The Golden Family, rising from the Western Regions

Chapter 214 Suppressing the Kangli Allied Forces
"Those who retreat will be killed."

"Charge! Kill!"

Yelü Wusi, wielding a scimitar and with bloodshot eyes, roared furiously, forcing the fleeing slave soldiers to turn back and continue the siege.

But in the next second, a feeling of horror suddenly exploded in his heart, and the hairs on the back of his neck suddenly stood on end.

"Danger."

Yelü Wusi suddenly became very wary, his instincts, like those of a wild beast, made him feel an unprecedented life-or-death crisis.

Without the slightest hesitation, he leaped off his horse and lay prone under its belly.

The only thing he could think of was that there were archers aiming at him from the top of the city wall of Dongdu. Ordinary arrows couldn't reach that far, but that didn't mean ballistae couldn't.

But the next second, the ten cannons on the city wall roared again, and crimson flames shot out.

Ten exploding shells, trailing dark red flames, streaked across the sky and exploded in a blinding white light above Yelü Wusi's head.

The cannons were not aimed at the slave soldiers closer to the city walls, but at the Kangli cavalry behind them.

The Jinzhou army's artillery had a normal range of 1,500 meters, something Yelü Wusitu was completely unaware of.

Therefore, when he led his cavalry to within about a thousand meters of the city, he instantly became the target of the Jinzhou army's concentrated fire.

"Boom boom boom~"

The moment the cast iron cartridge case burst open, thousands of nails and pieces of iron rained down like a storm.

The flagpole of the Nine-Tailed White Banner was cut in half, the white banner fell into a pool of blood, and the yak tail hair ignited with ghostly blue flames.

Yelü Wusi suddenly heard the warhorse above him let out a mournful neigh, and then he was heavily pressed down on his body.

"Yurhan!"

The captain of the guard's desperate shouts were swallowed up by the sound of the explosion.

Shortly afterward, the roar of the cannons stopped, and Yelü Wusi was rescued.

At that moment, he felt a tearing pain in his left shoulder, and he felt completely exhausted. He didn't know how many bones had been broken. His gold-plated helmet rolled to the side, revealing a hideous wound on his forehead.

"Yurhan, are you alright?"

The general of the Yuliboli tribe rushed over and nervously shook the slightly dazed Yelü Wusi Tu.

Only then did they discover that an iron nail had pierced Yelü Wusi's chainmail, and bright red blood was seeping out from the gaps in the armor plates.

"Ahhhhh~"

Yelü Wusi suddenly let out a miserable cry of pain, feeling pain all over his body.

Looking around at himself, his pupils constricted, and he gasped.

The severed bodies of three bodyguards lay at his feet, one of them with his chest cavity blown open, revealing bare bones and bloated internal organs.

The other person's head was missing, and blood was still bubbling from the severed neck.

The flying nails pinned the slave soldiers ten paces away to the ground, their twisted bodies riddled with metal fragments, making them look like hedgehogs pierced by a thousand arrows.

Not far away, the flagpole of the Nine-Tailed White Banner was blown into two pieces, and yak tail hair mixed with brain matter and bone fragments were scattered on the ground.

The entire surrounding area has been turned into a hellish landscape.

The battlefield fell into an eerie silence, the slave soldiers staring blankly at the fallen main flag.

Li Dashan, standing on the city wall, raised his telescope, the lens reflecting his sinister smile: "Hahaha, good."

"Zhu Zi, well done! Keep blasting them into the crowd like that!"

Li Dashan laughed excitedly, then ordered, "Light the signal fire and let Zhao Dadao launch the attack."

"As ordered."

Soon after, billowing smoke rose from the top of the city wall of the Eastern Capital. In clear weather, the visible range of the smoke could easily exceed twenty li, or even further.

Therefore, the moment the smoke signal was raised, three Jinzhou scouts immediately got up on a hillside more than ten miles away.

"The smoke signals have been lit in the Eastern Capital. Go back and report to the commander-in-chief immediately."

Then, the three mounted their horses and rode off in the rear.

Outside the Eastern Capital, Yelü Wusi struggled to sit up, his bloodied fingers gripping the broken flagpole tightly.

He stared at the blood-red furrows carved out by artillery fire in the distance, and the twisted corpses of Kangri soldiers lying in pools of blood, his eyes filled with anger and shock.

