The next day, dawn.

On the flat and wide wilderness outside the city of Suzhou, the Song army lined up with the city on its back, and the distance between them and the Jin soldiers was about 400 steps.

The Song army discharged a goose-shaped formation, and the left and right flanks were composed of 6,000 men and horses led by Wang Shilong and Zhang Zhu, including 1,500 cavalry. The Chinese army had 15,000 men and was lined up in a stacked formation.

The stacked array was created by the famous generals Wu Jue and Wu Ling brothers in the Shaoxing period. The whole army was divided into three columns, with the long soldiers with swords and spears in the front, the bow in the back, and the last was the crossbow with the divine arm. During the battle, the whole army sits on its knees, and when the enemy approaches to a hundred paces, it is ordered to shoot a divine arm archer standing up (this is for the purpose of distance measurement), and if it can enter the enemy's formation, the divine arm archers are fired. When the enemy approaches to 70 paces, make a flat archer stand up and shoot at him, and if he can enter the enemy's line, he will shoot at the same time. When the enemy rejects the horse, the spearmen will fight with him hand-to-hand. In this way, the use of long-range strike weapons to intercept and defend at all levels weakens the ability of the enemy's cavalry to maneuver quickly, making it possible to resist cavalry in the field. This is the combat method summed up by the Wu brothers in the war with the Jin army in Sichuan and Shaanxi for many years.

The stacked formations listed by Li Xianzhong today are slightly different from those of the Wu brothers. Fifteen hundred crossbowmen were listed on the city wall of Suzhou, behind the whole army, and they were very open, including the left and right flanks. Although this is a little less dense, the coverage is much higher. And according to the condescending position, the range can also be increased by twenty paces.

In front of the city gate is Li Xianzhong's 500 personal guards, as well as golden drums, flags, horns and other things, which is the command center of the whole army, and there are 1,000 cavalry and 3,000 archers lined up on the left and right, forming the second case.

The first and second cases were about ten paces apart, and they were all foot soldiers. At the forefront are the shield bearers to protect the other troops, followed by the spear team, the great axe team, the broadsword team, the distance horse team, etc., each with a different weapon, fighting against the changes on the battlefield.

Su Shi Lie Zhining looked at the Song army on the opposite side, and the number was far less than himself. I was sure that the news of the spies was indeed wrong, and Shao Hongyuan did not join forces with Li Xianzhong. However, what makes Sushi Lie Zhining still a little puzzled is that since the Song army has few people, why not defend the city and fight, although the city wall of Suzhou has collapsed in many places, but when the military strength is at a disadvantage, it is always necessary to fight from the front to fight from the city.

"But maybe it's because Li Xianzhong has full confidence in the stacking tactics!" Of course, it is not unreasonable for Su Shi Lie Zhining to think like this. In the first year of Shaoxing (1131), Wu Jue and Wu Ling brothers guarded Sichuan and Shaanxi. The three battles of Shukou, Monk Yuan, Raofeng Pass, and Xianren Pass, all resisted the repeated attacks of tens of thousands of Jin troops with less than 10,000 troops, and the famous generals Wanyan Zongbi, Lou Room, Wanyan Sali and others were defeated under the hands of Wu Jue and Wu Ling brothers, and it was by virtue of the stacking battle method created by Wu Jue and Wu Ling brothers. It also established the brothers Wu Jue and Wu Ling in one fell swoop among the famous generals of Yue, Han, Zhang, and Liu, and the name of the stacked array was also famous all over the world and was promoted to the whole army of the Great Song Dynasty.

On a hill thousands of steps northwest of Suzhou, Yang Yan, Yu Gongliang, Bi Zaiyu, and Cao Xun immediately stood in the woods, looking through the trees as the two armies of Song and Jin lined up.

Yu Gongliang was obviously very familiar with the tactics of this dynasty, and He and the other three explained in detail the method of arranging the stacked array, as well as how the brothers Wu Jue and Wu Ling defeated the Jin army with the stacking array, and after killing Yan Zongbi, his heart was attacked by two arrows, and the Jin army led by him was killed several times.

After listening to Yu Gongliang's explanation, Cao Xun said: "Old Yu, according to what you say, isn't the stacking tactic invincible in the world?" Then we won't win this battle, then we are still hiding here to risk Shao Dutong's army. ”

Before Yu Gongliang could answer, Yang Yan smiled and said: "It's so easy to fight, the stacked array battle method created by Wu Jue and Wu Ling brothers was a matter of the first year of Shaoxing (1131), in fact, later the Song and Jin countries were at war, and our Great Song Dynasty was still defeated most of the time. ”

Cao Xun scratched the back of his head and said puzzledly: "No, I heard Lao Yu say this just now, this stack of battle methods is simply amazing, as if it is invincible in the world, why didn't it work later." ”

Bi Zaiyu also said: "I have thought about this point in the next wish, but I can't figure it out, can Brother Gongliang explain one or two?" ”

Yu Gongliang said with a smile: "This is actually not difficult to understand, although the stacking formation method is strong, but it takes a lot of time to set up the array, if the two armies meet in a narrow way, then you have time to calmly set up the formation, and the Jin soldiers have also learned to be obedient, and when you set up the stacking array, they will not attack." ”

Bi Zaiyu suddenly realized: "I wish to come like this, and then I will understand." ”

At this time, Yang Yan suddenly said: "There is one more point." ”

Yu Gongliang was stunned for a moment and said, "There is still that point, please Brother Yang explain it in detail." ”

