The difference between victory and defeat in a confrontation between two armies is actually only between the morale of the soldiers of the two armies. When the morale of an army is exhausted, it is the time of defeat.
The army's food and grass, equipment and weapons, the number of people, and any small victory or defeat on the battlefield will all affect the morale of the army.
Fu Jian led one million troops to the south, which could be said to be a force that could swallow up the whole world. Compared with the 80,000 Beifu army, the difference in strength was more than ten times. Before the war started, Beifu would have had difficulty gathering morale to resist the enemy.
This is said to be true, but the fact is not absolute.
Wearing white Confucian uniform without any armor, that is a majestic back.
Xie Xuan stood on horseback outside Guangling City. The Beifu soldiers who were in formation immediately burst into shouts, and everyone shouted his name as Commander Xuan. Even though the soldiers knew that they would soon face a million-strong Hu army, their morale was still high. reached its peak.
This is a battle that concerns the survival of the Han people. This is a battle that concerns life and death. It is precisely because Fu Qin went south that the soldiers of Beifu gathered the will to resist to the death.
The morale of such Beifu soldiers, under the command of Xie Xuan, has become unprecedentedly high.
Accompanying Xie Xuan were Liu Laozhi and He Qian, whom he regarded as his right-hand men. Both of them were dressed in leather, and their eyes only showed determination, without any fear or wavering.
The Beifu Pioneer Army of 20,000 troops, led by Xie Yan, was heading to the front line at this moment. Their destination was the strategically important Bagong Mountain on the east bank of Feishui River.
Xie Xuan watched the men of Beifu passing by in front of him, and his thoughts were ups and downs.
Since the establishment of Beifu, he has never tasted the bitter fruit of defeat, and his reputation has spread far and wide... The battle that established his current position took place four years ago, when Fu Jian's son Fu Pi led an army of 70,000 to invade the south. First they occupied Xiangyang, and then captured the governor Zhu Xu. After gaining a foothold, they immediately sent Peng Chao to besiege Pengcheng, which shocked the Jiankang court and everyone.
At that time, Xie An overcame all opinions and directly ordered Xie Xuan, who was still inexperienced, to go into battle. In this battle, he defeated the Qin army and burned Fu Qin's warships and grain ships to cut off their retreat. The Qin army of 70,000 was almost wiped out.
It is a pity that the important land of Xiangyang has been lost, so the fruits of today were sown.
This time when Fu Qin's army came south, it was different from what it was four years ago. Not only did they send out all their best troops, but Fu Jian also had Murong Chui and Yao Chang at his side.
In fact, Xie Xuan was not even remotely sure of victory.
It was hard to win, but he never showed it. He knew that if there was any hesitation in his expression, even a trace of frown, it would affect the will of the men of Beifu.
Although the morale of the Beifu Army is high, any news that is unfavorable to them will most likely cause this high morale to collapse instantly.
Da da da da…
The vanguard army had already left Guangling City, and there was a rapid sound of hoofbeats approaching. Xie Xuan ignored it and still looked at the backs of the 20,000 Beifu men heading to the battlefield.
A horse was approaching at speed and was stopped by several soldiers. Liu Lao stepped forward to ask...
After a while, Liu Laozhi returned to Xie Xuan and said, "Commander Xuan, there is news from Bianhuang."
Xie Xuan withdrew his gaze and said in a deep voice: "It's a ceremony to return home."
After giving the order, Xie Xuan led a group of soldiers, two generals on the left and right, back to the city.
The General's Mansion in Guangling City.
At this moment, in the meeting hall of Beifu, Gao Yan saw Xie Xuan and spoke concisely. After he repeatedly asked about the news about Bianhuangji, several people in the hall looked surprised.
The sun sets in the west, and a few stars are already visible.
After some questioning, Liu Laozhi grasped the key point and repeated: "Are you saying that a cavalry consisting of eighteen people has entered the border area first?"
Gao Yan was not impatient at all and nodded: "Yes!"
Liu Laozhi frowned and said: "With these people, we can kill the Hu gang and save the lives of most of our Han people?"
Gao Yan responded: "Go back to join the army. Gao Yan dare not talk nonsense. They call themselves Yanyun Eighteen Cavalry, and the team is composed of eighteen people. They are dressed in cold clothes, with scimitars on their waists, masks on their faces, and black scarves on their heads. Wearing silver armor and silver spears, they all carry strong bows. Each of the eighteen people in this team is extremely skilled in martial arts, and I can also see that in addition to possessing extremely strong martial arts skills, they also seem to be familiar with the art of battle formations."
After hearing this judgment, Xie Xuan said, "Brother Gao is saying that those eighteen people are not ordinary masters?"
Gao Yan's face turned red, and he said without any panic: "Don't be surprised, Commander Xuan. Although I don't know much about military affairs, I can still tell the difference between them. I have seen them kill enemies with my own eyes. The Eighteen Cavalry are definitely not the same." Composed of ordinary masters, they advance without retreating, cooperate with each other and know the tactics of war, and they are a real battlefield cavalry."
