Chapter 1694: The Might of the Great Han Army

"Tomorrow morning, the entire army will pursue!" That very evening, Zhao Song's order reached the ears of every officer and soldier, lifting the entire army's spirits. Everyone understood that tomorrow would be the decisive battle against the shogunate forces. Win this battle, and the Great Han would dominate all of Japan.

Aside from the necessary guard and patrol units, the entire Great Han encampment sank into silence. These men were seasoned veterans with abundant combat experience, so the order caused no unrest among the troops. Some looked forward to it eagerly, rubbing their fists and wiping their palms, too excited to sleep. Others treated it as nothing special, lay down directly, and began snoring loudly, conserving their energy for the next day's fight.

After issuing the order, Zhao Song went straight to bed. He slept deeply and soundly, only waking when a sliver of fish-belly white appeared in the eastern sky the next morning.

His staff officers had all risen early, and with the cooperation of the commanders of each unit, they had already prepared the entire force. They awaited only a single command from Zhao Song.

Zhao Song stepped out of his command tent and saw the soldiers already assembled in neat formations around it. These soldiers were arrayed in their distinct square formations, grouped by their respective branches, which were then organized into larger combined-arms squares according to their unit designations. His three regimental commanders — Bi Su, Li Huanghe, and Ma Chonghao — sat on horseback with their orderlies at the front of the ranks.

Though these officers and soldiers held different ranks, their expressions were uniformly steady yet excited, filled with the tense atmosphere that precedes a great battle.

Zhao Song walked silently to the very front of these men, and his guards led a horse over to him. This horse had been specially selected from among the cavalry sent this time by the Liaodong Army — tall, handsome, and imposing, with a pure black coat that gleamed with a dark luster under the cold morning light.

Zhao Song gently patted the horse's cheek, then stepped directly into the stirrup and swung himself into the saddle.

Once mounted, Zhao Song suddenly found his field of vision broadened. Beyond the vast red square formations before him, his gaze could now extend all the way to the horizon of the entire plain, as if he could overlook the whole world.

And at the end of that horizon lay the victory and glory he had long dreamed of.

Zhao Song drew a deep breath. The early morning air was always so fresh. By afternoon and evening, the air would probably be different — thick with the acrid smell of gunpowder, the body heat of men packed together, and the scent of blood.

After years of campaigning, Zhao Song had long grown accustomed to it. Yet at this moment, he suddenly felt a nostalgia for the days when he had ridden freely across the open plains of Liaodong.

Once I retire from the army, I must ask for a piece of land in Liaodong, and spend my days riding through the estate on horseback. Surely His Majesty would grant me such a reward... A strange thought suddenly arose in his mind.

Just then, he suddenly felt the gazes directed at him from all around. Those gazes seemed full of yearning — yearning for Commander Zhao to immediately give the order to charge at the enemy, to destroy them and crush them. That fervent impatience was just like his own, back in those days.

Indeed, the young men under his command must harbor the same wishes as he did. And only by achieving merit for the nation on the battlefield could they earn such rewards.

Then, let us advance now! For myself, and for my subordinates.

Zhao Song raised his hand, lifted his riding crop, and then swung it down heavily.

"March!" As if at that very same instant, the entire great army began to move. The red flood advanced slowly, yet irresistibly, forward. The scouts and the cavalry who had raided the enemy yesterday had already thoroughly surveyed the enemy's position and the surrounding terrain. The detailed march plan had long been drawn up; all that remained was to execute it.

At that moment, the sun rose from the distant plain. The golden-red sun dyed the morning clouds at the horizon, and bathed these soldiers in a golden radiance.

Meanwhile, the Shogun Tokugawa Iemitsu had also risen early. Following the orders he had given the previous night, the shogunate's great army was preparing to withdraw to Nozaki and then fight the Han invaders decisively. Thus, the camp had been in an uproar since early morning, with preparations for retreat underway everywhere.

Due to a persistent lack of sleep, Tokugawa Iemitsu still had a splitting headache when he first woke. However, he forcibly endured this physical discomfort and emerged from his tent to show himself before the assembled officers and men, in order to steady their morale during the retreat.

Because the shogunate army was so large and its chain of command was not very smooth, despite the Shogun's personal order, the retreat preparations were still insufficient. Only Tokugawa Iemitsu's personal guards and the nearest units were ready. Thus, even by morning, the retreat had still not been able to commence.

Seeing this dilatory state of affairs, Tokugawa Iemitsu was furious. He summoned several commanders and began to reprimand them. Under his scolding, these commanders also began to forcefully urge their subordinates to start the retreat.

However, just as the great army was beginning to move slowly, a shocking piece of news reached him — the Han invaders opposite them had actually launched a general offensive against his position!

Having learned their lesson the previous night, and to prevent a repeat of the Han invaders' raid while also scouting their exact position, the shogunate army had sent out large numbers of scouts early that morning to search in all directions for news of the Han invaders. Some of these scouts discovered the Great Han army rolling inexorably toward their own forces.

Although most of these scouts could not clearly make out the scale of the Great Han army, from their descriptions, this was undoubtedly an attack by the entire Great Han force.

