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

Chapter 468: The Battle Between the Two Sides

Although the Ezhou army was one of the most elite troops in the Song Dynasty's battle sequence, it was still unable to fight a field battle with the Jin army of similar size.

Even if we have the advantage of geographical location, it won’t work.

Although Cheng Min was mentally prepared, he did not expect the Jin army to be so brutal. Their tiger-like spirit was like the resurrection of the founding soldiers of the Jin army.

When the armies on both wings were compressed to the extreme, Cheng Min actually had very few options.

We can't wait for reinforcements. If the infantry is defeated by the Jin army and the fleeing soldiers enter the camp, then everything will be over!

Gazing at the Jinwu banner two miles away, Cheng Min raised his broadsword and said, "Beat the drum! March!"

The general's drum in the central army rumbled, and the three thousand Beiwei soldiers mounted their horses and looked straight ahead.

Chen Min, Zhao Xun, Du Yan and others heard the order and launched a counterattack at the same time, tearing off tactical space for Cheng Min.

However, the Song army had been fighting continuously and was already exhausted. Although the commanders led their personal guards to charge in the front, they were unable to shake the Jin army's formation.

The reaction of the Weisheng Army was still slow, and the commander-in-chief on the battlefield, Marching Meng'an Tangkuo Wuye, could only try his best to block it.

The Wuping Army, under the command of Wanyan Alin, directly attacked and fought with Chen Min, and instantly showed a trend of counterattack.

However, these are no longer a problem. As the saying goes, when a teacher goes out to fight, it is an honor to die and a disgrace to live. Now Cheng Min can't care about much else.

"Beiwei Army! May you win!" Cheng Min galloped in front of the formation, with the Beiwei flag fluttering in the wind behind him.

This glorious army was first established when Han Shizhong was still hanging around in the Western Army. At that time, it was just a personal guard organized by elite trusted men in imitation of the Western Xia tradition.

They followed Han Shizhong to fight against the western bandits, suppress the Rebellion, and fight against the Jin army. They traveled through Hebei, Henan, Central Plains, and Lianghuai, and experienced repeated defeats and great victories.

After experiencing more than 30 years of wind and snow, the Beiwei Army once again stood before the Jin Kingdom, revealing its sharp claws.

"Wan Sheng!"

"Wan Sheng!"

"Wan Sheng!"

The Beiwei Army, which had been silent until then, burst into thunderous cheers.

"Good man! Kill the Jin thieves!" Cheng Min pulled the reins, and the warhorse stood up, with the long sword pointing directly at the Jinwu flag.

"Follow me!" After saying that, Cheng Min jumped on his horse and charged to the front as the commander.

The fierce cold wind brushed against his face, and Cheng Min seemed to have returned to his youth, when he was also running in front of the Beiwei Army. However, the difference from that day was that the majestic figure who had been cutting through obstacles and bravely moving forward was no longer in front of him.

Thinking about it now, that was twenty or thirty years ago.

But at this moment, Cheng Min saw that figure again in a trance.

The figure he had been chasing gradually slowed down and gradually overlapped with him.

"From now on, you and I are together!" Cheng Min shouted while running.

It was said both to himself and to Han Shizhong's afterimage.

Regardless of victory or defeat, life or death, after this battle, Cheng Min will not need to look up to anyone!

Under the Jinwu banner, Wanyan Liang looked at the Beiwei flag from afar but instead of getting angry he smiled.

"Da Huaizhong!" Wanyan Liang shouted loudly after laughing.

Da Huaizhong nodded in understanding and led a thousand Hezhameng'ans to meet the Beiwei army.

Wanyan Liang personally led another two thousand Heza Meng'ans and rushed forward in a mighty force.

The Wurui army and Han Tang were already defeated, and the situation had deteriorated to such an extent that Wanyan Liang's claim of not being anxious was nonsense. However, the more anxious he was, the less he could act rashly.

The Jin army was facing a pincer attack from both sides. If they could not concentrate their forces to defeat one side first, they would be completely finished.

As the last mobile force in Wanyan Liang's hands, Heza Meng'an must of course act together with Wanyan Alin and Wanyan Yuanyi to crush Cheng Min's troops first before doing anything else.

However, Hezhameng'an could not attack first.

The reason was that as a cavalryman, the only Beiwei army that Heza Meng'an could reach was in the middle of the avenue.

This location is right between the Song army's large and small camps on Guishan Mountain. If Heza Meng'an takes the initiative to attack, he might be blocked in this narrow space and attacked from three sides.

