Datang: Rebirth of Li Chengqian, the beginning of the treason interrogation

Chapter 212: The Peak of Infantry Combat

"Mukena, your plan is absolutely brilliant! I didn't expect that the use of bows and arrows could so cleverly break the enemy's arrow defense."

Looking at the battle situation in front of him that was progressing extremely smoothly, Duomi Khan couldn't help but laugh out loud in triumph.

However, he was completely unaware that in a dark corner not far away, several pairs of sharp eyes were watching their every move.

These observers hiding in the dark, like ghosts in the night, silently spy on the changes in the situation on the battlefield.

"Haha, those arrogant Tang soldiers have always thought that we are not good at attacking cities, so they look down on us. Now is the time to teach them a lesson and let them know how powerful our Xueyantuo warriors are!"

The more Duomi Khan thought about it, the more excited he became, as if victory was just around the corner.

At this time, Mu Ke Na took a few steps forward, clasped his fists and said:

"Khan, the Tang army is now locked in a fierce offensive and defensive battle with our army, and there is no way to escape. I would like to suggest that we send our archers to fight and launch precise point shooting at the Tang army on the top of the city. With our soldiers' superb archery skills, we will surely deal a heavy blow to the enemy, and it won't take long before we can break the city."

Hearing this, Duomi Khan nodded slightly, expressing his agreement, "Well, this is a very good plan! Our Xueyantuo soldiers are all sharpshooters who can shoot through the target from a hundred paces away."

After getting the Khan's approval, Mukena immediately began to deploy troops.

He quickly gave orders, and teams of well-trained archers rode their horses and rushed towards Lingzhou City.

They pulled the bowstrings to their full potential and aimed at the Tang army on the top of the city. With an order, sharp arrows whizzed out like a storm and flew straight towards the Tang army on the top of the city.

In an instant, the Tang army on the city wall was caught off guard by this sudden and fierce attack.

Many Tang army soldiers were shot in the vitals before they could react, and fell to the ground and died with screams.

The armor they wore also failed to protect all vital parts, such as the cheeks.

The archery skills of the Xueyantuo archers are extremely superb. Their arrows never miss their targets and they can kill enemies in the melee.

The other Tang soldiers who had managed to escape the disaster hurriedly raised their shields to try to block the subsequent arrows, but under the extremely accurate shooting of the Xueyantuo archers, people continued to be injured and fell.

Under Mukena's orderly command and deployment, the Xueyantuo army fully demonstrated its powerful combat effectiveness.

For a time, morale was boosted and the offensive became more fierce. The Tang army on the top of the city gradually fell into a dilemma of passively taking the beating.

As soon as you show your head, arrows will be shot at you.

Under the cover of these archers, the Xueyantuo soldiers fearlessly rushed to the top of Lingzhou City. They were agile and vigorous, climbing the ladders and ropes and quickly climbed up the towering Lingzhou City.

However, is it so easy to gain the upper hand?
On top of the city wall, the Tang army had been waiting in formation for a long time.

They were seen holding strong shields and closely arranged into a shield formation like a solid wall.

Just as the Xueyantuo soldiers had just stepped onto the top of the city wall and had not yet gained a firm foothold, the extremely solid shield formation was suddenly torn apart, and countless sharp spears stabbed out like poisonous snakes spitting out their tongues.

In an instant, a cold light flashed, and blood and flesh flew wherever the tip of the gun passed.

Those unfortunate Xueyantuo soldiers didn't even have time to let out a scream before their bodies were pierced and turned into lifeless hornet's nests.

The Tang army not only occupied the advantageous terrain of being high above the ground, but also cleverly formed a tight and orderly military formation.

This caused the Xueyantuo army to suffer repeated setbacks in their attacks and suffered terribly.

Whenever they finally climbed to the top of the city wall, they were greeted with ruthless killing and death.

In just a few moments, the pile of corpses under the city wall had reached a height of more than ten feet.

Blood gushed out like a spring, gathering into dazzling scarlet rivers of blood that flowed slowly down the city wall.

The entire city wall was dyed red, and the air was filled with a strong and pungent smell of blood, which was nauseating.

But even in the face of such horrific and shocking scenes, those high and mighty people in power turned a blind eye, as if all this had nothing to do with them.

