Chapter 483: Taking the Xu Army First

The vast area east of the Fei River, having seen little development and being cut off by hills, had always been sparsely populated. Since the Northern Han invaded from the south, Shouzhou had become a battlefield, and the scattered villages in the region had mostly seen their inhabitants flee south with their families to the riverine areas to escape the chaos of war. Thus, as the Tang army marched north from Hefei, they scarcely saw any sign of human habitation along the way.

Chen Jue's advance was already slow enough, but Xu Wenzhen's army was even slower—first, because of Chen Jue's standing orders, and second, because they carried too much heavy equipment and supplies. At roughly fifty li out, after a full day's march that had steadily advanced another twenty-five li, seeing the sky gradually darken, Xu Wenzhen ordered a halt to the advance, making camp on the spot, pitching tents, and setting up cooking fires.

Unfortunately for them, the carrier-pigeon method Chen Jue had placed his hopes in did not work—the messenger pigeons that had escaped from under the hands of Ma Renyu and the other Fengchen soldiers had flown off to who knows where.

Because the route they had chosen was too primitive, the civilian laborers accompanying the Tang army, driving carts and urging on their beasts, had also had an exhausting day. The moment they heard the order to make camp and rest, it was as if they had received a pardon—but they did not move immediately, instead resting right where they stood.

Seeing this, Commander Zhu Yuan flew into a rage. He hurriedly sent his subordinates to urge and drive the laborers on, using whips and fists to "reason" with those corvée workers. He cursed under his breath: "These lazy bastards, so sluggish and indolent—if the Han army attacks, they'll be the ones crying!"

Only when the Tang army's marching column had contracted and slowly begun to move again did Zhu Yuan, physically and mentally exhausted, find Xu Wenzhen and say: "The supplies we carry are enough for three months. Carrying this much all at once... ah..."

Hearing this, Xu Wenzhen said: "Our army marches north to relieve Shouchun. If we don't stockpile ample grain and weapons, and the Han army cuts off our supply line and rear, without sufficient provisions, how could we resist them! It's clear that Chen Jue has already prepared for a protracted confrontation with the Han army this time!"

As he spoke, he pointed toward the northeast and sighed softly: "The loss of the Huai River has greatly constricted our position—even the transport of grain and equipment has become this restricted! I only hope that Governor Huangfu and Army Supervisor Yao can reopen the Huai River passage as soon as possible. Otherwise, if this war continues like this, we won't hold out much longer!"

Zhu Yuan fell silent at this, and could only sigh along with him. Looking up, he noticed the bitter expression shrouding Xu Wenzhen's face and could not help asking: "Lord Xu, I've observed that you've been grave and solemn the whole way here—do you have some hidden worry?"

At the question, Xu Wenzhen pulled Zhu Yuan aside and said: "To be honest with you, the farther north we go, the more alarmed I feel. Chen Jue said that even with our army advancing north, the Han army remains holed up in their city, showing no unusual movement—that in itself is worthy of suspicion!"

The two army commanders of the rear guard found a cart to sit on and resumed discussing the military situation. Zhu Yuan guessed with a serious expression: "Could it be that the Han army intends to repeat their old trick, luring our army north?"

As he spoke, Zhu Yuan shook his own head: "This time, we're not like Liu Yanzhen, charging ahead rashly out of contempt for the enemy. With this much force, if we reach Shouchun, we might not be able to win a decisive victory, but for the Han army to defeat us—that shouldn't be so easy either, right?"

Xu Wenzhen was also deep in thought, his brows tightly furrowed, and he said with worry: "Whatever the Han army is planning, what deeply concerns me right now is that it's been nearly a day and a half since we last received a mounted dispatch from the central camp!"

"Lord Xu fears that something has gone wrong on Chen Jue's side?" Zhu Yuan asked in surprise.

"Very possible!" Xu Wenzhen clutched his chest and said gravely: "I have a feeling like I can't breathe! Whatever upheaval has occurred to the north, we must be careful! Finish setting up camp as quickly as possible, and send men to the central camp to check on the situation!"

"How long has it been since our scout riders last returned to camp?" Xu Wenzhen suddenly asked.

"Nearly two shichen!" Zhu Yuan was startled.