Upon hearing this news, Tokugawa Iemitsu was greatly shocked. He had not expected that after the previous night's raid, the Great Han army would launch a full-scale attack without any further small-scale probing or assaults.

In his shock, he immediately issued an order, countermanding the previous retreat order and commanding all his forces to halt and prepare to meet the Han invaders. Under the pressure of the Great Han army, continuing a full retreat would surely throw the ranks into chaos, which would be nothing short of courting destruction.

Under Tokugawa Iemitsu's orders, the messengers hurriedly went to relay the latest command to each unit.

But because he had just strictly ordered a retreat, many units had already left their previous camp positions. These men then became jammed together with the soldiers who had received the new orders. For a time, the entire great army was in some confusion; everyone was at a loss, and it was nearly chaos.

Seeing the chaotic state of his own great army, Tokugawa Iemitsu grew increasingly frantic and flew into a rage once more, urging every unit to immediately return to its original position, form ranks, and prepare to meet the Han invaders. Under this forceful suppression, the shogunate army finally regained its calm.

In the confusion of the shogunate army vacillating between retreating and staying in place, the morning hours were completely consumed, and it was already afternoon. By this time, the Great Han army had also arrived within close proximity to the shogunate forces. The two armies could now see each other with the naked eye!

At this moment, both armies received the alert and assumed battle-ready postures. The difference was that the Great Han army, with its more experienced soldiers, shifted formations and deployed much faster, while the shogunate army, bloated in numbers and affected by the earlier incident, moved with some sluggishness.

Sharp horn calls and thunderous war drums sounded from all directions. Zhao Song had already settled himself and his staff officers beside a small grove of trees, turning it into a temporary command post. His staff officers surveyed the surrounding terrain with extreme speed, marking on the map the composition and deployment positions of their own forces and the observed enemy troops. They then began to assess the current situation, shouting loudly at one another, nearly drowning out the incessant horns and drums.

Amid this tense and uneasy atmosphere, Zhao Song remained extremely composed. He stood at the edge of the grove, holding a telescope and constantly scanning in every direction, taking in all the surrounding intelligence. However, though he appeared calm on the surface, his blood was racing, his eyesight seemed sharper than usual, and his thoughts moved as fast as lightning.

He could see that the enemy was somewhat disordered in their maneuvers, but this did not surprise him — he had already seen plenty of the shogunate soldiers' quality, which was hardly praiseworthy, and their officers were generally ineffective. On top of that, with so many men crammed together at the front, it would be strange if their movements weren't chaotic.

After observing carefully for a while, he grew increasingly confident, and a slightly cruel smile began to appear on his face.

"Commander Zhao, may we launch the attack?!" Yan Guang shouted loudly beside him. "The enemy's left flank is relatively weak. Our army can first thrust into the enemy's left flank. If we can break them easily, then break them in one stroke!"

"No, thrust directly through the center. Give them a little surprise first. Once they're in chaos, then pull the artillery over and give their left flank a good shelling." Zhao Song put away his telescope, then spoke in an extremely relaxed tone. "Our army is launching the offensive; it's time to show them the true strength of the Great Han army."

"Commander Zhao, what do you mean?" Yan Guang was somewhat taken aback. "The enemy's frontal strength is the greatest, and there seem to be some shogunate elites there..."

As a staff officer, Yan Guang had always prided himself on his strategic wisdom. In battle, his priority was always how to use his own side's strongest force to strike the enemy's weakest point. What he despised most was reckless, headlong charges, and he believed that directly attacking the enemy's most heavily defended front was inadvisable. Had it not been for his consistent respect for Zhao Song and the fact that Zhao Song was the commanding officer, he would almost have spoken out to rebuke him.

"The enemy appears thick and solid, but is in fact weak. Their morale has long been unstable. Moreover, our forces are not numerous, so we should indeed seek a quick, decisive battle. As long as we break through where their forces are most concentrated, their collapse will be imminent. Besides... I can see that brat Tokugawa Iemitsu is right there in the enemy formation. Once our army thrusts into the center, chaos will surely erupt around them. Then we'll outflank their left, and make them collapse in a single battle!"

"Sir... are you that confident?" Yan Guang still had some misgivings.

"Confidence? What need is there for confidence? The enemy merely outnumbers us ten to one — too few." Zhao Song smiled calmly. "It's a pity His Majesty cannot be here in person to watch us sweep them away like dead leaves!"

Under Zhao Song's orders, although Yan Guang had some reservations, he still accepted Zhao Song's judgment and command, and then revised the battle plans for each unit accordingly.

Just as the shadows in the sunlight began to slant eastward, a stirring rippled through the Great Han army's battle formations. Several Great Han square formations began to advance along the many paths between the two armies, moving in orderly array. Each of these formations numbered several hundred men. The front and center were composed of soldiers carrying long spears, arrayed in dense horizontal lines, each line dozens of men across and nearly twenty or more ranks deep. At the four corners of each square were matchlock soldiers formed into dense blocks.

