Chapter 498 One-on-one challenge!

Sunjiagou, outskirts.

A messenger quickly crawled into the Yan army formation, knelt on one knee and reported to Zhao Yong, who was concentrating on observing the battle in the village:

"Sir, the Fengwu Army in the village has been defeated, and our army is pursuing them..."

Zhao Yong frowned slightly after hearing his subordinates' words and asked Xu Zhe, the master beside him:
"How's the situation around here?"

Xu Zhe said without hesitation:
"I reported an incense stick ago that there is no trace of the Fengwu Army around our army. According to your order, I have sent hundreds of scouts to the surrounding ten miles. As soon as the enemy appears, they will report the situation immediately!"

Zhao Yong's frown relaxed a little after hearing this. After considering it for a while, he made a decision and ordered:
"Continue to pursue the Fengwu Army in the village, but the enemy is cunning, so be careful not to fall into their trap!"

"Yes!"

After giving the order, Zhao Yong turned his attention to Sunjiagou. After realizing that Sunjiagou was a trap set for him by the Fengwu Army, his subconscious reaction was to run away, running as far as he could to avoid the pursuit of the Fengwu Army.

However, after calming down and thinking carefully, he realized that he no longer had the capital to escape. If he chose to escape and was chased and killed by the Fengwu cavalry all the way, he would undoubtedly die a more miserable death. It would be better to fight the Fengwu Army while he still had the strength to fight. Even if he died, it would be far better than being chased and killed on the road as a coward...
Although he was determined to fight to the death, as the old saying goes, it is better to live a miserable life than to die a good death. No one wants to die while they can live. So Zhao Yong made careful plans for the desperate situation before him, even though he didn't know how many Fengwu troops were ambushed in Sunjiagou.

However, Zhao Yong estimated that the enemy would not have too many troops. The first reason was that the Fengwu Army was mainly composed of infantry, and the large infantry marched slowly and should not be able to catch up. Second, if the enemy came with a main force, after realizing that the ambush plan had failed, they should have started to take the initiative to attack and arrange a siege.

And now the enemy is still defending Sunjiagou, which means that they do not have many troops and horses, probably only a few thousand cavalry of the Fengwu Army that pursued them at the beginning. After realizing this, Zhao Yong, who was originally a little desperate, now has a lot of confidence in his heart. Although his troops are still at a disadvantage and his food and grass are almost exhausted, the soldiers under his command are the most elite Youyan cavalry of the Great Zhou, so he still has the capital to turn the tables and fight back.

After careful planning, Zhao Yong began his preparations for the war. He did not care about tomorrow or the day after tomorrow. He directly took out all the remaining food in his hands and let his brothers have a full meal. Then he imitated the strategy of burning the boats and smashing the pots in the army. He made the current danger public and told his brothers that as long as they captured Sunjiagou, they would all have a chance to survive, and if they failed to capture Sunjiagou, they would all die here...

It has to be said that Zhao Yong's move was indeed very effective. After his operation, the Youyan Iron Cavalry, which had originally had low morale, immediately became high-spirited again under the drive of survival, and were ready to fight a decisive battle with the Fengwu Army!

After boosting morale, Zhao Yong divided the 3,000 troops into three teams of 1,000. Two teams of 1,000 attacked from the east and west sides respectively, while the remaining team of 1,000 served as a reserve team in case of an emergency.

Seeing that the soldiers who were attacking Sunjiagou had basically all entered Sunjiagou, Zhao Yong had a bad feeling in his heart and immediately turned to his advisor Xu Zhe beside him and instructed:

"Pass the order down, and have the scouts in the surrounding area expand their range to fifteen miles... No! Twenty miles!"

Listening to Zhao Yong's words, Xu Zhe said subconsciously:
"Sir, are you worried that the Fengwu Army's troops are not all concentrated in Sunjiagou, and they have ambushes outside?"

Seeing that Xu Zhe understood what he meant, Zhao Yong nodded solemnly and said:
"Well, too fast! They attacked too quickly! The Fengwu Army has always been cunning and treacherous, so we have to be on guard!"

"I understand, I'll make arrangements right away!"

Xu Zhe took the order and left.

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Just when Zhao Yong was feeling anxious outside Sunjiagou, Cui Desheng in Sunjiagou was trying to persuade Guo Zhiping:
"Sir, let's take action now! I don't know what Zhao Yong said to these defeated soldiers, but now they are so fearless and unafraid of death. If we don't take action now, it will be very dangerous if they really break through the direction of our army!"

