Chapter 171: Fighting for Hetao (36)

Outside the city gate, flags were flying, and the two armies were lined up in the field.

Lianxian County is backed by the Yellow River, and to the east is a quite wide flat ground, and the Black Eagle Army set up a formation in front of the village gate.

More than 200 chariots with removed horses were connected together with thick ropes to form a bow shape. Outside the bow shape, several rows of horses were set up.

Bai Shuangwu led more than 5,000 infantrymen behind the chariots, each carrying a Hou family knife, a Huanghua crossbow, and a long bow, equipped with fifty crossbow arrows and fifty bows and arrows.

Kuang Cao led a total of 5,000 cavalrymen in the Wolf Camp and the Bear Camp, behind the infantry. In order to save horsepower, they did not ride on horseback, but led war horses behind the infantry.

Behind the infantry and horse army is the Muzhai Fence. There is an open space between the wooden fence and the city wall under construction. There are fifty medium-sized catapults and four large catapults on the open space. There are many stones and sealed pots next to each catapult.

Behind the catapult cart was the city wall being built. The Black Eagle Army tried its best to install fifty Western Shu crossbows on the incomplete city wall. All Western Shu crossbows were lowered and stared at the Khitan Army with a fierce look.

The people in the city all picked up the swords and guns that were given to them and guarded behind the city wall.

The city wall gate, village gate, carriage and horse-resisting horses form a tight blocking position.

The team against the Black Eagle Army was the Khitan Cavalry Team, which was the vanguard battalion sent by Yelu Daguang.

Commander Segeqi continued to send cavalry teams to launch a tentative attack. These cavalry teams had about a hundred people quickly approached the Black Eagle Army's position. After shooting one or two arrows, they quickly turned back to the team. The Black Eagle Army completely adopted a defensive force, and only when the hundred-man team approached, they used bows and arrows to fight back.

Liu Hongye was quite puzzled by the formation of the Zhou army: the formation of the Black Eagle Army is a typical defensive formation, and the chariot formations built with chariots as fortresses are mostly used in field battles. Compared with city walls or village gates, the chariot formations are more likely to be broken through. The Black Eagle Army is quite inappropriate for defense in this way.

Hou Dayong was covered in a wardrobe, observed the movements of the Khitan army for a while, and said to Liu Hongye sideways: "Mr. Liu must have a very good understanding of the Khitan army. How do you view the situation of today's war?"

Liu Hongye led the Richie army and the Khitan army to fight dozens of times, and was very familiar with the tactics of the Khitan army. He thought for a moment and said, "The Khitan army has both infantry and cavalry, and is mainly cavalry. Cavalry acts alone and are mostly responsible for tasks such as cutting off the rear, surprise attacks, harassment, etc. If I am not wrong, this cavalry is just a vanguard of the army."

Liu Hongye's judgment was basically consistent with the information provided by the Lion Camp's detective cavalry. Hou Dayong smiled and said, "Mr. Liu is very smart. The detective cavalry came to report, and the Khitan army was coming later."

Liu Hongye was a little worried: According to the Khitans' habit of using troops, the vanguard battalion is usually one-quarter or one-fifth of the entire army, and the vanguard battalion has more than 10,000 people, which means that the Khitan army is about 40,000 or 50,000. The Black Diao Army has only more than 10,000 people, but it is posing as a decisive battle with the Khitan army. It is really difficult for the Black Diao Army to win.

The Khitan Army tried several times. Seeing that the Black Eagle Army was in a mess and had no reaction, it stopped sending cavalry teams to test, and waited patiently for the arrival of the army.

The two sides confronted each other for half an hour, and the sound of horse hooves from the far away came, and a large group of Khitan troops flocked to him. Soon, the Khitan army with distinctive armor was divided into three heavy army groups, with flags waving. The military was extremely powerful. The Khitan Central Army was flying a large military flag with a flying silver tiger on it.

Liu Hongye's face changed and reminded Hou Dayong: "The general commanding the army is Yelu Daguang, a famous Khitan general, and the governor should not underestimate the enemy."

Hou Dayong smiled mysteriously, waved his whip and said, "Yelu Daguang is the commander of the Xijing Road of the Khitan Army. After defeating him, the land of Hetao belongs to me. A battle will determine the world, which is really a pleasure in life!"

Seeing that Hou Dayong was confident and Liu Hongye couldn't say anything else, he thought to himself: If Hou Dayong was not a famous general, he would be a lunatic.

The Khitan army quickly completed its formation. As the war drums in the Khitan army sounded, a team of thousands of people rushed out from each side, avoiding the thickest front end of the Black Eagle military vehicle formation and taking the relatively weak wings.

