Chapter 864 – Camping Against Water, Worry of Strategists
At 11 AM, the blistering sun was in the air, mercilessly scorching the earth.
Even the ocean breeze from the west side was hot and humid. To the soldiers that were wearing armor, such weather was undoubtedly a torture.
The sweat seeped into their inner shirts, and their boots even had water seeping out.
Out of the 130 thousand territory army, only that black man army remained calm.
Last night, the three territories were not attacked by the Great Xia Dynasty, so they thought that the Great Xia Dynasty wanted to win in one battle and throw all their troops into attacking Rabat.
Hence, to save time, the army quickly traveled, and their patrols were only limited to five miles out from the army.
To the commander, there would be no other enemies in Morocco, so why should they be on alert?
As they say, saving someone is like putting out a fire. Seeing Rabat being cornered, everyone was anxious. The player forces that were originally at the back of the army were now at the front.
The players also continued to rush and push the army to move faster.
This misjudgment was a huge mistake.
After walking for an hour, the commander raised his head and looked at the sky. He saw the sun hanging in the middle of the sky; the temperature had gotten a few degrees higher, and the heat waves were corroding the stamina of the soldiers.
The heat caused the air to be unstable and give rise to waves.
The soldiers were all restless; their lips were dry and their bodies were leaning on their spears. Those who were weaker looked like they were about to collapse at any moment.
Even the players started to lose their eagerness.
“Men, let’s find a place to rest!”
Although the commander was not a famous one, he was really experienced and knew that if they continued, they would not be of much use even if they rushed to the imperial city.
“Yes!”
Quickly, the vanguard forces reported that there was a huge river that was suitable for resting.
The commander did not think about it. He simply ordered the troops to rush there and replenish their water. If this general had read the Sun Zi art of war, he would not have made such a stupid mistake.
To camp with backs facing water was a horrendous decision for a traveling army.
After receiving the military order, the 130 thousand troops cheered out. The soldiers all ran to the river, gulping down the water.
“Wow!”
Some of the soldiers felt that it was not enough, taking off their armor and bathing in the water. The cool water cascaded down from their heads, bringing away the heat of the weather and soothing them.
The water that splashed up appeared really colorful and eye-catching as the sun shone onto it.
“Comfortable!”
Seeing someone take the lead, everyone else followed.
On the long and stretched out river, many soldiers were bathing inside. Those who could swim were already at the center of the river.
To the soldiers, there was nothing happier than that. The exhaustion from traveling was instantly removed from their bodies.
There was no military order better than that.
Originally, the commander did not care, but when he saw that the situation was getting out of control, he said sternly, “Men send my orders. Immediately return to shore after drinking. No playing with water. Those who disobey will be punished under military law.”
“Yes!” The messenger soldier turned around.
Unfortunately, the commander was too late.
At this very moment, a change occurred.
A short distance from the shore, rumbling horse hooves could be heard. The sound was rushed and powerful like that of lightning, and even the ground shook.
The shaking ground brought with it sand and dust, blocking their vision.
“Not good!”
The commander was the quickest to react, and his expression changed. Morocco lacked cavalry, so it definitely was not something good for such loud horse hooves sounds to spread out.
“Gather, quick gather!”
The commander ordered, but it did not help.
The current army was scattered along and could not form up. Many of them had tossed their weapons and armor to the side to play in the water.
Even those who had returned to shore had removed their armor and were sitting down drinking water.
The moment the order to gather was given, they scrambled to the shore, and the scene grew more and more chaotic.
In this short while, they could already see the cavalry in the horizon. The golden armor gave off an eye-catching golden light under the hot sun.
The Guards Soldiers were all Grade 10 war elite soldiers and had great stamina that was comparable to basic generals. Hence, although the Mingguang Armor was heavy, they could all wear it. Along with their horses being elite Qingfu Horses, they traveled as swiftly as light armored cavalry.
This charge was like that of a bolt of lightning.
“It’s the Great Xia Dynasty Army!”
