Within an hour, more than 3,000 civilians had gathered under the city. They were shivering in the north wind. Some were cursing the defenders in the city loudly, while others were crying and begging, but it was all in vain.
About two hours later, the sky was already beginning to brighten, and a hazy black shadow vaguely appeared below the western horizon. The black shadow came very quickly without making any defensive moves. On the vast snowfield, seven thousand war horses galloped rapidly. Only a corner of the black outline could be seen in the faint white mist. In the blink of an eye, the enemy was already at the gate of the city. The Yanbei army in Beishuo City rushed to tell each other, and the news of the enemy's attack quickly spread throughout the army. Before the Xia army in the east took action, the Xia army's hidden troops in the west had already drawn their swords. General Cheng Yuan, who was in charge of the defense of the west city, was still in fear. Fortunately, Xue Zhiyuan reported it in advance, otherwise the consequences would be disastrous.
The civilians were the first to let out roars of fear and ran towards the city gate in panic, but at this time, who dared to open the city gate for them?
A creaking sound was heard on the city wall. It was the sound of heavy crossbows being fired. Deputy General Cheng Yuan stood on the top of the city wall, wearing a green fur coat, holding a knife in his hand. He looked at the team in front with contempt and snorted coldly. It was simply a fantasy that a light cavalry team of only 10,000 people dared to attack Beishuo City.
He casually ordered his men, "Don't be soft-hearted. Wipe them all out. The victory of the first battle of Beishuo must be firmly in the hands of our Beishuo native soldiers!"
His subordinate Sun He frowned in confusion and said in embarrassment: "But there are still many civilians under the city."
Cheng Yuan raised his eyebrows slightly and said coldly: "Civilians? I didn't see any." Then, he left the city wall and went back to the barracks to rest.
The weather was so cold that it was unbearable. With such a small number of troops on the other side, it was not worth it for him to stay here to guard.
Sun He understood immediately, turned around and instructed the middle-level generals behind him: "The civilians below are all Xia soldiers in disguise, using them as smokescreens to confuse us. The purpose is to force us not to dare to shoot arrows. As long as we open the city gate, these people will immediately become enemy troops, kill us all, and raze Beishuo to the ground!"
Everyone understood immediately and said, "Xia Gou is so cunning and has gone too far. If we don't kill them all, we will have no face to live in this world."
There was a commotion on the city wall, and people were yelling at the people below with gnashing teeth. However, at this moment, the entire cavalry suddenly stopped not far away. The leader, a cavalryman in a black fur coat, ran forward and took off her hood, revealing a beautiful and heroic face. The woman said in a loud voice: "I am Chu Qiao, the military advisor of the General Staff. Behind me is my army, the Southwest Town Commander. The Xia army has been wiped out by us. Please ask the officers guarding the city to open the city gate and let us in!"
Her voice was not loud, but everyone on the city wall could hear it clearly. As soon as he finished speaking, a burst of laughter rang out from the city wall. If General Xue had not notified them in advance, they might have been fooled by them. Staff Officer Chu had already died for her country, and they were still using her name to cheat? Southwest Town Envoy? What team is that? The rebel leader?
Sun He had never seen Chu Qiao face to face, but only saw her back from afar several times. This place was too far away from the army below, and the morning fog was heavy, making it impossible to make out her true appearance. He had a preconceived idea and received private instructions from Cheng Yuan, so he became bolder. He sneered and waved his hand gently.
"Fight for freedom! Kill!"
A loud roar suddenly sounded! In response to Chu Qiao, more than 300 crossbow arrows were fired at the same time. The arrows were like dark clouds that blocked out the sunlight, covering the sky and the sun, whistling and falling from the sky like a storm!
"Protect the adults!"
The officers and soldiers of the Southwest Town Envoy were furious and rushed forward with a loud shout. More than a dozen young soldiers stood in front of Chu Qiao and built a dense human wall for her.
After Chu Qiao's improvement, those crossbow arrows can fire thirty-eight arrows continuously. Their power and speed are so great that they can be regarded as the best weapon for defending a city in the world. Thousands of arrows were fired at the same time. The black rain of arrows was like a whistling gale, instantly piercing through more than a dozen soldiers. In an instant, their bodies twisted strangely like hedgehogs and flew backwards!
"Protect the lord!" He Xiao rushed forward with a sword and chopped off a stray arrow with one sword. Hundreds of soldiers rushed forward regardless of their lives and surrounded Chu Qiao. They were all light cavalry, without shields or armor. Because they followed Chu Qiao to surrender, they did not even form a suitable defensive formation. Under the first round of dense rain of arrows, they were immediately thrown to the ground.
A young soldier hugged Chu Qiao and rushed back without hesitation. An arrow shot through his chest, and a large amount of blood stained Chu Qiao's face. However, the soldier still refused to let go. He galloped on his horse and shouted loudly: "Protect the lord! Come closer to me!"
But soon, their war horses were shot into a hornet's nest and fell to the ground. He didn't even have time to take a look. He rolled on the ground, got up, and still protected Chu Qiao and ran back.
"There is an enemy attack! Protect the adults!" More and more people rushed forward. They were like black waves. When one row of people died, another row rushed forward. There was no weakness, no fear, and no retreat. When they escaped out of range, there were already densely packed soldiers lying on the ground behind them.
"Hahaha!" The Yanbei army's laughter rang out from the top of the city, and the sound was so harsh.
