The Splendor of the Five Dynasties

Chapter 92 Pursuit
The Longtou where Xiao Yi is located is the highest point in this area, with a gentle and long slope.

The battlefield at the end of the gentle slope was less than four hundred paces away from him.

Nie Wenjin originally fled westward, but encountered a deep ditch with wooden planks laid across it. The tracks left by the wheels of vehicles stretched westward, indicating that Liu Chengyou's entourage had already passed by.

Before the remaining troops could get there, Song Yanwo's troops caught up.

A large banner bearing the character "聂" was planted on the east side of the ditch, arrayed in formation, ready for a battle with its back to the ditch.

At this point, the number of people could no longer be counted by the flags. Xiao Yi calculated the number of riders by the array and estimated that Nie Wenjin had only about three hundred riders left.

Within Song Yanwo's army formation, beneath the main banner was a command flag, surrounded by a goose-wing formation, with a command flag on each side and a commander escorting the rear, totaling two thousand Huazhou cavalrymen. However, their formation had already broken up due to the pursuit.

The north wind howled and whistled.

"Your Majesty, please do not flee... The one who comes is Prince Consort Song! Please return to the city, Your Majesty..."

"Nie Wenjin abducted the Emperor and fled west, which is treason! Kill him and reward him with one hundred bolts of silk and ten acres of land..."

The scattered wild goose formation surrounded the remnant army from three sides.

Song Yanwo's order was very sound: first, cut off Nie Wenjin's escape route to the north and south, and then reorganize the formation.

However, Xiao Yi, looking from above, could see the problem.

Nie Wenjin was prepared to fight with all his might.

The banners tilted forward, and the sounds of drums and bugles began.

"kill!"

Nie Wenjin took the lead, raising his long sword high, and headed straight for Song Yanwo's banner.

He rode a magnificent horse from Hexi, which was driven mad by the spurs and charged like an arrow. The three hundred riders behind him were inspired and roared as they surged forward.

The soldiers from Huazhou were still firing arrows.

Xiao Yi knew that mounted bows usually weighed only two jin (approximately 1 kg), and their damage was limited at a distance. However, close-range shooting was a great test of courage. Given that Nie Wenjin's troops were charging like madmen, he estimated that ordinary soldiers would not be able to keep their hands steady.

Sure enough, Song Yanwo's central army front line was thrown into chaos.

"Judging from this," said the little monkey, "the prince consort is going to suffer a bit."

Hu Deng shook his head and said, "Two thousand circumferences and three hundred circumferences. If we lose the banner, we'll lose face big time."

"Commander, I have an idea, it's brilliant!"

The little monkey pointed and said, "Go around there and follow the cart tracks; maybe we can catch the little emperor."

"Great!" Hu Deng was overjoyed and said, "It's amazing that you, you idiot, could come up with such a good idea. We'll get ahead of Prince Consort Song and make a great contribution!"

Xiao Yi shook his head and raised his hand to stop the two from talking.

He didn't need to offend Song Yanwo to gain such merit; it would be a losing proposition.

"Let's raise our voices and cheer on the Yicheng Army!"

"Here!"

Although the monkey was disappointed, it immediately sounded the bugle.

Hu Deng then unfurled the banner of the 20th Battalion and waved it on the top of the ridge.

Upon hearing the bugle call, the soldiers of Huazhou turned around and their morale was clearly boosted; shouts could be heard from afar.

"It's the Twentieth Camp of the Broken Yan Kunlun Slave!"

"The King of Hell's Spear is coming!"

Suddenly, Xiao Yi's eyes narrowed.

He could see clearly that Nie Wenjin was eager to attack the banner, and his forces were concentrated, without any protection on the left and right flanks.

Once they started running, the horses were moving at different speeds, and the column would turn into a long snake formation. Sure enough, some horses were clearly getting weaker and weaker.

“Send flag signals to Song Yanwo, telling him that Nie Wenjin has no prepared forces, and that I want to cut off the Southern Army's formation so that his flanks can tighten the encirclement.”

