You have truly caused me great suffering!

Li Xiaozhong's camp suddenly became tense in the past few days.

The incident began when a group of Jurchen Tartars was discovered leaving the city during a battle for a mountain peak by scouts!

Soon, the Xiazhou army camp began to reinforce its troops, and the Tartars in Datong Prefecture also began to reinforce their troops.

Both sides continuously reinforced their forces around this hilltop, repeatedly vying for it.

The Yinzhou army, which was originally stationed at Longshou Mountain, also split into multiple routes and headed north from the complex mountain paths, showing that they were ready to rush down the mountain and actively seek battle with the Jurchen Tartars!
Inside the Jurchen camp, bonfires burned, releasing waves of heat.

Zong Han looked at the generals and suddenly laughed, "The Western barbarians of Longshou Mountain are just pretending. The one who will really fight us is Li Xiaozhong."

"They started preparing for this battle long ago. The formation of three battalions attacking Datong has been rehearsed countless times in their old stronghold to the west."

Zonghan's son, Wanyan Xiege, retorted, "Does Li Xiaozhong alone dare to engage our army in open battle?"

Wanyan Xiyin nodded and said, "I've met Li Xiaozhong. He's very bold, so don't underestimate him."

Back then, Li Xiaozhong personally went to Datong Prefecture to buy ancient Khitan books. Judging from the current situation, their Dingnan Army should have already begun preparing to fight against the Jurchens at that time.

At least the idea has been there.

Wanyan Xiyin secretly regretted that he should have killed Li Xiaozhong back then.

Judging from his record of commanding the Xiazhou troops in Shuozhou, he was a rare and capable general in the Dingnan Army.

Because Tong Guan's campaign against Liao was so humiliating, the Jurchens generally felt that the Song army was not worth mentioning.

The Dingnan Army, nominally a Song army, had many Jurchen soldiers who, despite having overthrown the Liao Dynasty, still had a narrow vision.

They had not yet figured out the difference between the Song Dynasty's troops and the Northwest Dingnan Army.

The Jurchens were, after all, a small tribe. They thought the Song Dynasty was the same. If the Northwest Army was so capable, why weren't they the main force of the Song Dynasty?

Their population is not large. Even after gathering the Jurchen people from Liaodong, the total population of the tribe is only around one million, and they can mobilize at most a hundred thousand warriors.

After destroying the Liao Dynasty, and even before capturing Yelü Yanxi, they already possessed a wealthier territory far exceeding their original lands.

Many Jurchen warriors were no longer as fervent as before when it came to marching south and fighting for more territory.

This was not so obvious in the Western Route Army, but it was most evident in the Zongwang Eastern Route Army Group, which occupied the fertile and prosperous lands of the Liao Kingdom.

Nevertheless, many Jurchens believed that their reluctance to launch another large-scale invasion of the Song Dynasty was simply because they did not want to lose too many of their men.

Starting with tens of thousands of troops, they destroyed such a large Liao Kingdom. Shouldn't they enjoy a couple of days of happiness?

However, as long as our Jurchen soldiers are willing to fight, how can we not win?
This confidence was almost shattered in Yunzhong Prefecture. They had used the same strength they had when they conquered the Liao Dynasty, but they still couldn't achieve the same great victory in Yunzhong Prefecture.

The more this happened, the more determined they became to defeat the Dingnan Army and regain the momentum they had when they swept across the Liao Dynasty.

Yin Shu was one of the generals who had fought against the Dingnan Army the earliest and most frequently. After a moment of silence, he earnestly advised, "Zong Han, I am not trying to make excuses for the defeat in Yingzhou a few months ago, but just to remind everyone that this group of troops is indeed different."

"We used to be able to defeat the Khitans by sending out some scouts, but we should stop using that tactic."

Those inside the tent looked at Wanyan Yinshu with disdain, thinking he was terrified. Wanyan Xiege, in particular, stared coldly at Yinshu without speaking, his gaze somewhat menacing.

Zong Han thought about it carefully. He listened to Yin Shuke's reminder, but he didn't fully take it in.

Instead of sending out small groups of sentries as before, send out more!
Zonghan ordered Wanyan Loushi, the commander-in-chief of the attack at the front, to send out even more scouts to distant locations.

