Chapter 161: Chasing the Northern Invaders (Part Ten)

A dozen personal guards surrounded Wang Fan, charging forward in a chaotic rush. Wang Fan sat in the saddle with a dazed expression, seemingly still unable to comprehend why he had been reduced to such a plight.

The guards were already shouting hoarsely at the infantry and cavalry battalions blocking the road, "Make way! This is a matter of utmost military urgency, our commander must see the Grand Administrator to report!"

The roadblock troops would have dared to stop the cavalry of the Vanguard Camp, but Wang Fan was a clansman of Wang Rengong, which barely qualified him as a member of the Taiyuan Wang clan. The hundreds of infantry and cavalry really did not know how to handle him.

The fierce infantry squad leader, who had removed his helmet and stood bare-headed, froze in place while his surrounding brothers looked to him. The squad leader gritted his teeth, waved a hand, and shouted, "Let them all pass! This is the Wang family's own business anyway, let them ruin it themselves!"

Dozens of infantrymen withdrew their long spears and retreated in disarray. The embarrassed Vanguard Camp cavalry acted as if granted a general pardon and whipped their horses into a gallop. Then the dozen personal guards swept past with Wang Fan in their midst, nearly colliding with the infantry. On horseback and afoot, the soldiers cursed at each other, plunging the road into utter chaos.

Behind them, the cavalry also cleared the path. The leader of this cavalry unit was not a battalion commander, but a squad leader. Being a veteran of the Mayi local garrison, he silently waved his hand to signal the cavalry to quickly retreat to the roadside as well.

As Wang Fan and his entourage swept past, not a single one of the dozen horsemen looked back.

Both the infantry and cavalry looked toward their respective commanders, awaiting further orders. These officers were equally at a loss, merely gazing at the billowing dust rising in the distance.

What kind of battle had this turned out to be? When had the Mayi Eagle-and-Falcon Garrison ever suffered such humiliation?

Wang Rengong was a veteran general with full capability in commanding troops and fighting battles. During the peaceful days of the Great Sui, had he been stationed in Mayi as a border official without selfish motives, he naturally would have governed Mayi Commandery in peace, leaving the two Eagle-and-Falcon Garrisons with exceptional combat prowess.

However, precisely because the Great Sui was collapsing and the Emperor of Daye had gone south, Wang Rengong also harbored ambitions to venture south into the Central Plains and contend for supremacy. He had exhausted every means to squeeze the commandery of Mayi to expand his military forces. Yet, because Liu Wuzhou commanded the Heng'an Eagle-and-Falcon Garrison in opposition, Wang Rengong was inevitably wary and defensive of the local officers and men of the Mayi Eagle-and-Falcon Garrison, cultivating external forces in the army that were loyal only to him. Such actions caused the once formidable ranks of the Mayi garrison to become alienated, their combat effectiveness plummeting by more than a notch.

When the time came to march and fight, the local soldiers and external soldiers undermined each other—and then they crossed paths with someone as formidable as Xu Le. The two factions within the Mayi garrison eagerly awaited each other's downfall, and this final movement of troops advancing toward Shenwu had culminated in this very spectacle!

Amidst the smoke and dust, mountains and plains of routed soldiers emerged. They were none out of other than the vanguard battalion of Mayi flying cavalry that had been defeated earlier.

During their flight, the formation of these Mayi flying cavalry remained entirely unbroken, their spirits seeming to rise the faster they ran.

Such a scene left the infantry and cavalry stationed on the roadside simply dumbfounded.

In an instant, these routed soldiers closed in. The formidable infantry officer spotted someone he knew and shouted at the top of his lungs, "Zhang Leopard, what is going on here? Has Liu Wuzhou arrived?"

A flying cavalry squad leader, sweating profusely on horseback, roared back at the top of his voice, "Whether Liu Wuzhou has come or not, I wouldn't know! Either way, the Vanguard Camp has been routed and Wang Fan has fled, so why should we continue standing about? Why aren't you hurrying back to Shanyang to rest?"

The cavalry squad leader also trotted up and shouted, "What should we do?"

That Zhang Leopard, sitting tall in the saddle, wore an expression of exasperation toward iron failing to become steel. Without even halting his mount, he swept past like a gust of wind, "Even if heads are rolling, yours won't be among them! Run, you mothers! If the Grand Administrator won't give an explanation, let whoever's eager to fight do the fighting!"

