novelAbuy Chapter 117 The Great Collapse
Chapter 117 The Great Collapse
Just when Wang Er thought Cao Wenzhao's cavalry would charge straight at him, unexpectedly, as the cavalry rapidly approached, the enemy suddenly split off from the left and right.
Two cavalry units, each with five hundred riders, drew graceful arcs in front of the formation, increased their speed, and charged straight towards Wang Er's left and right flanks.
Before Wang Er could react, Cao Wenzhao's two cavalry units arrived in front of him.
Instead of charging directly into the enemy lines, these cavalrymen turned their horses and cut across in front of Wang Er's formation. When they were about a hundred paces away from Wang Er's troops, they raised their pre-prepared three-barreled muskets and swept across the front of the formation like a gust of wind.
A series of loud cracking sounds rang out as the three-barreled guns fired in quick succession at the array.
Don't underestimate these three-barreled guns. Although their armor-piercing ability is relatively weak, they are generally only effective at a distance of thirty paces, and they are basically useless beyond fifty paces.
The problem is that very few of the rebels are armored; most are peasants who followed the rebellion and are lucky if they have a decent weapon.
Moreover, the Guan Ning cavalry had frequent encounters with the elite Eight Banners troops and possessed extremely rich battle experience. Unlike ordinary garrison soldiers or other border troops, they wouldn't panic in the face of battle and hastily fire before reaching firing range. Cao Wenzhao's cavalry generally charged to within eighty paces of the enemy's formation before opening fire, some even as close as fifty paces. At this distance, the unarmored rebels simply couldn't withstand a single shot from the muskets.
Moreover, almost every member of the Guan Ning cavalry carried a three-barreled gun, and some even had two.
Cao Wenzhao divided his forces into two flanks, each with 500 cavalry, which meant each flank had 500 three-barreled muskets firing simultaneously. Even more deadly was that the three-barreled muskets could fire three times in succession. Even though their accuracy was poor and their lethality was not as great as that of the muskets, under such dense fire, Wang Er's two flanks were instantly filled with screams of agony, and nearly a hundred men fell in the blink of an eye.
That's not all. Cao Wenzhao's cavalry were also equipped with breech-loading cannons and tiger-squatting cannons.
At the same time the three-barreled guns opened fire, several cavalrymen carrying cannons quickly dismounted, set up their cannons away from the enemy formation, and fired.
After a series of volleys, the cannons were put away, and the soldiers mounted their horses and rode off. Because of the distance, Wang Er's troops were completely unprepared, giving Cao Wenzhao ample time to set up and fire. Once the barrage was over, Wang Er's left and right flanks were thrown into chaos.
The actual number of casualties from those hit by muskets or cannons was not high. The problem was that the shock and fear it instilled in the rebels were very real.
Watching his companions fall suddenly under the deafening barrage of firepower before they could even touch the enemy.
Few of those hit by musket fire actually died; most were wounded, lying on the ground groaning in agony. But those hit by cannon fire were in a much worse state. A flash of light, and the bullet hurtled towards them. Those struck directly were blasted to the ground before they could even scream. Some were even torn to pieces, limbs severed, flesh and blood flying everywhere. Some lucky ones survived, but were missing limbs and cried out in pain.
The air was thick with the smell of gunpowder and blood, and bits of flesh and blood from the corpses of their comrades splattered onto the faces and bodies of the others.
Some instinctively wiped their hands, only to be met with a shock of blood and gore. Ordinary rebels had never seen anything like it. They turned pale with fright and screamed in terror. Some, unable to contain their fear, dropped their weapons, flailing their arms and shouting wildly, fleeing without looking back.
Once the first soldier made a move to flee, fear spread like a plague. After Cao Wenzhao's cavalry swept past the rebel ranks and unleashed a volley of firearms, they circled around before charging towards the rebels again. This time, it wasn't just firearms; the Guan Ning cavalry, like a red-hot knife, sliced directly at the flank of the rebel ranks.
The already panicked rebel army was no match for them. Before they could even react, the cavalry was already upon them.
The Guan Ning cavalry, armed with spears, archers, and swords, swept through the rebel army into chaos. Completely defenseless and suffering heavy casualties, the rebels were terrified and dared not resist any longer, turning tail and fleeing towards the central army.
"Hold on! Hold on for me!"
Wang Er never expected that the first to collapse would not be Cao Wenzhao's cavalry, but rather the two flanks he had carefully arranged.
Originally, these two flanks were meant to outflank and eliminate the cavalry, but Cao Wenzhao launched the first attack, catching them completely off guard. In less than the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, his two flanks collapsed.
Even more critically, the collapsed flanks, driven by Cao Wenzhao's cavalry, surged directly towards his own center. Once these defeated soldiers broke through the ranks, the center would also become unstable.
In an instant, Wang Er's face lost its initial air of composure, replaced by fear and unease. He shouted and brandished his knife, ordering his trusted men to quickly stabilize the flanks and prevent these routed soldiers from breaking through the formation.
But at that moment, Cao Wenzhao's central army, which had been waiting for a long time, also began to move.
