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

Chapter 888 A single sword once defeated a million soldiers
On the north bank of the Yellow River, Liu Huai listened to the news of victory that had just arrived and nodded slightly: "This battle should be the greatest achievement of the Tianxiong Army! To have three thousand men confront twenty thousand Jin bandits head-on is enough to make them famous throughout the world."

Unlike Liu Huai's calm demeanor, most of the officials and their entourage around him were unusually excited.

Even the composed Liang Su frowned and asked, "Young Master, are the Jin invaders completely finished? If so, how about sending out the entire Tianxiong Army?"

Upon hearing this, Liu Huai, holding his belt, rose from his stool and shook his head, saying, "The Jin bandits still have some fighting power, but this fellow, Pusan ​​Zhongyi, is encountering cannons for the first time and was stunned by the explosion."

Without artillery cover, our army will have to resort to the old method of fighting with armored soldiers and cavalry. Then the Jin invaders won't be so easily defeated.

Liang Su nodded repeatedly, but when he saw Liu Huai's actions, he still panicked a little: "Young Master, didn't we agree to cross the river last?"

Liu Huai shook his head: "I didn't expect the artillery to be so effective. Now that I'm crossing the river immediately, it could actually lead to a major change in the situation."

Liang Su was incredibly clever and immediately understood Liu Huai's meaning, but he still couldn't help feeling flustered: "In that case, how about letting Bi Dalang lead the entourage across the river first?"

Liu Huai once again rejected his strategist's suggestion: "No, we can't deceive our own men. Mr. Liang, let me ask you, if the soldiers of the Tianxiong Army see that I am not under the banner, how disappointed will they be?"

Liang Su said helplessly, "Then I will cross the river with the eldest son!"

Liu Huai shook his head for the third time: "No, we still need someone to oversee the whole situation north of the Yellow River. Mr. Liang might have to stay in Hebei for the next couple of days."

Helpless and even more panicked, Liang Su didn't care about anything else and grabbed Bi Zaiyu and Yao Buping with one hand each: "I'm telling you, if the Prince of Han wants to personally charge into battle, you must stop him no matter what, do you understand?"

Bi Zaiyu and Yao Buping looked at each other in bewilderment.

What Liu Huai really wanted to do, how could these two teenagers possibly stop him?

However, seeing Liang Su's expression turn stern, the two could only nod haphazardly.

Liang Su, however, persisted in his threats: "I know that it was common for the King of Han to personally lead his armored cavalry into battle before, but things are different now! The lives of so many people are in the hands of the King of Han."

If you can't stop the Prince of Han, countless people in the north will want to kill you both, understand?!

Liu Huai knew that Liang Su was using this method to offer advice, but he remained silent, waiting and gazing at the south bank of the Yellow River, waiting for his personal guards to pull out the large banner with Chinese characters representing the King of Han.

Guan Chongyan, who was standing to the side, was about to say something when Liang Su turned his attention to him: "And you, Guan Qilang, you are in charge of the Flying Tiger Army. You should be willing to die for your lord! Do you expect your lord to risk his life for you?"

Before Guan Chongyan could even express his opinion, he saw Liu Huai already walking towards the ferry. He could only bow to Liang Su and immediately follow.

Liang Su, even more flustered, shouted to Liu Huai from afar, "King of Han, we have been on good terms as ruler and subject for so long, can't you give me a clear guarantee?"

Liu Huai ordered his guards to raise the flag high, and finally, leaning on the railing, he shouted back, "Mr. Liang, in the end, someone has to do the work!"

Having said that, Liu Huai disregarded Liang Su's somewhat erratic behavior and simply turned around and went to the flag at the bow of the ship to begin putting on his armor.

As Liu Huai boarded the ship and crossed the river, the slight fear of the Han army on the north bank vanished. The Han soldiers marching on the pontoon bridge raised their weapons and cheered when they saw the ships carrying the ceremonial guards of the King of Han passing by.

"King of Han!"

"King of Han!"

