Tiger Guards

Chapter 652 Unwilling to Give Up
As Zhao Ang gave the order and the drums resounded, the more than three thousand cavalrymen who had already spread out to the left and right began to charge northward.

Once so many knights are on the run, they cannot be brought back by just a few people or by the sound of drums or gongs.

With horses trampling the ground, even though some Han heroes had sensed something was wrong and wanted to escape, the riders on their left, right, and rear were restless and advancing, so these Han heroes had no choice but to launch a charge reluctantly.

Unfortunately, the marching column has not yet fully transformed into a large horizontal formation.

Even after these three thousand cavalrymen launched their charge, the area behind the original battle line appeared empty and sparse.

Even though Zhao Ang had no less than 20,000 Han and Hu chieftains behind him, they were like wheat scattered on the road, difficult to string together, let alone gather into a group!
Seeing more than three thousand knights charging north, Zhao Ang looked up and glanced to his side. There was a banner with the five characters "Protector of the Qiang, Zhao" embroidered on it.

Then he looked at his former colleague who had fallen to the ground, clutching his throat with both hands, his eyes wide open and struggling to breathe... Zhao Ang let out a long sigh, lifted his waist and thrust his hips forward, and his fine steed moved forward.

Zhao Ang's blood-stained spear plunged down again, slamming into the gap between the overlapping armor plates on the opponent's chest from a downward angle.

The horse strode forward, and Zhao Ang used the momentum to thrust his spear into the overlapping layers of lamellar armor, piercing the opponent's chest and lungs.

The other person stared intently at Zhao Ang with wide eyes, but Zhao Ang remained unmoved.

At this moment, the enemy's attendant drew his sword and was about to stand up, about to shout angrily to gather his courage, when Zhao Ang's cavalry shot an arrow at close range. The arrow pierced the attendant's mouth, and the arrowhead flew out at an angle through his neck. The attendant's eyes widened, filled with resentment, and he slowly fell to the ground, still pressing down on his master.

"At this point, there is no turning back."

Zhao Ang remained calm. Even though he felt he was going to lose, he still wanted to try one more time. Otherwise, he would be truly unwilling to just flee like this.

His gaze swept over the clansmen, fellow villagers, and valiant cavalry around him: "The fact that the traitor Zhao is lurking here shows that he harbored murderous intent towards us even before the war began. It is hateful that we were deceived by him and failed to raise troops to defend the emperor sooner, allowing this traitor to grow stronger and become a great calamity for the nation."

As he spoke, he pointed his spear diagonally at the white tiger-striped banner: "Only by killing this traitor can we ensure the safety of our families and clans. Otherwise, we will all be enslaved by the government, and there will be no hope of ever rising again."

As the most powerful families in a prefecture, they knew all too well the lives of ordinary servants and slaves.

It was bad enough that life was hard and undignified, but what the powerful and wealthy found most unacceptable was the kind of life of suffering where there was no hope and they had to endure it day after day.

Their ancestors were able to overcome obstacles, live frugally, and endure hardship to gradually build up their current business. But if they were asked to repeat the great achievements of their ancestors so that their descendants could enjoy the benefits... that would be too difficult!

Zhao Ang didn't need to do much mobilization; the two hundred-plus knights around him naturally understood the outcome of defeat.

Some people began to discard the useless equipment on their horse harnesses, and many of them actually only had one chance to charge when faced with Zhao Ji's sharpshooting.

To kill Zhao Ji, one must endure casualties, rush to Zhao Ji's side, and force Zhao Ji into close combat.

Once Zhao Ji is forced into close combat, more and more of our knights and infantry can rush up. Relying on our manpower advantage, even if they can't kill Zhao Ji on the chariot... they can still overturn the chariot!
Thus, more than two hundred Zhao clan members and fellow villagers, along with their elite cavalry from Longshang, followed Zhao Ang with heavy hearts, slowly accelerating as they advanced toward the white tiger-patterned banner where Zhao Ji was located.

