Xu Sheng led his troops to run for more than ten miles and was discovered by the Mongolian army. To the west was the surging river and to the east were towering mountains. There was no place to hide. The two sides were walking towards each other, only a few hundred steps away.
"Dismount, cannon!"
Recalling what was said in "Tatar Policy" that there were some good archers among the Mongolian cavalry, those with good bows could shoot to two hundred paces, and many could shoot to one hundred paces, Xu Sheng immediately issued a military order.
The knights dismounted and seven or eight small cannons were set up on the post road.
"Put your shield up and load your ammunition!"
The shield was raised, the cannon was swung, the iron nails were smashed down, the cannon was fixed, and the gunner immediately began to load ammunition.
The Mongolian cavalry roared along the post road, iron hooves bursting, and smoke billowing. The Mongolian cavalry all drew their bows and arrows, and the sharp archers on the horses drew their bows and arrows, ready to move.
The sound of "swish" feather arrows came, and dozens of feather arrows whizzed in, hitting the Song army's shield, making a "dang" sound, but with no force.
The Mongolian cavalry was invincible in riding and shooting. As expected, only firearms could deal with it.
"fire!"
Xu Sheng did not hesitate and immediately issued a military order.
"Puff!"
The sound of cannons sounded, gunpowder smoke filled the air, and thousands of iron pellets volleyed into the air. The dozen knights and horses in the front row of the Mongolian army sprayed blood mist.
The post road is narrow and can only accommodate a dozen war horses passing side by side. The artillery of the Song army blocked the post road, and the Mongolian cavalry made a commotion. They reined in their horses one after another, dismounted and put up their shields, and moved forward on foot to engage the Song army on foot.
Another round of artillery fire came, and more than a dozen Mongolian cavalry were shot over, their shields shattered, and the Mongolian cavalry fell to pieces, bloody and bloody, and howling like ghosts and wolves.
Feather arrows whistled, and the Mongolian cavalry fired arrows one after another. Because the distance was too far, they did not cause much damage, but only wounded a few Song soldiers.
The destructive power of artillery is tragic. Once it is shot, blood and flesh will fly everywhere, which is terrible. This is completely different from the injuries caused by cold weapons. The Mongolian cavalry were frightened. They dismounted and fired on foot, which caused the Song army's artillery to fire continuously. They lost the opportunity to approach the opponent on horseback and fight the Song army at close range.
Firearms have greatly changed battlefield tactics and the direction of war.
The sound of artillery continued, and the Mongolian knights were shot and killed. Seeing that the situation was not good, the Mongolian cavalry retreated, mounted their horses, and retreated north.
"Escape now!"
Wang Wen was stunned and wanted to pursue, but was held back by Xu Sheng.
"This is the tactic of the Tatar cavalry. They rarely fight to the death. The Da'an army in front is on a flat terrain, so be careful of being ambushed by them."
"Xu Sheng, you are a good boy, you know so much!"
Wang Wen said in surprise.
"You have been to the martial arts lecture hall, and you don't even understand "Tatar Strategy". You'd better be a promising civil servant!"
Xu Sheng shook his head and got on the horse. This strong civil servant really does not have the talent to be proud on the battlefield.
"You are the emperor's personal attendant, I will let you go! Besides, can what you learn in books be the same as in actual combat?"
Wang Wen muttered in a low voice and got on his horse.
"What should we do now?"
"Cold salad! I watched it while walking!"
Everyone got on their horses and urged their horses forward until they reached the exit of the post road. The front suddenly became clear, and Da'an Military City was right in front of them.
The walls of Da'an Army are all made of earth, only three meters high and only three miles around. They are not very dangerous. The Mongolian army chose to attack the Da'an army, but I don't know what they considered.
Outside the Da'an Army City, corpses of Song people were scattered everywhere, while the vast Mongolian army was attacking the Da'an Army City.
Arrows were flying, artillery fire and thunderous explosions were heard, thick smoke was billowing from the top of the city and below the city, and the sound of fighting was loud.
