Chapter 184: Once the Sword is Drawn
"Eating dog intestines."

As soon as he left the general's tent, Cui Tie slapped his face hard, but at this moment the slanting rain just happened to fall on his face, blurring his eyes for a moment, mixed with the biting chill of the early morning, which really made him feel irritated.

The rain was indeed not heavy, but it was heavy. The camp site had been crowded with people coming and going recently, and the ground was full of potholes and not flat. This camp, which looked like a bandit camp, was not built with great care, and drainage measures were omitted. It was fine if it snowed normally, but now it rained, and water accumulated in those small potholes.

Fortunately, Cui Tie was in a good mood. He glanced at the potholes that looked like ponds and pretended not to see them. The rain was not heavy, and it would not be too late to ask someone to clean them up when it rained heavily later.

He was wearing a mink cloak brought from his own fortress and expensive satin boots looted from somewhere. He walked through the mud without any care, holding the cloak tightly to keep himself warm, and pointed to the sky with a sneer.

"It's freezing cold, and it's raining. You can tell how rotten the road is. How can we march? In my opinion, even if the Liang army is a heavenly army, they can't come!"

The scholar who had been following closely beside him as an aide just smiled and said, "Marshal, what you said is very true. I think so too. But..."

"Just let it out if you have to. Why are you hesitating?"

"But I heard a few days ago that when the marshal led us to camp outside the city, there seemed to be a Liang army in Gaoliang and Henan. At that time, all the troops that went south seemed to have suffered a setback. Although the scale of this Liang army should not be large, however..."

"If you want to hurry up and tell me, why are you pretending to be so stupid!?"

Cui Tie was so angry when he saw that the scholar always spoke half-sentences that he shouted to the soldiers leading the way in front to stop. Then he stopped walking and stared at the scholar with great dissatisfaction. If he hadn't had a whip in his hand, he would have whipped the scholar.

The latter was naturally afraid, and spoke hastily.

"The student has the guts to speak frankly... Marshal, although the Liang army in the south may not be strong enough to fight against the Yan army of more than 100,000, we are the first to bear the brunt. If the Liang army is really bold enough to advance northward, our camps are closely connected, and the families and soldiers live together. The camps of the refugees and bandits nearby are also very close to us, making the stockades almost useless. In addition, the trenches are not dug deep. If the Liang army attacks, how can we resist? And..."

"And if the main camp is attacked, the surrounding refugees and bandits will be in chaos, and we will be defeated as well, right?" Cui Tie added with a sneer, leaning on his waist.

"Marshal, please understand."

"So you can only be a sour scholar, but I am a marshal!"

Cui Tie sneered and pointed at his nose proudly.

"Do you really think I don't understand these things? Yes, if it was an ordinary season, I would set up camp as you said, clear the area around the camp, dig deep trenches to prevent anyone from attacking the camp. But now is an ordinary season? How do you think I, a marshal, have seven or eight thousand soldiers under my command? The Yan army has changed marshals and generals one after another in the past six months, but I have survived until now, and even the number of troops under my command has increased several times?"

The scholar laughed awkwardly and knelt down, but he no longer had the spirit he had in the tent: "I am a stupid student, please teach me, Marshal."

"Hmph, stupid." Cui Tie was complacent and spoke in a neither loud nor soft voice as he walked back towards the village wall.

"At this moment, whoever has more people in the Yan army has the strongest backbone. These people are not just soldiers, but also refugees and bandits. They are indeed poor, but they are also human beings, right? Going out to attack forts and strongholds for food, where are there no lives to be lost? Are we going to let our precious soldiers go?

But I also understand one thing. If I want these people to die willingly, I should take care of them. So I let them live next to the camp, so no one dares to bully them. The Yan army is everywhere on the hills. If they lose me, not to mention food, I'm afraid that my whole family will be forced to die. And I..."

Cui Tie turned around proudly, pointed at his nose and said: "I have saved the lives of their children, right? Following me, Cui Tie, these poor people can also have a mouthful of rice soup to drink, and they will not be like other marshals who put all the food into their own pockets. Tsk tsk tsk tsk, I, Cui Tie, am a great philanthropist. The family is easy to understand, but you can't figure it out. What kind of crappy book did you read?
Why do these soldiers I have gathered listen to me so much? It's because I can guarantee the lives of their families. People must be differentiated. When they see that their families are different from those untouchables outside the camp, they will naturally work for me wholeheartedly. "

The scholar following behind him remained silent.

At first glance, it seemed that there was nothing wrong with what Cui Tie said, but what he said about protecting the children of those refugees was clearly just that the daughters were abducted into the camp to be enjoyed, and the sons were forcibly conscripted as soldiers. And the rice soup was really just rice soup, not a bit off.

Other marshals and generals were beasts who let their subordinates put all the food and other things they robbed into their own pockets. They only used the food for their trusted soldiers and did not care about the lives of other people. But Cui Tie, although he would leave some food for others every time he robbed it, he would also take 80% to 90% for himself first to replenish his own soldiers and then worry about other things.

