Three Kingdoms

  Chapter 737 Between a retreat and an advance

Yuan Shao stared closely at Gongsun Zan's queue lined up in front, saying that he was not nervous, that would be a lie. Before Yuan Shao led the army, most of them fought against bandits, yellow scarves, and most of them were county soldiers, like Gongsun Zan. This is the first time that Liaodong's powerful armies have fought...

  Like every junior brother, what Yuan Shao can hope now is that his army can be stronger and last longer, although most of the time this wish is backfired.

  In this early spring day, Yuan Benchu ​​finally took the first step towards becoming a powerful local warlord.

  Seeing that Gongsun Zan's cavalry troops had almost crossed the river and formed their formation, Tian Feng reminded in a low voice: "Duke Ming, it's time to order..."

Yuan Shao clenched his sweaty hands tightly, tried to make his voice steady and powerful, and said, "Command General Qu to go forward!" In fact, this time the operation was still very dangerous. The reason for choosing a relatively flat area for the battle is to make Gongsun Zan underestimate the enemy, and to create favorable conditions in an unfavorable situation.

Actively attack the cavalry with infantry, and use Fei Qian's previous tactics of crossbowmen to allow Gongsun Zan's cavalry to be hit by crossbows without the cover of his infantry, and then charge back instead of engaging in traditional infantry combat This strategy, a tactical arrangement that violates the traditional art of war, is Tian Feng's strategy of underestimating the enemy.

  When Yuan Shao gritted his teeth and made up his mind to adopt Tian Feng's strategy, all the generals were terrified, but Qu Yi agreed and volunteered to be the front...

Qu Yi can be regarded as a native of the Central Plains of Xilianghua. During the reign of Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty, the Pingyuan Qu family took refuge in Xiping and gradually became a common surname in the local area. Therefore, Qu Yi was proficient in some methods of warfare of the Qiang people in Liangzhou. Some of Liang's handsome men also had a lot of acquaintances, and he also had some understanding of Xiliang's iron cavalry. Later, after Qu Yi returned to Jizhou, he became the general of Jizhou Mu Hanfu at that time by virtue of his bravery.

  But Qu Yi grew up in Xiliang after all, so his personality is also very extroverted, careless, he doesn't pay attention to what he says, he belongs to the type of cannonball, so he doesn't get along with Han Fu to some extent...

  Later when Yuan Shao arrived in Jizhou, he instigated Qu Yi's rebellion with almost no effort, making him a general under his command. This time against Gongsun Zan, he sent Ju Yi to the front line.

When Gongsun Zan defeated the Yellow Turban Army of Qingzhou, and when the morale was high, the other generals were a little worried. Koji patted his chest...

Gongsun Zan was originally facing Yuan Shao across the river in the north of Jieqiao, but Yuan Shao retreated 20 miles and set up a formation. Gongsun Zan saw that the south of Jieqiao was flat ground, and the surrounding area was open without any cover for ambush, so he let 30,000 infantry The formation followed up, and I led the 3,000 white horse righteous followers in the center and the 5,000 cavalry on the left and right wings, and crossed the boundary bridge first, and arrived in front of Yuan Shao's formation.

  Yuan Shao's seemingly weak behavior hides murderous intentions...

When Qu Yi led 800 elite heavy infantry and 1,000 strong crossbows to the battle drums, the ambitious Gongsun Zan underestimated the enemy and made the same mistake as Niu Fu. , trying to stud in one fell swoop.

Gongsun Zan saw that all his cavalry had crossed the river, and they did not suffer the so-called attack at half-cross. In addition, the place was flat, and there was no sign of any soldiers and horses coming to help. Yuan Shao had few Qu Yi soldiers in the forward attack, so he did not wait for the follow-up infantry to follow up, and without any delay, he ordered Baima Yicong to attack from the center immediately, and the two winged cavalry followed up. The heavy cavalry group's charge tactics crushed Yuan Shao's forwards, and even swept Yuan Shao's central army together.

Normally speaking, there is no big mistake, because the cavalry is one to three against the infantry, and after forming a battle formation, it is one to five. Qu Yi only has about 2,000 people, and Gongsun Zan has 3,000 white horses. There is nothing wrong with it theoretically.

  It's a pity that this world is never lacking in malice, Tian Feng's strategy is for this moment...

