Guiyi Fei Tang

Chapter 452 Deterring the Southern Barbarians
"kill!!"

"put!"

"Boom bang bang-"

On the fifth day of the fifth month of the eleventh year of Xiantong, when shouts of killing and muffled thunder rang out at the same time, countless corpses lay in front of Qingxi Pass in Lizhou.

Tens of thousands of barbarian warriors in leather armor are attacking the city using engineering siege engines such as the Lu Gong Chariot and the Cloud Chariot. The muddy, blood-stained land outside the pass tells the story of a heavy rain that has just fallen here.

At Qingxi Pass, the Three Stars Banner and the crimson Han army banners were sticking wetly to the flagpoles, while on the Qingxi Pass, which was about 300 paces from east to west, cowhide tents were erected one after another.

Under the cowhide awning, three soldiers wearing only breastplates were methodically cleaning the breech of a four-foot-long iron cannon, then filling it with fixed gunpowder, stuffing in a pre-loaded iron ball cloth bag, and then using a cone to poke through the chopstick-sized opening on the side of the cannon's breech, before inserting the match cord.

Once the fuse was inserted, a soldier planted a yellow flag next to the cowhide tent and awaited orders.

Between and behind each cowhide shed, there were soldiers in full armor waiting for orders to fill in at any time.

On either side of the city gate, seeing that the artillery on the city wall was ready, the flag officer immediately went to the gate and bowed: "Commander, all units are in position!"

Inside the city gate tower, Zhang Wu sat imposingly in the main seat, with Xin Dang, dressed in bright armor, sitting beside him.

Having served under Liu Jilong for four years, Xin Dang gradually adapted to his new role.

However, since his family had been officials for generations, he did not take the initiative to attack when facing the Tang army, but only took on the responsibility of defense.

After Liu Jilong recovered Jiannan Circuit, Xin Dang volunteered to go south and became the prefect of Lizhou and the defense commissioner, stationed at Qingxi Pass.

Since the Southern Barbarians attacked Qingxi Pass in late January, they have been repeatedly defeated by Xin Dang.

However, even ants can kill an elephant, and the Southern Barbarian standing army was not weak in combat. Therefore, Xin Dang, who only had 5,000 soldiers, eventually asked Chengdu Prefecture for help.

He never expected that the reinforcements would be led by Zhang Wu himself, and even more unexpectedly, Zhang Wu brought five hundred elite cavalry, five thousand infantrymen, and ten thousand foot soldiers.

Xichuan only had 45,000 troops, but now 20,000 of them have gathered here, which shows that Zhang Wu's intentions were not simply to repel the Southern Barbarians.

"Brother, everyone in the army says you are good at defense but not at offense, is that true?"

Zhang Wu glanced at Xin Dang, addressing him with extreme intimacy.

Xin Dang was nearly fifty years old and didn't find anything wrong with Zhang Wu addressing him as "elder brother," but he disagreed with Zhang Wu's words, saying:
“In his youth he practiced martial arts and in his prime he studied military strategy. However, he was frustrated by the lack of ambition of the court, so he traveled around the country.”

"We were good at defending before because our grandfathers were all Tang officials. Now that we are facing the southern barbarians, we can naturally act freely."

"With our army now assembled, if the governor only wants to defend Qingxi Pass, there is no need to deploy so many troops."

"In my opinion, the governor must want to reclaim the lost territory of Xizhou in order to prepare for our army's future attack on the southern barbarians."

"I am unworthy, but if the governor is willing to lead his troops south, I am willing to lead five hundred cavalry to defeat the barbarians outside the city."

Xin Dang bowed confidently, and even Zhang Wu hesitated upon hearing this: "Five hundred cavalry? There are fifty thousand barbarians outside the city. Brother, you should think it over carefully."

Faced with Zhang Wu's questioning, Xin Dang stood up and said, "Most of the barbarians wear leather armor, and many of them don't wear armor at all, or they wear bronze armor."

"Of the 50,000 barbarians outside the city, only the Southern Barbarian general Duan Zongbang and his 10,000-plus guards need to be watched."

"Although the Southern Barbarians have cavalry, they wear heavy armor and do not pay attention to their faces. Our army can easily defeat them with ten-step mounted archery!"

"Good!" Zhang Wu nodded, thinking to himself that five hundred elite cavalry was not a lot, and if they could really succeed, it would be a great achievement.

Even if it fails, I can still lead my troops out of the city and make Duan Zongbang wary and leave.

"In that case, I will send five hundred elite cavalry and five thousand infantrymen to you..."

