Jiuxi

Chapter 567 [Life and Death]

"Hammer and Anvil Tactics..."

These four words popped up in Lu Chen and Xiao Wangzhi's minds at the same time, and both of them looked a little strange.

This is a very common tactic of cavalry and infantry coordination. In the Battle of Xifengyuan a few months ago, Li Tianrun used this tactic to defeat the Yan army.

The tactic itself is not complicated. Use your own heavy infantry to gain a foothold to block the enemy's offensive, and then let your own cavalry go around the enemy's rear. The two-pronged attack is like a hammer hitting a chopping board, and the enemy is caught in the middle.

However, in actual wars, there are not many generals who can do this.

In order to build up a hammer and anvil force on the battlefield, first of all, the soldiers must have a solid foundation, which requires the commander to have strong training capabilities.

While luring the enemy to attack fiercely, the infantry had to hold the last line of defense at the same time. If the enemy broke through from the front, they would be defeated before the cavalry could even attack.

Cavalry needs to be able to find flaws in mobile warfare and disrupt the enemy's rear formation with a strong posture, so as to move forward and complete the finishing blow.

These are just basic requirements. What is more important is whether the coach has an accurate grasp of the timing.

If the cavalry is dispatched too early, the enemy has not yet been trapped in a melee situation and can naturally withdraw its forces to reorganize the battle line. If the cavalry is dispatched too late, the infantry on our side may not be able to hold out for the front and back attacks.

This matter was obviously not a big deal for Qing Yugong, and he did not rigidly follow the usual pattern of hammer and anvil tactics, but made some slight adjustments.

Pucha and Wulinda each led a cavalry to detour to the rear of the Qi army's position. Under normal circumstances, they would be responsible for hammering, but Lu Chen was well aware of the strength of the Jing army's cavalry, and he also expected that Qing Yugong would definitely take advantage of the cavalry's high mobility to make something of it, so he had been prepared for this.

The Dingbei Army and the Feiyu Army attacked at the same time, and the two sides fought back and forth, making it difficult to determine the winner in a short period of time.

If Jing Jun's actions stopped here, it would be an unsuccessful change, because there was not much difference in the strength of the cavalry of the two armies entangled in the southeast of the battlefield.

The Feiyu Army faced off against the Zhongyi Army, and the Dingbei Army faced off against the Changsheng Army. The two sides had similar strength and equally high morale. In this situation, it was difficult for the Jing Army's cavalry to shake off their opponents and go straight to the rear of the Qi Army.

At this moment, the appearance of the third Jing army cavalry broke the situation on the battlefield.

They rushed straight towards the two wings of the Qi army's formation with the force of thunder. Their purpose was self-evident. They wanted to cut the Qi army's formation in half and then eat up the Qi army's infantry who broke into the Jing army's position.

There was no panic in Lu Chen's eyes. He turned his head to look at Xiao Wangzhi and said with a puzzled look: "Qing Yugong seems a little anxious?"

"Ah."

Xiao Wangzhi responded.

Although it was difficult for the front army's infantry to withdraw at this time, the Beijing camp led by Liu Shouguang had not moved yet. This was a trump card in Lu Chen's hand.

If Qing Yugong had enough confidence in his soldiers, he should continue to wait for Lu Chen to send the Beijing Camp, and then use all the reserve cavalry to intercept the flank.

Xiao Wangzhi pondered for a moment and said in a deep voice: "He has been taking advantage of the situation all along, from actively changing the formation to now attacking from both sides. In essence, he is taking advantage of our army's changes to find opportunities. If I am not mistaken, he is waiting for you to issue the order to retreat, which will be the time for the Jing army to launch a general attack."

"Retreat?"

Lu Chen looked up at the battlefield ahead and said calmly: "In today's battle, we can only advance and not retreat."

The drums sounded again and the flags continued forward.

