A Good Landlord in the Tang Dynasty: Starting from the Village Chief

Chapter 553 The Wrath of the Eternal Heaven

The Divine Machine Battalion's Divine Machine Arrows and Divine Machine Thunder caused the Turks' camp to be thrown into chaos.

The camp roared.

While this wasn't a true riot, it was close enough. A real riot usually occurs when highly stressed soldiers suddenly suffer a mental breakdown in the middle of the night due to someone's hysteria, causing the entire camp to collapse.

This is especially true for troops that have suffered a crushing defeat and are on the verge of a mental breakdown.

And now,
The Turks also broke out in a panic.

However, because of the violent explosions of the divine arrows and thunderbolts, some people heard that the Eternal Heaven was angry and sent down heavenly lightning and fire rain as punishment. They believed it to be true and shouted along with it. Some even knelt down and prayed.

The horse was severely frightened and ran around wildly.

This caused many terrified soldiers to flee as well.

This fear and panic was spreading rapidly.
Three thousand cavalrymen charged in the chaos, creating the effect of thirty thousand men.

It exploded.

Completely blown away.

The Tang army used firearms to bomb the Turkic camp, causing the Turks to panic and scatter their own troops.

Two passageways were reserved in advance.

This proved extremely effective at this moment; the terrified and panicked Turkic soldiers all fled through the two holes, like a pressure relief valve.

It's like a river bursting its banks; the water naturally rushes out through the breach.

This breach attracted soldiers in the camp to flee.

No one was willing to resist.
They clearly saw the Tang cavalry charge into the camp, yet they were still shouting that the Eternal Heaven was angry and had unleashed divine punishment.

Qin Wutong slaughtered his enemies on all sides.

He hadn't expected the night raid to be so effective.

Although their warhorses were also affected, they were better prepared than the stunned Turks.

I don't know when the explosions stopped.

The fire, however, grew even larger.

It's very windy tonight.
With the help of the wind, the Turkic camp was completely engulfed in flames.

The Turks in the camp had already fled through the two gaps.
Beyond the breach to the south lay the Hutuo River beach, a soft, muddy expanse. Countless Turks fled in panic, so much so that they even forgot about this river beach.

He continued rushing forward into the dark, muddy ground, where he became trapped.
The people behind were pushing the people in front forward.

As a result, even more people rushed onto the riverbank, and many frightened horses followed suit.

In an instant, countless people were trampled.
People trampling people, horses trampling people.
Yet many people were still fleeing the camp condemned by heaven in panic and screaming, rushing forward with hysterical cries.

Some people kept rushing into the river without stopping.

More and more people rushed into the river, or were pushed into it.
Many Turks cannot swim.
The Hutuo River wasn't very deep at this time, but in the crowded darkness, people who couldn't swim could easily slip and fall.
Once it falls, it struggles wildly and can't get up again.

Even someone who can't swim can drown if they fall into knee-deep water.

The Turks who rushed out from the north were in a much better situation.

Qin Wutong led his troops in a combined attack, utterly crushing the Turkic camp.
They also began to pursue the routed enemy to the north.

In the darkness,
The Turks, Sogdians, and Burokhi were already in complete disarray and their forces were utterly routed.

These nomadic peoples, born light cavalry, were now mostly forced to flee on foot, their horses scattered in fright, and they could not catch up.

No horses,
Night,

flight,
This is the night of death, the road of death.

Three thousand light cavalry regrouped and pursued them relentlessly.
They kept charging and fighting, each time cutting off a large group of fleeing soldiers, then attacking and killing them, and then cutting off another group of fleeing soldiers.

Repeatedly.

Qin Wutong was so numb from all the chopping that he was almost numb.
More and more Turks surrendered and begged for mercy.

Liu Shiche's spear was also soaked in blood as he caught up with Qin Wutong.

"We've already chased them for twenty li. We can't chase them any further. If we do, we'll be at the gates of Yanmen City. Stop the pursuit and intercept the fleeing soldiers behind us, forcing them to surrender."

Qin Wutong was panting heavily, his eyes bloodshot.

The sky was just beginning to brighten.

The road there was littered with corpses.

