Outside Dingxiang City.
This was supposed to be a battlefield where the two armies faced off, but now it has become a arena for spectators.
The Turks crowded the top of Dingxiang City. Jieli led Li Chengqian to the best position at the top of the city, able to have a panoramic view of the two cavalry teams facing each other below.
Li Jing of the Tang Dynasty also led the main men and horses up the gentle slope in the distance, all looking at the battlefield with solemn expressions.
On one side are the most elite cavalry of the Royal Guards of the Turks, and on the other side are the fresh troops of the Tang Dynasty that have been trained for a whole year by the Marquis of the Tang Dynasty. Who can overwhelm the other? I think the person who is most concerned about this issue should be Prince Li Chengqian who is watching the battle on the top of the city.
Hou Junji drew out the long and narrow Tang sword from his waist, and rode his horse to sweep the swords of the soldiers in the front row. "This battle is the first battle for our cavalry of the Tang Dynasty. We must fight brilliantly! For ten thousand years of the Tang Dynasty..."
"Ten Thousand Years of the Tang Dynasty..."
…
On the opposite side, the Turkic Right King was licking the corners of his bloodthirsty mouth with a sneer on his face, as if he was brewing some conspiracy.
The war drums sounded, and Hou Junji gave the order, "Kill!"
Twenty thousand cavalry rushed towards the opposite side. From a distance, it looked like a long log being crushed rapidly. The overwhelming force was shocking.
Cavalry vs. cavalry is usually like this. They line up in a row and fight with swords at the moment of collision.
The Tang Dynasty gave up the bow and crossbow this time. Firstly, the Tang army was not good at shooting while riding. Secondly, they were fully armored. Even the horses had armor on their heads. They could block most flying arrows and were not afraid of the opponent's arrow rain.
Rush in front of the opponent and fight in close combat. This is to use your strengths and avoid weaknesses. The armor on my body can reduce the damage, but the Turk's armor... obviously can't stop the sharp Tang Dao.
On the other hand, the Turks did not line up in a row at the beginning, but stood scattered like this. When the soldiers and horses of the Tang Dynasty began to charge, the other party did not follow suit and just watched helplessly. This made Hou Junji a little puzzled.
On the gentle slope, the famous general Duan Zhixuan of the Tang Army's observation group asked doubtfully: "Commander, what kind of tactics are the Turks doing? The cavalry is the most powerful in combat. They are slow and immobile, waiting for us to attack. They will only be slaughtered." ...It’s not a scam, right?”
Cheng Yaojin said: "Could they have dug a trap in front of them? Are they just waiting for our people to step into it?"
Everyone turned to look at him. Cheng Yaojin scratched his head and said, "Isn't that right? Why are you all looking at me? Did I really guess it right?"
Li Jing laughed loudly and said: "Zhijie, do you know how many manpower it takes to dig a trap for an army of 20,000 people?"
...Cheng Zhijie smiled awkwardly and said, isn't this just a guess?
At this moment, the Turks moved.
"That's weird! What are they doing? The formation is a front-line formation, but they don't charge head-on to the enemy? Instead, they run towards the east?"
"Yes, if you want to use the long snake formation to encircle and suppress us, you should send troops from both ends. This way of doing things is more like running away!"
Old Li Jing's smile froze on his face, and he said in a deep voice: "Turkic generals are very smart. They know that their armor and weapons are not as good as ours, so they use their strengths and avoid weaknesses for the time being, hoping to consume our troops with roaming cavalry and shooting."
"Hey, you're a blind commander. Our horses all have armor, so why are we afraid of him?" Yu Chigong said disdainfully.
Duan Zhixuan retorted: "Don't be careless. Turks grew up on horseback and are best at riding and shooting. And although our equipment is good, it also increases the load on the horse and makes it difficult to fight for a long time."
"Hiss... so insidious? Can Hou Junji do it?" Yuchi Jingde asked worriedly. Although he had a bet with Hou Junji, he still wanted Datang to win this battle.
"It should be fine."
On the battlefield, Hou Junji saw through the opponent's conspiracy at a glance. With a curl of his lips, he immediately ordered the flag bearer to change the team. Everyone put away their melee sabers and replaced them with crossbows.
