"The other party has landed in Antioch... If so, it will launch an attack from north to south. (!du kan) Isn't the defense we have arranged on the western front of Jerusalem useless... No, the other party's naval transportation capacity is very strong. So it is very likely that the sly emperor is waiting for us to make a mistake at this moment."

In the barracks in the city of Jerusalem, Saladin was stunned when he heard about the movements of the crusaders, and then thought about the problem. However, although he was known as the King of the Desert and was excellent among his contemporaries, Saladin's vision was still not that good - no, or, this is the common point of the entire Western world at this moment. Whether it was the Crusaders or the Arab Jihad, at this moment, there was only one city left in their eyes, and what they thought was that they wanted to compete for - that is, Jerusalem.

This holy city, which seems to have magic, attracted the attention of everyone in the whole old world. No matter how old or young, they all pay attention to Jerusalem. Furthermore, under the light of this holy city, other cities, other strategic places, and religious cities all appear dull...

"Do you want to dispatch? My master?" Zhao Haier said to Saladin: "If the master trusts me, please give me a group of Mamluk cavalry. It doesn't take too much, only about five hundred is enough. In addition, some of the Gulam cavalry and Arab cavalry who can fight with me, I can teach the enemy a deep and unforgettable lesson."

"Yes, your Majesty, it is really inappropriate to simply guard Jerusalem. Taking the initiative to find opportunities to attack the pagans can not only delay their speed, give us more preparation time, but also frustrate the morale of the enemy and reduce their strength." On the other hand, another general of Saladin, Baibls, said: "It's just that five hundred people are too few. Even with the Guram heavy cavalry and the Arab light cavalry, there are too few."

"If it were you, Bybours." Saladin pondered for a moment, then asked, "What would you do if it were you?" Saladin asked.

"The desert is our best friend, my master. If it were me, I would use the advantages of terrain and geography to fight in the desert as much as possible - after all, there are many terrain available from Antioch to Jerusalem." said Malek Baibers Bendugadari, another general in Saladin's empire, a brave general who is proficient in siege machinery, cavalry combat and strategy.

"So what to do with those towns?" Saladin continued.

"If possible, my master, I hope to give up those cities." Baibls replied: "From Antioch to Jerusalem, there is only one Damascus in the middle, which is the great city of our capital - and this city is closer to the inland and not on the other side's march route. And you have left five thousand of the most elite guards there. So there is no need to worry.

But other towns are not the case. They are too small and too difficult to defend, and many of them happen to be on the other side's marching route. Even if this is not the case, the pagan army will not have too much effort to break through their defense. So I think that instead of sticking to these towns and consuming our strength in vain, it is better to let these cities be given up. Let these cities become the burden of the other side - in the end, we will win. Only then will we take back these towns."

"If, I mean, what should we do if, my general, if the other party attacks Damascus?" Saladin pondered for a long time and then asked.

"Is this possible?" Baibls and Zhaoheer looked at each other: "The target of the other party's attack is Jerusalem, and it is only Jerusalem. Although after Jerusalem is lost, the other party is likely to continue to attack other territories. But before that..."

"Master, the Crusaders have attacked this land more than once. And they come to Jerusalem every time," said Bybers.

"... Maybe I'm worried too much." Saladin shook his head - as Baibls said. In the first three crusades, the crusaders did not leave Jerusalem and attack Damascus. This time, it would probably be the case. Even if things were not as good as they thought, Damascus left a total of 5,000 elite soldiers to guard it, which was enough to support Saladin sending reinforcements.

"Okay! My generals!" Saladin made up his mind and ordered: "Baibours! I will give you a thousand Mamluk cavalry, two thousand Gulam cavalry, and five thousand Arab cavalry - I will give you the right to let them go east and they will go east, let them die, and they must die! I want you to lead them north to fight the invasion of the pagans! I will give you full authority to judge how you should. Whether it is a battle or a retreat, it is up to you to decide!"

