Ji Han Da Sima

Chapter 648 The Tiger Falls in Pingyang
The Wei River flows from northwest to southeast. Because Longyou is full of hills, the Wei River has carved out many river valleys in the mountains. The river valleys are fertile and nourished by the Wei River, so most of the counties in Longyou are located in the Wei River valleys.

In addition to the Wei River, another important river in Longyou is the Tao River, which flows from southwest to northeast and flows into the Yellow River in Jincheng County. There are many cities along the way.

Therefore, the fight for the Longyou region is essentially a fight for control of the Weishui and Taoshui rivers.

Historically, Zhuge Liang and Jiang Wei launched the Northern Expedition, and their different goals led to different routes of troops.

At present, the Wei River Basin was controlled by Wang Ping, and the Tao River Basin was controlled by Lu Xun. Ma Chao had lost his footing in Longyou.

The ancient Xiangwu County is now Longxi County.

The Wei River runs from east to west, and the river valley is distributed in a straight line, so the Wei River Valley Road is a major transportation road. Now Wang Ping and Lu Xun cut off the road from the east and west, causing Ma Chao to be surrounded. At this time, Ma Chao wanted to flee to Qiang, so he had to go from the north road.

The north road leads to Langgan (now Tong'anyi Town). In Langgan is the Qinqi River, which flows into the Weishui River from the north. Going back along the Qinqi River, you can reach Dingxi City in later times, and then turn to Yuzhong to reach Jincheng.

Therefore, the North Avenue is the mouth of the Qinqi River, and it flows north along the river to Langan; the small road is the Langan Intermediate Road, which goes along the mountain road to Langan.

The mountain road was narrow, not conducive for galloping horses, and prone to ambushes, so Ma Chao wanted to take the main road to Langan.

At two o'clock in the morning, Ma Chao summoned the remaining soldiers in the city.

In the depths of winter, the wind in Longyou was biting and the cold air filled the sky and earth. In the silent cold night, the wind was howling, the night was dark and it was difficult to see anything, except for the hundreds of torches on the city.

The army flags were fluttering in the cold air, making a rustling sound, and the neighing of war horses was muffled by the wind.

At the north gate, more than 3,000 soldiers and horses, after eating up the little remaining food and fodder, had gathered under the orders of the officers.

Even though the weather was extremely cold, the Long people, who had long been accustomed to the low temperatures, lined up in a solemn manner, everyone holding their swords and guns tightly, with high morale.

These soldiers are the elite of Liang State, the wealth accumulated by Ma Chao after his entire life's struggle. With the help of these three thousand brave soldiers, Ma Chao may be able to rise again.

The attendant came running from a distance, knelt down and reported: "Your Majesty, Captain Zhang Fu took advantage of the time when our army was gathering and led hundreds of people to surrender to the Han."

Upon hearing this, Cheng Gongying's expression changed and he said, "Your Majesty, Zhang Fu's escape may reveal military information. We must break out before the Han army deploys. If the Han army learns of your whereabouts, you may be surrounded by the army."

"it is good!"

Ma Chao had no time to blame Zhang Fu and immediately jumped on his horse.

During the few days when he retreated to Xiangwu, it can be said that people led their troops to defect every day. Now that he was about to escape from the jaws of death, it was not a bad thing to filter out the unreliable officers.

Ma Chao held the reins and drove the warhorse to march back and forth in front of the queue.

In the dim firelight, Ma Chao could see everyone's face clearly. Some of them had followed him when he rebelled against Cao. They had been through many battles, their faces were wrinkled and covered with frost, and they were about forty years old.

Some of them joined the army after he took Longyou as his base. They were around 20 years old, and because of their passion and loyalty, they still stay by his side and want to continue fighting with him.

Ma Chao reined in his horse, took out his spear, and said in a deep voice, "Did the spies report anything?"

"Your Majesty, according to the spies' report, there are no traces of the enemy troops outside the city!"

