The choice between advance and retreat was difficult for Muawiya at this moment.
He doesn't care about the victory or defeat at the moment, the gain or loss of a city or a pool. What he cares about is that as long as he makes up his mind at this moment, the road ahead will be narrow. He can only keep his head down and forge ahead, with no way to retreat.
How much heritage can the Hashemite family retain with the glory of the prophet? Can the Uyama family's fierce military strength be able to overthrow the rule of the Caliph? Can the benefits gained from marching to the East make up for his losses in resisting the Caliph's order at this moment...
For a moment, my mind was filled with confusion.
A long wind swept over the river and stirred up waves. The sun was still high in the sky and scorching the earth. Tens of thousands of soldiers stood silently on the sand by the river.
After a long time, Muawiya looked at the dust gradually rising in the distance, and raised his arms firmly: "The rear team becomes the front team, the infantry retreats, the cavalry forms to stop the Tang army, we return to Damascus!"
Before fighting the outside world, you must first make peace with the inside.
Muawiya finally made up his mind to return to Damascus first to consolidate his power, and then wait for an opportunity to seize the leadership of the Arab Empire.
When he unified Arabia, it was the beginning of conquering the Western Regions and conquering the Tang Dynasty!
The soldiers behind them were well-trained, and after the order was issued, the rear team immediately changed to the front team, and slowly retreated towards the southwest. The cavalry in heavy armor slowly stepped forward, formed at the front, and watched intently as they rushed in from the distance.
The Tang army.
Under the scorching sun, the sand and dust in the distance are billowing, as if there is a doomsday disaster and the devil has come to the world.
When the sandstorm rising from the flat ground swept to a place more than ten miles ahead, looking far ahead, I saw groups of Tang Army Qingqi suddenly jumping out of the sand and dust, with the horizontal swords in their hands raised diagonally, reflecting the dazzling sunlight.
radiant.
The majestic war horses and vigorous warriors are like a forest of swords shining with murderous intent!
The Arab army remained motionless, and Mu'awiya rode behind the heavy cavalry, not missing the opportunity to observe the Tang army's formation so closely.
Even though he had to retreat temporarily due to weighing the situation today, he firmly believed that one day he would lead the most courageous warriors in Arabia to set foot on this land again and have a vigorous battle with the Tang army!
War and conquest have long been engraved in his blood and will never be erased!
However, no matter how conceited Muawiya was, he could not help but be shocked by the Tang army in front of him.
The first thing to see clearly from the sand and dust was the opponent's light cavalry. The warriors were wearing leather armor and the horses were powerful. The horizontal swords in their hands shone brightly in the sun. The light cavalry charged forward with unparalleled speed.
Then came the heavy cavalry of the Tang army.
The configuration of heavy cavalry can best demonstrate the strength of a country's military force. Not only does it cost a lot of money to build, it is also a reflection of iron smelting and forging technology. Every heavy cavalry is made with technology and money.
Stacked mobile fortress!
During his expedition to the Western Regions, he brought a total of 60,000 troops, including more than 10,000 cavalry. Such a force was a powerful force that could not be ignored in the entire Eurasian continent. Even overlords such as the Persian Dynasty could easily defeat them.
To defeat, to fall.
However, at this moment, facing the sudden appearance of the Tang Army's armored cavalry, Muawiya still felt deeply fearful!
Such an army is an important weapon for any country to control the country. Even if a small country can build it, it will never be able to maintain it.
An army can bring down a country!
However, the Tang army placed him in the Western Regions thousands of miles away from the capital...
Doesn't it mean that in Chang'an, the capital of the Tang Dynasty, there was a force that was not inferior to, or even far superior to, this army?
At this moment, Muawiya realized that he knew too little about the Tang Dynasty. His unbeatable record had made him blinded by pride, and he had never realized how powerful the Tang Dynasty was.
Fortunately, he gave the order to retreat. Otherwise, if he had entered the Western Regions so ignorantly, when the Tang Dynasty sensed the danger and mobilized heavy troops to encircle and suppress...
Muawiya thanked the prophet in his heart, but his eyes were burning as he stared at the Tang cavalry.
Strong enemy?
Conquering the most powerful army in the world and occupying the most fertile land is the most noble achievement!
Compared with the Tang Dynasty, the Persian dynasty, which used to have hundreds of thousands of iron cavalry across Europe and Asia but now couldn't even put together a few armors, was like a clay sculpture. Even if it was conquered, there would be no pleasure!
