"kill!"
"Encircle the Jingjun!"
"Capture Yuan Zhang alive!"
Although He Biao and Li Yunqing were tied down, Li Yunqing's troops still blocked Yuan Zhang's path. The mobile battalion fought desperately to ensure Yuan Zhang's escape.
Although Yuan Zhang kept his eyes fixed ahead, he was aware of everything happening around him. However, he couldn't stop at this moment and could only rush forward regardless of everything.
If they cannot break through, all the soldiers' sacrifices will have been in vain.
Yuan Zhang shot each enemy with a single shot, and was already sweating profusely from exhaustion.
Tuo Tiewuhua quickened his pace to catch up, walking alongside Yuan Zhang to help him deal with the enemy troops blocking his way.
Suddenly, Tuo Tiewuhua raised his voice and shouted excitedly, "Li Yunqing has been killed by me. Those who want to live, hurry back to Southern Zhou!"
"I've already slit Li Yunqing's throat, do you still want to be buried with him?!"
"Are you all idiots? If Li Yunqing hadn't died, how could I have escaped?"
"roll!!!"
Tuo Tiewu Hua focused all his strength on the last "roll" character, which actually stunned the wave of enemy troops who were about to charge. They looked at each other, and the slight pause affected the morale of the surrounding enemy troops.
Taking advantage of this opportunity, Tuo Tiewuhua quickly sped forward, saying, "Your Highness, let's run while we can!"
Yuan Zhang glanced at Tuo Tiewuhua with satisfaction and said, "You finally know how to use tricks. I am very pleased."
Tuo Tiewu wiped the blood from his face and smiled, "The prince consort is right. No matter how long we Western Region people stay in Dajing, we will never learn to lie. My heart is still pounding."
Yuan Zhang said, "But you've already learned it."
"Even if you asked me to face a thousand troops, my heart wouldn't race, but I get nervous when I lie." Tuo Tie Wu Hua frankly said, "So the reason why people from the Western Regions can't learn to lie is not a matter of ability, but a matter of mindset. As long as they change their thinking, they can also learn trickery."
In the blink of an eye, the light ahead grew brighter and brighter.
Yuan Zhang and Tuo Tiewuhua spurred their horses and leaped out of the woods, where they saw an endless grassland pasture.
Herds of cattle and sheep roam freely, a scene brimming with life.
The Northern Guards and the Mobile Battalion followed closely behind. Yuan Zhang paused, glanced at them, and then turned back to see the four riders not far away.
On the four horses, Zhao Cheng was in the center, with Gan Lang and Yu Jin protecting him on either side, and Yuan Fei behind the three.
"drive."
Yuan Zhang took a deep breath, rode his horse to Zhao Cheng, and said frankly, "You saved my life."
Zhao Cheng smiled and said, "The prince was saved because of his strong will to survive."
Yuan Zhang asked, "Why did you come back?"
"I will live to see the Southern Zhou dynasty fall, even if it means dying in Yunjing." Zhao Cheng clasped his hands deeply to Yuan Zhang and solemnly said, "The Great Jing cannot be without General Yuan."
“General Yuan…” Yuan Zhang looked up at the sky, then suddenly laughed and said, “I like this title.”
Zhao Cheng turned and glanced at Yuan Fei, saying, "Xiao Fei, go signal Lao San and the others to retreat."
"Yes!" Yuan Fei immediately spurred his horse and galloped into the woods.
Zhao Cheng pointed to the distance of the grassland and said, "Your Highness, Yuan Fei has chosen a temporary campsite for us. Even if the Southern Zhou army comes out of this forest, it will not be easy for them to find us in a short time. I think they will not dare to linger on the ground of Yun Jing County and will retreat immediately."
Yuan Zhang nodded and said, "They didn't catch us in the woods, so they definitely won't dare to go any further. If I'm not mistaken, they'll take the opportunity to occupy Muqiao Pass and build fortifications on Muqiao."
Zhao Cheng said, "That's good, now we have some time to catch our breath."
