On the twenty-fifth day of the eighth month of the second year of Jianshuo, at around a quarter past seven in the evening, the Black Flag Army and the Jurchen Western Army collided for the first time in the hills to the northeast of Yanzhou City.
As this was the first time the two sides had fought, there weren't too many fancy moves. As the Jurchen camp suddenly lit up, the elite Jurchen cavalry surged forward like a torrent, their momentum reaching its peak in an instant. However, in the face of such a scene, the Hua Xia army only tensed up for a moment. When the arrows flew and fell like raindrops, the soldiers on the periphery had already raised their shields, following the posture they had practiced countless times, allowing the arrows falling from the sky to hit the shields.
At this time, the war drums had already begun beating. The army's formation advanced and stretched forward. Their pace didn't speed up too much, but it was firm and awe-inspiring. He Zhicheng led a regiment in front, Sun Ye's four regiments on the left and rear, and Lu Liangshan's two thousand infantrymen on the right, mixed in with the special forces. In the southeast of the battlefield, Han Jing's two thousand cavalry had already moved to meet the cavalry led by Man Duyu.
In the south, Yan Zhenguo's army had almost completely collapsed, and the huge battlefield was in chaos. The war drums in the north stirred the night, attracting the attention and gazes of many people. The three hot air balloons in the sky had already flown over the walls of Yanzhou City, and the soldiers on the balloons were looking at the battlefield in the distance. If the arrows shot by the Jurchen cavalry were like a surging tide, then the Black Flag Army at this time was like a giant ship against the tide. It broke through the waves and firmly pushed towards the Jurchen camp on the small hill.
The cavalry formation that had thrown the arrows was still spreading and expanding. In the southeast, Han Jing's cavalry and Man Duyu's cavalry began to shoot at each other. In the south, the horses dragged the hot air balloons closer to the Hua Xia army's rear formation. The several thousand elite Jurchen cavalry that had come out of the camp had already rushed to the two flanks, and the Hua Xia army's formation was like a huge living body, constantly changing. The shield formation was tight, and the arrows from the formation were constantly shooting at the distant Jurchen cavalry to counterattack. However, the entire formation was still constantly pushing towards the Jurchen camp.
In terms of tactics, there weren't many options for infantrymen to fight against cavalry. The cavalry moved quickly, and their formation was scattered. In a situation where the number of people was about the same, the accuracy of the infantrymen's archery was too low. However, the cavalry did not have armor or shields. Although long-range shooting could put pressure on the enemy, against a strict formation, they could only rely on the initiative.
This was the norm when the Jurchen cavalry fought against the Wu dynasty's forces. The Wu dynasty's forces would always use the tactic of withdrawing like turtles to force the enemy to retreat, and then they would report their success rate to their superiors. In the end, their success rate would pile up to more than eighty percent. However, once the Jurchen cavalry truly seized the opportunity and decided to charge, even if the Wu dynasty's forces had a complete formation, they would always suffer a crushing defeat in a desperate battle. This had nothing to do with battle tactics. It was purely the result of an army that did not have the determination to die on the battlefield.
However, the Huaxia army was different …
*****
Boom!
Boom!
Boom!
The sound of drumbeats accompanied the sound of advancing footsteps shook the night sky. In the surroundings were arrows that fell like raindrops. Specks of light carrying flames danced and fell from the sides. It was as if people were at the bottom of a valley in a rain of arrows.
The sounds of orders being passed on and the shouts of officers rang out one after another. Sometimes, one could even, in an extremely absurd manner, hear the laughter of people.
The black flag fluttered in the wind. Qin Shaoqian rode on his horse, occasionally turning his head to look at the situation around him. The Black Flag Army soldiers that covered the mountains and plains were advancing in units. In the distance was the majestic Jurchen cavalry. The cavalry dragging the hot air balloons had already caught up from the back.
Without an eye, it was sometimes very inconvenient.
He furrowed his brows. No one knew that this kind of thought flashed through his nervous heart.
