Big man: I am the Champion Marquis!

Chapter 50 Differential Treatment
Huo Xian met Zhao Po Nu, the Marquis of Xuye, who looked exhausted at the moment.

Seeing Huo Shan, Zhao Po Nu was both pleasantly surprised and surprised, "Shan'er, why is it you?"

Huo Xian took off his mask and asked, "Uncle Zhao, why didn't you lead your troops to charge out just now?"

"We are exhausted and I dare not gamble with the lives of my men." Zhao Po Nu was also very upset. He missed the best chance to break out. "We have been chased for more than 500 miles and have no strength left."

Look at this simple camp, it’s not even a camp.

The cavalry had basically dismounted, except for the outermost circle of cavalry who were still on guard, the rest were sitting casually on the grass. They looked tired, their lips were dry and cracked, and they were all exhausted.

The Huns did not attack, perhaps because they thought that they only needed to trap these people to death. As long as they surrounded them from the outside, they could destroy these Han cavalry without bloodshed.

Zhao Po Nu continued, "The Zuo Da Duwei was killed after his plot was exposed. The Chanyu ordered Zuo Xian Wang to lead 80,000 men to hunt us down!"

Huo Xian asked quickly, "Eighty thousand people?"

"Don't think I'm bragging, sir." Zhao Po Nu explained, "These people are like a pack of wolves. Every time they charge, there are tens of thousands of them. After one group is replaced by another, they can take a break, but I dare not stop."

After listening to Zhao Po Nu's explanation, Huo Xian could also understand Zhao Po Nu's current miserable situation.

These Xiongnu were like a thorn in the flesh, constantly harassing them along the way. When Zhao Po Nu's troops were exhausted, 80,000 Xiongnu suddenly surrounded them and surrounded them in one fell swoop.

Handing the water bag to Zhao Po Nu, Huo Xian asked worriedly, "Do you have enough arrows?"

Zhao Po Nu greedily drank a few sips of water, then shook his head and said, "There are only a few arrows left. It is only with the help of horse gear and arrows that we can escape here. The Huns dare not attack too hastily for the same reason."

Chen Ju suddenly said, "Old Zhao, I'm afraid your time as Marquis of Xuye has come to an end. You've been conferred the title twice, and I'm afraid you'll be stripped of it twice!"

Zhao Po Nu said in annoyance, "I have killed many Xiongnu along the way, but it is difficult to show my achievements."

According to the Han Dynasty's military system, if the loss was greater than the result, it would be considered a failure. During Zhao Po Nu's escape, he lost an estimated 5,000 cavalrymen.

Huo Xian thought about it carefully and said, "I have brought enough arrows. If I distribute them to the soldiers, they can probably hold off a bit of trouble."

Zhao Po Nu said worriedly, "Your Excellency has less than 700 men, how many arrows can you have?"

After breaking through the outer and inner encirclements and experiencing two frontal charges, Huo Xian lost more than a hundred people even with heavy cavalry leading the way.

"We can still get 10,000 or 20,000 arrows." Huo Xian was a little more optimistic. "If we use them sparingly, we can give those Xiongnu a hard time when we break out."

Zhao Po Nu pointed to the front and said, "The Xiongnu are moving. I'm afraid they want to cut off our retreat and prevent our reinforcements from arriving."

The smoke in the distance and the movement of some relatively close Hun cavalry clearly indicated that the Huns were adjusting their tactics.

Huo Xian originally wanted to break out from the side, but looking at the situation of Zhao Po Nu's troops, it was probably unrealistic even if they broke out from the side.

"There's no water." Zhao Po Nu said in embarrassment, "There's not enough horsepower either."

Huo Xian thought for a moment and said, "It will take at least three days for the general to arrive, and General Fu Ju will arrive in a day. But with only 5,000 cavalry, it may be difficult to break through the formation."

After hearing what Huo Xian said, Zhao Po Nu became even more worried. He was worried that his soldiers could not hold out for three days, and he was also worried that the Huns would launch a general attack during these three days.

The Han army would send out cavalry scouts, and the Xiongnu would naturally do the same. It was really difficult for the 5,000 cavalry led by Gongsun He to break through the Xiongnu's formation.

According to the current strength of the Xiongnu, there are at least 70,000 people! And compared to the exhausted Han army, the Xiongnu can be said to be waiting for the tiredness, and they have more physical strength.

It was difficult to escape, as Zhao Po Nu's troops no longer had the strength to fight.

It is very difficult to hold on for a few more days after being trapped.

Huo Xian looked at Zhao Po Nu and asked, "Where is the Xiongnu Zuo Xian King?"

Zhao Po Nu was stunned for a moment, then smiled and said, "My Lord, the camp of Zuo Xian Wang is probably dozens of miles away from here. Look at these Xiongnu people, they want to trap me to death. You rushed in all the way, and his 70,000 people are probably all scattered around."

If you think about it carefully, it is true. The radius from the outermost encirclement to Zhao Po Nu is at least twenty miles.

Once Huo Xian and others started moving, the Huns would certainly move immediately, and they could quickly gather and attack this exhausted army.

