Chapter 175: A Lone Rider Charges Fifty Thousand

The remaining thousand Han soldiers, under the shroud of this horn, all suddenly had their morale greatly lifted.

As if they'd taken a celestial pill, each flushed red, new power erupted within them again, they clenched their weapons and charged at the Northern Yuan troops before them.

But the Northern Yuan soldiers beneath the city gate did not know what had happened on the right, how many reinforcements the enemy had brought!

Their unsettled minds caused morale to weaken considerably.

As one side waned and the other grew, they were constantly forced to retreat backward under the Han Army's onslaught.

As the horn and hoofbeats drew nearer, the shouts of men and whinnies of horses kept coming.

Under the central army's great banner, Tuo Tuo Bu Hua and Bo Er Zhi Jin Ba Ya'er narrowed their eyes, their faces set, staring intently toward the source of the sound.

To their right, on the yellow‑dust‑filled horizon, a black line was advancing.

A uniform line of dark‑armored warhorses, accompanied by the horn, advanced silently and oppressively.

Two thousand riders formed a spearhead formation, the center protruding, the wings slightly sweeping back, like a drawn black arrow aimed straight at the Northern Yuan formation.

The two thousand riders arrived extremely fast—within a moment from sight to approach, the distance was already less than five li.

Northern Yuan Crown Prince Ba Ya'er squinted, trying to discern who the newcomers were.

At the lead was a horse entirely crimson, like blazing flames, a uniform reddish‑brown without a single stray hair.

The red horse trampled the yellow earth like a red lightning bolt.

The rider wore a three‑pronged hair‑binding purple‑gold crown, a western river red brocade robe embroidered with a hundred flowers, and a finely‑crafted lion‑pattern belt.

He brandished a Bright Silver Spear, carried a large bow on his horse, and his red cloak billowed high in the north wind, rustling loudly.

The man wore no helmet, revealing a youthful face—sword‑shaped eyebrows, eyes like cold stars, a face chiseled like a knife.

He surged ahead, with two thousand riders tightly following; it seemed an invisible line linked rider and horse, no one lagged, no one scattered.

Tuo Tuo Bu Hua's expression changed.

He had fought his whole life on the steppe, having seen countless cavalry charges.

But he had never witnessed such a charge—two thousand riders moving as one, two thousand horses stepping in the same rhythm, two thousand hearts beating to the same thought.

That was not a charge. It was thunder striking the ground.

It was undoubtedly elite cavalry of the Han Army.

"Prepare to meet the enemy!" Tuo Tuo Bu Hua bellowed as the Han cavalry drew nearer.

The Northern Yuan troops, hearing the order, tightened their weapons, drew swords and spears, and nocked their bows.

The two thousand Han riders kept approaching, already breaking into within three li of the Northern Yuan formation.

Within two li.

Within one and a half li… the leading mounted Han general suddenly raised his hand.

The two thousand riders simultaneously halted their horses, stopping in unison at seven hundred steps from the Northern Yuan formation.

When the dust cleared, the leading Han general urged his horse forward a few steps, standing alone between the two armies.

He squinted and glanced at the mountain of Han corpses piled at the city gate and the opened gate.

He then glanced at the blood‑soaked Zhou Yingyuan, You Shiyong, and the remaining thousand Han soldiers still fighting.

Finally he lifted his head, his gaze passing over the Northern Yuan formation to rest on Ba Ya'er and Tuo Tuo Bu Hua.

At that moment, on both flanks of the arriving Han cavalry, two large Chinese character banners and four Jia character flags were raised, fluttering high in the wind.

This scene made Zhou Yingyuan, You Shiyong and the others watching from afar feel a thrilling chill—indeed, our Han reinforcements had arrived!

"Jia flag! Could it be the Da Han Empire's Marquis Jingwu Jia Jing who annihilated fifteen thousand Qing forces in Liaodong last year?"

A chill flashed in Tuo Tuo Bu Hua's eyes, showing a hint of caution and doubt.

The Northern Yuan were not completely ignorant of Da Han intelligence; among the Da Han generals surnamed Jia, none was more famous than the Jia Jing who was ennobled in last year's battle.

