The winter nights were long.
As dusk fell, the sunlight on the horizon had already lost its color. Amidst the wind and snow, only the western horizon was left with a bit of white. In the faint light, the boundless snow reflected a cold, silver gray. The infantry was retreating. Then, the sound of iron hooves surged forward.
With a loud bang, the flying snow lifted up a huge wall. The armored cavalry charged straight into the crowd, and as they brandished their blades, black waves of blood rose up. The soldiers at the front tried to stabilize their position, but when their blades and spears slashed out, they collided with steel armor.
Sometimes, a battle on the battlefield was like a game of chess. Everyone had one chance to attack.
The advancing cavalry were like an overturned iron plow, wreaking havoc in the crowd. The light cavalry followed closely behind, and only further behind were the infantry advancing in a phalanx. Meanwhile, on the side of the advancing formation, the thousand-some Jurchen cavalry that had pulled away from the enemy were watching this side, not daring to advance. They were running into the range of the arrows and firing arrows at this side, while the enemy was also firing arrows at them. Neither side had the upper hand, so this round of shooting had produced almost no results.
Qin Shaoqian turned his head to look at the distance between the Jurchen cavalry and then waved his steel saber. "Kill! No need to change formation! Kill them all! "
Meanwhile, on the side of the Mou Tuogang camp, Shu Liesu, who had received the news, was stunned for a moment. "What? Armored cavalry? "
According to the messenger, the Jurchen army had run into a tough opponent in a hurry.
When the two sides charged forward, the leader of the cavalry, Hu Zongxiu, was at the front of the formation. This was something that shouldn't have happened. However, first of all, Hu Zongxiu was a brave and valiant general, and second of all, he had won many battles over the years, so the Enlightened Ladies were already used to cutting the Wu Dynasty's troops like melons and vegetables. This time, Zong Wang did not bring Hu Zongxiu with him when he attacked the city, which made him feel very aggrieved. Although he was left behind because the cavalry he led was very powerful, most of the infantrymen in the camp were the weakest soldiers in the Jurchen army. He was already very stifled when he had to defend the camp with these people.
It had to be noted that the Jurchen army was most heavily composed of cavalry. Although there were quite a few infantrymen, the majority of them were either used to clean up the battlefield and earn some minor contributions or were simply used as manual labor. The six thousand infantrymen that remained in the camp at this time had to help the craftsmen with their daily tasks, such as moving and transporting goods. Even so, their combat strength was still much higher than that of the Wu Dynasty soldiers of the same number.
In short, Hu Zongxiu was very depressed. He led the cavalry and charged into the enemy's formation. When he discovered that the enemy was covered in armor under their cloaks, it was already too late. A large number of cavalry collided, and the Jurchen army paid an unimaginably heavy price in the first round of attacks. Hu Zongxiu himself was struck in the chest by a saber. His body was tall and sturdy, and after shouting, "It's a trap! Retreat!", he had already lost his breath.
In such a charge, even if the people at the front heard the shout, it would be extremely difficult for them to change formation. The fighting spirit of the Jurchen cavalry was extremely strong. Since there was no way to retreat, they would use their greatest strength to break through the enemy's formation. But in this battle that lasted for several dozen breaths, the Jurchen soldiers encountered an attack of the same strength as them. There was no need to mention the heavy cavalry. In close combat, they were unable to inflict any damage on the enemy. Even though several of the enemy's heavy cavalry were knocked into the snow by the massive impact, the enemy was able to inflict several times more damage on their own side.
If this was all, the Jurchen cavalry could still use the fighting strength and willpower of a large number of cavalry to surround and kill the few heavy cavalry. But after a few moments of this intense battle, the elite Jurchen soldiers realized that something was wrong. The army of the Wu Dynasty before them, even though they were all light cavalry, maintained the same fighting spirit as them. Although their individual fighting strength was still somewhat lacking, the enemy's saber swings and sudden advances were extremely firm. This was the most important characteristic of an elite army. With this kind of willpower, even if they experienced a large number of casualties, they would often not flee.
The Jurchen Daoists had experienced many battles in the last few months, and the reason for their victories lay in this: ten thousand cavalry against tens of thousands of infantry. In the first charge, the difference in casualties between the two sides was not large, with one to two hundred cavalry casualties and three to four hundred infantry casualties. But after the first charge, the casualties of the elite Jurchen cavalry would plummet, and the infantry who had their defenses broken in the first charge would be massacred.
And this was often the case even in a clash of cavalry. The Wu dynasty had cavalry. Because it was not easy to form a cavalry, they would often undergo a great deal of training. But when their psychological defenses were broken in the first charge, these Wu dynasty cavalry would also become targets to be hunted down and hunted. In large-scale battles in the era of cold weapons, the most important factor was willpower. If this was not equal, there was basically no need to consider other factors.
