SFS Chapter 512 The Great Battle of Dangyang (4)
Chapter 512 The Great Battle of Dangyang (4)
The Han army camp was filled with trenches covered with wooden planks. Whenever the battle turned against them, the Han army would retreat to the rear and remove the planks, turning the trenches into an insurmountable barrier for the Wei army.
Unaware of the situation, Chang Diao suffered a severe loss, being beaten so badly that he abandoned his horse and was forced to flee.
This is because visibility is poor at night; if it were daytime, it would be much more difficult for him to escape.
After Chang Diao left, the Han archers covered the trench with wooden planks, then returned to their original positions, loaded their arrows, and waited for the second batch of unlucky souls to take the bait.
As darkness fell, the battle not only did not stop but intensified, with figures crisscrossing and screams echoing across the battlefield stretching for miles.
The most intense fighting was between Xia Tong's Heavy Feather Battalion and Wang Shuang's Armor-Piercing Battalion. These two elite units were like sworn enemies meeting, their eyes blazing with hatred. Xia Tong swung his Mo Dao (a type of long-handled sword) directly at Wang Shuang, intending to cleave him in two. Wang Shuang, in turn, raised his armor-piercing spike, which was even longer than the Mo Dao, and thrust it at Xia Tong, attempting to knock him to the ground.
Wang Shuang didn't expect the armor-piercing cone to pierce Xia Tong's heavy armor. He just wanted to use the force of the cone to knock him down. With dozens of kilograms of heavy armor on his body, once he fell, he wouldn't be able to get up.
The idea is good, but...
Xia Tong's slashing Mo Dao struck Wang Shuang's armor-piercing cone, sending sparks flying and making Wang Shuang's hand ache. He couldn't help but curse inwardly, "Damn it, where did Guan Yu find such an inhuman guy? He's too strong."
Xia Tong could forcefully break through the armor-piercing cones with his strength, but the other soldiers of the Chongyu Camp were not so lucky. Their horse-slaying swords were shorter than Xia Tong's long-handled swords, making it difficult for them to gain an advantage against the armor-piercing cones specifically designed to target them.
Seeing his teammates fall one after another, Xia Tong was furious and roared, "Have the archers in the back provide indiscriminate fire and shoot these bastards to death!"
Don't like comparing lengths? Then let's see if your armor-piercing spike has a longer attack range or my bow has a longer attack range.
His teammates behind him exclaimed in astonishment, "Indiscriminate coverage will also hit us."
Xia Tong retorted, "What are you afraid of with your full suit of heavy armor? Can mere arrows penetrate armor that even armor-piercing spikes can't pierce?"
His teammates agreed and immediately relayed Xia Tong's instructions to Meng Jun in the rear. Meng Jun decisively summoned hundreds of archers to indiscriminately cover the positions of the Heavy Feather Camp and the Armor-Piercing Camp.
Now the Heavy Feather Camp and the Armor-Piercing Camp are locked in a stalemate, and the crossbows are firing at the Armor-Piercing Camp, naturally causing friendly fire from the Heavy Feather Camp as well. However, most of the Heavy Feather Camp soldiers are facing away from the archers, and their backs are covered in iron plates, so there are no weak points like eyes or throats. Arrows hitting their backs are no different from tickling them.
The Wei army's armor-piercing battalion soldiers were in a terrible predicament. Without the formidable protection of the Chongyu battalion, they were wounded and fell to the ground one after another under the dense barrage of arrows, and the Chongyu battalion soldiers immediately pounced on them to reap the rewards.
Upon seeing this, Xia Tong excitedly roared as if he had discovered a new continent: "Move three thousand archers to guard behind me. If we see the enemy, we can shoot them directly without hesitation."
This tactic is incredibly effective. The Chongyu Battalion acts as a shield to protect the unprotected archers and crossbowmen. When the Wei army attacks the Chongyu Battalion, the archers and crossbowmen immediately fire a volley, using long-range fire to disrupt the Wei army's formation. Then, the Chongyu Battalion can charge in and finish them off. Perfect.
How come I never thought of such a perfect tactic before? As General Anguo said, we must learn warfare through warfare.
While feeling proud of his new tactic, Xia Tong once again brandished his knife and charged at Wang Shuang, roaring, "You bastard surnamed Wang, I told you I'd teach you a lesson today!"
