God Three Group Chat: Three Kingdoms

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Originally, all the orders were fine, and the preparations were in advance. However, an disorderly retreat will only cause larger-scale panic and rout, and will also lead to a loss of organization and control over the troops.

An army without organization is essentially doomed to defeat when facing an organized army.

Therefore, even if a retreat is necessary, it is essential to maintain adequate organizational capacity. Only in this way can a retreat be carried out with minimal cost and casualties.

Even when things are not going well, one can go all out and fight to the death.

Even a cornered beast retains its ferocity, and a weakened army can still fight; they remain a threat and can make their opponents wary.

However, Gacholi underestimated Cao Cao's decisiveness, as well as his boldness.

Based on their previous encounters, Gachali had also confirmed Cao Cao's command ability and battlefield adaptability.

He is quite excellent and capable in command, but not to the point of overwhelming him; in fact, there is still some gap between them.

Gachali was able to recognize this, and he was confident that his opponent would recognize it as well.

After all, once you reach their level, you can feel the difference in actual command between the two sides on the battlefield.

Recognizing the gap between the two sides' command structures, a military commander naturally needs to be more cautious to avoid falling into a trap.

Faced with an organized retreating army, any commander or general with sound thinking would have to consider what the enemy's true intentions are.

Is it a genuine retreat, or a strategy to lure the enemy deeper into our territory and then launch a counterattack at a later opportunity...?

These can be seen as two different choices, which will also lead to two different outcomes in the war.

It involves so many people, and the command ability is clearly insufficient, so why be so decisive and resolute?

"Could it be that this decisiveness and ruthlessness is why the enemy commands such an elite army?" Recalling the Han army's frantic advance along the way, Jiaqieli felt as if he had guessed the reason.

If we think about it from this perspective, then everything Cao Cao showed is quite appropriate.

Boldness, capability, and military strength—the ability to advance unimpeded is a testament to both strength and confidence.

If things really turn out as I imagine, then there are many things that cannot be done in dealing with the Han army forces that must be put on the agenda. Otherwise, how can the safety of the Khyber Pass fortress be guaranteed?

However, no matter how many thoughts he had, they couldn't stop the army under Gachori's command from withdrawing.

Even with prior preparations and the deployment of intercepting troops, the defensive line built by the Yuezhi army still failed to stop the Cao army soldiers, whose morale was soaring, whose combat power was rapidly increasing and who were now in a state of explosive power, especially since a large number of cavalry units were also involved.

Under these circumstances, Cao Cao's cavalry demonstrated exceptional battlefield cutting and breakthrough capabilities.

In particular, the intentions of all the Yuezhi army's current actions are quite clear: to retreat.

Against a retreating army, the fighting power of soldiers, even new recruits, is not much less than that of veterans. Veterans, with a bit more vigilance, will pursue more efficiently and quickly. They will relentlessly infiltrate and penetrate, forcibly breaking through the forward defensive lines set up by the Yuezhi, and then further engulf the retreating Yuezhi army, thus creating a stronger deterrent and pursuit capability.

"Defeating and crushing the enemy is already a great success for us," Li Qian, one of Cao Cao's generals, exclaimed excitedly upon witnessing the scene.

While the Kabul Valley region is capable of accommodating large armies for combat, its operational width is not particularly expansive.

The enemy forces were numerous, while our own forces were relatively small. Being able to defeat and rout the enemy was already a good result.

Of course, no one doubts that we can defeat or crush our opponent; the difference lies in when we defeat them.

The timing is indeed somewhat surprising, but it's still within an acceptable range.

With the enemy's weakness exposed, it was only natural to press the attack. Moreover, Cao Cao, as the commander, did not issue any order to stop them. Instead, he charged forward with the flags. What else was there to say?

Just fight!

As the moonlight faded, the sounds of battle in the Kabul Valley did not cease; on the contrary, they continued.

The road, stretching for hundreds of kilometers, was filled with people, especially the Yuezhi army, which was exposed among them, while the Han army pursuing them was also scattered.

However, the Han army, having gained momentum, pursued the enemy despite being outnumbered, relying on the advantage brought by their cavalry.

Cavalry has a faster movement speed and greater mobility, and when they are in a good position, they can pursue a larger force with a smaller force.

If it is confirmed that they cannot win, they can also gather multiple small cavalry units to form a combat advantage and launch continuous attacks.

Seeing all this happening, Gachori felt powerless. In this relatively wide valley, he led his army to continue retreating until he found a relatively narrow area or canyon in the Kabul River Valley, where he would be able to organize his army to carry out an effective resistance.

However, after the army had been defeated and lost its will to fight, Gachari knew how long it could hold out by relying on the terrain advantage.

Instead of relying on the current terrain advantage to stop the Han army, we should make the most of it to buy time, move more soldiers to the Khyber Pass fortress, and give the Khyber Pass fortress more time.

If these things are accomplished, then the sacrifice of the troops used to cover the rear will ultimately be worthwhile.

As an outstanding general, Gacholi never lacked the courage and determination to make tough decisions, especially when faced with such an opportunity, which he demonstrated to the fullest extent.

Relying on this spirit and the advantage of the terrain, Gacholi managed to lead his infantry back to the Khyber Pass fortress with nearly half of his troops, despite not suffering particularly heavy casualties, while being pursued by the Han cavalry.

As for the remaining troops, Gachali could only offer his prayers in his heart.

The Han army ultimately pursued and routed the enemy, rather than annihilating them. This meant that the scattered soldiers theoretically still had a chance to survive, only the degree of that chance varied.

However, judging from the speed of the Han army's pursuit, Jiaqieli estimated that most of his troops were probably not within the enemy's clearing range, otherwise they wouldn't be able to hold out so tenaciously...
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(End of this chapter)