My father Liu Xuande

Chapter 335 The Grand Historian Captures Wu Jing

Gao Dai's shouts woke up Xu Zhao's troops, and with their morale soaring, they were no longer panicked but became even braver.

In particular, Xu Zhao led his personal guards and rushed forward, getting to the front lines.

With Xu Huang leading the charge, no one could stop them, and with Xu Zhao leading the charge, the morale of Xu Zhao's troops reached its peak, with many even entering a state of frenzy.

Many of Xu Zhao's followers were from the Yue tribes and the southern barbarians, who were brave, fierce, and fearless.

Warriors with this personality type tend to lack resilience in adversity and have poor stress tolerance. They are prone to collapse under sustained pressure, and even the bravest warriors may exhibit suicidal behavior. Once the pressure limit is exceeded, they will inevitably collapse and flee.

However, these same people tend to be exceptionally ruthless when things are going well, especially when inspired by a brave general like Xu Huang, at which point they disregard even life and death.

Wu Jing was completely stunned. Just a moment ago, he thought he had successfully reclaimed the North Gate and was even starting to think about how to deal with the Xu Zhao family.

The situation suddenly took a sharp turn for the worse. Wu Da, the commander of the personal guard, was killed in battle, and the frontline personal guard began to waver and collapse.

Wu Jing was completely dumbfounded.

But he quickly came to his senses and immediately issued orders, sending two personal guards to the east and west of the city to inform his subordinates to retreat, while he himself took the remaining three personal guards and turned to run away, completely disregarding the personal guards who were still fighting desperately on the front line.

Wu Jingke had suffered many defeats. When he followed his brother-in-law to fight in the Central Plains, the opponents were all top-tier armies in the world. The Sun family army was thoroughly defeated by Xu Rong in Liangdong, and even his brother-in-law suffered a crushing defeat, with only a dozen or so riders left to return south.

Therefore, Wu Jing knew that his own life was the most important thing, and that the army could always make a comeback.

Wu Jing left quietly, and at first, his personal guards were unaware of his whereabouts and continued to fight desperately.

However, as more and more of Liu Feng's soldiers entered the city, the follow-up troops even had time to regroup outside the city and regain their organization before entering the city in an organized manner to engage in battle. Wu Jing's personal guard could no longer resist, and when the officers wanted to ask Wu Jing for help, they found that Wu Jing had disappeared.

Wu Jing's disappearance became the final straw that broke the camel's back. Wu Jing's personal guards immediately began to collapse and started to flee.

Because of the narrowness of the road, some soldiers even turned on their comrades with knives in an attempt to escape.

The frontline troops, having nowhere to escape and no match for Xu Huang and his fresh troops, simply threw down their weapons, knelt on the ground, and begged for surrender to Liu Feng's army and Xu Zhao's troops.

Liu Feng's army was alright; they wouldn't indiscriminately kill prisoners. But it was a different story with Xu Zhao's troops. The two sides had just formed a blood feud and fought to the death. Now that they had suddenly surrendered, they were far from stopping.

Not to mention that Xu Zhao's troops were far less disciplined than Liu Feng's army, and there were also mountain tribes and southern barbarians whose bloodlust drove them to despair, making them completely deaf to military orders.

Fortunately, Xu Huang intervened in time, asking Xu Zhao to order a ban on killing prisoners and to order his own troops to retreat and regroup, which saved many of Wu Jing's personal guards from death.

However, what awaits these people may not be a good thing. Unless they are absorbed by Liu Feng's army, the rest will likely be sent to Pengcheng, Xiapi, and Peiguo to mine.

Among the former subordinates of Zuo Rong and Xue Li, a small number who had committed heinous crimes were naturally beheaded and their heads displayed to the public. Those who had committed serious crimes but did not deserve to die were sent to mines in Henan and Xuzhou.

Sun Cejun will likely follow this rule.

Wu Jing fled to the county government and immediately ordered the twenty men left behind to bring out the horses. Then, he led these twenty-odd personal guards straight to the south gate.

Now, only the South Gate is truly safe; the other two gates may have already fallen into the hands of Liu Fengjun.

As long as Wu Jing can successfully leave Yuhang through the South Gate, he will be safe.

After exiting the South Gate, heading southeast leads to Qiantang County on the banks of the Qiantang River, while heading straight south leads to Fuchun, the ancestral home of the Sun family.

Wherever he went, Wu Jing was able to gain a foothold, gather his defeated troops, and then consider what to do next.

