I

Xue Si sat on the ground, tilted his head and asked the fellow villager: "What are you shouting on the other side?"

"It's too far away to hear clearly." Fang Tang shook his head.

Xue Si asked again: "Why was there so much trouble earlier?"

Fang Tang said upset: "How did I know that even after running all day, no one would sleep."

"Are you still sleeping? You can't get up if you fall asleep." Xue Si said.

Fang Tang spat: "Bah, bah, bah, don't you dare say such depressing words."

The two met when they were fleeing the wilderness, and joined Yuan Laosan's team together. At that time, Yuan Laosan's army was called Da Yuan Ying, and Yuan Shizhong's army was called Xiao Yuan Ying.

Yuan Laosan suffered a defeat, and they followed Nezha to rebel.

This Nezha, not that Nezha, really had no ability to cause trouble in the sea. He only rebelled for half a year and was destroyed by the officers and soldiers.

They went around in circles, followed by four thieves, and now they took refuge under Zhang Yigui.

Xue Si couldn't sleep anyway and whispered: "Do you think we can win this battle?"

"It doesn't matter who wins or loses," Fang Tang said nonchalantly. "If you lose, run away. If you win, run faster. You might be able to cut off a high official's head."

Xue Si added: "Do you still remember that Chen Xiucai?"

"Xi Zuo was caught and beheaded?" Fang Tang asked.

Xue Si nodded and said: "That's it. He said that everyone in the south can allocate land. If the land is not given to the landlord, it is farmed by the family. Emperor Zhao is also very benevolent and righteous. He has no servants and does not collect miscellaneous taxes."

Fang Tang said with a smile: "How can there be such a good thing in the world? That Chen Xiucai is talking nonsense."

"What if it's true?" Xue Si asked with a look of longing and admiration on his face, "Many villagers have no food to eat and have gone to the south together. Do you think they have been allocated land?"

Fangtang said: "It's hard to divide the land. No emperor or official is a good person. Can I divide the land for you? Even if the land is divided, there will be severe drought every year and no food can be grown. This In the world, only fools farm! If God doesn’t have eyes, he can’t grow food. If God opens his eyes, the food he grows will be taken away by others. It’s still true to rebel and be a soldier. If we don’t rebel and don’t serve as soldiers under General Zhang, I’m afraid I have been starving to death for several years.”

Xue Si sighed: "Oh, that's right."

Fangtang warned: "Today's battle is very strange. They are so close at night, so we might start fighting in the middle of the night. Fourth brother, please be alert. If one of us falls asleep, remember to wake him up and run away together." We are all dead ghosts in the whole family. You take care of me and I will take care of you. Don’t sacrifice your life for anyone, our life is our own."

"How can I sleep when I keep making noise?" Xue Si sighed.

…

Ouyang Shu was lying on the ground holding a spear, or to be precise, lying on the grass.

It's a bit cool at night, but luckily it's not the mosquito season, otherwise tonight would be even more uncomfortable.

Although the military order from her superiors was to take turns to rest, Ouyang Shu could not sleep at all. From time to time, a dragoon would shout a message between the two armies, or a musketeer in the front would light a match rope.

As long as there is any movement, the orders from both sides will sound non-stop.

Ouyang Shu's ancestors were from a wealthy family in Anfu County, but by his generation, they had long been reduced to tenant farmers. His name was given to him by his parents, who paid him half a catty of rice as a reward, and asked the village school teacher who came from the main clan to give him his name.

Ouyang Shu's eldest brother was also a soldier and was killed in battle with Sun Kewang.

In addition to the pension, the family was also allocated an extra acre of land. The mayor even came to express his condolences in person and asked his eldest brother's two sons and one daughter to study well and get extra points in whatever exams they take in the future.

Ouyang Shu also received the legacy of her eldest brother and gave priority to switching from the militia to the regular army.