Cao Wenzhao concentrated most of the artillery carried by his cavalry and set up a barrage of cannons about three miles away from Wang Er's main force. After the barrage, the main cavalry force charged out and headed straight for Wang Er's central army.
Upon approaching, they would first fire a barrage of three-barreled guns, then switch weapons, or simply swing the three-barreled gun like a hammer and smash it.
With just one charge, Wang Er's troops, already weakened by the defeats on both flanks and suffering heavy casualties from being attacked from three sides, collapsed completely.
"How could this happen? How could this be?"
Wang Er was completely dumbfounded by what he saw.
Not long ago, the rebel army was arrayed outside the city with great momentum, but now it has become lambs to be slaughtered at will by the Ming cavalry.
The battlefield was filled with his men fleeing in all directions. The original formation was long gone, and his men were being driven and killed by the Ming cavalry.
At this moment, Wang Er finally understood that not all cavalrymen were the same.
The cavalry before him was more powerful than he had ever seen or imagined.
Tens of thousands of men! As the saying goes, "When there are tens of thousands of people, there is no limit." Wang Er thought that with so many men, he could easily wipe out this cavalry force, but the reality was quite the opposite. His main force was routed by this cavalry force of only two thousand men, as easily as slaughtering chickens and sheep.
Even more terrifying, he discovered that the enemy suffered very few casualties. These cavalrymen were not only clad in armor, but their warhorses were also armored, rendering his own swords and spears completely ineffective. On the other hand, whether the enemy charged at him on horseback or slashed from horseback, a single rider would inevitably send a rebel soldier crashing to the ground with a scream, their fate unknown.
"Leader, run! Run now! It'll be too late if you don't run!"
Wang Er was dumbfounded, staring blankly at the scene, his mind blank, at a loss for what to do.
He never expected to lose, and to lose so decisively. At that moment, his men were the first to react, shouting at him and leading over a hundred men to escort him away.
It's not possible to turn around and run back to Sancha City right now.
Because the central army collapsed, the city gates leading to Sancha City were blocked, and the soldiers stationed on the city walls were at a loss, not knowing what to do when they saw the scene of collapse outside the city.
Now, there was only one way to get back to the city—to escape around it, running directly to the west gate and entering from the rear. That's what Wang Er's men did. They protected him as they struggled through the crowd, spurring their horses southward without looking back, intending to bypass the city from the south.
This scene was witnessed by Cao Wenzhao.
As the commander-in-chief, he had not personally led his troops into battle, but instead had been directing the operation with his personal guards. When he saw nearly a hundred men suddenly rush out of the formation and head south, with more than a dozen of them on horseback, his keen battlefield instincts immediately told him that this was a big fish.
Those in the rebel army who could ride horses were undoubtedly leaders, or even the enemy's commanders. How could Cao Wenzhao let such an opportunity slip by? Without a word, he immediately led his personal guards and spurred their horses to give chase.
Wang Er led his men out of the encirclement, and before they could even catch their breath, they heard the rapid sound of hooves behind them.
Looking back, he saw dozens of Ming cavalrymen chasing after him. The leading Ming general was clad in iron armor and wielded a lance, flanked by well-equipped cavalrymen. Their horses were incredibly fast, and in the blink of an eye, the distance between them closed. This sight terrified Wang Er. He never expected the pursuers to arrive so quickly. Although the enemy was few in number, having already experienced the might of the Guan Ning cavalry, he had long since lost any desire to turn and fight; his only thought was how to escape back to Sancha City.
"You! You! Quickly take men and stop them!" He spurred his horse and fled, but after a few breaths, he looked back and saw that the distance had not increased but had actually increased. In his anxiety, Wang Er didn't care about anything else and urgently shouted to his two trusted men.
Seeing this, the two trusted men knew that if they couldn't stop the Ming cavalry, they had no chance of escaping. But if they turned back to stop them, Wang Er might escape, but they would most likely die.
But there was no time to think further. Besides, they were Wang Er's trusted confidants, extremely loyal to him. Even in a life-or-death situation, they wouldn't refuse Wang Er's order. A resolute glint flashed in their eyes. The two slowed their horses and, with their respective guards, turned and charged back towards the direction Cao Wenzhao had come from.
He shouted at one of them, "Stop being so arrogant! State your name! I am..."
Before he could finish shouting, Cao Wenzhao arrived in front of him like lightning.
Without a word, he casually flicked the lance in his hand. The rebel leader felt a blur before his eyes, followed by a sharp pain in his chest. In a dizzying moment, he was lifted off his horse and thrown into the air, crashing to the ground with a "thud," lifeless.
Cao Wenzhao had no interest in hearing the name of such an unknown person. His attention was already focused on the fleeing Wang Er. Dealing with such a small fry was effortless; he finished him off with a single, casual move.
After eliminating the man blocking their path, Cao Wenzhao's men swept past like a gust of wind. The men Wang Er sent out to stop them couldn't even hold them off for a moment; most of them were felled in a single exchange.
The remaining men were terrified and dared not fight again. In their panic, they even forgot about their leader, Wang Er, and fled in any direction on horseback.