A goshawk flew across the blue sky and flew to the land filled with earthy yellow sand.
The wind blowing in the desert north blew the dead grass under the horses' hooves and kept falling. After the wind passed, they stood up tenaciously.
The war horse snorted and moved its hooves a little restlessly.
Tens of thousands of Northern Barbarian cavalry were waiting quietly.
…
On the other side, the Sheng army led by Zhao Haiping continued to advance.
On the way to the Woodlands Tulas Mountain, the forward Sheng army began to encounter the Northern Barbarian cavalry one after another. These cavalry were not many in number and had little fighting spirit. After a brief struggle, they fled one after another.
All signs are exactly the same as what Duke Qi encountered before.
But since Zhao Haiping has made up his mind, of course he will not give in.
He knew that there must be an ambush by the Northern Barbarians on the Woodlands Mountains, but he also knew that only in this case would the two sides have a chance for a decisive battle.
If the victory of the powerful army is certain, the leader of the Northern Barbarians would rather abandon a large amount of baggage and flee to preserve the vitality of the elite cavalry. Although it will be considered a victory by then, the strategic goal of the expedition to Mobei will be difficult to achieve.
There is only one reason why you bite even though you know it is bait.
Let’s see if the fish dies or the net breaks!
The mountains in the distance are getting closer.
Woodlands Turashan is not a very high mountain range. Compared with those majestic mountains, it is just a continuous small slope.
But this kind of terrain is enough for tens of thousands of cavalry to hide.
Finally, at a very subtle distance, Zhao Haiping saw a shadowy figure appearing on the top of the mountain in the distance.
Soon, more cavalry appeared.
Each hilltop was occupied by the Northern Barbarians' armored heavy cavalry.
These heavily armored cavalry, both men and horses were covered in armor. In the age of cold weapons, they were the well-deserved kings of war.
Not only that, each of these Northern Barbarian cavalrymen had three or four horses, and the total number of horses was estimated to be hundreds of thousands, which was superior to Sheng's army in terms of horse power.
Zhao Haiping's eyes swept over the hills one after another: "At least 30,000 heavily armored cavalry..."
This is the absolute main force of the Northern Barbarian Army, and such a heavy cavalry was a force that could sweep the world in most historical periods of ancient times.
"Array up!"
Zhao Haiping gave an order, and Sheng Jun, who was already exhausted from the long journey, immediately cheered up and formed a square formation.
The Northern Barbarians' cavalry has also occupied many highlands in the Woodlands Mountains, overlooking the Sheng army from a commanding position. At the same time, they are constantly mobilizing.
The war is about to break out.
However, during this process of mobilization between the two parties, the vast grassland was filled with an atmosphere of silence and depression, even a bit chilling.
Even Chu Ge and the other three players did not speak at this time and watched quietly.
Just like a magnificent movie, after many ups and downs, it finally reaches its climax.
They each played different identities, but now, if they want to win this war, they can only watch Zhao Haiping's own performance.
Zhao Haiping continued to order: "Shenji Battalion, form an array in front!"
At this time, the Northern Barbarian army clearly had the advantage, and the initiative was in their hands.
The Woodlands Tura Mountain was a carefully selected ambush site for the Northern Barbarian army. The leader, Mahali, hid all the elite cavalry behind the hillside in order to build a perfect encirclement when Sheng's army arrived.
At this time, for the Northern Barbarian army, no matter what Sheng's army chooses, they can maintain sufficient initiative in tactics.
If the Sheng army chooses to fight, then the Northern Barbarian army is commanding a high position on the mountain, and the charge of the cavalry can take advantage of the terrain to produce an overwhelming effect. The cavalry of the Dasheng Dynasty must be at a huge disadvantage if they want to hedge.
If Sheng's army chooses to retreat, its morale will inevitably be greatly damaged, and all Sheng's soldiers will think that the chance of victory is extremely low. And while Sheng's army is withdrawing, as long as the Northern Barbarian cavalry launches a pursuit, even if Sheng Taizu is there, all will not be defeated.
The army is depleted and it is estimated that the losses will be heavy.
In the age of cold weapons, the outcome of many wars often did not depend entirely on the number of people, but on morale.
Therefore, the Sheng army at this time must not retreat, but can only put everything on the line and make a huge gamble.
