted to form a formation to meet the enemy and resist the soldiers for a while, but he suddenly lost his position and panicked. The Wolf Cavalry soldiers who followed him rushed up and beat him violently.
Liu Chong, who was chasing after him from behind, stared at his camp with glaring eyes. The wolf cavalry passed by quickly, leaving only a pile of corpses.
In the hands of King Hongnong, the Wolf Cavalry, which was repeatedly crushed, turned his camp into a mess.
No comparison, no harm!
The achievements that King Chen and Liu Chong were proud of suddenly collapsed at this moment.
He finally understood.
It's not that he is great, but that King Hongnong has the right strategy to defeat the Wolf Cavalry.
If he relied on his own strength alone, he would be beaten without any backhand power.
Hurry—!
Liu Chong reined in his horse, raised his eyes and stared at the back of the wolf rider, and said secretly:
"Cao Mengde, I just want to see what you can do to win the favor of King Hongnong."