ushernet Chapter 306 A God-given Opportunity
Chapter 306 A God-given Opportunity
The three iron shield defensive lines at the forefront of the 2nd Brigade of the 133rd Company had been completely breached by the enemy soldiers. The remaining soldiers could only use spears to meet the enemy cavalry charges, while the archers behind the defensive line continued to fire crossbow bolts at the enemy cavalry that had not yet clashed.
The Dayuan cavalry charged with increasing ferocity, and some had already broken through the dense array of Chinese spearmen, fighting fiercely within the Second Brigade's ranks. Although they were surrounded and killed by the Chinese soldiers within minutes, this gave the Dayuan cavalry behind them a much-needed boost of morale, and they saw hope in breaking through the Chinese lines.
In the center of the battlefield, a large organization of nearly 20,000 Dayuan cavalrymen gradually gathered. They all discovered the crumbling state of the central front of the Chinese troops and charged wave after wave, determined to completely crush the Second Brigade of the 133rd Society of the Chinese troops and penetrate into the rear of the Chinese troops.
At 10 p.m., the Second Brigade of the 133rd Company gradually showed signs of being unable to hold on, and the signs of retreating became more and more serious. The entire Chinese soldiers' front line had been stretched from more than 4,000 meters into a curved line of more than 10 kilometers. The central front of the Chinese soldiers had suffered thousands of casualties and had been forced back two or three kilometers.
Seeing victory within reach, Ustuku finally brandished his sword, pointed forward, and personally led his most elite Dayuan guards to join the charging troops in attacking the center of the Hua army, hoping to achieve victory as quickly as possible.
Sun Ce's 2nd Brigade of the 131st Society was responsible for defending the right flank, located in the northern part of the Tovia Wasteland. Because the Ustuk cavalry contingent charged from the northwest, although the main attack was on the center of the battle line, Sun Ce was under considerable pressure, though far less than Li Yan's 2nd Brigade of the 133rd Society. At 8:30 PM, the Ustuk, located on the western side of the battlefield, led all his guards in a charge towards the center of the battlefield.
The enemy cavalry attacking Sun Ce's right flank began to converge towards the center, and the pressure gradually decreased.
By 10 p.m., Sun Ce's second brigade's battle line had been stretched into an arc, with the point connecting the central defense line a full three kilometers away from the edge, and enemy soldiers and cavalry could hardly be seen in the northern border area.
By observing the dim moonlight and the shouts of the enemy soldiers, Sun Ce deduced that the enemy cavalry had basically entered the encirclement he had set up. He ordered the signal to be released that the enemy soldiers had entered the encirclement, and at the same time directed the northern front to move southwest to encircle them. As long as they joined forces with the 1st Brigade of the 131st Society in the south, the 40,000 cavalry of Ustuku would have nowhere to escape.
A dozen minutes earlier, Zhao Yun, Xun Yuyu, Zhuge Liang, and other high-ranking officers of the platoon stood on a makeshift observation platform at the edge of the logistics position, observing the battle scene ahead through binoculars.
Despite the Imperial soldiers' valiant fighting, skillful formations, excellent teamwork, and robust armor, they still suffered heavy losses defending against cavalry. Even with the Chinese Empire's crossbows, shields, broadswords, and spears, they could only manage a one-to-one fight against the Ferghana cavalry. When the Ustuk cavalry, charging relentlessly, suffered over five thousand casualties…
The 2nd Brigade of the 133rd Company also suffered over 4,000 casualties, a devastating loss. Zhao Yun's face gradually showed anxiety; he didn't know if Ustuk had fallen for the trap, or if all the enemy soldiers and cavalry had entered the encirclement. Although he saw that most of the enemy soldiers and cavalry were converging towards the center, he couldn't see the full picture of the battlefield.
However, it is unknown whether Ustuku, who was overseeing the battle from the rear, had joined the assault force and entered the encirclement. If Ustuku could be annihilated along with the main force, it would be like cutting off a pillar of the Great Ferghana Kingdom, ensuring their future security.
Seeing that Zhao Yun seemed somewhat uneasy, Zhuge Liang reassured him, "General Zhao, the tactics have already been deployed."
Most of the enemy's cavalry have already fallen into the trap. Even if we can't kill Ustuku, the Great Ferghana Kingdom is essentially finished. You must understand that although Ustuku is both intelligent and brave, he hasn't won a single victory since we began fighting. There are likely treacherous officials in the Great Ferghana court who are spreading rumors that Ustuku is useless. If we lose the Talas River defense line and the capital falls, and then lose this battle, even if Kokoytudo...
If he doesn't trust Ustuku, he won't have a good life when he goes back.
As long as we annihilate the majority of the enemy's infantry and cavalry according to plan, the Dayuan Kingdom will be conquered in no time!
Haha, I was just thinking that Ustuku built a river embankment in less than ten days and breached our defenses in the southern canyon.
The plan to build a bridge across the valley, which Zhang Fei pursued, yielded little benefit; the Kemuzi Gorge nearly made it impossible for us to move an inch, and now he's managed to lure away our main cavalry force with just 10,000 men. Zhang Fei said that when they directly engaged him at the Talas River, he didn't gain the slightest advantage. Although Zhang Fei lacks some strategic acumen...
Surprisingly, he was a formidable warrior, ranking among the top in the country.
None of them could defeat him, which shows how formidable he was. Such a general, whose literary and military prowess was unparalleled in Central Asia, was virtually unheard of among these small states. As long as he lived, Dayuan would be difficult to completely destroy; even killing King Kokoyitu wouldn't help.”
Zhao Yun shook his head and sighed.
“In any case, once we eliminate this main cavalry force and capture Jerosburg, the fate of Dayuan is sealed. Even if Ustuku rages on for a couple of days, it won't affect the overall situation. It's already ten o'clock, and Li Yan's troops have suffered some casualties. Should we send out the soldiers to provide support?” Xun Yuyu said from the side.
"No, Li Yan has a very effective training method. Even if the Second Brigade suffers more than half its casualties, it won't collapse. If we provide support now and are discovered by the enemy, and someone manages to regain their senses and report to Ustuku, it will ruin everything, and we won't achieve our goal of encircling them. Only by fighting fiercely like this can the enemy fully concentrate on the battle, forgetting to think and forgetting reconnaissance."
Even if Ustuku discovers something amiss, they won't be able to stop their attack. Zhuge Liang shook his head in disapproval, having absolute confidence in the soldiers of Li Yan's Second Brigade, who had experienced the Battle of Ulama.
Zhao Yun nodded, agreeing with Zhuge Liang's statement: "Our troops are not the rabble that the Yellow Turban soldiers were during the late emperor's time."
We can defeat any organization we can defeat, so let's just wait and see. If Zhang Ji and Sun Ce on both flanks haven't given the signal by 10:30, we'll strike and attack on time. Don't worry about anything else.
Just as several generals were anxiously discussing whether Ustuku himself would fall for their trap, a communications soldier, sweating profusely, climbed onto the observation platform and reported to Zhao Yun: "Reporting to the commander-in-chief, the enemy leader Ustuku has personally arrived on the battlefield. General Ma Teng and Brigade Commander Li Yan went forward to engage him, but they were unable to hold out. Advisor Dong Zhao requests reinforcements!"
Xun Yuyu was overjoyed and excitedly said to Zhao Yun, "General Zhao, this is a golden opportunity! General Ma Teng is old. Please lead the troops in person and kill Wustuku. The destruction of Dayuan will be decided in this battle."