weaving

Chapter 1175: Go first

Inside Zuo Liangyu's central army tent, all the generals looked very surprised after hearing his words, and all eyes were once again focused on Zuo Liangyu's face.

With a very serious expression, he once again glanced at the generals in the tent, knowing that there were indeed many loyal and righteous people among them, and many of them were loyal to the emperor and the country, and not all of them were cowardly and afraid of the enemy like a tiger.

However, the current situation is like this. We have been without water for several days and there has been no improvement. Now the army has no food supplies and we will run out of food completely in the next two days.

  Moreover, based on the movements of the bandit camp seen today, Zuo Liangyu determined that the day when the bandits would launch a general attack on their side was imminent and would definitely not exceed two or three days. Now that they were building additional artillery batteries and expanding fortifications opposite their camp, they were afraid that they would use this side as the main target of their attack!

If that really happens, we will be cut off from water and food, and I am afraid that the shouts from the bandits will cause our soldiers to collapse. There will be no need to engage in battle with the bandits, as our army of hundreds of thousands will collapse immediately, and I and all the generals present here today will probably all die without a burial place.

Thinking of this, Zuo Liangyu could not help but feel chilled. With anxious and angry eyes, he continued to say to the generals: "I think you have all seen what happened today. The blind bandits have been building artillery batteries opposite my left camp for several days and have strengthened their troop deployment. It is very likely that they will place their main attack direction opposite me.

The rebel army has 300,000 men and women. Even if there are some servants and menial workers among them, there are at least 100,000 main infantry and cavalry. According to reports from spies, they have 20,000 to 30,000 elite cavalry alone. They will deploy three rows in battle and attack the enemy over and over again. Their strength can last for a long time and they will not stop until they win.

On the other hand, our division is on the verge of running out of water and food, and the morale of the soldiers is low, without the spirit of the past. The Ding Camp and the Yang Camp are even worse than our Left Camp. If the blind bandits really launch a general attack on us, the Ding Camp and the Yang Camp will surely escape before us.

Once they flee, our left camp will be faced with the dilemma of fighting on three sides, or perhaps even being surrounded on all sides. It will be too late to retreat then.

For now, there is only one solution left, and that is to escape from this desperate situation and leave first!"

Deputy General Ma Shixiu asked, "General, once we leave, what will happen to Ding Camp, Yang Camp, and Hu Camp?"

Zuo Liangyu snorted coldly and said in a cold tone: "Then we have to leave it to fate. In the current situation, we are lucky to be able to save the lives of more than 100,000 soldiers in our Zuoying. How can we care about so many things?"

Deputy General Wang Jincai raised another question: "General, if... Commander Ding, Governor Yang, and Hu Zhen's troops were all wiped out here, how could the court not hold you accountable?"

Zuo Liangyu glared at him fiercely and said, "I have seen through what is going on in the court a long time ago. Today, let's just talk about today's affairs. Protecting my soldiers is the most important thing. There is no need to worry about what will happen in the future!"

Wang Jincai was so frightened that he dared not say anything more and just stood aside obediently.

Zuo Liangyu looked at everyone and continued, "Our division will retreat to Xuchang first. After we have established our foothold and rested for a while, we will make other plans."

Among the generals in the big tent, some knew clearly that Xuchang was not a good place to stay, but the current situation made them dare not ask more questions.

In fact, although Zuo Liangyu said this, his final destination was not Xuchang. He just wanted to rest for a while in Xuchang, gather the defeated soldiers, and then lead his troops directly to Xiangyang to settle down.

He thought that the whole territory of Henan was completely finished, and there was no place for him, Zuo Liangyu, to stand in the Central Plains. However, he was unwilling to inform the generals in advance that his final destination was Xiangyang, because he was afraid that they would run crazy and ignore the fleeing soldiers and only lead a few personal guards to Xiangyang. After all, as the commander of an army, he did not want to lead only a few hundred or thousands of troops to Xiangyang. If that was the case, even if he really escaped to Xiangyang City, he would probably be living under someone else's roof, and he might even be caught by local officials and escorted to the court for questioning!

Just as everyone was quietly waiting for him to give a specific strategy on how to retreat with the entire division, Zuo Liangyu suddenly raised his voice and said, "Generals, listen to my orders!"

All of a sudden, everyone became nervous. They all stood up straight and respectfully, staring at Zuo Liangyu, only to hear him clearly state the arrangements for the retreat one by one.

He considered very carefully and explained very clearly which general would lead the way, which general would guard the rear, which general would provide support in the center, and which general would provide flank cover.

  From this we can see that Zuo Liangyu’s current status and power are by no means an incompetent person who relies solely on luck. After all, the general who pacifies bandits is quite capable!

Finally, he ordered all the generals to return to their camps immediately and make preparations in secret, waiting for the fourth watch of tomorrow to cook, and at the fifth watch the whole army would set out in order and rush straight to Xuchang...

Wang Yuncheng, the deputy general who was in charge of leading the way, suddenly asked, "General, if we go southwest, we will pass through the Dingying and Yangying camps. If we encounter any obstacles..."

Zuo Liangyu interrupted him impatiently: "At this point, we can't care about so much. If there is anyone trying to stop us, just kill them!"

After hearing Zuo Liangyu's words, all the generals looked solemn. Although this approach was indeed a bit excessive, everyone knew that given the current situation, there was no other way. The Marshal was also thinking about the generals and soldiers, so everyone had no choice but to accept the order and withdraw quietly.

However, before leaving the big tent, everyone couldn't help but look at Wang Yuncheng, thinking: This Iron Cavalry King's sword is probably going to chop down one of his own people! Known as the "Iron Cavalry King", a general in the late Ming Dynasty and the Earl of Yueyang in the Southern Ming Dynasty.

Wang Yuncheng, whose courtesy name was Le'an, was a native of Liaodong. He was originally a general under Deng Qi. In the eighth year of Chongzhen, he was transferred to Zuo Liangyu and was promoted to the position of deputy general due to his meritorious service.

In the 12th year of Chongzhen, Wang Yuncheng's troops defeated Luo Rucai in Fengyiping, Dangyang, killing more than 2,300 people and capturing more than 500 alive. The rebel generals Wu Ziqiang and Bai Gui were forced to surrender, which was known as the first meritorious service in Jingchu.

It was precisely because of this great achievement, and the fact that Wang Yuncheng was proficient in cavalry warfare and extremely brave in front of the battlefield, that he was called the "Iron Cavalry King" in the left camp, and his cavalry was also more skilled than other units.

Therefore, when withdrawing troops this time, Zuo Liangyu arranged Wang Yuncheng to lead his troops to open the way in front, in order to use his status as the "Iron Cavalry King" to open a way for the entire army to survive.

In fact, looking back on Wang Yuncheng's life, he was relatively loyal to the Ming Dynasty. Although he made some mistakes and even surrendered to the Qing army for a short period of time, he was able to abandon the Qing and join the Ming in the end, which can be considered a complete success.

According to historical records, in the 13th year of the Yongli reign, Li Dingguo entered Mubang and ordered Wang Yuncheng to report to the Yongli Emperor. Wang Yuncheng therefore escorted the Yongli Emperor all the way to Myanmar, and eventually died at the hands of the Burmese for protecting the Yongli Emperor at all costs, sacrificing his life for his country.