The cheers traveled along the pontoon bridge to the Han army camp on the south bank, and many Tianxiong soldiers looked back.

When they saw a ship flying a flag with Chinese characters crossing the Yellow River, their morale soared, and the entire camp cheered.

Wang Youzhi, who was directing the armored soldiers to form ranks in the rear camp, dared not leave his post. He could only wait for Liu Huai to come closer before saluting and saying, "King of Han, the Jin bandits seem to be afraid of our cannons and want to charge with their cavalry."

Liu Huai nodded slightly: "If that's the case, it would actually be a good thing."

Wang Youzhi nodded repeatedly: "It is indeed a good thing."

Although the camp here was simple, it still had several sections of trenches dug and several wooden fences erected.

In addition to the chevaux-de-frise made of spears and the heavily armored soldiers standing ready, it was a large, immovable crescent-shaped formation. If the Jin army really charged into the formation with a large number of cavalry, it would play right into the hands of the Han army.

If another thousand or so casualties are inflicted, Pu Sanzhongyi will have no chance of moving Kaifeng Prefecture intact. He'll be lucky to leave with his army.

Liu Huai picked up the Li Quan spear and stretched his arms: "In that case, I'll add another measure to Pu Sanzhongyi's plan. The Tianxiong Army will proceed step by step and launch according to the plan."

As he spoke, he slowly walked forward, and with his movement, the large Chinese character flag behind him followed, attracting the attention of the entire Tianxiong Army.

At first, Wang Youzhi thought Liu Huai was going to inspect the military situation, but when he saw the other party leading more than a hundred personal guards towards the front of the battle, he immediately panicked: "King of Han! King of Han, please sit in the rear camp! And watch us defeat the enemy!"

Liu Huai heard him but ignored him, simply waving his hand in the distance.

Wang Youzhi stamped his feet repeatedly, wanting to chase after him, but because he still had the important task of organizing troops, he dared not act rashly. He could only send his personal guards to inform Chen Zhongkan, urging him to make sure to protect the safety of the Prince of Han.

In fact, why would Wang Youzhi need to say that?

When Chen Zhongkan saw the Han King's entourage slowly approaching, even though he had been in the cold winter wind for a long time and was already chilled to the bone, he still broke out in a layer of white sweat all over his body.

"King Han..."

"No need for further words, are the Jin invaders about to launch their attack?"

"Reporting to the King of Han, a scout just reported that the Jin invaders have gathered at least three thousand armored cavalry and are poised to attack." "Very well, I'll wait for them here!"

Chen Zhongkan's face was covered in even more sweat. He looked back at his obviously excited subordinates and still forced himself to advise, "Young Master Han, we can defeat the enemy here. Please return to the rear camp and wait."

Liu Huai held up two fingers to stop Chen Zhongkan from speaking, and at the same time ordered: "Send the order to Shi Wang to continue firing!"

Helpless, Chen Zhongkan could only stride to the front of the battle line, shouting loudly through a tin megaphone: "The King of Han has arrived! You must fight to the death! Do not let the world look down on the men of Hebei!"

The Tianxiong Army cheered, but kept quiet after being reprimanded by their officers.

The Han soldiers, who were somewhat exhausted after the great battle, were immediately filled with energy again, and their morale was soaring.

As the saying goes, one side's morale rises while the other's falls; the morale of the Han army soars while the morale of the Jin army naturally plummets.

Just as Pusan ​​Zhongyi's second offensive was being organized, he dispatched generals to gather the routed troops while simultaneously ordering his cavalry to form ranks and prepare for a charge.

Unlike the Han army's scouts, this time Pusan ​​Zhongyi assembled a full forty strategists and nearly four thousand armored cavalry, deploying them in formation from three directions. They used the speed of cavalry to quickly pass through the range of the cannons' long-range strikes before dismounting and forming ranks.

This is already a desperate gamble.

Pusan ​​Zhongyi only brought 20,000 elite Jin troops this time. If this attack is also repelled, the morale of the Jin army will not be able to support another round of attacks.

