Three hours later, Zhao Yang, who had been delayed by the fire in Chidu, rushed over, assembled the Northwest Army and the scattered Southwest Field Army, and attacked from both sides with 500,000 troops!
In the conference room, Cao Mengtong's seat had been replaced by someone else. Chu Qiao, wearing a black uniform, sat upright, looking down with burning eyes. Most of the familiar faces were gone. Seeing that things were going badly, more than a dozen tribal leaders fled in panic with their family troops. Almost no high-ranking generals of the Second Army were to be seen. The leader of the Third Army's support force, Yu Zeqi, surrendered to Daxia with his 50,000 troops. Xia An, the defender of Beishuo City, saw that Beishuo was about to be defeated, so two days ago, under the banner of punishing deserters, he led the original Beishuo City Defense Army to flee to the inland of northern Yan.
Now, those sitting below were almost all middle and low-level generals in the army. In the position of the Seventh Battalion of the Eighth Division of the Second Army, there was actually a fat cook sitting. The captain of their team fled on the battlefield with 5,000 soldiers under his command. Because he refused to leave and tried to persuade other comrades to stay and defend Beishuo, he was severely beaten and nearly died. Now the Seventh Battalion is in name only, with only him left. When Chu Qiao notified representatives from various military departments to come to the meeting, she couldn't nominate anyone else, so the cook rushed over without even taking off his apron.
When the country is in crisis and facing life and death, the most loyal people are not the leaders and officials who enjoy high positions and generous salaries. They are busy escaping, surrendering, betraying their compatriots, and looking for ways to survive. At this time, it is the little people who are usually the most despised who dare to stand up and take on the heavy responsibility of defending the country with their thin shoulders and simple minds. The absurdity and ridiculousness of the world are simply hilarious.
"General, what should we do?"
Yin Liangyu used to be a clerical officer in the Quartermaster Department, mainly responsible for recording the incoming and outgoing food and fodder. When his boss ran away, he handed all the work over to him and generously said that he would promote him and give him his position. Before he could open his mouth to object, the man disappeared without a trace. This kind of opportunity allowed Yin Liangyu to be promoted more than 20 levels in two days, becoming the deputy commander of the Second Army and now the second most important person in Beishuo City.
Chu Qiao turned around and said calmly, "You can tell me what you think."
Everyone was silent and looked at each other cautiously. They were all small figures before, always running at the front in the charge, so they didn't have any ideas of their own. After a long while, a militia representative who looked very honest suddenly stood up. He was wearing a coarse cloth robe with blood stains on it, and it was unclear whether it was his own or someone else's.
Seeing that everyone was looking at him, he was a little shy and hesitated for a long time. Finally, he mustered up the courage and asked in a low voice: "I am a militiaman from Xitao Village. Our village chief was injured, so he asked me to come here. He asked me to ask the general whether he would retreat? Would he abandon us?"
"Yes!" someone echoed, "Will you be like General Xia An, leading people to chase the deserters and never come back?"
Chu Qiao said calmly: "Don't worry, even if we retreat, I will be the last one to step out of the Beishuo city gate."
"That's good!" Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
A big bearded man suddenly said, "I don't understand so many big principles. I will fight the way the general tells me to fight."
"right!"
"Well, we listen to the general!"
Chu Qiao thought for a long while, then slowly stood up and said in a deep voice: "In this case, please go back and count the troops immediately. After daybreak, we will fight to the death with the Xia army!"
Everyone responded loudly. They seemed more willing to accept orders than to give suggestions. After a while, the conference hall became quiet. However, Yin Liangyu still sat in his seat, as if he had something to ask.
"General Yin, if you have something to say, please speak up."
Yin Liangyu thought for a long time, and finally said: "General, I don't know much about military affairs, but three days ago, when General Yu Zeqi of the Third Army defected, he burned half of the grain warehouse. Currently, the total number of combat-capable defenders in the city is less than 40,000. Even if you add the 30,000 people the general brought back, there are only 70,000, and most of them are militia. Daxia has a strong military force. If we fight them head-on, can we win?"
Chu Qiao frowned slightly and was about to speak when Yin Liangyu hurriedly explained, "I don't want to escape, I'm just... just a little worried."
Chu Qiao smiled slightly and said, "I know General Yin doesn't want to escape, but you don't have to be so pessimistic. I'm willing to stay because I'm confident."
Yin Liangyu immediately stood up and said excitedly: "Sir, do you have a sure-win method?"
"I don't have a sure-fire way to win, but I have a piece of news that you might be willing to hear."
"What news?"
"The First Army led by His Highness, and the Sunset Army led by Miss Yu are stepping up to reinforce us. As long as we can survive ten days, reinforcements will arrive."
Yin Liangyu was immediately overjoyed, and said with great joy: "Really? Is it true, sir?"
"Really?" Chu Qiao smiled, "Go tell everyone the good news!"
Yin Liangyu almost ran out of the door. Watching his back gradually disappear at the end of the conference room corridor, Chu Qiao's smile gradually disappeared and her expression froze.
No one knows yet that Yan Xun led the First Army and the troops from Blue City in Sunset Mountain to attack the inland of Daxia. Firstly, she is afraid that there are traitors in the army. Once this matter reaches Zhao Yang's ears, although it can lift the siege of Beishuo, it will also inevitably lead to Yan Xun's retreat being surrounded and putting Yan Xun in danger. This is what she is most worried about at the moment.
