Chapter 171: Conquering People with Force
Seeing that Master Xiang Chang personally led the cavalry to arrive at the most critical moment, Li Yi, who had already made up his mind to die, was greatly encouraged and his fighting spirit doubled. He led a thousand guards and increased his speed again, and rushed into the two thousand guards of Han Wangxin, who were in a panic in the formation.

When two armies fight, what they compete on is momentum.

Morale is high, everyone is fighting desperately, no matter how large the enemy force is, they will be beaten badly by the flying dragon.

Li Yi’s 1,000 guard cavalry, with backup, were full of fighting spirit and momentum. On the contrary, Han Wangxin’s 2,000 guard cavalry watched as an elite Chu cavalry of over 10,000 rushed over from afar, trembling with fear and wavering in fighting spirit.

As the strength of one side increased while the strength of the other decreased, even though there were 2,000 people, 1,000 of whom were Hun soldiers, they were still unable to stand steadily and were in great disarray because of the charge of Li Yi’s 1,000 guard cavalry.

Han Wangxin was the first to give in. Although he was badly defeated by Xiang Chang at the city of Jixian and hated Xiang Chang very much, he was also extremely afraid of him.

Commanding a thousand stubborn Hun soldiers to rush to the front, he quietly led hundreds of escort cavalry, turned his horses’ heads, and ran backwards.

In the current situation, even if they defeated Li Yi’s 1,000 cavalry, what would it matter? Even if they killed Li Yi, what would it matter? The 10,000 cavalry of the Great Chu would come rolling in, and wouldn’t they still devour their small cavalry without leaving anything behind?

Just as the two cavalry armies were engaged in a melee, Han Wangxin escaped from the battle formation and fled, and Xiang Chang, leading 10,000 Chu cavalry, had already approached.

Xiang Chang was too lazy to bother with this small cavalry of only 2,000 people. He left Han Hu with 3,000 cavalry to join the battle and assist Li Yi in defeating them. He then gave them to Huang Zhong who was leading 2,000 cavalry to assault the infantry formation, while he also led 5,000 main forces to attack the cavalry directly.

Li Yi’s 8,000 cavalry were in danger of being defeated by Han Wangxin’s army mixed with thousands of Xiongnu cavalry. As soon as Xiang Chang’s cavalry joined in, the situation of the battle was immediately reversed.

Xiang Chang also has a secret weapon to deal with the Hun cavalry, and that is to use a heavy hammer!

The 5,000 cavalry he led personally included not only javelin and archery teams, but also a heavy hammer team.

These one thousand cavalrymen are all tall, with broad shoulders and round waists, and extraordinary physical strength. The weapons in their hands are all long and heavy weapons such as axes, hammers, and hatchets. Their outstanding feature is that they can conquer others with force!
Right now, the two cavalry armies of Chu and Han were entangled in a fierce battle. The spear-throwing army had undoubtedly lost its place, and it was appropriate to use the heavy hammer army.

Xiang Chang led the Heavy Hammer Army to charge at places where the Xiongnu cavalry were densely packed. The Heavy Hammer Cavalry wielded axes, giant hammers, and large hatchets, chopping off heads, cutting horses’ legs, and smashing waists and hips, making the fierce and strong Xiongnu cavalry waile incessantly, blood spurting out, and the casualties were tragic.

When more than half of the thousands of Xiongnu cavalry were wiped out, the situation was completely reversed. The Chu cavalry formed a mighty torrent and with a sudden charge, they beat the remaining Han cavalry into pieces and made them flee in all directions.

At this time, most of Han Wangxin’s two thousand cavalry guards were surrounded and killed. Those who were lucky enough to survive fled in a panic like a herd of frightened bison, with their tails between their legs.

In the great battle between the Chu and Han infantry, the 20,000 Han troops were already on the verge of collapse due to the impact. After the Chu cavalry joined in, they gave a sudden and fierce kick to the flank, and they collapsed.

If the cavalry is defeated, they can still escape by hiding themselves and holding their horses. If the infantry is defeated, especially when facing the Chu cavalry on all sides, there is nowhere to escape. If they don’t want to die, the best way is to kneel down and raise their hands high in surrender.

Han Wangxin escaped from the battlefield surrounded by hundreds of escorting cavalry. He watched helplessly as the army he had worked so hard to build was defeated and slaughtered. He felt heartbroken.

Why are my eyes filled with tears? It’s because I’m heartbroken.

Seeing that the cavalry army was broken up by the Chu cavalry, and many of them managed to escape, running around in all directions all over the mountains and plains, Han Wangxin hurriedly ordered his guards to wave the flags in an attempt to gather them together.

