I am Emperor Shizu of Song

Chapter 114 Liangshan Attack
Zhao Zicheng also knew that the military officers who had just arrived in Laizhou could not be given responsibilities immediately. They had to be given time to adapt to the local environment and gradually integrate with the local customs.

Fortunately, Zhao Zicheng wasn't in a hurry, so nothing major happened in Laizhou during July and August, and all the work proceeded smoothly.

The Laizhou Bay Shipyard is taking shape and will be able to start construction on the first locally made large ship before winter. The gunpowder workshop has also begun construction in secret.

Zhao Zicheng organized a group of craftsmen. Based on his vague memories from his previous life, he pointed out the research and development direction, while the craftsmen were responsible for the specific tasks of trial and error. They worked hard to tinker with multi-spindle spinning machines and even tried to optimize the design of the spinning machines so that they could be driven by water.

Although there are no large rivers with significant drops and abundant hydropower resources in Laizhou, it would be beneficial to conduct a small-scale trial first.

There were also looms with flying shuttles, and other production tools. Zhao Zicheng tried to invest a small amount of money to start a business with anything he could think of that wasn't too difficult.

Although cotton cultivation has not yet been deliberately promoted, Zhao Zicheng still managed to have a tailor make the first cotton-padded jacket in Laizhou based on the small amount of locally produced cotton he had purchased. This may not be the first cotton-padded jacket in the Song Dynasty, but it is definitely the first cotton-padded jacket that Zhao Zicheng has seen with his own eyes since he traveled back in time.

The cotton-padded jacket was not widely available until the Yuan Dynasty. It may have existed by the end of the Northern Song Dynasty, but no one promoted it. In any case, Zhao Zicheng had never seen it before.

After the cotton-padded coats were successfully made, Zhao Zicheng's first thought was to let his troops try them out. Northern winters are cold, and they might have to fight the Jin people and other northern enemies in the future; more cotton-padded coats would certainly be better. Letting the troops adapt to this new winter uniform as quickly as possible was a good thing.

……

It was around the end of August. In the Laizhou army camp outside Yexian City, Huyan Zhuo and Xu Ning each led their troops in routine drills.

With Zhao Zicheng's support, Huyan Zhuo's cavalry doubled in size within just two months. Now, there are three hundred cavalrymen in Laizhou, all of them well-equipped.

There was no need to worry about manpower or weaponry for the expansion of the army. Zhao Zicheng also spent money to expand the arsenal and ironworks in Laizhou. In addition, he had previously experimented with water-powered forging technology in Hangzhou and had also acquired a small stock of Qingtang wart armor in Hangzhou, all of which he brought with him when he went north to take up his post.

Whatever weapons and armor Huyan Zhuo needed to expand his army, Zhao Zicheng could readily supply them.

Comparatively speaking, the most lacking military force in various parts of the Song Dynasty was high-quality warhorses. The Laizhou Army should also be in dire need of horses, but Zhao Zicheng valued maritime commerce and was well-versed in navigation, so he transferred elites from the maritime merchants of Hangzhou in the south to fill the gap in Laizhou.

Therefore, within two months of taking office, Zhao Zicheng had already established an official channel for importing Jin dynasty warhorses to Liaodong. The specific route involved crossing the Shamen Island Strait and sailing directly from the northern tip of the Shandong Peninsula to Jinzhou, which is present-day Dalian, at the tip of the Liaodong Peninsula.

The warhorses needed for Huyan Zhuo's expansion of his army were all purchased from Jin merchants. For this purpose, Zhao Zicheng also spent a lot of the silk and brocade that he had not finished selling in Hangzhou.

Compared to the rapid expansion of Huyan Zhuo's army, Xu Ning, as the commander of the Laizhou infantry, has not been recruiting soldiers much recently. Xu Ning has spent the past two months mainly on adapting to new weapons and practicing new tactics.

When Zhao Zicheng was in Hangzhou, he successfully produced a batch of new double-hooked spears with sharpened front and back edges. At that time, only Zhao Zicheng figured out how to use them, and they were basically used like ordinary spears.

Even a master of spear techniques like Lin Chong, who sparred with Zhao Zicheng, couldn't figure out how to maximize the combat effectiveness of the double-hook spear.

But after arriving in Laizhou and subduing Xu Ning, the Golden Spearman, everything changed.

Xu Ning was already a master of the hook-and-sickle spear. After switching to the double-hook spear, he only needed to get used to the new version with hook blades on both sides. The whole process would take at most a month or two before he could use it with ease.

His veteran soldiers with hook-and-sickle spears could quickly master the new tactics, and once they were well-trained, they could expand the army and teach new recruits.

