Twenty miles outside the Wuzhou Great Wall, the sun was shining brightly, and the gentle breeze blew through the hills, making bursts of whimpering sounds.
One after another, the horses snorted and lined up neatly.
Among the knights on horseback, some were carrying bows and arrows and holding bronze collars in their hands.
This is a very primitive but deadly weapon.
It can be used in short-range combat and can also be used as a long-distance throwing weapon.
There are also cavalrymen wearing typical bronze helmets made by the Huns.
The typical sign of this kind of helmet is that the wearer does not need to distinguish between front and back at all.
You can wear it however you want.
Although the rough workmanship and simple craftsmanship made every Han Dynasty craftsman despise it.
However, this kind of helmet had a very obvious protective effect on the Huns cavalry.
It can effectively resist attacks from most long-range weapons on the grassland.
However, the production of bronze in the Xiongnu was very small, so there were very few cavalry qualified to wear such helmets.
Probably the total will never exceed three thousand.
These people are also the real elite and backbone of the Zhelan tribe.
Their bodies are stronger and they have more weapons and equipment than others.
Most people also have a weapon such as a mace or a meteor hammer stuck in their waist.
There is no doubt that they are ready to fight their enemies on the ground at any time.
King Zhelan asked his soldiers to raise the banner of the Zhelan tribe.
Look at the huge divine eagle flying high in the sky.
All the Zhelan cavalrymen drew their weapons and looked up to the sky, roaring.
"Get ready for battle!" King Zhelan blew his whistle, raised his whip, and rode his horse past his own battle formation.
He was greeted by deafening cheers.
And on the horizon directly opposite them.
Waves of smoke and dust billowed from the north.
A black dragon flag with fangs and claws splayed appeared in the sight of the Zhelan people.
"Black Dragon Flag?" King Zhelan paused slightly.
Using the dragon as the flag, whether it is the Xiongnu or the Han Dynasty, only represents one meaning - it is the elite belonging to the royal family (royal family).
"The Forbidden Army of the Han Dynasty?" King Zhelan waved his riding whip and sneered: "You are very courageous. How dare you abandon the city and go to war? Watch me tear you into pieces!"
Although the Zhelan tribe had no contact with the northern and southern armies of the Han Dynasty, they had heard of them.
It was the favorite of the emperor of the Han Dynasty and the palm of the hands of the aristocratic officials of Chang'an.
More than 70% of the officers and more than 40% of the soldiers in these two armies that defended the Han capital came from Guanzhong, their core.
A large number of noble children serve in these two armies.
Therefore, their equipment is so luxurious that it is jaw-dropping.
Even a small pawn is fully equipped with armor, bows and crossbows.
King Zhelan then said loudly: "My warriors, our enemy is the richest imperial army in the Han Dynasty!"
"Killing one Han soldier like this is worth ten other Han soldiers!" He declared loudly: "The ancestors and gods also like to enjoy such sacrifices! Warriors, tear the Han soldiers on the opposite side into pieces and cut off their
limbs, chop off their heads, rip off their equipment!"
"I swear in the name of my ancestors and gods: All warriors who died in this battle, no matter what their previous status was, will be led by their ancestors to the palace of the gods and enjoy the service of countless goddesses; regardless of their previous status
What is it? His sons will all have the opportunity to become my king’s bodyguards!”
"Long live!" Countless Zhelan cavalry shouted excitedly after hearing their leader's promise.
They felt that their blood was already boiling.
Even those slave soldiers who just rode a bad horse and followed the army at the end of the formation also grasped the stone pillar in their hands and the stone bolas around their waists.
"God, please bless me to kill a Han Dynasty person..." A slave soldier prayed on a horse: "As long as I can kill a Han Dynasty person, even if I die immediately. I will be eaten by vultures and gnawed by wild dogs.
, I am willing too!”
Another slave soldier ran to his master, knelt down and said: "Great master, please allow me to charge first and die for you!"
These slaves were all people robbed by the Zhelan people from the Western Regions, Xianbei Wuheng, Yuezhi Wusun and even the Han Dynasty in past wars.
The Zhelan people are very picky about their slaves.
Except for women, all men who are taller than the wheel will either be killed or sold.
They will leave behind only healthy, obedient and well-behaved children.
They were whipped and tortured since childhood, and the idea of fighting for Zhelan and the Great Huns was instilled in them.
Over time, these slaves will be twisted into the cannon fodder the Zhelan people need.
Of course, there are smart people too.
However, these smart people usually don't live long.
The Zhelan people knew very well that they needed slaves who were obedient and resigned to their fate.
