The west wind carried the hot poisonous smoke across the land, and terrifying explosions were heard one after another.

The raging fire spread from the river bank inland, the flames roared and burned away the dead leaves, shrubs and cypresses, and finally gathered into a sea of ​​flames floating on the canopy of the trees.

No matter what the Teltun people had planned, they did not choose to break out of the siege immediately after being besieged.

Winters also did not rush to launch a general attack, and the battlefield fell into an uncomfortable silence.

What broke the silence was a fire, a fire coming from the water - Samkin's fleet landed under the cover of darkness, set fire to their horses and entered the forest, igniting several coastal woodlands in one fell swoop.

During the process of clearing the country, most of the trees along the coast were burned, leaving only the woodland at the intersection of the two rivers, just to wait for the miraculous effect of the general attack.

The fire took advantage of the power of the wind, and the wind helped the fire. The scattered fire fields quickly connected into a line, and the ten-mile river bank was reflected blood red by the fire.

Taichi's camp was in chaos. The fire hadn't even reached this point, but the strong wind had already sent a scorching heat wave.

The frightened and crazy birds and animals fled in droves, even rushing into the crowd without hesitation.

A slave near the forest heard the sound of hooves behind him, but before he could see what it was, he was knocked down head-on by an adult stag.

The stag broke its neck and died on the spot; the unarmored slave was also penetrated by twelve forked antlers, and soon lost his breath as the blood gurgled out.

But at this juncture, no one cared about the life or death of a stag and a slave.

The Teltun people in the camp were cursing, shouting, and running around, trying to save their belongings and lives.

"Saddle up! Get saddle up quickly!"

"Bring everything with you!"

"Go away!"

"Can't wait any longer! Catch the horse! Catch the horse!"

People are panicked, and horses are even more restless. Horses' senses are far sharper than people's, and they have smelled the strange smell in the wind long ago.

A war horse threw off its rider without warning, kicking and kicking wildly, while the Terton people around them rolled and crawled to dodge.

"Lash it! Catch it!"

"Ah! This beast!"

"Get out of the way!" Another Terton man shouted in the chaos: "The horse is frightened!"

Another frightened war horse rushed over, and slaves who couldn't avoid it were hit hard and flew out with blood vomiting from the mouth.

The frightened horse also received a great recoil force, and it roared and raised its front hooves high.

At this moment, two nooses were put on the frightened horse one after another to stop it.

A strong man with gray hair and a round waist pounced forward, wrapped his hands around the frightened horse's neck, and clamped it under his armpits.

The strong man used all his strength to lower the frightened horse's head while pushing the frightened horse from the side.

The joint structure causes the horse to have vertical strength but no horizontal strength, so the wrestling between man and beast lasts only a few breaths.

With a thunderous roar, the frightened horse was "thrown" down by the strong man from Teldon.

The frightened war horse screamed and fell to the ground, kicking and kicking wildly.

The strong man held the frightened horse's neck tightly, neither letting the horse get up nor giving it a chance to bite.

The rest of the Terton people swarmed up and tied the four legs of the frightened horse to control the crazy beast.

When everyone saw who the strong man was who had mastered the art of riding a horse, they couldn't help but cheer loudly. It was none other than Tai Chi.

Tai Chi put his hands on the ground and struggled to support his heavy body, as if he was saying silently: "What is this? I didn't need to be so powerful when I was young."

Taichi's bodyguard - the one who had just thrown the rope and hit the horse - ran over to help him and said in a rough voice: "That Yan's power is still the same as before."

Taichi spat viciously: "If you don't grow hair, we'll tell you later. Have the people sent to find other leaders come back?"

The guard shook his head.

"Father! The towers - they refuse to join together!" Taichi's son shouted and rushed over: "Let's go quickly! Father!"

Although the Tertun people's camp is located on a higher ground, it is difficult for them to directly observe the fire due to the obstruction of the forest.

But the night sky was already burning red, and the choking smoke was getting thicker and thicker. It was obvious that the fire was approaching rapidly as he spoke.

But Taichi's tribe was still running around to collect the scrolls, rescue goods, or gather their horses.

"It's too late to join together." Tai Chi became furious and ordered through gritted teeth: "Bring only bows, arrows, armor, food and drink! Leave everything else behind! Follow me quickly to avoid the fire."

The Terdun people camped in scattered camps in family units. For a while, the only people Taichi could control were his direct subordinates.

Taichi's son was stunned for a moment, then rushed into the camp with a roar and beat the tribesmen who were collecting the belongings: "Give them all away!"

…

On a hill behind the third line of defense, Winters and others in the command headquarters were watching the fire.

