I summon all the famous generals in history in another world

Chapter 1456 The Prideful General Jingyuan's Farewell to Life and Death

"Pass on my order: sound the gong three times to signal General Lan to withdraw his troops!"

Li Wenzhong said in a deep voice, reaching out to take a signal arrow from his waist—this was an emergency communication signal within the Three Thousand Battalion, the arrowhead wrapped in red silk, which would emit a sharp whistling sound when lit.

"General, given General Lan's temperament, I'm afraid he might not be willing to retreat! Moreover, if we break through now, we'll have to tear through two lines of defense, and the losses will definitely be significant."

Zhao Yong hesitated for a moment.

"Even greater losses are better than total annihilation!"

Li Wenzhong's eyes sharpened.

“The Three Thousand Battalion is the lord’s most precious possession. We cannot let it be ruined here because of a moment of anger. Although Lan Yu is arrogant, he is not stupid. He will understand once he sees the situation clearly.”

"Take five hundred men immediately and open a gap at the low slope on the east side. That is the junction between the Hengwu infantry and the guerrilla cavalry, and the defense is relatively weak. Remember, use short crossbows to clear out the front row of long spearmen first, and then use horse lances to widen the gap. Make sure to leave a retreat passage for Lan Yu's troops!"

As they spoke, three signal arrows shot into the sky, their sharp whistling sound piercing through the clamor of the battlefield.

"The rest of you, follow me. We'll hold off the Hengwu infantry formation on the west side and cover General Lan's rear!"

Li Wenzhong drew his sword from his waist, the blade gleaming coldly in the gloomy light of the day.

Lan Yu was in the heat of battle, and had already switched to a second black horse. His first horse had fallen in the midst of the formation, bleeding from its mouth and nose from the continuous charges. The lance in his hand had pierced through the armor of the seventh Hengwu soldier, and the three-edged armor-piercing groove on the tip of the lance was covered with blood and flesh. When it was pulled out, it made a piercing tearing sound.

"You scum of the Hengzhou army! Come and die again!"

Lan Yu roared, the bloodstains on his silver armor had congealed into clumps, and the bloodstains splattered on his face made him look like a ferocious demon.

He was furious after being tricked by Wu Qi outside Wuzhou City last time. Now that he finally had the chance to lead three thousand battalions in a charge, he just wanted to kill to his heart's content and repay the previous humiliation tenfold.

"General, it seems the central army is retreating! Should we...?"

His personal guards tried to remind him.

"Why retreat?"

Lan Yu swung his spear and sent an enemy soldier flying, shouting angrily.

"Xu Shuai is just adjusting the formation. Can't you see we're breaking through their defenses? If we push a little harder, we'll reach Wu Qi's central army!"

As soon as he finished speaking, three red signal arrows suddenly rose from his rear. The sharp whistling sound made him pause. This was the emergency retreat signal for the 3,000 battalion, and only Li Wenzhong's side could fire it.

Lan Yu abruptly reined in his warhorse, and the black horse reared up, pawing the ground with its front hooves and neighing restlessly.

He looked in the direction of the signal arrow and saw Li Wenzhong leading a cavalry unit charging toward the Hengwu infantry formation on the west side. The white qi was particularly conspicuous in the chaos of the army.

He then began to look around the battlefield, and in the direction of the central army in the distance, the situation was even worse than he had imagined.

The once orderly formation of the Five Armies Camp had completely fallen apart, with soldiers fleeing in all directions like headless flies. Jiang Xiaobai's allied forces had long since disappeared, leaving only a few Yellow Turban soldiers still putting up a stubborn resistance, but under the Hengzhou army's offensive, it was nothing more than a drop in the ocean.

"Damn it!"

Lan Yu slammed his fist on the saddle, only then realizing that it wasn't Xu Shuai adjusting the formation, but that the army had truly been defeated.

He glanced at the soldiers beside him. Of the original 1,500 men, only 700 remained. Many of the cavalrymen's horses were exhausted and they had to dismount and fight on foot. Their willow-leaf armor was covered with knife marks and arrow holes, clearly indicating that they were at their last gasp.

He knew that Li Wenzhong was firing a signal arrow to buy them a chance to retreat. Given Li Wenzhong's personality, he would definitely choose to stay behind and cover the rear, allowing him to lead the remaining troops to break through the encirclement.

But the thought of abandoning his comrades and escaping alone made Lan Yu's face burn with embarrassment—when had Lan Yu ever been so disheveled?