"Keep charging! Even if we have to pile up the bodies of our soldiers, we must break through this damn Lingzhou City today!"

Duomi Khan stood in the distance, looking expressionlessly at the Xueyantuo soldiers who kept falling in front of him, and gave orders coldly and ruthlessly.

His voice was icy cold, without a trace of mercy.

Although this scene is extremely cruel, this is the reality.

If they could not capture Lingzhou City in one go, and the two sides got into a long tug-of-war, the losses for the Xueyantuo would be even more severe.

Therefore, there was nothing wrong with Duomi Khan's decision.

After all, a kind army cannot be commanded.

The Tang army on the other side also had no way to retreat. Once their defense line was breached, they would be slaughtered, so they could not retreat even half a step.

However, as time passed, the situation on the battlefield gradually began to change.

The original stalemate was slowly broken, and the advantage was gradually tilting towards the Xueyantuo army.

You know, Xueyantuo sent a full army of 200,000 to attack the city this time. With such a huge force, even if they just stood there and let the Tang army defending the city hack and kill them, I'm afraid they would be exhausted to death.

The Xueyantuo side continued to send reinforcements, making the entire Lingzhou city's defense line shaky and precarious.

It seemed as if a complete collapse would occur in the next moment.

"General Su, we can't wait any longer, otherwise Lingzhou City will fall."

On a mountain not far away, Zhishisili and Su Dingfang were lying on the ground and watching.

"Xueyantuo has already divided half of its troops to attack the city. The time has indeed come."

"Duke, you first lead 5,000 soldiers to charge out from the right wing, charge into the Xueyantuo army formation, and attack Duomi Khan's tent."

"I will lead a thousand soldiers to charge out from the left wing, attack from both sides, and kill Duomi Khan, and then we can defeat Xueyantuo."

Su Dingfang pointed his finger forward and kept talking.

"General Su, you only have a thousand men. Isn't it too risky? You and I each have three thousand. If we fight against each other, we will surely be able to defeat the army."

Zhishisili was also a fierce general who often charged into battle. He was not afraid even when facing an army of more than 100,000 Xueyantuo soldiers.

"Duke, if you show up first, you will definitely be surrounded by Xueyantuo's heavy troops, and I will strike back. A thousand will be enough."

Very wealthy indeed.

Unlike the vanguard officer at the beginning, who only led 200 people to charge into the camp of tens of thousands of people.

Relatively speaking, cavalry can win with fewer troops as long as they form a formation. Both of them are decisive people. After formulating the battle strategy, they set out separately.

"Khan, let's go back to the tent and rest. The Tang army is holding out stubbornly. I'm afraid we won't be able to take them down in a short time. I'm afraid it will be midnight."

Mukena rode his horse back to the camp, and the two armies came into direct combat, which made the Xueyantuo archers cautious for fear of accidentally hurting their own people.

Therefore, after covering the army's charge to the top of the city wall, they all withdrew.

"Then the battle situation will be supervised by you."

Just when Duomi Khan turned around.

Suddenly, from the direction of the Xueyantuo's right camp, a huge cloud of dust rose into the sky, like a giant dragon circling in the air, which was chilling.

At the same time, an extremely subtle but clearly discernible vibration also came.

"Oh no, the flank was attacked by the enemy!"

A sharp-eyed soldier shouted loudly. After all, as a nation that makes a living on horseback, they are very familiar with the noise caused by cavalry charges.

However, even if they could quickly detect the approaching danger, it would be almost an impossible task to make effective defensive adjustments to the entire huge army in such a short period of time.

At this time, Duomi Khan was not as panicked as the others. He frowned, stared at the smoke and dust rolling in the distance, and thought to himself:
"Why would the Tang army have reinforcements here? Is this just a deliberate illusion they created to disrupt our morale?"

So Duomi Khan calmed down and shouted to his soldiers: "Don't panic, this is probably just a trick of the Tang army, don't worry too much!"

However, before Duomi Khan finished his words, a large group of aggressive cavalry appeared in everyone's sight.

These cavalrymen rode on tall horses, held sharp spears and scimitars, and their armor shone brightly under the sunlight.

"Khan, this is terrible! These are not Tang troops at all, but Turkic cavalry!"

Mu Kena on the side opened his eyes wide and said in astonishment.

As old rivals who had fought against the Turks many times, they were well aware of the strength of the Turkish cavalry.

