On May 23rd, forty miles west of Xuzhou, at the foothills north of Xiao County.
The sky was clear, the air was quiet and dull, and eagles were flying in the sky.
The rugged mountain road spreads and disappears into the dense forest at the foot of the mountain. On the slopes in front of the mountain road, the sound of human breathing gathers together.
The smell of gunpowder wafted through the crowd, and lead bullets were pressed into the barrels of guns.
Black flags spread out, and a queue of nearly a thousand people lined up on the slope.
Luo Ye stood on the stone and looked at the eagle in the sky. There was a faint trembling sound on the ground, indicating that the enemy was coming.
This is a corner of the entire Xuzhou retreat.
Since the Jurchens launched their attack southward in the ninth year of Jianshuo, in the first half of the tenth year of Jianshuo, during the southward invasion of the Jurchen armies from the east and west, several vigorous and large-scale blocking battles broke out in the Central Plains, and the entire Jin region was destroyed.
Due to the sea of fire, the resistance of the Guangwu Army of Daming Prefecture was also the most brutal. During this period, the resistance in Xuzhou was relatively stable. Except for the fact that it was besieged by nearly a million hungry ghosts in the winter, by the first half of the 10th year of Jian Shuo, the resistance was complete.
After Yan Zongfu and Zongbi launched an attack on the city, Xuzhou held the city for less than three months and began to evacuate in mid-May.
Compared to the 50,000 troops in Daming Prefecture who resisted for half a year and finally broke out, they were joined by more than 10,000 Chinese troops who came to the rescue, but only a few thousand people survived. The war in Xuzhou was not vigorous enough in the eyes of many faultfinders.
At least for Li Anmao, the prefect of Xuzhou who originally invited the Huaxia Army to defend the city, the Huaxia Army's 10,000 reinforcements plus the tens of thousands of troops he had raised in Xuzhou should have been at least half a year or even a year at the place where the four battles were fought.
.If he can kill himself to become a benevolent person, then his loyalty to the Wu Dynasty will be fulfilled.
However, Liu Chengzong and others had no such plan from the beginning.
Since the arrival of this 10,000-strong Chinese army in Xuzhou, they have been engaged in the evacuation of residents near Xuzhou to the south. Li Anmao was already determined to fight to the death, and did not have much opinion on the evacuation of the people. Instead, he tried his best to provide a lot of cooperation.
Later, the hungry ghosts outside Xuzhou City dispersed, and the Jurchens came to kill them. The remaining residents in the city took advantage of the beginning of spring to go south. Liu Chengzong and the nearly 50,000 Xuzhou garrison in the city carried out a tenacious defense.
The Jurchen East Route Army of more than 300,000 people had been preparing to attack the city since the beginning of last winter. Tens of thousands of people defended Xuzhou City for more than two months. Later, Liu Chengzong and others knocked out Li Anmao at a meeting and captured him.
took military power and announced the evacuation decision from Xuzhou.
The number of soldiers under Li Anmao's command was as many as 50,000, but their composition was complex. Some were Liu Yu's troops before, and the other were just wanderers who enlisted for food. Li Anmao mobilized more than 50,000 soldiers to build a strong momentum.
, I want to drag the Huaxia Army here, but these 50,000 people have no combat effectiveness. After the Huaxia Army arrived, they trained with these people, improved military discipline, and held talks, and then they partially increased their combat effectiveness. Now the Huaxia Army said
To leave, no one in the Xuzhou garrison was willing to obey Li Anmao's order to defend. The recruitment of tens of thousands of people who had gone through two months of war has naturally become a reality. At least during the retreat, no one dared not to do so.
Listen to the deployment of the Chinese army.
Xuzhou has been a place of four battles since ancient times. The city is located in a basin and is surrounded by mountains and rivers with complex terrain. The rugged terrain is easy to defend but difficult to attack. In order to win quickly, Zongfu Zongbi's Eastern Route Army chose to attack violently.
Rather than encircling the city into a dead end, the Jurchens surrounded the city in three columns. It was not difficult for tens of thousands of troops to break through. The subsequent evacuation process was met with fierce pursuit by the Jurchen army.
But for the entire retreat plan, the Huaxia Army began to explore and deduce it last year. When the army left the city, Liu Chengzong divided the backbone of the Huaxia Army into several groups and chose rugged terrain to block and retreat in an orderly manner. Tens of thousands of Jurchen pursuers came from behind.
