Desert Eagle Suletan Khan

The vast river flows eastward, and the waves raise huge waves. Shangbailizhou is like an emerald pearl lying quietly in the river, letting the wind and waves blow. A fleet slowly marches towards Jiangxinzhou. The sails of the warships swell under the breeze of the river, like a ferocious beast that chooses its prey. Under the huge fishing rod and fishing flag on the flagship, the vanguard of the guard army, the general Zhong Jida, holds a long knife and stares coldly at Jiangxinzhou in front of him and the troops of Luo Maotong and Ma Jinyu who are leading the army to attack Jiangxinzhou. As surrendered troops, Luo Maotong and Ma Jinyu's troops have always acted as pioneers, and this time is no exception. Zhong Jida's headquarters quietly waited behind, and his troops would not be able to join until the troops of Luo and Ma were exhausted. Strangely enough, since surrendering to the Kingdom of David, the subordinates of Luo Maotong and Ma Jinyu have been like chicken blood, their combat effectiveness has greatly increased, and they have made many military exploits.

"Shoot!" With the order, the crossbows on the warships made a dull sound of ejection, and countless shells and burning crossbow arrows flew towards Shangbailizhou. The casualties caused by the shells were not great, but the rockets that streaked across the river like meteors ignited the grass and simple fortifications on the shore, and thick smoke suddenly billowed, blocking the defenders' vision and causing a large number of casualties.

Warships approached Jiangxinzhou one after another. Soldiers holding shields and spears lined up at the bow and sides of the ships. As soon as the pedals were lowered, they rushed to the shore with shouts.

"Brothers, here comes your chance to make merit and receive awards!" Luo Maotong roared, jumped off the warship, and ran straight to the shore. He chopped left and right with the big knife in his hand, and in an instant, he chopped down several Ming soldiers.

Upon seeing this, Ma Jinyu also led his troops to join the battle. Even when facing his former comrades, he had to fight forward desperately. This was the fate of a surrendered general.

"Hold on! Anyone who retreats will be killed!" Feng Qifeng, the Earl of Xinhua in the Ming Dynasty, commanded his men to put up a tenacious resistance based on their familiarity with the terrain. The artillery hidden in the woods fired at the approaching warships, and the barricades and stakes set up on the shore tripped up many landing guards. When someone fell to the ground, the Ming army's spears would instantly pierce them.

"Forward~" Seeing that his troops had successfully landed, Zhong Jida no longer saved his strength, and roared, commanding his men to land. The warships of the Guards kept pouring in, the infantry formed a shield formation, and slowly but firmly advanced forward, while the archers behind the shield formation threw bullets at the defenders to provide cover.

Feng Qifeng gritted his teeth and persisted. Suddenly, shouts of killing came from the side and back. It was Qi Wang Mai La Si who ordered the guerrilla Wang Xi Qi to lead 20 fast boats to attack the flank. This special force was like a sharp blade, piercing the rear of the Ming army. The Ming army was defeated, and corpses could be seen everywhere on the river.

"Retreat~" Feng Qifeng wanted to retreat to Songzi City for defense. Unexpectedly, Mailas led the cavalry and infantry to chase him closely, so he had no choice but to abandon the city and flee to Jiangling.

After capturing Shangbailizhou and Jiangzicheng, the morale of the guards became higher and higher, but the face of Qi Wang Meilas became more and more solemn. The scouts sent news: Jiangling Wang Li Laiheng had led his army to Jiangling. He knew very well that the reason why he could win consecutive battles was because he was not facing the main force of the Ming army. Among the various Ming troops in Kuidong, Jiangling Wang Li Laiheng's troops were the best at fighting, which was vividly reflected in the Battle of Maolu Mountain. After removing the losses in the war and the division of troops to guard the occupied counties, his own troops were only 40,000, of which more than 4,000 were surrendered soldiers led by Luo Maotong and Ma Jinyu. Although these two people have proved their loyalty in previous battles, they are not their old troops after all, so their combat effectiveness should be discounted. The number of enemies is estimated to be more than 60,000. The enemy is numerous and we are few. This battle is not easy to fight!

