Northern Prefecture Rivers and Mountains

Chapter 416 She

Inside the Wei army camp, Changsun Song was utterly astonished, "Ye City has fallen?"

Shusun Jian said, "Liu Daogui led more than 10,000 elite cavalry to cross the Yellow River from Qinghe County, ambushed and killed General Daxi Jin, and then forced Gongsun Biao to surrender. Gongsun Biao falsely claimed that His Majesty had ordered him to assist in the defense of Ye City. Lü Dafei was caught off guard and was taken advantage of by the Jin rebels!"

Changsun Song plopped down on the soft couch, looking somewhat dazed. Ye City had been under his management for five years before it had finally regained some vitality.

Unexpectedly, Liu Daogui had somehow managed to sneak up behind them without anyone noticing.

With Yecheng gone, the entire Hebei region is in grave danger.

The battle at Fangtou could no longer continue.

"Please lead us north, General, and we will fight to the death to retake Ye City!" The generals stepped forward one after another to volunteer.

"If he can't even take Liu Yu's camp, how can he attack Ye City? Liu Daogui is even more cunning than Liu Yu!" A few years ago in Huatai, Changsun Fei had already experienced Liu Daogui's prowess. When Tuoba Gui launched a five-pronged attack on the Central Plains, he single-handedly thwarted it all, and Changsun Fei almost ended up in the Central Plains.

Upon hearing this, all the generals present were speechless.

Since the siege of Liu Yu began, the number of elite troops killed or wounded by various armies has exceeded 10,000, not counting the Xiongnu, Jin, and Dingling people who were forcibly driven to their deaths.

An Tong said, "Ye City is ten times harder to attack than Fangtou. Instead of counterattacking Ye City, we should block the news, gather the elite troops of all armies, and launch a strong attack on Liu Yu. As long as we capture and kill him, this battle will not be considered a defeat!"

Liu Yu was the prime minister of the Jin dynasty, the Duke of Song, and an invincible war god in the hearts of the Jin people. Killing him would at least boost the morale of the Wei army.

But it's hard to say how heavy the price will be.

It might have been feasible for Liu Daogui not to launch a surprise attack on Ye City, but now Liu Daogui's more than 10,000 elite cavalry are right behind them. If they attack Liu Yu and suffer too many casualties, Liu Daogui's light cavalry will launch a surprise attack, and there is a risk of the entire army being wiped out.

In the Battle of Fei River, eight thousand elite troops of the Northern Army overwhelmed the hundreds of thousands of Di-Qin troops.

The army was defeated like a landslide, the emperor died and the country perished.

At this moment, a scout outside the tent reported loudly: "Reporting... Lord Situ, the Northern Army, consisting of 30,000 troops from Liu Guangzhi, Wang Yuande, and Xin Gongjing, is converging on Liyang!"

This is clearly a signal that a decisive battle is about to begin.

The situation has become extremely unfavorable for the Wei army.

It's autumn now, and the weather is getting colder every day. If winter comes, food and winter clothing for hundreds of thousands of people will be a problem.

Although the State of Wei has been thriving in recent years, its national strength cannot be compared with that of the State of Jin.

Last year, Dai County also suffered from drought, forcing Tuoba Si to lead a large army on "hunts" everywhere...

Changsun Song, born into the royal family of Wei, was not a gambler who would risk everything. The morale of the Wei army was already low, and if news of the fall of Ye City spread, morale would drop even further.

"Order all troops to retreat slowly, take the Taihang Pass, and return to Shangdang!"

"Lord Situ!"

"General!"

The generals were filled with groans of despair. Making such a decision would come at a price, and they could very well become scapegoats for the failure of this great battle.

But Changsun Song was determined. He said nonchalantly to everyone, "We have lost. This defeat is entirely my fault and has nothing to do with you. As long as our elite troops are still here, we will be able to take it back sooner or later. All the passes around Ye City are in our hands. The Jin people's base is in the Jianghuai region, thousands of miles away. They will not be able to hold out for long. Your Majesty is a great ruler who is diligent and hardworking. It is still unknown who will win in the future."

Even before the battle began, Cui Hao had made a similar suggestion.

They believed that the Northern Army was at its peak and that they should temporarily avoid its advance, abandon Ye City, and draw the Jin army northward. Then, by leveraging their geographical advantage, they could gradually wear down the Jin dynasty's national strength.

