You have truly caused me great suffering!

Chapter 129 The battle to destroy the country
The population composition of the Western Xia and the Dingnan Army was too similar.

This led both sides to plant a large number of spies to gather intelligence on the other.

Upon receiving the news in the army, Chen Shao suddenly threw on his clothes and stood up.

Looking around, all was pitch black. Inside the tent, a personal guard brought up a candlestick.

Zhao He lifted the curtain and came in, saying, "Master, Commander Han requests that you retreat to Yanzhou."

"If you lose, it doesn't matter where you retreat to; if you win, you don't need to retreat."

Chen Shao was not really that calm, but in the end, he made up his mind and simply threw away all his anxiety.

Although the disparity in strength was vast this time, history is replete with battles where the weak triumphed over the strong, so he dared not be complacent.

Da Hu maintained his calm expression, but today he had changed to a more suitable weapon, holding a large cleaver as he followed Chen Shao.

At this moment, the armored warriors in the vanguard were silently waiting, swords at their sides and shields in hand.

Unlike Chen Shao's forced calm, Han Shizhong was genuinely composed. With such a significant advantage on paper, he felt there was nothing to fear.

The enemy's choice to fight at night was also within his expectations.

Night battles, especially in open field battles, can, to some extent, reduce the advantage of troop strength.

Currently, Han Shizhong has dispatched more than 50 teams, totaling more than 300 scouts, around the battlefield.

If even more than thirty enemy cavalrymen are discovered, signal fireworks must be set off.

Chen Shao spent a lot of money to gather gunpowder craftsmen from the Song, Liao, and Xia dynasties. Although they did not develop gunpowder that could be fired from the barrel, they had already developed signal flares, something that had existed for a long time, into a very sophisticated product.

The idea was to have the scouts attach gunpowder to the arrows, light them, and time the release so that they would explode at the highest point.

Although it looks primitive, it is indeed useful, especially at night.

Not only can it send an alarm, but it can also indicate the approximate direction.

Time passed slowly, and everyone's eyes were fixed ahead, where white mist filled the dark grassland.

Richard galloped away, completely disregarding his beloved warhorse.

The warhorse's warm saliva sprayed on his face, but all the Tangut knights seemed oblivious, only feeling their hearts swell larger and larger, as if they were about to jump out of their chests with excitement.

At this time, people can often unleash several times their usual endurance and fighting power, which is what later generations called an adrenaline surge.

Even though it was nighttime and there were no torches, the horses did not slow down much.

Following these battle-hardened warhorses, it was as if they had become one with their masters, reacting precisely to every movement of their masters in the night, avoiding all potholes and obstacles.

As the vanguard crossed the Lingchuan River, suddenly, dazzling fireworks lit up the sky everywhere.

Richard felt something was off. He looked up and saw that although the fireworks were brief, they were indeed incredibly dazzling.

The Western Xia had advanced gunpowder technology, and fireworks were set off in Xingqing Prefecture on important festivals.

At this time of night, he did not feel any fear of his whereabouts being exposed, after all, he had long known that such a large-scale operation could not be kept secret from the enemy.

Richard suddenly felt a surge of joy.

If I'm lucky enough to win, I'll never forget tonight's fireworks for the rest of my life.

If we lose, let's just consider it a farewell to ourselves.

He ripped the bit off the horse's mouth and shouted, "My men, tonight there is no turning back! For the Emperor, for Western Xia, we will crush the Song people on the other side!"

Behind him, he heard the elite Tangut cavalrymen respond in low voices, their tones filled with murderous intent!
As they approached the designated battlefield, Han Shizhong suddenly gave an order.

The moment the horn sounded, a knight lit a torch and threw it onto a pile of firewood that had been prepared beforehand. The flames roared up and then rose higher and higher.

The flames flickered, casting shifting light and shadow, reflecting the unwavering, immovable formation of the Dingnan Army.

It was the traditional infantry square formation of the Western Army.

The Western Xia warriors faced their nemesis, a foe that had haunted them for generations.

The difference this time is that, on both sides of the infantry formation, there are cavalry whose numbers and combat power are no less than theirs.

Heavy cavalry and light cavalry, all were present and arrayed, ready for battle.

The flames continued to rise, standing out starkly against the dark night sky of the Xingling Plain.

Han Shizhong's signature voice boomed in the ears of the nearby guards:

"All troops, prepare to engage the enemy!"

Meanwhile, on the northern front, Wu Jie also set fire to the prepared haystacks.

Under the firelight, the weapons gleamed in a dazzling display!

Chen Shao rode his horse on a high hill, overlooking the battlefield.

