I rode and slashed unparalleled in the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 1173 We've been waiting for you
In the fifth year of the Kaiyuan era, at the end of December, snowflakes were falling.

With the arrival of the first snow of winter, the Romans took the opportunity to begin their secret withdrawal.

The moment he decided to withdraw his troops, Severus seemed to age ten years in an instant. His once straight imperial spine had to bend in the face of cruel reality. He knew that this order meant the complete failure of his ambitious eastern expedition and the imminent collapse of the Roman Empire's hegemony in the East.

However, if you can't win an attack, how easy is it to retreat?
Turning around an army of 200,000 against a menacing enemy was an incredibly risky gamble, not to mention the added disadvantages of running out of supplies and having their retreat cut off.

Although senior generals like Severus had been cracking down on the spread of rumors, the truth could not be hidden forever, and the panic in the military was already surging and difficult to contain.

Therefore, in order to preserve the embers of the empire as much as possible and safeguard its last remaining bloodline, Severus stayed up all night to devise a detailed plan for this retreat with Protinus and others.

First of all, although they withdrew, it does not mean that they would give up their territory in Asia Minor so easily.

The retreat was a last resort for the 200,000-strong army, whose supply lines had been cut off. This was not because they lacked food supplies locally and had to transport grain from Europe, but because the undulating mountains of Asia Minor caused prolonged losses, almost consuming every grain they brought from the rear.

This is by no means an exaggeration. Relying solely on land transport, while the loss of grain transported within Cappadocia province was still acceptable, the loss of grain transported from Pontus across provinces by land exceeded 70%. On the other hand, the grain silos of Greece and Macedonia, transported by sea to Trabzon, a Black Sea port in their respective provinces, and then on to the front lines, could keep the loss to within 30%.

This was the foundation upon which the Roman Empire ruled the Mediterranean.

The Mediterranean's fast shipping network tightly connected the empire's vast territory, supporting the expeditions of its massive army. However, now, with the Bosphorus Strait blockaded by the Han fleet, this vital lifeline has been completely severed.

Therefore, the core of Severus's plan was to break up the enemy into smaller groups, break out along different routes, and withdraw his troops to port cities along the Black Sea coast in northern Asia Minor that were still under Roman control, such as Sinop, Amastris, and Trabzon. He hoped to rely on local food supplies and Black Sea shipping (at this time, the Black Sea was still largely under Roman control) to maintain the front line.

"The Han Chinese had a limited number of ships and could not possibly control the entire Black Sea."

Emperor Severus glared with bloodshot eyes and gritted his teeth, saying, "As long as we retreat to the coast, we can rely on food supplies from Crimea and Colchis on the northern Black Sea coast to stabilize our position!"

"As long as our army is not annihilated, every town and pass will become a thorn and a barrier on the Han army's path forward! We will buy precious time for the empire to reclaim the seas!"

"Your Majesty is right."

Protinas immediately stood up and echoed his sentiment.

"Defeat is temporary. We also suffered the painful experience of naval annihilation when we fought against Carthage, but in the end, the Romans still ruled the seas, while Carthage was reduced to scorched earth!"

The emperor and the commander of the Imperial Guards worked in concert to boost morale, but the generals' expressions were far from positive.

Admittedly, the few dozen ships the Han Chinese have now cannot blockade all the coastlines, but to reclaim the ocean? Is that so easy?

After all, Carthage back then didn't have giant ships that could breathe thunder, nor did they have divine beasts that could soar through the heavens to aid them! They had witnessed, or at least heard, too many terrifying legends about the Eastern Emperor Su Yao and his golden griffin. It wasn't just a weapon on the battlefield, but a symbol of power beyond mortal comprehension, capable of destroying the strongest defenses and the most unwavering will.

Worse still, their retreat now means leaving their fate in the hands of Rome in the west, hoping that the Senate will go all out to gather warships, build warships, and once again engage in a decisive naval battle with the Han Chinese.

But can the empire today truly work together as unitedly as it did back then?

The thought of the current Western co-ruler Caesar made everyone's hearts pound.

However, they did not say these words aloud. Now that things had come to this, they seemed to have no choice but to follow the emperor's plan.

Thus, in silence, the Romans' breakout plan was finalized.

Severus's retreat plan was undeniably meticulous. He divided his army into four routes:
The left wing, led by the veteran Quintus Flaccus, consisted of four legions and a large number of allied cavalry. It was responsible for covering the rear, using the complex terrain of the Sald Valley to set up defenses layer by layer, delaying any possible pursuit by the Han army, and in the final stage, retreating northwest through Phrygia to the province of Bithynia.

The right flank, commanded by the valiant general Gaius Macrinus, also led four legions and auxiliary troops, and broke out to the northeast with the aim of opening a road to the Kingdom of Pontus (a Roman vassal state) to join forces with the local garrison and solidify the defenses on the southern coast of the Black Sea.

The vanguard (originally under Letus's command) was split up. A portion of the elite troops, led by Letus himself, served as the vanguard of the emperor's central army, heading west to clear the way and ensure the safety of the road to Metropol (Ankara), the capital of the Galata Province. The remaining troops were dispersed to garrison various fortresses in Cappadocia, delaying the Han army's control of the entire province as much as possible.

Emperor Severus himself, together with Protinus, personally led seven of the most elite legions, including the Praetorian Guard, as the core of the central army, closely following Letus's vanguard, striving to reach the relatively safe Metropol as quickly as possible, and then plan for the future.

To mislead the Han army, Severus also ordered flags to be displayed in the camp to make it appear as if the main force was still there, and sent out small groups of troops to launch feint attacks in an attempt to cover up the signs of the main force's retreat.

And so, Severus's retreat plan, like a meticulously choreographed drama, quietly began amidst the swirling snow.

However, Severus underestimated the Han army's ability to perceive the battlefield situation and overestimated the possibility of maintaining discipline in dire circumstances.

His opponents here were the shrewd and resourceful Jia Xu, the experienced and cunning Cao Cao, and the quick-witted and decisive Zhao Yun, among others.

Early the next morning, Jia Xu deduced from the smoke rising from the Roman camp that the Romans had begun to withdraw.

Cao Cao immediately clapped his hands and laughed loudly, "Your Majesty's strategies are divine and ingenious. You have secured the empire at sea and defeated the enemy on land, all within your grasp! Now it is finally time for us to make our mark!"

At Cao Cao's command, the Han army launched a full-scale attack.

Generals Zhao Yun, Gao Shun, Xiahou Dun, and Cao Ren led their elite troops in separate attacks, directly storming into the seemingly secure Roman camp and utterly destroying it.

(End of this chapter)