[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-shao-song":3,"chapter-shao-song-shao-song-chapter-401":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Shao Song",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},1558567,2024,"Chapter 401: The Flaw","shao-song-chapter-401",401,"\u003Cp>The Zhao ruler's actions might have been a bit superfluous, but considering he might not have known that Hu Yin would come in person and make such a statement, it was hard to say much. However, this still made it seem like he didn't trust the resolve of Minister Hu and the several gentlemen in Dongjing, this civil official decision-making collective.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At the very least, compared to Yue Fei, there was a lack of trust.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No wonder Hu Mingzhong was momentarily angered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But right now was hardly the time to discuss this matter. Just as Jin Wushu knew to put away his sarcastic remarks and instead encourage his troops, on the Song side, Hu Yin immediately let Yue Fei and the others guide the officers in the tent to examine the imperial decree for encouragement.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the end, with the river channel sealed, the opportunity for battle had appeared for the Jin army, and war was bound to break out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This battle, compared to the one just after crossing the river last month, would be no less intense in ferocity, but its scale would be several times, even ten times larger. And considering the Song army's complete fortifications and the Jin army's ample troops, it was very likely to become a war of attrition and grinding.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No one could take it lightly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The Song army's biggest mistake wasn't made by Yue Pengju, but by that self-righteous Zhao Song ruler!\" After Jin Wushu's anger, Bolisu formally took over the military council in his seat, speaking with conviction.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"In this northern expedition of our army, the overall situation is in our grasp!\" After the officers in the tent finished examining those 'imperial decrees,' Yue Fei sat upright in the commander's seat, looking around sternly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That ruler's biggest mistake was splitting his 300,000 Imperial Guard Army in two, and after dividing them, still pushing for advances on both fronts!\" Bolisu explained confidently.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The reason I say this is not only because we have worked hard for ten years, gradually grown strong, have 300,000 Imperial Guard troops, and can mobilize 500,000 civilian laborers, but more importantly, the Jurchens are visibly declining day by day.\" Yue Fei slightly softened his tone. \"In ten years, the Jin army's strength has changed like heaven and earth. This is the real foundation for our army to face the enemy here.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"If that Zhao ruler had used his Imperial Guard Right Army and navy to guard the Yellow River, then blocked the Imperial Guard Forward Army directly at Longde Prefecture (Shangdang Basin), and then combined Wu Jie's Imperial Guard Rear Army and Yelu Yudu's Khitan mixed troops to exit Yanmen, filling the wilds of Hedong densely without a single gap, in that kind of terrain, I truly wouldn't dare to engage in a decisive battle with a large army!\" Bolisu suddenly stood up. \"But since he divided his forces, forced Yue Fei to attack Great Ming Prefecture, and forced the Imperial Guard Forward Army to take this Yuancheng, he has exposed his opportunity for battle...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"In this battle, although our troops are slightly weaker, we have ample fortifications and defensive lines.\" Yue Fei continued his calm analysis. \"It's easy to show bravery behind high walls. We can rely on our fortifications to inflict heavy casualties on the enemy. And the enemy, though seemingly powerful, is actually bloated. Once their first general assault fails, the second won't succeed either, and the third will completely deflate their morale, leaving them in a dilemma...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"No matter how many routes they attack from, we only need to kill on this one route!\" Bolisu finally drew his saber, revealing a gleaming white blade. \"This is the overall trend! In this battle, we have united thirteen Wanhu units, with the Prince of Wei personally overseeing the army. We must swallow Yue Fei's 60,000 men!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The imperial decree is here; you have all seen it. Its meaning is self-evident, and Minister Hu is sitting right here... There is no retreat in this battle!\" Yue Fei also finally stood up and then gave a stern order. \"But if you can strictly observe military discipline and follow orders without fail, then there is absolutely no reason for defeat in this battle!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And so, with both sides' commanders having finished their exhortations and assigned combat tasks, around the afternoon, troop deployments were settled, and the battle quickly and massively erupted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, it was by no means intense.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because the first to attack were not the main Jin forces, but the conscripted troops.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Driven by the fully armed heavy Jin army groups, no less than 70,000 to 80,000 conscripted troops, wearing anti-slip straw sandals, many only in the tattered winter clothes they brought from home, a few possessing broken leather armor and strangely out-of-place straw raincoats, carrying simple long spears, soft bows, and broadswords, climbed over what might have been the most spectacular sheep-and-horse wall of the era—the Yellow River levee—on a front nearly 17 or 18 li wide. Then they trampled across what might have been the era's broadest moat—the frozen Yellow River channel—and launched a mighty charge towards the vast Song army positions that had been built up for nearly a month.