Chapter 1: The Awakening of Shin Wang...

  Let's fight again! The commanders of the various armies, and the main officials of the commander's office, were all boiling with enthusiasm. The atmosphere in the commander's tent suddenly became very lively, except for the urgent breathing sounds, no other voices could be heard.

  At this moment, the Jin army's reinforcements have withdrawn and are now in Shouyang, tightly defending against the righteous army's advance towards Taiyuan Prefecture. However, there are very few Jin troops in other directions, and they cannot stop the numerous righteous army at all.

  At this time, the righteous army can launch an attack in any direction except west. "Everyone please look at Weizhou." Zhao Song pointed to the map and analyzed it in detail: "Because Weizhou is small and not an important strategic location, the Jin army has deployed very few troops in Weizhou. There are 5,000 Jin army soldiers stationed in Weizhou now, and this army is mainly composed of Han people, with average combat effectiveness."

  After that, Zhao Jun stood up from his chair and waved his hand, saying: "So, to fight against the Jin army, we must fight a battle in Weizhou. Occupy Weizhou and threaten Zhending."

  "What are your opinions?" Zhao Song raised his head and looked at the crowd, saying: "All of you generals, please speak your minds freely. This is an extraordinary time, don't have any reservations, say what you want to say."

  A group of generals had nothing to say. Fighting and making strategies are one thing, but fighting in battle is another. If you want to achieve strategic or tactical goals, from the commander-in-chief to the civilian porter, even including weather and terrain, etc., all are crucial elements that determine victory or defeat.

  In recent months, a series of battles were fought with each battle being perilous, but Zhao Yun won every single one. Therefore, the generals had blind confidence in Zhao Yun.

  Everyone has a deep respect for Zhao Chen, the King of Xin. Who has ever heard of a prince of the Great Song Dynasty personally taking to the battlefield? Who has ever heard of a prince of the Great Song Dynasty using his troops like a god, winning battle after battle? The King of Xin, Zhao Chen, is truly an enigmatic prince of the Song Dynasty.

  Everyone is a blood-sucking person, and the respect for the royal family is limited. But there is such a wise and brave prince, which is enough. Enough to make the generals trust Zhao Chen, with full confidence in his plan.

  Due to Zhao Song's successive victories, the city-conquering and land-plundering almost occupied the entire Pingding Prefecture and the Taihang Mountains. Small groups of righteous armies and civilians from all over flocked to join him. The civilians were fine, arranging for them to open up wasteland to grow grain and build houses. However, for the countless small groups of righteous armies, Zhao Song did not have any arrangements for them, so he could only establish a rear camp, with Zhao Bangjie and his second wife, Zhao Qing'er, in command.

  After about fifteen days of preparation, Zhao Kuang led the army to Weizhou. Along the way, the officials arranged by the Jin army heard that the King of Xin brought a large army and all villages and towns surrendered and defected.

  On the undulating hills, a bright red sun slowly rises. The morning breeze blows gently, and the sound of bugles echoes back and forth as the righteous army arrives at Weizhou City.

  At this time, King Xiang of Zhao stood at the highest point on the hill, gazing out into the distance. Now, the great banner of the Central Army had been moved to his flagpole, and the heralds were stationed to his left and right.

  Across, the Jin army also made a move. The Jin army in Weizhou City received news that the righteous army had been attacking and capturing cities and strongholds along the way, and would be launching a major attack on Weizhou. Upon learning that they were the target of the righteous army's attack, the Jin army in Weizhou immediately requested reinforcements from the Zanhuang and Zhending directions.

  The Jin army that came to support Zanhuang was the cavalry unit of the Golden Army that had previously attacked Wuma Mountain, with a full 5,000 cavalrymen. The Zhending Prefecture also cobbled together an infantry force of 10,000 men to provide support. Since the main force of the Righteous Army was being held back by Wanyan Zongbi in Pingding, and since they had to defend various places, Zhao Chen could only lead his own personal bodyguard unit, as well as the two armies of Gao Baoshan's Heilongjun and Fu Xuan's Tieshanjun, along with Jiao Wentong's Zhuhu Army, and 10,000 strong porters carrying grain to attack Weizhou.

  The Righteous Army had 21,000 soldiers, while the Jin army had more than 20,000 troops. The Jin army did not rely on city walls, but instead formed ranks to fight directly. Twenty thousand Jin soldiers formed ranks to meet the Righteous Army marching towards Weizhou City. A great battle was about to erupt.

  As the sound of bugles, the King's Righteous Army marched out of the camp in groups, formed into teams and squads, and infantrymen formed phalanxes lined up in front of the Golden Army.

