Zhao Xiaoyi and Chen Qing climbed out from the northwest corner. Below was a smooth boulder. Chen Qing tied a long rope to the top and slowly slid down the rope.
"Follow me, everyone!"
Zhao Xiaoyi led the way. They passed through a pine forest, followed a stream south, and then went north in a roundabout way. They were about a hundred steps away from the military stronghold, and unexpectedly reached the rear of the enemy's army.
Chen Qing saw the enemy general. He was hiding behind a big tree, watching the fierce battle between the two armies, and constantly directing the Jurchen soldiers to fight. Several torches were erected next to him, and his face was looming in the light of the fire.
Chen Qing drew the bowstring, lowered a crossbow arrow, and raised the crossbow to aim at the side face of Wanyan A'lu, who was sixty steps away. With life and death at stake, Chen Qing pulled the hanging knife, and a deadly crossbow arrow shot out with a 'Whoosh!'
Wanyan A'lu never dreamed that the opponent's general had already circled behind him. He suddenly heard the sound of a crossbow machine and turned around, 'poof!' The wolf-fang arrow hit him between the eyebrows.
The powerful crossbow arrow penetrated Wanyan Alu's head, blood sprayed and the arrow tip came out from the back of his head.
Wanyan Alu's eyes widened, he fell to the ground on his back, and died.
"The captain is dead! The captain is dead!"
The Jurchen soldiers shouted, and their morale dropped rapidly. Centurion Yinya saw that the situation was not good and ordered: "Retreat!"
The fierce fighting suddenly stopped at the bloodiest moment.
More than 130 Jurchen soldiers gathered into a square formation, holding a spear in one hand and a shield in the other. Facing the Song army, they began to slowly retreat into the woods.
"Pullback!"
Yang Hua waved his hand, led fifty soldiers and retreated to the military camp, closing the gate.
At this time, Chen Qing returned to the military camp and smiled at the soldiers: "I shot and killed the enemy's general. They should not fight anymore!"
An excited cheer suddenly erupted in the military camp.
……….
The sky was getting brighter, but the smell of blood had not yet dissipated. The mountain road in front of the gate of the military camp was filled with corpses of the two armies. The soil was dyed red with blood, and the air was filled with the pungent smell of blood.
The soldiers were exhausted and lay on the ground to rest.
"All we have left is this flag!"
Yang Hua, the escort, handed a broken plain yellow flag to Chen Qing.
Chen Qing pulled out a dagger, pricked his finger, and wrote on the yellow flag with the blood of his finger, "Serve the country with all my heart, swear to kill the gold thief". This is the flag of the Eight-Character Army.
Chen Qing personally placed the military flag on the overlooking platform. The mountain breeze blew, and the military flag riddled with holes fluttered in the wind.
Fifty-three Song soldiers stood up slowly, supporting each other and supporting their bodies with spears. They looked up at the military flag. Everyone's eyes were moist. Although they were scarred and almost the entire army was destroyed, as long as
As long as the military flag is still there, they have not failed.
This is their military spirit and their determination to fight for the country. As long as they have a breath left, they will never give up.
The Jurchen soldiers in the woods also saw the military flags waving in the wind. Everyone realized that they could not defeat this army. Even if the opponent fought to the last man, they could not claim victory.
More than 160 of the 300 Jurchen soldiers were killed in the battle. Centurion Yinya did not want to suffer any more casualties. They were the most precious ranger cavalry and could no longer die like this.
The responsibility could be passed on to Wanyan Alu. Centurion Yinya finally made up his mind, "Send the order to the entire army to retreat down the mountain!"
More than a hundred Jurchen soldiers carried the bodies of wounded soldiers and generals down the mountain sadly.
Behind them, a broken Eight-Character Army flag still fluttered tenaciously in the wind.
………..
In the battle of Fuping, 200,000 Song troops were defeated miserably. Zhang Jun, the envoy of Xuanfu in Sichuan and Shaanxi, ordered the execution of the defeated general Zhao Zhe and led the remaining army to retreat to Xingzhou. Forced by the situation, he soon retreated to Langzhong.
Zhang Jun ordered Wu Jie, the commander of the capital, to gather troops to suppress the danger at Monk Yuan and Dashan Pass in Fengxiang Prefecture.
At this time, Wang Yan, the leader of the Eight-Character Army, successfully crossed the Wei River with an army of 5,000 troops, retreated to Heshangyuan, and joined forces with Wu Jie. Zhang Jun immediately appointed Wang Yan as the deputy general in charge of the capital, and cooperated with Wu Jie to guard the key road at Shukou.
Wang Yan stood on the Dashan Pass, staring worriedly at the north.
General Wu Jie walked over slowly, stood next to him and asked, "Is there any news from Zicai's men?"
Wang Yan shook his head and sighed, "If a thousand soldiers were to stop Wanyan Zongbi's 10,000 cavalry, the whole army should be destroyed."
"But they didn't die in vain, did they?"
"They blocked the enemy for a quarter of an hour, but it was this critical quarter of an hour that allowed the main army to successfully cross the Wei River. Even if the entire army was killed, they deserved their death. But what moved me was that many of them were lucky enough to win.
A sign of life, but willing to leave generously to die!"
Wu Jie sighed softly, "It is precisely because of so many soldiers who served the country heroically that the Song Dynasty was immortalized and that we still have the opportunity to stand here and continue to fight against the enemy."