Only the Tang Dynasty, and only the Tang Dynasty, could be Mu'awiya's opponent!
Muawiya’s eyes were shining and his fighting spirit was high!
He reined in his horse and was about to turn around and evacuate. He would go back to Damascus to strengthen his troops. After seizing the supreme power of the caliphate, he would definitely come back and fight the Tang army for a showdown!
However, before he turned around, he was shocked to find that Tang Jun's armored cavalry not only did not stop, but was gradually speeding up...
Black iron helmets, both men and horses, the long sword in the knight's hand is erected at an angle, thousands of blades are pointed at the sky, the sharp and bright blades are like pieces of steel forest, the horse's hooves are walking briskly,
Gradually accelerating, the sound of hoofbeats coming together was like thunder from the sky, hitting people's hearts and stimulating their blood vessels. Even from a distance of more than a hundred feet, the wall-like pressure came rushing towards them like a mountain falling apart.
!
Muawiya opened his eyes wide and looked in disbelief at the Tang army, which was rushing in front of him. It didn't even stop to reorganize its formation, and then brazenly launched a charge with heavy cavalry!
Among all his tactical knowledge, heavy cavalry, a great weapon on the battlefield, is of course extremely powerful. A hundred or ten men can often determine the outcome of a medium-sized war, but its weakness is also very prominent, and that is
Because both men and horses wear heavy armor, the overall weight is too great, which is not only not conducive to long-distance attacks, but also unsustainable in battles.
All heavy cavalry must sit down and rest for a while before launching an attack, giving the warriors, especially the war horses, sufficient time to recover.
The scene before him completely subverted his understanding...
Was it that the Tang army was too arrogant and did not take the brave Arab warriors into consideration?
Or did the Tang army have another way to quickly restore the strength of the heavy cavalry?
However, he could no longer think too much at this moment. The large infantry was slowly retreating. A hasty counterattack would only cause chaos in the formation. The heavy cavalry of the Tang Army charged forward fiercely, but the light cavalry on both sides dispersed far away.
, roaming on both wings of the heavy cavalry, once they find that the Arab infantry array is in chaos, they will rush over without hesitation.
The speed of light cavalry is much faster than that of heavy cavalry. If they are driven into the formation, using the natural restraint of cavalry against infantry, a disastrous defeat will be inevitable.
Muawiya made a prompt decision, raised his arms high, and loudly ordered: "All infantrymen step forward, set up shields, erect spears, and resist the enemy!"
"boom!"
Following his order, the infantry who were originally standing behind the cavalry and responsible for breaking up the rear quickly ran forward for a distance, leaving the cavalry behind, and formed a square formation. The shields were at the outermost periphery, and inside were densely packed spears erected diagonally.
, just like a steel hedgehog huddled up!
This is the most effective phalanx of the Arabs. It is not very effective against light cavalry. After all, the light cavalry can quickly turn and rush to the two wings when approaching the battle, and then use bows and arrows to shoot and kill neatly arranged soldiers...
However, it can often work wonders against heavy cavalry that is relatively slow but has extremely strong inertia.
Heavy cavalry are heavy, have strong impact, and have greater inertia. It is impossible to turn during the impact of thousands of troops. An accident will cause one's own horse to fall and be trampled. A chain disaster is enough to cause future disasters.
When he reached the enemy's position, he wounded most of himself.
Of course, no matter how solid the phalanx is, it cannot stop the impact of the heavy cavalry.
The huge kinetic energy carried during the charge can easily knock the outermost shield hand into broken bones and tendons, and then be trampled by iron hoofs into a pile of minced meat. But the spears standing high in the back row are like wave-proof lifts.
Generally, the impact of the heavy cavalry is offset bit by bit, and finally a human life is exchanged for a buffer. By the time the impact of the heavy cavalry disappears, it has already penetrated deep into the array. At that time, the heavy cavalry no longer has a powerful force.
The impact force, trapped in a tight siege, is like a tiger without teeth, just waiting to be slaughtered.
Muawiya did not want to tangle with the Tang army here. The strength of the Tang army was beyond his expectation. His original life-long faith had been shaken. Moreover, he was unwilling to pay a heavy price. Even if it was a tragic victory in the end, the gains would outweigh the losses.
, shaking the foundation of his rule in Damascus, and thus affecting his plan to compete for the throne of the caliphate.
With these more than 10,000 infantrymen, he decided to give up.
As long as the Tang army's cavalry rushes into the formation, he will decisively lead the cavalry to withdraw from the battle group and return to Damascus...