When the Xianbei general learned of Cao Cao's reply, he was helpless. The Han army was now powerful, and their 30,000 cavalry were fighting the Xiongnu. They could not easily retreat and could only wait for the Han army to be ready.
The Wuhuan general felt the same way. These Xiongnu soldiers were now all ready to die, even though they were almost all wounded and at a disadvantage. They were determined to fight to the death, exchanging wounds for wounds and lives for lives. Their losses were also considerable, but the battle had already begun, and retreat was not an option. He could only helplessly watch the Wuhuan warriors die one after another; his heart bled as well.
……………………………………
On the hillside, soldiers from the Xianbei and Wuhuan tribes had repeatedly come to Cao Cao requesting him to send troops to jointly attack the Xiongnu. Cao Cao had been declining the request, until he saw that the Xianbei and Wuhuan tribes and the Xiongnu had almost finished fighting. In front of the envoys from the two tribes who had come to request his assistance, Cao Cao ordered Zhao Liu: "Now you can fire the cannons."
"Fire!" Upon hearing this, the envoys from both tribes were stunned for a moment, then filled with fear. Over the past three months, they had witnessed the terror of cannons. They pleaded urgently, "My lord, you can't do this! Our people are currently fighting the Xiongnu to the death. If you fire the cannons, our warriors will also be affected. My lord, you can't fire the cannons!"
"Hahaha." Upon hearing this, Cao Cao laughed and said, "Now is the best time to fire the cannons, why can't we fire them?"
Upon hearing this, the Wuheng envoy quickly pleaded, "My lord, could you please allow our people to retreat first? If the cannons are fired, our people will suffer heavy casualties."
"Heavy casualties, hahaha." Cao Cao laughed loudly, and even the generals around him, including Zhao Liu, laughed along. "That's exactly what I wanted—heavy casualties. Otherwise, why wait until now? Do you really think the mere Xiongnu need us to send 120,000 troops?"
"What!" Upon hearing this, both envoys widened their eyes, never expecting that the Han army's target was not only the Xiongnu. The Han army's goal was the entire grassland, and fighting the Xiongnu with them was merely to use them to wear each other down. Now that the Xiongnu were on the verge of extinction, they had turned their swords on the two Han tribes, and it was likely that the two Han tribes would soon follow in the footsteps of the Xiongnu.
The Xianbei envoy said urgently, "Isn't your target the Xiongnu? Aren't we allies? Aren't you afraid of being condemned by the world, betrayed, and attacked from behind?"
"Hahaha... Where is the betrayal of trust, where is the backstabbing?" Cao Cao laughed again upon hearing this, and said, "We have never said that our target is only the Xiongnu, nor have we ever said that we want to form an alliance with you. We are fighting the Xiongnu, and you are fighting the Xiongnu yourselves. This doesn't prove anything. Joining us in fighting the Xiongnu is just your own wishful thinking. It was you who sent envoys here, not us. Now that the Xiongnu have been almost defeated, it's natural that we will attack you."
"You..." Upon hearing this, the envoys of both tribes were furious. They knew that the situation was indeed as it was and that there was no way to turn back now. They gripped their swords and were about to draw them to slash Cao Cao.
"Bang bang..."
Two crisp gunshots rang out, and the heads of the two envoys were instantly blown apart.
"This rifle is really useful; it not only kills without leaving a trace, but it also has such great destructive power."
Zhou Qi and Wu Yong lowered their rifles and blew the smoke from the muzzles.
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“Dead.” Wang Han looked at the rabbit on the table and stopped wielding his thin knife. “A normal life force enhancement of less than ten times can only make its life force more tenacious, immune to common germs and venoms, able to withstand more severe injuries, and more adaptable to temperature and other factors. The enhancement can only last for an hour and cannot prevent death after a fatal part is removed. At most, it can only prolong its life a little longer, and the speed of injury recovery is not even visible to the naked eye.”
After analyzing the situation, Wang Han took another rabbit out of the cage, secured it to the table in front of him, and picked up the thin knife again.
"This time, the enhancement will be more than ten times stronger."
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"Boom boom boom..."
On the grassland, artillery shells rained down on the battlefield, igniting huge flames that engulfed soldiers—the Xiongnu, the Xianbei, the Wuhuan—for this moment, there was no difference between them.
The incessant explosions startled the horses and stunned the warriors fighting on horseback.
The Xianbei and Wuhuan generals were equally astonished to see the huge flames caused by the cannonballs landing on the battlefield. After a moment of realization, they anxiously ordered their subordinates, "What happened? How did Han cannonballs land on the battlefield? Can't you see our warriors fighting the Xiongnu? Didn't the messengers we sent stop them? Quickly send someone to ask!"
"Tell the warriors to retreat quickly, lest they be blown up by the Han army's artillery."
"Report..." Before they could give their orders, the cavalryman in charge of reconnaissance rushed over in a panic and said anxiously, "General, the Han army has moved. Their troops have bypassed us from both sides, formed a battle formation, and are coming from our front and sides. They are closing in and are about to surround us."
"Oh no, the Han army has betrayed us!" Upon hearing this, and recalling the previous incident where the Han army bombarded their warriors, the Wuhuan general immediately realized the danger and ordered, "Order the soldiers to break out of the Xiongnu's Touman city before the Han army can encircle them. Also, immediately send men to rush to the flank and find a way to tell the people of our tribe that the Han army has betrayed us as soon as possible."
"Yes, sir." One by one, the messengers spurred their horses and galloped off to deliver the order.
"The Han army has betrayed us and is immediately breaking out towards Touman City..."
"The Han army has betrayed us and is immediately breaking out towards Touman City..."
On the battlefield, the messenger cavalry galloped along the edge of the battlefield, shouting loudly.
"What? The Han army has betrayed us!" Upon hearing the order, the cavalrymen of the three tribes who were fighting were stunned for a moment, and then quickly followed the order, abandoning the enemy they were fighting, withdrawing from the battlefield, and galloping towards Touman City.
The Xiongnu were desperately trying to prevent the cavalry of both tribes from breaking through to Touman City.
Many Xianbei and Xiongnu cavalry also heard the news.
Unfortunately, the news arrived a little late, but not too late, or perhaps Cao Cao deliberately made a strategic error. The Han army formed an advancing firing formation and advanced towards the battlefield and the Xianbei and Wuhuan cavalry from three directions, but the direction leading to Touman City remained uncontained for a long time.
The Xianbei and Wuhuan cavalry seized the opportunity and quickly fled towards Touman City.
……………………………………
"Marshal, the Xianbei and Wuhuan cavalry have fled towards Touman City." After watching the two tribes' cavalry flee, Zhao Liu said to Cao Cao, "Should we continue towards Touman City?"
“No,” Cao Cao shook his head and said, “My lord’s intention is to drive them westward. If we occupy Touman City, we will block the remaining enemies on the grasslands from heading west. Let’s ignore them for now and start wiping out the remaining enemies on the grasslands.”
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