Big man: I am the Champion Marquis!

Chapter 48 Three-stage attack

Everyone is busy in an orderly manner, with a sense of nervousness and anticipation.

Huo Xian looked at Cao Zong who was busy with his work and said jokingly, "Cousin, you are my aunt's only son! Your family's title of Marquis of Pingyang belongs to you! Now follow me into battle, I have to protect you."

"My Lord, I still have uncles and cousins!" Cao Zong said bluntly, "My Lord is the only heir and he doesn't care about his own life, how can I retreat!"

Huo Xian was immediately amused and said, "That's true. This was originally arranged by His Majesty."

Cao Zong smiled and said, "I asked for it! I also want to make military achievements like Aong and live up to the family name. After searching high and low, I found that I can only make achievements under your command."

Huo Xian looked at Cao Zong and said carefully, "I will definitely live up to your expectations!"

The scouts quickly broke away from the main force and rushed south, without any further delay.

Huo Xian led his troops northward, with armor, weapons, etc. all loaded on their horses.

The reason is very simple. Now we have to squeeze out the last bit of energy from the horses that haven't rested enough. The idle horses will be replaced when facing the enemy, to ensure that the horses have enough energy when charging.

"My lord, I will be the vanguard!" Zhao Anguo's eyes turned red, and he clasped his fists and said, "Please help me, my lord!"

Huo Xian did not hesitate, but warned, "Disperse the scouts and retreat, don't go to meet the enemy!"

Zhao Anguo understood what Huo Xian meant and responded immediately, "I will obey your order!"

Zhao Anguo led fifty light cavalrymen to set off, and Huo Xian continued to give orders, "The heavy cavalrymen are not wearing armor, now move forward at full speed!"

Just as Huo Xian was about to lead his troops forward, a soldier suddenly shouted, "Sir, the general has ordered us not to meet the enemy!"

Huo Xian turned his head angrily and looked towards the direction where the voice came from. It was a familiar face. It was the team member who once accompanied Huo Xian in practicing riding and archery in the palace. Now he has become the head of a village!
"Liu Da!" Huo Xian pointed the whip at the man and asked, "What do you mean?"

Liu Daqiang managed to hold on and said, "The general has given orders, and so has General Fu Ju. We are just scouting and there is no need to meet the enemy!"

It seems like we are really on a battlefield, and the once vigorous passion and ambition may be crushed by the fear of death.

Huo Xian turned his head to look at Cao Zong and said, "If you are afraid of fighting, you should be executed according to the law!"

Cao Zong was even more angry. He and Huo Xian were both sons of wealthy families, but he still would not back down. And now someone was talking about backing down. Damn it!
The angry Cao Zong drew his sword and asked, "What else do you want to say?"

Liu Da's face turned pale and his teeth chattered, "Sir, the general has an order."

Blood splattered everywhere. After killing someone, the enraged Cao Zong shouted, "Anyone who dares to retreat will be killed!"

This scene was something no one had expected. This battalion of soldiers had been training together for more than three years, and some had been with Huo Xian for even more than five years.

You have to know that Liu Da once went hunting with Huo Shan and attended banquets at the Guanjun Marquis’ Mansion!
But such a brave man actually became cowardly before the battle even started!
After experiencing such a farce, the atmosphere naturally became more solemn.

But the army still needs to advance!
Thirty miles is far, but also near. A horse can reach a speed of thirty miles per hour if it jogs. If it sprints at full speed, it can reach a speed of nearly fifty kilometers per hour.

Cavalry suddenly appeared in front of them. "Captain, let's disperse the scouts. Sima is leading his troops forward!"

Huo Xian understood what was going on and said, "Change horses and put on armor!"

The family generals immediately fetched heavy armor and quickly helped Huo Xian put on the heavy armor. They also brought up the previously empty horse and quickly put armor on it.

The light cavalrymen were naturally not idle either. They were either helping their comrades change their armor or sorting out their weapons.

"Step forward in heavy armor!" Huo Xian took out a mask and put it on his face, "Now is the time to achieve great things!"

"color!"

"color!"

"color!"

"Camp Commander, lead the light cavalry and go ahead with us!" Huo Xian continued to give orders, "When encountering the enemy, shoot crossbows first, retreat from both sides of our army, go around the back and follow us to break the enemy's formation!" In fact, cavalry combat does not have particularly strict formations. Most of the time, cavalry tactics are frontal assaults, long-distance raids, strategic encirclement, cutting off the enemy's retreat, etc.