Yang Yan said: "Although the stacking battle method is strong, it is only a purely defensive tactic, and it cannot take the initiative to attack. At that time, Wu Jue and Wu Ling brothers guarded Shaanchuan, mainly to defend, so that the stacking array could be used to throw off the field. Now that my Song Xingbing is on the Northern Expedition, it is the initiative to attack the Jin army, and I am afraid that the use of stacking the array is not great. After a pause, Yang Yan said again: "Moreover, the land of Shaanxi and Sichuan is mostly mountain roads, narrow and uneven, rugged and difficult to walk. Horses can not gallop fast, so that the cavalry of the Jin army is fast, the advantages of maneuver can not be brought into play, such a terrain can give full play to the power of the stacking array tactics, if it is on a flat battlefield, a distance of one or two hundred steps of the horse gallops, it will pass in an instant, and the power of the stacking array tactics will probably be greatly reduced. ”

Yu Gongliang looked at Yang Yan in surprise: "Brother Yang's opinion is one layer deeper than below. ”

Bi Zaiyu also said: "Now I have a thorough understanding of the advantages and disadvantages of the stacking array tactics, if I lead troops in the future, when should I use the stacking array, and when I shouldn't use it, I will have a bottom in my heart." ”

Cao Xun looked at Yang Yan, then at Yu Gongliang and said, "Just now Lao Yu blew the stacking array into the sky, and now the eldest brother has demoted it to the ground, who of you two is right!" ”

The three of them all saw Cao Xun together, and suddenly laughed together, Yang Yan sighed with a smile and said; "Soldiers are impermanent, water is impermanent. There are advantages and disadvantages to any kind of tactic, and there is a truth that one tactic can dominate the world. Yue Wumu said, the use of the skill, only one heart, he did not use the stacking array when he was fighting, but didn't he win more battles than anyone else?

Cao Xun shook his head and said, "Forget it, forget it, what tactics and formations are too complicated." You can worry about these things, I will listen to you, and I will do what you say! When I went to sleep, he called me when he started to act. ”

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The number of the Jin army was more than 45,000. Among them were 20,000 cavalrymen, most of whom were Jurchens, but also a small number of Khitans and Han Chinese. The composition of the infantry army was more complex, with about 15,000 Han Chinese, and the others including Jurchens, Khitans, Xi, and Dangxiang. The left-wing general of the Jin army was Wanhu Puluxu, and the right-wing general was Wanhu Lubu. The two men each led 5,000 cavalry to form the left and right crutches and horses, and each also had 5,000 infantry. There were 10,000 cavalry, 10,000 infantry and 5,000 archers in the middle.

Today, the Jin state has ruled the Yellow River valley for more than 30 years. The period of rule over the Hebei Road area, including the land of the former Liao State, was longer. Both the Khitan and the Han people inevitably dissolved into the social life of the Jurchens. The army of the Jin State has also changed from the Jurchens of the past to a multi-ethnic mixed army dominated by the Jurchens.

"Attack" Su Shi Lie Zhining's raised left hand waved down hard.

The Iron Float Commander led the Column with a thousand Iron Floats rushing to the front. It was followed by five thousand cavalry and five thousand infantry. When Sushi Lie Zhining sent out his troops, he brought 1,000 iron floats, and from the defeated army in Hongxian, there were more than 300 iron floats led by Wudai, and they stayed by the side of Lie Zhining for the second echelon.

The cavalry was in front, and the infantry was in the rear. The sound of tens of thousands of horses' hooves stepping in was earth-shattering. The air seemed to suddenly become heavy, and the earth had begun to tremble.

The Song army was still standing still at this time, and the distance between the two sides was constantly being narrowed.

But the static situation was soon broken. When the distance between the two armies was shortened to about two hundred paces, the sound of bullhorns sounded on the city wall of Suzhou.

The Godarm crossbowman raised his crossbow.

More than 1,500 sharp arrows broke away from the bowstring, flew into the sky, and fell into the formation of the golden army like a gathering wind. The Tiefutu in the front row of the Jin army were all wearing heavy armor, and the arrows were not a big threat to them, and the cavalry behind them were also prepared and raised their shields to block the arrows. Although there was still blood pooling out through the gap between the shields, it did not slow down the Jin army's advance.

The distance between the two sides was closer, and the archers in the second row of the Song soldiers also began to release arrows, and the rain of arrows of the Song army suddenly became dense, and more arrows dodged the shields and shot the Jin soldiers, and some shot the war horses. Even if the horse that fell to the ground with an arrow and the golden soldier who fell from the horse were not shot to death, they were either trampled by the war horse behind them, or they tripped over the war horse behind them, and they were trampled by the war horse behind them. Wailing and moaning are also increasing. But the Jin soldiers, who were still sitting on horseback, still bravely braved the rain of arrows to rush towards the Song army.

When the distance between the two directions approached thirty paces, the Song army, which had been standing still, finally began to move. The shield soldiers in the front row suddenly put down a large shield more than a person high, and the cavalry, pikemen, giant axe soldiers, and horse rejectors in the back rushed out and rushed towards the Jin army. The archers of the Song army also stopped shooting arrows so as not to injure their own people by mistake, and the crossbowmen on the city wall of Suzhou also consciously fired into the distance, shooting at the Jin infantry who followed the cavalry.

Despite the loss of nearly 2,000 men in the course of the charge, the cavalry of the Jin army also threw away their shields, their spears were flattened forward, and their sabers were raised high to meet the Song army. Swords, guns, and armor collided violently. Hot blood gushed out in large quantities. The spears were broken, the armor was pierced, and the Song and Jin armies were intertwined and engaged in a desperate struggle.

"Die, Golden Dog."

"Kill, kill Nanban."

The horses neighed in the same voice, and the people roared in different languages. There was also a wailing from both sides. The stumps of the swords and guns were still flying in the air, the heads rolling on the ground were still wearing helmets, and the horses were trampling on the corpses of the enemy and themselves, intertwined, and the people on the horses were still fighting to the death. In just a few moments, deaths on both sides were growing alarmingly.

Although it was only the beginning of the great war, the earth was already stained red with blood, and only the smell of blood was left in the air.

