In the snow-covered wilderness, the two armies chase each other. The war horses trample countless snowflakes and dance in the wind, like a giant dragon rolling in, with fierce momentum and murderous intent.
A shower of arrows came over, and the pursuers lowered their bodies one after another, howling and screaming in anger. Their bows and arrows could not reach their opponents, and they were suffocating. They stared at the front with a pair of angry eyes, wishing to bite off a piece of flesh from their opponents.
No piles of corpses were found on either side, but pairs of excited eyes were staring at them.
Pretending to be dead does not require a high level of skill. It is rare to get some corpses to press on, or get some blood, and the most important thing is to lie still. When you see the pursuers entering the ambush circle, your heart will jump out of your chest, but you are not being killed.
Discover?
Can the war still be fought like this?
At this moment, everyone was no longer worried or nervous. They wanted to take action right away. Their eyes flashed with fierce fighting intent, and everyone stared at it like wolves and tigers, as if it was a lamb in the mouth.
Just after the war, it was normal to see corpses all over the ground. No one expected that someone would pretend to be dead. Most of them were dressed the same, making it difficult to identify them. They couldn't care less about identifying them. They were all furious at the opponents in front of them.
The leader of the pursuers had a cold face and stared ahead. Due to the favorable wind, he could only be passively beaten along the way. If he didn't kill the opponent in front of him, it would be difficult to settle the situation. A group of weaklings who only knew how to run must be captured.
Soon, the leader of the pursuers saw the army waiting in front, holding a crossbow in his hand. He was shocked. Didn't he run into a hedgehog's nest? He quickly shouted: "Stop-stop!"
But the large troops let go of their speed and ran wildly. It was not easy to stop. The cavalry behind them swarmed in, huddled together, and continued to run forward for a certain distance. Invisibly, they all entered the ambush circle.
The leader of the soldiers pulled the horse and shouted anxiously: "Stop, stop quickly!"
However, what greeted him were countless crossbow arrows on both sides, dense as rain, one after another, as if they didn't know how to stop.
The continuous crossbow attack from the side was hard to guard against, and people kept falling off their horses. The screams and roars were endless. The team that was already crowded together became a mess. Without speed, they were like living targets, and they died faster.
Two thousand people and two thousand repeating crossbows kept firing crossbow arrows in an endless stream. Even if they were not accurate, the density was enough to tear into pieces those in front.
When Qin Huaidao saw that his pursuers had actually stopped, he was still some distance away from the horse trap formation and had exceeded his shot. He sighed with some regret. It would have been better if he had gone further, but the opportunity was not to be missed. He pointed his long sword forward and shouted: "Disperse."
Open, outflank, shoot——"
"kill!"
Countless people roared and rushed forward, forming a horizontal line and advancing forward, firing crossbows continuously. Soon, the horizontal line turned into a big sack and charged towards the pursuers, with arrows raining down like rain.
There were only more than a thousand pursuers left, and they had lost their speed, so they could no longer withstand it. They all turned around and tried to run away, but they were crowded together and unable to move, so they all dismounted to escape.
Four thousand people surrounded the pursuers from three directions. The pursuers could not escape. Some brave people rushed forward and tried to fight back, but they were all pushed to the ground by a burst of crossbow arrows, without causing any waves.
.
Qin Huaidao looked at this scene and knew that the overall situation had been decided. He secretly breathed a sigh of relief and did not pursue him. As a general, his position was in command, and he had no choice but to go to the front line to fight.
At this time, Fang Yiai said: "General, let me go up?"
"Your identity is the general's own military captain. When you go, who will lead the troops?" Qin Huaidao refused. Seeing what he wanted to say, he interrupted: "Take your people to the mountain ridge to see if there is any enemy presence around.
.”
"Follow the order!" Fang Yiai responded with some regret, and hurried away with a hundred of his people.
Li Yixie quickly asked one hundred of his men to surround Qin Huaidao to prevent stray arrows. He looked at the battlefield in front of him where the fighting was coming to an end, his eyes full of envy.
Qin Huaidao could see that Li Yixie also wanted to go to the battlefield to fight and perform meritorious service, so he didn't care and asked Xue Feng beside him: "Xue Canjun, how many people do you know about the Wandan tribe?"
Qin Huaidao quickly made a calculation in his mind: 50,000 people, excluding the elderly and children who cannot fight, there are at least 20,000 to 30,000 women and teenagers. These people can mount horses and draw bows. Although their combat effectiveness is average, they cannot be ignored.
