novelhk Page 2574
Page 2574
Wanyan Mouyan followed and asked, "Marshal, should we hold our ground or retreat?"
Wanyan Zonghan said, "Attack!"
"attack?"
Wanyan Mouyan exclaimed in shock,
"With morale low and everyone exhausted, how can we possibly launch a strong attack on the enemy's main force?"
Wanyan Zonghan said, "Are we exhausted, but aren't the southern bandits exhausted too?"
"These infantrymen in front of us have all come from Dading Prefecture. They are exhausted from the long march."
"We must take advantage of their unstable footing and lack of protection from their chariot formation, and launch a full-scale attack to crush and annihilate them!"
"Otherwise, when the Ming army (Li Yanxian) from the south arrives with chariots to reinforce us, what chance will we have of winning?"
Wanyan Mouyan was already terrified: "Since these infantrymen came from Dading Prefecture, then Dading Prefecture must be undefended."
"Why don't we ride horses and launch a surprise attack, then take over Dading Prefecture!"
"idiot,"
Wanyan Zonghan said,
“There must be garrison troops in Dading Prefecture, and they also have cannons and explosive iron bombs.”
"Even if the number of defenders in the city is small, we will still suffer casualties if we try to break through the city."
"And if we go to raid a city, will we still need the military rations here?"
"If we want military supplies, we have to divide our forces. But if we divide our forces, how can we withstand the enemy before us?"
"Even if we successfully capture the city, it will only be a matter of exchanging the camp and military rations here for the Ming army's city and military rations."
"At that time, we'll still be trapped in this isolated city!"
Wanyan Mouyan had no rebuttal.
Wanyan Zonghan said, "There is only one way now: to annihilate these enemies before us."
"Send the order: all units, once reorganized, come forth immediately for the final battle!"
"Aren't we going to eat first?"
Wanyan Mouyan said,
"Both men and horses are hungry, and the warhorses haven't recovered yet."
"Why don't we let the soldiers eat their fill first, and let the warhorses recover for a while?"
Wanyan Zonghan angrily said, "By the time our warhorses are restored, the enemy's infantry will also be restored!"
Wanyan Zonghan was extremely exhausted.
Wanyan Chamu died of illness, and Wanyan Loushi also died of illness.
Although Shi Jianu and Poluhuo were not dead, they were suffering from injuries and illnesses and were recuperating in Shangjing, making it impossible for them to fight on horseback again.
Of Wanyan Zonghan's veteran generals, only Yin Shu was still capable of fighting.
Yin Shu could be sent to Xingzhong Prefecture to resist Li Bao's main force.
That place cannot be lost. Once Xingzhong Prefecture falls, the Ming army in Liaodong can capture Jinzhou and then connect with the Ming army here.
At this very moment, Wanyan Zonghan didn't even have a single general to discuss military matters with!
The Jurchen soldiers began leading their horses out of the camp; they had already fed their warhorses beans, salt, and river water.
But the horse was exhausted and I didn't want to ride it.
The remaining six thousand or so Jurchen elites had just been reorganized by Wanyan Zonghan.
"Hu Zhan, you take charge of the attack!" Wanyan Zonghan said.
Pucha Huzhan said, "I swear I will never retreat!"
Pucha Huzhan's men were all the strong troops left behind by Wanyan Loushi.
They were the ones who just killed Luo Ruming and over three hundred Ming cavalrymen.
They themselves suffered heavy casualties, but Wanyan Zonghan immediately replenished and reorganized them.
They are all the elite of the elite!
These guys always managed to win against overwhelming odds before encountering the Ming army, and their record was quite outrageous.
The war with the Western Xia had already been fought; while they were still besieging Taiyuan...
With a thousand cavalry, they first defeated ten thousand Song soldiers, and then with another thousand cavalry, they defeated thirty thousand Song soldiers.
Meanwhile, Yue Fei was also reorganizing and restoring the strength of his warhorses.
Even while cleaning up the battlefield, they would gather any usable armor and equip it to the best-performing grassland tribes.
Wang Yan's infantrymen marched at breakneck speed, leading mules carrying armor, jogging the entire way through the night.
Finally, the mules refused to run anymore. They thought the mules were too slow, so they simply put on armor and rushed over.
The troops were arrayed in formation, and we were extremely exhausted!
Meanwhile, the reinforcements led by Li Yanxian were still ten miles away.
Pucha Huzhan resolutely mounted his horse, and the elite soldiers who had once followed Wanyan Loushi also showed the same fearlessness in the face of death.
but!
The soldiers who had just been supplied with Puchahuzhan ten minutes earlier hesitated slightly when mounting their horses.
They were considered elite, and previously belonged to the Poluhuo tribe.
Now, Poluhuo is recuperating in Shangjing. His three sons were killed by the Ming army one after another, and his remaining children are still minors.
Last night, Poluhuo's nephew led the troops and died in battle while attacking Li Yanxian. Some of the survivors were sent to Puchahuzhan to make up a thousand men.
Chapter 3466 Heavy Losses
They really don't dare to fight anymore.
Several years ago, many people died fighting alongside Poluhuo, and their commanders were replaced several times.
Last night saw another large number of casualties; the last breath in my lungs was exhausted when we recaptured the supplies.
However, Wanyan Zonghan had too much prestige in the army, and the military law was extremely harsh.
The soldiers who were supplied to Puchahuzhan did not dare to raise any objections; they could only grit their teeth and fight.