"The general is right, but I still have a glimmer of hope."
"Zicai thinks they can still break through?"
"I have a gut feeling that a miracle might happen!"
Wang Yan thought of Chen Qing. The sudden appearance of this young general gave him a completely different feeling. If a miracle happened, it must be because of this man.
……….
Chen Qing led more than fifty of his men to retreat to the northwest after leaving the military camp.
Everyone was injured and they could not march at high speeds, so they had to travel day and night. It took them five days to reach Chunhua County.
Chunhua County is an important military town on Jingyuan Road. Zhang Zhongyan, commander of the Huanqing Army, led more than a thousand defeated troops to temporarily station here.
At this time, Zhao Zhe, the leader of the Huanqing Army, had been beheaded by the commander Zhang Jun, and other major generals were also killed. When this news came out, the retreating generals of the Huanqing Army were horrified and looked for a way out.
Commander Murong Tao led his army to defect to Xixia, while commander Zhang Zhongyan, who fled to Chunhua County, also decided to surrender to the Jin Kingdom.
Zhang Zhongyan is about forty years old, with dark skin, a pair of triangular eyes under thick brush-like eyebrows, and a thick beard. He looks bold and rough, but his triangular eyes are full of treachery.
In the room, Zhang Zhongyan heard that a remnant of the Eight-Character Army had arrived, and he sneered in his heart. He was worried that he had not given Wanyan Zongbi the certificate of surrender, and a Eight-Character Army arrived at his door.
Zhang Zhongyan had previously received news that Wanyan Zongbi was offering a large reward for the capture of a remnant general of the Eight-Character Army named Chen Qing. Anyone captured alive would be rewarded with a reward of 10,000 yuan, and he would be promoted to three ranks. Those who offered his head would still be rewarded with 10,000 yuan, but his official rank would be promoted to two ranks.
It is said that this person only has a few dozen men left, which is in line with the characteristics of the eight-character army in front of him.
"You obey my orders!"
Zhang Zhongyan summoned several of his generals and said: "Once they enter the city, immediately close the city gate and shoot them inside the urn city without fail!"
All the generals were silent, and Zhang Zhongyan said sternly: "There are at least five to six million Song troops who surrendered to the Jin Kingdom. When will it be our turn to take the lead? This is our only chance to gain glory and wealth. If you don't want to do it with me, raise it now."
come out!"
Lieutenant General Li Hua raised his hands and said: "I can follow the command and surrender, but I can't kill the brothers of the Song Army!"
"You!" Zhang Zhongyan was furious and put his hand on the hilt of his sword. The generals on both sides quickly tried to stop him.
Zhang Zhongyan knew that he couldn't kill Li Hua, so he snorted heavily and said: "If you don't want to do it, just step aside. If you dare to ruin my important affairs, I will definitely kill you with my own hands!"
Li Hua snorted, turned and left.
Zhang Zhongyan looked at Li Hua's back with sinister eyes and ordered the soldiers on his left and right, "Watch his every move!"
……….
Chen Qing led his men to the city of Chunhua County. The city gates were closed. Dozens of Song soldiers wearing hats stood on top of the city, holding spears in their hands. The regimental dragon war flag of the Song Dynasty was flying high on the city head.
At this time, the city gate opened a gap, and a soldier ran from the city, stepped forward and clasped his fists, saying: "My general said that you can enter the city, but you are not allowed to rob the people, and you have to take care of your own food and accommodation!"
Chen Qing did not expect the other party to entertain them warmly. He was eager to let the soldiers settle down and recover, so he nodded, "Our Eight-Character Army has strict military discipline and will not harass the people or trouble you!"
The soldier waved his hand, and the city gate creaked open.
Chen Qing greeted everyone, "Let's go to the city!"
The group of people supported each other and walked towards the city...
On the top of the city, Zhang Zhongyan looked sinisterly at the Song Army below. He was very cunning and knew that asking too many questions and caring too much would make the other party suspicious. If he simply acted mean, the other party would relax their guard.
When the last soldier entered the city gate, Zhang Zhongyan immediately turned around and made a gesture, and the soldiers began to push the winch and close the city gate.
Inside the city gate is an urn city, which is like a large patio. It is empty, without any buildings, and there is no road to the city. It is surrounded by city walls. Only by entering the previous city gate can you enter the county seat.
As soon as Chen Qing and his party entered Wengcheng, the city gate behind them suddenly closed. There were ambushes on the surrounding walls. Thousands of soldiers drew their bowstrings, and cold arrows were aimed at them.
The men were shocked, and Yang Hua said anxiously: "Du Tou, we are surrounded!"
Chen Qing ordered in a deep voice: "Don't panic, everyone, use your shields to defend yourself!"
The soldiers gathered together back to back, holding shields in their hands, and formed a shield wall.
Chen Qing slowly looked around the city and shouted loudly, "Dear fellow defenders, did I see it wrong? Isn't the battle flag behind you the Song Army's regimental dragon flag?
You are still wearing Song Army armor and Song Army hats, but your bows and arrows are pointed at the brothers who once fought side by side.
We fought bloody battles with the Jin soldiers, but we did not die by the swords of the Jin soldiers, but we died by the arrows of our own people. Is this how you fight against the Jin soldiers to protect the country?"
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[Oops! I just found out that "Fenghou" can be rewarded, so I voted for it monthly! 】
I have been frustrated for a week, asking for monthly tickets and rewards!