Chapter 365: Pass the order, the entire army attacks!

In the vast northwest desert, a cavalry of 50,000 marched slowly.

This cavalry was different from the Hu people who often shouted and marched across the desert, herding cattle and sheep and wearing fur coats and woolen clothes. There was no similarity between them in appearance and clothing.

They were Qin people and wore black armor.

He wore an iron helmet on his head, and light armor that extended from his shoulders and neck to his thighs. Even the Qin army, which was the best in the world, had never been so extravagant.

They were previously equipped with the best and most sophisticated equipment, which were armor plates tied with thick hemp rope and fixed on the shoulders and arms. The generals had two breastplates on their chests and backs, which were already the most luxurious equipment of this era.

These protections gave them an inherent advantage when fighting against soldiers from other countries - if the enemy's spears pierced their armor, they would only fall. And no matter where their spears landed on the enemy, it would be a real bloody hole.

Among the armies of the seven nations, only the Qin army could have such a configuration.

It was not that Qin was rich. The richest of the seven states was Qi, but the armor of the Qi army was far inferior to that of the Qin army.

It’s not that Qin has the resources. Among the seven countries, Han has the richest iron ore resources, but Han’s armor is far inferior to that of the Qin army.

The real reason is that the Qin Dynasty had wise rulers throughout the ages. The Qin kings, who did not advocate material desires but only pursued hegemony, were willing to spend money on equipment rather than natural treasures, pearls and jade.

Equipment has always been an area of pride for the Qin army.

If the invincible Qin army in Guanzhong came here and saw this cavalry fully armed and covered in armor, they would feel that their equipment was not good at all.

The most outrageous thing is that not only the cavalrymen were armored, but the horses were also armored. The horses' heads and eyes were covered with armor on both sides, and the horses' backs and bellies were also covered with armor, except for the horses' legs.

At first, when Ying Jianglu came to Jiuyuan County, found Meng Tian, and asked him to be the commander-in-chief and lead 50,000 cavalry to attack the Xiongnu territory, Meng Tian refused.

"The Xiongnu eat animal meat, drink milk, wear leather, and feel furs. They live in yurts and are skilled in horsemanship. They are difficult to pursue in the desert where there are no safe places.

"Every elite Xiongnu soldier can ride a horse and draw a bow. Some of the best can even stand on a horse's back while it's galloping. Our army is a sitting duck in the desert. Third Master, please go back."

Meng Tian, who defeated the Xiongnu with his chariots and recovered Jiuyuan and Yanmen counties, was not arrogant and looked down on the Xiongnu. The Chu State lost 200,000 Qin soldiers and buried Meng Tian's arrogance.

Ying Jianglu was not angry or tough. He only asked Meng Tian to take a look at the military appearance and discipline of the 50,000 cavalry.

When Meng Tian saw these 50,000 armored cavalrymen, he immediately decided - even if he would not gain any military merit by leading this cavalry to attack the Huns, he would do it anyway.

He had never fought such a rich battle.

How much financial resources are needed to put armor on soldiers and horses?

Not to mention the financial resources, just thinking about designing armor that does not affect the flexibility of people and horses is not easy. At least the Mo scholars raised by the Qin State have not been able to design one in all these years.

Meng Tian sent someone to report to Xianyang overnight, asking the First Emperor whether he could lead the troops to war.

The departure of a local lord is a big deal, not to mention that Meng Tian’s Jiuyuan County is a frontier county, which has to face the Huns head-on and protect the safety of the rear.

The First Emperor replied to Meng Tian with four words: this battle was a failure.

Meng Tian had a premonition of this, and he told him when Ying Jianglu came to find him. These 50,000 cavalrymen were not the Qin army, but Ying Jianglu's private army.

Although it was a pity that he had no military merit, Meng Tian still accepted it.

First, he took these 50,000 cavalrymen to train near Jiuyuan County for about a month. Sharpening the knife does not delay the chopping of wood.

This is not wartime, the situation is urgent, and new recruits must go to the battlefield as soon as they arrive.

Before the war even began, Meng Tian had to have a general idea of the 50,000 cavalry so that he could use them as easily as with his own arms and win every battle.

Fighting a war is actually not an easy job. The more people there are, the harder it is to command. War is not a game where you click the mouse and the soldiers will run there.

From the commander issuing the order, to the messenger and the flag bearer conveying it with flag signals, to the front-line soldiers executing it, any mistake in any of these links can be fatal. The more people there are, the harder it is to command.