To be a commander without troops is really worse than shit in this chaotic world. At this moment, Han Wangxin still refused to accept his fate and tried to preserve as much strength as possible.

It has to be said that when the fleeing cavalry saw his waving flag, they rode their horses and gathered around him like flies attracted to a stench. In a short time, he actually gathered more than a thousand cavalry.

Seeing that this fellow not only did not run away, but was even bold enough to gather the defeated troops, Xiang Chang was furious. He left the main army to gather and clean up the battlefield, and he himself took 3,000 cavalrymen, turned into a sharp spear, and stabbed straight forward.

“You bastard, you don’t even know your death is approaching! You and your son are hated by heaven, and will die without a burial place.” Han Wangxin waved his spear, pointed at Xiang Chang who was rushing towards him, and cursed him.

After a brief exchange of words, he swiftly turned his horse around, whipped his horse as fast as he could, and galloped towards the north with several thousand remaining cavalrymen in the fierce wind.

Xiang Chang was furious to see that this guy was still so arrogant and cursing at the critical moment. He led his cavalry and followed closely behind him, chasing him relentlessly, as if he would not stop until he had completely eradicated the problem.

Xiang Chang knew very well about this guy’s bad deeds in his previous life. If he escaped this time, he would definitely surrender to the Huns in the north.

Especially now that he has lost everything and has no scruples at all, he has colluded with the Huns and become their guide. Before long, he will inevitably lead the Huns to invade again.

If you want to avoid future troubles, you must eradicate them completely now.

Han Wangxin fled quickly, and Xiang Chang chased him urgently. Before long, the two cavalry armies flew over thirty miles one after the other.

Xiang Chang’s cavalry had sufficient military supplies and had the momentum of a great victory, so they had no worries. On the contrary, Han Wangxin’s cavalry had abandoned their armor and weapons, lacked clothing and food, and were as panic-stricken as a stray dog ​​or a fish that had escaped a net. If they continued to flee like this, they would have frozen to death without Xiang Chang even having to kill them.

Seeing Han Wangxin’s cavalry hastily turning around a small hill and disappearing, Xiang Chang smiled coldly, let his big black horse continue to gallop, and followed this road to catch up.

After turning the mountain, a vast unobstructed field appeared before our eyes again.

Xiang Chang looked up, his face changed drastically, and an endless chill in his heart swept through his whole body in an instant.

On the gray and yellow plain, under the gray and low-hanging sky, in the fierce north wind, a cavalry army of 70,000 to 80,000 people stood still on their horses, forming a vast gray and yellow ocean.

All the cavalrymen were short but strong and sturdy, with knotted muscles. They wore cowhide armor, had dark skin, broad faces and flat noses, and had thick beards and hair braided into small braids. They were full of rough and domineering aura, and at the same time, a strong fishy smell was blown over by the north wind.

Especially at the front of the queue, there was a large banner with nine flags hanging high, exuding endless solemnity and majesty.

——The Hun army!

“Xiang Chang, my boy, what did I tell you? I said that your death is approaching, and that means your death is approaching!” Han Wangxin turned around and laughed wildly at Xiang Chang, then led his troops straight towards the Hun army.

At the position of the nine-flag banner in the middle of the Xiongnu army, a general led dozens of cavalrymen to meet them. After they joined Han Wangxin, they also stretched their heads and cursed Xiang Chang:

“Xiang Chang, my boy, the Xiongnu Great Chanyu Maodun has led the Left Wise King Jizhou, the Right Wise King Maochan, as well as the Xianbei King, the Wuhuan King, the Baiyang King, the Loufan King, the Hunxie King, the Xiutu King and other grassland kings, totaling 80,000 cavalry, to attack Yan. Do you still want to resist? Why don’t you dismount and accept death?”

This general was none other than Zang Yan, the son of King Zang Tu of Yan who managed to escape from Ji County.

After escaping, he had nowhere to go, so he surrendered to the Xiongnu. After meeting with the Great Chanyu Maodun, he offered half of the territory of Yan as a thank you and asked Maodun to send troops to help him restore his country.

Originally Maodun was still quite hesitant, but at this time, Han Wangxin sent Wang Huang as an envoy. He not only brought stirrups and traded a large number of war horses with him, but also expressed his gratitude by offering his own country, Han, and begged Maodun to send troops.

Maodun could not help but be tempted to get half a country’s territory for free, so he gathered a cavalry of 80,000 people and rushed to the State of Yan.

Whether it was Maodun, Han Wangxin or Zang Yan, they were all full of confidence that an army of 80,000 was enough to defeat the three kingdoms of Yan, Zhao and Han!

Xiang Chang’s face was gloomy. He glanced coldly at the arrogant Han Wangxin and Zang Yan, turned his horse around, and without saying a word, he led the cavalry back the same way.

