Big man: I am the Champion Marquis!

Chapter 182 Rout
The Han army advanced forward step by step. The infantry in the front row waved their weapons fiercely and killed the Xiongnu cavalry who were inconvenienced in their movements.

The Han cavalry in the back row were also working hard. They continued to draw their bows and shoot arrows, suppressing the Huns.

As for King Riju, it was not that he wanted to escape, but that he had already started to flee. He could no longer hold on. Defeat was already decided. Now he had to consider how many people he could bring back and how much loss he could recover.

This time he was defeated, and defeated completely.

The Right Wise King's surprise attack did not work, but instead fell into the trap of the Han army. He wanted to tire out the enemy and make the Han army lose their guard, but his plan was discovered and he suffered heavy losses.

The defender becomes the forward, and the people in the back row escape first and keep some distance, so that the soldiers in the front can also escape.

There would definitely be no problem with such a tactical arrangement, but the problem is that it is definitely not easy to execute.

When they were on the grassland, everyone was the bravest warrior. Facing weak tribes, they could march forward triumphantly, wielding their weapons ferociously and reap lives.

But in the final analysis, we are all human beings. We will feel fear when facing death, and when facing opponents that we know we cannot defeat, we will also want to beg for mercy and to live.

What’s more important is that among the Xiongnu, apart from a very small number of elite professional soldiers, most of them are herdsmen and so on.

They usually herd sheep and horses. Under the test of nature and the influence of local customs, they also practice riding and archery and have a certain combat capability.

But it was a bit difficult for them to enforce orders. Even though there were formations during war, the requirements were much lower than those of the Han army.

Zhang Anshi and Zhao Chongguo were extremely excited and directed their soldiers to brandish their weapons.

"Forward!" Zhao Chongguo shouted excitedly, ignoring the arrows stuck in his armor, "Officer, officer, move forward!"

Zhang Anshi, who was standing behind the queue not far away, shouted, "Horse legs, cut off the horse legs! Hook the Xiongnu's weapon and drag him down!"

As soon as a Xiongnu cavalryman was dragged off his horse, the Han army's spearmen began to stab him with their spears. Occasionally, a comrade fell, and someone immediately took his place. Whether it was holding a spear or a shield, they all maintained a tight formation.

Military exploits were constantly accumulating, which of course made the Han army extremely excited.

Although there were military merits and gains in the previous battles against the Western Regions countries such as Cheshi, these military merits were also divided into different levels. The people of the Western Regions were not as "valuable" as the Xiongnu, and killing the Xiongnu would get higher military merits and more rewards.

Most soldiers may not dare to dream of becoming generals, but after this expedition, the rewards they receive can allow their family to live in peace for two or three years, which is worth their lives!

"Captain, the Xiongnu are trying to escape!" a garrison commander shouted to Zhao Chongguo, "They are running low on arrows!"

It was not just that there were fewer arrows, but also because he heard some horse hoof sounds and shouting, which were very different from the previous sounds of fighting and killing.

Zhao Chongguo knows a lot of foreign languages, including Xiongnu and Qiang, which are all abilities he has mastered.

"Hurry up and send someone to report to the Grand Marshal!" Zhao Chongguo said immediately, "Keep going forward, the more you kill, the more merits you will gain!"

We cannot let the Huns escape easily. The formation has always been tightly connected with the Huns. This is the military order from the Grand Marshal.

In addition to preventing the Xiongnu cavalry from having room to maneuver, it was also a factor in making full use of the Han army's weapons.

The most important thing is to keep a close eye on the Huns and not give them the chance to turn around and escape, so as to kill the Huns to the greatest extent possible.

There was a high probability that the Huns would flee, and many soldiers would not be surprised at all.

The battle had reached this point, and it was meaningless for the Huns to continue to persist, as their defeat was inevitable. Unless something incredible and major suddenly happened, they would have a chance to fight back.

Upon hearing the military intelligence from the front, Huo Xian decisively gave the order, "Let those who can speak Xiongnu language shout loudly, and those who surrender will not be killed! Those who surrender will dismount and kneel by the road!"

Huo Xian was not a man of high moral character, but he would avoid doing things like killing the prisoners of war if he could.

Moreover, there were many Xiongnu in his army. This was the case between the Han and Xiongnu. It was common for them to surrender after being defeated. Some Han troops surrendered to the Xiongnu after being defeated, and some Xiongnu surrendered to the Han after being defeated.

