Wait, please don't call me Emperor Zhaolie

Chapter 146 Liu Bei: Fishing
The sound of the Huns' horns resounded through the wilderness, followed by the sound of horse hooves.

The Huns' tasseled flags fluttered in the sight of the Han army, and a murderous atmosphere gradually rose.

The Han army beat drums and slowly retreated along the river in a chariot formation. The cavalry from the twelve Xiongnu tribes reined in their horses and surrounded the area without attacking, waiting for the Great Khan to arrive.

There was a burst of rapid horse-horse sounds, and Chanyu Yufuluo led hundreds of armored cavalrymen, as well as Xiongnu nobles and tribal chiefs and appeared in the Xiongnu formation.

Seeing this, the Xiongnu cavalry raised their swords and bows from their horses and shouted: "Chengligutu Great Chanyu! Chengligutu Great Chanyu!"

"Chengligutu Chanyu" means the emperor born by heaven and earth in the Xiongnu language.

The Great Chanyu led them to the Han land and obtained a lot of utensils, money, food, and women. Luandi and Yufuluo enjoyed a very high prestige in their hearts.

Zuo Da Dang Hu had narrow eyes and a short and fat body. He pointed at the Han army's chariot formation and said to Fu Luo with regret: "Great Chanyu, we are still too late. The Han army has crossed the river and even brought chariots. The tribe has lost the possibility of a surprise attack. We have no power to break through the Han army's chariot formation."

Yu Fuluo also had a grim expression on his face. He didn't expect that he was still half a step slower. The marching speed of Qingzhou Mu Liu Bei was far beyond that of other Han troops.

But he soon showed his joy. Seeing the enemy retreating to the riverside, he pointed at the Han people's red banner and said with a smile: "Liu Xuande is just like that. He panicked when facing my 6,000 people who were shooting arrows with bows. You see, he has retreated to the river bank. Regardless of whether he is luring the enemy or not, he has already been trapped. As long as we surround him, there will be no food and grass transportation outside, and no firewood inside to supply cauldrons and steamers for cooking. Even if we bring corn, it will be useless."

"At most, the siege will last for a few days. Liu Bei will have no choice but to dismantle the chariots for fuel. Zuo Da Dang Hu, you lead a tribe to go around the chariot formation and shoot arrows to gauge the strength of the Han army."

"Right Da Dang Hu, you lead the two tribes to continue eastward along the river to see if there are any Han troops crossing the river. If you encounter any, shoot them immediately and then burn the wooden bridge."

Yu Fuluo gave instructions to the two pawnbrokers beside him.

After hearing the order, Hu Yan, the left chief, performed a slight Xiongnu etiquette to the Great Chanyu while riding his horse, and then led his people away.

The Right Great Danghu Qubei had sharp eyes and watched the Han army vigilantly. He said suspiciously, "Great Chanyu, the Han scouts had a brief confrontation with our scouts before. When the Han army commander learned that we were coming with a large army, he deliberately lined up his troops by the river. He must have other intentions. We need to be careful."

Yu Fuluo pointed with a sneer and said, "Haven't you figured it out yet? Liu Bei is deliberately trying to provoke me. He raised the banner so high just to let me know that he is in the battle line, and to remind me that the Left Grand Commandant Luan Di Bao and his tribe were also defeated by the river."

"The Han army always likes to use powerful crossbows to shoot people and horses. If I get angry and order a few tribes to ride on horses and shoot arrows into the chariots, I'm afraid they will be killed by the powerful crossbows immediately."

Yufuluo gnashed his teeth, then suddenly laughed. Seeing Qubei's puzzled look, he sneered and said, "I am the Chanyu of Chengligutu. How can I be led around by the nose like cattle and sheep by a Han vassal? Even if I want to capture and kill Liu Xuande, I can't do such a irrational thing. I must stay calm at this moment and not let Liu Bei get what he wants."

"But you reminded me that when I led the tribe eastward and found a bridge, I first confirmed that there were no more Han troops on the south bank of the river. I could cross the river and swim along the Qinshui River for a few days to prevent the Han troops from building a bridge across the river and giving Liu Xuande a way back."

