Water Margin: Lu Bu sits on Mount Liang

"Kill—don't stop!"

"The one in the white cloak ahead is Zhang Shuye!"

A shout rang out on the battlefield. Surrounded by his personal guards, generals, and even Song cavalry, Zhang Shuye turned to look in the direction of the shouts, gripping the reins tightly. In his line of sight, a white cloak was being lifted up by the wind as he galloped along.

"General, quickly take off your cloak!"

Zhang Shuye, lying on his horse, roared with wide eyes: "I am a general of the Great Song Dynasty, how can I be frightened by a few words from the northern bandits and take off my clothes and armor! Do you want me to repeat the story of Cao Cao at the end of the Han Dynasty?"

However, at this moment, Lü Bu, leading his generals, broke through the last line of defense in the northwest. When Zhang Shuye saw the banner with the character "Lü," he immediately shut his mouth and turned around to run with his personal guards and deputy generals.

On Red Hare, a burly figure covered in blood frowned as he looked at the chaotic scene.

It is common for morale to collapse when the banner falls, but it is rare for it to crumble to this extent in an instant.

Even the most incompetent subordinates, like the skeletons in a tomb, would try their best to fight back at this moment, relying on their numbers...

With a mix of indescribable emotions swirling in his mind, Lü Bu raised his halberd and pressed it forward: "Sound the horn, drive their troops to charge their rear!"

The deep sound of bugles echoed in the sky. Several generals marched towards the east and west, forming small cavalry formations as before. They charged at any soldiers who dared to resist, scattering them and driving them south.

Less than 30,000 northern cavalrymen drove 40,000 to 50,000 defeated Song troops toward the Bian River. Yang Zaixing, covered in blood, ran wildly with his spear in hand, killing and scattering those who resisted to vent his anger, while his eyes glared fiercely: "Your commander has fled, why don't you lay down your weapons and surrender!"

An enemy general turned and ran, but he drew his bow and shot him dead from behind. The warhorse dragged the body forward for several dozen feet before slowly coming to a stop.

Upon seeing him, the Song infantry and generals around him turned around in fear and ran even faster. Some people behind who did not know the truth ran slower, but they were pushed to the ground and then trampled on to run even faster.

In that brief moment, Yang Zaixing galloped away on his horse, only to watch Zhang Shuye disappear into the crowd.

Then, on the battlefield, people kept shouting, "The one in the white cloak is Zhang Shuye!" "Whoever captures Zhang Shuye, regardless of whether he is from the Song or Qi dynasty, will be immediately ennobled!" Such shouts made many people's eyes turn red.

As the army advanced, more Song infantrymen followed the cavalry and surged toward the rear.

The setting sun burned the western sky, overlooking the plains where dense crowds stretched out in all directions. Tens of thousands of people drifted downstream in a sea of ​​fleeing people, with no end in sight.

The main battle lines had completely collapsed. As the Qi cavalry charged, more and more people turned to flee. After several engagements, they had lost the will to resist, and almost everyone was turning to run away.

Lü Bu led over two thousand elite cavalrymen, aggressively driving the fleeing Song army behind the routed troops. Occasionally, the guards beside him would fire arrows, forcing the straying crowd back onto the right path. Nearly seventy thousand troops from both sides were spread out in a dense crowd, with people everywhere.

“Strange, we should have encountered the enemy’s rear guard by now…” Red Hare galloped along, and the man on horseback frowned: “Why haven’t we heard any sounds of fighting yet?”

"Your Majesty, will they retreat?" Wei He looked at him from his horse with his chubby, round face: "With the central army breached, given the nature of these officials, they probably wish they could run away faster than their commander."

Looking at the seemingly endless sea of ​​people, Lü Bu shook his head: "Regardless of what happens to their rear army, order Wang De and Shi Wengong to intercept the Song army in the rear and persuade them to surrender. Bring them back later."

"Here!"

Several guards behind them reined in their horses and galloped away.

Lu Bu was silent for a moment: "Wei He, lead your men to continue forward. If you reach the river, immediately turn back with any prisoners you can bring back."

The fat man carrying the large halberd nodded, waved his hand, and led half of the Wuwei cavalry to continue driving away the fleeing soldiers.

Red Hare slowly came to a stop, and Yu Cheng approached: "Your Majesty, would you like to find a safe place to rest?"

"No need." Lü Bu waved his hand. "There's no life-or-death battle, and it's not that tiring." Looking at the figure crying and screaming in the distance, he pulled on the reins. "Organize the army and move backward. Tell Yao Gang and the others to find a safe place to unload their armor and rest. Don't forget that there is still a Zhao Song vanguard waiting for us behind us."

He waved to the cavalryman beside him and said, "Go and find Wang Zheng and the others on a fast horse. If they return to camp, have them rest well. If it's a night battle, order them to retreat immediately."

