Three Kingdoms

Chapter 3347 Qin Chu in the past

Don’t look at the school swordsmen stacking up their shields and moving slowly, looking like an old man, but when these school swordsmen whistled and started charging, they were like a steel hurricane, sweeping the remaining distance of the stone bridge and rushing into the Cao army formation!

It happened to be stuck in the gap when Wen Pin issued the order to change the formation!

Wen Pin ordered the archers to suppress Huang Zhong’s archers and retreat to the second line.

There is nothing wrong with this order.

The problem is that the rigid Cao army soldiers can’t keep up with the flexible and changeable Huang Zhong’s troops!

If it is carried out according to the normal process, then the Cao army’s archers will shoot and retreat, and exchange positions with the Cao army swordsmen behind. This is basically the normal operation of the battle formation, and this tactic is the most basic, and it is also a pattern engraved in the hearts of almost every soldier.

According to thousands of trainings, the sword and shield soldiers slightly turned sideways to make way for the passage. At this time, the archers were about to pass through the passage and then regroup behind the sword and shield soldiers.

But Huang Zhong's school sword soldiers whistled out!

Huang Zhong's school sword soldiers did not wait for Huang Zhong's order, but directly seized the opportunity of the Cao army to change the formation!

Faced with the sudden change of the school sword soldiers, the Cao army archers on the opposite side were inevitably affected by it, triggering a domino effect.

Originally, Huang Zhong's school sword soldiers moved very slowly. Of course, the most important purpose was not to deceive the Cao army, but to seek stability and reduce the probability of casualties. Therefore, in the process of the first half of the stone bridge, it was inevitable that the soldiers of the Cao army formation would leave an impression that these school sword soldiers could not walk fast, or it was difficult to walk fast...

However, at this moment, the school sword soldiers suddenly accelerated, which naturally caught the Cao army archers off guard. Most of these archers were still responding at the original speed of the school sword soldiers, and the speed of changing the formation was also slower. Seeing the school swordsmen rushing forward frantically, the Cao army archers who were still behind were inevitably afraid, and their movements became deformed.

Some people began to speed up, trying to get back to the safer second line before Huang Zhong's school swordsmen arrived, some people were at a loss, and some people tried to turn their heads and shoot the school swordsmen who rushed over...

Although the school swordsmen rushed forward and indeed entered the range of the archers' greater power, because the Cao army archers were changing their formation, many people were not ready to shoot, and even the arrows were still in the quiver and had not been taken out, with only an empty bow in their hands!

Even if there were Cao army archers who took out the arrows in time, they were not very accurate in a hurry. Not all archers are sharpshooters, especially when dealing with moving targets. It's like a hunter shooting prey. If there is only one prey, then the accuracy will probably increase, but if a group of prey are flying around, the slightly inexperienced hunters often fire blanks. Because the eyes are aimed at one, and the hand may be aimed at another.

In this situation, even if the school swordmen were shot, it was not a critical part.

Several school swordmen were shot in the chest, but their fine iron breastplates could not be penetrated.

Several others were shot in the arms and legs, and it was difficult for them to continue fighting, so they retreated under the care of their comrades.

After the Cao army archers finished a round of panic shooting, the school swordmen were almost in front of them!

Some of the Cao army archers wanted to continue shooting, but they were hit by the archers of Huang Zhong's side!

The school swordmen gave up their positions on the stone bridge, and more archers from Huang Zhong's side filled in. In the terrified eyes of the Cao army on the opposite side, the archers of Huang Zhong's side in the second row raised their longbows and began to shoot in a large range.

『Strong wind! 』

『Strong wind! 』

The archers of Huang Zhong's side repeated the command, and a large number of arrows whizzed out, rushed to the sky, and then turned around and fell towards the Cao army!

Cao's sword and shield soldiers and archers were crowded together, with no room to dodge!

『Puff!』

『Ahhhhhh...』

The screams rang out one after another.

