The semi-cavalry battalion of the "Flying Dragon Army" controlled the speed of the advance very well, not only did not arouse the courage of the Bohai Routed Army to fight the trapped beasts because of excessive persecution, but also made the latter dare not slow down the pace of escape, so that its leading generals could not find an opportunity to reorganize and stabilize their positions.

Dingzhou City is only five miles away from Yalushui (Yalu River), and the Bohai rout army has rushed to the riverside in just half a column of incense. Seeing that the two pontoon bridges that had been temporarily erected a few days ago were still intact, and they were gently shaking under the impetus of the river, a group of Bohai Navy soldiers could not help but be overjoyed, and many of them even cried with joy, and then almost without exception they whipped a few times on the horse's buttocks, and rushed to the pontoon bridge at the fastest speed, completely ignoring the simple pontoon bridge that was built in a hurry, and could not withstand such a violent impact.

The impact of the war horse on the bridge deck made the thin pontoon bridge crumble, and in order to run on the two pontoon bridges less than a zhang wide first, those Bohai routs who were eager to flee for their lives were even more fighting for each other, squeezing each other, and even glaring at the blood-red eyes to pick up the sword and spear at the former robe. It didn't take long for the corpses of the Bohai soldiers who were shaken off the pontoon bridge, squeezed off the pontoon bridge, and cut down the pontoon bridge by Pao Ze to cover the river around the pontoon bridge. As for the more than 1,000 Bohai routers who were lucky enough to cross the pontoon bridge, their excitement about escaping did not last long. Before they could catch their breath, several shells had already rained down from the sky, exploding in their chaotic ranks. Immediately afterwards, another half battalion of the "Flying Dragon Army" cavalry, which had already been ambushed on the other side of the Yalu River (Yalu River), appeared in front of them, and also surrounded them slowly but with great determination in an arc-shaped array.

When they were in Jiangbei, because there was a possible way of life for the pontoon bridge, the Bohai rout army could not muster the courage to fight against the Zhou army at all. But when he arrived in Jiangnan, he saw that his last way of life was about to be blocked by the Zhou army, and the more than 1,000 Bohai defeated soldiers who crossed the bridge were also red-eyed, picked up their knives and spears and began to fight the trapped beasts.

It's just that with a defeated army of more than 1,000 people who are like lost dogs and fish that have slipped through the net, against a victorious army with more than 700 morales like rainbows and armed to the teeth, even if these Bohai rout soldiers dare to fight hard, such a decisive assault will only increase casualties. Seeing that the two or three hundred people who rushed to the front were easily swept off their horses by the dense rain of bullets of the Zhou army like cutting wheat, coupled with the Zhou soldiers shouting in unison "abandon their weapons and kneel down and surrender without killing" kept coming into their ears, the idea of surviving in the hearts of the Bohai rout soldiers gradually prevailed. So, after a short period of hesitation, someone finally decided to give up resistance, throw away the weapon in his hand, roll the saddle and dismount, kneel on the ground, and beg to surrender to the Zhou army.

If there is the first, there will be the second, and as the example appears, more and more Bohai defeated soldiers choose to surrender. In a short period of time, except for a few extremely brave people, there were no more Bohai routers standing or riding on horses on both sides of the Yalu River - it was not only the Bohai soldiers who had already crossed the bridge who made a similar decision, but also the robes who were still in Jiangbei completely lost their will to fight after realizing that the road ahead was cut off.

From the shells falling into the Bohai rout group under the far city of Dingzhou, to the death or surrender of all the Bohai routs, this blockade battle, which Li Cheng regarded as the last battle of his Northern Expedition, lasted less than half an hour. The Zhou army, which was waiting for the rabbit, achieved the record of killing and capturing more than 3,900 men of the Bohai Navy at the extremely small cost of only three people, all of whom were caused by the accident of the horse's stumbling hooves. Even counting the losses of the previous capture of Dingzhou and Laiyuancheng, the casualties of Li Cheng's troops were less than 50, of which the dead and seriously wounded were in single digits. In the process of attacking the city, the Bohai navy annihilated by the Zhou army exceeded 2,000 people.

Achieving the goal of annihilating 6,000 enemies at the cost of only 50 casualties is a cause for celebration even if it is placed in the "Flying Dragon Army", which has always had a high exchange ratio. However, the happy expression only existed on Li Cheng's face for less than half an hour before disappearing. Because the regimental intelligence staff officer in charge of checking the prisoners reported to him a piece of news that he absolutely did not want to hear—the leader of the Bohai Navy, the so-called prince of the Bohai Kingdom, Wang Ji (Da Guangxian), and most of his henchmen and cronies were not among the prisoners, let alone the pile of dead enemy corpses. According to a confidant of a captured Wang Ji (Da Guangxian) confidant, Wang Ji (Da Guangxian) and his cronies did not flee to the pontoon bridge like other generals after the defeat of the troops in the Bohai Sea because of the capture of the Zhou army in Dingzhou Laiyuancheng, but took advantage of the chaos to go up the river in the northeast direction from Dingzhou to Yuancheng, and before the Zhou cavalry left the city, they had already crossed the river by boat from a secret ferry twenty miles away and fled to the town of Shuoning in Goryeo, one hundred and forty miles away. Unable to keep up with his companions and eventually become a prisoner, I am afraid that the Zhou army will not even know how Wang Ji (Da Guangxian) escaped.

