The sun was shining brightly, and although it had not yet entered the scorching summer season, the sun was still very scorching, because there were a large number of slaves in the powerful army, which slowed down the march a lot.
"General, something is very wrong with these slaves." Yang Tie rode his horse to Po Chaoqi and said in a deep voice: "These slaves are completely different from the ones before. They have no joy at all after being rescued; now they seem to be deliberately delaying time."
Po Chaoqi looked back and sneered: "This place is close to the Northern Turkic Khan and far away from the Great Sui Dynasty. The people here have lived on this land for generations. They have an instinctive rejection of the Central Plains Dynasty. They feel that living here is Even in dire straits, they are far happier than the people in the Central Plains. Even these slaves are no exception. They insist on being slaves of the Turks and do not agree with us."
Yang Tie was dumbfounded. They had the same mentality when they were still Dang Xiangqiang. They would rather live among poisonous insects and ferocious beasts in the deep mountains and old forests, and would rather live in poverty and poverty than agree with the Sui Dynasty or accept the good intentions of the Sui Dynasty. The issue of interests is secondary. The key is an instinctive rejection of "foreign races".
If Tuoba Ningcong hadn't offended the powerful Sui Dynasty, the Qiang people would not have surrendered to the Sui Dynasty, let alone accepted Yang Ji's dispersal and resettlement policy. Of course, they would not have their current status and good life, but at this time Only today did they discover that after becoming the people of the Sui Dynasty, not only were they not as uncomfortable as they imagined, but they were actually a hundred times more nourished than before.
"Let people collect the weapons of these slaves and tell them that when the war comes, they will be distributed to them." Po Chaoqi added.
Yang Tie calmed down and asked quickly: "Do you want to collect the war horses together?"
"No need! Let them continue to ride." Pochaoqi shook his head. The Sui army scouts just came to report that Ashina Qilifushu was leading an army of tens of thousands to fight. Now he expects these horses to make achievements. How can it be confiscated?
"Here!" Yang Tie agreed and sent someone to collect all the weapons of the newly joined slaves.
This naturally caused a strong dissatisfaction. Just when Yang Tie asked the soldiers to forcibly collect the weapons, more than a hundred slaves suddenly rushed away from the surrounding soldiers and flew towards the north.
"You are seeking death!" Yang Tie was furious. He took off the strong bow on his horse, bent the bow and arrows, and was about to shoot these slaves who did not know whether to live or die.
"Stop!" Po Chaoji rode his horse to Yang Tie's front. He looked at the escaped slaves and ordered: "Send an army to chase for a while without charge. Remember, don't kill the slaves." . Otherwise, military law will be engaged.”
Yang Tie looked at Po Chaoqi's rough face in confusion, but he did not dare to delay and quickly followed Po Chaoqi's instructions and sent a group of soldiers to pursue them symbolically. Then he ran back and asked: "General, if these slaves go to notify Ashina Qilifushu, won't they come towards us and kill us?"
"I just want them to come over." Po Chaoqi said: "The task given to us by the king is to kill as many Turks as possible. Although there are many enemies, I don't want to miss this opportunity." He said emotionally: "Your Majesty Instead of looking down upon us because we are Qiang people, we are treated equally and promoted out of the ordinary. This is something I never dared to dream of before. Your Majesty thinks so highly of us and entrusts us with important responsibilities, how can I let him down?"
Although the Qiang people, including Po Chaoqi, don't know what "you treat me as a countryman, and I will repay you as a countryman", their actions are similar. They were originally prepared to be brutally slaughtered by Yang Ji, but the result far exceeded expectations, which also made Po Chaoqi and others determined to sacrifice their lives in retribution. The bloody battle at Bailangyuan is the best proof.
"Ashina Qilifu has an army of fifty or sixty thousand, of which twenty thousand elite soldiers are well-equipped shamans. We only have about twenty thousand warriors who can fight, and they are all light cavalry. If we fight head-on, we will suffer a loss. It will definitely be us. The only thing we can use now is Ashina Qilifushe." Pochaoqi finally said.