At this point, they could no longer rely on the Qiang-Di allied forces trekking along the roads behind them.

This made Zhao Ang extremely frustrated. He had already prepared all kinds of ingredients, but before they could even be served, Zhao Ji kicked over the stove!

With 20,000 troops right behind them, Zhao Ang was extremely unwilling!
If he had been more cautious in his military strategy, he wouldn't have ended up in such an embarrassing situation.

Even without rushing to ambush and cut off Han Shu's supply train, he could have preserved his main force and avoided such a devastating defeat by simply sending a detachment to attack.

He lost not only this battle, but also the future of the entire Zhao family of Tianshui and the gentry of eastern Liangzhou!
Faced with Zhao Ji's deliberate trickery, Zhao Ang could accept defeat. However, the fact that 20,000 Han and Hu allied troops remained was truly difficult for Zhao Ang to accept!
It evokes a sense of frustration, like the entire clan having toiled for twenty years to accumulate a generous dowry, only to have their ancestral home burned down by enemies before the wedding.

With mixed feelings, Zhao Ang charged forward with his spear, still unable to let go of his grievances.

At this moment, all they could do was stare intently at that white tiger-striped banner, pinning all their hopes of turning things around on it.

The Han-Qiang cavalry, who had already launched the first charge, wisely avoided the flat road and split to the left and right, rushing into the snow-covered fields to support the routed Qiang cavalry and engage Gao Yanglong and Chang Mao in battle.

The snow on the field wasn't deep, barely enough to fit a fist's width.

This slowed down the fleeing Qiang cavalry, hindered the pursuing Tiger and Leopard cavalry, and prevented the Han and Qiang cavalry from maintaining their charge as they left the road and traveled through the fields.

The soil in the fields was either loose or hard, and there were crisscrossing ridges and small streams, making it impossible for either side's knights to run freely.

The loose soil in the fields is not suitable for horses to gallop... The snow covering the ground makes it difficult to see the complex terrain, which can cause horses that run too fast to break their legs.

Therefore, Zhao Ang's two hundred elite cavalry from Longshang, who were sent out later, did not have the opportunity to charge directly at Zhao Ji's chariots in the chaos of battle. They could only confront Zhao Ji's dozen or so chariots head-on along the road!

Zhao Ang no longer cared about observing the changes on the battlefield; his eyes were only on that white tiger-striped banner!
"Ha~!"

Zhao Ji fired another arrow, then quickly discarded his bow and grabbed a new one.

The closer the distance, the more he prefers to use the lighter shortbow; since there's a damage amplification, he doesn't even need to use the power of 'qi' to accurately kill and pierce armor with the shortbow.

As long as the arrow is accurate enough, it doesn't matter whether it penetrates the armor or not.

The arrows are not aimed at the armor, but at the parts that the armor cannot protect, so that they can easily kill or injure the opponent.

For example, at this moment, when Zhao Ang's two hundred elite cavalry were about to approach, Zhao Ang instinctively controlled his horse to slow down, and the strong cavalry on his left and right spurred their horses to accelerate and protect Zhao Ang.

When the vanguard knights approached within seventy paces, Zhao Ji began to fire rapidly with his short bow.

Drawing the short bow no longer requires much physical exertion from Zhao Ji; the physical exertion is less than the energy he expends when searching for a target.

He fired rapidly with his short bow, while the chariots, moving slowly to the left and right, also unleashed a barrage of crossbow bolts.

As this elite cavalry force from Longshang approached, the front-line riders fell off their horses one after another, disrupting the order of the charge and causing widespread obstruction.

Amidst the chaos and the fall of the horses, Zhao Ang could only hear the neighing of various horses before he was struck by an arrow and knocked off his horse.

He bounced on the ground after falling, and the faces of his wife and children flashed by quickly.

Then, the knights behind him couldn't stop their horses, and the horses' hooves trampled Zhao Ang's thigh, causing him intense pain that brought him back to his senses.

She screamed and fainted.

(End of this chapter)