While Xu and Zhu were still sitting among the unfinished camp discussing the military situation, the ambush force Liu Chengyou had dispatched came riding swiftly with banners furled and bells removed, moving with remarkable efficiency.

At roughly seven li out, they temporarily reined in their horses. Though the Han cavalry numbered less than ten thousand, a full eight thousand war-horses gathered and arrayed in formation was already an extremely rare sight in Jianghuai. In their silence, their imposing might was astonishing.

"Reporting to the Chief Inspector! Over twenty thousand Tang troops are six or seven li away—they've halted their advance and are adjusting their formation, setting up camp!" The cavalry commander in charge of reconnaissance galloped to the central command and reported to Murong Yanzhao in person.

"The sky is still early—they've stopped marching?" Hearing the report, Murong Yanzhao immediately asked: "Have the Tang army's scout riders been eliminated? Were the Tang troops alarmed? Are they on guard?"

"All enemy sentries along the route have been shot and killed by my men. Judging by the appearance of the Tang camp, there has been no warning!"

"Excellent!" Murong Yanzhao's expression was cold and stern as he began issuing orders directly: "Guo Chongwei!"

"Here!" The Chief Commander of the Longjie Army's Left Wing immediately acknowledged the order.

"You will take two thousand men and advance to the Tang camp first. While they are unprepared and their camp foundation is not yet secure, ride around their flanks, galloping freely, striking with mounted archery to shake their morale and throw their formation into disorder!" Murong Yanzhao instructed: "Remember, I'm not sending you to charge their camp. Fight smart—empty every soldier's quiver!"

"Understood!" After receiving the order, Guo Chongwei immediately mustered four commands of cavalry and galloped southward.

"The remaining troops will follow me south at a leisurely pace, eating dry rations to recover strength—both men and horses!" Murong Yanzhao continued: "In three quarters of an hour, we attack the Tang army. Before nightfall, we will rout this Tang force!"

"As ordered!" Han Tong and the others responded in unison.

Murong Yanzhao led the main force southward at an unhurried pace, and before they even drew near, they could already hear the clamor of battle. Among the Han generals, Guo Chongwei was a top-tier commander—over twenty years of military service, rich combat experience, and crucially, a man of loyal character who obeyed orders in battle and never acted on his own initiative.

As a battle commander with strong comprehension and execution abilities, he carried out Murong Yanzhao's orders to the letter. The two thousand cavalry split into two groups, weaving back and forth before the Tang army, loosing arrows continuously.

On the Tang side, before the Han cavalry struck, Xu Wenzhen had already sensed that something was amiss. Together with Zhu Yuan, he urgently urged the soldiers and civilians to contract and fortify their camp. But with over twenty thousand people, soldiers and civilians mixed together, exhausted from the journey, and the Tang army's overall execution capacity being low, even with all the urging, the effect was minimal.

When the Han cavalry attacked, their movements quickened somewhat under the tension, but mostly there was no time to react—only panic and chaos. The Tang army had many carts, and their camp was being built on a foundation of cart-shields. Facing the Han cavalry's arcing volleys, most were at a loss in their panic.

The majority of people cowered behind the carts seeking cover, while some fled in panic, throwing their own formation into disorder. During the camp-building, soldiers and civilians were especially intermixed, causing the Tang army's chaos to spread.

At the critical moment, it was Xu Wenzhen who remained cool-headed enough. Together with Zhu Yuan, one steadied the front camp while the other steadied the central camp. Recognizing the intent behind Guo Chongwei's maneuvers, he directed with composure, gathering troops, positioning them behind the carts, raising large shields in numbers, and directing soldiers to set up what appeared to be caltrops and barriers around the perimeter to prevent the Han cavalry from charging in.

However, the Tang army had too much material. In the midst of the chaos, achieving full preparedness was simply impossible. So Xu Wenzhen, in a "cutting off the arm to save the body" move, chose to abandon the excess supplies and instead used his elite troops to consolidate a core defensive zone within the central cart camp.

Once somewhat stabilized, Xu Wenzhen even organized a force of several hundred men to counterattack the Han cavalry with crossbows and bows, exchanging volleys with them. Of course, the Han cavalry were agile and far more flexible than the Tang army's passive suffering, but even so, several concentrated volleys did cost Guo Chongwei some of his men.