Wang Shuang was caught off guard by the arrows and dared not fight Xia Tong head-on when he saw him charging. Without thinking, he shrank behind his personal guards and shouted, "The armor-piercing battalion is retreating in an orderly manner. Mobilize the ballistae and catapults to launch a full-scale attack on the Chongyu battalion!"
It's not just the Shu army that has ranged attack capabilities; the Wei army does too. Can your heavy armor withstand arrows and stones?
Thinking of this, Wang Shuang suddenly had a flash of inspiration and roared again, "Bring those chariots over here and ram them into the Chongyu Camp. I want to see if their sabers can cut through the chariots!"
Most of the chariots that Wei's army copied from Guan Xing were destroyed by Shu's Axe Battalion. However, only the blades extending from the carriages were removed and the wheels were broken. The carriages themselves were still intact. They carried the carriages and rammed them into Chongyu Battalion to see who had the stronger defense.
The Heavy Feather Camp has many advantages, but its disadvantages are also obvious. Its biggest disadvantage is its slow movement speed. If the Armor-Piercing Camp is focused on escaping, they really can't catch up.
Especially Wang Shuang, who seemed to know he was no match for Xia Tong. After exchanging a blow with Xia Tong, he moved nimbly around the formation, not giving Xia Tong any chance to get close.
But no matter how fast the armor-breaking battalion was, it couldn't outrun the bows and arrows. The Wei soldiers in the armor-breaking battalion were constantly shot down by the crossbowmen and easily harvested by the Chongyu battalion. In less than a quarter of an hour, Xia Tong ruthlessly harvested one-third of the heads of the armor-breaking battalion. How many people were in the armor-breaking battalion in total?
Just as Xia Tong was preparing to press on, he suddenly heard several whooshing sounds as he tried to cut through the air, which startled him so much that he quickly retreated to avoid them.
He had only taken three steps back when several stones as thick as buckets crashed down around the spot where he had previously landed. The damned Wei army had actually used ballistae and catapults. Several Chongyu soldiers were hit by the ballistae and were sent flying by the force of the bolts. As for whether they had penetrated the heavy armor, it was unknown in the dark.
Upon closer inspection, they saw Wei soldiers carrying more than a dozen chariots rushing towards them, less than a hundred meters away.
These tortoise-shell chariots were also the nemesis of the Chongyu Camp. The Wei soldiers would hide inside the chariots and carry the carriages to ram into you. No matter how sharp your saber was, it couldn't cut through the carriage. If you couldn't cut through the carriage and were hit by it, your proud armor would become a burden instead of a weapon. You wouldn't even be able to get up after being knocked down by the carriage.
Knowing the gravity of the situation, Xia Tong decisively shouted, "Half an hour has passed, retreat!"
The soldiers of Chongyu Camp quickly assembled and, under Meng Jun's cover, carried their comrades' bodies and retreated, leaving the battlefield to Meng Jun.
Xia Tong, carrying a Mo Dao (a type of long-handled sword), came before Liu Bei, wiping the blood from his face, and said, "Your Majesty, General, I have decimated most of the Wei army's armored battalion, but those damned Wei soldiers have no martial ethics. Not only did they use ballistae and catapults to attack us, but they also tried to run us over with their chariots. They are too hateful."
Liu Bei comforted him, saying, "It's good that you're back safe and sound. Go and rest. Once you've recovered, you can continue the battle."
“Yes…” Xia Tong bowed and took his leave.
Liu Bei watched Xia Tong leave and said, "Heavy infantry are useful, but they have too many limitations. If the Wei army really carries dozens of tortoise-shell carts to ram into you, you really don't have a good way to deal with them."
Guan Yu said, "Yes, that's why the Chongyu Battalion can only be used in specific situations, and it must avoid chariots."
"However, on the other hand, could we build a chariot battalion, discard the unsightly blades, nail a layer of iron nails on the outside of the chariot, and then push the chariots forward? Perhaps this could effectively curb the Wei army's cavalry."
The current chariots are mainly for defense, and they are large and cumbersome. If they could be reduced in size to deal with cavalry charges, it might make up for the Han army's lack of cavalry. At the very least, they wouldn't be so easily overwhelmed by a cavalry charge.
Liu Bei stroked his beard and said, "That makes sense. Let's make a batch and see how it goes."
Tonight is destined to be a sleepless night. The sounds of battle between the Han and Wei sides resounded throughout the night sky. The fierce fighting even made the stars in the sky seem to be startled and hide behind the dark clouds.
As the two armies fought fiercely, day broke...
An even fiercer battle has begun...