amaotonovel Chapter 190 Guan Ping vs. Cao Zhen
Chapter 190 Guan Ping vs. Cao Zhen
War is the touchstone of a general's ability; as long as fighting breaks out, a large number of unqualified generals will be eliminated.
In other words, the generals who survived the war were not fools. Guan Ping was not, nor was Cao Zhen. Guan Ping would send scouts to explore the road ahead, and Cao Zhen would do the same.
Cao Zhen led his cavalry at full speed, and when they were less than twenty li from Shanggui, a scout suddenly returned and said, "General, we have spotted Shu scouts ahead."
"Shu army scouts?" Cao Zhen's expression changed slightly, and he hurriedly reined in his horse, asking, "Have you spotted the main force of the Shu army? Who is leading the troops, and how many are there?"
The scout shook his head and said, "We only saw the scouts, not the main force of the Shu army, but our brothers have already made their way up, and we should have results soon."
Cao Zhen pondered, "The Shu army's appearance here must be aimed at Shanggui. Shanggui is a small county and doesn't need too many troops, which means there won't be too many Shu troops coming. Scouts, continue to investigate. The rest of you, follow me."
Cao Zhen slowed down and advanced at a steady pace, while simultaneously forming a battle formation, ready to attack or flee at any moment.
This situation was quickly reported to Guan Ping by scouts. Seeing that he had been discovered, Guan Ping simply stopped pretending and led his army to make some simple preparations before setting up their formation in the middle of the road, ready to fight the Wei army in a real battle.
With both sides having roughly equal strength, there was little that couldn't be fought. Although the Wei army consisted of cavalry, if the infantry were deployed in formation, the cavalry wouldn't actually gain much of an advantage.
The greatest advantage of cavalry over infantry is speed. The most suitable tactic is to constantly harass and disrupt the infantry by using speed. When the infantry sets up their formation, I run away. When the infantry packs up their formation and moves on, I attack back. When the infantry sets up their formation, I run away again. When they pack up their formation, I return. In this way, I constantly disrupt the infantry's mentality until it is completely broken.
This is the legendary kite flying technique, which works every time. But if you can't fly a kite and have to fight head-on, the infantry isn't really that afraid.
Moreover, Guan Ping also had cavalry, which was temporarily formed using warhorses captured from Ma Zun. Although there were only six or seven hundred men, it was enough.
Guan Ping made his appearance, and Cao Zhen, being not blind, naturally saw it. After learning that Guan Ping was blocking the way and setting up his formation, Cao Zhen did not rush to attack, but instead ordered scouts to expand the reconnaissance area to see if there were any Shu army ambushes nearby.
What if I'm in the middle of a fierce battle with the Shu army in front of me, and the Shu ambush troops hidden nearby suddenly attack? Wouldn't that be disastrous?
So we should be careful.
While the scouts were exploring, Cao Zhen was not idle either. He led his cavalry to continue advancing and soon stopped three miles away from Guan Ping, facing Guan Ping across an open space.
Guan Ping, being an infantryman, naturally wouldn't take the initiative to attack; he patiently waited for Cao Zhen to make the first move.
In a battle between masters, patience is key. Whoever loses patience and reveals a weakness first will die, while whoever notices the opponent's weakness first can strike quickly and fatally.
So let's see who can outlast whom.
They could hold off the scouts, but not the scouts. The scouts from both sides engaged in a fierce battle outside the battlefield, and screams could be heard from the forests on both sides of the road from time to time, constantly stimulating the sensitive nerves of both armies.
Despite this, the two armies still fought under the scorching sun for two hours, leaving Guan Ping speechless. He kept complaining in his mind, "What are those damn Wei soldiers waiting for? Why don't you attack? I've been in this position for so long, why don't you just go for it?"
Cao Zhen was also cursing in his heart: "Damn Shu army, why don't you go? You have more troops than me, what are you afraid of?"
Like Guan Ping, he hoped the other side would take the initiative to attack, because if he attacked, who knew if there were any horse traps in front of the Shu army's lines?
The Shu army realized they didn't have much time, and theoretically, they didn't have time to dig horse traps, but what if they did?
Besides, even without the horse traps, we can't launch an attack. You have to understand that the Shu army's crossbowmen are no joke.
Cao Wei's cavalry, Eastern Wu's navy, and Shu's crossbowmen were all fearsome forces. Cao Zhen only brought two thousand men, and it's estimated that half of them would be shot dead before they even got close to the Shu army.
We were already outnumbered, and if half of our troops were shot down, would we still have a chance of winning? So let's just wait it out. Let whoever wants to attack attack; I will never launch an attack first.