Soon, Guo Chongwei probed out the few hard-to-crack "bones" within the long Tang wagon formation, and decisively avoided the difficult to attack the easy—he passed the order to strike at the weak points of the Tang formation.

But few officers in the entire Tang army had Xu Wenzhen's caliber. In the haste, Xu Wenzhen's defensive methods and strategies could hardly reach the entire army. Most importantly, it was the corvée laborers accompanying the army who were the most uncontrollable—and also Guo Chongwei's primary targets. Soon, signs of collapse began to appear.

By the time Murong Yanzhao led his troops close, Guo Chongwei's arrows were mostly spent, his short spears had all been thrown, and his soldiers were utterly exhausted. As for Xu Wenzhen, seeing the second Han army approaching from the north—that massive cavalry formation, bristling with killing intent—his heart sank straight to the bottom.

Surveying the battlefield, the Tang army's wagon formation resembled a coiled long dragon, but one covered in wounds and countless breaks. Though Guo Chongwei's attack had not caused much direct slaughter, this long dragon was already in disarray.

While observing the enemy formation, Murong Yanzhao also finished listening to Guo Chongwei's report on the attack and the Tang army's response. His fierce eyes swept across the battlefield, and pointing into the distance, he directly ordered: "Han Tong, lead the Tieqi Army to attack the tail of the Tang formation!"

Murong Yanzhao intended to first sever the dragon's tail—that was where the chaos was greatest, the laborers most numerous, and the formation most broken.

"The remaining Longjie Army troops, with each command's Commander leading their own command as a unit, will continue to circle and shoot, suppressing the Tang army, giving them no chance to catch their breath!"

"Yes!"

With the orders given, six thousand Han cavalry split into two great columns, raising clouds of dust as they charged menacingly toward the Tang army. Guo Chongwei led his men to guard Murong Yanzhao's side, resting and eating dry rations to recover their strength and combat readiness.

With this large force of Han cavalry attacking in coordination, the already chaotic Tang formation came under tremendous pressure. As for command skill on the battlefield, Xu Wenzhen was more than a little inferior to Murong Yanzhao. In exploiting cavalry advantages, finding weaknesses, and making on-the-spot command adjustments, Murong Yanzhao performed excellently.

Add to that the Han army's inherently superior combat power by several notches, plus their three quarters of an hour of rest—the explosive force they unleashed was hardly something a weary, demoralized Tang army could withstand.

Soon the Tang rear camp simply couldn't take it anymore—they collapsed, scattering in flight or surrendering. Having severed the dragon's tail, they then struck at the dragon's head. Though Zhu Yuan fought hard to lead resistance, he ultimately could not rally the scattered, fearful morale of his troops and was captured alive.

Pressing their advantage, the Han army concentrated their forces to attack Xu Wenzhen, the last holdout—and hit a wall. He had completely turtled up within the dense wagon formation, using his personal guards to supervise the fight, leading nearly three thousand remnant troops in stubborn resistance.

Several assaults failed, and casualties mounted. Seeing this, Murong Yanzhao directly ordered Guo Chongwei to drive the several thousand captured prisoners forward, carrying large shields and wooden planks, to charge the wagon formation.

Things often work in such strange ways—faced with the same life-or-death threat, these Southern Tang soldiers and civilians would rather be driven like dogs and oxen as cannon fodder than fight the Han army to the death. Of course, perhaps these people also had a simple-minded notion: stubbornly resisting the Han army meant certain death, but if they helped the Han army defeat their own forces, there might still be a chance to survive...

Under the dusk, with the prisoners charging, Xu Wenzhen's defense quickly failed. The wagon formation was broken apart, and the army utterly collapsed.

Across the vast battlefield, though there were many fires, the outcome was already decided. Seeing no more organized resistance from the Tang army, Murong Yanzhao finally let out a complete sigh of relief. As the commanding general, he could not relax until the moment of final victory.

Overall, Xu Wenzhen's army had not been hard to defeat. Gazing at the vast clusters of military supplies, Murong Yanzhao roused himself, arranging for the aftermath—cleaning up the battlefield and tallying the spoils.

One thing was certain: the fruits of this battle were enormous!