Outside the northwest camp, a large group of Bian troops surged in like a tide.
They carried large shields and moved quickly to surround several early warning villages set up on the outside of the camp. After a while, the few soldiers in the villages were submerged in the vast sea of Bian soldiers.
After clearing these small villages, the Bian army slowly retreated.
The master, who had been waiting for a long time, rushed forward immediately.
Their job was to fill the horse traps, clean the antlers, cut off the horse-repelling guns, that is, remove all obstacles to attack the camp.
After clearing this, they still had to fill in the trench behind them, tear down the earthen walls on the inside of the trenches, and clear away the spiked obstacles such as iron caltrops behind the earthen walls.
Every step of the work has to be completed by shooting with the bow and crossbow on the wall, so it can only be completed by the masters... It would be a shame for professional warriors who have been trained for many years to die here without value.
The arrow rain on the top of the city was very dense. Although the masters were protected by large shields, how could everyone be covered? In just a short while, more than two hundred people fell screaming, and at this time, it was only just a moment ago.
Some horse pits were filled up, firewood was piled under the antlers and horse guns, and kerosene was poured over them.
"Boom!" The camp door suddenly opened, and Yang Liang rushed out with more than a thousand cavalry.
The galloping war horses rushed into the group of concubines, slashing left and right. The concubines from Heyang retreated one after another, crying like ghosts and howling like wolves.
The bold ones threw their torches on the firewood pile, while the timid ones ran away.
A raging fire burned, and thick smoke billowed in front of the camp.
The killing by the cavalry lasted for two sticks of incense. Seeing the infantry of the Bian army coming up, they hurried back to the camp, took back the trench bridge and closed the camp gate.
The battlefield suddenly became calm.
On the gentle slope to the east of the camp, hundreds of corpses were lying scattered under the wilderness. The fire became more and more intense, and gradually engulfed the corpse of the Bianjun master who was shot to death in the antlers and in front of the horse rifle, making "crackling" explosions from time to time.
The south wind blows, and the air is filled with an unpleasant burnt smell.
The Bian army adjusted its deployment.
They mobilized some crossbowmen to cover the master as he continued to move forward.
At the rear, people were still building high platforms and building temporary fences, and some engineering equipment, such as trench-filling trucks, were also rolled out.
Attacking the camp in the northwest corner is undoubtedly the focus of the Bian army.
Yang Liang stood on the high platform in the camp and looked around. The soldiers, auxiliary soldiers, and the master mobilized more than 10,000 people to build high platforms, build fences, dig trenches, and set up defenses.
This is determined.
"Rest for an hour and then leave the camp for a charge later." Yang Liang ordered the troops.
This is not an easy task. The Bian army suffered a loss once, and many cavalry have been mobilized. If they charge again, they will suffer a big loss.
However, this also indirectly creates opportunities for Heqing County. It depends on whether they can seize it.
After the north gate of Heqing County was opened, two hundred cavalry surrounded the infantry column of the Bian Army and attacked them.
After being expelled by the Bian Army's cavalry, they went back and changed their horses and came back again, using the terrain to gallop from a distance but not running away. It was not until the Bian Army mobilized more cavalry that they dispersed.
However, the Tiande Army's thousand cavalry troops quickly dispatched. They met the Bian Army cavalry and fought repeatedly, each leaving two to three hundred corpses. It was extremely tragic.
At noon, another five hundred Fan cavalry rushed from the direction of Liaowu. The Bian Army cavalry, who had just been about to take a breath, had no choice but to mount their horses and rush forward. The Fan cavalry did not engage with them head-on, but kept distance to harass them. The Bian Army cavalry was lost.
After laying down dozens of corpses, they were driven away far away.
At this time, another thousand Fan cavalry rushed from the direction of Baiyacang. More than 700 cavalrymen of the Tiande army recovered their horse power and physical strength, and once again went out of the city to attack.
The cavalry of the Bian Army fought hard for half a day. Each of them only had one horse. At this time, they could no longer be driven. After fighting for a while, they rushed eastward back to the camp.
There were more than 4,000 cavalry in total, and more than half of them were divided up near the northwest camp. Only 2,000 cavalry were facing them. Being harassed in turn, their energy, stamina, and horsepower were exhausted to the extreme. If they didn't retreat, I was afraid of what would happen.
Things.