Su Shi Lie Zhining nodded with satisfaction, and used the thick armor of Tiefutu and the speed of the cavalry to resist a few rounds of arrows from the Song army and then fought with the Song army, so that the archers of the Song army did not dare to release arrows easily, and it seemed that this goal had been achieved. He immediately ordered: "Second team, rush." ”

More than 20,000 people, including 10,000 cavalry, finally rushed to the battlefield that was being torn apart, and this time it was the main force of the Jin army.

Of course, Li Xianzhong never expected to be able to stop the Jin army's attack with bows and arrows, and the Song army invested only 5,000 troops in the first round of attacks. Seeing that the main force of the Jin soldiers began to enter the battlefield, Li Xianzhong also ordered, and the 12,000 Song troops also began to increase to the battlefield.

"Kill." With an angry shout, the sword flashed, and another golden soldier fell in front of Shi Jun, the fierce general who won the name of bravery in the battle of Quarry Rock threw away the knife in his hand that was covered in flesh and blood, took the new knife from the pawn who was carrying the knife behind him, and continued to slash at the golden soldier.

"Kill, kill the Jin soldiers." Shi Jun was slashing the Jin soldiers, and loudly encouraging the soldiers around him.

In the light of a sword, another golden soldier scraped his armor and his stomach ruptured, and eyeballs and blood splattered from his face. Before the deceased fell to the ground, the big knife in Shi Jun's hand suddenly slashed out in the opposite direction at a faster speed, and the wrist of the spear that was still holding it flew high into the sky. Immediately after that, the long knife plunged into the body of the third golden soldier with a fierce sword aura.

More and more corpses fell beside Shi Jun, but there were still more Jin soldiers who rushed forward as if they were not afraid of death. Shi Jun threw away the bloody knife in his hand again, and when he turned around to look for the servant with the knife basket on his back, he found that the servant with the knife basket on his back didn't know whether he was killed in battle or was killed by the Jin soldiers, and he had disappeared. Shi Jun was stunned for a moment, and immediately picked up a big knife from the ground, and then carefully observed the form, the Song army around him was becoming less and less, and the Jin soldiers were still surging up like a tide. Shi Jun was discouraged for a while, in this battle of tens of thousands of people, personal bravery could not change the situation of the battle.

Although in the melee, the fast maneuver of the Jin army's horseback and the strong impact of Tiefutu could not be brought into play, but with the advantage of numbers, the Jin soldiers gradually gained the upper hand, and the formation of the Song army was constantly squeezed by the Jin soldiers and retreated.

Su Shi Lie Zhining stared at the battlefield, and now there were about 12,000 people left in the Jin army who had not moved.

At this time, Bai Yanjing, who was beside him, said: "Marshal, now that our army has the upper hand, why don't you add some more people to go immediately and defeat the Song army in one go." ”

Su Shi Lie Zhining shook his head and said: "No need, it's not time yet, the Song army also has reserve men, let's not rush to send all the reserve troops." Suddenly turned his head and shouted: "Drumming." ”

"Knock, knock, knock, knock" Hundreds of cowhide drums emitted a deafening roar.

The spear in the hand of the "Huh" Shulie made a slicing sound of the wind, piercing the armor of a Song army. Despite the lack of room to sprint, Tiefutu still had the upper hand in the battle against the Song army with an impenetrable iron armor. Moreover, with the protection of the infantry, the Song army could not focus on horses and legs without armor as they had done with Tiefutu in the past.

"Kill, kill, kill, kill, kill all the Nanban." Shulie screamed, the spear was drawn, and the Song soldiers fell like mowing grass.

Li Xianzhong was still stationed under his command, watching the Song army retreat to the edge of Suzhou City, still not moving.

At this time, Li Bao and Li Fu, who were already in crooked armor, retreated to Li Xianzhong's side with a group of soldiers.

Li Xianzhong's face sank, and he said, "Why did the two of you retreat here, why don't you take the native soldiers back quickly." ”

Li Fu said in a trembling voice: "The Jin army is so powerful that we can't stand it." ”

Li Bao also said: "Yes, Lord Fufu, the Jin soldiers are too powerful, our army is going to be defeated, so let's go into the city first." ”

Li Xianzhong's face changed greatly, he looked around and said sharply: "Take these two people and I'll take them down." The pro-guards on the left and right immediately swarmed up and arrested Li Bao and Li Fu.

Li Bao was shocked and said: "The last general is not guilty, why should you arrest the last general." ”

Li Xianzhong didn't say a word, took out his saber, "hey, hea" two knives, and cut off the heads of the two. said sharply: "If there are any more people who retreat, these two people will end." ”

As soon as he turned around, he shouted to the city of Suzhou: "Close the city gate, and you are not allowed to open it without the order of the commander." ”

"Boom" sounded the gate of Suzhou closed. Li Xianzhong turned his head and said in a loud voice: "Ben Shuai is standing here, if the Jin army dies here, Ben Shuai will fight to the death with the Jin army to the end, and will never return to the city if he does not kill the Jin soldiers." This time he used his internal strength to shout, and the Song soldiers on the battlefield could hear it clearly.

Seeing the commander like this, the morale of the Song soldiers increased greatly, and they shouted in unison: "If you don't return the gold soldiers, you will never return to the city." ”

The Jin army's advance finally stopped. Shulie found that no matter how hard he tried, the Jin army could not move forward. Even if it's an iron float, it won't work. The Song army simply fought to the death with the Jin army without regard for his life. The infantry ignored the swords and guns coming at them, and confronted the golden soldiers, and the cavalry jumped directly from their horses, hugged Tiefutu and fell off their horses together. Due to the heavy armor he was wearing, Tiefutu who fell to the ground had almost the slightest resistance. And the crossbowmen on the city wall saw that the rear team of the Jin army had also entered the range of fire, and began to shoot arrows again.