Listening to Sun Desheng's words, Guo Zhiping was no longer as calm as at the beginning. He narrowed his eyes slightly and thought quickly. This Zhao Yong was indeed not an ordinary person. He could still remain calm and composed until now. He was really patient and did not attack all the troops in his hands into Sunjiagou.

After pondering for a while, Guo Zhiping opened his mouth and ordered:

"Pass the order down, the troops on the east side of the village should retreat to the big locust tree..."
Before Guo Zhiping finished speaking, the anxious Cui Desheng heard that he was going to retreat. He forgot the rules for a moment and interrupted Guo Zhiping and asked anxiously:
"Sir, are you still retreating?"

Although his words were interrupted by Cui Desheng, Guo Zhiping did not get angry, but just looked at Cui Desheng with calm eyes. Under Guo Zhiping's gaze, Cui Desheng also realized his slip of the tongue, so he shut his mouth obediently, lowered his head, and bowed to Guo Zhiping to apologize.

Because he knew that Cui Desheng was in a hurry and did not intend to challenge him rudely, Guo Zhiping did not pursue the matter and continued to give orders:
"If Zhao Yong doesn't come in, then we will launch a counterattack. Remember, even if we launch a counterattack, we are not allowed to put all the troops in. We must counterattack bit by bit and nibble away at him step by step. I don't believe Zhao Yong can hold on! Also, tell the soldiers outside not to worry. Wait for my signal!"

"Yes!"

Following Guo Zhiping's order, under the continuous offensive of the Yan Army, the Fengwu Army abandoned their positions and retreated towards the big locust tree that marked the center of the village. Soon Zhao Yong, who was still outside Sunjiagou, also received the news.

Zhao Yong was tempted to hear the news. He was hesitating whether to throw all his troops into Sunjiagou, drive the Fengwu Army out of Sunjiagou in one battle, and get the food and grass supplies in Sunjiagou...

Just when Zhao Yong was hesitant, a new messenger came running over and reported breathlessly:

"Sir, the Fengwu Army has begun to counterattack, and our army has been forced to retreat one mile!" Upon hearing this news, before Zhao Yong could react, his master Xu Zhe began to advise:
"Sir, our army is already at the end of its strength. We have fought to this point only because of our bravery. If we are beaten back now, everything will be over! Even if the Fengwu Army really has an ambush outside, as long as we attack Sunjiagou, there is still hope!"

Seeing that his most trusted advisor had said so, Zhao Yong also made up his mind and nodded and said:
"I'll follow your advice, sir. I'll fight!"

After saying this, Zhao Yong drew out his sword and shouted loudly to the 1,000 reserve troops beside him:

"Brothers, follow me! Go to Sunjiagou and drink a lot of wine and eat a lot of meat!"

"Kill!"

After Zhao Yong entered Sunjiagou for a cup of tea, Cui Desheng rushed into Guo Zhiping's command center. Before he could speak, Guo Zhiping asked first:

"He's coming in?"

Cui Desheng nodded and said:

"Zhao Yong is leading the team personally, and all the Yan troops have entered the village!"

Upon hearing this, Guo Zhiping's eyes immediately showed an undisguised murderous intent, and he immediately opened his mouth and ordered:

"Send a signal to the brothers outside! Counterattack on all fronts! Counterattack on all fronts!"

"Yes!"

Cui Desheng, who had been ready for a long time, was shocked when he received Guo Zhiping's order, and immediately passed the order down...
After a cup of tea, Zhao Yong, who was personally supervising the battle at the front line in Sunjiagou, suddenly heard a crackling sound in the air. He looked up instinctively and saw an orange-red firework rising into the sky, blooming into a brilliant flower in the sky.

Watching the fireworks appear, Zhao Yong sighed subconsciously:

"so beautiful!"

After expressing his feelings, Zhao Yong seemed to realize something. His face froze and then slowly turned ugly. Just when he was about to say something, he heard a deafening cannon shot all around him. Countless Yan army soldiers were knocked to the ground before they could react. The artillery shells created a huge shock wave that shattered the Yan army's formation.

