Lizhou West Road, the northwest frontier of the Song Dynasty, Lizhou West Road prefecture, Mianzhou.
Since the first year of Xingqing, when the new emperor Zhao Hong ascended the throne, he decreed that Lizhou and Lianglu would be exempted from taxes for three years so that they could live well with the people. New troops were also sent to Lizhou and Lianglu. Under the management of a group of officials led by Cui Yu, the envoy of Sichuan, and Cao Youwen, the governor of Lizhou West Road, and with the efforts of Sichuan soldiers and civilians, the entire northwest frontier, including Shu, quickly recovered from the trauma of the war. come over.
Xihe Prefecture is an important town in the Three Passes and Five Prefectures. The city walls and trenches are structured according to the valley situation, with a circumference of 10 miles. It is steep on all sides, easy to defend and difficult to attack, and is very solid. Xihe Prefecture has always been the fortress of Lizhou West Road and the gateway to the northwest.
On the west wall of Xihe Prefecture, Lu Wende, the commander of Lizhou West Road, was surrounded by a group of generals and was watching outside the city.
Since the beginning of last year, the Mongolian army has been overwhelming and has defeated several important cities in Xixia. Most of the territory of Xixia was lost. The Mongolian army successively attacked the important towns of Lanzhou, Taozhou, and Lintao Prefecture in the northwest under the rule of the Jin people. They burned, killed, looted, and destroyed the towns. The Jin people fled into the Song Dynasty. The Mongolian army invaded and invaded Taozhou and Lintao. It seems that it is only a matter of time before the frontier fortress of Song Ting, which is closely connected to the government.
"General, look, there seems to be an enemy!"
Suddenly, the guards pointed to the west and shouted.
Lu Wende was shocked, picked up the telescope, and looked to the west.
Among the undulating hills, more than a dozen Song Army Rangers were riding in front of them, running straight towards Xihe City.
Immediately afterwards, countless iron cavalry came into view. The horses had protective gear, armor in their pockets, horns, bows and axes, and quivers full. They were full of ambition and arrogance. The knights' hoofbeats rumbled, the ground shook, and they quickly gathered in rows from all directions. They were fast and well-trained, which frightened the soldiers of the Song Army at the top of the city.
And in the wilderness, among the iron cavalry, countless people, soldiers and civilians of the Song Dynasty were rolling and crawling, howling like ghosts and wolves, and were driven towards the west and the city.
"Tatar army! Blow the trumpets, beat the drums, and light the smoke!"
Lu Wende was shocked and shouted loudly.
What the hell!
Unexpectedly, the Mongolian army invaded Song Dynasty without any warning!
As soon as the emperor ascended the throne, he made plans outside of Shu and prepared for rainy days. His vision was really vicious!
"Your Majesty is so powerful in predicting the unknown! I am so impressed!"
Lu Yuanting sighed and expressed the thoughts of the Song army generals on the city wall.
The emperor published the "Tatar Policy" three years ago and deployed it in the northwest frontier two years ago. He is indeed far-sighted and cannot accept it.
The sound of horns was desolate, the sound of drums was thrilling, and the sound of fighting resounded through the city wall. Like ants, the Song army swarmed onto the city. Soon, the smoke billowed straight into the sky, and the entire city became busy.
The Mongolian cavalry had ferocious expressions, their armors were blazing, their cavalry was criss-crossing, and their faces were full of endless hostility and murderous aura. They came on horseback and beat the captive Song people arbitrarily. The Song people knelt down and begged for mercy. The Mongolian cavalry showed no mercy, and the horses struck with swords, killing or injuring them. The Tatar cavalry continued to advance without stopping.
Judging from the direction of their march, it seemed that they were heading directly towards Xihezhou City.
"Ms. Chen, didn't you already order the walls to be fortified and the country to be cleared? How come so many people were robbed?"
Lu Wende glared at the generals under his command, pointed at the Mongolian army outside the city, and his voice became louder unconsciously.
Lu Wende was strict in running the army, and all the generals under his command looked at each other, bowed their heads, and did not dare to say anything.
"General, these captured soldiers and civilians probably came from the ground in Jiezhou."
On the side, Chen Yin, the magistrate of Xihe Prefecture, looked at it carefully with a telescope and said in confusion.
He was meticulous in everything he did and considered himself diligent in his work. Xihe Prefecture was also a military prefecture, so it was impossible that so many people had not entered the city.
"Jiezhou?"
Lu Wende was startled, picked up the telescope and looked at it carefully, feeling as if he had fallen into an ice cave with chills.
Judging from the attire of the captured soldiers and civilians of the Song Dynasty, there is indeed the word Jiezhou.
Jiezhou is located to the south of Xihe Prefecture, with few troops and weak defenses. No one expected that the Tatar army made a big detour and plundered Jiezhou first.
Lu Wende stared outside the city with his eyes as ugly as pig liver.
"The Tatar dog thieves actually killed me, the people of the Song family, like cattle and sheep!"
Zhao Ming, a second-year student of the Jinling Martial Arts Hall and a general in the army, stood on the city wall and watched the captured Song soldiers and civilians being laughed, cursed, and massacred wantonly by the Tatar army. His face was red with anger, and his heart was about to jump out of his chest. Come chest.
Although Zhao Kui, Zhao Kui's father, was defeated by Zhao Hong as the leader of Yangzhou, Zhao Kui was still admitted to the Jinling Lecture Hall and voluntarily came to the northwest border to serve the country.
A father is a father, and a son is a son. Although the father is a little innocent, the court is not so unkind.
"If you are really brave, you should fight with the other party. It is really sad and annoying to linger and try to escape!"
Another Song army general, Cao Erxiong, the commander of Xihe Prefecture, snorted coldly.