Both sides wanted the other to make the first move, but neither side made a move.
They wanted to keep going, but fate wouldn't play along; the sun was steadily moving westward and was about to set.
Cao Zhen gritted his teeth and said, "Damn Shu army, I don't believe you don't eat or sleep. Retreat."
He planned to detour into the city or find a place to hide, and then attack when the Shu army was resting and traveling.
The question is, does Guan Ping agree?
Seeing that the Wei army had lost its morale, Guan Ping immediately said, "Zhang Bao, lead the cavalry and charge!"
Zhang Bao had been waiting for this moment to the point of near madness. Upon hearing this, he spurred his horse forward like a tiger released from its cage.
The cavalry were all White Feather Soldiers. They had fought for many years and received specialized training. Their horsemanship was no worse than that of the Wei army, and they were ruthless in pursuit.
Enraged by this, Cao Zhen immediately cursed, pulled on the reins, turned his horse around, brandished his sword, and roared, "Brothers, charge with me!"
After saying this, he took the lead and charged into the Shu army.
As we all know, when you are being pursued by the enemy, you must not run away blindly. If you run away, you will lose your morale and then you will be at their mercy. The defeat of an army is no joke.
The best way to avoid being slaughtered is to turn back and fight back. Only by defeating the enemy so badly that they dare not pursue can you retreat at your own ease.
Having fought for many years, Cao Zhen surely understood this principle. Facing the pursuit of the Shu army, he decisively turned back and charged towards them with all his might.
Zhang Bao also unleashed his full power, and the two armies collided fiercely in the middle of the road like two mad ancient beasts, causing chaos and destruction in an instant.
Guan Ping then ordered the spearmen to lead the infantry, with the swordsmen and shieldmen following behind, and to slowly advance while maintaining their formation. When they encountered lone Wei cavalrymen, they were to be stabbed with spears, and when they encountered fallen Wei cavalrymen, they were to be cut down by the swordsmen and shieldmen.
In order to create opportunities for the infantry behind, Zhang Bao would make contact with the enemy and then leave without lingering. Like a giant dragon or python stirring up the wind and clouds in the sea, he broke the Wei army's formation and gave them no chance to regroup and launch an attack.
Zhang Bao charged ahead, while Guan Ping followed up with finishing blows; the two brothers coordinated exceptionally well.
Cao Zhen was so badly beaten by the two's perfect teamwork that he vomited blood. He wanted to bypass Zhang Bao and attack Guan Ping's left and right flanks, but Guan Ping chose a terrible battlefield. The road was surrounded by mountains on both sides, and the cavalry could not pass through at all.
Seeing that victory was hopeless, Cao Zhen had no choice but to order a retreat. He turned around and galloped away. Zhang Bao naturally would not give up and led his troops in pursuit. Guan Ping hurriedly shouted, "Don't chase too far. Retreat after ten miles."
This was something that had been instructed before the battle, and Zhang Bao dared not disobey. After chasing for more than ten miles, he decisively retreated.
Cao Zhen finally had time to rest. Turning around, he found that only half of his two thousand cavalry remained. He was on the verge of tears and said, "Damn Guan Ping, you just wait."
In a fit of impotent rage, he spurred his horse and rode back to Jicheng.
While Zhang Bao was pursuing him, Guan Ping followed behind, cleaning up the battlefield left behind by Zhang Bao. After Zhang Bao retreated, he met Guan Ping halfway and dismounted, excitedly saying, "Brother Tanzhi, cavalry is still the most useful! How many warhorses did you capture this time?"
Guan Ping laughed and said, "Seven or eight hundred horses, but most of them have broken legs or cuts. I estimate that only three or four hundred are usable."
Zhang Bao said excitedly, "That's enough! With these warhorses, the White Feather Soldiers can be completely transformed into White Feather Cavalry. Now what do we do?"
Guan Ping said, "I'll stay here to clean up the battlefield and treat the wounded. You take a thousand soldiers to take Shanggui. Cao Zhen has already retreated, so Shanggui shouldn't hold out any longer. If you take the troops there now, they might just surrender."
This place is less than twenty miles from Shanggui. They confronted Cao Zhen here for several hours. With such a long time and such a big commotion, it was impossible for Shanggui City not to know.
As it turned out, Guan Ping's guess was correct. When the magistrate of Shanggui County learned of Cao Zhen's defeat and saw the Shu army attacking, he decisively opened the city gates and invited Zhang Bao in.
Guan Ping then entered the city and, while resting, sent a messenger to report the situation to Zhuge Liang.