Nine dragons fight for the throne, I don't want to sit on this throne

This is a battle of cavalry against cavalry, elite against elite.

The White Dragon Riders' spears clashed with the Scorpion Clan Heavy Cavalry's battle axes; silver armor against iron armor; discipline against savagery.

The two cavalry forces clashed within a narrow circular formation, with men falling every moment and every inch of land soaked in blood.

"Your Majesty! If this continues, the White Dragon Cavalry will be wiped out!" Xue Dingshan said anxiously.

The young general was covered in blood. He had just personally led his guards to block a breach, and his left arm had been slashed open by a battle axe, leaving a deep gash that exposed the bone.

Chu Ning said expressionlessly, "We must hold on. If we can hold on for another half an hour, the battle inside the city will be over, and Consort Feng will be able to lead her troops out of the city to provide support."

He paused, then added, "Moreover... Commander Xue has a backup plan."

Before he could finish speaking, the situation on the battlefield changed again.

The Scorpion Clan heavy cavalry who charged into the circular formation suddenly encountered an unexpected attack.

The ground inside the circular formation began to collapse!

It was not a natural collapse, but a man-made trap—as early as when the Chu army formed its battle formation, Xue Huaide ordered his soldiers to dig shallow pits inside the circular formation and camouflage them with wooden planks and turf.

At that moment, as the Scorpion Clan heavy cavalry charged rampaging through the circular formation, the Chu soldiers lying in ambush suddenly activated a mechanism, causing the wooden planks to flip and exposing the shallow pit!

Caught off guard, the warhorses plunged into the pit.

Although there were no sharp stakes at the bottom of the pit, the warhorse broke its leg bone, and the cavalryman fell off the horse, instantly losing his fighting ability.

Even more deadly was that countless Chu soldiers suddenly leaped up from the "piles of corpses" around the circular formation—they were simply faking their deaths!

Suddenly, he sprang into action, wielding a short blade, aiming to stab the throats, faces, and other unprotected areas of the fallen cavalrymen!

"Fell into a trap!"

The scorpion general at the forefront was furious, but it was too late.

He had just cut down a Chu soldier when the ground beneath his feet suddenly collapsed, and he and his horse fell into the pit.

Before he could even get up, three or four short blades had already pierced the gaps in his armor.

In a short time, more than half of the thousand-plus Scorpion Clan heavy cavalry that charged into the circular formation were killed!

"Retreat! Get out of there now!"

The surviving cavalrymen retreated in panic, but the gaps in the circular formation had already been resealed by the Chu army.

On the periphery, Helian Hui's face was ashen.

He hadn't expected the Chu army's defenses to be so tenacious, nor had he expected that Xue Huaide, that old scoundrel, to be so treacherous.

They actually set a trap inside the circular formation, using feigned death to lure the enemy deep inside!

"Khan, such a direct attack will result in too many losses!"

General Hulun said urgently, "The Chu army was clearly prepared, we..."

"Shut up!"

Helian Hui interrupted sharply: "If we retreat now, all our previous sacrifices will have been in vain! And—"

He looked at the Tang army resting on the gentle slope in the distance: "That old bastard Li Shimin is still watching the show."

"If we retreat, I will become a laughing stock, and how will I be able to maintain my foothold in the Central Plains in the future?"

He took a deep breath, a fierce glint in his eyes: "Order the entire army—change tactics, do not charge the circular formation, but harass instead."

"The cavalry were divided into squads of a hundred men each, taking turns to launch feint attacks to wear down the Chu army's arrows and stamina. At the same time, men were sent to circle around to other directions of Jianghuai City to see if there were any weak points in the defenses."

"Order!"

The Scorpion Clan cavalry began to change tactics.

Instead of launching concentrated attacks, they broke into smaller groups, forming numerous squads to harass the Chu army's defensive formation from all directions.

They shoot an arrow and run, slash once and retreat, constantly provoking and wearing down their opponent.

Although this harassment tactic has limited lethality, it is extremely agonizing.