Lou Shi's troops were far superior to Yin Shu's; his forces numbered seventeen strategists, over three thousand cavalry, plus auxiliary troops such as cannon fodder and scouts, totaling over six thousand men.

This force was sufficient to pursue and defeat the Liao dynasty in the war to destroy it, and it had no rivals in sweeping across the western part of the Liao.

Normally, each mouke would send out two or three teams of ten men to scouts. However, after Wanyan Loushi heard the order, he increased the number to one full-strength Puliyan with fifty cavalrymen per mouke!
They all felt they had taken the Dingnan Army seriously enough. The reason they were able to fight the Jurchen warriors to a draw in Dongsheng Prefecture and Shuozhou was because Zong Han had summoned them, and they were all eager to gather in Datong Prefecture before heading south to invade the Song Dynasty.

Now that they've set up their forces in Datong Prefecture, let them witness the might of the Jurchen warriors when they're going all out!
For the Jurchens to be able to send out so many people was already quite an achievement.

It's important to understand that the Jurchens of today are no longer the impoverished, barbaric tribe they once were, exploited by the Liao people and left with nothing but a worthless life.

They plundered such a vast land, amassed a great deal of wealth, and, being a tribal army, each muq had many people left behind to watch over their possessions.

The troops on this southern expedition were not fully manned; almost every unit left behind some soldiers.

After pursuing and killing Yelü Yanxi, they went through countless hardships in the cold winter, crossing mountain paths and charging into Yunnei, inevitably suffering casualties.

Each Mouke sends out a fully-equipped Puliyan, which is roughly a third of their combat strength, as long-range scouts!
Zong Han was very satisfied when he learned about it. In their view, such an unprecedentedly powerful outpost was enough to dominate the battlefield.

Perhaps with just these forces, they could break through the mountains of Yingzhou and wipe out those Western barbarians who dared to leave the city and fortresses to fight against the Jurchens.

As for the remaining main force, they followed him and marched easily. After crossing these mountains and rivers, they attacked Yingzhou Prefecture, occupied its capital, and used it as a springboard to invade the Song Dynasty's Hedong region.

Wanyan Zonghan had already seen the mountain and river map left by the Khitans. He believed that taking Taiyuan in Hedong would be equivalent to breaking through the northern gate of the Song Dynasty.

From then on, they could invade however they pleased, with no more passes or fortresses to stop them, and their armies could reach the vicinity of their capital province at any time.

Ten days have passed since the battle at Hongtao Peak, a spur of the Yinshan Mountains.

Contrary to Wanyan Zonghan and Wanyan Loushi's expectations, the clash between their outpost troops was not as optimistic as they had imagined!
A series of small-scale, brutal battles unfolded in the towering mountains and icy snow of southern Datong Prefecture.

As military intelligence reports came back, the enemy was indeed as formidable as Yin Shuke had described! They were even more skilled in battle and more resilient than he had said.

In the past, even a group of fifty people from Puliyan would cause thousands of Liao soldiers to flee at the mere sight of them.

But now, even though the opposing side only has a few dozen outposts, they still relentlessly attack.

They not only dared to resist, but even took the initiative to seek out the Jurchens for battle. Small-scale battles between the two sides lasted for seven or eight days.

News from the front lines indicates that casualties have reached over a hundred, and some Jurchen soldiers have even been captured alive by the enemy.

Even though some Puliyans did manage to win or even annihilate enemy scout squads, they almost always suffered considerable losses! The casualty ratios seen in the past when fighting the Khitans are no longer seen.

The Jurchen Tartars finally raised their level of attention once again. They had never seen such an adversary again after the Battle of Hubudagang shattered the morale of the entire Liao Empire.

Encountering such a formidable opponent only fueled Wanyan Loushi's warlike spirit; he was not originally a general who feared battle.

It's just like hunting. When hunting is efficient and easy in the early stages, people always think about hunting without taking damage.

In fact, when the Jurchens first raised their army, they were prepared to perish together with them, and were determined to die.

Now that the country has been established and its strength has increased, it has lost the determination and courage to risk everything.

The Dingnan Army they faced was on the rise, and everyone was determined to make a name for themselves, secure a good life for their wives and children, change their lifestyle, and achieve upward social mobility.

