Chapter 213 Opportunity to Defeat the Enemy
Around midnight, the black bear rode his sled north again.

Similar to the first half of the night, night watch teams were arranged in all the large and small camps of the Wuhuan and the various tribes of the Di.

After the two forces merged, they basically stationed along the ruins of the camp left behind by the right royal court.

The black bear circled around for a short while and then retreated.

The factor of war was already taken into consideration when the Right Royal Court was being built.

Therefore, after the two tribes united, they fully utilized the geographical advantages and layout of large and small camps of the right royal court.

If they all gathered together, why would we need a large army?
If Lü Bu were allowed to charge in at night and start charging back and forth, he would be able to cause the Wuhuan and Yu Di tribes to mutiny and cause protests in their camps.

As the sky gradually brightened, neither side mobilized its troops.

Throughout the early morning, Zhongdu City and Jingling City began to carry out the lightly wounded soldiers who had frozen to death.

When the sun became warmer, the various newly-formed auxiliary centuries and captured centuries, with full stomachs, continued to clean the battlefield and collect fuel.

It was also because the Taiyuan soldiers and the Xiongnu soldiers were eager to fight; and because of Lu Bu's harassment, they were unable to disperse their forces to collect various materials.

Now, teams of hundreds of people are demolishing the city and houses outside the city, mixing them with the large amount of horse oil accumulated in the past few days. The problems of night lighting and heating can be quickly improved in the short term.

The sled team transported pounded corn from the southern camp to the north. After dawn, the captives in the southern camp began to slaughter cattle and sheep and tan leather.

A large number of Hun leather armor collected during the battlefield cleaning were also sent to the southern camp and handed over to the Hun craftsmen there for repair and reinforcement.

After completing the food distribution, the sled team returned to the place where the Taiyuan soldiers had surrendered yesterday, loaded piles of frosted armor and equipment into the sleds, and transported them to the Hun camp in the north.

The cavalrymen were busy until noon, when they began to change their uniforms one after another.

During lunch, another military meeting was held.

A dozen people sat around in the tent. Black Bear put down the dagger he used to cut beef, wiped the corners of his mouth and said, "I don't know what the Wuhuan people are thinking. According to common sense, they should have taken advantage of our army's fatigue to launch a night attack last night, or at the latest, they should have taken action today. But they still did not move. I provoked them again and again, but they did not move. Are they waiting for the Hedong soldiers to attack from the north and south?"

"Or has Yu Digen already contacted Yang Feng and is trying to surround me from three sides?"

Black Bear went to see Zhang Yan, who immediately replied, "The snow in the mountains blocks the road, and Yang Feng will need another three days to arrive. It is also difficult for messengers to travel. If the Great Canal Commander has any doubts, he can take over Yang Feng's front troops first."

Yang Feng's front force had more than 4,000 people. They took the initiative to join the battle yesterday and held down the Xiongnu's left-wing infantry group. After the battle, they robbed more than a thousand horses and dragged away hundreds of dead horses.

In Zhang Yan's eyes, there was no problem with this annexation, as such changes in factions often occurred within the Black Mountain Army.

Black Bear nodded and said, "Then we will continue to rest today and make sure the soldiers and horses have a good meal."

Zhang Yan then withdrew, and the subsequent battles against the Wuhuan and Yu Digen in the north had nothing to do with Zhang Yan.

To avoid suspicion, Zhang Yan remained stationed in the southern camp to assist in the detention and guarding of prisoners in the camp.

After Zhang Yan left, Zhao Yun spoke up: "General, in my opinion, the Wuhuan are waiting for our wounded soldiers to recover from their injuries."

Seeing Black Bear looking suspiciously, Zhao Yun immediately explained: "If Wuhuan attacks in the next two days, the wounded soldiers under your command will still have the strength to fight. After three or four days, most of the wounded soldiers will have a high fever or be physically weak, and it will be difficult for them to participate in the battle. Moreover, the battle has just begun, and the captives are terrified and dare not resist. A delay of a few days will allow the captives to recover their morale and physical strength. If you lead your troops north to participate in the battle, the captives will rebel and you will be in danger."

Liu Bao, who was sitting next to him and wearing a white bear cloak, immediately spoke up: "General, please don't misunderstand me. I am sincerely convinced by the Great Canal Commander. I only regret that I can't stand in front of the battlefield and fight for the Great Canal Commander. How could I possibly have the heart to rebel?"

Linghu Shao, the temporary representative of the Taiyuan soldiers who were sitting on the other side, also expressed his opinion: "General, I am willing to lead 3,000 brave soldiers to be the vanguard of the army."

More than 3,000 suicide soldiers were selected from the entire Taiyuan surrendered army group in one morning.

As long as they behead level five, they can atone for their sins and be released.

If he dies, his replacement will be chosen from among his children.

During his service, Black Bear promised not to implicate their three tribes in the crime of treason.