Wang Ji (Da Guangxian) and most of his henchmen ran away? Hearing this news, Li Cheng's first reaction was disbelief. But the facts are the facts, and after personally interrogating the captured Wang Ji (Da Guangxian) confidant, Li Cheng had to accept this fact that he was most unwilling to accept. Now that we have accepted the facts, we must find a way to remedy them. Fortunately, Wang Ji (Da Guangxian) and others fled the battlefield for a little more than an hour at most, and even if they rode their horses, they must not have arrived at Shuoning Town of the Goryeo people now. Coupled with the time it took to change horses, rest, and replenish supplies in Shuoning Town, there was still a possibility that the Zhou army would block it outside Shuoning Town. Therefore, after a little thought, Li Cheng ordered the first battalion of the regiment to assemble immediately, and one man and two horses crossed the river to pursue. It would certainly be best to catch Wang Ji (Da Guangxian) before they enter Shuoning Town, and even if they can't, they should try to capture them when they leave Shuoning Town and continue to flee south.

Listening to the sound of horses' hooves gradually moving away from the soldiers of the first battalion, Li Cheng did not feel the slightest sense of relaxation in his heart. After all, Wang Ji (Da Guangxian) and the others were fleeing for their lives this time, so they would naturally go south as quickly as possible. With a time difference of more than an hour, even if a battalion is one person and two horses, it is basically impossible to intercept Wang Ji (Da Guangxian) and others before they escape into Shuoning Town. As for intercepting the former after leaving Shuoning Town, the chances of success are based on the fact that the other party will definitely flee to Goryeo Xijing. If Wang Ji (Da Guangxian) and the others fled to other cities, or simply hid in the deep mountains and old forests, it would be difficult to find him out with a battalion of four or five hundred cavalry. What's more, if Wang Ji (Da Guangxian) and the others no longer continue to escape, but hide in Shuoning Town and do not come out, the first battalion is afraid that they can only hope that the city will sigh. Not to mention that the target of the imperial court's northern expedition was Liao rather than Goryeo, and before the new order came, he could only prevent the Goryeo people from crossing the Qingchuan River to continue to encroach on the territory of the former Liao State. With a battalion of light cavalry, it is impossible to defeat a fortified city under any circumstances - even if they are the "Wyvern Army". Therefore, in a sense, Li Cheng's previous decision to let a battalion chase Wang Ji (Da Guangxian) and others was nothing more than a reaction that he had to make as the commander of the Zhou army responsible for intercepting the Bohai rout. As for whether such an arrangement can succeed, it can only be left to fate.

As soon as the sound of the horses' hooves of the soldiers of the first battalion disappeared across the river, an even louder sound of horses' hooves came from the direction of Dingzhou to Yuancheng. Immediately, a signal soldier came to report to Li Cheng that the main force of the provisional brigade following the Bohai rout had arrived under the leadership of the commander-in-chief Xing Zhengnan.

Hearing that his immediate boss was coming, Li Cheng hurriedly packed up his mood, sorted out his outfit, and went to greet him with a guilty attitude. At the same time, he also secretly resolved that no matter how his boss reprimanded him, he would never quibble; Punish whatever you deserve, and never ask for forgiveness.

However, to Li Cheng's surprise, after listening to his briefing, Xing Zhengnan neither flew into a rage nor scolded him for a bloody sprinkler, but after pondering for a while, he shook his head and said to him: "One battalion is too little. There are four or five hundred people, and it is only difficult to block the roads around Shuoning Town in an unfamiliar area. As for the siege of Shuoning Town to force the Goryeo people to hand over Wang Ji (Da Guangxian), it is even more insufficient. When the time comes, not only will it not be able to intimidate the Koreans, but it will attract the ridicule of the other party. Once the commander of the first battalion could not resist the humiliation of the Goryeo people and attacked the city, even if he would not suffer a big loss by relying on the advantage of firearms, it would inevitably make his blockade of Shuoning City more omissions, so that Wang Ji (Da Guangxian) and others would have a greater chance of escaping by taking advantage of the chaos.

Wang Ji (Da Guangxian) is in Shuoning Town, and we can also use the method of siege and intimidation to force the Goryeo guards to hand him over. If he is allowed to run to the Goryeo people's Xijing or Kaegyo, I am afraid that it will be impossible to use such a method. After all, the line of the Qingchuan River can also be said to be the homeland of the Bohai Sea and the territory of the Liao State, and we can use this reason to fight a lawsuit with the Koreans, even if they sue Kaifeng, they are not afraid. However, the Daedong River and even the Han River have been controlled by the Goryeo since the founding of Goryeo, and the Great Zhou court also stated it in the canonization document to the king of Goryeo. Not to mention how to solve the problem of logistics and supply when our troops enter Goryeo Xijing or even Kaijing, I am afraid that we will not be able to pass the imperial court alone. In any case, Goryeo is a vassal state that pays tribute to our Great Zhou. Even if it is suspected of secretly supporting Wang Ji (Da Guangxian), we can't start a war against him on our own before the imperial court issues an order to crusade. Therefore, if you don't chase them, you must make sure that Wang Ji (Da Guangxian) and others are trapped in Shuoning City, and they must not be given the opportunity to flee to Goryeo Xijing or Kaijing. ”

After speaking, without waiting for Li Cheng, who was still analyzing his words, to react, he ordered him: "Commander Li, you immediately lead the rest of the divisional cavalry regiment to set off, and one person and two horses go to Shuoning Town to support the first battalion. ”

Li Cheng was ordered to set off here, and Xing Zhengnan immediately ordered the 15th Infantry Regiment of the "Flying Dragon Army" to leave two companies to organize the young Han people in Dingzhou City to clean up the battlefield, take prisoners, and maintain order in Dingzhou City. After a short rest, the rest of the men and horses were personally led by him and marched into Shuoning Town.