Twenty miles north of Xiaxiang is a wide wilderness with flat terrain that can be used for horseback riding. It is called Xiaoyuan by the locals.
The black flag is now fluttering here. In addition to the sentries on the outside, thousands of Qin soldiers are sitting on the ground and resting.
"Your Majesty, the traitors have left the city."
Zhao Guang, fully clothed, walked up to the coach and loudly reported the latest news.
Zhao Tuo was looking down at the map in his hand and nodded when he heard this: "This Liang has good eyesight. I will send people back to Pengcheng to dispatch cavalry to help. Calculating the time, we will arrive either tonight or tomorrow morning."
.If Xiang Liang had delayed for one more day, our army would have been supported by hundreds of cavalry. It seems that he had calculated this and could not wait to attack."
"That's what the Lord said."
Zhao Guang agreed.
Then he hesitated and said: "According to the observation of our army's scouts, the number of rebels is large, probably more than 2,000. And our army's cavalry will arrive tomorrow, so it is better to retreat temporarily to avoid their sharp edge, and wait until our army's reinforcements arrive."
Arrive there, launch another attack, and defeat the rebels in one fell swoop."
Zhao Tuo smiled and shook his head: "You are right, but there is no need to be like this."
"Although there are many rebels, most of them are young and strong men who have been coerced by the Xiang family. These people have not experienced training and have no fighting spirit. It is at this time of panic that they urgently need to win a battle.
Stabilize the morale of the army. If our army retreats, Xiang Liang will definitely take this opportunity to publicize it, which will actually boost the morale of those young men."
"It's better to defeat them with one blow, but don't forget that I have two hundred Langwei cavalry, and you have one hundred county cavalry. With three hundred cavalry in hand, you can defeat the rebels without waiting for support."
military."
…
"General, the Qin army has formed a formation five miles away and seems to be waiting for our army to fight."
As the leader of the scouts, Hou Wu rushed to Xiang Liang's side and reported the military situation to him.
"Um."
Xiang Liang nodded, and then said to a young Xiang descendant beside him: "Xiang Sheng, please pass on my general's order to order all the troops to stop traveling to restore their physical strength."
Seeing Xiang Sheng's doubts on his face, Xiang Liang explained: "The Art of War says, if you fight for a profit at fifty miles, you will overthrow the general, and half of his method will be achieved; if you fight for a profit at thirty miles, two-thirds will be reached. Our army is on its way for ten
Yu Li Ben is attacking, and the soldiers are exhausted. If we go to attack the Qin army in this state, we will definitely be defeated by Zhao Guang while waiting for work. It is better to rest for a while and wait until our army regains its energy before attacking."
"My uncle is proficient in the art of war and speaks very well."
Xiang Sheng suddenly understood, and after praising him, he went down to convey the order to rest.
Among the three thousand Chu troops holding flags with the word "Chu", except for hundreds of people protecting themselves in front, others sat in the back to rest and relieve the fatigue of the journey.
As the commander-in-chief of the entire army, Xiang Liang looked solemnly ahead in the direction of the Qin army.
The Chu army was the main attack force and marched twenty miles to attack the Qin army. No matter how well rested the soldiers were, they would be physically and mentally exhausted. This was a disadvantage compared to the Qin army, which was waiting for work.
But Xiang Liang had no choice.
He estimated the time. If Zhao Guang sent people to Pengcheng for help when he knew he was raising the flag, the Qin army's cavalry would be able to arrive at the earliest tonight or tomorrow at the latest.
Then in a few days, a large number of Qin army infantry will arrive, and by then Xiang Liang's military advantage will be greatly reduced.
The Qin army increased its troops faster than the Chu people who supported Xiang Liang.
Therefore, Xiang Liang must defeat Zhao Guang's troops before the reinforcements of the Qin army arrive, and then use the power of victory to coerce the Chu people along the way, build up momentum, and take Pengcheng directly. This is their only way to survive.
This battle had to be fought, and he had to take the initiative.
"Fortunately, Zhao Guang did not retreat to avoid our army and wait for Qin army's support. He was so arrogant that he wanted to fight our army decisively, which gave me a chance."
Thinking of this, Xiang Liang felt a little lucky.
Fortunately, he was shot down by the Qin army's arrows not long after.
"Enemy attack! Qin cavalry is coming!"
The shrill and piercing sound rang out in the forest, startling Xia Xiang Qingzhuang who was resting behind him. Some people even ran back on the spot, showing that they were well prepared.
Fortunately, Xiang Liang arranged a supervising team with Xiang's children and boy servants at the rear. He chopped off the heads of several people on the spot, and the red blood splattered, which suppressed the thoughts of those young men who wanted to escape.
"Defectors, behead immediately!"
Xiang Sheng galloped on the side of the road and shouted at these young soldiers: "What are you afraid of? They are just a small group of Qin cavalry who intend to harass our army. Now they have been driven away by our cavalry and crossbowmen! This is
The people of Qin were afraid of our army, so they came to harass and attack us!"
As Xiang Sheng shouted, the team became quiet.
In front of the entire Chu army, Xiang Liang's face turned black.
When Xiang Tang came back on horseback, he was afraid and said: "The Qin army's cavalry was about a hundred cavalry, all of them wielding crossbows. Before our cavalry could get close, dozens of them were shot down. Fortunately, Xiang Xiang followed up with his crossbowmen.
Drive them away."