He felt a sense of dread about this mysterious weapon in the Eastern Capital, but a burning rage quickly ignited in his mind.

The Eastern Capital is small and has few soldiers. Even with the help of this terrifying weapon, it is not impossible to conquer it.

The more powerful the weapon, the more determined he was to conquer the Eastern Capital and seize it.

At that time, not only the small northern frontier, but even the royal court and the entire Kipchak grassland will tremble at my feet.

"Kill~"

Yelü Wusi suddenly mounted his warhorse again, ignoring his injuries, his face contorted with rage, and let out a low growl like a trapped beast: "Regroup! Continue the siege!"

Before the words were even finished, another round of artillery fire tore through the sky.

Soon after, a Kangli cavalryman rushed to Yelü Wusi Tu's side, looking terrified, and said...

"Yuerhan, a large cavalry force is attacking from twenty miles east of Yemili City."

Upon hearing this, Yelü Wusi's expression changed drastically: "What?"

"A large-scale cavalry force? How many are there? Who is the commander-in-chief?"

"About ten thousand men, their flags bear a sun and moon design," the scout said urgently.

"Damn it, it's the Jinzhou army!"

Yelü Wusi's expression immediately darkened as he suddenly recalled the smoke rising from Yemili City not long ago.

Despite the pain all over his body, he tied himself to the horse with ropes and roared angrily, "We've fallen into a trap!"

"Inform the other tribes of this news. Forget about Yemili City for now. Deploy the most elite soldiers from the tribes to intercept the ambush in Jinzhou."

"If they break through to the city walls, our army will probably collapse immediately."

It was only at this moment that Yelü Wusi realized that this was clearly a conspiracy by the Eastern Capital.

By using Yemili City to tie down Kangli's army, and then using that mysterious and terrifying weapon to intimidate Kangli's troops, the cavalry outside the city could launch an attack while Kangli's morale was low.

The entire sequence of actions did indeed leave Yelü Wusi somewhat stunned.

After his personal guards left to relay the order, he glared fiercely at the scout: "Didn't you assure me that there were no enemy ambush troops within thirty miles of Yemili City?"

The scouts' faces immediately turned panicked. They had indeed searched for a long time last night and were certain that there was no trace of the Eastern Capital Army.

But since it has suddenly appeared, there can only be one explanation.

"Yurhan, the Eastern Capital Army is cunning. They must have hidden themselves in a more distant place beforehand, so we didn't find them."

"Hmph." Yelü Wusi suddenly snorted angrily, but he knew very well that this was not the time to pursue responsibility.

Subsequently, Yelü Wusi ordered the slave soldiers to form ranks on the spot to guard against a pincer attack from the city's defenders and the cavalry outside the city.

He himself led a portion of the elite troops of the Yuliboli tribe to join forces with several other elite troops to intercept the Jinzhou army's surprise attack.

"Boom boom boom~"

Nine thousand Jinzhou cavalrymen galloped across the land, raising dust clouds like black dragons soaring into the sky.

Zhao Dadao was dressed in white cotton armor, holding a long spear, with only half of his face exposed.

His tiger-like eyes were wide open, and a fierce aura emanated from the depths of his gaze. He shouted loudly at the cavalrymen around him: "Give the order to all the commanders, give it your all!"

"Catch up with the Kangli dogs, leave no one alive."

"Tell those bastards in the Kuril army that their time to prove themselves has come."

"Let the killing begin."

“After I’ve killed enough, I’ll personally promote them to town level, and I’ll give them all the cattle, sheep, women, and pastures.”

"Kill me."

Zhao Dadao, looking as if he had gone mad, led his army in a frenzied charge towards the Eastern Capital.

The group consisted of only three thousand veterans from Jinzhou wearing cotton armor, three thousand Kuli soldiers, and three thousand former Dongdu cavalry.

A total of nine thousand cavalrymen.

In addition, two thousand men were left behind to guard the royal prisoners of war in the rear, plus five thousand soldiers in the eastern capital, for a total of sixteen thousand men.

This is all the troops from Jinzhou stationed in Dongdu.

At the forefront of the charge were a thousand burly men, each with broad shoulders and thick waists.

At this moment, they had all taken off their shirts, their shoulders were bare, and they were holding all kinds of weapons, looking extremely fierce.