"Marshal Du! Marshal Du!"

Just before the general offensive was about to begin, a general rushed in from the front: "I heard from the scouts that Liu Bei's banner has arrived at the front!"

Pu Sanzhongyi's breath hitched, and he struggled to control his expression: "Is the news true?"

The general's voice trembled slightly, whether from panic or exhaustion, it was hard to tell: "The scouts heard the Han traitors cheering for the King of Han, it must be that Liu Bei has personally arrived!"

Pu Sanzhongyi did not speak, but immediately turned to see the reactions of the generals present.

Liu Huai's decision to relinquish his position as commander-in-chief and personally lead the army to the front lines presents both a crisis and an opportunity.

It's called a crisis because even if Liu Huai comes to the front lines alone, the elite Han army behind him will not allow their lord to be in danger. They will definitely rush up and fight him, making the battle difficult.

It is called an opportunity because as long as Liu Huai can be killed, the Han army will have no successor, and the affairs of the world can be mostly settled.

Such an opportunity doesn't come easily; next time, it's very likely that we'll have to break through the entire Han army to reach Liu Huai.

However, to Pusan ​​Zhongyi's disappointment, but not entirely unexpectedly, the majority of the Jin generals around him looked panicked, with only two showing signs of eagerness to try.

That makes sense, as this is no longer the case as it was a few years ago when the Northern Expeditionary Army consisted of only a few hundred men who acted like bandits.

As the saying goes, a person's reputation is as powerful as a tree's shadow; some people's fame alone is enough to awe the masses.

After making a mental note of the two men, Pu Sanzhongyi loudly ordered, "The entire army must retreat to Kaifeng Prefecture!"

The Jin generals breathed a sigh of relief and immediately began to direct the retreat.

However, the Western Jindu Marshal was still unwilling to give up. After giving the order, he directly led his personal guards, lowered the flags and stopped the drums, and headed towards the front of the Han army.

Liu Huai naturally noticed the Jin army's unusual movements, but he continued to stand at the front of the formation, waiting coldly.

"Liu traitor!" Pu Sanzhongyi roared as he hurled his spear at the front of the battle line, "With me here, you won't be able to destroy the Great Jin!"

Liu Huai sneered, but didn't bother to reply. He simply raised his hand and pointed forward.

The roar of cannons and the twang of crossbow bolts blended together as cannonballs and crossbow bolts hurtled towards Pu Sanzhongyi.

However, Pu Sanzhongyi seemed to be wary of Liu Huai turning against him, since this King of Han had a habit of executing envoys. Therefore, after shouting to vent his anger, he immediately turned and left.

The cannonballs and crossbow bolts all missed their mark, and not a single knight was left behind.

Chen Zhongkan, holding up a tin megaphone, shouted, "Notify the patrol cavalry to hold them off!"

Liu Huai waved his hand to stop him: "No need. Gather the troops and set up camp! Ha, what does the fate of the world have to do with a mere individual like Pusan ​​Zhongyi?"

"Go and clean up the battlefield! Collect the crossbow bolts, armor, and cannonballs! Treat the wounded!"

After saying this, amidst a sudden burst of cheers, Liu Huai turned around and went back again with an air of nonchalance.

Chen Zhongkan was somewhat dazed, and it wasn't until a moment later that he realized what had just happened.

The King of Han arrived at the front lines with only a hundred or so personal guards. He made no grand pronouncements and did not give any major orders to his troops; he simply raised the banners.

This simple tactical maneuver caused over ten thousand elite Jin troops, who were clearly still capable of fighting, to completely lose their morale, abandon the excellent opportunity to block the enemy on the beachhead, and retreat without a fight.

Who dares to say this wasn't a resounding victory!
"Awu!" Chen Zhongkan remembered something and quickly summoned his personal guard, instructing him: "Quickly retrieve the spear that Pu Sanzhongyi threw back. From now on, our Tianxiong Army will be a powerful army that can make the Jin Kingdom's Grand Marshal lose his spear!"

(End of this chapter)