It was soon midnight, because the New Moon had not long passed, and the sky was like a cold moon, and there was almost no light.

At this time, in the Qingshui River Valley, all the sub-cities that were still under the control of the Tang Army had been swallowed up by the night, and only the head of the city wall was still flickering with some sentry fires.

As for the sub-cities on the outskirts of the valley that had been captured by the Turks, there was still some noise coming out of them, and the light from the cities was flickering, and it was obvious that the Hu pawns were still celebrating greedily after conquering the sub-cities.

Of course, the distance between them is so close that it is impossible to be safe and unguarded. Outside the Tang Army, layers of horses were erected, leaving only a few emergency passages for personnel to enter and exit, and the defenders at the head of the city were also holding their bows and pretending to sleep, ready to enter the battle state at any time.

As for the Turkic contingent on the opposite side, there were often rangers patrolling back and forth in the first half of the night, and some temporary fortifications were erected between several major roads, which were quite cautious from time to time.

But as time passed, the Hu people gradually relaxed their vigilance, and the sound of horses' hooves on patrol at night became slower and slower, and the vigilant bonfires that had been built in the fields were only embers because of the lack of firewood.

The proximity of each other's lines seemed a little strange, as if the Hu people were not worried about being attacked at night.

But this is really not a strange thing, the Tang people often recruit Hu servants inside and outside the border. Most of these Hu people were untrained herdsmen, or could easily recognize the orders to advance and retreat, but they were by no means a strong army that was forbidden by orders, and they could fight with the wind, but it was difficult for them to take on real offensive and defensive positions.

Moreover, even if the Tang army really wanted to launch a counteroffensive, it would not be from the river valley. The cities were originally a joint defense whole, and the flat river valley could quickly put and transfer men and materials between the cities, but it was difficult for them to attack each other directly.

The ditches on both sides of the valley were also part of the defense system, and the Tang army had been operating here for a long time, and had already laid a spider-web-like route between the complex river valleys, both to increase the complexity of the valley defense line and to deal with the recapture of the sub-city after being captured as it is now.

Located in a sub-city on the west side of Qingshui City near the ditch ridge, in the shadow of the city wall, a group of soldiers are quietly dressing up.

Assassin Feng Jingyu was also wearing a mountain armor at this moment, and he distributed the silk cloth cut into thin strips to each of the battalion soldiers who were responsible for the night's attack, and the battalion soldiers took the silk strips and tied them to their foreheads, and added a touch of chicken blood with a brush.

In addition to identifying the signs of friend and foe, the blood of the rooster has the effect of warding off evil spirits, and can protect the souls of the dead in battle from entering the Yellow Spring. This statement may not be substantiated, but it also reflects the determination of the soldiers to fight to the death.

There were more than 3,000 defenders in the Qingshui River Valley, and there were originally more people and Hubu City, but in such a grim situation, it was still impossible to rashly send those servants with low combat effectiveness to the battlefield. Their will to fight is not strong, and once there is any disturbance, the harm will be great.

Under the persuasion of Lou Shide, Feng Jingyu, the assassin, also had great confidence in this night attack camp and was ready to invest 2,000 men in the battle. Among them, 800 men were led by him himself, bypassing the military routes between the ravines and directly attacking the city occupied by the Turkic bandits.

The other 1,200 men were organized into four cavalry teams, and they were to be in the city of Clear Water while they were in attack, and did not participate in the first round of night attacks. In other words, if Feng Jingyu and his entourage could not disturb the enemy camp and give the cavalry a suitable opportunity to fight, the cavalry team would not leave the city at all, and the 800 foot soldiers who returned to attack Zicheng would be left to fend for themselves.

The soldiers were still silently tying up their armor, and suddenly a rapid drum and trumpet sounded in Qingshui City. The sound of the drums soon broke the silence of the night, and the birds flew away, the wild beasts flew away, and the whole valley became agitated by the sound of the drums.

Soon, in the suburbs close to the Hu People's Front, the bonfire was burning again, and Hu pawns rushed in on horseback to take a closer look at the movements of the Tang army. But except for the rumbling drums coming from Qingshui City, there was no other sound in the Tang Army's Zhuzi City.

"These Tang pawns are really cunning and disgusting, cowering in the city, only sleeping with drums and bugles!"

"Aren't you Tang Jun arrogant? This night the Khan's tent is in the river valley, if you have the guts, go out of the city to fight! ”

Those Hu pawns who were disturbed and went out to inspect rode their horses and shouted, their expressions and tones were arbitrary, and they were proud and proud of being able to force the Tang army not to dare to go out of the city to fight.

The drums of Qingshui City stopped beating three times, and there was no other sound in the castle defended by the Tang people. Some of the Hu pawns were angry, and their horses rushed to the outside of the castle on the left, shouting towards the city, but no matter how they shouted, the Tang troops in the castle did not respond.

So the guards stayed in the suburbs and continued to watch, while sending people back to the camp to report the news.