He ordered his cavalryman to clasp his hands together, let out a whistle, and gallop away with more than ten cavalrymen.

More than a thousand warhorses turned around, and the cavalrymen in black armor slowly walked back in the opposite direction.

……

Bianliang.

Black smoke billowed into the sky, torches were lit on the city wall, and able-bodied men quickly carried away the wounded and injured soldiers, their groans echoing from the city wall down to the city below.

Broken arrows were stuck in the bluestone, and many people were using brooms as tall as a person to clean up the fragments of poison smoke balls, thunderbolt fireballs, and other items.

Li Gang slowly sat down on the broken wood of the city tower, which was stained with blood. A personal guard handed him a water bag. The commander, who had been directing the defense all day, pulled out the cork, slowly took a big gulp, swallowed, took a breath, and then raised the water bag and drank more than half of it before stopping.

The chilling stench of blood filled his nostrils, causing the resolute old minister to sigh, stuff the water pouch back into place, and toss it back to his personal guard.

"The Qi army is fierce and brave, and is indeed incomparable to the navy of the past few days."

Muttering something, Li Gang sat for a while before getting up: "Quickly tally the casualties!" He strode to the battlements and walked slowly along this section of the city wall. All around him were pools of blood, and broken arrows, abandoned weapons, and shattered stones were scattered everywhere on and off the city wall.

Someone carried lanterns outside the city to prevent anyone from sneaking into the city under cover of darkness. One by one, the marks left by stone projectiles came into view. Standing on the wall with the most bloodstains, he recalled that this was the place where the northern bandit general with the leopard head and bulging eyes had attacked. Three commanders had died in this section of the city. If it weren't for Gao Chonghan, a general under Gao Dianshuai, leading several fierce generals to provide support, perhaps even more people would have died.

Peeking out, I saw that the inscription above the city gate had been blasted to pieces by enemy artillery fire. If the heavy gate hadn't been lowered in time, the city gate would have been breached.

but……

At least we managed to hold on today.

Li Gang sighed, put his hands behind his back, and led his personal guards down the city wall.

They also had to go to the palace to report the battle situation to the emperor, and could not rest.

……

At the front of the battlefield, the surrendered Song soldiers, surrounded by more than 20,000 cavalry, were extremely anxious. On the one hand, they wanted to shake off the cavalry chasing them frantically, wishing they could run on eight legs. On the other hand, they were furious as they looked at their comrades who were running faster than them. Their outstretched hands could not grab the armor in front of them, and they had to dodge the black hands of the people behind them. This made them secretly angry.

After running for an unknown amount of time, the air seemed to have become a little damp, and the faint sound of a river could be heard. Yang Zaixing, who was desperately chasing after the pursuers, stabbed a Song soldier who had slowed down ahead with his spear. The sound he heard had turned into a sob.

"I can't swim, help!" "Don't push me, don't push me!"

Near the edge of the river, dozens of pontoon bridges were still standing. Some people ran desperately to get on them, while others blocked the entrance. The two sides grappled, blocking even more people and fueling the anger of the desperate deserters. It's unclear who bumped into whom, but the battle quickly escalated. As time went on, most of the deserters were unable to reach the pontoon bridges to escape.

"By order of His Majesty, stop the fleeing soldiers from crossing the river and force them to turn back!"

"By order of His Majesty..."

Dozens of shouts rang out in the increasingly dim light. Someone lit torches, and the cavalry approached the pontoon bridge amidst gasps of alarm.

Upon seeing the Qi army approaching, the Song soldiers who were wrestling quickly dispersed, clutching their wounds and watching the mounted soldiers with fear and trepidation.

tumultuous--

The cavalrymen, carrying flammable materials, set the pontoon bridge ablaze. Many Song soldiers lost all hope of crossing the river, their legs gave way, and they knelt down, staring blankly as the flames grew stronger and stronger.

Da da--

Horse hooves thundered on the noisy riverbank. Wei He, clad in iron armor and half-covered in blood, held his large polearm upside down and shouted in a powerful voice, "Each unit, led by a squad, begin capturing prisoners. Anyone who resists will be executed on the spot!"

The sound was so loud that many Song soldiers looked in the direction of the sound. They showed no excitement or anger, but silently lowered their heads, as if they were acquiescing.

Warhorses galloped, orders were relayed through the crowd stretching for miles, and figures carrying torches and dressed in black armor began to walk into the fleeing soldiers.

The crowded people parted slightly, making way for the cavalry to pass. The moment the rider pulled out the rope, a quick-witted soldier-general stepped forward, grinning obsequiously, "No need for this general to do it. We can do it ourselves to avoid tiring you out."

"Hurry up and stretch out your hand. Do you want the Qi soldiers to use their knives?"