"Use Ashina Qilifushu? How to use it?" Yang Tie asked in confusion.
"Take advantage of his eagerness for revenge." Po Chaoqi's eyes flashed with excitement, and he said excitedly: "The Turkic army is still more than seventy miles away from us, but Ashina Qilifushe has three more troops than us. Wan, and he is eager to regain his position and restore his prestige. He will definitely come at a great speed. But after the army has galloped for more than a hundred miles, how much fighting power is left?"
Yang Tie thought about Po Chaoqi's previous arrangements and said suddenly: "What kind of snake is the general trying to attract?"
"Lead the snake out of the hole!" Po Chaoqi chuckled and said summarily: "Ashina Qilifushu is eager to annihilate us, and he has the advantage in military strength, and he also has to give Qimin Laogou and the Turks an explanation. So he Now we are not afraid of fighting, but we are afraid of escaping. Once the slave reveals the news that we are here, he will definitely lead his troops to find us."
"The general is wise!" Yang Tie praised, and then said: "Then what should we do?"
"The Han people have a word called retreat. It means pretending to be afraid of the enemy, and then luring the enemy to attack from afar, while waiting for the enemy to come and die. I plan to follow this method to deal with Ashina Qilifushe. We pretend to be afraid of the enemy. They looked afraid of the battle and retreated to the tribe they conquered." Po Chaoqi said to Yang Tie: "I remember that there were forested hills on the east and west sides of that tribe, which were perfect for us to hide our troops. After we retreated there, , we ambush on the hills on the left and right, and then dig trenches and set traps on the only roads we must pass. Hey, if we annihilate Ashina Qilifushe's army, won't the Turkic Northern Khan Court just let us kill them?"
"The king brought so much kerosene, didn't he just burn the Turkic ancestral grave again? Although he can't do it now, if our subordinates burn it once! It can be regarded as fulfilling a dream of the king."
When Yang Tie heard this, his heart became hot. Since the Han Dynasty, only Yang Shuang, the founding king of Wei Zhao, has captured the Turks' home base and burned the Turks' ancestral tombs. Although the Turks' strength is far inferior to that of the past, if they burn it again, it will be enough for their names to be recorded in the history!
Just when the army turned around and was about to leave, Murong Yan came on horseback to report: "General Pochao, those slaves are still swearing and making trouble, and they even refuse to leave."
Po Chaoqi coldly snorted: "Kill! Kill them all."
Murong Yanwang's pupils shrank, he looked back at the noisy crowd of more than 3,000 people, and couldn't help but take a breath of air. To be honest, he is also a murderous person. These days, he has become accustomed to killings and massacres, but now he was still extremely shocked after hearing Po Chaoqi's words.
Murong Yan said with some reluctance: "General Pochao, half of our soldiers are slaves from various tribes. These are all young and powerful men in front of us. If they are trained and trained, they can become our arms, so why bother?" …”
"When did General Murong become so kind? This is not like your style!" Po Chaoqi swung his sword heavily and said coldly: "These newly joined slaves are no longer useful. If you keep them, they will only become ours." A burden. Besides, the enemy troops are coming, and I don’t have time to train them. Since they dare to cause trouble, they must be responsible for their actions."
"Here!" Murong Yan smiled bitterly when he heard this and did not dare to speak anymore; he was the main attacking general in the Bailangyuan battle. More than 10,000 Qiang soldiers were attacked by him, and about 6,000 of them died; and those people, They are all members of the tribe of Po Chaoqi and Yang Tie.
Because of their responsibilities and missions, they did not make things difficult for themselves, but they did not want them to sincerely accept themselves.
Thousands of soldiers surrounded more than 3,000 unarmed slaves, and cold crossbow arrows were aimed at them.
"You can't kill us, your general promised us." These slaves finally knew they were afraid. They did not expect the Sui army to be so ruthless, nor did they expect the Sui army general to go back on his word.
"I promised you, but you violated military regulations." Po Chaoqi came on horseback, pointed his knife at the slaves, and coldly ordered: "You will bring the blame on yourself, and death is not a pity, kill!"