Just as Wu Jing had predicted, he arrived at the South Gate of Yuhang safely half an hour later. Wu Jing's troops were already heavily on guard, but there was no sign of battle.

Clearly, this place is still extremely safe and has not been attacked by Pan Jun and Liu Fengjun.

"General!? May I ask what has happened in the city?"

The captain guarding the gate hurriedly came forward. Now, more than 500 people had gathered at the south gate. Ever since the battle cries from the north of the city started, the captain had gathered the guards on the wall, leaving only 20 or 30 men on guard at the city tower, while the rest had been gathered at the city gate.

Wu Jing had no time to spare and immediately replied, "The traitor Xu has rebelled, and the north gate has been breached. Quickly open the city gates and retreat with me at the last minute!"

The captain was greatly surprised and found it hard to believe.

Seeing Wu Jing's disheveled appearance and the panicked expressions of his personal guards behind him, it was clear that what Wu Jing said must be true.

So he didn't dare to delay and quickly turned around and shouted, "Open the city gate quickly and let the people on the city wall come down and get ready to leave."

Wu Jing nodded, then, as if he had thought of something, said to the captain, "Send a few more reliable people to go up the city wall to the east gate and the west gate, and tell them to leave quickly. They can go to either Fuchun or Qiantang."

The captain nodded repeatedly.

At this moment, the city gate had already opened. Wu Jing didn't say anything more, only leaving a message to follow, and rushed into the dark gate.

Two guards carrying torches overtook Wu Jing and took the lead in the procession. It was pitch black, and no one dared to increase their horse speed, as they risked breaking their horses' hooves if they went too fast and left the main road.

The captain dared not delay and quickly gathered his troops, fleeing the city only half an hour later than Wu Jing and his men.

It must be said that Wu Jing was quite skilled at escaping and acted very decisively.

After leaving the city, Wu Jing headed straight south to Fuchun without hesitation.

Actually, the road to Qiantang is easier to travel, since it's a main road and Qiantang is a transportation hub.

Wu Jing, however, chose Fuchun directly, simply because he couldn't figure out how many men Liu Fengjun had, nor did he know their deployment.

The road to Qiantang is in the east of the city. They came out from the south of the city and had to take a detour to return to the main road in the east.

If we were to run into Liu Feng's army, which was flanking the east side of the city, we would be in big trouble.

Moreover, in the pitch black, if a horse were to fall and break its leg while navigating around, it would be quite a hassle.

Wu Jing's decision was undeniably prudent; he had already compromised to the extreme.

The only problem was that they didn't retreat immediately, but instead organized a counterattack to try and retake the North Gate.

But this is perfectly reasonable; Wu Jing couldn't just flee without a fight.

Wu Jing never expected that even though he had run so fast, there would still be someone waiting for them in the south of the city.

At this time, Taishi Ci led a troop of cavalrymen, guided by a guide, carrying torches, directly through the west of the city, circled around to the south of the city, and blocked the roads in the south.

If Wu Jing had left immediately, Taishi Ci would not have been able to stop him. However, Wu Jing fought fiercely in the city for half an hour, which was just enough time for Taishi Ci to cross the East Tiaoxi River and arrive at the south of the city.

Taishi Ci dismounted and rested at the edge of a dense forest two miles south of the city. Although the wind was biting cold, he could not light a fire to keep warm, and even the torches had all gone out.

Their force of two hundred men were all cavalry, the fastest of all, and there were two or three thousand infantrymen following behind on their way.

By this time, the fighting at the North Gate had already reached a fever pitch. The Southern Expeditionary Army, which was on its way outside the city, naturally had no need to hide anymore and simply lit torches to march quickly.

Taishi Ci and his men extinguished their torches because they wanted to ambush enemies who might escape from the south of the city, which is why they needed to hide themselves.

Taishi Ci and the others originally thought they would have to wait for a while, or even be disappointed. After all, this road was a small path leading to Fuchun, not the main road leading to Qiantang.

Unexpectedly, they had only rested for less than the time it takes to drink a cup of tea when the brightly lit South Gate was opened.

Despite being two miles away, the south gate of Yuhang was brightly lit due to the height of the security measures. The contrast between the light and dark made it difficult to see the gate clearly, but even a fool would know that the gate was wide open from the sudden appearance of light inside the gate opening.

"General, a fish has taken the bait!"

Taishi Ci's personal guards were flushed with excitement; at least their hard work for half the night hadn't been in vain.

Taishi Ci nodded, wondering if Wu Jing might be among this group of people.

