The Murong Xuan Department of the Tuyuhun army marched in the northeast direction, eighty miles away from Heisha City, and suddenly reported that the Turkic cavalry was attacking. The Xianbei army then adjusted its direction to face the enemy, and the Turkic cavalry occupied a high place to attack, and the two sides fought for half a day without winning or losing, and Murong Xuanmi's five men and horses were not even broken through, and the Turkic cavalry fled away. The pursuers chased for a while before being ordered to stop.

Murong Xuan summoned his generals and said: "The Mosi Khan is far away in the northwest, and at this time, the strength of Heisha City is empty, and according to the recent reports, the total strength of the Turks in the vicinity is more than 10,000 people. We don't need to dwell on it, we want to capture Black Sand City and then make plans! ”

The generals thought it was good, so they led their troops to continue to advance. In just eighty miles, it was attacked and harassed by the Turkic cavalry several times, but each time the Turks retreated in a hurry at the slightest disadvantage, and the Xianbei army could not seize the opportunity, and there were casualties on both sides but no substantial progress.

It was two days before Murong Xuan's troops reached the vicinity of Black Sand City, and after several back-and-forth clashes, the men and horses were already a little tired. But seeing that the Turkic cavalry was also all arranged on the left side of the city, ready to defend the capital, Murong Xuan looked at his camp and said: "The first two days of raiding the Turks were just to delay our army to seize the city, and did not want to fight a decisive battle, so they failed to make progress. ”

A minister said: "My army has come thousands of miles, and I am not in a hurry, and because of the exhaustion of horsepower after repeated killings, the king of Khan can retreat ten miles to camp and set up defense, and then take the city in one go." ”

But immediately someone said: "There is only one part of the Turkic cavalry, and it has fought with me several times, and the same people are sleepy and lacking." If there is no difference, why delay the fighter? ”

The man just now frowned and said, "The Turkic horse is shorter than the Helong horse, but the endurance is very good, how can we compare our own weaknesses with their strengths?" ”

At this time, Murong Xuan spoke: "You all have some truth in what you say, but our army has a numerical advantage, so we don't have to worry about it." Today, the soldiers are approaching the city, such as a relentless patrol, afraid of the night, and dreaming a lot. In the land of this Turkic Khanate, the people who live there are silent sobs on their subjects, and if they delay only for unexpected rescue, we will regret it. ”

When the ministers heard this, they shouted: "The Khan is wise. ”

So the Xianbei 30,000 cavalry set up a formation and slowly approached the Black Sand City, and they divided the army into five divisions, with two large groups of men and horses in the front and back, and the Chinese army of Wang Qi in the middle, marching in a regular arrangement. In contrast, the Xianbei aim to be more concentrated with only one force; The men and horses on the Turkic side were more scattered, and the cavalry outside the city was divided into three parts, and they were arranged in a zigzag shape facing the southwest, and they were far apart, and the camps on the left and right flanks were almost close to the city wall.

The two armies faced each other, and the light-toned Xianbei army and the dark-toned Turkic people seemed to be a black-and-white contrast. About the reason why there is more sunshine on the Tuyuhun side, the Tuyuhun cavalry is mainly dressed in white and light gray, and the head is also tightly wrapped, the headscarf covers the head and helmet together, and some wear hats, and the scarf is covered to block the wind and sand, and most people can't see their faces. The Turks, on the other hand, were dressed in black, some wore iron helmets and hoods, and some wore their hair scattered, and it seemed that the Turks were even more backward than the Tubo and Tuyuhun Xianbei people.

A force of Turkic cavalry could be seen in front of the city, and it was estimated that there were three or four thousand people. The king of Tuyuhun then issued a command to order the left flank of the front army to attack the enemy army in front, with a force of about 6,000 men, about twice as many as the Turks.

When the Turks stood still, and when the Xianbei army advanced hundreds of paces, a general in armor in the middle shouted loudly in Tuyuhun language: "Let the brutal northern barbarians see the bravery of our Xianbei people!" ”

The crowd waved their flags and shouted, the atmosphere became more and more enthusiastic, the hooves of the war horses ran faster and faster, and the battalions coordinated to charge the opposite side. From a distance, they looked like a white tide that had disappeared.

Cavalrymen armed with long weapons lead the way, with spear-like weapons on either side, but with slightly different structures and names. After hand-to-hand combat, the cavalry fought with swords, and the iron weapons swayed in the sea of people, like fish in a dry pond beating sharply. The sword style of the Tuyuhun people is mostly straight, while the Turks mostly use scimitars to slash and kill. Both sides had casualties and could not see obvious advantages and disadvantages, but the Turks had few to fight and retreat in order to prevent being besieged from the left and right. The Tuyuhun army actively took an offensive posture with a wider lateral camp.