He wiped his face; sweat mixed with blood, almost forming a thick layer.

"Alright, send several light cavalry squads forward to scout ten miles ahead and keep a close eye on Yanmen City. If any troops from Yanmen come, report back immediately."

Last night's raid on the camp,
The results were unexpectedly good. I had thought that I would just launch a night raid on the enemy camp when they were not prepared, blunt their morale, kill some enemies, and provoke them to pursue me to Fanzhi so that I could encircle and annihilate them.

Who would have thought,
These three thousand light cavalry, on the contrary, routed twenty thousand enemy troops in one fell swoop.

They chased them for twenty miles.

Just accept it as soon as you see fit.

"Liu Bingcao, won't what we're doing ruin Sikong's plan?"

The plan was to wipe out these 20,000 men, but now the enemy has been routed and is fleeing.

Although the results of the battle have not yet been tallied, Qin Wutong estimates that the number of people killed last night was not large, and even the number of prisoners should not be too many.

It would have been better if we had a few thousand more troops yesterday.

"Let's clean up the battlefield first." Liu Shiche felt that the battle had been fought well enough.

The sky is bright.

The Tang army would not pursue those who escaped twenty li west of the camp.

But before they could escape, the Tang army began a sweep.

Lacking horses and morale, the defeated Turkic soldiers were surrounded and attacked by groups of Tang cavalry, and most of them chose to surrender.

On the contrary, it took more effort to deal with the scattered Turkic horses.

When the sun comes out

A light cavalryman reported that a large army of tens of thousands had emerged from the Turkic camp below Yanmen City and was heading east.

Qin Wutong heard that there were at least forty or fifty thousand men, and knew that Jieli already knew about the defeat. "Damn it, how did Jieli react so quickly this time? There are still so many defeated soldiers that haven't been captured, and so many warhorses that haven't been recovered."

Liu Shiche was quite optimistic. Despite the fierce battle that had lasted all night, he was still extremely excited. "Let's retreat eastward slowly. We don't have the strength to fight tens of thousands of Turkic troops again."

Slowly retreating eastward,

By noon, Qin Wutong's three thousand men had retreated back to the enemy camp where the previous night's battle had taken place.

The initial results have also been tallied.
"The results were very fruitful. The battalions reported more than 3,000 heads taken, and the number of prisoners was even more, which was unbelievable."

"There were more than five thousand prisoners."

Qin Wutong's eyes widened. "Impossible! We only have about three thousand men, yet we beheaded over three thousand and captured over five thousand in one night. Which bastard lied about his military achievements?"

"Even if we were to lie about our military achievements, we wouldn't dare to lie so much. We have indeed captured many prisoners. General Qin will know once he sees for himself."

More than three thousand heads were beheaded—that's a real three thousand heads.

Most of these beheadings took place on the riverbank south of the camp. Last night, more than a thousand Turks and other non-Turkic peoples trampled each other to death or injury.

Some also drowned in the river.
This all benefited the Tang soldiers, who easily gained military merit by taking heads.

Those who were captured were those who didn't have time to escape and were intercepted by the Tang army before surrendering. This was mainly because their horses were startled and ran away, leaving the Turks and Sogdians trapped. These defeated soldiers had long lost their fighting spirit.

"It's a pity that the main camp was completely burned down. There were so many tents, food and other supplies."

Qin Wutong also felt it was a bit of a pity, "How many warhorses did you capture?"

"There are probably four or five thousand of them. We're still trying to capture them. These horses are badly frightened and difficult to catch."

When Qin Wutong saw the mountain of heads...
Ignoring the overwhelming stench

"Quickly transport these heads back to Fanzhi City, not a single one can be missing."

"And the prisoners and warhorses, hurry up and escort them away as well."

Those were all military achievements, especially the achievements involving the capture of heads. They had to be sent to Fanzhi for verification; otherwise, who would believe that in one night, their three thousand men had broken through the camp of twenty thousand Turks, captured more than five thousand, and beheaded more than three thousand?

He himself didn't believe it just now.

The evidence must be presented to everyone.