"Get ready, remember to put on the bit, and don't let the horses make a sound."

Taishi Ci, still feeling uneasy, offered a reminder, and everyone quickly agreed.

Soon, all the horses were bitten and then dispersed.

Most of the cavalrymen were armed with bows and arrows and hid in the dense forest, waiting for the enemy south of the city to walk into their trap.

"Huh!?" Taishi Ci suddenly exclaimed softly, as the enemies emerging from the south of the city suddenly split into two groups.

There appeared to be twenty or thirty cavalrymen in front, and more than five hundred armored soldiers behind them.

They were clearly one group, but they split into two, obviously because the cavalry didn't want to wait for the infantry to follow.

Taishi Ci's lips curled up slightly; he keenly realized that he had caught a big fish.

Thinking of this, he quickly issued an order: "The one who comes is probably no ordinary man. Try your best to capture him alive."

Upon receiving the order, everyone was initially surprised, but then delighted.

Most replaced their horse bows with melee weapons, with only a few sharpshooters continuing to wield them.

Wu Jing and the others were not moving fast, only slightly faster than the average person walking.

Seeing the vast fire dragons on both the east and west sides of the city behind him, Wu Jing's face turned extremely ugly.

Previously, Wu Jing had successfully slipped away from Wu County and passed between Wucheng and Youquan without anyone noticing, which made him quite proud, thinking that the Southern Expeditionary Army was nothing special.

But who could have imagined that they would suffer such a crushing defeat in Yuhang City?

Looking at the vast flames in the east and west of the city, Wu Jing felt as if his heart was bleeding. Most of the three thousand soldiers in Yuhang City were his veteran soldiers.

He only needed to glance at it for a moment to roughly calculate that the number of the Southern Expeditionary Army in the east and west of the city was more than three thousand.

With such a large number of soldiers, it would be almost impossible for the soldiers inside the city to break through successfully.

Unless they head south immediately and exit the city through the south gate, it will be too late if they suffer a setback outside the city and retreat back inside before turning south again.

The thought that he had just sent someone to tell them to leave the city immediately filled Wu Jing with deep regret.

However, amidst his regret, Wu Jing also harbored a sliver of smug satisfaction deep in his heart. Fortunately, he had left directly through the south gate. With the flames getting closer and closer, it was clear that the Southern Expeditionary Army had not spared the south gate either, they were just too late.

Wu Jing was filled with mixed emotions. His personal guards looked panicked, but also relieved that they had escaped a great disaster. The group split into two parts, each holding a torch, and protected Wu Jing in the middle.

The procession moved forward in silence. Wu Jing remained silent, and the others were not in the mood to speak either. For a moment, only the sound of horses' hooves could be heard.

Before they knew it, the group had entered the dense forest. Wu Jing's personal guards were, after all, carefully selected veterans who had been through countless battles.

Although they were unaware that enemies were lurking in the dense forest, they instinctively quickened their pace and increased their vigilance.

However, such experience and caution are worthless in the face of an absolute difference in strength.

"Do it!"

A loud shout suddenly rang out from the dense forest, and more than ten arrows shot out, aiming at Wu Jing's soldiers at the front of the line.

None of the thirteen arrows missed their mark, but a third of them hit the same target.

Almost simultaneously, many soldiers dressed in the battle robes of the Southern Expeditionary Army rushed out, and shouts of battle filled the dense forest.

Wu Jing was shocked. He immediately lowered his head and spurred his horse, wanting to rush out.

Before the horse could even pick up speed, an arrow suddenly shot out from the darkness, hitting Wu Jing squarely in the thigh.

In pain, Wu Jing lost his grip on the horse's neck and fell off.

The battle ended quite quickly; in the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, Wu Jing's personal guards were completely wiped out.

Apart from a few wounded who were captured alive, almost all the others died in battle.

However, their sacrifice was meaningless. Wu Jing was seriously wounded and captured, while the Southern Expeditionary Army only suffered three minor injuries.

The reason for such an exaggerated casualty ratio is that the difference in strength between the two sides is too great, and also because of Taishi Ci and his dozen or so sharpshooters.

Their first volley of arrows felled seven or eight men, and the second volley added another six or seven. In just two volleys, they wiped out two-thirds of Wu Jing's personal guards, and the rest were no longer a threat.

The fighting in the dense forest clearly startled the infantry behind them. Shocked, they gritted their teeth and sent men to rush over, hoping to reinforce or rescue Wu Jing.

