The convoy transporting baggage stretches and twists and turns like a long snake.
The entire team numbered nearly ten thousand people!
Of course, there were only a few hundred regular Qin soldiers among them... The vast majority of them were civilians temporarily recruited by the Qin government.
These nearly ten thousand people are just the tip of the iceberg - the Qin State is mobilizing the whole country to prepare for the allied forces of Chu, Wei and Han that are likely to break out after the spring. It is conservatively estimated that there are hundreds of thousands of people in the Qin State currently trekking.
This is because Qin's law is strict and the mobilization ability of Qin's war machine is really strong.
If it were placed in Chu State, it would probably lead to a mutiny!
There was a civil war last year, and there was a heavy snowstorm this year... The government also had to collect grain, do corvee labor, and prepare for war... The people of Qin were miserable!
However, these are not things that a small military commander like Ying Xiao needs to consider.
As night fell, the huge baggage convoy was still trudging along.
Ying Xiao loudly ordered: "Keep going for half an hour! There is a mountain col ahead where you can camp out of the wind."
The Qin army's convoy continued to move forward - marching in the snow was originally extremely painful, but now that it was dark and the vision was unclear, it was even more painful.
Tens of thousands of Qin soldiers and civilians advanced hard, and by the time they reached the 'mountain col' mentioned by Ying Xiao, they were exhausted.
Ying Xiao ordered again: "Set up camp!"
"This place is still one day's walk from Danyu Camp!"
"We have to set off early tomorrow morning and get to Danyu before dark!"
Immediately after this order, the whole team was filled with complaints...but no one dared to argue. Qin's law is extremely strict, and if you miss the deadline, it will be a serious crime of beheading.
Just at this moment, a gust of mountain wind blew by.
A long whistle came from above... Ying Xiao felt confused in his heart...
It's so late, is there anyone on the mountain?
Benedict!
The sound of bowstrings is loud!
Densely packed arrows shot down from the top of the mountain col!
Several Qin soldiers around Ying Xiao were shot to death by random arrows before they could react!
Shock!
An ambush by the Chu people? impossible! How could the Chu people touch this place? How could he know the specific time when his baggage convoy arrived at this mountain col?
Ying Xiao showed the unique calmness of a general. He suppressed the shock in his heart, suddenly pulled out the sword from his waist, and roared: "When attacked... kill up the mountain!"
"Qin Fa - in the battle formation, those who retreat or surrender will die! Family members will sit together!"
"Kill with me——"
…
The reaction of the Qin people was not unpleasant.
For this exhausted team after a long journey, they showed amazing fighting spirit!
Even the civilian men who had been recruited did not flee as Xiong Wuliang had originally expected... Instead, they picked up all the handymen and went to the mountains to kill them desperately, trying to fight back.
Hong Shitou was shocked in his heart, but his face remained calm: "Keep shooting arrows!"
Five thousand elite soldiers, five thousand armed with repeating crossbows.
Dense rain of arrows poured down - Hong Shitou adopted the tactic of releasing arrows in turns to ensure continuous suppression of the rain of arrows.
Even though the Qin people were fierce, they had no effect.
There were only a few hundred Qin soldiers with shields in their hands... The vast majority of Qin people were civilians.
Although these civilians are commendable for their courage... they have no shields in their hands, and they are even less likely to be wearing armor. They are the favorite killing targets of Quyang's new army's standard repeating crossbows... The Chu army's repeating crossbows were condescending and exerted maximum damage. force!
The flying arrows are like locusts, and the corpses are piled up like mountains!
Although it was already dark, the Qin people were still very conspicuous targets on the white snow.
The soldiers of Quyang's new army fired arrows mercilessly, as easily as shooting targets on the school field.
Wherever the arrows splashed, there was a huge rain of blood.
Qin and Chu had been at odds with each other for many years, and although there had been a brief alliance... the Chu people's hatred for the Qin people had not diminished at all.
