vrcanaries Chapter 34 Sowing discord
Chapter 34 Sowing discord
Since its establishment, the Tulan Army has fought more than fifty battles, large and small, but has never suffered a series of defeats.
Although Gourna was the Grand Tutor, he was also a military strategist.
He wanted to defeat Qin Xuan even more than Tu Lan, otherwise he would have Qin Xuan as a demon in his heart for the rest of his life.
"Imperial Advisor, what brilliant plan do you have?"
Seeing Gulna's usual confident smile, Tu Lan asked urgently.
Gulna smiled faintly: "The Great Qi Alliance has been pretending to attack the north gate of Beining City, but when we retreated just now, there were clearly troops coming from the east. Your Great Qi Alliance must have dispersed your forces to try to outflank us from the east."
"At the same time, in order to cut off our retreat, they also left troops in the northwest."
"This method is good, but they overestimated their troop strength and combat power. How can a mere 60,000 men withstand our Tu Lan army?"
In terms of combat power alone, even 20,000 Tulan soldiers could rout 60,000 Daqi allied troops, after all, this is the northern border, a vast area, most suitable for cavalry charges.
The Tulan army excels at cavalry, and the Daqi coalition forces are indeed too weak in comparison.
“But the Shence Army is right behind us, and I’m afraid they’ll come after us,” Tu Lan said worriedly.
Gulner shook his head, denying the guess: "We just abandoned military rations, supplies and siege equipment. If I were Qin Xuan, I would definitely send people to clean up the battlefield first. The only ones who could possibly catch up are the Daqi Allied Forces from the east."
"But this army is still some distance away from us. As long as we don't get bogged down in battle, we will have enough time to break through the Great Qi Allied Forces blocking our way."
"In this way, even if we fail this time, we can still give His Majesty a satisfactory explanation when we return."
Gulna's last words startled Tu Lan, who immediately said, "Then we'll listen to the Grand Preceptor. If we can break through the Great Qi Alliance in one fell swoop, we might still have a chance to turn the tide."
Tu Lan's mind began to race.
Previously, it was the Shence Army defending the city, so the Tulan Army was naturally at a disadvantage and extremely passive.
However, the current situation is an encounter battle. Given Tu Lan's own military prowess and the formidable fighting strength of the Tu Lan army, Tu Lan is fully capable of swallowing an elephant whole.
"The foolish Great Qi Alliance is still putting on an act for me at this point!"
"This time, I'll show you what the true strength of the Tu Lan Army is." Tu Lan's fighting spirit was reignited. He quickly reorganized his troops and then charged towards the Da Qi Allied Army in the northwest.
At this time, the north gate of Beining City was already in a precarious state.
With the retreat of the Northwest Army and the deployment of the Qingyun Army, the Shence Army defending the city clearly felt greater pressure.
"Quick! Quick, we can't let the enemy get up here."
Ning Yuanfeng moved incessantly up and down the city walls, constantly directing the remaining Shence Army to put up a tenacious resistance.
In order to mislead the Tu Lan army, Qin Xuan temporarily withdrew 20,000 troops from this side.
"Even if I die in battle, I must not lose the North Gate."
Ning Yuanfeng gritted his teeth and roared, gripping his long sword, as he engaged in a fierce battle with several Daqi soldiers who had just climbed up using grappling hooks.
Similar scenes unfolded across the entire city wall, and then ladders began to be erected, and the scales of victory seemed to have begun to tip.
Inside the command tent, Sun Wei smiled slightly: "It seems that it won't be long before we break through the city."
Sun Wei felt he had strategized brilliantly in this battle and had endured countless hardships; he was even already thinking about how to write his memorial to the emperor.
Cao Xueguang also breathed a slight sigh of relief. Although he was only the military supervisor, he would naturally be rewarded if the army won.
"They all won by stepping on the corpses of my Northwest Army. When I get back, I will definitely tell His Highness the Third Prince about this." Liu Zhizhong remained silent, but he already had a plan in mind.
Just as the three were lost in their own thoughts, a furious roar suddenly came from outside the command tent:
"Enemy attack! Enemy attack!"