Those slaves who have many thoughts and ideas, and are unwilling to regard their master as everything and are willing to fight to the death for their master, are often killed or thrown into the harshest environment for exploitation.
This further stimulated the remaining slaves to desperately express themselves in front of their masters.
People in Zhelan may not know what Stockholm Syndrome is.
But they did use torture and occasional kindness to turn most of the slaves into the cannon fodder they wanted.
They are as crazy and bloodthirsty as they are, and everyone is willing from the bottom of their hearts to die on the charge.
Because only in this way can their souls be redeemed and recognized, and their descendants can be transformed from slaves at the bottom of Zhelan society to slaves who can manage slaves.
In this expedition, the Zhelan people brought about three thousand slave soldiers as usual.
Originally, these slaves were expected to take on tasks such as transporting supplies and escorting people from Mayi City to the grasslands, as well as cleaning horses and sanitation for their masters.
But now, in order to break through Wuzhou Fortress, King Zhelan also recruited these slaves.
Because he needs to concentrate every ounce of his strength and put it into his fist.
Looking at the appearance of these slaves, King Zhelan nodded in his heart and praised: "These are good slaves. If I can return to the grassland, I will definitely catch some female slaves for them so that they can have offspring..."
On the grassland, slaves did not have all rights.
Including reproductive rights.
Only with the permission of their masters could they have offspring with other female slaves.
But in other tribes, each tribe encourages slaves to give birth.
Because the descendants of slaves will also be slaves.
But it's different in Zhelan.
The Zhelan people deprived slaves of their right to have children and strictly controlled them with whips and swords.
Only those who behave well have the right to have offspring with female slaves.
By restraining the lower body, the Zhelan people further strengthened the brainwashing of the slaves.
This makes them have to desperately curry favor and obey their masters in order to obtain permission to have children.
Although the consequence of this is that the slaves of the Zhelan tribe have been unable to make ends meet for a long time, and can only barely maintain their scale by relying on constant external plunder and replenishment by Shan Yuting.
But the benefits are also very obvious.
That is, the slaves of Zhelan are two different species from the slaves of other tribes.
Most of them even performed better on the battlefield than the backbones and backbones of the tribes.
King Zhelan withdrew his gaze from the slaves and looked at the distant horizon.
"Pure cavalry?" His eyes narrowed into a straight line, and his expression became serious.
Although the army on the opposite side can't be seen clearly.
However, judging from the outline, momentum and formation, there is no doubt that this is a standard cavalry combat formation.
Moreover, the dust raised and the faint sound of horse hooves also proved that this was indeed a cavalry group no less large than his tribe.
"The cavalry of the Han Dynasty was between nine thousand and twelve thousand!" Zhelan came up with such a number in his mind by judging the size of the smoke.
The cavalry of this size is roughly on par with his tribal cavalry.
"Are the people of the Han Dynasty looking for death?" King Zhelan laughed.
In his opinion, the Han Dynasty people came out to fight in this wilderness with a force equal to the number of his tribe, and it was true that they were looking for death!
Last year, the Wusun people rebelled. The Zhelan cavalry used only 3,000 men to overwhelm a 7,000-man Wusun cavalry phalanx and chased them all over the grassland.
In terms of cavalry assault and fighting, even Shan Yuting admitted that it would take at least two Shan Yuting's own ten thousand cavalry to defeat one Zhelan Wanqi.
During the reign of Lao Shanyu, Lao Shanyu even praised the Zhelan Cavalry happily, saying: "The Zhelan Cavalry is the backbone of the Huns!"
A backbone that can never be beaten. An unbreakable backbone!
And Zhelan people have never failed to live up to Shan Yuting's expectations.
Whether it was sending troops to the west, fighting against the Yuezhi, Donghu, and Wusun, or going south to invade the Han Dynasty, the Zhelan tribe was always the arrowhead and vanguard of the Xiongnu.
It’s Shan Yuting’s riding whip and the arrow where Ming Dy is located!
In the past history, all the enemies of the Han Dynasty that Zhelan cavalry encountered could only hide in fortified cities and tremble at the carved flags of the Zhelan tribe.
I dare not go out of the city to fight in the field at all.
However, when encountering in the wild, without more than three times the strength advantage, the Han Dynasty army did not even dare to form a frontal formation.
Now, facing him and the main force of Zhelan's headquarters commanded by him.
The people of the Han Dynasty actually only used cavalry that was equal to or even smaller than their own number to fight in the field and fight head-on!
This made King Zhelan feel angry in his heart.
"You are asking for death!" King Zhelan thought as he grabbed his saber.
Throughout history, the Zhelan Cavalry has never lost any evenly matched battle.
They even had a glorious record of winning despite being surrounded by three or even five times the enemy.
