Chapter 363 Repaying the favor
The first year of Chengtian, the first year of Republic, March 27th, Yinmo.
Under the bright moon, 3,500 knights, holding their mounts in hand, were slowly sneaking along a forest road. Under the bright moonlight, Zhang Chong led the Seventh Battalion of Assault Cavalry for more than half an hour, and finally arrived at the camp not far from the resting camp of the Zhongshan National Soldiers.
At this time, the Zhongshan soldiers were still sleeping.
Without Zhang Chong's order, the leaders of the seven battalions had already dispersed under the moonlight in the sky.
Among them, the three armies of "Flying Leopard", "Flying Elephant" and "Flying Bear" are in the front, and the four armies of "Tianwei", "Tianxiong", "Tianwu" and "Tiande" are behind.
Zhang Chong, on the other hand, led a collision team of a hundred or ten people to a wide highland. Here, they could overlook the grassland below where the Zhongshan soldiers were stationed and rested.
However, when Zhang Chong led the collision team uphill, he encountered an accident.
Because this is the commanding heights of the area and has very important military value, Zang Yi, as the marching deputy commander, deployed 20 Chinese army guards to station here.
Although in Zang Yi's opinion, this place was probably very safe, his long experience in military formations made him subconsciously arrange this wave of troops.
In charge of this expedition were two ten-person collision teams. One of the leaders was Zhang Sheng and the other was Gao Chang.
This man named Zhang Sheng was previously the pavilion chief of Wuzhi County, Hanoi. When the Han army in Henan and the Western Expeditionary Army led by Ding Sheng fought across the river, he led hundreds of people to the front line in the snow and carried food.
After that, there were few soldiers on the front line in Henan, so the hundred or ten of his men were detained by the Hanoi side to prepare for filling the line. But then the situation suddenly changed, and the Han army in Henan retreated. The remaining people, such as Zhang Sheng and others, surrendered to the Taishan army along with everyone else.
How did Zhang Sheng, a small pavilion chief, suddenly become a general of the Taishan Army's collision team? Not shown here. In short, it is the luck that comes from people's hard work. To put it simply, his surname is Zhang, and he happened to recognize Zhang, a soldier in the army, as his adoptive father.
The general who accompanied Zhang Sheng was called Gao Chang, who was directly recruited from the Qingzhou Army system.
Since Sun Ji brought the remaining tens of thousands of Qingzhou Yellow Turbans to join the Taishan Army, the three counties of Jinan, Le'an and Pingyuan, except for Pingyuan County, chose to join the Hebei Yellow Turbans, the other two counties also joined the Taishan Army along with Ji Sun. middle.
Because of this, military officers from the Qingzhou line began to be absorbed into the Taishan Army system on a large scale. It was against this background that Gao Chang was an elite warrior selected to join the collision team.
At this moment, Zhang Sheng led Chang Diao and other nine new warriors who had joined the collision team, and slowly walked up the hillside.
The sky was still dark, and only the faint moonlight penetrated the haze that shrouded the forest floor, giving Zhang Sheng a little vision.
Looking at the few Han soldiers still squinting and dozing in front of him, Zhang Sheng quietly pointed the crossbow in his hand at them.
Just when Zhang Sheng was about to give the order to kill, Gao Chang and the others who were walking uphill on the other side actually took the lead in launching an attack.
One of their stout warriors from the Underworld fired three arrows in a row. The first two arrows hit one person each, but the third arrow grazed the Han soldier's neck and flew out.
The Han army, who was scratched raw by the arrow, couldn't help but scream.
Seeing this, Zhang Sheng secretly cried out.
Sure enough, the remaining dozen or so Han soldiers on the slope were also sleeping lightly, and they all started shouting after being shouted out by their companions who were keeping watch.
They saw that two Pao Ze had fallen not far away. No longer caring about where the enemy troops were, they hurriedly sounded the alarm bell on the slope.
The sharp golden sound echoed melodiously through the forest floor.
At this time, Zhang Sheng no longer cared about hiding, and with Chang Diao and the others, they were quick to shoot. Gao Chang, who was on the opposite side, glanced at Han Dang hatefully, and without caring about anything else, he hurriedly ordered a rapid fire.
The Youzhou warrior who fired three arrows just now was none other than Han Dang.
At this time, because the collision team was hidden in the dark, dozens of arrows came down, killing the dozen or so Han troops.
Although the collision team finally captured the slope, their whereabouts were exposed.
After Gao Chang killed the people, he immediately asked Han Dangtuo to be brought up and scolded:
"You're so good Han Dang, you acted without orders, who gave you the courage?"
Han Dang was being held back by his colleagues, his expression was gloomy, and he just defended in a low voice:
"General Gaosh, you didn't say you can't act without orders."
