Twenty miles away, on the upper reaches of the Baiqu River.
Twenty thousand cavalrymen were scattered across the vast grasslands, and countless warhorses grazed leisurely.
The head of the household, Huyan Qimai, sat on a clean white sheepskin rug, slowly drinking his wine.
He was surrounded and accompanied by a group of subordinates, whose flattering words were incessant.
Among the three major noble families of the Xiongnu, the Huyan clan was the strongest, had the most soldiers, and the largest territory, compared to the Xubu and Lan clans.
On par with the left and right wise kings, the Huyan clan had a unique fiefdom, namely Wuyuan County, located between Daqingshan Mountain and Wuliangsuhai Lake.
The family is full of talented individuals who have historically held important military and political positions in the Southern Xiongnu.
For example, there was Huyan Gu, the Left and Right Grand Commandant and Right Wise King, and women of the Huyan clan all married into the Shanyu family.
The daughter of the Right Grand Commandant was Yufuluo's principal wife, and Huyanqimai's youngest daughter is now married to Huchuquan.
In short, almost half of the Xiongnu's territory was built by the Huyan family.
Huchuquan was able to become the Chanyu mainly because of the support of Huyan family head Huyan Qimai and others.
Of the 10,000 cavalrymen Huchuquan led back to Yunzhong after Shanwu's escape, only 4,000 remained.
They gathered the guards and scattered remnants of the Qiangqu army along the way, along with the troops left in Yunzhong.
Huchuquan only had 20,000 soldiers and 40,000 to 50,000 followers.
However, Huyanqimai, the chieftain of Wuyuan County, came to support his ascension to the throne, bringing with him 20,000 cavalry.
Then Xubu Xian, the head of the Xubu clan, also brought 10,000 soldiers to help.
Huchuquan suddenly had a force of 50,000 cavalry.
This weakened the power of Uncle Qubei in Shuofang County.
Even including the Lan family troops who supported Qubei, Qubei only had a total of more than 30,000 cavalry.
It's not hard to understand why Qu Bei, who aspired to the position of Chanyu, secretly colluded with the Xianbei people outside Yinshan.
Since Huyanqimai personally cut off the nose of Murong Jie, the envoy sent by the Tuoba tribe, a few days ago, Huchuquan and his men have been determined to fight a brilliant comeback!
That prince is so aggressive, daring to invade Yunzhong. We must suppress his arrogance.
This time, it was Huyanqimai who took the initiative to lead the troops to fight, while Huchuquan was stationed in Yunzhong.
The two thousand soldiers from Wujin were used as bait to lure the main force of the Han army. They only needed to hold out for one to two hours.
The signal fire rises!
The 20,000-strong army launched a pincer attack from 20 miles away, annihilating the Han army that had been stuck in Wujin and was exhausted.
Huyan Qimai was very satisfied with his plan and gave a generous reward to the two thousand soldiers in Wujin to motivate them to hold their ground.
"The head of the household!"
"Smoke signal! Smoke signal!"
A scout came running to report, "Smoke signals have been raised in the direction of Wujin!"
"Damn it, the Han people have finally arrived!"
Huyanqimai suddenly stood up and slammed the wine flask in his hand onto the grass, splashing wine everywhere!
"Order each cavalry commander to have their warriors mount their horses and charge towards Wujin!"
"Today, we will crush the heads of Han soldiers with our iron hooves! We will use their blood and brains to pay tribute to the souls of our compatriots who died in Shanwu!"
"Awooooo!"
Wolf howls filled the air, and the 20,000 Xiongnu cavalrymen, upon receiving the order, quickly mounted their horses.
They split into two groups, each with ten thousand men, and stormed towards Wujin.
Twenty thousand Xiongnu cavalrymen, like two surging tides, swept across the boundless plains, their might overwhelming everything.
Seeing his magnificent army, Huyan Qimai revealed a smug smile.
No matter how many Han soldiers you send, they will surely tremble under the iron cavalry of our Xiongnu.
The journey of twenty li is only half an hour.
Along the way, this image kept flashing through his mind:
Led by the commander of a thousand cavalry, the valiant Xiongnu soldiers defended Wujin City like an iron wall, repelling the Han people's attacks time and time again.
The Han people were exhausted, and large numbers of corpses were left along the city walls.
The Han Chinese general was furious and severely reprimanded the attacking soldiers.
The Xiongnu wolf banners on the city walls stood tall and unyielding, while a thousand cavalrymen laughed heartily.
However, he did not see the scene he wanted at all.
The grassland was flat and open. When Huyan Qimai's 20,000 cavalrymen could see the top of Wujin City, Han Chinese flags were flying over it.
Outside the city, a large army, lined up in neat rows, awaited Huyan Qimai!
This large army set up a grand formation with its back to Wujin City.
Like a wild beast with sharp teeth, it was quietly waiting for their arrival.
Long spears were like a forest, layer upon layer, densely packed.
Zhang Liao's spear battalion, with their spears propped up at an angle, stood at the forefront like hedgehogs.
Li Su's five thousand archers followed closely behind.
Liu Du's Xianbei camp and Pugu Huaiyu's Xiongnu camp guarded the two flanks.
Sixteen thousand soldiers formed a massive battle formation, with their backs against the city walls, ready for battle.
Yao Guangxiao's three thousand battalions guarded Liu Wei, standing atop the city wall, surveying the entire scene.
Huyan Qimai had already seen a large banner with the character "Liu" erected on the top of Wujin City.
The banners fluttered in the wind, seemingly mocking Huyanqimai's 20,000-strong army for arriving late.
What!
Two thousand soldiers, who were fighting with the utmost enthusiasm, were wiped out so quickly?
Did the Han people bring siege equipment? But we haven't seen any!
"Chief, shall we charge?"
Two waves of Xiongnu cavalry, like a tidal wave, were getting closer and closer to the Han army formation in front of Wujin City.
Seeing the enemy's well-organized formation, some of the cavalry commanders around them hesitated.
The Xiongnu light cavalry's tactics in field battles involved constant movement, like flying a kite, using mobility and mounted archery to suppress the infantry.
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