"General Lang, the pursuers are near. Twenty Li away!"
"General Lang, the pursuers are near. Fifteen Li away!"
"General Lang, the pursuers are near. Ten Li away!"
"Stop! Rear formation to front formation, stay where you are! "
Under Tin Aino's order, the Tang army that was marching quickly stopped. The entire army turned around and rested on the spot.
They had already sent cavalry back to Mingwei Garrison to ask for reinforcements. However, Mingwei Garrison only had two thousand and five hundred cavalry. They were not sure if the defending general would dare to take the risk of the enemy swallowing up a fresh force, which would further weaken Mingwei Garrison's defenses and send reinforcements.
Whether the reinforcements came or not, they could only rely on themselves now that there were no reinforcements.
On the main road, only the old and weak soldiers and the cooks who were originally responsible for feeding the horses and cooking continued to march quickly towards Mingwei Garrison. Everyone else had stopped. The original rear formation was densely packed with archers and crossbowmen. Behind them were the jumping soldiers, ambushers and other close combat infantry.
The entire army was arranged in an echelon formation. This was not because of Tin Aino's order, but because it was the Tang army's usual formation. Each echelon of the Tang army was like a phalanx, but within each phalanx, the spear and shield wielders formed a small wedge formation.
In truth, even though Xu Yisheng had been shot in the buttocks and did not want his subordinates to see him in such an embarrassing state, it was rather strange that he still refused to show himself at such a critical moment. But now, all the Tang soldiers were nervously looking into the distance, waiting for the Turks to charge over, and no one was thinking about this illogical point.
The Tian Ai Nu tugged at the corner of the curtain and looked outside.
The reason for their hasty retreat was because they heard that the other side had a hundred thousand strong army, far more than their five thousand undefended troops could resist. The soldiers already knew this, so even before the Turks arrived, they had already gained the upper hand with a show of strength. The Tang officers and soldiers were somewhat uneasy.
Tin Aino frowned and thought, "The military books say that when two armies fight, the most important thing is morale. How can they withstand the attack of the Turks?"
She thought for a moment and shouted, "Gu Zhou, Liang Sier!" At this time, Deputy General Xiao had run to the front to personally command the troops. Tin Aino really did not know any of the other Tang generals. Fortunately, he remembered the names of the two soldiers and shouted for them.
These two men were Xu Yisheng's personal guards, they were indeed guarding nearby. As soon as they heard her shout, they immediately ran over. Tin Aino said, "In front of the great enemy, the brave will live, the fearful will die; what's the use of being afraid? Tell our brothers to puff out their chests and sing a song to boost our courage! "
"Here!"
Tin Aino didn't know what songs they usually sang, but he knew that there must be military songs in the army. Sure enough, Gu Zhou and Liang Si gave the order. A moment later, a mighty and majestic song resounded through the snowy plains.
"The Royal Wind of the Four Seas has been subdued, and the waters have been clear for a thousand years. The military uniform has not been worn, and today I have succeeded …
Looking back at Qin Pass, which was as low as a horse, he could see the Yellow River flowing straight north. Heaven's might has swept through the Jade Gate Fortress, the Hu people have sung for ten thousand li!
The Royal Wind of the Four Seas has been subdued, and the waters have been clear for a thousand years. The military uniform has not been worn, and today I have succeeded …
The Lord has begun a new era of prosperity, the subjects have been loyal to the Lord. After the revolution, it will be a peaceful autumn … "
Groups of warriors raised their spears, bows, sabers, and even clashed their weapons and shields. Beating the rhythm, they used their rough and heroic voices to sing the mighty "Great Battle Formation Music"!
The song carried a heroic air and immediately boosted the morale of the soldiers.
Amidst the song, a black line appeared on the distant snowy plains. Amidst the song, the black line turned into a surging torrent.
Amidst the song, the horses were like dragons, the men like tigers, and the hoofbeats were like war drums. Amidst the song, the Turkic warriors raised their gleaming sabers high, forming a forest of gleaming blades!
Amidst the song, the crossbowmen and archers released the arrows they had been preparing for a long time. Some fired horizontally, some fired backwards, and the arrows rained down on the charging Turkic army like a storm. The shields of the cavalry were like umbrellas, incapable of blocking the sudden storm. The Turkic soldiers charging at the very front were cut down like wheat.
The ground was littered with corpses. The horses that had lost their owners no longer ran forward with all their might, blocking the path of the knights behind them, causing their charge to slow down slightly. The corners of Xiao Ningfeng's mouth curled up into a sinister smile. He waved his hand down fiercely and shouted, "Shoot again!"
With a wave of his banner, a second volley of arrows was fired.
Once again, the Turkic army closed the distance between them, and at the same time, a large number of them were killed. The corpses and masterless warhorses caused the speed of their attacks to slow down. Their original speed was unstoppable, but at this moment, they no longer had the momentum that could intimidate one's courage to resist, and the originally sharp offensive formation had also begun to fall into disarray.
The Turkic cavalry commander bellowed, and the charging Turkic cavalry suddenly split to the left and right, charging into the vast snowy plains. From the looks of it, they were going to form an arc to pincer the flanks of the Tang army, while the advancing Turkic cavalry continued to attack from the middle.
Seeing this, Xiao Ningfeng could not help but reveal a proud smile. He ordered loudly. With a wave of the war flag, the Tang Army on the left and right flanks expanded into an arc shape, protecting the two flanks of the army. They nocked their arrows and waited for the next attack.
