Three Kingdoms Eschatology

The cavalry battle between the two sides lasted for two full hours, and the Bedouin war cavalry was finally defeated after suffering heavy casualties.Said was also killed instantly when a spear gun penetrated his body through the back chest during the melee.

Some of the Bedouins fled to the oasis in a swarm, while others fled around the oasis. These people did not believe that Demut could be held by the Bedouins.

Liang Junhu cavalry also flooded into the Demut oasis, but they immediately discovered that this undulating oasis was not suitable for cavalry operations.

So Ma Chao's regular army rushed in and raised a hot air balloon that could overlook the whole oasis.All kinds of ballistas and fire-breathing cabinets were mounted on the frame, and they followed Liang Jun's infantry and Hu Qi to move forward.Suddenly flames blazed in the oasis, and thick smoke billowed.Bedouin strongholds set up in oases were captured or turned into a sea of ​​​​flames one by one.In the end, in the middle of the oasis, the main camp built in the valley was also broken by Liang Jun, destroying a section of the wall outside the camp.Tens of thousands of Liang Jun Hu Qi poured in like a tide...

Chapter 945 The Disappearing Bedouin

After the main fortress of Demut Oasis was breached, the battle continued for five or six hours.Every corner of the oasis with a radius of tens of miles was filled with the sound of people shouting and weapons screaming.

After all, in addition to more than ten thousand Bedouin war horses, there are also tens of thousands of Bedouin old and weak women and children living here.At this time, they don't distinguish between soldiers and civilians, as long as they can lift a knife and gun in their hands, they all go into battle.

It wasn't until dawn the next day that the killing sound gradually weakened.Corpses can be seen everywhere on the long yellow sand in and around the oasis.The few remaining Bedouins in the oasis abandoned their wealth, cattle and sheep, and fled to the oasis. However, they would soon be intercepted and killed by Liang Jun's rangers. Even if they escaped by chance, they would be buried in the desert without enough fresh water. middle.

The Huqi who entered the oasis began to compete for the spoils. This time was different from the past, and a large amount of gold, silver and jewels were found from many places.Those steppe chiefs who were both centurion and thousand commanders tried their best to maintain order.They commanded their own soldiers to yell at everyone to hand over the loot and distribute it uniformly, and even beheaded several Hu Qi who had hidden the loot on the spot to enforce the law.

It was not until noon that the disordered order was restored.In several open spaces in the oasis, large boxes of gold, silver and jewelry were piled as high as mountains, and there were also young women and children tied up in piles with ropes.These are the spoils of war.

These spoils of war were first distributed by Lu Bu to the various tribes participating in the war, then distributed by the tribes to the small tribes below, and finally distributed to individuals.In the oasis, Hu Qimen lined up more than ten long lines, waiting for the distribution of gold, silver, jewelry and population.I have been busy until dark before everything is considered in order.Bonfires were set up everywhere in the Demut Oasis, and half of the captured cattle and sheep were slaughtered, enough for 10,000+ people to have a full meal.Lu Bu specially entrusted Lin Tao's fleet to transport wine by sea, which was enough for everyone to share a small pot, and everyone drank to their heart's content.

After Lu Bu and Ma Chao drank a few cups, Ma Chao said with a hint of intoxication: "Although this desert with a radius of thousands of miles is barren, there are thousands of oases with abundant water sources and fertile fields. The land is also good for herding sheep and cattle. Now, these Bedouin bandits are about to be wiped out by us. After that, these oases will not be strategic places, and it is impossible for us to garrison them for a long time. Do we want these lands to be abandoned in the future? Can't do it here?"

Lu Bu spread his arms and replied, "Your Majesty didn't say anything specifically. He only revealed that some of these places will be of great use in the future, and some will be granted to people with military merits as fiefdoms."

Ma Chao was even more puzzled, and said, "What is the use of this barren land other than herding cattle and sheep? As for the fiefdom... this isolated place..."

