xymnovel Chapter 74 Luring the Enemy in the Mid Lane - The Hawk Appears
Chapter 74 Luring the Enemy in the Mid Lane - The Hawk Appears
Despite being at a disadvantage on both flanks, Li Yichao was not nervous.
Taking the initiative to cross the river and attack always comes at a price. After all, it was seven thousand men, enough to contend with the entire strength of the allied forces, and they wouldn't be so easily defeated.
All we need to do is stall them; the decisive moment will come when we use the Iron Falcon.
As he had predicted, Zhe Congyuan and Yang Hongxin fought valiantly and repelled the enemy forces that crossed the river to invade, but they dared not pursue them across the river, lest they switch sides and fall into the same unfavorable situation.
Dingnan Army retreated on both flanks, gained a foothold, and confronted the Zhe and Yang families across the river.
With the focus of the battle shifting to the central command, Li Jidu, who was directing the front lines, immediately felt the pressure.
The three thousand Tangut cavalry changed their tactics, with several hundred men forming a horizontal line and attacking in shifts. They did not go ashore, but instead drew their bows and hurled arrows from the middle of the river, creating a chaotic net of hundreds of arrows that rained down on the Zhangwu army's front.
He would shoot an arrow, not bothering to see the outcome, then turn his horse around and ride away, repeating this cycle endlessly.
Li Jidu ordered his men to raise their shields for protection, which blocked most of the arrows. However, a few arrows still managed to slip through the shields and penetrate the flesh, causing casualties among the soldiers.
Shots to the limbs were relatively forgivable, but those that pierced the eye and skull caused long, agonizing screams, and those that pierced the neck rendered speechless—all were fatal wounds. The little courage Jin Mingzhen's soldiers had mustered to avenge their families was gradually worn away by the relentless barrage of arrows.
Li Jidu could not retreat, nor dared he retreat, so he loudly encouraged his subordinates: "Hold on! The Tanguts are just cowards who only dare to shoot arrows from afar; they don't dare to attack at all."
"How can you face your fellow villagers if you cower in the face of battle!"
"Once the enemy forces are exhausted, the commander will send out his elite troops to slaughter them without leaving a single survivor."
Li Jidu knew perfectly well that Gao Xingzhou's personal guards were to be reserved to deal with that hidden heavy cavalry, and that the state army he led was merely a pawn to wear down the enemy.
Each quiver contained twelve arrows. The Tangut light cavalry usually carried two quivers, enough for twenty-four volleys of arrows. Even if each volley killed or wounded dozens, it would be enough to break the Zhangwu army. Could they withstand such a barrage?
The Tangut cavalry noticed that the enemy's morale was slightly low, and some of the bolder ones went further forward and tried to climb onto the riverbank.
"If it were a family like the Zhe and Yang, with hundreds of elite cavalry, how would the rebel army dare to be so arrogant..."
Whether or not cavalry are present to contain the enemy makes a world of difference in the course of the battle.
If the Tangut army were to cross the river, the situation would become even more difficult. Li Jidu had no other choice but to say to his son, "You hold your ground, and I will go and charge into battle."
Li Xiaoshun quickly stopped him, saying, "The enemy's arrows are raining down, how can we break through? Besides, how can a father risk his life in front while his son hides behind the lines? If anyone should go, it should be me."
"You haven't even married or had children yet, why are you in such a hurry to die!"
Li Jidu checked the armor straps to make sure they were secure, and scolded his son, "If we can repel the enemy, it will be Heaven's blessing upon the Jinming Li clan. If I were to die, the outcome of the battle would be irreversible..."
Taking advantage of the moment while adjusting his helmet, Li Jidu lowered his voice and said, "Just surrender."
Li Xiaoshun was shocked, never expecting his father to say such a thing.
"The military governor is, after all, an outsider. Even if he loses Yanzhou, he can still take up an official post elsewhere. My Li family's ancestral home is Jinming; where else can we go if we leave this place?"
