"Reporting!"
"General, the Turkic wolf cavalry is twenty miles away from the east city gate! There are around twenty thousand of them! "
Three miles east of Shuofang City, in the bushes beside the official road, a cavalry galloped over. He quickly got off his horse and cupped his fists toward Chai Shao.
Chai Shao was shocked and said excitedly, "Good! Xieli did not disappoint me! Did you recognize who the general is? "
"General, the enemy general is Ashina Sheerchu. A few years ago, the Turkic invaded our Tang border. I followed General Qin up north to fight the enemy and saw him!"
The soldier cupped his fists and replied.
Ashina Sheerchu, also known as Ashina Sheerchu, was a Turkic noble. He was the second son of Chuluo Khan. When he was eleven, he was famous for his courage and intelligence, and his archery skills were unparalleled. As such, he asked Tuo Xie (the leader of the tribe) to build the ivory flag (a flag decorated with ivory as the symbol of a general or leader). Together with Xieli Khan's son, Yugu Xie, he ruled the Tiele, Huihe, Tongluo, and other tribes. Ashina Sheerchu used a relaxed policy to raise the troops and raise the people. As an official, he did not collect taxes for ten years. He once said, "Since the tribe is rich, I am satisfied."
"It's actually Ashina Sheerchu? Good! Today, I will help Shu Bao take revenge for that arrow! You, quickly go and scout and report! "
Hearing that Xieli had sent such a heavyweight general like Ashina Sheerchu to rescue Liang Shidu, not only was Chai Shao not afraid, he became even more excited. He hurriedly ordered the scout.
In the sixth year of Wude, the Turkic invaded the Tang border. Qin Qiong followed the Qin King Li Shimin up north to fight against the Turkic. In a battle, Qin Qiong fell into a trap and was surrounded. The Turkic general at that time was Ashina Sheerchu, who was known for his courage and intelligence and unparalleled archery skills.
Although he was surrounded, Qin Qiong naturally could not get off his horse and surrender. In the chaotic battle, Ashina Sheerchu found a chance and shot an arrow at Qin Qiong's back. If not for Han Tianhu risking his life to save him, Qin Qiong might have died in battle in the sixth year of Wude! Even so, one of Han Tianhu's legs was crippled because of the arrow!
Hence, Chai Shao was helping Qin Qiong take revenge for that arrow, but it was more like he was helping Han Tianhu!
"Yes! General! "
The soldier immediately accepted the order and left.
Chai Shao ordered his men, "The Turkic reinforcements are here!"
"Yes!"
The left and right.
It had been six days since the army arrived outside Shuofang City. During these six days, many things had happened.
First of all, the crops in the farmland outside Shuofang City had been completely trampled by the cavalry led by Xue Wanjun, leaving Liang Shi badly battered and exhausted. If he sent out troops to deal with them, he was afraid that there was a large force of the Tang army behind him. But if he did not send out troops, he could only watch as the crops were destroyed in a mess.
In the end, the people in the city panicked. After all, Shuofang City was now a 'dead city'. Liang Shidu had closed the gates, and the crops outside were all trampled. Being trapped in the city meant that they would starve to death sooner or later. Moreover, the Tang army was hiding outside the city. Although this matter had not been confirmed, it was a fact that everyone knew.
Liang Shidu saw that the people were becoming more and more restless. He could only send people to spread the news that the Great Liang reinforcements were about to arrive. At the same time, he sent soldiers out of the city to ask for help from Xieli Khan.
Although Yuchi Jingde's men noticed the soldiers that Liang Shidu sent out to ask for help, they did not stop them. This was because one of the goals of the Imperial Court was to lure the Turks to send troops.
On the same afternoon that Liang Shidu sent troops to ask for help, Yuchi Jingde led the main force and surrounded Shuofang City so tightly that not even a drop of water could trickle through. Seeing the Tang Army surrounding the city on all sides, the commoners, gentry, and officials in the city were even more terrified.
At the same time, the hundreds of spies that Liu Min, the governor of Summer Province, had sent into the city suddenly "worked together". All kinds of rumors and slanders immediately arose in the city. For example, Liang Shidu's son had raped many women, Liang Shidu had raped ten palace maids in the palace after drinking, and afterwards, those palace maids were all thrown into the snake pool to feed the snakes by the empress, Liang Shidu had raped the Tujue for his own glory and power, Liang Shidu had raped the wives of officials, and so on.
