Guide to traveling through the Northern Song Dynasty

After more than 20 miles of mountains and rivers, there was another small river in front of Jin Bing.

Once this river is crossed, the terrain becomes more open. From the foothills to the seaside, a full twelve miles wide, Jin cavalry can gallop.

After walking two and a half miles, Wanyan Zongbi pointed to the small hill ahead and said, "We will set up camp around this mountain."

During the Liao and Jin Dynasties, the population here was not large, and there were no decent place names.

But eight hundred years later, a famous battle will break out here - the Battle of Tashan!

There is no tower or mountain in Tashan.

The small hill pointed by Wanyan Zongbi was already the commanding height within a radius of ten miles.

He set up his command tent on a hill, commanding all directions, and his soldiers and civilians camped around the hill.

Under Wanyan Zongbi's command, there were only more than 5,000 meng'anmou Ke troops, another 6,000 issued militiamen from various ethnic groups, and several thousand unarmored civilians with crude weapons.

The camp was set up, close to the river to the west, and extended for more than a mile to the east.

Wanyan Zongbi looked at the south with a telescope and ordered: "Towards the sea, set up a fence and be careful at night!"

When the army is out, there are three ways to set up camp.

The first is to insert a gun into the camp.

This kind is mostly used in areas controlled by one's own side, and there is basically no danger. Use long guns to insert around the camp, which can be regarded as demarcating boundaries and prohibiting civilians from entering.

The second is to build a fence.

It can protect against small groups of enemies and wild beasts, and is mostly used during fast marches or in less dangerous areas.

The third type is a stronghold.

This requires trenches to be dug, earth walls to be built, and facilities such as watchtowers and arrow towers to be installed in the camp, which are mostly used in confrontations between two armies or in dangerous areas.

Although this place was very close to Jinzhou and belonged to the area controlled by the Jin soldiers, Wanyan Zongbi was still worried about the Ming army attacking from the sea. He set up gun camps on the east, west, north, and west, but built a fence on the south side facing the sea. At the same time, he sent cavalry to patrol the seaside.

Li Bao traveled quickly by boat and had been waiting all day and night!

Among them, two thousand Ming troops were hidden on a small island with a radius of two miles (Dayushan Island).

Another three thousand elite members of Li Bao's direct lineage landed in the dark last night, marched all night to the north, and hid in the ravines at the foothills of the north.

When Li Baotun stationed troops on Juehua Island, he plundered the Liaoxi Corridor many times and had a thorough understanding of this area.

He could even guess where the Jin soldiers camped every day. The Jin soldiers withdrew in the middle of the night and almost arrived at Xingcheng River in the afternoon. Therefore, the camp point of the Jin soldiers on the first day must be on the east or west bank of the Xingcheng River.

The Jin soldiers' camp point on the second day was mostly in Huludao City in later generations. There are two rivers there, it depends on which river the Jin soldiers will cross before setting up camp.

The Jin Bing's camp point on the third day must be near Tashan, and the journey is short that day. If there is enough time, he must cross the river and set up camp again!

The commanding height near Tashan is just a small hill, and Wanyan Zongbi's handsome tent must be set up on the hill. Most of Wanyan Zongbi's elite cavalry would leave one on the mountain, so that they could swoop in all directions in case of war.

…

Monk Li is not a monk, he is a craftsman.

His ancestors, who were unknown to many generations, were captured in the early years of the Liao Kingdom, and together with other Han craftsmen and farmers, they collectively moved to Jinzhou to settle here.

I don’t know how many years later, a large number of Bohai craftsmen and farmers were also moved to Jinzhou by the Liao Kingdom to multiply.

The political system of the middle and early Liao Dynasty was very complicated and even allowed wealthy families to own territory. Hence the term "private states" and "private counties", where powerful families could take over their own territory. Only in the middle and late period of the Liao Kingdom did they gradually take back some of their power.

But Jinzhou has remained unchanged because it was a private state of the Liao emperor.

Monk Li's ancestors have been craftsmen for generations, and at least one person in each generation must inherit the profession. Because the emperor of Liao sent many nobles to manage Jinzhou, the craftsmen's houses had to serve the emperor and nobles in rotation, making various items for the government or nobles for free.

There was great chaos at the end of Liao Dynasty, and many people died in Jinzhou.

However, the Jin people captured Yanshan Prefecture and migrated a large number of people, and Jinzhou quickly regained its vitality.

