Chapter 337 Ambush in the Valley
Xiahou Dun did not have many cavalry under his command, mostly infantry.
Most of the cavalry in Cao Cao's army had been recruited to go to Zhu'a area to encircle and suppress Zhao Yun's army.
Moreover, the terrain around Liangfu Mountain was a bit rugged, and the terrain was not suitable for cavalry raids, so Xiahou Dun could only order the army to speed up the pursuit.
Fortunately, the distance between them was only a dozen miles, and the enemy was an exhausted army after days of rapid marching. They should be able to catch up in less than an hour.
The situation was similar to what Xiahou Dun had expected. Zang Ba's army's marching speed was obviously slower than theirs, and the distance between the two sides was getting closer and closer.
However, it seemed that Zang Ba's army had sensed their presence and felt threatened, so they fled with all their might, and their marching speed was slightly accelerating, but fortunately, it was still somewhat slower than theirs.
"General, at this speed, it may take us another hour or so to catch up with the enemy." After chasing for more than half an hour, the distance between the two sides was only shortened a little, the deputy general reminded.
Xiahou Dun, who was riding a horse in pursuit, nodded slightly without saying much.
This situation was also within his expectations.
At this time, both sides were fighting against time, and the battle was about who could hold out longer. Compared with Zang Ba's army, which had been marching for days and crossing mountains and ridges, although his army had also been marching for a day, its condition was definitely much better.
As long as he catches up, Zang Ba's troops will be easily defeated.
However, after hearing this, Liu Ye felt even more uneasy, but he couldn't figure out where this uneasiness came from.
"Zang Ba's army is indeed a tired one, and there can't be other Tian Ze's troops around. What else is there that I haven't thought of?" Liu Ye kept asking himself in his heart.
"Am I really overthinking it, or is this a trick of the enemy to confuse me?"
Liu Ye hesitated in his heart, but Xiahou Dun did not waver at all.
Even a clay man has some temper. After being led for a walk for such a long time, Xiahou Dun had already accumulated a lot of anger.
Now that the rat Zang Ba is right in front of him, he has decided to eat him, and no one can stop him!
At this time, Zang Ba's troops were indeed a little tired. After all, they had a bumpy and fast journey, but their condition was still maintained at about 70%, which was far from as bad as Xiahou Dun had imagined.
In fact, before Xiahou Dun arrived, Zang Ba's troops had already rested for a while, just waiting for Xiahou Dun to take the bait.
"Yuanzhi, it should be dark in two hours. Will Xiahou Dun really continue to pursue us?" Zang Ba couldn't help but ask.
"Xuan Gao, do you remember the story His Majesty once told about boiling a frog in warm water?" Xu Shu said with a smile.
"As long as we give Xiahou Dun hope, he will never give up. Because if he can hold on for another quarter of an hour, he might win. After chasing for so long, the sunk costs will drive him to the limit."
In Xu Shu's eyes, war is a gamble, and the most important thing is to see through the enemy's cards and psychology.
Zang Ba's advantage in mobility makes him completely invincible now. Moreover, he has not revealed his cards, so he does not have to worry about losing and his mentality is very calm.
On the contrary, Xiahou Dun had already lost his balance mentally.
Upon hearing this, Zang Ba nodded slightly, but he was alert in his heart.
He couldn't help but reflect on whether he would fall into the trap if he were in Xiahou Dun's position.
The outcome is inevitable.
Xu Shu's strategy was not very brilliant, but he firmly grasped people's psychology, like the mentality of a gambler who wants to turn the tables.
If you win, this mentality is called decisiveness and perseverance, but if you lose, this mentality is called impulsiveness and greed.
Everything went just as Xu Shu had planned. The distance between the two sides was getting closer and closer, but the speed of closing was slowly slowing down under Zang Ba's control.
After another hour, the two sides still maintained a certain distance, which made Xiahou Dun feel that he could catch up in just a quarter of an hour. Therefore, even though he knew that night was approaching and that the soldiers were exhausted and close to their limits after chasing him all the way, Xiahou Dun still had no intention of stopping.
Liu Ye, who was beside him, looked at Xiahou Dun's current state, not knowing whether he should stop him or not, but he knew that he definitely couldn't stop him, so he simply said nothing more.
The only thing that comforted him was that after seeing the back of Zang Ba's army, he realized through various details that Zang Ba's army was indeed exhausted and not pretending.
In this way, there should be no need to worry that the other party is pretending to be tired and preparing to counterattack.
Under the reflection of the setting sun, Zang Bajun's figure was very long. He had already arrived at a valley under Liangfu Mountain and entered in a line without hesitation.
When Liu Ye saw the valley, his heart suddenly skipped a beat.
Not good!
The enemy may have an ambush, but it may also be a tactic to confuse the enemy.
Liu Ye's talent began to show its side effects at this moment.
There are lots of good ideas, but it’s easy to think too much.
"kill!"
At this time, Xiahou Dun could already see the backs of Zang Ba's troops, and he led his troops to chase them without hesitation.
Although they entered the mountains, which was a terrain that Zang Ba was good at, they were the pursuing party. Moreover, even though Zang Ba's troops were good at climbing mountains and crossing ridges, they could not fly into the sky or into the ground, so their speed would inevitably be slow, and they would soon be caught up by them.
Sure enough, after Xiahou Dun led his army into the valley, he saw Zang Ba's troops climbing towards the mountain road.
Obviously restricted by the terrain, the formation was completely lost and the marching speed was greatly slowed down.
At this time, Xiahou Dun's eyes were filled with excitement.
Finally caught up!
"kill!"
Without hesitation, he led the charge and chased after him.
Both sides are now exhausted, and the battle is about who can last longer. How can Zang Ba's troops defeat his powerful army?
At this time, the sky was gradually getting dark, and the scenery above the valleys on both sides could not be seen clearly.
But Liu Ye was staring closely at both sides, looking for possible ambushes of the enemy.
"kill!"
Accompanied by countless shouts and cries coming from the valleys on both sides, Liu Ye's heart was completely dead.
Fell into a trap!
Not only Liu Ye, but Xiahou Dun and his soldiers also realized this.
Countless arrows were shot down like locusts, and countless enemies rushed out from the dense forests in the valleys on both sides.
The soldiers under Xiahou Dun were already exhausted after several hours of pursuit. They could still deal with Zang Ba's troops who were also in a state of retreat, but how could they stop this group of ambushed troops who had been gathering strength for a long time?
What's more, it was dark and unclear at this time. The soldiers of Xiahou Dun's army, who had already been ambushed and mentally broken, only felt that there were enemies everywhere, countless, at least tens of thousands of them.
The morale completely collapsed, and countless Xiahou Dun's troops turned around and ran away, only to be chased and killed wantonly by the ambushing troops who caught up with them.
Xiahou Dun shouted "Retreat", and then led Liu Ye and others to retreat out of the valley under the protection of his personal guards.
(End of this chapter)