Lu Bu interrupted him and said, "Brother Ma Chao, you don't understand this. It is precisely because of its isolation from the world that such a place is the most suitable place to be entrusted to princes and princes. Think about it, Daliang is based on counties and counties. , including the entire territory of Persia that we just occupied. If the fiefdom is divided between counties and counties, it is not suitable for the court or the feudal lord. Unless it is like the Han Dynasty before, the Hou State is just a fiction, and the king of the Hou State is not Without real power, the real power is still in the hands of the ministers appointed by the court, and the laws that are practiced in the marquis are also the laws of the court. But what the Holy One wants is for these rewarded people to get real titles and fiefdoms."

Ma Chao said thoughtfully, "I see."

……

In the next month, more than [-] Liang Junhu cavalry continued to squeeze and advance towards the southwest corner of the desert, and the dozens of oases remaining by the Bedouins all fell one by one.At this time, although there are still a very small number of Bedouins distributed in the North African desert and the northwest corner of the Bedouin desert, they are likely to disappear on the stage of history as a whole.

Just when Lu Bu and Ma Chao thought the war was over, Feng Yu sent an edict from far away Taixifeng.In addition to asking Lu Bu to bring all the 30 to [-] Huqi back to the prairie as planned.Ma Chao was also required to bring sufficient supplies and continue northward along the east coast of the Red Sea to support the Alexander Roman army who was fighting a few Bedouins in the northwest corner there.

Seeing this edict, Ma Chao felt very strange.In the northwest corner of the Bedouin Desert, that is, the area called the Sinai Peninsula surrounded by the Isthmus of Suez, the Mediterranean Sea, and the Red Sea, there are not many oases.Therefore, there are very few Bedouins distributed in the Sinai Peninsula.The combined population of all men, women and children is only tens of thousands. How could the Roman army, known as an elite soldier, be unable to deal with such a small number of people?

Military orders are like mountains.Ma Chao didn't have time to think too much, so after preparing sufficient supplies, he led his troops and marched northward along the coast of the Red Sea.Because Liang Jun had already set up a series of strongholds on the oasis on the east coast of the Red Sea, the march went smoothly and he arrived at the Sinai Peninsula a few days earlier.

After marching for another half a day, Ma Chao's forward scouts reported that a Bedouin army with a size of more than [-] riders was besieging a fort in an oasis valley, but they did not know where the army in the fort came from. The battered banner on the fort had an eagle on it.

Ma Chao, who knew something about the Roman Legion, secretly said: "Since it is an eagle flag, it must be the Roman Legion. How could they be besieged by the Bedouin?"

The Sinai Peninsula is different from most of the Bedouin Desert. There are a large number of independent Gobi mountains on its surface, which cut the whole area into fragments.

At this time, a fierce battle is going on in a lush oasis in a valley formed by two mountains.

This oasis is not very big, it only covers an area of ​​more than a hundred acres, and it can be seen clearly from a high ground far away. In the northwest corner of the oasis, where the vegetation is most lush, there is a simple small fortress.There is a broken eagle riding on the fort.

There were corpses lying in disorder outside the fortress. Dozens of Roman soldiers came out of the fortress with large shields and took down the javelins stuck on these corpses. It seemed that their war supplies were very short.The arrows of the nearby Bedouin knights who rode away came like a storm.

A Roman soldier with a large bundle of javelins under his arm was accidentally shot by an arrow in the buttock. He yelled in pain, and the javelin fell to the ground again.Some of the rest of the soldiers hastily dragged him back to the fortress, and some of them gathered up the javelins he dropped.At this moment, the Bedouin warriors who were riding their horses in circles rushed up again, shouting and roaring.The Roman soldiers quickly retreated into the fortress.

Just when these Bedouins who attacked in several groups were less than ten battles away from the fortress, javelins were thrown out of the fortress again intensively.However, these Bedouins had already learned their lesson, and when they saw the javelin attack, they dispersed quickly.In the end, only a dozen or so people were shot by the javelin and rolled to the ground like porcupines, while the rest of the warriors still rushed up without stopping.