At this time, in the castle where the Hu people were stationed and in the camp tents in the suburbs, the soldiers were also slightly reorganized and prepared for battle, and when they heard that the soldiers reported that this might just be a trick of the Tang army to disturb the enemy, their mood could not help but be greatly ruined.

Although the Tang army did not make any further moves, the Hu chieftains did not dare to slack off, so that the soldiers still maintained the posture of armor and preparation for battle, and at the same time went to the Khan's tent to ask for instructions.

At this time, in the Khan's tent, the banquet had already dispersed, and the new Khan was silently lying on the couch, only bowing slightly after hearing the return of the soldiers, and said: "I know, order all battalions to prepare for battle, if anyone loses the camp, he will be killed at dawn!" The wolf rode out of the valley and rested on both flanks of the camp, waiting for my orders. ”

This kind of suspicious fatigue is the usual tactic of the weak side, and it is not surprising that he is silent, he himself is an expert in guerrilla harassment and disturbance, as long as the main army is not disturbed and disturbed, in fact, the morale of the army will not be too damaging.

The army around the Khan's tent began to shrink, faintly independent of the entire camp, and the Turkic soldiers waited for the enemy in batches, while the rest of the Hu subordinates looked a little confused, and the sound of the Hu chieftains shouting and restraining the troops was everywhere.

This situation lasted for most of the hour, and the Tang army in the river valley did not make any new moves, and those Hu pawns who were disturbed to prepare for war gradually relaxed.

In the first half of the night, they shared some wine, and the drunkenness swelled, and the fatigue spread doubly, and gradually they could not maintain a serious state of preparation, some of them kept dozing, and some simply retreated to the camp to rest.

However, at this moment, the urging drum sounded again, no more, no less, and three links. The Hu pawns hurriedly cheered up again, nervously waiting for the scout to report the news. But when the drumming stopped, it was still quiet in the cold night.

"The Tang people are disgusting! It seems that this night is not intended to let people sleep peacefully! ”

After the sound of the drums this time, the military discipline between the camps inevitably became more sloppy, and all kinds of chaotic shouts and curses came and went.

Such a suspicious tactic was superficial, but effective, and when the third drum sounded, many of the pawns who had already fallen asleep did not bother to do anything more, turned over and covered their ears with their hands, and continued to sleep soundly.

But this time the drum beat was full of five passes, and when the fourth drum sounded, the Hu chiefs generally sensed that something was wrong, ignored the complaints of the subordinates, forcibly drove the soldiers out of the camp, and nervously waited for the Tang army to attack. But this time, after the drumming stopped, the Tang army still prepared a quiet night for them.

At this time, it was not far from dawn, the stars were hidden in the sky, and the night became darker. After repeated tosses, many of the Hu pawns were able to eliminate their sleepiness, but their respective chiefs had been worried all night, and now they were a little unable to support it. The soldiers were left to stand by while they went to sleep.

"Luxury, will the Tang army attack this night?"

In a castle close to the slope of the mountain, several Tuyuhun chieftains stood at the head of the city, looking at the dark night in the distance, their expressions were quite heavy.

Murong Luxury's Turkic-style braids were full of gloom at this time, and after hearing the words, there was no lack of complaints: "Most of them are going to attack, otherwise tomorrow's army will fill the river valley, and the Tang army may not be able to fight." ”

"Then we, do we really want to share life and death with Tang Jun? Do we really want to follow the silent sip back to the plug? If you really follow the silent slurp, how many people are willing to follow? If the imperial court really wants to investigate it strictly, we are afraid that we will ......"

A small Tuyuhun chief said with a bitter face, originally he just wanted to use the power of Mo Si to suppress the Tiele tribes and open up a living space for them, but he didn't expect to go to the hostile side of the Tang Dynasty step by step. They are already accustomed to accepting the protection of the Tang Dynasty after they have lost their country, and if they really go to Monan, it is really difficult to make a painful decision.

"I don't know, I ...... Alas, no matter what, how can my Xihe clan succumb to the fishy daughter of the Ashina family! ”

Although Tuyuhun also belongs to the border Huyi, it has been sinicized for a long time, and has been in contact with many famous Hexi artists, and he still looks down on Mobei Oghuz in his heart. What's more, if he really dared to marry the woman of the Ashina family, not to mention the Tang family's court, they would not spare him alone.

"If the Tang army really comes, it is better to be in battle......"

Suddenly, a small chief whispered, and after the others heard this, their eyes also flashed, obviously quite tempted, and they did not want to go to the dark with the Turks.

But Murong Haoli shook his head after thinking about it, and then said in a low voice: "We already have the crime of leading thieves, and we may not be able to pay for it, so it is better to wait until the time when the silent army retreats through Lingzhou, and lead the people to attack him, when he will return to the soldiers, he will have no will to fight, not only can he get more gains, but also leave the goods he has plundered......"

Before Murong Haoli's words fell, suddenly a sharp warning sound sounded in a castle near the left, and that small city was counterattacked by the Tang army!