Chapter 383 Banquet Invitation
Qiang Lin shot an arrow that injured Xiao Beiheng's black horse, which threw him off the horse. Xiao Beiheng was very skilled and somersaulted in the air, landing steadily on the snow.
He quickly drew out Yan Que and planned to chase Qiang Lin on foot. Another arrow flew towards him. Xiao Beiheng blocked it with his sword. The arrow hit the sword spine with a ding, creating a few sparks before falling to the ground.
Xiao Beiheng became even angrier and tried to chase after him, but Qiang Lin had already turned his horse around and galloped out of the forest. He seemed to be extremely afraid of the Yanque Sword and did not engage in a fight with Xiao Beiheng.
Xiao Beiheng did not give up and took two more steps to catch up. There was a rumbling sound of hooves in front of him, and hundreds of Western Rong cavalrymen, waving swords, emerged from the woods and shouted as they passed through the trees.
At this time, the Dingbei Army cavalry behind him had also arrived, crossed his flanks, and began to fight with the Xirong cavalry.
Xiao Beiheng was so angry that he had no place to vent his anger. He punched the tree trunk beside him, causing the snow to fall down. He turned around and looked at Wu Zhui who was struggling in the snow.
He loved this BMW very much, but Wuzhui's leg was hit by an arrow and it could not stand up. Obviously, it could no longer carry him and Su Mo.
Xiao Beiheng walked up to Wu Zhui, raised the tip of the Yanque sword, and aimed it at Wu Zhui's neck. Wu Zhui gasped and looked at him, as if he knew what his master was going to do, and a tear fell from the corner of his eye.
The sword blade, shining with cold light, hesitated in the air for a moment, then stabbed down with a swish.
The blood spurting from Wuzhui's neck splashed on his armor, slowly flowed down the armor, and dripped drop by drop onto the snow.
"Your Majesty, we can't stop the Xirong's attack," a general rode up to him and shouted, "We will hold off the enemy, Your Majesty, please evacuate this place quickly."
The Dingbei army hadn't eaten since morning, and with no numerical advantage, they were clearly no match for the Xirong's onslaught. The woods were littered with people and horses falling to the ground, and screams of agony filled the air.
Xiao Beiheng also knew that there was no chance of winning, so he returned to the clearing in the forest, found a tall and strong chestnut warhorse, helped Su Mo onto the horse's back, and said to Lin Kui, "Let's leave quickly."
He took Su Mo out of the woods first, and Lin Kui led the cavalry to follow him sparsely and fled all the way.
This time was different from before. Not long after they escaped from the woods, they saw the Western Rong cavalry emerging from the woods and chasing them from afar. There were more than 3,000 of them.
The snow had stopped at some point, and two groups of cavalrymen, one in front and one behind, were galloping wildly on the snow-covered mountain road.
Xiao Beiheng looked around and found that there were only more than 500 cavalrymen left by his side, and no generals at all.
He knew that if he stopped to fight the Western Rong cavalry, he would have no chance of winning. He was the Emperor of Great Yan, how could he be killed or captured alive by a barbarian king of the Western Rong?
Especially since Qiang Lin had been defeated by him before. Thinking of himself being held captive and humiliated, Xiao Beiheng shuddered. He fled hastily, not knowing which direction to go, only wanting to escape quickly.
The two sides chased each other. The Western Rong cavalry had lived in the cold and harsh environment outside the Great Wall for many years and were better at riding in the snow than the Dingbei Army. The distance between the two sides gradually closed.
After turning a corner at the foot of a mountain, the view suddenly opened up. Su Mo suddenly raised her hand and pointed ahead, exclaiming, "Bei Heng, this is the Xirong Army camp."
Xiao Beiheng also saw a large Western Rong camp emerging from the plain ahead, stretching for miles and blocking their path. As trumpets blew, another group of Western Rong cavalry emerged from the camp and charged towards them.
Lin Kui rode up to Xiao Beiheng and shouted in panic, "Your Majesty, we're surrounded by Western Rong people. What should we do?"
Xiao Beiheng was equally horrified and turned to look behind him. The Qianglin cavalry were getting closer and closer, only two or three miles away. The Xirong cavalry in front of them were three or four miles away.
He wanted to keep running, but his horses were too exhausted to continue, foaming at the mouth. If he stayed where he was, he would be waiting to die.
He looked around and saw a small hill not far away, about several dozen feet high. The terrain was rugged and there was only a winding path leading up to it. It was easy to defend but difficult to attack. He pointed at the hill and said, "Everyone, go up the hill and take shelter."