"The Tulan army launched a surprise attack on our rear!"
The sudden shout stunned Sun Wei and the other two, and they all saw shock and disbelief on each other's faces.
"Who is spreading rumors outside? Is Liu Zhizhong one of your men?"
Sun Wei instinctively shouted angrily, then ignored Liu Zhizhong's livid face and rushed out of the command tent.
But when he went outside, his heart sank to the bottom.
Large numbers of Tulan cavalry were rampaging through their own rear camp, killing countless soldiers on the spot.
"Supervisor Cao, what is the meaning of the Tu Lan army? Why did they suddenly betray our army?"
While ordering his men to launch a swift counterattack, Sun Wei mounted his warhorse and rode straight towards the rear defense line.
Cao Xueguang followed closely behind, saying with trepidation, "There's probably some misunderstanding here. I'll go ask first."
Having said that, he took the lead and charged ahead.
From afar, he saw Tu Lan's tall figure on the battlefield like a divine warrior descending from the heavens, with no one able to withstand a single blow from him.
"General Tu Lan, I am Cao Xueguang, an envoy of the Great Qi. What is the purpose of your sudden attack on our Great Qi allied forces?"
Cao Xueguang shouted at the top of his lungs.
Tu Lan looked up and gave him a cold glance: "What do you mean? You're about to die and you're still putting on an act for me. Tu Lan Army, kill this lousy envoy!"
At his command, a large number of Tu Lan soldiers surrounded and attacked Cao Xueguang.
Cao Xueguang was so frightened that he turned and fled without hesitation.
"He's gone mad! He's gone mad, Tu Lan must be insane!"
Cao Xueguang was still shaken and fled for his life, but he didn't notice that an arrow had silently been aimed at him from the side.
"call out"
A barely perceptible whooshing sound rang out, and Cao Xueguang felt a sudden pain in his neck, followed by a warm flow, and he fell off his horse.
The next second, before he could even feel the suffocation, he was trampled underfoot by horses and countless soldiers.
"Commander Cao!"
Sun Wei roared to the sky, but he was powerless to do anything about it.
Liu Zhizhong, standing to the side, merely sneered inwardly, for the assassin in the shadows was none other than one of his own men.
Cao Xueguang repeatedly favored Sun Wei, and Liu Zhizhong had long harbored murderous intentions. Moreover, if the supervising officer died, the commander-in-chief would bear the main responsibility.
"These damned Jurchens are treacherous. Since they're courting death, let's slaughter them without leaving a single one alive."
Sun Wei was already furious and raised his sword, shouting.
The killing of Cao Xueguang completely shook him, after all, Cao Xueguang had another identity—an envoy of the Jurchen Kingdom.
Therefore, whether for the sake of the overall situation or for his own life, Sun Wei has no choice but to fight against the Tu Lan army.
What he failed to consider was that at that moment he was still pressing forward with a large army, trying to break through the city. At this time, facing the Tu Lan army, his numbers were not superior.
Moreover, Tu Lan's army launched a surprise attack, while Sun Wei was forced to counterattack. The outcome of this great battle was predictable.
"Report! Commander, a Shence Army unit has suddenly appeared to our west and is about to charge forward."
A vanguard soldier, covered in blood, came to report.
Sun Wei's heart tightened. How could the Shence Army appear directly outside the city?
Did the Tulan army not attack the city at all today?
Is their only goal to join forces with Qin Xuan and destroy my Great Qi Allied Forces?
As soon as this thought came to mind, Sun Wei suddenly felt as if the fog had been cleared, and everything that seemed illogical now had a reasonable explanation.
"Damn Qin Xuan, he actually turned Tu Lan against us. I should have been on guard long ago." Sun Wei gritted his teeth in hatred, but he was powerless to do anything about it.
He looked around and saw that the attack on the city by the front camp had already failed. If they were attacked from the flank by the Shence Army outside the city, they would be completely wiped out.
Behind them, the Tu Lan army had already succeeded in their surprise attack and was reaping lives at will.
Only the central area is relatively safe for the time being.
"Withdraw troops!"
Finally, Sun Wei gritted his teeth and issued this humiliating order.