Tuo Tuo Bu Hua did not overthink; the veteran immediately sensed something amiss:

"The main army clearly dispatched Ti cavalry to monitor movements; the Han reinforcements have arrived—why was no one reporting in advance?"

At that moment, a loud shout came from the red‑robed Han general:

"Are you looking for your Ti cavalry? They're right here!"

"Gulu, gulu…"

A series of round, rolling thuds sounded, and a string of Northern Yuan heads were tossed from the Han cavalry, rolling far to the front of the Northern Yuan formation.

Before Tuo Tuo Bu Hua and Ba Ya'er could react, Jia Jing let out another booming shout from afar:

"You Northern Yuan have unjustly invaded our lands, slain our people, accrued blood debts; today you shall leave your lives here!"

Finishing, Jia Jing's face darkened; he reached out to touch the Overlord Bow beside him, gauging the distance.

At this moment they were about seven hundred steps from the Northern Yuan front line and roughly fifteen hundred steps from the central banner, slightly beyond range, so they held fire to avoid startling the enemy.

Jia Jing lowered his hand from the bow, his expression cold and sharp, and ordered Zhu Que, Niu Jizong and the others beside him:

"You all lead your troops here to rest briefly, recover strength, and raid the formation for this Marquis!"

"After this Marquis breaks the enemy army and slays their commander, then strike again to prevent their escape."

Jia Jing's words thundered like a strike of lightning in Niu Jizong's ears, leaving them stunned.

They had intended to charge forward with Jia Jing, but he issued this unbelievable order.

"What does the Marquis mean?"

"He wants us to rest here and raid the formation—does he intend to face tens of thousands of Northern Yuan troops alone on a single horse?"

"And still break the enemy army, slay their commander?"

The Northern Yuan forces observed were not few, roughly estimated at no less than fifty thousand men and horses.

Even if all two thousand of our men and horses charged, the odds were low, let alone the Marquis alone!

Niu Jizong and the others knew Jia Jing's martial prowess; they had heard he was exceptionally skilled, strong enough to lift a cauldron! He once shattered the Marquis of Linchuan with a single blow.

But no matter how martial you are, at most you're a bit stronger, a bit more skilled; being able to defeat a thousand foes is already a rare, top‑tier general throughout history!

As for one person fighting fifty thousand alone, that's simply impossible; not even in a dream would anyone do that!

Isn't this order a bit overconfident, or rather, underestimating the enemy!

Niu Jizong and the others, of course, did not want to see Jia Jing surrounded by the enemy or even killed, so they immediately raised their hands in preparation to advise him:

"Lord Hou, you must not…"

"Just follow the order; any words can be spoken after the battle," Jia Jing waved his hand and interrupted in a deep voice.

He of course understood Niu Jizong and the others' thoughts; some things are hard to believe unless seen with one's own eyes.

And the reason he issued this order was, on one hand, to see where his martial limit lay, and whether he could indeed take the enemy commander amid ten thousand troops.

More importantly, after more than ten days of nonstop day‑and‑night raids, the two thousand Han Army light cavalry were exhausted, their combat power now barely a tenth of what it was.

If they were sent now to clash head‑on with the Northern Yuan troops, even with him leading the charge, casualties would be heavy and unnecessary losses would be incurred.

Given that, why not let him try it himself first?

Although the Northern Yuan army seemed to number no less than fifty thousand, he was unafraid, boasting that even if he couldn't slay generals or seize flags, protecting himself would be no difficulty at all.

After all, Zhao Yun, Lü Bu, Xiang Yu—none of them aren't fierce generals who could kill and retreat seven times over within ten thousand troops.

He possessed the strength of three men; charging the Northern Yuan formation of fifty thousand, what difficulty could there be!

Having said that, Jia Jing said no more, donned his helmet, and rode alone on a single horse, facing the rising morning sun, charging toward the Northern Yuan army formation.

Red Hare Horse's four hooves sliced the air, its crimson figure casting a long shadow in the golden dawn.

The rider's beast‑faced, head‑engulfing linked armor shimmered with a chilling cold glint, the red tassels on the trident‑bound hair and the purple‑gold crown fluttered wildly, and the western river's crimson brocade hundred‑flower robe was blown by the north wind like a burning war flag.