The battle formations of both sides have been deployed, and of course Zhao Haiping will not act rashly, because he knows that the Northern Barbarian army will definitely attack first.
In the eyes of Mahali, the leader of the northern barbarians, Sheng's army had penetrated deep into Mobei and was exhausted from the march for several days. At this time, it even recklessly broke into the ambush site that he had carefully designed. It was already a piece of fat.
If you don't take the initiative to attack in this situation, what are you waiting for? Are you waiting for Sheng Jun to collapse on his own?
The opportunity cannot be lost.
For Sheng Taizu, all the previous preparations were aimed at severely inflicting heavy damage on the Northern Barbarians, so they must not retreat at this time. And for the Northern Barbarians, the same could not be said.
Sure enough, smoke and dust rose from the mountain opposite.
The heavy cavalry of the Northern Barbarians are on the move!
These armored heavy cavalry charged towards the center of Sheng's army and came crashing down with a commanding force, like the ground cracking and a mountain falling.
Countless horse hooves stepped on the ground, causing rumbling tremors, which was unstoppable!
Mahali was obviously extremely convinced that no infantry or cavalry in this world could stop the charge of the condescending heavy cavalry.
If Da Sheng Dynasty uses any troops to meet the enemy, there will only be one result, and that is to be run over by the ruthless cavalry and directly scattered!
But they didn't expect that what greeted them was not any infantry or cavalry, but the first arms created by the Dasheng Dynasty.
Divine Machine Camp!
Guns, artillery, and countless black muzzles were aimed at the unstoppable Northern Barbarian heavy cavalry charging from high places.
"boom!"
"boom!"
Guns and cannons fired in unison, shaking the sky and the earth!
The commander of the Shenji Battalion did not attack immediately, but waited for the heavy cavalry to enter the range of the muskets, and then ordered the guns and artillery to fire at the critical moment.
The huge sound completely drowned out the sound of the Northern Barbarians' horse hooves, and the bullets and artillery shells were shot into the battle formation of the heavy cavalry along with the diffuse smoke. Those armors with excellent defensive effect against cold weapons were as brittle as a shell in front of the guns and cannons.
A piece of paper, whether it is a soldier or a war horse, all flesh and blood is flying!
The steel giant, which weighed almost half a ton, collapsed, its blood staining the withered grass in Mobei red.
The surviving cavalry tried to pull out their legs from the fallen horse, but was quickly trampled by the cavalry behind them who could not dodge.
Then a group of cavalry rushed up and were killed by a new round of guns.
The soldiers of the Shengjun Shenji Battalion are arranged in three rows. The soldiers at the front are only responsible for shooting, the soldiers at the back are responsible for loading, and the soldiers in the middle are responsible for passing guns. In addition, there are various other auxiliary units that interact with each other.
Cooperate.
"retreat!"
After throwing away thousands of corpses, these arrogant Northern Barbarian heavy cavalry finally realized that something was wrong and retreated hastily.
They want to go back to the top of the mountain and adjust the array.
And Zhao Haiping also knew that the fighter plane was coming!
Although Sheng's army's firearms were powerful, they could not always count on the Northern Barbarian cavalry to rush in stupidly.
After the Northern Barbarian cavalry suffered this loss, they will definitely be more cautious next time, and it is hard to say whether the Shenji Battalion can still achieve such results.
If you want to severely damage the enemy, you still need cavalry.
Because in this era, only cavalry has high mobility, and only cavalry has the ability to break up the enemy's formation and decide the outcome in a battle.
Thinking of this, he immediately ordered.
The Shengjun cavalry on both wings began to attack the Woodlands Mountains ahead!
For Sheng's army, this was the only opportunity. After all, the elite Northern Barbarian cavalry charging from the center had just retreated, and their formation was not in order. When they wanted to return to the top of the mountain, they would inevitably cause a certain amount of chaos.
Take this opportunity to attack the enemy's two flanks. As long as you can make a breakthrough and seize some of the hills as commanding heights, the battlefield situation on both sides may be reversed.
But it is obvious that the Northern Barbarian cavalry are not incompetent.
Arrows rained out from the tops of the mountains on both sides, and armor-piercing heavy arrows blocked the sky. With the advantage of the high ground, the advancing army was struggling to move forward.
Soon, the Northern Barbarian cavalry on both sides also rushed down to confront Sheng's army!
