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Zhang Xutuo led the remnants of his subordinates to rush wildly, and finally temporarily escaped the pursuit of Gao Jianwu's army and stayed away from the camp of the coalition army. At this time, there were less than seven people left around him.

When he retreated to the west, he successively collected a number of lost defeated soldiers, but no one knew whether Cheng Yanjin had broken through or not, nor did he know the current situation of the front army and the rear army.

After a short rest, Zhang Xutuo ordered the soldiers to eat some dry food, and then he stepped on the war horse again, lifted the horse lance, and prepared to continue to collect the lost Sui army and find the whereabouts of Qin Qiong, Luo Shixin, Cheng Yanjin and others.

And many of the wounded Sui soldiers, after this fall and rest, could no longer stand up, and could only lie there forever.

Several of his own soldiers stepped forward and grabbed the reins of Zhang Xutuo's war horse, and said with tears streaming down their faces: "General, you can't go out again." Now the soldiers have been fighting for a day and a night, and the men are sleepy and tired. If you stay here and wait for the arrival of reinforcements from Your Majesty and General Yu and General Qu, there will still be a glimmer of life. If you go out now, you will die if you encounter the enemy. Why don't we retreat to the forest next to us, and after today, we will gather the soldiers and horses of His Majesty and General Yu and General Qu, and then go to the Goryeo dog thief to take revenge! ”

"You have to persuade again! How can I ignore my brothers who were born and died? It was I, Zhang Xutuo, who brought them from Qi County to Goryeo, and I will bring them back to Qi County! Even if they die, I will send their bones back to my hometown and let them return to their roots! After Zhang Xutuo heard this, his face was flushed, although he was also exhausted and scarred, but his face was full of determination, and there was a look of absolute death in his eyes.

"General, the terrain here is dangerous, and there are dense forests, and most of the brothers who broke through the siege have fled into the mountains and forests. And the brothers who were not besieged have been fighting fiercely last night until now, and it has been a day and a night. Now it's too late to save them. General, stay in the green mountains, don't be afraid of running out of firewood. As long as you are here, the soul of the Eight Winds Camp will not be destroyed, and you will still be able to lead us to re-establish an iron army that dominates the world in the future. When the time comes, we will kill Liaodong again and find these Goryeo dog thieves to avenge their blood hatred! The generals persuaded again.

They really don't want to watch Zhang Xutuo lead people out again, not to mention how many people can be recovered, even if they are recovered, they are afraid that the price paid will be very heavy. Most of the more than six cavalry who are following now are wounded, and only a few people are left who can still continue to fight. Rushing out again at this time is tantamount to death.

Zhang Xutuo sighed, looked at his subordinates lying on the grass beside him, pondered for a moment, and then said in an unquestionable tone: "It is impossible for me to leave any brother behind!" Rest here for a while, and I'll come as soon as I go. ”

With that, he swung his whip, struck the horse's buttocks, and galloped out. The general gritted his teeth and yelled, "Go! Let's go with the general! ”

Immediately, he summoned the last cavalry that could still move and killed him.

At this time, within a radius of ten miles from the camp of the Goryeo coalition army, there were war regiments everywhere, and the cavalry of the Sui army and the Goryeo coalition army were fighting. Many of the cavalry's horses had already been killed, and they had to dismount, like infantry, several men fighting to the death back to back, trying to kill a few more enemies before they died.

At this moment, it was already afternoon, and the Goryeo army was divided into two groups, one group was eating, and the other group continued to pursue and kill the Sui army. They were divided into more than 10 units in units of 1,000 people. The Sui army, which was constantly fleeing around their camp, would attack them as soon as they found them, and they would kill them all.

And Gao Jianwu and Yi Zhide were most anxious in their hearts, but they still didn't find Zhang Xutuo. You must know that they are taking such a big risk, desperately trying to defeat Zhang Sutuo. Turn the tide of the war. If you pay such a big price, but in the end let the first brave general of the Sui army run away, wouldn't it be a waste of all your previous achievements?

As time passed, Gao Jianwu's face became more and more heavy, and he knew it in his heart. If Zhang Xutuo could not be found before dusk, he would have to retreat. Because at that time, reinforcements from the Sui army also arrived. He wasn't sure that he would be able to retreat under the combined attack of Yuming and Qu Tutong.

……

At this time, Zhang Xutuo's team of the remaining cavalry around him kept rushing back and forth by the river, rescuing one after another besieged Sui troops, but Luo Shixin, Qin Qiong and Cheng Yanjin were never seen. Most of the soldiers rescued were seriously wounded, and they did not have much combat effectiveness, but instead became a drag.

Although Zhang Xutuo saved more and more, there were fewer and fewer soldiers and horses around him who could fight with him.

Unconsciously, a light rain fell in the sky, and the earth was wet with rain, I don't know when it stopped, and the sound of tearing and killing was no longer on the entire battlefield. There were only one or two occasional screams, which were the screams of the captured Sui army before they were slaughtered by the Goryeo coalition army.

