Chapter 249 The First Face-to-Face Confrontation

When Xu Rong first saw the elite troops of the Jinmao Army, he still found it a little hard to believe.

Rumors are just rumors. People will believe them only when the facts are right in front of them. This is human nature.

Xu Rong was sure that no one on the enemy side would know about this surprise attack, so he was extra careful.

Even though he brought 50,000 troops to guard the pass, with many hilltops among them, the number of troops actually belonging to Xu Rong would not exceed 10,000.

Even among these 10,000 people, only 30% are elite soldiers, and most of them are small fry who cannot withstand a head-on attack.

In contrast, the elite Jinmao Army remained calm in the face of danger and made decisions based on their actions.

In just a quarter of an hour, the direction of travel changed twice, but there was no sign of panic.

Some took the lead in retreating, while others took the lead in covering the rear.

The battle was about to begin. Xu Rong glanced at the "Ling" flag on the opposite side and knew that the rearguard commander was Ling Cao, a brave general under Jin Mao.

As an opponent, Xu Rong always likes to plan before taking action. Ling Cao's information appeared in his mind instantly, and he knew how to deal with it.

"The front army engages in battle!"

"Crossbowmen, get ready!"

"Cavalry attack from both wings!"

Orders were issued one after another, and Xu Rong sat on the podium and began to give orders from a high position.

"Send the reserve archers forward."

The first part was routine operation, and the last part was Xu Rong's killer move. He knew that although Ling Cao was brave, he was not a fierce general. In order to maximize his combat power, he usually only wore a single layer of armor.

Therefore, the bow and crossbow are definitely a powerful weapon against Ling Cao. As long as they can hit the enemy on the spot, the enemy will be thrown into chaos.

Soon, Xu Rong's vanguard army engaged in battle with Ling Cao's rearguard army.

The two sides collided like two steel torrents, with blood and residual soldiers flying all over the sky. Upon closer inspection, Xu Rong's front army was at a slight disadvantage, and as time passed, the disadvantage was expanding.

"What an elite team!"

You have to know that the front army was Xu Rong's elite troops, but they were still inferior to Ling Cao's troops.

It can be said that if we only talk about infantry, in a head-on battle with the same number of troops, one battalion is enough to defeat Dong Zhuo's entire army.

But Xu Rong didn't know that these were not just a battalion of heavy armored infantry, otherwise, the combat effectiveness would have to be raised to a higher level.

"Unfortunately, you will die today!"

Xu Rong stared at Ling Cao, who was eager for war, with murderous eyes.

"Report!"

"Prepare the crossbow team to arrive at the designated location!"

Xu Rong stood up, walked to the big drum and beat the drum himself.

At the front line, the deputy general of the archers and crossbowmen reserve team knew it was their turn to take action as soon as they heard the drum beat.

"preparation!"

"put!"

The crossbowmen shouted in unison: "Wind, wind, wind!"

More than a thousand arrows fell densely around Ling Cao.

Ling Cao seemed to be prepared. He fiercely repelled the enemy in front of him and then took out a wooden shield from behind.

"Shield array!"

"drink!"

His confidants cooperated well and immediately formed a sunflower made of shields.

"Dudududu" the arrows hit the wooden shield, and a few muffled groans were heard from time to time.

The sunflowers made of shields began to wither, and casualties appeared!

Even Ling Cao's left hand, which was holding up the shield, was nailed by the arrow.

Xu Rong had no moral principles and actually used a powerful crossbow to launch a sneak attack!
Ling Cao wanted to fight again, but was forcibly dragged away by his deputy general.

"Heavily armored soldiers, move forward!"

There was no other choice but to use the first battalion’s last resort.

The dark heavy infantrymen advanced slowly with heavy steps. They held black iron shields in their left hands, extended ring-handled swords in their right hands, and had face guards on their faces.

The weapons and equipment are all specially made, and the daily food and salary are the best in the entire battalion. The battalion has the fewest people, only 400.

Therefore, all you need to do is to go wherever there is danger!

