Chapter 339 Continuous Attacks on Reinforcements

Mao Biao did not want to retreat, but he hadn't expected Xiao Yu and his group to be so ruthless, directly ordering the withdrawal of the garrisons from Kuozhou, Ming Prefecture, and Taizhou.

Moreover, they had issued fifteen imperial edicts to him in a mere ten days.

With his reserve forces completely drained and no one left to transport supplies, Mao Biao, no matter how unwilling, could only helplessly abandon the defense line he had worked so hard to maintain.

Just as he had predicted, as soon as he retreated, Gao Xianzhi pressed forward with an unrelenting stance, giving Mao Biao no room to breathe.

At this time, if the troops from Kuozhou and Quzhou were still there, they could have provided some support for Mao Biao to retreat calmly, but now they were gone.

At the border of Quzhou and Mu Prefecture, Mao Biao's troops were finally caught by Gao Xianzhi, surrounded in the open and unable to move.

On the other side, upon learning that the garrisons of the nearby prefectures were indeed returning to help, Gao Yuan was naturally overjoyed. He ordered the navy to continue surrounding the Capital City while he led over ten thousand Xuanjia Army soldiers south to set an ambush.

The first to arrive in Hangzhou territory were three thousand guards from Mu Prefecture, who traveled day and night, hoping to claim the top merit for saving the king.

However, they had forgotten what Gao Yuan was best at.

Sure enough, not long after entering Hangzhou, they paid the price for their haste and carelessness.

Looking at his chaotic soldiers and the Yue Army troops shouting and charging from all sides, the well-read Mu Prefecture commander was filled with despair.

Contrary to Gao Yuan's expectations, this general from a scholarly background did not choose to surrender. Instead, knowing there was no hope of breaking through the encirclement, he chose to commit suicide.

Looking at the corpse on the ground, Gao Yuan raised his right hand and tapped his chest to show respect, then ordered,

"Collect his remains properly and bury him with the honors of a general!"

"Understood!"

Seeing Gao Yuan treat their commander with such kindness, the soldiers finally surrendered willingly.

Currently short on troops, Gao Yuan quickly selected over a thousand men to be incorporated into the Xuanjia Army. He gave the rest travel expenses to return home and hurried to the next location.

The garrisons from Ming Prefecture, Taizhou, and Wuzhou were more cautious. They waited until the troops from all three prefectures gathered before entering Hangzhou territory together.

But even so, they could not escape the fate of being ambushed by Gao Yuan. However, because of the large number of enemy troops this time, Gao Yuan did not choose a tactic of total annihilation.

In the end, out of the thirteen thousand soldiers and laborers from the three prefectures, over a thousand were killed, more than five thousand were captured, and the rest managed to escape.

Outside the Capital City, they were again intercepted by the combined forces of Jiang Qin and Cao Xing, losing another two thousand men before barely escaping into the Capital City through the East Gate.

The entry of over three thousand troops into the city should have been an encouraging event, but Yang Dingguo could not bring himself to be happy, for these defeated soldiers brought the emotion of fear into the Capital City as well.

Originally, this temporary collection of rabble lacked confidence. Now, hearing that the reinforcements were heavily defeated and that Mao Biao was surrounded and in dire straits, how could they have any confidence left to continue the defense?

As the saying goes, when people's hearts are scattered, the team becomes hard to lead. Yang Dingguo now deeply regretted letting these remnants into the city.

Gao Yuan, having devoured two waves of reinforcements, was clearly not satisfied. Taking advantage of the fact that Meng Zhenshan's reinforcements were still far away, he led his army south, intending to help Gao Xianzhi finish off Mao Biao.

Mao Biao was not the type to resign himself to fate. He tried to break out several times and actually succeeded in breaking through the encirclement twice, but he was surrounded again in the blink of an eye.

When he abandoned the defense line to retreat, he still had over twelve thousand troops. After losing men all along the way, he was now down to only five thousand.

