aircannonsinc Chapter 853 Xiang Yu was panicked. Where did the cavalry come from?
Chapter 853 Xiang Yu was panicked. Where did the cavalry come from?
But despite his anger, Xiang Yu did not lose his mind, let alone fear. After a brief burst of rage, he forced himself to calm down and began to carefully review the day's battle.
"Black powder..." Xiang Yu's fingers tapped unconsciously on the table, making a clattering sound. He was not completely unaware of the Southern Border Army's possession of this special weapon. The Chu Army's scouts were no idlers, having already reported the relevant intelligence to him. However, Gao Yao had previously withheld information, preventing him from accurately assessing the number and power of the weapon.
Today, Gao Yao was finally deployed. Although it caused considerable casualties and huge psychological shock to the Chu army, it also exposed a crucial piece of information!
The corners of Xiang Yu's mouth gradually curled up into a cold and confident arc.
"Gao Yao, Gao Yao, you finally gave up!" Xiang Yu sneered inwardly, "If you really had enough black powder, why didn't you use it freely during my army's first siege? The casualties and panic it would have caused would have been enough to prevent me from launching another all-out attack for days! But you didn't!"
"You've been holding back until now, only being forced to use it when our offensive was at its fiercest and the city's defenses were at their most critical juncture... This only proves one thing: the amount of black powder you have is extremely limited! Maybe... it's all you have!"
Xiang Yu's thoughts became clearer, and the light in his eyes grew brighter. "I'm afraid this black gunpowder isn't originally in the possession of your Yangping Pass garrison, but was brought here by Gao Yao! But you didn't bring much, so you must treat it as your last trump card, saving it for the most crucial moment, to buy a last glimmer of respite!"
"And you used it today... This just proves that you've reached the end of your rope, with nothing left to play! You've realized that without this last resort, Yangping Pass will be breached today!"
Thinking of this, the depression and anger in Xiang Yu's heart were swept away, replaced by an excitement and confidence of having a clear understanding of the enemy's situation and victory in his grasp!
"Pass the order!" Xiang Yu stood up suddenly, his voice like a bell, regaining his former dominance and majesty. "Let the soldiers have a good meal and a good night's rest! At dawn tomorrow, attack the city with all your strength!"
He glanced around at the generals in the tent, his gaze sharp as a knife. "Tell my men, the Southern Border Army is at the end of its rope! Their magic has run out! Tomorrow, we must break through Yangping Pass! Whoever captures Gao Yao alive will be rewarded with ten thousand gold coins and granted the title of Marquis of a Thousand Households!"
"Yes!" The generals in the tent responded in unison. Infected by Xiang Yu's confidence, their morale was boosted again.
Xiang Yu stepped outside the tent and gazed at the distant outline of Yangping Pass, which lay dormant in the night like a giant beast. A confident smile filled his face. In his view, Gao Yao's struggles tonight were merely a futile attempt to delay his death. Tomorrow's sunrise would mark the fall of Yangping Pass and the surrender of Gao Yao!
The decision had been made, the military order had been delivered. Xiang Yu dismissed his generals, and a moment of peace finally returned to the vast central tent. He personally removed his heavy armor, the metal parts clashing with a dull sound. After days of supervising battles, even a master like him felt deeply exhausted. The serious injury of his personal guard commander, Black Tiger, cast a shadow of gloom and regret over him. He secretly resolved that at dawn tomorrow, he would personally don armor and wield his spear, leading the charge, and in one fell swoop, crush this damned Yangping Pass to dust, to vent his hatred!
Just as he closed his eyes, preparing to take a short nap to recharge his batteries, he heard a sudden, chaotic clatter of horses' hooves from far outside the tent, followed by the shouts of soldiers and the sound of running footsteps approaching from afar! This sound was particularly piercing in the relatively quiet night, instantly shattering the silence of the barracks.
Xiang Yu's brow furrowed, and the slightest hint of sleepiness that had just begun to brew was dispelled. He suddenly opened his eyes, a flicker of displeasure and vigilance in them. On a wartime night, any unusual movement could mean something was amiss.
Before he could even ask, a messenger dressed as a scout had already rushed out of the tent, his voice shrill and distorted with haste and fear:
"Report—!!! Your Majesty! Urgent military intelligence! Yangping Pass… A large number of troops have broken out of Yangping Pass under cover of darkness! They're galloping north! They've bypassed our main camp. Our scouts risked their lives to get close and observe, and we estimate… our estimate is probably no less than five thousand! And… and it looks like it's mostly cavalry! The sound of hooves is like thunder, and the sky is filled with smoke and dust!"
"what?!"
Like a thunderclap in the sky! Xiang Yu leaped up from his couch almost reflexively! The immense force brought down the nearby weapon rack, causing several weapons to clatter to the ground without him even noticing! He dashed to the tent door, flung aside the curtain, his eyes wide open as he stared intently at the panting messenger kneeling on the ground, his voice filled with extreme shock and disbelief:
"Say it again?! How many people? Which direction did they go?!" He almost suspected that there was something wrong with his ears.
The messenger, terrified by Xiang Yu's terrifying, almost tangible aura, trembled all over and stammered, "Reply... Reply, Your Majesty! Just now... Just now, a large number of southern troops rushed out from Yangping Pass, about... about five thousand cavalry! They didn't take the main road, but circled from the flank, heading north! The movement was very loud, there's no doubt about it!"
"Five thousand cavalry?! How is that even possible?!" Xiang Yu roared, his heart pounding like a hammer! Where did Gao Yao get five thousand cavalry?! He knew the situation of the Yangping Pass defenders all too well. Days of bloody battle had already exhausted them, and warhorses were scarce! Could it be... Could it be...
A chilling thought emerged in his heart, "Could it be that reinforcements from the Southern Border Army have already arrived?! And they are elite cavalry from the north?!"
Once this thought came to mind, it quickly wrapped around his thoughts like poison ivy! Yes! If reinforcements hadn't arrived, how could Gao Yao have the confidence and manpower to proactively send out such a large number of cavalry at night? This was completely unreasonable!
If Yangping Pass really received thousands of fresh troops, especially the highly mobile cavalry, the entire battle situation would be reversed in an instant! His plan to capture Yangping Pass tomorrow in one fell swoop suddenly became a ridiculous joke! Even...
Xiang Yu's thoughts involuntarily drifted towards something even more terrifying: "These five thousand cavalrymen... they broke through under cover of darkness, bypassing my main camp and heading north... What's their goal?!" The north... that's his rear, where his food supply lies, and where his troops are relatively undermanned! Could it be that Gao Yao's ambitions extend beyond simply defending Yangping Pass? He intends to use these reinforcements to encircle us, cut off our food supply, or even... cooperate with the defenders of Yangping Pass to completely encircle and annihilate Xiang Yu's tens of thousands of troops here?