"When the charging wind is weak, it cannot raise feathers; when the strong crossbow is at its end, its strength cannot penetrate Lu Zhen." [Book of Han·Han Anguo Biography]
The city gate opened wide, and a group of cavalrymen rushed out of the city gate opening with hidden bells in their hands. The first dozen cavalrymen were all white horses in gray robes. This was the white horse follower originally created by Gongsun Zan.
The White Horse Army in Hebei is based on these people. Although it has been in decline for a long time, this remaining White Horse Yicon still retains its former vigor.
Gongsun Zan was a natural cavalryman, and the charge he led seemed to follow the tide of the sea. This tide violently hit the rocks and stirred up countless rubbles.
The first time many Yuan troops outside the city witnessed this raging wave was at Jieqiao in the third year of Chuping. At that time, everyone in the Yuan army was stunned. Tens of thousands of cavalry came galloping forward, fearless of arrows and fear of casualties.
, risking his life to cut the enemy's neck with his knife. Although he was defeated by Qu Yi's crossbowmen in the end, his fearless look had already left a deep impression on Yuan Jun.
Even as a general, Gongsun Zan could not stop his galloping momentum. If he stopped, he would be the first rock to be crushed.
The silent night was suddenly broken. Something happened suddenly. There were loud sounds of four gold and six drums in the camp. Yuan Xi, the governor of Youzhou, hurriedly ran out of his sleeping tent. He was fully clothed and had a tired look on his face. It was obvious that he had stayed up all night.
It's just that my steps are a little unsteady.
"Gongsun Zan left the city?"
Yuan Xi is the second son of Yuan Shao. He is sandwiched between Yuan Shao's eldest son Yuan Tan and his beloved son Yuan Shang. His presence has always been weak. Although he is not taken seriously, he is calm and tolerant in situations, which are his advantages over the two brothers.
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When his general Jiao Chu saw that Yuan Xi was wearing heavy armor, he hurriedly stepped forward to give him a hand and said, "The scouts from Wanglou detected the situation as soon as they left the city, and now Zhang Nan has called all the soldiers and horses to attack him."
"I can't bear it anymore." Yuan Xi breathed out softly and quickly calmed down. Once the boulder in his heart fell, he just had to follow the plan step by step and asked: "Where is the general?"
"I'm here." Zhang He responded steadily and strode over. His strong right arm was exposed under the armor-leaf shoulder pads, and he hugged his waist. His hair was simply tied up, revealing his plump Yintang.
: "I have sent people over to where Yan Rou is. As soon as Mr. Yuan's troops arrive, we can counterattack."
"Then what should we do now?" Jiao Chu clasped his fists and said, "Gongsun Zan is fighting with his back to the wall. Regardless of casualties, Zhang Nan may not be able to hold on in the front."
In order to make Gongsun Zan relax his vigilance, Yuan Shao had already withdrawn most of the troops outside Yi Jing. Now Yuan Xi had only ten thousand people under his command. Although he was not new to the battle, he had little experience. At this time, he looked at Zhang He slightly panicked.
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Zhang He took his time and ordered directly to Jiao Hu: "Let Zhang Nan lead the troops to retreat, leave an open space in the camp, use strong bows and crossbows, and hide behind the sword and shield men to shoot."
Through these days of getting along, Zhang He gradually understood Yuan Xi's character. He was not the kind of person who wanted to get involved in everything and show his presence. For generals who were good at using soldiers, Yuan Xi had always obeyed his advice.
So Jiao Chu called the crossbowmen and took the order. Zhang Nan in front received the military order and breathed a sigh of relief. He immediately retreated with his troops and horses. On the way back, the prepared archers took advantage of the weak firelight and moonlight.
, throwing a large hail of arrows at the enemy on horseback.
Forced into a desperate situation, Gongsun Zan's cavalry unleashed their superhuman potential at this time. They did not control their horse speed to avoid the flying arrows, but instead raised a simple small shield with one hand to cover their heads and foreheads, almost facing the rain of arrows.
Continue to advance. Jizhou Qiangnu and Youzhou Tuqi are both the elite soldiers in the world. The crossbowmen in Yuan Shao's army are all strong and strong athletes with good eyesight at night. At this moment, the two elite soldiers collided violently like waves hitting the rocks.
together.
People kept falling off their horses, and people kept being overtaken and killed by the cavalry. The dozen or so remaining white-horse rebels were like white arrows, protruding from the cavalry. The cavalry had already rushed through the gate, and Gongsun Zan had the advantage. He
At this time, there was only one thought in my mind to chop down the big bamboo pole!
Zhang He pressed the hilt of his sword. The rough shark leather sheath had become smooth due to years of use. He took a deep breath of the air filled with dust and blood. No matter how many big battles he experienced, he always
When going into battle, he would feel as nervous and excited as when he first entered the battlefield. This emotion made his blood boil, and he felt a heat flow filling his limbs. He looked around, and Zhang Nan, who could not resist, was already stumbling under the cover of the crossbowman.
Withdrew to the Chinese army.
"General... let's go! Let's go! Let's retreat to the back and wait for Duke Yuan's army!" Zhang Nan stopped hard beside Zhang He, his voice trembling.
Zhang He stood with his sword in hand, looking directly at the wave of cavalry coming towards him, his voice was as calm as ever: "I will command the crossbowmen, you will escort the young master back first."
"Then...it's all up to the general!" Zhang Nan turned around and fled to the rear with dozens of soldiers. He had spared no effort and left Zhang He with one or two hundred remaining soldiers.
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Zhang He glanced at Zhang Nan's back and shook his head in disappointment. He knew very well Yuan Shao's intention of placing Zhang Nan beside him. He said he wanted him to support and cultivate him, but in fact he was still closely monitoring whether he was communicating with the imperial court in private.
.It seems that even though he dealt with Zhang Chao, Yuan Shao still didn't believe him. Perhaps, Yuan Shao is wary of anyone now.
One hundred steps, fifty steps.
Zhang He looked at the attacking cavalry and suddenly thought of the young general he met at Huguan that year. The young general who led the charge was as heroic and passionate as if he had drunk farewell wine.
He narrowed his eyes and stared at the approaching Gongsun Zan. He slowly drew out his sword with a dazzling cold light: "After beating Gongsun Zan, I should meet you for a while next time, right?"
Gongsun Zan rushed forward waving his long sword. When he rushed in front of Zhang He, the opponent's crossbowmen had already begun to retreat. Without the cover of a strong shield to stop the horses, Gongsun Zan could quickly penetrate the defense at such a short distance.
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Even if it means paying a heavy price.
"Kill!" Gongsun Zan jumped up on his horse and slashed down with his long sword.
Zhang He held his breath and turned around with all his strength. His body suddenly exerted force before Gongsun Zan's long sword struck him! The sword blade thrust out from bottom to top with a light gesture. Gongsun Zan suddenly felt something bad. Years of experience reminded him
He was in crisis, and in a second thought, he gave up the attack and chose to seal the gap between the two of them with his sword. Zhang He stabbed with the sword without losing momentum, directly aiming at the belly of Gongsun Zan's horse, which was not covered by the armor.
The soft belly of the horse was cut open by a sharp knife, and the bloody internal organs spilled out.
Zhang He jumped back to avoid a blow from the cavalry chasing him. He escaped Gongsun Zan's attack, but Gongsun Zan's horse was stabbed to death by him and fell to the ground. Gongsun Zan fell off the horse and was followed by him.
The incoming cavalry caused chaos.
"At the end of the day, you can't do anything more than this!" Zhang He shook his sword and shouted loudly as usual, but his wrist holding the sword could not stop trembling.