Usurpation of Mongolia: My father-in-law is Genghis Khan

Chapter 162 The Western Xia Dynasty will be destroyed today!
Time flies, and three years have passed since Zhao Shuo returned from Khwarezm.

During these three years, Hua Zheng gave birth to three children for Zhao Shuo, including his seventh son, Zhao Ye. Yang Miaozhen also gave birth to a son as her second child, Zhao Shuo's eighth son, Zhao Yi. Princess Luo Xier of Khwarazm gave birth to Zhao Shuo's ninth son, Zhao Yun.

Byzantine Princess Maria and Hungarian Princess Elizabeth each gave birth to a daughter for Zhao Shuo.

Now Zhao Shuo has nine sons and six daughters, a total of fifteen children.

The beautiful Jin Wanrong, who was sent by Goryeo and had a unique fragrance, and Princess Li Yan of Western Xia, whom Zhao Shuo obtained, were also pregnant. If they were to be born successfully, Zhao Shuo would have seventeen children.

Zhao Shuo's eldest son, Zhao He, is already seventeen years old this year, which would be considered almost an adult even in later generations. In the Mongolians of this era, he would already be considered a qualified warrior. Although there haven't been many battles in the past year, Zhao Shuo has appointed him as a deputy commander of a thousand men in his own unit, and he has participated in several hunting expeditions.

Hunting was not only the most popular production and entertainment activity among the grassland people, but also the activity closest to actual combat, making final preparations for Zhao He's future participation in the attack on Western Xia and engaging in actual combat.

Zhao Shuo's second son, Zhao Yan, is ten years old this year; his third son, Zhao Yi, is nine; and his fourth son, Zhao Yu, and fifth son, Zhao Xuan, are eight. They are all of school age. Zhao Shuo personally teaches them martial arts, while Lu Zibu is in charge of their academic studies.

Lu Zibu had been appointed "Grand Instructor" by Genghis Khan for over ten years. Initially, this title of "Grand Instructor" was merely a casual appointment by Temujin, and the actual support he received consisted of providing for Lu Zibu with the assistance of one hundred herding households.

However, Lu Zibu's status is no longer what it used to be.

Ten years have passed. Among the children of ordinary people on the grasslands, who can write Mongolian and cannot be associated with Lu Zibu? Even if they have never attended Lu Zibu's classes, they are considered Lu Zibu's students. Those who have attended Lu Zibu's students' classes are considered Lu Zibu's grand-disciples.

As these young men joined the Mongol army, Lu Zibu's status naturally rose accordingly.

Temujin keenly sensed this change and summoned Lu Zibu again, not only bestowing upon him three thousand taels of gold but also granting him permission to attend all the grand banquets held by the Great Khan of the Mongols. In terms of status, Lu Zibu was now on par with the hereditary commanders of the Mongol tribes.

The kerosene lamps in Zhao Shuo's workshop were already being sold. These lamps, far brighter than ordinary candles, quickly became popular throughout the country. With the opening of the Silk Road, they were even exported to Europe as a luxury item. However, the price of kerosene was still around twenty copper coins, making oil lamps a rather expensive expense for ordinary people.

At the horse farm under Zhang Yong's management, the average shoulder height of the crossbred warhorses of the Baicha Ironhoof Horse and the Arabian Horse has exceeded four feet three inches, but their traits are not yet stable enough. This cannot be rushed, so Zhao Shuo instructed Zhang Yong to continue his research. Furthermore, he planned to use the newly acquired Sacramento and Kipchak warhorses for crossbreeding to see if any new superior breeds could be produced.

Veteran Su He has passed away, and his second son Su Fei has taken over.

Muqali also passed away, and his son Bolu succeeded him.

Jebe's health has not recovered, and he is now bedridden. It is feared that his days are numbered.

Zhao Shuo's main force, the Han Chinese Eight Banners, also included some retired soldiers due to old age. The main force was naturally replenished from young men from the grasslands. The Eight Banners soldiers were selected from outstanding local militia in Shandong and Hebei.

