Liu Zhaoji!

Li Zicheng frowned when he heard the name.

This man came from the Liaodong Army and was known for his ability to fight tough battles.

Meeting him was not a good sign.

"Send a message to Gu Kecheng and order him to send 3,000 soldiers to fight and destroy them. Otherwise, you will be punished by military law."

They discussed for a while, and as it was getting dark, they returned to the camp to rest.

On the morning of April 19, Ma Shiying was awakened by his personal guards outside the door: "Sir, there are people coming from outside the city."

"who?"

"He said it was a messenger from Lord Lu."

Ma Shiying hurriedly put on his clothes and went to the front hall.

When I walked into the hall, I saw a middle-aged man in blue cloth standing upright.

Seeing Ma Shiying coming, he bowed deeply and said, "Greetings, Governor Ma."

"Who are you?"

"I am here to deliver the message under the order of the Governor-General Lu."

"What news?" Ma Shiying asked indifferently.

Prior to this, Lu Daqi had issued a military order, ordering him to leave the city from the east and north on April 18th to fight the bandits in the field.

As a result, he only sent 10,000 troops to the north of the city, and returned to the city after the confrontation.

The messenger Yu Tong stared at Ma Shiying's face for a while, then slowly said, "Lord Lu is on the warship of the navy 20 miles east of the city. Yesterday, you did not fight the bandits in the field to contain their main force, which disrupted Lord Lu's plan."

"Today I come here on behalf of Lord Lu to question him."

"Ask him about his crime," Ma Shiying smiled. "I haven't asked him about his crime yet! My city has no troops left. If we lose the battle outside the city, Fengyang will be lost! Can Lü Daqi take on this responsibility?"

Yu Tong asked in return: "Can Governor Ma defend the city and ensure that Fengyang will not be lost?"

"Of course! I've been guarding for a month!"

Yu Tong smiled slightly and said, "I wonder how much food and grass Governor Ma has left in the city?"

When it comes to food and fodder, Ma Shiying fell silent.

With the frugal life, the city was running out of food and fodder. In two days, the city would run out of food.

If this continues, it is only a matter of time before the city is broken and the mutiny occurs.

Seeing Ma Shiying silent, Yu Tong sighed and said, "Let's not talk about the missed opportunity for now. Lord Lu asked me to tell Lord Ma that we must send troops tomorrow, otherwise Fengyang will be lost."

"But..." Ma Shiying still wanted to quibble, but reality made him shut up.

After a moment he asked, "When will the troops go out tomorrow?"

"At the beginning of the afternoon, troops will be dispatched from the north and east gates respectively."

"Shenshi?" Ma Shiying's expression was stiff.

The Shen time is three o'clock in the afternoon when converted into modern time.

It would take about quarter of an hour to assemble and form a formation outside the city, and it would be evening in another hour.

What kind of battle is this?

"Then what?" Ma Shiying asked again.

"Then Gao Jie on the north bank of the Huai River will force his way across the Huai River and head south, and you will attack Li Chuang from both inside and outside," said Yu Tong.

"That's all?"

"Yes, that's all."

"Please go back and tell Lu Daqi that I will definitely follow your orders."

......

The next morning, Shun army general Gao Hong led 3,000 soldiers and horses from the camp east of the city and headed eastward to search for Liu Zhaoji.

After walking fifteen miles, the scout reported: "Report, we spotted a Ming army five miles ahead. Judging from the flag, it belongs to Liu Zhaoji's troops."

Gao Hong asked cautiously: "Are there other Ming troops nearby?"

"No, they are camped by a pond, nearly two miles away from the bank of the Huai River." The scout replied.

Gao Hong was overjoyed: "Okay, tell the infantry to form a formation and march, and the cavalry to retreat three miles and be ready to provide support at any time."

As the military order was issued, the three thousand Shun troops began to put on armor and then quickly rushed towards the pond.

After receiving the news, Liu Zhaoji quickly deployed his troops and waited for the enemy to tire themselves out.

The two sides met in the field.

This is a golden wheat field. The wheat will be ripe in ten days or half a month.

The Shun army formed two military formations on the left and right, and advanced forward side by side on the wheat.

Their advance was slow because the ripening wheat made it difficult to move forward on the battlefield.

Every time the chariot advanced a certain distance, the soldiers pushing it would take a rest to recover their strength.

Seeing that the car was about to leave the wheat field, the Ming army suddenly launched an attack.

"Kill!" Hundreds of Ming soldiers rushed over pushing chariots.

The Shun army was unwilling to be outdone and immediately went to meet the enemy.

The two sides fought near the wheat field.

After several rounds of attacks with long-range weapons, the two sides engaged in hand-to-hand combat.

But soon, the Ming army began to collapse.

They abandoned the enemy in front of them and turned and ran.

Upon seeing this, Gao Hong immediately ordered a pursuit.

After chasing for just over ten steps, the fleeing Ming army suddenly turned around, raised their spears and launched a counterattack.

Gao Hong laughed wildly: "Liu Zhaoji, is this all you have? This is how Ma Shitai was defeated yesterday. I will not repeat his mistake."

Ma Shitai’s defeat yesterday was very unfair.

He did not expect that the defeated army would launch a counterattack. The Shun army in front was blocked, but the Shun army behind was unaware of it. As a result, they were crowded and trampled, and they underestimated the enemy, so they were defeated by the counterattack of the Ming army.

Amidst the chaos, Liu Zhaoji was personally leading his servants to charge towards the Shun army and could not hear Gao Hong's shouts at all.

"Kill!" He led the charge.

The two sides came into close combat again.

Firearms kept spewing out flames, and the sounds of bows and crossbows were as rapid as torrential rain.

Spears stabbed out, swords and shields were swung, and blood spurted out.

After the attack of this elite Shun army was blocked, it immediately changed its formation. The soldiers in the front held off the Ming army's counterattack, while the soldiers on both wings began to go around the rear.

Just as their formation was dispersed, dozens of Ming army flags were suddenly erected in the wheat field on the left wing, and at the same time, deafening shouts of killing broke out.

"Kill! Wipe out the bandits today!"

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