Following Po Chaoqi's command, thousands of arrows rose into the sky and fell heavily towards the slaves. Continuous wails, miserable sounds, and pleas for mercy continued to sound. Although some people attacked the Sui soldiers, they were stabbed to death by the spearmen surrounding them before they could reach the front of the formation.
"Pack up the arrows and leave immediately." Po Chaoqi looked at the corpses on the ground and asked people to clean the battlefield indifferently, while giving those who were not completely dead with a knife. In less than a moment, more than three thousand slaves died on the grassland, and no one survived.
After finishing cleaning up, the army left the corpses on the ground and returned to the previous tribe; they began to dig trenches and arrange horse traps on the only way into the tribe.
These gadgets are mainly used to counteract the impact and speed of cavalry. They are not difficult to make. All you need to do is dig a hole and lay a layer of wild grass on top.
Before dusk, the scouts sent back news that the Turkic army was invading in large numbers. It seemed that they planned to destroy the Pochao weapon in one go.
"General, the Turkic army is huge, will our trap be effective?" Yang Tie looked at the trap area before the tribe, feeling extremely worried. Although in theory, traps and trenches were powerful weapons against high-speed cavalry, they had never used them before, so he had no idea whether this arrangement would be effective.
Po Chaoqi looked at the sky, then at Yang Tie, and asked sternly: "At this point, we have no retreat. What's the point of talking about this? Whether we can make contributions and become famous all over the world, it depends on this. Fight, are you afraid of death and war?"
"Who said I am afraid of death and war?" Yang Tie was aroused by this, and a majestic anger surged from the bottom of his heart, and he said loudly: "General, don't underestimate people, isn't it just death? Why should you be afraid?"
Po Chaoqi nodded and ordered: "The army will form an array."
The order was conveyed, and ten thousand troops formed a formation behind the trap, and many flags were planted. The banners that covered the sky and the sun concealed the number of troops very well, creating the impression of an army of 20,000 to 30,000 men.
. . . . . . .
When the sun was about to fall into the mountains, the Turkic flag appeared where the sky and the earth met. Soon, a dark cloud swept in from the north, causing the sky and the earth to change color, as if it were a thunderous and huge horse's hooves. The sound made the earth tremble, and the momentum created by more than 50,000 Turkic cavalry was enough to destroy everything.
Ashina Chilifushu saw the Sui soldiers arrayed opposite from a distance, and a look of relief and relief flashed in his cold eyes.
Now that things have happened, he is not afraid of fighting, but he is afraid that he will not fight if he is too powerful. But when he went all the way south from the Northern Khan's Court, the scouts said that the Sui army had escaped. When he faced the empty prairie, Ashina was so angry that he just wanted to curse.
He originally thought that if he won this battle, he would be able to wash away the shame Yang Ji had brought to him. When he returns to the Southern Khan's court one day, he can give an explanation to his father Khan and thousands of Turkic people. Even if there is no hope of succeeding to the throne in the future, no matter what happens, he can still keep his position in the west. But if the damn Po Chaoqi focused on escaping, he, who was also a cavalryman, would not be able to catch up, which would also result in the loss of the opportunity to wash away hatred and shame.
Just when he was in a dilemma, the slaves who escaped finally gave him good news, saying that instead of fleeing, the Sui army planned to line up more than 20 miles away to wait for the enemy.
This news made Ashina Qilifushu overjoyed, so he chased after him non-stop. At this time, when he saw the enemy's flags fluttering, he actually wanted to fight to the death with him. He was not surprised but happy.
He forcibly suppressed the excitement in his heart, ordered the soldiers to reorganize their battle formation two miles away from the Sui army, and set up a front line. The shaman army, which was brave and skilled in fighting and well-equipped, was the main attacking front army. There are more than 30,000 cavalry on the left and right wings. As long as the war between the Shaman Army and the Sui Army was intense, the left and right wings would outflank him from both sides.
