Guide to traveling through the Northern Song Dynasty

Anbahai was not Hebula Khan's brother, but his cousin.

During the expansion of more than ten years, Anbahai had one-third of the tribes of Mongolia. Hebula Khan and him were not simply monarchs and ministers, but more like partners in starting a business together.

Historically, when Hebula Khan was dying, he did not pass the throne to any of his sons, and very rationally chose his cousin to inherit the throne.

But Anbahai still could not save Mongolia. At that time, there was a ballad like this: The starry sky is rotating, all the tribes are rebelling, and they can't sleep peacefully, fighting for wealth. The grassland is turning over, all the tribes are rebelling, and they can't sleep. You attack me, and there is no time to miss each other, only to collide with each other...

At this time, Mongolia, because it drove away the Tatars early, its strength has far exceeded that of another time and space.

Hebula Khan claimed to have 100,000 men who can control the bow, which is of course a very exaggerated boast. But if the teenagers aged 14 or 15 are counted, it is still possible to pull out 50,000 Mongolian cavalry.

The Mongolian cavalry here are naturally not the kind of fighting machines wearing several layers of armor. They don't have the conditions yet, let alone equipping several layers of iron armor, and even the arrows cannot be guaranteed to be all iron.

Using bone arrows and stone arrows is normal on the grassland.

Having a leather helmet and leather armor is already considered elite cavalry.

In comparison, Zhu Zhongming's Khitan cavalry is much more elite. They once turned against Yue Fei in Dading Prefecture and helped Yue Fei beat the fallen dog. They snatched more than 80 sets of iron armor and more than 300 sets of leather and iron mixed armor from the defeated elite Jin soldiers.

Zhu Mingyi's troops, who were ordered by Yue Fei to rush to the rescue, were mostly prisoners who were defeated in the war when they were vassals of the Jin Kingdom. They were broken up and reorganized by Yue Fei, and formed a new bulk tribe with some Tanggu people.

Such bulk tribes did not even have a proper chieftain, but were appointed by the court as commanders (foreigners), and even the grasslands where they lived were named so-and-so townships.

The two divisions together had more than 6,000 soldiers.

When it was confirmed that Yue Fei would not come to help in person, but Han Shizhong would lead the troops to the south, and they needed to hold on for a while, Zhu Zhongming and Zhu Mingyi had no choice but to go ahead.

The snow had just cleared up, and the snow on the grassland was just enough to cover the horses' hooves. The two sides fought on the west bank of the Yeliguna River.

Six thousand against eight thousand (and two thousand Mongolian soldiers were ambushed), Zhu Zhongming and Zhu Mingyi, who had fewer troops, actually had the upper hand. Because they had been following Yue Fei for many years, not only were their weapons and equipment better, but they were also very brave and aggressive.

Anbahai was frightened by the beating, and quickly adjusted his battle strategy, blowing the horn of feigning defeat in advance to lure the enemy.

You have to pretend to be defeated.

To be more precise, the Mongols were covering the retreat in turns.

Although the two local chiefs Zhu Zhongming and Zhu Mingyi had ordinary military capabilities, they had extremely rich combat experience. When they led the troops to pursue, they always followed behind the right side of the Mongolian soldiers, making it impossible for the Mongolian cavalry to shoot on horseback.

Even among the soldiers who grew up on the grassland, few could shoot arrows on horseback. Most of them held the bow with their left hand and pulled the string with their right hand, so they could only shoot arrows to their left and rear. It was very difficult to shoot arrows to their right rear.

However, the pursuers behind them could chase and shoot at the same time.

The Mongolian cavalry who retreated alternately were shot off their horses if they were not careful. Zhu Zhongming and Zhu Mingyi became more and more comfortable in fighting, and no longer took the Mongolian cavalry seriously. They chased forward with their blood boiling.

This area is the junction of mountains and grasslands, but the mountains are not steep, and there are grasslands for grazing on the mountains.

The two sides chased each other for more than 20 miles, and Hadan, the eldest son of Anbahai, who was defeated by Han Shizhong in the mountains before, suddenly rushed out of the mountains with all the elite of Anbahai.

There were only 2,000 of these elite troops, but they had more than 60 sets of iron armor, more than 400 sets of leather and iron mixed armor, and the rest were all equipped with leather armor, and everyone carried enough iron arrows.

At this moment, the armies of Zhu Zhongming and Zhu Mingyi had been in disarray due to the long-distance pursuit of the enemy. On the battlefield with a width of more than ten miles, they were scattered in the east and west, only knowing to chase the enemy in front.

The two thousand Mongolian elite troops of Hadan suddenly rushed out and rushed to a cavalry of Zhu Zhongming's troops, instantly reversing the situation on the battlefield.

