kingnovel Chapter 1859: Careless
Chapter 1859: Careless
Liu Xiu roared in frustration, his voice changing tone.
The fear and anger in his heart reached a peak. He hated the Chu army for lingering around, and even more so, he regretted why he had followed the advice to stop and rest!
The entire Han army camp exploded instantly!
The soldiers were awakened from their sleep by the officers' rough kicks and shouts. Confusion, fear and panic were intertwined. They grabbed their weapons and ran around like headless flies. The organization was in complete disarray and the scene was in chaos.
"Your Majesty! Calm down!"
Although Zhou Yongyan's face turned pale, he still managed to maintain a certain composure.
He tried his best to hold back Liu Xiu, who was about to lose control, and said quickly, "Your Majesty, it's too late! They are all cavalry, and they are very fast!"
"Most of us are infantry, and we're so exhausted and confused. If we turn and run now, we'll be exposing our backs to the enemy. They'll easily hunt us down and kill us. It's a dead end!"
He pointed at the approaching flames and judged, "Judging from the number and distribution of torches, the pursuing cavalrymen don't seem to be the entire main force of the Chu army. Perhaps they are just the vanguard!"
"Although our army is exhausted, we still have 50,000 men! If we flee hastily now, we will surely perish!"
"But if we can quickly organize a defensive formation, using spears, barricades, and bows and crossbows to repel the enemy, we might be able to fight!"
"We might even have a chance to first eliminate this reckless vanguard cavalry, dampen their spirit, and then find an opportunity to retreat!"
Zhou Yongyan's words were like a pour of cold water on his head, causing the furious and panicked Liu Xiu to shudder.
He instantly understood the situation: if he ran, he would definitely not be able to outrun the four-legged creature, and the result would be annihilation of the entire army.
Although it is difficult to defend, there is still a glimmer of hope!
As an emperor who had experienced countless fierce battles, Liu Xiu had extraordinary decisiveness at critical moments.
He immediately suppressed all his panic and regret, and a fierce look flashed in his eyes!
"Pass on my orders!"
Liu Xiu's voice once again turned cold and filled with murderous intent: "All spearmen and shieldmen, immediately advance and form a circle!"
"Crossbowmen, prepare your positions! Cavalry, stand guard on both flanks! Quick! Anyone who disobeys orders or flees will be executed without mercy!"
"Quick! Form a formation! Quick!"
"Lancers forward!"
"Crossbowmen! Where are the crossbowmen?"
The generals of the Han army also knew that it was a moment of life and death. They shouted desperately and even swung their swords to kill a few soldiers who were running around, trying to unite this scattered group of people.
A sudden encounter is about to break out on the cold Kunyang plain.
No one knows whether the remaining Han army can withstand the fatal attack of the Chu cavalry.
But Liu Xiu knew that he had no way to retreat and could only give it a try!
If he fails to defeat the vanguard of the Chu army, he will be the one to die!
The night was as dark as ink. On the Kunyang Plain, firelight illuminated an extremely unequal battle.
The 20,000 Chu cavalry led by Xue Huaide and Zhao Yu were like two red-hot knives, repeatedly cutting and attacking the Han army's hastily formed defensive formation.
Although the Han soldiers had a short rest, their physical and mental strength were far from recovered.
Faced with the elite cavalry of the Chu army who were well-rested and full of murderous intent, their resistance seemed so weak and desperate.
"Hold on! Hold on, spearmen!"
The Han army officers roared at the top of their lungs, but their voices were soon drowned out by the deafening sound of horse hooves and shouts of killing.
The Chu cavalry did not confront the Han army's spear formation head-on.
They took advantage of the unparalleled mobility of their cavalry, divided into several groups, and like circling vultures, constantly searched for the weak points in the Han army's formation.
Once they found a gap, they would rush in like lightning, brandishing their sabers and wantonly hacking at the archers and exhausted infantry in the formation, creating huge chaos before quickly withdrawing without any lingering fight.
Xue Huaide took the lead. Every time he swung the huge Fang Tian Huaji in his hand, it brought terrifying power, often directly chopping off several Han soldiers with their shields, and forcibly carving out bloody alleys in the gun formation.
He was like a god of war, invincible, and no general in the Han army could match him.
Zhao Yu on the other side was like a cold and poisonous snake.
He did not seek large-scale killings, but instead led an elite light cavalry to specifically harass the flanks and rear of the Han army.
His spear appeared and disappeared with great precision, accurately killing low-ranking officers of the Han army and soldiers who tried to organize a counterattack, further exacerbating the command chaos of the Han army.
Under such efficient and brutal attacks, the Han army's circular formation quickly became riddled with holes, like a dam constantly washed by floods.
The outer gun array was thinned layer by layer, and the formation was compressed smaller and smaller.
The corpses piled up outside the line, hindering the movement of their own soldiers.
Panic and despair spread among the Han soldiers like a plague.
"I can't stop it!"
"We're going to die here!"
"Run!"
At first, small groups of Han soldiers could not bear the pressure, dropped their weapons, and tried to escape into the darkness outside the formation.
However, as soon as they left the main force, they were easily caught up by the Chu cavalry cruising on the periphery and chopped to the ground.
This senseless death further destroys the will of the remaining people.
Liu Xiu stood on a slightly higher earthen slope in the center of the army. His face was as pale as paper, and the knuckles of his fingers holding the hilt of the sword were white from the force.
He watched helplessly as his army was being eroded and disintegrated bit by bit, but he was powerless to do anything.
Zhou Yongyan was standing aside, sweat also on his forehead. It seemed that the previous suggestions were pushing this remnant army into an abyss of no return.
The generals fought desperately to maintain the line, but everyone knew that collapse might come after the next cavalry charge.
"Your Majesty! The left wing is about to collapse! General Li is dead!"
A captain covered in blood ran over crying.
"The right wing requests support! There are too many casualties!" Another messenger brought bad news.
Bad news came one after another.
The Han army's formation had been twisted and deformed and was on the verge of collapse.
The Chu cavalry's charge became bolder and more fierce. They seemed to have smelled the scent of victory and blood, and their attacks became more wild.
Xue Huaide even led his troops to break into the Han army's formation three times in a row. Although he was forced to retreat at a huge cost by the Han army each time, each time made the Han army's defense system more fragmented.
He raised his blood-stained painted halberd high and roared like thunder: "Liu Xiu is right there! My men, follow me and kill him! Take his head!"
Upon hearing this, the morale of the Chu cavalry rose even higher, and they cheered bloodthirstyly. Their attack was like a storm, with each wave higher than the last.
The Han army's front line has reached its limit.
The soldiers' eyes were filled with numbness and death, and many of them were wielding their weapons simply out of instinct and fear of death.
Collapse seems inevitable.
Liu Xiu could even clearly see Xue Huaide's ferocious face and the tip of the painted halberd that was flashing with cold light.