Although the forwards of Sheng's army suffered heavy casualties, it was naturally impossible for them to collapse at the first touch when Sheng Taizu was personally conducting the expedition. They still fought to the death and the two sides fell into a stalemate.
The heavy cavalry from both sides collided violently, and many soldiers were knocked off their horses. However, as long as they could get up after dismounting, they immediately drew out their swords or scimitars and hacked together with the enemy.
The battle between the two wings soon became tense.
"Keep the formation and press forward!"
Zhao Haiping gave an order, and the military formation in the center also began to move forward.
Under the intimidation of the Shenji Battalion, the Northern Barbarians' heavy cavalry did not dare to attack the center rashly. The horses moved their hooves anxiously on the hillside, but they still maintained an extremely strict formation.
At the highest point, the Northern Barbarian leader Mahali and many of his princes looked down at the army of the Dasheng Dynasty.
It's a pity that the distance between the two sides is still very far, and with low attack and high attack, the range of Shenji Battalion's guns and artillery is greatly restricted.
As the battle situation on both wings became tense, the heavy cavalry in the center of the Northern Barbarians also began to support both sides.
It was obvious that the central position was at a stalemate at this time. Shengji's Shenji Battalion had already set up its formation and its guns and artillery were set up. The Beiman heavy cavalry had suffered heavy losses after charging once and did not dare to move again.
But Sheng Jun did not dare to rush forward rashly, because once the heavy cavalry was used to charge, it meant that the firearms of the Shenji Battalion could no longer provide cover. After the two sides fought together, the muskets and artillery would accidentally injure their own people.
Once it becomes a cavalry hedge, the Northern Barbarian cavalry occupying the high ground will have a greater advantage.
Therefore, the key at this time lies in the battle between the two wings.
If Sheng's army wins, it means that they can use their cavalry to pull out one of the mountaintops and use it as a fulcrum to launch an attack on the Northern Barbarians' main formation.
On the other hand, if the Northern Barbarians win, they can take advantage of the situation and directly eat up all the Sheng Army's cavalry on the flanks, and then make a roundabout attack on the flanks and rear of the Sheng Army.
Zhao Haiping's hand held the horse's rein tightly. Every minute and every second at this time was very difficult, but he knew that the situation was still unclear and he must not act rashly.
A battle with cold weapons is like cutting flesh with a blunt knife. Soldiers collide one after another. The two armies may fight for several hours. It is completely unlike the era of hot weapons, where the firepower of heavy machine guns pours down and can kill the enemy in an instant.
The entire army was exposed.
But it is precisely because of this that concentration is needed even more.
As the sun gradually sets in the west, the battle on the flanks finally begins to show a clear trend.
But this trend is not good news for Sheng Jun.
The Northern Barbarian Cavalry has gained the advantage!
After marching for a long time, the physical strength of Sheng's army was not at its peak, let alone fighting high with low. Although there were more people and they all fought bravely, they gradually fell behind with the increasing number of Northern Barbarian cavalry.
Downwind.
Some cavalry generals have died heroically, or were hit by several arrows and forced to retreat.
Zhao Haiping's eyes swept across the two wings, and then quickly looked back.
The battle damage was very high...
In the era of cold weapons, the battle losses that the army can withstand are very low. If there is only 5%, it is very likely that the organizational structure will collapse, causing the entire battle to develop in the direction of rout. If it can withstand 10% or even 15% of battle losses, then in the cold war
In the age of weapons, they were already a great elite force.
But now, the battle losses on both wings of Sheng's army were already teetering on the edge of collapse.
Once one side collapses, the consequences will be disastrous.
There are already generals who are ready to lead troops to support the Sheng army on both wings, because the Northern Barbarian cavalry has divided its troops several times to support the two wings.
But Zhao Haiping didn't say anything, so naturally no one dared to act rashly.
Zhao Haiping looked at the high hillside in front of him, seeming to have locked onto the target he was looking for across a long distance.
He slowly closed his eyes, seeming to be thinking about what kind of mentality Sheng Taizu must have had when facing this situation.
Is it boiling blood? Or...no regrets in this life?
Finally, Zhao Haiping opened his eyes, raised his hand, and quickly issued a few instructions.
The general beside him was stunned.
"Your Majesty! This..."