"Commander, but we only have ten..."

"Use flag signals!"

"Here!"

The monkey immediately waved the signal flag.

Soon, the sound of golden gongs responded from beneath Song Yanwo's banner, and the two wings began to contract.

"Follow me into battle! Speed ​​up again within a hundred paces. Remember, no need for prolonged fighting; just cut off the Southern army's formation!"

"Here!"

"I will go first. Shou Tao and Wang Jiu, you two hold shields and protect my flanks. Jin Sanshui, you follow behind with your short sword and cut down anyone who gets close. The rest of you, use your long weapons to force back the enemy soldiers and do not rush in front of me."

"Here!"

Xiao Yi spurred his horse downhill, and the ten riders galloped toward the battlefield.

As they drew closer, and the white horse could finally see the expressions on the enemy soldiers' faces, it excitedly pawed the ground.

"drive!"

Charge forward, back straight, lean slightly forward, shoulders relaxed and elbows dropped, and raise your spear.

The white horse and silver spear streaked past like shooting stars, accompanied only by the fierce sound of the wind.

Before him, an enemy rider to the northwest hastily reined in his horse to avoid a collision; another rider to the northeast turned around and brandished his sword.

Xiao Yi did not thrust out his spear, but instead gently deflected the blade to the right with the tip of the spear.

Immediately afterwards, the spear was raised high and then slammed down diagonally, hitting the helmet of another enemy rider and knocking him off his horse.

"Oh!"

The spear swept across, dissipating the force and knocking down two enemy riders, clearing a path.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

Without a drop of blood, Xiao Yi had already knocked five men off their horses and broken through the enemy ranks. Ahead, Song Yanwo's right flank was still approaching.

Behind him, Jin Sanshui stabbed one of the men to the ground. Seeing the enemy cavalry swinging their swords at him, he couldn't help but shout loudly.

Several more sounds rang out, and Shou Tao and Wang Jiu roared and raised their shields. Several clanging sounds of weapons clashing were heard, and soldiers behind them thrust their spears in a staggered attack, felling several men.

Xiao Yi rode out for several dozen steps, then reined in his horse and reorganized the ranks.

"Kill back!"

"Kill!" This time, they cut diagonally, heading straight for the opening they had just created.

The ten riders, like a dagger, once again stabbed at the snake's vital spot.

The Huazhou army then flanked the enemy from both sides, cutting them into two parts and encircling them separately.

Xiao Yi spurred his horse forward and looked at Nie Wenjin, who was fighting fiercely in the encirclement.

"Eh-"

With a mournful cry, the horse from Hexi was pierced by a spear. Nie Wenjin fell off the horse and continued to swing his sword wildly, the blade already warped.

The remaining thirty-odd soldiers rushed forward and protected him.

"General Nie!" Xiao Yi shouted, "The situation is settled, surrender!"

"Xiao Yi?"

Nie Wenjin turned around, furious, and shouted, "I have treated you well, why did you not obey my orders to kill Wang Yin?!"

"The hearts and minds of the people."

Xiao Yi only gave four words of advice: "You should accept the consequences of your bet. I am willing to repay the general's kindness and plead with the commander-in-chief for leniency."

"Haha, what a fine 'people's hearts and minds' statement."

Nie Wenjin laughed loudly, shouting, "I am the mastermind behind the palace coup!"

"Among all the traitors, only the general can be considered a hero..."

"puff."

Before he could finish speaking, Nie Wenjin swung his knife horizontally and swiftly sliced ​​through the neck, blood gushing out. He swayed and collapsed to the ground.

"General!"

Upon seeing this, six or seven soldiers cried out in grief, drew their swords, and committed suicide, falling to the ground at the same time.

Xiao Yi suddenly spotted one of them and shouted, "Lü Chou!"

Lu Chou looked over, paused, and stopped his self-immolation.

Xiao Yi said in an unquestionable tone, "Put down the knife. We can discuss the rest with your brother."

After a moment's hesitation, Lü Chou, along with the other soldiers, abandoned their swords and surrendered.