Like two sharp scimitars, the two groups of Turkic cavalry ran diagonally away from the main road, following an arc to the snowy plains. If their original position was the starting point, the arc would end at the center of the retreating Tang army.
It seemed that they also knew that the Tang army at the back was the weakest, and at the same time, they cut off the long line of Tang army, which was equivalent to cutting off the Tang army's escape route. At that time, the Tang army on two legs would not be able to escape in this vast snowy plains, and could only be slaughtered.
The two groups of Turkic cavalry were brandishing their whips, desperately whipping their mounts. However, no matter how much they urged, the mounts became slower and slower, as if the hooves of the horses were stuck in the mud, unable to move forward. Just as they were puzzled, with a "boom", a large pit suddenly appeared in the snowy plains, and several of the cavalrymen fell into the pit along with their horses. A few of the cavalrymen behind could not stop their momentum and also fell into the pit, screaming in pain.
The Turkic cavalry was somewhat startled, and their charge immediately slowed down. However, this situation did not disappear, and the snowy plains on both sides continued to collapse, like the giant mouth of a monster, suddenly opening up and sucking in a few men and horses.
This situation was too terrifying, and they had no idea what they were facing, and no one knew when it would happen. The frenzied Turkic cavalry reined in their horses in fear as they stared at the flat snowy plains in front of them. The pure white snow stretched as far as the eye could see, and the wind had smoothed the snow until it was as smooth as a mirror. There was nothing out of the ordinary on the surface, but who knew if they would be swallowed up by the monster beneath the ground if they took even a single step forward?
The Turkic soldiers at the front were greeted with a third volley of arrows. They had used their lives to buy a chance for their comrades behind them, but the Turkic soldiers at the back did not make good use of this opportunity. They reined in their horses and looked left and right in shock, not knowing what was going on.
There were two lakes in this snowy region, the Baiting Sea and Xiutu Swamp, but these two lakes had originally been connected together. At the time, this place was called Fish Haizi, and the entire lake was massive and majestic. However, as the water source gradually dried up and land was revealed in the middle, it split into two lakes.
The large expanse of the lake had been turned into saline land, and the two sides of the road that the Tang army was currently on had originally been the banks of the higher part of the lake. The road here was the least sturdy, and many of the roads looked very normal and flat, but in reality, they were actually layers of sand and salt that had accumulated over the years, forming an empty space beneath them.
And the empty space beneath them was not just a single layer. It was probably a honeycomb of many layers of empty space. The situation down there was extremely complicated, and it was impossible to know how deep it went. Thus, if someone were to fall down, even if they didn't die from the fall, there was nothing they could do but watch.
The soldiers stationed here and the nearby commoners all knew of the situation in this ghost region, so they didn't dare to approach. Thus, when Xiao Ningfeng saw them charge toward the ghost region of death, a smug smile appeared on his face. In this sort of wretched place, even a shepherd boy leading a sheep could disappear with a boom, and these Turkic soldiers were galloping on top of it, so it would be strange if nothing happened to them.
The panicked Turkic soldiers tried to turn their horses around and retreat, but some places were still fine when they came, with clear hoof prints on them. Who would have thought that when they turned their horses around, a huge hole would appear on the ground, swallowing both the rider and the horse.
This immediately caused the Turkic soldiers to run around like headless flies. The places with hoof prints were treacherous, and the places without hoof prints were even more treacherous. They moved cautiously, afraid that if they moved too fast, they would stomp a huge hole in the ground.
At this time, the soldiers on the left and right flanks calmly began to shoot. They were unhurried and unhurried, accurately aiming at their targets before firing. These border army soldiers were quite skilled, and every arrow would hit its mark, knocking down the Turkic soldiers who were in a dilemma of whether to flee or fight.
Seeing this scene, the Turkic soldiers on the main road also knew that there was something strange about the snowy plains on both sides, so they didn't dare to disperse their soldiers into the plains. Instead, they mobilized their strong archers to shoot at the Tang army.
As soon as they drew their bows, the archers and crossbowmen of the Tang army immediately retreated. The archers with shields that were taller than a man swarmed forward and erected the big spears into a strong wall. The archers of the Tang army hid behind and shot forward through the gaps. The two sides fell into a stalemate.
Sitting in the carriage, Tin Aino heard the battle report from the ancient boat and couldn't help but be overjoyed. Earlier on, she pretended to be vague and had already asked Liang Sier about the dangerous saline-alkali ground, and she knew that the area was only two miles wide. Whether the Turkic cavalry came from afar or continued to retreat, it would be a headache to deal with them.
The problem was that the Turkic did not know how big the area was, so they didn't dare to send their troops to test it. In this way, there were two natural barriers on both sides to block their pursuers, leaving only one path at the back, which was much easier to deal with. Tin Aino immediately ordered, "Leave the rear to deal with the enemy, the rest of the troops continue to retreat!"
Hearing this, Gu Zhou was shocked and asked, "General Lang, the brothers left at the rear … are we going to ignore them?"
Right now Tin Aino was in a good mood, and couldn't help but scold with a smile, "Idiot! Retreat calmly, do not panic, retreat a hundred steps, get into formation and wait for the enemy, then order the remaining troops to retreat a hundred steps behind us, get into formation and wait for the enemy. The two teams will repeat this cycle and slowly retreat! Also, order the couriers to quickly go to Mingwei to get reinforcements! "
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