The enemy troops walked in step by step and were already within the 200-step line.
"Crossbow ready!"
Three thousand crossbowmen raised their crossbows, and the cold and sharp crossbow arrows pointed at the sky at a 45-degree angle.
A lieutenant general shouted loudly: "Shoot!"
‘Ka! Ka! Ka!’ A crossbow machine sounded, and three thousand crossbow arrows rose into the air, forming a cloud of arrows in the air, and swooped down like locusts on the Tubo soldiers rushing towards the formation.
The Tibetan general shouted, and the running Tibetan soldiers stopped running, knelt down on one knee, and raised their shields high.
'Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!'
The dense crossbow arrows shot through the snowflakes flying in the sky into the Tibetan army.
Each crossbow bolt was inserted deeply into the muddy ground, and was inserted into the shield raised high. The shield of the Tibetan army was made of pine wood as the base, and covered with two layers of tough yak hide. It was very strong, and ordinary crossbow bolts and
None of the arrows could penetrate the shield, and the shield was so large that it completely covered the vital parts of the Tibetan soldiers.
This was also a defensive weapon developed against the powerful crossbows of the Tang army after hundreds of years of fierce fighting between Tubo and the Tang Dynasty. The effect was very obvious.
After firing a round of crossbow arrows, none of the Tubo soldiers was hit by the arrows. The Tibetan leader shouted, and the two thousand soldiers got up again and attacked the Tang army two hundred steps away...
Guo Song's expression became serious. He realized that he had underestimated the enemy. The enemy's sentries were wiped out by the scouts in the woods. It was just because they were not used to fighting in the woods, but the Tang army was very good at it. That's all. It must not be done.
This shows that the Tibetan army has low combat capabilities.
From the attack of these two thousand soldiers, we can see that they are orderly and well-organized. They are a well-trained army. No wonder the Tang army and the Tubo army always lost more than they won in battles in history. Their personal bravery and training are effective.
Su, such an army is indeed terrifying.
Although the opponent uses daggers and shields, this is actually equivalent to a sword-and-shield army. As long as they are used skillfully, they are no less lethal than spears. Once they enter close combat, the Tang army's spears will be helpless, while the Tubo army's
However, the dagger and shield can give full play to their flexible advantages. At this time, the Tubo soldiers have a greater chance of winning.
Guo Song cheered up. He already knew that he underestimated the enemy, so he would not be careless anymore. He must discover the enemy's weakness as soon as possible.
"The crossbow troops retreated and the heavy armored infantry attacked!"
Seeing that the crossbows were useless, Guo Song immediately made a decision and ordered the crossbowmen to withdraw. The three thousand crossbowmen immediately transformed into spear infantry and gathered behind the heavy armored infantry to protect the back of the heavy armored infantry.
Three thousand heavy armored infantry stood neatly, holding Mo Dao tightly in their hands, with cold eyes and no emotion. They had killed too many enemies and had seen too much blood. In their eyes, the enemy troops coming from the front were about to turn into a mass of blood.
Pile of rotten meat.
‘Woo——’
The trumpet sounded in the Tubo army. Seeing that the enemy archers and crossbow troops had withdrawn, Shang Jiezan immediately ordered the entire army to attack. The 13,000 Tibetan army abandoned their horses and gathered into infantry to attack. The army attacked the Tang army like a sea wave.
go.
The Tang Army's 20,000 cavalrymen were eager to fight. Lieutenant General Li Bing shouted: "Your Highness, come forward to fight!"
Guo Song was as calm as a mountain, with a face as cold as a rock. He saw that the enemy troops were mixed but not chaotic. He did not lose his order in running. They were still in a group of five. If the Tang army rushed forward rashly, they would inevitably lose their formation.
Relying on the enemy, Guo Song fell into chaos. Guo Song had learned the lesson of underestimating the enemy before. At this moment, he would never underestimate the enemy again.
Guo Song shook his head and said sternly: "Instruct the army to stabilize their formation and avoid chaos!"
At this time, Pei Xin and his deputy Yang Xuanying stepped forward and shouted: "Your Highness, please Rong Beizhi and General Yang each lead five hundred cavalry to attack and disrupt the enemy's formation!"
Both of them are strong generals who are good at riding and shooting, so their suggestion is feasible. Guo Song immediately agreed, "Yes!"
Pei Xin was overjoyed. He and Yang Xuanying each led five hundred elite cavalry, one on the left and one on the right, like two sharp swords piercing the enemy's sides. They seemed to cut through the waves and charged into the enemy's ranks.
At this time, two thousand Tibetan vanguard troops finally came to the front. Three thousand heavy-armored infantrymen waved their swords with cold light and slashed at the Tibetan soldiers. The Tibetan soldiers raised their shields to resist, but their shields could not block the extremely sharp swords.
