Big man: I am the Champion Marquis!

Chapter 179: Taking advantage of the situation
The cold wind in the valley made King Riju feel even more dejected and caught in a dilemma.

The surprise attack tactic had already failed. It was almost impossible to catch the Han army off guard. What was even more fatal was that the vanguard troops were destroyed in one fell swoop, which meant it was extremely dangerous.

The vanguard couldn't even escape back, and the shouting and killing sounds soon stopped. All this showed that the Han army definitely had a lot of people, which meant it was even more dangerous.

We still need to be cautious. We should test when it is time to test and prepare when it is time to prepare. We must not be afraid because of such a small situation. We need to continue to observe.

Huo Xian did not take off his armor. He looked at the pile of Xiongnu corpses and smiled, "The Xiongnu have not yet come to reinforce us. I'm afraid these people dare not advance or retreat."

Zhao Anguo thought the same thing. "My Lord, I think we should lure the enemy out first. We should charge with heavy cavalry first, which will surely catch the Xiongnu off guard."

"No, the Xiongnu are on high alert now, so it's hard to launch a surprise attack." Huo Xian said solemnly, "Let's wait and see how these people fight. We should plan first and then act, don't rush to act first."

Since Huo Xian said so, others naturally couldn't say anything, because this was the absolute commander.

Zhao Anguo looked at the sky and said, "My Lord, the moon is dark and the wind is strong!"

Huo Xian also smiled and nodded, "It looks like that. I guess it's going to snow in the next few days."

If there is snow, it will not be a big problem for the Han army, and they don't have to worry too much about food and supplies. As for the Xiongnu, they may be under great pressure because they don't have so much supplies.

As for the fact that snow would not affect the war, the reason is naturally that if it just snowed, there would not be too many problems, and there would naturally not be any big problems with marching and fighting.

The scout came on horseback to report, "Great Sima, the Huns have not retreated, they are still gathering in the front, and they have sent people up the mountain to try to explore the main army."

Huo Xian was not surprised at all. It would be strange if the Huns did not do this. When the enemy situation was not clear, they should have been more cautious.

With sufficient logistics, the Han army did not have much of a supply problem. Although they had just carried out an ambush, the soldiers soon had dry food and drank what they needed, and were ready to continue fighting.

As the sky darkened, Huo Xian still did not rest. Most of the soldiers in the army were also resting, but they still needed to continue to take necessary precautions.

Chen Ju brought Huo Xian a bowl of hot soup and said, "My Lord, the Huns are likely to attack tonight."

Huo Xian agreed with this judgment, "I think so too, but I don't know if these Xiongnu people think so too."

It is said that they would launch a surprise attack, and this might have some effect. However, Huo Xian and Chen Ju could think of it, and the Xiongnu might also think of it.

He also never underestimated the fighting power of the Huns, or doubted their ability to lead troops. Otherwise, it would not only be arrogant, but also disrespectful to the soldiers who had fought against the Huns before.

Even though the situation is different now, the Huns still have some fighting power, and the Han army has suffered many defeats in its battles against the Huns.

If you really think that you can defeat the Huns easily, that would be the greatest disrespect to the soldiers who died. The Huns are definitely not so easy to defeat.

In the middle of the night, Chen Ju suddenly came running over and said, "Sir, the Huns are coming."

Huo Xian stood up suddenly and rushed to the weapons rack. "How many people are here?"

"Less than 500. An Guo led his men to fight them back." Chen Ju quickly persuaded Huo Xian, "Sir, it's just a small group of enemies testing us. There's nothing to be afraid of."

Huo Xian felt relieved now, but he still walked out of the tent, "I'll go take a look, otherwise I'll still feel uneasy."

It is indeed necessary to go and see it in person, so that you can be more sure. It is not surprising that the Huns tested and attacked the camp.

After finding Zhao Anguo, Huo Xian asked, "What's going on with these people?"

Zhao Anguo spat and said, "They tried to sneak over here and abandoned their horses. I think these people must be tired of living. They bypassed those rocks and trees and were shot back by our arrows and crossbows."