“No need!” Xin Dang interrupted Zhang Wu, his face full of confidence: “I only need five hundred elite cavalry. If there are too many troops, the barbarians will flee at the sight of us, which would be unfavorable!”

Although Zhang Wu admired Xin Dang, he dared not joke with the lives of his brothers in the army. Therefore, he leaned forward and earnestly confirmed, "There is no joking in the army?"

"If I fail, you may cut off my head!" Xin Dang declared confidently.

Seeing this, Zhang Wu, though still frowning, took out his fish tally and handed it to Xin Dang.

"If the battle goes badly after you leave the city, I will personally lead the cavalry and infantry out of the city to launch a surprise attack on the southern barbarians."

"Your subordinate obeys!" Xin Dang took the fish tally and strode out of the city tower.

At the same time, the Nanman troops once again attacked beyond the pass.

Zhang Wu got up and walked out of the city tower. Seeing the barbarian horde approaching the base of the wall, he immediately took the five-colored command flag from the general beside him and waved the yellow flag down.

"put!"

The flag bearers followed Zhang Wu's lead, waving yellow flags, while the artillery units supervising the battle were issuing orders to blow whistles.

As they gave the order, the crackling sound of burning fire ropes filled the air, and at the same time, the barbarians climbed up along Lu Gong's chariot and the cloud ladder.

Having fought the Han army for several months, they already knew that the Han army had something like thunderbolts guarding the city, and they all called it witchcraft.

Even though they were used to it, the hissing sound still made the barbarians near the city gate panic.

"Han Chinese witchcraft!"

“Retreat quickly!!”

"Boom bang bang-"

In an instant, the four-foot iron cannons forged by the Han army using the skills of bell-making craftsmen in Shu began to unleash their power.

Hundreds of iron pellets shot out like bullets, and in an instant, the barbarians below the city were killed or wounded in large numbers. Hundreds of people died suddenly, and only a hundred or so escaped with injuries.

"This cannon is much more powerful than the previous one."

Behind Zhang Wu, Liu Yingyan, who had been promoted to Left Military Commissioner of Xichuan, stepped out and looked at the four-foot-long iron cannon with a seven-inch-wide muzzle.

Zhang Wu shook his head and said, "The muzzle is still too big; it can't shoot very far."

"What does a large muzzle have to do with a short range?" Liu Yingyan asked, puzzled. After all, he had followed Liu Jilong for a long time and had only received basic literacy education.

Compared to Zhang Wu, who successfully completed primary school and devoted himself to learning about artillery, his knowledge base was indeed somewhat limited.

In response, Zhang Wu explained, "His Highness wrote in his book 'Essentials of Firearms' that the ratio of the length of a cannon to its muzzle diameter is called the caliber multiple, and the larger the caliber multiple, the greater the range."

"Our army's four-foot iron cannons, if filled with iron balls, have a range of only seventy paces, but if filled with iron cannonballs, the range is two hundred paces."

After Zhang Wu finished speaking, Liu Yingyan subconsciously said, "If that's the case, why not make the opening smaller and the cannon longer?"

"You think it's that easy?" Zhang Wu said with a wry smile.

"Even the most skilled bell makers in Sichuan and Chongqing can only cast bells that are four or five feet tall, with the mouth being one-third the length, and weighing over four hundred pounds."

"After our army captured the bell makers of Bashu, it took more than a year to cast this four-foot-long iron cannon, which is less than six times the diameter, yet it still weighs more than two hundred pounds."

"I heard that many imperial bell makers have been captured in Chang'an and can cast bells that are eight feet tall, but they weigh more than ten thousand catties."

"Those bell makers were taken to Linzhou, and it is unknown when they will be able to cast an eight-foot cannon that can be used."

"If we could cast an eight-foot cannon, or increase its caliber and reduce its weight, then we could use cannons to attack the city walls in the future, without having to use shield carts and gunpowder bags to attack them."

The mortality rate of firearm soldiers attacking cities is not low. Therefore, after Zhang Wu learned about the advantages of artillery, he knew that if artillery were fully developed, ordinary rammed earth walls would become nothing, and only rammed earth walls covered with bricks could withstand it.

However, casting cannons using the techniques and metallurgical technology of the Tang Dynasty was still quite different and required considerable exploration. It would not be easy to succeed without several years or even more than a decade of hard work.

The artillery currently in the Han army is too short-range to be used for attacking cities; it can only be used for defending them.

Even when used solely for defending the city, its effectiveness is quite evident.

Thinking this, as the barbarian hordes receded like a tide, the gates of Qingxi Pass slowly opened, giving Duan Zongbang in the Southern Barbarian formation an opportunity.