Faced with the aggressive cavalry of the Jing army, Liu Shouguang immediately dispatched more than 10,000 people to form a formation on the flank to block them. On the other side, behind the Zhenbei Army, Qi Shouzhi, a trusted general under Li Tianrun, led his personal guard battalion to erect a barrier for his comrades in Huaizhou.

Looking at the battlefield on the plain today, it can be roughly divided into three areas. The first is where the main cavalry of the two armies are fighting in the southeast. The second is where the Beijing Camp and the Jingzhou Guard Camp are resisting the harassment of the Xiashan Army cavalry on the flanks. The third is the most brutal head-on confrontation between the main infantry of the two armies.

"Order the entire army to attack!"

After Lu Chen issued this order, the formation of the Qi army changed again.

Except for the two cavalry units, the Jingzhou Guard Battalion and 10,000 soldiers from the Beijing Camp, the rest of the reserve forces pressed forward as a whole and rushed towards the main infantry who were fighting in the front.

The decisive battle is coming.

Jing army’s position, under the king’s flag.

The Fourth Prince looked out at the endless stream of Qi soldiers rushing towards the Jing Army's position, and a feeling of tension quickly filled his mind.

Just now when Qing Yugong sent the Xiashan Army Cavalry to attack the two wings of the Qi Army, he was full of anticipation and very excited.

At that moment he had fully understood the strategic intentions of the Southern Court Marshal.

From the very beginning, Qing Yugong was showing weakness. Even though he didn't know the purpose of the Qi army's strange square formation, no matter what the opponent's commander wanted to do, it would ultimately come down to attack. Therefore, he rotated his troops in advance to give the opponent a chance.

The subsequent developments were completely consistent with Qing Yugong's inference, but the Fourth Prince did not expect that Lu Chen of Southern Qi would be so courageous. Knowing that Qing Yugong was going to use the hammer and anvil tactics, he did not retreat but advanced instead and launched a general attack at this time.

At this point, the Qi army had no way to retreat.

They must make a desperate effort to defeat the Jing army's position before the two cavalry sides decide the outcome!

Thinking of this, the Fourth Prince couldn't help but frown and said, "Your Majesty, the opposing coach is too crazy."

Qing Yugong narrowed his eyes and said, "In this case, our army will have no choice but to follow Li Tianrun's example."

The fourth prince looked puzzled: "Imitate?" Qing Yugong did not answer, but turned to look at his confidant on the other side: "Send a message to Tuote, order him to lead the army to attack the left wing of the Qi army."

Hearing this name, the Fourth Prince's eyes suddenly lit up.

The horn sounds melodious, echoing between heaven and earth.

The soldiers on the battlefield could hear it, and naturally the people in Yongqiu City, which was not far away, could also hear it.

Then the east and south gates of Yongqiu were opened at the same time, and countless elite soldiers of the Jing army swarmed out, rushing towards the battlefield like two long dragons.

They gradually merged as they marched and rushed straight towards the left wing of the Qi army.

Judging from the number of people, almost all the defenders stationed by Qing Yugong in Yongqiu City have come out in full force. If Lu Chen had secretly deployed an army in advance and attacked Yongqiu City at this time, he could have taken it without any effort.

But nothing happened.

The Feiyu Army and the Dingbei Army were entangled by two Jing Army cavalry units and were unable to make a detour to intercept the Jing Army coming out of Yongqiu City. They had an unimpeded journey and quickly approached the left wing of the Qi Army.

Lu Chen and Xiao Wangzhi obviously noticed this, but the central army did not issue any response orders, and the main force of the Qi army still attacked the Jing army's position without any hesitation.

On the left wing, above the Da Qijing Army’s position.

Liu Shouguang looked to the west and saw 20,000 Jing army infantrymen heading towards there.

If they only had to deal with a few thousand Jing army cavalry, the soldiers of the Beijing camp could still do it, but now that there are suddenly 20,000 more powerful enemies, the pressure of defense will increase dramatically, and it may even be impossible to defend.