Su Shi Lie Zhining and Bai Yanjing couldn't help but feel a little chill when they looked at it, they were both soldiers who had experienced a hundred battles, but they had never seen such a tragic battle. Yang Yan and the others in the distance were also speechless.

It was the first time for Yang Yan to watch the battle of tens of thousands of people from the perspective of a bystander.

Bi Zaiyu muttered: "It's been more than two hours since we fought, why didn't Lord Fu give us the order to take us to battle?" ”

Yu Gongliang said calmly: "The Jin army still has reserve troops to fight, and now the Song army can withstand it, Li Zhaofu wants to wait for Jin Zai to dispatch all his troops before letting us attack." ”

At this time, Yang Yan suddenly said: "If Shao Dutong can give me 10,000 horses, not only 5,000, I can make a surprise attack on Liucheng and cut off the return route of the Jin army, then it will be so fierce." ”

Bi Zaiyu nodded and sighed: "You are right, but it's a pity that Shao Dutong refuses to take care of the overall situation, what can we do." ”

Yang Yan said slowly: "So if I were Sushi Lie Zhining, I would not have fought a decisive battle with the Song army in this situation, but confronted the Song army here, and sent another 5,000 men and horses to take the Lingbi to gain a foothold, after taking the Lingbi, if Li Zhaofu and Shao Dutong have not joined forces, they will be broken one by one, if Shao Dutong will join forces in Suzhou, they will take Hongxian, if Li Zhaofu will join forces in Hongxian County, they will take Suzhou, and then divide the city to defend and cut off the grain route of the Song army, then they can win without a fight." ”

Yu Gongliang looked at Yang Yan with a starling face and said, "If Su Shi Lie Zhining uses troops like this, our army will definitely be defeated, it seems that it is really fortunate." Brother Yang's use of soldiers is really unexpected! ”

Yang Yan said: "There, there, I'm just talking on paper, and when it comes to the real battlefield, it may not be useful." ”

At this time, Bi Zaiyu said loudly: "It seems that the Jin army has begun to use the reserve army. ”

The two immediately looked at the battlefield again, and sure enough, after a long time of attacking, Sushi Lie Zhining finally dispatched all the reserve troops, leaving only a thousand people and Uday's three hundred iron floating figures by his side. On the Song side, except for the 1,500 crossbowmen in Suzhou City, only Li Xianzhong's 500 personal guards did not enter the battlefield. Even the archers rushed up and fought with the golden army.

At this time, the reserves of both sides were basically thrown into the battlefield. The battle was raging on the walls of Suzhou City.

After nearly an hour of fierce fighting, the Jin army finally regained its advantage, and the Song army's formation slowly contracted. Su Shi Lie Zhining finally breathed a sigh of relief, it seems that the battle situation has finally developed in his favor.

At this moment, a wolf smoke suddenly rose from Suzhou City. The black-and-gray smoke lingered in the air for a long time. Su Shi Lie Zhining's eyebrows immediately tightened again, and the mood that had just been relaxed suddenly became tense again.

At this time, dust suddenly flew from the left rear of the Jin army, and the sound of dense horses' hooves came from far and near. A Song army was killed, and the military flag was a big "Shao" character.

Although the dust raised was so high that it almost obscured the day, it could not hide the battle-hardened Lie Zhining: "It was the smoke and dust caused by tying a tree branch to the horse's tail. According to his judgment, this Song army is no more than five or six thousand people.

If Sushi Lie Zhining was just a mediocre commander, he wouldn't think too much about it at all, the enemy came with 5,000 reinforcements, then split 5,000 people to fight on the back, and the rest of the men and horses continued to attack Li Xianzhong's Song army. But Su Shi Lie Zhining is a general with considerable military talent, looking at this Song army that suddenly appeared, his mind was running rapidly: "Where is this Song army from?" This is Li Xianzhong's pre-arrangement, pretending to be Shao Hongyuan's reinforcements, which makes me think that I have been hit by his needle to lure the enemy, or is it really Shao Hongyuan's reinforcements, I have indeed been hit by the needle of the Song army to lure the enemy? ”

Su Shi Lie Zhining worked hard to calm himself down, carefully observing the Song army that had already entered the left flank of the Jin army. I saw a green horse spear Song general in the lead, the spear momentum was like the wind, the courage was abnormal, and the Jin army fell like a wave of water separated. When the Song army saw the reinforcements coming, they were all in high spirits, and the left flank of the Jin army was in a hurry, and it was chaotic at this moment.

"Li Xianzhong didn't live in the city and defended it, but he dared to open the city to meet the battle, because he knew that reinforcements would come? But if it was really Shao Hongyuan's reinforcements, why were the numbers so small? According to the report of the spies, Shao Hongyuan's army was at least more than 20,000 people. So where is Shao Hongyuan's main force? ”

At this time, Bai Yanjing, who was on the side, finally spoke: "Marshal, it seems to me that this is indeed Shao Hongyuan's troops. ”

Su Shi Lie Zhining said: "Oh! How can you be sure that it is Shao Hongyuan's people? ”

Ziyan Jingyi pointed to the Song general led by him and said: "Marshal, the Song general with the green horse and spear is the brave general of Shao Hongyuan's subordinates, and the back army is under Yang Yan, and Wudai also knows him." ”

Su Shi Lie Zhining turned his head and asked Wudai: "Wudai, do you know that Song general?" ”

Uday nodded and said: "The words of the White Prison Army are true, the last general fought with this person several times when he was in Hongxian, of course I know." It was he who killed Lord Puchatumu. ”

"Oh! This army is really Shao Hongyuan's troops, so Shao Hongyuan really came to help Li Xianzhong. Fu Shi Lie Zhining was talking to himself, as if he was asking Bai Yanjing, and said, "But why didn't Shao Hongyuan come first, but he didn't come until now." ”

Bai Yanjing said: "Thinking about it, Shao Hongyuan must want to wait for Li Xianzhong to fight with our army first, and wait for Li Xianzhong to help him when he can't support it, so as to win the battle merit alone, right?" ”

Su Shi Lie Zhining nodded, but immediately shook his head and said: "No, if according to your statement, Shao Hongyuan should be dispatched with the whole army, but why only five or six thousand people came." Where is Shao Hongyuan's main force? ”

Just as they said this, both of them were stunned at the same time, and at the same time thought of a place: Yongcheng.