"it is good!"

Ma Chao pointed to the gate with his spear in hand and said, "Open the gate and move quickly. Don't waste time on the way!"

"promise!"

As the city gate opened, the cold wind poured into the city, causing Ma Chao, who was in charge, to shiver. However, this did not stop Ma Chao from moving forward. Under the guidance of the waiting cavalry, Ma Chao led more than 3,000 infantry and cavalry to gallop away.

Because the horse's hooves were wrapped in thick cloth, the sound of the hooves was not like dull thunder, but the low sound could penetrate the cold wind and echo in the empty river valley.

Xiangwu is located in the south of Wei River, but due to the cold weather, the Wei River had already frozen. Ma Chao led the cavalry and rode carefully across the Wei River, followed by the infantry. More than 3,000 cavalry and infantry walked along the river mouth and gradually disappeared into the distance.

After crossing the Weishui River, the entire army marched along the main road for more than ten miles in the dark. There was dead silence along the way, and no trace of the Han army was seen, which made Ma Chao feel relieved.

Because rushing was too tiring, the speed of the Liang army's infantry and cavalry slowed down a little.

Under the weak moonlight, Ma Chao, who had relaxed, said: "Although Lu Xun is cunning, he is not a divine fortune teller. Now he has escaped by taking the right path, and I will repay him in the future!"

"Your Majesty, you must not slack off!"

Cheng Gongying said: "Lu Xun has been planning for a long time. He instigated Jiang Jiong to rebel and cut off our army's food and grass. He then ordered Wang Ping to attack Ji County and cut off our army's base. When the king's troops were heading towards Ji County, he also attacked Niutou Mountain and occupied the counties along the Tao River to cut off our army's retreat."

"He and Wang Ping are attacking together along the Wei River Valley from east and west. I think they want to kill our army. Now our army is trapped in Xiangwu. How can they sit back and watch the king escape? We must be prepared now!" Cheng Gongying said worriedly.

Cheng Gongying gradually understood the current situation. Since the Southern Han decided to turn against Ma Chao and seize Longyou, the two sides were in a life-and-death struggle. It is no exaggeration to say that as long as Ma Chao is alive, Lu Xun dare not say peace.

After all, if a person was cheated by Lu Xun twice, causing the country to be destroyed and the family to be ruined, and years of savings to be burned, it would be impossible not to be angry, and it would be difficult for him to swallow that anger.

Of course, Lu Xun also had to consider Ma Chao's influence on Longyou. Not to mention that Ma Chao was deeply loved by the Qiang and Di people, just the fact that Ma Chao was once the lord of Longyou made it impossible for Lu Xun to let him go.

Although Longyou was initially under the control of the Han army, the situation could only be considered initially stable after Ma Chao was captured and killed.

After being reminded, Ma Chao became alert and said, "See if we can get the waiting cavalry to disperse and be more vigilant along the way!"

"promise!"

Although the river valley road is flat, there are hills on both sides. In the dark night, these hills are like sleeping beasts, accompanied by the howling cold wind, which is inevitably frightening.

The cavalrymen tried their best to explore the situation in the dim moonlight. However, the vision was limited at night, and the terrain was complex with many trees and mountains, so it was difficult to explore clearly. The cavalrymen did not even dare to go too far away for fear of losing sight of the main army.

Under the moonlight, the Liang army's infantry and cavalry marched along the river valley with lanterns, and the waiting cavalry were scattered on the hills on both sides to serve as an early warning.

Under high alert, the Liang army marched about ten miles, and the sky gradually brightened. Because there was no trace of the Han army overnight, not only the Liang army, but even Ma Chao relaxed a little.

At five o'clock in the morning, the darkness before dawn gradually became brighter and I could see far away.

The Liang army's infantry and cavalry were tired after walking for most of the night, and they were also very cold in the cold wind. Their pace slowed down and their vigilance was relaxed. Ma Chao saw that the soldiers were tired and asked, "How long do we have to go to Langgan?"