At this moment, Huyan Zhuo had just finished practicing a round of cavalry coordinated charge tactics. Taking advantage of the rest time, he and his subordinates watched Xu Ning's training from the sidelines. He knew that the hook-and-sickle spear technique was used to break cavalry, and since he was leading cavalry, observing the operation of potential opponents could be considered a form of adversarial training.

The new double-hook spear in Xu Ning's hand mainly used the technique of sweeping before thrusting or sweeping before pulling, rarely employing the straight-forward and backward, wide-open fighting style of ordinary spears.

On the open ground in front of Xu Ning, there were several hard wooden sticks, only as thick as a human forearm, which looked like they were imitations of the legs of warhorses.

Each time Xu Ning made a move, he would first quickly thrust his spear forward, then slightly shake it left and right until the blade or shaft touched the thin wooden target that mimicked a horse's leg, before swiftly pushing forward or pulling back. The movements were small in range but extremely fast, emphasizing a short burst of power.

Hu Yanzhuo had never seen such a technique before and couldn't immediately explain its power, but his instincts told him that it was indeed very powerful.

"Good! Indeed, the waist and stance are in perfect harmony, and the inch-force is integrated into the spear technique."

Just then, a cheer came from the edge of the field. Xu Ning quickly put away his gun and looked over. It was Lord Zhao who had arrived, accompanied by several servants carrying things.

"Greetings, Lord!" Huyan Zhuo and Xu Ning quickly bowed together.

"It's alright, you can practice first, and I'll take a look. I don't have anything important to do today, but the army tailor made a few sets of cotton-padded clothes that are suitable to be worn under the armor. I'd like you to try them on after you finish practicing. Although it's not cold yet, it's the end of August, so they should be wearable."

As Zhao Zicheng spoke, he looked up at the sky.

The end of the eighth month in the lunar calendar corresponds to the beginning of the tenth month in the Gregorian calendar. The Mid-Autumn Festival has been over for half a month, so wearing a light cotton-padded jacket for a short while won't make you sweat profusely.

Upon receiving the order, Xu Ning continued the drills.

Huyan Zhuo accompanied Zhao Zicheng to watch the martial arts competition. He had gained some insights from Zhao Zicheng's comments, but they were not entirely clear to him. So he sincerely asked Zhao Zicheng to provide a more in-depth analysis:
"What you just said, Your Excellency, seems to have hit the nail on the head when judging the merits of the Double Hook Spear Technique. Unfortunately, I don't understand it. Please enlighten me, Your Excellency."

Zhao Zicheng's martial arts skills are now quite good, especially his theoretical knowledge. He has inherited a considerable part of Duan Yuyan's theoretical foundation, and he can also draw on the past and present to integrate his own insights.

Therefore, he easily pointed out the key to Xu Ning's spear technique: "I originally thought that whether it was a hook-and-sickle spear or a double-hook spear, the principle of using the horizontal blade to sweep, peck, break armor, and break cavalry was similar to that of the 'Bu' character halberd from the Han and Tang dynasties."

But now it seems my initial misconception was completely wrong. The key to breaking through cavalry with the Bu-shaped halberd lies in the 'sweeping' motion. Its long horizontal blade relies on its attack range to sweep the horse's legs, thus its advantage lies in its wide attack range. When thrusting forward with the long shaft, precision isn't crucial. Its disadvantage is insufficient armor-piercing power and 'pressure' after a successful sweep. Therefore, it was gradually phased out since the Tang Dynasty.

Judging from Brother Xu's spear technique, the accuracy required for using the hook-and-sickle spear to break through cavalry is higher than that of the halberd, but not as precise as a long spear. It doesn't need to directly pierce the horse's leg like a long spear. After thrusting the hook-and-sickle spear, a slight error of one or two feet to the left and right is acceptable. If a direct thrust misses, the spear should be quickly shaken left and right, so that the side of the main blade, or a section of the shaft not far behind the main blade, touches the horse's leg.

Then, quickly push and pull. If the horizontal hook has already missed, pull back; if it hasn't reached the horse yet, push forward so that the hook tip pierces the horse's leg, causing the enemy cavalry to break free. Compared to the halberd with the horizontal blade, the halberd's horizontal blade contacts the horse's leg along a complete line, resulting in a much larger area of ​​force application and making it difficult to penetrate. The hook blade, however, only intersects the horse's leg at a single point, making its armor-piercing power similar to that of a main spearhead.

However, judging from Brother Xu's method, the key to using the hook-and-sickle spear well lies in the application of "inch power".

Because when a long spear thrusts forward with full force, one can use the strength of the whole body, from the legs to the waist, from the waist to the shoulders, and then to the arms and wrists. One can even use the momentum of the body charging forward or the galloping of a warhorse to concentrate all the strength into the tip of the spear.

