Destroy Jin and conquer Song, and carry the Northern Expedition through to the end

Chapter 463: Soldiers' Life and Death

The moment Liu Qi's troops were suddenly attacked by the Jin army, he inevitably thought of the Battle of Fuping.

It's strange to say, old people tend to forget things easily. Even a famous victory like the Battle of Shunchang, old Liu Qi had forgotten most of it. However, he remembered the causes and consequences of the Battle of Fuping, every detail of it, and even every frown and smile of his comrades.

Because in this battle, Liu Qi lost his hometown.

The situation was similar that day. The Song army was scattered and disorganized, and Zhang Jun's chaotic command forced them to fight on their own. However, facing them were the founding generals of the Jin Dynasty, elite troops from the east and west, and the Jin Dynasty's god of war, Wanyan Loushi, as the commander-in-chief.

The final outcome was the great defeat of the 180,000 Song troops, and this was also the final story of the Western Army.

Later, Liu Qi's brother Liu Xi was exiled by Zhang Jun for military defeat, and Zhao Zhe and his generals Zhang Zhong and Qiao Ze were beheaded. Murong Tao, a general from Huanqing Route, defected to the Western Xia, while Zhang Zhongyan and Li Yanqi, generals from Jingyuan Route under Liu Qi, defected to the Jin army.

From then on, there was no more Western Army in the world.

After coughing a few times, Liu Qi stared at the large Korean flag more than a hundred steps away, silently put on his helmet, and put all distracting thoughts behind him.

Even if the Song army today repeats the mistakes of the Battle of Fuping, Liu Qi will definitely do his best as he did that day! In the end, he will not let down the grace of his emperor and father, and the reputation of the Western Army!

Even though the tiger is old, its claws and fangs are still there. How can it allow wild dogs to bark at it? Who can ask, "Is Lian Po old and still able to eat?" Are you, a child? You don't deserve it!
"Form a battle array! Meet the enemy!" Liu Qi's composure allowed his elite troops to quickly recover from the surprise attack. "Liu Si, lead your men to hold off the Jin thieves! Wei You, form a train formation! Wang Fang, protect the flanks!"

After receiving the order, the entire army took quick action. Liu Si led 700 soldiers to fight in the front, their blood soaking through their heavy armor, and finally withstood the most deadly first wave of attacks from the Jin army.

However, the Jin army's goal was to eliminate Liu Qi. How could they be discouraged by such a small setback?

Soon, three Meng'an of the Jin army launched another fierce attack on the Huaidong army from the east, west and south directions.

Han Tang, the commander-in-chief of the Wurui Army, stared at the big flag with the word "Liu" on it, and inevitably thought of the Battle of Fuping.

In that battle, Han Tang's father Han Chang followed the fourth prince Wanyan Wushu as the left wing of the Jin army to attack the Song army.

However, it was this Liu Qi who led the Song army from Jingyuan Road to fight, encircling the left wing of the Jin army in the mud. Han Chang fought hard for half a day, and although he and Wanyan Wushu fought their way through the encirclement, he was blinded by a stray arrow.

This arrow wound tormented Han Chang for half his life.

For Han Tang, isn't this also a family feud and national hatred?
"Pass on my order. Whoever kills Liu Qi will be promoted three ranks and rewarded with ten thousand gold. Even if I don't take any credit for this trip south, I will still recommend him!" Han Tang said to the military envoy, "Let every Meng'an know that Liu Qi and my Han family have an irreconcilable feud. Even if Your Majesty doesn't reward him, I will give away all my wealth to reward him handsomely!"

The military envoy bowed and left. After a while, the entire Wu Rui army was in an uproar and rushed towards Liu Qi's troops without regard for their lives.

Liu Qi's Song army immediately fell into a bitter battle.

At the same time, Yu Yunwen also encountered trouble.

When he led his army to force a crossing of the Qingxi River, he was attacked halfway across the river.

If the Jin army came from the northwest, it would be easy to deal with, because the first to cross the river were the elite troops under Li Xianzhong, and they would naturally not be panicked by a sudden attack.

However, this time the surprise attack came from the southeast, from where the Song army had just passed. The civilians who were transporting baggage and food in the rear almost collapsed at the first touch and rolled back, and even the thousands of Song soldiers who had not yet crossed the river were unstable.

"Who are these?" Yu Yunwen, who had not yet crossed the river, was shocked and angry when he saw thousands of Jin cavalrymen slaughtering people wantonly in the rear. He pointed at the Jin army flag and asked the scouts, "Why did you come to report this so late?"

"Sir, I don't know who this flag belongs to. They're coming so fast. I've never seen so many horses before." The scout said in horror, "These Jin thieves didn't even notice the camp in the tunnel. They just went around us. No matter how hard we tried, we were only one step ahead of them..."

"Prime Minister Yu, judging by the flags, it should be Pucha Shijie." Commanding Officer Dai Gao came over and said, "He should be in Huaidong, why is he here?!"

"It doesn't matter why he is here. The most important thing is how to meet the enemy." Commander Zhang Zhen also went to meet the defeated army and fought side by side with Wang Qi, temporarily blocking the Jin army out. However, Yu Yunwen was unsure.

