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

Chapter 880 A Difficult Path Between New and Old Ones
It was only natural that the main generals of the Jin army were in a state of panic.

Just as Wanyan Guangying's composure was to be expected, it was all a normal phenomenon.

For the generals of the Jin state... whether they were generals of the Eastern Jin or the Western Jin, all the generals of the Han army were extremely dangerous.

This is purely a case of ruthless crushing within the same ecological niche.

Just imagine.

You have practiced both literature and martial arts since childhood and are among the best of your peers. You have a friend who is superior to you in everything.

Over the years, you gradually went from being unconvinced to being completely convinced, while your friend also became very successful.

You once asked your friend, "Does everyone in the world consider you the best and me the second best?"

My friend laughed and said that there was another extraordinary person, someone he could hardly compare to, someone who was simply incomparable.

You later met this extraordinary figure once, and he was indeed as powerful as your friend had described.

Then, a few years later, a piece of news suddenly came.

That extraordinary figure, along with your friends and many others stronger than you, were all easily crushed into dust one after another.

What would you think?
anger?
Will not.

Instead, it was fear and despair.

This state of mind is something that laymen like Wanyan Guangying could never understand.

Just like how a world champion sprinter may appear to be only one second faster than the runner-up, only sprinters know that that one second is like an insurmountable distance, impossible to bridge.

Therefore, even though Xin Qiji only brought a thousand or so Flying Tiger cavalry to this place, it still caused a shock to the entire Jin army. So much so that even Cheng Min, who was surrounded, did not want to kill them and retreated.

The chaos even led to several routs, and it was only through the combined efforts of Hezhameng'an and the Eastern Palace guards that the disorder was brought under control.

As the Song and Jin armies gathered their troops, Xin Qiji led his Flying Tiger Army slowly to the battlefield.

"Sigh, I should have waited a little longer. Maybe we could have gotten a better deal." Chen Wenben grumbled on his horse, carrying his spear. "Fifth Brother, with the Jin and Song forces fighting like this, should we just wipe them all out right here?"

Xin Qiji, who was observing the battlefield situation with a monocular telescope, shook his head with a wry smile upon hearing this: "The battle situation is unclear, the military intelligence is unclear, and the enemy and ourselves are unclear. How can we rush into battle?"

"The Flying Tigers aren't used like that. Do you know what else Dalang intends to do?"

Chen Wenben grinned and said, "It's nothing more than showing my friendship with you, Fifth Brother, so that no villains might cause trouble in the middle."

Xin Qiji stuffed the telescope into a cloth bag and hung it on his waist: "Of course there is such a saying."

But most importantly, after being trained, the Flying Tiger soldiers could become officers like squad leaders and generals after being sent out to other posts.

"Your Highness wants me to use this method to completely bring the Henan troops under the control of the state. Do you understand?"

Chen Wenben nodded repeatedly: "Oh, then it's similar to what we did in Hebei and Shandong. In that case, we shouldn't cause casualties indiscriminately because of the gains or losses of a single city or place. It's damaging the foundation of the Henan army."

But if all the soldiers are sent out, how will the Flying Tigers be replenished? Are there enough skilled soldiers in Henan?

Xin Qiji, gripping the hilt of his heavy sword, said, "Those are things for later. Now, let's get rid of the Jin traitors!"

As the two were talking, the Flying Tiger Cavalry had already set up their formation, but it was not the usual cone formation used to break formations. Instead, they chose a horizontal formation with left and right sides connected, layer upon layer.

Without the support of light cavalry on both flanks and infantry, cavalry forming a line formation is not a good choice on plains battlefields, especially when facing an enemy force that is primarily composed of cavalry.

Because military formations need to ensure the width of the battlefield.

If the knights form a horizontal line and charge in a wall formation, the enemy is very likely to flank them and launch a flanking attack.

However, Xin Qiji did not want to fight now; on the contrary, he wanted to resolve the conflict. Therefore, the more imposing the formation, the more effective it would be.