They came from different directions, but were beaten into a panic. On May 23, Chaoxianling, north of Xiao County, became the forward fulcrum of the entire retreat.
The Liaodong Army, which numbered over 10,000, was coming from nearby. The leader was Liu Guangji, the Han general of Liaodong. On the other hand, the Chinese Army was a special regiment of nearly 1,200 people led by Luo Ye. They were an experimental unit of the Chinese Fifth Army.
The entire equipment has not experienced actual combat, but the entire special forces group is composed of veterans of the Chinese army.
This special forces regiment performed quite well in the previous Xuzhou city defense battle, and did not use the new weapons equipped by all their members - because the effect in the city defense battle was not necessarily good. At this time, it is better to choose first.
Ridge is used for defense, firstly because the terrain here is the most ideal, and secondly because after the nearby friendly forces have retreated, this mountain pass is located at a prominent point on the front line, and the defensive pressure may be the greatest. There are also other things that Luo Ye has not told too many people.
The third point mentioned above: According to previous tactical deductions, this place is most likely to be visited by the enemy's vanguard general.
The most powerful vanguard general in the Jurchen Army was none other than the Jurchen "Fourth Prince" Jin Wushu, who almost dominated the entire Eastern Route Army's offensive posture.
In Luo Ye's opinion, this is the most suitable place for new weapons to shine.
If something can be done, he wants to get killed.
It's a pity that the situation on the battlefield changes rapidly, and it's not Wushu who is killed.
This year's Jurchen South Expedition was more than ten years after the first southward march. The east and west armies raised nearly 600,000 troops. Although it took several years of training, the Jurchens once gained the reputation of being "invincible".
It is impossible for the Jurchen soldiers to expand to this number. In fact, it is difficult for the new Jurchen children to join the army to reproduce the bravery they had when they fought out of the white mountains and black waters.
Therefore, the entire army was joined by many other ethnic groups, such as Bohai people, Khitan people, Xi people, Han people, etc., who were the second highest in the Jurchen country. Although in later generations, one Han people did not speak two languages, but in this era
Here, the Han people in Liaodong looked down on the southerners. In their eyes, the brave Jurchens were naturally more worthy of following. It was only natural to follow the Jurchens and achieve great fame during the southern expedition.
At this time, the status of the Han people in Liaodong was not high in the Jin Kingdom. Therefore, in order to improve their status, they had no choice but to fight tooth and nail. Liu Guangji was a fierce general under Zong Bi. He had a violent temper and was known for his strict military management and ferocious use of troops. In his military camp
Here, at first a Han slave was whipped to death every day, in order to wake up the cowardice of many Liaodong soldiers: "Those who dare not bleed will become slaves!" Later Taizong issued a decree not to kill Han slaves at will, so Liu Guangji would do it every day
If a Han slave had his hands and feet chopped off and was seriously injured to death, given his status, he would just have to pay the penalty. In fact, with Zongbi's protection, Liu Guangji basically did not need to pay even the fine.
Before the two sides met, Hai Dongqing and the scouts sent a message. Blocking the intersection ahead was about a thousand-man team of the Chinese Army. Since the terrain in front began to narrow, the battle would be unfavorable to the attacking side, and the Chinese Army
If you arrive first, artillery must have been arranged at a slightly higher ground. In the first wave of the attack, your side will inevitably suffer huge losses.
The first time he brought the opponent's military formation into his sight, Liu Guangji also discovered the opponent's strange long formation in the telescope. At this time, the infantry formations were mostly square formations, even though the appearance of cannons had a negative impact on the square formations.
It was a huge threat, but it was still necessary to maintain a phalanx, otherwise the battlefield would be prone to chaos and would not be able to withstand the opponent's charge. But the array in front was only two to three rows of people, holding in their hands - flashy muskets.
Such pyrotechnic weapons of the Wu Dynasty have been around for decades, but they are basically of little use. They have short range and poor power, and can easily explode their own eyes. Although since the rise of the Chinese army, all forces have changed their attitude toward gunpowder.
It must be taken very seriously, but at least this musket has not yet shown its glory in any major battle.
Liu Guangji knew the reputation of the Huaxia Army. He frowned when he saw an incomprehensible picture. However, behind him, there was not much room for change. According to Zongbi's order, he must quickly break through the Chaoxian Ridge.
