Liu Zongmin was indeed ambushed by the Ming army.
Under Lu Daqi's deployment, he was surrounded by the Ming army.
In order to break the siege of Fengyang, Lu Daqi made careful arrangements.
He first ordered the navy to break through the mouth of the Huai River, and then sent his servants Shan and Zhu Guobi to the south.
Faced with these two soft persimmons, he guessed that Liu Zongmin would definitely want to pinch them.
In fact, pinching or not has no effect on his strategy.
The servants Shan and Zhu Guobi served as bait, while the rest of the army quickly advanced westward along the river.
After holding the enemy back for a day, Lu Daqi ordered Liu Kongzhao to lead the navy to pick up the troops of Servant Shan and Zhu Guobi.
Liu Zongmin must have been shocked when he found out he had been tricked, so he rushed to Fengyang overnight.
When they arrived at the outskirts of Fengyang, Gao Jie was crossing the river.
Upon seeing this, Liu Zongmin immediately joined the battle and charged into Gao Jie's camp.
but...
Lu Daqi was well prepared.
He prepared four troops on the north bank of the Huai River.
Gao Jie stationed 31,000 soldiers on the banks of the Huai River.
Liu Liangzuo's 10,000 troops were stationed ten miles to the west.
Li Jiyou stationed 10,000 troops in the dense forest ten miles to the northeast.
Wang Zhigang stationed 10,000 soldiers and horses in the fields ten miles to the north.
Liu Zongmin will definitely come from the west, and then Li Jiyu only needs to advance quickly to encircle him in the middle.
Standard tactic of besieging a point and attacking reinforcements.
If Liu Zongmin did not come, they would attack from the north bank of the Huai River to the south bank at the same time.
Taking the wolf smoke as a signal, they would lead their troops and move closer to Gao Jie's troops when they saw the wolf smoke.
"Report," the scout ran directly to Liu Zongmin and shouted, "General, a Ming army was discovered in the east, with a number of about 10,000."
"Report!" A scout rushed to Liu Zongmin's side: "We have discovered a Ming army in the north, numbering about 10,000 people."
"Report! A Ming army was spotted in the west, numbering about 10,000 people."
"Report!" The last scout heard the others finish speaking, swallowed his saliva and said, "Gao Jie's troops suddenly launched a counterattack, and our army can't hold on any longer."
Liu Zongmin was riding on his horse with a gloomy face.
He never expected that he would be surrounded.
What to do? What to do next?
The cavalry was fine. Although they had only run 200 miles in two days, they could still run further if they wanted.
The infantry is no match for them.
After abandoning a large amount of baggage, the continuous march of 100 miles for two days resulted in nearly half of the infantry falling behind.
You have to know that the soldiers under his command are all elite troops of Dashun. If it were other troops, the number of infantrymen falling behind would be even greater.
"Inform all units to break out to the west!" Liu Zongmin gave the military order after thinking it over again and again.
To the west of Fengyang are Huainan and Fuyang.
Huainan was in the hands of the Shun army, and by running there they could not only obtain supplies but also rest while defending the city.
The situation in Fuyang was similar. Although it was still in the hands of the Ming army, the defenders had all been taken away by Ding Kuichu.
It can be easily conquered.
The Shun army, which had come from a long distance, immediately began to collapse.
The cavalry quickly left the battlefield and galloped westward.
The infantry was already at the end of their strength, and after seeing their own side defeated, they had no fighting spirit and laid down their weapons and chose to surrender.
"Chase!" Gao Jie gave an order, and all his cavalry rushed out and chased after them.
The one stationed in the west was Liu Liangzuo.
After seeing the wolf smoke, he reorganized his troops and marched in formation.
Just after walking five miles, a scout came to report: "Report, the bandit cavalry is charging towards us."
"Ah?" Liu Liangzuo was shocked. "How many cavalrymen are there?"
"There are countless of them, and they are in a state of collapse, covering the entire mountain and plain."
"Form a horizontal formation to meet the enemy, quickly, quickly!" Liu Liangzuo ordered hurriedly.
The purpose of the horizontal formation is to stop as many enemy cavalry as possible and maximize the results of the battle.
However, he should not change the formation at this time.
Before the formation was ready, Liu Zongmin's cavalry arrived.
The Shun army first fired a wave of arrows, then rushed into the crowd waving sabers.
The fast horse and the light sword cut a bloody path through the crowd.
The Ming army did not allow themselves to be slaughtered, but instead waved their weapons to block the Shun army's advance.
It’s a mess. Too messy.
The entire battlefield fell into chaos.
Gao Jie's cavalry quickly caught up, making the already chaotic battlefield even more chaotic.
"Don't fight to the end, retreat quickly, retreat quickly!" Liu Zongmin led the flag-bearing soldiers and took the lead in breaking through Liu Liangzuo's defense line.
The countless cavalrymen behind him were overwhelmed by the Ming army's offensive.
As he ran away, he looked back and suddenly felt hopeless.
These elite Dashun troops suffered heavy losses in the attack of the Ming army, with only one in ten surviving.
After running for a while, he suddenly realized a problem. He patted the shoulder of the soldier beside him and shouted, "Find a way to go to the south bank of the Huai River to tell the emperor that my army was defeated. Please withdraw the troops as soon as possible."
"Hurry up."
"I obey your command!" The personal soldiers turned their horses and galloped towards the south.
......
The battle on the south bank of the Huai River has just officially begun.
After defeating Liu Zongmin.
Gao Jie sent cavalry to pursue, while at the same time regrouping the infantry to prepare to cross the river.
Li Jiyu and Wang Zhigang's troops also crossed the river with him.
The total number of troops crossing the river reached 45,000!
Countless warships, countless pontoon bridges, and countless soldiers rushed forward towards the south bank of the Huai River.
at the same time.
Lu Jiude, his servant Shan, and Zhu Guobi with 17,000 soldiers and horses in the east of the city; Ma Shiying with 10,000 soldiers and horses in the west of the city, all changed direction and attacked the Shun army in the north of the city.
"Your Majesty, please withdraw your troops!" Hao Yaoqi walked out of the tent for a moment and then came back in to persuade Li Zicheng.
"Yes, Your Majesty, it is already night. We should take advantage of the temporary pause in the Ming army's offensive and quickly retreat to Huainan." Niu Jinxing advised.
Song Xiance knelt in front of Li Zicheng holding a torch and said, "Your Majesty, victory and defeat are common in the military. If you don't withdraw, our army will be wiped out."
Li Zicheng's face turned pale and he could not accept the reality of his defeat.
He besieged Fengyang for a month and thought he could defeat the Ming army like he did in Zhuxian Town.
The result was a great defeat.
"Report!" A strange scout rushed into the tent.
He looked around by the light of the fire, and when he saw Li Zicheng, he knelt on one knee and said, "Your Majesty, urgent news from Nanyang."
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