Qu Yi ordered the heavy infantry to lie behind the shield to prevent the white horse Yicong from riding and shooting. When the enemy was riding a distance of dozens of steps, these infantry suddenly raised dust and shouted, and launched a countercharge against the white horse Yicong in front of him. Thousands of crossbows fired at once, forming a crossfire to block the follow-up white horse righteous cavalry.

  Bai Ma Yi never expected this move at all. He panicked under the intensive blow of the crossbow, and was attacked by the opponent's heavy infantry with long halberds. At the same time, the advance path of the two-winged cavalry who came from the rear was also blocked, and they huddled together with Baima Yicong, unable to use it, and became a living target for a strong crossbow.

  In this unprecedented situation, not only Baima Yicong and other cavalry were at a loss, but even Gongsun Zan was stunned. There was no effective measure to break the deadlock, causing many cavalry to lose their lives in the chaos.

  With the constant attrition, the morale of the cavalry such as Baima Yicong is also declining, and then most of the cavalry fled...

Yuan Shao, who had never thought of such a situation, was overjoyed, his blood rushed to his head with excitement, and he also made a fatal mistake, ordering the entire army to follow Qu Yi to pursue Gongsun Zan, trying to defeat Gongsun Zan in one fell swoop. Dozens of crossbowmen and two hundred halberd infantry were left behind.

The cavalry on Gongsun Zan's flanks after Baima Yicong did not suffer a very serious blow, so they regrouped after passing through the panic period, bypassing the front area where the fierce fighting was taking place, and found the cavalry behind. Driven by instinct, Yuan Shao rushed towards Yuan Shao's banner.

  The regrouped Gongsun Zan cavalry, although not the white horse righteous, but when the attack came, it was not just Yuan Shao's main formation with hundreds of people to contend...

  Yuan Shao's blushing face from excitement suddenly turned pale, and the sound of horseshoes was like a horn calling for his death, as if he had fallen into an ice cave, and he couldn't help trembling.

  Tian Feng stepped forward and said: "My lord, retreat quickly! I'm here to break the queen!" Then he made people surround Yuan Shao, relying on a broken eaves and broken wall beside him, and let the soldiers gather together to resist with all their strength.

   All of a sudden, bows and arrows rained down, men and horses screamed and fought, and Yuan Shao was in danger.

  Yuan Shao's soldiers were also very scared. Seeing that their morale was constantly being drained, many people began to retreat gradually, hoping that other people would go up and they could hide behind the broken wall.

  At this time Yuan Shao made perhaps the most wise decision in his life. He took off his pocket, threw it on the ground, and then shouted loudly: "The man is now fighting to the death, but fleeing the evil between the walls?"

After finishing speaking, he raised his long sword and charged forward. How could Tian Feng and the guards around him make Yuan Shao really rush to the front line, and quickly stepped forward to guard, but it was precisely because of this that Yuan Shao's soldiers in the formation all met the generals. They fought desperately, and they all rekindled their fighting spirit, bravely withstood the attack of Gongsun Zan's cavalry.

  Afterwards, Yan Liang on the battlefield noticed the abnormal situation in the formation, and hurriedly led his troops to rescue him. Gongsun Zan's cavalry saw that there was nothing they could do, so they retreated again...

  With the retreat of Gongsun Zan's cavalry, the battle of Jieqiao came to an end.

  For both sides, in this short battle, apart from Gongsun Zan's Baima Yicong and Qu Yi's first boarding camp, the other troops did not suffer much damage.

However, the entire situation in Jizhou has undergone a fundamental change. The myth of Baima Yi never being defeated is like a soap bubble. The gentry in Jizhou and even the entire Hebei region have readjusted their evaluations of Yuan Shao and Gongsun Zan...

   This battle is actually a clever combination of human heart and strategy...

   In order to prevent someone from talking about water, I will briefly describe it...

   In fact, in this battle, Yuan Shao took the initiative to retreat 20 miles, acting against the law of war. The moment Gongsun Zan ordered the cavalry to cross the river first, he had already fallen into a trap...

   At the moment when Yuan Shao faced danger, he took a brave step forward, and only then did the entire Hebei gentry truly convert...

   As for Gongsun Zan's retreat, perhaps he just thought it was a tactical retreat adjustment at the time, but in fact he had lost all opportunities...

   …

   But Yuan Shao is also cunning...

   After taking off the helmet, they are no different from ordinary soldiers...

   It's a bit similar to Sun Jian's hat throwing...

  (end of this chapter)