Five thousand Dashun cavalrymen met three thousand Ming cavalrymen head-on.
The corners of Li Xingzhong and Hao Yaoqi's mouths curled up at the same time, revealing a smile of success.
Li Xingzhong's strategy was to lure the enemy deep into his territory.
Hao Yaoqi responded by using the same tactics against him.
At first he did not want to pursue the Ming army, but when he saw the strength of the Ming army clearly, he quickly changed his mind.
Five thousand versus three thousand, the advantage is on him.
As long as he could quickly break through Li Xingzhong's formation, he would have more than 80% chance of winning the battle.
Even if they could not break through the Ming army's formation in a short period of time, they could still leave the battlefield and reach a safe area by relying on the speed of the cavalry.
The two sides lined up to meet the enemy and began to charge at each other in the autumn wind after the rain.
After two volleys of arrows, both sides put down their bows, drew their swords and started hacking at each other.
Both sides were wearing armor, and it was difficult for the arrows shot by the cavalry's soft bows to cause fatal injuries unless they hit the opponent's face.
Furthermore, the number of arrows is limited, and given the speed at which the cavalry shoots, the arrows will soon be exhausted.
The cavalrymen met and their weapons clashed, and both sides fought for their lives.
Compared with hand-to-hand combat between infantry and cavalry, fighting between cavalry is much more entertaining to watch.
Infantry hand-to-hand combat is mainly a test of strength and courage.
They first need the strength to hold up the other person's body, and then muster up the courage to fight him.
The cavalry is different.
They cannot be as steady on the ground as infantrymen when riding on horses, so the main test in close combat is skill.
The gaps in the armor and the ropes used to tie the armor became the primary targets of attack.
As long as the angle is tricky enough, the hemp rope and iron wire that fix the armor can be broken.
The armor will not necessarily fall off after being broken, but it will become loose.
When the armor is loose, many gaps will appear, resulting in numerous flaws.
Without the all-round protection of armor, the opponent's combat effectiveness would be reduced by 50% to 60%.
There were flashes of swords and sabers on the battlefield.
The sound of swords and arrows breaking through the air, the screams of soldiers, and the neighing of war horses were endless.
As the number of casualties increased, the originally yellow earth turned dark red.
The muddy battlefield quickly turned into a purgatory.
After Hao Yaoqi killed a Ming soldier with his own hands, he suddenly felt something was wrong.
Because the cavalry on both wings of the Ming army were retreating.
Just as he was about to order a pursuit, he realized that he had seen it wrong. It turned out that it was not the two wings of the Ming army that were retreating, but the central army that was attacking.
"Soldiers, charge with me and drive the Ming army back!" Hao Yaoqi grabbed the reins with his left hand and rushed towards Li Xingzhong with a knife in his right hand.
The two sides fought for less than half an hour, and Li Xingzhong's cavalry gradually became exhausted.
They first launched a long-distance raid, and then encircled and suppressed Zhang Xianzhong's infantry on the battlefield.
After a long battle, they are already showing signs of fatigue.
In contrast, the cavalry under Hao Yaoqi's command were well-rested and full of energy.
More importantly, they are the elite combat forces of Dashun!
No matter how powerful Li Xingzhong is, he cannot defeat the larger force with a smaller one in this situation.
The Ming cavalry was fighting and retreating, and was just one step away from defeat.
"It's time to give orders to the city!" Li Xingzhong shouted to a personal soldier beside him.
After receiving the order, the personal soldier rode his horse backwards, and after leaving the battlefield, he turned his horse around and galloped towards the southwest corner of Chengtian Prefecture.
When he reached the moat, he took out a small flag from his arms and waved it vigorously while shouting, "General Li has ordered us to march out of the city to meet the enemy, and we must do it quickly."
This military order was passed on by word of mouth and finally reached the ears of the heavy armored cavalry who were ready to go at the west gate.
"Get your three-barreled guns ready and light the matches for me. After you leave the city, form a horizontal array to meet the enemy and fire at every 20 steps. After you've finished firing, charge into the array and attack anyone. Anyone who dares to stop will be beheaded and their family members will be exiled."
"The Ming army is mighty!"
"The Ming army is mighty, the Ming army is mighty!" The heavy cavalry responded loudly, holding up their weapons.
Creak...the city gate opened.
With a bang, the suspension bridge was lowered.
Before the splashed mud fell to the ground, a thousand heavily armored cavalrymen came out one after another.
After leaving the city, they formed a single column and rushed westward.
After all the cavalry had left the city, they stopped and turned south.
At this time, the column became a horizontal column.
The heavy cavalry commander urged his horse forward, and the rest of the soldiers quickly followed.
Their speed was very slow, so slow that it was a bit depressing.
If I have to describe it, it's about the same speed as an average person's walking speed.
The Dashun cavalry on guard in the rear soon discovered this heavy cavalry and quickly informed Hao Yaoqi of the news.
By the time Hao Yaoqi received the news, the heavy cavalry was only three hundred steps away from them.
Hao Yaoqi turned sideways and looked behind him.
In the setting sun, a small group of cavalry were slowly approaching them.
The armor on this cavalry reflected a dazzling golden light under the sunlight, making people dare not look directly at it.
"It's the heavily armored cavalry! Quickly form a formation to meet the enemy!" Hao Yaoqi was horrified.
He had encountered the Ming army's heavy cavalry before, but their equipment was completely different from this cavalry.
In the past, the Ming army's heavy cavalry usually wore double armor, a layer of cotton armor on the outside and a layer of dark armor on the inside. The war horses were covered with cotton armor, which had considerable protective capabilities.
This Ming cavalry unit was all wearing iron armor.
The thick steel sheets can not only block arrows, but even ordinary bird guns cannot penetrate them.
Under the command of Hao Yaoqi, the Dashun Army formed three cavalry formations on the left, center and right.
At this time, the Ming army had already arrived a hundred steps away.
Under everyone's gaze, the Ming army's heavy cavalry began to accelerate.
The warhorse's iron hooves stepped on the ground, splashing mud everywhere.
As the distance got closer, the sound of iron hooves stepping on the ground became louder and louder.
Boom...Boom!
The earth began to tremble.
A thousand heavily armored cavalry formed a steel torrent and charged towards the Shun army without hesitation.
Eighty steps!
The Ming army's heavy cavalry began to accelerate.
The Shun cavalry looked frightened and they drew their bows and arrows to try to stop the Ming army's charge.
Instead of slowing down, the Ming army accelerated its charge.
Fifty steps!
"Shoot, shoot!" The Shun army fired arrows like rain.
The Ming army refused to retreat, and the war horses once again sped up.
Thirty steps!
Another wave of arrows rained down from the Shun army, knocking an unlucky Ming soldier off his horse.
Twenty steps!
boom!
The three-barreled gun fired bullets in unison, the sound of the gun was like thunder, and thick smoke billowed.
The front row of cavalry of the Shun army fell down.
Before they could organize a counterattack, the heavy cavalry had already rushed in front of them.
What greeted them was the blunt force of heavy armor.
Various weapons such as three-barreled guns, horse lances, iron rods, etc. came crashing over with the sound of wind.
The kinetic energy of the blunt weapon plus the potential energy of the running horses directly smashed the Dashun cavalry into pieces under the double force.
The Shun army who witnessed all this were stunned.
After an unknown amount of time, the Shun army soldiers shouted in fear: "Run! They are not human!"
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