Chapter 57: Armored Cavalry Charge
Victory and defeat are often just a matter of thought.

The Turkic Wolf Cavalry not only had examples of defeating a larger force with a smaller one, but also had the ability to break through the Tang army's square formations. Poli firmly believed that he could do it.

Under his command, there were five hundred Apoda cadres and brave cavalrymen wearing iron armor.

Knowing that he would have to face the Tang army's phalanx, he also carried hundreds of vests.

The Turks were once the blacksmiths of the Rouran people, so naturally they knew how to make iron armor.

The armor of the Turks was iron armor, which was far inferior to the Ming Guang armor and fish scale armor of the Tang Dynasty in terms of quality, appearance and comfort.

In addition, in terms of iron smelting technology and iron production, the Turks could not be compared with the Tang Dynasty.

After receiving the battle order, the Turkic cavalry took off their vests, put them on the strongest horses, and had the bravest armored cavalry ride them.

The Turkic cavalry aimed to break through the Tang army's defenses in one breath and charge into the formation.

"Once our country was destroyed and we surrendered to the Tang Dynasty, but the Tang people kept recruiting us to fight all over the country. Countless of our ancestors died and were injured. They took our cattle and sheep and let our ancestors starve to death in the winter on the grassland. We could no longer tolerate it, and it was Jie Dilishi Khan who led us to rebuild our country."

"We don't want to be slaves. Our ancestors have told us what the consequences of being a slave are."

"We cannot surrender. When Ashidewenfu surrendered to Pei Xingjian, Pei Xingjian clearly promised to spare his life, but he went back on his word and killed him. The Tang people will not be lenient to those who surrender. Those cowards who surrender to the Tang people will only live under the whip of the Tang people."

"We must drive the Tang people to within the Yellow River. That is where they should go."

"My sons, fly like eagles on the grasslands, and be fearless like wolves. To die in battle is an honor, and you will be summoned by the gods of Tianshan. To die of illness is a shame, and the gods will abandon you, and you will be reincarnated as a sheepdog in the next life."

"charge!"

Poli held a spear in his hand, raised it three times in a row, and shouted at the elite cavalry.

"Woooo..."

A fierce and long horn sounded, which was the sound of weapons and weapons.

"God bless you."

Countless Turkic cavalrymen shouted to the sky. Their morale was high, and they rode their horses and galloped on the full moon night.

Of the 10,000 cavalrymen, 1,000 were left behind to wait for support after the formation was broken, and the rest were divided into three teams.

One team of 3,000 cavalry made a feint attack on the front, and another team of 3,000 cavalry made a feint attack on the north.

The last team was led by a hundred armored heavy cavalrymen, followed by knights in iron armor. Some of the remaining cavalrymen wore leather armor, while most were not.

The Turkic cavalry would cover their horses' eyes with black cloth to prevent the horses from seeing obstacles or stopping in fear of spears.

Although the armored cavalry is slow when charging, it is very intimidating.

The war horses were like huge beasts at night, and the symphony of hooves and iron sounds was like the roars of wild beasts.

When the Turkic cavalry dispersed, an invisible pressure enveloped the Tang army.

Li Xuan personally commanded the southern camp. He deployed troops and generals to make up for the gap in the south.

Teams of armored soldiers, holding spears nearly two meters long, replaced the unarmored soldiers in the front.

Deer horns and chariots were pushed out to make the defense coherent and unbreakable.

Hundreds of soldiers wearing leather armor and holding ordinary spears walked out from the gaps between the teams and lined up in a row. They stood in front of the chariots and deer horns to attract the Turkic armored cavalry.

When the Turkish cavalry approached, these soldiers would immediately retreat.

Poli commanded the cavalry in the north and south to launch a feint attack on the Tang army.

The feint attack here does not mean to charge at the Tang army's swordsmanship foolishly on horseback.

Instead, they cavalrymen fired missiles from a distance to attract the attention of the Tang army's phalanx.

However, in terms of range and power, how can a cavalry bow compare to an infantry bow?

Not to mention the Tang army's 1.54 crossbows with a range of over steps (one step in the Tang Dynasty was about meters).

"Get ready!"

After the Turkic cavalry came into range, the crossbowmen loaded their crossbows under the command of the generals.

The powerful crossbow is not suitable for projectile shooting, and its power is greatest when shot horizontally.

The Tang army consisted of fifty men in each team.