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When there are over ten thousand men, they stretch beyond the horizon; when there are 70,000 to 80,000, it is a force that no one can take lightly. Only the Song army here, with no less than 130,000 to 140,000 men of their own, could face it without fear and respond steadily.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As for these conscripted troops, they were simply the able-bodied young men from the surrounding prefectures and counties. Over the past ten years, they had successively escaped the Jurchens' mass slaughter and trafficking, endured the subsequent years of unimaginable tyranny, but ultimately could not avoid today's battle.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the slightly chilly winter afternoon, under the direct rays of a sun that gave no warmth, these Hebei conscripted troops, like a thick black tide, struggled to roll from the west side of the Yellow River channel towards the east. The Song army on the opposite side did not hesitate. The eight-ox crossbows on the levee, the trebuchets behind the levee, and the divine-arm crossbows on the earthen mounds all fired almost simultaneously, hurling countless arrows, bolts, and stone projectiles from and over the levee.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Under the dense long-range strikes, this black tide quickly became sluggish and viscous. After finally reaching the levee on the other side, it rapidly lost the momentum to continue rolling, and then, as if acted upon by gravity, rolled back again—at the edge of the levee, the main Song forces were waiting in full battle array behind the palisades. These conscripted troops had no courage for hand-to-hand combat. As for the very few who did reach the front, even if they expressed surrender and begged the Song army to let them pass through for refuge, they were only met with long spears and short swords.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In this state of an isolated army in peril, the Song army could not afford to take the huge military risk of showing them leniency.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In fact, even the Jin army had not expected these poorly equipped conscripted troops to break into or enter the Song positions. They were originally meant to waste the Song army's arrows and projectiles, and then exhaust and shake their morale.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Therefore, seeing the black tide rolling back en masse, the Jin commander had no second thoughts. He simply ordered the supervisory troops forward immediately, forcing them to roll back again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, they would have to roll back.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And so, for most of the afternoon, nearly 100,000 conscripted troops were repeatedly turned over like some dish being flipped by a spatula in a hot wok. Their strength, agility, courage, thought, life, and hope all gradually drained away in these repeated rolls.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But these complex and precious things had a surprisingly simple color scheme—fresh blood seeped into the ice, spreading through the cracks in a patch of crimson. On the surface of the ice, due to the constant trampling of these conscripted troops, a thin layer of melted muddy water formed, which quickly froze again. The two colors overlapped to create a strange, uniform reddish-black hue.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was just like the pale yellow oil residue left behind by fish and meat in a frying pan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Winter nights fall quickly. After about four or five such large-scale assaults, the sun sank low. The Song army, ultimately unable to bear it, began to consciously reduce their strike intensity. Sensing this, the conscripted troops also started to stay within the river channel as much as possible in a chaotic yet unified manner... Sure enough, as long as they didn't assault the Song positions, the Song army stopped attacking them. And the Jin army, having perceived the solidity of the Song positions and the strict discipline of this Song force, quickly lost the will to waste more effort on supervising the battle with their swords.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>By evening, the Jin army finally sounded the gong to withdraw.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This battle was a prelude, a beginning. Its purpose was to drain the Song army's morale and stockpile of projectiles, and to test the Song army's discipline and execution ability... Beyond that, it was also supposed to have the tactical goal of probing the enemy's strengths and weaknesses and finding weak points in the Song line. But due to the Song army's tight defenses and the bloated mass of the conscripted troops, this was not achieved.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But that was nothing. Starting the next morning, the Jin army would replace them with a new batch of conscripted troops, mixed with some armored Han'er troops, and even a small number of dismounted Jin iron cavalry, to ensure this tactical goal was met.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>By then, these conscripted troops would be unlikely to get even a brief respite in the river channel like today. They would be coerced until the very last moment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, Yue Fei was by no means someone who would passively defend without daring to strike back. That night, amidst the cold wind, in the somewhat weary and silent Jin army camp west of the river, flames suddenly erupted, startling the entire army.