If it was infantry versus cavalry, or a mixture of infantry and cavalry, the battle tactics would be more demanding. But now Huo Xian was going to charge into the battle formation, that is, to confront the Huns head-on.

However, this can also be regarded as a cone formation, which uses elite forwards to attack the enemy in a narrow front, break through and split the enemy's formation, and expand the results of the battle on both wings. It is a formation that emphasizes offensive breakthroughs, which is also called the ox formation.

Huo Xian would not worry about such coordination because his battalion of soldiers had been coordinating drills for the past two years.

Continuing forward, they soon saw Zhao Anguo leading his troops back, "Sir, the Huns are catching up!"

Huo Xian shouted loudly, "Retreat and change horses, and you protect the left wing!"

Zhao Anguo shouted as he galloped on his horse, "The Xiongnu are powerful, and there are hundreds of pursuers!"

"Form a battle array!" Cao Zong drew out his ring-handled sword, "Raise your crossbows!"

The large group of people slowed down, and the first row of two hundred riders lined up in a row, keeping a certain distance between them. They soon saw the team of Hun cavalry chasing Zhao Anguo.

"shoot!"

When the cavalry pulled the trigger, a series of sounds of breaking through the air were heard.

This is not a large yellow crossbow, so it cannot shoot at a range of 400 meters. But more than 200 meters, this is still no problem.

In an instant, the Xiongnu cavalrymen fell to the ground, their ferocious faces turned into wailing and fear. However, this also aroused their ferocity, and many of them urged their horses to close the distance.

But at this moment, Cao Zong shouted again, "Shoot!"

The second row of 200 cavalrymen had already stepped forward from the gaps in the first row of cavalry and immediately pulled the trigger.

There was another rain of arrows. Before the Huns could react, the third row of cavalry had already stepped forward and quickly pulled the trigger.

The three-stage attack was an improvement made by Huo Xian. Although the charging distance between cavalrymen was very short, it was not convenient to use the three-stage attack sometimes.

But now we are only facing a few hundred Hun cavalry, so we can use the three-stage attack to ensure the continuity of firepower.

The crossbows of the Han army seemed to be endless, so that the Xiongnu cavalry could not really close the distance. Even if they wanted to shoot arrows in retaliation, their range was still not as good as that of the Han army.

What’s even more terrible is that most of the Hun cavalry had no armor, and it was difficult for even each person to get a set of leather armor.

When hit by the Han army's crossbows, the Xiongnu cavalry would either fall off their horses or grit their teeth and hold on, but they might also lose their combat effectiveness.

After three rounds of crossbows, the Han cavalry took out their bows and arrows rained down. At this time, they did not consider the three-stage attack, but the density of firepower.

The terrified Xiongnu cavalry turned their horses around. This group of Han troops was too fierce!

As for the Xiongnu cavalry, they were not afraid of a head-on confrontation with the Han army. What they were afraid of was the crossbows of the Han army!
Looking at the panicked Xiongnu cavalry fleeing, Huo Xian ordered, "Behead them and chop off their ears!"

About fifty of the Jianzhang camp cavalry dismounted and rode forward to finish off the struggling or not-yet-dead Huns. They beheaded them and cut off their left ears, which was their military achievement!
In the first encounter with the enemy, those Huns were simply vulnerable. Their comrades suffered only minor injuries at most, but more than two hundred of them had been beheaded!

Seeing someone trying to tie the Xiongnu's head to the horse's neck, Huo Xian said disdainfully, "Who dares to embezzle my military achievements? Only the left ear will be left as a proof of my merit!"

The knights of Jianzhang Camp were now even more excited. Fighting with Marquis Guanjun, not only would they be well-equipped, they would also not have to worry about having their credit stolen!

Zhao Anguo was not happy about the small victory in the first battle. Instead, he became more worried. "Sir, there are probably tens of thousands of Huns ahead! I took a look and Aong was surrounded!"

Huo Xian nodded slightly. He had guessed about this matter, and this also confirmed the reason why those Xiongnu cavalry were on the retreat route of Zhao Anguo's troops.

As for the small victory just now, it is not worth mentioning. It was all due to the crushing advantage of equipment.

The next counterattack by the Huns will be a real hard battle!
(End of this chapter)