"Your Majesty, judging from the speed, it should be more than sixty or seventy miles away," said the attendant.

"Tell everyone that we are only fifty miles away from Langan. Let the soldiers cheer up. There will be hot meals and hot water when we get to Langan." Ma Chao said.

"promise!"

The attendant rode out of the line and shouted along the marching line, saying: "The king said that there are still fifty miles to Langgan, and there is hot food in the city..."

Before he finished his words, several sharp arrows were shot out from the hills and ravines, knocking down the servant who was shouting.

"Woo~"

Then, a dull horn sounded among the hills, and the sleeping hills on both sides came alive. A "Wei" banner was raised high, and the flags of the Han army's infantry and cavalry fluttered in the wind, as if telling the Liang army that they had been ambushed by the Han army.

The Liang soldiers, who had been running all night, were terrified when they saw the sudden appearance of the Han army. Under the urging of their officers, they tried to line up to fight.

However, Wei Yan would not give the Liang soldiers this opportunity. The Han cavalry on the hill took the lead and charged down the gentle slope, allowing the war horses to exert their fastest speed.

Compared with the Liang army's horse hooves wrapped in thick cloth, nearly ten thousand horse hooves stomped the ground frantically, and the sound of their hooves was like thunder. The cavalry on both sides rushed down the mountains and plains, rushing straight towards the Liang army. Their might was like a landslide and tsunami, shaking the hills and valleys.

Such a sudden situation immediately caused a violent reaction in the Liang army. The Liang cavalry spread out to try to stop the Han cavalry's charge, while the infantry tried to form a formation as quickly as possible to avoid being overwhelmed by the Han cavalry.

The Han cavalry, taking advantage of the gentle slope to charge, increased their speed to the maximum in a short period of time. Their task was not to defeat the Liang cavalry, but to break through the Liang army's infantry and cavalry formations and cooperate with the subsequent infantry to eliminate Ma Chao's last available troops.

The Liang cavalry faced the Han cavalry charging head-on with spears at high speed. Even though they were extremely brave, they did not dare to block them head-on. They had to disperse and try to fight back against the Han cavalry. However, they did not expect that there were light cavalry following closely behind the Han cavalry to fight with the Liang cavalry.

As Cheng Gongying thought, Lu Xun would never let Ma Chao go. He selected 3,000 cavalrymen and Wei Yan from the army, and then assigned 2,000 elite infantrymen, in order to let Wei Yan ambush and kill Ma Chao. Wei Yan also signed a military order to kill Ma Chao, and received 5,000 elite infantrymen to ambush and kill him.

Although Wei Yan was unruly, he had the capital to be arrogant. He was not only brave but also good at using military tactics.

When Wei Yan was ordered to ambush Ma Chao, he did not set up an ambush in front of him, but deliberately deployed troops halfway to make Ma Chao relax. He did not set up an ambush at multiple dangerous intersections, but instead fought in a relatively open valley, so as to make the Liang army relax as much as possible.

Wei Yan's move really made the Liang army relax. At dawn before daybreak, the Liang army, which had been running all night, was no longer on guard and was easily ambushed by the Han army led by Wei Yan.

"kill!"

The Xianqi raised their long spears at an angle and rushed into the chaotic ranks of the Liang army with overwhelming force.

The Liang army under Ma Chao was famous for its good use of spears, but faced with the Han cavalry that broke into their formation, the frightened Liang army found it difficult to form a neat line. Even without the Han cavalry rushing up to them, the infantry dispersed and retreated on the spot, allowing the Han cavalry to easily enter the formation.

The cavalry charge was always so simple and crude. The infantry would not be able to stop the cavalry charge without a spear formation or a chariot formation. Even if the cavalry stabbed the warhorse, the cavalry would go crazy because of the warhorse, making it even more unstoppable.

