The Villain's Counterattack

Chapter 442 Emperor Liao: The destiny is with me!

With a powerful enemy at the door, Yelu Hongji's tent was brightly lit, and intelligence was continuously delivered. Few civil and military officials could sleep peacefully. As more and more intelligence came in, their expressions gradually changed from solemn to suspicious.

"Three thousand troops attacked the rear army's baggage train at night, causing a roar in the camp and throwing the 200,000-strong army into chaos. Five thousand elite troops then retreated to support them, looting countless supplies."

"Two thousand elite soldiers disguised themselves as the enemy's rear guard and delivered food and fodder to the central army camp at midnight. They secretly manipulated the lower ranks, causing most of the horses in the central army of 200,000 to suffer from diarrhea and be unable to be driven."

"As dawn approached, the army attacked the camp from all directions with great fanfare. They created chaos and then retreated. The enemy troops left the camp to pursue them, but their horses were weak and unable to pursue them. Instead, they were ambushed by the 20,000-strong army and nearly 10,000 of them were killed. The Crown Prince and the King of Chu were terrified and executed the forage officer. Since they were short of food and forage and could not set out, they urged the rear troops to hurry."

"A false order has been passed on to the King of Chu, ordering the vanguard to rush and meet Your Majesty without regard for their physical strength. They are already fifty miles away. The Crown Prince and the King of Chu's true envoys have been kidnapped and killed. The enemy's vanguard, center, and rear are severely disconnected. Furthermore, the vanguard has been completely cut off from the Crown Prince and the King of Chu, and they are two hundred miles away and cannot reunite anytime soon."

"Report, the Imperial Uncle and the King of Chu's vanguard troops are already thirty miles away! They show no sign of slowing down."

"Report, the Imperial Uncle and the King of Chu's vanguard troops are already twenty miles away! They show no sign of slowing down."

"Report, the Imperial Uncle and the King of Chu's vanguard troops are ten miles away! Their marching speed is slowing down."

All the civil and military officials in the big tent looked at each other in bewilderment. They knew that the Crown Prince was proficient in military affairs and was the Grand Marshal of the Liao Army, commanding millions of Liao soldiers. How could he be so incompetent in leading the troops this time?

Although the 100,000 vanguard troops are all elite, the general who leads them is also very powerful and good at training and commanding troops. He is also very loyal to the Crown Prince and the King of Chu. Otherwise, he would not have been able to serve as the vanguard general.

It was just his turn to lead the army alone, how could he make such a low-level mistake?

As a general, would the vanguard general be so stupid?

This was probably because he was constantly urged to march faster by the two imperial uncles and the envoy of the King of Chu, and there was a faint cloud of dust behind him. From time to time, there were fast horses urging the vanguard to move forward, forcing him to do so.

On the crude map, a complex array of flags of different colors appeared. Yelu Hongji slammed his hand on it, his eyes flashing with a cold, intimidating light. "The Crown Prince was a wise and shrewd man, but in the end he made such a huge mistake. The fate is with me! Soldiers, listen to my orders!"

Following Yelu Hongji's order, the 50,000-strong army no longer defended the camp, but rushed out with great fanfare and set up their battle formations in advance. One side rested for a day and a night, and was full of food and drink, and their morale was high, while the other side was exhausted after two days of running around.

Yelu Hongji immediately stood in front of the battle, raised the golden sword high in his hand, and denounced the Emperor Taishu and the King of Chu for treason in the capacity of the Yellow Emperor. After a few words, 30,000 of the 50,000-strong army were divided into three groups to launch a crazy attack. The 100,000-strong vanguard army fought hard but was defeated one after another.

Just at this moment, flags were waving and the sound of horses' hooves came from the rear. What shocked the vanguard general was that these soldiers were not from his side, but from the Liao Emperor Yelu Hongji. The exhausted army of 100,000 was defeated by the attack from tens of thousands of troops from both sides. Half of them died in the battle and the rest all knelt down in surrender.

The lower classes are very easy to follow the crowd. They used to obey the orders of the Grand Marshal of the Army. If the Crown Prince had won, they would not have had any second thoughts. But now that they have met the emperor and have been defeated, they have no pressure at all to surrender and admit defeat. Instead, they feel it is natural.

The vanguard general was killed. Before he died, his eyes widened and he stared at the two envoys on his left and right. They were people around the King of Chu, and he had seen them more than once. Why did this happen?

