Destroy Jin and conquer Song, and carry the Northern Expedition through to the end

Chapter 397: The Warriors' Blades Are Like Scales
Thousands of cavalrymen were galloping, and the momentum was so great that smoke and dust billowed for miles around, and there was no way to hide at all.

Just after the entire Jingnan Army had landed one after another and roughly gathered in formation and marched north again, the scouts of the Jingnan Army began to fight with the scouts of the Wurui Army. Both sides tried to cover the entire battlefield, but to their surprise, they ended up in a draw, and neither side gained the upper hand.

For the Jingnan Army, it was incredible that they failed to defeat the Jin army scouts with ease after waiting for the enemy to tire themselves out and fighting with their personal bravery.

And the number one Meng'an of the Wu Rui Army was even more shocked.

Is this the Song army?

Judging from their proficiency in archery and horsemanship, some people would believe that they were Mongols!

No matter what, the scouts of both sides fought evenly, so that neither side could accurately detect the other's situation. All Han Wenguang could do was to move forward cautiously while forming a battle array.

Across a small ditch seven or eight steps wide, Han Wenguang saw Yuxi Town from afar, and also saw hundreds of armored soldiers lined up with their backs to the town. Although at this time, these armored soldiers holding the flags of the Elite Army were just sitting cross-legged on the ground, they were still not at all panicked when facing the armored cavalry formation that had already revealed its presence, and let the murderous aura rise to the sky in silence.

As the saying goes, an expert can tell the effectiveness of an attack with just one move. Han Wenguang is not a fool. He knows from a distance that these soldiers are all elite and cannot be easily destroyed.

Looking upstream of Yuxi River, Han Wenguang saw billowing smoke and dust, as if a large group of people were marching, which made his heart sink.

As the number one general of the Wu Rui Army, he knew very well what was happening in the upper reaches of Yuxi River.

The target of this group of Song troops was not only Yuxi Town, but also the water stronghold of the Jin navy and even Dongguan further upstream.

How many Song troops had actually left? Was the water fort secure? Was the East Gate in danger?

Han Wenguang originally wanted to call the cavalry to inquire in detail, but after looking around and seeing the scouts fighting in groups, and ultimately unable to cross a certain invisible and intangible front line, he had to give up.

He had already sent out three Mouke's cavalrymen as scouts. If he sent out two more Mouke, the organization would be in chaos. At that time, let alone fighting, it would be difficult for him to even command.

Seeing this, Han Wenguang quickly fell into a dilemma.

Although Han Tang's military order was to withdraw if the situation was beyond repair, that specifically referred to Yuxi Town.

As a temporary fortress guarding the entrance of Yuxi, the terrain of Yuxi Town was too poor and there was no way to hold it. Even if it was lost, it could be fought back at any time.

After all, this is no longer the time for Wei and Wu to compete with each other. Yuxi Town has long since become a commercial town. It would take several months to turn it back into a military fortress.

But the East Gate upstream is different. It is a checkpoint built by taking advantage of the terrain of mountains and rivers. Even if the Song State is more unreasonable and neglects management and maintenance, the Ruxu Mountain will not be any shorter, and the army will still not be able to pass through.

If Dongguan was captured by the Song army in a surprise attack, how much would the Jin army have to pay to take it back?

Now is not the time for Wang Quan to preside over Huaixi!

As for sending military envoys to inform the water stronghold and the East Gate, not to mention whether it is too late, just looking at the scene of scouts fighting in front of them, as soon as the military envoys set out, they will be hunted like prey.

Thinking of this, Han Wenguang gritted his teeth and made up his mind to fight no matter what. As long as he could kill these soldiers who were left behind outside Yuxi Town, and then chase them upstream, wouldn't he be able to defeat the Song army that had already deployed in marching formation?
"Asa, take two Mouks and go around from the north!"

"Huligai! Take two Moukes with you, don't wear armor, cross the river from the south, and harass the enemy. Remember, don't attack head-on!"

"Dai Lao Si, raise the flag after crossing the river, gather scouts on the spot, and provide backup for me. Damn it, Song Gou doesn't want us to cross, but I'm going to concentrate my troops and charge head-on!"

"The remaining three Mouks, follow me! Follow me!"

Once the military order was given, there was no turning back. The cavalry of the First Meng'an dismounted and put on armor, then changed to the main warhorse that had been running all the way, and then drove the horses directly across the small ditch in front of them. The two wings spread apart, like a pair of big hands, and attacked the vanguard army.

With light cavalry on both wings and armored cavalry in the center, the Jin army deployed the most traditional crooked horse formation.

The elite soldiers who had been sitting in their original places finally stood up at this time.

As if he had rested for too long and his whole body was rusted, Lei Ben moved his wrists and ankles, then pulled out the long machete that was stuck in the ground and held it high.

"Stand up! Form a line!"

At the command, six hundred tall armored soldiers stood up and consciously formed small square formations.

"The first formation of crossbowmen!"

"Second formation of spearmen!"

"The third formation of swordsmen!" The order was given, and the array of soldiers changed again. One hundred and twenty soldiers holding bows and arrows and carrying long machetes came to the front of the formation.

Then, more than a hundred armored soldiers holding eight-foot-long spears followed closely behind, forming two horizontal rows.

Finally, there is a small square formation composed of the remaining swordsmen.