This opportunity is extremely rare; there hasn't been one like it in over a hundred years in the Western Xia Dynasty. If you miss it, who knows how many generations you'll have to wait for.

Both sides have reasons to fight desperately, and their strengths are quite similar.

Therefore, Wanyan Loushi transferred more elite troops to engage in a series of small-scale, bloody attrition battles in the complex mountain paths.

He had stopped pursuing 'no injury' and was determined to break out of the continuous mountains of Yingzhou, no matter the cost.

Only in open terrain can the Jurchen army unleash its full power, demonstrating its ability to traverse vast distances and wage large-scale field battles!
Mountain warfare is the Qiang people's favorite pastime.

Then this entanglement continued for two more days, with both sides waiting for the other to give out first.

Wanyan Loushi was really anxious at this point. He had recently discovered that the enemy's forces were increasing, and it was clear that the Yinzhou soldiers from Longshou Mountain had joined the battle.

At this time, Zong Han's main force was assembled in Datong and had not yet arrived. However, the number of enemy reinforcements was unknown.

With tens of thousands of soldiers, along with a large number of auxiliary troops and accompanying soldiers, trapped in the mountains, unable to expand, they didn't know how many more young men and women would have to sacrifice to break out of these mountains!
Through interrogating prisoners, Wanyan Loushi finally figured out some of the enemy's strengths and weaknesses.

Just as Yin Shuke had predicted, their forces were terrifyingly large!
The three battalions each had 30,000 to 50,000 soldiers, and they also had many auxiliary troops.

The strength of the Dingnan Army is like being shrouded in layers of cotton gauze; each time you lift a layer, you discover the hidden portion of their power.

No one knows exactly how much was hidden.
According to intelligence gathered by Liao generals who surrendered and from Song spies, each of their expeditions was said to involve around 10,000 men, and very rarely more than 30,000.

In retrospect, it was definitely a false report. Unlike others who exaggerate their numbers to scare the enemy, they consistently underreported their numbers.

This made Wanyan Loushi somewhat worried.

These people are like hunters hiding in the snow, and we Jurchens are the tigers and bears they have been eyeing for a long time.

When we finally saw an opportunity and announced our invasion of the Song Dynasty, but before our troops had even assembled, these hunters reacted remarkably quickly, heading north to the Yunnei region to prepare for a decisive battle with us Jurchens.

Wanyan Loushi sighed and had no choice but to order, "Continue to reinforce the troops!"

At this moment, this escalating mountain skirmish had become the prelude to the decisive battle between the Jurchens and the Dingnan Army, and Wanyan Loushi knew that he had to win.

Even after winning, the men under my command will still firmly believe that we Jurchens are invincible!
If they fail, the fighting spirit that the old emperor and everyone had worked so hard to build up might be gone forever.
Therefore, Wanyan Loushi urged his men to attack desperately over the next few days, determined to break through the mountains even at the cost of their lives.

Later, Wanyan Loushi simply led his personal guards to the forefront of a certain mountain road, and as the commander-in-chief of the front, he personally led the charge.

Under the exemplary leadership of Wanyan Loushi, his subordinates, the Mouke, lost their arrogance and laziness after the destruction of Liao and began to devote themselves wholeheartedly to this bloody grinder.

The brutal fighting aroused the slightly dulled ferocity of the Jurchen Tartars. They began to disregard casualties, cold and fatigue, as if they had once again shown the same spirit they had shown when they first started their army and wiped out the Liao Dynasty's elite forces. Once they spotted the enemy, they would hold on tightly and fight a continuous battle to the death!

If it were an ordinary army, it would probably have collapsed long ago when faced with such fierce Jurchen Tartars.

However, the Qiang people of Hengshan were an even more formidable force; they had been fighting in Hengshan just a few years ago.

Who exactly will he fight?
First, the Western Xia wanted to wipe them out; second, the Song Dynasty also wanted to attack Hengshan; and then, the Qiang people in Hengshan were still constantly fighting among themselves.

Now there is only one enemy, and it is in their most proficient field—mountain warfare. The casualties seem extremely heavy to outsiders, but to them, it is as commonplace as eating a meal.
-
The atmosphere in Li Xiaozhong's military tent was tense. Orders were being relayed back and forth by his personal guards, and generals were coming and going to receive orders. Everyone had a solemn expression.