When the battle formation is in order, the clarion call for attack is sounded. The Turkic soldiers suddenly rushed toward the powerful military formation.
The charge of 20,000 horses was indeed magnificent. The billowing dust and smoke, the huge shouts and the sound of horse hooves made them look like a flood bursting from a dam.
Ten thousand Sui soldiers, led by Po Chaoqi, quietly looked at the approaching enemy troops. They faced the incoming Turkic cavalry without even moving a step.
This army, which originated from the Great Lakes region, has achieved victory after victory under the leadership of a superb leader, and the victory has also allowed them to successfully hone an invincible spirit and become a true army. The elite divisions are no less different than those of the past.
"This Ashina Qilifushu finally has a better memory and knows to use elite soldiers as the vanguard! But he still thinks too much." Po Chaoqi squinted his eyes and looked forward. Wherever he looked, he saw all the Turkic soldiers had in their hands. Holding a very short horse bow, he was rushing towards them with thunderous momentum.
The power of the charge of the Shaman Army is really amazing. It is no different from the elite divisions of the Sui Dynasty. It is definitely not comparable to the miscellaneous soldiers that Qu Chaoqi has encountered in the past. It is no wonder that they can carry Xue Yantuo's 100,000 troops day and night. attack.
Six hundred steps...
Five hundred and fifty steps...
Five hundred steps... already the edge of the trap area. However, the Shaman Army, which was galloping at high speed, only paid attention to the enemy soldiers in front of them, and did not even think that the crisis originated from the ground, so they rushed into the traps dug in advance without hesitation.
Amidst the wails of the war horses and the screams of the soldiers, the shaman army charging at the front fell on their backs without any warning, while the soldiers at the back kept charging, but they were not tripped by the horses and soldiers who got up in front. He stepped on the robe and continued to rush forward, and then fell into the trap ahead.
This posture has the meaning of "the waves behind the Yangtze River push the waves in front, and the waves in front die on the beach", but one wave after another, and one wave after another, stepped on the previous wave, and finally the wave of shamans reached the range of the Sui army's crossbows. .
"Boohoo!" When the soldiers in front saw the flag waving in front, they immediately fired their crossbows.
A rain of arrows came from the sky!
Since the Warring States Period, the Central Plains have invented powerful crossbows. Since then, crossbow arrows have been the Central Plains army's most lethal weapon against nomadic cavalry. Therefore, the Central Plains dynasty's research on crossbow arrows has reached the extreme.
By the Sui Dynasty, most of the troops were equipped with crossbows. The equipment rate of bows was 100%, and the equipment rate of crossbows was only one-fifth. With such a powerful equipment rate of crossbows, the shaman army gradually lost its mobility advantage. They are just a bunch of living targets.
At this time, the distance between the two armies was less than 200 steps. Even if the Shaman army reacted quickly, it would take a lot of time to change from dense to loose. Moreover, the people in front knew that there were a large number of robes coming from behind. If they stopped, they would Becoming an obstacle to the enemy behind would ultimately harm others and themselves. The only chance at this time was to rush forward and fight with the Sui soldiers, preventing them from taking advantage of their crossbows.
In an instant, the Soul-Chasing Crossbow pierced through people and horses. It would be fine if it hit a person, because the person would realize that the danger behind was greater and would bear the pain and rush forward. But if it hit a war horse, the war horse would not care about so many, they would only use They crawled, stopped, and lifted their hooves to relieve the pain. This slowed down the people ahead, causing them and their owners to be hit and trampled to death by the horses behind them.
Ashina Lifushu watched the brave and skilled soldier fall to the ground inexplicably, and was trampled to death by the soldiers behind him, and then was shot cleanly by slender crossbow arrows. His heart couldn't stop bleeding, and he couldn't help it. He roared loudly: "Come on, order both the left and right wings to kill me."
While running at high speed, it would be difficult for the soldiers to slow down, let alone turn around. If they give a hasty retreat order at this time, it will only become more and more chaotic. For the Turks, it will definitely be a disaster. A catastrophic blow. Ashina Chilifushu saw through this and rushed forward to engage in hand-to-hand combat with the Sui soldiers despite the losses. In this case, the power of the crossbow would not be exerted.