With the old and the new generation coming together, about 15% of Zhao Shuo's army now consists of new recruits who have never experienced actual combat.

However, these new steppe warriors, raised on horseback and archery from a young age and involved in hunting, are natural-born cavalrymen. After three years of rest and recuperation, and with the guidance of their fathers who have extensive combat experience, their fighting strength is considerable.

Needless to say, the new Eight Banner soldiers were a different story. Zhao Shuo had already established an upgrade system from commoners to soldiers of the Manchu banners. They were selected from the best soldiers of the Manchu banners, and their combat effectiveness was no less than that of ordinary Eight Banner soldiers; they only lacked war experience.

Moreover, a newborn calf is not afraid of a tiger.

They yearned to use their swords, spears, bows, and arrows to achieve great deeds, seize wealth and beauties, and their fighting spirit soared even higher.

In the blink of an eye, the day to send troops to Western Xia arrived.

The campaign against Western Xia was a strategy Temujin had devised three years prior when he returned with his army. Western Xia was generally rectangular in shape, longer east to west and shorter north to south. Its western border was the Jade Gate Pass, within which lay the four famous cities of the Hexi Corridor: Shazhou, Guazhou, Suzhou, and Ganzhou.

To the east, bordering Yanzhou, which Muqali had already conquered, lay the Western Xia cities of Yinzhou, Xiazhou, and Yanzhou. When Muqali launched his campaign from the grasslands, invading Shaanxi and occupying Yanzhou, he intended to attack Western Xia after taking Shaanxi. Unfortunately, he was struck by an arrow during his attack on Fengxiang, and his plans to conquer Western Xia were shelved.

In fact, the cities of Shazhou, Guazhou, Suzhou, Ganzhou, Lingzhou, Zhongxingfu, Yanzhou, Xiazhou, and Yinzhou roughly form a long, serpentine curve from west to east. It can be said that the vast majority of Western Xia's cities lie along this curve.

The major cities not on this curve are only Xining and Jishi in the south.

The north and south are relatively simple. South of Keyimen, which fell into the hands of the Mongol army, was Zhongxingfu, the capital of Western Xia. Southwest of Zhongxingfu were the two large cities of Xining and Jishi.

It can be said that as long as Zhongxingfu is captured, the Western Xia, which is shaped like a long snake, will be unable to attend to both ends.

Therefore, Genghis Khan decided to divide his forces into three routes.

In the west, Chagatai and Ögedei each led an army of 50,000, totaling 100,000, and broke through the Jade Gate Pass. Then, they attacked from west to east, conquering the cities of the Hexi Corridor and advancing towards Zhongxing Prefecture.

Chagatai and Ögedei could not rely solely on their four commanders of a thousand to guard their fiefdoms. Over the past three years, they had built an army of over 100,000 within their own territories. This time, they led 50,000 elite troops from their fiefdoms to participate in the war to destroy the Western Xia.

In the east, Zhao Shuo led his army, joined forces with Muqali's son Bolu, and set out from Yanzhou to attack cities such as Yinzhou and Xiazhou, and also headed towards Zhongxing Prefecture.

Temujin's own mission was to lead an army of 100,000 directly from Keyimen to besiege Zhongxingfu, the capital of Western Xia, cutting off the connection between the Western Xia court and the local authorities, forcing them to fight their own battles.

By now, although Zhao Shuo's main force included the Flying Eagle Army stationed outside and a thousand-man unit left in the Jielek Valley, the population on the grasslands had increased, and with the addition of soldiers from the Balu Camp, the Han Eight Banners, and the Semu Eight Banners, Zhao Shuo's total military strength had reached 17,000 men.

The number of Black Cavalry alone reached four thousand.

Of these 17,000 troops, all but 2,000 were sent to defend the Hulunbuir Grassland.

