weaving

Chapter 1422 The Flag Has Fallen...

Luo Hu had been holding back his anger for a long time, waiting to go to the battlefield to kill the government troops and vent his rage, but he found that the government troops opposite him were acting out of character, and retreated without a fight when they saw him coming up.

This surprised him, and he became more cautious. Although he did not charge forward as recklessly as usual, he did not stop pursuing the cavalry led by He Zhenxiong.

He led his left wing of 500 child soldiers straight to He Zhenxiong's government troops, while ordering his right wing of 500 child soldiers to find the other government troops that were setting fires everywhere.

As a loyal follower of Chuang Wang, Luo Hu's feelings for him were not merely worship. He firmly believed that only Chuang Wang was the chosen one who could relieve the suffering of the people, and the leader he had to defend to the death.

"Duan Cheng, take a hundred men and circle around to the left to stop those bandit soldiers."

At Luo Hu's command, a young soldier responded loudly and led more than a hundred men to rush northwest, intending to intercept He Zhenxiong ahead.

…………

He Zhenxiong's original intention was not to escape, but seeing that there were many enemy troops rushing towards him and that they were well-rested, he changed direction in order to coordinate with Li Changsheng to fight.

Seeing that the enemy army thought he was afraid to fight and had actually divided their forces, he was pleasantly surprised.

What's alarming is that the pressure on Chen Zhanqi will increase as a result, and it's uncertain whether he can handle it; what's encouraging is that the rebel Li Zicheng is not far ahead. If he can defeat this group of rebel soldiers, he can charge straight in and fight. If he can really kill the rebel Li Zicheng in battle, it will be worth dying for!
However, despite having such thoughts in his mind, He Zhenxiong also knew that his men were already exhausted and at their limit. Although they could still fight, they were no longer able to penetrate the rebel camp, so he dared not act rashly.

Just then, Li Changsheng, who was fighting the bandits not far away, also noticed the change. He whistled and led the Imperial Guards towards He Zhenxiong.

Upon receiving Li Changsheng's response, He Zhenxiong immediately made a change. He led his cavalry to suddenly turn around and charge back the way they came.

This unexpected turn of events surprised everyone.

Luo Hu thought He Zhenxiong was trying to escape, so he immediately ordered his four hundred child soldiers to chase after him. As a result, he lost coordination with Duan Cheng's one hundred men who had been separated from the group.

…………

Unlike He Zhenxiong's side, which kept going in circles, Chen Zhanqi's side was leading the enemy army by the nose.

He led his cavalrymen, charging left and right, weaving through the gaps in the enemy's blockade. Wherever they went, fires broke out, forcing the pursuing enemy to take detours.

Thanks to the cover of the billowing smoke, and the elusive movements of Chen Zhanqi's troops, his army suffered very few losses. Of course, this was mainly because the main force of the rebel cavalry was drawn to He Zhenxiong's side.

"Charge up to the big flag ahead, cut it down, and you'll be credited with the greatest achievement!"

Chen Zhanqi suddenly shouted and rushed out first: "Use all the bullets and guns, don't hold back!"

"kill……"

Hundreds of elite cavalrymen charged forward with a roar, heading straight for the rebel king's banner. They were making a final, desperate charge, ready to die for their cause!

"Head Chen, there are bandits."

"Never mind that, cut down the flag first!"

Faced with four or five hundred bandits suddenly appearing on his flank, Chen Zhanqi chose to completely ignore them. He had only one target, and it was very clear—the banner of the rebel king!

"Follow me, each of you take a hit."

Although there were dozens of bandits under the banner, they were no match for the elite cavalry. Faced with the desperate charge of the elite cavalry, these bandits were almost negligible.

Chen Zhanqi stomped his feet on the horse's flanks, urging it to gallop. He raised his long sword high and extended it backward. Just as the warhorse was about to reach the flagpole, he suddenly swung his long sword in a semi-circle with all his might...

There was a muffled sound of "bang".

The longsword struck the nearly foot-thick flagpole heavily, leaving only a deep cut, while the massive flagpole remained completely still, not even a single splinter flying out. However, Chen Zhanqi did not see any of this.

He had already spurred his horse past the location of the great banner, and was turning his horse around to meet the approaching enemy cavalry on his left without hesitation.

The sounds of "Boom... Boom boom... Boom boom boom..." came one after another, sometimes even in quick succession, like a series of rhythmic drumbeats, becoming the war drums that stirred the fighting spirit of the standard cavalry.

More than 700 elite cavalrymen and more than 700 swords and axes kept hacking at the flagpole, but they still failed to cut down the flagpole of the Grand Marshal of the Fengtian Uprising, which shows how thick and sturdy it was.

With only four knights remaining, they followed behind the column, galloping forward, their target still the thick banner pole...

The first knight still held his tiger lance. He spurred his horse forward, swung the lance in a wide arc, and smashed it heavily against the area covered in knife and axe marks. Wood chips flew everywhere where the force hit, and the flagpole swayed back and forth for a moment, but it still stood upright.

The second knight then spurred his horse forward, yelling and straining with all his might. He slammed his saber down on the flagpole, sending more wood chips flying, but the banner of the Grand Marshal of the Righteous Army stood firm as before.

As the third knight charged forward, he glanced at the saber in his hand, his gaze suddenly hardening, as if he had made a choice or decision in his heart.

As he spurred his horse toward the flagpole, he leaped off and began hacking repeatedly at the gap with his saber, once... twice...

But the large banner, apart from swaying, showed no sign of falling, which made the knight cry out in frustration.

Now only one knight remained. His eyes were wide open, bloodshot as if they were about to bleed, and drops of bright red blood were dripping from the belly of his warhorse...

Clearly, the spurs on the boots had pierced deep into the horse's belly. Although this could temporarily boost the horse's energy, allowing it to run nearly twice as fast as usual, it would eventually collapse due to exhaustion after a short gallop, and might even die.

"Erzhu, hide!"

He shouted loudly, "Wang Erzhu, quickly hide!"

Like a bolt of lightning streaking across the night sky, its speed was beyond imagination, almost reaching the speed limit that humans could achieve at that time.

Even riding on the back of a warhorse that had gone mad, he felt no fear whatsoever. Instead, he pulled out a white cloth from somewhere and excitedly pressed it over the horse's eyes, blocking its vision.

"Erzhu, my mother is..."

Before he could finish speaking, there was a loud "bang," and the thick flagpole began to shake violently.

Wang Erzhu, who had already jumped to the side, had a look of fear in his eyes. Before he could react, he heard a "crack" sound, followed by "crack...crack..." sounds.

"Da Shuan, Shi Da Shuan..." Wang Erzhu's shouts suddenly stopped...

Because he witnessed a shocking scene:
Shi Dashuan and his warhorse crashed into the thick flagpole, which is why he covered the horse's eyes with a cloth in the critical moment when the horse went berserk and charged.

The warhorse lay fallen beside the flagpole, its skull shattered, blood and brain matter splattered everywhere. Shi Dashuan was clinging to the thick flagpole, slowly falling down with it.

It was impossible to tell whether Shi Dashuan was injured, but with his arms and legs wrapped around the flagpole and not moving at all, he was probably in grave danger!

"The banner has fallen..."

"Quick...save Brother Da Shuan..."

"Erzhu, mount your horse quickly!"

"The rebel leader is dead... The rebel leader has been defeated..."

"Run! Run if you want to live!"

For a moment, various sounds rang out, creating a chaotic yet somewhat orderly atmosphere...