Guide to traveling through the Northern Song Dynasty

Due to the narrow valley, a thousand Ming heavy cavalry were divided into several groups.

On the hillsides on both sides, there were some knights kneeling and squatting who had abandoned their horses. The reason why I adopt the kneeling and squatting position is because the steep slope makes me unstable.

Chen Ziyi came up behind the first group of heavy cavalry and shouted loudly: "Is there any deduction in food and salary?"

"No!" the heavy cavalry replied in unison.

Chen Ziyi asked again: "Is there a shortage of clothes and quilts?"

"No!"

"You have the highest military pay in the Ming Dynasty, you eat the best food in the entire army, and you are even given out clothes and quilts in winter. Is the court treating you poorly?"

"No!"

"The barbarians from the Jin Kingdom across the way are burning, killing, and looting, and they do all kinds of evil. If the Jin people are allowed to kill your hometown, they will rob you of your food, your land, and your wives and children. Even if you are an obedient citizen, you must Shave off your hair as given by your parents, wear left-hand clothes. And endless conscription for troops and food! Will you agree?"

"No!"

"For the Ming Dynasty, for Your Majesty, and to protect your parents, wives and children. Do you dare to fight to the death and kill the enemy today?"

"dare!"

"dare!"

"dare!"

"The heavy-armored knights who died in the battle today will be generously compensated. For those who have children, the court will choose a son to support the Imperial College. For those who have no children, the court will adopt a son on their behalf, pass on the incense to him and support him to the Imperial College! But! Any regrets?"

“No regrets!”

“No regrets!”

The soldiers who climbed up the mountain to observe with telescopes had already raised their flags. Chen Ziyi shouted: "Beat the drums and charge!"

"kill!"

The Ming heavy cavalry started slowly, and even after accelerating, the charging speed was still relatively slow.

Because they were in a dense formation, the distance between cavalry and cavalry was less than half a meter.

Chen Ziyi actually used the most expensive heavy cavalry as consumables to carry out a "wall style" charge.

This is because although the equipment of the Ming army's heavy cavalry is sufficient, the combat skills, combat experience and tenacity are insufficient. Then don't think about anything else, just go directly to the narrow valley and confront Hezha Meng'an in a dense formation.

Looking at Hezha Mengan of the Jin Kingdom, the distance between them is much larger. Even due to terrain restrictions, the distance between the cavalry is only reduced to less than one meter.

As for the three cavalry teams connected with ropes, and the resisting horses being dragged behind to show that they would fight to the death, these are all fabricated contents in the memorials of the civil servants (Wang Ruohai, the main combatant), used to describe the horror of the Iron Pagoda of the Jin Dynasty. Then, it was inexplicably cited by the "Three Dynasties Northern League", and spread more and more widely to become the symbol of Iron Buddha Tu.

The heavy cavalry of the two sides were getting closer and closer, and the men of the Jin Kingdom were at a loss.

Because the distance between the heavy cavalry of the Ming Dynasty could not accommodate the golden cavalry to pass through, they were obviously heading for a suicidal collision.

Wanyan Loushi, who was standing on the slope behind to observe, finally saw clearly the situation of the Ming heavy cavalry, and felt a sense of fear in his heart for no reason.

Hezha Meng'an is indeed brave and unafraid of death, but in the face of a certain death situation, can they still move forward?

What's more, they were frightened by wooden cannons, their retreat was blocked, and friendly forces suffered a defeat during the retreat.

When the two sides were about to enter the final sprint phase, some Hezha Meng'an did not choose to speed up. This was almost a subconscious action in the face of death.

Even the heavy cavalry of the Ming Dynasty who wrote a suicide note in advance, some people were afraid of the battle.

But the terrain couldn't be swept left or right, let alone turning around and running away. They had no choice but to bump into each other.

"boom!"

A rare collision between heavy cavalry occurred in this nameless valley.

It was tragic, but not as tragic as imagined.

At the last moment, both sides unanimously chose to slow down, and only a few reckless men actually accelerated their sprint.

The four-meter spears poked each other, and with the force of the charge, many heavy cavalry immediately fell backwards. The horses that lost their master continued to move forward and collided with each other after automatically decelerating. In order to prevent collision, some horses even stood upright and kicked towards the opposite horse with their front hooves.

There were also cavalrymen who did not fall off their horses, and they collided with each other. The horses under the crotch were either dead or wounded. No matter dead or wounded, they all fell down, and the cavalry also fell off their horses.

The heavy cavalry of the Ming Dynasty were closely spaced, and the number of troops in a single charge was naturally larger. Lucky Man successfully penetrated into the gap between Hezha Meng'an, pulled out the secondary weapon at his waist, and began to slow down and fight on horseback.