"The Han army has opened the city gates! Their witchcraft has now ceased; it will take at least half an incense stick's time to unleash it again. Kill them! Take the city gates!!"

Duan Zongbang gave the order, and the flag soldiers beside him immediately waved their command flags and horns sounded continuously.

"Uuuuuu——"

"kill--"

Tens of thousands of barbarians launched an attack on Qingxi Pass, like a black tide.

However, compared to them, the elite Han cavalry were faster.

Holding a horse spear, Xin Dang charged ahead of the barbarian horde, followed by five hundred elite cavalry who surged forward like a torrent.

On the siege tower, Duan Zongbang's expression changed slightly when he saw the Han army deploying its elite cavalry. He glanced at his adjutant beside him and said, "Mobilize our elite cavalry to attack!"

"Yes!" The lieutenant, dressed in black rhinoceros armor, responded and immediately began waving the command flag.

Before long, more than two thousand elite cavalrymen in heavy armor marched out, bypassing the main army from the left flank, preparing to launch a flanking attack on the Han army's elite cavalry.

Five hundred elite Han cavalry charged into the tens of thousands of barbarians who were only wearing leather armor, or even no armor at all, and disrupted their still-forming formation as easily as cutting melons and vegetables.

Duan Zongbang didn't care about the casualties of the barbarian tribes; his eyes remained fixed on his own elite cavalry.

Just as the elite cavalry were about to launch an attack by flanking around the enemy lines, Xin Dang, who was in the midst of the barbarian formation, heard the clamor of horses' hooves in the chaotic environment.

"Follow closely the banner of a certain leader and march straight for the barbarian chieftain's banner!"

"Uuuuuu——"

When the horn sounded, tens of thousands of barbarians could not stop five hundred elite cavalry. Xin Dang charged left and right, and those barbarians who were not wearing armor were cut down on the spot, their limbs and broken arms falling to the ground.

Some of the barbarian tribes tried to blow poison needles, but they couldn't pierce the armor at all.

The Han army galloped away, and seeing that 50,000 barbarian tribes could not even stop a few hundred Han cavalry, Duan Zongbang frowned but did not take it seriously.

He held the command flag and began to wave it, and the more than 10,000 regular troops on either side of the chariot began to form ranks as he directed them.

The standing army of Dali was all dressed in iron armor. Since the captured artisans were all artisans from the Tang Dynasty, and Dali was not short of mines, their style was similar to that of the Tang army, except that they were painted with vermilion lacquer, making them appear similar in color to the Han army.

Under Duan Zongbang's command, the soldiers of the Grand Ceremony Army formed three ranks, with the front-line soldiers raising nine-foot-long spears to defend against the impending charge of the elite Han cavalry.

In addition, the two thousand elite cavalrymen of Dali, who were originally prepared to attack from the side, now followed the Han army like venomous snakes and changed their attack to attack from the rear.

Seeing that the situation outside the city was not good, Zhang Wu immediately transferred the five thousand cavalry and infantry that had been assembled earlier to the outside of the city.

Duan Zongbang also saw the Han army cavalry and infantry pouring out of the city, but to him, the Han army cavalry and infantry, in terms of their attire and armor coverage, did not look like cavalry and infantry, but rather like elite cavalry.

Seeing that more and more Han cavalry were leaving the city, Duan Zongbang no longer hesitated and began to wave his command flag, directing the barbarian tribes to retreat back to their own lines from the left and right flanks.

At the same time, Xin Dang remained calm and, while charging forward on horseback, hung his lance on the victory hook and took out his short bow.

"Beep--"

The piercing whistle blew, and the elite Han cavalry all followed suit, their movements perfectly synchronized, a sight to behold.

"The elite cavalry of Gansu and Liangzhou truly live up to their reputation!"

Duan Zongbang's expression shifted slightly, but he didn't think that these five hundred men could shake his fully armored army of over ten thousand men, especially since his two thousand elite cavalry were also behind these five hundred elite cavalry.

Even though Zhang Wu was leading his cavalry and infantry out of the city in the distance, Duan Zongbang did not panic.

He admitted that he was no match for Gao Pian, but it was Liu Jilong, not Zhang Wu, who defeated Gao Pian.

Now that Liu Jilong has returned north and Gao Pian has gone east, the southwest is the time for Duan Zongbang to make a name for himself!
"Yu!"

Duan Zongbang waved his command flag, and the three-tiered army of ten thousand armored soldiers began to move like mountains, taking the initiative to attack Xin Dang's five hundred elite cavalry.

