Neither Zhang Xiu nor Han Sui expected that they would meet face to face at Niushou Mountain east of Zhanjuan County.
The first to confront each other were the scouts from both sides.
At the forefront of the fifty-mile radius of Niushou Mountain, both sides met each other without warning. The person who came out to inspect this time was Zhang Xiu's newly appointed commander of the Tanma camp, Jiang Ren, nicknamed Bojun.
After Guo Kai died in battle, Zhang Xiu ordered people to bury his bones and personally buried him, which moved the three armies.
Jiang Ren is from Xiliang.
He followed Zhang Ji out of Xiliang and then fought with Zhang Xiu. He fought bravely and had superb riding and archery skills. He was a rare mounted archer in the Xiliang army. After Guo Kai's death, Zhang Xiu appointed him as the commander of the first battalion and led the exploration horse camp.
This southward attack on Huchuquan was extremely important. If the news leaked out in advance, he would be in a passive situation. Zhang Xiu ordered Jiang Ren to personally go out and explore the road ahead, and ordered Wei Yan to lead 3,000 troops as the vanguard.
In the era of cold weapons, the entire marching team consisted of three parts, namely the front army, the middle army, and the rear army, which were the so-called "three armies". The front army was also the vanguard. Its main task was to detect the enemy situation in front and eliminate obstacles in the front army. , destroy small groups of enemies.
The Chinese army is the main force and is controlled by the commander. It maintains contact with the forwards at all times and controls the marching speed. Once a fighter plane appears, it will immediately engage the enemy; the rear army provides food, grass and baggage, and provides rearguard for the large army.
The two sides met each other face to face, and Jiang Ren ordered the attack without hesitation, intending to capture the other side alive. The enemy also reacted very quickly and immediately summoned the left and right exploring horses to kill.
Jiang Ren held a horse spear, clamped his horse and led dozens of soldiers to kill.
The two sides fought, and Jiang Ren was brave and invincible. After the fight, he killed three enemies in a row, and his morale was greatly boosted. The soldiers fought harder and more bravely. When the enemy general saw that the situation was not right, he immediately turned his horse and fled.
Jiang Ren stretched his bow and arrow, and shot through the horse's leg. The horse was in pain, and fell to the ground with a neigh. Jiang Ren rode his horse, captured him alive, and brought him back. Then he led the rest of the troops to further detect the enemy's situation.
At this time, Yan Xing led three thousand vanguard cavalry galloping over.
Yan Xing was shocked when he saw the strange cavalry in front of him. He immediately reined in his horse and looked at the appearance of the cavalry in front of him, but the distance between the two sides was too far and he could not see clearly.
After thinking for a while, Yan Xing decisively ordered: "Kill! Capture the cavalry in front alive!"
When Jiang Ren saw a large group of enemy cavalry approaching, he did not hesitate to lead dozens of men from the horse exploration camp to withdraw towards the rear, because Wei Yan's vanguard troops were not far behind.
Yan Xing led the vanguard troops to pursue Jiang Ren and others. The two sides galloped ten miles and bypassed the small valley in front. On the other side of the valley, Wei Yan had received news from the Tanma camp and led his troops.
The vanguard troops of both sides met in the valley.
Wei Yan was holding a big sword and looked majestic. He had experienced dozens of battles. His face was calmer and he was more calm and collected when facing the enemy. The two armies suddenly faced each other. The main force of the Chinese army behind definitely had no time to react. Under such circumstances, he could not easily engage the enemy, so when he was about 500 steps away from the enemy, he reined in his horse and stopped.
This distance can not only protect the brothers in the Tanma camp from being chased by the enemy, but also have enough space for the horses to charge to prevent the enemy from attacking.
After seeing the enemy's vanguard, Yan Xing wisely gave up the charge.
Because the main force of Han Sui's Chinese army was not ready to fight, they did not dare to fight easily without knowing who the enemy was and how many troops they had.
Both sides maintained restraint and faced off in the valley.