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bolisu and Jin Wushu were greatly alarmed. They hastily rose, issuing commands continuously. On one hand, they ordered each unit to partition the camp area, hold firm and not panic. On the other, they dispatched trusted troops from their own units eastward along the river through the night, to patrol and ensure they guarded against a large-scale Song army surprise attack.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After a night of chaos, by dawn, when information was gathered, Bolisu and Jin Wushu finally learned the reason.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It turned out that during the previous day's probing attack, the Song army had spotted an opportunity. They had dispatched a small elite force disguised as conscripted troops, who, in the chaos of the later stages of the battle, hid in the river channel and then mixed into the Jin camp with the disorderly conscripted ranks... Due to the heavy casualties and low morale among the conscripted troops, no one noticed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the end, it was the classic tactic of setting fires under cover of night.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, the Jin army's reaction was still very swift, and their handling was appropriate, so the fire did not spread, and the camp did not fall into large-scale chaos. Probably for this reason, after the Song relief force made contact with the Jin army and covered the retreat of many of their own raiding squads, they also directly withdrew.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even so, this night's turmoil was still a standard and even brilliant counter-raid and harassment operation—not only did the Jin army go sleepless all night, but a large number of conscripted troops who had witnessed the cruelty of the battlefield also took the opportunity to flee.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Benefiting from this, the scale of the battle on the second day suddenly shrank by more than half.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, it must also be said that having suffered such a raid the day before, still persisting with the original tactics and strategy on the second day, and with the armored Han'er troops appearing as scheduled, conversely proved that the resolve of the Jin high command was unshakable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On the third day, Jin heavy infantry began to participate on a small scale, and the intensity of the fighting further increased. The Song army's levee position, which they relied on, was breached for the first time. Two eight-ox crossbows were burned, several hundred civilian laborers were slaughtered, and only then did the Song army's second-line troops manage to plug the gap.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And it was on the afternoon of this day that, to the north of Great Ming City and Gucheng Town, on the east side of the Song positions—that is, near the old positions of the main Song force—over a thousand Jin heavy cavalry suddenly appeared. After patrolling the east side of the Song positions for a full two hours, and listening to the clamor from the western battlefield across the vast Song camp for another two hours, they suddenly withdrew around evening.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Needless to say, this was almost certainly Wang Bolong's unit. And the sudden appearance of Wang Bolong's unit, abandoning the Xiajin City to the north, could only mean one thing: after two and a half days of continuous probing, pressure, and expenditure of projectile weapons, the Jin army's first general assault was about to arrive as scheduled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Early on the fourth day, not long after dawn, before the Song cavalry scouts had even returned from all directions, the last hot air balloon of the Song army, which had been raised without hesitation, confirmed the news. The so-called Balloon Camp's battalion commander, Bei Yan himself, boarded the basket and, through ropes, hooks, and counterweights, continuously passed down sheets of paper with text and simple diagrams from over ten zhang in the air.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The intelligence could not be clearer:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The main force of the Jin camp, after eating, was massively assembling and converging along the river;\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dust billowed; at the southern section of the Jin camp, a considerable number—likely at least ten thousand Jin cavalry—were moving south;\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To the north, in the Guantao direction, the main Jin force was also regrouping;\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Inside Yuancheng, a large number of cavalry were also beginning to assemble around the already quite empty Cuiyun Tower, seemingly uncertain of the direction of their sortie;\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Finally, to the northeast of the positions, dust was thick. The commotion couldn't compare to the main Jin camp west of the positions, but it was immediately clear that it was dust kicked up by a large force on the move, which had suddenly appeared.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Needless to say, on this day, the Jin army would not only launch a general assault but would attack from all sides, aiming to maximize their numerical advantage.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Commander...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On the gate tower of Yuancheng's north wall, Gao Qingyi, accompanied by two guards, hurriedly ascended the wall and then earnestly advised, \"This place is dangerous. If you wish to observe the battle, you might as well go to the east wall...