However, due to the accumulation of corpses blocking the road, a large number of repelling horses arranged in front of the Roman position and the reason for going uphill, the speed of these Bedouin warriors suddenly slowed down...

Chapter 946 Imperial Civil War

A row of a hundred soldiers suddenly appeared from the simple fortress in the small oasis. The armor they wore was not the ring armor that was commonly worn by Roman soldiers, but chain mail, which was common armor for the Roman African Legion.

Holding two-foot-long daggers or javelins, they charged at the slowed Bedouin warriders.But none of them was holding a large shield.Because the opponent is fighting condescendingly on horses or camels, the large shield can't play a protective role, and it has become a burden.Instead of using a shield, dealing with enemies on horseback on foot has the advantage of flexibility.

A Bedouin slashed down the scimitar hanging in the air, and when his blade cut into the target's head, the javelin in the opponent's hand, which was used as a short spear, also pierced the chest of his mount.The Bedouin horse neighed, and he was knocked off the horse, rolling to the feet of another Roman soldier.The latter inserted the short sword into his neck smoothly.

Another Bedouin felt a sharp pain in his thigh just as he was driving a horse and knocked down a Roman soldier.Another Roman soldier in the garden rushed up, pierced his patella with a sharp dagger, and unloaded his entire calf.Losing his balance, the Bedouin fell heavily to the ground and passed out.

A moment of fierce fighting resulted in casualties on both sides.But this time the Bedouins did not retreat in a hurry like the previous few times. Instead, more Bedouin cavalry rushed out of the main formation one after another, dispersed and rushed towards the small oasis from all directions. go.

Soon, there were several whistles from these Bedouin warriors, and the Bedouins who had rushed to the Roman fort jumped off their mounts one after another, and fought on foot with swords and shields in their hands. All kinds of obstacles quickly approached the Roman soldiers.

The Romans who broke through the walls of the trench were shocked because their shields were left in the trench.Leaders with weak troops will be at a complete disadvantage in face-to-face battles on the ground.

At this critical moment, the sound of rolling thunder came from behind the Bedouin cavalry standing in the distance, and a heavy cavalry rushed into their crowd from behind with lightning speed.

It was the heavy cavalry of the Ma Chao Legion who came. They first charged in a row with spears, and then swept across with maces and clubs.In a short time, the two thousand Bedouin warriors who were caught off guard were defeated.However, they collapsed without chaos, and fled westward under the leadership of a certain chief.

The raid also had a major impact on both sides of the oasis that were at war.Seeing the reinforcements coming, the Roman army's morale was immediately boosted, while the Bedouins who were fighting with the Roman soldiers on foot saw that the large group of troops had left and ran away, so they had no heart to fight again, and they rushed to flee one by one.However, when they climbed up their mounts, they were dragged off by the Roman soldiers behind and pierced their necks with a sword.The few Bedouins who successfully got on their horses and ran out were intercepted and beheaded by Ma Chao's iron cavalry, and none of them escaped in the end.

Seeing that Ma Chao's iron cavalry did not come after them, the thousand or so Bedouins were about to breathe a sigh of relief when they found two or three hundred Liang soldiers in ring armor blocking the road between the two rocks ahead. soldiers.

These Bedouins living in Sinai had never seen Liang Jun, and mistakenly thought that they were troops from some remote provinces of the Romans.Seeing that there were not many soldiers, the chief chief waved his hand and signaled the cavalry to cover and kill them.

The iron hooves of sixteen or seven hundred warriors galloped across the sandstone, making a loud noise like rolling thunder.The whole earth seemed to tremble, but the hundreds of Liang Jun standing in the middle of the road remained motionless like statues.