Therefore, we don't accept small orders, and we accept orders with a minimum of 100,000. Only Bai Qi, who is best at field annihilation warfare, can scare all countries. Only those who can fight large-scale legionary battles are worthy of the title of general.

A month later, with the assistance of dozens of direct generals of the Meng family who had resigned from their posts, Meng Tian's training was almost complete. Fifty thousand cavalrymen, all fully armed, set foot on the Huns' territory.

Looking down from the sky.

The desert is mottled with yellow and green, with sand and grass intertwined, and streams of water are like knife marks, with blue blood flowing.

And this cavalry that trudged from Xianyang, this black steel torrent, was extremely conspicuous, like a colony of ants devouring everything.

"General, we will reach Gaoque in another fifty miles."

A general rode forward and reported to Meng Tian.

Meng Tian nodded and looked at the big gap in the Yinshan Mountains in the distance.

The Yinshan Mountains in the northwest stretch for thousands of miles. King Wuling of Zhao expanded his territory to the north, fighting along the Yinshan Mountains all the way. He fought until the Yinshan Mountains were broken, forming a gap that looked like a gate, and then he turned back.

From then on, this area with a large gap was named Gaoque.

Gaoque, this was the first time that people from the Central Plains came here.

Looking at the rushing river not far away, Meng Tian gave the order.

"The whole army is resting."

His horse had stopped moving, but the army was still moving forward.

The messenger moved quickly to pass on Meng Tian's order.

Half a quarter of an hour later, the 50,000 people stopped one by one in an orderly manner.

Set up the pot, find water, and cook.

Unlike the last time when he brought a bunch of chariots to pull the baggage, this time, Meng Tian did not bring any infantry except 50,000 cavalry, let alone the baggage soldiers driving the chariots.

A day's journey from Gaoque is the Great Wall built by the State of Zhao. There is a supply point there, which was arranged by Meng Tian before he set out on the expedition.

Meng Tian only brought five days of dry food this time, and he would stay for one day on the way back. If there was no gain within four days, Meng Tian would lead the 50,000 men back to the Great Wall.

When fighting the Huns, you cannot bring too many items. Otherwise, you will be played around by the Huns like a kite. This is the bloody experience of countless wars with the Huns.

Meng Tian, Ying Jianglu, and several senior military officers sat on the ground among the crowd of 50,000 people.

In order to reduce the burden, these 50,000 people did not even bring a central military tent.

A map was spread out between these people. Meng Tian pointed his finger at the place marked with Gaoque, then turned to face a thin and dark general who seemed a little restless when he sat down.

"Is there anything unusual?"

The thin and dark officer in charge of the scouts in this army shook his head.

"It's the same as usual. The Hun dogs ran away when they saw us and didn't fight with us at all. We caught a few tongues and asked them. They said that across the river is their city, with a hundred thousand people gathered."

Ying Jianglu was stunned.

"The Huns also have cities?"

He prepared his lessons carefully before coming to the Xiongnu land, and remembered clearly that the Xiongnu were a nomadic people who lived by following water and grass, driving their cattle and sheep everywhere, going wherever there was water and grass.

Unlike the people in the Central Plains who chose to settle in one area, farm and build cities, the Huns liked to move around and had no cities, so they were extremely good at field battles.

A sturdy man who was a head taller than the others sat down and said with a smile:

"It's called a city, but it's not a city. The Xiongnu's city has no walls or moats. It's just a few tents placed there for years and months, and they call it a city."

Ying Jianglu finally understood.

"Very good. Rest for five hours and take turns on duty. We will cross the river in five hours and take down this city."

Meng Tian pointed at the high tower on the map and looked around at the generals.

"Gentlemen, although I have no military achievements this time, I can still go down in history. This land is the first time I have set foot in the Central Plains. At that time, King Wuling of Zhao saw this gap and went back to build the Great Wall. Today we come here, take it down, and expand the Great Wall to this point."

Everyone laughed.

"What kind of military achievement do you want? You've already resigned from your position."

"How dare I disobey Lord Meng's order? General, please treat me to two more meals of good wine later."

"Don't worry, General. We will do our best. If we lose this battle, I will kill myself without your telling me."

“…”

Ying Jianglu looked at this group of people eagerly, feeling a little confused.

Is that all? No tactics? Just cross the river and capture the city? So simple? No military tactics?

Ying Jianglu had never fought in a war, but he knew many famous battles. In the famous battles he knew, the victors did not seem to have such simple and crude command.

Such arrogance and simplicity are always the behaviors .

After everyone had dispersed to rest, Ying Jianglu carefully asked Meng Tian who was still looking at the map.

"General Meng, isn't this a bit too much of a joke?"