The Jin Kingdom Xiaoqi, who was further behind as an auxiliary, saw the miserable situation of the heavy cavalry in the front and didn't know how to fight for a while.

They were completely unprepared and subconsciously reined in their horses and fired towards the knights behind Ming Dynasty.

The Ming Dynasty Xiaoqi, who was kneeling on the hillsides on both sides, shot towards the Jin Kingdom Xiaoqi from a distance. The Ming Dynasty knights following the heavy cavalry did not carry their main battle weapons at all. When they approached the scene of the "car accident" on horseback, they jumped off their horses one after another, pulled out their secondary weapons and rushed towards the battlefield.

Some people use iron rods, some use bones, and some use maces. When he met Hezha Meng'an who was still fighting on horseback, he leaned down and hit the horse's legs. When encountering Hezha Meng'an who was still alive after falling off his horse, he would knock down those who were struggling to stand up. If they encountered those who were lying on the ground and moving, they would rush over and smash them.

Jin Guo Xiaoqi finally reacted, stopped shooting arrows and charged towards the battlefield.

But they couldn't reach the speed at all. First, the charging distance was too close. Second, there were many unowned war horses blocking the front. Third, they were shot by Ming troops on the hillsides on both sides. They simply wanted to come to rescue friendly troops.

The surviving heavy cavalrymen of the Ming Dynasty were helped up by the valiant cavalry, picked up their spears and stabbed them diagonally upwards.

Soon, each other's survivors were fighting together again. Jin Guoxiao, who lost his horse speed, fell down one after another when his horse's legs were hit. Those who were not entangled were so frightened that they quickly reined in their horses and ran away.

Wanyan Loushi turned pale. The Ming cavalry was trading their lives for lives with Hezha Meng'an.

How many Jurchens are there in total?

And how many people are there in Ming Dynasty?

The heavy cavalry of the Ming Dynasty and Hezha Meng'an can be accepted not only for one for one, but also for two for one or three for one.

What's more, due to sufficient tactical preparations in advance, this time the heavy cavalry fought to the death, and Hezha Meng'an suffered more deaths.

In this wave just now, Ming Dynasty invested 200 heavy cavalry, and there were more than 40 people who could continue to fight. Another fifty or sixty people either suffered fractures from falling off their horses, were seriously injured in a fall, or passed out.

The Jin soldiers threw themselves into Hezha and fiercely secured one hundred and twenty people, but no one was spared. Those who survived after the hedging were all killed by blunt objects.

"kill!"

"kill!"

"kill!"

In the center of the battlefield, the heavy cavalry of the Ming Dynasty, which could still stand, formed a formation and roared on the spot relying on the heroic cavalry. It is both a declaration of victory and a shout of excitement for the rest of the life.

"Wan Sheng!"

"Wan Sheng!"

Other Ming troops near the battlefield followed suit, and the sound of victory resounded throughout the valley.

Wang De was originally standing on the wall of the village, pretending to still be fighting against the city. He had just witnessed the heroic performance of the heavy cavalry. With wet eyes, he raised his mace and shouted for victory.

The second wave of Ming heavy cavalry was already moving slowly along the wall.

"Get out, we can't fight here!"

Wanyan Loushi's attitude towards the Ming army changed from the initial vigilance to the horror after the volley of wooden cannons. Now he regards the Ming army as his lifelong enemy.

The available troops under his command, after experiencing the encounter with the vanguard troops when returning to reinforcements, the charge in the valley, and the wounded who fell behind during the march, there are still: more than 1,400 Hezha Meng'an, more than 1,600 Liaodong Han infantry, More than 4,200 Jin Kingdom Xiaoqi, more than 800 Jurchen, and Prairie Qingqi.

The total remaining strength is more than 8,100.

These golden soldiers quickly left the mouth of the valley and ran westward along the foothills.

Chen Ziyi led his troops to chase them out, and sent Xiaoqi up to shoot arrows to harass them, slowing down the movement of the golden soldiers. When encountering a counterattack by the common cavalry of the Jin Kingdom, they went up to fight head-on. When encountering Hezha Meng'an coming in armor, they immediately took turns to cover the retreat.

At the same time, the cavalry was sent south to tell Zhang Guangdao the direction of the Jin soldiers' evacuation, and to notify Yang Yun in the southeast to bring Xiaoqi to join them.

Wanyan Loushi led his troops to withdraw two miles away, and Wendu Sizhong, who was exploring the mountain terrain, finally sent his light cavalry back: "Wanhu, there is a place not far to the west where it is easier for cavalry to pass."