The Han Dynasty treated the surrendered Xiongnu soldiers well, and many of them were incorporated into the army. Most of the Xiongnu nobles who took the initiative to surrender were granted titles of nobility, and they could also enjoy wealth and honor in the Han Dynasty.

Huo Xian did not think there was anything wrong with this. It was not necessary to kill all the Xiongnu people. Weakening the Xiongnu did not necessarily rely on war alone. Disintegration and division was also a good way.

The moment of decisive battle is over, and the next thing to do is to sweep up the fallen leaves and clean up the battlefield.

Zhao Anguo was quite excited and said to Huo Xian, "Sir, it looks like the outcome has been decided. If the Xiongnu start to flee, our cavalry should move forward!"

Huo Xian thought the same and said, "We should not be careless. I will lead the heavy cavalry to charge and kill them. They will not be able to rest and gather their troops. You will lead your troops to follow and kill them. Order the infantry to follow and collect the surrendered soldiers."

Then he continued to give orders, "Tell Tian Ren and others to quickly prepare arrows and falling rocks for support."

King Ruju was defeated and fled. Now is the time for the Han army to pursue the victory. Naturally, they also need to consider continuing to expand the results of the victory. It seems that there is no possibility of losing this battle.

However, Huo Xian still remained sufficiently vigilant and still needed to take into account some possible changes. The ambushes on both sides of the valley not only could not move, but also had to serve as support to prevent their retreat from being cut off.

This is also one of the more stable aspects of Huo Xian's use of troops. Even if it seems that he is sure to win now, he still needs to consider the possibility of a reversal and must not recklessly play when victory is already decided.

The Huns in the front were retreating, and the Han army was killing the enemies while undermining the Huns' morale and constantly persuading them to surrender.

There was definitely an effect, not only because the Huns felt that the hard fight was disadvantageous, but also because they had no support behind them.

The soldiers who were still holding out in the front began to panic, because they had no intention of fighting anymore, and their comrades were already retreating! Huo Xian carefully observed that the heavy cavalry was also moving forward, although the speed was slow, but it was very effective. The infantry were also retreating at this time, and the battle was once again handed over to the cavalry.

The coordination between the arms is very smooth, which is due to the strict training in daily life and the high professional quality of the soldiers. This is also the reason why the Han army seems to have a very tacit understanding.

Huo Xian and the heavy cavalry were ready for battle. When the drums sounded, they immediately urged their horses to speed up, and their horse spears instantly knocked down the Huns who were still resisting stubbornly.

The heavy cavalry charged into the Huns' defense line in the shape of an arrow. This time, it could be felt that the Huns' resistance was much weaker, and their will to resist was indeed constantly disintegrating.

This time, without the Huns' continued efforts, the resistance they encountered was instantly wiped out, and the subsequent light cavalry and others could easily continue to advance.

Huo Xian knew that he was sure to win. As the heavy cavalry continued to advance, the Huns would either collapse at the first blow, kneel down and beg for surrender, or turn around and run away.

These people have no choice at all. Since they can't win, they naturally just think about how to save their own lives, which seems to be the most important choice.

"Sir, this is the character of the Xiongnu!" Chen Ju felt very happy, "I'm afraid we will have to chase them all the way out of the valley!"

Huo Xian nodded and said, "Let An Guo lead his men forward quickly. The Xiongnu are no longer a threat now. We have overestimated them. Send the light cavalry to attack them. They are fast!"

I had indeed overestimated the Huns. I originally thought that even if they retreated, they should do so in an orderly manner, with the necessary defense lines, resistance, etc.

This is also the reason why Huo Xian chose to use heavy cavalry to charge forward, and he also hoped to completely break the Huns' will to resist at the critical moment.

But who could have imagined that the Huns were so decisive and resolute when they fled, not caring about formation or defense at all, and just turned around and ran away in a huge crowd, not caring about their comrades behind them at all.

Heavy cavalry would not be useful at this time. Heavy cavalry has excellent attack capabilities, but in such a chase, its speed is obviously not as fast as light cavalry. This is a reality that cannot be changed.

"Remember to be quick, and never give the Huns a chance to regroup!" Huo Xian urged, "The faster you kill them and the harder you chase them, the faster they will flee!"