Mo Dao, the shield was split in half, and the blade continued to penetrate the flesh. Blood spattered suddenly, the body was broken, and the heads rolled. Many Tubo soldiers had their heads split in half, with red and white brains flowing all over the ground.
Two thousand Tibetan troops screamed and shouted, encouraging the soldiers to fight fiercely with Mo Dao, but they could not get close at all. If they rushed up, they would surely die, and their death would be extremely miserable.
Despite this, the Tibetan soldiers still rushed forward without fear of death. They were extremely brave and tried to overwhelm the heavy armored infantry. If it were other Tang troops, they might not have been able to withstand it. Unfortunately, they encountered the mountain-like Modao Army, and their bravery could not shake them at all.
If you can't defeat the opponent, you will die quickly.
At this time, the Tibetan army in the rear also came up to fight. The cavalry led by Pei Xin and Yang Xuanying were too small in number. They were like waves in the sea and could not change the discus-like Tibetan army. After they defeated the enemy, they launched an offensive from behind.
The cavalry of the Tang Army collided with the sword-and-shield infantry of the Tubo Army. In the snowflakes flying in the sky, the two sides fought fiercely. The horses of the Tang Army soldiers continued to overturn, and their chests were immediately pierced by another Tubo soldier's sword.
There were also constant corpses of Tibetan soldiers being lifted into the air by the spears of Tang army soldiers.
Guo Song remained extremely calm. He did not participate in the battle, but observed the development of the fierce battle with sharp eyes and observed the enemy's loopholes.
At this time, Guo Song finally discovered a loophole in the Tubo soldiers. The Tubo soldiers often needed three strikes to injure the Tang soldiers, but the Tang soldiers only needed one strike to stab the opponent. This difference lies in the armor defense capabilities of the two sides.
The soldiers of the Tang army almost all wore Mingguang armor, which was strong and light, but the Tubo soldiers wore leather armor. The leather armor could not stop the Tang army's spears from stabbing, nor could it stop the Tang army's armor-piercing arrows.
Guo Song immediately ordered: "Order Pei Xin and Yang Xuanying to each lead two thousand horse archers to shoot the enemy with armor-piercing arrows from the outside!"
This is actually three orders, one is for two people to lead two thousand horse archers each, the second is to fight on the outside, and the third is to shoot the enemy with armor-piercing arrows.
Pei Xin and Yang Xuanying did not play a big role. It was not that they were incompetent. The key was that their fighting methods were wrong. First, they had too few troops. Second, they went to attack the enemy, but they could not break the enemy's formation.
In this case, why not fight in another way?
Pei Xin and Yang Xuanying each led two thousand horse archers to the periphery. They fired arrows at the backs of the Tibetan soldiers dozens of steps away. The arrows were like a rain of arrows, which made the Tibetan soldiers unable to guard against them. They were hit by arrows one after another. Although the arrow wounds were not fatal, they generally bled.
, greatly affecting combat effectiveness.
The Tang army's cavalry cavalry made the Tibetan soldiers extremely angry. Shang Jiezan shouted sharply: "The fifth and sixth teams come forward to fight!"
Two groups of Tibetan soldiers separated and rushed towards the two horse archers respectively. However, the horse archers were as fast as the wind and did not give the Tibetan soldiers any chance. Instead, they continued to shoot rapidly while running, shooting down the Tibetan soldiers one by one.
The appearance of the two cavalry archers, like two catfish mixed into a school of fish, enlivened the entire situation, allowing the Tang army to develop a second advantage based on the advantage of the heavy armored cavalry. The two advantages were superimposed, and the effect was obvious.
The weight of the war began to clearly tilt towards the Tang army.
Shang Jiezan was extremely anxious. He originally expected his army to fight fiercely with the Tang army for most of the day and wear down the Tang army's physical strength. However, it only took the Tang army an hour to gain the upper hand. If they fought for another hour, his army would surely be defeated.
The whole army was destroyed.
A general rushed over and shouted: "Prime Minister, our troops are not as strong as the enemy, and we will suffer heavy casualties. Please retreat!"
The only chance for the Tibetan army to retreat is if the general gives the order. If the general does not give the order to retreat, they will fight to the end, but if they retreat, they will be hunted down by the Tang army.
Shang Jiezan weighed for a long time and finally gave the order: "Send my order and the entire army retreats!"
'Woo--Woo--'
The retreat horns were blown continuously, and the Tibetan army began to gradually retreat. Their retreat was not to turn around and flee, but to leave the battlefield while fighting.
The Tibetan army will finally come to inspect the corpse. If anyone is shot in the back, he will not only die personally, but also his family will be affected, and the whole family will be deprived of slavery.
Guo Song saw the intention of the Tibetan army to retreat, and he ordered: "Pursue them to the end and never let the enemy go!"