The weather in June was sultry and hot. Staying in the wild for a long time in this weather would make people sweat profusely. However, Kong Youde's rebel soldiers, who were eager to open up a retreat, were forced to repeatedly attack the Xiaohuakou Village wall. Looking at the increasing number of casualties under the wall, while the wall of the defenders was still as solid as a rock, Kong Youde became anxious again. This Pingdu Realm is really evil. Kong Youde felt that he and his army were like falling into a big quagmire. The more they struggled, the deeper they fell. His side was clearly stronger than the other side in terms of the number of soldiers, weapons and equipment, but in the end it always backfired. The opponent is like a long needle wrapped in cotton. It doesn't show much strength on the outside, but it will be hurt by the slightest contact. After daybreak, the defenders of Pingdu City will find that their side has withdrawn, and the rebels will naturally pursue them with all their strength. They don't know that Cao Shaozhong's two thousand cavalry can stop the defenders of Pingdu City. Kong Youde did not dare to look down upon the Pingdu City defenders now. He thought repeatedly in his mind what methods Feng Jian used to train such an army. His soldiers were now afraid of this army, both in terms of momentum and strength. They are all weaker in fighting each other. The current situation will never allow our side to have time to attack. We must come up with a quick evacuation method, Kong Youde thought anxiously. Most of his elite men are concentrated in the five thousand cavalry camp. For the current plan, as long as the cavalry remains intact and quickly rushes through Xiaohuakou's interception, the remaining infantry can only attack the Xiaohuakou defenders with all their might, no matter how high the price is. No matter what, Kong Youde secretly made up his mind. With a wave of his hand, he ordered the Chinese army to beat drums and suspend the attack. The weather was unbearably hot. Let all the soldiers retreat temporarily to eat and rest, and refresh themselves after noon before attacking the Xiaohuakou Pass. In a temporary tent set up by the rebels. Kong Youde proposed his plan to generals such as Mao Chenglu and Chen Guangfu, preparing to let Mao Chenglu and Chen Guangfu's men continue to attack Xiaohuakou Pass. Kong Youde led the cavalry and Chinese soldiers to break through the Xiaohuakou official road, and used the speed of the cavalry to attack the Xiaohuakou garrison blockade. Mao Chenglu and Chen Guangfu were at their wits' end at this time. They felt that the defenders guarding Xiaohuakou were like candy. The defenders here have been unable to wipe out the defenders on the mountain and completely control Xiaohuakou. The defenders from Pingdu City on the other side are likely to come for reinforcements. Then they will really be cornered. Kong Youde's plan is currently the most effective way to escape. Fortunately, most of the dangerous positions in Xiaohuakou have been captured. It can contain the interception of the defenders on the mountain. However, it was quite difficult to ask Mao Chenglu and Chen Guangfu to stay behind and continue to lead the troops to attack Xiaohuakou. They both knew that staying behind to attack was more dangerous than risking their lives to break through. After some persuasion, Chen Guangfu reluctantly agreed to stay and lead the rebels to continue. Attack the Xiaohuakou garrison to cover the main rebel force's breakout. The sun began to set in the west, and the rebel soldiers who had rested for a while were divided into two groups. One group began a new round of attacks on the mountain wall, while Kong Youde led the cavalry and 6,000 Chinese infantry to bypass Xiaohuakou and rush to the official road. Prepare to force your way through lockdown. Zhou Wei stood at the entrance of the pass. He had been observing the movements of Kong Youde's rebels with his telescope, and he couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief when he saw the rebels rushing directly towards the official road. In the past two days, rebel soldiers continued to attack defense points on the mountain. Although the defense points were built to be easy to defend and difficult to attack. However, they could not withstand the large number of rebels. More than 200 Franco machine guns kept attacking, and eventually they had to abandon some less important defensive points. Concentrate limited defense forces on this main pass, as long as this pass is protected. This will ensure the threat to the rebels. The rebel attack was so fierce that Zhou Wei did not order the use of the Hongyi cannon hidden among the cliffs. He knew