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Yang Yan quickly waved the spear in his hand left and right on his horse. Jin Bing's screams kept ringing around him. Hai Dongqing also cooperated with Yang Yan to shuttle left and right in the Jin soldiers' formation. Under the leadership of Yang Yan, all the Song soldiers such as Bi Zaiyu, Cao Xun, and Yu Gongliang fought bravely, and everyone competed to be the first, killing the corpses of the golden soldiers all over the field. As soon as Zhang Zhu, the commander of the right flank of the Song soldiers, saw that reinforcements had arrived, he immediately commanded the Song army to counterattack, and did not allow the Jin soldiers to have time to reorganize the attack.

And Pu Luxu, the commander of the left wing of the Jin army, was already sweating profusely at this time, and desperately commanded the Jin army to stabilize the corner: "Steady, steady, don't panic, don't mess up, resist the Song army, you must be determined." But the sudden arrival of Yang Yanjun had already disrupted the formation of the Jin army, and the left wing of the Jin army had begun to retreat avoidably.

Pu Luxu was so anxious that he only stomped his feet in the horses' shoes, and just when he was at a loss for what to do, there was a sound of horses' hooves behind him, and when he looked back, he saw that about three or four hundred black-armored cavalrymen had come behind him. "Ahh It is an iron float figure. "Although there are only three or four hundred iron floating pictures here, it is enough to make Pu Luxu feel a lot more at ease. For Tiefutu, Jin people have an almost blind trust in their hearts.

"Master Pu." Uday came to Pu Luxu's horse: "On the order of the marshal, come to support Pu Daren." ”

"Good! All right! You've come so well. If it weren't for the horses, Pu Luxu almost wanted to hug Uday, "Quick, you take Tiefu Tu, you must block Song Jun." ”

The black armor, the black warriors, even though there were only three or four hundred people, gave a strong sense of oppression. Seeing that this black torrent only ran towards the Song army, Pu Luxu's heart prayed silently: "Uday, it's all up to you, everything can only hope for Tiefutu." ”

"Big brother, it's Tiefutu, Tiefutu is here again." Cao Xun shouted loudly to Yang Yan.

Yang Yan shook his spear and said, "What about Tiefutu, brothers and me—rush ——! At this time, the morale of the Song army was booming, and most of the Song troops who came with Yang Yan were in Mawengdian and Hongxian City and fought with Yang Yan in Tiefutu, and they were full of confidence in Yang Yan, and they no longer had the fear of other Song troops for Tiefutu in their hearts. And the Song soldiers under Yu Gongliang saw that the Song troops under Yang Yan were not afraid of Tiefutu, and they were not to be outdone, so they rushed forward together.

"Kill - kill the gold thief."

"Rush-rush-rush-ah!"

Yang Yan waved the spear in his hand and met the black-armored cavalry rushing over. With a "whew", the cavalryman was picked off his horse by Yang Yan with a shot. The spear in Yang Yan's hand did not stop, and each shot brought out a strong energy, and no one in Tiefutu was Yang Yan's general. Either the horse fell or the weapon was shaken away. When the Song army in the back saw it, their morale was even higher with high morale, and they were strangled with Tiefutu.

"It's too strong, it's so strong." A wave of despair suddenly surged in Uday's heart, "With this Song general, we don't want to defeat the Song army." In Uday's memory, only Yang Zaixing, who fought against Xiaoshang River in the legend, can be compared with this Song general.

Yang Zaixing, at the beginning of the Liukou Cao Cheng's general, in the second year of Shaoxing, Yue Feiping Cao Cheng, Yang Zaixing led a hundred cavalry to attack the Yuejia army, but the official army killed Han Shunfu and killed Fei Di. Success or failure, Zaixing jumped into the stream, Zhang Xian wanted to kill him, and Zaixing said: "I am willing to see my father-in-law." And he was bound. Fei saw the re-xing, strange appearance, relieved, said: "I will not kill, you should serve the country with loyalty." ”

In the battle of Yuncheng, Yang Zaixing rode into the Jin army alone, failed to capture the vultures, and killed hundreds of people and returned. Wushu was very angry, and came back with strength, and 120,000 soldiers were killed in Linying. Zaixing met the enemy at Xiaoshang Bridge with 300 horsemen, and in a sudden battle, more than 2,000 people were killed, and 10,000 households were scattered, and 1,000 households were killed. Ju said that after Yang Zaixing hit every arrow during the battle, he broke the shaft of the arrow and resumed the battle. Zaixing was killed in battle, and then his body was obtained, and he was burned, and he got two liters of arrows.

Uday did not meet Yang Zaixing. But I have heard many veterans who participated in the battle of Yuncheng and Linying talk about Yang Zaixing's bravery. Uday had always felt that it was a bit exaggerated. But seeing Yang Yan on the battlefield now, Wudai Jingyu found that there are really Yang Zaixing-style fierce generals in this world. Despite thinking like this, Uday still raised the spear in his hand and faced Yang Yan.

The two spears brought out a sharp sound of wind, and they struck each other fiercely seven or eight times. Uday felt a scorching stream of air spread throughout his body from his hands that clenched his spears. A mouthful of blood spurted out of his mouth.

