The Legend of Shushan Xuanjian

Chapter 114
The four towns are rich and elite, and all of them are unmatched.It is also heard that offering soldiers is enough to calm the wind and dust.

Lao Maye knew that goshawks were hungry for people.In the face of danger and protracted battle, start with urgency like a god.

——"Two Poems of Watching An Xibing Go to Guanzhong to Stand by" by Du Fu

……

After kicking off again, Tian Chengsi got the ball and was about to make a forward pass when Li Siye's horse rushed over.Li Siye's stick flicked, Tian Chengsi felt a blur in front of his eyes, Li Siye had already intercepted the ball from under his stick.

Li Siye turned his horse's head and walked away.Li Guiren and Sun Xiaozhe rode their horses and attacked from both sides, forming a momentum of closing the door, intending to win the ball.Li Siye pulled the rein, the steed's front hooves were raised high, Wu Liuliu neighed, and it stopped suddenly, avoiding the attack of the two.Li Siye cut across the middle, and when he was [-] steps away from the goal, he suddenly swung his club, and the polo hit the goal like a catapult.Anxi team came out on top again.

Fan Yangjun took a look and quickly launched an offensive.The two sides are like this, you come and go, alternating offense and defense.The score on the court climbed steadily.

At the critical moment, they suddenly heard drums and music playing in unison on the field. All the generals on the field reined in their horses, faced the pavilion with solemn expressions, and gave military salutes.

The audience in the arena knelt down on the ground.Before Bai Fu came back to his senses, Yang Yichan panicked and paused at the corner of Bai Fu's clothes. Then Bai Fu woke up and knelt down on the ground with everyone.

I heard Lang Lang's voice coming from the direction of the Changting Pavilion: "The sage has come to enjoy the joy with the people... The sage has a decree, please love me!"

Everyone kowtowed three times before getting up.

Yang Yichan took a sneak peek at the side, and saw a layer of gauze curtains being lowered in the long pavilion, sitting in the center of a person, dressed in a yellow robe, and beside her was a beautiful woman in palace attire, with a subtle and graceful appearance, just like a fairy coming to the world.

Yang Yichan secretly said in his heart: "This must be a saint and a noble concubine." The majesty of the emperor is admired by all, and Yang Yichan is very envious.Thinking about it for a second, I can't help but feel a little proud that I will be their bodyguard in the future.Looking at Bai Fu again, he was indifferent to the arrival of Xuanzong and his party, and concentrated on watching the game, Yang Yichan felt an indescribable regret in his heart.

The competition on the field has entered a fierce state at this moment, and the presence of the Holy Spirit in person is no small matter.All the generals on the field fought bravely and fought with their lives.Losing is a small matter, but honor is a big matter. No one wants to lose the face of their army.The competition in this ball game is no longer about winning or losing, but the prestige of "the first army of the Tang Dynasty"!It is exactly what the general said at the beginning: "The stadium is like a battlefield. It has nothing to do with life and death, and it is higher than life and death!"

Fan Yangjun, An Shouzhong, Sun Xiaozhe, and Ashina Chengqing are young, vigorous and brave.Cai Xide has been on the battlefield for a long time, and he is deeply loved by everyone.Cui Qianyou and Li Guiren are skilled in pommel horses, brave and good at fighting.Gao Miao and He Qianqian are both wise and brave, and have a keen sense of smell in front of the door.Tian Chengsi, Zhang Zhongzhi, and Li Huaixian are good at attacking and defending.Fan Yang is a master of martial arts and bold, each of them succeeds frequently.

Anxi Jun Feng Changqing's midfield organization was mobilized, and the overall situation was in mind.Li Siye is both offensive and defensive, brave and good at fighting.Duan Xiushi is both civil and military, moves erratically, and seals her throat with a sword.Bai Xiaode is brave and powerful, good at riding and shooting, can shoot left and right, and can dribble and shoot with both hands.Li Qiyun is both civil and military, calm and calm, and the backbone of the defense.Ma Lin joined the army with his sword, impassioned.Li Feiyuan is proficient at pommel horses, and he is very courageous.Tian Zhen opens wide and closes wide, one husband guards the gate, and ten thousand husbands can't open it.The generals of the Anxi Army have known each other for a long time, cooperated tacitly, and won several times.

All of a sudden, the battle became more and more fierce in the arena, all kinds of horses drove and parted, and all the horses were silent, attacking and defending back and forth.All the riders chased each other with lightning, galloped their horses, and fought wits and courage, which turned the stadium upside down.

