The Ming Dynasty: Starting with the border troops, it was overthrown and the Qing Dynasty was destro

Chapter 87 Ambush
News arrived in Yan'an like a bolt from the blue—Commander Aimu had fallen into a trap in Ganquan County and suffered a defeat!

Upon hearing this, General He Huchen, who was handling military affairs in the government office, was so shocked that he slammed his fist on the table and stood up, restless and uneasy.

He suddenly waved his hand and shouted in a deep voice:
"Where is the Aimu?! Bring him up here immediately!"

The guards dared not delay and hurriedly ran out to relay the order.

Before long, accompanied by two guards, Aimu stumbled into the government office.

Inside the government office, the atmosphere was so oppressive that it was hard to breathe. General He Huchen stood in the center of the hall, his eyes like knives, glaring fiercely at Ai Mu.

Seeing He Huchen's murderous gaze, Aimu fell to his knees with a thud, his voice trembling:

"General, I am utterly incompetent..."

He Huchen snorted coldly, interrupting him, his tone icy:

"How did you lose?"

How many people did you bring back?

Aimu, head bowed, cold sweat beading on his forehead, spoke with difficulty:

"They only brought back a little over eight hundred brothers."

Aimu paused, then explained,
"I was confronting the rebels in Ganquan County. I was planning to wait for General Wang to lead his troops to flank them from both sides and catch them off guard."

"But the bandit leader was exceptionally cunning and had laid an ambush at Wild Boar Ridge in advance."

"Caught off guard, our troops were attacked from both sides by the rebels. Our formation was subjected to heavy artillery bombardment, and we were utterly routed and routed."

Upon hearing this, He Huchen flew into a rage and slammed his hand on the table, making the teacups rattle.

He pointed at Aimu and rebuked him sharply:
"What do you mean by being attacked from both sides?!"

"You didn't even know there were ambushes behind you?!"

"You're a seasoned veteran, are your cavalry and scouts just for show?!"

He Huchen was furious when he saw Ai Mu kneeling on the ground begging for forgiveness.

"You didn't even thoroughly search the mountains and find the way on the way here, yet you dare to swagger your troops towards the battlefield?!"

"After all these years as a general, have you completely forgotten all the military texts you've read?!"

Upon hearing this, Aimu knelt on the ground, lowered his head even further, and dared not utter a sound.

In this battle, he suffered a complete defeat. He led four thousand elite soldiers into battle, but only brought back eight hundred men.

If it weren't for his eldest son, Ai Huaiguang, sacrificing himself to cover the retreat, the entire army might have been wiped out.

He Huchen stared at Ai Mu's disheveled appearance, his anger rising, and gritted his teeth, saying:

"You've managed to escape, but what about General Wang?"

Aimu was stunned, and his face turned deathly pale instantly.

Oh no! We were so focused on escaping that we forgot about General Wang!
His troops were scattered, so what about General Wang who had flanked them?!

So he immediately informed He Huchen of the news.

He Huchen was stunned. He wished he could kill Ai Mu right away. What a useless and troublesome thing!
But finding Wang Chengen is the key right now, yet he dares not send troops out rashly.

He only had less than three thousand men under his command, and even if he were to lead them out, he might not be able to defeat the rebels.

Helpless, he could only wave to summon his personal guards:

"Go! Send out scouts! Search all the way towards Ganquan and Fuzhou!"

"We must find General Wang's whereabouts, alive or dead!"

At this moment, Wang Chengen had already led his troops to approach Ganquan County.

After he and Aimu split up their troops in Yan'an Prefecture, he led his troops westward, bypassing Fuzheng.

Then they sailed down the Beiluo River, heading straight for Ganquan County, intending to outflank Jiang Han and launch a surprise attack.

He traveled light and marched at full speed, hoping to catch the rebels off guard.

But when he arrived at the outskirts of Ganquan County, he found that things were not quite as he had imagined.

The city gates of Ganquan County were tightly closed, and the area outside the city was deserted, with not a single person in sight. However, a faint, pungent smell of gunpowder could be smelled in the air.

His years of experience on the battlefield made him uneasy; such quiet must mean something was amiss!

He didn't dare to lead his troops into the city rashly. Instead, he waved his hand and sent out all his cavalry to scout the situation.

After receiving the order, a cavalryman named Cai Tao and several of his comrades rode slowly toward the city wall, their eyes scanning the surroundings like eagles.

As the sun set, its afterglow cast dappled light and shadows on the city walls. He squinted, carefully examining the city walls, which were also deserted; not even a guard could be seen.