Sure enough, as they marched forward in formation, shouting and marching, the Jin army accelerated their retreat, and the Song army, too, dared not pursue them, and began to regroup and regroup on the spot.

Xin Qiji and Cheng Min once fought side by side in Chaoxian County.

Cheng Bofeng even charged through Wanyan Liang's golden banner with Liu Huai on that day.

Logically speaking, if the two of them didn't feel an instant connection, they should at least have some regrets upon meeting again.

However, Cheng Min was actually quite exasperated, and shouted loudly, "Xin Wulang! Are you afraid of fighting?! Why didn't you charge in and fight when we had such a great opportunity!"

Xin Qiji frowned and replied, "Grand Commandant Cheng, the military situation is unclear, and we don't know who is on the enemy's side. How can I rashly advance?!"

Xin Qiji did not mention that he only led a thousand Flying Tigers northward, but instead retorted: "I just don't know why Prime Minister Yu has decided to send troops to Bianliang, but did not inform him at all."

I only learned of this after you entered Xuzhou, how could I possibly have had time to make arrangements?

Cheng Min sneered, but remained silent.

This problem couldn't be simpler.

The delicate relationship between the Song and Han armies could be easily appeased by minor officials, so how could the generals commanding the troops on the front lines be confused? Since everyone is a hypothetical enemy, there's no need to talk about real-time military intelligence reports.

Cheng Min was too lazy to argue, and simply asked, "Does Liu Dalang still want to kill the Jin invaders? Does he still want to make the destruction of the Jin Kingdom his primary goal? If so, how dare you remain indifferent to the Jin invaders, Xin Wulang?"

Upon hearing this, Xin Qiji became even less inclined to speak, and replied perfunctorily, "The Flying Tiger Army has its own destination. If Grand Commandant Cheng does not wish to travel with me, then please do as you see fit."

Having said that, Xin Qiji, disregarding Cheng Min's already somewhat furious demeanor, said to Chen Wenben beside him, "Capture two prisoners and have them tell the Jin generals that no matter if they are the Crown Prince or the Grand Marshal, they must all go back! Otherwise, we will fight to the death today!"

"Also, send a message to those generals and local tyrants: tell them to carefully consider the consequences of opposing the Prince of Han! This time I'm being kind and speaking to them politely, but they shouldn't be so ungrateful!"

Within half an hour, a released Jin prisoner brought back these words to Wanyan Guangying.

Wanyan Guangying's breathing was a little heavy, but he still turned to look at the veteran generals around him: "We just found out that Da Qingsi only brought a thousand cavalrymen, while we still have more than ten thousand troops. Can we fight?!"

All the Jin generals remained silent.

Wanyan Guangying was getting angry: "Speak up, can we fight or not?!"

It was the veteran general Tudanli who spoke first: "Your Highness, the morale of the army has collapsed. The most elite Heza Meng'an troops have just fought a fierce battle with the Beiwei Army, resulting in heavy losses on both sides, and..."

As he spoke, Tu Danli glanced at the Han Chinese tycoon whose face was pale and uncertain. When he saw that Ximen He, who had been the most aggressive earlier, was now the most timid, he couldn't help but shake his head repeatedly.

"In short, continuing the fight is unpredictable, especially since the Flying Tigers are a renowned and formidable force. The safety of the Crown Prince is paramount. Given our current momentum of victory, let's withdraw our troops."

"Yes, Your Highness, defeating the Song army's elite forces is already a great victory."

"I, General Da Qing Si, have also fought against him before, and he is indeed formidable..."

"Although the Flying Tigers only have a thousand men, they are a fresh force. It would be too disadvantageous to fight them now. We should plan ahead."

With Tudanli taking the lead, the other Jin generals also chimed in with their own words of advice, causing Wanyan Guangying's expression to change unpredictably, much like the Han Chinese tycoons present.

