kingnovel Chapter 1796: Fighting to the Death
Chapter 1796: Fighting to the Death
Gongsun Ao only then fully understood Chu Ning's complete strategy. Shame, anger, and despair surged in his heart.
"Chu Ning... is truly cunning! I... I thought he was just waiting for the right moment to attack the city... Ridiculous! Ridiculous!"
"General! Now is not the time to talk about this!"
Jia Yuan suddenly drew his sword with a resolute voice. He had already seen the Chu cavalry begin to organize their formation and prepare to launch a charge.
"I am willing to lead five thousand of my men to cover your retreat! To buy time for you and the remaining soldiers! Please lead the rest of us and retreat to the western mountains and forests immediately! Perhaps there is still a glimmer of hope!"
"General Jia, this..." Gongsun Ao was stunned for a moment. He knew what it meant to cover the rear.
"No time for hesitation, General!"
Jia Yuan almost shouted, he clasped his fists together and looked at Gongsun Ao deeply:
"The Han army can survive without me, Jia Yuan, but not without you, General Gongsun! Please stay alive and lead the remaining brothers to find the Duke of Protectorate! You will avenge us one day!"
After saying this, without waiting for Gongsun Ao's response, Jia Yuan turned around abruptly and roared at the terrified soldiers around him:
"Men who are not afraid of death, stay with me, Jia Yuan! Stop the Chu dogs! Cover the general and the brothers' retreat! If there are elderly or children at home, retreat quickly!"
Perhaps it was Jia Yuan's bravery that inspired the others, or perhaps it was the desperate situation that inspired their bloodiness. Suddenly, a large number of soldiers, especially Gongsun Ao and Jia Yuan's personal guards, gathered around Jia Yuan with red eyes, roaring:
"I am willing to fight to the death with General Jia!"
"Quick! Escort the general away!" Jia Yuan shouted sternly to the captain of Gongsun Ao's personal guards.
The personal guards suppressed their grief, surrounded the still dazed Gongsun Ao, turned their horses around, and forcibly took him away from the main road, rushing towards the dark forest on the flank.
Jia Yuan watched Gongsun Ao leave, then turned around and faced the wave of Chu cavalry that had begun to accelerate in front of him.
He raised his sword high and shouted to the more than 5,000 rearguard soldiers gathered around him: "Brothers! Form a battle line! Spearmen in front! Sword and shield men guard the flanks!"
"Archers! Shoot upwards! Let Chu Gou see that we, the Chinese, are not cowards!"
Relying on their last instinct and courage, the Han soldiers quickly formed a simple circle.
The spearmen pointed their spears diagonally forward, forming a sparse forest of spears. The sword and shield soldiers held their shields nervously and stood among the spearmen.
"Shoot!" Jia Yuan gave the order.
Sparse arrows were shot from the Han army formation, but for the elite Chu cavalry who were charging at high speed and fully armed, these long-range attacks were almost negligible.
"boom--!"
The next moment, the Chu cavalry, like a torrent of steel, slammed into the Han army's infantry line!
It was a massacre without any suspense.
The high-speed charging warhorses were like giant hammers that crushed everything, instantly smashing the Han army's hastily formed formation into pieces!
The horrific sound of bones breaking, the neighing of war horses, the howls of soldiers before their death, and the harsh sounds of swords and guns clashing all intertwined in an instant, playing a melody of death.
The lances and spears in the hands of the Chu cavalry took advantage of the speed of their horses and easily pierced the thin armor and flesh of the Han soldiers.
The swung sabers stirred up plumes of warm blood and severed limbs. The Han soldiers fell like harvested wheat.
Jia Yuan led the charge, wielding his sword and slashing left and right, knocking down two Chu cavalrymen who rushed in front of him, and shouting at the top of his lungs:
"Hold on! For the big man! Hold on!"
But his efforts were doomed to be in vain.
The infantry was surrounded by the superior cavalry in the open area, and the outcome was already determined.
The Chu cavalry divided, surrounded, and crushed the 5,000 Han troops with just a few charges and penetrations back and forth!
The remaining Han soldiers showed amazing courage and heroism. Although they knew they would die, no one surrendered.
They use their bodies and their lives to delay every minute and every second.
There were people constantly clinging to the legs of the Chu army's horses and dying together, and there were people constantly charging forward with arrows, swords and spears all over their bodies...
However, individual bravery could not turn the tide of the battle. The encirclement became smaller and smaller, and the number of survivors became fewer and fewer.
The personal soldiers around Jia Yuan fell one by one, and he himself was covered in wounds, blood, and his movements became slow.
A spear pierced his thigh, and a saber had cut deep gashes into his breastplate, from which blood oozed.
Finally, he was exhausted and was knocked to the ground by a Chu cavalry captain with a spear.
Before he could get up, several cold spears were already pressing against his body from different directions.
Jia Yuan lay on the ground, looking at the dark, starless night sky, gasping for breath, with blood constantly gushing out of his mouth.
He heard the faint sound of horse hooves coming from the distant mountains and forests - perhaps that meant General Gongsun had successfully escaped?
Thinking of this, the corners of his mouth seemed to move with difficulty, revealing a trace of imperceptible relief.
The captain of the Chu army looked at him coldly, as if to confirm that he was worthless, and thrust the spear in his hand forward!
"Uh……"
The sharp blade pierced his heart, Jia Yuan's body trembled violently, the light in his eyes quickly disappeared, and finally his head tilted and he died.
This deputy general of the Han army, who served loyally to the end, fulfilled his final duty with his own life and the blood of 5,000 remaining soldiers.
The battlefield soon returned to silence, with only the sporadic sound of horse hooves and finishing blows as the Chu cavalry cleaned up the battlefield.
The flickering flames illuminated the messy corpses and coagulated blood on the ground, making it look extremely miserable and sad.
This road of hope leading to the north has now become a complete dead end.
An hour after the war.
On the wall of Xunyang City, the night wind was howling, and Chu Ning overlooked the entire city.
It was not difficult for him to capture Xunyang City. He was just waiting for a suitable opportunity.
Now that Xunyang City has fallen into his hands, he just has to wait for good news from the front line.
At this time, a Jinyiwei wearing a flying fish uniform came to report: "Your Majesty, the front line has received news via carrier pigeons that the cavalry has intercepted the retreating Han army."
"However, the Han army's deputy general Jia Yuan led 5,000 soldiers to cover the rear, giving Gongsun Ao a chance to escape."
"Now, the 5,000 remaining Han troops have been completely annihilated, and Gongsun Ao is fleeing!"
Chu Ning's lips curled up slightly when he heard this, revealing a hint of amusement: "It's okay, that's just the bait I put out."
"According to the time, Huo Quji's reinforcements will be arriving soon!"
His real target is Huo Quji!
In fact, he could have prevented Gongsun Ao from escaping, but in order to catch the big fish Huo Quji, he chose to spend a huge amount of money.
Gongsun Ao was the one he released on purpose.
When Huo Quji receives the news, he will definitely rush to support Gongsun Ao immediately. Then, it will be his chance to eliminate Huo Quji!