Wen Du Sizhong did not find the most suitable place to march, because it was too far to the west. Moreover, the middle section of the "eight" shape is blocked by mountains extending southward. Even if Wen Du Sizhong found it, he would have to go south in the direction of Zhang Guangdao's main force, and then go around to the northwest.

"Speed ​​up the march!"

In order to deal with Chen Ziyi's attack, Wanyan Loushi left some cavalry from the small Jurchen tribe and the remaining prairie cavalry behind.

Due to the power of Wanyan Loushi, these cavalry had to turn around and deal with the pursuing Ming army.

After just cruising and shooting a few arrows, they didn't want to fight anymore.

Why can other cavalrymen withdraw, but he must stay and risk his life?

"Spare your life, we are willing to surrender!"

Team after team of cavalry responsible for cutting off the rear threw away their weapons and knelt down to ask for surrender.

The main force of Wanyan Loushi rushed to Wendu Sizhong's place. Guided by the light cavalry responsible for exploring the terrain, they divided into two groups and entered different ravines. Immediately the whole army dismounted and climbed the mountain ridge, and Hezha Meng'an also began to take off his armor. The horses carrying the heavily armored cavalry galloping were already foaming at the mouth from exhaustion.

Chen Ziyi led his troops in hot pursuit and dismounted to attack the mountain ridge. Even Wang De's first camp was on horseback to attack the mountain.

Further south, Zhang Guangdao's main force was still marching rapidly.

The cavalry sent by Chen Ziyi reported: "The enemy is heading west, probably intending to escape over the mountains!"

"Stay the artillery, stay behind the carriages, and the rest of the troops will march with me!" Zhang Guangdao immediately ordered.

The reason why they marched carrying wooden cannons instead of moving them on wheeled gun carriages was because the entire battlefield was rugged. Instead, four people carried the cannon barrels and ran the fastest.

In the two mountain cols to the north, hundreds of war horses foaming at the mouth ran wildly after being injured.

Those were top-notch war horses that carried Hezha Meng'an's armor and ran all the way. They could not withstand the subsequent trek over the mountains and ridges. Wanyan Loushi ordered them to be massacred on the spot, preferring to die rather than leave them to the Ming army.

Nearly a thousand fine horses were killed on the spot, and many of the hundreds of injured horses that escaped were stabbed and bruised casually and allowed to escape.

"You stay and guard these two mountain ridges!" Wanyan Loushi said to Han Chang.

Han Chang opened his mouth, stopped talking, lowered his head and said, "Yes."

More than 1,600 elite Han infantrymen in Liaodong became the abandoned sons responsible for breaking up the rear.

Hezha Meng'an's armor was carried on spare war horses at this time. Together with Jin Guoxiaoqi, they descended from the two mountain ridges, walked into the ravine further north, and then continued to climb the mountain ridge.

"Brother, the Jurchen barbarians don't treat us as human beings!"

Ming soldiers attacked the mountain ridge, and Han Chang's general Yang Sui began to complain.

The soldiers nearby also looked at Han Chang, unwilling to risk their lives.

Han Chang didn't know how to make a decision. Their entire family was in Wanyan Zonghan's hands. Moreover, they had a blood feud with the local Han people in Shanxi, so even if they surrendered to the Ming Dynasty, they would probably not end well.

But the soldiers were unwilling to stay and die, so Han Chang insisted on fighting, which might lead to a mutiny.

If you run away on the spot, even if you can escape back to the Kingdom of Jin, you will be punished by military law.

The world is so vast that there is no place for Han'er from Liaodong.

The soldiers of the Ming Dynasty were already shooting arrows at the foot of the mountain ridge. Han Chang gritted his teeth and said: "Go over the mountains to the northeast and go to the mountains to the north of Yu County to become bandits!"

Not long after the Ming army started to attack the mountain, the Jin army's rear troops ran away and deliberately avoided the withdrawal direction of Wanyan Loushi.

Wanyan Loushi had already climbed up another mountain ridge. He looked back and saw clearly. He said angrily: "Each ministry selects dead soldiers to come out to kill the enemy. There will be at least 1,200 people, excluding Hezha Mengan!"

This is an order given to the leaders of each tribe. Each tribe must recruit people, and the families of the dead soldiers will definitely receive preferential treatment.

After a while, the dead soldiers were selected and silently guarded the mountain ridge.

What Wanyan Loushi could take away were only more than 1,400 Hezha Meng'an who had lost their main war horses, and more than 3,300 Jin Kingdom Xiaoqi and Qingqi.

Zhang Guangdao arranged the battlefield for more than a year, but still failed to wipe out all the golden soldiers.

Including the Yu County defenders, Wanyan Lou's family lost tens of thousands of troops!