The prince is more stable

Chapter 209: First Battle to Revenge (Part )
The target had been set long ago, Zhuo Luo and the Southern Military Division, one of the twelve military divisions of Western Xia.

It is just to the north of Xizhou. Empress Dowager Liang mobilized the entire country's troops to invade the border. If nothing unexpected happens, there will not be too many troops stationed there by the Southern Army. All the troops have been transferred to Empress Dowager Liang's 300,000-strong army.

This was also a stupid move by Empress Dowager Liang. No matter how much hatred and resentment she had, she had to mobilize the entire country to fight this war, for fear that others would not know the strength of your Western Xia.

With the troops withdrawn, the rear was left empty, and Zhao Xiaoqian immediately saw the weaknesses exposed by Western Xia.

The purpose of attacking the Henan Military Headquarters was not only to shake the morale of the Western Xia army, but more importantly, after the Henan Military Headquarters was captured, the soldiers under Zhao Xiaoqian's command could directly attack Xiliang Prefecture, a city in the heart of Western Xia.

Xiliang Prefecture is an important city in Western Xia, and its status is no less than the capital Xingqing Prefecture. If Xiliang Prefecture is threatened, even if Zhao Xiaoqian does not attack the city and only wanders around outside the city, do you think Empress Dowager Liang will be anxious?
My period has to come early.

Riding at lightning speed, it only took one day for five thousand soldiers to travel from Weizhou to Xizhou.

After a brief rest outside Xizhou City, Zhao Xiaoqian ordered his troops to cross the Song-Xia border and march quickly towards Henan Military Command.

From this point on, Zhao Xiaoqian handed over the command of the troops to Zhong Jianzhong, and he retreated behind the scenes and did not personally participate in commanding the battle.

Leave professional matters to professionals. Zhao Xiaoqian had never experienced war in his two lifetimes, let alone commanding a battle. He knew his own worth.

If you are responsible for 5,000 lives, don't pretend to know everything. Let those who really know do their professional work, and Zhao Xiaoqian can just be responsible for applauding and cheering from the sidelines.

When Zhao Xiaoqian publicly announced that Zhong Jianzhong would be the wartime commander-in-chief, Zhong Jianzhong's eyes were shocked and he looked at him deeply for a long time.

The Song Dynasty has always been led by civilians. No matter how poorly the military command was during wartime, the civilians would hold the military power tightly in their hands. Even if the army was defeated or the war situation was irreversible, the military power would never change hands.

This is an ironclad rule of the Song Dynasty. Military generals can only accept orders. If they want to lead the entire army and command freely, they can do so, but they must first pass the imperial examination and come back.

Zhong Jianzhong did not expect that Zhao Xiaoqian was completely different from other civil officials. Before the battle, he gave him the military power without saying a word.

Suddenly I felt how happy it was to be able to lead troops under Zhao Xiaoqian. Just for this kindness and this unreserved trust, if we lose this battle, Zhong Jianzhong will not hesitate to cut his neck and apologize.

After another day of running, after crossing the Song-Xia border, the troops found a canyon to rest. Zhong Jianzhong summoned his generals to make the final pre-war deployment.

The entire army was equipped with muskets. New weapons naturally brought new tactics.

While Zhong Jianzhong was deploying tactics, Zhao Xiaoqian sat beside him with a smile on his face, not saying a word.

Only when Zhong Jianzhong had finished his deployment and turned to Zhao Xiaoqian for instructions did he wave his hand and say, "General Zhong has already made all the arrangements that need to be made. His orders are my orders, and anyone who disobeys them will be executed."

All the generals stood up and responded in unison.

"Well, let me add two more things. There's something very important, so listen carefully."

The generals stared at him solemnly.

Zhao Xiaoqian coughed twice and said, "This matter is... well, protect me and don't let me get hurt in the slightest. Once you enter Xixia territory, I won't stop you from doing anything you want. You can harm Tianhe, but don't hurt me."

"If I get hurt, the government won't forgive you, and all your achievements will be in vain. Please hold me in your hands, and protect, love, and cherish me like you would your ancestral tablets..."

The generals had dark faces, but still clasped their fists in response.

Zhao Xiaoqian was satisfied.

Personal safety is what he cares about most. After all, if you lose a battle, you still have a chance to get back on track, but if you are finished, then it is really over, and there is no chance of a comeback.