The Han army's Eight Banners were also fully staffed, with each banner leaving two commanders of a thousand to guard the rear, bringing the total number of people accompanying Zhao Shuo on his expedition to 64,000.

In addition, there are 20,000 men in the Balu camp.

In addition to the 3,000 engineers who participated in this expedition, Zhao Shuo's total force for destroying Western Xia was 104,000.

In the summer of 1224, Zhao Shuo led an army of 104,000 to Yanzhou. After joining forces with the 50,000-strong army led by Muqali's son, Bolu, the total strength exceeded 150,000.

An army of 150,000 marched towards Yinzhou City.

Although the Western Xia sent Temujin numerous gifts, including seven beautiful princesses, they remembered how they had humiliated the Mongol envoys and had been preparing for war for years.

At present, the total population of the Western Xia Dynasty is approximately 2.3 million.

They assembled an army of 600,000 men.

Of these 600,000 troops, 450,000 were local soldiers who farmed and herded livestock during busy seasons, participated in military training during slack seasons, and defended cities during wartime.

When the Mongols attacked, the Western Xia adopted a scorched-earth strategy, gathering food, soldiers, and civilians in the city to prevent the Mongols from obtaining a single grain of food in the countryside, and even more so, to prevent the Mongols from conscripting soldiers in the countryside.

However, the Western Xia's little tricks were completely useless against the Mongols.

If we breach the Western Xia's city walls, wouldn't we have everything? It would even save us the trouble of searching the countryside.

Having honed their skills through the westward expeditions, the Mongols had accumulated countless experiences in how to breach fortified cities. If the Western Xia were to venture out of the city for open battle, they would be doomed. The Mongols, having undergone the westward expeditions, not only possessed richer war experience, but their main warhorses had been completely replaced with tall Arabian warhorses, and even their undergarments were made of silk to reduce the damage from arrows.

How could the Western Xia people possibly fight back?
Zhao Shuo and Bo Lu led an army of 150,000 to besiege Yinzhou. After setting up white tents for seven days, they began attacking the city using counterweight catapults.

The key components of these counterweight catapults had already been transported to Yanzhou. Moreover, after years of improvements, the counterweight catapults were much easier to disassemble than before. In just seven days, fifty counterweight catapults were assembled under the walls of Yinzhou City. After three days of relentless bombardment with a thousand ordinary catapults and fifty counterweight catapults, Zhao Shuo ordered the Balu Battalion to begin the siege.

In less than two days, Yinzhou City fell.

Subsequently, Zhao Shuo's army took advantage of the situation to advance westward, and captured Xiazhou City half a month later.

Twenty days later, they captured Yanzhou.

Continuing westward, you'll reach Xiliang Prefecture (Lingzhou).

The Western Xia stationed 30,000 regular troops and 130,000 local troops in Xiliang Prefecture.

However, they still couldn't hold out for more than twenty days and were defeated by Zhao's army.

After Zhao Shuo seized the opportunity to attack and capture Xining and Jishi cities to the south, he led his army north and joined forces with Temujin outside Zhongxingfu.

Half a month later, Chagatai and Ögedei also led their armies to this place, and the Mongol army besieging Zhongxingfu exceeded 300,000.

It is fair to say that the Mongol army, after conquering half of the Jin Dynasty and launching the western expedition against Khwarazm, was far more powerful than the army that had conquered the Western Xia a decade earlier. Despite mobilizing all its forces, the Western Xia managed to keep the war from making any significant impact.

Now, only Zhongxingfu remains of the Western Xia.

The fall of Western Xia was a foregone conclusion; the only question was when Zhongxing Prefecture would be captured.

Temujin was also very relaxed.

After seven days of rest and reorganization, the army of Ögedei and Chagatai issued the order for a general offensive.

"The Western Xia has four city gates. Chagatai, Ashuo, Ögedei, and Tolui, you will lead your armies to attack from four directions! Whoever kills the Western Xia emperor first will get an extra ten percent of the spoils. What do you think?"

