Memoirs of the Heavenly Khan

Chapter 248 Different Offensive and Defensive Strategies
The morning sun shines, and the mist rises.

In winter, the Wei River flows eastward to shallow waters where cavalry can wade across.

Mo Zhetian led more than 20,000 troops to the battlefield, where Yang Kan's army on the opposite bank of the river had already formed ranks.

Across the river, Mo Zhetian could see a large banner with the character "sheep" fluttering in the distance, and the army under his command was surprisingly well-equipped.

Mo Zhetian couldn't figure out the other party's strength, but having come this far, he couldn't easily retreat.

Across the river, he pointed to the enemy's great banner and proclaimed to his troops:
"This sheep should be taken and eaten!"

After he finished speaking, Mo Zhetian's men burst into laughter.

Mo Zhetiansheng's words made the group of Qiang people following behind him laugh, but Mo Zhetiansheng had some doubts in his heart.

Having been in Longyou for so long, he had seen elite Han troops, but most of them were under the command of powerful Han clans.

These elite troops were characterized by being scattered, small in number, and mostly operating near fortified villages.

But now, the Han army on the other side gave the battle-hardened Mo Zhe a completely different feeling.

This appears to be an elite force!
As Mo Zhetian was pondering, his general Chigan Qilin rode up on horseback and bowed, saying:

"Chief, it's time to strike!"

Upon hearing this, Mo Zhetian realized that he should no longer hesitate.

The enemy has only four thousand men, while we have twenty thousand. If we hesitate any longer, we'll become a laughingstock.

If the leaders of the northern nomadic tribes are looked down upon and their reputation for cowardice spreads, they will not be able to lead their troops well.

"Attack!"

……

Seeing the large army crossing the river, Yang Kan finally felt reassured.

"Meet the enemy!"

Four thousand soldiers lined up in formation, surrounding the horses that accompanied the army. War chariots were erected on the outer perimeter, and powerful crossbows were set up inside!

Yang Kan did not rush to attack the enemy while they were crossing the river, but waited until they had crossed before seizing the opportunity to defeat them.

Therefore, Mo Zhetian, who had anticipated being attacked while crossing the river, was somewhat dismissive of the situation.

"I've heard that Yang Kan is a great general, yet he doesn't understand the principle of attacking while the enemy is crossing the river. We're sure to win this battle!"

Mo Zhetian was so confident because six thousand of his twenty thousand men were cavalry.

The nomadic Hu people, under extreme circumstances, could mobilize 300,000 soldiers from a force of 3 million. Moreover, because their tribes served as logistical bases, the Hu people had a remarkably strong logistical support capability as their armies moved.

In tribes like Mo Zhetian's, almost everyone was a soldier, and the rate of soldiers owning horses was very high. In addition to his own Qiang cavalry, there were also many Di people and Guanzhong Hu people who had been driven to Bashu among the 20,000 men, who were all incited to join the war.

After crossing the river and maintaining their formation, Mo Zhetian gave the order to attack.

His general, Chigan Qilin, led the cavalry in the first charge, followed by Mo Zhe Tiansheng with the main force.

Chigan Qilin was originally a local leader. When Mo Zhe Niansheng entered Guanzhong, he raised an army in response and occupied the prefectures and counties. Later, when Mo Zhe Niansheng was defeated, he joined forces with Mo Zhe Tiansheng under the siege of the Northern Wei army and fled to Liangzhou.

Chigan Qilin was also a brave general, always charging into battle and taking the lead.

The soldiers of the prefecture positioned their chariots horizontally in front of the formation, with sharp blades behind them. Countless arrows flew out from the ranks, and Chigan Qilin dodged while shouting loudly.

"Don't be intimidated by this display of strength. Don't forget, they are all Han Chinese!"

As the sound rang out, whether it was Chigan Qilin's imagination or not, he felt that the cavalry behind him was charging at a much faster pace.

Yes, they're just Han Chinese who only know how to farm!

They've seen it all! So what if they're wearing armor and carrying weapons? They'll collapse in one charge.