, cut into the middle of the retreating Chinese army.
Even if there are cannons, they will still shoot...
After briefly looking at the opponent's entire defense line, Liu Guangji gritted his teeth. In such a shrinking terrain, if he wanted to attack, the opponent's cannon was the most feared weapon. But there was no other way. In past experience, the more powerful the cannon was.
, the attack must be more intense, and only by breaking through the opponent's position in one breath can we break the opponent's defensive strategy. Fortunately, we have enough manpower on our side after all.
"Damn it! A dead bird flies to the sky..." Liu Guangji spat twice on his palm, then waved his long knife: "Blow the trumpet! Sons, get ready for me -"
The mournful sound of trumpets sounded in the mountain pass. All the armies lined up. Liu Guangji rode his horse and loudly boosted morale in front of his own army's formation. On the other side, Luo Ye's eyes were steady. He stepped down from the big stone to observe.
, came to one side of the formation, took the drumsticks, and began to beat the big drum in front of them vigorously.
The drums roared and moved with their breathing, and the soldiers in the ranks raised their guns like a forest of guns. Fighting on the battlefield, one burst of energy, two bursts of energy, two bursts, and three bursts. At this moment, both sides who are eager to quickly decide the battle will lose their morale.
Boosted to the highest level.
At three quarters of noon that day, Liu Guangji's army launched a charge. The surrounding terrain was complicated, and it was too far to outflank him. It was impossible for him to wait any longer. Driven by military orders, the forwards of the army, led by a light cavalry team, came forward.
Fans poured into the slopes of the mountain pass, the sound of cannons rang out, and military columns surged up like a tide. The Liaodong army shouted hysterically and fired the first wave of arrows.
On one side of the Chinese army, facing the incoming arrows, a long queue stood motionless with their guns raised. Due to the long and narrow queue, this hasty launch did not cause many casualties, and a few people were hit by the arrows.
The charge from the front surged forward, and the light cavalry separated themselves from the soldiers at the rear. The formations began to gather as the terrain shrank. Some people raised their hands high in the air.
"Hold still——"
"Hold still——"
…
"..."
…
"put!"
…
At the fan-shaped mountain pass, the cavalry has surged forward, and a long row of muskets has been fired. The seemingly not long array of more than sixty feet, three hundred gunshots, three hundred clusters of green smoke, and three hundred rounds of
The lead bullet crossed the ground and extended forward, and blood flowers bloomed in front.
After the muskets were fired, the soldiers squatted down quickly. With the changing drumbeats, the second team's 300 muskets were raised.
"The second team is ready——"
"--put!"
Green smoke rises amidst countless roars.
"Hold on!"
"The third team is ready——"
"--put!"
The shrinking slope turned into a huge mouth swallowing life.
This was a corner of Xuzhou's Great Retreat. It did not stop the Jurchens from going south, and it did not attract too many people's attention at the time.
Throughout the Xuzhou retreat, Liu Chengzong took advantage of the complex terrain to launch a counterattack, defeating tens of thousands of Jurchen pursuers who tried to take credit, and harvesting thousands of Jurchen East Route Army heads. And on May 23rd,
During the battle at Tianchao Xianling, Luo Ye broke up Liu Guangji's crazy attack and launched a counterattack. At the last moment, he killed Liu Guangji, who had led the charge because of the defeat in the battle, and then dispersed the entire attacking team.
In a series of battles between the Jurchens and the Chinese army, facing the bravery of the Chinese army, the Jurchens gradually became accustomed to it.
****************
Lightning flashed instantly, and roaring thunder shook the sky.
Chengdu, thunderstorm.
In the teahouse room, Cheng Zhouhai stood by the window with a gloomy expression, listening to the boiling voices coming from the streets and squares below. A public trial had come to an end, and the curses in the crowd almost covered up the roar in the sky.
Lei Sheng: "Kill that old guy——"
"None of their family are good people——"
"Kill! Kill kill kill——"
In this public trial, the people who were trying were the great scholar Chen Song and his gang members who had previously prepared to break the levee on the Minjiang River. These people were arrested on April 27th. The public trial was originally planned to take about ten days, but in order to complete the whole matter
, to create the reputation and reputation of the Chinese Military Court, the entire process was carried out in great detail, and all evidence, testimony and arrest processes were also announced to the public through newspapers and storytellers. On this day, Chen Song was sentenced to death, and other
The decisions of the party members were announced one after another. Although it rained unexpectedly, the crowds in Chengdu still blocked the roads.