He made countless refugees support him, but he treated them like livestock and drove them around. Wasn't he a beast?

It was even simpler for the families to live with the soldiers. As the main camp, the dominant forces in Cui Tie's camp were naturally the old soldiers he brought with him, plus some troops that had been annexed and conquered earlier. The so-called families lived in the main camp under such circumstances, and were mainly responsible for handling miscellaneous matters in the camp. In fact, ordinary soldiers could only see their families a few times every five or ten days.

It's called protection, but it's just a threat.

Cui Tie was a man with a very shrewd plan, and scholars could naturally see through it, but he himself knew that he was not a good person. He relied on Cui Tie to offer advice and suggestions, but he was just taking advantage of the people below.

The reason he made the suggestion just now was indeed purely out of his worry that if he was not careful, Cui Tie would suffer a crushing defeat. As a scholar, he had finally found a place to stay in this chaotic world. If Cui Tie was defeated, it would be difficult for him to have a good ending.

However, Cui Tie obviously saw through his concerns, and he burst into laughter. His laughter was so loud that almost everyone around could hear it clearly.

"What's there to be afraid of? If there really are Liang troops south of Gaoliang River, I have already set up outposts and scouts on the north bank. In this weather, let alone a large army, even a hundred or eighty people can hardly conceal any movement. If there is any movement, they should have reported it to me long ago. Why are they waiting until now? Do they really think that the small camps I set up in front of them are just for show? The distance is more than thirty miles, and people will be exhausted running here. What are you afraid of?"

He spoke directly to the top of the village wall, and his voice was so loud that everyone on and off the wall could hear it clearly. It was obvious that he wanted to reassure people.

Otherwise, how could he be a marshal?
Leading a few capable subordinates and the scholar as aide, Cui Tie stood majestically on the wall of the village. He first ignored the messy layout of shacks on all sides, and then asked a junior officer in charge of the guard.

"What's going on? Why can't I see it?"

The young officer and the other soldiers just looked at each other in bewilderment, and then said in a weak voice: "Marshal, someone just came to report that they heard someone roaring in the south. Although we didn't hear it, Marshal, you also said that everything must be reported to you first..."

"Fuck you, this little thing is called an abnormal movement?"

Cui Tiefu was furious again, almost jumping up in anger. He kicked the officer to the ground, pointed at the sky and yelled, "I came here in the rain, I was almost freezing to death, and you just said such a trivial thing? Are you kidding me?"

He cursed loudly, but was still not satisfied. He just walked back and forth, looking for something to hit people with. He couldn't find it anywhere, but he happened to see that the officer who was kicked over had a belt tied around his waist. He was delighted, took a big step forward, pulled out the belt and hit him with it.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck! How dare you play tricks on me!?"

The officer was hit by his own belt and rolled over on the wall, holding his head and begging for mercy: "Marshal, please spare my life, Marshal, please spare my life. This is not my fault. Someone really heard a roar."

"Fuck you, what kind of roar was that? Why didn't anyone from our small camp in front come to report it?" Cui Tie threw the belt to the scholar next to him who didn't dare to say anything, and looked around with murderous intent.

"Who reported it?"

The crowd that had come to watch retreated in a hurry, and then a soldier with a pale face appeared.

The soldier knelt down and begged for his life without thinking: "Marshal, Marshal! It's true, I really heard it. I just followed the leader to the small camp in front to change guard. I really heard something shouting. It was the leader who asked me to come back and report. I really don't know anything..."

"A bunch of trash!"

Cui Tie sneered disdainfully, thinking that beating the soldier again would only ruin his reputation. However, after hearing the last part, he felt something was wrong, and then asked casually, "You said you were going to change guards, where are the people who came back?"

"I don't know... Normally, you should be back by this time..."

"Marshal." The scholar on the side came closer and whispered, "It's better to be cautious in everything. The shouting that can be heard from the small camp ahead in this weather means that the enemy is either very close or the enemy is quite large, or even mobilizing before the war... No matter which one it is, we have to be on guard."

This time, Cui Tie rarely refuted. After thinking for a moment, he immediately narrowed his eyes and prepared to give an order.

Just at this moment, several voices of Ma Herod suddenly sounded from behind the crowd like ghosts.

Everyone was horrified.

Cui Tie also suddenly turned around and looked towards the south.

However, to the south of the camp, only two or three hundred steps away from the wall, perhaps just when the rain and fog were spreading everywhere, a few dark-blue knights suddenly appeared in the field of vision. These knights could not be seen clearly from a distance, but what caught people's attention was that they all wore bamboo hats, which made them look mysterious and strange.

Then, these knights were seen staring at this scene silently, and then they pushed several corpses off their horses.

The soldier who had just stood up in a panic had sharp eyes and immediately pointed at a corpse and exclaimed.

"Then, it seems, the team leader!?"

Cui Tie was shocked, his eyes filled with disbelief.

Could it be possible that the small camp in front was taken down silently?

Or did these few riders just get through by luck?