Xiang Liang nodded expressionlessly and said: "Zhao Guang wants to use cavalry to deplete our army's fighting spirit. This thief deserves to be a veteran of Zhao Tuo's command. He is really powerful."
Xiang Liang felt a little pain in his head.
Most of the 3,000 men under him are infantry, and the cavalry is almost a hundred.
This was only assembled after collecting horses from the Xiang family and other clans of the Prime Minister.
Although the number of cavalry is similar to that of Zhao Guang's county cavalry, their equipment and proficiency with bows and horses are far inferior. They are no match for them in a fight. Once the cavalry is released, they will be killed by the opponent.
"We can only rely on the number of infantry to make up for it."
Xiang Liang could only sigh secretly.
But after a while, the rumble of horse hoofs was heard on the ground again, and the Qin army cavalry who had just been driven away returned.
These cavalrymen attacked on horseback at very high speed. They suddenly rushed to the front of the Chu army's formation and fired a burst of fire. They shot down more than ten Chu soldiers who had not yet reacted. Then, amid bursts of screams, they
Before the Chu army's cavalry and crossbowmen came up, these Qin army's cavalry immediately turned their horses and ran away.
This second wave of raids did little harm to the Chu army, with only a dozen casualties, but it made the already unstable Qingzhuang soldiers look like frightened birds, and everyone looked frightened.
Even the Xiang family's children and servants looked uneasy.
"Damn Zhao Guang!"
Xiang Tan rushed to Xiang Liang angrily and offered a plan: "General, these Qin people are here to harass us on purpose. Why not let the crossbowmen ambush on both sides of the road ahead. When the Qin cavalry comes again, we will Just fire thousands of arrows at once, so that they can never come back! If we can kill a wave, it will definitely boost the morale of the army."
Xiang Liang nodded and said: "This plan is feasible, arrange it immediately."
"When the Qin cavalry came, Nai Gong shot them all covered with arrows."
Xiang Tang was so angry that he cursed and went down to arrange the ambush, regardless of his former noble status.
However, the Chu army waited for a long time, and the Qin army's cavalry did not appear again.
"Zhao Guang probably figured that we would take precautions, so he stopped coming to harass us. This thief should not be underestimated."
Xiang Liang sighed, then summoned Xiang Sheng and ordered: "The Qin army's cavalry has been intimidated by us and dare not come again. Our soldiers have also rested and should work hard to attack the Qin army! Order the whole army to attack !”
"Follow the general's orders!"
Xiang Sheng agreed and went down to deliver the order.
Soon the Chu army of 3,000 men set foot on the road ahead. Xiang Liang was worried that Zhao Guang would ambush, so he was careful to be on guard along the way.
Unfortunately, his worries were unnecessary. There was no surprise when the Chu army completed the five-mile journey and saw the Qin army arrayed at Xiaoyuan.
Just a few hundred steps away, a heavily armed Qin army in black armor had already stood in a long square array, with its soldiers arranged in an orderly and orderly manner.
And none of these Qin soldiers made a sound, they just stood there upright, holding spears, halberds, bows and crossbows, staring at Xiang Liang's troops with cold or hungry eyes, as if they were lying on the ground choosing people at any time. The black beast that gnawed brought a great sense of oppression to the Chu army.
Gudong!
Many Chu people swallowed their saliva involuntarily, fearing that the Qin army would suddenly launch an attack when they were setting up their formation.
Xiang Liang was also afraid of this move, so he arranged for a group of righteous soldiers to be prepared. Once the Qin army launched an attack, they would rush forward to meet the enemy and buy time for the Chu army to form their formation.
Fortunately, the Qin general on the opposite side seemed to understand the ways of a gentleman on the battlefield, and actually waited until the Chu army had formed its formation before making the next move.
Xiang Liang rode his horse and stood in front of the army. He saw ten men holding strange objects in their hands walking out of the Qin army's formation hundreds of steps away.
"trumpet?"
Xiang Liang frowned.
He recognized the objects in those people's hands. They were instruments popularized by the Qin army after the war against Wei. They were called trumpets. When people put the trumpets to their mouths to speak, this thing can amplify the sound, which is very useful.
It is said that every hundred people in the Qin army will be equipped with a set of loudspeakers, which are used by military officials to give speeches and give orders.
"Before the war started, did Zhao Guang want to use the loudspeaker to intimidate?"
The corner of Xiang Liang's mouth curled up slightly. The more threats and intimidation the Qin army issued, it would only make the three thousand men under him more determined to oppose Qin.
However, the next moment, words that shocked Xiang Liang appeared.
"Rebels and bandits, listen, the person standing before you now is the great Qin martial lord who once overthrew the Chu Kingdom, captured and killed the traitor Xiong Qi, destroyed the Dai Dynasty in the north, subjugated the Qi Dynasty in the east, conquered the barbarians outside the Great Wall, and was victorious in every battle!"
The Martial Lord of Great Qin!
When the sound drifted into the Chu army's formation with the wind, everyone was shocked.
A person's name, a tree's shadow.
The reputation of Da Qin Wugong Hou in Chu land is known to everyone. Especially in some places in Sishui County, it can even be used to stop children crying at night.
Just shout "Zhao Tuo is here" and even the naughtiest child will stop crying immediately.
Such a situation shows how much psychological shadow Zhao Tuo's name has left on these Chu people.
When the Qin soldiers shouted through the trumpets, the faces of the young and strong men behind the Chu army suddenly changed.