Zhu Zhongming personally led his troops to rescue and prevent the Mongolian ambush from expanding the results of the battle. But those Mongolian elite troops, led by Hadan, continued to rush forward, and ignored Zhu Zhongming who rushed over in a hurry.

At the same time, the main force of Mongolia, which had been "escaping", turned back under the leadership of Anbahai.

About two thousand grassland cavalrymen who had surrendered to the Ming Dynasty were instantly attacked from the front and back, and were killed and fled on the spot. Zhu Mingyi rushed too far forward and could not leave the battlefield for a while, so he was killed by Anbahai's second son.

Seeing the front troops disintegrate, Zhu Zhongming was shocked and led the remnants to flee.

Anbahai led his troops to chase for nearly ten miles, blew the horn and ordered to clean up the battlefield and retreat. Their combat goal was to severely damage the enemy and attract Yue Fei's main force, and to withdraw quickly to avoid Han Shizhong's attack.

In this battle, 10,000 Mongolian cavalrymen were involved in the battle, more than 400 were killed and more than 80 were seriously injured. More than 3,000 others suffered varying degrees of minor injuries - mainly arrow wounds.

Zhu Zhongming and Zhu Mingyi's two divisions, more than 6,000 cavalrymen were involved in the battle, and more than 2,800 were killed, some of whom were executed after being captured. Even Zhu Mingyi himself was killed.

Hardan happily came over to report: "Father, we have captured more than 1,700 uninjured horses this time. Of the more than 2,000 pairs of armor pulled from the corpses, 16 are iron armor!"

"Very good, rest for a while and then retreat!" I was also very happy.

Sixteen pairs of iron armor, this is a major harvest, not to mention many leather armors and leather-iron mixed armors.

After the horses and soldiers recovered a little strength, Anbahai led his army to withdraw along the south bank of the Yeliguna River. Not only was he afraid of Han Shizhong coming to kill him, but he was also afraid of Yue Fei's sudden appearance. He was even more afraid of being flanked by Han and Yue.

That afternoon.

My joy after Bahai's victory was gone, because the Ming army's reconnaissance cavalry appeared in front.

As the Ming Army's reconnaissance cavalry blew their horns, more and more Ming Army cavalry arrived, and my Bahai's face turned pale.

That direction can only be Han Shizhong's troops.

"Why did Han Shizhong come so fast?" I couldn't understand it at all, so I could only judge that it was bad luck that I happened to bump into him.

If Han Shizhong came after receiving the news, he would not be able to arrive until at least tomorrow morning. Moreover, those who can arrive tomorrow morning must be the exhausted soldiers who are quickly reinforced and exhausted.

Hardan had already been psychologically shadowed by Han Shizhong, and he murmured to himself at this moment: "Is the Immortal God also blessing Mingren? Otherwise, why would Han Shizhong be here?"

I don’t know if the Immortal Heaven has blessed me, but the God of Telegraph is definitely on the side of the Ming army.

At this moment, these Mongolian cavalry were rushing in front of them, and they experienced a fierce battle in the morning. They only rested for half an hour before retreating. They are the real ones who are exhausted!

Han Shizhong's army only had 5,000 cavalry, and the rest had already returned to Monan. Because there are too many troops left in Mobei, there is simply not enough food and grass. "Woooooo~~~~"

The battle horn sounded, and five thousand Ming cavalry swept in.

Four thousand of them were cavalrymen wearing medium-sized cotton armor and horses wearing light battle armor. There were a thousand light cavalry left, and all of them wore light cotton armor.

Compared with these Ming cavalry, the Mongolian cavalry were as poor as beggars!

By the way, with the improvement of chariot formations and the increasing popularity of firearms, the number of Ming heavy cavalry declined instead of increasing.

Currently, there are only 2,500 heavy cavalry troops left in the entire Ming Dynasty. One thousand are serving as imperial guards in Luoyang, one thousand are near Shandan Racecourse, and five hundred are in Anxi Protectorate.

The valiant cavalry troops have been expanded accordingly. They can rush into formations and attack, and are much easier to use than heavy cavalry.

Of course, the heroic cavalry in the eyes of the Ming emperors and ministers was often regarded as heavy cavalry by surrounding forces...

Both men and horses are wearing armor, so what is it if it's not a heavy horse?

The well-equipped Ming cavalry, waiting for work, accelerated towards the tired Mongolian cavalry.

My Bahai's first reaction was not to engage in battle, but to abandon the spare horses and food and lead the entire army to escape toward the southeast.

Only fools fight head-on!

"Blow the trumpet and intercept the Qingqi." Han Shizhong ordered.