He is not afraid of fighting. Young people in the village are eager to join the army. How many of them are looking forward to fighting and making meritorious deeds. If you win a battle, you will be rewarded. Even if you die in battle, you will receive a pension. You can also get extra points for your children's exams. Anyway, you will not suffer any disadvantages if you serve as a soldier for Mr. Zhao.

During the day, she took off her armor and marched hastily, and in the evening she faced the enemy's pulling back and forth. Although Ouyang Shu didn't understand what was going on, she just obeyed the orders.

He has listened to those orders countless times, and he listens to them every day during training.

If he doesn't listen to orders for a day, he will feel that something is missing.

In Zu Dashou's eyes, the tumult of advancing and retreating in the face of battle seemed so incredible. But for soldiers like Ouyang Shu, it is no different from usual training. They are used to it so early every day.

Afraid of enemy pursuit?

Haha, everyone in the Datong Army never thought that they would lose.

It doesn't matter that they are arrogant soldiers. Anyway, they have long developed the aura of giving up to others. Even the soldiers at the bottom do not take the Manchus seriously.

Ouyang Shu turned over and saw that Shaoyang next to him was resting his head on the back of his head with one arm and holding a weapon in his other hand. He was lying on the ground with his legs crossed and looking at the moon.

"Hiss!" Ouyang Shu pressed the tip of her tongue against her teeth and made a small sound in her mouth.

Shao Yang turned his head and looked over, and the two of them giggled silently.

Whispering was prohibited tonight, and they did not dare to speak. They threw weeds and leaves to each other to relieve their boredom.

After an unknown amount of time, the orderlies in the team came over and whispered one by one: "We will launch a surprise attack at dawn. Get some rest quickly. If you can't sleep, just close your eyes and wait."

It's strange that I can't sleep. There is movement every now and then.

…

Zu Dashou was always alert, but at dawn, he couldn't help but doze off.

The main reason is that I was highly concentrated in the first half of the night and was always on guard against the Datong army coming to kill me. Although they knew that the Datong Army was using routines, it was not only a way to tire out the enemy, but also to make them accustomed to making noises and giving up their vigilance.

But the trick had to be tricked, at least Zu Dashou himself, who yawned non-stop in the second half of the night.

Alas, as I get older, my ability to stay up late deteriorates.

Zu Dashou had a military advantage, and the composition of his troops was mixed. He didn't want to fight at night. It was very chaotic during the day, and it was even more chaotic when fighting at night. He had to wait until dawn.

The morning light is faint and the sky is slightly bright.

"woo woo woo woo!"

The trumpet sound suddenly sounded, and Zu Dashou woke up instantly, but the Datong army had already lit the match ropes and was getting ready to attack.

Xue Si and Fang Tang, who chatted last night, finally fell asleep in the second half of the night.

Hearing the bugle and the superior's orders, they stood up rubbing their sleepy eyes and were forced to form a formation to meet the Datong Army's attack.

"ha……"

Xue Si covered his mouth and yawned, his mind confused.

Fangtang looked at the sky and muttered: "It's still bright and dark today, why are you worried about the other side?"

After Zu Dashou's military order was passed down for a long time, the Datong army began to jog forward, but his side's formation was still not set up.

Many bandits who defected to the Manchu Qing could not even read flag orders or understand orders!

In desperation, we can only use the most primitive method.

Zu Dashou sent messengers on horseback to inform the generals, and ordered the two wings to outflank. He has 70,000 to 80,000 men, while the Datong Army only has over 10,000 men. It cannot be pushed away without outflanking them.

"Don't kill the prisoners!"

"Kneel down and surrender!"

"Don't kill the prisoners!"

"Kneel down and surrender!"

More than 10,000 fellow soldiers shouted in unison.

The shouting was a bit chaotic at first, but after shouting a few more times, the shouting became more rhythmic, and I even ran and shouted while stepping on the steps.

Xue Si's position was on the far right. He didn't hear the Datong Army's shouting clearly last night. He asked confusedly: "Can you survive by squatting down?"