After a while, the scouts reported to Murong Xuanzhong's army, and the Turkic cavalry on the left and right of the city showed signs of movement. The minister, who had experience in warfare, immediately said: "If the front army gains profits, we should immediately send additional troops to deal with the left and right, so as not to give the Turks an opportunity to take advantage of it." ”

Murong Xuan thought it was good, and immediately ordered to adjust the arrangement and send the second army to advance left and right; The Chinese army and the rest of the army were placed horizontally in the rear and slowly advanced.

With the passage of time, the Turkic front army was defeated and retreated, and many people were killed. Sure enough, at this time, most of the men and horses on the left and right flanks of the Turks rushed towards the center, and their forces were limited, and in less than half a day, almost all the cavalry was invested.

The left and right Turkic armies wanted to save the front army that was fighting, but Tuyuhun had new men and horses advancing up, and the second Turkic army was forced to adjust its direction under pressure to face the rejection of the enemy. The flames of war had reached the city of Black Sand, and when you looked up from the battlefield, you could see the old, somewhat shabby and low city.

On the wall of Heisha City, I saw Li Shizhi put on his previous white Confucian robe, wearing a long sword at his waist, and stood against the wind. Nearby stood the ministers of the "Little Khan" Tosi and Tun Desire Valley, all of whom stood at the head of the city and watched the war that involved their wealth.

The shape on the battlefield was clear at a glance, and Toxi saw that the situation was not good, and said in a hurry: "You can retire from the army, and order the front army to fight to the death to block those Xianbei people!" ”

At this time, some ministers built the defenders on the city to prepare to defend the city, and another built a city to withdraw before the capital was besieged, so as not to become a turtle in the urn. But Li Shizhi said indifferently: "It's just a temporary disadvantage, this situation is expected due to the disparity in strength, you should calm down." ”

The Turkic people who burned their eyebrows were very unhappy with Li Shizhi's expression, and one of them said angrily: "You don't have a backache when you stand and talk, but if you are captured by the Xianbei people, even if you are a Han person, then the Xianbei people are afraid that they will hand you over to the Tang Dynasty, and you will have good fruits to eat?" ”

揶|揄之 Li Shizhi is a fugitive, and he has the meaning of insulting and insulting, but he is just saying it more vaguely. Unexpectedly, Li Shizhi didn't have any acquaintance with him, and still maintained that very pretended appearance and said: "Since the cavalry has not been able to take advantage of the battle, it is no longer necessary to fight suddenly, you should quickly order them to retreat and avoid." ”

A minister couldn't bear it anymore and said: "The first two days were like this, running around without staring at the seams, and there was no result at all, and now the Xianbei people are directly attacking the city!" ”

Li Shizhi ignored the minister who couldn't speak, and said to Tosi: "Seeking opportunities to hinder the enemy's edge, and coordinating with each other inside and outside to attack and defend to repel the enemy soldiers, this method is an idea agreed before the war. Now that the soldiers are approaching the city, they must not change their strategy lightly, otherwise there will be chaos and nothing to be done. Minister Tosi is invited to think again. ”

Tosi looked back and said: "This Han people's advice, Tun Desire Valley and other ministers all agree, since we adopt it, we can't give up halfway, otherwise we should find another good way from the beginning." ”

Li Shizhi clenched his fists and said, "Minister Tosi is really a wise person. ”

Tosi then sent people out of the city to order the cavalry outside the city not to fight, and to retreat first to reduce casualties. As soon as the Turkic cavalry retreated, the three Xianbei tribes followed and pressed up, and the river near the city was shallow and slow and could not stop the cavalry at all, and the Xianbei people soon followed behind and crossed over. When the Turkic cavalry arrived at the gates, they did not rush into the city, but divided into two sides and ran according to the fortifications of the city walls.

At this time, there were no other obstacles between the Xianbei army and Black Sand City, and it was really a soldier coming to the city. According to the purpose of the plan of marching and fighting, Murong Xuan did not focus on eating the Turkic cavalry, and the blade of the sword was directed at Heisha City. He immediately ordered the first part of the front army to take advantage of the victory to attack the south gate.

The Xianbei cavalry first charged over and prepared to shoot at the city wall to suppress the defenders, and the people behind dismounted and then attacked and seized the fortifications with long ladders and other tools. Black Sand City does look dilapidated and short, and it is within range of an arrow from below the city upwards. This kind of city is called Heisha City, but people are also used to calling it "Nanting", because the original people who built the city were the Xiongnu and were regarded as the center of the southern Xiongnu; The Xiongnu have long since disappeared from the stage of chasing deer, and the new actors in this land have become Turks, and the Turks have rebuilt the city of Black Sand as their capital. Both the Xiongnu and the Turks were nomadic peoples, and building fortifications was not their strong point at all, so the defensive capabilities of the black sand can be seen.

In the gallop of thousands of troops and horses, the city seems to tremble in the sound of horses' hooves, and it looks stormy. Murong Xuan rode on the horse and lifted the curtain in front of his face, and his thin face also exuded pride at this time, he pulled out his long sword and pointed directly at Black Sand City: "Take the Turkic Capital!" ”G