Xie Xuan nodded slightly and fell into deep thought.
Liu Laozhi and He Qian did not ask again, and Gao Yan did not dare to interrupt the Beifu leader's thoughts. The hall became very quiet.
At this moment, there was a voice coming from outside the door.
"Tuk! Tuk!"
Xie Xuan retracted his thoughts and called out: "Who is it?"
"Commander, General Sun's subordinate Sima, Liu Yu, would like to see you."
Xie Xuan frowned, and Liu Laozhi and He Qian had strange expressions on their faces. Liu Yu was ordered to go to the border wilderness. He had important orders, so how could he come back now?
Xie Xuan thought of something and immediately said: "Ask him to come see me quickly."
The soldiers retreated, and after a while, the sound of footsteps resumed. I heard the footsteps of the person coming, and I was very anxious.
The door of the ceremony hall was pushed open, and Liu Yu appeared in front of everyone. Under the eyes of everyone, he paid his respects and said, "Liu Yu has met Marshal Xuan and met the two adults."
Xie Xuandao: "There is no need for false courtesy in the army. Xiaoyu got up and answered."
"yes!"
Liu Yu stood up. He looked quite embarrassed at this moment. Not to mention his uneven breath, even his clothes were covered in dust.
Xie Xuan caught a glimpse of his appearance and thought that he was eager to return. He did not hold him accountable for disobeying military orders and asked: "But there are changes on the front line? Is it related to the 'Yanyun Eighteen Cavalry'?"
Liu Yu responded: "Back to Marshal Xuan, there has indeed been a change on the front line, it is the 'Yan Yun Eighteen Cavalry'!"
Xie Xuan's voice became more urgent and he said, "Come quickly."
Liu Yu didn't wait to catch his breath and said: "At sunrise today, Fu Rong, the younger brother of Fu Jian, has led his troops to the plains of Bianhuang. On that plain, the 'Eighteen Cavalry of Yanyun' confronted them head-on. Fu Rong's 50,000-strong army Rout.”
The words were simple and shocking, but as soon as they came out, the lobby suddenly fell into a strange dead silence.
Liu Yu caught a glimpse of the shocked expressions on the faces of Liu Laozhi and He Qian, and when he saw Marshal Xuan, he also showed surprise. He immediately added: "This is what my subordinates saw with their own eyes. The Eighteen Riders went straight to meet Fu Qin's army. At the end of the battle, more than ten thousand people were killed in just one hour, and Fu Qin's army was immediately defeated. Facing the defeated army, they continued to pursue, with the intention of massacring all Fu Qin's army. After the killing in one battle, As it approached noon, only a few thousand of Fu Qin's troops escaped alive, while the vanguard commander Fu Rong also died in battle."
After a brief narration, Xie Xuan stared at Liu Yu without saying a word, but his expression began to change.
Liu Laozhi suddenly shouted: "Liu Yu, you disobeyed military orders and came back, and now you dare to speak nonsense."
Liu Yu looked quite calm and respectfully replied: "Everything my subordinate said is true and not half false."
Liu Laozhi was furious: "Eighteen people fought against 50,000 people and killed more than 40,000 people. You still dare to say that you are not lying? You are so brave!"
Liu Yu smiled bitterly and said, "How dare I lie to you, sir?"
"you……"
The angry shouts were stopped, and Xie Xuan said: "Xiao Yu has other news. Otherwise, you shouldn't disobey the military order and turn back."
Liu Yu sincerely admired the commander-in-chief of Beifu in front of him. Hearing this, he said: "This subordinate has met another person."
"who?"
"That's Mr. Ren from Jiankang City, whatever you want!"
Xie Xuan said in shock: "He? Are you sure it's him?"
Liu Yu said: "Although I have never seen Mr. Ren before, I can confirm his identity. The Eighteen Cavalry of Yanyun are indeed obeying Mr. Ren's orders."
"You said that the 'Eighteen Riders of Yanyun' are subject to arbitrary orders?"
"right!"
Xie Xuan looked at Liu Yu in surprise and remembered Uncle An's evaluation of that man. He realized that the war had exceeded his expectations and seemed to be beyond his control.
Liu Yu gritted his teeth and revealed the most crucial news: "Shuai Xuan, Mr. Ren still wants his subordinates to pass on a message to you."
Xie Xuan said solemnly: "What are you talking about?"
Another wry smile appeared on Liu Yu's face, because this sentence was even more unbelievable than everything he had said before.
After taking a long breath, Liu Yu said exactly what he said: "He wants his subordinates to tell him that he wants Marshal Xuan to lead me and other Beifu soldiers to Bianhuangji to burn the corpses and wash the ground in two days."
Xie Xuan stood up suddenly and froze immediately after standing up.
