Chapter 205: Trapped
Chu Tiankuo led fifty thousand troops into the Snow Mountain, and the army soon realized they were lost.
“Crown Prince, Your Highness, it seems we have entered the enemy’s formation and are trapped!” A Vice General surnamed Ren anxiously said as soon as they entered the Snow Mountain and found no trace of the Zhao army.
This Vice General surnamed Ren was Ren Zilin’s clan uncle.
The Ren family was considered a military family. General Ren had previously served as a soldier under the old Marquis Changping and had made great contributions, rising through the ranks to become a general. Later, Ren Zilin’s father also made military contributions alongside his father. After the passing of Old General Ren, he was appointed as the General of Agile Cavalry by the Emperor and remained stationed in the capital. This was why he had luckily escaped the disaster of his family’s extermination.
Upon hearing this, the soldiers began to panic!
Many soldiers of the Changping Army had been trapped in the Snow Mountain, leading to the annihilation of the entire army, with no bodies found. It was this very Snow Mountain!
This Snow Mountain was covered in snow all year round, never melting, and was extremely eerie!
They searched everywhere for footprints left by the Zhao army, but they couldn’t find a single one.
Although the snowstorm was fierce, they had entered right after the enemy troops. No matter how strong the snowstorm was, it was impossible for it to cover up the traces left by thirty thousand fleeing soldiers so quickly.
Chu Tiankuo frowned and stopped, looking at the army behind him. “Everyone, wait here. I’ll go scout ahead.”
Vice General Ren’s expression changed upon hearing this. “Crown Prince, Your Highness, your status is too noble. You absolutely cannot go. Please stay here. This subordinate will go and investigate!”
Chu Tiankuo looked at him and said coldly, “No need. You are not familiar with formations. Stay here and wait. Do not move without authorization unless absolutely necessary. This is a military order!”
Upon hearing this, Vice General Ren could only say with a worried expression, “This subordinate obeys!”
Seeing that he had agreed, Chu Tiankuo rode forward alone.
The snowstorm grew stronger and stronger, and soon his figure disappeared from everyone’s sight.
Vice General Ren signaled the soldiers to rest where they were.
About fifteen minutes later, a layer of snow had fallen on the soldiers’ shoulders.
Everyone was shivering from the cold.
The cold was one thing, but the soldiers hadn’t eaten a single grain of rice from last night to noon today, and they were starving!
However, everyone remained vigilant, watching their surroundings nervously, not daring to relax, worried that enemy troops might be lying in ambush and suddenly attack.
Someone, cold and hungry, couldn’t help but complain in a low voice to the person next to them, “General Xie said not to pursue a desperate enemy, as it was easy to fall into a trap. We’ve indeed fallen into a trap! Everyone, be alert in case of an enemy attack!”
Although his words did not directly blame Chu Tiankuo, who was the one who insisted on pursuing?
It was Chu Tiankuo!
Therefore, his words aroused dissatisfaction among many soldiers towards Chu Tiankuo.
No one dared to say anything out loud, but they couldn’t help but blame Chu Tiankuo in their hearts, thinking that even though Old General Xie had said not to pursue a desperate enemy, he still insisted on doing so! Wasn’t this being greedy for merit and acting rashly?
They had already achieved an unprecedented victory in the past ten years of war between the two countries by recapturing the city and forcing the Zhao army to abandon their weapons and flee back to Zhao. If they returned to the capital now, they would definitely receive a great reward from the Emperor.
It was a pity that the Crown Prince was so ambitious! He insisted on pursuing, and now if they were to perish in this Snow Mountain, it would truly be a huge loss.
A few bold soldiers chimed in, “When it comes to marching and fighting, it’s still better to have experienced and seasoned generals. Hopefully, the Crown Prince can find a way out.”
“I’m afraid that before we find a way out, we’ll either starve or freeze to death! This damn weather is getting colder and colder!”
“Those who don’t want to die here, shut up! Is this the time to boost the enemy’s morale and weaken our own?” Vice General Ren reprimanded, glancing at the person who had spoken first.
The man shrank his neck, looking like he didn’t dare to say anything more.
The rest of the people also immediately fell silent.