A distance of a hundred paces is nothing more than a moment's travel for elite cavalry.

In an instant, five hundred elite cavalrymen galloped in, and whistles suddenly sounded from the Southern Barbarian formation, unleashing a hail of arrows.

The warhorses neighed, many were hit by arrows, and dozens fell from their horses.

Even so, Xin Dang still personally led more than four hundred elite cavalrymen to break within thirty paces, taking the opportunity to draw his bow.

Once the army had charged within twenty paces, four hundred elite cavalrymen calmly fired arrows. The arrows flew straight at the faces of the barbarian soldiers wielding spears, who fell dead after being struck by arrows, leaving gaps in their formation.

"kill!!"

Without hesitation, Xin Dang switched from bow to spear and charged straight into the broken formation.

This scene left not only Duan Zongbang but also the elite Han cavalry who followed Xin Dang completely astonished.

The Han army's custom was to repeatedly engage the enemy in frontal assaults until the enemy could no longer withstand the pressure before launching another attack.

Now that Xin Dang had successfully broken through the pass, he immediately launched an attack, completely disregarding the thousands of barbarian soldiers behind the pass who could be brought up at any time, and charged off with a shout.

"Damn it! Magistrate Xin has gone mad!"

"You bastards! Lord Xin is nearly fifty and still dares to charge into battle. What are we afraid of? Kill them!!"

"kill--"

Led by Xin Dang, the Han cavalry, who were momentarily stunned, switched from bows to spears and charged into battle.

"Reckless man!"

Duan Zongbang was taken aback and spoke, only to see Xin Dang leading his elite cavalry to tear through the very foundation of his first line of defense.

The first 4,000-strong army was split in two, while the second troop, consisting of barbarian soldiers, never expected the vanguard to be torn apart so easily and had no time to replace their long weapons.

"Bam—"

"Hiss!!"

"Um..."

Warhorses neighed, spears snapped, and people wailed in agony...

Xin Dang led his elite cavalry into the central army, and amidst the fierce fighting on both sides, he was only sixty or seventy paces away from Duan Zongbang's chariot.

"Asshole!!"

Duan Zongbang cursed angrily, then waved his command flag: "Change to circular formation and surround and kill them!"

He waved his command flag, but at that moment the vanguard was cut off, and the elite cavalry of the Grand Li Army were blocked on the outskirts and unable to enter.

The more than 3,000 barbarian troops in the central army were in complete chaos amidst Xin Dang's flanking maneuvers, unable to regroup.

As the spears thrust forward, Xin Dang cleaved them with his spear, taking advantage of the momentum to knock down one of the men, and continued leading his troops on a gallop.

"Damn it, is that Lord Xin? I thought it was His Highness!"

At Qingxi Pass, Liu Yingyan stared wide-eyed, after all, he had personally witnessed Liu Jilong leading his troops with ease amidst a vast army.

The difference was that Liu Jilong was young and strong at the time, while Xin Dang was nearly fifty years old.

"Take this opportunity and send the entire army out of the pass!"

Zhang Wu had not expected Xin Dang to be so brave, but he reacted quickly. Seeing that the five thousand cavalry and infantry were about to finish leaving the city, he immediately gave orders to Liu Yingyan.

The two men descended the city wall. One rode off to command the infantry, while the other led the cavalry and infantry, who were about to leave the city completely, to speed up their departure.

"kill!!"

"Um..."

Xin Dang was still leading several hundred elite cavalrymen through the barbarian army's ranks, but the number of elite cavalrymen in the ranks was gradually decreasing.

Duan Zongbang ordered the rear guard to surround the central army and began to slowly withdraw the central army, attempting to completely encircle Xin Dang's hundreds of elite cavalry.

At the same time, Zhang Wu led 5,000 cavalry and infantry out of the city and charged towards the central army of the Southern Barbarians without hesitation.

"Buzzing, rumbling..."

More than 5,000 cavalry and infantrymen galloped at full speed, their power no different from that of cavalrymen. Not to mention that most of these cavalry and infantrymen were veterans from Longyou, and their horsemanship was no worse than that of cavalrymen.

On the chariot, Duan Zongbang saw Zhang Wu leading thousands of cavalry and infantry rushing towards him, and at this moment he dared not confront Zhang Wu at all.

A few hundred elite cavalrymen were enough to disrupt the army's formation, let alone several thousand.

"Withdraw and return to camp!"

Duan Zongbang gave a stern order, and in an instant, the flag bearers on both sides waved their command flags, and the sound of gongs rang out continuously.