"Yes!"

Zhao Shuo, Wokotai, and the others didn't really care much about the 10% of spoils of war.

But didn't Ögedei want to become the Great Khan of the Mongols? How could he gain the support of the people without demonstrating sufficient military capability?

Of the four chiliarchs originally granted to Tolui, three remained in his fiefdom. With his youngest son tending the hearth, Tolui now commanded only Temujin's troops and was unwilling to fall behind.

Although Chagatai had a falling out with Ögedei in Urgench, the two had reconciled over the years. Chagatai still supported Ögedei as Great Khan. He didn't want to claim the credit himself, but he transferred his elite troops to Ögedei, determined to ensure Ögedei achieved the greatest merit in this battle and established his prestige.

Zhao Shuo, known as the "Number One Warrior of the Grasslands," was naturally determined to win this first merit!

Thus, Zhao Shuo attacked the south gate, Ögedei attacked the west gate, Chagatai attacked the east gate, and Tolui attacked the north gate, and the general offensive against Zhongxingfu began.

Boom boom boom!
The catapults are unleashing their power!
Twelve-pound stones and five-pound thunderbolts, sparking with explosive force, rained down on Zhongxing Prefecture as if they were free.

In the blink of an eye, thick smoke billowed and flames soared from the city wall of Zhongxingfu.

Whoosh whoosh!
Three thousand ballistae unleashed their power simultaneously, firing three arrows with each shot at the city walls of Zhongxing Prefecture!

The Western Xia had as many as 80,000 regular troops defending Zhongxing Prefecture, and 150,000 local soldiers.

This was the last resistance force of the Western Xia. Facing imminent annihilation, their morale was extremely high, like a final burst of energy before death. They possessed thunderclaps, catapults, and ballistae, and engaged in fierce battles with the Mongol army.

Within a short period of time, the three gates—east, west, and north—were evenly matched.

However, the Western Xia army at the south gate was already showing signs of being overwhelmed from the start.

The boulder thrown by the counterweight catapult weighed as much as 60 kilograms!
Greek fire, modified with diesel fuel, cannot be extinguished with water; in fact, it fuels the fire!

Where had the Western Xia people ever seen such a weapon?
They could only rely on their high morale and grit their teeth to persevere.

However, they won't be able to hold on for much longer.

"Charge! Kill! Break through Zhongxing Prefecture!"

"The destruction of Western Xia will take place today!"

"The Han army's Plain Yellow Banner is invincible!"

"Kill all the Tangut people!" (The Mongol term for the Western Xia people)

……

With only one city wall, too many troops simply couldn't be deployed. Zhao Shuo didn't use the Balu Battalion; instead, he directly mobilized the Han Eight Banners and his own troops!

The three strongest commanders were selected from each Han army banner.

Zhao Shuo's main force consisted of six thousand-man squads.

A total of 30,000 troops, pushing 30 siege towers and carrying countless ladders, launched a fierce attack on the city walls of Zhongxing Prefecture.

These people can be considered the strongest fighting force in the entire world.

How could the Western Xia army possibly be a match for them?

Just as evening was approaching, Shi Tianze led a thousand-household commander from the Plain Yellow Banner and opened the south gate of Zhongxing Prefecture.

What followed was brutal street fighting.

"Soldiers, follow me! Slay the Western Xia emperor, destroy his state, and annihilate his dynasty!"

Zhao Shuo, clad in triple armor, pointed the Great Xia Dragon Sparrow and issued orders towards the south gate.

"I am willing to die for your majesty!"

Rumble!
Four thousand Black Riders, seven thousand of Zhao Shuo's own troops, and a total of eleven thousand soldiers followed closely behind.

Behind them were 40,000 Han Chinese Eight Banner soldiers!
More than 50,000 elite troops swarmed into the south gate of Zhongxing Prefecture.

The Western Xia Dynasty will be destroyed today!
(End of this chapter)