Destroy Jin and conquer Song, and carry the Northern Expedition through to the end

Chapter 25: Like a Tiger Lying on a Hill

"What's going on? What's going on? Why is there such a commotion at the dock?!" Gao Yuanqing, who was originally looking into the distance at the bow of the ship, stumbled onto the wheelhouse of the ship and looked at the dock by holding onto the stern guardrail.

The helmsman was an old shipowner in his fifties. He looked fawning and trembling as he said, "I... I don't know. It might be that the big ship wasn't stable and needed trackers to moor it, so there was some noise."

Beside the ship owner stood a Jin soldier, sword in hand, leaning against the wheelhouse wall. He said to Gao Yuanqing, "Something's not right. I heard the drums. Even if Wang Xian wanted to mobilize the troops, would he really need to beat the drums?"

Gao Yuanqing suddenly drew his sword, put it on the old ship owner's neck, and said coldly: "Turn the rudder and go back!"

"Okay... okay..." The old ship owner nodded nervously, but he suddenly bent the rudder with both hands.

The boat tilted at a huge angle in the river, and Gao Yuanqing and his trusted soldiers rolled to the ground.

Both of them were elite warriors who were well-equipped for three kinds of warfare. They were good at charging on horseback, shooting with bows, or fighting on foot. However, they were unfamiliar with naval warfare and ended up capsizing in the ditch.

The old ship owner, who had just been wearing a cautious smile, seemed to have taken root. He calmly lowered his head to avoid the blade that was pressing on his neck, pulled out a sharp knife for wrist-cutting from his boots, first wiped it on the soldier's neck, letting the blood from his neck spurt into a bloody mist, then turned around and held down Gao Yuanqing who was lying on the ground.

"When you get down there, remember to tell the King of Hell..." The old captain plunged the sharp knife into Gao Yuanqing's neck. Ignoring his twitching struggles, he leaned over and whispered in his ear, "The one who killed you is Hu Yanchuo of Dongping Prefecture!"

The boat shook, the war horses on board neighed together, shouts of killing rang out, and blood spread out.

……

Ferry within Lianshui County.

Li Gongzuo, clad in heavy armor, stared at the slowly opening floodgates, took a deep breath, and shouted an order: "Raise the banners! Remember, head straight for the armory and warehouses! Anyone who dares to delay, I'll skin him alive!"

"Here!"

With the help of an insider, the two warships flying the flag of the Song Dynasty broke through the water gate effortlessly.

Two hundred naval soldiers rushed out in full force, divided into two teams, and led by an insider holding a large flag with the word "Song" on the dock, they rushed towards the target at full speed.

The sounds of fighting gradually began to be heard at the city gates.

……

"Master Zhang... why... why is this happening?"

Before the fighting ship docked at the pier, Zhang Tong had already pulled County Magistrate Li to the corner of the pier to chat about some business.

County Magistrate Li thought that Zhang Tong was upset and wanted some reassurances, so he could only comfort him repeatedly.

However, County Magistrate Li was not a fool. After seeing the Song army rushing out of the fighting ships, how could he not know that Zhang Tong had surrendered to the Song and became the first sharp weapon stabbing the Wuxing Army and Lianshui County?
If it weren't for Zhang Tong, the Song army would have had to resort to hard-core cavalry to attack Lianshui, and the Jin army could have used its cavalry advantage to discover the situation early and make preparations in advance for either fighting or defending.

How could he be so defenseless that he was hit in the face by a Song army soldier? Even after figuring it out, County Magistrate Li still found it incredible.

What are you picturing? !
Others may not know what the Jin army and the Song army are like, but as a local businessman on the Song-Jin border, how could Zhang Tong not know?
The Song State is bound to lose this battle!
It was hard to say whether the Southern Song Dynasty would be destroyed, but the Jin Dynasty would surely be swallowed up. After that, Lianshui would no longer be a frontier town, but the heartland of the Jin Dynasty.

Whether Lianshui is in the hands of the Jin Dynasty or the Song Dynasty, what difference does it make in the face of the mighty army of the Jin Dynasty?

Could it be that if Lianshui was occupied by the Song people, they could still defend it like an impregnable fortress when facing tens of thousands of regular troops of the Jin Dynasty?
This is not Xiangfan, nor is it Xuzhou, it's just a piece of Lianshui.

Could Zhang Tong, with his own strength and the power of this place, thwart the Jin Dynasty's southward advance and change the world's situation?

In response to Magistrate Li's question, Zhang Tong simply smiled and waved. The attendant beside him pulled off his robe, revealing the chain mail underneath, and raised a large shield and spear, protecting Zhang Tong and Magistrate Li in the middle.

One of the attendants took out a horn from his bosom and started to blow it.

"Kill the bandits! Kill the bandits! Kill the bandits!" Three shouts erupted, and the once-quiet harbor erupted in a frenzy. Hundreds of young men, carrying banners bearing the Chinese character "Song," emerged from the previously quiet houses, inns, and warehouses. Quickly forming a battle formation under the command of a military officer, they attacked from the rear, engaging the Jin army in sporadic battles.

"The most important thing in this battle is to divide the power of the Jin thieves." Zhang Tong seemed not to hear County Magistrate Li's question. He spoke sincerely and slowly explained the battle to the other party.

"The Jin bandits have 300 combat troops, including over 70 cavalry, plus over 800 signed troops. Let alone defending the city, they can't be underestimated even in a direct field battle." Zhang Tong shook his head, sighing. "Of course, this number of troops wouldn't be worth a damn during the Shaoxing era. But with the Song army today, unless all the Chuzhou troops are mobilized, they'll never be able to capture Lianshui."

"Originally, my agreement with Wei Dadao was for him to attack Lianshui County head-on, and I would provide support from within the city at the crucial moment. But who could have imagined that Wu Chengjun's general, Xing Meng'an, would die? The Jin thieves, desperate and desperate, took the initiative to cross the river and entrusted the task to me. God bless the Song Dynasty!"

Zhang Tong tapped Magistrate Li's shoulder. "The next step is to separate the Jin bandits' armored cavalry from their soldiers. Once we've tricked the cavalry onto the ship, we've already won ninety percent of the battle. All that's left is to take them by surprise and attack them when they're unprepared."

At this point, County Magistrate Li couldn't help but realize that he had long been caught in the enemy's scheme, being manipulated at their mercy. Previously, the enemy had been servile, while he had been arrogant. Now, thinking back, he really was like a clown.

Magistrate Li was filled with shame and indignation, his hair standing on end. The Great God shouted at him, "Zhang Tong! Aren't you afraid that once the heavenly soldiers arrive, you'll be killed and your clan will be wiped out? Do you still expect a mere thousand men and horses to withstand the devastating attack of the Great Jin? You're absolutely crazy!"

Wu Dutou, who was following County Magistrate Li, felt something was wrong. Just as he pulled out the iron bar, Zhang Tong twisted his neck and threw it aside like garbage.

"Mr. Li." Zhang Tong smiled and extended his calloused hand, patting Magistrate Li on the back. "First of all, my name is not Zhang Tong. My full name is Zhang Rong."

"Liangshan Lake in Dongping Prefecture, Zhang Rong."

Magistrate Li looked at Wu Dutou's corpse and tried to remain calm, but his whole body began to tremble violently and he could not react for a moment to realize the difference between Zhang Tong and Zhang Rong.

But it only took a moment for County Magistrate Li to understand the meaning of the name Zhang Rong.

"Zhang... Zhang Rong... Zhang Rong! Zhang Diwan!"

(End of this chapter)