In the Battle of Hubu Dagang, if the twenty thousand Jurchen soldiers had not encountered the eight hundred thousand Liao soldiers but eight hundred thousand dogs, the Jurchen side would have been defeated. When the morale of an army collapsed on the battlefield, it would create an avalanche effect, and people would be worse than dogs.
The Jurchen soldiers in the battle formation might not be able to clearly say this, but after experiencing so many battles, their sensitivity to battle was still extremely high. Hu Zongxiu's death caused them to hesitate a little, but when the deputy general below her realized that something was wrong, he immediately gave the order to retreat. At this time, several of the basic officers of the Jurchen cavalry had already begun to retreat.
More than five hundred Jurchen soldiers, upon encountering this Wu dynasty army, were cut down in blood.
The one thousand five hundred retreating soldiers still maintained their fighting spirit. Under the leadership of Hu Zongxiu's deputy, Talai, the Jurchen cavalry began to move to the side in an attempt to attract the enemy's attention. At the same time, they sent out informants to inform the infantry to retreat and the main camp to be on guard. But they soon discovered that the Wu dynasty army did not change course to pursue them. They were heading straight for the main camp at Motuogang, and the two thousand soldiers led by the infantry general Pu Lu just happened to be in the middle of this path.
The sky was dark, and when the heavy cavalry arrived in front of them, it was already too late for Pu Lu's soldiers to retreat to the main camp. A moment ago, Pu Lu was still pondering over the quality of the so-called "elite cavalry of the Wu dynasty" that Talai and the others had sent over, and he had even formed a defensive formation, but he soon understood.
The heavy cavalry might not be as fast as the light cavalry, but as they steadily pushed forward, the corpses of the infantrymen spread out like a bloody carpet. Severed limbs, minced meat, mucus, and internal organs were dragged out. In the blink of an eye, the horrifying scene of the Wu dynasty infantrymen being slaughtered by the Jurchen cavalry was being reproduced on a small scale.
The gate to Motuogang camp was not far behind them. Pu Lu organized a resistance and was still trying to withdraw his subordinates into the camp, but Shu Liesu's order soon arrived.
Halt outside the gate and hold the ground. No one is allowed to enter!
In the distance, Shu Liesu walked up to the gate of the camp and immediately saw through the enemy's intentions. He immediately ordered the gate to be tightly shut. In the distance, as many as two thousand soldiers had already abandoned their formation and begun to flee. The Wu dynasty cavalry chased after them. In the wind and snow, it was as if these Jurchen soldiers were being chased by a raging tide. From time to time, some of them would be caught up in it. Meanwhile, in the dusky sky, the Jurchen cavalry was quickly making a detour, attempting to take advantage of the wind so that they could attack the Wu Dynasty's army.
"Talai took over after Hu Zongxiu's death?" Shu Liesu asked from above the camp gate.
"Yes."
"Good." Shu Liesu nodded. "Pass on the order to draw the bows. The furthest distance ahead … prepare … to shoot …"
On the wall, arrows flew into the sky. When they landed, some of them shot into the cavalry formation. At the same time, many of the Jurchen soldiers running at the rear collapsed.
There seemed to be an invisible line between the defeated soldiers and the heavy cavalry. Looking at the camp gate in the distance, the cavalry stopped. This Wu dynasty army was waiting for the infantry to catch up. Their goal was clear. It seemed to be to attack the camp.
The two sides hadn't exchanged blows for long. It had been a long time since Shu Liesu had felt this way. It was just like what Zong Wang had done when he was preparing to attack the Wu dynasty. In a single night, tens of thousands of troops had smashed through the two hundred thousand Wu dynasty troops on the plains outside of Bianliang with the momentum of a thunderbolt. Then, seeing the enemy defeated, they had almost completely crushed the will to fight of the Wu dynasty army. And this unknown Wu dynasty army before him seemed to have the same idea. Before Shu Liesu closed the camp gate, they had wanted to take advantage of the moment when the Jurchen infantry entered the camp and use their heavy cavalry to open a path and charge in.
Many times, the simplest tactics were the strongest tactics. On this land, the Jurchen were already used to winning. If Shu Liesu had been a little bit careless or hesitant, unwilling to abandon his allies despite his constant victories, he would have been fighting with the gate open.
And right now, the cavalry had already stopped outside the range of the bows and arrows.
On the snowy ground, Qin Shaoqian looked at the camp that was lit by fire in the distance. He turned his head to look at Han Jing, who was also frowning as he reined in his horse.
"General Han, the enemy's Garrison Commander Shu Liesu is a famous general who has been through hundreds of battles. We have to make a decision quickly."