Pucha Huzhan did not attack directly; such a decisive battle required waiting for the right opportunity.
"Tuhesu, go and disrupt the enemy formation!" Wanyan Zonghan ordered.
Tuhesu, a member of the Jin dynasty's royal family and a general under Shi Jianu, once massacred tens of thousands of Song soldiers guarding the pass in Shanxi.
Historically, this was the person who killed the seed master.
The soldiers under Tuhesu's command at this time had a more complex composition.
There were former subordinates of Shi Jianu, former subordinates of Yelü Mawu (Khitan soldiers), and former subordinates of Wolu.
Shi Jianu went back to the capital to recuperate, while Yelü Mawu and Wolu were killed in battle.
The three men's descendants inherited their troops, all of whom suffered heavy losses last night. The remnants were temporarily assigned to Tuhesu for unified command.
But then Tuhesu led his mixed troops forward, and the steppe cavalry came to meet them.
The steppe cavalry would shoot a few arrows and then run away, but this time they ran in a very organized manner.
Yue Fei allowed them to shoot arrows while fleeing, but they were not allowed to charge into friendly formations while fleeing; otherwise, they would be treated indiscriminately with crossbows.
After several groups of steppe cavalry were frightened away, Xu Qing circled around to the side and fired arrows to harass them, while Yue Fei led his troops to meet the arrows head-on with Tuhesu.
Another Jurchen general, Shalizhi, was sent by Wanyan Zonghan to fight against Xu Qing.
Yue Fei fought and retreated, leading his troops past his own lines.
"Shhhhhh!"
Wang Yan's infantry formation unleashed a barrage of powerful crossbow bolts, some even mixed with divine crossbows.
More than a dozen Jurchen cavalrymen were killed by arrows piercing their armor.
Tuhesu continued to lead his troops in a charge, and when he was more than ten paces in front of the formation, he launched a mounted archery attack on the Ming army's formation—his mission was to destabilize the Ming army's formation and create an opportunity for Puchahuzhan to forcefully charge into the enemy lines.
They used armor-piercing arrows, which were most effective at this distance when shot from horseback. Immediately, twenty or thirty Ming soldiers had their lamellar armor pierced by the arrows.
Fortunately, the Ming army suffered few casualties, only injuries.
The Ming army unleashed another barrage of arrows, inflicting even greater casualties on the Jurchen cavalry than they had just suffered.
Just then, several dozen riders under Tuhesu suddenly charged toward Yue Fei.
Those were the Khitan cavalry left behind after Yelü Mawu's death in battle.
Because of his loyalty and bravery, he was used as a loyal subject by Wanyan Zonghan, and his military pay and treatment were comparable to those of the Jurchen elites.
"We surrender! We surrender!"
The Khitan officer leading the troops shouted as he threw his spear to the ground, followed by his mace and saddle axe.
His dozens of Khitan cavalrymen also made the same movements, clearly having planned it before going into battle.
"Don't shoot the arrows!"
Yue Fei sent out a personal guard and instructed him: "Guide them to circle back to the rear of the infantry formation, dismount, remove their armor, and observe the battle."
Tuhesu was both shocked and furious. These Khitan cavalrymen, although they had only recently been incorporated into his ranks...
But how could he tolerate his soldiers defecting to the enemy in front of the enemy?
He immediately led his troops in pursuit.
Wanyan Zonghan immediately ordered, "Sound the horn! Tell Tuhesu to come back and regroup. If we keep chasing him, we'll get trapped!"
The Jin army's central command horns sounded loudly, and Tuhesu finally suppressed his anger and led his troops to retreat towards the main force of the Jin army.
His tail was constantly being held by Yue Fei, and he only managed to escape by abandoning more than thirty riders to cover his retreat.
Just as the Khitan soldiers surrendered to the enemy in front of the Jin army, another Khitan soldier on the Jin flank also fled frantically to the north, disregarding everything.
They were also remnants left behind by Yelü Mawu. If the allied forces ignored them and directly surrendered to the enemy, why did they stay behind?
Even if they win this battle, they will certainly no longer be trusted by Wanyan Zonghan.
A group of Jurchen soldiers gave chase and killed a quarter of the deserters before Wanyan Zonghan blew his horn to call them back.
In fact, the number of Khitan soldiers who defected or fled was not large, less than two hundred in total.
But it dealt a huge blow to the morale of the Jin soldiers!
Even Wanyan Mouyan felt that defeat was inevitable today.
However, he dared not dissuade Wanyan Zonghan and could only observe the battlefield situation at any time. If the situation turned bad, he would lead his troops to flee.
The so-called core elite can no longer be called elite.
Morale is low!
After regrouping, the two generals, Tuhesu and Shalizhi, continued their charge.
Despite the crossbow fire, they continued to fire arrows at the Ming army's formation, accompanied by repeated feints.
In order to make a quick march, the Ming army did not bring chariots or even giant shields.
More than two hundred soldiers have been killed or wounded—most of them wounded but not dead—yet the infantry formation remains unmoved.
Seeing that he could not disrupt the formation, Wanyan Zonghan changed his tactics.
He ordered Tuhesu and Shalizhi to drive away the enemy cavalry, while shooting arrows as they circled around the formation, and even thrusting their spears from the side in front of the formation.
Pucha Huzhan followed behind, leading a thousand elite troops in a fierce charge into the enemy lines!
Exhausted Jurchen soldiers, riding weary warhorses, charged towards the equally exhausted Ming infantry.
Chapter 3467 Low Morale