GBP Chapter 1834 Hope Becomes Despair
Chapter 1834 Hope Becomes Despair
The sky was getting light, and the morning light struggled to penetrate the smoke and bloody smell that filled the sky above Luoying Gorge, barely illuminating this valley that was like hell.
After a night of brutal fighting and desperate counterattacks, Huo Guang finally managed to stabilize his position and gathered the remaining Han troops.
Relying on some favorable terrain in the stream, they built a relatively stable line of defense, forming a new confrontation with the equally exhausted Chu army.
Corpses piled up like mountains, and the groans of the wounded were particularly clear and harsh in the brief breaks between battles.
Huo Guang leaned against a cold rock, breathing heavily. His armor was covered with marks from knife and gun stabs, as well as blood scabs that had long since solidified and turned black.
He took a few sips of water and forced himself to calm down and analyze the situation.
"Although the losses were heavy, we managed to hold on for now."
Huo Guang looked at the soldiers around him, who were tired but still had stubborn eyes, and thought to himself:
"Zhao Yu wants to eat us up in one bite, but it won't be that easy!"
"As long as we can hold him back here and maintain the stalemate, Geng Hui in Hongdu City will discover that our army has not arrived yet and will definitely send scouts or even reinforcements to help investigate."
"Or perhaps the main force led by His Majesty will soon arrive! By then, with internal and external forces working together, the outcome is still uncertain!"
Thinking of this, a glimmer of hope rekindled in his heart.
After resting for a while and feeling a little stronger, he grabbed the spear beside him and prepared to go to the front line again to boost morale and prepare for a new round of attacks that the Chu army might launch.
At this moment, the sound of flapping wings was heard, and a gray carrier pigeon, like an elf, landed accurately on the arm of a personal soldier near the temporary command post.
"General! It's a carrier pigeon! It's coming from the direction of Hongdu City!"
The personal soldier carefully took off the bamboo tube, with a hint of anticipation on his face, and quickly handed it to Huo Guang.
Huo Guang heard this and a look of joy suddenly appeared on his tired face:
"Great! General Geng Hui must have received the signal we sent last night and sent someone to support us, or at least to inform us of the situation in the city!"
He couldn't wait to take the small scroll of silk and quickly unfolded it with anticipation.
However, after just one glance, the joy on his face froze instantly, and then turned into incredible shock and horror!
The hands holding the silk began to tremble slightly.
"This...how is this possible?"
Huo Guang muttered in a dry voice, "The main force of the Chu army is fiercely attacking Hongdu City? The attack is extremely fierce, and the situation is critical. Requesting our army to provide quick assistance?"
This news was like a bolt from the blue, hitting his heart hard!
It completely overturned all his previous judgments!
Isn’t the main force of the Chu army besieging him?
How could he appear outside Hongdu City again and launch such a large-scale attack?
Could it be that Chu Ning's forces far exceeded expectations? Or had new troops been dispatched?
A terrible thought flashed through his mind in an instant, making him shiver all over!
"Someone come! Quickly! Go and ask General Yang Yongjun to come over immediately! Quickly!" Huo Guang shouted suddenly to his personal soldiers, his voice becoming sharp due to his urgency.
Soon, Yang Yongjun, also covered in blood and exhausted, hurried over: "General, what's the emergency? Is the Chu army making another move?"
Huo Guang's face was so gloomy that it seemed as if water was about to drip out of it. He stuffed the silk in his hand fiercely to Yang Yongjun:
"See for yourself!"
Yang Yongjun took the silk in confusion and glanced at it quickly.
The more he looked, the uglier his expression became, and finally he became as gloomy as Huo Guang, with cold sweat oozing from his forehead.
"Chu Ning actually gathered all available forces, including possible naval forces, and attacked Hongdu regardless of the cost."
Yang Yongjun's voice trembled slightly: "In that case, Zhao Yu's army is not the main force at all!"
"Their mission from the beginning to the end was only one, and that was to pin us down here like nails, preventing any of our soldiers from returning to Hongdu for support!"
He suddenly looked up at Huo Guang, his eyes filled with belated fear and despair:
"We...we were tricked from the beginning to the end! Zhao Yu was just wasting time with us!"
At this point, Yang Yongjun gritted his teeth, forced himself to calm down and analyze the current situation, his tone heavy:
"General, the reality is that after last night's fierce fighting and the early morning breakout attempt, our army has suffered heavy casualties. I'm afraid the loss of more than 10,000 soldiers has already exceeded 10,000!"
"The remaining troops can barely protect themselves now. It's simply a pipe dream to think of breaking through Zhao Yu's blockade and rescuing Hongdu!"
He took a deep breath and offered the only feasible suggestion at the moment: "I believe that the most urgent thing is to write back to General Geng Hui immediately, telling him the truth that our army is trapped and cannot be rescued. Please make sure to rely on the strong city and hold it until help comes!"
"At the same time, send a pigeon immediately to report this military situation to His Majesty!"
"The siege of Hongdu can only be lifted by the main force led by Your Majesty, especially the fast-moving cavalry! Your Majesty, please send elite cavalry to support us as soon as possible!"
After hearing this, although Huo Guang was filled with resentment and humiliation, he also knew that what Yang Yongjun said was the most rational and only choice at the moment.
He closed his eyes powerlessly, took a deep breath of the cold air with a strong smell of blood, and when he opened his eyes again, only determination remained in his eyes:
"Just as General Yang said! You'll handle this matter personally. Send a pigeon to deliver the message immediately! Quickly!"
"I obey your command!" Yang Yongjun clasped his fists and accepted the order, then immediately turned around to make arrangements.
Huo Guang looked at Yang Yongjun's departing back, then looked towards the direction outside the valley which was still tightly blocked by the Chu army. He clenched his fists tightly, his nails digging deeply into his palms.
Now, these 20,000 defeated soldiers are not only unable to serve as reinforcements, but they themselves have become the ones in need of rescue.
All hopes were placed on Emperor Liu Xiu, who was far behind and unaware of the dramatic changes in the front.
"Your Majesty, you must hurry!" Huo Guang shouted silently in his heart.
Two hours later.
On the city wall of Hongdu, the defenders, who had fought for half the night and one early morning, were exhausted to the extreme.
The defending general Geng Hui had red eyes and a hoarse voice, but he was still commanding his troops to resist the wave after wave of attacks from the Chu army.
From time to time, he looked anxiously towards the northeast, hoping to see the flag of Huo Guang's reinforcements.
Finally, a personal guard hurried up to the tower with a carrier pigeon: "General! A reply from General Huo Guang!"
Geng Hui was overjoyed and almost snatched the bamboo tube, taking out the letter and unfolding it impatiently.
However, after just one glance, the expectation on his face instantly turned into complete shock and despair!
He even staggered and almost fell.
"How...how could this happen!"
He muttered to himself in disbelief, "General Huo Guang's 30,000-man army was held at Luoying Gorge by a mere force of Zhao Yu."
"After a night of hard fighting, we've already lost tens of thousands. We can barely protect ourselves, so there's no way they can come to our rescue?"