Chapter 135 Chapter 9: The Battle of the Setting Sun

At the time of the second watch, there was a sudden rush of war drums from the top of Beishuo City, and the meeting room was silent. None of the chiefs from the various legions spoke. A powerful attack on Beishuo City will soon be launched.The middle-aged man who had just been promoted from a farmer to a cavalry scout swears that the opponent has a powerful cavalry regiment with more than 20 flags, countless infantry regiments and heavy armored soldiers. It was as dark as the sea, their torches covered the sky and the sun, and they meandered for more than ten miles. The vanguard troops had already approached the city, and the follow-up troops were still trekking on the Huolei Plain ten miles away.

If Chu Qiao was here, she might have seen at a glance that this was a trap.If Xue Zhiyuan was here, he might also pretend to have the courage to point out the unacceptable points in intelligence.But it's a pity that they are not here at the moment. Cao Mengtong rubbed his chin, glanced at Xia An sideways, and asked in a deep voice, "General Xia, what do you think?" Xia An half-closed his eyes, as if suddenly suffering from Alzheimer's disease, he seemed to be falling asleep in a daze, and said, "The general is far-sighted and wise, the general's wishes are our wishes, and we are willing to follow After the general is on horseback, follow the general's arrangement."

Cao Mengtong's eyes twitched lightly, and he cursed "cunning old fox", but the corner of his mouth still sneered, "Are you coming?"better! Cao Mengtong is no longer young this year. With his background, it is not accidental that he was able to take the position of general in command of hundreds of thousands of troops. Anyone who is familiar with Cao Mengtong knows that in the past ten years of fighting career, he was a leader on the Yanbei Plateau. The one and only undefeated general who has fought more than a hundred battles in his life without losing a single defeat. In this regard, even Wu Daoya can't hold a candle to him.But being undefeated does not mean that he is victorious. On the contrary, the number of times he has victorious in battles is pitifully small, and can almost be counted with one palm.In the words of Miss Yu, what the Second Army is best at is rational strategic shifts. They have been carrying out this great battle strategy almost all their lives, allowing them to fight the enemy with real swords and guns?Don't be kidding, General Cao still has to preserve the essence of Yanbei's army.

If in the past, guarding a city like Beishuo against Daxia's millions of elite cavalry, Cao Mengtong might have fled with his tail between his legs as before.But now, instead, he has a little bit more heroic and passionate power. No one wants to carry the name of an escaped king all his life. With support, they have their own excellent equipment, sharp knives and hard armor, countless horses, and nearly a million soldiers.There is also that little girl who is always by Yan Xun's side, she made a bunch of strange tools for defending the city, although many of them he still doesn't know how to use until now, but the few powers he only knows are not so powerful , and the city has also been heightened and thickened under her auspices, and now the outside is even more frozen.The Xia army was openly exposed on the ice sheet. They came from thousands of miles away, waiting for work at leisure, with millions of soldiers, thick cities, sharp blades, and sufficient reserves. Are these not enough to win a victory?

The blood in Cao Mengtong's veins gradually boiled up. If he wins, his reputation in Yanbei will rise in a flash!The group of old men in the Big Brothers Association who are screaming and pulling their necks will completely collapse at their feet, and Yan Xun, a boy whose hair has not yet grown up, can't even think of pointing fingers in front of him.The Yanbei regime will grow stronger, and the Great Xia will be weak. Even rushing out of Yanbei and entering Zhenhuang is no longer a dream.Three hundred years ago, the Pero family entered Hongchuan, and the history of proclaiming emperor once again reverberated in his mind. As a commoner, he climbed up from the grass and climbed to the pinnacle of victory and power step by step. What a beautiful picture.And the battle of Beishuo was his first battle!