Cao's sword and shield soldiers were fine, they just kept their heads down and used shields and armor to resist the falling arrows, but those Cao's archers were unlucky, because most of these archers were wearing armor, so it didn't hurt to stab anywhere?

『Strong wind!』

A loud shout rang out, and there was another sound of arrows whistling into the air.

As the rain of arrows fell, Cao's soldiers wailed and rolled on the ground.

The mountain road was not wide to begin with, with a cross-section of only about 40 to 50 steps, and the width of the most places was only 60 to 70 steps, so the distance between the two sides was not far, and in this case, the arrows shot out from the dart could already cause relatively large damage to unarmored or thinly armored units.

Even if the arrows did not hit the vital points, a lot of blood was splashed.

『Strong wind! Strong wind! 』

After the archers on Huang Zhong's side had finished shooting their arrows, they immediately retreated quickly and retreated behind their own spearmen array. The subsequent archers took over the previous archers' positions and poured arrows on the heads of Cao's soldiers.

The bowstrings were like fried beans, banging continuously, and arrows rose into the sky with their teeth and claws, and then bit out waves of blood mist in the Cao army array. The Cao army archers with thin armor suffered terrible injuries. Even if a large number of Cao army soldiers who were hit by arrows did not scream and roll on the ground on the spot, those who covered their wounds could not continue to participate in the subsequent battles.

Under such circumstances, the Cao army must have been in great chaos.

On the one hand, the Cao army's sword and shield soldiers could not go up and were blocked by their own archers. On the other hand, the passage that was opened could not be closed because it was also blocked by their own archers!

This state of being beaten but not being able to fight back is really too frustrating, especially watching comrades fall down one by one around you, but you are powerless. This kind of psychological pressure is too great. Moreover, Cao Jun's fighting will itself was not that strong. The front ranks were already mixed with the remaining troops of Wen Pin and could only be pulled together. This approach could only be temporarily maintained, but it would eventually cause problems.

After disrupting the formation of Cao Jun, Huang Zhong's archers moved to the sides, revealing the heavily armored spearmen in the middle. The dense layers of spears and halberds turned up, shining brightly in the sun. Waves of heavily armored spearmen shouted and rushed forward with spears, as if they wanted to mix with the school swordmen and completely defeat the Cao Jun formation!

Compared with the swords and shields of the school swordmen, the bright spears and halberds, each with a sharp edge, stood up in pieces, shining with a dazzling light. These people were all wearing thick armor and had sturdy bodies. They rushed forward without regard for their lives, and seemed to have an unstoppable momentum. Even the Cao army soldiers who did not join the battle were terrified.

『Kill! 』

Huang Zhong's spearmen joined the battlefield.

Although Huang Zhong's school swordmen could also kill and defeat these Cao army formations, relying solely on school swordmen would undoubtedly be greatly restricted and easily restrained by the opponent. Therefore, adding some heavy-armored spearmen was like injecting lubricating oil into this killing machine, which significantly improved its operating efficiency.

As Huang Zhong's men charged into the Cao army's front line, the chaotic Cao army formation became increasingly unable to support it.

The sound of swords and spears piercing flesh continued, and the sound of muffled groans and screams also continued to sound.

After Huang Zhong's clever deployment, the Cao army soldiers were naturally going to pay a greater price for being at a loss. At the front line of the Cao army, nearly half of them were killed or wounded in a blink of an eye. Many of the remaining Cao soldiers were also injured. Their originally dense and dense military formation had long been out of formation.

In particular, the blood and courage that the Cao soldiers had finally raised had been eroded to the point of being almost completely destroyed.

Even if the remaining Cao soldiers burst into a frantic struggle at the end of their lives, how could they be the opponents of the experienced and thick-skinned school swordsmen? The shields withstood the bursts, and then took advantage of the opponent's shortness of breath and gasped, and stabbed in with a puff, and that was it. It took a little more effort and a little longer time than other Cao soldiers.

