Chapter 402: Desperate Resistance
really!
Cheng Yu, who was in charge of the central army, looked at this scene and thought to himself.
Guan Yu had always fought tough battles, rarely bullying the weak, and almost never had an advantage in military strength.
Therefore, people all over the world overlooked the fact that Guan Yu’s talent was actually most suitable for fighting a favorable battle.
Under the terrifying threat, the enemy could only use 70% of their strength, and it was difficult for them to cope with it, let alone counterattack.
Combined with the many carefully crafted chariots, Guan Yu's frontal crushing and attacking capabilities were almost brought to the extreme.
Moreover, Guan Yu's power also put these bulky chariots in an extremely safe position, allowing them to focus their fire on the enemy.
This tactic was almost tailor-made for Guan Yu. Unless one encountered a large-scale cavalry or the enemy was strong and one was weak, there would be no flaws at all.
The coalition forces clearly did not meet either of these two conditions, allowing Guan Yu's army to attack at will.
How can you deal with this situation?
Looking in the direction of the coalition forces, Cheng Yu thought to himself.
Seeing Guan Yu breaking through the first line of defense with unstoppable force, his fighting spirit was not diminished at all, but rather his momentum was rising. Yuan Shao and others looked extremely ugly.
How to do?
"Keep fighting!" Yuan Shao said gritting his teeth.
"No matter how strong Guan Yu's army is, it has its limits. I don't believe we can't stop him!"
After realizing that they could not stop the charge of Guan Yu's army no matter what, Yuan Shao and others decided to adopt a strategy of blocking the enemy at various levels to slow down the offensive of Guan Yu's army.
There was nothing wrong with this tactic, but they misjudged one thing, which was the strength of Guan Yu's army.
Originally in their plan, even if all three lines of defense collapsed, it would be enough to delay most of Guan Yu's army. Then they could rely on a large number of troops to block Guan Yu's army's advance and then counterattack.
However, Guan Yu's army's strong frontal combat capability made their plan a joke.
Breaking through the first line of defense without any pressure, and with his momentum growing instead of decreasing, who could stand this?
The original plan of blocking the enemy at every level turned out to be a tactic of adding fuel to the fire, which is a taboo in military strategy.
Upon hearing Yuan Shao's order, Shen Pei, the commander-in-chief, waved the command flag without hesitation.
Seeing this, Cao Cao, who was standing by, wanted to say something, but stopped himself. He just looked in the direction of Guan Yu's army with a sharp gaze, his eyes revealing a desire as if he had seen a rare treasure.
What a great sharp knife!
For him, it was a perfect match.
Such a powerful general, it’s a pity that he is not under my command.
After Chunyu Qiong's army was defeated, they were confronted by the army of Cao Ren and Huang Gai. Both of them defended themselves on the spot and were ready for battle.
Cao Ren, who had already deployed his military formation, quickly put away his most proud Eight Gate Golden Lock Formation and replaced it with the simplest circular formation.
Having witnessed how Chunyu Qiong's army was destroyed, he knew very well that in the face of such a terrifying force, any fancy moves would only lead to a faster death.
Although he had extraordinary attainments in the Eight Gates Golden Lock Formation, he was still no match for Guan Yu's army in this state.
Taking advantage of the time that Chunyu Qiong was able to delay the enemy, Cao Ren quickly pushed a large number of chariots prepared in the general's formation to the front.
These chariots were originally intended to be used to trap the enemy after Guan Yu penetrated deep into the army formation, but now it is obvious that there will be no chance if they are not used now.
In fact, when Guan Yu's cavalry was dispatched, Cao Ren had already been tempted. He hoped to lure the enemy deep into the territory, destroy them with the advantage of chariots, and defeat the morale of Guan Yu's army.
It’s a pity that although Guan Yu was arrogant, he was very methodical and calm when using troops.
The cavalry charged out only to tear open the battlefield, with no intention of fighting to the end.
This is also the habit of the generals under Tian Ze.
The mobility of cavalry is always the first priority, and containing and cutting off the battlefield is what cavalry should do.
As for attacking the camp, if you are not sure enough, you should not do it lightly. Who knows whether there are a large number of chariots and powerful crossbows in the enemy's army? How did Qu Yi's first-line soldiers harvest the wheat? The generals under Tian Ze knew it very well.
On the other hand, Huang Gai did not have so many "little moves".
He took a deep breath, activated his talent to the extreme, and prepared himself to be beaten.
As one of the "three old generals" of Jiangdong, Huang Gai was the weakest general under Sun Ce.
Not only can his talent improve the defensive ability and will of his soldiers, but the more soldiers he loses, the higher the bonus.
No matter what kind of enemy he faces, Huang Gai has the confidence to entangle the enemy as long as his formation is not broken all at once.
However, facing Guan Yu's army in its current state, Huang Gai lost confidence.
"Pass on my order. The entire army must hold their ground and not retreat a single step! Anyone who disobeys my order will be executed!"
Cao Ren and Huang Gai issued the order almost at the same time, with a determination to burn their boats.
They are no different from Chunyu Qiong, and are the most loyal generals under their respective lords.
Any military general who doesn't want to fight on the battlefield and is willing to take on the responsibility of defending a city and sacrifice his own troops is undoubtedly a die-hard fan.
A large number of chariots in Cao Ren's army were gathering strength, ready to gallop. The crossbowmen in Huang Gai's army also stood behind the front row of shield soldiers, ready to fight to the death.
Guan Yu's army charged without pause. After crushing Chunyu Qiong's army, they instinctively reorganized their formation slightly, and then continued to smash into Cao Ren and Huang Gai's defense line like a huge hammer.
When the two sides were only about three hundred steps apart.
The same trick was used. Countless flying stones and crossbow arrows came towards them, and the soldiers standing in the front were immediately smashed through the formation.
Tian Ze once described countless "advanced" tactics of later generations. Although they were not completely in line with this era, some of the ingenious ideas still inspired a lot of his civil and military officers.
Zang Ba saw the great potential of the infantry with superb organization and mobility, and strengthened his own mountain troops.
Guan Yu, on the other hand, was attracted by the theory of "infantry and artillery coordination".
After the artillery bombarded, the infantry charged, and after the infantry charged, the artillery bombarded.
Although there were no cannons in this era, there were catapults and crossbows equipped with wheels. Although the effect was much worse, it was still terrifying enough.
Although it can only be used on the front battlefield on the plains and the combat conditions are relatively harsh, the current conditions are undoubtedly fully met.
An extremely simple tactic, but it is enough to be successful, especially when combined with the skilled craftsmen under Tian Ze and Guan Yu's powerful talent.
Watching the formation being torn apart so easily, Cao Ren and Huang Gai felt furious.
The infantry of Guan Yu's army followed closely behind, rushed up directly, and began to massacre along the gaps.
"Hold on!"
Cao Ren anxiously commanded his soldiers and chariots to continuously strengthen the defense.
However, a large number of sword and shield soldiers in Guan Yu's army were very skilled in interspersing and blocking the enemy. The heavy chariots could only provide limited obstruction, but they did a good job of blocking the progress of Guan Yu's chariots.
Huang Gai directly pulled all the crossbowmen to the front and shot them at close range, adopting a life-for-life strategy.
Both sides fought desperately and demonstrated extremely strong will.
When Guan Yu saw this scene, the same admiration he had for Chunyu Qiong flashed in his eyes.
"Yes, what a pity."
(End of this chapter)