"Yes, my master!" Baibls, the tough, burly and majestic general, was excited, and then fell to Saladin's front and kissed his boots.

"So master, what should I do?" Zhao Haier asked anxiously when he saw Saladin assigned a task to Baibls.

Saladin first helped Baibls up, then looked at Zhaohair with a smile: "My general, don't worry, I will not forget your mission - I will also give you an equal number of troops, equal Mamluk cavalry, Gulam cavalry and Arab cavalry. Your rights are as big as Baibls! I want you to divide your troops into two groups and attack the pagans separately."

"Yes, my master!" Zhao Haier also knelt in front of Saladin with excitement. Afterwards, when he stood up and looked at Baibls, both sides could see the competition and competition in their eyes. Saladin was also very satisfied with this. Introducing a competition mechanism in this way, letting his generals compete with each other and work harder is also one of the ways for Saladin to control his subordinates.

In this way, Saladin sent two of his commanders, the most capable generals, to fight, and sent two of his most elite Mamluk heavy cavalry, to the most elite, to the Gulam cavalry. The second-strong Gulam cavalry sent 4,000, and in addition to 10,000 Arab light cavalry. The number of such a large-scale cavalry is almost one-third of that of Saladin's cavalry.

Mamluk cavalry, even the people and horses were wearing heavy oriental scales, holding spears, round shields, maces and scimitars. Mamluk cavalry, equipped with compound bows, is one of the most proud elite troops in the entire Islamic world. The young slaves from the conquered areas are usually fourteen years old and healthy young children. After years of formal military training and converted to Islam, those who will join the army as free men after adulthood, enjoy rights, status and more trophy. Because of their education, faith, and changes in their own status since childhood, they are loyal to the masters.

They have high training intensity, high morale, and excellent discipline. They are also very elite in equipment. They are the army that Saladin values ​​the most. The degree of importance is still above the Kasakhi Guard, composed of veterans of a hundred battles and elite troops in the army. The Mamluk Imperial Guard Cavalry selected from Mamluk is an elite force among the elite troops that can compete with the Byzantine Iron Armored Paladin.

The Gulam Cavalry is slightly inferior to that of Mamluk cavalry in terms of status. However, its military history is longer than that of Mamluk. Before Saladin, Islamic monarchs had the tradition of organizing slaves into armies and promising freedom, status and money to drive them to fight. The Gulam Cavalry came as a result. The members did not receive military training since childhood. Therefore, they were not as disciplined and training as Mamluk. In terms of equipment, they were also slightly inferior to Mamluk, equipped with lighter chain armor and scale armor. However, their number was more than that of Mamluk cavalry. They were used as heavy cavalry in the usual sense.

Saladin is the most important thing to do across the desert. In addition to the Kasakhi Guards composed of elite sergeants, the elite Mamluk heavy cavalry, Mamluk Imperial Guards and Gulam heavy cavalry, there are also Sibien cavalry units composed of children of Arab nobles with certain hostages. These are usually the least status second son and concubine son in the family, and are comparable to Mamluk in terms of equipment. With a lot of resentment and eagerness to make the people stand out, these people work harder. Although they seem a little unruly because of their noble background and rebellious mentality, they are worthy of recognition in terms of combat effectiveness. Compared with Eastern Rome, those lancer troops composed of children of nobles are incomparable...

At this moment, the Sibien cavalry of Mamluk who carried out such a harassing strategy, using weak to attack the strong, were rebellious and looked down on slaves, and naturally would not use it. The number of Kasaghi guards was not large, and they often took on Saladin's guard mission. They actually went to the battlefield very few times. As for the Mamluk Imperial Guards, it was also because of the same principle - but, a cavalry unit that could command 8,000 people was already very satisfied for these two generals.

In this way, the two generals ordered their troops and left Jerusalem and headed straight for the north. Soon they learned the news - a Frankish army of 30,000 to 50,000 people attacked the south...

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Chapter completed!