However, the hook-and-sickle spear doesn't have such a long range of motion. It must first sweep and shake, waiting for the blade or shaft to touch the enemy's body or horse's leg before it can begin pushing or pulling. This pushing and pulling distance is at most only a little over a foot, so it requires using "inch power," or at most "foot power." With such a short range of motion, it's impossible to rely on the momentum of a charge or the strength of the legs; at most, it uses waist power. This requires a strong, instantaneous burst of power from the waist, arms, and wrists, and ideally, the ability to control and release it freely.

Zhao Zicheng's insightful and incisive commentary, comparing ancient and modern times, quickly convinced Hu Yanzhuo, who was still confused about the theoretical aspects, leaving him completely bewildered.

There was nothing he could do; Hu Yanzhuo had never seen a Bruce Lee movie, so he didn't understand what "inch power" or "short-range explosive power" meant.

Before Zhao Zicheng transmigrated, he had seen countless tutorials and analyses on Douyin (TikTok) from bloggers who could break bricks with a single punch. After transmigrating, he received further instruction from Duan Yuyan, gaining a comprehensive understanding of both ancient and modern martial arts. There was no martial arts technique he couldn't comprehend.

Unfortunately, Huyan Zhuo was a general who specialized in cavalry charges. His lifelong research into martial arts and combat techniques emphasized "fully utilizing momentum," not only using the strength of the entire body to enhance the attack, but also fully leveraging the momentum of the horse's charge. Therefore, among the Liangshan generals, Huyan Zhuo was the least adept at techniques like "inch punches."

After arriving in Laizhou, they had not yet had the chance to fight Zhao Zicheng. Because of their restraint, they did not dare to ask the Prefect to spar with them, even though they had heard that the Prefect was both literate and skilled in martial arts.

At this moment, after hearing Zhao Zicheng's "oral description of martial arts skills," Huyan Zhuo was completely convinced that Lord Zhao was definitely an expert and that his reputation was well-deserved.

That feeling was just like thirty years ago, in Xingzilin, Wuxi, when a group of masters from all over the world listened to Duan Yuyan's eloquent speech and regarded her as a master of the Murong family.

Not only did Huyan Zhuo admire Zhao Zicheng greatly, but Xu Ning, who was also practicing, also felt that he had gained a lot.

Although he had figured out what he thought were the most effective techniques to unleash the power of this new weapon, he knew he couldn't make such a high-level theoretical summary or immediately pinpoint the key technical points that needed the most attention and strengthening.

"Your Excellency has great insight. I have practiced the hook-and-sickle spear for half my life, but I only know how to use it. I can't explain the intricacies of it. Please enlighten me, Your Excellency."

After finishing his move, Xu Ning respectfully presented the spear to Zhao Zicheng with both hands, clearly seeking his guidance.

Zhao Zicheng didn't stand on ceremony. He weighed the spear in his hand, recalled Xu Ning's routine from earlier, and then began to dance along with it.

Zhao Zicheng couldn't possibly remember all the details of Xu Ning's routine, so his moves incorporated his original spear techniques and his new understanding.

In comparison, Zhao Zicheng's marksmanship was not as smooth and skillful as Xu Ning's in handling the details, but he was very outstanding in the key technical points.

For example, the flicking motion to press the spear against the horse's leg is executed very precisely, aiming to press the spear against the horse's leg as quickly as possible without directly aiming the thrust.

Zhao Zicheng's subsequent thrusts or back hooks were not as fluid as Xu Ning's, but his use of inch-force was indeed exquisite.

In one of the shots, Xu Ning clearly saw that after Zhao Zicheng thrust out, when he shook the spear horizontally, the side of the spear's main blade touched the target shaft, and the front end of the horizontal blade was only one or two inches away from the target shaft.

But Zhao Zicheng managed to thrust forward with a very short, explosive motion over such a short distance, almost entirely using his wrist to generate force—he couldn't even exert force with his shoulder over such a short distance. And yet, this single thrust, powered only by his wrist, actually snapped a five-inch-thick hardwood pole in two.

Is a five-inch thick hardwood pole considered thick? Honestly, no.

To give an example, if Lu Da were to swing his staff in full swing and have enough speed, he could break a pine tree three times the thickness of his own with a single swing.

However, if Lu Da is only given two inches of leverage, he absolutely cannot break a five-inch thick hardwood, while Zhao Zicheng can.

Even experts like Huyan Zhuo and Xu Ning were stunned by this single shot.

"No wonder the Prefect was able to kill Fang La's general Shi Bao amidst ten thousand troops! The Prefect's bravery is probably no less than that of Lord Guan."