Moreover, in today's fighting, we have already lost four to five hundred cavalry. In addition to the battle losses in the previous few days, the number of more than 4,800 cavalry that came from the expedition has dropped below 4,000.
It was not easy for the Bian Army to save some cavalry. The loss of cavalry made Pang Shigu feel very sad and he had to order this unit to withdraw.
Shao Shude sat under the tower and carefully observed the Bian army.
A long trench has been dug in the distance. The width is sufficient, but the depth seems to be relatively shallow.
After the grain carts, the infantry of the Bian Army were in casual postures. Some were resting on the ground, while others were eating dry food to maintain their strength.
However, they could rest, but the people arrayed on the south side of the grain truck could not rest well.
It was past noon, and it was a sunny day again today. The sun was so hot that it made people feel dizzy. The meal they had eaten before leaving camp in the morning was almost digested, and now everyone's stomach was growling with hunger.
On the other hand, the infantry of the Xia army had been resting behind the city gate for a long time. At this time, they had finished dressing up, stringing their bows and arrows, and were checking their swords and guns one by one, and were ready to leave the city.
More and more Xia Army cavalry were active in the field. They were divided into several groups. When they were tired, they would return to the city to rest. When the horses were no longer useful, they would be replaced. The rest surrounded the Bian Army infantry and charged forward, forcing them to be unable to rest.
, eating.
With his physical strength greatly weakened, the situation seemed a bit unfavorable.
…
Pang Shigu stood on the high platform and carefully examined the battle situation in front of him.
It seemed that he had achieved good results, but he had already ordered the withdrawal of troops.
Near the northwest corner of the fortress, several small camps have been roughly set up. There are more than a thousand soldiers in each camp, and the final reinforcements are still being carried out at this time.
Some high platforms were erected in the camp, and archers and crossbowmen were arrayed on them, shooting at the Xia bandit camp with arrows.
The camp is not as high as the city wall, and its height is limited, so there is no disadvantage in shooting. Moreover, the Xia bandits have few soldiers, so they cannot capture these villages. This is our own forward base, which can cover subsequent actions.
But in the direction of preparing for Heqing County, we are now in a dilemma.
The trench has been dug for a long time, but half a day is too short and not enough to completely cut off the connection between the county seat and the northwest camp.
Moreover, today the Xia thieves also sent a lot of cavalry from the direction of Liaowu and Baiyacang, totaling 1,500 cavalry, taking turns to go into battle. Relying on the large number of horses, they finally exhausted the horse power and physical strength of their own cavalry army, forcing them to withdraw from the main battlefield.
Camp rest.
The flags on the camp were constantly changing.
Five thousand men from the Changzhi Army Kou Yanqing left the camp, preparing to receive the return of their own infantry and master.
The 5,000-strong army was gleaming with silver and brightly armored. They were separated and rangers were standing guard on the outside. The 5,000-strong army was like a torrent of steel, marching slowly and with overwhelming momentum.
Guo Shaobin looked at the Changzhi Army headquarters coming to meet him from a distance, and secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
They stood in formation for half a day and took several breaks in the middle, but they were all interrupted by Xia thieves. The soldiers were hungry, their mouths were so dry that their mouths were smoking, their physical strength was greatly weakened, and they were really unable to fight anymore.
Suddenly, the north gate of Heqing County opened wide, and groups of sergeants came out of the city to form formations.
The Xia Army's cavalry no longer worried about casualties and began to get closer to the Bian Army's columns, creating greater pressure.
"Steady! Steady!" The officers knew something was wrong and shouted one after another.
Du Yuhou led more than ten cavalrymen, galloping back and forth in front of the formation. He held a bloody sword and roared: "Anyone who dares to make a noise that shakes the morale of the army will be killed!"
"The soldiers are leaving!" A faint shout came from the west.
Su Bing refers to Zhang Jun's troops on the right wing of the Jianrui Army. In fact, not all of them are Suzhou soldiers, but because Zhang Jun is a Suzhou general, he is often referred to as Su Bing, just like their left wing is called Cao Bing.
There was a faint buzz of discussion in the army.
Guo Shaobin's heart skipped a beat. At this time, when his physical strength and energy were exhausted to the extreme, he suddenly heard that the two thousand people in the right wing who had come out to form the formation had withdrawn. Regardless of whether it was true or not, the soldiers would definitely have doubts in their hearts.
"Pang Shigu has ordered the troops to retreat. Zhang Cunjing's cavalry escaped first. What are you waiting for?"