When the two horses staggered, Yang Yan shot backhanded, penetrating the heavy armor and piercing into Uday's body.

The main general was killed, and even the well-trained Tiefutu couldn't help but be in chaos. The panicked mood immediately spread to the left flank of the Jin army. Pu Luxu could no longer do anything, and watched the army under his command rout.

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"Shao Hongyuan's main force went to take Yongcheng." Su Shi Lie Zhining and Bai Yanjing said it almost at the same time.

"If Yongcheng is taken, then the return route of our army will be cut off, and our army will be in danger of being annihilated." Bai Yan said respectfully: "Marshal, then what should we do now?" ”

Su Shi Lie Zhining's face also changed. Clearly, there is a dilemma between the trade-offs. Although the current battlefield was due to the sudden appearance of Yang Yanjun, the left flank of the Jin army began to retreat, but the right flank and the middle of the Jin army still had an absolute advantage. As long as it is properly deployed, it is not difficult to stabilize the situation. Su Shi Lie Zhining is still confident that he is more than 50% sure of winning.

But even if the Jin army wins, the Song army can retreat to the city of Suzhou and defend the city. Although the walls of Suzhou City were damaged in many places, it was absolutely no problem that the Song army could still hold on for more than ten days. If Jin Jun has no worries, of course he is not afraid. But what if Yongcheng is taken by Shao Hongyuan, and he is unable to attack the city under Suzhou City.

"Collect the troops." Su Shi Lie Zhining finally squeezed out a few words from between his teeth: "Return to Yongcheng." ”

Despite being a scattered army, Fushi Lie Zhining still showed outstanding command ability. Not only the Chinese army and the right wing, which had the upper hand, but even the left wing, which was defeated by the Song army, was unstable and not chaotic at all. There was no chance for the Song army.

As soon as Li Xianzhong saw that the Jin army had no flaws, he also ordered that he should not chase after him, and collected his troops and returned to the city.

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Li Xianzhong knew very well that the retreat of the Jin army was only a suspicious plan by Yang Yan, but although he retreated, he was not defeated. If Su Shi Lie Zhining finds out the reality of the Song army, he will definitely make a comeback. If Jin Jun came again, it would be impossible to rethink his old plan.

The next day, Li Xianzhong ordered to gather the strong people of the whole city and rush to repair the city wall with the army. Yu Gongliang is responsible for scheduling.

Because Yang Yan was still Shao Hongyuan's subordinate, he did not participate in repairing the city, but only served as a patrol task.

In the afternoon of this day, Yang Yan came back from patrol, and happened to meet Yu Gongliang by the city gate, urging the army and civilians to repair the city wall. I saw that under the supervision of a group of soldiers with long whips and big sticks, a team of people carried large and small stones, mud, lime and other things to the city wall, and the engineers hurriedly repaired the gap in the city wall.

The supervising soldiers kept shouting: "Hurry up, hurry up, don't grind." And from time to time he waved the leather whip in his hand and "snapped, snapped". Yang Yan couldn't help frowning slightly, but he could see clearly that the leather whip was just waving in the air, although it was a little scary, but it really hit very few people.

At this time, Yu Gongliang on the city wall also saw Yang Yan, and hurriedly came down from the city wall to greet Yang Yan: "Brother Yang, the gong patrol is back, is there any movement?" ”

Yang Yan shook his head and said, "Fortunately, I haven't seen the Jin soldiers within a radius of fifty or sixty miles, and it seems that the Jin soldiers have really been scattered." ”

Yu Gongliang nodded and was about to speak. At this time, another group of soldiers escorted hundreds of people to the city wall, and a small leader led by Yu Gongliang came to Yu Gongliang, bowed down and said, "Lord Yu, we have arrested another group of people who are unwilling to come to work. ”

Yu Gongliang nodded and said, "Okay, let's put them all into each team to work." ”

The leader immediately ordered the soldiers to organize the captured people into a team to carry stones and other repairs to the city. A few of the people were still unconvinced, and wanted to struggle, but after receiving a few lashes, they became honest and went to work.

Yang Yan was puzzled and asked, "Brother Yu, what's going on, why do you want to forcibly recruit people to work." ”

Yu Gongliang smiled bitterly: "The soldiers are not enough, and they need to recuperate to wait for the Jin soldiers to come again, so Li Zhaofu had to give an order to recruit the people in the city and repair the city wall." ”

Yang Yan was a little displeased and said: "Even if you recruit people to repair the city, they have to be willing to do it themselves, how can they be forcibly recruited to work like this?" Our Northern Expedition was to recover the lost land of the Great Song Dynasty and rescue the people of the Great Song Dynasty in the Central Plains and Hebei. Shao Dutong connived at the abduction of the people by the native soldiers in Hongxian County. Li Zhaofu forcibly conscripted 100 pregnant laborers in Suzhou, what is the difference between this practice and the Jin people's rule here? ”

Yu Gongliang heard this, and said: "Brother Yang, what you said is not right, how can these two things be talked about together!" After a pause, Yu Gongliang said again: "[Sun Tzu's Art of War] Yun: 'There will be five dangers, you must die and kill, you must live and be captured, you can be insulted in your hurry, you can be humiliated by being honest, and you can be annoyed by loving the people. All these five will be passed, and the actual use of soldiers will also be used. If the army is overturned and killed, there will be five dangers, and it must not be overlooked. 'Brother Yang has seen it. ”

Yang Yan listened, thought about the meaning of these words, and thought thoughtfully.

