The cavalry rushed like a torrent and rushed to the camp. Suddenly there was a muffled sound in front of them, and the front army's horses neighed and fell into a big pit.
The cavalry behind were caught off guard and all fell into the pit. The pit was two to three feet in diameter. More than a hundred people fell into the pit and were crushed to death, screaming in agony.
Yan Ba also rushed forward at this time and roared: "It's a small trick!"
Pulling up the reins fiercely, the man clung to the horse's back. The horse raised its head high and fought hard, carrying his huge body and forcefully crossing the pit.
"Kill!" Yan Ba was enraged and led his troops straight to the Di camp.
At first he overturned a tent, only to find that there was no one inside. He roared forward and broke through several tents one after another. When he saw that there were actually hay and firewood in the tents, his heart suddenly sank.
"No, there's an ambush!" The angry Yan Ba seemed to have a bucket of cold water poured on his head. He calmed down instantly and hurriedly called for the soldiers to retreat.
However, the cavalry were extremely fast. They all swarmed down from the mountain and had to go around pits. There were very few places to turn around. At this time, they had all rushed into the camp. How easy was it to turn back?
Although it was already early summer, in the Xiliang area, vegetation had just sprouted at this time and everything was dry. A large thorn bush in the east suddenly ignited a fire, forming a sea of fire in an instant.
The Di people's camp was right next to the grass. The morning breeze blew, the fire spread, and the thick smoke billowed. In a blink of an eye, they couldn't tell their direction. The Xiliang army was covered in sight and huddled together in the camp.
In the chaos, an ambush force also broke out in the willow forest to the south. They fired a round of rockets in front of the tent and then flew away. The fire surrounded the entire camp. The Xiliang army crowded and trampled them, causing countless casualties.
Yan Xing was arriving in the valley ahead and ordered people to bury the bodies of the Qiang people. After all, they were allies. If he ignored it and spread the news to the Dangxiang tribe, it would cause another fight.
While resting, he saw black smoke filling the front, rising straight into the sky, and he hurriedly led his troops to respond.
"Fell into another trick!" Seeing the thick smoke filling the valley and the fire still burning under the scorching sun, Yan Xing was so angry that his face turned livid.
People kept coming out of the camp on fire. Some people were burned, rolling on the spot, and screaming. It was frightening to hear it in the clear sky in broad daylight.
Yan Xing led his troops closer and saw that there were still struggling men and horses in the big pit. He ordered people to come forward to rescue them, but most of them were disabled, with broken bones and tendons, and were in unspeakable pain.
Yan Ba led more than a hundred soldiers back in embarrassment, their clothes and armor were in tatters, and their faces were black and gray. When they saw Yan Xing leading his troops, he knelt in front of his horse to plead guilty.
Looking at the burning camp, screams could be heard from time to time in the thick smoke. Yan Xing's face sank like water. He was secretly happy at the loss of the Qiang soldiers before and didn't take it seriously. At this time, more than two thousand of his own troops were burned to death. The corners of his eyes twitched in distress.
This time, in order to capture Ma Chao, Yan Ba was ordered to lead the elite to pursue the enemy. This was his own part. To compete with Han Sui, the capital for future hegemony was reduced to ashes.
Yan Xing secretly gritted his teeth, pointed to the woods, and ordered: "Send a team of cavalry to investigate."
"Yes!" A cavalryman on the left galloped forward. When they reached the edge of the forest, they were cautiously tested. Dozens of people cautiously entered the woods.
Yan Xing watched helplessly as the camp turned into ashes, unable to do anything. After suffering several heavy losses, he finally felt that what Cheng Yi said was reasonable. The dense forest in front of him made him very wary.
The cavalry who escaped from the sea of fire gathered at the mouth of the valley. They were all unrecognizable and lay on the ground gasping for air. There were densely packed soldiers crawling next to several mountain springs.
Soon the cavalry in the forest reported that there was no ambush inside, but the front was empty and Ma Chao and Di Ren were nowhere to be seen.