Xiao Yi dismounted, went over to examine Nie Wenjin's body, and reached out to close his eyes.

Of all those involved in the coup, Nie Wenjin was capable, courageous, and the most clear-headed. Unfortunately, he chose the wrong path and ultimately met his end.

"Young Master Xiao, thank you for your help."

"Brother Zhongjian."

Xiao Yi turned around and saw Song Yanwo rushing over. He returned the greeting and said, "We both serve the Commander-in-Chief, it's what I should do."

"Xiao Lang, riding a white horse and wielding a silver spear, broke through the enemy lines. His magnificent appearance today is something I will never forget."

"You flatter me, Brother Zhongjian. Nie Wenjin has been kind to me, and I wish to give him a proper burial and plead for his family."

"Although I cannot make the decision on this matter, rest assured that the commander-in-chief will not hold those who rose to power through military merit accountable after their death. I will also speak on your behalf."

"Thank you."

"We are brothers, why stand on ceremony? The Emperor has been taken hostage and is in danger. The Commander-in-Chief, seeing that I am a close relative of the Emperor, has ordered me to do my utmost to protect him. Would you be willing to come with me?"

"I wish to go with Brother Zhongjian."

"please!"

Although he agreed to go with her, Xiao Yi noticed that Song Yanwo always looked at him with intense gaze, and for some reason, he subconsciously kept his distance.

After leaving some men to inventory the battlefield and temporarily guard Nie Wenjin's body and prisoners, the Huazhou cavalry quickly regrouped and set off.

After galloping through the wind and snow, half an hour later, cavalrymen returned from ahead.

"Report——"

"The Emperor's golden chariot has been discovered!"

After traveling a little further, they saw that the Grand Master of Ceremonies' banner was still standing next to the golden carriage, and a group of officials and soldiers were guarding there dejectedly.

Song Yanwo spurred his horse forward and shouted, "Where is His Majesty?!"

"His Majesty... has gone on a western hunt."

Xiao Yi looked around and saw footprints in all directions beside the golden carriage, with the most heading towards the official road to the west.

But a line of hoofprints caught his attention. It was a rugged path leading north, and he didn't know which village it led to, but all the animals running that way were horses; no one was walking.

"Let's go, keep going!"

"I suspect the government has fled north."

Suddenly, one of the officials shouted, "You're talking nonsense! I saw His Majesty riding westward with my own eyes!"

Xiao Yi ignored him, dismounted, walked towards the north path, squatted down, and examined the hoofprints.

Song Yanwo also came over.

“Brother Zhongjian, look, the imperial horseshoes are half an inch wider than those of ordinary warhorses, and the edges are decorated with cloud patterns. All the horses heading north are imperial horses.”

"How do you know?"

“I captured the Flying Dragon Envoy yesterday and noticed that he was carrying large horses from Hexi, with hooves three inches wide,” Xiao Yi said. “Look again, the distance between the hooves is even, which shows that he can control the horses steadily. They don’t look like scattered soldiers, but more like elite troops who have taken the emperor hostage. We can split up our forces to pursue them.”

"it is good."

Song Yanwo's division of troops involved assigning the military commander Wang Chongwen to arrange the various directions, while he himself and Xiao Yi led a small group of light cavalry along the northern path, indicating that he had great trust in Xiao Yi's judgment.

The winding path led to a small village, where a wooden sign at the entrance read "Caijing Village." After passing a section of snow-sweeped frozen earth, the hoofprints continued northward.

Xiao Yi suddenly reined in his horse.

Song Yanwo asked, "What?"

"The snow has just been swept. Why? This road is on the edge of the village, and most of the houses along the road are empty. Look at the main road of the village over there."

Xiao Yi pointed to the village, where the main road running through the middle of the village was covered with footprints in the snow.

He dismounted, pushed open a door, the lock had been broken, and inside lay a broom covered in snow stains, with messy footprints running through the room.

Song Yanwo followed, and upon seeing the situation, immediately said, "The Emperor is nearby."

(End of this chapter)