Great Han Arrow God

Chapter 263 Armored Cavalry
Liang Xiao came to Batu's big tent early in the morning.

Batu hadn't got up yet, his face was pale after the hangover, even whiter than powder, and he looked like a dead man.He kept covering his mouth with his hand, apologizing to Liang Xiao time and time again.I have to say that this kid is very considerate in etiquette, at least Liang Xiao can't find fault with him.

"I'm really sorry to disturb the prince so early."

"No...it's okay. Ah——" Batu yawned long, tears were about to come out.He waved his hands awkwardly, and managed to slow down. "Your envoy came so early, do you have any advice?"

"It's still the same thing as yesterday."

"What's the matter?"

"The thing about the princess."

Batu was stunned for a while, then he suddenly regained his energy.He moved to Liang Xiao's side, and said impatiently, "Why, what good idea do you have?"

"Prince, do you remember the Dawan customs I told you yesterday?"

Batu thought for a while and nodded again and again. "I remember, I remember, I remember clearly."

"Prince, have you thought about a question." Liang Xiao dragged his voice, and said slowly: "If you can't conquer those three maids..."

Batu froze for a moment before realizing the problem.He is the prince of the Yue family, and it is a big deal to propose marriage to Princess Dawan.Regardless of whether it succeeds in the end, it will alarm the dignitaries of the two countries.If it succeeds in the end and embraces the beauty, of course it will be the best of both worlds.But if it fails, and the reason for the failure is that you are not healthy, it will become a scandal.If this is passed back to Yuezhi, wouldn't he become a laughing stock?

If a man on the prairie cannot conquer women, he is just as useless as he cannot ride a horse, draw a bow and shoot an arrow.He is notoriously weak in martial arts, if he can't even conquer women, wouldn't he be useless?
What qualifications does such a person have to compete with Aliu for the throne?

"Then... what should we do then?" Batu asked eagerly, holding Liang Xiao's hand.

"According to a certain plan, the matter of proposing to the princess should wait for the time being. You might as well try it in private first to see if you are sure to pass the test. If you are sure, you can bring it up later."

"It makes sense, it makes sense." Batu nodded repeatedly, slapped Liang Xiao's hand vigorously, and suddenly laughed again. "There are four beautiful maids by your side, are you practicing every day?"

"Alas—" Liang Xiao looked ashamed. "Prince, keep it secret, keep it secret."

Seeing Liang Xiao like this, Batu laughed out loud. "Tell me, is this Dawan woman so different that even a warrior like your envoy can't stand it?"

Liang Xiao clung to Batu's ear and muttered a few words.In order to get rid of Batu's covetousness towards Luo Xuli, he had no choice but to fabricate lies against his conscience, making Alpha and the others look like Rakshasas, almost calling them vampires.He knew that Batu was lustful, and he also had thoughts about the four of Alpha, so it was hard to guarantee that he would make an illegal request one day, so he would take this opportunity to frighten him and silence him.

Sure enough, after hearing Liang Xiao's description, Batu blinked his eyes in fright, and his already pale face lost even a trace of blood. "So cruel?"

"Yeah, there's nothing I can do. I have to use the excuse of practicing archery to avoid their entanglement as much as possible. If it wasn't for this, I'm afraid I would have collapsed."

Batu was dripping with cold sweat, grateful. "Thank you for reminding me, I almost humiliated myself."

"Hey, who made us allies?" Liang Xiao patted Batu on the shoulder. "Prince, think twice before acting, and don't act rashly, so as not to bring disaster and notoriety."

Batu nodded repeatedly.

-

The king of Dawan soon received a letter of good news from Mei Cai.Knowing that Mei Cai commanded old Andrew and others to ambush the Wusun people at the mountain pass and won the first battle, I am very happy, but also a little worried.He has been worried about the arrival of the Wusun people, hoping that this is just a false alarm. Now that the Wusun people really came, he is very nervous and restless.

Do not hesitate to invite Liang Xiao, Batu and Azhena to enter the palace to discuss.

The result of the discussion was very simple. Liang Xiao and others led five thousand Yue clan elite cavalry to help Mei Cai, and together they repelled the Wusun people.Prior to this, Mei Cai had conscripted [-] troops, including more than [-] cavalry.With the addition of five thousand Yuezhi cavalry and the advantage of the terrain, there is every chance to block the Wusun people.

In addition, Liang Xiao suggested that the widows order the cities to fortify the walls and clear the fields, and prepare to defend the cities.Although Dawan has good horses, but the cavalry is very average, on the contrary, they have mastered the tactics of defending the city well.Considering that it is already winter, heavy snow may cover the ground at any time, and the Wusun people have limited time to attack the city, so defending the city has become the safest tactic.

Don't hesitate to agree.

After the farewell party, Liang Xiao and the others immediately set off for the mountain pass.

The Yuezhi people are all cavalry, with two or three horses per person.Compared with the Dawan people, these Yuezhi people are more able to bear hardships and stand hard work, so they march very fast, they can travel two to three hundred miles a day, and even eat on horseback, even Azhena is no exception.