"You are the scapegoats, the ones who stayed to break up the family."
"The Bian army is defeated, the Bian army is defeated!"
The sound sometimes appeared in the northwest corner, sometimes in the southwest, and even sounded in the east.
Guo Shaobin turned around and saw horrified expressions on the faces of the sergeants.
There are voices of summer thieves everywhere, and they say we are not scapegoats? Are we really surrounded?
"The Bian army is defeated!" Dozens of horsemen galloped over, throwing the captured flags on the ground, trampling them with their horses, and laughing loudly.
Of course, it is not certain whether the flag is true or false. Who can see it clearly from a distance? But some people believe it. Some people swallow their saliva, but they have not drank water for most of the day, and their throats are smoking. Where did the saliva come from?
"Kill! Kill! Kill!" Xia Jun's killing cry came from the wind.
Two thousand infantry soldiers of the Wuwei Army and one thousand Tibetan soldiers have been formed into a team. With the beating of war drums and strong physical strength and high morale, they marched in neat steps and came in overwhelming numbers.
"Run!"
"Our army is defeated!"
The Jianrui Army was just surrendering, so how could it possibly have the fighting will of the real Bian Army? As soon as the two sides fought, they almost collapsed.
Three thousand Xia troops were like sharp knives, piercing directly into the ranks of the Bian army.
Two thousand people completely lost their will to fight and fled eastward crazily.
Guo Shaobin was even knocked off his horse. The soldiers hurried over and helped him get on the horse. At the same time, they slashed and killed Pao Ze who was running around and rushed out of the crowd of soldiers with difficulty.
Two thousand people who are out of order are not as good as two thousand pigs. Pigs will bite back when they are cornered, but people can only run away and have no courage to fight back.
Three thousand Xia troops chased him to the north, harvesting heads with ease.
The cavalry also came out, killing with great ease, almost like they were undergoing a riding training: stabbing and chopping up the grass man.
Zhang Jun's 2,000 men collapsed without a fight.
However, they were a little better. Some of them fled eastward, and some fled northward to the vicinity of the Bian army's formation that was attacking the fortress. After some of them were killed, the rest were taken into custody.
Some of them broke into the grain truck formation. Behind the thick truck formation, they finally felt a little safer.
There were also people in Guo Shaobin's department who wanted to escape into the grain truck formation, but the defenders did not dare to let them in. Arrows kept flying out densely, and some people stabbed them with spears from behind the grain trucks. Countless people died in front of the grain trucks.
, the corpses were piled on top of each other, it was too horrible to see.
"Run quickly in small steps, organize your formation after a hundred steps, and then continue to charge forward." Kou Yanqing saw the scene of Guo Shaobin and Zhang Jun's 4,000 men being defeated like a mountain, and immediately ordered.
The massacre in the north of Haqing County continues.
After killing all the defeated troops, three thousand people rushed to the grain truck formation, planning to take advantage of the victory to attack.
However, the morale of this enemy army was not greatly affected. They fired with strong bows and crossbows, and the fastest Xia army warriors fell to the ground like weeds in the wind.
"Dang, Dang, Dang!" The sound of a clang sounded from the tower, which was the signal to retreat.
Like magic, the splashed "water" began to flow back slowly, and the Sanqianxia Army began to gather its somewhat loose formation.
The cavalry gathered to provide them with cover.
Some cavalry archers even rushed straight in the direction where the Changzhi army was coming, trying every possible means to slow down their pace.
Finally, after the infantry retreated past the City God, the cavalry roared and dispersed, continuing to chase the scattered Bian army retreating troops on the battlefield.
"Boom!" The north gate of Heqing County slammed shut, as if it had never been opened before.
But the more than 2,000 corpses of the Bian Army lying scattered in the field tell you unmistakably that a one-sided massacre just occurred here.
Kou Yanqing ordered the army to stop advancing.
In this battle, the Jianrui Army lost at least two thousand people, and some may have been captured, or escaped and could not return to the camp. In the end, it would be good to have a thousand people back.
The battle was won! Kou Yanqing cursed in a low voice.
The only result was a shallow trench and a few stockades that half surrounded the rebel army's northwest camp.
The stockade is of course valuable, because trenches can be dug around the stockade to restrict the movement of the rebel cavalry and mounted infantry in the camp. But is it worth paying the price of two to three thousand people?