Li Jidu pretended to be nonchalant and earnestly instructed, "The Dangxiang people have ignored the imperial decrees and, over three generations and fifty years, turned Xiazhou into their own private domain. Although the size of their territories may differ, the principle remains the same. Whether it's the Zhe family or the Yang family, we, the major indigenous clans, can only grow and thrive by establishing ourselves firmly in our territory."
"Don't be fooled by the fact that the Tanguts massacred Jinming Town. Our land, people's reputation, servants, and kinship ties are deeply rooted here. How could we so easily take it away?"
After Li Jidu finished adjusting his armor, he mounted his horse with the help of his attendants. The horse suddenly felt the weight on its back and neighed.
"Remember, preserve your life and continue your lineage; there will always be a day of recovery."
Li Jidu, along with his soldiers, clad in armor, took advantage of a lull in the rain of arrows to break through the shield wall and drive away the small group of enemy cavalry that had landed.
Having lured the enemy general out of battle, the Tangut cavalry naturally wouldn't let him go. The two riders stopped, each drew an arrow, nocked it, and fired, accurately hitting Li Jidu in the chest and ribs.
The arrowhead, made of fine iron, pierced through the outer armor, only to be caught by the inner padding. Li Jidu staggered, feeling a dull pain in his ribs from the impact. He didn't bother to check if he was injured, spurring his horse to the enemy cavalry, and swung his iron pestle with all his might, smashing one man's head open and sending him crashing to the ground.
The two armies were clearly on the battlefield, and the morale of the Yanzhou soldiers, who had been on the defensive since the start of the war, was boosted.
Just as Li Jidu was about to muster his courage for another battle, a series of whooshing sounds rang out as more than ten arrows pierced the air. Despite his soldiers raising their shields to protect themselves, two arrows still grazed his left ear and right neck, causing a burning pain.
The Tanguts were skilled archers, so Li Jidu dared not underestimate them. He lowered his head, spurred his horse, and charged into the enemy ranks, swinging his iron pestle left and right.
How could Li Xiaoshun stand by and watch his father fight alone? He rallied his men to provide support. Taking advantage of a brief pause in the enemy's continuous rain of arrows, the soldiers seized the opportunity, threw down their shields, and charged forward with their spears.
Li Jidu's advance was not reckless; he chose to attack during the transition between the enemy's vanguard retreating and their rearguard following, inevitably causing some disarray in the Dingnan army's formation. Furthermore, the light cavalry's movement was restricted in the river, resulting in a chaotic melee between the two armies, each numbering over a thousand.
The Tangut cavalry drew their longswords, sat upright on their horses, and slashed down at the spears thrusting at them from their elevated positions.
Li Jidu originally thought that the Tangut light cavalry would only harass with arrows and were not good at close combat, but he did not expect that their weapons were extremely sharp and many of the state soldiers' spear shafts were cut off.
"The Khitan saddle, the Xia sword, and the Goryeo secret-color sword are all the best in the world. Although other places may try to imitate them, they will never be able to match them."
The Tangut people, skilled in forging iron and making armor, were also adept at sword casting.
In the eastern border of Xia Prefecture, eighty li from Lin Prefecture, Fu Prefecture, and the Yellow River, lies a tea mountain, a place where iron is smelted and bamboo arrows are made. The swords forged there are three feet long, four fingers wide, and one finger thick. Wielding such a long sword, one is not at a disadvantage in close combat.
One unit of Tangut cavalry engaged in a fierce battle with Li Jidu's forces, while two other units were dispatched to flank from the left and right. This demonstrated the mobility advantage of light cavalry; once the encirclement was complete, there were plenty of ways to deal with the enemy.
The Zhangwu army was at a disadvantage in the battle, and the enemy attacked from both sides. Their morale, which had just been boosted, gradually declined, and their formation began to falter and they showed signs of retreating. It was clear that even if Li Jidu and his son fought hard, they would be unable to turn the tide.