, coupled with the fact that there are still three thousand soldiers in the tribe, the Xiwandan tribe is not without resistance.
Thoughts flashed through his mind, Qin Huaidao took out the map and looked at it, thinking at the same time.
"General, do you want to attack the Xiwandan tribe?" Li Derjian asked curiously.
When Xue Feng heard this, he was also startled. He quickly looked over and asked, "General, are you really fighting?"
"You think it's impossible?" Qin Huaidao asked.
The two exchanged glances, and Li Derjian smiled bitterly and said: "General, we fought twice. Each time, the general thought it was impossible, but the general did it. Therefore, the general's opinion is not important. The general is just curious."
What tactics will the general adopt next?"
"The general is also looking forward to it. Although the Xiwandan tribe only has more than 3,000 soldiers, if it really attacks, tens of thousands of people will jump out on horseback. It is no joke that everyone has soldiers. Although the combat effectiveness is average, the victory is in numbers, and
, if we can win, the troops from the Xiwandan tribe will definitely come back to hunt us down." Xue Feng reminded.
"Then it should be taken down." Qin Huaidao said, but his eyes were fixed on the map without saying a word.
It is known that the Wandan tribe lives by the water. The yurts are several miles long, with tens of thousands of households and a large population. A bold idea came to his mind. Qin Huaidao smiled and looked up and found that the battle was over and the soldiers were cleaning up.
On the battlefield, An Guogong and other generals came running excitedly.
"Hahaha, general, there was a great victory. This battle was fought so happily!" Zhi shouted excitedly without thinking.
"Send the order, clean the battlefield quickly, take no prisoners, collect usable arrows, and make more rockets as backup." Qin Huaidao said coldly, there should be no mercy on the battlefield, and there will be endless consequences if you let the prisoners go.
"Obey the order!" Everyone accepted the order with a roar. After this battle, Qin Huaidao's power became even higher.
Everyone returned to deliver the order, but Duke An Guo did not leave and asked: "General, do you want to set out first to capture the small tribe that was identified before?"
"Don't worry, the general has changed his mind." Qin Huaidao said.
"What's next?"
"You have Duke Lao'an to keep an eye on it, kill the enemy's horses, seize the grease to make rockets, and clean up the battlefield as soon as possible."
"Obey the order!" Duke An Guo didn't ask any questions as usual and left in a hurry.
Qin Huaidao did not explain in detail as before, because the next tactics were simpler and more cruel, and did not require more explanation. He led Li Yixie and said: "You also go and help clean the battlefield, and use the crossbows and feather arrows that can be fired."
Retrieve it and keep it for later use.”
"Follow the order!" Li Yixie quickly agreed and led the troops.
The next battle will be more expensive and must be prepared in advance.
In about half an hour, the battlefield was cleaned, all usable arrows were collected, the enemy's horses were also gathered together, and the soldiers were assembled and on standby, and their morale was high.
Qin Huaidao came in front of everyone, glanced at everyone, and suddenly he had a plan on his mind and shouted: "Dong An Guo, ask your people to take off the enemy's coat, cover it on the enemy's horse, and hold it up. Move quickly."
Everyone didn't know why, but they took action quickly.
After the two battles, everyone realized that Qin Huaidao was a general who liked to use tricks, and everything he did must have deep meaning.
Not long after, thousands of sets of coats were stripped off and placed on hundreds of usable war horses. Seeing that they were ready, Qin Huaidao shouted: "Dong An, your people are on the left, and the imperial army is on the right. Bring all the casualties and brothers with you."
Set off with me, the general, and eat some dry food on the way. There will be a big battle next."
No matter how good the command is, there will inevitably be casualties in battle, and everyone has long been used to it.
"Follow the order!" Everyone got on their horses.
The dry food was roasted meat made from the slaughtered sheep after capturing the tribe last night. It was kept close to the body and kept warm by the body temperature. It was not frozen, but the taste was much worse, but I didn't care about it. I took it out one by one and chewed it while walking on the road.
My acquaintances were very excited when they talked about how many people they had shot in the previous battle.
Qin Huaidao asked Fang Yiai to lead people to conduct reconnaissance in front to temper this guy's impatience, and then led the troops behind to slow down and let everyone eat something to regain their strength.
After more than half of the market, the team came to a hillside. In front of them was the Siwandan Department. The view was wide and unobstructed. The yurts stretched like small flowers blooming on the vast snow. There was smoke from cooking. The river was frozen, but there were many people there.
