Memoirs of the Heavenly Khan

Chapter 236 Breaking the Easy
Outside Xingyang City, on the battlefield between the two armies.

Yuan Tianmu and Erzhu Zhao led their troops from afar, but Chen Qingzhi did not avoid them. Instead, he led his troops directly out of the city.

With banners waving and Chen Qingzhi's troops all dressed in white robes, they stood out conspicuously on the battlefield.

Unlike the White-Robed Army, the troops under Yuan Tianmu and Erzhu Zhao were dressed in a much more varied manner. Erzhu Zhao, in particular, had troops who resembled barbarians from the north, with short hair, earrings, no uniform attire, and each armed with a bow and sword.

Erzhu Zhao glanced at the thin general in front of the white-robed army from afar and couldn't help but laugh.

"I heard that this Chen Qingzhi can't even draw a bow. I don't know what Xiao Yan was thinking, sending him here is just asking for death!"

Erzhu Zhao's disdain for Yuan Tianmu was not overlooked, but Yuan Tianmu, seeing the uniform white-robed soldiers outside Xingyang City, their disciplined formations, felt they would be difficult to deal with, and said:

"Don't underestimate the enemy!"

"Your Majesty, it's alright. I'll lead my troops to charge into the enemy lines first and test Chen Qingzhi!"

What Erzhu Zhao didn't know was that while he was underestimating Chen Qingzhi, the other party was also watching them from the front of the White-Robed Army.

"General, how should we respond to the enemy?"

Chen Qingzhi was not the type of general who charged into battle; he used his brain in warfare.

Seeing that the three thousand cavalrymen were dressed differently and were clearly divided into two groups, he already had a plan in mind.

"The northern barbarians rely heavily on their fierce courage when charging into battle. Erzhu Zhao is brave but lacks wisdom. If we form a battle formation in front of them, and Erzhu Zhao leads his troops to attack, we can easily defeat them once their morale is low!"

Just as Chen Qingzhi finished speaking, a bugle call sounded in the distance.

Erzhu Zhao has mobilized his troops!

Upon seeing this, the generals around Chen Qingzhi were all inwardly impressed by his brilliant strategy and greatly encouraged.

The north had more cavalry, while the south had more infantry.

Erzhu Zhao's plan was to launch a charge, hoping to break through Chen Qingzhi's army formation. If he couldn't, he could retreat.

The mobility of cavalry is unmatched by infantry.

But when they arrived at the front lines, Erzhu Zhao sensed something was wrong.

On the battlefield, Erzhu Zhao possessed the instincts of a wild beast.

As he approached the battle line, he sensed that this white-robed army was undoubtedly a highly trained elite force. Facing the cavalry, they showed no sign of panic, remaining remarkably composed.

Ordinary infantrymen would not have such a level of organization, and they were fully equipped with tripwires, horse-chopping swords, and other such items.

Erzhu Zhao led his cavalry in a charge, but instead of breaking through the enemy lines, he became trapped within them.

The situation reached a stalemate. Yuan Tianmu, who was outside the formation, also sensed something was wrong and couldn't help but curse.

"This reckless man!"

That's what they said, but Yuan Tianmu still had no choice but to lead his troops to the rescue.

Once cavalry stops charging, they are no better than infantry and will likely become prey for the enemy to slaughter.

Erzhu Zhao's troops were like an arrowhead, shooting into the formation, but they failed to break through the battle lines. Instead, they lost momentum and were heavily surrounded by the white-robed army, showing signs of being gradually swallowed up.

Yuan Tianmu led his troops in a charge, cutting off a portion of the white-robed army from the flank of the battle formation before finally reuniting with Erzhu Zhao, who was trapped in the encirclement.

"The situation is not good, retreat the troops!"

"it is good!"

Having suffered a loss, Erzhu Zhao had no will to say no.

The two forces joined together and returned along the same route from where Yuan Tianmu had attacked.

Upon seeing this, Chen Qingzhi laughed and said:

The opportunity to defeat the enemy has arrived!

A large number of troops poured out from Xingyang City behind them.

Chen Qingzhi, with practiced ease, led three thousand white-robed soldiers, mounted his horse, raised his sword before the other riders, and shouted a command.

"Capture and kill the northern barbarians with me!"

"I'm willing to follow the general!"

Yuan Tianmu and Erzhu Zhao finally escaped from the battle formation and thought they were safe.

Before they could catch their breath, the sound of war drums came from Xingyang City behind them.