The days are getting worse and worse, because the taxes and servitude in the Kingdom of Jin are too heavy.

Monk Li was even transferred to the army this time to build siege equipment for the Jin soldiers.

He also heard the explosion outside the city, but it was too far away to see clearly. He heard from Du San, a craftsman who accompanied the army, that the Ming army was protected by the God of Thunder Bodhisattva, who sent down thunder and lightning to kill the Jin soldiers, so the fourth prince of the Jin Kingdom withdrew overnight.

In the past two days, everyone was in a panic.

Not only was the reason for withdrawing the troops overnight, but the terrain along the way was rugged and narrow, and the team stretched as far as a long snake.

This kind of marching formation was extremely vulnerable to attack, so the fourth prince Jin Wushu ordered the entire army to wear armor and rush on the road. Not only did a large number of cavalry be sent to the front and rear of the team to investigate, but elites were even sent to the beach to observe.

Now I can finally sleep peacefully. Jinzhou is ahead and everything is flat.

Although Monk Li doesn't know how to fight, he also knows that it is difficult to set up an ambush here.

After a lot of work, it's getting dark.

Monk Li was holding a bowl of wheat porridge. Not only was the porridge very thin, but it was also mixed with a lot of wheat bran. He muttered: "I eat two meals a day, and they are all watery. How can I go on the road?"

"Just go home." Du San comforted.

Craftsmen like them who follow the army carry a full set of tools on the road and gain strength when setting up camp.

Having just gone to the southern camp to build a wooden fence, Monk Li was already very tired, but he was only given a bowl of gruel to get rid of him.

The food issued to the militiamen is better than that of the craftsmen. And the food of the craftsmen is better than that of the common people.

The ones who eat the best are, of course, those who are fierce and powerful.

After a bowl of gruel filled with wheat bran, Monk Li still felt hungry. He curled up and lay down, holding his stomach, and said to himself: "Go to sleep, you will be full after a good sleep."

Du San put the box containing the tools next to him, wrapped the strap around his wrist a few times, and held it firmly with his hands before closing his eyes. These were the things he ate.

Although I was hungry, I was so tired that I fell asleep in a daze.

…

Liu Sheng was a militiaman from Guangning Prefecture. He was a Khitan, and his surname Liu was a common Khitan surname.

Quang Ninh Prefecture has promoted the Meng An Mou restraint for several years, but now it is the Meng An Mou restraint and the issuing system in parallel.

During the last year's grain collection, Liu Sheng had very little food left, and his mother also died of malnutrition.

The wheat had just been harvested this year, and before he even had time to turn in the grain tax, Liu Sheng was drawn out to fight.

He was incorporated into the cannon fodder siege force and escaped death several times.

When the fourth prince ordered the withdrawal of troops, Liu Sheng seemed to be escaping from hell, walking away in fear.

The first two nights, I was so scared that I couldn't sleep soundly. I always felt that the Ming army would chase me.

Tonight, I feel relieved. We are almost to Jinzhou. After Jinzhou, we will reach our hometown of Guangning Prefecture.

"Hululu..."

The snoring of his fellow villager Pao Ze reached his ears, and Liu Sheng couldn't help but mutter: "This birdman actually sleeps quickly, and his snoring is like thunder."

Most of the issued militiamen do not have armor, but they can bring their own armor, or junior officers can receive leather armor.

Liu Sheng had no armor and fell asleep in civilian clothes.

The camp next door was full of soldiers. They had been marching in front of them for the past two days.

Although he walked very slowly, he was still very tired. He was finally able to take off his armor and sleep peacefully tonight.

Wanyan Zongbi didn't ask for much. He personally rode on horseback to inspect the southern camp and said to the Meng'an soldiers there: "You are all elites. We face the sea here. You must wear armor and sleep with weapons!"

When the master left, the soldiers cursed and cursed, but they could only obey orders.

But the military order can be discounted. It is very uncomfortable to sleep with the armor completely on. Quietly loosen the belt and loosen the joints of the armor. It will be difficult for the officers to find it when they come to check.

We are almost to Jinzhou, will the Ming army still come and kill us?

Just mess around.

…

Fourth watch.

Not only were the Jin soldiers in the camp fast asleep, but even the Jin cavalry patrolling the seaside were so exhausted that they dismounted and took a nap, leaving only a few people to continue patrolling there.