"We are not the King of Chu's men, never have been!" The middle-aged man who was able to ride a horse but wore a long robe and held a folding fan smiled slightly, pulled out the dagger from the waist of the vanguard general, knocked him off the horse with a palm, and shouted loudly that the enemy general was dead and those who surrendered would not be killed.

The vanguard general fell off his horse, his flag cut off, and before dying he shouted: "The Han people cannot be trusted!"

The two envoys of the King of Chu helped Yelu Hongji to subdue the remnants of the defeated army. Less than 20,000 of the 100,000-strong army were killed in the battle. Due to low morale and exhaustion, and being attacked from both sides, the vanguard generals died too quickly, and there were only more than 10,000 injured. Not many of the other 60,000 to 70,000 fighting soldiers escaped, and all of them surrendered.

It wasn't that they didn't want to leave. Firstly, they really didn't have much strength left. Secondly, there was the Liao Emperor Yelu Hongji in front of them, and later there were 20,000 troops cutting off their retreat. They had nowhere to escape.

The two envoys paid their respects to the Liao Emperor Yelu Hongji, and said that they were guests of the King of Chu. After sending the 100,000 vanguard troops, they had to go back to report to the King of Chu, and asked the Liao Emperor if there was anything he wanted them to convey.

Upon hearing this, Yelu Hongji couldn't help but feel delighted. He bowed deeply to the two envoys and asked many details. The two envoys told him everything they knew. Except for smiling and keeping silent when asked about the person behind them, they did not hide much else. They even explained the whereabouts of the families and relatives of the civil and military officials.

Asked for further advice, they only said that the Crown Prince and the King of Chu had unleashed a massive army, intending to crush and kill the Liao Emperor with overwhelming force. Not only were their logistics severely inadequate, but their march was also sloppy, with the vanguard, central army, and rear army severely disconnected, and their hasty march was exhausting. With the loss of 100,000 vanguard troops, and after last night's struggle, they now had only over 300,000 combat-ready soldiers. The Liao Emperor, including the surrendered soldiers, had 160,000 to 170,000 men, so he was not without a fighting force.

As for how to divide the troops and advance simultaneously, how to counter-encircle, how to cut off food supplies, how to avoid the enemy's attack, how to cut off the enemy's retreat, or even attack Huanglong and take Shangjing, that was the Liao emperor's own business. They were only responsible for causing trouble for the emperor's uncle and the king of Chu, and providing intelligence support.

Xiao Feng, who was not far away, heard their conversation clearly and couldn't help but say to himself, you are indeed Brother Murong's men. I heard him say before that he had arranged spies next to the King of Chu. I never thought that he had such status. If you say that Brother Murong didn't do anything behind last night's night attack, I don't believe it. The Liao people don't fight with so many twists and turns.

All of this is under your control.

Divide the troops and advance simultaneously, counter-encircle, these words fell into Yelu Hongji's ears, which inspired him to personally pardon the crimes of the vanguard soldiers, and found a few people he knew who could be trusted to report to the King of Chu together with the two envoys.

"It is said that the vanguard army is unstoppable and has broken into the Liao emperor's camp. Most of the imperial guards have been defeated and the vanguard army is exhausted and unable to pursue. The Liao emperor retreated dozens of miles. The vanguard army is chasing closely and dare not force them too much. They are waiting for support from the central army." Yelu Hongji's words made the two envoys nod slightly, and then they rode away with several vanguard surrendered generals.

Yelu Hongji ordered his soldiers to attack the camp, and destroyed the camp he had built with his own hands, and threw the dead soldiers of the vanguard into it, causing the camp to be lost. Then he ordered the King of the North Court to lead 10,000 guards, 20,000 surrendered vanguard soldiers, some civil and military officials, and his own chariots and flags to retreat to the north, while he himself led an army of 100,000 to go to Shangjing in two routes.

"First, we will take care of the rear army. Once they surrender and their food and supplies are cut off, it will be time for us to counterattack and encircle you rebels." Yelu Hongji's face was cold, but he couldn't help but worry about his mother, wife and children.

"I hope you won't do anything too extreme, otherwise don't blame me for being ruthless!"

It was a pity that the Crown Prince was an expert in military affairs. The vanguard troops spared no effort in order to hit the target with one strike, and first sniped at him. However, the 200,000-strong central army advanced in an orderly manner, maintaining considerable combat effectiveness and physical strength. If he met them head-on, he would certainly not get any good result, not to mention that they had hostages in their hands. Once they were pushed out, the morale of his side would drop greatly, and it would be even more difficult to win.