Cao Mengtong was excited by his own thoughts. His eyes were a little red, and the veins on his forehead were bulging. Finally, he stood up abruptly, facing dozens of Yanbei generals, and said slowly in a low tone: "Daxia is not benevolent!" , Cruel and tyrannical, the Battle of Beishuo was a holy war of Yanbei's self-defense, the rise and fall of Yanbei, after this battle, this battle is inevitable, I have made up my mind, please help me!" "Fight for freedom!" A tidy and loud voice sounded in the meeting room, and the guard at the gate quietly turned his head away, only to see a hard fist raised high above his head!

The Battle of Beishuo kicked off! The combat signal was quickly transmitted to the entire Beishuo City, and the clanging of war drums resounded throughout the camp.At this moment, Xue Zhiyuan, the deputy general of the Vanguard Battalion of the Second Army, rushed into the city in a hurry, and conveyed the news that thousands of Daxia enemy troops were lurking outside the city.For a moment, the west gate of the city that was completely open was immediately sealed, prohibiting pedestrians from coming and going. Xue Zhiyuan had seven or eight injuries on his body. I don't know.After him, a large number of Yanbei civilians who escaped from the war just rushed to Beishuo city, shouting loudly that they were the Yanbei people who responded to the conscription order and came to help the war, but they couldn't break the heavy door. The city gate is closed.

Within an hour, more than 3,000 civilians had gathered in the city. They were trembling in the north wind, some were cursing loudly at the defenders in the city, and some were crying and begging, but nothing helped. About two hours later, the sky was already bright, and under the western horizon, a hazy black shadow loomed. The war horse galloped rapidly, and only a black silhouette could be seen in the faint white mist.In the blink of an eye, the soldiers were already approaching the city. The Yanbei Army on Beishuo City rushed to tell each other. The news of the enemy's attack quickly spread throughout the army. , General Cheng Yuan, who was in charge of the defense of the western city, had lingering fears: Fortunately, Xue Zhiyuan reported in advance, otherwise they would really be in a hurry to face the western enemy suddenly.

The civilians roared in fear first, and they ran towards the city gate in panic, but at this time, who would dare to open the city gate for them? There was a creaking sound on the city wall, which was the sound of heavy crossbow bolts being opened. Lieutenant General Cheng Yuan stood on the top of the city, wearing a big blue fur coat, holding a knife in his hand, looking contemptuously at the team ahead, and snorted coldly, However, a light cavalry team of 10,000 people dared to attack Beishuo City, it was simply fantastic.He casually ordered his subordinates: Don't be relentless, wipe them all out, the victory of the first battle of the Beishuo War must be firmly in the hands of our Beishuo local soldiers!

His subordinate Sun He frowned suspiciously, and said rather embarrassedly: "But there are still many civilians under the city." Cheng Yuan raised his eyebrows lightly, his eyes became a little misty, and the corners of his mouth were cold and hard, and he said lightly: "Civilian? I didn't see it." Immediately, General Cheng Yuan left the city and went back to the barracks to rest up. The weather was unbearably cold, with such a small number of troops, it was impossible for him to stay here to guard. Sun He immediately understood. He turned around and told the middle-ranking generals behind him: "The civilians below are all smoke bombs disguised by Xia Jun to confuse us. The purpose is to force us not to shoot arrows. As long as we open the city gate, These people will immediately become the enemy army, kill us all, and burn Beishuo to the ground!"

