GBP Chapter 1840 Retreat, dare not chase
Chapter 1840 Retreat, dare not chase
Chu Ning looked at the surrendered soldiers kneeling in front of him, and the corners of his mouth couldn't help but rise up, revealing a satisfied arc.
Without bloodshed, 15,000 elite soldiers were subdued, and the gains from this battle far exceeded expectations.
He turned his head and said to Ran Ming, who was already impatient, "Ran Ming, I will leave these people to you."
"Disperse them into various battalions and keep them under strict supervision, but treat them all equally. If there are any unusual movements or poor performance on the battlefield, you know what to do."
Although Ran Ming was unable to persuade the enemy to surrender personally, he was overjoyed to receive so many reinforcements. He quickly patted his chest and promised:
"Don't worry, Your Majesty! I, Old Ran, will definitely make them obedient and turn them into brave soldiers of our Great Chu!"
Chu Ning nodded slightly, took a last look at the surrendered soldiers kneeling on the ground, turned his horse around, and left the training ground.
The sunlight shone on his silver armor, reflecting a dazzling light.
With the fall of Hongdu City and the incorporation of surrendered soldiers, the road to Chang'an, the capital of the Han Dynasty, seemed to be smooth.
An hour later, at the Luoyingjian battlefield.
Although the fighting here is not as brutal as at the beginning, it is still in a tense stalemate and confrontation.
The soldiers on both sides were exhausted and relied on willpower and simple fortifications to consume each other.
Zhao Yu stood on a temporary command platform with a frown on his face. Although he remained calm, he was a little anxious because he had not been able to completely defeat Huo Guang's troops for a long time.
At this moment, the sound of flapping wings was heard, and a personal guard came quickly with a carrier pigeon in his arms:
"General, His Majesty sent a letter via carrier pigeon from Hongdu!"
A gleam of light flashed in Zhao Yu's eyes. He immediately took the bamboo tube, took out the silk and quickly browsed through it.
When he saw the words "Hongdu City has been conquered", "Geng Hui was executed", "They are allowed to retreat", Zhao Yu's tense face finally showed a relieved smile.
He breathed a sigh of relief and smiled at his deputy general beside him, "That savage General Ran Ming never fails to deliver at the critical moment! He's truly captured Hongdu! With this, all our strategic goals have been achieved!"
He put away his smile, his expression returning to calm and decisiveness. "Send a message to all armies! His Majesty has ordered, mission accomplished, all troops immediately disengage from the battle, alternately provide cover, and retreat to the designated location in the southeast!"
"Move quickly and in unison, don't panic!"
"Yes!"
The order was quickly passed down, and the well-trained Chu army began to close the battle line in an orderly manner.
The troops in the front slowly retreated, while the troops in the rear came forward to support them. The archers took up advantageous positions to provide cover. The entire retreat process was orderly, demonstrating extremely high military qualities.
The unusual changes in the Chu army's front immediately aroused the vigilance of the opposing Han army.
"General! General! The Chu army seems to be retreating!" A scout company commander crawled to the temporary command post where Huo Guang was to report.
Upon hearing this, Huo Guang immediately climbed up a high slope under the protection of his personal guards and looked into the distance.
Sure enough, the Chu army, which had been fighting fiercely with his own troops, was slowly retreating like a tide. Although the flags were still neat, the overall direction of movement was clearly to leave the battlefield.
"strangeness."
Huo Guang's brows furrowed, his face filled with surprise and confusion. "Zhao Yu hasn't shown any signs of defeat, and our army is powerless to fight back. Both sides are evenly matched. Why would he suddenly choose to retreat at this moment? This doesn't make sense!"
Deputy General Yang Yongjun was observing carefully. Suddenly, his eyes narrowed and he said, "General, could it be... could it be that His Majesty's main reinforcements are arriving soon?"
"Didn't the scouts say that Your Majesty's army is less than a day's journey away? Zhao Yu must have gotten the news and fled early, fearing being surrounded by our army!"
The more he spoke, the more likely it seemed. His face lit up with excitement, and he quickly suggested, "General! Don't miss this opportunity!"
"Zhao Yu besieged us for a whole day and night, causing heavy losses to our army. How can we let him get away so easily?"
"Immediately order the entire army to pursue! Even if we can't completely annihilate him, we must bite off a piece of his flesh to avenge our previous humiliation!"