Even if the Huns had not voluntarily retreated at the last moment, Huo Xian and hundreds of others would have had to pay a greater price if they wanted to kill Zhao Po Nu.

"An Guo, distribute the arrows to those who still have strength left." Huo Xian thought for a moment and said, "Order the horses that cannot move to be slaughtered, and take out the water from our army to moisten their throats."

It was a drop in the bucket. The food and drinking water of Huo Xian's 700 people were not enough for an army of more than 10,000 people. Huo Xian's soldiers were well-equipped, and the extra arrows could be distributed. "Sima, go help An Guo." Zhao Po Nu also said to the deputy general beside him, "Choose someone who is good at riding and shooting."

Huo Xian lowered his voice and asked quietly, "Uncle Zhao, how many people in your army can't see the road clearly at night?"

Night blindness, commonly known as night blindness, is caused by a lack of vitamin A.

Zhao Po Nu understood what Huo Xian meant and said, "There are some of my troops that cannot be seen clearly at night, but not many."

Huo Xian was relieved. Not all ancient people were night blind, and there had been many night battles in history.

"We can't stay here. Let's rush to the left." Huo Xian said, "That's the foot of the mountain. Maybe we can find water there."

Zhao Po Nu immediately shook his head and refused, "No, if we go there, the Huns will definitely set the mountain on fire!"

"It's just at the foot of the mountain." Huo Xian said, "I would like to retreat southward, but I'm afraid that this will lead the Xiongnu to General Fu Ju. If that happens, I'm afraid we won't be able to hold our ground."

Zhao Po Nu understood what Huo Xian meant, which was simply that Gongsun He's troops were too few and Wei Qing's army was lagging behind too far.

The most important thing is that Zhao Po Nu's nearly 10,000 people are exhausted and have no fighting capacity.

We were worried about the Huns' general attack, but we couldn't just sit there and wait for death.

Especially now, it seems that the Xiongnu must have thought that the Han army's reinforcements had arrived, and they were withdrawing some troops to intercept and defend the retreat route. The difficulty of breaking through to the south is undoubtedly the greatest, but it is still possible to move to another place.

Zhao Po Nu felt a little embarrassed and guilty, "It's all my incompetence that put you in danger."

"Uncle Zhao, don't say that." Huo Xian said with a smile, "If I were in trouble, Uncle Zhao would definitely come to rescue me. If my grandfather were here, he would not watch Uncle Zhao fall into danger."

Zhao Po Nu did not think any more and said, "I will lead the army that night, and you can just follow me."

"No one can stop my heavy cavalry." Huo Xian said confidently, "Uncle Zhao should still command his own troops. It is difficult for me to command so many troops, and I am not familiar with the officers."

While Huo Xian and Zhao Po Nu were still discussing, a scout suddenly came to report.

"Marquis Guanjun, General, the Xiongnu has sent an envoy."

Huo Xian immediately became interested, "Why, trying to persuade them to surrender?"

Zhao Po Nu was even more embarrassed and said, "Most likely, in fact, some people have already surrendered."

Huo Xian did not find this strange, as there were many cases of surrendering to the Huns in the Han Dynasty.

For example, Zhao Xin was a Xiongnu who surrendered to the Han Dynasty after being defeated, but surrendered to the Xiongnu again after being defeated 20 years ago. There was also the eunuch Zhonghang Shuo, who was dissatisfied with being an attendant of the marriage between the Han and the Xiongnu, so he defected to the Xiongnu and later became an important adviser to two generations of Chanyu.

Huo Xian asked directly, "Meet him or kill him?"

Zhao Po Nu smiled and said, "Let's see first and see if we can deceive the Huns."

You can also consider the delaying tactic.

The Xiongnu envoy entered the camp, but he did not become arrogant because he was besieging the Han army. He said, "The Chanyu loves talents. If you surrender, you will be crowned king! You are a Xiongnu, why don't you submit to the Chanyu?"

Zhao Po Nu did wander among the Xiongnu when he was young, but that doesn't mean he was a Xiongnu. He was Han Chinese.

Seeing that Zhao Po Nu didn't say anything, the Xiongnu envoy looked at Huo Xian and asked, "May I ask if you are the Han champion marquis?"

Huo Xian smiled and said, "That's right. How can you persuade me to surrender to the Xiongnu?"

The envoy immediately replied, "If the Champion Marquis is willing to surrender, he will definitely be crowned king!"

Huo Xian smiled and said jokingly, "I think Zuo Xian Wang is too young. How about I become the Chanyu? Do you think the Chanyu is willing to give up the throne and let the wise man take over?"

Zhao Po Nu couldn't help but glance at Huo Xian. This Champion Marquis was indeed outspoken.

The envoy was not angry, but just said, "King Zuo Xian was very happy to hear that Guanjun Hou went to the battle, and he vowed to kill Guanjun Hou and cut off his head to sacrifice to his ancestors in order to seek peace!"

Huo Xian laughed and said, "Let your Zuo Xian Wang form a battle line and we will decide the outcome in three days!"

(End of this chapter)