It seems that the Song army in Da'an Military City also discovered the arrival of reinforcements and counterattacked even more fiercely.
"Why did the Tatar army come north of Mianzhou City?"
"Have you not read "Tatar Strategy"? The Tatar cavalry are highly mobile and like to make large detours. They want to repeat their old tricks, but they don't know that firearms have changed everything."
Xu Sheng looked at the fierce battle ahead with a calm tone.
The Mongolian army still used the old tactics from the past, thinking that they could hunt the opponent, but they did not expect that firearms made mounted archery out of the era.
"Won't the Tatar army defeat the Da'an army?"
Wang Wen felt uneasy.
"The Da'an army has a thousand defenders, and there are thousands of local people. The Tatar cavalry only has a thousand people. It is too fanciful to think of defeating the Da'an army."
Xu Sheng snorted coldly, looking disdainfully.
The Mongolian army apparently also discovered the approaching Song army. However, the exit of the post road was narrow and was not suitable for large army operations. They watched from a distance, scattered in all directions, and did not move forward.
Suddenly, the horns were blown among the Mongolian troops, and the Mongolian troops on the top of the city retreated and evacuated the battlefield instantly.
Surrounded by all the horsemen, under the banner of the Chinese army, Zhao Hong rode on the horse and rode quickly.
It has been more than a year since I left at the beginning of last year and sent my troops here today.
This time, Princess Li Weiming of Xixia did not come. In the military, Zhao Hong was not used to bringing women with him.
War makes women go away. Although there are female soldiers in the army, they are very few in number. They are also medical soldiers and have received training in military camps.
"What are you looking at? Artillery comes forward!"
In the telescope, the Mongolian cavalry gathered outside the Da'an Army saw it, Zhao Hong's face turned ugly, and he immediately sank.
Needless to say, those scattered, bloody corpses of civilians were the "masterpieces" of the Mongolian cavalry.
The gun carriages were pushed forward and out of the post road exit, and the gunners began to load ammunition. Thousands of Song Army cavalry followed closely behind, with their bows and arrows drawn, ready to move, rumbling forward.
The Song army's formation stretched as far as the eye could see, occupying the entire post road and the entrance of the valley. There were endless and countless people and horses moving around.
There was a commotion among the Mongolian cavalry. They turned their horses one after another and swarmed towards the north.
They can tell at a glance whether he is an elite soldier or not. What's more, the Song army is huge, at least tens of thousands. If a hero doesn't suffer the immediate loss, he will never be able to fight the Song army head-on.
"fire!"
The military order was issued, the sound of artillery sounded, and hundreds of solid iron balls came out of their chests and smashed into the rear formation of the Mongolian cavalry, causing a devastating and devastating attack.
The Mongolian army was shocked. They obviously did not expect that the Song army's artillery could hit almost three miles. In a panic, the cross-section of the cavalry formation rapidly increased and they fled north.
The city of Da'an was filled with smoke, and the Song army took the opportunity to fire artillery. The sound of artillery continued for a while. Many of the Mongolian cavalry heading north fell off their horses. Countless Song army cavalry followed up on horseback. They were not afraid of the Mongolian cavalry's return fire, their arrows flew rapidly, and they desperately shot the fleeing Mongolian cavalry.
The city gate of Da'an Army opened wide, and several knights came on horseback. When they arrived, the officials on horseback dismounted and saluted Zhao Hong.
"Your Majesty, Lin Xiaoguo, the commander of the Great An Army, is here to see your Majesty!"
"Lin Xiaoguo, how is the Da'an army? Where do these Tatar soldiers come from? How is the military situation in Shukou? Report to His Majesty quickly!"
Cui Yu urged his horse forward and asked loudly.
"Your Majesty, the Da'an army is safe and sound. These Tatar cavalry seem to have come from Jiezhou via Motian Ridge. Judging from their appearance, they want to besiege the city for reinforcements and lure the Mianzhou defenders to come to the rescue. The Tatar army has invaded Lizhou. On the west road, Mianzhou City is being besieged. The two sides have been fighting for more than half a month, and the fighting is very fierce. However, this is the military situation two days ago."