Zhang Xutuo rode on the war horse that had accompanied him for many years, looking up at the sky, and behind him, only twenty-eight horsemen were left.

28,000 people killed Goryeo, originally to serve the country, so that these Shandong soldiers have a good future. But now there were only twenty-eight horsemen left with him. Looking at the Iron Army of the Eight Winds Battalion of Qi County, which was originally crisscrossing Shandong and Henan, and was powerful in the world, now there are only twenty-eight old soldiers with bloody faces and wounded bodies.

He suddenly felt a little sorry for these subordinates who had followed him for a long time, these brave Qi County soldiers followed him, conquered the bandits in the Central Plains, fought victory after battle, and exterminated one traitor after another. But in the end, what did these brothers who fought with him go? Their homeland, Shandong, was the hardest hit area by the rebels. Now the land has long been barren, the people are not living, and the land is thousands of miles away. Most of their families have died under the butcher's knives of the rebels or the tyranny of the imperial court.

These younger soldiers from Qi County have won more and more battles with themselves, but in the end, they can't even keep their homes and relatives. How does this make Zhang Xutuo feel guilty?

Now, because of the emperor's order, they trekked from Shandong to wade through rivers and rivers, and did not hesitate to travel thousands of miles to the Liaodong region of Baishan and Heishui. After a bloody battle, most of them died in other places, becoming lonely ghosts who could not return to their hometowns for burial.

Thinking of this, Zhang Xutuo couldn't help but shed two lines of tears in his eyes. At this moment, he suddenly felt black in front of his eyes, dizzy, and almost fell off his horse.

This trip was really a tiger falling in Pingyang and being bullied by dogs. The first fierce general of the Great Sui who is invincible in the Central Plains. Now that he has been beaten so badly by these grassland tribes who used to look down on him, how can he have the face to go back to see his fathers and fellow villagers in Shandong?

The twenty-eight guards behind him also felt the anguish and grief of their general, and they all couldn't help but shed tears. Maybe this is the end of the hero, Xiang Yu was invincible in the world back then, but in the end, he also ended up killing Jiangdong. Zhang Xutuo is also a hero in his life, but he didn't expect today's fiasco.

"General, let's retreat, as long as you are still there, we can regain our strength, and the majesty of the Eight Winds Battalion will still be there!" A pro-soldier persuaded.

Zhang Xutuo's prestige is unmatched in Shandong, even if it is the Great Sui Emperor. As long as they can return to Shandong safely, Zhang Xutuo will summon him, and countless younger soldiers will immediately come to vote. At that time, with time of training, we will certainly be able to gather another elite army.

"Yes, General. Where there is life, there is hope. In time, we will be able to avenge our blood! Another soldier also advised.

Twenty-eight soldiers pleaded bitterly, and now they were left with only this few people, and if they did not withdraw, then they would surely die.

They are all tough guys, and no one is greedy for life and afraid of death. But they don't want to die like this.

After Zhang Xutuo heard this, he could only smile bitterly and said: "Brothers, for so many years, you have fought with me in the north and south, quelling the rebellion, and the bandits are all terrified. In Shandong, Henan and other places, I Zhang Xutuo can be described as an invincible opponent in the Central Plains. Although I am not from a big family, His Majesty has great trust in me and appointed me as the chief general of the Northern Army. ”

"But now, I have failed the trust of the Holy One and the expectations of my brothers. Now, I don't want to win, I just want to be able to rescue those old brothers who are still alive one by one! Now, every scream you hear coming from the neighborhood is one of our old brothers dying. At such a critical moment, how could I, Zhang Xutuo, abandon my brother and run away alone for survival? You must know: There has never been a Zhang Xutuo who died in battle in the world, and there will be no Zhang Xutuo who fled in battle. ”

Under the illumination of the sun, Zhang Xutuo's shiny iron helmet reflected a dazzling light.

Immediately, Zhang Xutuo took off his helmet, straightened his blood-stained hair, gently wiped off the blood-dripping horse lance, and then put on the helmet properly.

Not far away, a thick black line began to form, followed by the sound of horses' hooves, mixed with heavy footsteps, and it seemed that the enemy's brigade had arrived.

Zhang Xutuo glanced at the thousands of Goryeo coalition soldiers who were approaching behind him, but he snorted coldly, ignored them as nothing, and turned to get on the war horse.

At this time, he raised his horse lance without changing his face and heartbeat, suddenly aimed at the enemy army in front of him, and shouted: "The commander of the Northern Army of the Great Sui and the Liaodong Left Behind Zhang Xutuo is here!" The Goryeo thieves have not come to their deaths yet! ”

With that, he picked up his horse lance and rushed into the enemy's ranks, followed closely by twenty-eight guards. Their eyes were on the enemy to kill them, and in an instant, there was a clash of swords and guns, blood splatters, and screams.

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