Since surrendering to the Xiongnu Chan Yuting, Zhelan has been the trump card of the Xiongnu expansion.
He never missed any of the Huns' wars.
During the southern and northern campaigns, he made great contributions to the Xiongnu and gained a great reputation.
On the grassland, the word "Zhelan" is equivalent to the devil.
In the Western Regions, the Kingdom of the Western Regions, when they heard that the Zhelan cavalry was coming, even if there was only one of them, they would tremble and ask for anything.
Even in the Han Dynasty, officials of the Han Dynasty who defected to the Xiongnu said that in the Han area, especially in the border counties, the Zhelan tribe was regarded as the strongest army of the Xiongnu, and even the strongest army in the world.
Now, an army of the Han Dynasty actually dared to leave the city wall and come to the wilderness without being outnumbered?
This made King Zhelan feel his face burning.
This is undoubtedly a provocation and disregard for him and his tribe.
"The Chanyu dare not bring only 10,000 riders to compete with my Zhelan warriors!" King Zhelan clenched his fist.
But as a keen hunter and experienced commander.
King Zhelan deeply understands one truth - on the grassland, wolves will never sneak attack cattle, jackals and foxes without being sure, and they will never provoke a majestic animal without fully considering their own strength.
The Wolf King.
If they do this, there is only one possibility - they feel that they will win!
By the same token. Han Dynasty people were not stupid.
Especially their top brass.
King Zhelan once heard his father and ancestors tell some stories about the generals of the Han Dynasty.
Know how scary and tough these opponents are and how cool they are.
Some generals are feared and respected even by the Zhelan tribe.
For example, Xia Houying, Guan Ying, Zhou Bo and Wei Shang.
So, he raised his hand, sheathed his saber, and ordered: "Warriors, listen to my king's orders, unite the army and occupy the high ground!"
So, all the Zhelan cavalry began to advance.
In the process of advancing, they used their extremely skilled riding skills and their close tacit understanding with each other to complete the formation.
All the cavalry, each with 500 men, formed dense formations one after another.
This is a common cavalry charge battle formation on the grassland.
Each other adopts a dense cone-like formation.
In this way, when the charge begins, the momentum of the entire cavalry square and the deterrent power of the charge will leave an indelible impression on the enemy's mind.
Very few people can maintain a calm attitude during such a charge.
A timid enemy may even be directly frightened and paralyzed.
Of course, this is not the point.
The point is that these small formations are closely connected to form a large oval formation on the battlefield.
On the periphery are six slave battle groups, in the middle is a battle group mainly composed of cavalry from Zhelan's headquarters, and in the core area, the armored cavalry serving as arrows are united around King Zhelan's banner.
Such a formation is not afraid of enemies coming from any direction during the march, and can also defend against attacks from any direction.
And it can be adjusted flexibly to aim the arrows of the Chinese army at the enemy.
Conducive to the attack and defense of the army.
These Zhelan cavalry maintained such a formation with great discipline and organization.
Move forward silently and silently.
Then, after advancing about five miles, they stopped.
Because they have already occupied a high ground.
It is said to be a highland, but it is actually a protruding hilly area on a plain.
The hill is not very high, only a dozen meters or so.
Zhelan's cavalry could therefore stay high and wait for the Han army on the opposite side to approach.
"Woo!" The desolate horn sound resounded throughout the world.
The Zhelan people began to disperse.
With these hills as the center, they stretched the entire front into a military formation that was five miles long from east to west and about two or three miles wide from north to south.
It may look sparse.
But, it's actually not sparse at all.
Because the cavalry is very fast.
If the enemy wants to attack, he must face attacks from all directions.
Moreover, they are still a large oval formation.
The distance between each battle group is not far, which means that they can quickly respond and support each other.
Although the nomadic tribes are ignorant and uneducated.
But in matters like war, in the era of cold weapons, experience and intuition were more important.
The nomadic people on the grassland have been training on the backs of sheep since they were young.
When they grow up, they will follow the adults and go hunting, and when they get older, they will start to join the army and fight. In the long journey of life, their life is a poem of fighting with others, nature and the enemy.
Growing up in such an environment, they don't need to learn any culture, they naturally know how to deal with their enemies.
It is also very clear what response method should be used under what circumstances.
King Zhelan erected his own banner on a higher hill.
Then he rode his horse and looked into the distance.
The Han army in the distance had naturally discovered them long ago.
The same process started.
Waves of exciting war drums rumbled, and flags were waved one after another.
The Han army in the distance, using surprisingly skilled riding skills and strict organization and discipline, formed a large formation on the opposite plain that King Zhelan had never heard of. (To be continued.)