"How unreasonable, Ma Chao is a thief, dare to come out and fight me head-on?" Yan Xing gritted his teeth, his anger had nowhere to vent.
Yan Ba was also eager for revenge and said: "Uncle, the Di people were in the camp just now. This is their pasture and their territory is around. If they go far away, they will be attacked by other tribes. They can't go far."
"Revenge!" Yan Xing took a deep breath, sent sentries to investigate the surroundings, and ordered Chengyi to transport a batch of grain and grass first.
More than a dozen teams of exploration horses scattered in search of traces of the Di people. Yan Xing led his troops through the woods, camped on the river bank, and personally inspected the valley.
As the sun was about to set, Yan Xing turned back from Nanshan, frowning. The mountains to the south were complex and jagged, which was not conducive to the movement of war horses. Where did the Di people escape to?
When he was wondering, he suddenly saw black smoke rising from behind the mountain in the direction he came from. Yan Xing asked, "Have the bodies of the Qiang people not been disposed of yet?"
The soldier replied: "It has been buried in the forest behind the mountain."
Yan Xing's heart suddenly jumped and he asked anxiously: "Where did the fireworks come from?"
He set up his camp behind the woods. If he hadn't been patrolling the Nanshan Mountains and being blocked by dense forests and ridges, it wouldn't have been easy to spot the black smoke.
Just as he was about to send someone to investigate, he saw a man coming on horseback, shouting: "Report to General, the Di people attacked the grain and grass, and all the vehicles were burned down."
"Trash!" Yan Xing was furious and hurried back to the camp and ordered Yan Ba to lead the rescue force.
Before the men and horses were dispatched, Cheng Yi came in a panic and said helplessly: "General Yan, we... better retreat!"
Yan Xing roared angrily: "The rear camp still has food and grass, why should we retreat?"
Cheng Yi looked miserable and said helplessly: "The grain and grass were attacked just now, and I immediately led the troops to rescue. Unexpectedly, they had already ambushed the rear camp. There was sulfur buried at the bottom of the granaries left behind, and all the grain and grass had been burned."
"That's unreasonable!" Yan Xing's eyes were red and he waved his fists, "What do you do for food?"
Cheng Yi sighed: "The enemy has many tricks and tricks, which are hard to guard against. Ma Chao must get help from experts. If we don't find out this person, it's better not to advance rashly. It's better to..."
"I will not retreat, I will never retreat!" Yan Xing roared: "If you retreat at this time, how can I explain to General Han?"
After losing so many soldiers, horses and food, Ma Chao has not even been seen yet. If Han Sui finds out, his status will plummet in the future, and he may even be beheaded on the spot. He must defeat the enemy as soon as possible to make up for his mistakes.
Cheng Yi said helplessly: "But there is no food and grass, what should we do?"
"Eat horse meat!" Yan Xing narrowed his eyes slightly and said coldly: "I will be able to find Ma Chao's whereabouts within ten days at most. He is nearby."
Cheng Yi also understood that he could not escape the blame for this defeat. Seeing that he refused to retreat, he had to take the initiative to lead troops on patrol, hoping to find Di's whereabouts as soon as possible.
Yan Xing also divided his troops to hunt nearby and found all the injured and burned horses in the camp to make dry food.
Three days passed, but nothing was found. On the contrary, the Di people appeared in the woods from time to time. Sometimes they fired arrows to sneak attack, sometimes they beat drums and shouted, which shocked the Xiliang army and found it difficult to calm down.
The horse meat was sour and hard to swallow, even worse than wild vegetables dug from the mountains. The Xiliang army suffered a lot, their morale became increasingly low, and complaints arose among the army.
Cheng Yi saw that the morale of the army was low, so he persuaded Yan Xing to retreat, first join up with Han Sui's army, and then try to capture Ma Chao. The troops and horses staying in this mountain made him always uneasy.
It feels like a prey being targeted by wolves, and may be destroyed at any time!