On a hidden observation tower not far away, Guo Zhiping, who was holding a telescope, saw this scene and a satisfied smile appeared on his face. The red cannon was the unique killer weapon of the Fengwu Army. Although it was extremely powerful and lethal.

However, it has a fatal weakness. Due to the limitation of technical conditions, the red cannon is huge and heavy, which makes it very troublesome to transport. It is easier on plain roads, but it will be very troublesome if you encounter mountain roads. This has also become a major pain point for the Fengwu Army.

Under Ye Mingsheng's order, the Cancer Manufacturing Bureau actively collected suggestions from military generals, gathered a group of technical backbones, worked overtime to overcome technical difficulties, and finally launched the second model of the Red Cannon, code-named Shenwei, before the Fengwu Army entered the pass.

Compared to the original red cannon, the power of the Shenwei cannon has been reduced. According to the test, it has been reduced by about 20%, but its volume and weight have been reduced by nearly half, which undoubtedly saves a lot of manpower and material resources for transportation...
This was also directly reflected in Guo Zhiping's Third Division. In the past, due to transportation issues, the red cannons equipped to the Third Division were all given to the infantry, and the cavalry units did not even have tiger squat cannons. But now with the appearance of the Shenwei cannon, the cavalry units are also able to be equipped with red cannons.

In the previous fight, because it was a chase, Zhao Yong's troops were constantly moving and changing positions, so the Shenwei Cannon was not used. But now that Zhao Yong has led his troops into Sunjiagou, the encounter has turned into an offensive battle, and this Shenwei Cannon will naturally give Zhao Yong a big surprise!

After the bombardment, thousands of Fengwu Army soldiers who had been hiding in the rear immediately rushed out from the rear. Seeing this scene, Zhao Yong realized that he had been fooled and his face turned pale. He knew that he had been cautious but still fell into the Fengwu Army's trap!
Although he had gradually begun to realize that Sunjiagou might be his burial place, out of fear of death, Zhao Yong still tried his best to control his Yan army, get rid of the troublesome Fengwu army soldiers in front of him, and then break out of the siege.

I have to say that the Youyan Iron Cavalry is really strong. Despite encountering such a desperate situation, they still managed to fight their way out and reached the exit of Sunjiagou village. However, just when hope burst out in their eyes and they were about to be able to fly freely in the sky and fish leap freely in the sea, more than a thousand Fengwu Army cavalrymen silently appeared right in front of them...
Just when Zhao Yong was feeling desperate, the Fengwu Army suddenly stopped attacking. A slender, tough-looking middle-aged man dressed like a Confucian general rode a tall horse and came to the front of the two armies, surrounded by the generals of the Fengwu Army. He glanced at the hundreds of defeated soldiers of the Yan Army in front of him, and then spoke loudly:
"I am Guo Zhiping, general of the 3rd division of the Fengwu Army. Where is Zhao Yong, general of the Zhuo County Army of the Yan Army?"

Zhao Yong was a little surprised to hear Guo Zhiping introduce himself. He didn't know why Guo Zhiping came here. He hesitated for a moment, looked at the hundreds of blood-stained soldiers around him, and then looked at Guo Zhiping who had forced him into a desperate situation. He felt that he had come to this point and there was nothing to worry about. He immediately decided to stand up and face Guo Zhiping and said loudly:

"I am Zhao Yong!"

Seeing Zhao Yong standing up, Guo Zhiping looked him up and down and said:
“Draw your sword! Let’s fight one on one! I promised our Lord Commander that I would personally chop off your head and present it to him. If you defeat me, you can take your men and leave here…”

Zhao Yong was a little surprised when he heard this. He thought Guo Zhiping wanted to recruit him. He was already hesitating between pretending to surrender and lurking in the dark with the Fengwu Army, or righteously refusing and swearing to die. But he never expected that Guo Zhiping wanted to fight him one-on-one! What era is this? He still plays this game?
Although he was a little surprised, he could leave if he beat Guo Zhiping. Zhao Yong couldn't help but feel a little moved and said to Guo Zhiping:
"A gentleman's word?"

Guo Zhiping smiled and said:
"It's hard to chase a horse!"

After getting Guo Zhiping's affirmative answer, Zhao Yong took a deep breath and used his clothes to slowly wipe the bloodstains on the goose-wing knife in his hand. Then, without saying anything more, he galloped on his horse and went straight to Guo Zhiping...
(End of this chapter)