When these Bedouin warriors were less than thirty battles away from Liang Jun's shield wall.The leading chief only heard an order he could not understand from the enemy crowd, and then rows of soldiers stood up from behind the shield wall, holding some special "crossbow" in their hands.Then he saw a row of arrows flying towards him, he had never seen such thick and long arrows like miniature spears.

It was Liang Jun's crossbow spear. The first salvo fired thirty or forty Bedouins off their horses.The chief shouted loudly: "Rush over, let's rush over, and they will all be finished." He thought that before he rode into the enemy's formation, the enemy would shoot three or four rounds of "arrows" at most.

Unexpectedly, Liang Jun's crossbow spears were fired continuously, with only one breath between each round, which happened to be the time for the cavalry to roll off the horse.It seemed that if Liang Jun didn't shoot the next round of arrows to make the Bedouin in the front row fall to the ground, he would have shot faster.In addition, a dozen portable ballistas were set up behind the hundreds of Liang soldiers, and they began to throw explosive bombs at the rear of the Bedouin cavalry.

Although the blazing flames did not engulf a Bedouin war cavalry, they frightened their war horses badly.Many of the horses were frightened and knocked the Bedouins off their saddles, and some galloped away into the distance.

The Bedouin chief saw the rows of horses rolling down in front and the rear was in chaos, so he realized that he couldn't get through by charging hard, so he had to turn the horse's head and lead the horsemen to find another way to escape.However, not long after, they encountered the same Liang Jun blocking the way again.It turned out that Ma Chao had already taken advantage of the messy terrain of the mountains in this area, and set up Liang Jun at various key points around him to intercept them.These Bedouins are already vulnerable.

After these Bedouins ran around like headless chickens, there was nothing left, and they were finally beheaded and killed by the chasing horses and heavy armored cavalry, and the entire army was wiped out.

When Ma Chao rode his horse and arrived in front of the simple small camp of the Roman army, the opponent rushed out three or four hundred soldiers.The first person who looked like a general came to Ma Chao and talked a lot, and there seemed to be an interpreter next to him, who also translated in a lot of noise.Although Ma Chao still couldn't understand what the translator said, he could tell that the translator spoke Persian.Fortunately, I also brought a Persian translator in my army.Hastily summoned, so that the two sides can barely communicate.

Only then did Ma Chao understand why Feng Yu transferred himself to Sinai to support Alexander's Roman army.It turned out that Macrinus had announced that Alexander's Roman army would overpower the rebels. While Liang's army was besieging the Bedouins, he dispatched a large army to conquer Alexander, and the civil war of the Roman Empire officially started.Alexander was forced to deploy troops to reinforce Beirut, so that the defenders in Sinai were much smaller.Not only Sinai, but also North Africa on the southern coast of the Mediterranean Sea.

To make matters worse, Makrinus also united with the Bedouins in Sinai and the Great Desert of North Africa, allowing them to continue to harass the defenders of Alexander.Although there are only a few oases where the Bedouins live, the population only accounts for a small percentage of the total Bedouin population.But their harassment also increased the pressure on Alexander's Roman army.In particular, the army with logistical supplies was frequently attacked.

And the current transport team composed of two brigades temporarily built this fort defense on the oasis after the attack.Before the end of Ma Chao, they had held on for two days and one night.

Chapter 947

In just over half a month, the Ma Chao Legion and the Roman army of the three battalions left by Alexander in the Sinai area wiped out all the Bedouin tribes in the Sinai Peninsula.

This would have been impossible to do in previous years.Because the Bedouin would run away if they couldn't beat them, unless they could march forward with an absolutely superior force like Lu Bu's prairie horsemen, control every water source oasis that the opponent could reach, and stop them from fleeing before they could be wiped out.However, the Ma Chao Legion and the three battalions of the Roman Army combined have less than 5000 people, so naturally they cannot do as they please.