The rising pillar of fire illuminated the western night sky with an eerie dark red hue.

Against the backdrop of the swirling pillars of fire and the dark red sky, the Tangut knight who suddenly appeared before them looked as if he had leaped out of hell!
Every Tangut warrior let out a hoarse roar, the reverberation merging into a single, overwhelming sound.

By this time, the horses had already gained momentum, and the first rank of horses leaped across the narrow trench and fortifications in a single bound.

These Tangut knights, all clad only in leather armor and armed with long weapons, advanced with incredible speed.

This group had an extremely strong impact force, and almost broke through the infantry formation of the Dingnan Army.

At the crucial moment, the sound of drums and horns blared, and the soldiers formed a dense, shoulder-to-shoulder circle. Shields were held in front of them, and the sharp edges of their spears protruded like wolf fangs, gradually stabilizing themselves.

They used to be in the Western Army, and they formed the same square formation, but their shields weren't as sturdy or their armor as thick as it is now, so they were often breached.

But at this moment, he was able to grit his teeth and hold on!
The infantry phalanx of the Western Army of the Great Song Dynasty was an extremely powerful fighting force in this era; otherwise, it would not have been able to withstand the nomadic cavalry of the Liao, Xia, Jin, and Mongol dynasties for so many years.

Beside Chen Shao, a young military officer whispered, "When the cavalry charges close, keep your stance and spear steady, with the spear tip pointing upwards. Don't thrust it out; just wait for the enemy to run into you! Stay steady, and don't close your eyes when facing enemy cavalry!"

These were words he was supposed to memorize during daily training, but now, seeing the enemy cavalry charging at him, he couldn't help but recite the mantra he knew by heart.

Like him, the soldiers below also triggered muscle memory.

What appears to be a simple act of stopping the enemy's advance is actually the result of thousands upon thousands of training sessions conducted daily.

Han Shizhong immediately divided his troops to block their retreat route; he didn't want to let these people escape again.

Li Qianshun, who was behind, saw the Dingnan Army blocking people at the river crossing and sneered inwardly.

I had no intention of going back.

If Xiping Prefecture is lost and we suffer a defeat, the nobles in Shuofang who have been temporarily suppressed and had their property confiscated will surely rebel.

In the ditch, Han Shizhong sent men to destroy the wooden bridge, and the Western Xia cavalry crossed the river directly from the shallow part.

They had guarded this place for generations. There were six sluice gates in Xiping Prefecture, which had long since cut off the Yellow River. After the river was blocked, the water could not reach the horses' hooves, and the two groups of cavalry collided head-on here.

After all, the river channel was crowded and couldn't be spread out, so the people behind could draw their arrows and shoot.

Both sides fired volleys, the rain of arrows was truly ferocious. After the shooting stopped, there was a brief pause before a deafening, deathly scream echoed from the riverbed!

This was practically firing arrows at the foreheads of their opponents and the backs of their own heads. Arrows rained down on the dense crowd, each one almost splattering a spray of blood.

Many people were instantly riddled with arrows, fell from their horses, and their blood gushed out, flowing across the riverbed, reflecting a dim light under the firelight.

Li Qianshun stood high on the city wall, watching the battle in the valley with an expressionless face. Most of his men had already crossed the river.

Surprisingly, the Song cavalry had the upper hand in numbers, and according to his spies, many of them were subjects of the Western Xia.

As the number of Western Xia soldiers in the river dwindled, Li Qianshun waved his hand, and the sluice gates in Xiping Prefecture were immediately opened.

The long-accumulated river water rushed in, and many people hurriedly jumped on their horses and ran to the shore.

In the middle of the valley, with his horse unable to run and surrounded by people, Pang Ge quickly shouted, "Disarm! Disarm!"

He had only shouted twice when he tore off half of his armor, and then the water surged towards him.

Han Shizhong, still feeling that he wasn't high enough on horseback, actually lifted his foot and stepped onto the saddle, straightening up on his warhorse and standing there steadily, observing the battlefield situation!
Immediately, arrows were shot at him.

Han Shizhong quickly landed

He had no intention of showing off his horsemanship; on the contrary, he was so angry that his eyes turned red. "That Xia thief even charged his own people!"

"Now their escape route is cut off, and they'll have to fight us to the bitter end!"

With their retreat cut off, a real field battle involving 50,000 cavalrymen began on this battlefield.

The scale of the battle involving so many real soldiers was unprecedented in history. Most of the large-scale battles involving hundreds of thousands of troops included civilian laborers and were often exaggerated.

Richard had about 20,000 troops, which he brought back; they were the last elite Tangut cavalry.