A quarter of an hour later, seeing that the Beiwei Army was almost fully assembled, Wanyan Guangying forcibly suppressed his anger and nodded, saying, "Since all the generals of the country have given such advice, it must be the right thing to do. Issue my military order: Heza Meng'an and the Donggong Guard will cover the rear together, and the entire army will retreat to Weishi County!"

The Jin generals all breathed a sigh of relief.

Xin Qiji, watching the Jin army gradually retreat from three miles away, breathed a sigh of relief: "Send an order to Zhang Shu, nullifying the previous order and telling him not to advance north, but to continue to defend Yancheng!"

Cheng Min had calmed down by now, but upon hearing this, he still sneered and said, "Congratulations to Xin Wulang for taking Xuzhou. It is truly a cause for celebration."

Xin Qiji sneered in return: "I don't know what Grand Commandant Cheng is so angry about? It's clear that you don't consider us comrades fighting against the Jin invaders; it's clear that we came here to meet you despite the hardships. Why do you now regard us as enemies?!"

Cheng Min remained silent for a long time before finally speaking with a sigh: "Because Liu Dalang has already become the King of Han."

Xin Qiji pressed on, "With your great achievements, are you really not even worthy of the title of king?"

Cheng Min shook his head repeatedly: "Of course, one can be a king, but only a king appointed by the Song Dynasty."

Xin Qiji sneered twice and simply laid it all out: "Even the eldest son doesn't want to be king. All the documents are still from the Jingnan Army's Jiedushi Mansion, and even the plaque at the entrance hasn't been changed."

The title of King of Han was bestowed upon us by the people of the north. Can you say that the millions of people in Shandong, Hebei, and the Central Plains were all wrong? If not, then who was wrong?

Cheng Min remained silent until Cheng Bofeng came to ask for his orders, at which point he sighed and shook his head, saying, "The fault lies with me."

Xin Qiji was taken aback by Cheng Min's response and could only remain silent.

"Ever since the end of the great battle last year, I have been thinking, if I had been able to defeat Pusan ​​Zhongyi that day, would I have been able to save Asheng?"

Is Liu Dalang still a capable general of our Song Dynasty at this time?
Are we now working together to sweep away the Jin army?

Cheng Min had been pondering these thoughts for a long time, but given the political climate in the Song Dynasty, he couldn't voice them.

Once he admits his mistake, he will hand over the leverage against him to others.

At this moment, Cheng Minfang, in the desolate wilderness, with only the heavens and earth in their presence, revealed his true feelings.

"Xin Wulang, is it truly impossible for things to turn back now?"

Xin Qiji remained silent, gazing at the setting sun for a moment before finally speaking: "I've heard that Prime Minister Yu governed Nanyang. May I ask how he dealt with the newly recovered territories?"

Cheng Min: "Naturally, all the land and property of the Meng'an Mouke households will be confiscated, while the land of the local tyrants and gentry will be retained. Part of the land collected will be used for military and civilian settlements, and another part will be sold to the powerful families in Jiangnan."

Xin Qiji shook his head repeatedly halfway through the conversation, and finally became completely impatient: "Grand Commandant Cheng, don't you understand?"
The Song state had fallen to this state because those in power were too fat and bloated to fight, while those below were too weak and emaciated to fight.

Now, if Prime Minister Yu doesn't seize this opportunity to take the spoils and distribute them to his subordinates, wouldn't he be going in the opposite direction?

"Grand Commandant Cheng, this isn't simply a matter of you wanting to be king and me wanting to be a hegemon; it's that we have different paths and cannot work together. You go your old way, and we'll seek a new one. From now on, we'll have nothing to do with each other!"

Having said that, Xin Qiji completely disregarded Cheng Min's reaction and rode away.

"Xin Wulang! Tell Liu Dalang that the situation in the Kansai campaign may be in trouble! Tell him to prepare as soon as possible!"

Hearing the sounds coming from behind, Xin Qiji didn't stop.

(End of this chapter)