Chapter 990: Pursuit

"General, the North Di have fled in three directions."

As the North Di scattered in flight, Zhong Fang said to Chen Hu.

The scout Cavalry they dispatched covered the snow plains, tailing the North Di army the entire way.

Each scout Cavalry unit had one hundred and twenty men.

Every so often, one man from these one hundred and twenty would break off from the unit to deliver the latest intelligence to them.

Therefore, they had a clear grasp of the North Di's movements.

Moreover, they also deduced that Mule Hongzhen had the intention of merging with Ashuer.

Thus, he decided to head straight south along the Yin Mountain, taking the shortest path.

Sure enough, just as they were about to join forces, he arrived leading the Gun Cavalry.

"Then we shall split our forces as well," Chen Hu said.

He understood the North Di's current approximate Cavalry strength, and he also understood their weakness.

Due to their panicked flight, they naturally could not carry cattle and sheep for a slow march.

So, in order to fill their stomachs, they had no choice but to slaughter their Warhorses for food.

Now, many North Di Cavalry had only one horse to sit on.

Yet their Gun Cavalry each had two horses, and having eaten and drunk their fill at the Yin Mountain, they were full of vigor.

Under these circumstances, the North Di Cavalry could not possibly be their match.

Even splitting their forces to deal with them would be no problem.

"Then let's make a bet: which route is Mule Hongzhen on?" Zhong Fang winked.

This was a great merit, after all.

However, since they were splitting up to pursue, it would depend on their respective luck.

"The one heading northeast is almost coming directly toward us; it is clearly a decoy. They would never let their Khan take such a risk. Mule Hongzhen must be in the northwest direction. The one heading southwest should be Ashuer; they are fleeing in a panic and would not have time for careful planning," Chen Hu chuckled, feeling confident.

It wasn't so simple for this kid Zhong Fang to take advantage of him.

"Since that is the case, the General will catch the big one, and this subordinate will catch the small one. Let Xue Jian go pursue Ashuer," Zhong Fang said.

Chen Hu shook his head. "We cannot pursue like that. You and I will go together to pursue Mule Hongzhen. Let Xue Jian's twenty thousand men split into two routes: ten thousand to pursue Ashuer, and ten thousand to pursue the route to the northeast."

"Why?" Zhong Fang asked.

Chen Hu said: "Although they cannot beat us, they still have the ability to block our pursuit. If we assign twenty thousand men to pursue, they will certainly leave behind Cavalry to obstruct us and let Mule Hongzhen escape safely. If you and I go together, we can instantly defeat them with forty thousand men."

He paused, then continued: "As for Ashuer and the northeast route, if we can catch up and kill them, that is naturally good. If we cannot kill them, we will hunt down the Cavalry and Infantry under their command. Only in this way can we achieve the greatest battle results; otherwise, I fear we won't catch a single big fish in the end."

Zhong Fang nodded. "The General is absolutely right."

Thereupon, the two immediately led their troops toward the northwest route.

Two more ten-thousand-man Cavalry units were dispatched to pursue Ashuer and Wulanba respectively.

The Great Song Cavalry split their forces.

Mule Hongzhen, Ashuer, and Wulanba noticed it.

Seeing over forty thousand Cavalry coming in his direction, Mule Hongzhen immediately broke into a cold sweat.

Constantly whipping his Warhorse, he only wanted to flee back to the Grassland as quickly as possible.

And Wulanba, seeing that his Great Khan might be in danger, immediately led his subordinate Cavalry to turn around, attempting to go to the rescue.

But the moment he made this move, he immediately regretted it.

Because he was effectively telling the Great Song Cavalry that the northwest direction was indeed his Great Khan.

It was just that everything was too late.

Chen Hu and Zhong Fang looked at each other upon seeing this, their eyes both flashing with excitement.

For Chen Hu, it had only been a gamble.

But now, he had clearly bet correctly.

"Idiot!" Ashuer, seeing his nephew reveal a flaw, immediately gnashed his teeth in hatred.

He actually preferred Tiemuta more, and had always believed Wulanba lacked the qualifications to be a Khan.

Because on the battlefield, his performance was always poor.

Now, this confirmed that point even more.

Seeing the majority of the Cavalry decisively pursue Mule Hongzhen,

he hesitated for a moment, then immediately turned his horse's head toward the northwest, preparing to relieve his older brother.

But, it was ultimately just wishful thinking.

The ten thousand or so Great Song Cavalry pursuing him discovered this tendency and immediately blocked his path forward.

"Kill!" Relying on the large number of Cavalry under his command, Ashuer gave the order.

A large number of North Di Cavalry immediately charged toward the Great Song Cavalry.

In the northeast direction, Wulanba was likewise intercepted.

Facing a Cavalry force five times their own size, the Great Song Cavalry charged directly at them.

"Bang, bang, bang..." Soon, gunfire rang out successively on the southwest and northeast battlefields.

Upon the first contact, the Great Song Cavalry immediately used their Cavalry Rifles to kill many North Di Cavalry.

Ashuer and Wulanba were each quite shocked, immediately understanding why the Great Song Cavalry could easily defeat North Di Cavalry three times their number.

Next, they witnessed a scene they never wanted to see in their lives.

Their Cavalry could not break through the Great Song Cavalry's defensive line at all, but were instead shot off their horses one after another by the enemy's gunfire.

While the southwest and northeast directions were mired in fierce fighting,

Chen Hu and Zhong Fang galloped in pursuit.

They made their warhorses gallop with all their might, and when one warhorse grew tired, they would leap onto another to continue the pursuit.

Just as he had expected, due to a lack of warhorses, the Northern Di cavalry's marching speed was no faster than theirs.

Before long, they caught up with the troop of Mule Hongzhen.

At this moment, Chen Hu had Zhong Fang lead twenty thousand cavalry to intercept the Northern Di cavalry that were coming toward them, preparing to stall them.

He himself flanked them directly from the side.

After chasing for another thirty li, he finally intercepted this unit of Northern Di cavalry!