Everyone immediately understood, and said one after another: "Xia Gou is so cunning, he is really deceiving people too much, if we don't kill them all, we will have no face in this world." The city was full of hustle and bustle, and people gnashed their teeth and roared to the people below.However, at this moment, the entire cavalry suddenly stopped not far away, and a cavalry in black fur at the head rushed forward, took off the hood, and revealed a beautiful and heroic face. The woman said loudly: "I am Chu Qiao, the military staff officer of the General Staff Department. Behind me is the Southwest Township Envoy of my army. The previous Xia army has been wiped out by us. Please open the city gate and let us in!" Her voice was not loud, but everyone in the city could hear her clearly.As soon as the words fell, there were giggling laughter on the city wall. If General Xue hadn't informed in advance, they might have really been fooled by them. Staff Chu has already died for the country, and they still use her banner to cheat?Southwest town government envoy?What team is that?A traitor leader? Sun He didn't see Chu Qiao in front of her, but only saw her back a few times from a distance. This place was too far away from the army below, and the white fog was heavy in the morning, making it even more difficult to recognize her true face.He was preconceived, and after receiving Cheng Yuan's private instructions, he became more courageous, sneered, and waved his hand lightly. "Fight for freedom! Kill!" A loud roar sounded immediately!In response to Chu Qiao's words, more than 300 crossbow arrows were fired at the same time, a large stream of arrows covered the sun like a dark cloud, roared to cover the sky, and fell from the sky like a violent storm! "Protect the adults!" The officers and soldiers of the Southwest Town Government's eyes were tearing apart, and they rushed forward with a loud cry. More than a dozen young soldiers stood in front of Chu Qiao and built a dense human wall for her.After Chu Qiao's improvement, those crossbow arrows can be fired thirty-eight consecutively. They are so powerful and fast that they can be called the most powerful weapon for defending the city in the world. A gust of wind swept over, shooting through more than a dozen soldiers at once, their bodies twisted strangely like hedgehogs, and they flew upside down under the huge impact! "Protect the adults!" He Xiao rushed forward with his sword, and with one sword he slashed a arrow. Hundreds of soldiers rushed forward regardless of life and death, protecting Chu Qiao.They were all light cavalry, without shields, without armor, because they followed Chu Qiao, and they didn't even have a formation suitable for defense.Under the first round of intensive arrow rain, people turned on their backs immediately, screams soared into the sky, blood spattered, hoofbeats, hissing, screaming, arrows piercing the air, blood everywhere, and death everywhere. A young soldier recklessly hugged Chu Qiao and rushed back. The arrow shot through his chest, and a large amount of blood stained Chu Qiao's face, but the soldier still refused to let go. He shouted loudly: "Protect your lord! Get closer to me!" He rode his horses wildly, but soon, their war horses were shot into a hornet's nest and fell to the ground. Get up, still protect Chu Qiao and run back. "There is an enemy attack! Protect your lord!" More and more people rushed forward, they were like black waves, one row of people died, and the other row rushed forward, just like that, there was no weakness, no Fear, no retreat, when the arrow shot over, someone stood up to resist immediately, and the corpses fell to the ground one by one. Finally, when they fled out of range, there were already densely packed soldiers lying on the ground behind them. , Like autumn grass whose roots have been cut off, they are brushed together, and everyone maintains a running posture. "Hahaha!" Yan Beijun's roar of laughter resounded from the top of the city, and the sound was so piercing for a while.Chu Qiao fell heavily to the ground, and He Xiao rushed in through the crowd, shouting nervously, "My lord! Are you alright?" The soldiers scattered in all directions, He Xiao just ran in, his eyes glared, and he shouted loudly: "Bold! How dare you disrespect your lord!" As he spoke, he was about to rush forward. "General He, stop talking." Chu Qiao weakly poked her head out from the arms of the young soldier who was holding her tightly, her tone was sad and low, her face was pale, tears welled in her eyes, but did not fall. "He's dead, he saved me." Breaking free from the soldier's hand, Chu Qiao stood up slowly. At this moment, there was a short low cry from the crowd. The soldier's back was like a hedgehog, with more than a dozen sharp arrows already inserted, three or four The roots were all shot at the heart, and most of them were broken, which