Facing such a situation, even though he was Mao Biao, a famous general of the Great Qian and the former pillar of the Southwest, he was now helpless. He even issued a tragic declaration: "Even if I die, I must die on the road to the Capital City."

Although Mao Biao was surrounded, Gao Xianzhi only had over sixteen thousand men left. It was not an easy task to swallow Mao Biao's force in one bite.

Moreover, Mao Biao had already embraced the determination to die, which could potentially unleash combat power beyond his normal level.

Just as Gao Xianzhi was preparing to write a letter explaining the situation and requesting reinforcements, Gao Yuan appeared at just the right time, descending upon the battlefield like a divine soldier from heaven.

Gao Xianzhi, Feng Changqing, and the others were overjoyed and hurried to the front of the camp to welcome Gao Yuan.

"We pay our respects, My Lord!"

Sitting on his horse, Gao Yuan nodded slightly.

"You may all rise."

After everyone thanked him, Gao Xianzhi immediately took two quick steps forward, personally leading Gao Yuan's horse by the reins to the front of the commanders tent.

Gao Yuan was very surprised by Gao Xianzhi's behavior. According to historical records, this man was quite arrogant. He hadn't expected him to be willing to lower himself to lead a horse and hold a whip.

How could Gao Yuan have known that Gao Xianzhi had long since become his admirer because of his astonishing battle record?

In the commanders tent, Gao Xianzhi briefly explained the current situation and his considerations. Gao Yuan was very satisfied with his choices.

"Good, good. I am gratified that you haven't let victory go to your head. Now that I've brought reinforcements, let's not waste time. Finish off Mao Biao as quickly as possible; there are still many battles waiting for us."

Gao Xianzhi immediately handed the command baton to Gao Yuan with both hands respectfully.

"Please give the order, My Lord."

Gao Yuan smiled and waved his hand.

"You are the commander-in-chief here and know the battlefield situation better than I do. You should still be in command. Just treat me as one of the vice-generals under your command."

After a bit of back and forth, Gao Xianzhi finally realized that Gao Yuan wasn't just putting on an act and truly intended to leave the command to him. His admiration for Gao Yuan deepened instantly.

Two days later, Gao Xianzhi commanded the two armies to launch an attack on Mao Biao's camp from all directions.

Gao Yuan handed all his troops over to Gao Xianzhi and Feng Changqing to command, while he and Nan Jiyun roamed the battlefield like cold-blooded snipers.

On the battlefield, a Southern Qian officer was shouting orders when a sharp arrow pierced his throat, taking his life with ease.

Another Southern Qian Army soldier was incredibly brave, killing two enemies in a row. However, before he could celebrate, a sharp arrow struck his eye socket.

The two of them didn't strike often, but the deterrent effect was excellent. The Southern Qian soldiers understood that standing out would bring immediate death, and they all began to act with extreme caution.

With this caution, the scales of victory immediately tipped toward the Yue Army. As a section of the camp wall collapsed, the Southern Qian Army's last barrier was gone, and the battle entered its final, decisive stage.

While taking a moment to replenish their arrows, Gao Yuan and Nan Jiyun met again. Gao Yuan took a large gulp of water and then asked Nan Jiyun with a smile,

"Nanba, what is your tally?"

Nan Jiyun was very happy that Gao Yuan called him by his nickname. He replied with a smile,

"Thirty-eight, twelve of whom were officers."

Gao Yuan gave Nanba a thumbs up and praised,

"You are still the better one. I only shot twenty-nine, but fourteen were officers."

"My Lord is still more impressive, killing fourteen officers..."

Gao Yuan smiled and waved his hand.

"What officers or soldiers? As long as they are hit in a vital spot, they die just the same. Nanba, don't learn to flatter like them; it's not good!"

After resting for a while, seeing that the battle was nearing its end, the two naturally didn't want to miss out. They immediately ended their break, gripped their precious bows, and rejoined the fight.