However, at the moment, in the Bedouin desert oasis adjacent to the Sinai Peninsula, the Liang Army Beifu Army and the Axum Allied Army have not yet withdrawn their defenses.Therefore, these Bedouins had only two options to avoid the invasion of Daliang and the Roman coalition forces.One is wandering within the Sinai Peninsula.The second is to escape to Africa through the Isthmus of Suez, cross the Nile River and head to the North African desert.There are also dozens of Bedouin tribes scattered there.

However, the coalition forces have deployed two heavy cavalry battalions on the Isthmus of Suez, and the Bedouins in the Sinai region have been cut off from fleeing to Africa.There are only more than [-] oases in the interior of the Sinai Peninsula, and the entire area is only four to five hundred miles in radius, with limited room for movement.These Bedouin tribes were quickly wiped out by the coalition forces by means of raids, siege with troops, and ambush on the inevitable escape route.

……

In the temporary palace of the Roman emperor in Beirut, Alexander was receiving an oriental guest from Daliang.This person is Chen Tiao.

After some cup-changing and diplomatic rhetoric, Alexander got down to business: "Now, the traitor of our country, Makrinus, is raising troops to attack the province of Syria, and our army is fighting hard against the enemy at the junction of Syria and Asia Minor. Rinus also sent agents to contact the Bedouins in the African desert. This has threatened the safety of our rear in the North African provinces. Now let alone my army marching into Rome to eradicate the traitor Macri Nous, it is very difficult to keep the current territory..."

Chen Tiao interrupted him and said: "Your Majesty's words are wrong, and now the city of Rome is not monolithic. I heard that most of the senators in the Senate just expressed their support for him because of his power. Besides the Senate, Gaul outside the mountains Provinces, far Spanish provinces, the governors of the Germania provinces, and even the commanders of several naval regiments also have the heart to rebel."

Alexander nodded and said: "Your envoy is right, otherwise my situation would be worse. It is precisely because of this that I don't need to invest in the Mauritania province. Threats at sea. But your envoy does not have a deep understanding of our country's national conditions. Although these people oppose Macrinus, they are not good people themselves, they are all ambitious people. They are waiting for me and Macrinus Nu Si fights and loses both sides, and then reaps the benefits of the fisherman."

Speaking of this, Alexander paused, and said with determination: "So, we need strong foreign aid to quell the crisis of the empire. Now, only you, Liang, have the ability."

At this time, Chen Tiao's expression became solemn, and he said: "Our country once formed an alliance with your country just to jointly deal with the Sassanid Dynasty. Now the Sasanian Dynasty has perished. Later, we added a Bedouin, and they have also been wiped out by us. Even if the mission of the alliance has been completed. Of course, our two countries can cooperate in other fields such as commerce and trade in the future, but I am afraid that it is a bit inappropriate for Liang Guo to directly intervene in your country's internal affairs."

Alexander leaned back indifferently, leaned on the back of the chair and said, "If you have any conditions, you can just mention them. As long as you Liang Guo can help me put down the rebellion and solve the crisis of the empire. There are gold and silver treasures in the land, just ask for it."

After hearing this, Chen Tiao smiled calmly and responded, "If any conditions are really acceptable, I, the Emperor of Daliang, have one condition. As long as your country agrees, I am willing to help His Majesty put down the rebellion. But this condition is not You want land, not gold and silver. But after Your Majesty puts down the civil strife in your country, you will arrange for one of our people to serve as an official in the imperial court of your country."

When Alexander heard these words, he instinctively became vigilant, and he had already turned a few turns in his mind to guess the other party's intentions.Then stretched out a finger and said, "Only one person?"

"Only one!" Chen Tiao paused after affirmative answer, and continued: "Don't worry, Your Majesty, our monarch has no other intentions for this move. Because our monarch, Emperor Liang, has seen many countries, all of which are similar, only the noble The country’s political system is different. He found it quite novel, so he wanted to send someone to learn about your country’s governance and political system, so as to learn from its strengths and make up for its weaknesses.”