shows how many times he fell while running.His expression was ferocious and crazy, as if he was still running wildly at the moment before he died, or, even though he was dead, he was still running.No one knew what kind of power this was. Chu Qiao took off her fur coat, and under the watchful eyes of all the officers and soldiers, she put the clothes on the soldier, knelt down, brushed the soldier's cheek lightly, and closed his eyes for him. With a swish, the girl stood up abruptly, turned around and walked towards Beishuo City Gate. "grown ups!" The soldiers shouted in unison, and He Xiao was the first to stop her, shouting loudly: "My lord! No!" Chu Qiao's eyes were cold, and the flames of anger burned in her heart. Just for a while, they killed more than one hundred people and injured more than three hundred people. These people followed her all the way to betray Zhen Huang When they came to Yanbei, they even almost went to war with Bian Tang because of her. Now, they are resolutely returning for her. In Yanbei's precarious situation, they did not hesitate to take up their swords to defend the new Yanbei regime . They used to be traitors, unforgivable traitors, unforgivable lackeys in Daxia, cowards who were reviled by thousands of people and despised by thousands of people!However, it was also they who were the first to raise the banner of rebelling against the Great Xia, and the first to follow Yan Xun against the blades of the entire Zhenhuang City. The Zhenhuang Change that shocked the world was born in their hands and swept across the northwest. They also started the battle of the coalition forces of ten provinces and counties. Even after being abandoned, they still did not forget their responsibilities and inner loyalty.They have unparalleled trust and reliance on her, but at this moment, what she brings to them is a merciless massacre from the very first appearance! She was so angry that she couldn't add more, she pushed He Xiao away, and walked forward stubbornly.Unexpectedly, He Xiaomeng got up, stepped forward a few steps, knelt down in front of her again, and shouted loudly: "My lord! It's hard to tell the enemy from us. Beishuo City must have misunderstood our army. It's good or bad to go at this time." Unpredictable, absolutely impossible!" With a sound of "shua", Chu Qiao pulled out the sword, the blade was shining, and said in a cold voice: "Get out of the way!" "My lord! Absolutely not!" As soon as the words were finished, the other soldiers all stepped forward and knelt down dozens of times in unison. Chu Qiao raised her eyebrows and wanted to go forward persistently. Suddenly, the entire army knelt down on the ground, and seven thousand voices shouted in unison: "My lord! Absolutely not!" "My lord, if you want to go there! Please step on our dead bodies!" Chu Qiao stood slumped on the spot. She turned her head and looked at the young soldier who was dying, then slowly raised her head and closed her eyes.The flame of anger was hunting and burning in her heart, she breathed slowly, as if she wanted to suppress everything, suppress it, and suppress it again. "Prepare your horses and set up an impact formation!" There was a sharp sound of "嗖", and the soldiers at the top of Beishuo City were shocked. Even heavy bows and crossbows couldn't reach such a long distance, but the opponents only relied on ordinary hand crossbows and arrows. An arrow shot through the banner of one's own Chinese army, what a pity of physical strength! He Xiao put down his bow and arrow, and there was a dead silence in the audience. Even the civilians who came to join the army fell silent in surprise. Chu Qiao rode on the horse and stepped forward slowly. The red cloud flag fluttered above her head, waving in the wind. Standing a hundred steps away from the range of the crossbow arrow, she stared at the other party coldly, and said loudly: "I am General Staff Chu Qiao, I want to see your top general!" Cheng Yuan had just come out of the rest room at this time, and Da Qiu's belt hadn't been fastened yet. The moment he heard Chu Qiao's voice, he was stunned. In the early morning mist, it looked like a burning flame. The soldiers were like iron, with a solemn military style. The silent anger was suppressed like a mountain. With just one look, he knew that the army on the opposite side was far from his own. These rabble can contend.They have no advantage other than the large number of people. "I am Chu Qiao, the military staff officer of the General Staff Department, and I want to see your top general!" Chu Qiao's words were repeated again, and Cheng Yuan's face turned pale. Sun He, who was standing aside, saw the expression on the officer's face, and a terrible chill slowly rose in his chest, and the terrible thought engulfed his mind. Yes, thinking of the relationship between this woman and His Highness, his hand holding the knife almost