Throughout the process of the trial, Cheng Zhouhai, who came here, had been negotiating with Ning Yi, hoping to replace this old Confucian scholar with some compromise or exchange of interests. However, Ning Yi never let go.
At this time, the verdict was announced in public, and the whole matter had been settled. Cheng Zhouhai's expression was obviously unhappy. He was a well-connected person, but Ning Yi didn't care to show such emotions.
"How does the Chen Song below compare with Qian Xiwen back then? When the Jurchens came to Bianliang, you and the teacher all considered fighting against the Yellow River. You even made preliminary preparations in Xiacun!
Why, he is the bad guy and you are the good guy!?"
He knocked on the window with his hand and looked at Ning Yi, who was sitting in the room drinking tea. At this time, in addition to him and Ning Yi, there were also Qin Shaoyu and Song Yongping. Song Yongping was brought by Cheng Zhouhai to talk with the Chinese Army.
For "business", he brought Song Yongping, and Ning Yi asked Qin Shaoyu, who was in a wheelchair after his leg was broken by Lin Echan, to negotiate complex matters to balance the human issues in the business. At this time, Ning Yi put down the tea cup and raised his eyes.
.
"When Mr. Qian was martyred, he only implicated himself. He was definitely not comparable. In the Bianliang disaster, we faced the Jurchens. If we really couldn't defeat them, they could only perish together. If you regard the Huaxia Army as the same as the Jurchens,
We are of the same alien race, so Lao Qin and I are indeed no different from Chen Song. But at least I don't engage in massacres, so I'm somewhat better than the Jurchens."
“How big is the difference between destroying one’s orthodoxy and destroying one’s country?”
"It's really not a big deal if you want to argue, but I want to destroy the orthodoxy after it is clear that your orthodoxy has problems, and you and I can't find a way to improve it. It's not because I am a child. If you accept my opinion,
Then convince me that I will correct it. If you don't want to raise a flag, Chen Song is a bastard. You and I both know it clearly. From the perspective of people's hearts and interests, I am justified in killing him. If you sit on my
position, you will let a person who is preparing to fight against me live on the Minjiang River!?"
In the past few days, this is not the first time that the two have had a heated argument. Qin Shaoyu and Song Yongping can only stay out of it. In fact, Cheng Zhouhai came to represent the Princess Palace to cooperate with Ning Yi. Ning Yi
He did not hide his secrets. Over the past few days, he had taken Cheng Zhouhai to visit many places. Even some of the weapons factories in operation at this time, and some of the advanced concepts based on the development of the study of physics, had been introduced to Cheng Zhouhai one by one.
Reveal it.
Ning Yi didn't care what Cheng Zhouhai learned from the Chinese Army. It was more like he was actively "polluting" Cheng Zhouhai's thinking. That morning, they originally visited a newly built musket workshop in Chengdu.
, before seeing it thoroughly, he came here to visit the public trial. Cheng Zhouhai and Ning Yi argued for a while, and the matter had been settled, and he no longer pressed.
After both sides were silent for a moment, Cheng Zhouhai said: "I know that you have always been extremely enthusiastic about firearms. However, the Wu Dynasty already had a sudden musket. Do you really plan to put it on the battlefield? I know this thing.
It’s cumbersome to use, it’s easy to blow yourself up, and the range is not as good as a bow and arrow. Have you solved all these problems?”
"Of course it's not solved." Ning Yi held the tea cup, "But things will eventually be solved slowly. The potential of bows and arrows has come to an end. It takes two or three years to make a good bow. It takes ten years to cultivate a marksman.
In a few years, muskets did have a lot of problems at the beginning, and now they are only slowly catching up with the range. But with the advancement of assembly line technology, its production will gradually become much faster than bows and arrows, and the training of shooters will also be very simple. In the future
Even if a woman holds a gun, she can kill you. With limited manpower and infinite material resources, the study of studying objects is far from over."
"Then...sell me this thing?"
"Okay." Ning Yi said with a smile.