Alexander thought that a person could not make big waves under the rule of Rome, so he nodded: "Yes, it is possible, but officials from the bottom to the top of Rome, the senators of the Senate and the judges of the court, including me, the emperor All positions, including positions, must be Roman citizens. Therefore, the people you arrange must first become citizens of our Rome."

Seeing what Alexander said, Chen Tiao agreed, and immediately said happily: "It's natural, everything is up to His Majesty's arrangement."

Alexander asked back: "When will your country send troops to help me, and when will the person you want to send come?"

Chen Tiao replied: "Our army's Ma Chao Legion is working with your team to kill the Bedouin bandits in the Sinai Peninsula. I think this time is coming to an end. This legion can be dispatched by Your Majesty. In addition, we will send another legion Go to Beirut City to assist His Majesty in resisting and counterattacking the invading enemies from Asia Minor. As for the person we are going to send, it will not be too late to come after your internal turmoil is settled.”

Alexander frowned and said, "Only two legions...", swallowing the words halfway.Chen Tiao saw it and said with a smile: "Don't worry, Your Majesty. Although our army has only sent two legions with a total of 7000 people, these are elite soldiers. I think the soldiers stationed in the Sinai Peninsula in your country will stand shoulder to shoulder with them." I have reported the situation of our army Ma Chao's army to His Majesty, and His Majesty should have a better understanding of their combat strength."

What Chen Tiao said made Alexander speechless. The Roman army in Sinai had indeed reported many battle situations to him through letters. tough.

Alexander picked up the wine and toasted Chen Tiao and said, "Then we will represent all countries and make this oath, and it is a deal."

Chen Tiao drank the wine in his glass and said, "It's a deal."

Chapter 948

A turquoise river flows from north to south on the red-yellow land, and then rushes eastward after a sharp ninety-degree turn in a small town with only a few hundred households.The town is called Raqqa, and it is the westernmost town in Daliang Mesopotamia.Further west is the northern part of the Roman province of Syria.The turquoise river is the Euphrates River, and then upstream, it enters the Roman province of Asia Minor in the north.

At this time, in the small town of Raqqa, some Persian soldiers of the Liang Army held swords and guns, shouted constantly, and drove the crowd of spectators on the street.It turned out that hundreds of ships of Liang Jun size were moored on the river outside the pier of the Euphrates River in the town.There are warships suitable for inland navigation, as well as Viking warships.A large number of Liang soldiers are boarding the river from the boats. They are the real Liang soldiers from the Far East.The aborigines in the small town had never seen these yellow-skinned and black-haired people in their life, so they went out to look at them one after another, forcing the local government to send Persian soldiers to maintain order.

The army that landed was Zhao Yun's army, ordered by Feng Yu to reinforce Alexander.According to the plan, he was supposed to go to Beirut to meet with Alexander, but Alexander suddenly sent a letter saying that the front line was tight, and asked reinforcements to go directly to the battlefield at the junction of Syria and Asia Minor, attacking and killing the enemy from the side and rear. The breakthrough has lasted for several months long deadlock.Zhao Yun led his troops to sail westward along the Euphrates River by boat and landed here.

More than two hours later, all the personnel and equipment had landed, and with Zhao Yun's order, nearly 4000 men and horses drove westward in a mighty manner.Three days later, they saw a towering mountain range full of exposed red rocks lying in front of them, and that was the Lebanon Mountains stretching for hundreds of miles on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea.

One of Zhao Yun's Persian generals as a guide said to him: "Commander, the Lebanon Mountains are ahead, and the direction of ten o'clock is the Hama Pass of the Lebanon Mountains. We should be able to arrive in two hours after walking."

Zhao Yun had already reined in and said, "No, we won't go that way."

The Persian lieutenant general became puzzled: "But the commander, the Hama Pass is the only way to the Mediterranean coastal plain."

"Because it is the only way to pass, the enemy must have already stationed heavy troops at the mountain pass, so why should we rush up. We don't even need to send scouts, so as not to startle the snake."