Huang Zhong's heavy armored spearmen were even simpler. There were school swordsmen in front to hold the Cao soldiers, and Huang Zhong's archers in the back to support them, so these few heavy armored spearmen did not need to consider their own risks, and only needed to concentrate on attacking. Their sharp spears and halberds specifically search for flesh and blood in the gaps between people. As long as there is a slight flaw in the formation of Cao's soldiers, these spears and halberds will arrive and take away a burst of blood. Every assassination is harvesting the lives of Cao's soldiers.

In this narrow and embarrassing mountain road, the soldiers on both sides shouted unconsciously to each other in the fierce battle, swaying sweat and blood.

Human struggle is always a manifestation of primitive power and impulse.

When the lives of the soldiers on both sides are in the greatest danger, they bite, struggle and kill each other by instinct. They poured all their courage and fear into the shouting, trying to encourage themselves and shock the enemy in this way.

The weapons rise and fall one after another, just like the reincarnation of every day, the beginning and end of every dynasty.

Started in iron and blood, and perished in iron and blood.

Every swing is full of power and despair.

They hacked and stabbed at opponents who had the same skin color and the same language as them. These opponents might be their friends, neighbors or even relatives in peacetime.

They might even meet at the same fair, greet each other, and trade their output and harvest, but now in the torrent of war, everything is distorted, and human nature is stripped away to the instinct of survival in extreme conditions.

Soldiers who were hacked and stabbed had different reactions to fatal injuries.

Some soldiers felt aggrieved at the last moment of their lives. They might have uncultivated fields, unrepaired roof tiles, unfulfilled filial piety, and no love, but as the blood gushed and flowed, everything turned into clouds in the sky and dust on the ground.

Some soldiers fell silently, helplessly uttering their last sigh. They might have been accustomed to life and death, and had a premonition of such an ending, but they were powerless to change it and could only accept it silently.

Hot blood flowed from their bodies and stained the mountain road.

Wuguan Road, which had tasted enough blood during the conflict between Qin and Chu in the past, is now welcoming fresh blood and fresh meat again and again.

The brutal and bloody battle did not last long. Cao's soldiers soon couldn't hold on any longer and began to collapse and retreat, without even waiting for Wenpin to send reinforcements or issue an order...

In the eyes of Cao Jun's soldiers, their own comrades are getting fewer and fewer, but their enemies seem to be increasing. Many people could no longer suppress their inner fear and ran away screaming.

"Cao's army was defeated. 』

Huang Zhong muttered.

Through the confused blood mist and smoke, we can see that many of Cao's soldiers have been beaten. Some of them are running around with their heads in their hands, some are throwing away their weapons and running back screaming, while the rest are dumbfounded. , I don’t know what to do.

"This is already pretty good..." Huang Zhong praised half-heartedly, and then gave the order, "Form up!" Push forward! 』

"Wait... wait..." Pang Shanmin hurriedly stepped forward and said, "General Huang, this... you have forgotten the trap you just mentioned..."

"How could you forget?" "Huang Zhong smiled and raised his chin slightly, his long beard fluttering in the wind, "The rockets are ready... Let's see how Wen Zhongye chooses..."

"How to choose Wen Zhongye?" Pang Shanmin didn't understand.

Huang Zhong seems to be talking about the present, but also seems to be talking about the future.

Pang Shanmin stood behind Huang Zhong, looking at the battlefield on the mountain road, and suddenly he understood a little bit more.

There were many marriages between Qin and Chu back then!

During the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, although various vassal states often used marriage as a political means to make friends with each other in order to strengthen ties and support each other, the marriage between Qin and Chu was more special than other vassal states from the beginning.

Because Qin and Chu were both barbarians to the vassal states in the Central Plains.

The initial purpose of the marriage between Qin and Chu was also to fight against the powerful opponent in the Central Plains at that time - the State of Jin. With such common interests, there are seven accurate historical records of marriages between Qin and Chu. This does not include cases that may not have been recorded, and these marriages are all very high-level. Qin Ying and King Ping of Chu married Bo Ying, and the Empress Dowager Mi Bazi of Qin Xuan was the daughter of a Duke of Chu. This marriage not only helped the two countries support each other politically, but also promoted cultural exchanges between Qin and Chu. and fusion.