Therefore, Wanyan Liang could only wait, either the Wuping Army and the Weisheng Army would defeat the Song Army's infantry, or Cheng Min would release the Beiwei Army.

Of course, if the Song army could hold out, Wanyan Liang would not sit idly by and wait for death. He would give it a try even if the terrain was unfavorable.

Now it seems that Cheng Min couldn't help it after all.

As long as Cheng Min is killed, everything will be settled!

"Long live!"

"Long live!"

"Lead the way for His Majesty!"

Seeing the Jinwu flag charging at the Song army, the Jin army, which had been fighting for a long time and was already somewhat exhausted, burst out with powerful fighting power again.

Several Moukes on the edge of the battlefield even gave up attacking the Song infantry on the flanks and turned to attack the Beiwei army.

However, the Beiwei army had no intention of stopping. After defeating several Moukes along the way, they shouted in unison. The more than 700 armored cavalrymen in the front, who were used to break the formation, collided with Heza Meng'an with a loud bang with the determination to die.

Cheng Min and Da Huaizhong clashed with swords and spears, but neither could do anything to the other. They just glared at each other fiercely and continued to lead their troops forward.

The armored cavalry all fought in the same way. They couldn't perform any fancy moves like circling horse archery, and the dense formations and heavy armor prevented the knights from making any unnecessary movements.

He could only hold the spear, brandish the long sword, and swing the hammer, charging, charging, and charging again.

Either tear the enemy formation apart and penetrate it from beginning to end.

Or the charge will be stopped and the exhausted will die under the hammer.

When the vanguard of more than a thousand cavalry passed each other, both Cheng Min and Da Huaizhong were extremely shocked.

The reason is simple: the opponent's elite strength is beyond the imagination of their respective officers.

In the first round of charge, both the Song and Jin armies suffered heavy casualties. However, the surviving cavalry were like unconscious stones, continuing to charge forward with their generals.

Da Huaizhong swung his halberd and knocked a Song soldier wearing a red copper mask off his horse. He looked up and saw nearly a hundred Beiwei soldiers rushing towards him desperately. He was surprised that the Song army had such a strong army. He hurriedly turned around to look at Cheng Min's flag, but saw that he had also killed his way through the formation of more than a thousand Hezhameng'an and rushed towards the Jinwu flag.

"General! Where is His Majesty..." A marching officer beside him also saw this scene and shouted loudly to Da Huaizhong.

Da Huaizhong gritted his teeth, knowing that turning back now would not only be useless, but would also cause the army's formation to fall apart. If the Beiwei army's follow-up troops then pursued Wanyan Liang, that would be a grave mistake!

"Hezhameng'an! Advance and never retreat!" Dahuai Zhong roared like a tiger, pointed his halberd forward, and his warhorse sped up again, charging forward.

If Da Huaizhong was surprised, then Cheng Min was horrified.

Common sense would dictate that the imperial guards would likely have the most adequate food and pay, the best equipment, and the most talented soldiers. However, they were essentially just for show, their combat effectiveness significantly inferior to that of other regular armies.

There was an event in the West. The Roman Guards supported Julian, but Severus of the Danube Legion was dissatisfied and returned to Rome with two legions. However, although the Guards had similar military strength, they did not even have the courage to fight and simply rolled out of Rome in disgrace.

For example, in the Huaixi Campaign that took place nearby twenty years ago, the Palace Army led by Yang Yizhong performed like shit. They were faster than anyone else in trying to gain credit, but were weaker than anyone else in fighting tough battles.

However, this Heza Meng'an was different. Their combat experience and will were simply unprecedented in Cheng Min's life.

Was Wanyan Liang really a horse-riding emperor as rumored? Did he personally lead his troops into battle after becoming emperor?
However, all this has become unimportant. Cheng Min has killed his way through Hezhameng'an's vanguard army and is less than a hundred steps away from the magnificent Jinwu banner!
"kill!"

Cheng Min roared loudly, and the warhorse under his crotch galloped forward, heading straight for the golden-armored cavalry under the banner.

Under the guidance of the big flag, more than 500 Song cavalry gathered into a cone and rushed towards the Jin army without regard for life and death like moths to a flame.

Wanyan Liang was also running at the front of the battle. It had been many years since he had personally fought in the battlefield.

The blood born between the white mountains and black waters gushed out of his chest, the chilly wind caressed his body, the sound of horse hooves and drums roared, all of which finally made Wanyan Liang find the feeling of being alive.

Finally I am back on the battlefield and can finally lead my troops into battle again.