Liang Xiao and others saw the perseverance of the nomads.If it weren't for the experience of being chased by King Hunxie for more than half a month before, it would be difficult for them to persevere.But no one could have imagined that it wasn't Liang Xiao and the others who couldn't persevere first, but Batu.

Batu is a standard dude, and his body is weak, so he can't bear this kind of high-intensity rapid march.After just two days of walking, his thighs were worn out, and he screamed when he touched them.Azhena had no choice but to leave Batu in a city passing by along the way, and he and Liang Xiao led the army to rush forward.

Ajina, as the Dalu of the Yue family, is equivalent to the prime minister of the Han Dynasty, but he is not a civil servant.In fact, he is the real commander of the Five Thousand Yue Clan Royal Court Jingqi, and Batu is only here to gild.Along the way, Liang Xiao saw Ashena dispatching cavalry with his own eyes, and learned a lot.It's just that Ah Shena was reserved and introverted, and never took the initiative to communicate with Liang Xiao.Liang Xiao asked him for advice, but he just tasted it and refused to go into it.

Liang Xiao could only see with his eyes and listen with his ears at the same time.

When leaving Guishan City, Luo Xuli gave Alpha another volume of ancient books.This time, I probably didn't have time to copy, so I gave the original manuscript directly.

This ancient book is about the cavalry of Bactria, which is exactly what Liang Xiao is eager to understand.

Liang Xiao was surprised.Bactria actually had cavalry equipped with heavy armor, fighting with spears.It was by virtue of such armored cavalry that King Osidmus of Bactria defeated Antiochus III of the Seleucid Dynasty and stabilized the newly established dynasty.

In Liang Xiao's impression, the armored cavalry probably appeared in its infancy during the Three Kingdoms period, developed during the Southern and Northern Dynasties, reached its peak in the Sui Dynasty, and then quickly declined.But he didn't know that as early as the Qin and Han Dynasties, there were armored cavalry in Central Asia, which was nearly 400 years earlier than the appearance of the Central Plains.

Of course, the armored cavalry in Central Asia did not have stirrups or high bridge saddles. Although they could fight with spears, their impact power could not be compared with the heavy armored cavalry of later generations.They can only attack the enemy's flanks or rear wings, and once they face the spearmen standing in formation, they can only retreat for a while, far from the rampant prestige of the heavy armored cavalry of later generations.

Liang Xiao wondered, since Bactria had such powerful cavalry, why did they lose to the Yuezhi people?Even without stirrups, such cavalry should be stronger than the Yuezhi people who only have leather armor.

With a cheeky face, Liang Xiao went to ask Azhena again.

Ah Shena glanced at Liang Xiao in surprise, held the rein with one hand, stroked his beard with the other, and pondered for a moment. "I can answer your envoy's question. Your envoy needs to tell me first, how do you know Bactria's armored cavalry? As far as I know, not long ago, you seemed to know very little about Bactria's cavalry .”

Liang Xiao smiled. "read."

"Reading? What book?"

"Some Greek war history books mention Bactria's armored cavalry, including their equipment and fighting methods."

Ashina was even more surprised. "Can you read the classics in Greek?"

"I just learned it, and I'm still very unfamiliar. I can barely understand the general idea, and I still don't understand some words."

"That's hard to come by." Ashina thought deeply. "The reason why my Yuezhi cannot be strong is probably related to my Yuezhi's lack of writing." He sighed, and then said: "Actually, the people who defeated Bactria were not our Yuezhi people, but the Cypriots. "

Liang Xiao thought for a while and nodded in agreement.The Sai people are the nomadic people who were driven all the way by the Yuezhi people. They were originally in the east of Congling.The Yuezhi people were defeated by the Huns and forced to move westward, crushing them all the way. The Sai people, like the Wusun people, were defeated by them and had to flee westward.After passing Congling Ridge, the Cypriots were very powerful and defeated the Bactrians.The Yuezhi people then also went to Central Asia, and defeated the Central Asians again.

This is a survival game where big fish eat small fish and small fish eat shrimp.Unfortunately, Bactria, with its heavy cavalry, is that shrimp.

This made Liang Xiao even more curious.

"Although the cavalry in Bactria have armor, they don't ride and shoot, but prefer to use spears. Although the spears are only two feet long, even the weakest bows and arrows can shoot farther than the spears. Ten Even if the Bactrian cavalry wears armor, they may not be able to block the bows and arrows of the Cypriots. Even if people can block them, what about horses?"

Liang Xiao suddenly realized.It seems that although Bactria's cavalry has armor, they are not so strong that they are invulnerable.

"Wearing armor, for humans, the protection is stronger. But for war horses, the burden is also heavier, both speed and endurance are greatly reduced. Facing the Cypriots, chasing them, they can't catch up, fleeing , they couldn’t escape, and they could only be shot at close range by bows and arrows in the end. What’s the use of such cavalry?”

Liang Xiao smiled.Isn't this the reason why the heavy armored cavalry died out during the Sui and Tang Dynasties, but I didn't expect that there had been similar cases before that, but it happened again in the Central Plains seven or eight hundred years later.

The news is not well informed.

This shows how important it is to open your eyes to see the world, and how technical details affect the process of the world.How ignorant and arrogant it is to ignore technology and worship saints' scriptures all day long.
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(End of this chapter)