The Song Dynasty on the Sand Table

Chapter 496 The Five Major Army Groups of the Northern Song Dynasty

"The Northern Song army advanced in three routes towards Kaifeng."

"The Southern Route Army, led by Privy Councilor Gong Erniangzi, along with generals such as Ma Sheng, Sui Yi, Zhang Wei, Niu Gao, and Zhang Yong, set off from Caizhou, entered Yingchang Prefecture, passed through Wuyang City, and headed north to attack Kaifeng."

"The Southeast Route Army, led by the unranked yet unfathomable Young Master Yue, along with generals such as Zhang Yong and Zhang Dashu, entered Taikang County in Kaifeng Prefecture from the direction of Chenliu, and then continued northward."

Dressed in beggar's clothes, Ma Dayuan, an elder of the Beggars' Clan, was vividly telling stories to passersby on a street corner in Lin'an.

A large crowd had gathered around him, including not only ordinary people but also several scholars who appeared to be of high status. The scholars frowned as they listened, but their fists were clenched tightly, making them look quite nervous.

Ma Dayuan chuckled and said, "There's a third way..."

At this point, he became suspenseful.

A young master of about ten years old immediately understood, reached out and pulled out a handful of copper coins, tossing them into Ma Dayuan's hand: "Go on, stop keeping me in suspense, finish the story in one go, and I will reward you handsomely."

Ma Dayuan chuckled, put away the copper coins, and continued, "The third route, the Northeast Route, is something else entirely. The Seventeenth Prince personally led the Northeast Route Army, with Minister of War Wu Jialiang accompanying him, along with veteran generals such as Guan Sheng and Yu Fanwen. They marched from the Eastern Route of Tokyo, attacked Jizhou and Guangji, and were heading straight for Kaifeng."

"Wow!"

The onlookers exclaimed in unison, "The emperor is personally leading the expedition!"

A vegetable vendor whispered, "What's so special about the emperor personally leading an expedition? Didn't our Southern Song emperor personally lead an expedition a few days ago? He defeated 50 Jin troops and preserved the six prefectures of Jingzhou and Xiangyang. You weren't this excited then."

"Tch! You don't know anything."

Someone immediately retorted, "Don't you know that our emperor's personal campaign was just an act? The real hard battles were fought by the Northern Song Dynasty."

One of the young masters said, "It wasn't all the Northern Song Dynasty that fought; our Han Shizhong and Yue Fei also fought tough battles."

A beggar immediately shouted, "What good will it do? Han Shizhong has been demoted and sent to be an old fisherman, and Yue Fei has been killed."

Everyone: "..."

An eerie silence followed.

Now no one dares to mention Yue Fei. Everyone who speaks up for Yue Fei has been arrested. Those with official positions are only demoted and exiled, while commoners without official positions are all killed.

Who would dare to speak up for Yue Fei now?

but……

Not daring to speak doesn't mean I don't think about it or that there's no hidden anger burning in my chest.

Everyone who knows about this has a ticking time bomb in their heart, they just don't know when it will explode.

The ten-year-old boy said to Ma Dayuan, "Continue telling the story of the Northern Song Dynasty!"

Ma Dayuan nodded and continued, "Now, let's talk about the seventeenth prince of the Northern Song Dynasty. He personally led an expedition, accompanied by five legions. The first legion was called the Smoothbore Spearmen. They stood in neat rows, and when facing the enemy, they raised their smoothbore spears and fired them with a series of bangs. Within ten feet in front of them, men and horses were all killed." The audience exclaimed, "Wow! That's incredible!"

"The second legion is called the Grenadiers. It is composed entirely of tall and strong Shandong men. When they are about to fight, they ignite the thunderbolts in their hands and throw them forward with all their might. The distance can be more than 20 zhang, and the distance can be more than 10 zhang. When the thunderbolts explode, there is a loud bang, and sand flies and people die within a radius of 2 zhang. No one can survive."