All sorts of rumors and slander, regardless of whether they were true or false, were spread like they were true! As a result, Liang Shidu's reputation in the Great Liang fell again and again. Liang Shidu also wanted to find the Tang spies who spread the rumors, but he did not have the energy to do so. This was because there were many violent incidents in the city where the people fought against the officials. More importantly, there were also mutinies in the army. Although those mutinies were all mercilessly suppressed, the morale of the army was shaken. At this time, if he was not careful, he would lose everything.
Thus, Liang Shidu did not dare to make any rash moves. He could only try to rope in some high-ranking generals, promising them high positions, wealth, and beauties. However, whether or not such roping could truly obtain their loyalty, only the heavens knew!
… … …
"Hyah ~!"
Peng, peng, peng!
After waiting for about two hours, the place where Chai Shao's army was hiding finally heard the sound of horse hooves in the distance.
Chai Shao's expression was extremely nervous. He ordered his men, "Send down the order. After the Turks enter our pocket formation, prepare the tripping ropes! Next, prepare the archers! Lastly, charge the cavalry! "
"Yes! General! "
The left and right generals received the order and left.
Peng, peng, peng!
The sound of horse hooves was getting closer and closer. The Tang soldiers lying in the bushes on both sides of the road could already faintly feel the earth trembling!
Twenty zhang, fifteen zhang, ten zhang, five zhang, three zhang — the Turkic wolf cavalry did not realize that anything was wrong. The entire army was still galloping at an extremely high speed. On the way here, they had already learned that Shuofang City was surrounded by the Tang army. They had to reach Shuofang City before it was breached, so they had to use their fastest speed!
"Rise!"
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!
Someone shouted, and dozens of tripping ropes suddenly appeared on both sides of the road. The Turkic army was caught off guard, and a third of the vanguard was instantly tripped!
The cavalry at the back had no time to slow down and avoid the tripping ropes. Like dumplings being dropped into a pot, they fell into a pile of meat in front of them!
"Ambush! Ambush! Order the cavalry at the back to immediately slow down! "
Turkic Great General Ashina She 'er had jumped down from his horse at this crucial moment, and now that he had stabilized himself, he hastily called out.
But to completely slow down the Turkic wolf cavalry in this state was easier said than done. The powerful inertia caused batch after batch of cavalry to fall onto the soldiers who had tripped over them. Once all four thousand of Ashina Sheerchu's vanguard had fallen, the army finally came to a stop!
Ashina Sheerchu looked at the mountain of Turkic corpses in front of him, and although his heart ached, he knew that now was not the time to be sentimental. He hastily ordered the army to get back into formation!
At this moment, several thousand Tang archers suddenly stood up from the bushes on the right side of the road. They nocked arrows and aimed at the Turkic army!
"Not good! Spread out the formation! Everyone, get on your horses! Charge! "
Ashina Sheerchu grimaced as he hastily ordered.
There should have been no problem with his command, but it was a little too late. Chai Shao had waved his hand, and a dense rain of arrows immediately began to rain down on the Turkic army!
Thwishthwishthwish! Squelch!
The sound of arrows being fired and the sound of arrows piercing flesh rang out incessantly. Countless Turkic soldiers began to wail in agony!
"Charge! Get rid of their archers! "
Ashina Sheerchu waved his saber to deflect the arrows flying towards him. At the same time, he led the cavalry around him and charged towards the Tang archers!
He knew that at this distance, if he tried to escape, he would definitely be shot in the back by the Tang army. He could only brace himself and break through the Tang archers. Only then would he have a chance to fight the Tang army head-on and have a chance of survival!
At this moment, the 'ferocity' in the bones of the Turkic people was on full display. Although many of the Turkic soldiers still had arrows in their bodies, they still fearlessly followed Ashina Sheerchu and charged at the Tang army. Even if their clothes were stained with blood, they still did not care!
The Turkic Wolf Cavalry was indeed a world-renowned elite cavalry force, and their reputation was well-deserved!
Chai Shao's eyes darkened. Even as an opponent, he could not help but admire this cavalry!
He stretched out his right hand and was about to order the cavalry behind the Tang army to charge when a strange scene that no one had expected appeared!
A moment ago, the sun was still high in the sky, but at this moment, the sky suddenly darkened. Soon, it was so dark that one could not even see one's own fingers!