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After the Yellow River froze, the east wall, which had initially been bombarded, had instead become the safest area of Yuancheng.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"No need.\" Fully armored, hands resting on a crooked wooden palisade, Gao Jingshan stared at the main body of the Song camp north of the city without turning his head. The brick and stone crenellations here had long been smashed away by Song trebuchets. \"The Song army won't have the energy to worry about the city today...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That's true.\" Gao Qingyi was stunned for a moment, then nodded and also stepped forward. But with just one look, he couldn't help but sigh, and then, like Gao Jingshan, fell into a daze.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It turned out that from this spot, the very core of the entire Song army camp was laid out in full view.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not only the two obvious heavy defense lines running north-south, nor only the natural defense lines formed by the two Yellow River channels and dikes to the east and west, nor only the crossbow positions on the six earthen mounds and the artillery positions atop and behind the dikes, and certainly not only the shipyards and reservoirs conveniently built while excavating the earthen mounds—the most intuitive aspect was actually the scale of the camp and the density of the fortifications.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dense palisades, earthen ramparts that were not tall but sufficient to create obstacles, and orderly crisscrossing trenches were everywhere. Between camp and camp, between worksite and position, everything was clearly demarcated. In fact, because of this density, most of the roads within the Song army camp had a tunnel-like feel.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A single glance at fortifications of this degree made one's teeth ache on behalf of the outer army.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What business does Gao Tongshi have with me?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After staring a while longer, Gao Jingshan, his face full of fatigue, finally came to his senses, frowning deeply.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Pusuyue has already assembled. Requesting the Commander's next instructions.\" Gao Qingyi also hurriedly suppressed some unease and answered quickly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Don't bother with him. It will be given when the time comes.\" Gao Jingshan's expression did not change; he merely pointed at the hot air balloon hanging high in the safest central area of the Song army's main camp. \"Telling him now would only expose the direction of our attack.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gao Qingyi turned his head to look at the two guards who had followed them up. One of them understood and immediately turned back to inform Pusuyue. As soon as the man left, Gao Qingyi stared again at the many things before the city for a while, then couldn't help shaking his head:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"This battle gets harder and harder to understand. Hundreds of thousands of troops from both sides meet, yet instead of deploying in formation for field battle, there are countless artillery pieces, giant crossbows, large Kongming lanterns that can carry people, and such dense fortifications... Twenty years ago, when we were young, who could have imagined this?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"There are still traces to follow.\" Gao Jingshan shook his head unceasingly upon hearing this. \"Everything you mentioned, except for the hot air balloon which is an anomaly, had its roots twenty years ago...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gao Qingyi was momentarily bewildered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"It's still the armor.\" Gao Jingshan did not mean to be cryptic; instead, staring at the Song army beginning to deploy in an orderly manner below the city, he explained calmly. \"I've had this thought for a long time... When armor reaches a certain thickness and density, ordinary soft bows, swords, and spears become ineffective... Do you remember, twenty years ago, when we were guarding against bandits in Liaodong, the most useful things were actually long spears and large shields, and the sword-and-shield men all had to prepare a small pouch at their waist, containing seven or eight pebbles?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That did happen.\" Gao Qingyi recalled the past, feeling as if it were a lifetime ago. \"That was a good thing for sword-and-shield men without bows to use against harassment from a moderate distance.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Correct.\" Gao Jingshan stood up, pointing at the heavy armor on his own body and responding calmly. \"And now? After such thick and dense armor appeared, every elite soldier who can truly decide victory or defeat is armored like this. Against this kind of armor, wouldn't carrying those seven or eight pebbles be a joke? Even soft bows and single-edged sabers are mostly items prepared by the people themselves, not the key equipment of the military. Which of the Song and Jin would waste half a thought on soft bows and thin arrows?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Now it's all strong crossbows, heavy arrows, war hammers, thick maces, great axes, long spears...\" Gao Qingyi nodded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Yes. In other words, everything has become heavy troops... heavy infantry, heavy cavalry... We have the Iron Pagoda, they have the Infantryman's Armor. A main battle soldier has to carry several tens of jin of equipment into battle.