Inside the tent, a tense atmosphere filled the air, as if a great battle was about to begin.

This time, I was genuinely nervous.

Outside his central command tent, the various command camps, which were originally packed full, are now much emptier.

Squads of troops were dispatched to either maintain contact with the enemy, to delay and harass the enemy, or to help their comrades retreat from the pursuit of the Jurchen Tartars.

After the seriously wounded soldiers were brought back, they were immediately sent to Yingzhou Prefecture in the rear, while the lightly wounded were bandaged and rested before going into battle again!

Battles can be fierce and spectacular, with tens of thousands of warriors clashing, or they can be deadly and suicidal.

Because in the mountains, no one dares to casually order the entire army to advance; if they did, they would certainly lose command of the army in a short period of time.

The Battle of Baigou River during Tong Guan's campaign against Liaodong had already demonstrated how dangerous it was for soldiers and generals to lose contact with each other.

A slight lapse in attention could lead to a major collapse.

Back then at Baigou River, in terms of troop quality and combat capability alone, the Song Dynasty was not weak at all. Those men were elite Western Army soldiers who had fought their way up on the northwestern border.

The collapse and defeat were caused by the redeployment of mid- to low-ranking military officers, which prevented the transmission of orders.

Therefore, both sides could only gradually fill the mountainous area with people, fighting and clashing in small groups.

The prefectures of Yunnei, serving as a northern bulwark, have long been border regions, and there's a reason for this: the terrain is too mountainous and too difficult to traverse.

At this time, in Li Xiaozhong's camp, the only road for the army to enter and exit each military camp had been trampled by the passing troops, and the black frozen soil had been turned up, standing out conspicuously in the vast white landscape.

Every now and then, dozens of heavily armed soldiers would gallop away, rushing towards the mountains to the north.

Even those who didn't go into battle were extremely busy in the military camp.

Including the local conscripted laborers, everyone was busy digging trenches, reinforcing the stockade walls, repairing weapons, or expediting the transport of supplies. No one had a moment's rest.

Many powerful families in Yunnei simply lived in the camp and directed the laborers in their own villages to work.

If they could make an impression on Li Shuai, it would be an excellent opportunity in the future. After seeing that Li Xiaozhong's Xiazhou soldiers could really hold off the Jurchens, their minds were already racing.

If given a choice, who would willingly submit to the Jurchen Tartars? They truly do not regard foreigners as human beings, but only as their slaves, frequently beating, scolding, and even arbitrarily killing them.

In a sense, the rise of the Jurchens was due to the poor performance of the Song, Liao, and Western Xia dynasties.

The fact that the Dingnan Army was able to subdue Yunzhong Prefecture so quickly was actually a great gift from the Jurchen Tartars. Their brutality pushed many local powerful families to Chen Shao's Dingnan Army.

Otherwise, given the fighting prowess the Jurchens displayed when they overthrew the Liao Dynasty in the early stages, many powerful clans would surely have chosen to surrender to the Jurchens after careful consideration.

At this moment, the sound of rapid hoofbeats came from outside. Zhu Lingling's huge body was riding a pure white horse, followed by a group of cavalry guards and some military officers from Yinzhou.

His horsemanship was superb; he noticed bloodstains on the snow in the military camp.

Old Zhu immediately realized that this was the place where the army's "Wounded Scribe" treated the wounded.

Wounded soldiers were rescued from the front lines with great difficulty, and after enduring the bitter cold and bumpy ride, they were brought here, where the wounded soldiers bandaged their wounds and fed them medicinal soup.

Every day, vehicles depart from here to transfer more seriously injured people to Yingzhou, and some even go to Taiyuan.

This is one of the reasons why the soldiers who fought the battle risked their lives; the wounded were genuinely rescued, and the compensation and resettlement were handled well.

Old Zhu dismounted and glanced at the crowd, spotting several soldiers from Yinzhou.

He bent down to ask and comfort the Qiang soldier who was being patted on the shoulder. At first, the soldier was so frightened that he was stiff and his eyes were glazed. For a moment, he was so frightened that he forgot the pain.

After calming down, tears suddenly welled up in their eyes again. Back in Hengshan, which clan chief or leader treated them like human beings?

The person before him was none other than the chieftain of Zhuling! Even his former clan leader would have to bow and scrape before him with utmost respect.

