Chapter 309: Ambush

Hengshan County.

In the clear light of dawn, a long, winding column appeared outside the city.

The column was moving very slowly, with the soldiers struggling to drag their feet forward.

Many were supporting one another; from a distance, they looked like a defeated, remnant army.

They were Liu Tan and the soldiers under his command.

Many days of high-intensity marching had exhausted their physical strength.

The remaining rations were even less sufficient to maintain the abundant energy they had before setting out.

Thus, for the same distance, it took them nearly three days this time to return to Hengshan County.

"Open the city gates quickly!" Bai Shang shouted.

He had been left behind this time to garrison Hengshan County and was also responsible for coordinating the grain and baggage train transported from Feihu Pass.

Before Liu Tan arrived, the Scout had already delivered the news to him.

So, as soon as Liu Tan arrived, he immediately went out to welcome him.

Approaching them, he looked at the Wangfu Army soldiers with their cracked lips and worn-out boot soles, and a sudden pang of sorrow struck his heart.

Grabbing Liu Tan's hand, he remained silent for a long time before finally saying, "You have worked hard."

Liu Tan just chuckled twice, "This subordinate did not fail the Prince's expectations this time; this horse meat was not eaten in vain."

Bai Shang laughed, "Right, it wasn't eaten in vain. If not for you all, Xin City would not have been taken so smoothly. Next, the Prince will surely beat the Xiliang people to a pulp."

Liu Tan nodded, licked his cracked lips, and said, "The Xiliang reinforcements withdrew from Huaicheng on the same day as us. They are likely entering Jin Commandery now; this news must be reported to the Prince."

"You all should have a big meal now and then rest. You don't need to worry about the rest; the Scout will certainly have delivered the news to the Prince."

……

Jincheng.

After Zhao Xu continued to besiege the city for another half-day, he received the news sent back by the Scout.

Ninety thousand Xiliang troops had entered Jin Commandery,

and were marching day and night toward Jincheng.

It was estimated they would arrive by the next morning.

"It seems they have seen through our strategy," Chang Wei said upon hearing this.

Zhao Xu nodded slightly.

Counting the days, half a month had already passed.

It was normal for the Xiliang army to discover something was wrong and return at this time.

"Since they have returned, we shall proceed according to the plan," Zhao Xu sneered.

This time, he had only left two thousand garrison troops in Xin City, and he had brought most of the men over.

At the same time, he had transferred five thousand soldiers from Hengshan County.

Because they were now on the offensive, there was no need to keep heavy troops to guard the city.

These extracted forces would participate in the ambush of the ninety thousand Xiliang troops.

"Yes, Your Highness," Chang Wei cupped his fists heavily.

The excitement on his face could not be concealed.

After pondering for a moment, he said, "According to the Scout, this Xiliang army seems to have marched continuously to relieve the siege of Jincheng; they must be exhausted and weary right now. If they continue marching tonight, we will lie in ambush thirty miles to the north and wait for dawn to attack. If they rest tonight, we will march through the night, reach their location, and launch an attack while they are fast asleep."

This was what everyone had discussed, and Zhao Xu had no objections. He said, "However, to prevent the troops inside Jincheng from colluding with them, it is best to leave four thousand men to coordinate with the Artilleryman to block the four city gates, so as to avoid any accidents."

Chang Wei agreed.

In the evening, the Scout sent back news again.

The Xiliang army had only rested briefly before continuing their march.

Chang Wei immediately decided to adopt the first strategy.

When night fell and darkness covered the traces of all things, he immediately had the army withdraw from Jincheng to lie in ambush at Li Jiazhuang, thirty miles away.

This village had long since been burned down by Xiliang soldiers, and the surrounding area was also filled with deserted villages.

The terrain around Li Jiazhuang was flat, and as far as the eye could see, there were barren fields, with only the main road passing through here.

However, dense Taolin grew on both sides of the main road.

It was the time when the peach trees had sprouted new leaves, enough to provide cover for some of the soldiers.

Only the other soldiers would be distributed in the shape of a pocket.

They would lie in ambush further away from the main road.

Once the battle began, they would tighten the pocket.

Withdrawing from beneath Jincheng and after an hour of trekking, Zhao Xu and Chang Wei arrived here.

For this ambush on the ninety thousand Xiliang troops, they would hold nothing back, but would instead commit the Flintlock Infantry to this battle to ensure the successful annihilation of the Xiliang reinforcements.

Therefore, after arriving at Li Jiazhuang, Chang Wei gathered the generals to re-verify the coordination details.

Having rested and waited all night, the Xiliang reinforcements did not appear on time the next morning.

The Scout went back and forth to investigate; the Xiliang soldiers seemed extremely exhausted from days of marching and were walking slower and slower.

Discovering this, Chang Wei and the generals grew even more confident.

It was nearly noon.

The figures of the Xiliang reinforcements finally appeared on the north side of the main road.

Walking at the very front were the Xiliang Cavalry, followed by the Infantry.

The ninety-thousand-man column was very long, stretching out to a very distant place.

During the march, the Xiliang scouts headed toward Jincheng to investigate for news.

However, hearing the rumbling of cannons and seeing soldiers still in front of the camp, they assumed it was no different from previous days and sent the news back.

Within the Xiliang army, Jili learned that the Yan Prince Army was still attacking Jincheng and once again ordered them to hasten their march.

He certainly knew that after days of marching, the soldiers were exhausted.

But as long as the siege of Jincheng could be lifted, it would be worth it even if more soldiers died.

Before long, more than half of the Xiliang army had passed through Taolin.

Suddenly, a chorus of battle cries rang out in unison from the Taolin on both sides.

Wangfu Army soldiers wearing Plate Armor and wielding swords and blades suddenly charged out from the Taolin on both sides.

The Xiliang soldiers were shocked, then drew their weapons to meet them.

But how could they, exhausted as they were, withstand the energetic Wangfu Army soldiers?

At the first encounter, the weapons in the soldiers' hands clashed, and the blades in the hands of some Xiliang soldiers were immediately knocked away.

Before they could recover their senses, they were cut down to the ground by the Wangfu Army soldiers.

The Wangfu Army soldiers following behind continuously charged into the ranks of the Xiliang army to slaughter them.

Very quickly, the Xiliang soldiers were severed in the middle.

One part of the Wangfu Army soldiers slaughtered their way north, and one part slaughtered their way south.

Their mission was to split the Xiliang army into two halves, so that the front and rear could not support each other.

Suddenly attacked, Jili's heart sank.

Judging by the Armor of the attacking soldiers, these were again the soldiers of Yan Wang.

Clearly, the troops of Yan Wang had ambushed them.

But at this moment, he was unable to think about how the troops of Yan Wang had appeared here.

He immediately ordered the Xiliang soldiers in the front to charge toward the middle of the army.

At the same time, the Xiliang Cavalry turned their horses around and charged toward the Wangfu Army soldiers engaged in the slaughter.

And at the same time the battle cries rang out in Taolin, the Wangfu Army soldiers lying in ambush on the outskirts of Taolin moved.

The Flintlock Infantry on both sides of the north-south official road were in phalanxes of five hundred men each.

In the phalanx, the outermost circle consisted of Long Spear soldiers, and the middle consisted of three rows of Flintlock Infantry.

The interval between each phalanx was about thirty meters.

At this time, these phalanxes moved across the Pingyuan, constantly tightening like a chain.

At the same time, the Light Cavalry of Zhong Li and the Heavy Cavalry of Chen Hu were both prepared.

There was also a reserve force of ten thousand ready to respond to emergencies at any time.