trembled. "My lord, she, she won't be..." "idiot!" Cheng Yuan narrowed his eyes slowly: "You have made a big mess." "Prepare the horse, the whole army will go out with me to meet the enemy. If one enemy is released, we don't have to come back alive!" Cheng Yuan gave a cold shout, and strode down the tower. Sun He couldn't wait to rush forward, and hurriedly said, "My lord! Since it's true, then we..." With a crisp "snap", Deputy Cheng slapped Sun He's face, and the young general grabbed his collar and shouted coldly, "You idiot! Do you know who she is? Do you know the relationship between her and His Highness? It has reached this point now, if she does not die, the two of us will wait for His Highness to come back and take our two sacrificial flags!" Anyway, this is the case, if you want to survive, you can only die, since you have already confirmed that it is fake, you can only admit it to the end! Cheng Yuan felt cold and said coldly: "Western City Defense Force! All gather!" Xue Zhiyuan was awakened in his sleep. The sound of rumbling war drums spread throughout the city. He resisted the pain in his body and got up. However, when he walked up to the west wall, he suddenly froze.The man's eyes widened. Hearing the familiar voice from the opposite side again and again, he glanced at the formation assembled under the city. He immediately understood, pushed away the guards and hurried down the tower: "What are you doing? Open the city gate! That's Chu Master Staff!" Cheng Yuan walked forward coldly, and pressed Xue Zhiyuan's mouth. The man was seriously injured and was unable to resist, so Cheng Yuan lowered his voice and said in a cold voice: "If this matter goes through, you will be the first One is doomed! Misreporting the military situation and causing riots among friendly troops, do you think His Highness will let you go? If you want to live, shut up immediately, or I can send you to the west now!" Cheng Yuan's eyes were cold, and he walked away with murderous strides, and he ordered: "I will follow my command later, we will pretend to be friendly troops and approach them first, then Sun He will lead troops to attack their flanks, and Li Lu will lead troops to attack their rear." , surrounded and wiped out the city, none of them can let them leave alive!" Xue Zhiyuan stood there blankly, his blood gradually cooling down, his expression was sluggish, and his expression was in a trance. In an instant, he recalled many things, the hunger, cold and embarrassment when he was young, the excitement and enthusiasm when he was first conveyed the idea of ​​Datong, all the way. All the hardships and hardships, and the weakness and exhaustion of being unwilling to face the reality all the time, his beliefs, his ideals, and everything about him collapsed at this moment! His face became paler and paler. Suddenly, he staggered and ran towards the city wall. His figure was extremely fast, like a swift tiger! Cheng Yuan came to his senses immediately, turned around and shouted sharply: "Stop him!" However, in such an instant, he was already on the tower, and the young man climbed up and shouted: "Chu Qiao! Run!" The sound of "嗖嗖" suddenly sounded, and thousands of arrows were fired, and shot through the man in an instant. The arrows penetrated his body and his shoulders, and poked out his head from all over his hands and feet, blood dripping all over the place. On the city wall, the man's young blood is like drops of bright red seeds, dripping from the majestic city wall and falling on the white snow, forming small bright red whirlpools! Everyone was stunned. The cold wind blew over his shirt and his promising young torso. His eyes were clear and tough, with an unyielding Ling Ran. The oath he made many years ago still echoed in his ears: I voluntarily Dedicate my whole life to Yanbei's Datong cause, no ego, no selfish interests, struggle for life, and fight for freedom! The sky and the earth became empty and silent in an instant. Facing the wind, his body crashed down, along the majestic city wall, and landed on the icy land of Yanbei! "boom!" The civilians under the city suddenly let out a terrified roar!The crowd left the towering city wall like a chaotic flood, and the way they looked at the soldiers on the city wall was no longer pure trust and dependence. Chu Qiao was sitting on the horseback, the corners of her eyes were red, her palms were cold, her gaze was as tough as iron, but her chest was filled with magma-like heat and frenzy.Finally, she raised her palm heavily and issued a short and clear military order: "Retreat!" The cavalry behind them immediately lined up, and the army turned around in unison, ready to leave.At the last moment before leaving, the stern girl turned her head coldly, and took a last look at the flying Yanbei battle flag, at the densely packed defenders on the tower, and even at the messy mess on the ground. As well as