"If you don't go this way, it's not easy for thousands of people to cross this mountain hundreds of feet high. No, it's not easy, it's almost impossible."

Zhao Yun said with a smile: "As long as there are mountains, there will be roads, it just depends on whether people can find them." Then he said coldly: "Pass down my military order, select twenty mountain scouts, and go into the mountains in groups of two to search for them." Those who can climb over this mountain range and stay away from the path of Hama Mountain Pass will be rewarded for whoever finds the most suitable one.” Ling Bing made a promise and galloped away.

The army waited for two or three hours, and the ten groups of commanders returned one after another.Six of them simply failed to find a way for thousands of troops to pass.Zhao Yun summed up the intelligence of the other four people and chose the most suitable path among them.

Under the leadership of this group of scouts, Zhao Yun's army soon came to the eastern foot of the Lebanon Mountains.After the army was arranged, it was divided into two columns, and the cavalry also dismounted and led the horses, and followed the two scouts on the mountain road.

This road is said to be the most suitable road, but in fact it is just that there is no need to climb rocks and walls.The mountain road was extremely narrow and rugged, and it was impossible for chariots and baggage vehicles to pass through such a road.Zhao Yun's countermeasure was to build a camp at the foot of the mountain, guarded by heavy soldiers.Those chariots and baggage vehicles are all kept in the camp.Some heavy equipment can only be temporarily idle in these camps.The rest of the materials can only be transported by soldiers and horses on their shoulders.

A gray-bearded lieutenant general walked seven or eight miles out of breath on such a mountain road, and asked Zhao Yun: "Commander, it is really not a problem for us to turn over such a mountain road. But even if the logistics supply is cut off, this horseback How much material can a person carry?"

This person is Zhao Yun's old subordinate for decades, so he can speak up without hesitation if he has any doubts.Zhao Yun smiled slightly and said: "Old Wu, let's go over the mountain, launch a surprise attack from behind, defeat the main force of the enemy army, and then return to the division to seize the Hama Pass, so the logistics problem will be solved. In addition, Alexander The army can provide us with some supplies. This time can be completed in three days at most, and each of our soldiers has brought enough dry food, and it is enough to save food for five days."

Old Wu was still shaking his head and muttering: "But this is still too risky, too risky..." When he looked up, Zhao Yun had already walked to the front of the team and disappeared.

Standing on the high slope of the western foot of Mount Lebanon, Zhao Yun looked down and saw the lush greenery, which was in sharp contrast to the red-yellow desolation at the eastern foot, and the sparkling blue Mediterranean Sea could already be seen in the distance.It is the water vapor from the Mediterranean Sea that is blocked by the Lebanon Mountains that creates this wet and rainy situation in the west and dry and rainless in the east.

Zhao Yun originally thought that the west side of the mountain range was the same as the east side, and it was also a piece of bare rock.In this way, when the army goes down the mountain, there will be a high possibility of being spotted by the patrolling enemy soldiers on the plain to the west of the mountain range.This was the only flaw in his plan.Now that he saw such a scene, his previous worries disappeared.

After the Liang army quietly descended to the coastal plain on the west side of the mountain range, they turned to the south and rushed towards the battlefield between the Alexander army and the Macrinus army.

A cavalry team with eagle banners was riding along a road along the coast. They were a patrol team of Macrinus's army, about twenty riders.The leading general's expression suddenly froze, and fear appeared in his eyes.Two hundred paces away, a large group of strange troops came out of the woods and appeared in his field of vision.

The general hurriedly said: "There is an enemy situation! Hurry back to the camp and report to the peak!" As soon as he finished speaking, dozens of fast riders rode out from the opponent's team, apparently also spotted them.

The Roman general and his twenty or so soldiers had already turned their horses' heads. At this moment, dozens of black objects appeared in the sky and rushed towards them. The sound of breaking through the air.Before more than ten people had time to react, they were shot through their bodies by longbows and heavy arrows.