"Are you going to fight on cavalry and archery? I have already prepared for this. Although my cavalry has not been trained for a long time, they are not as good as you on cavalry and archery since childhood. However, our bows and crossbows are more powerful and have a farther range than yours." Twenty steps, tsk tsk, these twenty steps are your death line."
Sure enough, Hou Junji's response was very good. After the distance between the two sides was reduced to the shooting range, the Tang army fired thousands of arrows. Although the accuracy was not very good, the victory was due to the rain of arrows, and many Turkic cavalry were hit by arrows and fell from their horses.
In just one round, about a thousand people were defeated.
The viewing group on the gentle slope cheered in unison! Well done, a good start.
Li Chengqian on the top of the city couldn't help but excitedly waved his fist, and said with a smile: "Don't be too happy too early, and look down."
King Youxian, who led the Turkic team, was slightly surprised. He obviously did not expect this small change, but although he was not panicked, he still directed the flag bearer to pass the order. No matter how close the distance was, he would still fight for the rain of arrows.
Although they were chasing and escaping, this time they were within the shooting range of the Turks. In other words, both sides could shoot at each other. The Tang army relied on the advantage of wearing armor, and the Turks relied on their more accurate shooting on horseback. Each has its own advantages and disadvantages.
Both sides fired a hail of arrows at the same time. This time the result was evenly divided, each with its own injuries.
The generals on the gentle slope applauded again, but the old commander Li Jing had a stern look on his face, with a hint of worry.
Sure enough, the next moment, the command flag of the Turkic Right King changed again, and the Turkic cavalry, which was originally charging mightily, suddenly changed their formation and dispersed. A group of several hundred people actually ran in different directions. This immediately disrupted the Tang army's deployment.
Now if thousands of arrows were fired at once, they would not be able to cover many people. The Turkic war horses were slightly faster. If they wanted to run away with all their strength, the Tang army, which was fully equipped, would not be able to catch up.
"What does this mean? Run away separately? Hurry up and chase after each other!" Yu Chigong shouted anxiously.
Duan Zhixuan said calmly: "No, we must not chase them separately."
Li Jing nodded, "That's right. Our army's cavalry and shooting are not as good as those of the Turks. The enemy comes and goes like the wind. Once they are separated and pursued, the advantage will turn into a disadvantage, waiting to be shot by someone wandering around."
"Oh... okay, okay, Hou Junji didn't impulsively divide his troops." Yuchi Gong breathed a sigh of relief.
Everyone complained in their hearts, do you think Hou Junji is as reckless as you?
Li Jing sighed: "I'm afraid that this battle will be lost. The opponent keeps skirmishing and shooting, just like a mosquito, biting him from time to time..."
lose? how come? How could it be so fast?
quick? No, of course you won’t lose quickly, but you will lose in the end. Old Li Jing did not explain that with his many years of experience, he could basically see the results at a glance, but the same could not be said for his group of people.
The facts turned out to be as Li Jing had guessed. A team of two hundred Turks were like mosquitoes, attacking and biting them from time to time. There may only be three or five people at a time, but it can't stand against the opponent's nearly a hundred such teams.
Although the war horses of the Tang Dynasty were elite, they were still inferior to the most elite cavalry of the Turkic Royal Court.
Hou Junji looked at the gradually losing soldiers and secretly cursed him as despicable! He gritted his teeth, looked fiercely, and ordered the flag bearer to pass on the order, prepare for the rain of bows and crossbows, not to chase randomly, look for the flag, and only shoot at one Turkic skirmisher at a time.
Anyway, there are going to be battle losses, so come on, trade your life for your life, and shoot ten thousand arrows at one, almost 20,000 arrows, covering only 200 of your people? Where are you running?
After a round of arrows, none of the Turkic skirmishers who were targeted survived, and they were all nailed into hedgehogs.
Everyone on the gentle slope shouted in unison again, "Okay!" Beautifully done. Lao Hou is really a cruel person.
Old Li Jing shook his head, "Exchanging lives for lives... Well, it seems that there is no other way."