the power of the red cannon and had been hiding it to use it as a trump card. The rebel cavalry plus 6,000 infantry were just enough for the red cannon to fire. Zhou Wei put down his telescope and saw that the rebel Fo Lang machine gun below the pass began to fire shells again. After continuous bombardment, some crenellations of the village wall had been blown down, and some of the walls began to be damaged. However, if he wanted to directly rely on these powerful It is very difficult for the small Fo Lang machine artillery to destroy the pass wall. Previously, Zhou Wei completely handed over the defense of the pass here to the First Division Commander Yang Ba Shi, and all the gun soldiers of the 3000 Headquarters were handed over to Yang Ba Shi, who assigned and commanded them. And Yang Baoshi lived up to his expectations. He made plans based on local conditions and took advantage of the complex terrain in the mountains. He assigned gun soldiers to hide in them to carry out long-range attacks on the rebels, making it difficult for the rebels to defend themselves. Zhou Wei licked his chapped lips and said to Yang Baishi, who was standing beside him: "General Manager Yang, the rebels are preparing to flee. I will go directly to the artillery camp Jiangliang to command the battle. We will hand over at the pass." I¡¯ll give it to you. No matter what, we can¡¯t let the rebels break through.¡± Yang Ba Shi wiped the sweat from his face with his hand and said in a hoarse voice.President Zhou Qian, go ahead, but the pass here is steep and the rebels cannot easily conquer it without suitable climbing equipment. Moreover, once the rebels realize that the main force of the rebels has escaped, they will lose their fighting spirit in an instant, and it will be easier for their subordinates to defend. , the rebels can't even think of crossing the pass. " Zhou Wei nodded and said: "The main force of the 3000 Headquarters is basically defending on the pass. I, President Qian, allow you to act expediently at critical moments! " Yang Baoshi's face was solemn, he raised his hand in a standard military salute and said: "Thank you, Mr. Zhou Qian, for your trust. I will act according to the opportunity. " Yang Ba Shi understood what Zhou Wei meant. This was to hand over all the command rights on the battlefield to himself. This was an absolute trust and respect for himself, and he felt a burst of gratitude in his heart! " In the gentle slope of the mountain col to the north of Xiaohuakou, Zhenshan More than 200 soldiers from the Hunting Division are hiding here. The horses of the Hunting Division are concentrated in the shade and are being cared for by a group of soldiers. The other soldiers from the Hunting Division are sitting or leaning in the shade of the mountain wall, some whispering. , some closed their eyes to rest, and a solemn atmosphere before the war filled the valley. Surrounded by Shen Xiaoshan were Guo Tai, Liu Rongsheng, Xie Wu, Jiang Yu and other four cavalry commanders from the enemy hunting department, who were talking in low voices at this time. Among the several people, Guo Tai was the most arrogant: "Since the Kong Youde rebels began to attack the city, there has been no opportunity for Xie Ensi to make military exploits and show off. This time the rebels are defeated and must not let go of this good opportunity to rob. Damn it. If we can catch Kong Youde during the chaos, then our enemy hunter Sike will have made a great contribution! " Liu Rongsheng and Xie Wu set out from Dengzhou City to transport Western craftsmen back to Huluyan last time. They set up illusions along the way and successfully led the Dengzhou cavalry astray. They safely sent half of the Westerners to Huluyan and rewarded them afterwards. Liu Rongsheng and Xie Wudu was promoted for their merit, and both of them were awarded the title of Commander-in-Chief of the Enemy Hunting Department. Liu Rongsheng raised the water bag and took a sip of water in his mouth. He grinned and said, "Kong Youde is not like those Westerners. Even if the rebels fled all the way, he would still be there." There is also strict protection around him. It is very difficult to find and capture him in the chaos. Lao Guo, please don't have any illusions. " Guo Tai glared at Niu Baozi and said: "Is this a delusion? When the truth comes out on the battlefield, I, Lao Guo, have always been very lucky. If I really want to catch Kong Youde, I will first starve him for three days and three nights, and then take him to Dengzhou City to persuade the rebels to surrender. "After speaking, I glanced at the people in front of me triumphantly, and found that everyone was looking at me with a half-smile. I touched my chin and