Cui Tie's mind suddenly flashed through countless thoughts, but he finally locked on the last one. He didn't believe that anyone could quietly eliminate the scouts of Gaoliang River and then take down the small camps in front without any movement.

Thinking of this, he laughed loudly and waved his hand violently: "Who are you trying to scare? Someone go and drive them away!"

"That's not right!" The scholar next to him grabbed Cui Tie's arm and said urgently, "Marshal, that's not right!"

What is wrong and where is it wrong?

Cui Tie was very dissatisfied. He was about to scold the scholar again for daring to speak halfway, but the moment he opened his mouth, he was suddenly startled.

wrong!

How could the sound of the mounts of just a few people be heard by everyone at a distance of two or three hundred steps?
"wrong!"

Cui Tie was so anxious that he almost shouted out the two words in his mind.

But at this moment, everyone, including him, was suddenly stunned.

However, from the rain and fog behind those riders, there began to be a continuous stream of tiny but noisy snorting sounds from the horses, mixed with neighing sounds, which gave a sudden feeling of bustling activity.

And almost in the next moment, behind the layers of rain and fog, teams of armored knights suddenly appeared one after another, stretching out in horizontal formations, with lances and spears raised high like a forest, their sharp blades tempered by the drizzle, reflecting a menacing light under the gloomy sky, and there was no end in sight.

Iron armor, dark and light-absorbing heavy armor.

Horse lance, double-sided horse lance.

A knight, a knight with a mask on his face.

Large groups of knights spread out in front of the field, slowly pressing towards this so-called camp.

The few knights in bamboo hats who seemed to be demonstrating at the beginning had already merged into the rain and fog. The most immediate force in front of them was a row of four or five hundred heavily armored cavalrymen armed to the teeth. Both the men and the horses were wearing armor, and the air was chilling.

And at the front was a tall figure wearing ordinary iron armor and riding a horse with no protective gear. He held the hilt of the sword at his waist and moved forward slowly.

Behind this man, there were who knows how many armored knights were following him. On the left and right sides, there were two cavalry regiments with four to five hundred men in each row. Standing on the wall of the village and looking down, even a fool could see that the area of ​​five to six miles across was probably filled with this sudden cavalry brigade.

It should be noted that if the same number of cavalry are pulled into the field, the space they occupy is much larger than that of infantry. If the same number of infantry are pressed forward, the range of horizontal control will be no more than one or two miles, and the deterrent effect will not be so strong.

Not to mention the endless cavalry corps in front of them, whose murderous aura grew stronger with every step forward.

This murderous aura that seemed to be tangible rose into the air, and had already frightened everyone on the wall to the point that they seemed to have stopped breathing, not to mention the shacks surrounding the camp. As soon as the army appeared, all the refugees began to scream and cry uncontrollably, and fled to the north in panic, inevitably crashing into the camp they relied on.

"Hurry, hurry..." Cui Tie's teeth were chattering, but he could hardly issue a complete military order.

And there was no need for him to issue any more military orders. As the knight walking in the front drew his sword and pointed forward, the large group of cavalry, which was only two hundred steps away from the camp, immediately sped up their horses and rolled forward like an iron wall.

In an instant, the only sound between heaven and earth was the thundering sound of horse hooves. As far as the eye could see, there was only mud and dirt stirred up by the iron hooves of the war horses.

Almost before Cui Tie could say anything else, all the people with normal brains just ran towards the wall of the camp. In this kind of weather, the power of the bow would be reduced due to the rain, not to mention that the opponent was a heavy cavalry that looked like a tin can. There was no need to even shoot arrows, because everyone knew that the trench outside the camp, which was not an obstacle at all, could not stop these cavalry.

No one can stop it!

The next moment, with countless whistling sounds breaking through the air, the first row of knights took off the short spears on their backs and threw them fiercely towards the wall of the village.

But after just one round, there were no more heads standing on the wall.

Cui Tie was stabbed with several spears in the chest and abdomen. The lethality of these short spears is not comparable to that of bows and arrows. Under such great force, he was pierced through and nailed to the wall of the village.

He was still in disbelief, staring with his eyes wide open, his hands tightly holding the short spears, his mouth opening and closing with blood constantly flowing.

"I, I haven't yet..."

Unfortunately, before he could finish his words, his head tilted and he died.

He might never understand until his death that he had finally accumulated a fortune of seven or eight thousand, finally made a big name in the Yan army, and finally embarked on the path of a hero...

How could he lose his life in such a confused way without even seeing the front of the cavalry?

However, there were many people like Cui Tie in the Yan army. There were even more people who claimed to be heroes and wanted to establish a foundation in this chaotic world.

But, wait until someone draws his sword.

On that day, I really don’t know how many so-called heroes’ heads fell.

……

As the saying goes.

Don’t you see the white bones covering the fields like snow, and the sad sound of the wind rustling among the tall trees?

Once the hero draws his sword, the people of this world will suffer another ten years of disaster.

However, there is also a prophecy.

The common people are lucky to know heroes, and are happy to see the spring in the nine provinces——

If you kill all the evil dragons, your children will be able to draw strong bows.

(End of this chapter)