However, the battle in the dense forest ended too quickly, and by the time Wu Jing's infantry arrived, the battlefield had been completely cleared, leaving only a dozen or so Wu Jing soldiers' corpses with their armor removed.

While the captain was inspecting the battlefield, another volley of arrows rained down from the dense forest. This volley consisted of forty or fifty arrows, and even though the captain was prepared, his men still suffered considerable losses.

The more than one hundred elite infantrymen who rushed to the scene lost nearly 10% of their fighting strength on the spot.

This captain was also a member of Wu Jing's clan. His name was Wu Yang. He served as a captain in Wu Jing's army, leading two commanders of a thousand men, but the actual number of soldiers was only about seven hundred.

Two hundred men had been transferred away to patrol teams, leaving him with only five hundred men at his disposal.

Arrows rained down from the dense forest. Although the tower shields provided protection, they couldn't cover everyone. Every time, one or two, two or three, or even three or four people would be hit by arrows, which terrified Wu Yang.

He stood there dumbfounded for a while before, as if remembering something, he shouted, "Extinguish the torches! Extinguish the torches now!"

Upon hearing the order, Wu Yang's soldiers finally realized what was happening and tried to extinguish their torches, forgetting that there were sharpshooters in the dense forest.

This volley of heavy arrows felled another seven people, bringing the total casualties to over 20%.

Before even seeing the enemy, they had already suffered heavy casualties, leaving Wu Yang speechless with despair.

The reason for this outcome is that Wu Yang was worried about Wu Jing's safety; otherwise, he wouldn't have walked into this trap himself.

Unfortunately, Wu Yang risked his life to come, but he still couldn't make it in time and didn't even get to see Wu Jing.

Seeing that Wu Yang had suddenly extinguished his torches, the large group behind him hesitated and stopped outside the dense forest, not daring to enter.

Wu Yang was anxious; he knew that staying in the dense forest meant certain death.

Just as he was about to order a quiet retreat from the dense forest, a torch was lit within it.

Wu Yang and his soldiers couldn't help but look over, only to see Wu Jing, who had been shot in the thigh with an arrow, blood flowing all over the ground, and his face extremely pale, being pushed out.

Taishi Ci stood behind Wu Yang and said in a deep voice, "Wu Jing has been captured by me. Why don't you all quickly lay down your weapons and surrender? If you continue to be stubborn, don't blame me for showing no mercy."

Wu Yang glanced at Wu Jing, whose eyes were tightly closed and who seemed to be unconscious, and then at the wounded soldiers in the formation who were screaming softly.

In an instant, all the soldiers in the formation focused their gaze on Wu Yang, their eyes filled with pleading.

As for what he wanted from him, Wu Yang knew perfectly well.

After hesitating for a moment, Wu Yang looked back and saw that the fire dragons that were originally in the east and west of the city had crossed the East Tiaoxi River and were extending towards them. He immediately knew that even if he resisted stubbornly, he would only face certain death and there was no possibility of breaking through.

Finally, Wu Yang sighed, threw his weapon in front of him, and lamented, "We are willing to surrender! We hope the general will be merciful."

Surrendering in those days was quite risky; you might get slaughtered by the enemy. It was only because Liu Bei and his son Liu Feng had good reputations that they never had a record of killing those who surrendered.

This benefited Liu Bei even more as his power grew stronger.

At Wu Yang's command, his soldiers breathed a sigh of relief and hurriedly threw their weapons outside the formation.

For a moment, the only sound in the dense forest was the clanging of metal.

A dozen soldiers stepped out from behind Taishi Ci and ordered the surrendered soldiers to pile up their weapons while removing their armor.

Another seven or eight men brought out an empty horse, which Wu Yang mounted, and they went with him to the outside of the dense forest to persuade the remaining troops to surrender.

By the time the 1,000 infantrymen of the Southern Expeditionary Army arrived, all of Wu Yang's men had already surrendered.

In this battle, Taishi Ci only slightly wounded three people, but captured Wu Jing alive, forced Wu Yang's more than 400 troops to surrender, and killed more than 40 people in battle. It can be said that he won a great victory.

Meanwhile, after inquiring, Taishi Ci learned that the enemy in the west and east of the city had failed to break out and had been forced back into Yuhang City, while the south gate was empty and had been taken over by the Southern Expeditionary Army.

Taishi Ci was overjoyed upon hearing this. He immediately left infantry to escort the prisoners back to the city, while he himself led two hundred cavalrymen and the captured warhorses back to the city first.

(End of this chapter)