The purpose of sending light cavalry to attack is speed and efficiency. It is necessary to make sure that the Huns have no time and energy to gather the defeated soldiers and reorganize the defense line. They must not have any strength to resist.

Huo Xian naturally understood that the current pursuit war was all about speed and efficiency. The Huns who had come to their senses might have a chance to reduce their losses, but Huo Xian would never allow the Huns to have such an opportunity.

Only with death chasing them all the time, the Huns could only focus on escaping instead of thinking about other things.

King Riju had actually reacted. The cavalrymen behind him were running wildly. It was not an orderly evacuation as previously arranged, nor was it a one-by-one retreat.

Who would be willing to let their tribe become cannon fodder? Seeing that everyone else has fled, if they don't flee they will only be killed by the Han army. How can they have the courage to continue fighting?

Now there is really no other way except to escape. Only by running faster can you have a chance to save your life. No one can block your escape.

The Xiongnu in the rear wanted to organize a defense line, but they were broken up by the fleeing soldiers. After failing once or twice, King Riju had no other ideas, as he had already been defeated.

The only thing we can do at this time is to escape, or escape faster. If we are caught by the Han army, it will be a shame.

The former Zuoxian King, Qie Di Hou, is still in Chang'an. King Ruju does not want to stay with Qie Di Hou. He still hopes to return to the grassland, where he should live.

As for why this battle was lost, or what consequences will occur after this defeat, there is no need to think too much about such things for the time being, because there is really no need.

The more important thing is to escape back to the grassland and leave this valley that brought shame to oneself. This is obviously more important than becoming a Han Chinese and gaining military merit!
The shouts of the Han army filled the Huns with fear. Apart from fleeing for their lives, they had no other thoughts or ideas. The most important thing was to escape from the valley.

The Han army behind was chasing them very closely, leaving them no chance to relax. The only thing they could do was to flee forward and keep running.

Huo Xian led his army in continued pursuit. After five or ten miles, the infantry had been left further and further behind, but the pursuit had to continue, and those Hun stragglers could not be let go.

"My Lord, we are almost out of the valley." Chen Ju reminded loudly, "I'm afraid we should be more careful!"

Huo Xian knew that he had basically not encountered any decent resistance during the pursuit, but it was hard to say except at the valley entrance, where he might run into the main force of the Right Wise King.

Huo Xian also decisively ordered, "Quickly send someone to inform An Guo to stop at the entrance of the valley and do not continue to pursue!"

Naturally, a messenger would fly over to pass on the message. Huo Xian breathed a sigh of relief and asked, "Uncle Chen, how many people do you think you killed along the way?"

Chen Ju immediately said happily, "In total, we have killed at least 5,000 people and captured at least 3,000! What King Rizhu? I think all his elite soldiers were lost in this valley in one go!"

Huo Xian was also very satisfied with this evaluation. "Although our army suffered some casualties, it was much better than those Xiongnu. In this battle, the casualties may be over a thousand."

These were the casualties during the initial stalemate between the two armies. They were the damage caused by the exchange of fire between the two armies before King Rizhu fled.

Chen Ju didn't care too much. "It's a pity to lose one or two thousand soldiers, but it's a great achievement to kill nearly ten thousand enemies. How many people in the world can kill so many people at such a small cost?"

Huo Xian continued to lead his troops forward, when suddenly a scout came on horseback to report, "Sir, the Right Xian King of the Xiongnu is waiting for you at the entrance of the valley, and the following Marquis of Pi dare not advance."

That's right, both armies were very cautious and both knew that the terrain was not suitable for large-scale combat. One did not dare to continue chasing forward, and the other did not dare to enter the valley.

This was even more true for the Right Wise King of the Xiongnu. After seeing the disastrous defeat of the vanguard, King Riju, it would be a lie to say that he was not a little apprehensive. If the army continued to advance, it might just repeat the same mistake.

It was definitely impossible for the Han army to leave the valley, otherwise the disadvantage in military strength would be infinitely magnified. Huo Xian did not dare to fight against the remaining 50,000 Xiongnu with less than 10,000 people.

Riding his horse quickly forward, Huo Xian wanted to meet the Right Wise King of the Xiongnu to find out what conspiracy he had. He continued!

He wanted to see what other plans the Right Wise King had!
(End of this chapter)