Back then, they marched eight hundred li in seven days and nights, never retreating even when surrounded, but now they have to rely on others to cover their rear to survive.

"General, General Li has already breached the eastern side! If we don't leave now, it will be too late!"

His thoughts were interrupted by the shouts of his personal guards. "The Hengzhou army's cavalry has surrounded us. If this drags on any longer, we won't be able to retreat even if we want to!"

Lan Yu looked in the direction the guard pointed. On the low slope to the east, Li Wenzhong's men were clearing out the enemy with short crossbows. The sharpness of the horse spears had already torn open a gap more than ten feet wide. Although the Hengzhou army's guerrilla cavalry were launching a frantic counterattack, they had not been able to block it for the time being.

He gritted his teeth, torn between his pride and his duty to protect the elite of the three thousand battalions. On one hand, there was the pride of dying on the battlefield to prove his loyalty; on the other, there was the responsibility of protecting the three thousand elite troops.

When Zhu Yuanzhang formed the Three Thousand Battalion, he patted Lan Yu on the shoulder and said, "Lan Yu, this force is the sharpest blade of our Great Xuan. It must not be lost unless absolutely necessary."

These words struck him like a thunderclap.

He can die, but the Three Thousand Battalion cannot perish!

This was Zhu Yuanzhang's hard work, and it was the foundation for the Yellow Turban Army of the Great Xuan to continue its southward advance against the Great Xuan and even the Hengzhou Army.

"withdraw!"

Lan Yu suddenly swung his lance, his voice tinged with resentment.

"Everyone follow me! Break through the gap General Li opened! Do not linger! Only by getting out alive can we avenge our fallen brothers!"

More than 700 cavalrymen responded in unison, their voices filled with the relief of surviving a disaster.

Lan Yu took the lead, his lance cleaving through the oncoming long spear, and his black horse, like a black lightning bolt, charged towards the gap on the east side.

The Hengzhou soldiers tried to stop them, but a number of them were shot down by Lan Yu's cavalry with short crossbows. As the horse spears flew, the gap was widened further.

As Lan Yu rushed through the gap, he glanced back at the center of the battlefield. Li Wenzhong was leading the remaining cavalry, desperately holding off the Hengwu infantry formation on the west side. The white qi contrasted sharply with the black armor of the Hengwu infantry, like a lone boat in a raging storm.

"Li Wenzhong, you wait, I, Lan Yu, will definitely come back to save you!"

Lan Yu's eyes instantly turned red. He gripped his lance tightly and squeezed out a few words through gritted teeth.

Compared to the life-or-death decision faced by the 3,000 battalions, the retreat of the Wuzhou stronghold coalition was much "smoother."

Zhu Jiuyin and Dijiang had received Jiang Xiaobai's secret order half an hour earlier: "The situation is hopeless, retreat to Wunan immediately."

Dijiang never intended to fight to the death for the Yellow Turban Army. His previous battles with Sun Wukong and Shen Yuan were just for show. Although Zhujiuyin had some doubts, he naturally wouldn't continue fighting to the death since the front line was on the verge of collapse.

The two immediately began to maintain a tacit "fight without breaking" situation, waiting for Jiang Xiaobai's signal to retreat.

"Shen Yuan, your white jade pillar is quite heavy, but unfortunately it's too slow!"

As Dijiang brandished his double halberds, he made casual sarcastic remarks, while keeping an eye on the surrounding situation out of the corner of his eye.

Seeing the Yellow Turban army's central force collapse in the distance, he was secretly delighted. Suddenly, the spatial energy in his hand erupted, forming a huge spatial rift that forced Shen Yuan to retreat repeatedly.

"Brother Zhu, it's about time we went, or we'll be stuffed into dumplings!"

Dijiang shouted, and his black horse suddenly accelerated. Spatial energy formed a barrier around the horse's hooves, forcefully knocking away two guerrilla knights.

Zhu Jiuyin understood immediately. With a backhand swing of his Time Staff, the silvery-white Time Qi formed a time-stabilizing band, blocking Sun Wukong's golden cudgel.

"Sun Wukong, I'll spare your life for today, and we'll have a proper fight another day!"

He emphasized that the steed, with its four hooves flying, galloped swiftly westward.

"You two cowards! You dare to fight but not to win, what kind of heroes are you!"

Sun Wukong was so angry that he screamed loudly.

(End of this chapter)