Han Shizhong commanded 40,000 troops, including 20,000 cavalry and 20,000 infantry. These 20,000 infantry were his true elite core, mainly composed of the formidable Xihe Army from the Western Army.

These people were defeated by Richard in the Battle of Tong'an City, and then Chen Shao regrouped them along the Hengshan line, using them as the backbone and recruiting some Xia people as supplements.

A powerful army that gradually grew and developed.

The infantry phalanx took on the attack head-on.

Meanwhile, the cavalry, mainly composed of barbarian soldiers and new recruits, harassed, pursued, and conducted guerrilla warfare from the flanks.

Previously, the infantry of the Song Dynasty lacked cavalry to protect their flanks. If they won, they couldn't pursue; if they lost, they couldn't escape. Even with many victories, they couldn't expand their gains, which was almost the same as not winning at all.

Meanwhile, to the north, there was also the Iron Falcon Army clashing with Wu Jie's forces.

In terms of scale, it absolutely deserves the title of 'war of annihilation'.

Chen Shao stared down at the fires that were still burning, the scene on the battlefield was like the end of the world, extremely tragic.

Infantry formations are definitely not static; they are constantly changing and alternating.

The cavalry from both sides surged towards them like a flood, their speed increasing rapidly. Shouts and the thunder of hooves were deafening. At the same time, the Western Xia cavalry behind them also surged forward. It was as if the plain had become a whirlpool, with men and horses rapidly moving.

Arrows flew wildly in the air like locusts.

At this moment, the war drums of the rear formation sounded in unison, and the thunderous sound of horses' hooves roared rapidly on both sides, the clamor seeming to pound on people's chests.

"Ahhh..." Screams of agony echoed from all directions amidst the clash of swords. Dense ranks of spearmen and shield-bearers clashed wildly on the front lines, countless gruesome scenes shrouded in the hazy moonlight.

Arrows flew swiftly through the air, their cold whistling sound echoing through the darkness. Dark shadows appeared and disappeared in the moonlight, creating a terrifying sight.

The two armies' formations were drawing ever closer. In this situation, there was no longer any room for retreat!

When facing a large army, no general could organize a retreat of 50,000 men in an orderly manner during the night.

The only way out is for one side's entire army to collapse; there is no other way!

There was no personal heroism of military commanders, nor any dramatic twists.
Both sides are composed of elite troops with extremely high morale and fighting spirit. It's purely a contest of killing efficiency and who will give up first.

Chen Shao took a deep breath and coldly stared at the battlefield. The occasional booming of gunpowder explosions, the whistling of arrows, and the shouts, screams, and cries of people filled with fear and anger echoed in his ears.

A mountain of corpses and a sea of ​​blood, an utterly tragic scene!

As dawn broke, the rising sun dispelled the morning mist.

Blood made the grassland roads muddy, and Richard, who had fought all night, collapsed helplessly on the ground.

He glanced at his personal guards, almost all of whom were wounded, and then turned back to see a large group of cavalry who had followed him dismounting and surrounding him with their weapons.

Countless armored soldiers were surrounding them.

"Surrender without killing!"

Someone in the crowd shouted, and the sound was like a roaring mountain and a tsunami, venting their excitement.

Excited shouts were everywhere, and the cries echoed across the land.

Chen Shao let out a long sigh of relief, his face showing a hint of relaxation and exhaustion. Tonight's battle was the most brutal scene he had ever witnessed in his life.

Even scenes from movies and TV shows from my previous life couldn't recreate even a fraction of this horrific tragedy.

He rode his horse, its hooves pounding on the grass, the muddy sound like after a rain, all caused by blood.

Wherever Chen Shao went, the cheers of his soldiers suddenly grew louder.

"Surrender without killing!"

The calls rose and fell.

Hearing the cheers, Richard suddenly opened his eyes; he knew it must be Chen Shao again.

This person is my nemesis.

The Battle of Hengshan, fueled by the great victory at Tong'an City, allowed Western Xia to break out of Hengshan, put pressure on the Song Dynasty, and force them to negotiate peace. This was Western Xia's last chance.

It was he who ruined it.

Richard did not choose suicide. He picked up his weapon and staggered down the slope. Because his cheek was pierced by an arrow, he made some strange, incoherent sounds.

The others also picked up their weapons and charged towards the Dingnan Army with him.

After a hail of arrows, the last of the Western Xia soldiers who were surrounded fell. Tonight, apart from a few cavalrymen who managed to break through on the flanks, most of the rest were killed in battle.

At this point, the Western Xia dynasty existed in name only.

(End of this chapter)