Fenghou

It makes sense, three people riding side by side really can't move forward, and one person has three horses, and the burden on the horse is not heavy, so why did their scouts see three people and three horses?

Zhang Xiao said with a smile, "Don't be surprised by the envoy Xuan Fu. The three men and three horses seen by the scouts are just marching. The low-ranking staff probably still have one of the three horses, and the other two are spares."

Chen Qing nodded, "It's also possible, but it doesn't matter whether they are three horses or three horses, these are actually not very meaningful. The difficulty is, how do we fight against [-] Jurchen cavalry in the Xixia Plain?"

Everyone was silent, they didn't underestimate themselves, but they also knew that the Jurchen cavalry had tens of thousands, and their combat effectiveness was extremely strong, let alone the opponent had [-] cavalry.

At this time, Chen Qing laughed again and said, "It's not a big problem to deal with kidnapped horses. As long as one horse falls down, the other two horses can't fight anymore. We can use hooks and guns to deal with them."

Everyone's eyes lit up, it was a good way to connect the gun with a hook.

Gao Ding also said: "The enemy must charge with kidnapped horses, and their cavalry are hiding behind. Our only way is to use cavalry against cavalry. We use the overwhelming majority of cavalry to deal with the golden soldiers. We use [-] cavalry Ok?"

"But if all our cavalry go to attack the Jinbing, how will the Xixia Army and the Xixia Army and the Xixia Army respond?" Yang Zaixing asked.

"That's why we're going to dispatch 20 troops, [-] cavalry to deal with the Jurchen cavalry, and [-] infantry to deal with the Xixia Army and the Xixia Army."

Yang Zaixing sneered, "20, [-], this is a strategic decisive battle. Only when several fronts are engaged in fierce battles can so many troops be mobilized. How can there be such a reason for so many troops being mobilized in a major war? Food needs to be eaten at one bite, and the road needs to be taken step by step. , accumulating small victories for big victories..."

"You said it simply, but will Jin Bing pay attention to you? What I'm talking about is how to concentrate troops to defeat Jin Bing, and it has nothing to do with how to fight."

Gao Ding and Yang Zaixing confronted each other, and they were about to quarrel.

"Stop arguing, you two!"

Chen Qing stood up and interrupted the quarrel between the two. He stood up and said to the crowd: "Dealing with the Jurchen cavalry is a severe reality that we will face sooner or later. How to defeat the Jurchen cavalry is not something we thought out from scratching our heads. I have accumulated experience from battle to battle. In the past, I always considered how to minimize casualties, and I was unwilling to fight head-on with the enemy. Now I have gradually figured it out. Without the accumulation of fighting against a strong enemy, I will not be strong. We need to take a longer view, even if we are defeated by the Jurchen cavalry this time, it doesn't matter, we will make a comeback, but if we dare not fight the Jurchen cavalry head-on, what will we do in the future?"

There was a burst of thunderous applause in the big tent. Chen Qing's words touched the hearts of the generals. Don't be afraid of failure, you must learn from the experience in the failure, and finally defeat the powerful enemy.

……

After the crowd dispersed, Chen Qing smiled at Zhang Xiao: "The so-called strategy is to despise the enemy, and tactics is to pay attention to the enemy. We can have the courage to fight the enemy, but we must not underestimate the enemy. In particular, we must give full play to our own advantages." , make full use of strengths and discard weaknesses to fight against the Jurchen cavalry."

Zhang Xiao nodded, "I very much agree with Xuan Fushi's idea. The four words of using strengths and avoiding weaknesses are the key to our victory over the Jurchen cavalry. For example, the hook and spear mentioned by the general just now are indeed a sharp weapon against Jurchen kidnappers. Kidnappers The horse wears heavy armor, but only the horse's feet are exposed, so the horse's feet are the opponent's weakness. Our advantage lies in the skill of training. We can let the elite infantry form a spear phalanx to fight against the enemy cavalry, and our cavalry will go Clean up the Xixia army and the Xixia army, as long as the Xixia army and the Xixia army are defeated, the morale of the Jurchen cavalry will definitely be affected."

Next to him, Yang Zaixing said: "The strategy of Jin Bing is also very powerful. We must prevent Jin Bing from plagiarizing our rear. The humble official suggested that the Han people should be moved to the valley south of Ghota Village, and the supplies, food, and grass should also be moved there, and they would plant there. Daying, there are only Mingsha County and Yingli County left here, as long as you stick to the county towns, the enemy's surprise attack will be meaningless."