The three thousand rear guards who were originally going to surround Xin Dang have now stopped their encirclement and begun to defend their positions, retreating step by step.

Duan Zongbang quickly dismounted from the chariot, mounted his horse, and shook the reins. Under the cover of the three armies, he calmly began his retreat.

Xin Dang did try to give chase, but the whistling from afar forced him to stop where he was.

As the southern barbarians receded like a tide, Zhang Wu seized the opportunity to rush over, leading his cavalry and infantry armed with horn bows and crossbows to shoot down the slower-moving barbarians.

Seeing Zhang Wu approaching, Xin Dang quickly spurred his horse closer, bowed, and questioned, "Commander, the Southern Barbarians are in disarray. Why aren't you pursuing them?"

"Of course we must pursue!" Zhang Wu replied without hesitation, then pointed to his own troops: "Our cavalry numbers are numerous; let them go first and expend some energy." "Yes!" Xin Dang's eyes lit up, and Zhang Wu then gave instructions:
"I will lead my cavalry and infantry in pursuit. You will lead your elite cavalry to rest for a while, feed them good horse feed and fresh water, and then come with Liu, the military commander, and his main army."

"Let's seize this opportunity to reclaim Xizhou and celebrate His Highness's birthday!"

"Your subordinate obeys!" Xin Dang replied, while Zhang Wu continued to lead his cavalry and infantry in pursuit of Duan Zongbang.

Due to the narrowness of the camp gate, Duan Zongbang first ordered the armored soldiers to retreat back into the camp, and then ordered a small number of armored soldiers to line up in front of the trench to help the barbarians retreat back into the camp.

Zhang Wu led his army in pursuit, and a large number of cavalry and infantry dismounted and brandished long weapons and short swords to chase and kill the barbarians.

Even a crossbow with poor armor-piercing capabilities can easily kill a group of barbarians by simply pulling the trigger, because they wear very little armor and are mostly made of flesh and blood.

"Um..."

"Pfft!"

Duan Zongbang retreated back into the camp, and as soon as he climbed the arrow tower, he saw the scene of the Han army unilaterally slaughtering the barbarians outside the camp.

"Zhang Wu of the Han army?"

Upon seeing the banner bearing the character 'Zhang' among the cavalry and infantry, he immediately knew who the newcomers were.

Zhang Wu was quite well-known in the southwest, after all, he had twice thwarted Gao Pian's attacks, which was no small feat.

Originally thinking it was a junior officer from Qingxi Pass, Duan Zongbang immediately guessed that Zhang Wu had brought reinforcements upon learning that the visitor was Zhang Wu.

He observed carefully and saw that all the Han soldiers outside the camp were wearing lamellar armor, and their weapons were extremely sharp.

Even with 30,000 barbarian troops lined up, they were still slaughtered on the spot by the Han infantry, who cut them down like melons and vegetables, forcing the barbarians to retreat continuously.

Many barbarian soldiers were pushed into the trenches, and screams of agony echoed from the pile of people. The barbarian soldier at the bottom quickly died.

"Bastard!"

Seeing his own side being slaughtered in one-sided way, Duan Zongbang was unsure how many reinforcements Zhang Wu had brought, and even less could he figure out his intentions.

Given the current situation, the only way to defeat Zhang Wu is to retreat to Qiongbu County in the rear and request reinforcements from Huichuan.

The retreat from Qingxi Pass to Qiongbu County was a journey of over ninety li, and the official road was only four or five zhang wide, making it inconvenient for a large army to march.

"Order the armored troops to remain in place, and order all other units to withdraw to Qiongbu County first!"

"Yes!"

Duan Zongbang, after all, had been a general who had fought alongside Fan Cui and others throughout the Indochina Peninsula. He knew that although the barbarians had many tricks up their sleeves, they were just cannon fodder on the battlefield against the Central Plains. At most, they could only be used for harassment. So, he could not leave them to cover the rear.

Not only can they not be allowed to stay, but he himself must personally lead troops to garrison the area and force these barbarians to retreat first.

Otherwise, if I lead the main force to retreat first, the Han army will catch up and drive the barbarians to attack my army formation.

At that time, the Han army will be able to exhaust its entire force without losing a single soldier.

Taking this opportunity, we should first get the barbarian tribes to retreat back to Qiongbu, and then lead our troops to retreat ourselves. That would be the right thing to do.

Thinking this, he saw Zhang Wu shoot down the barbarians outside the camp and immediately station his troops to confront him.

Looking into the distance, Han troops were still pouring out from the direction of Qingxi Pass, which made Duan Zongbang's expression change drastically.

"Quickly, urge all units to retreat immediately!"

