Jinting Han people

Since Tuoba Liwei unified southern Mongolia, the Tuoba Xianbei had always been the hegemon of the grasslands and the leader among the Xianbei tribes. This was not due to any special destiny or aura bestowed upon the Tuoba people, but rather to the hard work and painstaking efforts of their generations of heroes.

After Tuoba Liwei, the three heroes Tuoba Shamo Khan, Tuoba Chuo, and Tuoba Luguan maintained stability within the territory. Later, the three heroes Tuoba Fu, Tuoba Yiyi, and Tuoba Yilu expanded the Tuoba tribe's hegemony to Liaodong, the northern deserts, and the Western Regions. Now, although the position of Chanyu has not yet been passed down to the younger generation, a large number of young talents have emerged, the most famous of whom are Tuoba Liuxiu, Tuoba Yulu, and Tuoba Pugen.

All three men rose to prominence through military achievements, especially Tuoba Liuxiu. Although he was the eldest son of the Great Chanyu Tuoba Yilu, he was not a legitimate son. Because his mother was a Xiongnu, he faced discrimination within his own tribe. Therefore, to prove himself, Tuoba Liuxiu often led from the front and fought bravely. He had previously defeated Liu Cong in Bingzhou, repelled Liu Hu in Shuofang, and even subdued the Yuwen Xianbei in Liaoxi, all of which earned him great merit and a distinguished reputation.

Tuoba Liuxiu had previously sworn brotherhood with Shi Le and strongly advocated for an alliance between Shi Le and the Tuoba tribe, which may have been an attempt to use Shi Le as an external ally and interfere in the succession within the tribe. Now, in this great battle concerning the ownership of the Central Plains, it was precisely the time for him to display his talents.

At this moment, Tuoba Liuxiu wore a black helmet painted with white wolves, adorned with red-dyed eagle feathers on both sides. A long collar encircled his neck and shoulders, followed by heavy fish-scale armor lined with cowhide, and then a layer of chainmail underneath. His mount was a seven-foot-tall Akhal-Teke horse, clad in a set of dark blue iron armor, making him appear a head taller than ordinary horses, truly a king among horses. With his eight-foot height, Tuoba Liuxiu mounted his horse in stirrups, standing out even more among the other tall and imposing knights.

Standing on his horse, he shouted to those around him in Xianbei language: "Nan'er's formation is solid. Only those who can tear a tiger's tongue from its mouth can break it. Fellow Xianbei warriors, are you afraid of death?"

Those on either side shouted in unison, "We who live with bows and die without swords, we Xianbei are willing to live and die with you, my lord!"

Tuoba Liuxiu then brought out a black dragon banner used by the Tuoba clan, which was held aloft by Daxi Tai. He ordered Duan Fan to be the vanguard and Wei Xiong to be the rearguard, and then led five thousand iron cavalry to charge towards the front of the Han army.

The Xianbei attack was not accompanied by drumbeats. As they took their first steps, the Xianbei who were not following behind brandished long spears and took out their quivers, shaking them vigorously in mid-air, the arrow shafts colliding with each other and making a cracking sound.

The Han army had never heard such a sound before. At first, they did not know what it was. After a while, they heard the sound of the quiver shaking getting louder and louder, as if arrows were flying wildly in the air and colliding with each other, or as if thousands of raindrops were hitting yak hide felt.

Looking ahead, whistles and the deep, drawn-out sound of horns mingled with the distant clatter of horses' hooves. Before the Xianbei cavalry, countless tiny points of light rose and fell, reflecting the dazzling sunlight off the tips of their spears. Having witnessed the Han army's resilience, the Xianbei had abandoned archery and were now determined to break through with sheer force!
Such a display of force placed immense pressure on the Han troops defending the front lines. They could clearly feel the earth-shattering tremors and the crashing waves around them, reminding them that the enemy's charge was more powerful than any they had ever encountered before—an unprecedentedly formidable foe. Moreover, compared to the rear guard equipped with crossbows and the chariot formations with flanking barriers, the Han troops on the front had nothing to rely on but their weapons and their own flesh and blood.

In fact, when the Xianbei cavalry charged right in front of them, even Li Ju, the commander-in-chief, was on edge. Witnessing the scene that resembled the end of the world, he also realized that even though his own cavalry had been trained for a long time, there was still a considerable gap between them and the Xianbei, and the defeat of the right flank was not undeserved.

At this moment, Li Ju himself was unsure whether the Han army could hold off the enemy. He could only force himself not to close his eyes and maintain a calm expression, watching the Xianbei people charging into battle while urgently thinking of a way to deal with them.