Huo Guang's eyes flickered with excitement upon hearing this, but the cautious nature cultivated through his long military career suppressed this impulse. He shook his head slowly, his tone solemn, "No! General Yang, do not be impulsive! There is no definite information yet on the exact location of His Majesty's army."
"What if this is Zhao Yu's ploy to lure the enemy, deliberately showing weakness and retreating, luring our troops away from our existing fortifications and rashly pursuing us? And he sets an ambush along the way? Then, our exhausted army will be annihilated!"
He looked at the Chu army's orderly retreating formation in the distance, and became more resolute in his judgment:
"Zhao Yu is cunning in his tactics, so we must be on guard!"
"The most urgent matter is our army has fought hard for a whole day and night, suffering heavy casualties. We are exhausted. The most important thing is to preserve our current strength and reunite with Your Majesty's main force, rather than taking risks and seeking personal gain!"
Yang Yongjun was still a little unwilling, looking at the Chu army that was about to slip away, he said anxiously:
"Are we just going to watch them swagger away? Wouldn't the blood our troops have shed all day and night be in vain? How frustrating!"
Huo Guang pondered for a moment, a sharp light flashed in his eyes, and he made a compromise decision:
"Of course we won't let them have it so easy! Send the order! Select three thousand elite infantrymen who still have strength left, and lead them personally to pursue them!"
But he emphasized: "Remember! Only chase for three miles! After three miles, no matter what the outcome, you must retreat immediately!"
"The goal is to harass and delay the enemy, testing their strength, not to engage in a decisive battle! If you encounter a strong enemy counterattack or signs of an ambush, retreat immediately. No mistakes!"
"The general will get the order!"
Although Yang Yongjun felt unsatisfied, he was able to vent his anger and immediately took the order and left.
Soon, three thousand elite Han troops rushed out of the formation and chased after the retreating Chu army.
However, all this seemed to have been anticipated by Zhao Yu.
The Han army's pursuers had just rushed out less than a mile when suddenly a gong sounded. The Chu army's archers who had been ready on the hillsides on both sides and in the rear formation of the Chu army suddenly attacked!
"Whoosh whoosh—!"
Dense arrows fell from the sky like locusts, instantly covering the pursuing Han army!
"Pfft! Pfft!"
"Ah! There's an ambush!"
"Raise your shield quickly!"
The Han army rushing in the front was immediately shot down, and screams were heard everywhere.
Yang Yongjun was shocked and quickly ordered his soldiers to raise their shields for defense, which slowed down the momentum of the charge.
During this delay, the main rear guard of the Chu army took the opportunity to accelerate their retreat and increase the distance.
The Chu army's archers shot and retreated, always keeping a safe distance from the Han army's pursuers, and constantly using rain of arrows to slow down the Han army's pace.
Yang Yongjun tried to organize several charges, but they were all shot back by accurate and dense arrows, which resulted in more casualties.
Seeing that they had chased the Chu army for about three miles, and the Chu army's formation was still tight, with no signs of chaos, Yang Yongjun remembered Huo Guang's order, and although he was unwilling, he did not dare to risk going any deeper.
"Damn it! Retreat! Retreat!"
Yang Yongjun waved his sword angrily and ordered to stop the pursuit.
The pursuing Han soldiers retreated in a panic, dragging the bodies of their companions and the wounded as if they had been pardoned.
On the high slope in the distance, Huo Guang took it all in. He slowly breathed a sigh of relief, but his brows furrowed even tighter.
Zhao Yu's retreat was calm and well-planned, which made him more convinced that the other side was not defeated, but was evacuating in a planned and proactive manner.
The reasons behind this are probably far more complicated and unfavorable than Yang Yongjun guessed.
"Clean up the battlefield, treat the wounded, reinforce the camp, send out more scouts, closely monitor the movements of the Chu army, and await the arrival of Your Majesty's army!"
Huo Guang issued a series of orders.
Although he repelled the Chu army, he did not feel the slightest joy in his heart. Instead, he was shrouded in a deeper haze.
Why did the Chu army suddenly retreat?
What exactly happened in Hongdu City?
The Chu army led by Zhao Yu completely broke off contact with the Han army after the Han army had given them a three-mile escort. Maintaining its intact organization and combat effectiveness, it retreated safely to the southeast and gradually disappeared on the horizon.
The battle of Luoyingjian came to a temporary end in a way that seemed like the Han army forced the enemy back, but in fact the Chu army perfectly achieved its strategic goal.