Chapter 491 Mountain Guerrilla
In the Taishan Mountains, Tian Yu and his team of a hundred men were traveling through the mountains and forests.
As soldiers under Zang Ba, each of them was strong and sturdy, wearing leather armor. They were well versed in mountain warfare and guerrilla tactics. They could run through the mountains and forests with great agility, and they could just pass by the thorns and ditches and bumps on the ground.
Just as they were about to cross a valley, Tian Yu suddenly stopped, put his hands to his mouth, and made a sound similar to a bird's cry. Although it was not loud, it was extremely sharp.
The teams in front and behind immediately stopped, hid nearby, and observed the surrounding situation.
Soon, a large group of Yuan Shu's troops appeared in the distance, with about two to three hundred people. They also moved swiftly among the trees, coordinating their actions with tacit understanding.
Both parties discovered each other almost at the same time. In an instant, the air was filled with tension, as if even the temperature around them had dropped a few degrees.
"General, what should we do? Fight or retreat?" Li Nan asked in a low voice.
During this period of time, they have fought against Yuan Shu's army many times and witnessed with their own eyes how this group of mobs grew up little by little.
From being able to bully them at will to now imitating their fighting methods, a certain threat has already emerged.
Moreover, the other side has much more people than them, so if a fight really breaks out, they will probably suffer a lot of casualties.
Tian Yu couldn't help but feel a little hesitant.
There is no problem with evacuation now. Although the enemy is also good at mountain marching, their speed is still not as fast as ours.
But I finally got a chance to come out, and I really don't want to go back like this.
This was not the first time he had encountered a small group of Yuan's troops. Recently, this group of guys had appeared more and more frequently, and their numbers had also increased, making them increasingly difficult to deal with.
"Let's try fighting first and see what kind of person he is." After thinking about it, Tian Yu decided to take action.
During this period, they encountered frequent resistance from Yuan Shu's army while advancing southward with great momentum. The speed of their advancement and clearing became increasingly slow, and they had even stagnated.
If we retreat like this, the enemy will take the opportunity to advance the front line for a distance, which is not a good idea.
After making up his mind, Tian Yu immediately observed the surrounding terrain.
After scanning the target, the surrounding terrain was immediately clear in his mind. Tian Yu said in a deep voice: "Seize the high ground on the right side. The terrain there is favorable to us."
Upon hearing this, the soldiers quickly and orderly moved towards the high ground on the right. Yuan Shu's troops also noticed Tian Yu's intention, and they also quickened their pace, trying to prevent Tian Yu's troops from occupying the high ground.
For a moment, the sounds of footsteps and swaying branches in the forest were intertwined.
Although the distance between both sides and the high ground was about the same, Tian Yu's side was obviously stronger than the other side. Relying on excellent physical fitness and tacit cooperation, they reached the high ground first.
Tian Yu stood on the high ground, looking at the approaching enemy troops, and shouted loudly: "Shoot!"
Suddenly, a rain of arrows shot towards Yuan Shu's troops like locusts.
The sword and shield soldiers in Yuan's army hurried forward and raised their shields to block. There were frequent "bang bang" sounds on the shields, but many people were still hit by the stray arrows and cried out in pain.
However, Yuan's army did not panic. Under the order of the leader, the team split into two, using trees as cover, and encircled and approached Tian Yu's team from the left and right.
As they advanced, they fought back with their bows and arrows. Their archery skills were not as accurate as those of Tian Yu's men, but with their numerical advantage, they still put some pressure on Tian Yu's team.
Although they had the advantage of being on high ground, several of Tian Yan's soldiers were unable to dodge and were shot by enemy arrows, falling to the ground injured.
Seeing this, Tian Yu hurriedly shouted: "Don't be greedy for the results of the battle, be careful of the enemy's arrows! Medical soldiers, treat the wounded quickly!"
With the help of geographical advantages, under the command of Tian Yan, Zang Ba's army firmly held the upper hand.