From the moment Old Zhu moved into that magnificent and solemn house with its unique charm when he settled in Yinzhou, he became fascinated with Han culture.

He invited many scholars to teach him to read and write, and to tell him anecdotes about famous people.

This guy has really learned something.
After they left, a heroic atmosphere immediately arose in the Sishang Camp.

Zhu Lingling walked out of the Sishang Camp, her expression unchanged. Although in the short ten days of outpost engagements, fifty or sixty brothers had not returned, and the casualties were heavy.

Even small-scale outpost engagements were fought so brutally that, even in the mountains, their own scouts were being pushed back step by step.

It was this intensity of battle that made the Dingnan Army realize with exceptional clarity that they were facing the formidable Jurchen Tartars who had truly overthrown the Liao Dynasty!
When Zhu Lingling arrived at the central command tent, Li Xiaozhong was guarding Mutu.

His calm expression remained unchanged. The sudden outbreak of the brutal battle did not cause him any tension or wavering. Instead, he became even more focused, and his gaze became even sharper.

The wooden plan in front of him was meticulously crafted by skilled artisans from the Bureau of Military Affairs. Despite the fact that the Song Dynasty had never recovered the Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun, this was a testament to their dedication.

None of the emperors of the Song Dynasty were known for their shrewdness or competence, but before Zhao Ji, all the Song emperors regarded the recapture of the Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun as their ultimate goal.

Even knowing they can't get it back, they will still do what they can to pave the way for future generations.

Emperor Huizong's father and brothers left him a fortune of millions in the imperial treasury. A little was added each year, and he was never willing to use it, stipulating that it could only be used to recover the Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun.

After Zhao Ji ascended the throne, he took it out and lived it up for a few years.

Over a century of accumulation had resulted in extremely detailed research into the mountains and terrain of the Sixteen Prefectures of Yan and Yun. Maps, wooden diagrams, and sand tables were all readily available; what was lacking were troops and generals capable of launching an attack.

Although this set of wooden maps is not in the form of a three-dimensional sand table like later ones, and it doesn't have things like contour lines, it at least clearly marks the intricate mountain paths leading south from Yingzhou from a two-dimensional perspective, without omitting a single one.

In this era, it was already very advanced; only the Song Dynasty could have come up with it.

The Liao and Xia dynasties were similar to the Song dynasty in terms of craftsmen, iron smelting, and gunpowder, but the Song dynasty still had a significant advantage when it came to "refinement."

There's no way around it; the civilization of the Central Plains is always more refined than that of the northern frontier.

Upon seeing Zhu Lingling enter, Li Xiaozhong waved and pointed at Mutu, saying directly, "Look, this is the path that Wanyan Loushi's vanguard cleared!"

"I have received the military report. Zonghan will be able to set off no later than tomorrow, and most likely today!"

Between Yingzhou and Datong Prefecture, there are numerous mountain roads in the continuous mountain range, but only five or six of them can barely support the movement of a large army.

The remaining roads are only wide enough for small groups of a few dozen people to pass through, and they cannot carry supplies.

This kind of road is practically useless for marching; it's only useful for intelligence gathering or small-scale raids.

The scouts and sentries dispatched by Li Xiaozhong also focused most of their attention on those five or six mountain paths. And the majority of the outpost fighting was still fiercely taking place around those mountain paths!

The latest markings on the map are clear and distinct, showing the Jurchen army advancing southward step by step, about to break through the mountains.

Moreover, according to the confessions of the tortured prisoners, this southward-bound army was the main force of Wanyan Loushi's troops, and was the vanguard commander personally appointed by Zonghan, who himself was at the forefront.

The main force of Wanyan Loushi was extremely powerful, which made Li Xiaozhong somewhat afraid. They also changed their previous habit of being reluctant to use the Jurchen main force and stopped sending auxiliary troops and prisoners to their deaths.

Li Xiaozhong tapped the wooden map lightly with his fingers, keeping his feelings deep in his heart. He looked down at Zhu Lingling, who was also intently examining the wooden map.

Li Xiaozhong felt somewhat relieved. The Jurchens were indeed very strong, but his allies were equally formidable.

"Where is Han Shizhong?" Zhu Lingling asked. Li Xiaozhong immediately pointed to a pass in the southwest of Datong Prefecture.