In the center of the 80,000-strong Hun army, under the nine-flag banner, the great Chanyu Maodun, wearing a sable fur coat, rode on a Ferghana horse, squinting his eyes at the slowly retreating Chu cavalry.

Maodun had a round face, big ears, a resolute appearance, curly hair, red beard, and a pair of eagle eyes as sharp as knives, exuding an inexplicable power that made people feel intimidated. As for the mink fur coat he was wearing, it was completely black without a single stray hair. It was made of more than a dozen pieces of high-quality black mink skin, which set off his majestic body and made him look like a god.

There were dense war horses and swords and spears all around. His cavalry guards, including the kings, stood still and silent. No one could be heard and they all looked at him with respect.

At this time, Maodun, after shooting and killing his father, Touman Chanyu, destroyed the Donghu, expelled the Yuezhi, annexed the Loufan, dominated the north and south of the desert, unified the grassland, and established a powerful Xiongnu Empire. He had more than 300,000 cavalry under his command and was at the peak of his life’s achievements.

“Your Highness the Great Chanyu, the Chu general who escaped is none other than Xiang Chang, the son of the Overlord. He is extremely cunning and ferocious in his use of troops. Please quickly send cavalry to catch up with him and kill him.” Han Wangxin followed Zang Yan back to the Xiongnu army, saw Maodun, dismounted and greeted him humbly, then said anxiously.

Maodun didn’t even look at him, but just shook his head indifferently.

Han Wangxin was very anxious and could not help but beg for mercy, but the Right Xianwang who was standing beside him whipped him on the head with a horsewhip and cursed:

“Get lost! Your Nanman soldiers are just weaklings, and Xiang Chang is just a little bit sharper. Now that the Great Chanyu has arrived, no matter how many there are, they can be destroyed in one fell swoop. Letting that kid escape, reorganizing the troops, and killing them all at once is not easy or easy!”

The thousands of Xiongnu cavalrymen traded to Han Wangxin came from Maochan’s army. Unexpectedly, Han Wangxin was so weak that almost all of his troops were annihilated in one battle, with only a few hundred remnants fleeing back in a hurry. Naturally, the Right Wise King was extremely angry with him.

What Han Wangxin didn’t know was that the 80,000 grassland cavalry had traveled a long distance and came from afar. How could Maodun, the experienced, calm, and ambitious cavalry king, not rest and rush into battle immediately?
Han Wangxin was so angry at being scolded that his blood almost rushed back to his chest, but he dared not show it. He smiled awkwardly, nodded repeatedly and walked away.

“The Great Chanyu is right to think so. It is difficult to catch up with Xiang Chang, not to mention that even if we catch up and kill him, his subordinates will scatter in panic. How can we wipe them out in one fell swoop?” Zang Yan urged his horse to come over and said to King Han.

The two men, who were in the Xiongnu camp and came from the Central Plains and belonged to the same lineage of Yan and Huang, naturally supported each other.

Han Wangxin frowned, his eyes anxious, and shook his head, “I hope so. I always feel that the kid is not so easy to deal with.”

Zang Yan instinctively wanted to laugh at Han Wangxin’s concerns: “You are really afraid of ropes after being bitten by a snake once. You have also seen how powerful the Xiongnu cavalry is. Now there are 80,000 people, not to mention the tens of thousands of soldiers and horses of Xiang Chang. Even if the Overlord leads 100,000 troops in person, I am afraid it will be difficult to match them! You’d better put your heart at ease.”

Han Wangxin thought about it and felt that he was being too nervous, so he relaxed and nodded.

Xiang Chang led three thousand cavalry and rushed back to the battlefield of the Chu-Han War as soon as possible.

At this time, Li Yi had gathered the prisoners and guarded them in the camp, and the battlefield had also been cleaned up.

This battle was a very successful one. Over 10,000 Han soldiers were killed, over 10,000 were captured, and only a few thousand escaped.

The wealth and food that King Xin of Han had worked so hard to collect from the states of Han and Zhao, and the war horses that he had paid a huge price to trade with the Huns, all fell into the hands of the Chu army.

Xiang Chang led an army of 50,000, of which 30,000 were cavalry and 20,000 were infantry.

He led 10,000 cavalry to rush to rescue Li Yi, and 20,000 cavalry escorted 20,000 infantry and slowly advanced afterwards, and all of them arrived at this time.

When the two armies were combined and excluding the casualties, the total strength reached more than 60,000 people, including 30,000 cavalry and 30,000 infantry.