Qin Wutong personally covered the rear.
Fortunately, the tens of thousands of troops sent by Jieli marched very slowly, perhaps because the battle reports given by Zhishi Yan and Ashina Simo, who had fled back that morning, were too exaggerated.

However, the 20,000 men collapsed overnight. Zhi Shiyan said that Li Yi personally arrived and that Li Yi triggered heavenly thunder and fire, which led to the fierce attack of 30,000 to 40,000 Tang troops, causing their collapse. This sounds absurd, yet it also seems quite reasonable.

Anyway, Ashina Simo said that the Tang army that attacked them last night numbered at most five or six thousand, all of them cavalry. But they used some kind of explosive, incendiary weapon, which was more powerful than ordinary rockets.

Even Jieli wouldn't believe such nonsense.

How could six thousand Tang cavalrymen launch a night raid and defeat twenty thousand Turkic troops?

Even if there were 10,000 mixed Hu people among them, the other 10,000 were from the Zhishi tribe, which was one of the four main direct line tribes of the Blue Turks.

As for the Tang army possessing weapons capable of producing thunderous roars and exploding sparks, even weapons that could blast men and horses away or obliterate them, Jieli did not believe it.

But if you say it was divine punishment from the Eternal Heaven, he doesn't believe it even more. Why would the Eternal Heaven help the Tang army?
Jieli couldn't understand it, but he still sent 50,000 troops over.

However, the soldiers under the command of Jielifa marched slowly and did not dare to advance hastily.

The unknown is what is most frightening.

They couldn't understand how their 20,000 men had collapsed overnight, and they dared not underestimate the enemy or advance rashly.

Then,
Forty miles,

These 50,000 people only traveled 20 li in a day.

Then they set up camp early, this time erecting palisades and digging trenches.
Set up barricades and spread caltrops.

Widespread patrols were dispatched.
Each one was heavily guarded.

Even the five Jielifas each commanded 10,000 troops and established separate camps.

The five camps were arranged in a way that resembled a plum blossom.

The five battalions were connected, both independent and linked.

Previously, Zhi Shiyan and his group had underestimated their enemy, and now these five groups are being overly cautious, which has given Qin Wutong and his group more time.

They captured many more prisoners and took many more horses.

The next day,

The five divisions finally advanced another twenty li slowly, arriving at the camp where Zhi Shiyan's army had collapsed.
But this place had long since been burned to the ground, leaving only white ruins.
Riverbanks, roadsides, and field edges were littered with dried, dark red bloodstains, and many unburied corpses lay scattered about.

Their heads were cut off.
Their equipment, weapons, and clothes were all stripped off.
In the summer, it had already begun to rot and stink, and even maggots were crawling around on it.

Crows and rats were enjoying a lavish feast.

Seeing these horrific scenes,

All the Jielifa, Sijin, and even the Dagans sent by Jieli Khan, fell silent.

"It seems Simo has really lost his mind. Is this something that five or six thousand light cavalry could do?"

"Zhi Shiyan told the truth. It was definitely Li Yi who came in person the day before yesterday, and he led at least 30,000 to 40,000 troops to attack,"

"Judging from the appearance of this camp, the Tang army did indeed use fire."

The group of Jielifa, Sijin, and Dagan chatted amongst themselves.

"Gentlemen, it seems Li Yi has already retreated to Fanzhi County. What should we do now? Continue our advance to Fanzhi City, or set up camp here?"

This statement by Jielifa immediately drew a chorus of opposition.

"How can we possibly set up camp in this godforsaken place?"

"Exactly, it reeks of corpses, and this place is considered unlucky."

"How about we retreat to yesterday's camp, then report the situation here to the Khan and ask him to make a decision?"

"Alright, let's go back to yesterday's camp first."

No one wanted to set up camp in this godforsaken place, and no one suggested continuing the march towards Fanzhi City.

The main force of the Tang army, capable of wiping out a camp of 20,000 men in one night, is in Fanzhi, and there are at least 30,000 to 40,000 men, or even more. It is possible that the Hebei armies of You and Ding are gathering in Fanzhi. It is not safe for these 50,000 men to go there now.

"Collect those headless corpses and burn them."

That's all they can do for now.

(End of this chapter)