Chen Qing said happily: "This method is good, we can adopt it!"

Chen Qing made a decision to move the Han people's camp to the valley south of the Ghota Village. Hundreds of thousands of people started to leave, supporting the old and the young, and evacuated to the south in a mighty way. The Song army took out 10,000+ heads Donkeys and mules provided transportation for the disabled elderly and young children, [-] camels carried food and tents, and tens of thousands of militia soldiers who had just converted to the official Song Army escorted along the way to help the elderly and weak people evacuate.

Chapter 684 The Siege

Wuyan Puluhun, the leader of the Jin army, was afraid that the Song army would attack the convoy. He led [-] cavalry to form a battle formation, ready to face the Song army at any time, but the Song army did not attack, allowing the huge convoy to pass through a hundred miles away from Mingsha County. In the desert area, continue to the direction of Xingqing Mansion.

Three days later, the Jinbing reinforcements arrived at Xingqing Mansion. The Xixia court organized more than 30 people out of the city to sing and dance to welcome the reinforcements. Changping King Li Kan went out to welcome the Jinbing, but the Jinbing did not enter the city, but set up camp outside the city When they went to camp, the first generous gift they received was [-] fat sheep.

Of course, Jin Guo also brought the supplies that the Xixia Army urgently needed, [-] sets of armor, which solved the urgent need for the Xixia Army to wear white cloth armor.

In the large tent of the Chinese army, dozens of Jurchen and Xixia generals gathered together. Changping Wang Li Kan hung a map of Xixia. Although they did not understand each other's language, it didn't matter. Most of them could speak Chinese, and Chinese became the language they communicated with.

"At present, the Song army occupies the area south of Mingsha County, but the Song army also captured Xiping Mansion. This is a bit difficult to handle. It is like a sharp knife against our abdomen. We feel that we must take back Xiping Mansion first."

Speaking of this, Li Kan glanced at Wuyan Puluhun and Han Chang, implying that he hoped that they would send troops to retake Xiping Mansion.

Uyan Puluhun ignored Li Kan's inducement, they were all cavalry, isn't it a joke to ask them to attack the city?

He waved his hand and asked, "How many troops are there on each side?"

Li Kan was slightly disappointed when he saw that he hadn't picked up on him. He said again: "The current strength of the Song army is estimated to be in the early 20s, with 10 cavalry and the rest are infantry. Our army has 23 troops. The troops are similar, if you add your 6 troops, then we have 30 troops, which is stronger than the other side."

"But even so, you were suppressed repeatedly by the opponent, and you couldn't fight back. What's the reason?" Uyan Puluhun asked unceremoniously.

"The reason is the leader's problem. The previous leader was King Li Cha of Jin. He was too selfish and didn't go all out to deal with the Song army. As a result, he was defeated in every battle. The emperor couldn't bear it, so he changed his general."

Wuyan Puluhun nodded and asked again: "Is there any news about the Song army?"

"I just got news from the spies that the Song army is withdrawing on a large scale."

"Evacuate?"

Wuyan Puluhun was taken aback, "What do you mean?"

Li Kan hurriedly said: "What I mean is not to evacuate the army, but to evacuate the logistics, supplies, and hundreds of thousands of Han slaves, all evacuating in the direction of the Khota village. To be honest, I don't understand their intentions."

Wuyan Puluhun glanced at Han Chang next to him, "What does General Han think?"

Han Chang said indifferently: "This should be Chen Qing's worst plan. If he loses to us and has to evacuate Xixia, he won't retreat in a hurry, and the loss will be huge."

"I see, it's a word commonly used by Han people, what is it called?"

Han Chang smiled and said, "It's called planning for a rainy day!"

"Yes! As far as this word is concerned, prepare for the best and prepare for the worst. This Chen Qing is not easy. I underestimated him before."

Han Chang shook his head, "Puluhun must not underestimate the enemy. Yin Keshu was defeated by him not long ago, and he is still unable to stand up. Didn't the fourth prince also lose to him in the Dasan Pass?"

Wuyan Pulu's face sank, and he said a little unhappy: "The fourth prince was not defeated by him, but the fourth prince was defeated by the unfavorable terrain. If it was a plain area, one hundred Wu Jie and Chen Qing would not belong to the fourth prince." Opponent, I heard that General Han was repeatedly defeated by Chen Qing."

