Hua Mulan's expression changed, and she said, "You're not serious, are you?"
A resolute and determined look flashed across Xiang Yu's face: "Do I look like I'm joking?"
Mulan was truly alarmed and shouted, "Are you crazy?"
At this moment, Xiang Yu had already walked outside the tent. His personal guards, having heard their master's call, had all mounted their horses and formed a small square formation of 500 men, quietly waiting for Xiang Yu to issue his orders.
Seeing that things were not going well, I quickly grabbed Xiang Yu and said, "Brother Yu, impulsiveness is the devil. You won't take a joke seriously, will you?"
Xiang Yu took a few pieces of ordinary armor, made some simple protection for himself, still without a helmet, and tied his hair back roughly. He then leaned on his spear and prepared to mount his horse. Hua Mulan couldn't stop him and cried out in desperation, "I was wrong, okay? From now on, even if you're the only one left in the simulation, you'll still win..." Xiang Yu ignored her and leaped onto the lame rabbit.
At this critical moment, Yu Ji slowly walked over, carrying a bowl of brewed Chinese medicine. Upon seeing her, I immediately exclaimed, "Sister-in-law, aren't you going to do anything about this? Brother Yu is leading a few hundred men to fight against 5,000!"
Yu Ji was taken aback. She handed the medicine bowl to Hua Mulan and looked at Xiang Yu with a questioning gaze. Xiang Yu had already mounted his horse. He placed his spear across the saddle, met Yu Ji's eyes, and said softly, "Ah Yu, will you let me go or not?"
Yu Ji gracefully approached Xiang Yu's horse and quietly asked, "Are there many of them?"
Xiang Yu nodded: "A lot."
"Is he fierce?"
Xiang Yu nodded: "Ruthless."
Yu Ji nodded, straightened Xiang Yu's stirrups, and said softly, "Then you must be careful not to hurt yourself, or the children will laugh at you when they grow up."
Mulan and I never expected her to say that, so we looked at each other in bewilderment and couldn't utter a single word.
Xiang Yu chuckled and said, "Don't worry." Yu Ji smiled gently, said nothing more, and led Xiao Huan into the tent.
Before I could say anything more, Xiang Yu glared at me with an imposing look, and I quickly shut up.
Xiang Yu stood before his 500 guards, his gaze sweeping over them one by one, and declared loudly, "This time we are facing 5,000 men."
The 500 guards shouted, "Yes!"
Xiang Yu said, "Some of you may die."
The 500 guards shouted, "Yes!"
Xiang Yu said, "But the final victory will be ours."
The 500 guards, their blood boiling, roared, "Yes!"
Xiang Yu glanced at his excited subordinates and suddenly smiled, "Don't be so serious. We've fought against 10,000 men before."
Upon hearing this, the guards burst into laughter, and one of them shouted, "Your Majesty, didn't you say we can't bully the weak with our numbers?" The soldiers laughed again.
Xiang Yu laughed and said, "Let's go!"
So, Xiang Yu, the King of Chu, led his 500 personal guards out like the wind, their rough laughter echoing from afar. They weren't going to fight to the death; they were more like a bunch of migrant workers who had arranged to go to a night market.
Hua Mulan watched their figures disappear until they came to their senses, then sighed leisurely, "What a bunch of desperados."
I said, "Sister, with your many years of experience leading troops, do you really think they can win?"
Hua Mulan smiled wryly and said, "I wouldn't have thought that way before, but now it's hard to say. This guy seems to never play by the rules when it comes to fighting."
Only then did I realize that Yu Ji had come out at some point and was leaning against the doorway, staring blankly in the direction Xiang Yu had left. I quickly said, "Sister-in-law, are you really not going to stop Brother Yu from risking his life like this?"
Yu Ji smiled faintly: "Do you think he really won't go if I don't tell him to?"
Xiao Huan helped Yu Ji up and said, "Actually, I'm most worried about Sister Yu."
I said, "Sister-in-law, you're too traditional. If you insist on not letting him go, I don't believe he'll dare do anything to you, especially since you're pregnant." Anyway, if I did that, Baozi would definitely cry, make a scene, and threaten suicide—of course, I definitely wouldn't do that.