This is the Black Armor Army.

After annexing Xiao Simo's Tiger Pounce Camp, the number of Jinzhou Black Armor Army reached more than 2,200.

One thousand of the Black Armored Soldiers were left behind in Dongdu by Li Xiao, specifically to break through the enemy lines during the charge.

A moment later, the scout hurriedly returned to report: "Commander, Kangli cavalry has been spotted ten miles ahead, numbering approximately ten thousand."

Zhao Dadao slowly reined in his warhorse and looked towards the direction of Dongdu City. Besides the vague outline of the city wall, he could also see patches of black spots moving across the green grassland.

"Well done."

He licked his chapped lips and growled through clenched teeth, "Pass on my order: the Black Armor Army, change into your armor immediately and prepare for battle."

"Today, we will make this grassland soak with the blood of the Kangli people!"

It was just 10,000 Kangli cavalry; with roughly the same number of troops, the Jinzhou army had never been afraid.

As the horn sounded, the Black Armor Army, with the help of auxiliary soldiers, quickly donned full sets of iron armor and boarded a new batch of strong, warhorses.

A moment later, the Black Armor Army soldiers, fully dressed and encased in heavy iron armor, with only their cold eyes visible, stared ahead.

Holding armor-piercing spikes or horse-slaying swords, with the blades pointing diagonally to the ground, they exuded a terrifying aura like iron towers.

The armored warhorses beneath them sensed the approaching war from the soldiers, neighing softly and restlessly shifting their hooves.

As the outlines of the Kangli cavalry became clearer, Zhao Dadao gave the final order to charge.

The close-quarters combat on the grasslands is devoid of fancy moves; it's all about the most primal, life-or-death struggle.

"kill!"

Nine thousand iron cavalry swept towards the horizon like a tidal wave, the sound of their hooves shaking the earth.

Once the two sides were close enough, the first thing they did was exchange a volley of arrows.

The Kangli people's arrows struck the Black Armor Army's iron armor with a crackling sound, either bouncing off or leaving only white marks on the armor surface, causing absolutely no damage.

On the other hand, Kangli's army was filled with screams as soldiers were hit by arrows and fell from their horses.

The cavalry charge and exchange of fire lasted only a moment, and a few breaths later, the Black Armor Army crashed into Kangli's army formation like a moving iron mountain.

"Ahhh~"

"Puff puff puff~"

The screams of agony and the muffled thuds of blades piercing flesh echoed incessantly. The lances of the Black Armor Army were like an overwhelming torrent of steel, easily piercing the thin leather armor of the Kangli Army.

A Kangli cavalryman raised his lance to parry, but was sent flying backward along with his horse. The sound of armor and bones shattering, mixed with screams, pierced the sky.

The armored warhorses of the Black Armor Army, with their astonishing charging power, directly shattered the Kangli Army's formation.

Horse hooves trampled mercilessly on the Kangli soldiers, some were impaled by lances, tracing a scarlet arc in the air.

Some tried to retaliate with their swords, but the black-armored soldiers cleaved their skulls open with a backhand axe, their brains splattering onto their companions' faces.

The Black Armor Army's offensive was swift and devastating, and the screams of Kangli's soldiers and the mournful neighing of their warhorses echoed continuously.

Zhao Dadao led the three towns of Jinzhou and the cavalry of the Kuli army to encircle the Kangli army from both sides.

Although the cotton armor was not as protective as iron armor, it was still far beyond what the Kangli cavalry's rudimentary weapons could penetrate.

Even in one-on-one head-on battles, it was mostly the Kangli people who fell in the end.

Ultimately, under the powerful offensive of the Jinzhou army, Kangli's army suffered heavy casualties and gradually began to collapse.

"Devil, devil."

"They are a bunch of devils."

"The Eastern Capital Army is too powerful; we can't defeat them."

"We can't keep fighting like this, or we'll all die."

"Let's retreat, Yurhan."

Fear spread like a plague through Kangli's army, and the call to collapse had already been sounded.

If an army can continue fighting when its mortality rate reaches 30%, it can be considered an elite force.

Historically, only a few armies, such as Qi Jiguang's army, possessed this kind of will.

Moreover, under the massacre by the Jinzhou army, the Kangli army's death rate had far exceeded three thousand.