Although the cavalry was under his command in this desperate battle, Qin Shaoqian understood that the real leader of this team was Han Jing, who had come down from Mount Lu Liang. The bandits of Lu Liang had always been fierce. Although Ning Yi had subdued their leader, Miss Lu, it was hard to say how he would get along with these soldiers. Qin Shaoqian also didn't want to use his status as a general to suppress them. Most importantly, this battle was led by the cavalry. Although the battle just now caught the Female Daoist unprepared and left thousands of lives along the way, the real casualties were the elite cavalry that came down from Lu Liang Mountain. At this time, many of the heavy cavalry were also taking the opportunity to rest and adjust their breathing.
Normally, this would have been enough to boast about in the throne room, but right now, they couldn't relax in the slightest.
Han Jing cupped his hands. "Since we have come this time, we have already cast aside life and death. General Qin need not worry. Just give the order."
On the gate of Mou Tuo Gang's camp, Shu Liesu took a deep breath and then exhaled. At this time, the entire Jurchen camp had already begun to move. A large number of soldiers were rushing to various places on the walls. "Pass on my order. Inform Talai to use the Wild Fox Strategy and attack the infantry and heavy cavalry of the Wu dynasty. Draw the enemy cavalry to attack and exhaust the strength of the heavy cavalry!"
Before this order had even been issued, the two-thousand-strong light cavalry in front of the camp had already begun to charge madly in the direction of the thousand-strong cavalry led by Talai. Meanwhile, the infantry and heavy cavalry had begun to merge and form a formation. Immediately, the Jurchen cavalry also began to charge. If it was just a charge of light cavalry, Talai might have dared to fight one thousand and five hundred against two thousand. However, considering that the enemy's heavy cavalry was still present and that the task of defending the camp was more important than just winning this battle, he didn't want to be entangled by the enemy cavalry.
The light cavalry of the Wu dynasty maintained a straight line with the outer wall of the camp as they charged eastward. The Jurchen cavalry moved in the opposite direction, and from a distance, the snow and dust kicked up by the two squads looked like a long, galloping dragon. On the gate of the camp, Shu Liesu issued a series of orders to the soldiers in charge of defending the western wall to raise their vigilance.
Cavalry wasn't suitable for sieging cities, but that didn't mean they couldn't attack. On the side of this Wu dynasty cavalry, Talai led the fifteen hundred Jurchen cavalry, maintaining a distance of an arrow's throw from the enemy. Once the enemy entered the firing range of the camp, he would immediately shorten the distance and fire at the light cavalry along with the camp.
At the same time, the phalanx of the Wu dynasty infantry in front of the gate also began to move, pushing toward Talai's cavalry. The Wu dynasty cavalry began to turn around after galloping into the distance, attempting to force the charging Jurchen cavalry into the angle between the two sides' firing range.
Like a giant dragon, the long line of cavalry charged across the snowy plains. Talai led his troops in a circular arc. On one side, the infantry of the Wu dynasty was pushing forward, and behind them, the light cavalry of the Wu dynasty were pressing forward. Both sides drew their bows and released arrows at the same time. The arrows flew into the sky in different directions, and only a few sparse arrows fell into each other's formation.
Talai led his cavalry and smoothly charged out of the encirclement!
On the gate, Shu Liesu waved his fist and shouted, "Good!" This was an almost artistic control that the Jurchen Enlightened Ones had developed through slaughter on the battlefield!
After Talai charged out, he widened the distance between him and the light cavalry of the Wu dynasty. With the infantry of the Wu dynasty as the center, he began to wildly charge and scatter in an attempt to provoke the heavy cavalry that was with the infantry. The infantry counterattacked at the same time. On the other side, after chasing the Jurchen cavalry, the two thousand light cavalry turned around again. They aimed at the top of the walls of the Camel Mound Camp and began to shoot. On the top of the wall, the soldiers raised their shields and returned fire with bows and arrows. However, the wind was blowing from the north, and the Camel Mound Camp was at the downwind. For a moment, the arrows hit the shields and rang out like hail.
Just like how the Jurchen Enlightened Ones fought outside Bianliang, every part of the wall had to be defended. While they were shooting at high speed, they could quickly change positions. This was clearly what the Wu Dynasty's people were planning. Once they found a weak point in the camp's walls, two thousand people would swarm over. Without a doubt, once these four thousand people broke into the camp, everyone's face would be completely gone.
The intensity of the battle had already begun to build …
Did the people of the Wu dynasty still have a troop with such fighting spirit? On the wall, Shu Liesu watched all of this and thought to himself …
To the south of Camel Mound.
More than a hundred white figures quickly charged into the surface of the frozen lake and silently charged toward the Jurchen camp on the other side of the lake …
At the same time, in Bianliang.