"I must make him die in this battle to avenge the Left Grand Commandant and the tribe."

Yu Fuluo looked at the dazzling large banner with the Chinese character "Han" on it and said solemnly.

Youda Danghu Qubei immediately led the tribal troops and galloped eastward.

……

The Han army's war drums sounded in unison, with a deafening roar.

Some of the surrounding Huns were unaware that they were already within the range of bows and crossbows. Arrows flew through the air like clouds and rain, and the soldiers of the Shengshe Camp fired several rapid rounds.

"Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!" As the sound of arrows and crossbows was heard, there were screams in front of the battle line. The Huns who were hit by arrows lay on the ground wailing, and the horses under their crotches also fell to the ground and neighed in pain.

Even Hu Yan, the left leader who was personally supervising the battle, was nearly hit by an arrow. The arrowhead grazed his neck, causing him to feel a slight sting.

He immediately rode his horse back dozens of steps and reached out to touch his neck. Fortunately, there was only a little bleeding.

At least two hundred members of his tribe were killed in this round of powerful crossbow shooting by the Han army.

The surviving Huns were terrified, as this was completely beyond the range of their bows and arrows. If they wanted to shoot their arrows into the enemy's chariot formation, countless lives would have to be lost.

He couldn't help but look at Zuo Dadanghu, praying in his heart that he would never let them do such a thing.

The tribe came here to seek revenge on the Great Chanyu, not to sacrifice their lives in front of the chariot array. It would be better to use the tactics they are best at to surround the enemy without attacking and wait for them to collapse on their own!
Hu Yan looked at the blood and flesh all over the ground, and at his tribesmen who were still screaming in pain. The Han army waited for the Xiongnu cavalry to retreat, and did not continue to shoot arrows at them, allowing the wounded soldiers who were unable to move and would not die for a while to cry.

Hu Yan curled his fingers into fists and wanted to order the rescue of his tribesmen who were pinned down by horses, but he was afraid of the powerful crossbows of the Han soldiers.

He wanted to say something several times but stopped himself. Finally, he sighed heavily, turned his head and asked his trusted followers to blow the horn and retreat.

Liu Bei stood on the slope and watched the Huns retreat to a distance of six or seven hundred steps, and then the tribes dispersed and surrounded the Wugang chariot in layers.

Some shook their heads in disappointment and said with emotion: "The bravery of the Xiongnu people in Hanoi is not as good as that of the Xianbei people in Liaodong. When they fought against Gongsun Du in Donglai, those Xianbei people did not hesitate and tried their best to shoot arrows into the Wugang chariots to injure the enemy."

"Now that the Xiongnu and I have a grudge, they are able to restrain themselves and surround us without attacking. This is quite like the hunting method of a pack of wolves."

Liu Bei said with a chuckle.

Zhang Fan stood up and looked, then bowed and said, "Lord Xuande, the Xiongnu are scattered everywhere. What should we do if we find any traces of the Tiger Cavalry?"

"Gong Yi is extremely worried. Since the Xiongnu don't want to move, I will reluctantly cooperate and move a little to attract their attention and make them nervous."

Liu Bei smiled and ordered the chariot to move two hundred steps west.

As expected, as soon as the Han army moved, the Huns instantly became nervous. Those who had dismounted to graze their horses, comb their horses' hair, or drink water all mounted their horses in an instant, holding their weapons, and looked at the slowly moving Han army with serious eyes.

Yu Fuluo and other Xiongnu nobles who had dismounted to rest were also alarmed. They looked at each other, not knowing what the Han army was going to do.

Are you thinking of retreating?
But that’s not right either, this is going west.

Even though the Han army's chariots were being pushed by auxiliary soldiers at this moment, and there were gaps of several steps between the chariots, the Huns did not dare to come up and test them easily.

When Yu Fuluo personally went to the front to look at the Han army's chariot formation, he saw that the gap had widened even further, and he couldn't help licking his lips.

"This is a good opportunity to attack!"

(End of this chapter)