Ask the mountains and rivers

Chapter 277 Reinforcement
Three days later, in Liaoxi Commandery.

The Xiongnu barbarians leaped onto the city wall using siege ladders.

The city gate was covered with wreckage, a mixture of fresh blood and dried black bloodstains.

Li Xi fought fiercely, wielding his sword. He had multiple knife wounds, especially the one on his back, which was so deep that the bone was visible and it was bleeding profusely. But he didn't even have a moment to stop and bandage it.

The Xiongnu barbarians have been attacking the city relentlessly for the past few days. The Liaoxi army has suffered heavy casualties and its morale is low. Every night, large numbers of soldiers are sneaking away by scaling the city walls.

All the sons of the Li family were fighting a bloody battle on the city gate. Their fate was to die there.

Li Xi was stabbed again, and his left leg throbbed with pain. Cold sweat poured down his forehead, but he didn't look down at his wound or scream in agony; he gritted his teeth and continued fighting. Unfortunately, the leg injury greatly hampered his movements.

Just as his father said, if the city fell, he would die on the city gate.

Li Xitou felt dizzy and couldn't help but turn his head to look at Liaoxi City. This was where the Li family had risen to power; their dream of establishing their own independent power was far from over, and it was time to wake up completely.

A hand supported the swaying Li Xi.

Li Xi turned his head with difficulty and saw his own blood-soaked self in Li Chi's bloodshot eyes. He grinned and said, "Cousin, after I die, you will take over as commander."

Li Chi's hands were trembling, but his voice remained relatively steady: "Li Xi, hold on. General Pei will definitely come to save us."

Li Xi's vision blurred, and he only managed to stay upright thanks to Li Chi's support. His voice grew weaker and weaker: "I'm afraid I won't be able to wait for General Pei to arrive. Li Chi, the Liaoxi Army will depend on you from now on..."

Suddenly, billowing smoke and dust rose in the distance.

The ground trembled slightly.

Li Chi turned his head quickly and exclaimed with delight, "We have reinforcements!"

"Brothers, look! It's the Pei banner! General Pei has brought men to rescue us! Li Xi, open your eyes and take a look!"

His hand suddenly felt heavy.

Li Chi's heart sank. Looking down, he saw Li Xi had closed his eyes. Perhaps he heard Li Chi's call in his last moments, for Li Xi breathed his last breath, closed his eyes with a smile, and passed away peacefully.

Many people die on the battlefield every day. Li Xi is not the first, nor will he be the last. Li Chi didn't even have time to weep. He laid Li Xi's body down, then raised his arms and shouted, "Reinforcements have arrived! Everyone, cheer up, we're saved!"

The sound of horses' hooves grew louder and louder.

The soldiers, who had long lost their will to fight, suddenly regained their strength and spirit upon seeing the fluttering Pei banner, as if they had been given a bowl of ginseng soup. They roared and fought desperately with their swords against the Xiongnu barbarians. The battle situation took a sharp turn for the worse; now it was the Xiongnu barbarians who were filled with anxiety and unease.

A person's name is like a tree's shadow. In last year's battle, Pei Qinghe killed the Xiongnu general Wuyan on the battlefield, and the name Pei Qinghe resounded throughout the Xiongnu.

Some time ago, two thousand cavalrymen were all killed by Pei Qinghe. Their bodies were burned and their heads were used to build a mound of skulls.

Each and every incident instilled fear in the hearts of the Xiongnu barbarians.

General Pu Nu, who was overseeing the battle at the city gate, let out a cold laugh: "Pei Qinghe has finally arrived."

Instead of leading his troops to attack Tuhe, he relentlessly attacked Liaoxi County, intending to lure Pei Qinghe to come to him.

How many cavalrymen does the Pei family army have? In the previous battle, two thousand Xiongnu warriors died, and how many of the Pei family army's cavalrymen also died? As long as Pei Qinghe is willing to leave Tuhe, without the strong city walls, how could she possibly be his match?

In the past few days, he has dispatched most of his troops, but left 5,000 cavalry unmoved. He is waiting for Pei Qinghe to walk right into his trap.

Punu gave a stern command, and all five thousand well-rested cavalrymen were mobilized. At that moment, warhorses galloped, warriors neighed, and the earth trembled.

Li Chi's blood was surging on the city gate.

He was breathing heavily, gazing into the distance. He watched as two cavalry forces clashed and collided fiercely like a torrent.

He was too far away to see the specifics of the battle. However, from this vantage point, one thing was clear: the Pei family's cavalry was far outnumbered by the Xiongnu barbarians.

Unfortunately, Jingchao had no horse farms or warhorses. Every army was short of warhorses, and cavalry was already extremely scarce.

The Pei family army had only been established for a few years, yet it already possessed a cavalry force that could be described as elite, which was truly astonishing.

But the Xiongnu barbarians were all warhorses, every single one of them a cavalryman. Mounted warfare was their forte. No matter how powerful Pei Qinghe was, he was still human, not a god; he couldn't possibly kill all the Xiongnu barbarians single-handedly. The Pei family army's cavalry was far outnumbered by the Xiongnu barbarians; were they really going to rely on infantry to fight cavalry? How could that be possible?

In the distance, they clashed and fought, and the banners of Pei and Pu Nu collided.

Li Chi's heart was pounding in his throat as he strained to see into the distance.

Suddenly, a curved blade rushed towards him. Li Chi swiftly retreated, gripping his longsword and fighting the barbarian who had attacked him. He had no time to look at the battlefield in the distance.

After an unknown amount of time, the barbarians on the city gate were finally all killed.

Even more soldiers from the Liaoxi army died; their corpses lay scattered haphazardly, in all sorts of gruesome ways. Li Chi, clutching his bleeding left shoulder, gasped for breath as he looked into the distance.

My heart sank suddenly.

The Pei family army was clearly at a disadvantage, and some soldiers had already begun to turn their horses around and flee. The Pei banners also began to move, their imposing presence gone as they hurriedly retreated.

Li Chi sighed sadly.

Even the Pei family army was no match for the Xiongnu barbarians.

No one can save the Liaoxi army. All the people in Liaoxi City will be trampled by the Xiongnu barbarians and become victims of war.

As dusk approached, the clouds on the horizon burned like fire, dazzling and breathtakingly beautiful.

Pei Yan and Yang Huai, frantically galloping away, had no time or inclination to appreciate the beautiful sunset. Both were slightly injured and didn't have time to stop to treat their wounds. The Xiongnu barbarians chasing behind them were like jackals smelling blood, greedy and ferocious.

On the battlefield, luring the enemy into an ambush is the most common tactic. However, luring the enemy is not easy and is easily seen through. Therefore, it is necessary to fight a real battle.

Pei Yan was a fierce general in the Pei family army, and Yang Huai was the most valiant general in the Guangning army. This betrothed couple was entrusted with an important task: to lead all the cavalry to "lure the enemy." They had to lose, but not be routed; they had to escape, but also lure the Xiongnu cavalry into pursuit, yet they couldn't actually be caught, until the Xiongnu barbarians were led into an ambush.

This mission is both dangerous and arduous; the slightest mistake could cost you your life.

The word "fear" didn't exist in Pei Yan's mind. She happily accepted the military order.

Yang Huai was equally fearless. Before setting off, he only said to Pei Yan, "If I die in battle, you can choose another son-in-law from the Yang family."

Pei Yan readily agreed, "Okay!"

Yang Huai: "..."

Pei Yan laughed heartily: "Such petty words, what are you pretending to be magnanimous for? Stop with the nonsense, after this battle, we'll get married!"

(End of this chapter)