Duan Zongbang urged them on, and then tens of thousands of barbarians who had retreated to their camp began to flee in panic toward the south gate.

Because the camp blocked the river valley, the Han army was unable to pursue these southward-retreating barbarian tribes.

However, to the Han army, these barbarian tribes were nothing more than hunters who had taken up arms, and Zhang Wu paid them no attention.

There were still more than 20,000 barbarians left outside the camp. Zhang Wu waved his command flag unhurriedly.

In an instant, five thousand dismounted cavalry and infantrymen began to form six-flower formations, pressing forward in a multi-faceted straight line.

The barbarian tribes drew their bows and arrows, or perhaps they were trying to fight the Han army. However, these five thousand cavalry and infantry were all veterans from Longyou, tall and strong.

Faced with the barbarian counterattack, they formed a battle formation and approached with their thirteen-foot-long spears, steadily suppressing the nine-foot-long spears in the hands of the barbarians.

Before the barbarians could retaliate, they were stabbed down in droves.

The number of fallen barbarians continued to increase, and blood filled the puddles.

The trenches that Duan Zongbang used for defense have now become the burial ground for the barbarians.

Large numbers of barbarians fell, and if they weren't killed, the leaping soldiers behind the vanguard would come to deal with them.

A group of leaping soldiers wielding axes and maces appeared, ruthlessly dragging away the barbarian soldiers and beheading them shortly afterward before continuing their advance.

With Duan Zongbang providing support while the Han army slaughtered them, the more than 20,000 barbarian tribes quickly "disappeared" in the Qingxi River Valley.

Three-quarters of an hour later, when Duan Zongbang led the armored soldiers to retreat back into the camp with the last of the barbarians, the gates of the Southern Barbarian camp were tightly closed, while the area outside the camp was littered with the corpses of the barbarians.

"Asshole..."

Duan Zongbang's face turned ashen as he looked at the tens of thousands of corpses lying outside the camp. He hadn't expected that Zhang Wu would even kill the surrendered barbarian soldiers on the spot.

Although the barbarians were merely entourage of the regular army, the sudden loss of over ten thousand barbarians still caused him considerable distress.

With so many barbarian tribes dead, it won't be so easy to recruit just as many more from the various tribes.

"How is the withdrawal of the various tribes going?"

He turned to ask the generals beside him, who quickly replied, "More than 20,000 have already been evacuated."

"The more than 10,000 people who were just brought in by the camp are also on their way to retreat south. It will take at least another 25 minutes!"

“Two quarters of an hour…” Upon hearing this, Duan Zongbang’s face turned ashen.

His intuition told him that Zhang Wu wouldn't let him retreat to Qiongbu so easily.

As he was thinking this, Zhang Wu outside the city ordered his cavalry and infantry to rest, while Xin Dang and Liu Yingyan led 10,000 infantrymen to a position not far behind them.

Upon arriving at Zhang Wu's camp, they immediately noticed that many of the banners were missing, leading them to conclude that Duan Zongbang was withdrawing his troops.

"They are withdrawing their troops."

"Those who withdrew were all barbarian tribes. Killing these barbarians would have little effect on the strength of the Southern Barbarians. Only by severely damaging the elite troops personally led by Duan Zongbang can we make the Southern Barbarians feel the pain."

Liu Yingyan rode up and spoke, and Zhang Wu, upon hearing this, explained, pointing to the camp with his whip as he said:
"Once he withdraws his troops, immediately use explosives to blow up this section of the camp wall."

"If we only go through the camp gate, the pursuit will be too slow. Have someone prepare gunpowder packs."

"Yes!" Liu Yingyan readily agreed, and then ordered people to prepare gunpowder packs and tools.

There's no need to prepare shield carts specifically to increase the power of gunpowder explosions when facing a camp.

Even just digging a hole would be enough to place a gunpowder pack and blow it up.

Seeing that Liu Yingyan agreed, Zhang Wu looked at Xin Dang and said, "Send someone to Chang'an to say that the Southern Barbarians have gone too far in provoking us. I have no choice but to lead my troops to attack the Southern Barbarians. Please punish me, Your Highness."

"Your subordinate obeys!" Xin Dang replied, then asked in return, "If we are to attack, what about the money and provisions..."

"Don't worry," Zhang Wu reassured him. "I have spoken with Mr. Yishan, and he also supports our army in recapturing Xizhou. He has even dispatched 20,000 laborers to transport grain south."

"Right now, all we need to do is recapture Xizhou and Huichuan City before July 22nd!"