After Jiang Ren led his troops back to their own positions, Wei Yan chose to retreat in an orderly manner.
Yan Xing also led his troops to retreat.
After Zhang Xiu got the news, he was shocked and immediately ordered the army to set up camp. At the same time, he ordered people to call Yan Xing, Xu Shu, and the generals of the three armies.
"We suddenly encountered an enemy situation ahead. General Wei of the vanguard force has already met them." Zhang Xiu said with a sullen face and a cold tone, "According to the information revealed by the detectives who were captured alive, the enemy is Han Sui's troops from Xiliang. Their strength is It’s…50,000!”
When he said the word "50,000", Zhang Xiu's eyes swept over the people on the left and right.
This number is more than twice theirs. More importantly, this place is more than 200 kilometers away and is behind Huchuquan. Fighting Han Sui here will definitely buy Huchuquan enough time to react. .
At that time, when Huchuquan and Han Sui join forces, they will be in a very passive situation.
Xu Shu's brain was spinning rapidly, he twirled his beard, his eyes flashed, he thought for a moment, and said thoughtfully: "My lord, Han Sui must have come here to get the land of the Loop. Why don't we take a detour to let Han Sui pass, and then spread the word about Han Sui?" With the news that the Hetao land is to be captured, can Huchuquan still be able to sit still?"
Yan Xing said: "If this is the case, the whereabouts of our army will be exposed."
Frowning, Zhang Xiu thought carefully and said: "With Han Sui's attack on the Loop, it doesn't matter whether our whereabouts are exposed or not, because Huchuquan will definitely not be able to sit still. Compared to Guanzhong, In other words, his own nest is more important, even if Cheng Yu's tongue is three inches of gold, it will not stop Huchuquan from returning north."
LeBart stood silently behind.
His current identity is Zhang Xiu's hostage, and he is the trump card to force Hu Chuquan to surrender.
"Can Han Sui be fooled?" Ma Chao next to him asked, "When they encounter our army, their plan will definitely be interrupted. Even if we give way, will they still dare to go straight to the Loop?"
Zhang Xiu looked at Lebat with a smile: "Then it depends on whether the temptation is big enough."
Lebat was so scared that he felt like he was on Zhang Xiu's pirate ship.
Xu Shu and Yan Xiang looked at Lebat and immediately understood what Zhang Xiu meant. They laughed, and that gentle smile made Lebat shudder.
In the end, I couldn't help but ask: "Um...what does Marquis Xuan mean? Please explain it clearly."
Ma Chao and Hu Cheer also looked confused.
Don't know what they are laughing at.
Yan Xiang explained: "If our army marches in the name of the Hun Prince, claiming to be assisting Huchuquan in capturing Xiao Pass, how do you think Han Sui will react?"
Hu Che'er said without hesitation: "Hey! There is Lebat's army in front, and Huchuquan's one hundred thousand army behind. If I were Han Sui, I would immediately say that I am also here to help. Otherwise, I will definitely be caught in the attack from both sides. "
Yan Xiang smiled and nodded, "Since Lebat has led a large army to assist again, it means that the land of the Hetao is even more empty. Han Sui will definitely not miss such a good opportunity."
"Oh~" Hu Che'er made an expression as if he suddenly understood, "That's it! My lord is so wise!"
Zhang Xiu smiled and looked at Lebat: "Lebat, tomorrow you will be the commander-in-chief of the three armies. Give the order. The whole army will put on Hun clothes and pretend to be Hun warriors. The army will display the banner of the Hun Prince for Han Sui to see. .”
"Here!"
This matter was left to Yan Xiang and Xu Shu.
LeBart had to agree even if he disagreed.
In this way, while the two sides were still inquiring about the news, Zhang Xiu's army quickly changed into Huns' clothes and changed their flags.
Fortunately, after they captured Shuofang City, they took a lot of things, which were enough for their needs.
Han Sui was dumbfounded when he heard the news.
Huns cavalry?