The four hundred heavily armored soldiers were divided into two rows, with a distance between each row just enough for one person to pass through, and the back row just filled the gap in the front row.

When Xu Rong ordered the entire army to attack, the front army suddenly rushed into the heavy armored formation.

There were groans, sounds of nails cutting, screams, and also heads flying and blood splattering.

In just one encounter, the front army was like entering a meat grinder, with casualties skyrocketing.

Xu Rong sensed something was wrong, but the battlefield could only advance and there was no retreat, so the vanguard army would definitely not be able to withdraw.

"Strong Crossbowman!"

"Crossbowman!"

"A salvo!"

If the army were a person, orders would flow to each part as quickly as neurons.

Xu Rong was worthy of being the number one general under Dong Zhuo. He was good at training his troops and his orders were quickly reflected in various departments.

"Wind, wind, wind!"

Archers and crossbowmen are arranged in front and behind. The rain of arrows is fired first by the archers in the front, and the rain of arrows from the crossbowmen are fired later and arrive first.

About five thousand arrows were aimed at the heavy infantry formation, but only more than three thousand hit the target.

The heavily armored soldiers were engaging in battle with the front army. It was too late to dodge and screams were heard everywhere.

Although Xu Rongjun suffered greater losses, the heavy armored troops' formation was also broken, and only a few hundred or so heavy armored soldiers were still standing.

The deputy general of the first battalion led his men to retreat in hatred, and the remaining heavy armored soldiers could not be rescued. Although they were born for this, they still found it hard to accept when they actually encountered it.

Seeing that the first battalion of troops was moving away, Xu Rong became very anxious. If he missed this opportunity, he would never have a second chance.

"Boom boom boom!"

The sound of the war drums became more rapid, urging the cavalry to attack.

The terrain inside Dagu Pass is in a T-shaped structure. To the south is a small earthen slope, where Xu Rongshuai Terrace is located, and on both sides are hills with higher altitudes.

Tupo was not in the plan because Dong Zhuo's army was heavily guarded there.

The location of the first battalion happened to be a small plain outside Dagu Pass, about ten square kilometers in area, which was perfect for the cavalry to deploy.

Lu Bu, Li Jue and other generals will receive orders and move quickly.

However, all the generals were very careful. The combat capability of the First Battalion was obvious to all, and no one wanted to be the first unlucky one.

If my trusted and loyal troops were defeated, I would have no place to cry.

Especially Lu Bu, his troops have not yet been restored. It was still okay when Duan Wei was there, as he still had the Qiang and Hu available.

After Xu Rong came, Lu Bu could only play with his Bingzhou Wolf Cavalry.

There are less than a thousand people, what’s the point of playing!
Therefore, Lu Bu always wandered at the back of the cavalry force.

really!

"Wind, wind, wind!"

This time it was not the archers under Xu Rong, but the strong crossbowmen led by Huang Zhong who arrived. They started shooting fiercely from a distance of five hundred steps.

Moreover, the reaction of the First Battalion was also very quick. Upon seeing the reinforcements, they immediately stopped and chose to fight head-on. Among them, five hundred archers also began to take action.

Lu Bu could not see the battle situation in front, but he could see that the cavalry on the left and right wings led by Li Jue and Guo Si were making a detour.

This shows that the pressure on the front battlefield was very high. Otherwise, with nearly 20,000 cavalry on both wings combined, it would be impossible for them to retreat just because they were afraid of a few thousand infantry.

It was not until Lu Bu rushed to the front of the formation that he understood the reason.

In front of us were the remnants of a battalion, with more than 2,000 people left.

Five hundred steps away were the crossbowmen led by Huang Zhong. Further away, about two or three miles away, was another group of elite infantry. Even further away, Lu Bu also saw cavalry leaving the camp!

"Fuck, is this going to be a decisive battle?"

Lu Bu was surprised by the thought in his mind, but also happy at the same time.

Good fight!

It is known that the enemy has less than 20,000 men, while ours has 50,000 infantry and 20,000 cavalry!