The Black Eagle Army's carriages were all connected together with thick ropes, and there was enough space between each carriage for infantry to enter and exit freely, while the cavalry was hindered and it was difficult to leap over the carriage. The Black Eagle Army's infantry, the strong men selected from the united soldiers, hid behind the carriage. After the Khitan cavalry entered the range of crossbows, under the command of their respective generals, they took turns to shoot at the enemy cavalry with Huanghua hand crossbows.

Most of the selected united soldiers were the Tang survivors from Gua and Shazhou, and a few were border residents living in Lingzhou for generations. They were all brave and fighting. Facing the Khitan cavalry, after a brief panic, they followed the orders of the Black Eagle Army General and the Chief of the Black Eagle Army, they ordered the ground yellow birch crossbows in their hands.

The Khitan Army was easily repelled by dense crossbow arrows in the first round of attacks, and many Khitan soldiers who were caught in the arrows fell down in front of the two armies.

Baishuangwu was the commander-in-chief of the chariot position. After the Khitan army retreated, there were 100 infantrymen on both sides of the left and right wings. They crawled out from the gap between the carriages and rushed towards the Khitan soldiers in the fallen place. They collected crossbow arrows and chopped the injured Khitan soldiers.

Seeing this, the Khitan army sent two cavalry teams to attack the brutal Zhou infantry. As soon as the Khitan cavalry was dispatched, several horns sounded behind the chariot formation. The infantry spread their legs and fled back to the Black Eagle Army's position at a speed of 100 meters.

The Black Eagle Army infantry's move was to make the Khitan Army have the illusion that the crossbows were not enough, and to arouse the anger of the Khitan Army.

The Khitan army did not continue to send cavalry attacks. After a drum sound, four Khitan infantry and military teams held huge square leather shields, maintained a tight formation, and advanced towards the wooden formation at a constant speed, followed by thousands of cavalry.

The advantage of the chess formation is to hide behind the carriage and fire crossbow arrows to destroy the enemy's impact. If the enemy infantry approaches the chess, the chesss formation is easily broken through, which is also the biggest disadvantage of the chess formation. Liu Hongye and Yelu Daguang fought for half a year, and knew the chess of Yelu Daguang. Seeing that it changed the formation very quickly, they couldn't help but worry for the Black Eagle Army.

The central army of the Black Eagle Army sounded sharp horns, and the two red flags kept shaking. A messenger rode his horse to the city wall and shouted: "The crossbow is ready to launch."

There are fifty crossbows on the city wall. They are divided into three groups on the left, middle, right, left and right, each with fifteen groups. There are twenty in the middle group. The three groups of crossbows are divided into three groups to achieve the continuity of shooting.

Chen Meng is the commander of the Western Shu crossbow. After the enemy infantry was dispatched, he had ordered the crossbow battalion to be ready for launch. After the Khitan infantry entered the pre-set shooting area, the unique ground horn of the crossbow battalion sounded on the city wall.

The crossbow arrows, as thick as a gun, made a huge roar like a tiger's roar, and rushed straight to the infantry phalanx.

The ground shield in the Khitan infantry's hands could not block the thunderous ground crossbow arrows. The giant crossbow easily penetrated the leather shield and nailed the leather shield and the soldiers to the ground. There were only two rows of large leather shields, and the soldiers in the back row all held infantry shields. The infantry shields were much lighter than leather shields and could be used on their arms and in front of the giant crossbow. These infantry shields were shot through like paper.

The Khitan infantry formation was attacked by a huge crossbow, and it was completely disorganized. The infantry who was lucky enough to be scared by the giant arrows and fled in all directions. The Khitan army was extremely strict and those who retreated without authorization were killed. With the order of the cavalry general, the cavalry team attacked the fleeing soldiers with arrows.

Yelu Daguang led half of the cavalry and half of the infantry in the Khitan army. All the Khitan soldiers were cavalry, and the infantry was composed of Bohai soldiers and Han soldiers. Many infantry were shot and killed by the cavalry. In desperation, the infantry had no choice but to return to the position. They held a leather shield and cursed the Khitan cavalry angrily.

In the second round of the Zhou army, the third round of the giant arrows arrived as scheduled with strong wind and whistles.

After 500 soldiers and three giant arrows, half of the soldiers turned into resentful souls. Seeing that they could not escape and died, the remaining infantry rushed towards the Black Eagle Army's position desperately. At this moment, the Khitan Central Army issued a retreat order, and the infantry fled back to the formation as if they were amnesty.

When Yelu Daguang saw the Zhou army's bed crossbow activated, he suddenly realized: No wonder the Zhou army wanted to burn the bodies of the fallen soldiers, because it turned out to cover the traces of the bed crossbow.

