The third way is to brave the heavy snow and continue to advance towards Hufro's tribe. This is a quite risky choice, more dangerous than staying where you are and continuing to camp.
Because the snow is so heavy, it is very difficult to hike or ride on horseback. The only suitable option is to use skis. But in this case, the tents and the beef and mutton from Chiwule will definitely not be able to be carried. If you know how to use skis, of course you can't go with them.
Ma Chao couldn't care about that much anymore. In his mind, the desire to make meritorious deeds defeated everything else. Everything was for meritorious service. As long as he could make his first contribution, he was willing to take any big risk.
However, Ma Chao was not completely carried away. He counted the fried noodles prepared by the soldiers, and then made an important decision. He divided his army into two groups, and 5,000 people followed him to attack Yu Fuluo. The tribe advanced, and another 10,000 people returned to Chiwule's tribe.
With only 5,000 men, it was indeed a bit fanciful to capture Yuvluo's tribe, but Ma Chao had no other option because they didn't have much fried noodles. Using skis as a means of transportation could certainly allow the soldiers to run quickly on the snow. OK, but there is also a weakness, that is, they cannot carry too much weight. In addition to necessary weapons and equipment, convenience food such as fried noodles has become their best supply. Now, these 15,000 soldiers still have five days left. rations, Ma Chao cannot guarantee that he can lead everyone to find Yuvluo's tribe within five days. And it is not enough to find Yuvluo's tribe alone. They must be captured in one fell swoop. Otherwise, he and his soldiers will all run out of food. And starved to death in this snowy field.
Ma Chao weighed it again and decided to concentrate the fried noodles for three people on one person, which could last for fifteen days. Of course, the number of people participating in the operation was reduced to one-third. This was already a fairly safe method. As for whether it could be done To defeat the Yuvluo tribe with more than 10,000 young herdsmen with five thousand men was something to consider later. The first thing Ma Chao had to do was to find the location of Yuvluo's tribe.
Those guides were quite competent. They heard that Ma Chao had sent troops to Yuvluo's tribe. After a brief discussion, they pointed out the general direction of Yuvluo's tribe to Ma Chao. Ma Chao calibrated it with the compass and set the direction. It's twenty degrees north by east.
When everything was ready, Ma Chao gave the order to rest. The soldiers who stayed behind to return to the Chiwule tribe knew that Ma Chao would face a very dangerous battle, so they consciously gave up their only tents to these approaching troops. It was the best opportunity for the soldiers who went on an expedition to rest, and they themselves took on the role of escort without hesitation, ensuring that the five thousand soldiers could have a good night's sleep.
At dawn, the soldiers who set out for the expedition packed their bags and embarked on the journey. At this time, the good training of the Han army showed its effect. Although the general had left, the remaining 10,000 troops were under the guidance of several lieutenants. Under the command, they still set up camp, set off, and retreated in an orderly manner. Two days later, they successfully returned to the Chiwule tribe's garrison.
Ma Chao led 5,000 soldiers, supported on skis, and walked for two full days under the guidance of the compass. He did not see Yuvluo's tribe, not even a herdsman. In such bad weather, the herdsmen naturally They would all stay in their own camps, so it was normal for Ma Chao and the others not to encounter them. However, without encountering the herdsmen, Ma Chao had no way to ask for directions and no way to correct his direction.
However, Ma Chao was not worried. Yufuluo was a Chanyu of the Southern Huns, and his tribe was the largest tribe of the Southern Huns, with more than 10,000 young herdsmen, accounting for almost one-tenth of the entire Southern Huns. In this way For a large tribe, the size of their camp must be more than double that of Liu Bao's tribe, and it should be very conspicuous. Ma Chao has clairvoyance. Although the heavy snow reduced the visibility, he believed that as long as the guides pointed in the right direction, He should be able to spot the target.
What surprised Ma Chao was that he led his team for five consecutive days without encountering a tribe. This made Ma Chao, who had always been confident, hesitate. However, there was no turning back when he opened his bow. Since he had already decided to choose this route On the road, Ma Chao will not retreat, but will only move forward.
Fortunately, the snow gradually subsided at this time. Ma Chao quickly took out his clairvoyance and looked around, and finally found a large tent vaguely in the east, which should be the camp of a certain tribe. Ma Chao felt happy and pointed the iron gun in his hand toward the east. With one finger, the soldiers immediately turned around and slid in the direction where his gun was pointing.
Traveling on the snow, the speed of skis is unparalleled. From the moment Ma Chao saw the camp with his clairvoyance to the time when the army skied closer, it only took a cup of tea. Getting closer to the camp, Ma Chao made a gesture, All the soldiers lay down, their white cloaks covering their bodies, almost blending into the snow. No one in the camp would notice them even if they looked here.
