Chapter 201: Decisive Battle At Jiangxia
Dark clouds hung low, the river wind swept across a vast wilderness. The booming war drums sounded, and ten thousand Cao Army soldiers, armed with shields and spears, slowly advanced towards the Yuzhang Army formation.
The dense shields completely covered the soldiers’ bodies, rendering the Yuzhang Army’s archery ineffective. Not far from the Cao Army infantry were three thousand cavalry led by Gao Shun, armed with spears, riding fine warhorses, closely following the infantry formation.
This would be the first wave of attack by the Cao Army on the Yuzhang Army. One mile away, Cao Ren led twenty thousand troops, marching in formation. Facing them, thirty-five thousand Yuzhang Army soldiers were arrayed in wait, with spearmen, crossbowmen, and the fire oil camp arranged in order.
Xu Shu watched intently as the ten thousand three hundred Cao Army infantry and cavalry advanced. The two armies were only five hundred paces apart. At this moment, the enemy drums roared like a shattering ice mountain, and the three thousand cavalry behind, led by the Great General Gao Shun, charged towards the Yuzhang Army.
Xu Shu ordered, “Crossbowmen, engage the enemy!”
“Woooo—woooo—”
A low horn sounded, and five thousand crossbowmen stepped forward. The tips of their crossbow bolts gleamed coldly in the air. Seeing the enemy cavalry sweeping in like a storm, five thousand crossbow bolts were fired simultaneously. An arrow rain, dense as clouds, shot towards the cavalry.
The cavalry dodged while running, but still, warhorses were hit and fell, tumbling to the ground with their riders.
After firing only two volleys, nearly four hundred cavalrymen were hit and fell. The remaining cavalry still reached the front.
“Retreat! Retreat!”
The crossbow soldiers quickly retreated, and the spearmen advanced, holding their spears densely like a forest.
The Cao Army cavalry instantly charged into the infantry ranks. The Cao Army cavalry, like fierce beasts, rampaged through the infantry formation.
Just as the Cao Army cavalry broke into the infantry formation, the Yuzhang Army’s second and third infantry battalions simultaneously attacked. The crossbow units reappeared, aiming their crossbows and firing at the cavalry at close range. In an instant, arrows rained down like a dense fog, covering the sky and shooting towards the cavalry mass, causing Cao Army cavalry to fall from their horses.
Ten thousand Cao Army soldiers also arrived and, after several charges, broke into the Yuzhang Army infantry formation. The two great armies engaged in a bloody battle on the vast plain.
At this point, Cao Ren saw that the Yuzhang Army had fully deployed. He sneered and ordered, “The entire army will attack!”
A low horn sounded across the wilderness as two ten-thousand-man infantry units advanced. This was due to Cao Ren’s rich combat experience; he first used cavalry and ten thousand troops to disrupt the Yuzhang Army’s formation, and only then did his twenty thousand troops appear.
The two ten-thousand-man square formations, like two massive carpets, surged and ran across the wilderness. Each Cao Army infantry soldier held a round shield in one hand and a ten-foot-long spear in the other. This was an elite infantry force that Cao Ren had trained for over half a year, originally intended to counter the Yuan Clan’s army, but unexpectedly, their final opponent turned out to be the Yuzhang Army.
The two Cao Army square formations advanced with a strong, dense formation, like a battering ram fiercely impacting the Yuzhang Army’s position.
“Hurl fire oil!”
Strategist Xu Shu gave the order. The Yuzhang Army’s war drums roared like thunder, shaking the heavens. Two hundred medium-sized catapults launched simultaneously, hurling two hundred incendiary bombs into the Cao Army’s square formations.
Flames erupted everywhere within the Cao Army formations. Countless soldiers wailed and cried out, quickly engulfed by the fire. The Cao Army formations began to fall into disarray.
Zhao Yun led fifteen thousand troops, charging forward. Zhao Yun thrust his spear, blood spraying like an arrow. His great spear danced like a pear blossom, cutting a bloody path. Wherever Zhao Yun passed, bodies lay piled high.