Cheng Zhouhai's brows wrinkled, and Song Yongping and Qin Shaoyu's brows also wrinkled. Qin Shaoyu's eyes were relaxed, while Song Yongping looked somewhat wary.
——There is a conspiracy.
Ning Yi sighed and stood up, but he did not shy away from it: "I can sell you muskets, I can even sell you the entire concept of geophysics. If you can really learn it and defeat the Jurchens, that would be the best. But
You can't learn. When the enemy comes, you want something good, but the way to study things is endless. There will always be better things. How to ensure that you will always see better things, then everyone has to open their minds.
Don't be bound by some things that are taken for granted. If the people want to know it, do you dare? Today the king and the military can promote the investigation of things, but it is just because there is a war today. After the war is over, it is better for the people to let it go. "
"If I sell the musket to you, I will sell it to you. I am not afraid of you imitating it. Once you imitate it, I will have a better musket. And imitation may not be realistic. You don't have much time." Ning Yi smiled and tapped with his fingers.
Turning on the coffee table, "Urgent news came this morning..."
He said: "Western Route Army...Xi Yin led the vanguard to cross the river."
The rain outside the window was still falling. Soon after, news of a pipe surge near Dujiangyan came. Ning Yi led his people to rush back to the rescue front - everywhere has its own problems. On the Jurchen side, in order to deal with problems that may arise at any time in the country, the east and west sides
The entire army had to speed up its move south. At the end of May, Xi Yin led the vanguard of the West Route Army to cross the Yellow River first, trying to reach the Xiangyang front line as quickly as possible to cooperate with the Eastern Route Army's strategic intention of attacking the Zhenjiang front line.
Soon after crossing the river, Xiyin received news from the Xuzhou frontline battlefield. The appearance of Chaoxianling muskets aroused his vigilance. In fact, after the potential of firearms was discovered, the Chinese Army, Wuhan
The North Korea and the Jin Kingdom were all studying its application. In the Dazhuo Institute in charge of Xi Yin, they also studied the musket, but there was no decisive breakthrough.
On the day he received the news, a mighty army was gathering at the port on the south bank of the Yellow River, with flags spreading like a forest. Standing on the city wall outside the port, Xiyin suddenly seemed to see the figure of the Chinese army in the southwest.
The Han army has been resisting for more than ten years. Now the Jurchen army still has the upper hand. If it continues, the Jurchen army will still have the upper hand, but...
We must take advantage of this battle to determine the world.
He didn't think about it any more, he just reconfirmed in his mind the idea he had at the beginning of going south.
If he were still young, he might not be willing to cooperate with Zongfu Zongbi's offensive of the West Route Army, but would rather sweep away the entire Wu Dynasty on his own. It would be best if Zongfu Zongbi and others could have more traps like Huang Tiandang
.
But at this moment, Xiyin put away such thoughts.
Lin'an, June.
The weather was so hot that only the chirping of cicadas could be heard.
In the study room of the Princess Mansion, the iced lotus seed soup was placed on the table. It was no longer cool, and there was no draft in the room. Messages from all over the world gathered on the desk. Zhou Pei looked up from the papers, she
There were beads of sweat on her forehead, but her face was slightly pale. She felt that the air was oppressive, and she put a hand on the left side of her chest. Bang bang bang, there was a sound like a drum.
In front of her, there was news coming from the southwest and news coming from the north. Before things happened, people could imagine all kinds of turning points or solutions, but at this moment, the situation became clearer and more stable.
, the preparations that can be continuously advanced from daily work have reached the limit of ability.
In the frontline area north of the Yangtze River, war preparations have been pushed to the limit. The transportation and distribution of military rations and ordnance, the cleanup of spies, the consolidation of defense lines, and the strength have been used to the limit. Killings are being carried out every day, and occasionally
There will still be rogue bandits who are forced to rebel, but this is also necessary to maintain the entire war situation. As for the news from the southwest, Cheng Zhouhai will write all kinds of knowledge and iron-blooded news in letters every few days and send them to Zhou.
What Pei could see was the smoke and the tense heartstrings that filled the air in all kinds of news.
This kind of breath made her feel palpitated, like a gambler waiting for the moment before opening the dice clock, like a prisoner waiting for the moment when the sentence is announced. The atmosphere in Lin'an City was suppressed and silent. At this moment, no officials and
The main war faction rebelled. In the palace, Zhou Yong had not been to the harem for several days...