The weather in the northwest was high, and they arrived late.
The six thousand Dark Cavalrymen didn't march close to the border of Ji River. Instead, they drew a semicircle in the sky. If the northern defensive line of Ji River was a relatively flat and straight bowstring, then the Dark Cavalrymen would be the arm of the bowstring. Within the area covered by the bowstring and the bowstring arm, there were many groups of Beimang scouts who had left the calabash and were patrolling the area. Their purpose was to prevent the supply of the army from being ambushed by the Dark Cavalry who had ventured deep into the enemy's territory alone. This time, Yu Luandao was still using the 'forced' speed of the cavalry, and they had advanced over six hundred miles in three days. In the eyes of those laymen who only knew how to talk about strategy on paper, or the common people who had heard of the famous steeds in the northwest that could travel over one thousand miles in a day, this speed was not considered forced marching. But, if they could see with their own eyes how worn out the Dark Cavalry was, and how nearly one hundred warhorses fell limp or even died when the cavalry stopped, they would understand how difficult it was to travel such a long distance in a hurry, where they would most likely be thrown into the battlefield at the next moment.
In the dusk, Hsu Fengnian was washing the noses of his warhorses at a water source where the winter snow had melted. This time, the six thousand Dark Cavalry had a total of fifteen thousand warhorses, nearly three times per man. Over four hundred warhorses had died during the journey, and almost all of them were Beimang warhorses seized from the battlefield north of Silver Harrier City. It did not mean that the Mang warhorses were weaker than the Dark Cavalry. In fact, it was the opposite. Although the Beimang warhorses were weaker than the Beiliang warhorses in terms of explosive force, in terms of physical strength, the Mang warhorses were actually superior. However, as Hui Lilu and Lang Sien, the two Generals, were rushing all the way to Ji City, and in consideration of the general situation of the eastern front, they did not even have two mounts per man. Even though they had rested for a day before the battle and fattened up the horses with fine grain, it was still not enough to make up for the loss of their stamina. This time, the Dark Cavalry felt sorry for his' wife 'who had been with him for many years, so they deliberately rode more Beimang warhorses during the journey. They also favored one side over the other in terms of fodder feeding, and as a result, many of the Beimang warhorses died from exhaustion. Yu Luandao, who had taken off his armor and rolled up his sleeves, carefully washed the back of his mount. He smiled, "Originally, we didn't need to run so many horses to death. If each person and three mounts were willing to split the effort fairly, at most fifty-six horses would have died."
Hsu Fengnian looked around and smiled, "This is also good. Starting tomorrow, there will definitely be continuous battles. Let's just treat it as conserving our strength. Our cavalry is obviously more familiar with the habits of the Youzhou warhorses. A few hundred Beimang warhorses dying is better than many people dying on the battlefield."
Yu Luandao nodded and said softly, "Fan Fen's more than three hundred scouts have been sent out. At most, there are fifty per unit, at least half a unit. After all, we have already started to encounter the Beimang Malanzi this morning. In order to prevent our whereabouts from being leaked, Fan Fen's scouts must kill the enemy scouts as soon as they see them. Otherwise, if the Beimang Malanzi escapes, all our efforts will be in vain. I am very grateful that the prince is willing to send out three of his personal retainers to help Fan Fen's scouts. With them accompanying us, the chances of completely wiping out the Beimang Malanzi will be much greater. "
Xu Fengnian smiled and said, "That young woman is Fu Shui Room's Grand Master of the Profound Realm. The old man is a Sword Dao Grandmaster of the Profound Realm. As for the child, his name is Yu Dilong. He is my eldest disciple among my three disciples."
Yu Luandao joked, "Killing the Beimang Malanzi is a bit like using an arcuballista to kill sparrows."
Hsu Fengnian shook his head and hesitated for a moment. He smiled, "I won't say for now. Let's wait. In the future, Beiliang will give Beimang a little surprise."
During this period of time, Hsu Fengnian was like the most ordinary Youzhou cavalry. Not only did he not take away Yu Luandao's military power, he did not roam around like the other generals during several short breaks. He only acted as a temporary scout a few times, staying far away from the main cavalry to spy on the military situation. This time, the Youzhou cavalry were all light cavalry. They abandoned excess supplies and reduced all items that would slow down the cavalry's speed. Except for a few generals who were equipped with spears and lances, all the cavalry were only equipped with a cold saber and a light crossbow. Those with outstanding strength could add a hard bow and three quivers of arrows. In the past few days, the army had maintained a column formation. When they entered the battle zone tomorrow, they would spread out horizontally in battle. In this forced march, the Youzhou cavalry had opened the eyes of Hsu Fengnian, who had never entered the bottom level of the border army before. For example, the Youzhou warhorses did not need to be pulled by the cavalry at all. They could follow their masters and move around. Even if they were temporarily stationed to rest, no matter how hungry or thirsty the warhorses were, they would always be within a few dozen feet of their masters. This meant that even if the Youzhou cavalry were ambushed and the scouts outside did not have time to report, the six thousand Youzhou cavalry could still put on their armor and get into formation to meet the enemy in half an incense stick's worth of time.