Dayushan Island, as its name suggests, is densely forested.

More than two thousand Ming troops set out on rafts in the middle of the night and rowed towards the shore less than two miles away.

Hu Yantong is responsible for commanding this army. There are two to three hundred people who were formerly members of the Song Dynasty Xiang Army. The remaining soldiers are all Shandong bandits after reorganization.

After they landed, they slowly gathered and headed towards the Jinbing camp a few miles away.

Not long after walking, a Jin cavalry patrol came, riding slowly from far to near.

In the dark, neither of them noticed the other.

Hu Yantong continued to lead his troops on the road. There were too many Ming troops, and no matter how careful they were, they would still make noise.

When Jin Qi heard the noise and looked closely, he saw many shadowy figures standing in the distance.

"Woooooo~~"

The horn sounded, and the Jin army camp was alerted.

Wanyan Zongbi had been wearing armor. He stood up and ran outside the tent. He said to the soldiers who were coming over: "The Ming army has indeed attacked the camp from the sea. I ordered all the troops not to panic and to assemble immediately towards the commander's tent. South Camp The soldiers sleep with their armor on, so let them form a formation to resist while I lead my troops to rescue!"

His whereabouts had been exposed. Hu Yantong did not retreat. Instead, he raised his gun and shouted: "Kill!"

More than two thousand Ming troops marched towards the camp of more than 10,000 golden soldiers.

Li Bao and his three thousand direct descendants were farther away from Jinying. They were hidden in the foothills of the north.

Halfway through the run, he heard a noise from the Jin camp, and Li Bao ordered: "The whole army hastened forward, Huyantong has been discovered!"

Liu Sheng slept so soundly that the sound of the horn did not wake him up.

It wasn't until an officer rode to the North Camp and shouted loudly along the way to gather troops that Liu Sheng finally woke up.

The officer in charge of him scrambled to his feet and put on his leather armor as he ran.

Liu Sheng's first reaction was to run away, not even thinking about weapons. After running for a while, he saw several cavalry rushing to intercept him. He was so frightened that he and the other defeated soldiers quickly turned back and followed the others to assemble in confusion.

As for Liu Sheng's immediate officer, when he was gathering the soldiers, he realized that he was only focused on wearing armor and had forgotten to bring the weapons.

Except for the heavily guarded Jinbing South Camp, which was slightly decent, the camps in several other directions were in chaos.

"March in formation and move closer to the commander's tent!"

Another group of gold riders came over, shouting and urging along the way.

It took Liu Sheng more than ten minutes to go from waking up, escaping, turning back, to gathering, and he was unable to complete the gathering at all. The main reason was that I was running around and couldn't find my troops. It was difficult to find the way even if braziers were lit in the camp.

Some militiamen issued by the Jin Kingdom could not find their own troops, so they simply mixed in with other troops to replenish their numbers.

They were still approaching randomly when they suddenly heard a loud roar from behind: "Kill the Jurchen! Kill the gold thief!"

Li Bao finally came with his troops.

"There are enemies to the north, turn around quickly to meet them!"

"kill!"

Li Bao's three thousand direct descendants trotted all the way, and began to speed up and shout when they approached Jinying.

Liu Sheng mingled among the signing troops and turned around to meet the enemy. The troops that had not been assembled in the first place became more chaotic after more than ten steps, and no one knew how many Ming troops were killed in the dark.

Moreover, Ming troops were coming from both the north and south directions.

"Run!"

As the Ming army's shouts of killing got closer and closer, some of the poorly armored Jin militiamen finally began to escape.

Liu Sheng was frightened when he was serving as cannon fodder for the siege. He was already frightened. He was one of the first militiamen to escape. Moreover, he also knew that he could not go east. That was the road back to Jinzhou. The Ming army would definitely intercept and kill them, and the Jurchen soldiers would also hack and kill the fleeing soldiers.

Almost subconsciously, Liu Sheng ran away westward.

Over there are the Minfu Camp and the Craftsman Camp. The craftsmen such as Li Monk and Du San were ordered not to move around by the Jurchen messengers and asked to wait in the camp until the battle was over.

However, the militiamen who issued the order fled, and the craftsmen and civilians immediately exploded and fled in all directions.

"Where to escape?" Du San asked.

Monk Li said with a cry: "I don't know, let's escape first. If we escape across the river, there should be no pursuers."