These people are originally powerful clansmen and core minions, and their fighting power cannot be underestimated when they gather together.

Therefore, they have only been selected and have not yet been issued armor and equipment.

The suicide soldiers can only take their turn after the cavalry have changed their equipment.

"General Zilong's concerns are somewhat reasonable. I have already made a decision on how to defeat the enemy."

Black Bear turned his head to look at Linghu Shao: "As you say, the daredevil soldiers will serve as the vanguard in this battle."

A staff of more than 3,000 people can continuously replace and replenish high-quality soldiers, and eventually replace five times the number of enemies. This is a good deal, and these people can be forgiven.

Liu Bao also requested: "My Lord is willing to select 3,000 elite cavalry to lead the Daqu army to break through the enemy's formation."

"No hurry, let me defeat Wuhuan first. After you and I build an altar and swear an oath, I will give you weapons and armor."

After the impromptu meeting, Jia Kui, who was listening in, hesitated again and again, but could not help but want to seize an opportunity, so he stepped forward and asked, "General, are you going to launch a night attack?"

"No, I want to defeat them fairly."

Seeing Jia Kui's weak appearance, Black Bear continued, "The Wuhuan people and Yu Digen dared to confront me. With so many people calculating repeatedly, I don't have enough room. Normally speaking, tomorrow is my only chance to counterattack them."

As he looked up at the azure sky, Black Bear couldn't help but smile: "This battle is really interesting. The Wuhuan people will never take the initiative to go south to fight."

Seeing this, Jia Kui said tentatively: "Since the general has realized the danger, then if we attack northward, it will be useless if we have too few troops, and there is a risk of the camp changing its flag or defecting if we have too many troops. Why not negotiate with the Wuhuan and Digen and divide Taiyuan with them equally?"

Black Bear just smiled, put his hands behind his back and looked at the mountains to the east: "I am very generous, but they misunderstood my generosity as cowardice. Half of Taiyuan is not enough to feed them, they want to eat my 100,000 troops. Who can resist the hegemony right in front of them?"

Although it seems that the two sides are in a standoff now, in fact it is still a game among multiple parties.

How many people will die if a field battle fails?
But if anyone loses his camp, the freezing weather will make him start over.

Therefore, whether it is the Wuhuan or the Digen, including Guo Xian who is hiding in Qi County, none of them will leave their current camp.

Whoever loses the camp will be immediately abandoned by his subordinates.

As long as we hold the camp, we will always have the capital for negotiation and evacuation.

The north wind blew on his face, and Black Bear knew with his limited meteorological knowledge that the dry and cold air mass was still moving southward.

When there are various changes in wind direction disturbances, it means that moist air is moving northward, and new snowfall will come.

Before the continuous north wind stops, the severe cold weather will not subside significantly. Therefore, the camp is the lifeline now. If I dare to lead more than 10,000 people north, the two camps in the north and south will definitely change.

As for negotiations, the possibility of negotiations was completely cut off from the moment Wuhuan and Yu Digen rejected his good intentions.

Between Qi County and Jiexiu is a secret prison.

Before everyone freezes or starves to death, a winner must be decided.

Ignoring Jia Kui's negotiation proposal, Black Bear boarded the heavy sled and led the Taoist soldiers northward.

Horse-drawn sleighs seemed more efficient than carrying riders.

They galloped all the way for more than forty miles. When they approached an outer camp of the Wuhuan, the horses could only be considered to be warming up.

Before the black bear could get any closer, dozens of Wuhuan cavalry and scouts attacked from both sides, drawing their bows and shooting arrows through the air.

Lu Bu and Gao Shun charged on horseback. The Wuhuan knights did not dare to get close to fight and continued to harass them with horse bows.

Two sleds drove into the small hill east of the camp. Six Taoist soldiers beside Black Bear held shields to block stray arrows, while Yuan Shu drove another sled to cruise around to attract the attack of the Wuhuan people.

The black bear observed the camp and found that the outer earthen ramparts and fences of the small camp had not been completely burned down during the scorching heat and clearing of the countryside.

The Wuhuan people removed the carbonized fences, leaving only the earthen mounds.

The five or six-foot-high earthen rampart couldn't even stop sheep, let alone Lu Bu and Gao Shun at this moment.

The two of them drove their horses in one after the other, charging back and forth.

Black Bear recognized the tribal leader and adult who was giving orders among the crowd, and soon there were no more accidents.

Faced with Lu Bu's sudden pursuit, the tribal leader was beheaded.

Basically, Lu Bu chopped down with his halberd, and Gao Shun followed behind and stabbed and picked up the head with his halberd, and they left the camp one after the other without any reluctance.

At this moment, the small Wuhuan camp was in chaos. Gao Shun stepped forward and threw the head into the sled carriage.

The two riders escorted the two sleds and moved again to another small camp five or six miles away, where mobilization had already been made.