The reason why cavalry is unstoppable on the battlefield is mostly because the charging horses will charge madly when they are injured or on the eve of death, and the desperate attack will break the general formation.

During the Ming-Mongol War, the Ming army formed a spear formation, which the Mongols could not defeat in most cases. However, in order to defeat the spear formation, the Mongols sometimes drove a large number of war horses to attack the square formation, causing the army to collapse, and then wielded sabers to kill.

When Qi Jiguang arrived in the northern border, he promoted chariots. A big reason was that the Mongols could drive their horses to break through the enemy's formation. By using chariots to build firepower advantage, they could defeat the Mongols.

By the Ming and Qing dynasties, the Qing had a large number of artillery. When facing an isolated spear array or a chariot array, the Ming army was often unable to stop it by directly bombarding it with artillery. A typical example is the Battle of the White Spear Army at Hunhe.

In a flash, the Han cavalry rushed into the battle formation, facing the Liang army infantry who lacked spear formations and chariot formations, and killed them one by one like chopping melons and vegetables. Then the Han cavalry chased and killed the Liang army like tigers and wolves chasing sheep, and their ranks were torn into pieces.
The Han soldiers advanced in a square formation, and with the cooperation of the Han cavalry, they surrounded and killed or forced the chaotic Liang soldiers to surrender. In an instant, the elite soldiers and horses that Ma Chao was proud of were completely powerless under the attack of the elite Han army.

After ensuring that the situation was proper, Wei Yan was even more eager to try. He aimed at the big flag where Ma Chao was and personally led 200 cavalrymen to charge.

Seeing that his troops had been ambushed and that the infantry and cavalry were being defeated like a mountain collapsing, Ma Chao became even more furious.

Under the banner of the Liang army, Ma Chao was furious and cursed: "Lu Xun is really treacherous. He set an ambush here."

Although Ma Chao's words were full of anger, they were more of a rage of impotence. This army was the only available soldier under his command. Now that they were defeated by the Han army, how could he survive in the future?

Compared to Ma Chao's anger due to incompetence, Cheng Gongying was much more decisive and said, "Your Majesty, our army is in disarray and it is difficult to save the whole army. It is better to cut off the rear and save your life. Your Majesty, lead your trusted men to run. If you can join forces with General Bo Zhan, you will also have troops available."

"If the king dies here, there will be no way to avenge him!"

"go!"

Under Cheng Gongying's persuasion, Ma Chao was very decisive and said: "The current situation is devastating, we should abandon the army and save our lives."

As he spoke, Ma Chao ignored the chaotic infantry and cavalry, abandoned the big flag, led hundreds of cavalry, took advantage of the chaotic situation, charged out with bravery, and fled towards Langgan.

Wei Yan, who was still unaware of Ma Chao's escape, led two or three hundred cavalrymen with a long spear in hand and charged straight at Ma Chao's banner.

Along the way, Wei Yan was extremely brave. Wherever he went, the Liang army fled in panic, and he killed them all directly under Ma Chao's banner.

"Where is Ma Chao?"

Wei Yan stabbed a Liang cavalryman to death with his spear and asked loudly.

"General, Ma Chao is cunning. He left behind dozens of flag soldiers and ran away with two or three hundred cavalrymen!" the attendant shouted.

Wei Yan observed the situation around him and cursed, "Ma Chao, you bastard, is so decisive!"

"General, should we lead the troops to pursue?" asked the attendant.

Wei Yan sneered a few times and said, "I have sent people to set up an ambush at Luoma Gate ahead. I think Ma Chao can escape from here, but not Luoma Gate."

Wei Yan hesitated, then remembered the military order he had given to Lu Xun. He changed his mind and said, "Let Yang Ang stay behind to lead the troops, and you will follow me to pursue Ma Chao. You must not let Ma Chao get away."

"promise!"

(End of this chapter)