Upon closer inspection, the rammed earth city wall is full of gaps, and several battlements are only half left, as if they have been bombarded by heavy artillery.

Cai Tao was immediately alarmed and dared not be negligent.

He tightened the reins, turned the horse around, and slowly circled the city wall, his right hand always resting on the horn at his waist, vigilantly observing every corner.

Suddenly, a faint rustling sound came from the dense forest not far ahead, and the leaves trembled without any wind.

He looked up and saw several birds circling overhead, reluctant to land in the woods.

His pupils contracted, and he sensed something was wrong. He pulled a horn from his waist and put it to his lips, ready to blow it as a warning.

But the woods were dark, and he couldn't see clearly, so he didn't dare to blow the horn rashly.

If it were just livestock like mules, horses, cattle, or sheep, he would be executed for falsely reporting military intelligence.

Having no other choice, Cai Tao gritted his teeth, spurred his horse, and cautiously entered the woods to find out what was going on.

The horses' hooves snapped the dry branches with a crisp "crack," and the silence in the forest was chilling.

He held his breath and peered out, vaguely catching glimpses of several dark figures flashing past in the bushes.

"who!"

Cai Tao gave a low shout, and before he finished speaking, a cold arrow suddenly shot out from the forest, heading straight for him with a whooshing sound.

Caught off guard, he lost his grip on the horn and was shot to the ground by an arrow.

He quickly dismounted, scrambled to pick up the horn from the ground, and prepared to blow it as a warning.

But just as he grabbed the horn, several more arrows whistled through the air and struck him squarely in the back.

Cai Tao screamed in agony, his body slumped to the side, and blood gushed out, staining the withered leaves red.

His eyes widened, and with his last breath, he raised his trembling hand, brought the horn to his lips, and blew it with all his might.

The deep, drawn-out bugle call pierced the sky, echoing through the clouds, carrying a strong stench of blood into the distance.

Exhausted of his last bit of strength, he could no longer hold on and collapsed to the ground, completely lifeless.

In the dense forest, squads of soldiers emerged from all directions, passing over his corpse and heading straight for the government army formation not far away.

These were all Jiang Han's hidden troops.

After defeating the Aimu tribe, he took advantage of the situation to capture Ganquan County, where he laid an ambush to await Wang Chengen's arrival.

After cleaning up the battlefield, Jiang Han divided the team into two:
A group led by Li Laowai was hiding in the county town of Ganquan, waiting for Wang Chengen to enter the town and walk into their trap;

The other unit was hidden in the nearby dense forest, waiting for its chance to strike.

He just didn't expect Wang Chengen to be so cautious. Seeing that the situation was not right, he didn't dare to enter the city and sent out all the cavalry from more than ten miles away.

There was nothing they could do. When Jiang Han and the others in the woods saw the cavalry sound their horns, they knew their whereabouts had been exposed, and there was no point in hiding any longer.

Jiang Han then waved his hand, ordering the messenger to sound the horn and commanding his troops to launch a full-scale attack, heading straight for Wang Chengen's army.

When Wang Chengen, who was not far away, heard the bugle call, his heart skipped a beat, and he knew that he had been ambushed.

His face turned ashen, and he decisively gave the order:
"The rear guard becomes the front guard, maintain formation, and slowly retreat!"

"No one is allowed to leave the position without permission!"

"Those who disobey orders will be executed!"

He dared not give a direct order to retreat, because that could easily turn the retreat into a massive rout.

Only by maintaining the formation can the enemy's pursuers catch up and hunt them to death.

Upon receiving the order, his soldiers immediately turned their horses around and retreated. Although there was some commotion, they maintained their formation.

Wang Chengen breathed a slight sigh of relief upon seeing this. As long as the formation remained intact, he still had the strength to fight.

But just then, the city gate of Ganquan County, not far away, suddenly burst open.

Li Laowai, the leader, led his troops out of the city and headed straight for Wang Chengen's flank.

Wang Chengen finally panicked, and his government troops were so frightened that they were at a loss for what to do.

Seeing the rebels attacking from both sides, many government troops began to unconsciously turn and run, some even rushing out of the formation.

But the cavalry supervising the battle were no pushovers either. Seeing someone break away from the formation, they spurred their horses forward and cut the deserter to the ground.

The bloody scene shocked everyone. The government troops dared not run anymore and could only grit their teeth, form a battle formation, and slowly retreat.

(End of this chapter)