Audience: "Is that amazing? Does such a weapon really exist?"

The young master angrily said, "Don't interrupt! Let him continue."

Ignoring the question, Ma Dayuan continued, "The Third Army Corps is called the Artillery Corps. They use a weapon called the Red-Clad Cannon, which is ten feet long and as thick as a bowl. When the fuse is lit, it produces a loud 'boom,' and the cannonballs fly three miles away, splitting rocks and piercing walls. Anyone hit by it is instantly turned into mincemeat."

Listeners: "Sanli? Sanli?? Sanli???"

Ma Dayuan had no choice but to stop temporarily, saying, "Three li is too close. If they really go all out, they could fight from five li away."

The audience: "It's fake, you're definitely lying to us! You're making up stories to deceive us."

The young master roared, "What's so strange about fighting three miles? You don't know anything about how strong the Northern Song army was. Anyone who interrupts or asks a question while he's telling his story, I'll beat him to death. I'm young, so I won't have to pay with my life if I kill someone!"

Everyone quickly covered their mouths. Lin'an was right under the emperor's nose, and there were countless high-ranking officials and nobles. Although this young master looked only ten years old, he might be the son of some high-ranking official. If he killed someone, he wouldn't have to pay with his life. Ordinary people really couldn't afford to offend him.

The young master continued, "Beggar, please continue speaking and ignore their questions."

Ma Dayuan continued, "The fourth legion is called the Cuirassiers. They ride tall horses, and the riders wear small, shiny breastplates. They are equipped with four short guns. When the cavalry charges, the four short guns fire in turn. After they finish firing, there are no enemies left to stand in front of the cavalry."

The audience started arguing again: "Four short guns? Cavalry is expensive to begin with, right? Add four more firearms? How much money would that cost? If we could get a thousand or two cavalrymen like that, wouldn't that bring down the imperial court?"

This time, the young master didn't tell them to be quiet. Instead, he lowered his head and started calculating rapidly. After several seconds, he raised his head with a look of horror: "Is the internal affairs of the Northern Song Dynasty really that impressive? The Southern Song Dynasty doesn't have the financial resources to support such a cavalry unit."

Ma Dayuan continued, "The Fifth Legion is called the Heavy Musket. Each musket is twice the weight of an ordinary musket, so soldiers can no longer hold them by hand. When using them, they must stick a pitchfork into the ground and place the musket on the pitchfork to fire. Therefore, the soldiers gave it a nickname: 'Hand Cannon.' It is said that this legion does not usually move out. No matter how fierce the battle is, they just watch from the rear. But when the Jin army's Iron Pagoda moves, the Heavy Musket will follow. Wherever the Iron Pagoda attacks, the Heavy Musket is waiting there."

The audience chimed in again: "Huh? Specifically targeting the Iron Pagoda? Can it even be damaged?"

Ma Dayuan laughed heartily: "Of course they can be hit. Once the trigger is pulled, the Iron Pagodas fall one after another. Five hundred sets of Iron Pagoda armor captured by the Northern Song Dynasty were given to the Han Family Army, and three hundred sets to the Yue Family Army..."

At this point, he sighed deeply: "It's a pity that the Han family army and the Yue family army have both scattered now, and these eight hundred sets of iron armor are probably useless now."

This time, the audience did not question it anymore; instead, they joined in with a long sigh.

Ma Dayuan finished speaking and figured that the officials should be arriving soon, so he prepared to leave.

The ten-year-old young master followed behind Ma Dayuan, calling out, "Brother beggar, wait for me! My surname is Lu, and my given name is You. I have some questions about the Northern Song Dynasty that I would like to ask you."

Ma Dayuan turned his head and smiled, "So it's Young Master Lu You. May I ask what brings you here?"

Lu You said, "Where did you hear so much about the Northern Song Dynasty? Even the intelligence of my Southern Song court isn't as detailed as yours! You must be a spy for the Northern Song Dynasty!"

(End of this chapter)