Break open the ice to get water.
"General, are you really going to attack the Xiwandan tribe?" Duke An Guo came up and asked immediately.
"No, the general has made up his mind. If there is a way, we will just follow the order."
Qin Huaidao glanced at the other party in surprise. This change was quite big. An Guogong smiled sarcastically: "The general is superb in his military use and his tactics are unbelievable. He even tried to pretend to be dead, and he succeeded. I am ashamed of myself and am willing to obey the command."
."
"Have you seen the shortcomings of the Wandan tribe?" Qin Huaidao asked, pointing to his dismounted horse.
An Guogong looked at the front, shook his head and said: "It is no different from other tribes. If we talk about the weakness, it is undefended, but there are many people. Once a war starts, the weakness is not necessarily a weakness, it will drag us to death."
"If the attack goes in, it will definitely kill you."
"Go in without attacking?" An Guogong was a little surprised.
Qin Huaidao looked at the many brothers around him, and finally his eyes fell on Li Derjian: "Brother, have you seen any flaws in the Xiwandan Department?"
"If you don't see it, they are just a group of wolves who live quietly. Once someone invades, they will explode and swarm out, killing the intruder." Li Derjian said truthfully.
"Wolf? No, they are at most a group of sheep." Qin Huaidao smiled confidently.
Everyone is confused, how can a tribe with a population of tens of thousands be sheep? People on the grasslands are different from those in the Central Plains. They survive in the harsh natural environment and have developed a brave and warlike character since childhood. They are skilled in bows and arrows and have extraordinary equestrian skills.
, Mount your horse to serve as a soldier, dismount your horse to serve the people.
Qin Huaidao did not explain. He looked at the tribes in front of him. They were a little far away and found nothing unusual. He looked solemn and shouted: "Dong An Guo, divide your troops into three groups, each with a thousand troops, and temporarily give them to the three brothers of the Cheng family to command.
Question?"
When An Guogong heard that he wanted to seize the command, he was a little reluctant.
If it were before, he would have directly jumped out to oppose it, but after two consecutive battles, An Guogong became more convinced of Qin Huaidao. In addition, he was the commander-in-chief, and he had to obey the military orders. He had no choice but to say: "No problem, everything is in accordance with the general."
That’s the order.”
Qin Huaidao looked at Cheng Chumo. It was very troublesome to command without satellite images. He hesitated for a moment, then took out the paper and charcoal again, sketched out the general appearance of the surrounding terrain, pointed to a place and said, "Chu Mo."
"Here!" Cheng Chumo quickly stepped forward and looked at the drawings.
"Take a thousand men over there and a hundred captured war horses. When you arrive at the position, look at my flag. If the war flag is raised, then lead your troops to attack. Set fire to the clothes held by the captured war horses, chop the horses, and go to
The Wandan Tribe is driving them away. You are not allowed to rush into the tribe, you can only stay on the outside." Qin Huaidao said and drew an arc route.
"Is it similar to the double snake strangulation strategy?" Cheng Chumo asked.
"No, this is called sparrow tactics. Spread out, rush up and fire rockets to burn the Xiwandan tribe for me. You are upwind, and the fire will start quickly. Once the enemy comes out to pursue you, retreat quickly and run along the upwind.
Just keep your distance as you did just now, drag the pursuers to death, then return and continue to attack, repeat this process, if there are too many pursuers, draw them as far away as possible, get rid of them and come back to join them."
"Follow the order!" Cheng Chumo's eyes lit up.
"Chu Liang."
"Here!" Cheng Chuliang stepped forward quickly.
"Your elder brother is attacking the head of the Siwandan tribe, which will inevitably attract a large number of soldiers to rush to help. After your elder brother leads the troops to retreat, you can lead people to attack the tail of the Siwandan tribe. The Xiwandan tribe lives by the water.
It's too long, long is its weakness, and its fighting skills are just like your big brother's."
"Follow the order!" Cheng Chu's eyes lit up.
Everyone heard that it made sense. Although there were many people in the Wandan tribe, the yurt was too long and it was difficult for the leaders to look after each other. If they started at the head first, attracting the soldiers to pass and then attack the tail, the defense would be empty. Also, they would attack with rockets, which was not true.
If you attack with a strong force, you will suffer very little losses. Once a burning camp is formed, you will definitely be able to capture it.