Seeing Xiang Chang returning with 3,000 elite cavalry in panic, Li Yi, who had just set up camp with 60,000 troops, hurriedly went to meet them. But when they heard that 80,000 Hun troops were about to arrive in an attempt to swallow up the three kingdoms of Yan, Zhao and Han, their faces changed drastically.

“The situation is urgent. The Hun army will arrive soon. In order to fight without any worries, these prisoners cannot be kept. They must be killed tonight.” Xiang Chang’s words were as cold as ice and he gave the order decisively.

Li Yi did not say anything, immediately accepted the order and went down to make arrangements.

In order to gain the loyalty of these captured Han soldiers, King Xin of Han aroused their fighting spirit in the shortest possible time and made them fight to the death. During this period, he allowed them to burn, kill and loot. Each of them had blood on their hands and deserved to be put to death.

“Although the Xiongnu cavalry is powerful, they are not invincible. Since Maodun dares to extend his wolf claws to our Central Plains, there is nothing to say. Just chop them off!” Xiang Chang glanced at the generals, his face covered with a thin layer of frost, his tone full of murderous intent, and spoke word by word.

All the generals bowed their heads and responded loudly.

On the third day, after a brief rest, 80,000 Xiongnu cavalry appeared on the northern horizon with boundless momentum, accompanied by the howling north wind and the low-hanging winter clouds on their heads, and slowly advanced.

The 60,000-strong Chu army was divided into infantry and cavalry. They lined up in strict battle array and waited quietly.

Maodun rode on a Ferghana horse, stared with eyes wide open, smiled calmly, pointed with his whip and said, “I heard that the reason why the King of Chu was able to turn defeat into victory and reverse the situation when he faced the Han camp was because of his son. But now that I see it, the battle formation is nothing special, nothing special.”

The Left Wise King Ji Ju, the Right Wise King Mao Chan, the Xianbei King Aqiletu, and the Wuhuan King Hadan Zhaorige all burst into laughter.

Ji Zhou looked respectful, and bowed to Maodun on his horse, saying, “The Great Chanyu’s power is as great as the grasslands and the desert. He is like the boundless blue sky and the boundless ocean. How can he be compared to that tyrant? As for his son, he is even less worthy of mention.”

Maodun laughed loudly, “Hahahaha!” “Right Wise King, you’re right! Today, let these southern Xinjiang dwarf sheep see how strong we desert men are.”

As soon as Maodun said this, without waiting for the military order to be issued, low and solemn horns sounded and drums beat from the opposite Chu camp, and then 30,000 cavalry broke away from the camp and charged towards them fiercely.

When the Hun generals saw this, they were all filled with indescribable anger.

Maodun’s face also darkened.

How dare these weak and frail sheep attack? Who gave them the courage? Damn it!

Maodun issued an order, ordering the Right Wise King to lead 30,000 Xiongnu cavalry to meet the Chu cavalry. In addition, he ordered the Left Wise King Maochan to lead 40,000 cavalry to attack the Chu 30,000 infantry.

As for him, he led 10,000 cavalry as a reserve mobile army and stayed there.

As we all know, when the two armies confront each other, the infantry is no match for the cavalry, especially in this flat land, which is conducive to the cavalry’s charge. Maodun sent 40,000 cavalry to attack the infantry of the Chu State. He was obviously angered by the active attack of the cavalry of the Chu State. He decided to use his absolute advantage to crush and destroy the infantry and cavalry of the Chu State in one fell swoop.

The 30,000 cavalry of the Great Chu was led by Huang Zhong himself.

Huang Zhong, who was exceptionally promoted to the position of commander of the cavalry, knew very well in his heart that the eldest son used his unparalleled bravery and hoped that just like he had done before against the Han cavalry, he would be able to succeed in a head-on collision with the incredibly powerful Xiongnu cavalry and defeat them severely.

In this case, success or failure depends on one person!
Huang Zhong, fully aware of the heavy responsibility, threw away all his worries. His eyes were filled with anger and fighting spirit. He stared at the 30,000 Xiongnu cavalrymen who were coming to attack him, and secretly clenched the large guillotine in his hand.

Just as the two armies were rapidly closing in and about to engage in battle, he roared like thunder, tensed all his muscles, poured all his strength into the huge guillotine in his hand, and threw it out.

“Woooooooo…”

The large guillotine spun rapidly, turning into a dark blue circle of light. The four or five Xiongnu cavalrymen with ferocious faces who were the first to bear the brunt of the attack were cut in half, and fell off their horses with screams, blood spurting out like rain.

The 30,000 Chu cavalry following behind them were in high spirits, and they waved their weapons and cheered.

The thousands of guard cavalrymen around Huang Zhong also roared at this time, turned sideways on their horses and threw out the short spears in their hands.

(End of this chapter)