After all, the core of the Wei Kingdom was in Dai Commandery and Mobei.

However, neither the Wei ruler nor his ministers listened to their advice.

After fighting Liu Yu for three or four months, they realized how formidable this tiger of Jiangdong was. With only three thousand armored soldiers and five or six thousand naval troops and able-bodied men, he withstood the full force of the Northern Wei Dynasty...

In the eyes of the Wei generals, Liu Yu's reputation had surpassed that of Murong Chui. Shusun Jian said, "Minister Liu is truly a national hero. If our army retreats, given Liu Yu's ruthless nature, he will surely pursue us relentlessly."

A sharp glint appeared in Changsun Song's eyes. "You and Changsun Fei's two elite units will cover the rear."

Of the hundreds of thousands of Wei troops in Hebei, only the forces of Changsun Fei, Shusun Jian, and Daxi Jin were truly capable of fighting.

After Daxi Jin's 10,000 elite cavalry were wiped out, only Changsun Fei and Shusun Jian remained.

Both were seasoned generals, brave and resourceful, and their combined elite troops numbered 20,000.

After everything was arranged, the Wei army began to retreat that very night.

All the tents, hay, and flags that couldn't be taken away were discarded.

But before they had gone ten miles, a scout came from behind and shouted, "Lord Situ, Liu Yu is catching up!"

The sound was quite loud, and the surrounding Wei soldiers were completely silent, their eyes filled with terror.

The retreat of over 100,000 troops was no small feat, and the various military units were already in disarray under the cover of darkness.

"The troops must not be disturbed. I have ordered the Duke of Langya and the Duke of Julu to cover the rear." Changsun Song said calmly, and the soldiers around him gradually felt at ease.

But suddenly, the sound of horses' hooves came from the west, and shouts rang out from the crowd: "The tiger is attacking! The Duke of Gaoyang has fled for his life!"

This shout immediately stirred the morale of the troops.

When you're trying to escape, the worst thing is for someone else to get away first.

"Damn barbarians!" Even Changsun Song, who had a good temper, couldn't help but curse.

The Duke of Gaoyang was An Tong. Most of his followers were Sogdians from the Daibei region. Every household was engaged in commerce. They were born opportunists, switching allegiances to whoever was stronger. They had served under Liu Yuan, Liu Yao, Shi Le, and Shi Hu in the past, and later under Murong Huang and Murong Chui. When the Tuoba clan grew stronger, they also served under Tuoba Gui.

Seeing that the situation was not good, he was the first to flee for his life.

Their escape caused great alarm among the Wei army.

Looking back, a distant expanse of fire could be seen, and shouts of "Conquer China!" grew louder as they approached.

However, they were quickly stopped by two cavalry units and engaged in a fierce battle.

Changsun Song had spent a great deal of effort to calm the army's morale, but unexpectedly, a commotion arose from the south: "The Jin people, the Xiongnu people, and the Dingling people have fled..."

Chaos instantly engulfed the entire army.

The Jin people, Xiongnu people, and Dingling people who were driven to their deaths during the previous siege of Liu Yu's Crescent Moon Formation were already filled with resentment.

Now that the troops have retreated overnight, even the most oblivious person knows what happened.

Of the 150,000 to 160,000 Wei troops, less than 40% were actually from the Tuoba tribe; the rest were young men from various northern ethnic groups, and they didn't even speak the same language.

Even though this 40% of the Tuoba tribe's troops were actually a combination of the Helan, Baba, Hegu, Daxi, and Yilou tribes, they were actually a mix of different tribes.

When the tide rises and there are opportunities to profit, everyone is a loyal subject; when the tide recedes, that is when the true nature of the Wei state is truly tested.

The scene grew increasingly chaotic, even Changsun Song's central army was disrupted, and his 10,000 troops were swept up by the rioting forces.

If it weren't for Changsun Fei and Shusun Jian covering the rear, they would probably have trampled each other long ago.

"This old minister has failed Your Majesty!" Changsun Song sighed deeply, never expecting the morale of the army to collapse so quickly.

"Father, hurry! If Liu Daogui's cavalry from Ye City catches up, we will all die!" The eldest son, Changsun Tui, stepped forward and helped Changsun Song up.

Liu Yu was an infantryman and could not defeat them, but Liu Daogui was a cavalryman.

(End of this chapter)