Chapter 217 Defeat

On the 22nd day of the first lunar month, Han Shizhong led 25,000 troops of the Left Army of the Imperial Camp to Chang'an.

The reason why it was a little later than expected was not because Han Shizhong was busy bullying Xin Xingzong at Wuguan, nor was it the effect of rain... it didn't rain on the road to Wuguan... but because after the Song army's recognized first general left Wuguan, he quickly discovered the problems of the Jin army through scouts, local officials and Yuwen Xuzhong's warnings:

A total of 20,000 elite cavalry, led by Wanyan Loushi's eldest son Huo Nu, were standing still in Huazhou, located between Shanzhou and Jingzhao Prefecture (Chang'an), as if they were waiting for him.

So, Han Shizhong responded immediately.

On the one hand, he ordered the troops to be divided, with some troops seizing cities along the way one by one to serve as strategic fulcrums. On the other hand, he ordered the main force to slow down its pace and move forward carefully to ensure that the army was not exposed to the direct threat of the Jin army's cavalry.

When the troops marched to Lantian, a strategic point connecting the Wuguan Road and the Luoshui Road, the Jin army in Huazhou still had no intention of blocking them head-on. He made up his mind to leave Black Dragon Wang Sheng with 5,000 men to assist the garrison sent by Yuwen Xuzhong to defend Lantian, and then he and the main force of more than 20,000 men suddenly accelerated and rushed to Chang'an.

Then they arrived safely at the city of Chang'an.

It is said that the Chang'an City in the Song Dynasty was definitely not the Chang'an in the Tang Dynasty with an area of ​​nearly 100 square kilometers, but it was still a huge city in the world. Therefore, Han Shizhong calmly led the people into the city and immediately ordered the establishment of small camps in front of each gate for cover.

But that was all. As Han Shizhong's army entered Chang'an, the Jin army, which had been as quiet as a virgin, suddenly rushed out. The power of the cavalry was undoubtedly demonstrated on the plains. The connections between the cities were cut off in an instant, the villages were set on fire, and the bridges and strongholds were occupied. Once a small group of troops was exposed, it would be a disaster.

The 20,000 cavalry swept across both banks of the Wei River, and the vanguard broke into the city of Chang'an like a storm.

Many cities along the way were intimidated by the strength of the Jin army and the reputation of Wanyan Loushi and his son, and they opened their cities and surrendered out of fear. Those that did not surrender were trembling like dead leaves in autumn even though it was spring.

Almost in one go, Wanyan Huo's army advanced directly to Baqiao and set up camp at this key point.

To be honest, if Han Shizhong had not come, faced with such momentum, the people of Chang'an would have been in panic long ago, especially the huge capital of Jingzhao, the thousand-year-old capital. Parts of it collapsed due to the earthquake that year, and although it was supplemented later, it also seemed not so solid... It's hard to say whether the city can be saved.

But wasn’t it Han Wu, who was known as the brave man of the government and dared to be the first in the world, who returned to Guanxi? Wasn’t it the 25,000-strong imperial camp left army that arrived in Chang’an City?

Han Shizhong, who had just set up camp under the city, took advantage of the fact that most of the Jin army had not yet gathered in front of the city. After learning a little about the city defense structure, he took advantage of the city camp and the superiority of military strength and took the initiative to go out of the city to fight:

On this day, he first ordered Cheng Min, who was promoted to the commander, to lead only 3,000 Beiwei cavalrymen to attack the city. The so-called support from the city and the small camps in front of the city gates kept coming and going with the Jin cavalry. Then, taking advantage of the distraction of the Jin army, he suddenly ordered Jie Yuan to lead the Chuipian army to attack...

Four thousand destructive troops poured out from the small camps in front of the city gates, and some of them simply hung down from a certain city wall. The purpose was to gather all of them at a specific location in the shortest time possible to form a large formation.

By the time the Jin army realized their mistake and came to respond, the strong crossbow formation had already successfully captured the city. The Jin army was afraid of casualties and hesitated for a while.

At this time, the commander Wang Quan led thousands of people out of the city, each carrying a bag of soil, and they threw it in front of the crossbow formation of the Chuipian army and then left... At this time, several Meng'an soldiers in front of the Jin army dared not hesitate any more, and immediately reached a result after the military meeting. Then, 5,000 cavalrymen began to take the initiative to ride their horses and attack, but it was already a little late.

The Song army's crossbowmen relied on simple fortifications to fight calmly with the Jin army, and Han Shizhong suddenly led his troops to break out from the flank to provide support. Nearly 10,000 troops from both sides fought fiercely in a narrow range of one to three miles in front of the city. Hundreds of corpses were left in just two quarters of an hour, but no matter what, the Jin army was still unable to drive out this elite crossbow unit lined up in front of the city, and they watched as the fortifications in this area became more and more complicated and the cavalry became increasingly weak.

Finally, due to the lack of a general to provide support, several Meng'an who could not bear the casualties gathered together again and simply withdrew, and the Song army successfully set up a camp here.

On the second day, the Jin army suddenly realized the real purpose of Han Shizhong's attack - to destroy the city wall behind the new camp of the partial army, which was exactly the part that had been rebuilt because of the collapse caused by the earthquake before Chang'an City was captured by Wanyan Loushi that day.

In other words, as soon as Han Shizhong arrived, he took the initiative to attack and took the lead in filling the biggest hidden danger in the city's defense.

That afternoon, Wanyan Huo Nu, who had just returned to Baqiao Camp from Weibei, rushed to Chang'an again. He circled the city and saw that Chang'an had tall walls and the Song army was in high spirits and well-equipped. He was also overwhelmed like the marching Meng'an. In desperation, the Jin army commander simply ordered all the front-line troops to follow him back to Baqiao Camp, and then wrote a letter to his father to complain.

Of course, it may not be accurate to say that she was complaining, because Huo Nu was not afraid of a hard fight.

But the problem is that, in the current situation, attacking the city is obviously an unwise move, especially with tens of thousands of cavalry. Instead of seeking a field battle, they divide their forces to attack the city from two sides. This is a tactical decision that only a fool would make... Huo Nu doesn't think that Li Yanxian is easier to deal with.

However, the only problem is that this idiot is a world-famous general who is invincible in East Asia and is the father that the girl admires and respects the most, so this person would not be so stupid!

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