At the Xibian Gate, there were over a thousand cavalrymen, with warhorses milling about all over the place, making them seem like an overwhelming force.
A large flag with the character "Jia" stood tall in the center.
Night soon fell.
The usual sounds of the Mongol army were gone.
The Guangning Gate opened.
3500 cavalrymen and 8500 warhorses, a massive army on the move, were bound to create a stir.
However, the Guangning Gate was already sealed off by the local militia.
The autumn night was cool, with the cold moonlight bathing the land.
The Mongol army was extremely large, carrying with them a vast amount of supplies.
This resulted in their slow pace of travel.
Soon, a scout team of twenty Xuanjia Iron Cavalry caught up to the rear of the Mongol army.
After confirming their location, Jia Yu did not charge directly but sent more light cavalry ahead to scout the way.
Jia Yu led his cavalry to flank the enemy, aiming for a deeper pursuit.
He had a large appetite, wanting more.
While dispatching scouts to gather information, the main army marched on, flanking the Mongol forces identified by the scouts.
The next day, one hundred and fifty kilometers from the capital.
According to the light cavalry's reconnaissance, a Mongol force of about 8000, carrying a large amount of baggage, would be passing through this area.
Soon, a disorganized column appeared in their field of vision.
The troops were in utter disarray.
The Mongols on horseback were laden with various goods.
The carriages behind them were similarly stacked with supplies.
This made their march incredibly slow.
However, the surrounding cities and the Great Zhou forces had been driven far away by them.
Even if there were Great Zhou troops, they wouldn't dare leave the city walls, only staying within the city to defend.
The only real threat was the Great Zhou Capital Garrison within the capital.
But they were tasked with protecting the capital and couldn't afford to chase them out.
Therefore, these Mongols were quite scattered.
Of course, this was also due to their not being a regular army.
The Mongol army could be divided into two types: a professional army and tribal warriors.
The professional army was paid by the Khanate and their families were taken care of by the Mongol Khan.
Professional soldiers received excellent treatment and were allowed to keep half of the spoils from battle, only needing to contribute a portion.
The other type of army was comprised of tribal warriors.
These warriors were drawn from various tribes.
They followed the Khan's orders and could be considered "Gods of the Wind" in battle, but "Dogs of the Wind" when things turned south.
When the wind was in their favor, they fought with the fiercest determination.
Of course, they were also the quickest to grab spoils.
However, if the tide turned and they found themselves at a disadvantage, they would flee faster than anyone else.
It was unavoidable; if there were heavy casualties among the tribal warriors, other tribes on the steppe wouldn't miss such a chance to exploit the situation.
So, if the situation was unfavorable, they would prioritize their own survival before anything else.
This was vastly different from the professional soldiers.
This particular force was the tribal warriors who followed the Mongol Khan on his expedition.
Before their invasion of the Great Zhou, they were simply herders on the steppe.
Naturally, their discipline was vastly different from the professional soldiers.
Seeing the enemy before him, Jia Yu frowned, "Are all the Mongol troops like this?"
Half of the Mongol army invading the Great Zhou consisted of professional soldiers.
The light cavalry leader in charge of scouting replied, "The six Mongol forces we have intelligence on are all like this. This is the largest one among them."
"Are they all like this?"
Jia Yu, whose mind was a bit lacking, felt this was reasonable.
His head felt a bit heavy, he had a feeling something wasn't right.
"My Lord, are you alright?"
The leader of the personal guards beside Jia Yu noticed his troubled expression and quickly asked.
Jia Yu waved his hand and said to the captains next to him, "The Three Thousand Cavalry will split into two groups, flanking the enemy and forming a large encirclement. Do not engage in direct combat without my order.
Try to drive the enemy towards me.
We can only use bow and arrow attacks from a distance."
Then, Jia Yu turned to his personal guard centurion, "Prepare, we'll strike with utmost speed and finish them off."
Jia Yu felt something was off, but couldn't pinpoint what.
Therefore, he decided to swiftly eliminate the enemy before him.
As long as they killed fast enough, and in sufficient numbers.
No matter what schemes the enemy had, with their forces reduced, they would surely reveal their true colors.
"Yes!"
The Three Thousand Cavalry, who had been with Jia Yu all this time, had witnessed the formidable combat strength of these black armored cavalry.
They readily obeyed Jia Yu's commands.
Moreover, Jia Yu had ordered them to surround the enemy, not charge into their formations.
The most dangerous place on a battlefield was charging into the enemy formation.
"Attack!"
After ten minutes, Jia Yu issued the order to the two flanking light cavalry using flag signals.
Two thousand-strong detachments of light cavalry, from both sides, surged out of cover, sprinting towards the enemy flanks.
The light cavalry's movements were large, visible from a distance, as they rode forth bearing the Great Zhou flag.
"Woo woo woo..."
The Mongols in the vanguard immediately sounded their horns.
The mournful horn blast echoed, and under the direction of their tribal leaders, the scattered forces reformed into groups of hundreds.
This force of 8000 Mongols wasn't from just one tribe.
They gathered together for safety.
Several major tribal leaders soon gathered.
"Iron Tribe Chief, your tribal warriors are the most valiant. How about you send a few to scout the enemy?"
A rather thin grassland leader said to Iron Tribe Chief, whose face was full of wrinkles and whose body was stout, making his warhorse look quite small in comparison.
Iron Tribe Chief ignored the thin leader's words, his gaze fixed with grave seriousness on the Great Zhou cavalry, which had already formed their battle formation.
"This is the Great Zhou Three Thousand Cavalry," Iron Tribe Chief said with utmost gravity, "Be careful, do not engage without authorization!"
When the Great Zhou cavalry approached within about two hundred meters.
The Mongols at the rear of the army were horrified to discover a vast number of Great Zhou cavalry had emerged behind them.
Their weapons and armor were identical to those of the ones in front.
Swoosh swoosh swoosh...