  Xin Wang Zhao Xun never gave up on the training of the righteous army soldiers. Due to the grain that was replanted in the fields not yet ripe for harvest, the righteous army's food supply is currently very scarce and cannot be guaranteed to be full. The current righteous army can only have two meals a day during non-combat periods and still cannot eat their fill.

  Because the warriors couldn't eat their fill, they also couldn't withstand a large amount of training. Therefore, Zhao Song was unable to use his future training methods that were extremely exhausting for the soldiers. However, although the training wasn't very intense, after several bloody battles and rational military training by Zhao Song, in this time and space, the warriors of the Righteous Army had enough combat strength to be on par with the Golden Soldiers, and they couldn't be underestimated either.

  At this time, Zhao Jun concentrated 5,000 cavalry, 15,000 infantry and his own 1,000 personal guards, as well as 10,000 strong men. They formed a battle line in the shape of a wild goose, with the cavalry on both sides of the army, facing the Jin army head-on.

  On the other side of the city wall, the Jin army commander Wanyan Zhen led his personal guards and a small number of Jin generals to observe the battle. The few people on the city wall were clearly visible from Zhao Chen's position on the hill.

  In the northeast direction of the righteous army, the Jin army also gathered under the city. Branches of infantry were arrayed in formation, and teams of cavalry were lined up.

  Attack Weizhou due to limited conditions, Zhao Song did not use any strange strategy. Facing the Jin army, Zhao Song could only fight hard. "Beat the drums and invite battle!" Zhao Song immediately ordered.

  "Beat the drum——" The loud voice of the special messenger resounded, and with his shout, several sturdy men holding large wooden mallets struck the big drum, and the huge leather drum immediately boomed "Boom! Boom! Boom!"

  "Kill! Kill! Kill!……" The righteous army infantry formation began to advance, taking big strides forward, each square formation stepping forward in unison. This was the result of Zhao's training, and now the righteous army was no longer a disorganized mob that only knew how to charge forward during battles.

  The sun, which had risen to the top of the warrior's head in the sky, gradually emitted its own light and heat. The end of June was indeed a time of abundant sunshine and sweltering heat, sprinkling down strands of golden yellow.

  Wanyan Zhen is over sixty years old this year, and he is also the leader of a large tribe of Jurchen. He closed his old eyes, and then opened them again, and an unbelievable sharp light burst out from those dull old eyes.

  "Descending the city, I will go to the forefront of the two armies. Since that King of Trust dared to come to the central army of the two armies and personally took to the battlefield, then I also cannot fall behind and let the soldiers' morale decrease." Wanyan Zhen said, immediately mounting his horse and exiting the city, arriving at the Jin army's central command to personally direct the battle.

  He rode out of the city, galloping to his own central army, Wanyan Zhen drew his treasured sword, pulled the reins, and the horse stood up, the old general's voice rang out: "The Great Jin is invincible!" Suddenly, the fierce warriors of the Jin army shouted in unison: "The Jin army is invincible! The Jin army is invincible!" The roar of the Jin army echoed through the mountains and floated into the ears of the righteous army.

  "In the midst of the army, Zhao Kuang roared: 'Swear to destroy the Golden Dog! Restore my rivers and mountains! Blood will not be shed in vain! Swear not to stop fighting!' Under Zhao Kuang's and his loyal soldiers' roar, countless righteous army soldiers simultaneously shouted: 'Swear to destroy the Golden Dog! Restore my rivers and mountains! Blood will not be shed in vain! Swear not to stop fighting!' All the righteous army felt their blood boiling, their loud voices echoing through the sky, piercing through the Jin army to reach Weizhou City."

  In Weizhou City, a faint roar was heard, and the people began to discuss it.

  "It's the Song army, it's our Great Song's military!" "Right! I heard that King Xiang personally led his troops to rescue us." "King Xiang has arrived, we must welcome the new king." "Exactly, you're a fierce warrior from the Zhao family. You always said you were formidable. Killing the Jin dogs is as simple as killing pigs for you. Take out your pig-killing knife and let's wait together until King Xiang's army arrives at the city gate. We'll go out to welcome King Xiang." "Great, let's welcome King Xiang!" "What if King Xiang can't defeat them?" "Are you stupid? Haven't you heard? King Xiang is a god descended from heaven, all-knowing and all-powerful. The Jin army was defeated by him and cried out for their fathers and mothers. They're not even worthy opponents. How could the invincible King Xiang not be able to defeat them? Come with me, good fellow of Great Song!" "Alright, I'll follow you!"