The shaman army was completely in a situation of being beaten. They lost thousands of robes before they even fought. This situation did not frighten them. Instead, it aroused the blood of the shaman army. They roared and ignored the rapid fire. The crossbow arrows forcibly built a path forward with flesh and blood.
At this distance, hundreds of shaman troops fell, and the soldiers on the left and right wings fell into a trap when they charged. Even under the encouragement of the shaman troops, they risked their lives. Kill forward.
Although the crossbows of the Sui army were sharp, they could not completely suppress them, and their numbers were far inferior to those of the Turks. Now the Turks' desperate charge shortened the distance between the two armies at a speed visible to the naked eye.
Po Chaoqi couldn't help but feel moved: The Turks are worthy of being regarded as powerful enemies by the king. These elite soldiers are indeed worthy of the word "powerful enemy" with their bravery and fearlessness of death.
When the Turkic soldiers approached 60 steps, Pochaoji issued a new order: "The spearmen and long sword soldiers come forward to form an array, and the crossbowmen retreat to shoot arrows."
Although Po Chaoqi, Yang Tie and others were Qiang people, they had been generals of the Sui Dynasty for nearly two years and had learned the art of infantry battle formations. At this time, they were on the well-prepared and passive defense side. As early as Before the Turkic army arrived, the tactics of battle were arranged, so the soldiers all knew what their mission was.
Under the command of Po Chaoqi, the spear soldiers and long sword soldiers strode forward, and the crossbow soldiers retreated from the gap, and fired arrows again from behind.
In an instant, countless arrows passed over the heads of the spear soldiers and long sword soldiers and shot at the Turkic army. The sharp arrows pierced into the bodies of the Turkic troops and horses, and red liquid splashed like fountains!
When the Sui army changed formations, the Turkic soldiers were less threatened by crossbows and finally reached the front of the Sui army's formation.
Anger flashed in Ashina Qilifushu's pupils, and he shouted loudly: "Turkic warriors, kill me! Kill all these hateful and hateful invaders!"
As soon as Ashina Lifushu's call fell, the Turkic soldiers, under the command of the trumpet, roared one after another, crossing the previous gap between the two armies like a whirlwind, and fought to the front of the Sui army's formation.
"Whoever is afraid of whom? Come and kill them all." Faced with the powerful intrusion of the Turkic soldiers, Yang Tie fearlessly commanded the spear soldiers and long sword soldiers to attack them.
With blood splattering, the Turkic soldiers, including men and horses, collided with the extended spears and knives. Under the terrifying impact, the spears and knives penetrated from the horse's neck through the back, and then pierced the knight on the horse. body.
Some spear shafts and knife shafts were also broken by the impact. The unabated war horses continued to hit and trample the soldiers behind the weapons to death, but the spear soldiers and long sword soldiers behind them pushed forward again.
After the Sui soldiers sacrificed two to three rows of soldiers, the spears and long knives finally withstood the menacing enemy formation!
The cavalry and light cavalry that have lost their impact are no match for the infantry phalanx. After all, the infantry phalanx is a combination of multiple arms, and they cooperate with each other tacitly and interlockingly.
The infantry phalanx first used overbearing crossbow arrows to offset the strongest impact of the Turkic soldiers. The archers behind them fired again and disrupted the assault formation. The Turkic soldiers who were confused by the trap were chaotic and not as fast as before, so After they only charged through two or three rows of soldiers, they became "the last of a strong crossbow".
The Sui soldiers behind saw that Pao Ze in front was blocking the enemy with his flesh and blood, so they strode forward, stabbed with spears and chopped the enemy soldiers on horseback with long knives. After them, they fought hard to attack. Archery, arrows, crossbows.
Although the Turkic army was large in number, they were huddled together because of this. In addition, the cavalry was far less flexible than the infantry. They soon stagnated like a torrent intercepted by a dam.