Vice General Ren remembered these people.
~
On the other side, Prince Xiang of Zhao and the Heir Apparent of Prince Xiang, along with their men, crossed the Snow Mountain.
Prince Xiang looked back, a sinister and murderous glint flashing in his eyes.
In the past month, he had fought three battles with Chu Tiankuo.
The first battle was when Chu Tiankuo led troops to recapture Hanxiang City. Chu Tiankuo had taken five thousand elite soldiers, wiped out a detachment sent by Prince Xiang to seize grain, disguised themselves as Prince Xiang’s soldiers to grab the grain, and in the dead of night, delivered the grain into the city, causing the defending soldiers to open the city gates. Taking advantage of the darkness and the blizzard, they concealed the movements of one hundred thousand troops. As soon as the city gates opened, one hundred thousand Chu troops surged into the city like a flood, successfully recapturing Hanxiang City!
All ten thousand Zhao troops stationed in Hanxiang City were slaughtered!
✿✿✿
Chu Tiankuo recaptured Hanxiang City.
The second battle was when Prince Xiang, upon receiving the news, rushed back to Hanxiang City with eighty thousand troops for reinforcements.
They failed to breach the city, suffering twenty thousand casualties. Then, Chu Tiankuo led five thousand elite soldiers to launch a night raid on their camp, and he actually wiped out another ten thousand of Prince Xiang’s troops!
It was infuriating!
The third battle, yesterday, was a head-on confrontation between the two armies. Prince Xiang had originally planned to feign defeat and lure Chu Tiankuo to lead his army to the Snow Mountain, but there was no need to feign anymore!
Shortly after the battle began, they were unilaterally slaughtered. Their formation hadn’t even taken shape before they were routed!
He couldn’t even order a retreat in time. In less than half an hour, another thirty thousand were slaughtered. He had barely managed to escape with the remaining thirty thousand troops!
In other words, in three battles, Chu Tiankuo had wiped out a total of seventy thousand of his soldiers, leaving only thirty thousand out of one hundred thousand.
Chu Tiankuo was too formidable!
He was even more formidable than the Changping Army led by Marquis Changping back then!
If such a person ascended to the throne, under his rule, Chu would definitely surpass Zhao and achieve new heights of glory!
Therefore, this person could not be allowed to live.
There was an Ice and Snow Annihilation Formation set up by Old Master Xu in the Snow Mountain. Even the number one Formation Master of Jin would need two days to break this formation.
Prince Xiang of Zhao planned to trap them for a day and a night, and then tomorrow night, when the snowstorm was at its fiercest, he would kill them all, leaving no one alive!
He said to the remaining soldiers, “Let’s go back to camp and have a good rest! Prepare for the next battle. This time, we will annihilate all the Chu troops in the Snow Mountain, avenge our fallen brothers, and uphold the national prestige of Zhao!”
This was already Zhao territory. There was a camp they had set up in advance in the forest two miles away.
Luring the Chu army to the Snow Mountain was part of the plan.
Prince Xiang of Zhao returned to the camp and found Old Master Xu. “This time it’s Chu Tiankuo leading the troops. Can your formation hold him for a day and a night?”
Old Master Xu calmly continued to study the Formation Diagram in his hand. “Don’t worry, three days and three nights will be no problem.”
Prince Xiang was relieved.
~
Chu Tiankuo rode alone through the icy and snowy landscape.
Along the way, he used two small flags of different colors to mark his path.
There was undoubtedly a formation here, and he had anticipated it.
Moreover, it was a formation covering a large area.
He had to figure it out before dark so that he could lead his soldiers to launch a surprise attack on the Zhao army.
This was not difficult for him, nor was he in a hurry. As long as he could break the formation before nightfall, it would be fine.
He arrived at a safe, sheltered area, and with a thought, he took out the dry rations he had prepared earlier for the soldiers to eat.
There would be hot porridge prepared by Xingnong at night.
As this thought crossed his mind, bags of dry rations appeared out of thin air around Chu Tiankuo.
He also saw the person he yearned for day and night, holding a bag of dry rations, appear in his sight.
Chu Tiankuo: “???”
Thank you to the readers who have donated and voted~