Liu Shouguang took a deep breath and said sternly: "Anyone who retreats will be killed immediately!"

More than ten thousand soldiers from the Beijing camp stared at the powerful enemy coming from the west. Some were fearless, some were timid, but under the constraints of military law, no one dared to turn around and retreat.

The 20,000 Yongqiu defenders, with the support of thousands of cavalry, rushed towards the positions of the Beijing camp like a tide.

In an instant, blood gushed out.

On the northeast side of the Jing Army's infantry position, the Heyang Army, Qingxu Army, Anping Army, Guangling Army, Taixing Army and other units were lined up on a battle line several miles long. When the central army's flag approached, the soldiers moved forward more bravely, constantly squeezing the Jing Army's defense line.

At this time, the war was in a stalemate.

On one hand, the soldiers of the Beijing camp were gradually losing the upper hand, while on the other hand, the main force of the Qi army was desperately tearing apart the defense line of the Jing army's infantry.

At the same time, the cavalry of both armies began to charge each other.

The outcome of any one battle will directly affect the final outcome of the war.

On this vast plain, Qi Jing's army of more than 100,000 was engaged in bitter battles.

The Fourth Prince felt his heart beating faster and faster. This was the first time he witnessed a war of such a large scale, and the resilience of the Qi army was beyond his expectations. When Qing Yugong decisively abandoned Yongqiu City and transferred the defenders to the battlefield, the commander of the Qi army ignored them and only wanted to achieve success in one battle and defeat the Jing army's infantry on the front battlefield.

What's even more terrifying is that no matter whether it is the Nanqi Jing army that independently supported the left wing of the defense line, or the main force that continued to pour into the Jing army's position, they did not waver for a moment and carried out the commander's orders with great determination.

Looking at the flags of the Qi army gradually becoming clearer in the distance, the Fourth Prince couldn't help but take a few deep breaths, then looked at Qing Yugong and asked: "Your Highness, as long as our army can break through the left wing of the Qi army..."

Qing Yugong said in a deep voice: "Your Highness, there is actually something I can't figure out. Why don't Lu Chen and Xiao Wangzhi guard against the Yongqiu garrison?"

The fourth prince was startled.

Since even Qing Yugong couldn't figure out the problem, he naturally didn't dare to express his opinion casually.

Qing Yugong continued, "It's very strange. No matter whether it's Lu Chen or Xiao Wangzhi, these two people can't be defenseless, unless they intend to use the Beijing army on the left wing as a trade."

The fourth prince asked quickly: "What exchange?"

Qing Yugong said slowly: "Defeat the defense line of our infantry and capture this Southern Court Marshal alive."

In fact, the Fourth Prince realized as soon as he asked the question that the purpose of the Qi army commander was clear from the moment the general attack was launched. Their cavalry only needed to remain undefeated, and the Jing army defending the left wing could be sacrificed in order to buy time and space for the main infantry to kill to the Jing army's flag in one go.

But how could this be so easy?

The first to give up were not the infantry defense line of the Jing army, but the soldiers of the Beijing camp who were at a disadvantage in terms of manpower.

Liu Shouguang's eyes were bloodshot, he knew very well the terrible consequences of the loss of the left wing, but there are some things in this world that will never change because of human will.

It was not until this moment that he confirmed that the Jing army infantrymen coming out of Yongqiu City were the real main force under Qing Yugong!
Amid the incessant beast-like roars of the Jing army's infantry, the soldiers of the Beijing camp kept retreating, their formation became increasingly loose, and was gradually on the verge of collapse.

At this time, no one could come to rescue them.

The defeat was irreversible. Once the soldiers of the Beijing camp were defeated and the main force of the Qi army failed to break through the Jing army's position, a huge crisis would be waiting for the border army of the Great Qi.

Liu Shouguang's eyes turned red and he drew out his long sword and pointed it at the sky.

"All soldiers, follow me to kill the enemy!"

(End of this chapter)