Skirmish Outside the City

Several stiff corpses hung outside the city walls, swaying in the cold wind. Li Chengxiao and his fellow traitors who had colluded with the enemy were all killed. Kong Xian had their bodies hung outside to intimidate the Qiang soldiers.

"Whoo!"

The sound of war horns echoed across the sky. The sight of the hanging corpses indeed drew the Qiang soldiers, who had been camped outside for over half a month. They poured out of their camp, forming up far from the city gates, their murderous intent permeating the air.

Wanyan Chang sat on horseback in the formation, while a subordinate general reported quietly:

"Checked it out. The bodies hanging at the city gate belong to Li Chengxiao of the Li family. Looks like he failed."

"Failure just shows he was useless, not worth using. But it's time to give them a taste of our power. Otherwise they'll think this general is weak."

Wanyan Chang's face was cold as he casually waved his hand, sending three hundred elite cavalry charging toward the city gates. Leading them was a thousand-man commander named Chahamu, a Qiang general known for his ferocity along the Yunyang Pass front.

The three hundred cavalry galloped wildly, shouting insults and shooting arrows at the city walls to provoke the defenders.

Facing the Qiang soldiers' insults and provocations, Yunyang Pass kept its gates tightly shut, not sending out a single soldier. After all, the massive city gates were right there - if they wanted to attack, they could try.

Chahamu saw this wasn't working and sneered:

"Hmph, a bunch of cowards. Bring them out!"

Several dozen captives seized by the Qiang soldiers were pushed to the front, kneeling on the ground with faces like death. They had been tortured by the Qiang soldiers for days, their bodies covered in wounds.

The hearts of the defenders on the city walls tightened. These were their comrades.

"Draw swords!"

"Kill!"

Dozens of curved swords were raised high, then swung down simultaneously. The captives' heads were all cut off. The moment the heads hit the ground, every defender's heart trembled violently. The Qiang soldiers even used long spears to impale the heads in the yellow sand, creating a gruesome scene.

It wasn't over yet. Chahamu casually dismounted and urinated on Yunyang Pass.

This brazen provocation made all the defenders feel humiliated, their faces turning red with anger.

"Listen up, you little Qian soldiers in the city! You can be cowards if you want."

Chahamu sneered, pointing at the row of impaled heads: "But when we break through the city, this will be your fate!"

"Damn it, this is too much! Who dares to lead troops out to fight the Qiang bandits!"

Everyone knew they couldn't let the Qiang soldiers ride roughshod over them. Otherwise, morale would plummet to rock bottom. Kong Xian looked at Jun Yi, hoping he would send troops.

But Jun Yi ignored him completely, not even glancing at Kong Xian.

When Li Chengxiao was still alive, the city was divided into three factions. Now that Kong Xian had absorbed Li family's troops, Jun Yi naturally needed to hold onto his own troops. He couldn't afford to send them out to die for nothing. He knew that if he lost his troops, he would have no say in Yunyang Pass.

Seeing Jun Yi ignore him, Kong Xian had to name someone:

"Han Shuo, lead troops out to meet the enemy!"

"Understood!"

Han Shuo stepped forward calmly, showing no sign of fear. Luo Yu and Xiao Shaoyou exchanged glances - they were both under Han Shuo's command.

"Remember."

Kong Xian instructed: "The Qiang soldiers are fierce warriors. Be extremely careful. We don't need to win; not losing is a great achievement!"

"Your subordinate understands!"

In no time, Han Shuo had his troops arrayed outside the city. Besides Luo Yu and Xiao Shaoyou, he had two other centurion teams, totaling about five hundred men. Most were infantry, holding long spears and shields, their expressions tense.

The most eye-catching were the cavalry under Xiao Shaoyou and Luo Yu's command. They stood tall and proud, their presence far surpassing ordinary infantry.

"Boom boom boom!"

The sound of war drums echoed from the city walls. Although there were only three hundred Qiang cavalry, they were led by a thousand-man commander, so they must be elite troops. Han Shuo knew this would be a tough fight.

Xiao Shaoyou, who had fought the Qiang multiple times, suggested:

"Following past patterns, the Qiang will use their archery to attack our formation from a distance. We don't have many shields, so casualties will keep increasing. Once we're worn down, their three hundred cavalry will charge our infantry formation, and we'll be defeated.

Why don't I lead my cavalry to charge first? The Qiang will definitely split their forces to fight me, which will divide their strength and reduce pressure on our infantry. Centurion Luo's cavalry can stay back to hold the line, ensuring the infantry formation stays intact."

"Excellent plan, let's do it."

Han Shuo waved his hand: "Charge, but be careful."

"Go!"

Xiao Shaoyou didn't hesitate, galloping out with a hundred elite cavalry. In the entire Yunyang Pass, his men were the most daring cavalry.

Following past tactics, the Qiang would usually split their forces to deal with Xiao Shaoyou while the rest charged the infantry. But this time they changed their approach, completely ignoring the infantry formation. Three hundred cavalry split into three groups, forming a pincer attack to surround Xiao Shaoyou.

"Charge!"

"Clang clang clang!"

Three hundred against one hundred, Xiao Shaoyou quickly fell into a disadvantage. He charged left and right through the enemy formation but couldn't break through. Fortunately, his troops were brave, gritting their teeth and fighting to the death, preventing a rout.

Amidst the cries of pain, cavalry kept falling from their horses, blood and flesh flying. The Qian soldiers' hearts sank - at this rate, the hundred cavalry would be wiped out by the Qiang in no time.

"Damn it, the Qiang are truly cunning!"

Han Shuo watched helplessly as Xiao Shaoyou was surrounded, but he couldn't do anything. His troops were mostly infantry and couldn't leave the formation to support them.

"Boss, let me go."

At this critical moment, Luo Yu stepped forward, but Han Shuo frowned, looking at his troops:

"You only have fifty cavalry. Will that work?"

Luo Yu's cavalry were not only few in number but also newly trained. Han Shou worried that these fifty men would be like meat buns thrown to dogs - gone without a trace.

"Is there anyone else who can go?"

Luo Yu said firmly: "If we hesitate, Shaoyou will really die on the battlefield."

"Alright, it's up to you!"

"Everyone, raise your spears and charge!"

"Understood!"

Fifty men followed Luo Yu out of the formation, Dong Chuan, Meng Hu, Xiao Wu, Lu Qingyun... All their faces showed a hint of tension. After all, this was their first time fighting the Qiang with cavalry, unsure of their training results.

But their faces showed more excitement, as if a surge of blood was boiling in their chests. The feeling of galloping with spears on horseback was completely different from fighting on foot - any man would prefer this.

Watching the departing cavalry, Han Shuo muttered:

"Good lad, you've got some spirit. Don't die out there, you still owe me wine."

The sudden charge of fifty cavalry also caught the Qiang's attention, but fifty men were simply too few. Even laughter broke out in the Qiang ranks:

"Fifty men dare to charge? These Qian soldiers must be crazy."

"Such a small number isn't even enough for Commander Chahamu's feast. Hahaha."

"Hey, the leader looks familiar. Isn't he the one who shot arrows from the city gate tower a while ago?"

"Is that the new recruit?"

Wanyan Chang suddenly became interested and cast a glance:

"Let this general see what else you can do!"