No need to bother with those literati and bureaucrats, no need to think about those mountains of paperwork, no need to worry about those intrigues.

"Kill Cheng Min!" Wanyan Liang raised his spear high, pointed it at the Beiwei flag a hundred steps away, kicked his horse's belly, and charged forward.

"Long live!" Hezha Meng'an cheered in unison. However, Wanyan Liang was the emperor after all, and his subordinates would not really allow the emperor to charge at the front. Several Moukes no longer cared about the formation and rushed to meet Cheng Min before Wanyan Liang.

"go away!"

"kill!"

"Who dares to stop me!"

When a warhorse is galloping at full speed, how short is a hundred steps?

The cavalry crashed together, countless men fell from their horses. No matter if they were renowned generals or heroes, they became expendable in such a fierce battlefield. Long swords slashed, spears pierced, hammers struck, and the cavalry trampled. Any ordinary means of combat would be transformed into a fatal blow under the accelerated speed of the warhorses, and the layers of heavy armor were as fragile as paper.

The corpses of people and horses raised the ground, but were then trampled flat.

The battle front gradually became muddy. The warm blood melted the hard winter soil, dyeing it brown, making it difficult to tell whether the ground was covered with flesh and blood or soil.

Cheng Min swung his long sword, slashing the leg of an enemy cavalryman on his right. He dodged a hammer blow aimed at his shoulder and used the hilt of his long sword to dismount a Jin soldier on his left. After slaughtering seven or eight oncoming cavalrymen, Cheng Min's vision suddenly opened up. The Jinwu Banner was already within sight!
Cheng Min took a deep breath and went straight for the general with a golden helmet under the banner.

Wanyan Liang's personal guards hurriedly tried to stop them, but Cheng Min's subordinates were not idle either. They almost risked their lives to knock the Jin soldiers off their horses, and used their lives to pave a smooth road for Cheng Min.

Wanyan Liang showed no fear at all. He clamped the spear with his right elbow and also launched a charge.

"Golden Dog! You, Cheng Min, are here!" Cheng Min raised his sword high and roared.

At this moment, Cheng Min accomplished an achievement that even Yue Fei and Han Shizhong had not achieved. He successfully killed his way to the front of the Jin emperor and used a knife to settle accounts with the Jin lord for the humiliation and anger of the past thirty years!
"You defeated thief! You dare bark at me!"

At the moment the weapons clashed, Wanyan Liang finally couldn't help but yelled.

Cheng Min swung his sword horizontally, aiming to cut Wanyan Liang in the waist, but Wanyan Liang used his long spear to deflect the blow. As the two horses collided, Cheng Min stretched out his big hand, trying to pull Wanyan Liang off the horse.

Wanyan Liang leaned forward to avoid it, pulled out a melon hammer from his waist with his left hand, and threw it at Cheng Min's back.

The melon hammer flew past Cheng Min's shoulder.

Wanyan Liang didn't care about the failure at all and continued to lead Heza Meng'an to tear apart the Beiwei army's formation.

Cheng Min was filled with anger and frustration, but it was difficult to turn back when the cavalry was charging. So Cheng Min could only lead the Beiwei army to continue charging forward.

All tactics and strategies have disappeared in this chaotic battle. There is no room for tricks. Everyone is following their own generals to charge forward.

Both sides are fighting with great determination. Whoever can hold on to the end will be favored by the goddess of victory.

However, a moment later, neither the Beiwei army nor Hezhameng'an was able to break through the other side.

The reason is simple. Both sides are cavalry led by armored cavalry, and they are also too elite. It is impossible for one part to be defeated and the rest to be completely scattered.

As soon as the war horses slowed down, armored cavalry quickly tried to surround and kill the enemy, and several pincer attacks were formed in an instant. The two sides fought each other, and neither could do anything to the other. The battle situation gradually evolved into a big melee.

At this point, Cheng Min and Wanyan Liang had actually lost their command. The battle turned into a short assault in units of a hundred people, and the people who influenced the entire battle situation became the marching marshals and captains.

Cheng Min could not advance any further after reaching the latter half of Hezhameng'an. He could only gather his subordinates while fighting with the Jin army that surrounded him from all sides.

The eldest brother does not laugh at the second brother. Wanyan Liang and Da Huaizhong are of the same character.

Wanyan Liang had more personal guards around him, but only about 300 cavalrymen. Da Huaizhong was in a terrible situation. He rushed too far forward, leaving only a few dozen men at his side. If it weren't for Da Huaizhong's extraordinary bravery, he might have been killed by the Song cavalry.