Gao Chang was trembling with anger and was about to scold him again when Cheng Pu, another striker of his, stood up to plead for Han Dang:
"Jiang Shi, I think Han Dang is also eager for success, and he was confused for a moment."
At this time, Gao Chang saw that Qu Shuai was coming up from behind, and he was no longer willing to waste words with Han Dang.
He shook his arm and said to Han:
"I can't control this matter of yours. Let's see what Qu Shuai decides later."
After saying that, he ignored Han Dang and strode to meet Zhang Chong.
Several other warriors in Shili were either watching or worried, but they all left with Gao Chang, leaving only Cheng Pu and Han Dang in the end.
At this time, Cheng Pu turned around and frowned, saying to Han:
"Did you do it on purpose?"
Han Dang frowned and asked:
"Why did I do it on purpose? I hit two of three shots in a row. Isn't that enough?"
Cheng Pu sighed after hearing what Han Dang said, and finally said:
"Although I don't know why you did this, you can do it for yourself. Even if you survive this time, don't think about staying in the collision team again in the future. Why bother!"
After saying that, Cheng Pu also left, leaving Han Dang alone.
He looked at the Zhongshan soldiers on the grassland not far away, with a bitter look on his face:
"Yes, if it wasn't for him, why should I suffer?"
……
The haze in the forest has not dissipated. In the darkness, no one knows how many enemies are hidden inside.
Because of the early warning from the peripheral police, all the Zhongshan soldiers had woken up from their dreams.
I don’t know whether the morale of the Zhongshan soldiers was good, or whether Zang Yi was well-organized, or whether it was just luck. In short, when I woke up this time, there was no camp roar among the Zhongshan Army.
At this time, in the center of the grassland, Zang Min was lying on the military couch and talking quietly to a red-headed general next to him.
"Wentai, what's the situation on the outside?"
Wentai? Sun Wentai?
Sun Jian, who disappeared from the Yecheng battle, is here?
Yes, it was Sun Jian who was next to Zang Min at this time.
After Sun Jian narrowly escaped death in Yecheng, he was unwilling to flee back to the rear. Because he knew that if he was defeated, he would be responsible for all the sins, so he put his life in Zhongshan to the north.
That was the territory under the jurisdiction of his old leader Zang Min, and he could still make a comeback there.
But before he went north to Zhongshan, he lurked in Yecheng for a period of time just to recruit his old troops. He already knew that in the battle outside Yecheng, only one of his core generals, Lu Fan, died. For example, Han Dang, Cheng Pu and even his nephew Sun Bi were captured. Later, he took advantage of an opportunity to contact Han Dang and asked him to take everyone with him to go north with him. But who knew that Han Dang told him that Cheng Pu had given up his intention to fight with the Taishan Army.
Sun Jian was discouraged at the time, but he was perseverant by nature. Later, when he learned that Han Dang was the guard of the Taishan bandit leader, he asked him to assassinate him.
But who knows, Han Dang also rejected Sun Jian. He said that he had been saved by a certain general in the Taishan Army, and that he had a bright future thanks to his kindness. Of course he doesn't care about this, but he can't let others down. Because once he assassinates Zhang Chong, regardless of success or failure, Taishan will inevitably die.
Finally, Sun Jian left Yecheng alone and frustrated. He didn't even contact his nephew and just left.
Although Han Dang finally told him that he would repay his kindness, Sun Jian no longer cared.
This betrayal and separation had a really great impact on him.
But the bigger blow is yet to come. When Sun Jian arrived in Zhongshan, he quickly received funding from Zang Min and raised a team of 200 soldiers.
Although this soldier cannot compare with before, it is always a new beginning. After all, he still has thousands of soldiers in the Han army in Henan in the south, and he still has some wealth.
Because of this, Sun Jian has always paid close attention to news in the south.
But then he found out that his hot wife had been sold by Cao Cao and his gang. Not long after he left, the Han army in Henan fought fiercely and annexed his tribe.
At that time, Sun Jian was really a little desperate. He was abandoned by his colleagues and subordinates. Could it be that he was too naive to tolerate me, Sun Wentai?
But the reason why a hero is a hero is because his background is indomitable. Frustration is always temporary, but optimism is the main theme.
Sun Jian soon recovered. Not only did he participate in Zang Min's military training, he also relied on the resources provided by Zang Min to go north to Youzhou to meet Lu Zhi several times. He also met many tribes on the grassland, which opened up the situation a bit.
This time, Zang Min went south to save his son, and Sun Jian, who was greatly favored by him, naturally joined the army. However, because he was different from Zang Min, the command of the army was still given to Zang Yi instead of Sun Jian.
However, Zang Min knew Sun Jian's ability, so he stayed with him and often served as counselor.
This time, facing the sound of security from the outside, Zang Min once again asked Sun Jian for advice.
Sun Jian lived up to his expectations, thought about it and said what he thought:
"In Jian's opinion, those on the periphery must be the Taishan bandit army. It seems that our army's plan to go south to attack the bandit army has been leaked."