They had already made a plan. After the trumpet sounded, a thousand Ming Qingqi immediately ran south.

Although Han Shizhong and Yue Fei have been serving as guardians in Monan, their subordinates have been mobilized frequently, otherwise ten years would be enough for them to become semi-warlords.

At this moment, the general leading a thousand light cavalry attack was called Zhai Cong, who was assigned to Han Shizhong's command just three years ago.

But, they are old acquaintances.

Zhai Cong is the son of Zhai Xing. Historically, father, son, brothers, uncles and nephews raised armies. They first made meritorious service by protecting the imperial mausoleum of Zhao and Song Dynasties. Later, in the chaos of the Central Plains, the Zhai family's army resisted the Jin in Luoyang. They recruited their own soldiers and collected their own grain. The court was only responsible for conferring officials.

Zhai's 700 soldiers suddenly attacked Luoyang and captured alive the Luoyang general who had paid gold. They also took the initiative to attack and win consecutive battles. They also defeated the Jin soldiers who besieged Luoyang many times. Unfortunately, two of the Zhai brothers' generals were bribed by Jin Bing in succession.

Zhai Cong's father, uncle, brothers, and cousins ​​were all killed by the traitors and the Jin soldiers. He led his own troops and survived. He went straight to Luoyang with a small number of troops to avenge his relatives. He captured Meng Bangxiong alive in Luoyang and stayed in Luoyang. Later, he broke through the siege and fought all the way from Luoyang to Xiangyang.

In this time and space, the Zhai family members were conquered by Han Shizhong in Luoyang. Later, they were dispersed and transferred back and forth to serve as generals in various armies.

But it was said that Zhai Cong led a thousand light cavalry and was sent by Han Shizhong to prevent the Mongolian cavalry from escaping.

The Mongols fled toward the southeast, and Zhai Cong went straight to the south to block them. When the two armies came into contact, Zhai Cong was already on the side of the central front of the Mongolian army.

Obsessed and blocked?

Zhai Cong charged directly!

Even if they are just Ming light cavalry, their armor is better than most Mongolian cavalry.

I Bahai urgently dispatched his second son Wu Kushu to stop him.

Wu Kushu and his troops hurriedly turned to engage the enemy. Zhai Cong had already used his light cavalry as a brave cavalry and rushed directly in front of him.

Although Zhai Cong is not famous in history, he has records of capturing enemy generals alive many times, including the bones of Hedong Dutong of the Jin Kingdom.

At this time, Zhai Cong fired three arrows in a row, shot down three Mongolian cavalry, and quickly charged into the enemy's formation with his bow and gun. He himself was hit by two arrows, and his horse was also hit by an arrow. However, the battle became more and more fierce, and he knocked down several enemy horsemen one after another.

Then, he headed straight for Bekushu, because Bekushu was wearing iron armor!

Wu Kushu had never encountered such a lunatic. He was momentarily overwhelmed by Zhai Cong's power and subconsciously slowed down his horse to allow his bodyguards to stop him.

Zhai Cong's men also rushed into the formation, and under his encouragement, they all fought bravely.

In the blink of an eye, more than ten of Bekushu's personal guards were killed or injured, and Bekushu was so frightened that he reined in his horse and fled.

Zhai Cong caught up and thrust his spear, stabbing the armor on Wukushu's back. He sped up his horse, leaned forward with his left hand to grab Wukushu and pulled him off the horse, then threw him to the ground and continued forward.

After Wukushu landed, he was soon trampled to death by the warhorse.

Zhai Cong ignored him and went straight to Anbahai.

After Zhai Cong's disturbance, a large area of ​​Mongolian cavalry nearby was in chaos, and Han Shizhong had led the cavalry to kill them.

The exhausted Mongolian cavalry were caught up by Han Shizhong, and they could neither fight nor run away. After being chased for only a few miles, the surviving Mongolian soldiers fled in all directions, aimlessly and only knowing how to save their lives.

Zhai Cong was still charging, and charging more smoothly because the enemy was already in chaos.

In order to protect his father Anbahai, Hadan personally led his troops to stop Zhai Cong. Then, the first Grand Master of the Mongol Empire (Mongol Empire appointed by the Jin Dynasty) was knocked off his horse by Zhai Cong in one encounter.

"Kill!"

Zhai Cong was already covered in blood, and he didn't know which ones were from the enemy and which ones were from himself. Four arrows had been stuck in his light cotton armor.

The Mongol cavalry in front were so frightened by Zhai Cong that no one dared to fight, and they all rode their horses to flee to both sides.

Under the setting sun, on the grassland.

Five thousand Ming cavalry chased the Mongol cavalry like chasing rabbits and killed them.