Yelu Daguang had a Youzhou strategist named Chen Wenyuan. Seeing that the Zhou army was in strict defense, sharp crossbows, and the Khitan had lost its tax energy for two consecutive battles. He rushed forward and said, "General, the subordinates have a plan to defeat the Zhou army."

"Sir, have any tricks?"

"The Zhou army has a tight defense, and the carriage and the village gate are connected to Ikkyu. If our army attacks hard, it will suffer heavy losses. However, this formation also has fatal weaknesses. The Zhou army is arranged very densely. If you use a catapult car and fire bomb attack, you will definitely defeat the Zhou army."

The Khitan army was not prepared to attack Lingzhou City this time. In order to move quickly, they did not carry a bulky catapult. If the catapult was transported from Xijing Road, it would take at least ten days to go and come. Therefore, Yelu Daguang was a little hesitant.

Chen Wenyuan seemed to see through Yelu Daguang's thoughts and said, "While waiting for the catapult, our army can cut off its food route and surround it without fighting. The Zhou army is good at defense and is not as good as our army's attack. They will definitely not break through the siege. At that time, we will use the head of the Zhou army general to pay tribute to the dead soldiers."

Lian County was originally a ruined old city. Yelu Daguang came with heavy troops and thought he could easily break through the city. Unexpectedly, the Zhou army suffered a strange disaster. The Khitan army attacked the hard stones. Yelu Daguang quickly accepted the reality and agreed to Chen Wenyuan's suggestion.

Yelu Daguang said to Segeqi: "You lead the Qianfeng Camp and go south along the Yellow River to cut off the passage from Lingzhou to Lian County, and do not allow a grain of grain to go north."

Before he finished speaking, the Khitan soldiers exclaimed, and dozens of big stones flew over from Zhou camp. The Khitan army was dense, and the big stones flew over, and the soldiers had no way to hide, and screamed everywhere. After the first round of stone attacks, the Khitan soldiers realized that it was not big stones that were flying in, but some large pottery jars containing wine and some compelling things.

Ten Khitan commanders ran out from behind Yelu Daguang, held the command flag in his hand, and kept shouting: "Keep the formation and retreat a hundred steps." The Khitan troops retreated one hundred steps in an orderly manner.

Liu Hongye knew the power of Yelu Daguang. At this time, although the Black Eagle Army had the upper hand and the main force of the Khitan was not damaged, there must be a fierce battle. When the troops behind the carriage were cheering, Liu Hongye's worries became even heavier.

Yang Tianpan was responsible for commanding the stone casting car. After the transformation of Guo Baoyu and others, the black eagle army's stone casting car could quickly adjust the distance of the stone casting. This technological innovation was completed by Guo Xiaobao, the apprentice of Guo Baoyu. Hou Dayong rewarded Guo Xiaobao with a set of yards, Zhou Yuantongbao fifty taels, and Guo Xiaobao enjoyed the treatment of commander. As the person in charge of the newly established equipment camp, Guo Baoyu also received corresponding rewards.

As soon as this move was made, the Fifth Battalion of Craftsmen in Lingzhou City believed that the newly issued "Technical Innovation Order" was to be truly fulfilled. The city of Lingzhou immediately set off a craze of technological innovation, with small inventions and small innovations emerging one after another. Chen Huaijing was specifically responsible for reviewing these inventions and innovations. If it has practical value, it will be reported to Hou Dayong immediately. After Hou Dayong's consent, it can be manufactured in large quantities and equipped to the army.

The Khitan army retreated a hundred steps back. According to conventional rules, this distance had already left the attack range of the catapult cart. Unexpectedly, countless stones and pottery jars still chased after them like the god of death. Anyone who was hit by the stone immediately became a ball of mud. Tens of thousands of Khitan troops attacked them once, but dozens of casualties were killed and injured. However, the person who was hit was too tragic to death, and the stones fell from the sky, and they could not be defended. They could not hide, and the Khitan soldiers gradually became afraid.

Yelu Daguang ordered the entire army to retreat one hundred steps.

At this time, four huge rocks flew out of the Black Eagle Army camp, each of which was as big as a calf, hitting heavily at the Khitan Army. The huge rock weighing 100 kilograms hit the ground. A loud "boom, boom" sounded, and four small pits appeared on the ground. A huge rock hit a cavalry, and even the people and horses were trapped in the pit, which had become a meat cake.

The Khitan army had not yet woken up from the attack of the huge rocks. A dull "buzz, buzz" sound came from the sky. Yelu Daguang looked up and saw a few black clouds moving slowly. Yelu Daguang narrowed his eyes, trying to see clearly what strange weapons were floating in.