Huo Xian nodded and continued to ask, "How many were shot and killed? How many Huns came?"

Zhao Anguo said uncertainly, "I think there were about a hundred people, and less than twenty were shot dead. These people collapsed and fled at the first touch. They were definitely here to test whether we were prepared."

It seemed that there were no major problems, and Huo Xian felt relieved. This was just a test by a small group of enemies, and King Rizhu was still relatively cautious.

This was just to test the situation of the Han army, or to find out some details of the Han army. How many people were there, were they well prepared, etc., these were the information that King Riju was eager to know.

Huo Xian pointed to both sides of the valley and said, "I am now worried that these people will go around the mountain."

Zhao Anguo also understood the reason for these concerns. "It's just that it's impossible to be completely on guard. Even if we ask people to be careful, there's no telling who might get in."

This is not to say that a large number of Huns ran over from both sides of the valley. More importantly, they were worried that some scouts would sneak over and find out some military information of the Han army. The number of people, the deployment of arms, etc., these are what the Huns want to know.

It is difficult to achieve absolute defense. The Huns might climb the mountain from some corner or pass through the relatively dense forest. These are all very possible things.

Just when Huo Xian and Zhao Anguo were still discussing some military information, someone suddenly came to report, "Sir, the Huns are coming again!"

Zhao Anguo subconsciously ordered, "Send someone to block them back immediately."

A hail of arrows attacked, and the Huns who wanted to clear the various obstacles at the bottom of the valley immediately retreated. They collapsed at the first blow, and fled decisively, leaving behind less than 20 corpses.

After these people left, Huo Xian ordered, "Send someone to see how many obstacles the Xiongnu have removed."

In fact, there are not many obstacles at the bottom of the valley, but they are distributed over a relatively wide area and are long, which is an obstacle for the cavalry and will affect their passage.

Huo Xian and Zhao Anguo were waiting patiently. Some situations really needed to be clarified, and some things needed to be investigated a little bit, so that they could deal with the next things. The scout came back soon and reported directly, "Grand Marshal, the Huns have moved some trees and rolling stones, but now it is probably difficult for the large cavalry to pass."

Zhao Anguo said confidently, "My Lord, I think so. The Huns only approach under the cover of night. If we make any movement, we will use crossbows. They can't carry away too many things."

Not only Zhao Anguo was so optimistic, other Han army soldiers were also relatively optimistic, because everyone was very vigilant and would not give the Huns more opportunities to remove obstacles.

It is definitely not an easy task to create a passage for a large group of cavalry to pass quickly, and the Han army will not let them do as they wish.

Even as they were talking, there was movement ahead again. It seemed that the Huns still hadn't given up and continued to approach and try to move the stones and trees.

Zhao Anguo laughed and said, "These people really wasted their efforts. How many chances do they have to move away with such petty thefts? If it really gets light and some more rocks roll down from both sides of the valley, the Xiongnu's efforts will be in vain."

There is absolutely nothing wrong with saying this. The Huns now can only move a little obstacle at a time and then retreat directly. There is no substantial effect at all.

In addition, if everything has been moved almost completely, the Han army can push down some rocks and trees from the valley again. The ambush troops are also working hard to create some obstacles.

Huo Xian nodded, agreeing very much with what Zhao Anguo said, but he also vaguely sensed that something was wrong and felt that King Riju would not be unable to understand such a simple truth.

These are very obvious things. The Han army seized the initiative and was very vigilant, not giving the Huns any chance to launch a sneak attack.

The previous tactics of a large number of Hun cavalry's roundabout encirclement had been shattered. Now it was unlikely that the Huns would be able to quickly open up the passage under the cover of night. It seemed that all their plans had failed.

The best way for the Huns now is to defend the bottom of the valley and not give the Han army the opportunity to rush over easily. This seems to be what they should do.

Or the Huns could have retreated directly and decisively, choosing to detour around the Tarim River instead of the valley entrance, which would have given them a chance to continue their detour. However, it would have been difficult to launch a surprise attack at that time, and they would have had to choose to fight an annihilation war in the wild.