There was a gap of nearly ten feet between the teams.

The crossbowman shoots at the enemy through the gaps.

Since only one horse can pass through the gap, the Turkic cavalry would surely die if they tried to break through the gap alone.

Even armored cavalry would be knocked down by the dense spears.

"shoot!"

At the order from the generals in front and in the north, the crossbowmen pulled the triggers.

It is impossible to prepare and aim at night, but with thousands of crossbow arrows, the probability of killing is very high.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa..."

Crossbow arrows flew out like rain, cutting through the night sky.

"Eh..."

"what……"

The shrill roars of war horses and the screams of Turkic cavalry falling off their horses.

Bloodshed in the darkness.

The Turkish cavalry had to get closer to launch their arrows. They had to brave the strong crossbows and move forward. After a round of crossbow arrows, about ten breaths later, the crossbowmen struggled to load the second crossbow arrow into the crossbow arm.

"Fire arrows!"

At this time, the Turkish cavalry entered the archers' shooting range.

Compared to crossbowmen, archers are a little further back.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa..."

They raised their bows and shot at a forty-five-degree angle to maximize the arrow's range.

Combined with strong crossbows, it dealt a heavy blow to the Turkic cavalry.

The Turkic cavalry moved closer and began to fire projectiles at the Tang army's formation.

The Tang army held up their shields to block the rain of arrows.

In such a shootout, the casualties of the Turkic cavalry on horseback would be several times, or even ten times, that of the Tang army.

This is the Turkic cavalry, still moving constantly.

Po Li was not afraid of being hurt. He thought that if he could hold on for a while, he would be able to wait for the good news that the formation had been broken.

As long as he can break the formation, his casualties are not worth mentioning.

He knew clearly that if one side of the Tang army's formation was broken, the situation could easily spread to the entire army.

"Kill the Tang people..."

The Turkic armored cavalry charging from the south of the army formation were only a hundred steps away from the Tang army.

They saw that the Tang army didn't even put up their shields, and there was a fierce look in their eyes.

Just today!

They will definitely be able to break through the Tang army's formation.

When the cavalry reached 80 steps away from the Tang army, the outermost Tang army began to enter the gaps between the teams in an orderly manner.

What was revealed were two layers of deer antlers and chariots lined up in a row.

Behind the chariot, there were large iron shields and long spears like a forest.

There is also the cold and resolute gaze of the Tang army.

"not good……"

The Turkic cavalry realized that something was wrong, but the arrow was already on the string.

They are different from the other two sides in that they are charging forward.

The horses charged at full speed and it was unlikely to stop immediately.

Especially at night, if you stop, you will be knocked down and trampled to death by the blindfolded horses behind you.

Apart from crushing the enemy, the other option is for the warhorses to be blocked and lose their mobility.

"Those who dare to die, let's go to see the gods together. Destroy the antlers."

Xi Jiejin was in the team, giving orders to the armored cavalry.

He tried to use his armor and cavalry equipment to tear a hole in this solid line of defense and fight to the death.

"Aim at the enemy armored cavalry and shoot!"

Li Xuan has five hundred powerful crossbowmen from the Feng'an Army, and he has been waiting for this moment.

The two sides were less than thirty steps apart.

The Turkic armored cavalry was exceptionally bright in the moonlight, allowing the soldiers to aim to a certain extent.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa..."

The crossbowmen crouched in front of the gap with their crossbows raised and pulled the triggers.

The powerful crossbow is fired like thunder, and whoever is hit will fall down.

At such a close distance, a powerful crossbow can penetrate iron armor.

Half of the armored cavalry fell down before they even hit them.

Other armored cavalry who were not wearing armor also suffered some casualties.

But the Turkic cavalry still charged forward, and they were not more than ten feet away.

An armored cavalryman, fearless and fearless, ignored the deer's horns and charged straight forward.

"Wow..."

The hemp ropes used to tie the deer's antlers were broken, and the spiked cylinders fell to pieces.

One of the spikes pierced the horse's chest, and the horse fell down after a scream.

The Turkish knight in iron armor just rolled off his horse but did not die.

He stood up, took out a dagger and started cutting the hemp rope on the antlers next to him.

"call out!"

Li Xuan saw him through a gap, picked up a crossbow, quickly loaded it with arrows, and pulled the trigger.

The Turkic armored cavalryman was shot in the chest and fell to the ground with hatred.

(End of this chapter)