After setting up camp on the grassland nestled against the mountains, it was already dark. Those who could escape from the woods had already arrived at the camp. Those who hadn't escaped by then were basically doomed to become fertilizer for the forest.
As expected, the Southern Zhou army did not dare to venture deep into the woods and did not emerge from this side of the forest.
A campfire was lit in the tent, and Yuan Zhang sat by the fire with his eyes closed, looking exhausted.
Zhao Cheng and his group sat around the campfire, while Zhao Yan and Zhao Wu roasted rabbit and lamb legs.
After the lamb leg was roasted, Zhao Wu handed it to Zhao Cheng. Zhao Cheng gave Yuan Zhang a wink, and only then did Zhao Wu hand it to Yuan Zhang.
"Champion King, gnaw on the leg."
Yuan Zhang shook his head, without even opening his eyes.
"Fine, don't eat it then." Zhao Wu angrily tore off a piece of meat and handed it to Zhao Cheng.
While Zhao Cheng was distributing meat to the others, Tuo Tiewuhua came over.
"Your Highness."
Yuan Zhang then opened his eyes and said, "You're back. How is the situation? What are the casualties on both sides?"
Tuo Tiewu Hua did not answer immediately. He sat down by the campfire, and his face looked rather pale in the firelight.
Zhao Yan handed him the roasted rabbit and asked, "Would you like some?"
"I'm really hungry, thank you!" Tuotie Wuhua quickly took the rabbit and ate a few bites before saying, "Your Highness, the exact casualties of Li Yunqing's enemy troops in the Battle of Muqiao Pass are unclear, but the total casualties are over three thousand. Our army..."
"Speak," Yuan Zhang urged calmly.
Tuo Tiewu put down the rabbit, bowed his head, and clasped his hands, saying, "All one thousand of our troops stationed at Muqiao Pass have been killed in action. The Northern Border Three Guards suffered two hundred and seventy-five wounded and one hundred and thirteen dead. The Mobile Battalion suffered over one thousand two hundred wounded and nine hundred and seventy-three dead!"
Although the grassland was a bit cool at night, it wasn't cold. Yuan Zhang stretched his hands out to the campfire and rubbed them back and forth over the fire, as if he were warming himself in the dead of winter.
He didn't speak, and the others didn't dare to open their mouths either, looking up at the stars in the night sky.
"More than two thousand were killed in action, and fifteen hundred were wounded..."
After a long silence, Yuan Zhangcai said softly, "I may seem to have schemed everything, but I haven't actually gained any advantage."
Tuo Tiewu Hua comforted them, saying, "The casualties on the Southern Zhou army are about the same as ours, so it's a draw."
Yuan Zhang shook his head and said, "The three thousand mobile battalion trained in that forest for two years, and now they have been defeated in their first battle. In the end, it is all my fault. If it weren't for covering my retreat, they would have been able to escape."
"Your Highness..."
"I don't need comforting, and I'm not that sad." Yuan Zhang raised his hand to stop Tuo Tiewuhua from speaking, and sighed, "I'm just lamenting that we only have a thousand mobile battalions and a hundred Northern Border Guards left to continue fighting, right?"
Tuo Tiewuhua nodded and said, "The Northern Three Guards and the Mobile Battalion have as many as 1,500 wounded. If we wait for them to recover, we will still have nearly 3,000 troops, all of whom are elite."
Yuan Zhang chuckled self-deprecatingly and said, "With conditions here, do you really expect them to heal their injuries? It would be a miracle if the wounds didn't worsen."
“It’s not necessarily impossible!” Zhao Cheng said suddenly, putting down the lamb leg bone he had finished gnawing on.
Yuan Zhang and Tuo Tiewu looked at Zhao Cheng in surprise.
Tuo Tiewuhua said, "Your Highness, you've never been to the battlefield, so you may not know that many soldiers don't die from fighting, but from infected wounds..."
Zhao Cheng waved his hand and said, "No need to explain, I know."
"But I have a way!"
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