The two infantry units were entangled, fighting fiercely. The Yuzhang Army also discovered the weakness of the Cao Army’s formations and attacked from their flanks. However, the two thousand cavalry that had returned fiercely protected the wings. Despite several charges, the Yuzhang Army could not break through the dense defensive cavalry.
Looking down from high above, along the long battle line, the Yuzhang Army and the Cao Army were in a mixed battle. Despite the Cao Army’s superior combat experience, the Yuzhang Army fought to a stalemate with them, relying on their superior equipment and high morale.
And at this moment, a low horn sound suddenly echoed from the distant wilderness, like a storm on the plain or thunder in the mountains.
“Advance! Advance towards the Cao Army!”
Taishi Ci waved his spear, leading the charge on his horse, his white warhorse’s mane flying.
Behind him, banners fluttered in the wind, and thousands of horses galloped across the plain. Three thousand cavalry charged forward, kicking up grass and dust under their thundering hooves, obscuring the afternoon sun. Their killing intent swept towards the Cao Army’s rear like a storm on the prairie.
Behind them were seventeen thousand infantry, running alongside the cavalry.
The worst thing Cao Ren had feared finally happened. He had originally planned to defeat them one by one, but now they were caught between two fronts. He suddenly realized that he had underestimated the opponent and himself; those who underestimate their enemy are bound to lose.
“Relay orders to General Gao Shun: lead the cavalry to hold off the rear cavalry. Relay orders to Yu Jin’s unit to meet the northern enemy army!”
Cao Ren remained calm in the face of the situation and redeployed his troops, but he already realized that defeat was inevitable today.
The enemy’s combat effectiveness was no less than theirs, yet their numbers were nearly double. How could they not be defeated?
Cao Ren immediately ordered his personal guards, “Notify all commanders immediately to find an opportunity to retreat north.”
The two cavalry units clashed with a roar and engaged in a fierce battle. Yu Jin led eight thousand troops and engaged in a fierce fight with seventeen thousand Yuzhang Army infantry.
The Yuzhang Army’s numerical advantage began to show. The Cao Army was gradually faltering, and signs of defeat appeared.
Xu Shu keenly perceived this and immediately ordered, “Beat the war drums!”
“Dong! Dong! Dong! Dong!”
The Yuzhang Army’s war drums sounded, an order to attack and the final drumbeat. The fifty thousand Yuzhang Army soldiers’ morale soared, and they launched a fierce assault on the enemy.
Yu Jin’s army finally couldn’t hold on and retreated north first. Following them, Cao Ren’s army also retreated north, and Gao Shun’s cavalry retreated with them.
The Cao Army was utterly defeated. The Yuzhang Army pursued them, killing them as they cried and begged for mercy, many kneeling and surrendering.
Gao Shun’s cavalry was responsible for covering the retreat, but they too could not withstand the pursuing torrent of the enemy army, fighting and retreating.
The Cao Army fled past Anlu County but could not enter the city, as the Yuzhang Army cavalry had already entered ahead of them.
Cao Ren had no choice but to lead his remaining troops in a flight northward, escaping towards Pingjing Pass.
In this battle, six thousand of the thirty thousand Cao Army soldiers were killed, and over fifteen thousand surrendered. Cao Ren was left with only a little over eight thousand men. The cavalry suffered the most; three thousand cavalry went into battle, but Gao Shun could only lead less than five hundred cavalry to follow.
The key to this disastrous defeat was Gan Ning’s decisive dispatch of reinforcements, especially Xu Sheng’s fleet and Wei Yan’s fleet completely blockading the Han River, preventing the enemy’s fifty thousand reinforcements from crossing. This left Cao Ren isolated in Jiangxia Commandery, unable to resist the Yuzhang Army’s fifty thousand-strong attack.
Cao Ren did not dare to linger and led his eight thousand remaining troops back to Pingjing Pass, then retreated again to Xiangyang.
This surprise attack, which initially seemed victorious, ended in utter defeat and expulsion from Jiangxia Commandery. Cao Ren was filled with regret and did not know how to explain it to the Chancellor. Ultimately, he had underestimated the opponent’s determination to defend the Salt Source and the importance of warships in the South.
