mesbooks Chapter 280 Frenzied Attack
Chapter 280 Frenzied Attack
Upon receiving news of an emergency at the river crossing, the commanders of the Wuxi Flying Army stationed at the fourth and fifth crossing points each woke up their 5000 sleeping infantrymen to urgently reinforce the Chinese army's crossing points. Just as the Chinese infantry had set up their formations and the engineers began constructing other pontoon bridges, the swiftly deployed Wuxi Flying Army infantry reinforcements arrived on the battlefield.
The two commanding generals were alarmed to see that the Chinese army had crossed a pontoon bridge and that several hundred men had already crossed the river to build riverbank positions on the south bank, and that Chinese engineers were building more pontoon bridges. They quickly launched an attack from both sides to flank the Chinese army.
The attack of nearly 10,000 Wuxi Flying Army troops put the Chinese infantry formations to a tremendous test. Tens of thousands of arrows rained down from the sky, which the shields could not withstand. The retaliatory crossbow bolts could only cause limited damage to the enemy, and the pontoon bridge could not provide effective support to the south bank. In less than two minutes, the two armies clashed, engaging in the fiercest hand-to-hand combat.
Due to their overwhelming numerical disadvantage, the Imperial infantry suffered repeated injuries and falls as the two reinforcements from the Wuxi Flying Army launched their attacks despite the risk of casualties. This sight fueled the anger of Yue Jin on the north bank.
On the battlefield where the Hua army was forced to retreat repeatedly, only the killing god named Ma Zhong, wielding a steel blade, charged wildly, creating death zones filled with corpses in the Wuxi Flying Army's attacking formation, inflicting a huge blow to the morale of the Wuxi Flying Army soldiers. Wherever Ma Zhong passed, the Wuxi Flying Army soldiers retreated in all directions, scrambling to escape for their lives, causing chaos in the army formation and giving the Hua army's infantry squares more time to hold out.
Under the cover of the main infantry, the Chinese engineering battalion soldiers on the riverbank built three more pontoon bridges, and the Chinese infantry began to reinforce the south bank in a steady stream, blocking the frenzied attack of the Wuxi Flying Army.
Chen Er personally led 20,000 cavalrymen and encountered a patrol captain who had abandoned his armor and fled the battlefield when they reached the fourth crossing point. Enraged, Chen Er ignored the advice of his generals and executed all 200 deserters, effectively deterring the cowardly soldiers of the Wuxi Flying Army.
Twenty minutes later, Chen Er led 4 cavalry to the east of the battlefield. Seeing the Chinese infantry advancing southwards from the four pontoon bridges amidst the flames, Chen Er decided to exterminate the deserter's commander and his entire clan while simultaneously ordering his cavalry to launch a fierce attack on the Chinese beachhead. Ignore the Chinese crossbow bolts.
Ignore the Chinese army's long spear formations and the lives of your own infantry. The charging cavalry have only one goal: to reach the riverbank and cut the ropes of the Chinese army's pontoon bridge.
Ignoring their own casualties, the 20,000 iron hooves charged into the stalemate-bound battlefield, and wherever they passed, the frail infantrymen were smashed to pieces and killed.
The infantry commander, who had come to reinforce from the fourth crossing point, was terrified when he saw the large cavalry force charging towards him, disregarding the lives of his infantry. He mounted a warhorse and fled south, followed by his personal guard of less than three hundred men who had managed to retreat in time.
This time, under Chen Er's personal command, the Wuxi Flying Army's cavalry force disregarded their own infantry's obstruction and charged forward, crashing into the two thousand-strong infantry spear formation that the Chinese army had built along the riverbank.
One after another, warhorses crashed into the two- or three-meter-long steel spears, emitting dying neighs, throwing their riders into the air before they fell into the dense array of spears, riddled with holes. The riders behind them did not stop, continuing to charge forward into the long spear formation of the Chinese Empire's infantry, only to be impaled and killed by the spears…
Gradually, the 20,000-strong Flying Army cavalry, disregarding casualties, forced the Chinese infantry formation into the river. Even with the four newly built pontoon bridges, the eight pontoon bridges were not enough for the Chinese infantry to reinforce the south bank.
The Wuxi Flying Army soldiers charged relentlessly like moths to a flame, finally breaking through the Chinese army's obstruction after suffering more than 3,000 casualties. They cut the ropes of the easternmost pontoon bridge, and dozens of infantrymen who were crossing the pontoon bridge to reinforce the south bank immediately fell into the river.
Seeing the relentless fighting spirit of the enemy cavalry on the opposite bank, and the heavy casualties of their own infantry, Le Jin finally ordered a retreat on Zhong Yao's advice. Of the remaining thousand-plus infantry, over eight hundred retreated from the pontoon bridge under the cover of crossbow bolts from the soldiers on the north bank. The rest of the soldiers were killed on the south bank by the frenzied charges of the Wuxi Flying Army. The eight pontoon bridges, painstakingly built, were ultimately destroyed by the Wuxi Flying Army.
In this night battle, the Chinese army suffered over a thousand elite infantry casualties, their efforts thwarted at the last moment. They were driven back to the north bank by the enemy's desperate counterattack, losing their last chance to launch a surprise crossing. Meanwhile, on the south bank, Chen Er, after suffering two thousand infantry casualties and over three thousand cavalry casualties, finally used sheer numbers to drive the Chinese army back to the north bank.
Despite heavy casualties, they successfully prevented the Chinese army from crossing the river and maintained their geographical advantage. Furthermore, in the days that followed, patrols and defenses along all sections of the river were strengthened, ensuring the Chinese army had no opportunity for a surprise attack. Moreover, if any Chinese army was discovered crossing the river, nearby troops were required to launch a desperate counterattack; any attempt to escape would be reported to the king, and the entire family would be executed.
On the last day of February, Gao Shun's army, except for the unexpected surprise of Ma Zhong, was completely defeated by Palau's cautiousness during their attempted crossing. Just three or four days prior, these areas where direct river crossings were impossible hadn't been patrolled so closely day and night; it was only after Palau's reminder that Chen Er strengthened the defenses in these areas.
Otherwise, before Chen Er arrived, the Chinese army would probably have already crossed the river with more than 10,000 men. An army of 10,000 men is not easily wiped out anywhere, which would allow the Chinese engineers in the protective circle behind to build more pontoon bridges and reinforce the south bank at a faster pace, forming a virtuous cycle.
However, the outcome was already decided. It didn't matter that they couldn't successfully cross the river. Back when they were discussing the matter in the grasslands north of Gilusen, everyone knew that it was impossible to easily break through Chen Er's southern defense line, so they weren't too disappointed.
The current task is to create the illusion of building more pontoon bridges across the river elsewhere, forcing Chen Er to deploy soldiers from all over Xichuan to the riverbank for defense, and even withdraw the patrol troops on Bisak Mountain in the east, creating an opening for Guan Yu. If Guan Yu's troops can successfully launch a surprise attack on the enemy's rear, then breaking through Chen Er's defenses will be much easier.
Chen Er looked at the eight pontoon bridges that had fallen into the river and were rising and falling with the current with lingering fear. He thought to himself that if he hadn't listened to Palau's advice a few days ago and strengthened the patrols and defenses here, the Chinese army would probably have already crossed the river by tens of thousands of people before he even arrived.
Of course, my own decisive action in ordering the cavalry to launch a desperate charge regardless of casualties was also key to successfully repelling the Chinese army's river crossing operation. The Chinese people's combat techniques were simply unheard of; even Palau didn't know that the Chinese army knew how to build pontoon bridges. It seems we are indeed far behind the Chinese Empire.