The Sun and the Lion

Piri, who marched overnight, was the first to arrive in Daman. They did not encounter any resistance. The original owner and defenders had disappeared without a trace, and the castle fell into the hands of the Safavid army.

The Safavid army stationed in the castle immediately began to rest and enjoy the remaining inventory in the castle. He only dismissed the Afghans, leaving the trustworthy red heads on duty.

It wasn't until the sun was high that the soldiers woke up Pili: "General, the scouts discovered our troops coming from the west outside, and His Majesty's royal flag is also among them."

He did not dare to neglect, he immediately left the city and galloped towards the large group of people in the west.

Ibrahim was observing the castle of Daman in the distance. From his perspective, the sentries on duty on the castle had probably discovered his team, and according to Piribey's report, reinforcements sent by Ulugh Beg He was already not far from here, and he needed to capture this small castle in a very short time and prepare to face the enemy.

"Your Majesty, a group of cavalry has arrived. They are wearing red hats. Their leader calls himself Pilibey. They want to see you."

The soldier's reminder brought Ibrahim back to his senses: "Take me there."

When Pili saw Ibrahim coming, he hurriedly saluted and said: "Bey Pili of Shamru's tribe, respect your Majesty's order, gather our troops to join you here. The castle of Daman has been taken over by our army, and the castle There is not much military supplies left in the warehouse, and it is difficult to support our army in combat."

For a long time, he saw that the sentries on duty on the wall were all his own. Ibrahim also thought about using the breech-mounted swivel cannon to fire solid bullets and grape bullets to suppress the defenders and facilitate the attack on the city.

Then he told the whole story of his lonely battle, which was much more detailed and vivid than the report sent back by the courier.

After hearing this, Ibrahim praised: "You have tried your best and paid enough for our army to win the victory. I would not be able to do better than you.

"You don't need to worry about the baggage. I have already brought enough food and fodder for 20,000 troops for three days. Plus the supplies collected from the surrounding villages, it will be enough for us to use until the end of the battle."

After saying that, Ibrahim started to plan to enter the castle. The Afghans who were originally staying in the castle were driven outside to the open space to camp and settle down with the red head.

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At noon the next day, we were only two or three kilometers away from Daman. Although it was not yet time to rest, the scout's report forced Zongnong to stop his troops.

Ibrahim had no intention of covering up, and the military camp and flags stood openly near the castle. The scouts of the Guregani Army were forced to fight with the Safavid patrols many times.

A large group of enemy troops suddenly appeared in front of him, and they were obviously here to stop him. Zongnong had no choice. In this case, let's fight.

"Send orders to all ministries to prepare for battle."

The herald galloped his horse among the long marching team. The cavalry was the first to gather under Zongnong's military flag. He planned to lead the cavalry in person first. According to the scout report, the enemy must have just arrived, and there are no decent fortifications around the camp.

He did not want to think that there was anything unusual about it, that subterfuge meant nothing to him, that he had neither the ability nor the inclination to discern the tricks of his enemies, nor to understand the opinions of his colleagues, good or bad. If something happens, will it be over? In the court of Kabul, several mullahs claimed: "We have a relationship with heaven. Because of your bravery, God has given you the title of 'Lion of God' and guaranteed that you can defeat all enemies."

And he believed these words, thanked Allah on the spot, and since then truly regarded himself as the "Lion of Allah".

Overconfident, he led part of the cavalry to the west without waiting for the army to be reorganized. The cavalry gathered around him were all infected by Zonnon Burke's confidence, and they all became enthusiastic: "Kill all those unbelieving heretics, and God will forgive our sins and kill enough Imani to go to heaven!"

The Guregani army rushed towards Daman in a chaotic manner. When completing the last step of the journey, Zongnong completely forgot to arrange the waiting and the cavalry responsible for driving away the enemy scouts.

This scene was also seen by the Safavid scouts. Ibrahim immediately learned that the Guregani army was not far away from him, and began to arrange the next battle.

Ibrahim first ordered all the troops to get out of camp and line up, and informed the senior officers around him of his arrangements.

"I plan to divide our army into three parts. The left wing near the castle and settlement will be commanded by Piri Bey. I will allocate you three regiments of red heads, plus the Afghan horsemen originally belonging to you." Ibrahim Give the order to Piri first.

Pili immediately saluted: "I accept your order."

The right wing of the Safavid army consisted of four regiments of red heads, and their commander was Bey Aqi from the Wasak tribe who was temporarily transferred.

The center force was commanded by Ibrahim himself, including all the camel cannon and standing army cavalry and bowmen, as well as the remaining two regiments of red heads.

Without further ado, after the deployment was completed, Ibrahim and senior officers rushed to the camp to mobilize the troops. Find Shuyuan www.zhaoshuyuan.com Before the end of the meeting, Ibrahim sent a messenger to inform the camp to prepare for battle. The Safavid army had prepared armored soldiers early and gathered together according to their respective organizations. , just waiting for the orders from the officers.

But even with such efficiency, the vanguard led by Zongnong still reached the camp before the Safavid army completed its deployment. Both Piri and Archie requested to take the initiative to fight and lead their own soldiers and already assembled troops to intercept this enemy force.

"No, the cavalry troops deployed behind the camp according to their original configuration."

This order immediately puzzled the two of them: "Your Majesty, if we retreat in front of the formation, it will only dampen the morale of our army and increase the enemy's arrogance. Besides, the camp is too heavy..."

After hearing the advice of the two emirs, Ibrahim explained: "Don't be anxious, I don't intend to admit defeat, I haven't finished the arrangements yet. The bow holder and I will stay here to set up defenses, waiting for you two to sort out Once you're done, press against the enemy's flanks, wait until the camel cannon disrupts the enemy, then charge forward, defeat them and return quickly. Now go and execute the order."

Seeing that Ibrahim was confident, the two beys implemented the new plan without any worries.

"Let all the camel artillery be concentrated and lined up at the forefront of our army, leaving a path for our army to charge." The messenger on the side then conveyed Ibrahim's order to the entire army with trumpets and drums. .

More than fifty camels were led to the front, and Zongnong saw this operation.

"What are they doing? Do they want to use camels to drive away our army?"

Camels can indeed scare horses and reduce the cavalry's combat power, but at this time Zongnong brought nearly a thousand cavalry, and more than fifty camels were really not enough. Besides, those camels were really weird. There were no warriors riding on their backs. Instead, they were wearing a layer of armor and carrying a large pipe, lying down in front of them.