The thunderous sound of hooves echoed as they looked back, only to see that Chen Qingzhi had already completed his troop conversion within the white-robed army formation. Thousands of cavalrymen were pouring out of the ranks, pursuing them relentlessly. In fact, Erzhu Zhao's underestimation of his enemy was based on a certain reliance.

The Liang people were not skilled in archery and horsemanship. Erzhu Zhao thought that even if they suffered losses against the Liang army, it wouldn't be a big loss. Relying on their horsepower, even if they were temporarily at a disadvantage, they could escape far away and look for an opportunity to defeat the enemy.

Keerzhu Zhaowan never expected that Chen Qingzhi would be so cunning and seize the opportunity so perfectly!
"Your Majesty, what should we do?"

Yuan Tianmu frowned. They had just escaped from the formation and were exhausted.

"What else can we do? Retreating means certain death, while fighting offers a chance of survival!"

Yuan Tianmu's words also aroused Erzhu Zhao's bloodlust, and he roared.

"Okay, let's give it our all!"
-
Hulao Pass.

After receiving the imperial edict, Erzhu Shilong stayed in Hulao Pass, waiting for news from the front.

Erzhu Shilong had a very clever plan.

He knew that he was not the main force in the encirclement and suppression of Chen Qingzhi.

He guarded Hulao Pass, awaiting the results of the battle ahead.

Whether Chen Qingzhi was defeated by Yuan Tianmu and Erzhu Zhao, or the battle reached a stalemate, he had completed the task assigned to him by Yuan Ziyou.

When we return to Luoyang, with such a promotion and the princess we'll marry, we'll be living the dream!
Regardless of his true feelings, Erzhu Shilong put on an excellent show. In order to demonstrate to the generals and soldiers in Hulao Pass their determination to resist the enemy, he stayed overnight on the city wall after arriving at Hulao Pass.

Fighting alongside him was Wang Bi, the governor of Xijing Prefecture, who had just been summoned to Luoyang and then came to Hulao Pass with Erzhu Shilong because of the war.

Erzhu Shilong was incompetent in warfare, and all military affairs were handled by Wang Bi.

Inside the city gate, Wang Bi arrived at the city gate and saw Erzhu Shilong harassing his maid. He coughed and said:
"The situation at the front is still uncertain, yet the general is so certain that he is a member of the royal family?"

Wang Bi was clearly joking, but Erzhu Shilong didn't care; he was in a very good mood these days.

"What can little Chen Qingzhi do?"

The military might of the Erzhu clan reached its peak when Erzhu Rong defeated the 200,000-strong army of the Six Garrisons. Even though Erzhu Shilong was not skilled in military affairs, he was still very confident in the combat power of his own cavalry.

"I'm afraid I'll have to disappoint the general!"

"what for?"

Erzhu Shilong stared at Wang Bi, only to see him take out a military intelligence document that had just been delivered.

"In front of Xingyang City, the King of Shangdang and the Duke of Yingchuan were utterly defeated by Chen Qingzhi and barely escaped with their lives."

"impossible!"

Upon hearing this news, Erzhu Shilong pushed aside the maid, hastily got out of bed, and without even putting on his shoes, ran to Wang Bi and snatched the document from his hand.

After carefully examining it, Erzhu Shilong seemed to have lost his soul and collapsed to the ground.

"General, how is it?"

Wang Bi asked softly, and Erzhu Shilong, in his haste, replied:

"Go, we need to go quickly!"

"Is the general no longer going to marry the princess?"

"Is the princess more important than my life? Even Erzhu Zhao couldn't stop Chen Qingzhi, so am I supposed to stay here and die?"

Erzhu Shilong hurriedly left, while his maidservant cried out anxiously behind him:
"General, don't forget to take this servant with you!"

Seeing this comical scene, Wang Bi couldn't help but laugh. His subordinate general entered from outside at that moment and whispered:

"My lord, what should we do? Should we continue to defend Hulao Pass?"

"Erzhu Shilong has already fled, what are we supposed to do if we stay behind? Protect the empire for the Erzhu family?"

"I understand."

Inside the city gate, Wang Bi gazed into the distance. Just over a year ago, the Duke of Tang had defeated Yuan Shen's army of 200,000 here.

But now, the situation is changing.

Wang Bi was moved and unconsciously recited:
"Even the most renowned generals and commanders should not be complacent, for thousands of troops will avoid those in white robes."

Wang Bi, with his hands behind his back, sensed the wavering morale of the troops within the city gates and said:
"interesting!"

……

(End of this chapter)