"Order the deputy commander of Pianguan Camp, Ma Zhilin, to lead 5,000 soldiers to station at Shangbailizhou. The rest of the troops should set up camp around Songzi City and keep double guards at night to prevent the Ming army from attacking the camp," the young prince issued the military order.
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"How fast the Wei army is!" Just after crossing the river from Jiangling and setting up camp at Yuhudukou, Li Laiheng received the news that Songzi and Shangbailizhou had fallen, and he sighed deeply.

"I failed to defend Songzi and Shangbailizhou. Please punish me, Your Highness." Feng Qifeng, the Earl of Xinhua, knelt down in front of Li Laiheng, the King of Jiangling, and cried. The defeat was too fast and too tragic. Not only did they lose Songzi and Shangbailizhou, but more than half of their subordinates were killed or wounded. "I took the main force with me, and you led a small army to fight the bandits. Although you were defeated, you defended Jiangling. What crime have you committed? Even if you are guilty, the court is in need of people, so you can keep me useful and make meritorious contributions." Li Laiheng helped Feng Qifeng up and comforted him. He knew that the morale of the army would inevitably fluctuate after losing battles one after another, and he should not be harsh to his subordinates at this time, so he did not pursue Feng Qifeng's crime.

"Thank you, King Jiangling, for not killing me. I swear to kill the barbarians and redeem myself for my crime!" Feng Qifeng said with emotion.

Seeing the generals showing fear after hearing the news of the loss of Songzi and Shangbailizhou, Li Laiheng suddenly laughed, "This place is called 'Hudukou', and my nickname is 'Little Tiger'. It's a good omen! If we attack from here, our army will surely win!"

Hudukou is located on the south bank of the Yangtze River 20 miles southwest of Jiangling City, the seat of Jingzhou Prefecture. It is the water inlet of Hudu River, a diversion of the Yangtze River. Legend has it that during the Later Han Dynasty, many tigers appeared in this area. The governor of Nanjun recruited hunters to capture them, but to no avail. The more tigers were captured, the more tigers there were. Later, a man named Faxiong was appointed as the governor of the county. Faxiong personally wrote an official document: "Tigers and wolves are in the mountains and forests, just like people in the city. In ancient times, when the world was most civilized, the beasts did not disturb us because of benevolence, so they flew away. Although the governor is not virtuous, dare he forget this principle? Remember, he should destroy the traps and not capture them at will." After the governor's official document was issued, local hunters destroyed all the traps for catching tigers and stopped catching them. Strangely enough, the tigers in this area actually swam away along the diversion of the Yangtze River. After that, people named this river "Hudu River" and the water inlet of this river "Hudukou", which just corresponded to the nickname of Jiangling King Li Laiheng, "Little Tiger".

"Your Highness is right. When a tiger crosses the river, who can contend with it? Our army will win! The Ming Dynasty will win!" Yidu Hou Ta Tianbao roared.

"Our army will win, the Ming Dynasty will win." Xinhua Earl Feng Qifeng, General Wu Zhiqi and other generals all followed Ta Tianbao and shouted, as if victory was just around the corner.

The Governor of Huguang, Mao Shoudeng, also shouted loudly, but he was muttering in his heart: The tiger escaped from here in the past. Doesn’t it mean that Prince Jiangling will be defeated and flee?
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On February 1667, , Li Laiheng, the King of Jiangling in the Ming Dynasty, set out from Hudukou and marched towards Songzi. He arrived in one day after marching as fast as the wind. After joining the garrison in Jiangling City and Feng Qifeng's defeated troops, the number of Ming troops reached more than , claiming to have troops. They set up camps one after another, with flags flying all over the sky and a huge momentum.

King Melas of Qi climbed up the high platform built in the military camp and stared at the enemy's camp. The red cape on his black armor fluttered in the wind. He held the scimitar in his hand and stood still like a mountain. His eagle eyes, which were unique to the Ikminan family, were piercing and his brows revealed his determination and courage. It was as if an eagle was looking down on the enemy. Even in the face of great difficulties, he would never retreat, but would only move forward bravely.

"Instead of waiting for the Ming army to attack us, we should take the initiative. Pass on my order to march out of the camp and fight tomorrow morning," Melas sneered as he issued the order. (End of this chapter)