At this moment, everyone suddenly understood what Qin Huaidao meant when he asked about the flaws in the Wandan Department. Li Derjian lowered his head in shame, sighing in his heart.
The same is true of observing the terrain and making judgments!
Cheng Chubi came up and asked excitedly: "General, what about me?"
"You take the remaining horses and lurk in the middle. When your second brother is chased by the enemy, or the enemy does not chase, he hides in the tribe and shoots arrows to counterattack. You suddenly kill him. The tactics are the same. The head and tail are attacked separately. The soldiers of Wandan tribe are all attacked.
If you are attracted away, it is said that the central part must be empty, but you must be careful of fraud and do not rush in. If anyone leads troops into the tribe, military law will be dealt with." Qin Huaidao warned.
"Follow the order!" the three of them responded quickly, clasping their fists.
Li Derjian couldn't help but interjected and asked: "General, does this method of warfare have a name? It will be easy for the general to record it."
Qin Huaidao didn't have a name, but speaking directly would make him look incompetent, so he said nonsense: "This method of warfare is like a sparrow. If someone comes to fight, it will run away. If no one comes, it will fly over and take a bite. This repeats until the food is gone."
After eating them all, the key is to run upwind. We can use the wind to make the arrows shoot farther, and the enemy can't hit us. This is called sparrow tactics."
I prayed in my heart, don’t blame the revolutionary martyrs, just borrow it.
Everyone has seen sparrows snatching food. If you think about it carefully, it is really vivid. You have a deeper understanding of Qin Huaidao's tactics. The Cheng family brothers left one after another, and An Guogong also hurried over to help divide the troops. Without An Guogong's order, the three Cheng family brothers all had an army.
Can't take it away.
"General, what are the forbidden troops doing?" Yuchi Baolin asked hurriedly.
Of course, the two thousand Forbidden Army cannot be idle spectators, otherwise the soldiers will become resentful and lose the morale of the army. Qin Huaidao smiled and said: "Compared to the Turks, the Forbidden Army is inferior in riding and shooting, and is not suitable for this method of warfare. Tell the brothers to be prepared. Once the opportunity comes,
Mature, let me charge down like a knife until you reach the middle of the army's tent and capture the tribe."
"Hahaha, obey the order!" Yuchi Baolin was overjoyed when he heard that the final battle was handed over to the Imperial Army. The two brothers exchanged a tacit understanding of their eyes and quickly went down to deliver the order.
"What are we doing?" Fang Yiai was anxious.
"Your mission is to protect my safety." Qin Huaidao smiled.
Fang Yiai was so depressed that his face dropped, but the duty of the pro-army was to protect the general. Qin Huaidao looked at Li Yixie and said: "Lead the troops to conduct investigations in all four directions, and expand the scope of the investigation to twenty miles, just in case.
"
Without drones, all intelligence can only rely on people.
If a large force comes up for a sneak attack, the fun will be great.
"Follow the order." Li Yixie knew the importance and hurried away.
Qin Huaidao looked at the tribe in front and silently counted the time.
In the tribe, many young men came out on horseback, but they were only on guard outside. Not long after, a man came out with a flag. Qin Huaidao looked at Xue Feng, and Xue Feng quickly explained: "They want to negotiate."
"According to the rules, how should we talk?" Qin Huaidao asked.
"They should regard us as other tribes and annex them. This kind of thing is very common on the grasslands. Once they are defeated, in order to save their own tribe, they will usually choose to negotiate and hand over enough cattle, sheep and slaves in exchange for peace, or
Agree to be annexed and avoid casualties."
Qin Huaidao was delighted when he heard this: "It's interesting, let's talk about it. Anyway, it will take some time for the brothers to prepare. Fang Yiai, give the order, don't do anything, let him come over."
"Follow the order." Fang Yiai hurried away.
Not long after, a middle-aged man was brought over, got off his horse, performed a Khitan salute and then babbled. Qin Huaidao didn't understand a word and said, "Xue Canjun, ask him if he knows Goguryeo or Tang dialect?"
Little did he know that the other party was the first to say, "I can speak some Tang dialect."
It would be easier if they could communicate. Qin Huaidao stared at the other person and asked: "Who are you?"
"My lord Moxi, where did your respected lord come from and why did you attack our Xiwandan tribe?"
Qin Huaidao said with great momentum: "I am the prince of Goguryeo. Tell your people to put down your swords and arrows and sacrifice your cattle, sheep, women and property. I can consider letting you live. Go away and tell you my request."