"It should be," Fang Tang reminded. "If the momentum is not good, squat down. Survival is important."

Ouyang Shu didn't think about life or death. He held a spear and trotted and shouted. The more he shouted, the more powerful he became, and the more he shouted, the more confident he became. He did not take the tens of thousands of enemies on the opposite side to heart at all.

The two wings were still outflanking, and when they moved, the formation was extremely chaotic.

The Datong Army rushed over directly, and after approaching, they ran faster and faster. When Zu Dashou's former army heard those shouts and remembered the shouts last night, they subconsciously wanted to throw away their weapons and squat down.

Wu Sangui wanted to lead his cavalry to stop him, but the friendly troops were outflanking him on both sides, blocking his attack route in a mess. Moreover, the dragoons kept watching and would not let Wu Sangui enter easily.

"Order the two wings to engage the enemy and fight immediately. Don't go around anymore!" Zu Dashou roared.

Afraid that the generals would disobey the order, the messengers rode out again and ran closer to deliver the message with their mouths.

At this time, the infantry of the Datong Army had rushed dozens of steps away, and the troops on both wings rushed over, hoping to cooperate with the front army in a three-sided pincer attack.

In order to cooperate with the friendly forces' charge, Cao Bianjiao and Wei Guoxiang ignored Wu Sangui's cavalry nearby and rode their horses to the opponent's flanks twenty or thirty steps away.

The whole army dismounted, raised their guns and fired.

Xue Si first followed the officer around, then charged inside. Zhang Yigui's troops were all veteran thieves for more than two or three years. They fought extremely bravely and fought tooth and nail, so they were called "elite".

But they really couldn't understand the flag orders, and their formations were not neat. Anyway, they could just rush in during the battle.

Rushing in confusion, Xue Si tried his best to get closer to Fangtang. Suddenly I heard the sound of horse hoofbeats and couldn't help but turn my head to look, only to see the enemy cavalry charging closer and closer.

Then, dismount...

Fangtang also saw it and shouted quickly: "Fourth brother, hurry up, you have to save your strength to escape!"

"Bang bang bang!"

The person in front was shot and fell. Xue Si didn't have time to dodge, tripping over the body and accidentally falling down.

Before he could recover, Fangtang dragged his clothes and shouted, "Run away!"

There were 2,500 cavalry on this side, and a total of 2,000 people fired their guns. From a distance of more than 20 steps, they instantly knocked down a large area.

Xue Si stood up and found that there were countless casualties among the friendly troops around him. He didn't know how many died. Anyway, there were still many people who were injured but not dead, screaming and wailing.

Xue Si was so scared that he lost his wits. When he saw the enemy riding on his horse and chasing after him, he immediately turned around and ran away.

"kill!"

Cao Bianjiao held a waist knife and led his troops towards the defeated troops, leaving only five hundred cavalry to block Wu Sangui who was rushing after him.

"Run quickly, run quickly!" Fang Tang shouted.

Xue Si said with a cry: "He's running, he's running!"

Under the impact of this defeated army, there were cavalry coming from behind, and another army on the flank also collapsed. A chain reaction was caused in an instant, and the army on the flanks collapsed. Some people even remembered to shout slogans, and actually knelt down and surrendered in the face of the cavalry pursuit.

Wu Sangui ignored the dragoons. He finally seized the opportunity and charged towards the Datong soldiers who were charging, and from behind the Datong army!

"Brother, fight or flee?" Jiang Xuan asked.

"Where can I escape?"

Jiang Yan drew his bow and set an arrow: "Let's fight!"

They followed Datong's infantry and were responsible for blocking Wu Sangui's cavalry from attacking the infantry.

Of course, the Jiang brothers were not fighting alone. There were five hundred dragoons on each side of the wings, waiting there without firing their guns.

"Bang bang bang!"

"Boohoo!"

