Ask the mountains and rivers

Chapter 287 Fierce Battle
A large number of ragged people were driven to the city gate of Liaoxi.

If they moved even slightly slower, they would be shot dead from behind by sharp arrows. They cried out as they moved forward, their hands trembling as they gripped their worn-out weapons.

Even the most hardened soldier would find it hard to resist softening at the sight and unable to bring himself to shoot and kill. The first wave of civilians, driven like cattle and sheep, quickly surged to the city gate.

Pei Qinghe fired the first arrow with an icy expression: "All those who come to attack the city are our enemies. Fire!"

Arrows rained down like rain.

One by one, figures fell down with screams of agony.

Pu Nu, overseeing the battle from the rear, had a somber look in his eyes. The stalemate of the past few days had been a tacit understanding between the two commanders. He needed to allow the wounded to recover and to rebuild morale. Pei Qinghe, similarly, needed to restore the strength of his wounded soldiers and to reorganize the various armies. Both sides needed time.

Now, that weak emperor Jingchao dares to send reinforcements. He can't wait any longer; he must capture Liaoxi City as quickly as possible.

Pei Qinghe's cold-bloodedness and ruthless methods were beyond his expectations. The tactic of driving the people to attack the city was utterly useless; it was merely a waste of time.

Punu quickly changed tactics, ordering the people to push siege equipment forward, with the Xiongnu warriors following closely behind. This greatly reduced casualties during the siege.

In addition, catapults were put into use. Heavy stones were loaded onto catapults and launched, slamming into the city gates. Anyone unlucky enough to be hit was instantly reduced to a bloody mess.

The defenders were well-prepared and retaliated fiercely with catapults. In the first wave of fierce fighting, the civilians suffered the most casualties.

On the battlefield, whoever is soft-hearted will lose first. Pei Qinghe ignored the hellish scene before her and directed everyone to move the timber to the city gate.

The number of stones was limited, and they were gone after a while. The timber, however, was plentiful. As the Xiongnu barbarians approached to attack the city, the soldiers and Han soldiers struggled to push the timber. The heavy timber rolled down, immediately causing chaos and knocking over a group of Xiongnu barbarians.

Once the timber was used up, boiling water was brought in. Bucket after bucket of scalding water was poured down, causing the Xiongnu barbarians to scream and howl in agony.

This was the advantage of the defending side. They held a commanding position, protected by sturdy city walls. The Xiongnu barbarians' superior archery and horsemanship were also largely neutralized. This all-out siege was unsuccessful. Pei Qinghe led his men to firmly defend Liaoxi City.

As darkness fell, the Xiongnu barbarians had no choice but to retreat. The soldiers and men at the city gates cheered loudly.

In this fierce battle, Pei's army was indeed victorious.

"Long live the general!"

Someone shouted first, and soon, the sound surged like a tidal wave.

Pei Qinghe smiled slightly, went down the city gate, and led everyone to treat their injuries, eat, and rest.

"General Punu, let's retreat!"

This time, even Pu Nu's trusted subordinates couldn't help but plead, "We've wasted half a month here, and today we've mobilized the entire army, but we still haven't been able to break through Liaoxi City."

"Our brave warriors cannot continue to die in vain."

"We are leading our troops back to the grasslands, back home. Our brave warriors have been away for months and are already homesick."

Pu Nu's eyes were dark and angry: "You also think that we have lost this battle?"

His trusted subordinate sighed, "General Punu, our Xiongnu warriors excel in mounted combat and archery. We shouldn't have abandoned our advantage in mounted combat to attack the city. The Liaoxi army was cowardly before; when we made a show of attacking the city, they panicked and fled one after another."

"Now, Pei Qinghe is on the city gate. She is a hundred times, a thousand times more capable than General Li. Since she entered Liaoxi City, there have been no deserters. They are all brave in battle."

"We've been besieging the city for so many days, but we can't take it at all. We can't even get onto the city gates. If we continue like this, more and more of our Xiongnu warriors will die. How will we explain this to the Khan when we return to the grasslands?" "Furthermore, Luan Ti and the others have already left. The other tribal leaders are also considering retreating. General, we really should withdraw our troops!"

Pu Nu remained silent. After a long while, he finally spoke, "We can't just leave like this. You're right, we excel at mounted warfare. The Pei family army is holed up inside the city gates; they won't come out and are only focused on defending the city, so there's nothing we can do."

"In that case, let's make them leave the city on their own initiative."

The trusted subordinate was startled and looked up to see General Pu Nu's grinning face: "Didn't the two thousand cavalrymen from Beiping arrive? We'll swallow them all. I want to see if Pei Qinghe will stand idly by or lead his troops out of the city."

……

Punu summoned his generals to discuss and devise a plan, promising them that after this battle, regardless of victory or defeat, they would retreat back to the grasslands.

The morale of the Xiongnu barbarians was finally boosted considerably. Moreover, mounted combat was as familiar to them as drinking water and eating. They had fought against the Beiping army many times before and did not take their former defeated opponents seriously.

While sending troops to continue the siege, Punu also dispatched four thousand elite cavalrymen, carrying three days' worth of rations, to set out quietly.

Meng Dalang, who led his cavalry to the rescue, encountered a surprise attack by Xiongnu cavalry a hundred miles outside Liaoxi City.

This fierce battle lasted only half a day from start to finish.

The Xiongnu barbarians used their most skilled cavalry charge, thrusting and stabbing back and forth, relentlessly attacking.

The cavalry of the Beiping Army went from being brave and spirited to being knocked off their horses and killed, leaving corpses strewn across the field – a truly tragic scene.

The Xiongnu also suffered heavy casualties. However, the Xiongnu won this battle.

Meng Dalang led his remaining troops in a desperate escape.

The Xiongnu barbarians pursued relentlessly, displaying a ruthless intent to annihilate the entire Beiping cavalry.

The battle report reached Liaoxi City.

Pei Qinghe frowned, her expression grave.

Opinions differed. Pei Yun said in a deep voice, "We can barely muster a few hundred cavalrymen. Sending them out of the city would be tantamount to sending them to their deaths. I do not agree with sending troops."

Yang Hu considered the matter more carefully: "The Beiping army insists on sending troops to rescue them. In order to send troops, the Meng brothers and General Zhang have fallen out. If we ignore them and let them be hunted down, this matter will be detrimental to General Pei's reputation."

Song Dalang and Lü Feng nodded subconsciously.

They were all reinforcements, and they deeply sympathized with the situation. Morally speaking, the Pei family army had to send troops. Otherwise, who would be willing to fight for the Pei family army in the future?
Li Chi also quietly turned around.

Since Pei Qinghe harbored ambitions to conquer Youzhou, he needed to demonstrate a level of responsibility and bravery far exceeding that of ordinary military generals. Pu Nu's scheme was an open conspiracy.

Pei Qinghe was well aware of this, and without hesitation, she quickly made up her mind: "We must send troops to rescue the Beiping army."

"Bring me a topographic map."

An increasingly large and detailed topographic map was laid out. Pei Qinghe pointed to the map: "The Beiping army is in this direction. Let's discuss how to send troops to rescue them."

(End of this chapter)