In the nick of time, a cavalry force of over three hundred men arrived, led by a general with a white horse and a silver spear. Commander-in-chief Gao Xingzhou personally led the elite cavalry of Youzhou to their aid!
……
Gao Xingzhou kept a close eye on the battle situation. He had been holding back Li Jidu, who was still able to hold on, but when Li Jidu was about to be defeated, he decisively led his troops to attack.
Even though they were both spearmen, the cavalry and infantry were vastly different opponents. Although the Xia people's swords were sharp, they could not repeat their previous tactics. By the time their longswords struck the spear shaft, the spears that came charging at them on horseback had already pierced through them.
The former troops from Youzhou were skilled in cavalry warfare, expertly felling enemy soldiers one by one, like an old farmer knocking ripe fruit from a branch. With the addition of this cavalry, the Zhangwu army turned the tide and fought the Dingnan army to a standstill.
Upon receiving the news, Li Yichao was not worried but happy. He said to his younger brother Li Yiyin, "Gao Xingzhou's appearance must mean that the battle has reached a critical juncture. A strike now can determine the outcome."
Li Yiyin licked his lips: "The men are complaining that Jinming Village has too few men and they haven't had enough fun killing. Today, we will surely stain the Sanchuankou with blood, break through Yanzhou City, and seize the land of several states in the Northwest for our brother."
Li Yichao stopped his impatient younger brother from attacking: "Didn't we capture a lot of Han men the other day? Let them lead the charge and clear the way for Brother Yin."
A cruel, sinister smirk appeared on his lips: "The Han people call their sons 'Linglang,' so let's call these people 'Bumping into Linglang.'" (Note 1)
Li Yiyin shouted "Good!" and ordered his men to bring out the prisoners, using swords and spears to force them forward.
Hundreds of captured civilians, unarmed, staggered across the river.
They were only given one meal of thin porridge a day to keep them alive. Hunger not only eroded their strength, but after several days without food, their minds became dull and numb, incapable of thinking. They constantly endured the feeling of emptiness in their stomachs, and even the hatred of losing their homes seemed less intense than the burning hunger.
The Tangut bandits, enjoying their autumn harvest and fighting with the local youths, suddenly brightened up when they saw this scene.
Run there, and you'll be saved.
The people were ignorant and did not realize that such actions would disrupt their own ranks. They stumbled and ran forward like a flock of sheep being chased by wolves.
"Ha ha."
Li Yiyin was overjoyed: "The Han people rushed over on their own without even the master lifting a finger."
"General, those are all people from Jinming Town."
Li Jidu's tone was bitter. He wanted to plead for them, but he also knew that the battlefield was ruthless, and those who charged into enemy lines would die. The lives of these civilians depended on the commander's decision.
Gao Xingzhou glanced around and saw hundreds of black-armored cavalrymen hanging far behind the common people, their attire and demeanor quite different from ordinary Tangut light cavalry.
He confirmed with Li Jidu, "Is it that heavy cavalry?"
Dark blue armor, linked by a noose—that's it.
The enemy cavalry, which had inflicted a crushing defeat on him and stripped him of his foundation, reappeared. Li Jidu gave a wry smile: "Indeed, Commander, please be very careful."
"I will go and distract them, while Commander Li will hold this place and shelter the people."
With a single strike of his silver spear, Gao Xingzhou and his three hundred cavalrymen followed closely behind, withdrawing from the battlefield.
However, his route was somewhat strange. He neither charged straight at the enemy nor retreated back to his own lines, but instead followed the winding path along the river.
"Haha, they must have heard about how powerful the Iron Falcon is."
Li Yiyin sneered, "Although the Iron Falcons are armored cavalry, they can travel a hundred li and a thousand li in a short time. They are incredibly fast and agile, no less than light cavalry. They don't think they can escape! Men, chase after them!"