If the battle continued to stalemate, it would be hard to say who would win. However, the Beiwei Army and Hezhameng'an were not fighting alone.

"I will die for His Majesty!" Wanyan Wangxiang led the Weisheng Army's most elite armored cavalry Meng'an and charged into the battle group from the flank, desperately rushing towards the place where the Jinwu flag was.

If armored cavalry wanted to confront armored cavalry at ordinary times, they would be seeking death. However, in the melee, more than a thousand well-organized and elite armored cavalry were enough to become the decisive force to decide the outcome.

The Beiwei army was caught off guard, and more than 300 cavalrymen were scattered in front of them, and the entire formation was actually split into two.

Almost in an instant, the Beiwei army fell into a disadvantage.

Chengmin and Huawang were separated into two regions, east and west, unable to respond to each other. Wanyan Liang led his personal guards to gather troops and advance westward.

"Your Majesty! I am late!" After knocking down two Song army knights, Wanyan Wangxiang rode his horse to Wanyan Liang and saluted.

Seeing Wanyan Wangxiang's sweat soaking through his heavy clothes and blood staining his armor, he must have been through a tough battle to get here. But Wanyan Liang didn't have time to waste time with him and ordered directly: "Wangxiang! Join me and rescue Ah Zhong!"

Wanyan Wangxiang shook his armor and bowed in agreement.

Although Wanyan Liang had asked Wanyan Wangxiang to join his banner, Wanyan Wangxiang was not one to be ignorant of the hierarchy, so how could he truly dare to share the same banner with the emperor? So Wanyan Wangxiang once again took the lead, personally leading the armored cavalry, charging in the direction of Da Huaizhong's advance.

Wanyan Liang followed closely behind, beheading generals and seizing flags along the way, defeating countless cavalry of the Beiwei Army.

"Your Majesty has fallen into the enemy's trap!"

"Follow Your Majesty!"

"Come on! Come on!"

The morale of Heza Meng'an, who had been gathered into an army, was greatly boosted, and he launched another charge following Wanyan Liang's banner.

When nearly 2,000 armored cavalry launched a charge, the Beiwei army still maintained its extraordinary courage and launched a counterattack against the Jin army in units of hundreds. However, courage could not replace strength, and these brave Beiwei soldiers were cut off their horses one by one and crushed into mud.

Da Huaizhong, who was leading dozens of cavalrymen, was being besieged by Hua Wang, the commander of the Beiwei Army. He heard the horn and looked back, only to see a large banner rapidly approaching. He felt a mixture of joy and shame.

Da Huaizhong knew Wanyan Liang's purpose.

War is like cracking a walnut. Hitting the hardest part of the walnut is a waste of time. If you only crack the weakest part of the enemy, you can break through the enemy's solid shell and taste the delicious flesh inside.

The Beiwei Army was split into two parts, east and west. Which one was weaker? Cheng Min or Hua Wang?
Although he knew that Wanyan Liang was not just trying to save him, Da Huaizhong was still extremely grateful and quickly put this gratitude into practice.

Da Huaizhong stared intently at Hua Wang's Beiwei Army Commander's flag and shouted, "Gangyong, stop the surrounding Song dogs! Wulimei! Follow me and kill them!"

The marching officer named Wulimei rode up to Da Huaizhong and whispered, "General, we haven't been able to defeat Hua Wang for so long, and we are exhausted. Your Majesty's army is coming, why not..."

"If Your Majesty has to personally handle all the affairs of the world, what is the use of us generals?!" Da Huaizhong immediately raised his eyebrows and scolded: "If you are afraid of death, just say it!"

Wu Li did not quickly bow his head to show his obedience.

Hua Wang had also noticed Da Huaizhong under the Qilin banner a long time ago. This man was indeed a fierce general. With a handsome warhorse and heavy armor, he swung his iron halberd and attacked left and right as if he was in an empty space. Even four or five cavalrymen could not stop him!
However, in this small battlefield, the Song army still had the upper hand in numbers, and the Beiwei army was composed of heroes who were willing to die, and they would be willing to kill Da Huaizhong in exchange for their own lives.

"General..."

The captain beside Hua Wang pointed at the rapidly approaching large banner.

"I see." Hua Wang said in a deep voice, his voice neither happy nor sad.

As a veteran who has been in the army for half his life, Hua Wang certainly knew what Wanyan Liang wanted to do, and of course, he knew even more clearly what he should do.

"Blow the horn! Go forward! Kill them!" Hua Wang pointed his long sword forward and rode his horse to charge towards the Qilin flag.