Han Chang's face suddenly became very ugly, and he didn't say a word. Li Kan next to him looked embarrassed. He suddenly found that Jin Bing seemed to have deep conflicts inside!

At this time, Cao Baozong asked from the side: "May I ask General Puluhun, how should we fight next?"

Wuyan Pulu said coldly: "I suggest that you first take back Xiping Mansion at all costs. Once Xiping Mansion cannot be defended, Chen Qing will definitely send troops to rescue, and that is the time for me to send troops. This strategy is called by the Han people. It is very useful to besiege the city and fight for aid!"

After finishing speaking, Wuyan Puluhun turned around and walked away, and the Jurchen generals also left one after another, leaving behind a group of Xixia generals, looking at each other in dismay, really embarrassed and annoyed, the Jurchens were simply too defiant.

After Li Kan dismissed the generals, Li Kan asked Han Chang in a low voice, "This Puluhun seems to be difficult to deal with?"

Han Chang smiled and said: "Jurchen! They are all like this, very proud, but he is not just talking about it, he is serious, besieging the city and fighting for aid is a strategy he has set before, and he learned about Xixia on the road. status quo."

"I see, thank you General Han!"

Han Chang said again: "Let me give you another suggestion, there are exactly [-] Han Chinese coachmen, let them work as laborers, and dig a moat around the capital. Without a moat, the city is easily breached by the opponent's battering ram, especially Chen. Qing is good at using fire, I guess Xiping City was captured by him with fire."

Li Kan is not as stubborn as Brother Li Cha, what the other party said is indeed reasonable, he saluted and said: "I will follow General Han's suggestion!"

Han Chang also left, and only Li Kan and Cao Baozong were left in the tent. Li Kan shook his head and said, "I didn't expect that there were conflicts among the Jin soldiers, did you find it?"

Cao Baozong smiled and said: "Of course I can see that the faction struggles in the Kingdom of Jin are fierce. The two of them should belong to different factions. In fact, this is not important. The important thing is that [-] Jurchen cavalry can defeat the Song army, and Chen Qing will have to Withdrew."

Li Kan nodded, "Go and report to the emperor! If the emperor agrees with Wuyan Puluhun's plan, then we will send troops to besiege Xiping City and create opportunities for the Jurchen cavalry to attack the Song army."

……

In the afternoon, Li Ganshun, son of Xixia, agreed in principle to Uyan Puluhun's plan for besieging the city and fighting for aid. He ordered Grand Marshal Li Kan and the Privy Council to continue negotiating with Uyan Puluhun on the details of sending troops.

Two days later, Li Kan personally led an army of 15 to the south, while Wuyan Puluhun and Han Chang also led [-] Jurchen cavalry and [-] congregation troops to the south simultaneously. Cao Baozong used [-] carts to transport tools, Transportation of supplies such as grain and grass.

At this time, the Song army was still continuing to transfer various supplies to the valley behind the Lieta Village. The 50 camel team had already made two trips. There were too many grains and supplies. The grain alone exceeded [-] shi, and there were copper coins. , sheepskin, cloth, utensils, wood, tents, bacon and other materials are all trophies obtained by cleaning the major manors.

Naturally, there are still [-] camels carrying the wealth of the Xixia dignitaries, which have already been sent away in the first batch.

Chen Qing is indeed preparing for the retreat, but this does not mean that he will give up on Xixia. Before that, he had to swallow the meat that had reached his mouth.

Chen Qing stood on the head of Mingsha County, watching the camel team not far away. The [-] camels stretched for dozens of miles, and the end could not be seen at a glance.

At this time, a cavalry team came from a distance, about a dozen of them, and he rushed into the county seat. Not long after, Yang Zaixing took a messenger to the city.

"Report to Dutong, 10,000+ Xixia Army and Jin Bing have left Xingqing Mansion and headed towards Xiping City."

Chen Qing nodded, which was within his expectation, and he asked again: "Does General Liu Cui know?"

"We already have a brother to notify General Liu."

"I know, let's go find out!"

The messenger soldiers withdrew, and Yang Zaixing smiled and said, "The golden soldiers should be Xiang Zhuang's sword dancer, and they are aiming at Peigong! Their real target is us, and they will besiege the city and wait for us to rescue them."

Chen Qing sneered and said, "Then wait for the opportunity and kill this Xiang Zhuang!"