The routed flying cavalry all raised their voices, howling and fleeing all the way.

"Liu Wuzhou's forces are overwhelming, everyone run quickly!"

"The Vanguard Camp has been completely wiped out! Commander Wang fled first!"

"The Heng'an armored cavalry have all arrived! Commander Liu is going to fight a decisive battle against Grand Administrator Wang at Shanyang!"

With swirling dust and echoing shouts along the roadside, over a hundred elite Mayi flying cavalry fled toward Shanyang without once looking back.

The officers of the infantry and cavalry on the left side of the road exchanged glances and nodded to one another. With a battle cry from hundreds of men, the cavalry turned their horses around and bolted. The infantry had only two legs and could not outrun the cavalry, so they scattered in rout toward the hills on either side. Everyone was a local from Mayi; they knew the people and the terrain well, and no one would get lost. Those who still wanted to collect a few days' rations from Wang Rengong would naturally find their way back to Shanyang city, while those feeling homesick simply cast aside their weapons, armor, and spare shoes, and bolted straight back home.

Everyone understood in their hearts that this was also the local officers and soldiers of the Mayi Eagle-and-Falcon Garrison taking the opportunity to force Wang Rengong's hand. If there was still no explanation given to their local troops, and no change of course made, no one was willing to risk their lives for Grand Administrator Wang!

As for defecting to Liu Wuzhou, very few people were thinking along those lines yet. After all, the Mayi Eagle-and-Falcon Garrison and the Heng'an Eagle-and-Falcon Garrison belonged to two different systems, and switching sides made it difficult to stand out. Moreover, Liu Wuzhou originated from humble roots; in an era dominated by aristocratic clans, no one knew how long this commander who rose from the grassroots could sustain himself, so everyone preferred to wait and see.

Nevertheless, Commander Liu's surprise detachment, striking swiftly to capture Shenwu, was truly a stroke of divine inspiration. The commander of that force, the suddenly emerged young master Le, was likewise an extraordinary figure!

Once this force collapsed, the momentum of defeat could no longer be reversed.

Along the post road leading from Shanyang to Shenwu, one military unit after another was dragged down into a massive rout. Whether they were Wang Rengong's trusted confidants or locals from the Mayi garrison, everyone scrambled to flee, and not a single person was willing to hold the rear and fight to the death for the others.

Cavalry scrambled for the road, infantry broke and scattered into the mountains, and the conscripted laborers abandoned their carts and baggage. The thousands of troops that had set out in succession all turned their heads and bolted toward Shanyang.

Under Wang Rengong's strict orders, the mobilization of several thousand infantry and cavalry, along with thousands of laborers, arranged like a long winding serpent, collapsed just like a pearl-string curtain rolling backward, entirely beyond recovery!

The setting sun sank, casting a blood-red hue across the earth and sky.

Xu Le reined in his horse, ascending a high ground beside the road.

With thirty profound-armored cavalrymen, lacking auxiliary troops for support and without spare mounts to change, how far could they pursue? Originally, they had intended only to rout one more marching enemy force before calling it a day, yet who could have expected that Wang Rengong's army of several thousand would collapse right in front of these mere thirty horsemen!

Looking out into the distance, dust swirled—the very picture of a routed army of thousands.

The setting sun cast a fiery, dancing reflection across the armor of the thirty riders. Among the thirty profound-armored cavalrymen, not a single person uttered a word.

Even Xu Le was somewhat dumbfounded. This genuinely was not due to any special skill of his own...

Han Yue stood by his side, asking Xu Le in a stammering voice, "Are we still going to pursue?"

Xu Le gave a bitter smile. "With just this handful of troops, what is there to pursue? Are we supposed to attack Shanyang? Wang Rengong will undoubtedly have countermeasures. Fall back, and prepare to head north! I have tested Wang Rengong's true strength for Liu Wuzhou and built up a tremendous momentum for him as well. But this also hands Liu Wuzhou a massive dilemma—heaven knows how he will deal with me!"

Xu Le raised his horse-lance, drew a circle above his head, turned his horse around, and headed back toward Shenwu.

The thirty profound-armored cavalrymen followed closely behind, still incessantly glancing back at the billowing dust rising into the sky in the distance.

They knew full well that under Xu Le's leadership, they had created a miracle!

In the autumn of the twelfth year of Daye, the profound-armored cavalry made their maiden battle, defeating four thousand men with just thirty riders!