Especially among the Tang army, the cavalry team led by Zhishisili was one of the most elite cavalry in the Tang army.

The Turks are well-known for their horsemanship. They are natural cavalrymen who have grown up on horseback since childhood and have an innate talent for riding horses and fighting skills.

Now equipped with armor and equipment carefully forged by the Tang Dynasty, its combat effectiveness is simply unimaginable.

You must know that the Turkic cavalry led by Zhishisili is not comparable to the Eastern Turks who have surrendered to the Tang Dynasty today.

These elite soldiers were special troops recruited by the Tang Dynasty. Although these soldiers were all from the Eastern Turkic people, they belonged to the Tang army.

Zhishishili himself was of an even more noble status. He was not only a brave and capable general of the Tang Dynasty, but also the brother-in-law of Emperor Taizong of Tang, Li Shimin. He married Emperor Taizong's sister, Princess Jiujiang, and was named Duke of Anguo.

As a royal relative, his relationship with the Eastern Turkic Khanate was far from as simple as it seemed.

In fact, he was more inclined towards the Tang Dynasty and was a true Tang minister. It can be said that this cavalry unit was an ace special forces unit of the Tang Dynasty.

"Guard the Khan, everyone is on alert, ready to meet the enemy!"

Seeing this aggressive cavalry approaching, Mu Kena shouted orders anxiously, not daring to take it lightly at all.

Because they all knew the combat characteristics of cavalry very well, especially in large-scale legion battles, cavalry was often used as a key force to penetrate the enemy camp and split the enemy formation.

An army of one hundred thousand could be easily broken through by a few thousand cavalry.

The combat effectiveness of a cavalry unit cannot often be measured by the number of its members.

Xueyantuo also immediately deployed defensive forces.

However, what is shocking is that the series of actions taken by these soldiers afterwards are simply incomprehensible.

The Xueyantuo cavalrymen, who were originally riding on tall horses, seemed to have received some mysterious instructions and dismounted quickly.

Then, they methodically organized themselves into small combat teams consisting of five or six people.

Trying to use infantry to fight cavalry is tantamount to seeking one's own death.

After all, cavalry has strong impact power and mobility, while infantry is often at an absolute disadvantage in such a head-on confrontation.

However, if you just think so, you are totally wrong!
In fact, this seemingly incredible tactic was not a temporary idea, but the valuable combat experience accumulated and summarized by Xueyantuo after countless fierce battles with the Eastern Turkic cavalry.

It can be said that they have brought the infantry's combat methods to the extreme, reaching the pinnacle.

The five soldiers in each group quickly squatted down in unison. They took out crossbows from their backs and aimed at the charging enemy cavalry.

At the same time, there was a soldier staying aside, carefully watching over the horses to prevent them from being frightened and running away during the battle.

Once they achieve victory, they can immediately jump on horseback and launch a swift pursuit, leaving the enemy no chance to breathe.

When the Turkic cavalry charged to the effective range, the Xueyantuo archers reacted instantly and fired their arrows at the same time.

These arrows did not fly high, but were shot out at a lower trajectory, aiming directly at the galloping war horses.

As the saying goes, "Shoot the horse first when shooting a man."

After just one round of salvos, the results were already extremely impressive.

The Turkic war horses at the front were shot by arrows and fell to the ground, neighing in pain.

Although the Tang Dynasty's forging technology was superb, it was not yet luxurious enough to tailor-make armor for each warhorse.

Therefore, when faced with such a dense and fierce rain of arrows, these unprotected war horses could only die miserably on the battlefield.

As a large number of war horses in the front fell down, their huge bodies instantly became a huge obstacle for the knights behind to continue their charge.

The originally lightning-fast charge speed suddenly slowed down, as if a rapids encountered a reef.

What's worse is that since these cavalrymen were not equipped with shields that could withstand arrow attacks, they had become living targets in the eyes of the Xueyantuo archers.

Arrows rained down, but the armor of the Turkic cavalry could still block these arrows with little lethality.

But the horses were certainly different. They were wounded by arrows and started jumping around in panic, causing varying degrees of casualties among the cavalry.

The battle between infantry and cavalry was a clear winner for Xueyantuo.

It created a counter-effect and kept the cavalry at a distance.

(End of this chapter)