  As they spoke, many civilians, under the incitement of some members of the Zhongyi Society, took out knives, iron shovels or hammers from their homes. They were preparing to use force to open the city gate and welcome King Xian.

  "March!" "At your command, General!" The golden armored cavalry commander, Muer Chi, thundered out of line! His eyes bulged like a cow's.

  "Give you three thousand iron cavalry, charge and kill the righteous army's main array, do you understand?" The old man Wanyan shouted loudly. "Yes sir!" M?ngke also knew the danger of this battle. Three thousand cavalry, attacking the righteous army's main array.

  At this moment, he suddenly understood the commander's mind. Catching a thief first catches the king, hitting a snake hits seven inches. As long as the cavalry can break through the formation of the righteous army, attack and enter the central army, capture King Xinyi Zhao Chen, and the righteous army will collapse without a fight. War is simple, whoever takes the first step to achieve their strategic goal will win.

  Mo Er Chi was a fierce general among the Jurchen people, he had the ability to capture the enemy's commander-in-chief in a battle of ten thousand horses. Although King Xianzong defeated several Jurchen armies with his wise and strategic mind. But no matter how wise and strategic he was, without strong and powerful generals, he would definitely be captured by Mo Er Chi who broke into the army formation. Mo Er Chi had great confidence in himself, when fighting against the Liao army, he often captured the enemy's commander-in-chief first, achieving many meritorious military service. Of course, all these merits were taken away by Wanyan Zhen.

  So Wanyan Zhen wants to use the fierce general Mo Erchi to break into the central army formation of the Righteous Army, and then he will lead the main force to charge and fight a decisive battle with the Righteous Army. After that, it depends on Mo Erchi's ability.

  "Kill!" Three thousand golden armored cavalrymen rushed out from the right side of Jin Jun's formation, three thousand cavalrymen galloping loudly and flying towards the central army of the righteous army to kill.

  "Let him come! Change formation." Xìn Wáng waved his hand, raised an eyebrow and smiled. The vanguard of the righteous army's formation parted to the sides like automatic doors welcoming a guest.

  At this time, the brave Mo Er didn't care at all and had no intention of looking further. Many people reading books see a certain general falling into an enemy trap and think that person is stupid. In fact, on ancient battlefields, once you enter the battlefield, in front of and behind you are all weapons and soldiers, and it's impossible to see the whole situation.

  Even many wise generals cannot fully grasp the overall situation, and most of them also rely on experience and their own tactics to fight. Therefore, Mo Er Chi did not hesitate and went straight to the mountain slope where the big flag of Xing Wang was located. Under the large "Xing Wang" flag, it was the location of the Wei army's commander-in-chief, Da Song's Xing Wang.

  At this time, Mo Er Chi didn't think much about other things, he just thought about how to defeat the rebel army and establish his own merits. Did he believe in Prince Zhao Chen? According to intelligence from various places, this prince of the Great Song Dynasty had jumped into the water to escape after being escorted by a team, and then gathered his forces on horseback to resist the Jin Dynasty. This Prince Zhao Chen was not simple, he knew military tactics, was wise and resourceful, and had extraordinary abilities.

  It was also for this reason that Wanyan Zongwang's 50,000-strong army did not dare to launch a direct attack and instead retreated immediately. At this time, the entire Jin army in both Hebei and Hedong had almost been depleted, and with the numerous righteous armies rising up everywhere, the Jin army was too busy suppressing them to cope, and their rear forces were insufficient. If Wanyan Zongwang were defeated, then Xing Wang would directly become powerful, affecting the strategic intentions of the main force of the Jin army.

  The Jin army had been fighting for many years and had destroyed the vast Liao state, with victories in every battle. However, the key issue was that in this war against King Xiang of Zhao, the Jin army could win but not lose. Therefore, before the main force of the Jin army returned, Wanyan Zongwang did not dare to launch a counterattack under the advice of Xiao Gan and Pu Jiasou.

  They don't dare, Wanyan Zhen dares, he himself dares! Relying on his own courage that can move mountains and seas, M?ngke believes he can achieve the final victory.

  "Rumble!" Jin Jun's cavalry was like a black torrent, suddenly pouring through the front of the righteous army's dozen or so square formations. "Kill——!" Mo Er Chi held high his wolf-toothed club, facing the incoming righteous army's long spearman formation, and charged forward fiercely.

  At this time, the righteous army's formation cracked open, and dozens of long gun carts over one zhang high appeared. The long gun carts moved forward one by one, with no knowing how many people were pushing from behind. Those shiny spearheads emitted a cold glow, while countless arrows rained down from the sky.