"A bunch of lazybones, hurry up and do it yourselves."

Shouts rang out among the surrendered Song soldiers, and figures dressed in crimson gradually formed rows and marched out of the ranks.

……

As the moonlight rose into the sky, the figures who had fled to the other side watched the river nervously. When they saw the pontoon bridge ablaze, they all breathed a sigh of relief. Many collapsed to the ground, supporting themselves with their hands behind their backs and looking up at the sky, panting heavily.

Zhang Shuye stood expressionless before the river, the surging water making a rushing sound. He stood motionless until he heard a dozen or so footsteps, at which point he moved slightly and turned his face.

"General, I, Li Jingliang, am late. Please forgive me." The imposing figure in front of him suddenly shrank by half.

"...You've wronged me." After a moment of silence, Zhang Shuye finally turned around completely, stepped forward, and looked down at him: "You should look that way..."

He stretched out his arm and pointed to the other side of the river: "Our comrades over there should apologize, they should apologize to the officials!"

Li Jingliang's kneeling figure trembled, and he quickly lowered his head: "The commander is right. When we return to the camp, I will immediately write a letter to confess my mistakes and am willing to go to prison to atone for my sins."

Zhang Shuye looked down at him for a long time, then slowly shook his head: "If you are defeated in battle, you are not guilty; but to flee before the battle is a capital offense!"

He raised his voice and shouted, "Guards! Take this man away and behead him, as a warning to others!"

Li Jingliang looked up in shock.

Several guards stepped forward, grabbed his arms, and dragged him backward.

"General, spare my life! General, spare my life!" Li Jingliang struggled but couldn't break free, so he cursed loudly, "You surnamed Zhang, you fought the battle, you gave the orders, why blame me for the loss! You ran away too!"

Seeing the unmoved figure standing there, and the force of the pull unyielding, he finally despaired: "I'll haunt you even as a ghost! Do you hear me! I'll haunt you even as a ghost..."

The sound faded into the distance, and soon a head was presented to the emperor.

Zhang Shuye's face was icy cold, and he didn't even look at it: "Send the head to the army and warn the other soldiers not to desert in the face of battle."

He paused, took a breath, and said, "Summon the commander of the rear army to come here. From now on, I will lead this army myself."

The messenger carried out the order, and Zhang Shuye turned back to look at the distant firelight. He didn't know when the torches had started moving, heading back the way they came, and gradually disappearing from his sight.

Zhang Shuye stood on the shore for a long time, then flicked his cloak and said, "...Go back!"

In the darkness, rustling sounds continued as someone took out a tinderbox and lit the torches carried by the warhorses. In the firelight, less than three thousand cavalrymen rode back to the camp.

The sound of hooves thundered.

……

Footsteps trod across the messy ground, occasionally slipping on sticky blood. Countless people walked in the firelight, with Qi cavalry carrying torches, swords, and spears to their sides and behind them. Some rode their warhorses, eating and drinking as they went. Many of the warhorses had bags in their mouths, chewing on bean cakes and other condiments.

This was Lü Bu and his entourage, who had turned back to the north. More than 30,000 cavalrymen had come out, but they had lost more than 1,000 men. However, they had captured almost as many Song soldiers as themselves. During the northward transfer of the main force, many surrendered soldiers broke away and escaped. Some of them were caught up with and killed by the Qi army in the night.

Even so, the darkness of night reduced the surrendered soldiers' fear of the cavalry to a minimum, and a large number of surrendered soldiers attempted to flee. Screams echoed across the plains, and the smell of blood permeated the air.

"Your Majesty, the hilly area where the vanguard is located is just fifteen li ahead." Yang Zaixing handed the army over to Lü Fang for temporary command, then ran into the central army and spoke behind the crimson figure.

"If you were a general in the Song army, what would you do?" Lu Bu asked without turning his head, his gaze fixed straight ahead as Red Hare undulated on its back.

"...I'll find a way to sneak us some coolness." Yang Zaixing said, his eyes darting around.

“Not bad.” Lü Bu turned back to look at him. “I have been on guard against them attacking us from behind.” He turned back, his body rising and falling with Red Hare. “They haven’t come yet, probably because of the orders from the previous commander.”

Yang Zaixing frowned: "Why? Wouldn't a pincer attack from both sides increase our chances of winning?"

"Who knows?" Lu Bu shrugged. "There's no point in talking about it now." He narrowed his eyes slightly. "It's better to think about how to welcome the guests who will be arriving later."

Yang Zaixing's eyes lit up from behind, and he clasped his hands in greeting:
"This humble general requests to fight." x2
Hearing the same voice, Yang Zaixing quickly turned around and saw Wang De had run over at some point, raising his eyebrows at him. (End of Chapter)