"Our army's weapons, armor, and horses are far superior to those of the Xiongnu. We can defeat them in any way we want."

Ying Jianglu felt very disappointed.

He didn't want the arrogant Meng Tian, he wanted the cautious General Meng Tian who had been trained for a month.

"General Meng..."

"Third Young Master."

Meng Tian put away the map and said with a smile:

"Is this your first time on the battlefield?"

"……yes."

"Sleep for a while and keep your spirits up, otherwise you will suffer. Eat less food and go to sleep."

【Little Taotie, worthy of its name. 】

Meng Tian didn't notice anything else but that Ying Jianglu liked to eat. He saw Ying Jianglu taking out food from his armor and eating it more than once.

The Third Young Master sat there in a daze, regretting not calling Li Mu to lead the army.

"You want to help my elder brother, so you fight like this on purpose, to squander my wealth? You came up with a brilliant plan before, using chariots to defeat cavalry, why are you so reckless today..."

Muttering softly, Ying Jianglu took out a pancake from his arms and bit into it, wanting to cry.

How can you fight like this? Who taught you that?

Two or three hours passed.

Boom!

The sound of horse hooves exploded like thunder, the earth trembled, and dust rose and fell!

Ying Jianglu, who had been unable to sleep, turned his head.

On the other side of the river, the Huns, wearing dirty coats and riding on war horses, were looking towards this side with fierce eyes.

The war horses snorted, and the sound could still be heard clearly after hundreds of meters.

The stench, smell and body odor of cows and sheep drifted across the river, and when it reached this side, it was still extremely pungent and unpleasant.

Meng Tian, who was not fully asleep, sat up when the ground shook, looked towards the other side of the river, and roughly estimated that the number of people should be around 20,000.

Seeing that the 20,000 Huns did not cross the river, he stopped at the riverside and gave orders to his subordinates.

"If these Hun dogs dare to cross the river, wake me up immediately."

"only!"

After falling to the ground, Meng Tian continued to sleep. He was not in a hurry at all and had no worries at all that the Huns would take the opportunity to launch a sneak attack when the army crossed the river.

Meng Tian was woken up not long after he slept.

"General, someone has crossed the river."

Five Huns rode across the river on horseback, had their weapons taken off them, and were brought before Meng Tian.

He started with a lot of gibberish, which made Meng Tian feel annoyed. He frowned, put away his sword, and cut off a Hun's head.

The blood spurting from the neck spread all over Meng Tian's body, staining his black armor with blood, making Meng Tian look like a demon.

Stepping on the head rolling on the ground, Meng Tian said impatiently:

"I don't understand what you dogs are barking about. Have you ever learned human language?"

When the remaining four Huns saw their companion being suddenly beheaded , they were stunned for a moment. They didn't react at all and were not mentally prepared at all.

How did this constitute murder?

Then his eyes became bloodshot and he struggled hard, wanting to rush forward to make Meng Tian pay with blood.

They were yelling, their faces twisted, and no one knew what they were saying in the Xiongnu language. But judging by their intense emotions, they were definitely not saying nice things, and the curses were probably quite dirty.

Meng Tian's face turned dark and his brows sank.

"Kill him."

Brush, brush, brush~

The Qin army behind the four Huns seemed to have been prepared and was just waiting for Meng Tian to say this, laughing grimly on their faces.

Four Qin swords chopped down neatly, four skulls rolled around, and four streams of blood spurted out three feet.

Ying Jianglu was stunned.

[Why don't you listen to what these Xiongnu people say? Why are you killing them like this? You don't understand Xiongnu language, but there are people who can understand it! You are just trying to destroy my troops on purpose!]

Among the 50,000 cavalrymen, there were not just one or two people who were proficient in the Hu language, but hundreds of them. Otherwise, if they caught the Huns and interrogated them, they would not be able to understand them, and if they did not know the enemy's intelligence, how could they fight?

A general who had beheaded a Hun wiped the blood off his face, his face red and scary, and he laughed:

"General, he called you a dog."

Meng Tian glared at the person who spoke.

"I understand!"

Ying Jianglu: "..."

[I don't understand! If you can understand what he said, why did you kill him? You really want to harm me! ]

Meng Tian glanced at Ying Jianglu and saw that Ying Jianglu's eyes were wide open.

"Third Young Master? Third Young Master! Third Young Master, are you okay?"

[I have something to do! I want to change the general! ]

Ying Jianglu forced a smile.

"Nothing, why did General Meng kill these three people..."

"When you come to the land of Qin, you must speak the Qin language."