  Ma Er Chi let out a loud roar and urged his horse forward. A wolf-toothed club "whirred" through the air, striking down. With a loud crash, the massive wolf-toothed club snapped several long spears on the spear cart.

  "Boom!" Another blow, and a wooden long spear car was smashed into a hole. As the brave Muer Cha smashed a long spear car, the Jin army's cavalry rushed in from the gap at once.

  Muer Cha held a giant club with wolf teeth in his bare hands, sweeping across the battlefield, and countless righteous army soldiers fell to the ground. Muer Cha rode his horse forward, creating an opening at the forefront of the battle, and instantly broke through one of the righteous army's phalanx formations. Afterwards, the warriors on both sides began close combat, and under the charge of the Golden Army's cavalry, two long spear infantry phalanxes of the Righteous Army were completely routed.

  However, the righteous army was not just two squares, but many squares. Just as the Jin army cavalry defeated these two squares of the righteous army, the soldiers of these two squares did not stop resisting. They shrank together, raised their long guns, and carried out hedgehog-like resistance.

  The soldiers of the righteous army, under the mobilization of General Zhao Ju, had already been filled with hatred for the Jin army and were boiling with hot blood.

  For their homes, families and descendants, as well as a huge reward, they no longer feared death and fought to the death with the Golden Army.

  "Is that Mo Er Chi?" King Zhao Xun pointed at the enemy general below. That big black guy was too eye-catching, it was him, he had already knocked down more than 20 righteous army generals with his wolf-toothed club. On the ancient battlefield, knocking down so many enemies in a row not only showed that his strength was great, but also showed that his physical strength and martial skills were top-notch.

  Zhao Xiao Dao said beside Zhao Chen: "It's him, he is a famous warrior of the Jurchen tribe, with the bravery of a thousand men. He has killed many Liao generals and is known for his ability to take the head of a general in a crowd of ten thousand horses. This guy is one of the few fierce generals!" As Xiao Dao spoke, he found that Zhao Chen shook his head.

  Zhao Yun shook his head, "It's because someone like him is going to die in this army of thousands. How long can one person last?" "It's truly rare..." Zhao Yun said slowly, "But that's all there is to it..." After speaking, he waved his hand and ordered the troops to change formation.

  As the square formations squeezed in from all sides, and with many chariots and armored vehicles blocking their way, the Jin army was thrown into chaos. The Jin army's renowned cavalry was thrown into disarray. Their generals were brave and fierce, but even heroes cannot withstand overwhelming numbers. They came to a halt, unable to charge forward.

  The Jin army cavalry simply charged towards the rear of the rebel army's central formation, and after the rebel army paid a price of four broken formations in front and back, they finally closed the gate. The ten rebel army formations that were previously surrounded by the Jin army cavalry at the front, blocked the retreat route of the three thousand Jin army cavalry.

  While the troops in other directions pushed war carts and gun carts, little by little, towards the Jin army cavalry. The activity space of the Jin army cavalry will be reduced bit by bit, and it is no longer possible to make a dash.

  The cavalry that couldn't move were the targets of the infantry's long spearmen. Soon, after the righteous army had surrounded them, a thorough massacre began. The righteous army warriors formed a phalanx with their long spears and pressed against the Jin army's cavalry, using their dense long spears to fiercely stab and kill the Jin army's cavalry, knocking them off their horses one by one, and then using their weapons to pierce and kill them one by one.

  Mo Er Chi led three thousand iron cavalry, who were truly Jurchen people. They were not afraid of death, shouting and charging forward with great courage until they were stabbed to death by countless long spears and lances.

  "General..." A Jin army general called out: "The enemy is closing in! Our brave warriors have suffered heavy casualties!" His face was covered in blood. As a member of the Jurchen tribe, he and M?lchi were from the same clan, so M?lchi valued him highly. M?lchi had transferred him to his own army specifically to cultivate a general from their own clan.

  "Are you scared?" Mo Er Chi shouted loudly. The battle had turned out to be something he hadn't expected, and logically speaking, the three thousand Iron Riders were not a small force! He had once led the three thousand Iron Riders in pursuit of several hundred thousand Great Song army fleeing in defeat.

  The enemy here has only more than 20,000 Song army troops, and it's unlikely that they have many more Jin soldiers. Normally, with such a charge, the enemy should directly collapse. Even if they don't collapse, at least they will be thrown into chaos by themselves.

  In this way, Wanyan Zhen in the rear could send troops to attack the weak points of the Righteous Army. This was also the experience he gained from fighting with Wanyan Zhen all along. However, it did not work this time.