He had realized that, given the Han army was now surrounded on three sides and the fact that their cumbersome equipment prevented them from altering the formations of the crossbowmen and charioteers, allowing this cavalry force to force the Han army into a retreat would render the entire Han defense vulnerable. Therefore, the Han army not only had little room to retreat, but also had to actively advance to seize buffer space from the enemy.

Therefore, Li Ju quickly ordered the soldiers at the front to advance instead of retreat, advancing several dozen steps forward, then dividing into three ranks, forming shield and halberd formations every few steps, in order to delay the Xianbei people's offensive.

This was an essential tactic for the halberdiers to deal with cavalry. As soon as he gave the order, the Han soldiers carried it out almost without thinking, subconsciously. Just like they had practiced it hundreds of times in Jingzhou, thousands of soldiers rushed forward and formed three human walls on the snow about thirty paces away with fluid movements.

These three human walls were composed of two rows of Han soldiers. The shield bearers at the front supported their shields with their hands and shoulders. They stood with one foot forward and the other knee on the ground, forming a line with shields that were nearly as tall as a person.

Behind them were the halberdiers, who thrust their halberds diagonally through the gaps in the shields. However, unlike the shield bearers, they did not kneel; instead, while bracing against the shields, they placed one foot forward for stability and the other foot behind, stepping on the halberd shaft, gripping the shaft tightly with both hands to stabilize the halberd.

They stood in three rows, waiting for the Xianbei cavalry to charge.

This tactic is essentially a suicidal strategy, especially for the first rank of soldiers facing the charge. Their casualty rate would be extremely high against any cavalry charge. If their own side showed weakness or hesitation, causing their formation to become unstable, there was a possibility of total annihilation. Therefore, Li Ju sent not only brave warriors here, but also death-defying soldiers, and had promised beforehand that if they died in battle, their compensation would be five times that of the other soldiers.

Whether the Han army can withstand the Xianbei's onslaught depends entirely on these people.

After the Xianbei entered their range, the Han army fired their first volley of arrows, severely wounding over twenty Xianbei knights. Before they could fire a second shot, gleaming armored beasts charged into the ranks. The horses were too fast, barely stopping, trampling over the bodies of the Han soldiers in the front ranks. The shield bearers and halberdiers in the first rank had no chance to escape, and were instantly crushed beneath their shields like waves crashing over a sand ditch. Duan Fan led hundreds of riders forward, their heavy hooves pounding the shields, creating a series of cracking sounds—the sound of Han soldiers' bones being crushed by the weight of the iron cavalry. No matter how fearless the Han soldiers were, human strength could not compare to the power of horses. Due to the immense impact, many died in agony before they could even scream.

At the same time, many Xianbei knights charged too fast, and their horses' bellies collided with the halberd tips, instantly disemboweling them. Before the horses even felt the pain, their lungs and entrails spilled out, and they belatedly collapsed to the ground.

Despite the Han army's valiant resistance, the vanguard of the Xianbei cavalry was briefly halted, their horses slowing down. Consequently, when facing the second shield wall, they could no longer replicate their previous momentum. The Xianbei attempted to force their way through the shield wall, but only partially succeeded, while the rest either fell from their horses and rolled to the ground or hesitated and stabbed each other in front of the shield wall.

Upon reaching the third shield wall, most of the Xianbei cavalry lost their speed. Due to the cramped formation, they could no longer turn around and launch an attack. Continuing to ride on horseback would only draw fire. So they dismounted and formed a battle line to ensure that the following cavalry could continue to attack along their path.

However, not all the cavalrymen stopped. At least one sharp wedge had carved a gap in the third line of defense and charged forward towards Li Ju's main force. The one that came was the cavalry led by Tuoba Liuxiu himself.

After breaking through three shield walls, he faced the Han army's direct combat troops. Armored soldiers of different armors, wielding swords, axes, spears, and halberds, formed small square formations in varying proportions. These formations could assemble or disperse according to the signal of their banners. Each square formation consisted of several dozen men. Seeing him penetrate so deeply, the other teams knew that a fight to the death was necessary to repel him, so they shouted and charged forward.

Two of the squad leaders, one wielding a long saber and the other a long spear, charged towards Tuoba Liuxiu's horse. The one with the saber charged forward, swinging his blade sharply down at the horse's head; the one with the spear rolled on the ground, intending to stab the exposed abdomen. This was a tactic Li Ju had personally taught his soldiers: against an overly fierce enemy general, use this pincer attack to first kill the enemy's horse, making it easier to hold the line on foot.

But Tuoba Liuxiu was no ordinary knight. In a flash, he first thrust his spear upwards, striking the man's throat. Before the longsword could fall, the man collapsed to the ground in astonishment. Then, Tuoba Liuxiu leaned slightly to the right, reversed his spear, and struck the man's shoulder with the shaft, causing him to drop the spear. Before he could react, the Akhal-Teke horse delivered a powerful side kick, sending him flying.