Officers interspersed within these formations carefully ensured the soldiers advanced to the fixed beat of the drummers. The red and black battle flags marking each unit fluttered above the dense mass of troops in their red uniforms.

Behind these assaulting troops, a large group of cavalry was particularly eye-catching. The brilliant sunlight spilled onto the various armor of the cavalry and infantry, flashing with a dazzling glare.

Just as the Great Han army began its forward advance, the shogunate army immediately detected their movement.

Both Tokugawa Iemitsu and Matsudaira Nobutsuna were somewhat stunned that the Great Han army would charge directly at the center, but they quickly regained their senses and urgently dispatched nearby units to meet the Great Han army.

Soon, the Great Han army charged to the front of the enemy lines. They rushed forward through rows of vine-wrapped trees, which became a major obstacle. Although the woods blocked the view of most of the musketeers and caused the formations to loosen somewhat, they still advanced fearlessly.

At this sweltering moment, the shogunate army did not forget to seize this opportune time. A large number of shogunate troops charged from the front. Seeing the enemy begin their assault, the Great Han army halted, and the musketeers opened fire.

"Bang!" The dense sound of gunfire rang out in waves, felling quite a few men on the opposing side. However, because the woods greatly affected visibility and fields of fire, and because the charging shogunate troops were so numerous, the shogunate army's losses were not heavy.

In the interval while the musketeers reloaded and prepared for the next volley, these shogunate troops also charged right up to the Great Han army's front. Then, the two armies immediately engaged. Since both sides relied on long spears as their primary melee weapon, the fighting grew increasingly fierce. The Great Han soldiers, packed shoulder to shoulder in dense columns, swept through everything like a violent flood, while the shogunate forces deployed in small formations from all directions and charged forward with howls.

At the initial clash, the shogunate army's courage was extremely high. They all prided themselves on being Kanto warriors, single-mindedly determined to protect the shogunate and defend their homeland. Amid their roars, the initial engagement quickly turned into hand-to-hand combat. The Great Han army and the shogunate army trampled over each other. Men began to fall at the front, one after another, and those behind continued to charge and kill over the blood-soaked corpses, thrusting their long spears into the chests and bellies of the enemy.

The initial engagement caused some slight disorder along the Great Han army's forward line, but under this tempestuous, raging pressure, they still maintained their formation and met these enemies with battle-hardened experience. Gradually, the fallen corpses grew more and more numerous, yet the red-coated soldiers accounted for only a very small portion of them.

In the gaps between the red-coated soldiers wielding long spears, a group of musketeers tirelessly repeated the various tactical motions of loading and firing. They had undergone long and incredibly rigorous training, so even in the current chaotic scene, they continued to fire with mechanical precision, using their powerful firearms to inflict additional casualties on the enemy.

The fighting at the very front line had completely turned into a slaughter, a furious and frenzied melee. Even some of the wounded, after falling to the ground, fought until their last breath. Some men, even after collapsing, directly grabbed the enemy's legs and began tearing at them with their teeth in a frenzy.

Gunpowder smoke from the muskets hung thick within the woods. For a time, the situation inside could not be seen from outside; only the unending sounds of slaughter and gunfire could be heard. But after a few quarters of an hour, the outcome began to become clear.

Under the gaze of the officers and soldiers on both sides, a patch of red began to appear at the edge of the woods, then the red grew brighter and brighter, until finally a red torrent surged forth from within, continuing to advance on the shogunate army with unstoppable momentum — it was clear they had not suffered too great a loss. The shogunate troops who had just charged forward so fiercely to meet them now began to retreat in defeat, their numbers far fewer than before.

Zhao Song had kept his telescope raised the entire time. The victory in the opening engagement did not make him overly relieved; he still watched the battle's development with tense attention, estimating the losses on both sides now, while constantly calculating the right moment to commit his reserve forces.

Yes, he had made his resolve. No matter what hardships and losses he had to endure, he would directly crush the enemy's will. Today — this very day — he would rout this enemy force ten times his own number, decisively defeat the entire shogunate, and force the whole nation of Japan to grovel beneath the feet of Great Han.

And at this very moment, the Great Han army's artillery had also begun moving with the infantry and arrived at their designated combat positions. After the vanguard's brief assault concluded, their artillery emplacement on this small hill was fully prepared to commence bombardment.

Then, under Zhao Song's command, the Great Han artillery, having already seized the advantageous high ground, began to act. With the merciless roar of their field guns, they swept the shogunate army's left wing with cannon fire, round after round of shellfire pouring down upon the enemy like a rainstorm.

Dense shells howled down to strike the earth, kicking up clouds of dust that mingled with the thick smoke billowing from the earlier musket fire, blanketing the entire battlefield. And the Great Han army pressed on into the battle's cannon fire, braving the threat of death, launching a fierce assault on the objective they were determined to seize, like a storm sweeping across the great plain.

"Second Regiment, assault! Continue to exploit the breakthrough!" When the din of the artillery covered the entire battlefield like a thunderclap, Zhao Song finally judged that the moment had come. "Cavalry, prepare as well — be ready to strike the enemy's flank at any time!"