His most elite troops were placed in the hands of Shi Jun, who had already crossed the Qingxi River with Li Xianzhong. Although the other four commanders also expanded and reorganized their troops, their combat effectiveness was much weaker.

"Why not let General Li return to the army?" Dai Gao came up with a bad idea.

How could it be possible? The battle of Chao County had already begun, and this might be the decisive battle. If Li Xianzhong did not step forward, what difference would it make for the Huaixi army to desert the battlefield?
By then, not to mention Cheng Min and Liu Qi's troops, even the morale of the Huaixi army itself would be ruined.

Before Yu Yunwen could refuse, he saw Wang Qi galloping towards him. He flew into a rage and shouted, "Wang Qi, why are you here when you're not fighting the enemy on the battlefield? Where's Zhang Zhen?"

Wang Qi pulled the reins of his warhorse, bowed on the horse, and without even a moment's apology or politeness, he shouted, "Prime Minister Yu, quickly take Dai Gao and cross the river. Destroy the pontoon bridge. Zhang Zhen and I will hold the line here."

This was beyond everyone's expectations.

"Do you know what you are saying?" Yu Yunwen quickly calmed down and asked in a deep voice.

At this time, the rear army was already in disarray, and the available troops of Wang Qi and Zhang Zhen combined would not exceed 4,000 people, and these 4,000 people were not the most powerful troops.

It can be said that Wang Qi and Zhang Zhen took the initiative to become abandoned pawns.

At the same time, Yu Yunwen looked at the flag of the Jin army commander-in-chief. Pucha Shijie's three thousand elite cavalry were carefully selected from three armies of ten thousand households. In terms of combat effectiveness, they may not be as good as Hezha Meng'an, but they will definitely not be too far behind.

As the chief commander, Pucha Shijie rushed to the front line and attacked the Song army's front line like crazy, just wanting to cross the river and join the battle before the situation became critical.

This is a real life-and-death battle with no room for maneuver.

"I know." Wang Qi nodded heavily, "But there is no other way!"

Seeing Yu Yunwen hesitate slightly, Wang Qi continued, "Prince Yu, you have been trying to persuade us these past few days. I have something to say today. Do you want to hear it?"

"Tell me now..."

"This battle will be recorded in history books. If I, a mere commander, make a mistake, I'll die, and not even a ripple will be made. However, considering your status as Prime Minister Yu, if you don't make a quick decision now, will you miss the opportunity to fight, ruin the overall situation, and become a laughing stock for future generations?"

Wang Qi said this loudly, and without waiting for Yu Yunwen's response, he turned his horse back and took two steps in the direction of Pucha Shijie's attack. He turned back and said, "Mr. Yu, I respect you as a man. Please don't let our deaths be in vain..."

After saying that, Wang Qi rushed to the front line with an axe, heading towards his own end.

This was also the last conversation between Wang Qi and Yu Yunwen.

Half an hour later, the Song army was defeated and scattered under Pucha Shijie's swift attack.

Wang Qi led his personal guards to cover the retreat. He was hit by nineteen arrows, three axe wounds, eight stab wounds, and six knife wounds. He died in battle by the Qingxi River.

In the end, he lived up to the name of his father, King De Yaksha.

At this time, Yu Yunwen stared at Wang Qi's back. After a while, he raised the flag and crossed the river westward with Dai Gao.

Afterwards, over 10,000 soldiers split into two groups. Li Xianzhong led 4,000 elite cavalry to the north to rescue Liu Qi at the foot of Tangshan Mountain, while Yu Yunwen led his infantry to attack Wanyan Liang's main camp.
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When the gates of Chao County were opened, Cheng Min actually had no choice.

To put it mildly, Liu Huai, theoretically the last person to risk his life, had already left the city and fought tooth and nail. Cheng Min, the heir to Han Shizhong's military legacy and a highly respected Grand Marshal, really had the nerve to sit back and watch the outcome? Veteran Liu Qi fought the Jin army to the death, while young general Liu Huai led the Jingnan army to storm the Jin camp. Civilian Yu Yunwen forced his way across the Qingxi River, with the barbarian Li Xianzhong leading the charge.

Cheng Min thought he was much stronger than these guys, so how could he just sit there?

Even though it was a common practice for the Western Army to sell out teammates, the army has its own heritage. How could people like Chen Min, Zhao Xun, and Hua Wang dare to tarnish Han Shizhong's reputation after his death?
More broadly speaking, from a strategic perspective, if Cheng Min had allowed Liu Qi to be annihilated, Liu Huai's Jingnan army would have been in vain in the open field. Once Chao County was lost, it would have been impossible to defend Guishan alone. If they retreated in the face of the Jin army's superior cavalry, they would have surely been pursued and killed along the way.

"General Cheng, what should we do?" Bi Jin asked loudly.

"What else can we do?" Cheng Min responded loudly from the watchtower: "Beat the drums, march!"

"Send the order to Hua Wang, Beiwei Army put on armor!"

"Send a military order to Chen Min, asking him to protect our right wing, but not to advance!"