The most brutal battle inside and outside the city since the start of the war was currently underway.
*****
Blood was everywhere.
Violent and boiling shouts came from all directions. Amidst the chaos, Shishi heard someone shout, "City gate …" Then there was the strange cry of the Jurchen Enlightened Ones. A group of Wu dynasty soldiers charged over and fought with the nearby Jurchen soldiers.
Seeing the corpses on the ground, Shishi staggered back. Then, she suppressed the surging urge in her stomach, touched the wall, and rushed toward the nearby casualty camp.
The fighting spread. When Shishi reached the large tents of the casualty camp, she saw some Jurchen soldiers fighting with the nearby guards. They knocked over the bonfires and set the tents on fire. The snow and blood around her had already mixed with the corpses. The large tents were full of people. Some rushed out from other doors, some ran out and tried to fight. But in reality, most of the people in the casualty camp were seriously injured. The lightly injured could only be wrapped up and could not be moved in. Their injuries were so serious that it was meaningless for them to enter the battlefield. In a few moves, they were cut down and fell to the ground.
Hiding in the shadows, she anxiously glanced at them a few times. Then, she picked up a nearby bucket and tried to go around to the other side of the tent. Halfway around, she suddenly ran into a Jurchen soldier with disheveled hair.
The other tilted his head and swung his saber at her.
In that instant, the woman's mind went blank. But in the next moment, the female soldier's arm was chopped off by a saber light, and a figure rushed over from the side and sent the female soldier flying with a kick. Shishi was stunned. Next to her was a burly man with a single saber. He held a steel saber and had a burly figure. However, not only was his head wrapped in bandages, but his entire left arm was also wrapped in bandages at the moment.
The burly man who had saved her turned his head. "Hey, you …" He seemed to recognize her.
Then, blood splattered. Shishi felt her face heat up. The blade of a long saber had directly pierced through the burly man's chest. The person behind him swung his saber and cut off the burly man's head.
Right in front of Shishi, that burly figure's head disappeared in an instant. In front of her, several more Jurchen soldiers had already charged over. But then, the Wu dynasty soldiers also charged over from the side.
Saber lights clashed and blood splattered. Shishi stood there in a daze. Her body trembled, and she could only softly cry. She looked at the headless corpse on the ground. She didn't know when, but it seemed that more people had come. Shishi bent down and picked up the saber in the headless corpse's hand. But after pulling it out twice, she still couldn't pull it out. The corpse had already lost its head, but it was still holding the saber in its hand very tightly. But in the end, Shishi still pulled the saber out. Holding it in her hand, she walked forward. Most of the Jurchen soldiers had already been killed. The last one had two spears stabbed into his stomach. Two Wu dynasty soldiers tore at him while pushing him, stabbing him to death on a nearby mound. When Shishi walked over, the Jurchen Daoist had already breathed her last.
The soldiers looked at Shishi holding the saber and thought that she was going to chop the corpse — they didn't care — but Shishi only cried in the end and didn't chop the corpse down. Several soldiers turned back to look at the burly man. Someone asked, "Are you a man?"
Shishi didn't answer. Shishi heard shouts from afar, and several people went in that direction. "Let's go, it's dangerous," one of them said before leaving.
Holding the saber, Shishi sat on the ground, paralyzed.
After a while, someone shouted again, "Miss Shishi, Miss Shishi." It was Xue Changgong's brother-in-law, Hou Jing, who had led a group of soldiers over. The battle cries in the city seemed to have become even more intense. Seeing Shishi's state, Hou Jing was very anxious. Shishi, however, gradually restrained her fear. "What's wrong? What's going on now? "
"The Jurchen Daoist broke the city wall just now, and we took it back. Some Jurchen Daoist rushed in and wanted to take over the city gate. I was about to lead some people to help. Miss Shishi, are you okay? Are you okay like this? "
"I'm fine," Shishi said. "Hurry up and go —"
"Then I'll go. You find a place to hide, hide!"
Hou Jing waved his hand anxiously. Then, he led some people and ran towards the city gate.
Shishi, however, wiped her tears. She first held onto the mound of dead people, then slowly stood up. When her legs were no longer trembling, she continued to rush towards the wounded barracks. Someone had already put out the fire. Many people died, and some were even more seriously injured. As Shishi ran, she began to treat their injuries. More than half of the tents had been burned. Wind and snow seeped in, and Shishi could see the city wall in the distance. At the top of the wall that was said to have been taken back, the white-hot battle was still going on. Countless people swarmed over like ants, and the sounds of killing could be heard from the city gate.
Fiery light filled the air, the city moving. More people, under the leadership of soldiers and officials, were currently surging in this direction.
The huge battle vortex. On this night, countless people were rushing over to fill the gap …
Ten miles away, Camel Hill.
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