Lin Xiaoguo, the commander of the Da'an Army, told everything he knew and didn't know in one breath.
"Which Tatar army is besieging Mianzhou City, and how many troops are there?"
Cui Yu asked anxiously again.
"Back to Your Majesty, I don't know which one it is. The Tatar rangers appeared and almost all our scouts were killed or injured. The surviving brothers said that there were about 20,000 Mongolian troops besieging the city, including both infantry and cavalry. However, General Cao was in charge of Mian. The state city, Mianzhou City should not fall soon."
Lin Xiaoguo was honest, listened to his wishes, and had great confidence in Cao Youwen.
"Lin Qing, well done! I will remember you. Go back and deal with post-war matters properly."
Zhao Hong looked calm and finally spoke.
"Your Majesty, I didn't expect that the Tatar army would actually use troops against me, the Song Dynasty!"
Lin Xiaoguo retreated, and Cui Yu, the envoy of Sichuan, was still stunned.
The Mongolian army invaded the interior of Shukou, and the war further expanded, leaving no way out.
"Your Majesty is far-sighted and able to prepare for a rainy day and deploy defenses on the border. I admire you very much!"
Fan Zhong bowed his hands in awe on the horse, showing great respect.
If the emperor hadn't made arrangements in advance, how many people would have been killed or injured in the dilapidated Shukou?
"Your Majesty, I once hesitated in court that Your Majesty would use troops against the Tatars. I sit in a well and look at the sky. I am so ashamed!"
Xuan Zhen was also convinced and bowed solemnly.
Fortunately, the emperor came with a large army, otherwise the soldiers and civilians of Sichuan would not know what kind of casualties there would be?
"Your Majesty, I am stupid and ignorant. I am ashamed of Your Majesty. Please punish me!"
Zheng Xingzhi, the minister of official affairs, also bowed immediately.
"Your Majesty, I am short-sighted, please punish me!"
"Your Majesty, please punish me!"
The accompanying Tai students Cheng Yuanfeng, Wang Ziqiang, Zheng Cai and others all apologized to Zhao Hong.
They once tried to prevent the emperor from using troops against Mongolia, but now they seemed to be watching the sky from a well, with the emperor strategizing and looking far above everyone else.
"Xuan Qing, Cui Qing, you two go back to the Lizhou camp first and be careful of the Tatar army coming to attack you."
Zhao Hong looked solemn and immediately issued a military order.
There are still nearly 10,000 soldiers in the Lizhou camp, and Lizhou is the gateway to Sichuan, so nothing can happen or anything can happen.
"My lords, have you seen this? This is war. There is no benevolence, righteousness or morality. It just depends on whose fist is stronger. In a world of great strife, you want to be quiet, but you are wishful thinking!"
Zhao Hong was riding on his horse, pointing at the corpses of Song soldiers and civilians scattered on the official road, facing a group of ministers, imperial students and soldiers, and shouted angrily.
"You all remember, I still said the same thing, anyone who offends us in the Song Dynasty will be killed no matter how strong he is! If anyone offends me, I will kill him!"
Zhao Hong's face was ashen and he almost roared angrily.
"I will obey His Majesty's teachings!"
All the Tai students and graduates of Jinling Lecture Hall had serious faces and bowed their hands.
The Mongol army had already reached the territory of the Song Dynasty. No wonder the emperor had to deploy defenses at Shukou in advance. These people of the Song Dynasty who died tragically were the people of the Song Dynasty. No wonder the emperor was so angry.
"The army moves forward immediately and goes straight to Mianzhou City!"
Zhao Hong looked grim and immediately issued the military order.
The Mongolian cavalry went around to the south of Mianzhou City and penetrated deep into the Song Dynasty. I wonder if there was something wrong with the defense at Shukou?
Cao Youwen, Lu Wende and others, famous anti-Mongolian generals in history, are not so unreliable, right?