"Cao Erxiong, you put it lightly. The common people are unarmed, how can they fight with each other? Isn't it a vain pursuit of death!"
Lu Yuanting, the general of Lizhou West Road and the commander of Xihe Prefecture, immediately raised objections.
"If my wife and daughter were raped, and my parents and brothers were killed, I would definitely fight with my life! Without swords, guns, bows and arrows, wouldn't there be wood knives and kitchen knives? Don't there be sticks? I would be the victim of such humiliation anyway. No!"
Cao Erxiong said angrily and blushed.
"Brothers, please stop saying a few words! In the final analysis, it is all the fault of these Tatars. We will kill them later to avenge the people!"
General Meng Ying of Lizhou West Road, a former Lizhou border general who was not from a martial arts hall, softly persuaded.
These graduates of the martial arts hall are all young and energetic, and they hate evil as much as they hate it. They are facing a powerful enemy, so they should not start a fight on their own.
What he didn't know was that there were so many military orders. Although these generals argued, no one dared to violate military orders because of strict military discipline, and fights were almost extinct.
Chen Yin, the magistrate of Xihe Prefecture, saw this and was secretly frightened.
Jinling Wushu Hall, as its name suggests, trains martial artists. These guys are all very brave and fierce. The Tatar army came with great momentum, but these generals were not afraid and would never show weakness.
A fierce battle seems inevitable.
"Go on, the artillery is loaded with ammunition. Listen to my military orders!"
Sure enough, the young guard general Lu Wende of Xihe Prefecture coldly issued a military order.
The Mongolian cavalry outside the city was bossing around. I'm afraid they didn't come to show off their muscles, just turn around and leave. In this case, there is no reason for him not to cooperate with the other party.
"General Lu, it's better to be careful and don't start a war rashly!"
The Mongolian cavalry was fierce, fierce and courageous, which made Chen Yin's breathing quicken and his heart beating wildly. He quickly started to persuade carefully.
"Ms. Chen, there is no reason to argue with robbers."
Lu Wende sneered and said softly.
"Tatar Policy" makes it clear that the Tatar army is fearful of power and has no morality, and only recognizes who has the strongest fist. Reason with these people unless you are out of your mind.
Several rangers rode up with disgraced faces, which made Lu Wende's face change involuntarily.
Turning his eyes to the galloping Mongolian knights, Chen Yin's voice trembled slightly and his face turned a little pale.
"General... they are our army's rangers. Do you want to let them in?"
The soldiers on the city wall were in full formation, and everyone looked at the Tatar army outside the city, preparing to attack.
The Song Army's cavalry arrived in front of the city wall. Everyone was covered in blood. The leading knight shouted loudly to the city wall.
"General Lu, the last general Li Shou, the deputy commander of Jiezhou. The Tatar army came around from Motian Ridge and headed all the way to Xihezhou, and the other way seemed to be heading towards Mianzhou!"
"Enter the city through the east gate!"
Lu Wende waved his hand, and Liu Zhi led the Song Army's cavalry, turned their horses around, and headed straight for the east gate of Xihe Prefecture.
Not long after Li Shou left, the Tatar cavalry army had already arrived under the city wall. They drove the captured Song soldiers and civilians, shot arrows, chopped down horses with knives, and laughed and cursed wantonly, despite the screams and wails of the slaughtered people.
This is their usual way of doing things, coercion and intimidation, taking pride in killing and plundering as their goal, which is completely different from the farming civilization of the Central Plains.
Lu Wende and others saw the massacre outside the city with blood filling their pupils, and their faces were all red.
"General, kill these idiots!"
"General, the Tatars are demonstrating against our army. You can fight them!"
The Song generals on the city wall were filled with indignation and shouted one after another.
"Wait a minute, let them get closer and see what they do?"
Lu Wende looked ugly and stopped the generals from asking for battle, although he was also so angry that his face turned red.
He hates evil as much as he hates it, his temper is as fierce as fire, and he has three thousand elite men at his disposal. In fact, he was already ready to make a move.
A war horse with protective gear, carrying a knight in a round iron helmet with iron armor all over its body, was galloping towards him like a demon from hell. The Mongolian knight on the horse was strong and strong. He raised his bow and nocked an arrow from a hundred steps away, and shot towards the city wall. The horse's forward speed did not slow down.
The arrow shot through the air, brushed past Lu Wende's shoulder, and hit the throat of the Song army behind him. Blood spattered, Song Jun groaned, and fell on the city wall.
The soldiers exclaimed and put up their shields one after another, or hid behind the walls. Shields were immediately put up in front of Lu Wende.
The Song soldier who was hit by an arrow was bleeding profusely and was dragged down. Seeing his eyes wide open, he might be in danger.
"Get out of the way!"
Lu Wende's face turned livid and he pushed aside the shield in front of him.
He was also a natural archer, but he was ashamed to be able to kill the opponent's target even though he was shooting from a hundred paces away.
He suddenly remembered that the "Tatar Policy" said that the Mongolian cavalry had a kind of light arrow, and the Mongolian bow they used had a range of more than 200 steps, and some Mongolian archers could immediately kill an opponent a hundred steps away.
Lu Wende secretly regretted his carelessness, his heart was filled with shock and anger, but his face remained calm.
"General, punish this bitch to death!"
They were caught off guard and hurt people. The Mongolian knights were so domineering that the officers on top of the city roared angrily.
"General, fire!"
Zhao Shu's face turned red, and he was very embarrassed by what he had just avoided.
As an officer of the Jinling Martial Arts Hall, he should treat death as if he were at home and hide in hiding on the battlefield. What kind of man is he?
"General, it's better to stay calm and wait and see what the other party says?"
Lu Yuanting shook his head and remained calm.
It seemed that only he and Lu Wende were motionless on the city wall just now.