Chu Qiao fell heavily to the ground. He Xiao pushed through the crowd and rushed in, shouting nervously, "Sir! Are you okay?"
The soldiers scattered. He Xiaogang ran in, his eyes suddenly glared and he shouted loudly: "How dare you! How dare you disrespect the adults!" As he said that, he was about to rush forward.
“General He, stop talking.” Chu Qiao weakly poked her head out from the arms of the young soldier who was holding her tightly. Her tone was sad and low, her face was pale, and tears filled her eyes, but she tried hard not to let them fall. “He is already dead. He saved me.”
Chu Qiao broke free from the soldier's hand and slowly stood up. At this moment, a short low cry was heard from the crowd. The soldier's back was like a hedgehog, with more than ten sharp arrows piercing his body. Three or four of them were shot at his heart, and most of them had been broken. It was obvious how many times he had fallen while running. His expression was ferocious and crazy, as if he was still running wildly at the moment before his death, or he was already dead but still running. No one knew what kind of power this was. Chu Qiao took off her fur coat and draped it over the soldier. Then she squatted down, gently stroked the soldier's cheek, and closed his eyes.
With a swish, the girl stood up suddenly, turned around and walked towards the Beishuo city gate.
"Sir!" the soldiers shouted in unison.
He Xiao was the first to stop her and shouted, "Sir! No!"
Chu Qiao's eyes were cold, and the flame of anger was burning in her heart. In just a short while, more than a hundred of them died and more than three hundred were injured. These people had followed her across thousands of miles to betray Zhenhuang and come to Yanbei. They had become bandits for her and even nearly went to war with Bian Tang. Now, for her sake, they had resolutely returned. When Yanbei was in danger, they took up their swords without hesitation to defend the new Yanbei regime.
They were once traitors, unforgivable traitors who were intolerable to heaven and earth, running dogs who were ignored in Daxia, and cowards who were cursed by thousands and despised by tens of thousands! However, it was also they who were the first to raise the banner of resistance against Daxia, the first to follow Yan Xun to fight against the blade of the entire Zhenhuang City. The "Zhenhuang Change" that shocked the world was born in their hands, and the battle that swept across the coalition forces of dozens of provinces and counties in the northwest was also launched by them. Even after being abandoned, they still did not forget their responsibilities and inner loyalty. They had unparalleled trust in her and unparalleled dependence on her, but at this moment, what she brought to them was a ruthless massacre!
She pushed He Xiao away angrily and walked forward stubbornly. Unexpectedly, He Xiao suddenly got up, took a few steps forward, knelt in front of her again, and shouted loudly: "My lord! It is difficult to distinguish between the enemy and us. Beishuo City must have a misunderstanding of our army. If we go there now, it will be unpredictable. We must not do that!"
With a swish, Chu Qiao drew out her sword and said coldly, "Get out of the way!"
"Sir! You must not do that!" As soon as the words fell, dozens of other soldiers came forward and knelt down in unison.
Chu Qiao raised her eyebrows and wanted to step forward persistently. Suddenly, the entire army knelt on the ground, and seven thousand voices shouted in unison: "Sir! Absolutely not! If you want to pass, please step over our dead bodies!"
Chu Qiao stood there dejectedly, turned around and looked at the young soldier who died with his eyes open, then slowly raised her head and closed her eyes. The flame of anger burned fiercely in her heart, and she breathed slowly, as if she wanted to suppress everything, suppress it, and suppress it again.
"Prepare your horses and set up a charging formation!"
A sharp sound of whooshing through the air was heard immediately, and the soldiers on the top of Beishuo City were startled. Even heavy crossbows could not reach such a long distance, but the enemy actually relied on ordinary crossbows and arrows to shoot through their central army flag with one arrow. What an amazing physical strength!
He Xiao put down his bow and arrow, and the whole place fell into dead silence. Even the civilians who came to join the army stopped talking in surprise.
Chu Qiao rode on the horse and slowly moved forward, with a large flag with a white background and red clouds fluttering above her head. She stood a hundred steps away from the crossbow's range, stared at the other party coldly, and said loudly: "I am Chu Qiao, the military advisor of the General Staff, and I want to see your highest general!"
Cheng Yuan had just walked out of the lounge at this time, and the belt of his fur coat had not yet been fastened. The moment he heard Chu Qiao's voice, he was stunned. He saw flags flying in the distance. The big flag with a white background and red clouds looked like a burning flame in the morning mist. The soldiers were as strong as iron and the military spirit was solemn. The silent anger was like a mountain that was overwhelming and pressing down on him. With just one look, he knew that the army on the opposite side was far from being something that his mob could contend with. Apart from their numbers, they have no advantages.
"I am Chu Qiao, the military advisor of the General Staff, and I request to see your top general!"
Chu Qiao repeated her words once again, and Cheng Yuan's face turned pale. Sun He, who was standing nearby, saw his superior's expression, and a terrible chill slowly arose in his chest. Terrible thoughts devoured his mind. If it was true, thinking of the relationship between this woman and His Highness, his hand holding the knife almost trembled.
"My lord, she...she can't be..."
"Idiot!" Cheng Yuan narrowed his eyes slowly, "You've made a big mistake."
"Prepare your horses, and follow me out of the city to meet the enemy. If we let one enemy go, we won't have to come back alive!" Cheng Yuan shouted coldly and strode down the city wall.
Sun He rushed forward impatiently and said hastily: "Sir! If it is true, then we..."