Everyone was panicked and rushed to the foot of the mountain, pulling their horses up along the path.
When Xiao Beiheng reached the top of the mountain, he found that it was quite spacious and could accommodate hundreds of soldiers. There was also a cave more than one person high. Two bundles of firewood and a shoulder pole were thrown at the entrance of the cave. It seemed that it was a place for woodcutters to rest.
He ordered Lin Kui to take Su Mo into the cave, and the soldiers to prepare stones to attack the enemy.
Everyone was frantically preparing for defense when a sergeant pointed down the mountain and shouted:
"Your Majesty, look! The two cavalry units are fighting."
Xiao Beiheng didn't believe it and stood on a higher ground to watch. Sure enough, the Qianglin cavalry and the cavalry from the opposite Xirong camp had engaged in a fight. The two sides rushed together, brandishing swords and fighting.
After both sides left nearly a hundred bodies on the snow, the Qianglin cavalry disengaged and retreated the way they had come. The cavalry from the Xirong camp showed no intention of pursuing them, but instead slowly advanced towards the hill.
He was surprised and puzzled, not expecting that these two Western Rong cavalry were actually rivals.
But this is not good news. Although the Qianglin cavalry retreated temporarily, the cavalry from the opposite Xirong camp came to find them.
The Xirong cavalry, numbering over 5,000, came to the foot of the mountain and surrounded the hill. Apparently, they were concerned about the narrow mountain path and the difficulty of attacking, so they did not attack immediately.
A man dressed in the attire of a Western Rong captain rode out and shouted to the soldiers on the hill, "Who is commanding the Yan troops on the mountain? Tell us your name immediately."
Su Mo couldn't sit still in the cave and came out to investigate. Hearing the Xirong general shouting at the foot of the mountain, she replied, "The one on the mountain is the Emperor of Dayan. Who are you?"
The commander of the Xirong army at the foot of the mountain was overjoyed. He looked up and shouted hurriedly, "I am a soldier under King Doma. Since you are trapped here, why don't you surrender quickly?"
Su Mo sneered and said, "How could the great Yan, a superior nation, surrender to a barbarian like you?"
Xiao Beiheng was being chased by Qiang Lin and was feeling very frustrated. When he saw the captain of the Western Rong army clamoring like a crow at him to surrender, he took out his precious carved bow, drew the bowstring and shot an arrow.
The captain didn't know that the precious eagle bow could shoot far, and thought he was safe. He was spitting and trying to persuade the soldiers to surrender when an arrow flew and pierced his left eye. He fell off his horse and died immediately.
The Western Rong cavalry at the foot of the mountain were in disarray and immediately launched an attack. However, there was only a small path leading up the mountain, and two people walking side by side would easily fall. The Dingbei soldiers raised stones and threw them down, and the Western Rong soldiers were beaten and bleeding.
After attacking for a while, more than 200 Western Rong soldiers were killed or wounded, while only a dozen Dingbei soldiers were injured.
The Xirong general at the foot of the mountain saw that it was not going to work if they continued fighting like this, so he ordered the Xirong army to surround the hill and sent a small group of troops to return to the distant camp in a hurry.
Seeing that the enemy had surrounded the hill and that he could not escape, Lin Kui said to Xiao Beiheng in panic, "Your Majesty, what should we do now?"
Xiao Beiheng was at a loss for words. Trapped in this mountain, even the dumbest person would know this was a hopeless situation.
No reinforcements will come, because no one knows they are here. There is no food or firewood in the mountains, and they can't even survive tonight.
He stared blankly at the mountain below, thinking about what it would be like if he became a prisoner of the Western Rong people, falling from a high position to the dust, with no dignity, no status, and even an ordinary soldier could beat and scold him at will.
For him, this humiliation was no different from killing him.
What if he rushed down the mountain and died in a glorious battle? His hands trembled at the thought of death.
Some people think death is nothing, simply because they have never faced it and feel it is very far away. Once they really face it, whether they are the emperor or the common people, they will all feel the same.
Even ants would beg for their lives, let alone the Emperor of Great Yan. How could he die like this? As long as he could escape danger and reunite with the Anzhou army, everything would be fine.
While he was struggling, a Xirong envoy came galloping down the mountain with a banner in hand, shouting:
"King Doma, having learned that the Emperor of Great Yan was here, has prepared a banquet and specially invited the Emperor of Great Yan to his camp for a chat."
When everyone on the mountain heard the news, they were stunned.
King Doma did not send troops to attack them, but instead invited Xiao Beiheng to a banquet. What was his plan?
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