At this moment, a third person tried to take advantage of the situation, but before he could even get into position, he saw two people fall one after another. Shocked, he tried to turn back, but it was too late. Tuoba Liuxiu, like a god descending to earth, roared and chased after him, killing him in one fell swoop. He then paused briefly, looked around, and coldly sneered in broken Chinese, "I am Tuoba Liuxiu, a warrior capable of defeating ten thousand Xianbei men. Who dares to fight me to the death?"

Having performed such terrifying feats in succession, even someone as valiant as Tuoba Liuxiu was inevitably somewhat fatigued. He was secretly terrified by the Han army's tenacity, though he didn't show it outwardly. The surrounding Han soldiers were also intimidated by his imposing presence, and a brief stalemate ensued.

Tuoba Liuxiu's first thought upon charging into the enemy ranks was to find the Han army's commander. However, when he looked around the army, he couldn't find the Han army's banner, as Guo Fang had already taken it to rally the routed soldiers on the right wing. Meanwhile, Li Ju wasn't the type to flaunt his rank; he was wearing ordinary two-piece armor, indistinguishable from a regular captain, which caused Tuoba Liuxiu to lose his bearings.

However, war is all about pride. If Tuoba Liuxiu continues his rampage, even the most resilient Han army will crumble under the weight of their broken morale. Therefore, Li Ju almost instinctively wanted to send a general to engage him in battle. But before he could finish speaking, he realized something was amiss. In his own camp, the only capable general he had was Wen Shuo. But could Wen Shuo possibly defeat this man?
Just as Li Ju hesitated, before he could speak, Wen Shuo had already made a move to step forward and shouted loudly, "How dare these barbarians be arrogant in front of my army? Haven't you heard that one Han man can take on five barbarians!"

Upon hearing Wen Shuo's words, the morale of the Han army generals was boosted, and they burst into cheers, shouting in unison, "Wen Wudang! Wen Wudang!"

Within the Han army, there was a saying: "Guo, Du, Wen, Mao, and Zhang." This meant that, excluding rising stars like Liu Lang and Qiao Deng, among the many Han generals who participated in the founding of the Han dynasty, Guo Mo, Du Zeng, Wen Shuo, Mao Bao, and Zhang Guang were generally considered the most valiant in battle. Wen Shuo, in particular, had participated in the formation of the Anhan Army's halberd division and enjoyed high prestige within the Anhan Army. Now that Wen Shuo was willing to fight, most people believed that he would surely achieve victory.

But this was actually the opinion of an outsider. Those with discerning eyes, like Li Ju, couldn't help but feel worried for Wen Shuo. Based on Tuoba Liuxiu's current performance, his ferocity should surpass Wen Shuo's, and his martial arts were comparable to Guo Mo and Du Zeng's. Especially since Tuoba Liuxiu also rode a magnificent Akhal-Teke horse; with the horse's strength amplified, it was hard to imagine how Wen Shuo could possibly win.

Wen Shuo, as the person involved, understood this even better. However, he stood up straight in front of the generals and was fully prepared: facing such a powerful enemy, and with Guo Mo nowhere to be found, if he didn't take responsibility, who would?
Moreover, ever since his defeat at Yidao at the hands of Du Zeng, Wen Shuo had felt deeply ashamed. After Du Zeng surrendered, he had no chance to redeem himself and could only think of ways to prove himself on the battlefield again. Now that he was on such an important battlefield, he was determined not to add another inglorious defeat to his record. Therefore, he was prepared to die. Even if he could not win, he would give his life to severely wound the enemy general.

Therefore, before going into battle, he first saluted Li Ju and said, "Marshal, take care. Wen Shuo, go and quell the rebels!"

Seeing the death wish in Wen Shuo's eyes, Li Ju was startled, but then felt a surge of genuine admiration. He unfastened his sword and handed it to Wen Shuo, saying:
"Brother Wen, this is a precious sword bestowed upon me by His Majesty. It was originally the double-edged sword of Emperor Liezu, accompanying him on his campaigns across the Nine Provinces. After Emperor Liezu established the nation, he gifted the mighty sword to Marquis Wu, who then gifted it to General Jiang. It can be said to be a sword of martial fortune. After Lord Laizhong held out in Brazil for forty years, he returned it to His Majesty, who named it the Anhan Sword and then gifted it to me. Today, facing this life-or-death battle, I lend you this sword, wishing you continued success in your military endeavors!"

Upon hearing this, Wen Shuo's expression turned solemn and dignified. He solemnly accepted the Anhan Sword, fastened it to his belt, and then slowly cupped his hands, saying, "Please rest assured, Marshal. Since you trust me so much, even if I die on the battlefield, I will be as happy as ascending to heaven!" (End of Chapter)