The Chu soldiers had to remain vigilant at all times, their nerves were on edge, and their physical strength was depleted very quickly.

"Commander Xue, this can't go on."

At the central command, the generals were filled with worry: "Our soldiers have been fighting all night and are nearing their physical limits. With the Scorpion Clan harassing us like this, we can't hold out for long."

Xue Huaide's silver-white beard and hair fluttered in the morning breeze, but his eyes remained calm: "Even if we can't hold on, we have to. His Majesty said it only takes half an hour."

He looked toward Jianghuai City. The shouts of battle within the city were still intense, but it seemed... to be gradually subsiding.

"Send the order to all formations."

Xue Huaide slowly said, "Contract the defensive circle, move the circular formations closer together, and reduce the defensive area."

"Archers, conserve your arrows and do not fire unless absolutely necessary. Tell the soldiers—hold on for another quarter of an hour, and reinforcements will arrive!"

With the order given, the Chu army began to retreat.

The twelve circular formations slowly converged, shrinking from a two-mile-wide arc-shaped defensive line into a dense defensive circle with a diameter of no more than one mile.

The defensive area is smaller, but the formation is more compact and the defense is more solid.

The Scorpion Clan cavalry continued their harassment, but with greatly reduced effectiveness.

Helian Hui, observing the situation clearly from within the formation, frowned deeply.

He knew that the Chu army was determined to hold out for their lives and await reinforcements.

The reinforcements... could only be the Chu army inside the city.

“Hulun,” Helian Hui suddenly spoke.

"The end will be here."

"You will lead five thousand elite troops and immediately circle around to the west of Jianghuai City. If the Chu army inside the city comes out to reinforce, you will intercept them from the flank. If not—"

He paused, a cold glint in his eyes: "Let's launch a probing attack. The main force of the Chu army is at the east gate, so the western defenses will inevitably be weak."

Hulun's eyes lit up: "The Khan is wise!"

He immediately mustered five thousand cavalry and set off westward.

Meanwhile, in Jianghuai City.

Feng Mulan personally led her troops and finally forced the last remaining Tang army, which was stubbornly resisting, into an abandoned warehouse in the west of the city.

"General Han Xing, General Guan Yun."

Feng Mulan, her red armor stained with blood, still spoke in a cold voice: "I'm leaving this place to you. I must leave the city immediately to support His Majesty."

She looked up at the sky—it was already past 1:00 PM, just a quarter of an hour away from the "half an hour" she had promised.

A quarter of an hour later, she will personally lead the Xuanjia Iron Cavalry to break out of Jianghuai City.

Together with His Majesty, they will attack from both sides.

Annihilate the Scorpion Clan cavalry here!

Meanwhile, on the hillside east of the city.

Li Shiming, supported by two soldiers, gazed at the distant battlefield.

Seeing that the Scorpion Clan's cavalry had been stopped, his face turned ashen: "Hmph, Helian Hui boasted that his cavalry was invincible and that he could tear apart the Chu army's defenses with just two charges."

"And now, humph, how arrogant he is! What a waste of my trust in him!"

Xue Che frowned and said, "Your Majesty, the Chu army's armor is superior to ours, and Xue Huaide's command was excellent, and they made preparations for defense in advance, which is why the Scorpion Clan cavalry suffered losses."

"However, judging from the movements of the Scorpion Clan cavalry, they seem to be planning to split their forces and storm into the city."

"Now is a good opportunity for our army. If we just charge in now, we can defeat the Chu army head-on with the Scorpion Clan cavalry!"

Li Shiming fell silent upon hearing this.

Although he also wanted to play the role of the mantis stalking the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind, the situation had evolved to this point that he could no longer sit idly by.

Otherwise, if the Scorpion Clan cavalry were defeated, the situation would be unfavorable to him.

Now is the perfect time to act!

With this in mind, Li Shiming's eyes turned cold, and he said in a deep voice, "General Xue is right. I order you to lead all your troops and immediately attack the Chu army!"