The commander had noticed the Tiger Leopard Cavalry and could see the horse lances that were raised up. In the blink of an eye, he could even see the steam from the noses of the horse.
“It’s over!”
The commander stared with his mouth agape.
In such a short time, the army could not even gather, much less form up. The only ones in formation were the five thousand Personal Guards.
With the Black Snake Guards providing them intel, it was not hard for Huo Qubing to learn of their traveling route. Along with their scouting beforehand, Huo Qubing became more and more confident.
Taking into account the traveling speed of the enemy, Huo Qubing had set up the ambush a long time ago.
As expected, just after noon, the enemy arrived. After finding their tracks, the Tiger Leopard Cavalry spies followed and tailed them. Huo Qubing was like a patient hunter, looking for the right opportunity to strike.
Huo Qubing knew that not only did he have to win, he had to win beautifully.
He needed to win, and it had to be one-sided.
Huo Qubing was still looking forward to going to the final battle in Rabat.
As a result, he needed to be even more patient.
Although Huo Qubing was young and did not send out troops following normal logic, if one needed to be patient, Huo Qubing was more patient than anyone else.
If not, how would he be able to sweep the deserts in history.
All God Generals possessed some basic qualities no matter how they used troops. Not only him, but Baiqi, Han Xin, and Sun Bin were all the same.
If now, why were they God Generals?
At noon, Huo Qubing finally found the chance. Even he did not expect the enemy to be so foolish and choose to rest by a shoreline.
“They are looking to die, do not blame me.”
Huo Qubing relaxed; he had already foreseen a massive victory.
Seeing this chance, he did not hesitate and ordered the troops to attack. 70 thousand of the most elite cavalry struck out and cut the 130 thousand army into pieces.
When the main force came over, it became a total massacre.
Along the shoreline, the cavalry did whatever they wanted and did not give the Moroccan army a chance to gather up. Wherever it looked like they were about to form up, the cavalry would focus.
Hence, each time they tried, they were charged apart. As it went on, the commander could not even find his own Personal Guards and lost control of the army.
The fall of the army was imminent.
Some soldiers thought they were smart and jumped into the river to try to escape. What they did not know was that the Guards Legion Corps soldiers were equipped with God arm crossbows. Anyone who tried to escape were shot.
Once bodies pierced with arrows floated on the river surface, no one dared to jump in anymore.
If they wanted to survive, the only way was to surrender.
In less than two hours, apart from the players who would rather die, the 130 thousand Moroccan army either died in battle or surrendered.
Close to 100 thousand surrendered soldiers lined up on the shoreline, forming a majestic sight.
As for the small number that escaped, Huo Qubing had no intentions of chasing them.
As they say, ‘The monk can leave but the temple cannot.’ Once the Great Xia Dynasty occupied Morocco, they would naturally take care of the soldiers that escaped.
The crucial thing now was to handle all these prisoners and deal with the post-battle matters.
The king had ordered them to not return to Rabat after crushing the army. Instead, they were to occupy Casa Blanca and Agadier.
As for Tangier City, the Mediterranean Squadron would deal with it.
Taking down the city would not only give them a supply base but would also dig away at the fighting spirit of Rabat.
Without reinforcements, it was not known how long Rabat could survive.
As the battle went smoothly, Huo Qubing was delighted, and he had no intentions of hiding it. He was unlike Baiqi, who would keep the same face regardless of the results.
“General, the first contribution for this war is ours.”
At this very moment, Legion General of the Tiger Leopard Cavalry Ma Chao came over. Currently, his face was brimming. Since following Huo Qubing, they had obtained victory after victory.
“These kinds of battles are the best.” Ma Chao was delighted.
When Huo Qubing heard that, he shook his head, “I do not think we are the first contributor; that belongs to the Mediterranean Squadron. But we have done a good job, and I’ll seek rewards from the king.”
Ma Chao smiled, “It is not that I’m greedy for the rewards, but it’s just that my boys deserve it.”
Although the victory was beautiful, it was not easy for the Tiger Leopard Cavalry.