However, the forest was mostly filled with trees, and arrows had limited effect. Yuan Shu's army relied on sword and shield soldiers and trees to slowly approach the hillside.
"Sword and shield soldiers, move forward, spearmen, get ready!"
Looking at Yuan Shu's army which was only fifty steps away from him, Tian Yu said in a deep voice.
Following Tian Yu's order, more than 20 sword and shield soldiers immediately stepped forward to form a defensive formation. But a moment later, Yuan Shu's army rushed up together, each of them stretched out their arms, and saw that they were hanging a simple bamboo crossbow.
In an instant, crossbow arrows were fired and came towards them.
The simple bamboo crossbow made of mangosteen is easy to operate, easy to carry, has high accuracy at close range, and most importantly, is low cost.
Although there is only one or two chances, and the lethality is a bit low, but if you shoot it before the battle and then apply poison, the effect is still very good.
This was especially suitable for Yuan Shu's army, which lacked archers and logistical supplies.
After a wave of concentrated fire, Zang Ba's army did not dare to show their heads, and Yuan Shu's army took the opportunity to rush forward.
Soon, the two sides began a close-range confrontation.
In order to facilitate mountain marching, neither side wore armor, and their weapons were mostly ring-handled knives, so the close combat was extremely brutal.
The sounds of shouting and weapons clashing intertwined and echoed throughout the mountains and forests.
Although Tian Yan's group had few people, they were physically strong and the leather armor they wore was carefully made of cowhide, which made them more capable of resisting swords and guns.
In addition, they were well organized, fighting in groups of three or five, and they did not fall into a disadvantage at all.
The situation on the battlefield became increasingly stalemate, with both sides suffering heavy casualties.
Finally, after losing dozens of men, Yuan Shu's army could no longer hold on and chose to retreat.
Tian Yu did not choose to pursue. The enemy was obviously very familiar with guerrilla warfare. Although they had retreated, once he caught up with them, the front line would be stretched and the enemy would be able to counterattack at any time.
And I'm afraid there will be many tripwires, traps, etc. along the way.
After fighting for such a long time, he had also experienced the cunning of Yuan Shu's army.
Looking at the more than twenty brothers who fell around him, Tian Yu couldn't help but feel a little regretful.
Although we won this battle, we suffered losses of 800 of our own while injuring 1,000 of the enemy. I'm afraid it will be difficult to explain to the general when I return!
The battle situation encountered by Tian Yu was not an isolated case. Zang Ba, who was in the rear, looked at the battle report from the front with a frown.
"No one in the Yuan family is easy to deal with. Yuan Benchu is fine, but how come Yuan Gonglu is like a spirit?"
In the past, Zang Ba always used guerrilla warfare to deal with the enemy, but now Yuan Shu learned this tactic and used it against him.
On the long battle line between the two sides, they constantly used small groups of troops to harass and launch ambushes. Although this did not achieve much result, it did hold him back. In the past month, the battle line only advanced a few miles to the south.
If we continue at this pace, we won’t be able to drive Yuan Shu out in another half a year.
Xu Shu said in a deep voice: "This is not surprising. We are growing, and our enemies are also improving."
"Your Majesty established a relatively complete army and combat system early on, so you were able to defeat the princes of the Central Plains without any setbacks."
"However, the princes of the Central Plains are all outstanding people. If they are not as good as us, they will naturally find ways to learn from us. After a few years, it is natural for them to grow a lot."
"However, Yuan Gonglu is a real genius. Yuan Benchu really put him in the right direction."
Guerrilla warfare sounds simple, but in actual operation, there are too many details to consider, and it also requires extremely high quality of the soldiers.
When the quality of his soldiers was far lower than that of his own, Yuan Shu not only perfectly imitated his own tactics, but also explored his own style of play by combining his own advantages.
This is not something that ordinary people can do. Some of the details and strange moves in his combat even brought a lot of inspiration to him and Zang Ba.
Relying on a force equal to his own, he actually managed to maintain the situation. Even Xu Shu couldn't help but be amazed by this ability.
(End of this chapter)