Especially Quyang County - when Xiong Wei was still alive, Quyang Jun's lineage was very popular in the Chu State... It was all the damn Qin State, which taught Quyang County to be in decline for several years... If the young master hadn't been wise and resourceful and worked hard to govern, I'm afraid Quyang would have been there long ago. It was defeated.
Now that we are going into battle for revenge, no one will be soft-hearted!
The standard equipment of Quyang's new army officers is that each person carries thirty arrows - five thousand elite soldiers carry a total of 150,000 arrows.
It sounds like a lot... but the repeating crossbows equipped by Quyang's new army shoot very fast, and within a short time, all the arrows have been fired.
"General Hong Qian, we have no arrows!"
Hong Shitou brazenly drew his sword in his hand, stood up and shouted -
"The target is gone, draw your sword and kill the enemy!"
Five thousand soldiers of the new army, who had been recuperating for a long time, stood up from the warm snow tent, roared and rushed down, stepping on the corpses of the Qin army, and charged with all their strength!
…
Ying Xiao relied on the soldiers around him to defend him desperately with shields raised, and luckily survived the rain of arrows. When he raised his head again, his heart dropped.
The corpses of Qin people are everywhere!
The white snow was covered with blood stains.
At this time, the Chu army swooped down from the mountain... Ying Xiao took a breath!
The Chu general at the head was very brave. He held a spear in his right hand and a sword in his left hand. He stabbed and stabbed him straight down... Even though the people of Qin were brave, their equipment was too poor to stop the Chu general.
In the blink of an eye, the Chu general rushed to the nearby area, swung his sword, and actually cut off Ying Xiao's battle flag!
Without the guidance of banners, the Qin people immediately dispersed. The soldiers of Chu chased them everywhere with confidence and boldness, swords raised and lowered.
Ying Xiao roared in despair - all the Chu troops in front of him were wearing armor, and they were obviously top-notch elites.
But he just can't figure it out!
How did these Chu troops find out where the Qin army's food routes were?
How did he travel across dozens of miles to set up an ambush here?
How did you know the specific time when the baggage arrived?
It's impossible to just wait in the snow forever, right?
Qin Fa, the defeated will die... Although Ying Xiao is a prince of the royal family, he may have a chance to save his life... but he feels too shameless to go back.
He waved his sword and was about to rush forward and fight the Chu general to the death!
But he was grabbed by the soldiers around him: "General! Don't be impulsive!"
"Young Master doesn't know the situation here yet. The general still needs to go back alive and report to the Young Master truthfully... You can't die in battle just because of your anger..."
Ying Xiao's eyes were about to burst, but he could only grit his teeth: "Withdraw...withdraw!"
"Disperse and break out!"
…
The dust from the battlefield had settled, and large swaths of dead bodies were piled up in the mountains.
Hong Shitou laughed heartily - this battle was a blast!
"General Hong Qian - the bodies of the Qin army are countless, and our army's casualties are less than thirty! Most of them are minor injuries!" A soldier came to report happily.
Hong Shitou was startled for a moment, and then he laughed even more heartily.
Although there is no specific number of casualties of the Qin people, it is conservatively estimated that there are thousands of corpses in the mountain col... but the elite soldiers under his command only have dozens of casualties!
too exaggerated!
But if you think about it carefully, it makes sense——
First of all, what was in front of them was not the regular army of the Qin State, most of them were just unarmed civilians.
Secondly, the Chu army has been recharging its strength and waiting for work, while the Qin army has traveled a long distance, endured the cold wind in the snow, and rushed around all day, and is already exhausted...
Third, the Chu army laid an ambush again, calculated deliberately and unintentionally. The first wave of arrows rained down, and the Qin people's baggage team had suffered heavy casualties.
Finally, the Chu army's equipment was very sophisticated - a full set of iron armor and repeated crossbows. Killing these Qin citizens was simply a dimensionality-reducing blow.
After a long time, Hong Shitou stopped laughing and ordered in a deep voice——
…