These were the most elite infantry in the Jingnan Army. Their predecessors were Wei Sheng's 500 personal guards and swordsmen. After being assigned to the Jingnan Army, although the army had been expanding, and even Liu Huai had some preference for Lei Ben, all the soldiers were first selected by the elite army, but because of the strict selection, the army was only expanded by 100 people.

However, the strict requirements starting from the selection of soldiers made this elite army the best in the world in infantry combat. Not to mention facing more than a thousand cavalry, even if tens of thousands of cavalry formed a large formation and pressed forward together, the elite army would be able to hold its ground on flat ground and kill the enemy.

The Jin army's light cavalry, acting as crooked horses, were the first to engage in battle. Since the elite army was lined up with its back to the city, the light cavalry could not go around behind the armored soldiers to harass them, so the Jin army's light cavalry chose to shoot arrows in front of the formation to disrupt the elite army's formation.

Although the selected vanguard troops did not carry shields, they were fully armored. Facing the arrows, they did not even make a commotion. They just lowered their necks and slightly lowered their heads, allowing the arrows to make tinkling sounds on their helmets and shoulder pads.

Seeing that the harassment was ineffective, the marching Mouke named Huligai waved his hand and moved closer with his light cavalry, then switched to heavy arrows and tried to shoot at close range.

However, just as they approached within thirty steps, the archer who had been lowering his head to avoid the arrows raised his hand, letting the dust from the galloping warhorse fly in front of him. He quickly bent his bow and put an arrow on it, and without moving his feet, began to shoot at the Jin army's light cavalry.

Because they were on horseback, their cavalry bows were generally shorter and could not match the accuracy and power of infantry bows. Consequently, in the direct exchange of blows, the Jin army was unable to gain an advantage. Over twenty horses were immediately shot down, their riders falling to the ground.

"Retreat! Retreat quickly!" Huligai was horrified. He never expected that the exploratory attack would suddenly turn into a frontal battle.

No commander dared to lead the light cavalry to shoot at the archers at this distance, so Huligai quickly ordered to withdraw from the battle.

However, whether it was because his voice was too loud or because he was wearing a full set of armor, the elite archers seemed to realize that he was an officer, and quickly shot more than ten arrows, turning the warhorse under Huligai into a hedgehog.

Not only was Huligai badly knocked unconscious, but his subordinate Puliyan was also horrified and rushed forward to try to rescue their leader.

Seeing so many light-armored cavalry gathered into such a large group, the archers of the vanguard army were overjoyed. They shot arrows in succession, causing heavy casualties to the Jin army.

However, the heavy casualties instead aroused the ferocity of the Jin army. They did not retreat. After forcibly snatching Huligai away, the Jin army light cavalry dismounted and, relying on their horses for cover, began to shoot at the elite soldiers.

This cannot be considered a wrong decision, because in a battle like this between elite troops, in the end they will fight to the death, exchanging their lives for their own. Whichever side lets go first will be defeated.

Therefore, the results of such wars are often unexpectedly tragic.

For example, in the Battle of Dawangzhuang in later generations, after our army killed the Tiger Regiment, the defenders of Xiaowangzhuang were frightened by the brutal and bloody battle and surrendered directly.

Han Wenguang didn't know what the Jingnan Army was thinking, but he knew that the No. 1 Meng'an under his command was the elite of the entire army and the apple of Han Tang's eye. He felt heartbroken when one of them died, and quickly ordered the light cavalry to retreat.

After Asa's 200 armored cavalrymen launched a surprise attack from the left wing of the elite army but were driven back, Han Wenguang became ruthless and directly gathered Asa, ordering the five Mouke armored cavalrymen to dismount, line up on the spot, and prepare for infantry combat.

Lei Ben also knew that a tough battle was about to begin, so he immediately ordered the heavily armored archers, whose hands were numb after shooting more than twenty arrows, to retreat. Long spears were arranged in formation to cover the front, and several small formations spread out from both wings, as if they were going to swallow up the light cavalry in front first.

Even though the Jin army's light cavalry dared to shoot at the armored soldiers, they really did not dare to fight with them in formation. Under the command of their officers, they immediately retreated, either on horseback or on foot.

After driving away the light cavalry that was blocking the middle, the elite troops continued to shout slogans and slowly moved forward, while the Jin army also pressed forward from the front.

Han Wenguang, who was in the center of the armored soldiers, looked around at the moment before the battle, thinking in his heart:

Dai Laosi behind him had gathered more than a hundred cavalrymen, which was enough for support. Although the scouts of the Jingnan army also gathered dozens of cavalrymen, both sides were exhausted and could not be a match for the Jin army's armored cavalry.

As for the armored soldiers, although our number is slightly smaller, it is not so small that there is a significant difference in numbers.

Everything is ready, we can fight!

With this in mind, the soldiers on both sides quickly formed a battle formation and approached each other. The spears only provided some resistance, and the close combat like a meat grinder quickly unfolded.

At one moment, long swords and iron maces flew together, melon hammers and long spears were the same color, soldiers on both sides fought to the death, heroes fought, and all wanted to concentrate on breaking through the opponent's line, but they failed because the enemy was too elite.

The entire line quickly became jagged.

Just when Han Wenguang was about to make another effort, a horn sounded from Yuxi Town, and then the gate burst open.

Han Wenguang was startled by the sudden sound of horse hooves.

(End of this chapter)