The Roman general survived and was still galloping with the rest of the survivors.At this moment, two huge black shadows swooped down in the air, and with two slaps, the heads of the Roman general and another soldier were pierced by the huge claws of Liang Jun Haster's giant eagle.

At the same time, several black shadows leaped up from the ground like arrows from the string and jumped onto the backs of the remaining horses.They were the cheetahs of Liang Jun's scouts, and they rushed at these Roman cavalrymen with their teeth and claws, and instantly bit off the latter's neck.

Chapter 949 Tartus Defense Line

Tartus, an inconspicuous town on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea, has now become Beirut's last line of defense.Under the pressure of Macrinus' army, Alexander's army retreated here, hastily building a line of defense.If Macrinus' army breaks through here again, Alexander will no longer be in danger, and the former can come to Beirut.

At dawn, the sound of drums and horns sounded again among the Macrinus army.Numerous Roman soldiers quickly assembled and arranged in an attacking phalanx under the eagle flag waving in the wind.

On the opposite side, the defenders of Tartus hid behind a low wall composed of mounds of earth, rocks, and wooden repellent horses.This low wall stretches from the shore of the Mediterranean Sea to the foot of the western foot of Mount Lebanon, and it was built by Alexander's army in two days.The Roman army of Macrinus attacked this line of defense for three consecutive days, but was repelled by the defenders.But these are all the former's tentative attacks. One is to wear down the will of the defenders, and the other is to investigate the reality of the defenders. Today is the day when they launch a fierce attack.

The legion leader who commanded the army of Macrinus was named Peter Seuss, and he was Macrinus' confidant in the Caracalla Guards in his early years.Now, he rode out and came to a Roman army lined up, and began to mobilize before the general attack.

After an impassioned speech, Peterseus raised his voice an octave and shouted: "Warriors of the Roman Legion, take your shield and sword to cut down these rebels for the empire. His Majesty Macrinus will reward you Excellent feat. Their line of defense is already in jeopardy, go! Rushing forward needlessly to launch the final blow and destroy them completely!"

After the words were finished, dozens of Roman trumpeters behind the army raised their four or five-foot-long bronze horns and blew them.The four groups of ballistas placed on both sides of the three phalanxes and in the gaps of more than ten battles began to blast.All they throw are stone bullets.Stone bullets of various sizes drew arcs in the air, hitting the walls and the ground.

Whenever the stone bullet hits the low wall, it will cause earth to fall and rocks to crack.Some stone bombs just left a pit and countless cracks on the wall, while others directly knocked down a corner of the wall.Some stone bullets even pierced through the wall directly.But the defenders behind the low wall did not move at all.

The four groups of ballistas bombarded a section of the city wall separately, and within a short time, they blasted four gaps tens of battles wide in front of the three army formations, which happened to be about the same width as the army formations.Each of the three phalanxes corresponds to a gap, and the other gap is prepared for the cavalry.Up to now, the defenders behind the low wall still have not responded, as if they disappeared out of thin air.

The rhythm and pitch of the Roman trumpeter's trumpets suddenly changed.Three huge Roman phalanxes began to move forward slowly.When approaching the gap, the soldiers from the second row in the phalanx raised their javelins over their shoulders. As long as someone appeared from behind the gap, they would be pierced into a sieve by the javelin within a few breaths.

In the previous two days of offense, Petersius suffered a loss here.When the attacker's phalanx was less than ten battles away from the gap in the low wall, the defenders suddenly appeared at the gap and threw dense javelins like a torrential rain.Our army's phalanx didn't even have time to transform into a tortoise shell formation, and their bodies were pierced by javelins one after another.Then hundreds of defenders rushed out of the gap, rushed into the chaotic attacking square, and began to slash and kill.

After a moment of melee between the two sides, Peterseus had to stop the attack immediately for fear of excessive casualties and defeat.