Seventy thousand versus twenty thousand, the advantage is on my side!

But his body was still very obedient, and Lu Bu followed the main force and began to retreat in a roundabout way.

Xu Rong stood on the podium, feeling heartbroken.

"What a great opportunity, just wasted like this!"

If Li Jue and Guo Si were not afraid of losing their own troops, Jin Mao would be defeated if only 20,000 cavalry troops rushed forward! No matter how elite the infantry was, they were no match for the absolute difference in numbers!

Unfortunately, Xu Rong was not Dong Zhuo, and he did not have the absolute prestige to force the generals to fight with their lives.

On the other hand, Jinmao is different. Knowing that they are bound to lose, they still dare to fight to the death. This is the difference in morale!
That's it.

Xu Rong sighed and said, "Sound the retreat!"

I didn't expect that I couldn't even finish a single elite unit today.

Xu Rong couldn't help but sigh that Jin Mao's decision to set up camp five miles outside Dagu Pass was a brilliant move.

The best explanation is the current battle situation. Even if one part advances rashly and falls into the enemy's trap, support from the rear can arrive at the battlefield at an extremely fast speed.

the other side.

Upon hearing Xu Rongming's announcement to withdraw his troops, Jin Mao was extremely anxious. He thought he would lose a battalion of elite soldiers today, but he did not expect that things would take such a turn.

"Order!"

"First Battalion, Second Battalion, hold on!"

"Huang Zhong provides long-range support."

"Army attack!"

At this moment, Jin Mao was like a god of war, passing down orders one after another.

What a great opportunity! As the inheritor of guerrilla warfare, how can I not take the opportunity to tear a piece of flesh from the enemy?
As the orders were passed down layer by layer, the lower-level soldiers thought they had won another victory, and they rushed forward shouting and yelling.

Jinmao knew nothing about this.

...

"General!"

"The enemy has launched a full-scale attack!"

Xu Rong's face was gloomy. He was not blind and saw everything clearly. He did not expect Jin Mao to look down on him so much.

"Send the order!"

"All cavalry units must regroup and stop the enemy one mile away!"

"Li Meng and Wang Fang lead their troops to attack!"

"Retreating troops, clear the way to the east and west. Those who violate this will be executed immediately!"

Soon, Xu Rong's order was passed down, and all the generals knew that this time was different from the last time. It was a death order and must be executed.

So, look down from the sky.

Xu Rong's troops were originally retreating like an octopus, but now their formation suddenly changed.

The octopus's two tentacles suddenly grew longer and attacked again. Those were the cavalry troops.

The octopus legs were originally connected to the body, but suddenly they began to disperse to both sides from the root and gradually became disconnected.

The octopus itself seemed to spit out a stream of thick black ink and rushed straight forward.

Moreover, the entire octopus was deforming, as if it was about to change direction and rush forward again.

Wait until the orders from both sides reach the bottom level.

Xu Rong's troops have adjusted their joint attack posture and are waiting for Li Meng and Wang Fang's troops to arrive at the front battlefield, which is Octopus Ink.

The Jinmao group is in the shape of an I.

The first and second battalions are at the front. Huang Zhong is the vertical bar of the Chinese character "工", and the horizontal bar at the back is composed of cavalry, personal guards, and combat soldiers.

The combat soldiers were in the middle, the personal guards were on the left, and the cavalry were on the right.

Jin Mao was among the soldiers, taking in the overall situation.

After a cup of tea, the first and second battalions engaged in battle with Li Meng and Wang Fang.

Right from the start, the battle entered a fierce stage.

Due to Jin Mao's wrong judgment, the first and second battalions did not complete their battle formation, which greatly reduced their combat effectiveness. They could only fight a tie with the 20,000 mob led by Li Meng and Wang Fang.

This result was only achieved with the support of Huang Zhong's powerful crossbowmen.

However, Li Meng and Wang Fang had cavalry units supporting them, and together they had nearly 40,000 men charging into a formation of 6,000 men.