The remaining soldiers then scattered and fled in all directions, having lost all courage to resist.

No matter how much Yelü Wusi rebuked him, it was to no avail.

On the other hand, when Li Dashan discovered that Yelü Wusi was leading more than 10,000 elite troops eastward, he guessed that Zhao Dadao had arrived.

He then ordered the cavalry in the city to attack, catching the troops outside the city completely off guard.

After all, the elite troops of Kangli's various units had been taken away, and what remained were either ordinary soldiers or slave soldiers, who were no match for the five thousand Golden State soldiers.

With just one charge, the soldiers outside the city scattered and fled.

The main reason was that they had been terrified by the cannons on the city walls before this.

They believed it was divine punishment.

Half an hour later, Li Dashan led his troops to join forces with Zhao Dadao.

"The Kangli people are nothing special. They carry one head on two shoulders. One shot and their heads are gone too, hahaha."

Zhao Dadao laughed excitedly, his white cotton armor now stained crimson with blood.

They overestimated the fighting strength of the Kangli people, thinking that they would be as difficult to deal with as the Naiman and Kereit tribes, but in reality, the Kangli people were slightly inferior.

"The main reason is that the Kangli people are not familiar with my Jinzhou Army and always think that my Jinzhou Army is the same as the former Dongdu Army."

Li Dashan chuckled.

Whether it was the cannons or the cotton armor of the Golden State Army, or even the large number of armored cavalry, they were all worthy of being called epoch-making weapons of war.

The Jinzhou army, possessing all these weapons, naturally suffered a crushing defeat when facing the Kangli army.

"Order all units to search for the defeated Kangli soldiers, organized by hundred-household units. The distance between the hundred-household units must not exceed ten li," Li Dashan commanded in a deep voice.

These fleeing Kangli soldiers are ultimately a hidden danger to the herdsmen of Dongdu and must be eliminated as soon as possible.

However, we must also guard against Yelü Wusitu gathering his remaining troops and launching a counterattack.

"Big Sword, let's split up and each lead a main force to pursue and kill Kangli's army."

"We must not give Yelü Wusi a chance to catch his breath," Li Dashan shouted.

"Yes, sir." Zhao Dadao nodded emphatically.

The Kor River is an inland river within the territory of Dongdu. It flows from the northern mountains of Dongdu to Lake Kor in the central part of Dongdu, dividing the northern half of Dongdu in two.

Five days later, large armies gathered on both sides of the Kor River.

Li Dashan and Zhao Dadao, after pursuing Yelü Wusi all the way, suddenly arrived at the Kor River basin.

However, Yelü Wusi took advantage of the river and launched a surprise attack while the enemy was crossing, managing to barely gain a foothold on the west bank of the Khor River.

At the same time, he ordered men to search for the scattered Kangli soldiers, and the troops were gradually being restored.

But it is far less than the peak of 30,000 people.

At this moment, in the main tent of the Kangli tribe, the leaders of the various Kangli tribes gathered together, but the former leader of the Guzi tribe was notably absent.

Because he was unlucky enough to be hit by a cannonball, he went to meet God on the spot.

At this time, the Guzi tribe was in charge of one of his cousins.

“Wusitu, you were the one who said that the Eastern Capital was full of gold and silver, but you never told us that such a terrifying thunder weapon was hidden inside.”

The new leader of the Guzi tribe took the lead in attacking Yelü Wusi, appearing furious and demanding that Yelü Wusi be held responsible for his cousin's death.

Meanwhile, the leader of the Erbeer tribe on the other side was also wearing bandages.

Although he was hit by artillery fire from the Jinzhou army, he was only wounded thanks to the protection of his personal guards.

He also looked at Yelü Wusi Tu with displeasure and said in a deep voice, "Wusitu, what do you have to say about this matter?"

The leader of the Guzi tribe slammed his hand on the table and said, "I think he is colluding with the Northern Frontier. His goal is to wear down the soldiers of our tribes so that the Northern Frontier army can annex our tribes."

He then added in a sinister tone, "Don't forget, everyone, Wusi Tu's original surname was Yelü."

Despite the challenges from the crowd, Yelü Wusi remained calm throughout.

I knew all along that they were a bunch of greedy bastards, so I wasn't disappointed at all.