When people were nervous, sometimes some inappropriate emotions would flash through their minds. The Jurchen … this was not the first time he had faced the Jurchen. In the past few battles, those bitter … it couldn't be said to be bitter battles, it could only be said to be bitter defeats and massacres. The countless screams outside Bianliang City still seemed to be circling in his mind, that desperate struggle. Every time at this time, his father's face, that mottled white hair, would flash before his eyes, as well as his older brother's face …
In the family, he could not be considered a pillar of existence. His older brother was the one who had inherited his father's legacy and knowledge. He was spoiled by his mother, and his temperament was extremely flamboyant when he was young. Fortunately, with his father and older brother's guidance, he was not too immature. His father and older brother's path of learning was about to come to an end, so he joined the army. First, it was because of rebellion, and second, it was because of the pride in his chest. Since he knew that he could not surpass his older brother on the path of learning, he could not be too inferior.
If one said that a man always watched another man's back as he advanced, the thoughts that existed in the bottom of his heart back then might also be the hope that one day, in another direction, he would become someone like his father. But unfortunately, the corruption of the army and the shamelessness of his colleagues quickly buried the thoughts at the bottom of his heart.
In that flourishing Wu dynasty, singing and dancing celebrated peace. So what if there was a problem with the army? The banditry was still suppressed. It wasn't that he did not have the help of his father and older brother's relationship in the army, but so what? If the world was truly at peace, living like this for the rest of his life was nothing … but the world was not at peace after all.
The Female Zhenren's southward march had put a weight on them. He led the companions he trusted by his side in a desperate charge. What he saw were the miserable deaths of his companions and the Female Zhenren crushing them like dry weeds and smashing rotten wood. Fortunately, there was a heroic talent like Liheng, the struggle of his father and older brother, and the sacrifice of even more people to repel the Female Zhenren for the first time.
That time, he thought there would be hope …
But this time, he brought this different team and once again killed his way to the front of the Female Zhenren's formation. This time, there was no Wu dynasty, no father and older brother, no millions of common people behind him, no righteous cause, nothing.
If his father and older brother were alive, perhaps they would not like his current state too much, and perhaps they would not like Liheng either. But in the end, they were gone.
Without an eye, the world was no longer the same …
The vanguard of the army brazenly pushed to the front of the Female Zhenren's main camp. The shield formation advanced. Within the Female Zhenren's main camp, there was the light of fire. In the next moment, a rain of flaming arrows rose into the sky.
The rain of fire crashed down, but the tight shield formation did not budge. It was the end of autumn, and the speckled rain of arrows ignited the withered grass on the ground.
Liu Chengzong waved his hand and pushed the cannon formation forward.
If it was said that in this brief moment of combat, the Female Zhenren's performance was as swift as the wind and sweeping like fire, then the Huaxia army's performance was as steady as a forest and as unmoving as a mountain. Facing the rain of arrows and harassment, they directly pushed the enemy's vital points and directly blasted open the enemy's main gate. The cavalry could play as much as they wanted!
At this time, on a corner of the Female Zhenren camp's wall, Wanyan Loushi was watching this scene with a solemn gaze. He was interested in the enemy's firearms and the large Kongming lantern. Seeing that the enemy had already killed their way close, he said to the personal guard beside him, "This is indeed the most aggressive Wu dynasty army I've ever seen."
In the Huaxia army's formation, Qin Shaoqian raised his head and slightly furrowed his brows. "Wait …" he said.
In the sky behind the formation, a strange change suddenly occurred. A Haidongqing flying in the night avoided the arrows and scratched a hole in the outer wall of the hot-air balloon. Because it did not fly very high, the hot-air balloon was slowly falling.
At the front of the formation, the soldiers who saw this scene lit the fuse. The volley of cannons suddenly tore through the night sky. In a moment, countless explosions rose up and the earth quaked and the mountains swayed! Standing on the side of the wooden wall, Wanyan Loushi witnessed the power of the cannons for the first time. He used his fist to pound the wooden wall in front of him, suddenly turned around, and left.
*****
Flames rose up with the explosion. Standing at the front of the formation, Chen Libo seemed to be able to feel the shaking of the wooden camp gate. He was the company commander of the First Battalion, Third Company, under He Zhicheng's command. He stood in the second row of the shield formation, and the densely packed companions beside him had already tightly gripped their sabers. Seeing the scene of the explosion, the companion beside him tilted his head. Chen Libo clearly saw the other person grit his teeth.