Zang Min hummed and asked Sun Jian to continue.
Sun Jian analyzed the current situation:
"If our army was attacked by thieves in our sleep at the beginning, we might really be defeated. But now I am prepared. I think most of the enemy troops will not dare to attack us at night. Night battles are a bet for everyone. I think most of the thieves don’t dare to gamble.”
"But in order to prepare for accidents, I suggest that all the troops be connected to form a camp with car formations to defend this grassland first. Moreover, this grassland is bumpy and difficult to navigate, which is suitable for guarding against the enemy's cavalry. As long as we wait until dawn, our army will have Odds.”
Zang Min closed his eyes and thought for a while, then turned to Zang Yi and asked:
"Yi'er, what do you think of what Sun Sima said?"
Zang Yi, who was neatly dressed, said calmly:
"I think Sun Sima said it well."
Zang Min nodded and asked Zang Yi to do this.
In the night, dozens of soldiers from the Central Army of the Zhongshan Kingdom were sent to attack each battalion, and they were ordered to build a vehicle formation and stand firm until dawn.
The ministries followed the order, and the silence was broken by the noisy and boiling sound. After a while, the grassland of the Zhongshan National Soldiers fell into silence again.
Relying on the simple cart, the Zhongshan soldiers waited anxiously. They knew that in the dark night, there were countless enemy troops watching them eagerly.
The restlessness has been simmering. But the inertia of long-term training let them know that this is the safest place.
Time passed bit by bit, and after a long and endless wait, a faint light finally flashed from the sky, breaking the dark horizon.
Gradually the light became thicker and stronger. Suddenly, the night was like a black curtain being suddenly lifted. The darkness disappeared instantly, and the whole world was visible at a glance.
Zang Min, Zang Yi, and Sun Jian, who had already left their tents and were waiting, also saw clearly the appearance of the enemy troops outside with the help of dawn.
It’s really the Taishan Army.
The floating apricots and the towering banner all showed their identity as the Taishan Army.
At this time, the Taishan Army formed a huge fan shape along a lower ridge. What was seen at the front were three types of flags, including leopards, bears, and elephants, and they were all cavalry.
There was a strong light shining on the opposite side, making it difficult for Zang Min and others to see how many enemy troops there were on the opposite side. Several of them were covered in cold sweat, knowing that if these cavalry troops were really charged in last night, nearly 20,000 Zhongshan soldiers would be dead.
But even so, the Zhongshan National Army is not optimistic.
At this time, the cavalry on the opposite side had occupied the most advantageous place on the battlefield, commanding a commanding position. And looking at them, on the lush grassland, the camp heads were twisting and turning.
Some camp heads have already surrounded the car camp, and some camp heads are simply out of touch with the carts. At this time, a shallow trench was dug around the perimeter.
Then there are countless small tents scattered all the way to the stream on the left.
As for the more than ten thousand civilians, they were scattered in various camps and villages, but these people were not protected in the car camp, but were driven out of the car camp by the Han army so that they could serve as the first wave of defense.
In the dark night at first, these disciples didn't quite know what happened. They only knew that they had encountered an enemy. But when daybreak came and they saw the countless shining cavalry on the slope outside, no matter how stupid they were, they knew that this time it was over.
Therefore, fear was the first to disperse from these slave groups. After seeing the Han troops hiding in the trenches of the car camp, many clever slaves took the lead and began to run towards the east.
Chaos began to sweep across the entire position. On the one hand, the military officers at each battalion tried hard to suppress the Han troops and stay where they were, while on the other hand, they watched the disciples flee.
After seeing the chaos, Zang Yi at the center asked Zang Hong:
"Father, do you want Wuhuanqi to intercept and kill these servants?"
Before Zang Hong could speak, Sun Jian said:
"It's better not to use it. It's just a good idea for these servants to escape. Otherwise, if they get bigger and run away again, the army will really collapse."
What Sun Jian said made sense, so the Chinese army chose to remain silent.
Suddenly, a powerful horn sound came from the opposite slope.
Then each battalion of the enemy's thieves and cavalry blew their horns.
At this time, the anxiety of the Zhongshan soldiers was detonated. They all stood up and looked anxiously at the sound of the rebel army's horn in the distance.
Then they saw countless soldiers leading their horses slowly along the slope.
Cold sweat has begun to drip down.
At this time there was another rapid blast of trumpets, which was issued by the enemy battalions themselves.
It was also during this burst of horns that the cavalry on the opposite side got on their horses neatly.
"Woooooo!"
Thunderous blasts of horns were sounded from all the battalions, villages, villages, and teams of the Taishan Army. Every fifty men rushed towards the Zhongshan National Soldiers down the slope at full speed.
The minds of the Zhongshan soldiers on the front line were blank.
(End of chapter)