Annihilation war seems to be inevitable. After all, the Han army is now fully prepared, and the Huns can only defeat the Han army in a head-on confrontation.

Large numbers of men and horses were a series of advantages for the Xiongnu. They should have known how many troops the Han army had in its expedition to the Western Regions. This time, the Right Wise King led nearly 60,000 people, which was obviously targeted.

Being able to launch a surprise attack would naturally be the best thing. If a surprise attack is not possible, then the natural choice is a head-on confrontation. The Right Wise King probably thinks so too.

The Han army had made full preparations before the expedition, taking into account many possibilities. Although some plans were temporarily changed, the general policy obviously did not change.

The Right Wise King obviously thought so too. He also considered all possibilities and naturally made sufficient preparations.

Huo Xian was pondering some things carefully, thinking about some of his own ideas, and thinking about what the Right Wise King and the Riju King might do.

Suddenly Huo Xian felt worried because the Huns started to try to launch a sneak attack again. They started to try to remove the obstacles, but these people still had no intention of giving up.

They were still the same as before, with small groups of enemies coming quietly and retreating decisively when they encountered the rain of arrows from the Han army. It was just that simple, and it was still the same as before.

Huo Xian thought about it carefully and asked uncertainly, "Is this the third time?"

Zhao Anguo nodded and said, "This is the third time. These people are still thieves and are not afraid of death."

Huo Xian said in a very serious tone, "Do you think this is a strategy of the Xiongnu to tire out the enemy? They come with dozens or hundreds of people each time, but they just move a little and then leave. But what about us?"

Huo Xian continued, "Our men in front are always on alert, which is tiring in itself. It's already the second half of the night, and the men must be even more tired. If they come a few more times, won't it feel like another hundred people are coming to attack us?"

After hearing Huo Xian's reminder, Zhao Anguo's face turned ugly. With this reminder, he naturally thought of this possibility. It is possible that such a thing might really happen.

Just look at the performance of the soldiers and you will know that everyone seems to have gotten used to it, thinking that the Huns can only steal in this way and that there will only be a hundred or so people involved.

It will be over with a rain of arrows. There is nothing to worry about. The Huns only have this much ability. There is no need to take it too seriously.

If this happens a few more times, the soldiers might really think that this is a normal situation. And if the Huns suddenly send a large army to attack the border, the Han army might not be able to stop them at all.

What's more, it may not be something we need to worry about if we move a little bit of things each time, but no one can tell how much things ants can move away.

What’s even more terrible is that not only the soldiers guarding the bottom of the valley will become numb, but the soldiers ambushing on both sides of the valley will also become somewhat numb, and their vigilance will become lower and lower.

Furthermore, if the Huns continue to make trouble like this, will the Han army soldiers have to stay tense all the time and not get any sleep?
With such a small fight, the Han army soldiers couldn't sit idle. Not to mention the defenders at the bottom of the valley and the ambushes on both sides of the valley, they all needed to concentrate and be on alert.

Even the large army behind them, most of them are now ready to go, ready to kill the enemy at any time.

"These people are really insidious!" After realizing this, Zhao Anguo couldn't help but curse, "They did this first, and they got the upper hand!"

Huo Xian was not annoyed. It was not surprising that the Xiongnu made such a choice. This was the case on the battlefield. Everyone had a lot of ideas and was always looking for the weakness of the enemy, and then defeating the opponent in one fell swoop. This was the norm.

It is not surprising that the Huns were able to come up with strategies to tire out the enemy. Whether it was the Right Wise King or the Ruju King, they not only had good backgrounds, they also needed to have certain abilities.

Huo Xian thought about it carefully and said, "Let's take advantage of their own accord. Since these people have bad intentions and want to catch us off guard, let's give them the same treatment!"

The Huns wanted to launch a surprise attack when the Han army let down their vigilance and kill them in large numbers when the Han army was relaxed.

That's good too. Huo Xian is also ready to counter the Huns' moves and see if the Huns have any other tricks. Everyone should show off their tricks!

(End of this chapter)