"Tell Liang Zichu to wait for an opportunity to join the battle."

"Zhao Xun, Du Yan, Bi Jin, each lead your troops to besiege the Jin bandit camp!"

As orders were issued one after another, the two camps on Guishan, one large and one small, erupted in excitement. After a while, the gates of the two camps burst open, and countless Song soldiers rushed out.

After hastily forming up their battle formation on the rugged hillside, the Ezhou army, which inherited Han Shizhong's will, ignored its lack of military strength and pressed hard towards the Jin army's Guishan camp where Wanyan Liang was located.

Decisive and ruthless, just like Huang Tiandang back then.

Seeing this, Wanyan Liang was not surprised or angry, but laughed out loud.

The Jin army in the camp had already formed up, and the regular troops were fully armed and lined up towards Turtle Mountain. The tents and chevaux de frise that had been blocking the army's formation had been dismantled.

The four generals, Wanyan Alin, Wanyan Yuanyi, Da Huaizhen, and Wanyan Bendu, stood quietly beside Wanyan Liang, without even asking, "Your Majesty, why are you laughing?"

These people were all famous ministers and generals. They all understood that for the Jin army, the most dangerous enemy was not Liu Huai, who was not well-known and fought thousands of miles away, nor was it Yu Yunwen and Li Xianzhong who had been passively beaten, nor was it Liu Qi, who had only a few thousand elite soldiers around him.

The most dangerous enemy has always been Cheng Min, who has been advancing with great strides and whose strength has not been reduced at all.

Cheng Min's division of the two camps on Guishan Mountain was indeed a tough nut to crack. If the Jin army tried to chew it head-on, they would definitely be defeated.

However, if Cheng Min goes out of the camp to fight, the war will be fought in a different way.

When it comes to field battles, the Jin army is not afraid of anyone!

"You can't hold your temper!" Wanyan Liang's smile faded: "Wanyan Bendu, please stay in the main camp!"

"Wanyan Yuanyi, Wanyan Alin, each return to your camp and lead the troops!"

"Order!"

"Here!"

Wanyan Yuanyi and Wanyan Alin were both close ministers who had fought with Wanyan Liang for many years. When they heard this, their scalps tingled and they quickly rode their horses back to their respective armies.

They all knew what Wanyan Liang was going to do next.

As expected, seeing the two large flags of Weisheng and Wuping returning to the army, Wanyan Liang and his close ministers and guards mounted their horses.

Heza Meng'an, who was standing solemnly behind the Jinwu flag and holding his horse, also mounted his horse silently at the same time.

"The whole army follows me..."

Wanyan Liang drew his sword and pointed it forward, and the gate of the Jin army camp opened wide. The soldiers pulled down the wooden fences of the camp, turning the layers of obstacles into a smooth path.

"Kill Cheng Min!"

After saying this, Wanyan Liang, as the emperor, led the way and rode westward. The huge Jinwu banner also moved with it. Heza Meng'an was also fully armed and, under the leadership of Wanyan Lucheng, followed closely behind Wanyan Liang.

The two thousand-man Jin army lined up solemnly, and then there was a loud bang.

"Long live!"

When the Jin army saw that Emperor Wanyan Liang personally went into battle, their morale once again skyrocketed. Under the command of their officers, they rushed forward like crazy, crossed the Jinwu flag, and charged into the Song army.

The battle lines stretched four miles long, a jagged, crisscross pattern. Both the Song and Jin sides felt as if a flood had broken through a dam. Troops advanced in succession, blood spilling from the front lines.

The Song army was no less powerful. Three thousand armored cavalrymen of the Beiwei Army rushed out from the avenue between the two peaks of Guishan Mountain and formed up behind the central army. Cheng Min's large banner was raised among them, facing Wanyan Liang's Jinwu banner in the distance.

The Chaohu navy sailed out from the mouth of the Zhegao River and patrolled on the north bank of Chaohu Lake.

The Dongting Lake navy set out from Chao County, eyeing the Jin army's flanks covetously.

The battle at the foot of Turtle Mountain entered a white-hot stage from the beginning. Both the Ezhou army and the Jin army fought tenaciously. During the battle, the Jin army defeated hundreds of Ezhou soldiers several times, but was unable to inflict a real rout on the Song army.

After the Song army broke into the Jin army's line several times, they were unable to break the Jin army's formation and were pushed back by the Jin army's mobilized forces.

After all, while the Ezhou army was slightly weaker, it wasn't so weak that the Jin army could easily swallow it, nor was it a pushover. And while the Jin army was already somewhat exhausted after months of fighting and having wasted a long time at Caishi, with the emperor personally leading the charge, their morale remained high.

Although the Jin army had some advantages, it was not to the extent of being able to crush the enemy.

The war entered a difficult stalemate.

From then on, the chain reaction caused by Han Tang's siege of Liu Qi became fully apparent. Within a radius of about ten miles around Chao County, a total of nearly 100,000 soldiers and horses fought together.

Everyone is racing against time.

　I had an X-ray yesterday and I'm worried it might develop into pneumonia, so I have to get an IV drip today.

　　There should only be one chapter.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)