So Liuli and Liubaili, from a certain perspective, are a kind of trust between the original "relatives".

But in the end this "trust" was exchanged for benefits.

Qin and Chu were originally friends, relatives, and friendly troops, but they still couldn't escape the end of fighting each other on Wuguan Road.

If the Chu State could cross Lantian during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, perhaps history would be different.

While Qin failed to invade Jingxiang, Chu may still use birds and flowers as characters...

Now, Pang Shanmin suddenly realized that it was actually very similar to history.

Qin Chu back then, how could he not be Qin Chu now?

The drums of the Chinese army sounded, and Huang Zhong's soldiers responded in unison. The sound suddenly became powerful, rolling through the mountain road like muffled thunder.

The school swordsmen reorganized into formation and advanced like a wall. But the soldiers of Cao's army in front of them retreated one after another, and no one dared to step forward to fight.

Cao Jun's courage is exhausted!

This is like a collapse, not everyone can hold it tightly and endure it...

Wenpin looked at the defeated Cao soldiers and opened his mouth, as if he wanted to issue some order, but fell silent after a moment.

In such a scene, even if he charged forward with his remaining troops, he might not be able to change anything.

Is there anyone who can change the entire situation of the war with one person?

It does exist, but it often requires the right time, right place, right people, and both are indispensable.

It's like Guan Erye beheading Yanliang.

Mr. Luo just said that Yan Liang thought that Guan Yu was coming to surrender. Guan Yu's horse was fast, but Yan Liang was careless, and then he was slashed with a knife. But in fact, Guan Yu killed Yan Liang in history. It was so fierce that even novels would not dare to write it like that.

Historically, Guan Yu was not a surprise attack, let alone a sneak attack, but an honest and upright charge into the formation to kill.

Because what is described in the Chronicle of the Three Kingdoms is "Ascend in front of the feathers, defeat, and kill the good." 』

"Climbing forward" means rushing in front, and "breaking through" means breaking through the opponent's formation.

Therefore, Yan Liang was definitely killed because he was unprepared. It can only mean that he was on guard, but failed to guard against it...

It is high risk for a general to fight in person. Generally speaking, few people would do this.

Wenpin clenched the long knife in his hand, veins popped out, but his feet did not move.

After a while, Wenpin ordered, "Ming Jin!" withdraw troops! 』

The guard beside Wenpin was stunned for a moment, "General, are we going to withdraw like this?" So, what about those horse-rejection traps? 』

A horse trap equipped with a fire starter.

Indeed, if we rely on these traps, we can still delay it for a while, and we can even kill some more of Huang Zhong's soldiers.

But then...

Wenpin raised his head and looked at the array of Huang Zhong's men in the distance. His eyes moved slightly, and finally he shook his head and said, "Strategies should not be exhausted." 』

These traps are no longer necessary.

On the one hand, Wenpin thought that Huang Zhong had probably seen through these traps, and the braziers in the distance were a warning to Wenpin. If Wenpin still wants to resist and lure around the trap, then what awaits may not be Huang Zhong's soldiers, but rockets falling from the sky!

On the other hand...

"Ming Jin withdraws troops!" ” Wenpin repeated.

Since Wen Pin had reiterated his words, his guards felt it was a pity to give up the trap and retreat, but they still followed the order.

The sharp sound of the horn sounded, and the Cao army soldiers retreated in a hurry as if they had been pardoned.

Seeing this, Huang Zhong also ordered the troops to withdraw.

After all, it was not a smart and rational choice to chase Wen Pin through those traps.

In war, it is right to pursue the desperate enemy with the remaining courage, but it is also right not to pursue the desperate enemy.

And the most important thing is that Wen Pin seemed to show a very interesting attitude by giving up the last resort here...