Faced with this bizarre scene, not only were the Turkic cavalry panicking, even the Tang army began to stir!
Everyone was at a loss for what to do!
The attack of the Turks paused for a moment, and the military order that Chai Shao wanted to give also paused for a moment!
"Don't panic, the heavens are helping our Great Tang! Archers, listen to my order. Aim at the Turkic people and shoot with all your might! The rest of the soldiers, prepare the tripping ropes and make the Turkic people fall from their horses! "
Although the weather was bizarre, Chai Shao quickly calmed down at this crucial moment. He suddenly thought of a plan and circulated his internal energy as he shouted.
His shout was not only heard by the Tang army, but also by the Turkic people on the road!
Chai Shao's idea was very simple. Since the sky had suddenly turned completely dark and his army could not see, the Turkic cavalry could not see either! With his shout, the Turks wouldn't be able to see their surroundings in the pitch-black environment. They would definitely be afraid of the tripwires on the ground and wouldn't dare to charge in this direction. At this time, the archers would be able to take this opportunity to shoot a few more volleys in the direction the Turks had originally come from!
Otherwise, if the Tang cavalry charged forward in this pitch-black environment, there was a high chance that they would accidentally injure their own men, and the outcome would be very difficult to predict! The gains would not make up for the losses!
As expected, in this pitch-black environment, the moment Chai Shao said that there were tripping ropes on the ground, the Turkic wolf cavalry immediately slowed down. After all, the tripping ropes had already caused the Turkic army to lose three to four thousand men!
Although the Turks had slowed down their horses, the Tang archers did not slow down at all. Although they did not know when Chai Shao had hidden the tripwires by the side of the road, at this time, they only cared about obeying orders and firing in the direction of the Turk cavalrymen!
In truth, the Tang army's tripping ropes were all on the road. There was not a single one on either side of the road. Chai Shao was completely tricking the Turkic people.
Even though they could not see anyone, they still remembered the general direction and only needed to shoot in that direction. In any case, there were many Turkic people, so they would definitely be able to hit them!
Thwishthwishthwishthwishthwish!
In the darkness, countless arrows were fired at the Turkic army. At this time, the Turkic people had tripping ropes in front of them, preventing them from charging at full speed. But if they turned around and fled, they would definitely crash into their comrades in this darkness. Moreover, their backs would likely be turned into a beehive by the Tang army!
They were in a dilemma!
At this time, the Turkic army was truly in a dilemma!
"Retreat! All soldiers, retreat! The rear army will become the front army, and the front army will become the rear army! Everyone, retreat! "
The Tang army had 'closed their eyes'. After several volleys of arrows, the Turkic army could be said to have suffered disastrous losses. Why did he say that they had closed their eyes? Because it was pitch-black right now, wouldn't those archers be shooting arrows with their eyes closed?
Ashina Sheerchu knew that in this situation, the Turkic army had no way of fighting the Tang army. He did not know what kind of 'witchcraft' the Tang army had used to make the sky suddenly turn dark, but even if the sky was bright again, he would still not be able to defeat the Tang army with these defeated soldiers! It was better to make a prompt decision and decisively give the order to retreat. This way, he could preserve some of his strength and make a comeback after returning!
Naturally, a messenger passed down Ashina Sheerchu's order. The Turkic army immediately changed their formation, leaving behind a trail of corpses. Then, relying on their memories, they fled toward the road!
Hearing that the Turkic army was about to escape, Chai Shao panicked. Arrows had a range. If the Turkic army escaped the range, he would be completely helpless! But in this dark environment, if he rashly ordered the cavalry to give chase, not only would they not be able to catch up, the cavalry might even trip over themselves because they could not see the road clearly!
At this moment, a miraculous scene appeared!
A corner of the sun suddenly appeared in the sky. Soon, the exposed part of the sun grew larger and larger, and soon, the sky was bright again!
The sudden change from night to day made it difficult for everyone to get used to this intense sunlight. Chai Shao covered his eyes for a moment, and after getting used to the intense sunlight, he roared, "All soldiers, hear my order! Get on your horses! Pursue! "
"Yes!"
The Tang soldiers replied loudly, and not long after, Chai Shao led thirty thousand elites in pursuit of Ashina Sheerchu!
It was said that a cornered enemy should not be pursued, but today, he had to pursue these defeated Turkic soldiers!
.....
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