When Li Ji retreated, he stopped at the entrance of the camp and gasped for breath.
He suddenly realized that his back was burning.
His ribs were also in pain.
Lifting up his robe, he saw that it was damaged and fresh blood soaked his clothes.
Li Ji was in so much pain that he grimaced.
When he was running before, he did not feel anything as he did not dare to delay at all. All his attention was on running and retreating, and he did not dare to stop at all. Only now that he had escaped did he notice his injuries.
"Retreat, retreat quickly!"
Just at this moment, Qin Qiong's shout spread over.
Qin Qiong actually rode out.
Before this, he had led an army to attack from another place. After he entered for a while, he was affected by the explosion of the gunpowder, so he could only retreat. Qin Qiong got closer and closer to Li Ji. When he got close to Li Ji, Qin Qiong did not dare to waste any time and shouted, "Chief Manager Li, retreat, retreat at full speed, Du Qi's army has started to attack."
Li Ji's expression instantly changed.
Du Qi was so fast.
He did not waste any more time and did not wait for the others. He continued to lead the army and Qin Qiong to retreat.
Everyone fled in a sorry state.
The other Tang generals were the same.
They were all fleeing in panic.
Du Qi's army had already started to kill. This army was the cavalry led by Xue Rengui. Under the bright moonlight, the warhorses could see the nearby area so they could see the path clearly.
The cavalry killed, and more Tang soldiers who escaped died.
When the army led by Li Ji retreated near Shazhou City, it was fortunate that Zhangsun Wuji, Wei Zheng, and the rest were leading a portion of the people in Shazhou City. There was also the army led by Wei Shuyu to support the retreat route. Therefore, when Li Ji and the rest retreated, Zhangsun Wuji, Wei Shuyu, and the rest immediately led the troops to receive them and then retreated together.
Li Ji did not dare to stay in Shazhou City.
That was because there was not enough food in the city.
Moreover, they did not have enough troops.
Li Ji led the army to retreat quickly. He did not know how many soldiers he had lost in this battle, but he knew that the losses were no less than Li Shimin's.
The army quickly retreated, and only after midnight did Li Ji's army stop.
Right now, Li Ji's army had reached the north of Shazhou City.
In the region near the Great Swamp.
To the north of Shazhou City, there was a swamp lake named Forty Miles Swamp. According to Li Ji's original plan, when Du Qi's army arrived at Shazhou City, once the two sides started fighting, Li Ji's army would retreat to the Forty Mile Swamp to avoid Du Qi's pursuit.
In the vicinity of this area, Li Ji had arranged food and troops.
Li Ji ordered the army to stop and rest.
At the same time, they counted their losses.
Li Ji's subordinates finally came to Li Ji's side and reported, "Head Steward Li, we now have less than 50,000 men. Qin Qiong, Cheng Yaojin, and the other generals had already led their troops back to the army formation. However, General Liu Hongji and General Qu Tutong have not returned. It is unknown whether they are dead or alive. "
Shua!
Li Ji's expression suddenly changed.
Liu Hongji and Qu Tutong were two valiant generals.
This was the general of the army.
Li Ji's expression flickered. Because at this moment, he didn't know what to do.
It was too tragic!
An army of more than 200,000 men, and now only less than 50,000 men had returned. Even if there would be more soldiers retreating, the final loss was already destined. It would be countless losses.
Li Ji looked at Zhangsun Wuji and said in a low voice, "Duke Qi, what can we do now?"
Zhangsun Wuji looked at the pitiful soldiers around him and sighed. At this moment, he was really dispirited. Because this battle had been too tragic, and they had lost too badly.
Especially when Du Qi had invited them into a trap, and they had taken the initiative to do so.
Wei Zheng said in a low voice, "Head Steward Li, now that things have come to this, Shazhou will definitely not be able to defend. My suggestion is that we withdraw our troops from Shazhou and return to Suzhou to defend it. The city of Suzhou has been repaired and strengthened, and there is even a barbican. The city is also built with green stones. Even if Du Qi's weapon is strong, it might not be able to blow up the city. At that time, we can still defend the city and defend against Du Qi's army. "
Li Ji was silent for a while before saying, "With our current military strength, even if we retreat to Suzhou, facing Du Qi's overwhelming attacks, it will not be easy."
Wei Zheng said, "No matter what, there is still a glimmer of hope."
Qin Qiong was still at the side, and he said, "Head Steward Li, Duke Qi, Prime Minister Wei, if we retreat now, it will be the same as giving up Shazhou. Although Shazhou City has fallen, the counties in Shazhou still belong to the Tang dynasty, and not Du Qi. If we defend these places, we will still have a chance. "
Li Ji shook his head, "We can't defend them. The counties in the counties are even worse than Shazhou City. Du Qi fired a few cannons, and the cities in the counties collapsed. Our current military strength is no longer comparable to Du Qi's, and we can't defend at all. Be it defense or direct confrontation, we can't win. "
Zhangsun Wuji said, "If we defend like this, we will only give Du Qi the chance to wipe us all out."
Qin Qiong instantly stopped talking.
The current situation was too bad.
Just at this moment, Cheng Yaojin said, "Head Steward Li, I don't know much about planning. However, now that we are in the Forty Mile Swamp region, why don't we use this region to fight against Du Qi's army? "
"Next, we will break up and scatter our troops, arrange for them to hide in various places, and fight against Du Qi's army everywhere. Because if we are all scattered, Du Qi's army will not be able to wipe us out. "
"Once Du Qi divides his troops to surround us, we can fight with them and slowly destroy Du Qi's army. Furthermore, Du Qi has taken over Shazhou and Guazhou, so we can send a portion of our forces to Guazhou and let them attack the government offices and cities under Du Qi's rule. In this way, we will have a chance to fight back. "
"If Du Qi's army wants to go to Suzhou, then let him go. We will destroy Du Qi's rear. We can even go one step further and directly go to Du Qi's Yizhou. "
Cheng Yaojin said, "In this way, we can mobilize Du Qi's army and obtain the advantage in this battle. If we fight head on, we will definitely lose. "
Hearing this, Li Ji's eyes lit up.
Cheng Yaojin's idea was feasible.
Splitting up the troops was the best strategy.
Because in the current situation, Li Ji was not willing to retreat with his tail between his legs, so he could only split up and continue fighting. In any case, he did not care about the defense of the city and went all out to fight against Du Qi.
Li Ji looked at Zhangsun Wuji and said, "Duke Qi, what do you think?"
Zhangsun Wuji said, "I agree!"
Li Ji then looked at Wei Zheng, and Wei Zheng immediately agreed. The other generals who came back with him all had the same opinion. Because at this moment, this was the only choice. Otherwise, they could only retreat with their tails between their legs.
This was what everyone was unwilling to do.
Li Ji immediately said, "Since that is the case, we will split up. However, at this moment, there will definitely be a certain amount of troops coming to Forty Miles Marsh, so we will wait for one more night. Tomorrow morning, we will split up and leave. At that time, we will take our weapons and food and leave, and then fight for ourselves. "
Pausing, Li Ji gathered all the generals under his command and quickly made arrangements for everyone under his command. Regardless of whether it was Qin Qiong, Cheng Yaojin, or the others, they all received a portion of the troops and were to fight for themselves within Shazhou.
After Li Ji made the arrangements, he also started to rest.
It was to recover his energy.
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