"Hey, no, no, I just happen to be good at this style of fighting. There are many different types of martial arts, and each has its own strengths." Zhao Zicheng still had self-awareness.

Six months ago, his martial arts skills were only at the level where he could withstand fifty or sixty moves from Lu Da, and he could barely defeat Lü Fang and Guo Sheng. This was even considering that his martial arts were relatively effective against Lu Da's type. The main reason he was able to kill Shi Bao was because Lin Chong had injured Shi Bao first.

Over the past six months, he has made significant progress, especially in integrating the Manichaean martial arts he obtained from the defeat of Fang La and the Murong family's "using their own methods against them" approach. He feels that his skills in using leverage and deflecting force have improved by leaps and bounds.

He now estimates that he can barely hold his own against Lu Da based on his true skills. However, he is still slightly inferior to Lin Chong and Yang Zhi. This is not to say that Lu Da's martial arts are weaker than Lin and Yang's; it's just that Lu Da's style is more easily countered by Zhao Zicheng.

As for comparing himself to Xu Ning and Hu Yanzhuo, Zhao Zicheng had observed their martial arts skills over the past few days. He believed he could now fight them to a draw based on his own abilities, and there was no issue of style clashes; it would all come down to a direct, head-on confrontation.

As the group got into a lively discussion, they inevitably had a real martial arts contest. Zhao Zicheng, wielding a double-hooked spear, sparred with Huyan Zhuo, who was wielding double whips, and then practiced with Xu Ning using the same weapons for a while.

Zhao Zicheng fought the two men in turn, exchanging over a hundred moves with each of them, neither gaining the upper hand.

However, the two generals clearly felt that Lord Zhao's martial arts skills were superior to theirs. This was because Zhao Zicheng was the one being fought in a series of battles, which alone demonstrated his endurance.

Little did they know that endurance was also one of Zhao Zicheng's strengths. Since he had learned the breathing techniques of the Murong family in recent years, and later practiced Huang Shang's "Wanshou Daozang Xinde", Zhao Zicheng's endurance had become increasingly continuous, long and tenacious.

"This humble general concedes defeat! I am truly ashamed!" In the end, the two generals were completely convinced and prostrated themselves in admiration.

"Alright, I'm tired too. You guys wipe your sweat first, then try on these cotton-padded clothes, or let your soldiers try them on and see if they'll get in the way."

While wiping his sweat, Zhao Zicheng instructed his servants to distribute cotton-padded coats to the group.

After wiping their sweat, Xu Ning and the others quickly tried on the cotton-padded jackets. They soon discovered that the jackets were indeed very effective at cushioning and keeping warm, and were much more comfortable than leather jackets.

Previously, when fighting in winter, one either had to wear a cloak over their armor or a fur coat underneath, both of which were extremely uncomfortable. After putting on a soft cotton-padded coat, it seemed that even the weight of the heavy armor was distributed more evenly.

The weight on the shoulders was reduced, and a significant portion of the armor's weight was distributed to other parts of the body. Traditional Chinese armor, especially the infantry armor of the Song Dynasty, may not have been much heavier than the full plate armor of later Western countries, but it was far more cumbersome.

Because Western full plate armor has a better load-bearing structure, the waist belt can support a significant portion of the breastplate's lifting force and distribute the weight of the lower body armor to the waist.

In the Northern Song Dynasty, infantrymen were practically "hanging" on their shoulders, bearing most of their 50-60 jin (25-30 kg) weight. This made it difficult for them to even lift weapons and shields, and weaker soldiers couldn't even raise their arms high, which naturally affected their combat effectiveness.

Zhao Zi said that although it was impossible to immediately improve the iron armor, having the soldiers wear cotton-padded jackets with better cushioning inside would not only keep them warm in winter, but would also be cheaper than fur jackets and distribute the force more evenly, which would be a win-win-win situation.

Hu Yanzhuo and Xu Ning were both knowledgeable, so after putting them on and trying out a few moves, they knew that what Lord Zhao had given them was definitely a good thing.

These clothes will definitely come in very handy in winter.

Just as the two were praising each other, a messenger suddenly rode into the training ground.

The messenger scanned the entire area, located Zhao Zicheng, and immediately ran over to report the news:
"Reporting to Your Excellency! Urgent military news! The neighboring Qingzhou Prefecture has been attacked and captured by the Liangshan bandits! Prefect Murong Yanda has been killed by Qin Ming, a general under Song Jiang! Now, the other counties in Qingzhou have urgently warned neighboring prefectures. The Military Commissioner of Jingdong East Circuit has issued a document saying that it is still unknown whether the Liangshan bandits will advance eastward next, and Your Excellency should be on guard!"

-

P.S.: The main chapters will be merged during the May Day holiday.

(End of this chapter)