Yu Gongliang stared at Yang Yan: "As far as the current situation is concerned, although the Jin soldiers have not been defeated, their vitality has not been injured, and they may make a comeback at any time." If we don't repair the walls quickly, how will we resist when the golden soldiers come back? What's more, although we forced the people to work, we did not let the people do it in vain, and we were paid ten yuan a day and two meals. This is not the same thing as conniving at soldiers to take the people captive. ”

Yang Yan was still a little puzzled: "Since there is a salary, why are there still people who are unwilling to come to repair the city?" ”

Yu Gongliang sighed and said, "The people don't think about so many things to recover the lost land. All they think about is how they should live. As long as you can ensure that you can live well, it doesn't matter if it is ruled by the Jin people or the Great Song Dynasty. If it is in the city under the jurisdiction of our Great Song Dynasty, we can also publicize to the people that if the Jin soldiers break through the city, the family will be ruined, and so on, the people will naturally be willing to contribute to the repair of the city. It is a pity that Suzhou has been occupied by the Jin State for more than 20 years, and most of the people in the city are used to the rule of the Jin people. The Great Song Dynasty came to attack Suzhou, although they would not resist, but it was impossible for them to resist the Jin soldiers with us. I've only recently learned this truth. ”

Yang Yan was at a loss when he heard this, he had never heard of the truth that Yu Gongliang said before, but he had to admit that it was indeed reasonable. Is this what real war is all about? In the past, when he was studying at the Shangwu Academy, the instructors often said that the people of the Central Plains were always looking forward to the recovery of the Great Song army. The minister of the main war often said in the endless arguments with the lord and peace, "The Central Plains are all looking forward to it, and they are eating pot pulp to welcome the king." However, this is not the case at all.

Yang Yan couldn't help but say: "Since this is the case, then is it right or wrong for us to raise the Northern Expedition?" ”

Yu Gongliang said categorically: "Of course it's right, the Central Plains, Hebei, and Shandong were originally my Great Song Dynasty lands, and they were forcibly occupied by the Jin people, how can they be left alone?" It's just that the fighter is a major matter of the country, and if you want to win, you must be fully prepared, and you can't pin your hopes on the people of Hebei and the Central Plains. During the Xuanhe period, the Great Song Dynasty invaded Liao, hoping that the people of the sixteen states of Yanyun would be able to fragrant flowers to welcome the king's division, but they were defeated by the Liao army. had no choice but to invite the Jin people to send troops, but instead led the wolves into the house, leading the Jin people to invade the south, and the two saints were covered with dust. Half of the rivers and mountains of my Great Song Dynasty were also lost at the hands of the Jin people. This is a profound lesson! ”

Yang Yan nodded and said, "Brother Yu, what you said is indeed very reasonable, and it has made me figure out a lot of things. ”

Yu Gongliang said with a smile: "Brother Yang has already told me, I have just been a soldier for a few more years, and I know more things." ”

Although it was a forced conscription of the people, at the end of the day, Yu Gongliang paid everyone their wages, and gave double copies to the ten people who worked the hardest as a reward. Seeing that the wages were really paid, and there were rewards for doing a good job, and the next day there was no need for Song Jun's strict encouragement, and the people came consciously, and the progress of the construction was much faster than the first day.

So Yu Gongliang divided the people into two groups, stepped up repairs day and night, and worked for six days and six nights in one breath, and finally repaired all the damaged parts of the city wall. He also prepared a lot of equipment to defend the city. Li Xianzhong was overjoyed, and he was not afraid to have 100,000 gold soldiers to attack Suzhou.

And Su Shi Lie Zhining, who retreated to Yongcheng, did not find Shao Hongyuan's men. Spies were sent to investigate, and a few days later, they finally got the exact news that Shao Hongyuan's main force did not have Suzhou at all, but did not move in Hongxian County, and only sent Yang Yan's 2,000 men and horses.

Su Shi Lie Zhining and Bai Yanjing couldn't help but regret it greatly, but by this time the Song army had already repaired the city wall of Suzhou. Siege warfare has always been the weakness of the golden soldiers. At his own expense, Su Shi Lie Zhining could not capture Suzhou with his existing forces. I had to report to the central capital and ask for reinforcements.

At this time, it was the end of November, the middle of winter was coming, and it was snowing heavily, and the reinforcements of the Jin Kingdom could not support the Jin soldiers of Yongcheng. The two sides then fell into a temporary truce.

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Lin'an, Imperial Palace, Deoksugung Palace.

Sitting was an old man in his seventies. Some of the gray hair was tied up by a golden crown engraved with a double dragon playing baht, and the yellow robe worn by the body was embroidered with a five-clawed golden dragon, which was none other than Zhao Gou, the emperor of the Great Song Dynasty. There was an old woman in palace clothes sitting on the side, who was the Empress Dowager Zhang. Sitting on the side of the lower head is Zhao Tuan, the eleventh emperor of the Great Song Dynasty.

Empress Dowager Zhang smiled and said: "I haven't seen you for a few days, the official family has lost some weight, although state affairs are important, the official family must also take care of their bodies." ”

Zhao Tuan said: "Thank you for your concern, and your sons will definitely pay more attention in the future." ”

Zhao Gou also said: "Although it is the emperor's duty to be diligent in government affairs, there are too many things in the court, and the things that should be handed over to the ministers must be handled by the ministers." ”

Zhao Tuan said: "Erchen knows that today's Erchen is to see Taishang and Niangniang; Second, I also want to tell Taishang and Niangniang a great joy. ”

Zhao Gou smiled: "What kind of happy event? ”

Zhao Tuan said: "Shao Hongyuan captured Hongxian, Li Xianzhong captured Lingbi and Suzhou, and defeated the left marshal of the Jin State, Su Shilie Zhining. This is a rare victory for me in many years. ”

Zhao Gou was stunned and said, "Why did you start a war with the Jin Kingdom again?" ”

Zhao Tuan said: "It's all because the Jin State is too deceitful, and the envoy sent last month not only wants my Great Song Dynasty to repay the New Year's coin, but also wants my Great Song Dynasty to cede the five states of Hai, Si, Tang, Deng, and Shang." It's really bearable, but it's unbearable. If it weren't for the fact that 'the two countries are fighting, and the envoys are not beheaded', the sons will behead the envoys. Now the retainers are preemptive and preemptively dispatch troops. ”