Should we launch a surprise attack on this camp? Ma Chao was suddenly confused. Liu Xin's order to them made it very clear that their first task was to protect the safety of the three tribes: Huchuquan, Chiwule and Gutu'an. , the second is to try to deal with Liu Bao. If Yu Fuluo comes forward to prevent the Xiongnu tribe from merging with the Han Dynasty, they can also attack Fuluo. At the same time, Liu Xin also reminded them that the Huns are now seriously divided, and some tribes follow Yu Fuluo. Some tribes of Luo and Liu Bao support Huchuquan and the others, so they must be treated differently. In fact, Liu Xin still doesn’t know that not only between brothers Yufuluo and Huchuquan, but also between Yufuluo and Liu Bao There are already many conflicts between the father and son.
The tribe in front of him was not large in size. It looked like there would be no more than 500 young herdsmen in it. However, Ma Chao had no way of telling which side they belonged to. What if they were a tribe that supported Huchuquan? It would be impossible to attack them. However, without attacking them, Ma Chao would not be able to find anyone to ask about the direction and approximate distance of the Yuvluo tribe's camp.
Ma Chao couldn't help but think of what Liu Xin said, "If the general is outside, the emperor will not accept your orders." He could not wait any longer. No matter whether he was an enemy or a friend, he had to control these people first. Following Ma Chao's order, the five Thousands of Han soldiers suddenly jumped up from the snow and quickly slid towards the camp.
Now that the snow is getting lighter, many people in the camp have walked out of their tents and started to clear the snow in the camp. People in the tribe are very aware that clearing the snow in the camp in time will not only make it easier for people in the camp to carry out various activities. For this activity, you can also build several snow walls outside the camp to block the invasion of wind and snow.
The nomadic tribes on the grassland are usually very vigilant, especially such a small tribe. They need to be very cautious to survive in the harsh environment until they slowly develop and grow. If they are lax in thinking, even if they can escape natural disasters, It is also very likely that they will be annexed by other tribes. Therefore, when the Han army led by Ma Chao was still two arrows away from the camp, it was already discovered by the people in the camp.
Of course, Ma Chao could have waited until nightfall and then approached the camp to launch a surprise attack, just like he did when he attacked the Liu Bao tribe. However, Ma Chao did not do that. He had been wandering around the snowfield for five days, and he had no time to delay any longer. , he must determine the direction as soon as possible. Who can guarantee whether Yuvrault has taken any action in these five days? Maybe Yuvrault has braved the heavy snow and headed towards Huchuquan. In that case, his first achievement will be the only one. I gave it to Zhao Yun.
The herdsmen in that tribe suddenly saw thousands of people rolling towards them with snowflakes flying towards them. They were all stunned. No one could believe that someone could run so fast on the snow, and These people seemed to have suddenly emerged from the ground, and they didn't notice any movement beforehand.
For people on the grassland, they are accustomed to using the vibrations caused by horses' hooves to judge the number and distance of the enemy. However, although these people in front of them walked on the snow like flying, they made no sound.
However, this kind of confusion only lasted for a moment, and soon someone turned around and ran towards the tent. These people were not running away, but habitually grabbing their own bows and arrows and leading their own horses.
Ma Chao has lived in Xiliang for a long time and is very familiar with the living habits of these nomads. As soon as he saw the reaction of the herdsmen, he knew what they wanted to do. He immediately pulled out the short-throwing gun on his back and threw it with all his strength. Ma Chao was already very strong. , and the speed of the skis on the snow was even far faster than the speed of the war horses galloping on the grassland. The short-throwing gun was so fast that it passed directly through a herdsman and directly inserted into a tent. Inside the tent, a Hun woman Hearing the panicked footsteps outside, she was about to go out to find out what was going on. Unexpectedly, the short-throwing gun came straight towards her and poked her in the chest. The huge inertia carried her body backwards, pulling down the entire tent. Arrive on the ground.
The five thousand soldiers brought by Ma Chao were all cavalry of the Sixth Army. Each of them carried five short-throwing spears, which was their trump card. Even if they were not riding horses, they all carried them with them. See Ma Chao threw his first short-throwing lance, and other soldiers followed suit, pulling out the lances on their backs and throwing them out.
With the high speed brought by the skis as the basis, five thousand people threw short spears at the same time, and the power was even more amazing. The sound of "swish, swish, swish" was many times louder than that of bows and arrows, and it was frightening to hear. In just a moment, This camp was filled with short-throwing spears. Many Huns had no time to escape and were nailed directly to the snow. The bright red blood spilled on the white snow, blooming into gorgeous peach blossoms.
While Ma Chao and his soldiers were throwing short spears, they did not slow down their advance. Their skis rolled up large flakes of snow and rushed directly to the edge of the camp. Some surviving Huns in the camp had already climbed onto their horses. Back, these people are men and women, old and young, but as long as they can draw the bow in their hands, they are qualified warriors. They don't want to sit back and wait for death, they want to resist.