Three feet of ice was not formed in a single day. The excellence of the Youzhou warhorses had a lot to do with the saying, "Leaving Yang and Beiliang place the most importance on horse management."
A scout galloped back from the southwest. The one riding side by side with the scout was actually a young man with a tender face. His horsemanship was so good that he did not need to hold the reins. The way he held his hands in his sleeves was fifty to sixty percent similar to his master's. The scout commander ordered the more than forty scouts under his command to dismount and rest. He and the boy named Yu Dilong rode to the side of the main general Yu Luandao and the "Great General" Hsu Fengnian. After dismounting, he cupped his hands and reported the military situation. It turned out that they had encountered sixty elite horsemen from a military town in Dragon's Waist Province more than sixty li away. They thought it would be a fierce battle with heavy casualties, but they did not expect that the boy would take the lead. After breaking through the enemy lines, he jumped high off the horse and killed more than twenty horsemen with his fists in one breath. By the time the Youzhou scouts pulled out their sabers and charged, it had become a one-sided chase. In one scene, while the thin boy was still in the air, he caught an arrow shot by a Mang horseman and stabbed it into the neck of the leader of the horseman. He casually pushed the corpse aside, squatted on the back of the Beimang warhorse, and grinned at the scout commander who gave him a grateful look as he patted his horse.
In the end, in this battle that should have been evenly matched, only nine of the Youzhou scouts were injured, and their injuries were not serious. At this moment, the burly scout commander could not help but reach out to rub the boy's head. Unexpectedly, the boy suddenly leaned back and dodged the scout commander's palm. The boy's feet were nailed into the yellow sand, and his body leaned back to the side. But he did not fall over, which immediately attracted a burst of cheers from the nearby Youzhou cavalry.
Hsu Fengnian looked at the boy who had been pretending to put his hands in his sleeves, and glared at him. "Stupid boy, why are you showing off the demeanor of a grandmaster? Stand still!"
Yu Dilong laughed and stood up straight again. Only then did the scout commander successfully rub the boy's head. Because his fingers and palms were full of calluses, although he tried to be gentle, Yu Dilong's hair was still messed up. The boy secretly rolled his eyes and then sighed like an old man. Afterward, the scout commander squatted by the water and casually washed his face. He glanced at the boy who was sticking his butt up and drinking water with his mouth and smiled knowingly. This little guy was really powerful. Not only did he easily beat a Beimang barbarian to death with one punch, but he also broke the warhorse's legs and caused it to fall to the ground. He also broke the boy's armor and body into two with a sweep of his arm. The scout commander sighed with emotion and turned his head to whisper, "Little guy, in the future, when you're on a battlefield where thousands of cavalry are fighting each other, you should take it easy. The northern barbarians' cavalry and archery aren't bad. Once you're targeted by them, they'll shoot you from all directions. It'll be very troublesome. Back in the day, our Old Scout Commander Biao also had good martial arts skills. Back then, he was injured in the ribs by a few arrows from the side and became ill. Otherwise, he wouldn't have left the border army so early. "
Yu Dilong smiled brightly and nodded. "I knew that. Master told me before that it's difficult for two fists to fight against four hands. Killing the enemy with hundreds of cavalry is not the same thing as a battle formation with thousands of troops. Don't worry, my eyesight is very good. Besides, even if I don't have eyes on my back, I'll still be able to sense the murderous intent if there's a sneak attack from the rear. Besides, Master also told me that in Beiliang, as long as you break through the enemy's lines and charge forward, you don't have to worry about your back. If there's any danger, there'll naturally be fellow soldiers to block it for you. "
The scout commander asked, "Did the Great General really say that?"
The boy, who had drunk several catties of water in one go and wasn't afraid of his stomach swelling, raised his head and grunted, "Yeah, right?"
The scout commander, who was squatting by the water, rubbed his chin and sighed with emotion. "If you're not an old soldier of the border army, you wouldn't be able to say that."
"Right, big guy, what does' fellow soldier 'mean?"
"It's the people who are equipped with cold knives and crossbows and kill the barbarians together."
"But I don't have a knife or crossbow. A few days ago, I asked Master for one, but he wouldn't give it to me. Then what about me? Am I still a fellow soldier? "
"Of course you are!"
"Then big guy, why don't you give me a set of cold knives and crossbows? I'm dying of envy. If you're too stingy to give it to me, you can lend it to me. "
"Little guy, it's not that I'm stingy, but I can't casually lend my knife, crossbow, and warhorse to others. Otherwise, I'll be punished according to military law. Only when I retire from the army will I be able to leave behind a set of armor and a knife and crossbow. Haha, I'll give them all to you then.
Okay. "
"How long will it take? Talking to you is so boring. Forget it, Master said that I shouldn't bite off more than I can chew. I'll learn other things after I've mastered the fist technique. Sigh, but I really want to wear a knife on my waist like Master does. "
Hearing the boy's childish words, the scout commander laughed heartily.
Yu Dilong turned his head to look at Hsu Fengnian, who was standing not far away, and shouted with a pleading face, "Master! When can I have my own cold knife? Big guy already admitted that I'm his fellow soldier! "
"You've only been drinking the northwest sandstorm for two or three days, and you already dare to call yourself a fellow soldier?"
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