The fire was better than he expected. It seemed that Samkin's task was completed well.

The sea of ​​​​fire is like a translucent red mist floating on the tree crown, and the flames are mixed with smoke and dust and fly into the air, like a veil blowing in the wind.

Thunderous explosions came one after another, mixed with a few screams of the dead being burned alive.

The hellish scene made the civilian clerks in the headquarters look unbearable. Some turned their heads and refused to look, while others covered their ears and did not want to listen.

Winters had experienced several fire attacks, and he knew very well that only a small part of them were burned to death. Most of the victims died from poisonous smoke - they fell down while running and could never stand up again.

His headquarters had just undergone a round of expansion, adding a group of administrative staff who were originally affiliated with Bard.

These clerks who could read, write, and do arithmetic liberated Winters from some mechanical manual labor. At least he no longer had to write every order or memorandum by hand, he only had to dictate it.

It also allows Winters to focus on more critical things.

Bud looked at the burning forest, with a worried look on his face, and murmured to himself: "We have driven the Teltown people to a dead end, and they will fight for their lives."

Winters pursed his lips and said nothing.

According to the original battle plan, the fire would be the signal for a general attack, and we should at least wait until the third and even fourth lines of defense were completely completed before starting.

At that time, even if the Terdun people want to defeat them to death, Tiefeng County's troops can rely on fortifications and fortresses to block the enemy layer by layer until the latter runs out of energy.

If possible, we should wait as long as possible with the Tertun people until the latter are exhausted.

But now the cage has not been tightened tightly, but the beast has been alarmed. What awaits the people of Tiefeng County is bound to be a bloody battle, and they may even fall short.

"If my guess is correct." Winters clenched his fists tightly, holding a statue of a shield-bearing goddess in his palm: "The Teltun people's counterattack will not be as strong as previously expected - I hope

I was wrong."

"Don't think about whether it's wrong or right." Bud said to Winters: "In order to avoid greater risks, this is a risk that needs to be taken."

Winters' war horse lowered its head, snorted, and kept pawing the ground with its front hooves. Perhaps it was because the horse smelled the pungent smoke, or perhaps because it sensed the owner's anxiety.

Liubard was at the command post, and Winters led Charles and Heinrich to leave the hills and gallop along the front.

In the original battle plan, the third line of defense was not just a "wall".

Walls and trenches are the foundation of all fortifications. On this basis, bastions, arrow towers, and breastworks can be added. With each day of preparation, this line of defense will become stronger, and Winters will be more confident.

point.

"Are you ready?" Winters asked himself, he didn't know.

But he couldn't show this emotion, because the soldiers, militiamen and even women who guarded the valleys, narrow roads, and passes all pinned their hopes on him.

Seeing the arrogant Hud barbarians being besieged in this small place step by step, the people of Iron Peak County gradually developed a kind of fanatical respect for Winters.

And because few people have seen Winters with their own eyes, the object of fanatical worship has shifted to his red flag.

Winters rode along the battle line, and the men and women cheered excitedly as they saw the red flag passing through the night, as if the sight of the flag meant victory.

Such sentiments are in some ways harmful - Winters is coolly aware of this.

But not only can he not suppress this enthusiasm, on the contrary, he must try his best to maintain it.

Fighting in battle requires not only armor and physical strength, but also courage and will.

If an army firmly believes that its side will win, it means that they can withstand greater casualties, endure more pain, and persist for a longer period of time, which means that they can really win.

Winters had never learned how to be a general. Will the old marshal feel the same confusion as he did when facing Shan Hu with thousands of troops? He didn't know.

When faced with the same fanaticism, did the famous generals who shine in the history books accept it calmly, or even think that they are the chosen ones?

Or will you feel uneasy about this and always remind yourself that "all men are mortal"?

Growing up, Winters' role model was his adoptive father. Looking at the back of Antonio Serbetti, Winters groped his way to where he is today without guidance.

But when he was about to touch his adoptive father's back, he discovered that he knew nothing about his adoptive father's inner world.

Was Antonio never confused? Or did he just not show it? Winters didn't know, and he never talked about these things with his adoptive father.

He longed for Antonio's guidance, but the two were thousands of miles apart, so he could only imitate Antonio:

Concentrate your emotions, accept cheers and salutes silently, return greetings silently, and reveal nothing.

…

The fire was still burning until daybreak, and the Tertuns launched an attack at dawn.

The whole front was in emergency for a while, and messengers asking for help came like hailstones. It seemed that every company and every defense line was being attacked with all their strength by the elite troops of the Terdun tribe.
To be continued...