But the heavy sled that was charging at full speed was simply not something the Wuhuan cavalry could stop. The black bear was still moving, and it took it more than ten minutes to lock onto the hidden Wuhuan leader.

When Lu Bu and Gao Shun completed the beheading, they saw the surrounding Wuhuan and Heishan armies sending out cavalry.

Black Bear immediately broke through to the northwest, and after walking for more than ten miles, he arrived at the Taiyuan soldiers' baggage train camp that he had encountered the previous night.

The camp here was still arranged in a circle. When the black bear approached, he saw that the other side had more than a hundred crossbow carts, which were crookedly formed into a line facing the east.

The enemy's leader led more than a hundred riders out of the camp in the north. Black Bear summoned more Taoist soldiers without leaving any trace and filled them between himself and the sled carriage.

As the sled approached, Black Bear commanded a Taoist soldier to throw the heads of the two captured Wuhuan leaders to the other side.

Without saying a word, Yuan Shu's team of six drove the sled around the hundred or so riders and returned to the ice surface of the lake.

The extra soldiers were then dismissed, and the two sleds quickly headed south.

Shang Yao, who was in charge of command and logistics escort, looked at the two heads. He also saw Lu Bu and Gao Shun, who were covering the rear in the distance, fighting together, and Wuhuan knights kept falling off their horses.

The light was good during the day, and after losing more than a hundred cavalrymen during the pursuit, the Wuhuan people finally calmed down and allowed Lu Bu and Gao Shun to retreat.

Shang Yao watched from afar and said with emotion: "The bravery of Taishi Wengong is no less than that of King Xiang."

The newly arrived Yanmen sentinel officer beside him had red cheeks and squinted his eyes to gaze into the distance: "The Wuhuan people are about to be defeated. This is an opportunity for you and me."

After the Wuhuan moved inland, the living environment of the Yanmen people of this generation was very bad.

Shang Yao heard this and handed over a piece of silk book: "This was sent by Envoy Qian this morning. I wanted to present it to Hei Zhenbei in person."

The Yanmen envoy took it and read it. At this time, hundreds of Wuhuan knights galloped over.

Shang Yao raised his lance high, and a row of arrows rained down from the camp.

This round of arrows had red ribbons tied to the feathers, and when they were nailed to the snow, a sparse red dot area immediately appeared.

Seeing that the Wuhuan people showed no sign of slowing down, more than a hundred crossbow carts fired immediately.

In the blink of an eye, dozens of riders and horses in the front were shot by arrows and fell down. Archers in the camp kept shooting, and arrows rained down. The hit Wuhuan people did not care about the wounded or the head of their leader, and retreated eastward in all directions.

After reading Qian Zhao's letter, the Yanmen envoy saw a group of Wuhuan people falling down more than a hundred steps away, and frowned: "Qian Zhao has captured Yuci again, which has blocked the retreat of Wuhuan and Yu Di. If we count our army and Shang Jun's troops, we may be able to annihilate the enemy."

It doesn't matter how many people are killed. Since we are at the outskirts of the battlefield, we can just grab a group of prisoners and horses and run away. Then we will not lose the battle no matter how you look at it.

The people of Yanmen could run away, but where could Shang Yao from Daling County, southwest of Jinyang, run to?
Shang Yao took the letter and shook it. "My fellow villagers have already served Hei Zhenbei. How can I ignore the friendship of my fellow villagers and collude with General Qian? Please also inform Lord Shentu that we have already lost and just want to end the war quickly."

After saying that, Shang Yao ordered the knights to finish off the enemy and take the head.

After these knights had two strings of heads hung around their horses' necks, Shang Yao sent his younger brother as an envoy, bringing letters from himself and Qian Zhao, as well as the heads of Wang Rou and Linghu Chao delivered by the Guanzhong soldiers that morning, and the two heads of Wuhuan leaders that Black Bear had thrown to him as a demonstration just now.

The hundred-plus riders circled southward along the ice surface of the lake, and some auxiliary soldiers also ran out of the camp to clean up the battlefield.

The Wuhuan people dragged all their leather coats, armor, swords, and dead horses back to the camp.

The essence of Bingzhou's border troops remained in Taiyuan, and the powerful people in Taiyuan mastered the crossbow-making technology of the border troops.

Not to mention today's crossbow carts, if the Taiyuan tyrants are willing to spend the money, they can make more powerful crossbows.

On the other side, the black bear breathed a sigh of relief when the heavy sled entered the camp.

In some way, I began to believe in Shang Yao's sincerity.

Caliber equals justice, and with awe of justice, he looked at the heavy sled and felt that he should start building his own chariot.

Tools refined by white magic have the ability to self-repair, which is great for making axles.

With armored Yin-dried horses as the power source and a rolling shutter device installed on the chariot, it is enough to crush any army head-on!
(End of this chapter)