But before they had time to say anything, Zhao Haiping had already raised his gun and galvanized his horse, charging towards the hillside ahead!
"kill!"
Behind Zhao Haiping, a roar broke out in an instant, and five thousand of the most elite cavalry followed closely behind him, rushing straight towards the Northern Barbarian cavalry on the hillside!
Once he leaves the formation, it means that the supreme commander has become a member of the soldiers. Even if he wants to issue new orders, it will be difficult.
Therefore, Zhao Haiping brandished his big gun and issued his last command in this battle while charging.
"We meet on a narrow road! The brave one wins!
“Long live Dasheng!!”
Five thousand elite cavalry were like a whirlwind, following closely behind Zhao Haiping, and launched an attack on the main formation of the Northern Barbarian cavalry.
At the same time, the Shenji Battalion received the order, dispersed to both sides, rushed towards the anxious battle lines on both wings, and violently shot the Northern Barbarian cavalry on the left and right with guns and cannons!
Smoke was rising, and the sound of gunfire was endless.
The Northern Barbarian cavalry who continued to reinforce the left and right wings were shot by guns and immediately fell into chaos.
The originally unsustainable two wings were finally greatly relieved by the addition of the Shenji Battalion.
But in the end, it is in the middle that determines the outcome.
Seeing that Sheng Jun actually started to charge with heavy cavalry, the Northern Barbarian cavalry showed a look of astonishment on their faces.
But after the shock, a smile flashed back.
The reason is very simple. At this time, the Northern Barbarian cavalry are still occupying the high ground and are in neat formation. Even if they are attacked, they will not necessarily collapse. Moreover, they have strong bows, crossbows and armor-piercing arrows in their hands, and they have a long range when shooting arrows down the mountain.
Advantage.
The next scenario is likely to be the same as the battle on the two wings. The armor-piercing arrows are fired first, and then the cavalry counterattack. No matter how you look at it, the Northern Barbarian cavalry will have a greater advantage.
Mahali waved his hand: "Fire the arrow!"
"Whoosh!"
"Whizzing!"
The armor-piercing arrows made a sharp sound as they cut through a perfect arc and shot toward the Sheng army below.
It is not easy to shoot at the fast-moving cavalry, but these northern barbarians are good at cavalry shooting after all, and with so many arrows shooting at the Sheng army's formation at the same time, they can always hit some.
What surprised the Northern Barbarian cavalry was that these armor-piercing heavy arrows shot at the Shengjun cavalry did not have much effect.
These cavalry are still charging forward!
As the distance between the two sides narrowed, the Northern Barbarian cavalry noticed that the armor on this elite cavalry seemed to be different from the armor of other Sheng troops.
All are heavily armored!
Not only that, the horses of these elite cavalry of the Sheng army are also carefully selected and have strong bodies. They are not inferior to the strongest horses in the Northern Barbarian army. Therefore, they have extremely strong load-bearing capacity and can bear such heavy armored cavalry.
The cavalry were as fast as the wind and the remaining clouds, and before Mahali could react, they had quickly closed the distance.
The galloping Shengjun cavalry have also drawn their bows and arrows to fight back!
The heavily armored horse archers also have strong lethality at long range.
Although the range of the riding bow is lower than that of the foot bow, and the range will be affected when shooting from bottom to top, this difference in range is quickly made up by the foot power of the war horse.
When they rushed in front of the Northern Barbarian cavalry with the first round of arrows, the Sheng army counterattacked with the arrows.
"rush!"
Mahali finally couldn't wait any longer, because the cavalry needed a certain distance to increase their speed and avoid being at a disadvantage when they collided.
The Northern Barbarian cavalry, which could no longer hold back any restraint, immediately launched a countercharge against the 5,000-strong army rushing down the mountain!
But before the actual battle between the two sides, an ominous premonition flashed through Mahali's heart.
Because the military strength seems to be somewhat insufficient.
He sent too many troops to support the two wings before!
It's just that Mahali still firmly believed that the Northern Barbarians would win. After all, the cavalry at this time was their entire family and they were absolutely elite. Many brave and capable princes were among them. What's more, they charged from top to bottom and naturally had an advantage.
But soon, he realized that he was wrong.
Because the Shengjun cavalry charging at the front actually stretched out their black muzzles towards them.
Moreover, there are still three muzzles!