the corpse of the young soldier she had slapped at the foot of Beishuo City, she let out a deep breath, but felt that her chest was getting heavier. "I won't take revenge! I swear I won't be human!" The sun finally jumped out of the horizon, sprinkled a golden light, and the whole land was golden. It seemed that even the gods wanted to crown this day. With such a fast speed, even if they pursue at full speed now, they have already lost the possibility of encircling and annihilating them.Cheng Yuan's heart seemed to have fallen into an ice cellar. Sun He stared blankly at the cavalry regiment roaring away, then turned his head and asked, "My lord, what should I do?" Cheng Yuan glanced at Sun He, his eyes were cold and cold like ice and snow, he turned around slowly, and strode away without saying a word. "what to do?" He also secretly asked himself in his heart, if he wants to find a way out for himself, he must, definitely! The sun in the sky is as bright as gold, and a new day has finally arrived! But an hour later, a large thick dark cloud floated over the northern sky, and there was a low-pitched roar like muffled thunder from the sky.Before breakfast was finished, an iron-gray ocean slowly appeared under the eastern horizon, like grass waves that could not be seen at a glance on the vast ice sheet, covering the sky and the sun, constantly expanding, expanding, tens of millions A horse's hoof trampled the ground, snow-white snow waves entrenched under their feet, and the gray battle robes were rolled up by the strong wind, like a large group of flying eagles! Excellent horses, hard armor, sharp swords and guns, neat military appearance, the Yanbei Second Army who have been fighting against the local garrisons all their lives, really saw the demeanor of the so-called army for the first time, and a veteran was frightened Sitting on the top of the wall with his buttocks, his eyes were straightened, and he murmured: "The devil is coming!" The flags are raised like the sea, the swords are like the forest, everywhere is covered with iron gray, gradually covering the whole plain, their square formation is strict, neat and clear, the central army is entrenched like a tiger, the flanks are flamboyant like eagles, and the rear is full of reserve troops The regiment sharpened their knives and guns one by one, with their big furs unfurled, winding for nearly five miles back and forth, it was obvious that there were still a large number of troops behind that had not entered Huoleiyuan. Those who have not personally experienced it cannot understand such a magnificent scene. For a moment, everyone showed panic and fear. Over the past century, facing the repeated provocations of the Great Brotherhood, Da Xia only made a few times. Strangulation and response, even when attacking Yan Shicheng, it was only a symbolic dispatch of the Meng family army.But this time, there were four regular legions with more than 100,000 people, not to mention the follow-up wings and support troops. Daxia was really angry. Facing the reactionary forces that dared to challenge the dignity of the empire for the first time in three hundred years, they defended it to the death, and they did not hesitate to fight! The cold long wind blew across the sky above Yanbei. When Beishuo City was shivering, at the foot of Sunset Mountain not far away, the military flag of the Southwest Township was fluttering under the dark clouds, and Chu Qiao was sitting on the horseback. , facing seven thousand pairs of passionate eyes, issued the following order: "Beishuo is about to be lost. The only plan for now is to seize Chiyuan Ferry, occupy Chidu City, and launch a second line of defense in Yanbei's interior. This is a military order! It will take effect immediately! All troops, move out!" Just when the Southwest town government envoy raised his whip and hurried to Chiyuan Ferry, in the camp of the Chinese army in Daxia, Zhao Qi frowned and marked a circle on the marching map, muttering: "Old Fourteenth!" It should be here." There, three tributaries converge in one place, the Lijiang River, Chixijiang River, and Wujiang River, which together form a Chishui that traverses the entire Simon continent. A lonely small city is located on it. It has a nice name: Chidu City. The war eagle screamed and screamed. The first Northern Expedition in history had already begun. Death's footsteps came to this cold land. The river was frozen and the surface of the river was snow-white. military base.The two famous generals are about to collide, and a battle for Chidu that shocked the world has sounded the horn of battle in the cold wind.The tide of history rolled in, and Cao Mengtong stood in front of the Yanbei Army and waved down the sacred command flag. The old veteran rarely mustered up the courage to shout loudly: "May God bless Yanbei! May we win in one battle! Warriors, Fight for Yanbei, for freedom!"