Seeing this, Xin Dang said nothing more, and Liu Yingyan began to arrange for the firearms soldiers to prepare.

Two quarters of an hour passed slowly. After learning that the barbarians had withdrawn, Duan Zongbang immediately ordered his troops to first go out of the south gate and form a battle formation to prepare to receive his own troops as they withdrew.

As the banners of the regular army began to move, Zhang Wu immediately looked at Liu Yingyan: "Attack!"

"Beep--"

Liu Yingyan blew the wooden whistle, and the flag bearers behind him immediately waved the command flags.

In an instant, hundreds of soldiers holding round shields escorted the firearms soldiers as they approached the camp.

"Fire arrows!"

At Duan Zongbang's command, countless arrows shot from inside the camp to outside, disrupting the Han army's advance.

Even so, thanks to their thick shields and heavy armor, the Han army quickly made their way through the trenches filled with corpses and reached the camp walls.

They spread out in groups, with five men covering one, and another man starting to dig and place gunpowder packs.

Due to the special nature of the camp, Duan Zongbang could not order his men to throw stones or logs to attack the Han army; he could only watch as the Han army operated outside the camp.

"The Han people are cunning; withdraw your troops!"

Duan Zongbang reacted quickly. Seeing that the Han army had begun to attack the camp, he immediately thought of the gunpowder in the Han army.

After he gave the order, more than 7,000 regular troops began to cover his retreat to the south gate.

Seeing this, Zhang Wu frowned: "Don't dig! Light the fire quickly!"

"Yes!" Upon hearing this, Liu Yingyan waved his command flag, and the firearms soldiers who were digging immediately placed the gunpowder packs on their backs on the ground and then waited for orders.

"Beep--"

A piercing whistle rang out, and the firearms soldiers lit their gunpowder packs and then led their troops in a rapid retreat.

On the way, some people tripped over the corpse in their panic, but they ignored the pain and scrambled away.

Once they had all retreated, the fuses of the gunpowder packs were almost ignited. Suddenly, dirt and dust flew up from the camp, followed by a loud boom.

"Boom——"

"Kill anyone who sees them! One string of cash will be awarded for each bandit killed, to be divided equally after the battle!"

Zhang Wu raised his arms and shouted, and the tens of thousands of Han soldiers, who had just regained their hearing from the explosions, saw the various squads beginning to chant these words.

In an instant, everyone was filled with fervor and began to charge forward.

"kill--"

The shouts of battle rang out, which brought Duan Zongbang, who had been startled by the explosions while retreating, back to his senses. He hurriedly urged, "Don't lose your formation! Withdraw from the camp, form ranks, and guard the gate. Our army can then retreat at our leisure!"

His plan was good, but the Han army charged very quickly, especially the cavalry and infantry.

Duan Zongbang ordered the elite cavalry to leave the camp first, followed by the infantry. So when the elite cavalry left the city, before the infantry left the camp, the sound of hooves could be heard from behind them.

"Buzzing, rumbling..."

"Form ranks, retreat steadily, and do not move your positions!"

Zhang Wu personally led 5,000 cavalry and infantry to attack. Upon seeing this, Duan Zongbang could only order his army to form a battle formation and retreat.

Under his command, more than 5,000 armored soldiers of Dali began to form ranks. They used long spears to block in front of them to resist the cavalry charge, while the central and rear armies held bows and crossbows ready to fire upwards.

"Beep--"

Faced with the armored soldiers who had formed their battle formation, Zhang Wu did not charge directly. Instead, he blew his whistle to give the order and personally led his cavalry and infantry to dismount and form their own battle formation.

They toppled all the tents and quickly formed ranks, giving Duan Zongbang no chance to launch a sneak attack.

By the time Duan Zongbang realized something was wrong, the Han army had already formed a straight line from three directions and was attacking them from all sides.

Five thousand cavalry and infantry from three directions faced more than five thousand armored soldiers from the southern barbarians who had not yet withdrawn from their camp. Their faces showed no fear, but rather excitement.

Even so, no one in the army, from Zhang Wu down to the lowest-ranking squad leader, dared to order an attack rashly, because most of them were students who had studied in Longyou for at least five years.

Even in a situation where victory is almost certain, they still need to follow military orders before taking action.

"Uuuuuu——"

"The various groups are fighting each other with the bandits; those on the left and right must rush forward to rescue them."

"If you are surrounded by thieves on either side, you must immediately advance to their aid."

"He went to rescue people but was entangled by thieves, and so he went again..."

As the bugle sounded, Zhang Wu calmly gave the order, and similar commands were transmitted to the captains of each regiment via flag signals. Then, a fast horseman personally came to relay the order.