He simply said with a cold expression, "In this battle, our Yuliboli tribe also suffered heavy losses."

"Could it be that I, Wusi Tu, colluded with the Eastern Capital and harmed my clansmen?"

"As for my original surname, I have long forgotten it. My current name is Yuliberiwustu."

"From now on, if anyone dares to threaten me with this matter again, don't blame me for being impolite."

Yelü Wusi stared coldly at the leader of the Guzi tribe, whose body was covered in wounds and whose bones were broken in several places.

But at this moment, he still exuded a powerful tiger-like aura, and his momentum was even more ferocious than usual.

The cold gaze fixed on the leader of the Guzi tribe sent chills down his spine. He involuntarily turned his face away, muttering something under his breath, clearly unwilling to accept the situation.

Finally, the leader of the Boyue tribe spoke up: "Alright, everyone."

"There are no invincible generals in this world. So what if you lose a battle? You can always win it back."

"Moreover, although our army has suffered many casualties, most of them were just slaves."

"Now we have regrouped more than 10,000 troops on the west bank of the Cole River, and they are all the most elite cavalry of our respective units."

"Without the trouble caused by those slaves, as long as we don't get too close to the Eastern Capital, we might be able to defeat the Jinzhou army on the east bank of the river."

After the leader of Boyuewu tribe spoke, no one continued to denounce Yelü Wusi Tu.

Because the leader of Boyue Wubu was the most prestigious among them.

Firstly, because he was older, and secondly, because the Boyue Wu tribe was one of the strongest among the Kangli tribes.

Finally, it was because the leader of the Boyue Wu tribe had a younger sister named Tuerhan.

Twenty years ago, it formed a marriage alliance with the Kingdom of Khwarazm.

Two years ago, Sultan Turgesh of Khwarazm died, and Turhan's son Ala ad-Din Muhammad succeeded him as Sultan.

However, the real power of the court was in the hands of Empress Dowager Turkhan.

Because they came from the Kangli tribe, the Kangli people held a very high status in Khwarezm.

In particular, some of the people from the Bayuewu tribe have already taken up important positions in the Khwarazmian court.

And this trend will only intensify.

Historically, the Kangli people even extended their influence into the Khwarezmian army.

Many of the officers and soldiers were Kangli people.

Therefore, with his sister, Tuerhan, who became the Empress Dowager, the prestige of Boyue Wubu, the leader of the tribe, grew increasingly heavy.

After the Battle of Dongdu, Yelü Wusi's promises to them crumbled, so the people gradually began to rely on the leader of Boyue Wubu.

"The garrison in the Eastern Capital City numbered only a little over ten thousand."

"We suffered heavy losses before because of the mysterious weapons of the Eastern Capital and the charge of the heavy cavalry."

"This time we must stay away from the Eastern Capital and avoid direct confrontation with them. We should make the most of our rangers."

"Let's slowly wear them down," the leader of the Boyue Wu tribe said in a deep voice.

The 30,000-strong Kangli army had gone on a long and arduous expedition, and had spent countless resources. If they were to return in such a disgraceful manner, no one would be willing to accept it.

This would further undermine their prestige within their respective tribes.

Therefore, they were unwilling to leave while they still had a chance to defeat the Eastern Capital army.

Thus, the Kangli Army and the Golden State Army began a standoff, with the Cole River as the boundary.

Meanwhile, in the southern grasslands of Dongdu, Li Xiao was leading the main force of the Jinzhou army northward in a grand procession.

"Boom boom boom!"

Warhorses galloped, iron cavalry rolled, stirring up towering dust.

"Drive, drive, drive!"

"Grand Commander, Commander Li Dashan has sent word that he has severely damaged the main force of Kangli's army and is currently confronting the remnants on the banks of the Keer River."

Upon hearing the messenger's report, a map of the topography of Dongdu instantly appeared in Li Xiao's mind.

The location of the Cole River and the surrounding mountains and lakes came to mind.

He made a decision immediately and said in a deep voice, "The army shall halt its advance."

"We won't go to Dongdu anymore. We'll head northwest to the west bank of the Keer River."

"They cut off Kangli's army's rear route."

"As ordered!"

"The Grand Commander has ordered that we proceed at full speed toward the northwest."

"Boom boom boom!"

(End of this chapter)