Second, once this matter is leaked, everyone will immediately know that Yan Bei has been betrayed by Yan Xun, the army will be greatly shaken, and there is no need to fight this war any further. Before, she guarded Chidu in order to protect the inland of Yanbei, so that if the Beishuo army was defeated, she would have a retreat. However, the inland troops are currently insufficient and the Sunset Mountain area is unguarded. There is no point in escaping, as it will only draw the enemy into the interior and make them aware of the lack of troops inside. In other words, all the armed forces of Yanbei are currently gathered in Beishuo City. If Beishuo is lost, Yanbei will perish, so she would abandon Chidu and move to Beishuo.
And Yan Xun, will he come back? Will he give up the grand ambitions that are within reach and the golden opportunity for revenge?
It was snowing heavily outside. Chu Qiao sat leaning back in a chair, the candlelight shining on her smooth forehead. A belief suddenly rose from her heart, like a fire, burning her internal organs.
"Yes, he will definitely come back." Facing the morning sunshine, on the distant horizon, one can see the Xia army's troops gradually approaching, one row after another, one after another, with flags raised like a forest.
After days of chaotic fighting, the battlefield is now littered with corpses and stabbed with short swords and long spears. Although it snowed all night, the area in front of Beishuo City is still a pool of blood. Those gorgeous flowers were not afraid of the severe cold and snow, and bloomed even more brilliantly. The rising sun was also covered with a layer of dark red by the blood, and it sprinkled the vast battlefield with an enchanting light.
The war came so quickly, and the consecutive defeats made Zhao Yang lose his patience. He was unwilling to deploy troops, plot and plan, nor was he willing to test cautiously anymore. In an instant, an army of 500,000 rushed forward, their armor like mountains and their roars like thunder.
Then, these 500,000 troops began to line up on the plain and sounded the charge in unison. The soldiers on the Beishuo city wall were all shocked for a moment, as if they felt the city wall under their feet was trembling in the enemy's roar, as if it was about to fall down.
The officers and soldiers of Beishuo turned pale. Compared with Zhao Qi's Southwestern Army that won by numbers, Zhao Yang's Northwestern Army was indeed a group of fierce tigers and wolves. They couldn't even imagine how Chu Qiao, with less than 10,000 Southwestern Town Envoys, could fight against such an army for so long. But they had no time to think about it. Thousands of horses were galloping, and the army was overwhelming and pressing down like a raging flood.
"Kill the enemy!" The army of Daxia suddenly became like an erupting volcano.
"Get ready!" He Xiao stood tall on the tower. Too many wars had allowed this young officer to quickly gain experience and grow. He held a sword in his hand and said in a deep voice, "Ready!"
"First team, prepare to attack!"
"Second team, prepare to attack!"
"Team Three, prepare to attack!"
"Team Four, prepare to attack!"
…
"Team Seventeen, prepare to attack!"
Loud slogans sounded one after another. Currently, there were less than 3,000 soldiers left of the Southwest Town Government. The remaining 7,000 were selected from the militia of Chidu to strengthen the army. After Cao Mengtong's death, the Second Army's super-strong guard regiment became Chu Qiao's personal guards. Together, there were 30,000 people, forming the main force of this battle. At this moment, in front of them, a row of large crossbows that were more than half a person's height stood there quietly. This was the blueprint that Chu Qiao had drawn before and submitted to the munitions factory for manufacturing. However, after she left, no one knew how to assemble and use them, so now, all three thousand crossbows have been preserved intact.
The bows and arrows were pressed into the secret box of the crossbow one by one. This kind of bow and arrow was an advanced weapon improved by modern technology. Driven by the axle, it could fire twenty-eight arrows at the same time. Every three rounds was a shooting mission, and it had a four-dimensional calibration direction. That was to say, between breaths, this crossbow could fire eighty-four arrows continuously, aiming at four different directions. The power was so great that it was unimaginable. If it were not for the power of the bullet, it would be almost comparable to a submachine gun.
The ear-piercing sound of bowstrings continued to be heard. The battle was imminent. The enemy was getting closer and closer. The cavalry quickly crossed the infantry ranks and rushed to the front. The officers led by Xia Bing shouted loudly: "Kill all the northern barbarians!" The soldiers immediately rushed up like a tide, and the shouts of "Kill the enemy" came like a tsunami.
He Xiao's expression remained unchanged. After a while, he finally said in a sonorous tone: "Attack!"
In an instant, a buzzing sound was heard, and the sky and the earth suddenly became pitch black, as if a huge black cloth was covering the top of the head, and three thousand bows and crossbows were fired at the same time.
No flesh and blood could withstand such a horrific storm of arrows. There was no way to escape or retreat. The scene under the city of Chidu was repeated. The huge cavalry army fell down as if knocked down by a giant's punch. No one could hide. After the sharp arrows passed, there was no creature standing within a range of 400 steps.
In an instant, everyone's eyes widened in shock. Xia Bing, who was rushing behind, looked like someone had knocked his jaw off. No one dared to move forward, especially those Southwestern Army soldiers who had never seen such a scene. Zhao Yang was so angry that he almost wanted to rush forward with a sword. He rushed there overnight, hastily reorganized his troops and started to attack, because he was afraid that Chu Qiao would create another sharp attack weapon like the one she used in the previous battle to defend Chidu. However, he didn't expect that he was still a step too late. How could he know that such a weapon had already been in Beishuo City? Of course, not only him, but many people might not have thought of it. After all, if such a thing had already existed, how could Cao Mengtong lose so badly in the previous battle?
"Charge! Anyone who retreats will die!"
The sharp charge sounded again in the Xia army camp. The heavy armored troops and shield bearers took the lead and the attack began again.