Encouraged by the two military orders and the sound of bugles, the captains of each regiment issued orders to attack.

Military officers at the regimental, squad, and gang levels began to act as brigade and squad leaders to kill bandits, while gang leaders were required to take the lead.

The Han army advanced in formation, shouting "Ten thousand victories!" and completely overwhelmed the Southern Barbarian armored army with their momentum.

They kept retreating, while the Han army kept advancing. Finally, when they had nowhere left to retreat, their spears clashed.

"kill--"

"Bang!!"

"Um..."

Spears clashed as numerous soldiers fought in formation within the muddy camp.

They were not the protagonists of the battlefield, nor did they possess superhuman bravery. After each shout, they might be pierced by a spear and fall down wounded.

The Han army camps constantly moved back and forth along the battle line, carrying wounded soldiers to the rear to begin providing medical assistance.

If it's just a fracture, the patient can be saved, but if the lungs or internal organs are damaged, causing massive bleeding, then death is the only outcome.

Mud and blood splattered, and shouts of battle and the clanging of gun barrels rang out incessantly, without ever stopping.

The Nanman armored army began to retreat while resisting the Han army's offensive.

However, the Han army's offensive was like a tidal wave, one wave stronger than the next, making it difficult for them to resist, resulting in countless deaths and injuries.

In addition, the cavalry and infantry were veterans from Longyou, tall and strong, with arm spans two or three inches longer than the average five feet two or three inches of the Southern Barbarian Ironclad Army.

Two or three inches may not seem like much, but on the battlefield, that short distance can take the lives of thousands.
As the Han soldiers thrust their spears forward, the Southern Barbarian Ironclad Army soldiers also thrust their spears forward. By the time the Southern Barbarian soldiers were stabbed and felled, their spears had not even touched the Han soldiers.

Therefore, the Han soldiers needed to be wary of sniper spears coming from the left and right, and they were often seriously wounded by sniper spears.

Even so, the situation on the battlefield still overwhelmingly favored the Han army.

Almost every moment, dozens or even hundreds of Nanman soldiers were stabbed to death. Every step the Han army took forward meant the deaths or injuries of hundreds of Nanman soldiers.

Duan Zongbang had already withdrawn from the camp and was directing the soldiers inside to continue withdrawing.

However, as more and more soldiers withdrew, the Southern Barbarian Ironclad Soldiers, who were already under pressure, began to lose their composure.

"The camp gates are closing, retreat!"

"withdraw!!"

It is unclear who was the first to waver, but once the first person began to abandon their weapon and retreat, those around them would instantly give up resistance and follow suit, fleeing the battlefield.

"kill!!"

Seeing the Nanman formation collapse, Zhang Wu immediately ordered his army to pursue and kill the routed Nanman soldiers.

The energetic leaping soldiers began to pursue the enemy with axes and hammers. Against these armored soldiers, the blunt weapons in their hands were the best weapons.

With a single axe blow, the armor plates caved in, and the sound of bones breaking mingled with the desperate cries of the Southern Barbarian soldiers, like a tiger entering a flock of sheep. The battle turned from the moment the Southern Barbarian soldiers collapsed into a one-sided massacre.

"Damn it! Who told you to take it down?!"

Duan Zongbang led his men to kill more than ten deserters at the camp gate, but there were too many deserters to stop them.

Seeing that the situation was not good, Duan Zongbang had no choice but to mount his horse and retreat, abandoning the more than 3,000 armored soldiers he had left in the camp.

The screams echoed throughout the camp and did not cease until 15 minutes later.

A large number of Han soldiers rushed out of the south gate of the camp, including Zhang Wu, who led the charge.

Zhang Wu wiped the blood from his face, looked at Duan Zongbang who had already disappeared from sight and the narrow official road, and said without hesitation:
"The Southern Barbarians have been utterly defeated. Let us seize this opportunity to reclaim Xizhou, drink our horses' water at Huichuan City, and celebrate the birthday of the King of Han!"

"Celebrating the birthday of the King of Han!!"

Before long, as the Han army poured out of the south gate, and Liu Yingyan led his men to push down the camp wall, the horses were also brought to the front of the cavalry and infantry.

Under Zhang Wu's leadership, tens of thousands of Han soldiers, carrying only enough rations for ten days, embarked on their southward journey.

But more than a hundred miles to the north, the laborers and grain carts arranged by Li Shangyin were stretching for dozens of miles southwards.

It's time to raise the banners of the Han army over Huichuan City, which was lost during the Tianbao era...

(End of this chapter)