The three-eyed blunderbuss had become the standard equipment of the elite cavalry at this time. Although this blunderbuss was much more primitive than the matchlock gun during the period of General Deng Yuanjing, it was after all a weapon most suitable for horseback combat.
In the cavalry's assault and fighting, the situation changes rapidly, and it is basically impossible to reload steadily.
The three-eyed gun can fire three shots in a row. It does not need to be reloaded after it is fired. It can be swung directly as an armor-piercing weapon. It has been favored by Shengjun for hundreds of years.
"boom!"
As smoke erupted from the muskets of the Shengjun cavalry in the front row, the opposing Northern Barbarian heavy cavalry had already been hit and fell off their horses before they actually engaged the opponent.
Immediately afterwards, the two torrent of iron cavalry collided with each other!
Meeting on a narrow road, no matter how many strategies were used, it was meaningless. At this time, the elite cavalry of this prosperous army was inspired by His Majesty to personally lead the charge. Their morale had reached its peak, and they had been waiting for a fighter at the foot of the mountain. At this time, they finally took action, with vigor and vitality.
Just like a newly forged sword, it is invincible to anyone who blocks it!
There is not a big gap between the military strength of the two sides.
But victory or defeat often depends on certain details.
For example, the heavy armor of these Sheng army's elite cavalry, the three-eyed blunderbuss, and the invincible confidence infected by Sheng Taizu.
In the chaotic battle, Sheng Jun's heavy cavalry began to break through layer by layer.
Fight from the foot of the mountain to halfway up the mountain, and then fight from halfway up the mountain to the top of the mountain.
Group after group of Northern Barbarian cavalry were devoured, divided, and torn apart. The Sheng army in front of them was like a huge guillotine. No matter how many cavalry were filled in, it could not satisfy its appetite.
It's a mess.
Amid the neighing of the war horses and the clouds of smoke and dust, Mahali saw a flash of bright yellow.
Wearing golden armor, the founding king of the Dasheng Dynasty rushed past all the Northern Barbarian cavalry in front of him as if he were a god descending to earth, as if he were in an uninhabited land, with the tip of his spear pointed directly at Mahali's position.
Behind this Sheng Taizu, countless elite cavalrymen of the Sheng army were also desperately trying to catch up with him. However, at this moment that seemed to be frozen, Mahali's field of vision seemed to be filled with his own soldiers, but he felt that his own soldiers were everywhere.
These soldiers cannot save themselves.
Because the bright yellow ray continued to expand, until the sharp tip of the spear pierced his chest in the next moment.
"puff!"
An extremely powerful impact came from the tip of the gun.
Mahali even had the illusion that this gun had more than just the impact of a war horse.
It seems that there is also...the distance of traveling thousands of miles from inside the pass to the outside of the Great Wall, the pent-up anger from the two-month long march, or maybe it is the land of Shenzhou, the humiliation of China being trampled under the feet of foreigners for hundreds of years.
Yanyun, the northern barrier, has been lost for more than four hundred years.
But Sheng Taizu only used one year to recapture it.
Now, Sheng Jun crossed Yanyun and came back to this land that had given birth to countless enemies, but they had never been familiar with it.
At this time, six to seven hundred years had passed since the last Central Plains army expedition to Mobei and severely defeated the enemy here.
This shot seems to be the surging trend condensed by the lament of countless Central Plains people over hundreds of years that "the remaining people are all in tears in the dust".
But this time, the Northern Barbarians' proud blade finally fell to Sheng Jun's more powerful blade!
Mahali's body flew into the air, and then fell suddenly.
The impact of the war horse was still unabated, and the spear dragged Mahali's body across the dead grass on the ground before finally stopping after a few meters.
Zhao Haiping's hands suddenly exerted force, and with the impact of the war horse, Mahali's body was firmly nailed to the ground.
Then, he watched Sheng's army's elite cavalry galloping past him, continuing to pursue the remaining Northern Barbarian cavalry like wind and clouds.
The sun has set in the west, and the setting sun is like blood.
In the chaotic battlefield, Zhao Haiping looked at the setting sun in the distance, and a strange feeling emerged in his heart.
Although the time spans hundreds of years, the culture and inheritance of a nation and a civilization bring distant souls together.
For a moment, I couldn't figure out who I was.
Until a line of system prompts appeared in his field of vision.