Anxi's Ma Lin knocked the ball to Bai Xiaode, while Fan Yang's Ashina Chengqing blocked it with his horse.Bai Xiaode didn't dare to confront him head-on, he swiped his stick and passed the ball to Feng Changqing from the air.Ashina Chengqing hooked his stirrups with both feet, leaned over to reach for his staff, intercepted the polo in the air, and then passed the ball to Gao Miao who was beside him.

Xuanzong praised: "Good riding!"

Bai Xiaode and Feng Changqing rushed forward to attack, Gao Miao's horse was fast, and he swept away from the middle of the two riders, leaving in the dust, moving like a rabbit, graceful and agile.

With a whistling sound, Li Qiyun took up a defensive posture and faced Gao Miao head-on.Gao Miao raised his thick eyebrows, counted the rhythm of Li Qiyun's horse's four hooves landing, and hit the polo directly under the horse's belly, "Put the crotch!" The audience applauded!
Li Qiyun couldn't return to his horse in time, the two horses pedaled wrongly, Gao Miao passed by him, raised his stick, the polo flew into the net like a rainbow, and scored a goal.

Fan Yangjun leads by one goal again!
Xuanzong asked: "Fan Yang's army is really full of talents. I know An Shouzhong, Cai Xide, Cui Qianyou and Ashina Chengqing. Who is this general?"

An Lushan smiled broadly and replied: "Your Majesty, this general is named Gao Miao. He is both wise and brave. He is the vanguard general of our Fan Yang army in the battle against the Khitan. He usually leads the Gao Yang army to garrison Yizhou."

Xuanzong praised: "From this point of view, we can see his leading demeanor. He is indeed a general with both wisdom and courage."

……

When the ball was kicked off again, Li Siye of the Anxi Army received a pass from Feng Changqing in the middle circle and dribbled the ball like flying all the way. Ashina Chengqing rode his horse and brushed past him to the right, hooking his stick out, trying to intercept the attack.Li Siye picked up the stick, picked the polo from the right side of the horse to the left side, and switched the stick to his left hand. He controlled the ball with his left hand, and continued to dribble forward without losing speed.This skill of controlling the ball, elegant and gorgeous, won the applause of everyone off the court.Ashina Chengqing had no choice but to follow closely, with one man and one horse separated. He kept hitting Li Siye with his horse in an attempt to regain the ball through reasonable collisions.Li Siye is tall and burly, with a tall horse in his crotch. He has strong confrontation ability and steady ball protection, so Ashina Chengqing can't take advantage of it.

When Li Siye was fifty steps ahead of the goal, the opponent's two cavalry galloped to defend.Li Siye was about to fight two with one, when he suddenly caught sight of Duan Xiushi riding his horse, he sped up and plunged obliquely into the abdomen, right to penetrate behind the two horsemen.Li Siye was overjoyed, and with a wave of his stick, the polo passed through the gap between Fan Yangjun's two defenders and directly hit Duan Xiushi.Tian Chengsi, the last defensive rider of Fan Yang's army, was shocked and rushed towards Duan Xiushi viciously.Duan Xiushi didn't stop the ball, hit the wall and passed the ball back, just in front of Li Siye's galloping horse, and also just broke through the last line of defense of Fan Yang's army.

Li Siye easily pushed the polo with his staff and sent the polo into the unguarded goal.Li Siye and Duan Xiushi galloped to one place, and hit the left chest with the right hand three times to express their respect for each other.Immediately, he swung his club and laughed, igniting the enthusiasm of the audience again!

Anxi Army also equalized the score again!
Xuanzong praised: "You Jinwu's great general Li Siye is still so powerful. I remember that when he took down Xiao Bolu, he was the one who took the lead in attacking Suole City, right?"

Gao Xianzhi said with a smile: "Your Majesty has a good memory, that's him. Up to now, he still takes the lead in every battle, bares his upper body, holds a long knife, and charges in front of the battle.

Xuanzong said with a smile: "Tell Siye that he is now a general, and he can no longer be a lone hero who goes to the front line. He is brave alone, and it is nothing. The troops he leads are brave and capable of fighting, and they are the generals." I want him to create an invincible Modao army for Datang!"

Gao Xianzhi burst into tears, thanking God for his grace.

　注释

　　The tactics of polo total defense come from the theory of "total football" by the Dutch master Johan Cruyff. ('total football' is also called 'total football', a more accurate translation should be 'total football').

　　Main reference materials

　　1. "Polo Sports in Tang Dynasty", Gao Yuan, Lanzhou University, 2006
　　2. "Stop Hunting Terrace", Liu Yuan, Jiangsu Phoenix Literature and Art Publishing House
　　3. "Guide to Settling in the Tang Dynasty", Forest Deer, BJ United Publishing House,
　　
　
(End of this chapter)