Chapter 685 Forced Attack

In Lingzhou, 20 troops surrounded the city from four directions. A few miles away from the city, a series of large tents continued, with great momentum, flags fluttering, and cavalry constantly galloping between the camps, echoing each other.

The top of the city was also full of Song troops. Facing the massive siege of the enemy, the defenders did not panic at all. They had enough confidence. There were [-] troops deployed in Lingzhou City, as well as [-] small trebuchets and a Thousands of bed crossbows, kerosene and gunpowder are essential items. The chief general Liu Cui has rich experience in defending the city.

Even in order to resist the enemy's siege, the Song army dug a three-foot-wide moat outside the city, poured water from the Lingzhou River into the moat, and built a suspension bridge, turning Lingzhou from the city of Xixia into a Song dynasty. city.

The chief general Liu Cui stood on the head of Nancheng, squinting at the camp in Nancheng. He received a report from the outer scout Feige that the garrison in Nancheng was different from the other three places. It seemed to be Jurchen cavalry.

Liu Cui also discovered that there were a lot of war horses in the South Camp, and there was a vast galloping field to the south. Thousands of Jurchen soldiers were training on the galloping field, constantly flying on horseback.

"How many troops does General Xiang think the Jurchen Army has?"

Next to him is Xiang Ying, Liu Cui's deputy general. Xiang Ying was originally a puppet general who surrendered to the Song army. He was about 30 years old. There are clear rewards and punishments, and he is very popular with soldiers.

Guan Shigu specially recommended him to Chen Qing, and Chen Qing appointed him as the commander. After becoming a general of the Western Army, he made many military exploits. He was just promoted to the commander of the upper army and is currently Liu Cui's deputy.

Xiang Ying laughed and said, "The big tents in the barracks are not only used to house soldiers, but also house horses, so it looks like there are 3 to [-] troops, but in fact it has to be reduced by half. .”

Liu Cui smiled slightly and said, "The hero sees the same thing. I also think that the opponent has about 3 people, but the cavalry is obviously not for attacking the city. They are stationed in the south city, and their goal must also be the south. They are waiting for our main force to go north."

Xiang Ying frowned slightly, "Their intention of deploying this way is actually very obvious. Don't you worry that we will use Eagle Letter to report to Mingsha County?"

Liu Cui shook his head, "This is a conspiracy. It is clear that we will fight the Song army. If the Song army dare not come, then they will harvest all the wheat this year. In fact, it is not a loss. I guess at least the Xixia people are holding this Thoughts, but we will never retreat because the enemy is strong, he will definitely lead the army north."

"Then what do we need to do to deal with it?"

Liu Cui smiled and said: "The thing we have to do is to wait patiently. Although Dutong will lead the army northward, he will not be controlled by the other party. He must go northward according to his own plan."

At this moment, outside the east city wall, the sound of war drums rumbled, as if the enemy army had begun to attack the city.

……

The Xixia army brought [-] siege ladders. Interestingly, the Xixia army’s siege ladders are almost exactly the same as the Song army’s simple siege ladders. He hoped that after the Jurchen iron cavalry defeated the main force of the Song army, the defenders in the city would be forced to break through, so that he could win without a fight and regain Xiping Mansion.

However, Uyan Puluhun wanted to witness the Song Army's ability to defend the city with his own eyes. The morale and training level of the Song Army can be seen from the ability to defend the city. He will be more prepared to face the Song Army, so that his eyes will not be dark .

Under the persecution of Uyan Puluhun, Li Kan had no choice but to agree to use [-] soldiers to conduct a tentative siege.

The dull sound of war drums rang outside the east city, and the low-pitched horns continued to sound, 'Woo—————'

The [-] troops assembled quickly. This time, Li Kan used a group of veterans recruited from the herdsmen. They had rich experience and a high level of training. Li Kan also had a glimmer of hope that maybe they could really capture the city.

At this time, the top of the city also began to respond quickly. One thousand bed crossbows were erected on the east wall, two thousand barrels of fire oil were transported to the upper city, sixteen thousand troops were deployed at the top of the east city, and 6000 men were armed with spears to prepare and attack the city. The enemy fought fiercely, but before the enemy attacked the city, they were temporarily responsible for manipulating the bed crossbow, and the ten thousand crossbowmen squatted behind the parapet, ready to implement a powerful bow and arrow array.

A large number of rolling logs and stones are ready, and the soldiers are ready.