\" Gao Jingshan continued to sigh. \"And to deal with these heavily armored troops, besides countering heavy with heavy, a simpler way is to rely on cities, camps, and fortifications, exploiting their immobility, their inability to fight for long, and their logistical disadvantages. Once the role of cities and fortifications becomes apparent, artillery must be raised, the city must be locked down. Then, to suppress the outer artillery, the best method within the city and fortifications is also to raise artillery, using artillery to counter artillery... So artillery pieces become more common, more numerous, simpler, and whether cities or camps, they all become thicker and denser... until it becomes what we see now.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gao Qingyi thought for a moment but could not find any words to refute, and could only nod heavily.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"There are actually two things I'm worried about now.\" Having said this, Gao Jingshan finally turned to the main issue. \"One is that if the Fourth Prince and the others fail in their general offensive, the Song army, seeking security, will inevitably turn around and attack the city with full force... And according to conventional logic, although our city walls are thick and sturdy, the shortest section of the wall is still three zhang high, making it very difficult to defend against artillery bombardment. Plus, with only a single layer of city wall, once a section is breached by combined bombardment, the city could fall directly.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gao Qingyi looked at the city wall beneath his feet, then turned his head to look at the interior of Great Ming City behind him, shaking his head helplessly: \"A city too large is not a good thing!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The other thing.\" Gao Jingshan again pointed his finger at the hot air balloon. \"Is worrying that the Song army still has such abrupt, new-style methods.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gao Qingyi still shook his head, but not in agreement: \"The Commander is overthinking. The current situation is this: if the Fourth Prince and the others cannot break the camp, then by conventional means, the Song army should already be breaking into our city. At that point, even if the Song army has some extraordinary tactic, it's just them adding icing on the cake. We are the ones trapped in the urn—what's the point of thinking so much?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gao Jingshan was visibly stunned for a moment, then finally nodded heavily.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then, the two chatted for a while longer, roughly about digging trenches in a ring inside the city to prevent the Song army from tunneling; storing gunpowder and oil behind some obvious weak points, using gunpowder and oil as accelerants to block breaches when necessary; and of course, rejecting 'suggestions' such as repairing the city wall by pouring water to freeze it as a defense measure, because many parts of the wall already had internal cracks, and pouring water to freeze might backfire and damage the wall's stability.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But they had only discussed a few matters when Gao Jingshan and Gao Qingyi both stopped their discussion of city defense. Because under the morning sun, in the dry deep winter season, the troops of Wang Bolong, who had not participated in the battle before, appeared first on the eastern side of the battlefield and began to form ranks across the river. This caused tension among the Song army and also made the two Gaos on the city wall frown together.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Wang Bolong came too early.\" Gao Jingshan said coldly. \"He's too eager to claim merit!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That old bastard!\" Gao Qingyi was even more blunt.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Now, the Song army, surrounding Yuancheng and using the river channels on both sides, had established a super-large camp with a circumference of seventy to eighty li on the strip of land. There were bound to be countless minor flaws, and some of these flaws had already been probed by the Jin army during the previous three days of fighting... But in large-scale army operations, besides finding those flaws and committing troops to exploit them, one must also consider some broad tactical choices.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For example, the Song army first built the northern defense line, then the southern line, so the southern line was inevitably inferior to the northern. The eastern and western defense lines were built even later, and could only be hastily established relying on the river channels and dikes, making it difficult for these two flank lines to compare with the northern and southern ones.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then, due to the objective existence of Yuancheng, the middle-southern section of this western defense line, about seventeen or eighteen li long, appeared even weaker—there was no help for it. For the Song army on the southern section, Yuancheng occupied half of this strip of land behind them, naturally lacking the necessary defensive depth, and troops and supplies had to be mobilized from the core area in the north.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Besides this, the main Jin army came from the west, gathering west of the river, which further forced the Song army to concentrate their energy and equipment on the western side. Conversely, the eastern section of the Song army's camp area would become the overall weakest region.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Therefore, the Jin army would almost certainly take these two sections as their main attack directions.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Among these, leaving aside the southern section of the western side, regarding the eastern side, if the Jin army wanted to concentrate troops for an attack, they could not send troops ahead of time to set up camp here for a timely assault, because the Song army was not weak, and with central command, they could conveniently sortie. Whether you sent many or few troops, as long as you dared to set up camp and stay overnight, you were giving the Song army an opportunity to defeat you in detail.