Having thought of this, several burly warriors in the Chigan Qilin team disregarded everything else and led their cavalry to charge towards the front of the battle line.

They and their warhorses were all heavily armored, so ordinary arrows had little effect on them unless they were hit by powerful crossbow bolts from the enemy lines.

Taking advantage of this, they charged directly to the front lines, using the immense force of the impact to make the chariots creak and groan.

As spears thrust forward from the ranks, they brandished their long spears, constantly provoking and creating opportunities for the cavalry behind them.

Soon, they smashed a gap open.

Mo Zhe Niansheng, standing behind, saw Chi Gan Qilin leading his cavalry into the enemy's formation. For a moment, he almost felt that the goddess of victory was beckoning to him.

But soon he realized that something was wrong.

The heavy army blocked the view, making it impossible for Zhe Tiansheng, who had descended the slope, to see the situation at the front. But he could not stop and could only lead the large army behind him to continue charging forward.

Within the formation, hundreds of heavily armored soldiers wielding long-handled swords blocked the way at the hole in the formation, led by Li Yuan.

Clad in heavy armor, his eyes flashed like lightning. With a single stroke, he slashed an oncoming heavy cavalryman from his horse. Blood splattered as the Qiang cavalryman fell to the ground. Looking at Li Yuan, who was covered in blood, and hearing his mount's mournful cries as it lay on the ground, he unconsciously moved his hands backward and slid his buttocks backward.

Without the slightest hesitation, Li Yuan strode forward and with a single slash, severed the head of the man wearing a helmet.

This scene greatly boosted the morale of the soldiers.

Not far away, Liang Yu was equally impressive, wielding a long-handled sword and acting like a madman, having already killed two cavalrymen.

When Chigan Qilin saw that his group was blocked, and then looked at the group of madmen who were blocking their way and wielding Mo Dao (a type of long-handled sword) to kill people, he suddenly felt a sense of fear.

These Han Chinese seem different!
The thought arose in my mind and was soon confirmed.

These Han people are indeed different!
These hundreds of heavily armored soldiers showed no fear in the face of the charging heavy armored Hu cavalry. They were skilled in tactics and highly proficient in martial arts. Those heavy cavalrymen who had stopped charging and were grappling with the surrounding soldiers were like lambs to the slaughter when they encountered them, both men and horses were crushed.

As the number of heavily armored barbarian cavalry ahead dwindled, Chigan Qilin couldn't help but swallow hard.

When Mo Zhetian arrived with his main force, the cavalry led by Chigan Qilin was already showing signs of collapse.

Mo Zhetian was completely confused about the situation until he saw Chigan Qilin riding a horse and running back from the enemy ranks. Only then did he understand the reason for the rout!
"Chief, save me!"

Dust billowed, and the cries for help from Chigan Qilin echoed. Mo Zhetian could vaguely see Chigan Qilin's figure and felt as if a wild beast was chasing him from behind.

But he did not hesitate and immediately led his troops to provide support.

As he got closer, just as he could clearly see the figure of Chigan Qilin, Mo Zhetian was about to shout when he saw a rider galloping up from behind Chigan Qilin!
The opponent dismounted his fine horse, gripping a long spear as thick as a tree trunk, and galloped behind Chigan Qilin just before it was about to escape.

A spear was swung down, but only a headless general continued to charge towards them.

As the smoke cleared, the large banner with the character "sheep" was clearly revealed before Mo Zhetiansheng's eyes.

The general wielding the spear lifted the head of the Qilin, followed by dozens of knights.

"Yang Kan!"

Mo Zhe was shocked.

What shocked him even more, or rather, made him despair, was that after Yang Kan killed Chigan Qilin, he led dozens of riders behind him and charged towards Mo Zhe Tiansheng's large army instead of retreating.

Mo Zhetian instinctively turned his head to look at the soldiers around him. What he saw in their eyes was not a desire for battle, but fear.

At that moment, he suddenly realized that the Han people in Guanzhong were no longer the same.

……

(End of this chapter)