Fortunately, the inconsistencies in Xu Rong's orders meant that Dong Zhuo's army was unable to fully exert its combat power.

Jinmao discovered the abnormality and knew that the mistake was irreversible. Now he had to find a way to win or at least retreat safely.

"Send the order!"

"Cavalry on both wings attack!"

"First Battalion, Second Battalion, form up!"

The character "工" began to deform and turned into an inverted scissors.

Guan Yu and Dian Wei each led 900 cavalrymen to launch a charge.

The combat troops in the middle also began to accelerate their advance. Most of these troops were composed of archers. As long as they arrived at the battlefield, they could provide great firepower support to the front.

But even so, Jin Mao knew that it was impossible to turn defeat into victory with such a weak fighting force.

"We must find a way!"

This time the opponent is not weak at all.

But how can there be so many solutions in such a short period of time?

Just then, Sun Jian came and wandered in front of Jin Mao.

Originally, Sun Jian just wanted to use Jin Mao's high platform to take a look at the battle situation, but he was spotted by Jin Mao somehow.

"Sun Jian, listen to my orders!"

When he first heard this, Sun Jian was completely confused. I treat you as my junior brother, but you want to be my superior?

But people are under the eaves and have to bow their heads.

"The general is here!"

Jin Mao pointed to the west in the direction of the First Battalion and said, "Your troops will immediately go to the First Battalion to provide support. There must be no mistakes!"

"As ordered!"

Sun Jian knew that he would have to have a good talk with Jin Mao later, but for now he had to obey orders, otherwise Jin Mao would really kill him with a military order.

After all, he is in Jinmao's army, and his position is even lower than that of the other party.

The remaining troops of Sun Jian were all elite soldiers. Except for the majority who were recovering from injuries, there were more than 400 lightly injured people who followed Sun Jian to the front line.

Han Dang and Zu Mao were recuperating from their injuries, and the person who came was their general Zhu Zhi.

When Sun Jian arrived at the battlefield, there were only a thousand men left in the battalion who were still resisting stubbornly.

"Sun Jian!"

"Sun Jian!"

While roaring his own name, Sun Jian rode his warhorse and led the charge into the enemy cavalry formation.

Li Jue thought he was going to accomplish great things, but Sun Jian suddenly showed up and frightened him half to death.

Although Duan Wei won the previous battle, Li Jue knew that Sun Jian just had fewer soldiers, and with the same strength, they were not on the same level at all.

Just having Sun Jian alone is enough of a headache, but unexpectedly there is also another powerful man.

"Dianwei!"

"Dianwei!"

Fortunately, Li Jue dodged quickly enough, otherwise he would have been skewered like a candied haws by Dian Wei's halberd.

So Li Jue retreated with his men without looking back.

The other side of the word "共".

The Second Battalion was fully organized. After receiving Jin Mao's order, the heavy infantry lined up in the front, greatly hindering the charge of Guo Si's cavalry.

Zhang Fei, the captain of the second battalion, was a man of hot temper. He dared to lead the charge alone on horseback, and he went in and out three times to kill the enemy cavalry, making them dare not speak loudly.

"Zhang Fei from Yan is here!"

Every time this sentence was shouted out, the morale of the Second Battalion was greatly boosted, its combat effectiveness soared, and it was able to withstand the repeated attacks of 20,000 infantry and cavalry with only more than 3,000 soldiers.

"Hedong Guan Yu is here!"

As Guan Yu joined with his cavalry, Guo Si wisely led his men to retreat. The two powerful generals could fight whoever wanted.

On top of the Dagu Pass command platform.

Xu Rong saw everything, and when he saw Zhang Fei, Guan Yu, Dian Wei and Sun Jian, he knew that nothing could be done.

However, this time Xu Rong did not sound the horn to call back his troops, but instead ordered the archers to shoot to cover their retreat.

At this time, Jin Mao had already arrived in front of the battle, and he also realized that it was not advisable to chase him any further.

Both sides withdrew their troops.

This head-on confrontation resulted in a win or loss.

(End of this chapter)