The assembly of [-] soldiers was completed, and the commanding general was Li Kan's eldest son Li Ke. He waved his spear and shouted: "Beat the drums, the first army is attacking!"

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

With the rapid sound of war drums, [-] soldiers rushed towards the city wall. They carried siege ladders and long rafts. It is also made of fir trees, four feet long and eight feet wide, with large iron nails at both ends, which are directly nailed into the soil. They put the rafts on their heads to resist bows and arrows, and run at the front. The army paved the way.

On the top of the city, the lieutenant yelled loudly to the eagle, "The bed crossbow is ready!"

The soldiers on the top of the city quickly loaded their arrows and prepared to shoot. The bed crossbows of the Western Army were no longer flat. The flat crossbows occupied too much area and were difficult to arrange on the top of the city. The Western Army invented the crossbow several years ago. Type bed crossbow, a tube of five arrows fired at the same time, need two people to string, one person to load the arrows, three people can operate.

This kind of cylindrical bed crossbow is not actually called a bed crossbow anymore. It is called jackdaw crossbow or barrel crossbow inside the Western Army. Its range is not as far as the previous flat bed crossbow. It is only [-] steps, but it is enough, and It has been reduced from five-person operation of the bed crossbow to three-person operation, and its volume has been reduced by more than half, so it can be launched just on the city wall.

"Fire arrows!"

With the sound of clappers, a thousand bed crossbows were fired at the same time, and five thousand jackdaw arrows shot out powerfully, drawing parabolas in the air, and shooting at the main force of the Xixia army [-] steps away.

The soldiers of the Xixia Army who were running raised their shields to defend, but what they encountered was the invincible Jackdaw Iron Arrow. The powerful Jackdaw Arrow pierced the shield, and also shot through the body behind the shield. Soldiers screamed one after another. Some were shot through the head, some were nailed to death on the ground, and some soldiers' shoulder bones were smashed, rolling and crying on the ground in pain.

The powerful bed crossbow killed and injured more than 950 Xixia soldiers in the first round.

But the Xixia army did not waver at all, and continued to speed up and run wildly. Soon they ushered in the second round of bed crossbows. The powerful iron arrows shot down, and a series of soldiers fell head-on. Nearly [-] soldiers disappeared in the attacking team again. middle.

The enemy army has rushed to within a hundred steps of the city, and shouted to the eagle: "The bed crossbow retreats, and the ten thousand arrows shoot!"

One thousand bed crossbows were moved away, and the ten thousand step archers squatting by the parapet opened their bows at the same time to release arrows. Suddenly, thousands of arrows were fired from the top of the city, forming an arrow net in the sky. The soldiers under the city shot over their heads.

The soldier arrows are two feet and five inches long, made of jujube wood or beech wood with high density, the shaft is thick and long, and the front arrow is also quite heavy. This kind of arrow is fired with a large defensive bow, but the range is not far , with an average of only seventy or eighty steps, thrown down from the top of the city, its penetrating power is no less than that of jackdaw arrows. If the quality of the shield is not too strong, it can also be pierced by soldier arrows.

Of course, the Xixia army also has high-quality thick shields, but these high-quality shields are all in the hands of the emperor's guards, and these herdsmen have their own weapons, armor and horses. The so-called shields are made of leather by themselves. The shield, if you think it is simple, how can it withstand the powerful standard soldiers and arrows of the Song Army.

Under the tens of thousands of arrows, the casualties were extremely heavy, and the killing rate was as high as 4000%. Twenty-five hundred attacking soldiers were shot by the arrows, and the city was full of mourning. The puppet Qi army was killed.

This is also the result of backward equipment. Of course, it is also related to national power. The armor and equipment seized from the Song Dynasty in the past has almost been exhausted. The armies in Xixia are all poorly equipped, which fully reflects the declining national strength of Xixia.

Even Wuyan Puluhun shook his head secretly. No wonder the Xixia army was defeated by the Song army. The equipment was too simple to withstand the Song army's bows and arrows.

Li Kan couldn't hold back his face, he yelled sharply: "The second army also presses down!"

Li Ke was a little hesitant. If he attacked the city like this, even 5 people would not be able to take it down. It would be better to withdraw his troops, but his father's military order was overwhelming, so he had no choice but to bite the bullet and shout: "The second army will go up!"

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

The drums sounded again, and 1 soldiers from the Second Army rushed up like a tide.