Outside the Ming army camp.
The war is drawing to a close.
The troops of Li Guoying and Xu Yong were not elite to begin with, and they were either killed or surrendered when attacked from both sides.
The 20,000-strong army was defeated in an instant.
Some soldiers even knocked Li Guoying unconscious in order to win credit, and carried him to the Ming army.
"Don't shoot, we're on the same side!"
"What are you carrying on your shoulders?" the Ming army asked cautiously.
"Li Guoying."
After confirming their identities, the Ming army soldiers brought them and Li Guoying to Yuan Jixian.
After being awakened by the cold water, Li Guoying looked confused.
When he found himself tied up, he immediately understood what had happened.
Yuan Jixian smiled and said, "Li Guoying, we meet again!"
Li Guoying held his head high and chest out, showing an awe-inspiring attitude and not fearing life or death.
"Is there anything you want to say?" Yuan Jixian continued to ask.
Li Guoying thought for a moment and said loudly: "I, the guilty minister, am willing to surrender to Governor Yuan and serve under him."
After saying this, he ignored the ropes on his body and kowtowed to Yuan Jixian with his head hitting the ground.
Yuan Jixian was shocked by Li Guoying's contrasting performance.
After thinking for a moment, Yuan Jixian understood the reason.
Why did Li Guoying choose to leave the city instead of serving under him?
To put it bluntly, it's fear of death.
Zuo Liangyu had a title and although he had fought for many years without any credit, he had worked hard.
The imperial court ordered the execution and the generals were frightened and chilled at the same time.
They were afraid that Yuan Jixian would use the same method he used against Zuo Liangyu against them.
Yuan Jixian nodded to Li Guoying and asked, "Let me ask you, how many troops did Feng Shuangli mobilize for this battle? How many defenders are there in Jingzhou City?"
"Feng Shuangli mobilized about 25,000 men, and there are still 5,000 defenders left in the city."
"Are there any reinforcements?"
"It is said that... Ai Nengke can lead tens of thousands of troops down the Yangtze River and arrive near Jingzhou in three to five days."
Yuan Jixian frowned.
This is not good news.
"Come here, temporarily detain Li Guoying and wait for the imperial court's order."
Several soldiers came in and escorted Li Guoying out of the tent.
After a while, Xu Yong came in pushed by four or five soldiers.
After asking the same question, Yuan Jixian ordered his men to take Xu Yong out and lock him up.
He got the same answer from both of them, so the news couldn't be false.
"Send soldiers to deliver a message to the city, asking them to surrender!"
Before the messenger entered the city, the defenders opened the city gates and surrendered.
The main force that went out of the city to fight was completely destroyed, and the whereabouts of Feng Shuangli, the governor of the rear military headquarters, was unknown.
Feng Shuangli is their backbone!
Without their backbone, the defenders in the city were in great chaos.
So without waiting for Yuan Jixian's urging, he took the initiative to open the city and surrender.
After sending troops to take over the city defense, Yuan Jixian ordered: "Beat the drum and go to the tent!"
After waiting for half an hour, all the other generals arrived, except for Jin Shenghuan, Xu Guodong and Wu Xueli.
After waiting for a while, the messenger came to report: "Reporting to Governor Yuan, we have searched the city and the surrounding areas but cannot find any trace of the three generals Jin Shenghuan, Xu Guodong and Wu Xueli."
"Some soldiers said that during the rout, they found the three of them fleeing north with thousands of people."
Yuan Jixian, who rarely gets angry, sat on a stool with his hair standing on end with rage.
Among the generals under Zuo Liangyu, Jin Shenghuan was the strongest.
He originally wanted to train Jin Shenghuan to be his right-hand man, but he didn't expect to be stabbed in the back by Jin Shenghuan.
To the north of Jingzhou is Chengtian Prefecture, which is still under the control of Li Zicheng.
To the south is Gong'an County, which is in the hands of the government troops.
Why did Jin Shenghuan run north instead of south?
It means he wants to surrender to Li Zicheng!
Backstab, naked backstab!
"Each department shall compile statistics on the losses!"
"Lu Ding, you are responsible for calculating the losses of Jin Shenghuan, Xu Guodong, and Wu Xueli's former subordinates."
"I obey your command." General Lu Ding gave the order in a panic, then hid in the corner with a pale face.
Previously, the four of them were defeated without a fight.
If all four of them were held responsible, and the court was in need of personnel, the most they would receive would be demoted, salary fined, and meritorious service while serving their sentences.
Now look what happens, the other three have run away!
No matter the merits or demerits, he has to bear them all by himself!
I’m afraid the head on my neck can’t be saved!
"Oh!" Lu Ding sighed in his heart, regretting deeply: "If I had known this would happen, I would have run away with them. Why would I organize a counterattack?"
Three hours later, when the sun was about to set, the losses were finally counted.
It would have been fine if he hadn’t counted the numbers, but after he had done so, Yuan Jixian was almost mad with anger.
"Reporting to Governor Yuan, in this battle, our army lost more than 2,700 people, more than 4,000 were injured, and another 3,000 were missing. If the missing are counted as losses, our army lost nearly 10,000 people."
"Mr. Duo?" Yuan Jixian stood up directly.
the herald repeated.
Yuan Jixian fell on the stool with a bang, and the muscles on his face twitched continuously.
In this battle of Jingzhou, he lost more than 10,000 soldiers and horses!
Ten thousand!
You know, his total military force was only 70,000.
Among them, Ma Jinzhong and Hui Dengxiang with 15,000 men were stationed in Qianjiang and Mianyang respectively and did not participate in the war.
The 10,000-strong navy was only responsible for transporting troops and supplies and did not participate in the war.
Although the number of troops actually participating in the battle was not large, it was still as high as 45,000.
The loss of ten thousand people out of forty-five thousand can only be described as tragic.
If the main force arrives a little later, the consequences will be disastrous!
"Where are the bandits? How many casualties are there? How many soldiers surrender?" Yuan Jixian asked.
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