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hence, approaching the general offensive, the Jin army could only temporarily dispatch a detached force to the eastern line... This detached force, departing from the main camp on the western side, needed a certain amount of time to cross the frozen river twice, bypass the Song army's camp and Great Ming City, which was still under Song control, and finally rendezvous and assemble with Wang Bolong's troops, who were originally on the northeastern side, behind the Song army.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then, at the most critical moment of the battle, they would concentrate elite heavy armor for a coordinated pincer attack.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Considering the distance and the necessity for the troops to rest in a safe area before attacking, the battle on the eastern side should begin in the afternoon, or perhaps in the later part of the afternoon.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The possibility of a night battle was not even ruled out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And now, before the main battle on the western front had even started, Wang Bolong had already brought his troops over impatiently. Wasn't this equivalent to pinching one's nose and reminding the Song army not to forget the weakest eastern line?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Add to this the fact that this man had always been arrogant, relying on being a direct-line subordinate to ignore Gao Jingshan's orders, plus the latent tradition of opposition between Han Chinese from Liaodong and Bohai people from the early days of Aguda's uprising, it was no wonder Gao Qingyi directly cursed him as a 'bastard'!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, this was not the time to dwell on such things, because soon, on the western line, after a brief reorganization, the Jin army launched an offensive like a tidal wave.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This time, the Jin army only forced the conscripted troops to launch two assaults.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After two assaults, just past mid-morning, the conscripted troops withdrew... This time, they were truly only there to consume crossbow bolts and artillery stones... Then, the so-called supplementary troops within the 'Wanhu' units, primarily the Han'er Army, but now no longer just Han Chinese infantry in organized formations, began to sortie in force.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>These infantrymen, of course, could not be as well-equipped, skilled in combat, or well-treated as the Meng'an Mouke troops, but as organized combat units, they were also a basic product of the Jin state's large-scale sinicization of rule in the Two Rivers and Yanyun regions in recent years, and they still received the equipment and treatment they deserved.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The troops' armor-wearing rate reached over sixty percent, and they were generally issued strong crossbows and battle axes according to their organization—this was a configuration aimed at the Song army's armored troops... Of course, more importantly, the medieval battlefield could not lack long spears and sword-and-shield men.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And the Jin army committed thirty to forty thousand of these troops in one go.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The reason for such a large deviation in the number was that the Song army soldiers in the hot air balloon did not have time to count and estimate properly before these combat troops, with military quality far surpassing the conscripted troops by who knows how many times, charged directly to the front of the Song army positions, immediately plunging both sides into close-quarters combat... After the previous battles, these supplementary troops were very clear that the smooth yet pitted, wide yet bundled river ice was the main strike zone for the Song army's projectile forces. Unlike the conscripted troops, if they stayed there, they would receive no leniency, only the most violent bombardment, so they had to enter melee as quickly as possible.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, besides deploying numerous crossbow carts and artillery pieces along the dike, the Song army had also built palisades on the inner slope of the dike, steepened the slope directly in front of the crossbow carts, and deployed sufficient front-line troops.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The supplementary troops in the Jin army camp surged forward all at once, but encountered stubborn resistance on the crest line of the dike, forced to endure heavy casualties from the Song army's strong crossbows while attacking uphill.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And soon, the Song army's eight-oxen crossbow carts, using the simplest and most direct method—propping up the rear legs with timber to lower the firing angle—quickly ended this assault.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Song army had done this deliberately. In the previous three days, they had rather watched two precious eight-oxen crossbows be burned than use this tactic, which was simple to the point of being incredible, and whose effect was also incredible.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If the Jurchen heavy arrowheads were like daggers, then the bolts of the eight-oxen crossbow were like large javelins. Firing three bolts at a time, at the closest range, they easily skewered several people in a row like stringing blood gourds along the slope of the dike, then viciously pinned the corpses to the frozen ground or solid ice at the bottom of the dike.