The midday sun was scorching and bright. Qingzhou army soldiers, descending the ropes, immediately attracted the attention of the common people of Liang.
Some common people screamed and ran into the city, shouting as they went.
Under years of training, the Qingzhou army's rope skills were already perfected. Soldiers descended to the ground from the ropes one by one without any delay.
This time, to ensure the success of the surprise attack, Lu Fei dispatched 10,000 of the most elite Qingzhou army soldiers and 10,000 Dengzhou army soldiers. These soldiers were seasoned veterans, and 20,000 men taking Liang Capital was not a problem.
The soldiers who descended to the ground quickly formed battle arrays to guard against attacks from the Liang soldiers, while subsequent soldiers continuously came down from the mountain.
When only two thousand men had gathered on the ground, the sound of rumbling footsteps came, followed by the appearance of the armored Liang army.
The Qingzhou army, which had already formed a three-rank firing formation, immediately fired, catching the charging Liang army off guard. The soldiers in the front fell like mown grass.
However, these Liang army soldiers were clearly also elites. Now that these enemies had entered the city, they had received Prince Liang's order to fight to the death. If this City fell, Liang would be finished.
"Bang, bang, bang..." Gunshots continued to ring out. The charging Qingzhou army retreated and charged, charged and retreated. As more and more soldiers came down from the mountains, the Qingzhou army's resistance gradually became more coordinated.
Just as the two sides were locked in fierce combat, a column of smoke suddenly rose from the city. Lu Fei, on the mountain, saw the smoke and suddenly had an ominous premonition.
He picked up his telescope and searched, suddenly seeing a large group of barbarian cavalry coming from the north and charging directly towards their grand camp.
Ye Qingyun also saw it. He angrily said, "This Prince Liang truly colluded with the barbarians! Now he's prepared to fight to the death!"
Lu Fei said worriedly, "I hope Qi Guangyi and Bai Mu can hold off these cavalry."
At this time, Bai Mu and Qi Guangyi also noticed the barbarian cavalry. The two exchanged glances, and Bai Mu said, "Now, the grand camp is protected by a chariot formation, so there's no need to worry. However, these barbarian cavalry must be eliminated, otherwise they will continue to harass our provisions. This time, why don't we take the initiative to lure them into a trap and catch them by surprise? I've already observed on the way here: there's a valley nearby, and this valley is very long and narrow, perfect for artillery bombardment. Luo Xin, this time, your artillery will cooperate with our cavalry to annihilate this barbarian cavalry unit."
"Are you talking about the valley to the west?" Luo Xin asked.
Qi Guangyi nodded and said, "That's right. We need to feign defeat and lure them into this valley. Then you will cooperate with us in the attack."
After a moment of thought, Luo Xin gritted his teeth and said, "No problem. I will gather the field guns and deploy them in the valley now."
Qi Guangyi and Bai Mu nodded. Then Bai Mu led a cavalry unit towards the direction from which the barbarian cavalry came. Qi Guangyi and Luo Xin led cavalry and artillery to the valley.
This was a long, narrow valley, over five li long and more than one li wide. Upon reaching the valley, Luo Xin said, "Qi Guangyi, the cavalry are entrusted to you. I will lead the artillery to ambush on both sides of the valley and establish artillery positions. When you hear my signal, attack."
"Good. I'll take the cavalry and ambush on the other side of the mountain." With that, Qi Guangyi led his cavalry to the other side of the valley. Over 20,000 cavalry quietly awaited the coming battle.
Seeing Qi Guangyi leave, Luo Xin scanned the valley, trying to find a suitable location for artillery fire.
At this moment, Bai Mu led 20,000 cavalry, marching in neat steps towards the barbarian cavalry. Feigning defeat was also a technical skill. If the act wasn't convincing, it could easily arouse the enemy's suspicion. A careless feigned defeat could even turn into a real defeat. So, Bai Mu was extremely nervous, but at the sight of the barbarian soldiers, he recalled the hatred from when the barbarians ravaged Qingzhou.
The barbarian soldiers clearly did not expect Bai Mu to lead cavalry to fight them. They charged at Bai Mu with a hint of bloodlust in their eyes.
"Kill!"
Bai Mu led his cavalry and crashed into the barbarian cavalry, initiating the fight. This surprise attack caught the barbarians off guard. They hadn't expected the Great Yu Empire's people to engage barbarian cavalry in close combat.
"Flag bearer, this is probably a trap." On a nearby hill, a barbarian general looked down at the battlefield below.
"We must engage them, otherwise we cannot explain ourselves to the Khan," Tenggel was the flag bearer of this barbarian army. This time, he was ordered to help Prince Liang resist Prince Qi's army.
Although they desperately harassed this army's supply lines, they had now arrived under Liang Capital, waiting for an opportunity.
At this moment, Prince Liang's distress signal flared up, and they had no choice but to attack.
"Form ranks!" Bai Mu commanded. The 20,000 cavalry quickly adjusted their formation again.
As the barbarian army approached, Bai Mu clearly saw a figure in front of the hill. This person seemed to be a barbarian general.
"Kill!" Bai Mu looked provocatively at the general, gritted his teeth, and shouted. The cavalry immediately surged towards the barbarian army like a tide. At this moment, he was even more enraged, seeing his enemies again, but he still remembered the agreed-upon plan. He charged into the barbarian army, fought for a while, and then turned and left.
The barbarian army had just gained the upper hand; how could they willingly give it up? The sound of horns blared from the rear, a signal for a full-scale attack.
Qi Guangyi and Luo Xin had been ambushing in the valley for a long time. Using the advantage of their telescopes, Qi Guangyi saw Bai Mu fleeing towards the valley. He licked his lips. This time, they were determined to thoroughly deal with this group of barbarian cavalry. They had suffered enough during these past few days.
According to the agreed plan, Bai Mu led his cavalry into the valley. After confirming that all the barbarian troops had entered the valley, his army suddenly stopped, then adjusted their formation to face the pursuing barbarian army.
"Plug the horses' ears," Bai Mu shouted. This was to prevent the horses from being startled.
On the hillside, after all the barbarian troops had entered the valley, Luo Xin had his troops remove their camouflage. The muzzles of a hundred black field guns were aimed at the barbarian cavalry, and the musketeers protecting the artillery also joined the battle, suddenly appearing on both sides of the cliff.
"Oh no, we've fallen into a trap," Tenggel's face turned pale.
His thought had barely finished when a sudden "boom" echoed from the hillside, followed by continuous "booms," like thunder from afar.
"Hiss..."
"Hiss..."
Such a tremendous noise made the horses beneath the cavalry restless, pacing back and forth. Some horses even bolted uncontrollably, and the cavalry near the valley was utterly chaotic. Before they could even grasp the situation, hundreds of cavalrymen were reduced to pulp, their blood splattering across the ground.