Yu Ji sighed and said, "Ever since the King came out of Gaixia, he has been unhappy. Although he doesn't say it, I know that if we don't let him go this time, he will probably be very upset."
At this moment, a scout from Mulan's army reported with a dazed expression: "Vanguard Hua, that General Xiang, for some unknown reason, led 500 men out of Yanshan. They are about to meet the Rouran army..."
Hua Mulan suddenly realized, "That's right, let's go take a look!"
Yu Ji, leaning weakly against the doorframe, said, "Sister Hua, Xiao Qiang, promise me. Don't interfere unless absolutely necessary. The King is proud and arrogant..."
Hua Mulan said, "I understand." She immediately mustered her troops and set off out of the woods.
We climbed to the top of a pile of rocks at the foot of Yanshan Mountain and looked down. Xiang Yu and the Rouran's 5,000-strong army had already met face to face. The Xiongnu soldiers, their armor gleaming, stood in a dark, imposing line, while Xiang Yu's army was in a dense formation, still a small square.
A barbarian general looked at the hundreds of unfamiliar soldiers opposite him and shouted, "Who are you? Are you just passing by or are you surrendering?"
Without a word, Xiang Yu raised his spear, and his 500 ugly guards drew their long swords from their sheaths. The Xiongnu soldiers were all taken aback; they watched as their enemy drew his weapon, still unable to believe that these few hundred men would dare to charge at them.
The general said, "You..."
Before he could finish speaking, Xiang Yu tightened the reins, and the lame rabbit dashed off like lightning. The general never dreamed that before he could finish a sentence, the enemy's spear was already piercing his neck. The word "you" barely escaped his lips before the sound of blood spraying through the air filled the air: "Pfft!"
Xiang Yu charged forward, followed closely by two guards on his shoulders, then four guards in a third rank, and so on. Their attack was peculiar, as if those in the back were hidden behind those in front, forming a sharp triangle that plunged deep into the enemy's heart. With 5,000 men lined up, the Xiongnu's defenses became extremely thin, and Xiang Yu's swift horse broke through the encirclement in just a few minutes. He turned his horse around and rode back to the front of the column, facing the already scattered enemy. His guards charged out and quickly rejoined the ranks. The first charge of 500 men was completed amidst the enemy's chaos and unpreparedness.
At this moment, the Xiongnu soldiers were in uproar. They had never expected to encounter such a vicious enemy. The long war with the Northern Wei army had instilled in them a bad habit: they were always on guard against what tricks the enemy might use, and they never expected that the enemy would be so enthusiastic. Many of them died without ever drawing their weapons, and were cut down from their horses with expressions of astonishment and disbelief.
Of course, if they had known their enemy was Xiang Yu, the Hegemon-King of Western Chu, perhaps they wouldn't have been so careless. It's like an adult not taking a child gesturing with a water gun seriously until the water gun shoots lasers, revealing it's not a child at all, but alien invaders…
But war has no "what ifs." Xiang Yu completed his first charge with almost zero casualties. He raised his spear high again, and as the sound of hooves behind him gradually thinned out, he knew that his men had regrouped and were launching a second charge without hesitation!
If the first sudden attack that injured the Xiongnu was an accident, then Xiang Yu's second charge was... a second accident. The poor Xiongnu weren't online writers; though they were physically strong, their imaginations were limited. They initially thought Xiang Yu's fearless charge was just a ploy to escape, never imagining his true aim was to devour them. While they were still hesitating between pursuing and not pursuing, Xiang Yu had already charged up from their backs again...
Xiang Yu led the charge once again. In the midst of ten thousand men, his spear was a simple killing weapon, devoid of any finesse or technique. He swung it wildly, stabbing and slashing, leaving none in his way. Enemies were all turned into juicy, crisp melons, and he swept them aside like a mischievous child. His guards, like a group of unruly scoundrels, were equally lawless; the battlefield was their playground and a place to vent their frustrations. For the first time, the notoriously fierce Xiongnu were bewildered. This time, although they had weapons in their hands, they hadn't expected to need them so soon, only to find they would never need them again…
Both of Xiang Yu's army's charges were completely successful. They crawled across the loose sand like a centipede covered in barbs, causing heavy casualties and chaos among the Xiongnu.