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>All armor, all shields, all exquisite martial skills and fearless courage were like paper.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To be honest, the actual killing power of a mere few dozen eight-oxen crossbows, after lowering their firing angle, was undoubtedly a drop in the bucket for the vast Jin combat formation. But its morale-killing power was too great, even more excessive than the killing power from the river before it thawed, because it was too close!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After just two or three volleys, the assault of these Jin supplementary troops was broken. The routed soldiers fled back to the river like a tide. They would rather crouch below holding up shields to take those crossbow bolts than see their comrades skewered together at the closest distance, terrified and imagining themselves ending up in that ghastly state.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even though the experienced soldiers and commanders among them knew full well that in this passive, defensive state, the casualty rate was actually higher, because the crossbow bolts were dense and continuous, and there was likely to be a covering bombardment from the artillery pieces.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But anyway, they just didn't dare to charge anymore.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, the Jin commanders were not stupid or stubborn. Before the artillery bombardment began, they quickly adjusted their strategy, recalling the troops, dividing them by unit into squads and groups, avoiding the direct sweep zones of those eight-oxen crossbows, and launching assaults in smaller intervals in waves.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The adjustment was immediately effective. The Song army could not possibly deploy eight-oxen crossbows to blockade a dozen-li front in one month. The Jin supplementary troops who avoided the direct strike zones of these few dozen eight-oxen crossbows still had to attack uphill, but at least they would not suffer a complete morale collapse like a major rout.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Moreover, the Jin army did not let these supplementary troops die in vain. Almost immediately, after confirming this method was feasible, some Jurchen heavy armor units officially joined the assault teams.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This immediately raised the Jin army's combat effectiveness by a notch. As had happened the day before, the Song army began to show casualties, and the line began to waver in a very few places.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After roughly two more waves of major assaults, just before noon, large formations of Jurchen heavy infantry began to appear, and without any surprise, they all massed on the southern section of the battle line.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In an instant, the Song troops holding the south bank of the Yongji Canal felt immense pressure.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Marshal, Commander Bei has relayed a report: Sector A-2 on the western line's southern segment was briefly lost, but was quickly retaken.\" On the earthen mound north of Yuancheng, Yue Fei's personal adjutant Bi Jin, who had only hurried back from Hedong a few days before the river froze, arrived sweating profusely, knelt, and reported.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Understood.\" Yue Fei sat upright on a chair atop the mound, his words extremely brief.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Upon hearing this, Bi Jin immediately turned back, heading to the ropes beneath the hot-air balloon to continue waiting for news... In this single morning, he had already made thirty or forty round trips, no wonder he was drenched in sweat.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Marshal, should we send reinforcements early?\" Staff Officer Huang Zong, though he hadn't been running messages, also showed signs of being soaked through with sweat.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Wasn't it you, Staff Officer Huang, who personally set the military strategy?\" Yue Fei finally showed a slight expression, squinting as he inquired. \"You said before that unless the Jin army attacks from both north and south, we absolutely cannot deploy the Imperial Guard Right Army, and unless they attack from the east flank behind us, we must not move the two Beiwei Army units. Why change the plan in the heat of battle?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At this moment, Zhang Rong had gone to the southernmost line to take command, and Hu Yin had gone to the northern line to supervise the battle. Huang Zong looked around and saw only Tian Shizhong, a high-ranking officer from an external garrison, sitting there, still staring at a 'ridiculous imperial decree' from the Zhao official. He took several deep breaths and gave a bitter smile:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"How could one know it would be this hard to endure without being in the midst of battle?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yue Fei nodded, thoughtful: \"So, Staff Officer Huang hasn't changed his mind, but is unsettled by the battle, to the point where, knowing full well we should wait, you still can't hold back?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Yes.\" Huang Zong admitted frankly. \"I've made a fool of myself before the Marshal.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yue Fei shook his head, as if he didn't think so, or as if he didn't care. But at this moment, the shouts of battle from the entire western line, over a dozen li long, came in waves like the roaring tide of the sea, coupled with the constant flow of military dispatches, no one paid it any mind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After waiting a while longer, Bi Jin returned again from beneath the hot-air balloon, reporting hastily: \"Marshal, a major problem on the southern segment. Sector B-4 has clearly been breached by the Jin army; the flag stationed in that sector has been cut down by the Jin troops!