As the saying goes, military orders are as heavy as mountains. Upon hearing the commander's horn, the Beiwei cavalry abandoned their opponents, paid a huge price to escape from the battle, and followed Hua Wang in launching a charge.

At the same time, Da Huaizhong also counterattacked.

There were less than 500 cavalrymen who could follow Hua Wang at the first moment. Of course, 500 cavalrymen would not be a match for the army led by Wanyan Liang himself. They might only be able to play a slight blocking role. However, before that, they would crush Da Huaizhong into pieces!
Of course, Da Huaizhong has some minor objections to this.

How could a general who could take charge of Heza Meng'an be just an ordinary person?
Da Huaizhong had only forty cavalrymen with him, but he ignored the enemy that was ten times larger than himself, held his spears tightly, and collided with the Beiwei army.

Wu Limei, leading the way, was riddled with spears almost immediately upon contact, but his death was not in vain. Da Huaizhong crouched low, accelerating his horse to maximum speed, and wielding his halberd, charged through the gaps in the Beiwei army's disjointed ranks.

Although they were both wearing red copper masks, the general had a special temperament. Da Huaizhong recognized Hua Wang running under the command flag at a glance.

"Duh!"

Da Huaizhong shouted loudly and pointed his iron halberd at Hua Wang.

Hua Wang naturally would not avoid the battle, nor would he allow Da Huaizhong to cut down the command flag. He also waved his long sword to meet the enemy.

When the two horses staggered, they could only exchange two moves at most.

However, the outcome was decided with just one move, not two.

Da Huaizhong's iron halberd was only a hair's breadth faster than Hua Wang's long sword, but this hair's breadth meant the difference between life and death.

The small branch of the iron halberd pierced through Hua Wang's iron armor and crushed his heart, while the long sword in Hua Wang's hand just cut off the shoulder cape from Da Huaizhong's shoulder due to inertia.

Da Huaizhong ignored the pain, lowered his body to avoid the weapons of the Beiwei cavalry, and reached out to drag the flag officer off his horse.

The Beiwei Army Commander's flag also fell to the ground.

Hua Wang's warhorse continued to run forward for a few steps by inertia, then slowed down. Hua Wang still held the long sword tightly in his hand, but his wide-open, angry eyes were lifeless. After shaking a few times, he fell headfirst.

Hua Wang is dead.

Like all the victims on this battlefield, no matter how great their reputation or ambitions were during their lifetime, once they die, everything ends.

However, as the commander of the Beiwei Army, Hua Wang's death had disastrous consequences for the Song army.

On the one hand, the cavalry army gathered by Wanyan Liang's charge was no longer blocked by anything and swept across the entire battlefield.

On the other hand, the fall of the Beiwei Army's commanding flag dealt a heavy blow to the morale of the various units of the Song Army. The morale of the Song Army's infantry fighting on Guishan Mountain was greatly depressed, and they were pushed again by the Wuping Army and the Weisheng Army, almost to the location of the camp.

The Weisheng Army even had enough spare capacity to send out seven or eight Mouke soldiers to participate in the siege of the Beiwei Army.

The Beiwei army, without a commander, finally began to suffer heavy casualties under the attack from multiple sides. Even though these brave warriors still fought to the death, facing the orderly killing of the Jin army, the Beiwei army's annihilation was only a matter of time.

"A Zhong!" In less than half a minute, the cavalry led by Wanyan Liang broke through the rear of the Beiwei army and came in front of Da Huaizhong.

Seeing Da Huaizhong covered in blood and wounds, Wanyan Liang did not offer any comfort or encouragement. Instead, he personally led a warhorse to him and handed him the reins: "A Zhong, do you still have strength?"

Da Huaizhong took two long breaths, tore off his clanging shoulder cape and threw it aside, then mounted a new warhorse and saluted: "I have the remaining strength to trade!"

"Good!" Wanyan Liang nodded in praise. "I'll give you the more than a thousand Zhameng I've gathered. You continue to be my vanguard!"

"Kill Cheng Min?"

"No, that old turtle is already in the frying pan." Wanyan Liang looked back at Cheng Min Daqi who was being attacked by the Weisheng Army and the Wuping Army, smiled cruelly, and cast his gaze into the distance.

There, a large flag with the word "Yu" on it was approaching the battlefield surrounded by a large army.

"Asa is here, I can't let him fight alone!" Wanyan Liang laughed angrily: "This asshole Yu Yunwen, if he is given some respect, he would really dare to open a dyeing factory!"

(End of this chapter)