A voice in horror broke out in the Khitan army: "The red-footed hornet is the red-footed hornet."

Yelu Daguang's face changed drastically when he heard this.

The red-footed hornet likes sweetness and wine. The black eagle army pot contains something mixed with sugar and wine. This mixed thing is the deadly love of the red-footed hornet. After the pot was broken, the fragrance quickly drifted with the wind. The red-footed hornet with a sensitive sense of smell accurately discovered the source of the fragrance. In a blink of an eye, endless red-footed hornets rushed towards the Khitan army.

Seeing the plan, Yang Tianpan was so excited that he danced with excitement. He rode his war horse and shuttled back and forth in the Thunder Camp position, constantly urging: "Populate all the pots." The remaining more than 100 pots were quickly thrown into the Khitan military camp. When Yang Tianpan saw that the pots were empty, he smiled and said, "Lianxian must not know the sweetness in March." In order to create a sweet wine mixture, the Thunder Camp collected all the sugar materials in Lianxian. Yang Tianpan sighed.

The huge rock and the red-footed hornet became a nightmare in the Khitan soldiers. Even though Yelu Daguang's military orders were like a mountain, the troops were also in chaos under the attack of the red-footed hornets. Yelu Daguang's face was stung for two or three times, and soon there was a large piece of redness and swollen face.

The fragrance of sugar and wine spread everywhere with the wind, and red-footed hornets flew out of Lian County for several miles.

Lian County has been abandoned for a long time, without human activities, and wild grasses and wild flowers have taken advantage of the situation to grow vigorously. After decades of development, a huge population has formed in the depths of a hill about three miles outside Lian County. At this time, the strong fragrance attracted all the red-footed hornets and flew towards the Khitan army continuously. After the Khitan soldiers were attacked by the red-footed hornets, they desperately slap these uninvited guests. The red-footed hornets were aroused by the fierceness, and they were even more fearless and went toward the Khitan soldiers.

Jiang Hui had been in Lian County for more than half a year. He estimated that there were nearly 10,000 red-footed hornets outside Lian County. Unexpectedly, there were countless red-footed hornets flying from all directions, covering the sky above the Khitan army.

The Black Eagle Army soldier opened his mouth and looked at the red-footed hornets that were covered with the sky. Liu Hongye lived in the grassland for a long time. This was the first time he had seen such a huge number of red-footed hornets. Feng Sha also opened his mouth and looked at it for a long time, saying to himself: "There are so many red-footed hornets. Only the locust plague in Guangshun has reached such a scale."

Seeing that the time was ripe, Hou Dayong shouted, "Cabinet attack." The infantry on the left wing quickly cut off the rope connecting the carriage and pushed open a large gap. The Wolf Camp led by Kuang Cao, five thousand cavalrymen of the Xiong Camp quickly set out from the gap and rushed towards the Khitan army. A thousand Modao teams in the Jiao Camp followed behind the cavalry team and swept away the remaining enemies.

In order to prevent the attack of the Red Foot Mountain Bee, the soldiers of the Black Eagle Army painted their faces with the juice of mountain bee grass. Yesterday, Hou Dayong and Liu Hongye were attacked by the Red Foot Mountain Bee in the cemetery, on the one hand, they sent a thousand united troops to dig the mountain bee grass everywhere. In addition, they bought the mountain bee grass at a high price in the city. After seeing the notice, thousands of people in the city went out to dig the mountain bee grass. After half a day of crazy digging, the mountain bee grass within ten miles was dug up.

Kuang Cao led 5,000 cavalrymen of the Black Eagle Army with cavalry and rifles in hand and stabbed into the Khitan army like sharp knives. The Khitan army had been tortured by the red-footed hornets and had no fighting spirit. A large number of Khitan soldiers were picked off by cavalry and rifles, and the Khitan army was soon torn apart.

In front of the tent of the Black Eagle Army, the soldiers beat the three-sided war drums frantically.

The five thousand lion camp cavalry led by Guo Jiong was hidden in the southeast of Lian County. At the beginning of the battle, the five thousand elite cavalry slowly moved closer to the periphery of Lian County. After the Kuang Cao cavalry launched an attack, Guo Jiong led the elite cavalry of the Lion camp to penetrate fiercely from the flank of the Khitan army. The elite cavalry of the Lion camp was selected very well, which happened to be the joint point of the Khitan army's infantry and cavalry. The elite cavalry of the Lion camp advanced rapidly and successfully cut the Khitan army into two halves.

Yelu Daguang could not gather the troops at all. Seeing that the defeat was settled, he sighed and fled to the west while slapped the red-footed hornets circling on the ground.
Chapter completed!