Zhong Jianzhong smiled wryly and said, "The flintlock rifle was invented by the Marquis of the County. My Dragon Guard Battalion is equipped with this artifact and will soon be engaged in its first battle. Does the Marquis of the County have any instructions?"

Zhao Xiaoqian yawned and said lazily, "You're more skilled at spearmanship than I am. What's there to tell me? Just follow the drill manual for daily combat drills and formations." He smiled again and said, "Tell the soldiers, if we win this battle, we'll charge into the Henan Military Headquarters. There's money to be made there, and we'll take it all. Well, that'll give the soldiers some motivation."

The power was indeed strong enough. It was still unknown how the soldiers would react, but the generals in the tent had their eyes shining and were ready to fight.

…………

The snow stopped, and although it was still bitterly cold, the sun still stubbornly pierced through the clouds and shone on the earth.

Perhaps even God couldn't bear to see the Central Plains dynasty's declining fortunes, so he generously released good weather.

When they were still twenty miles away from the Henan Military Headquarters, Zhao Xiaoqian's troops were discovered by the Western Xia scouts deployed around the military headquarters.

The five thousand musketeers did not hide their tracks at all and marched straight towards the Henan Army Headquarters.

A sneak attack was possible, but this was the first battle of the Longwei Battalion. The goal was not only victory, but Zhao Xiaoqian also wanted to test the Longwei Battalion. Whether the muskets could really play a role on the front battlefield would only be known by the cost of human lives.

Therefore, in the first battle of the Longwei Camp, Zhao Xiaoqian chose to confront the enemy head-on.

Sure enough, when they were still five miles away from the important military town, about 3,000 Western Xia troops had already lined up on an open plain.

Seeing the Song cavalry getting closer and closer in the distance, the Western Xia army couldn't help but get nervous. The sad and wailing horns sounded and the drums beat rapidly.

As the Dragon Guard Camp got closer, the atmosphere on the plain gradually became tense, and the air was filled with a sense of tension.

When they were three miles away from the Western Xia army, the Longwei Battalion stopped. At Zhong Jianzhong's command, the Longwei Battalion dismounted, took out their flintlock rifles in an orderly manner, and then formed three formations, calmly loading the gunpowder, loading the bullets, and holding them horizontally.

The Western Xia army, facing the Song army from a distance, looked at them with surprise. They saw that they were holding a strange object in their hands. It didn't look like a weapon at all. It had no blade or point. It was thin in front and thick in the back. It was even uglier than a fire stick.

The Xixia generals rode their horses back and forth in their own camp and saw that the Song army's weapons were so strange and seemed to have no lethality.

Whether to boost morale or to mock the enemy, the Xixia general laughed loudly, raised his whip and pointed it at the Song army opposite, saying something unknown. The three thousand Xixia soldiers also laughed loudly, and their laughter was full of contempt and disdain.

There was no way. Before this, the combat effectiveness of the Song army was obvious to all. For a hundred years, apart from escaping and losing land, they had to negotiate peace and pay money. No wonder the enemy was so contemptuous. With the combat effectiveness of the Song army, it was indeed not enough to make the enemy take it seriously.

So even though the Western Xia army had only 3,000 men and was at a numerical disadvantage, they still laughed so loudly and unscrupulously when the two armies faced each other.

The Song army dared to cross the border and enter the territory of Western Xia, intending to take advantage of the emptiness of the Western Xia rear and attack the Southern Army by surprise. This tactical strategy surprised the Western Xia generals, but again, no matter how empty the Western Xia rear was, the Song army was still not enough.

If you don't have a strong fist, why would others be afraid of you?

The arrogant laughter reached the Song army's position. Zhong Jianzhong and the soldiers gritted their teeth secretly, anger flashed in their eyes, and everyone gripped the flintlock rifles tightly in their hands.

Zhao Xiaoqian squatted far behind the soldiers. In order to prevent himself from being injured by stray arrows during the battle between the two armies, Chen Shou and a group of imperial guards also put up several shields in front of him. The security protection can be said to be in place.

Hearing the arrogant laughter from the opposite side, Zhao Xiaoqian was neither happy nor angry, but instead secretly added fuel to the fire of Zhong Jianzhong.

"Old man, they seem to be laughing at you..."

Zhong Jianzhong gritted his teeth and drew his sword with a clang.

"All troops advance in formation!"

"Today we swear to avenge the century-long shame of the Great Song Dynasty!"

(End of this chapter)