Zhao Gou frowned and said: "The major affairs of the country of soldiers, the two countries are fighting together, and the outcome is unpredictable, the officials still have to be cautious and listen to the minister's opinions." ”

Zhao Tuan smiled and said: "Taishang, please rest assured, Erchen has not been idle in the past few years, and has been inspiring troops to wipe horses, accumulate grass and grain, and rectify military equipment." Now I think that the soldiers are well fed and ready to be full. is about to fight a decisive battle with the Jin Kingdom. ”

Zhao Gou shook his head and said: "The number of victories and defeats is unpredictable, once the war starts, how many people will be displaced and their families will be destroyed. As a monarch, you should always remember the word 'benevolence' in your heart, and remember to think of the common people in the world! ”

Zhao Tuan said: "What Taishang said is that my Great Song Dynasty was occupied by the Jin State and occupied half of the rivers and mountains, and the two saints were taken captive, and they had to pay tribute every year. As the son of heaven of the Great Song Dynasty, how could Erchen be oppressed by the Jin people like this. Erchen's Northern Expedition came to regain the lost territory and hate his ancestors; Second, it is also for the people of the Great Song Dynasty in the Central Plains, Hebei, Shandong and other places not to be oppressed by the Jin people. ”

Zhao Gou said unhappily: "Jin soldiers have always been brave and strong, my Great Song Dynasty people have always been weak, and it was difficult to defeat the Jin Kingdom when my Great Song Dynasty was in its heyday, not to mention that now only this half of the country is left." I think that if the Jin soldiers don't attack, they will be killed, but they will give them some silver and silk cloth every year, even if they write to be ministers, it is just a face, and there is no loss to my Great Song Dynasty. It's not a good battle! ”

Zhao Tuan said: "Taishang, if you don't generalize everything, you can't beat the Jin people back then, and I'm sad that my Great Song Dynasty will never be able to beat the Jin people." Now didn't we capture the three cities and repel the golden soldiers? Why do you say that my Great Song Dynasty can't beat Jin Guo? Erchen not only wants to recover the lost land in the Central Plains and Hebei, but also to recapture the long-lost Yanyun Sixteen Prefectures, magnify my Great Song Dynasty, make Siyi come to the dynasty, and achieve the great cause of the Han and Tang Dynasties......" The more he said, the higher his voice: "Erchen wants to divide his troops into three routes, one route is Jinghu Lu to take Luoyang, one route is the Lianghuai Road to attack Xuzhou, one way is the coastal road to take Shandong, and the three roads are to enter ......"

Before Zhao Tuan's words were finished, Zhao Gou patted the armrest of the dragon chair and said angrily: "Okay, after I am a hundred years old, it is not too late for you to discuss the Northern Expedition." ”

Zhao Tuan was stunned and looked at Zhao Gou blankly. Zhao Gou also felt that he was talking a little too much, and he also looked at Zhao Tuan, and the two of them felt that they had nothing to say for a while, and the atmosphere was very embarrassing.

Fortunately, at this time, Empress Dowager Zhang was busy playing a round and said: "Taishang, the official family is also tired, and the Taishang is also going to rest, let the officials discuss these military affairs with the ministers!" ”

At this time, the atmosphere eased slightly, and Zhao Tuan also got up and said: "It's not too early, and the retainer will not disturb Taishang and Niangniang to rest, so I will retire." ”

Zhao Gou also softened his face and said: "The war between the two countries is not child's play, and the officials have to think twice." ”

Zhao Tuan said: "Erchen knows. Then he turned and walked out.

Zhao Tuan looked blue and walked out of Deshou Palace. Li Zong, the eunuch in charge of Deokshou Palace, sent him back to the palace gate.

Zhao Tuan suddenly stopped and said, "Have any ministers come to Deshou Palace in the past few days?" ”

Li Zonghui didn't dare to hide it, and said: "The day before yesterday, Shangshu Zuo Pu shot Tang Xianggong here, and he also came this morning. ”

Zhao Tuan nodded and "hummed" and said, "Tang Sihui." ”

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The next day, Zhao Tuan issued an order to enter Zhang Jun as the right Pu Shot of Shangshu, and Tang Siwei was the same as Zhongshu Sect Pingzhangshi, but he still served as a privy envoy. Yu Yunwen, who is also the deputy envoy of the Privy Council, Chen Junqing, a member of the Zhongshu House, was promoted to the governor of the political affairs, and Han Yanzhi was the secretary of the household department and the secretary of the Sinong Shaoqing, signed the Privy Council, and led the Huaidong Army, horses, horses, and grain.

Although Zhao Tuan did not remove Tang Sihui's phase, he promoted Zhang Jun to a position alongside Tang Sihui, and also served as a privy envoy. Several others were also promoted to important positions to show their determination to go on the Northern Expedition.

Later, he issued an edict to transfer the Qingyuan army to the festival, and to be commanded by Cheng Min to lead the horse army to 25,000 soldiers and horses to support Suzhou. In addition, Li Xianzhong and Shao Hongyuan were summoned to return to Lin'an to discuss the Northern Expedition. This edict was not discussed in the court, and after Tang Siwei knew about it, the holy decree had been issued.

Tang Si was shocked, and hurriedly convened the ministers of the lord and the minister to discuss together, and decided to find Zhao Gou again to dissuade Zhao Tuan. That knew that Tang Si retreated to Deshou Palace to see Zhao Gou, but when Li Zong returned, he passed the word that Tang Si retired, and the emperor would no longer care about military affairs.

Tang Si retreated and beat his brain, shouting that it was not good, it seemed that the intention of the Northern Expedition was determined, and there was nothing to do.