said, "Isn't what I said wrong? " " Several people on the side showed knowing smiles. When Sirao and other Western craftsmen were first captured to Huluyan, they made a lot of noise. As a result, Guo Tai came out to threaten and intimidate, and successfully became the devil in the eyes of Sirao and other Western craftsmen. Western craftsmen hate the most. This incident also became a joke among the generals in Huluyan. Guo Tai cursed: "Damn it, these foreign devils are really vindictive. I don¡¯t really want to deal with them, there is still a way for them to survive" Shen Xiaoshan interrupted with a wave of his hand: "Back to business. According to the commander's order, the next main task of the Enemy Hunting Division is to follow Kong Youde's rebel camera. Now the rebels are blocked by Zhou Wei's 3000 Headquarters at Xiaohuakou, and are in a dilemma. If the commander and the city's defenders can arrive in time, Kong Youde's rebels will inevitably be attacked from both front and rear, and eventually turn into a rout. At this time, we are hunting It was a good opportunity for all the enemy soldiers to fish in troubled waters and capture Kong Youde. Guo Tai's thoughts were not too much! " Guo Tai grinned and said: "It's better to keep your head down and get to know me, Lao Guo. You guys are not interesting enough. Lao Liu, Lao Guo won't let me drink next time! Liu Rongsheng curled his lips and looked very unconvinced. He turned to Shen Xiaoshan and said, "The commander ordered the Enemy Hunting Division to act accordingly. He wants us to seize the opportunity to get the maximum reward with the minimum effort. Although the Enemy Hunting Division is elite, after all, There were only 200 troops, so the rebels could not be attacked directly from the front. The subordinates believed that the best effect was for the rebels to suddenly attack from the side after passing through the enemy hunting department. " Shen Xiaoshan nodded and said: "Yes, showing off on the battlefield is the stupidest thing. The rebels broke through the Xiaohuakou blockade, were hunted by the enemy hunting department, and finally faced the difficulty of the first division of Zhenshan Camp. I think Xu Yannian They had long been waiting for the fleeing rebels to get into their ambush circle. Therefore, the first task of the Enemy Hunting Division is to capture as many rebel war horses as possible to use them to develop and expand the cavalry of our Enemy Hunting Division. " Jiang Yu frowned slightly and said: "Shen Tou, I feel that the rebel cavalry led by Kong Youde did not flee because they fought with others on the battlefield, but should be considered a retreat. These nearly three thousand cavalry plus six thousand infantry Although they would be bombarded by artillery fire if they forced their way through the Xiaohuakou blockade, the rebel cavalry that escaped the artillery attack suffered no major losses in all aspects of their organizational equipment. It was still not something that our mere 200 cavalry could shake. If we rashly attack, in case of The rebels took advantage of it but lost more than they gained! ¡± Shen Xiaoshan frowned, stared at Jiang Yu and said: "You mean to let the rebels led by Kong Youde pass, and then surround the rebel cavalry behind them, so that they will not be taken advantage of by the enemy, and you can take the opportunity to capture the rebels behind them. The army has a large number of war horses?" Jiang Yu nodded and said: "That's what my subordinates mean. Every soldier in the Enemy Hunting Division has been carefully selected and has mastered various special skills. They should not be fighting with the enemy on the battlefield, but in other places. There are special groups with special missions. " Shen Xiaoshan's eyes were stunned. It seemed that his mind was a little hot when faced with temptation. The commander once warned himself that the enemy hunting department would never fight the enemy head-on unless it was absolutely necessary. The enemy hunting department should fight head-on. Like a hunter hiding in the dark, he attacks his prey unexpectedly. This is the true nature of the enemy hunter. At the critical moment, Jiang Yu is not calm-minded, and he can't help but feel a little ashamed when he thinks of this. After thinking for a while, Shen Xiaoshan said: "Jiang Yu's reminder is very timely. I think everyone underestimates the enemy, thinking that Kong Youde's rebels will be vulnerable if they return defeated in Pingdu City. This is absolutely unavoidable. The size of the enemy hunting department Expand the increase in the preparation, and the leaders of our own commander, we are right to fight the enemy's combat. valley. ! ! (To be continued)