There were 500 dragoons on each side firing muskets, and more than 400 Jiang brothers firing arrows from the front. Then, they all picked up their weapons and charged towards Wu Sangui's 4,000 cavalry - after being hit by arrows and shot, only 4,000 were left.

There were only 1,500 cavalry on the three sides combined, and the dragoons were holding their hips in close combat, but they rushed towards an enemy force twice their size without hesitation.

After just one encounter, Jiang Xuan was beheaded from his horse, and Wu Sangui even beheaded two of them alone.

Thousands of cavalry were fighting in close combat, and the scene was extremely cruel. Due to the inferior equipment of the dragoons, more than 200 of them fell one after another.

Just when Wu Sangui's cavalry had an absolute advantage in the cavalry battle, the cavalry from the miscellaneous troops suddenly looked for an opportunity to escape from the battlefield with their cavalry. They won the battle and fled, because on the friendly side, all the infantry on both wings fled and fled back to attack the front army.

"woo woo woo woo!"

"Uu uh uh!"

The infantry formation of the Datong Army waved flags wildly, and brass whistles and horns also sounded. They changed formations during the charge. The melee soldiers ran to both sides, and the fire gun soldiers in the middle had no support at all.

Withstanding the arrows from Zu Dashou's front army, Datong Fire Gun Soldiers suffered hundreds of casualties and rushed all the way to within twenty steps.

"Bang bang bang bang!"

The fire gun struck three times in a row, and the enemy in front of him fell down like wheat.

"Fire the bayonet!"

"Charge!"

"Dudududududadudududu..."

Zu Dashou didn't even have time to mobilize the central army's reserves, and the front army and both wings collapsed. Even if he puts on his own elite troops, he still can't stop him. He fires more than 7,000 fire cannons in three stages. After firing the cannons, they all charge with bayonets on.

Who can withstand this?

Moreover, the two wings were the first to flee, and the former army was already on the verge of collapse.

Facing the charge of the Datong Army's infantry, tens of thousands of Zu Dashou's front troops did not escape. They threw away their weapons, some knelt down, some lay down, and some squatted down, as if they had been prepared.

Some missionary officers stopped and mobilized the enemy generals who had surrendered: "Pick up your weapons and follow the army to charge!"

There is no fear that these generals will defect again because they have already lost their organization.

The generals who surrendered did not dare to fight hard, but they were good at fighting with the wind. So they all picked up weapons and rushed with the Datong Army. The Datong Army "increased" tens of thousands of troops in an instant.

Cao Bianjiao and Wei Guoxiang also stopped chasing the defeated troops and returned with their cavalry to fight with Wu Sangui.

When the former army collapsed, Wu Sangui also ran away. The enemy army is a group of life-threatening lunatics, and he does not want to fight with such lunatics.

Facing the oncoming enemies and broken troops, Zu Dashou's Chinese army had no fighting spirit and turned around and fled before engaging the enemy.

Zu Dashou had no choice but to blend in with the defeated troops and escape on horseback skillfully.

Wu Sangui also ran fast, and no one chased him. Because there are still many cavalry who surrendered to the Qing Dynasty and are fighting with the dragoons, Cao Bianjiao and Wei Guoxiang must deal with these guys first.

On the land of the Central Plains, tens of thousands of people moved like ants in the soft morning light.

Wu Sangui fled all the way north, reaching the confluence of Shahe River and Guoshui River. There were only more than 20 servants and cavalry left behind him. Fearing that the enemy would pursue him, he took off all his armor and swam over with his horse.

Zu Dashou was also a good escaper and ran all the way to Taikang County.

After resting briefly in the city, he fled to Zhongmou by boat. He did not dare to defend Taikang County anymore.

"Caught an enemy general!"

Jiang Quan, whose brother was killed in the battle on horseback, was so angry that he rode up to see who had been caught.

He recognized this person at a glance and said, "This guy is Zu Zeqing, the fourth son of Zu Dashou!"

Zu Zeqing looked in pain, he fell off his horse and broke his leg.