"So what if the cavalry is powerful? When attacking the enemy, they must defend. No matter how many cavalry the Jurchen people have, they won't be without supplies. Let's see what Wanyan Loushi can do."
"The hardest part is yet to come. Don't let your guard down. If it's like what was taught in class … eh … "Chen Libo was slightly dazed. He suddenly thought of something and then shook his head. It shouldn't be …
At this time, the volley of cannons had already ended. Half of the Jurchen camp's gate had been shot down. The remaining gate was burning with flames and swaying on the verge of collapse. The surrounding soldiers were already secretly inhaling and preparing to charge. In the next moment, an order suddenly came. It was the loud voice of a messenger shouting, "Pass down my order to all units. Stabilize —"
Chen Libo raised his head and looked at the top of the nearby wooden wall. "What is that!"
With a bang, a Jurchen soldier threw down a wooden barrel. Then, wooden barrels were pushed down one by one from the continuous wall of the camp. Some rolled down the slope while others directly smashed on the ground. Black liquid fell onto the ground and a pungent smell came a moment later. This slope could not be considered steep. The black liquid would not spread to a distance of an arrow's throw from the Hua Xia army. However, after a moment, flames began to burn fiercely. What spread in front of the Black Flag Army was an enormous wall of fire.
That was kerosene.
In the Jurchen camp, Wanyan Loushi had already mounted his horse with his spear. The Jurchen soldiers who had thrown away the kerosene ran to their warhorses. The horn sounded. The horn was loud and clear. It was the signal for the Jurchen people to begin the hunt. In the south, a total of seven thousand Jurchen cavalry had already heard the signal. They began to converge and converge, forming an enormous flood.
The two thousand or so people in the rear of the Hua Xia army suddenly began to shrink their formation. The shields at the front fiercely stabbed into the ground. The back used metal rods as support. The people crowded together and set up a forest of spears. They pressed down on the spear shafts until they could no longer move.
The center and flanks of the army had already begun to charge back. The soldiers of the Special Forces pushed Big Bubble back in a frenzy. And the seven thousand Jurchen cavalry had already formed an ocean tide. A rain of arrows surged towards the sky.
"Stabilize —"
Loud, hysterical shouts — — — — —
Rewinding time for a moment, before the cannons were fired. Qin Shaoqian raised his head to look at the sky. He looked at the specks of fire in the distance and slightly furrowed his brow. "Wait …" he said.
"The number of arrows is too few …"
This was the first confrontation between the Black Flag Army and the Jurchen. All strategic considerations were based on the Jurchen's almost invincible super battle strength. They had their own confidence and pride. And Wanyan Loushi even more so had the most dazzling battle accomplishments in the world. But the Black Flag Army had no reason to retreat. Because they couldn't retreat at all. In a situation where they possessed cannons, the Black Flag Army's side also resolutely chose the most unyielding method of fighting. Everyone had calculated many possible situations, but there were always some things that were not easy to predict.
Wanyan Loushi truly considered the Black Flag Army as an opponent. He even treated them with an unimaginable degree of importance. He took precautions against cannons and hot air balloons. Before the first clash, he had already evacuated the entire camp's supply wagons and infantry …
The enemy had to defend when attacking. What if he didn't defend?
The sound of horse hooves could already be heard from the right side of the front formation. It wasn't just coming from the bottom of the hill. A cavalry was currently making a detour from the side of the burning Jurchen camp. This time, the Jurchen had come in full force.
Chen Libo suddenly began to laugh. He said to the subordinates around him, "It really isn't that simple." The people beside him were still stunned, but then they also began to laugh loudly.
"Change formation …"
The dense shield formation began to change direction. The forest of spears was suppressed, and the simple iron barricade was pushed in front of the formation! Someone shouted, "What are we!?"
Countless people shouted.
"Hua! Xia — "
At this time, the hill was covered in a wall of raging fire. Not far from the bottom of the hill, the seven thousand Jurchen cavalry had already formed a charging stance. There was no way forward, and there were pursuers behind.
Chen Libo exhaled, and smiled sinisterly. "Stupid Jurchen …"
He thought.
In front, the charging stance of the Jurchen cavalry was becoming clearer and clearer …
…
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