Leader, let him come and see me within one stick of incense, otherwise the clan will be exterminated."
"Great Goguryeo prince, Khitan and Goguryeo have already reached an alliance, so why did they suddenly attack? Aren't they afraid of triggering a counterattack from the entire Khitan?" the other party asked unwillingly.
"What covenant? I don't know, are you threatening me?" Qin Huaidao shouted pretending to be angry, but his heart moved. Has the Khitan really reached an agreement with Goguryeo?
"The covenant stipulates that we will join forces to divide the Tang Dynasty. This is an agreement signed by the Khitan Eight Tribes Alliance Mohuikuguge and the king of your country on the banks of the Nen River. Is the prince betraying the covenant by doing this, or does it mean that Goguryeo has no intention of forming an alliance?" The other party was angry.
geology asked.
Qin Huaidao was secretly shocked when he heard the news. He stared at the other party. From his micro-expression, it didn't look like he was lying. It was indeed true. This matter is not trivial and must be reported back to the court. His eyes were cold and he said with pretended disdain:
"What do you think? Are the stupid and ignorant Khitans worthy of forming an alliance with my great Goguryeo? You are only worthy of being the slaves of Goguryeo. Go back and prepare to die."
The other party stared at Qin Huaidao, his eyes full of resentment, and his whole body was shaking with anger, but he still rode back.
Qin Huaidao watched the other party leave with a gloomy look - How dare they join forces to separate the Tang Dynasty?!
If Khitan and Goguryeo really form an alliance, the news must be sent back, and one's own strategy must be adjusted accordingly. This tribe must be captured and investigated.
"Could he lie to us?" Li Derjian whispered.
"It looks like they are using this matter to pressure us and try to make us give up the attack. It shouldn't be deception." Xue Feng said quickly: "General, this matter is of great importance and the news must be sent back to the Yingzhou Governor's Mansion."
"Take down the tribe and verify the authenticity first, don't worry." Qin Huaidao said in a deep voice, looking into the distance, a group of Xiwandan cavalry came out to pick up the person just now.
Not long after, the Xiwandan tribe sounded a low and long horn, which was the rallying call.
Xue Feng quickly said: "General, I heard that the Wandan tribe is gathering troops. The sound of the trumpet means that all the people are in arms."
"Don't worry, it's better to let them gather together." Qin Huaidao said coldly. When he saw an army emerging from the slope ahead, it was Cheng Chumo who led the army to the designated position, so he shouted: "Captain Fang, raise the flag!"
"Follow the order!"
A big flag was quickly raised and the attack began.
At this moment, the world seemed to be quiet, and a chilling atmosphere filled the surrounding area.
After learning about Wandan's tribe, a group of cavalry rushed out and went straight to the direction of Qin Huaidao. There were more than a thousand people. Qin Huaidao was not afraid at all. He looked at Cheng Chumo without blinking. He saw that the clothes held by a hundred war horses were set on fire and were burned.
The people rushed toward Siwandan, like a large burning cloud.
Thousands of people made various strange noises from their mouths, surrounded the war horses to prevent them from running around, and kept driving them away. They held a rocket in their hands, and the cloth strips on it had been ignited. The cloth strips were wrapped in the fat of the war horses and burned vigorously.
"Boom!"
"Herod!"
More than a thousand war horses galloped wildly, and the roar could be heard from a distance. The Siwandan tribe who were chasing them also heard the sound of horse hooves. They stopped one after another, looked back, and started shouting. It is very cold in winter.
It is also very dry, so the yurt will burn quickly, and the fire will rush into the camp, causing endless troubles.
The cavalry that charged out turned around and ran away, not caring about pursuing Qin Huaidao.
Qin Huaidao smiled when he saw this scene. It seemed that since the leader of the Wandan tribe was not here, all the elites were out, and there was a lack of experts to take command, so there was nothing to worry about.
"Asshole, why are you running away? Come back." Fang Yiai shouted depressedly, thinking that there could be a fight.
"They actually gave up the charge, what are they doing?" Xue Feng also shouted in surprise.
Li Derjian looked at Qin Huaidao and said with a smile: "There is no unified command, or no one can convince the crowd, and the command is chaotic. General, this battle is out of danger!"
"Not necessarily, don't underestimate the enemy!"
Qin Huaidao stared at the Xiwandan tribe with sharp eyes.