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Everyone was alarmed, all looking to Yue Fei. Unhurriedly, Yue Fei glanced behind him from his seat, then glanced at the silent Tian Shizhong beside him, before slowly replying: \"No need for panic. Behind Sector B-4 is Li Kui's unit. Although he is meticulous and cautious by nature, he is always decisive in major matters. He should move up to plug the gap quickly... If he fails, Tang Huai is there to coordinate from the center.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The crowd barely calmed down, and moments later, reports indeed came from both the hot-air balloon and the front line, saying that a unit had been dispatched to drive the Jin army back, and the officer leading the counterattack was none other than the notoriously meticulous Commander Li Kui.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only then did everyone settle down.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was at this moment that Yue Fei, after looking back once more, suddenly called out to someone nearby: \"Commander Tian!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tian Shizhong's heart skipped a beat, and he tore the 'imperial edict' in his hand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yue Fei paused not a moment, speaking earnestly: \"Commander Tian, the Jin army has revealed a huge opening. Opportunity knocks but once. I think we can give it a try.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Startled, Tian Shizhong thought for a moment, then, like the surrounding officers and staff, stood frozen in place... First of all, in broad daylight, with the front line just breached, where was this opening?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Secondly, how exactly did you plan to 'give it a try'? And why call for me? Weren't we not supposed to move the Imperial Guard Right Army until the northern and southern forces attacked together?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Look behind us.\" Yue Fei didn't keep them in suspense. \"All morning, Wang Bolong's banner has been shifting back and forth a dozen times... Every time I turned to receive the notes Bi Jin brought, his banner was in a different position.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Like the staff officers around him, Tian Shizhong stood up in a daze, looked back, and stared at the eastern line, which had seen no action all morning, slowly coming to a realization:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"He's eager for battle and can't hold back anymore?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You go out and attack, lure him into striking! If he doesn't come, so be it. But if he dares to come with his isolated force, we'll snatch the teeth from the tiger's mouth before the other Jin units are in position, and devour him first!\" Yue Fei narrowed his eyes and gave the order solemnly. \"Devour him whole!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"How do we snatch? How do we devour?\" Though Tian Shizhong roughly understood Yue Fei's meaning, he still found it somewhat incredible. \"That's a full five...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You be the bait, I'll handle the encirclement. The two Beiwei Army units will attack one flank and circle around the rear!\" Yue Fei continued his calm exposition. \"That's how we'll devour him! It must be fast, it must be ruthless!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tian Shizhong was silent for a moment, then rose abruptly and hurried eastward.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As soon as he left, Huang Zong immediately reminded him: \"Marshal, if we pursue this risky strategy, we must not only keep an eye on Yuancheng, but also deploy some measures on the southern segment of the western line to guard against contingencies.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What plan do you have?\" Yue Fei asked seriously.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Dispatch a general to charge out from the mouth of the Yongji Canal, advance south along the river course, and seize the Jin army's momentum.\" Huang Zong thought for a moment and replied earnestly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I need both Beiwei Army units for the eastern line behind us; I cannot split my forces...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The river course is only so wide. We don't need a large army, nor cavalry.\" Huang Zong quickly reminded him. \"Sending a brave general with a thousand or so men will suffice.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Who is fit for this task?\" Yue Fei pressed on.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Battalion Commander Wang Gang can handle it.\" Huang Zong thought for a moment and mentioned a name. \"He was originally from the Beiwei Army and has always been the most daring in battle... Restore him to the rank of Commander before the battle, return some of his old troops, and let him atone for his crimes through merit!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yue Fei pondered for no more than a few breaths before making his decision: \"Agreed!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Bastard!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>About a quarter of an hour later, as the Song army suddenly made large-scale deployments, Gao Jingshan, standing on the bare city wall of Yuancheng, watched for a while, then blurted out, his face twisting with rage. \"I knew it was that bastard!!\"\u003C\u002Fp>",6673,"2026-06-06T07:46:32.508Z",1,"Novelzhen Translator","f089b848fcbb03835ffd18c3317844b42a8a9ce86350d570160573216d6133af","shao-song-chapter-402","shao-song-chapter-400",489,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fshao-song-cover.jpg"]