Hearing the familiar and rhythmic drum beat, the confused soldiers finally calmed down.
Even though they couldn't see clearly from a few steps away, with the experience of daily training, everyone quickly formed a formation under the guidance of the drums.
The heavy rain concealed the approaching footsteps and smell of the Xirong people. It was not until their vanguard collided with the people patrolling outside the camp that their whereabouts were revealed.
The rain was still falling, and it was impossible to tell how many people were coming from the other party, or whether there would be an ambush from other directions.
Yan Laosan held a long sword to protect Qi Zihao, who had been playing drums, and said during the break: "The Xirong people probably want to carry out a sneak attack, and there may not be too many people coming."
After all, the rain has not stopped, there is no moon and no torches can be lit. Except for the looming fire in the Daqi military camp, it can be said that it is impossible to see anywhere else.
In this case, if the two sides really fight in the same place, they may not even be able to distinguish themselves from the enemy.
Qi Zihao responded, continued to pick up the drumstick and started playing the drum.
Under the guidance of the drums, Daqi's soldiers quickly divided into three teams.
One group of men and horses went out of camp to meet the enemy, another group of men and horses rushed to protect the baggage and food and fodder, and the other group of people mobilized to respond.
These have been trained many times in daily life. The soldiers have already formed conditioned reflexes. Even when they are unprepared, they still quickly find their positions and move according to their duties.
.
Soon, whistles continued to sound from all directions, reporting to Qi Zihao the situation everywhere.
Yan Laosan led several people to protect Qi Zihao, paying careful attention to the dark surroundings.
The soldiers who attacked the enemy quickly fought against the Xirong people, and the battle was resolved in a short time.
Just as Yan Laosan had thought before, the other party didn't have many men. He probably wanted to sneak in and attack while it was raining and dark, but he was unlucky and bumped into a patrolman.
After hearing the whistle of victory, everyone in the camp breathed a sigh of relief, followed by a burst of cheers.
Several people protecting Qi Zihao also relaxed.
The mountainous areas of Juzhou are quite cold at night, especially when it rains, and you can see a faint white mist even when you breathe.
No one wants to stay outside on a day like this, and all of them have long scolded the ancestors of the Xirong people for eight generations in their hearts.
So when the news of victory came at this time, people were naturally happy and excited, and they could finally follow Qi Zihao back to the military tent to rest.
Qi Zihao played the drum twice for the last time, and when he was about to pass the drumstick to his subordinate, the tips of his ears suddenly moved twice.
He seemed to hear something, but he couldn't hear it clearly under the cover of the rain and other noisy sounds.
Just when he was motionless and listening attentively, Yan Laosan suddenly flew up and kicked him hard in the abdomen.
"What the hell are you doing..." Qi Zihao was caught off guard and fell backwards. At the same time, he only heard the sound in the air coming from far to near quickly.
A strong wind followed the sound, almost brushing the tip of his nose.
"Zheng——"
An arrow hit the drum head hard.
Most of the arrow body was submerged in the drum, and only the tail of the arrow was outside, trembling slightly.
Yan Laosan used too much force. After kicking Qi Zihao away, he also fell to the ground on his back.
Without caring about anything else, he immediately shouted: "Protect the general!"
Everything happened in a flash, and the few people who had just relaxed didn't even realize what happened.
Hearing Yan Laosan's cry, he came back to his senses and quickly stepped forward to help Qi Zihao up, protecting him firmly in the center with his body and the shield in his hand.
Yan Laosan didn't even bother to ask Qi Zihao for instructions. He directly raised his hand to point out the direction and ordered people to quickly chase him and arrest him.
"Quickly, go back to the military tent!" Yan Laosan got up from the ground, kept his body as low as possible, and protected Qi Zihao back to the military tent.
Back in the military tent, Qi Zihao issued several orders one after another, all of which required more patrol personnel and heightened alertness.
After watching the orderlies follow the order one by one, he finally sat down on the chair, wiped the rainwater from his face, and spat on the ground mixed with blood.
Yan Laosan was startled when he saw it, and shouted anxiously: "What's wrong? Where is the injury? Doctor, hurry up..."
Before he could finish shouting, "Quickly call the doctor, tell me the doctor," Qi Zihao covered his mouth.
"Don't yell, or I'll punish you for disturbing the morale of the army!" Qi Zihao said and let go of his hand, pressed Yan Laosan's shoulders and sat him down on the chair and said helplessly, "You have the nerve to ask me where I was injured.
, I wasn’t kicked by you!”
Hearing this, Yan Laosan opened his eyes in shock and asked, "Did you get internal injuries from the kick?"
"Bullshit!" Qi Zihao cursed, "You're really going to put yourself in a good position, and you want to kick me and cause internal injuries? Do you have what it takes!"
"Then why are you vomiting blood?"
Qi Zihao did not answer.
Why?
Why else!
Because I bit my mouth when I fell!
After the two people changed out of their soaked clothes, they sat back at the table and discussed the purpose of Xirong's trip.
"It seems that the Xirong people who bumped into the patrolling soldiers tonight are not unlucky infiltrators at all, but victims who were thrown out to attack in the west, just to create opportunities for your assassins.
"That person was lying in ambush in the distance, relying entirely on the sound of your drumming to identify the location, and then stood still until we called in the troops and retreated, and everyone unconsciously relaxed before taking action. He definitely had a premeditated plan..."
Yan Laosan became more and more excited as he talked. He slapped his thigh and said, "How do the Xirong people know that you can beat the drum to give orders? There shouldn't be any of their spies in our army, right?"
After he finished speaking, he looked at Qi Zihao and knew that the other party also had the same suspicion.
Just as the two were discussing how to investigate quietly, someone suddenly came to report: "General, Young Master Jia Lin and Qi Fei want to see each other."
"Why did you alert them so late at night?" Qi Zihao stood up and said, "It's still raining, please come in quickly."
This time in the battle against Xirong, the Wuman tribe also sent some manpower, and Jia Lin brought them over to help.
The Wuman people are most familiar with the environment in the deep mountains of Juzhou. Entering the mountains is as comfortable as a fish returning to the sea or a bird entering the mountains and forests.
Not only can it serve as a guide, but it can also help detect the enemy's situation.
However, the Wuman people did not live in tents like the Qi soldiers. They chose a place with deep forests and lush grass as their camp, and everyone lived in the trees.
Qi Zihao estimated that they heard the drums and whistles here, so they came to check the situation.
But when Jia Lin and Qi Fei walked into the tent soaked to the skin, the first words they said were: "General Qi, please pass on the order so that everyone can only rest in undressed tonight, and try to stay vigilant and not sleep to death.
"I think the Xirong people are likely to attack the camp in the early morning."