Zhu Lingling nodded, "We can't count on him for now. It seems he's waiting for Zonghan's army to come out. We can't deploy a large army on this mountain road right now, so we can only defend in separate routes. Lou Shi can't deploy his army either!"

"It's like the whole army attacking one route at once, and then you have to add people in one by one to command them. Hey! Lou Shi is willing to risk his life to break through."

“We will block all their paths and not let them pass. The Jurchen Tartars cannot fight us to the death.”

Old Zhu's nonchalant words, in contrast to his behavior at the Sishang Camp, seemed both absurd and brutally real.

A general who just moments ago loved his soldiers like his own children, could distinguish his own troops, and recognized even the lowest-ranking soldiers in his camp.

At this moment, he calmly stated that they couldn't risk their lives against him.

It was clearly completely calm.
Li Xiaozhong remained silent, then Zhu Lingling suddenly laughed and said, "What's wrong? Feeling sorry for him?"

"You withdraw your troops and concentrate on guarding this route. I will guard the remaining four routes!"
-
Inside the large tent, where the fire crackled and burned, Yinshuke and his Jurchen guards were eating.

He went out with Zong Han's army, but was excluded from the southward march and ordered to lead troops to guard against Han Shizhong's Helan Mountain army in the west.

Since the failed siege of Yingzhou, the food quality of Yinshuke tribe has dropped drastically, and they have been reduced to two meals a day. They have also begun to slaughter a large number of pack horses and mules.

Whether it was Yin Shuke or these guards, their bowls basically contained boiled meat in plain water.

Yin Shu knew that he had been summoned by the emperor and given a task by himself.

Zonghan didn't say it outwardly, but he harbored some resentment in his heart. The current emperor, Wanyan Wuqimai, had always said that the Jurchens should unite.

However, judging from his behavior, he still favors Zongwang and others of their own lineage.

Historically, Yin Shuke was one of the few members of the Zonghan Group who died a natural death.

He didn't defend himself; when asked to come to the west, he silently led his team there.

Before the expedition, Zonghan sent his auxiliary troops and captives to plunder the land around Datong Prefecture three or four times, seizing supplies to take south.

So Yinshu couldn't even find much firewood, and the horse and mule meat in the bowl was half-cooked.

However, at this time, the Jurchen hunters had not yet developed a refined taste for food.

They grinned and gnawed at the still-bloody food.

The tent was filled with the unpleasant sounds of chewing, the stench of undercooked food, and the foul smell of the Jurchen hunters with their extremely poor hygiene.
This huge tent was like a living hell; an ordinary person would probably vomit if they went in.

However, it was precisely these simple and crude living conditions that stimulated the muscle memory of the Jurchen warriors. During their months in Xijing Datong Prefecture, they enjoyed fine food and wine, and were served by servants, which softened much of their sharp and fierce nature.

Wasn't this the kind of life I lived when I was lying on ice and snow, hunting tigers and bears?

It's only been a few years, what's so hard about it!

Each of them sat down to eat, still wearing smelly leather armor, and some even still had chainmail and scale armor.

Weapons were kept within easy reach, so that if there was an alarm, even if they lost their jobs, they could jump up and rush out to have a good fight!
Having left Zong Han's side and leading his own troops alone, Yin Shuke was able to relax for once.

Like his men, he sat cross-legged on the floor at the head of the table, without even a piece of leather under his buttocks. His bowl contained boiled horse meat, which Yinshuke chewed with great relish.

He was clad in armor, with weapons at his side, and received the same treatment as his subordinates. Unlike generals in the Central Plains, he did not rely on his personal guards for everything.

Zonghan left, and Lou Shi left too; they were both heading south to Yingzhou, the place where they had suffered their defeats.

Yin Shuke was very relaxed. He even thought that once Zong Han arrived, he would realize that it was normal for Yin Shuke to be unable to conquer Yingzhou.

You're laughing, you're looking down on me, you're from a wealthy family, you look down on me, Yin Shuke, go and try it yourselves!
Look at Yingzhou, is it really as easy to beat as you mocked me for?

At that moment, heavy footsteps were heard, and a burly Jurchen general strode in. It was Nahai, one of Yinshuke's direct subordinates.

Although Nahai was a Jurchen, he also had half-Xi blood. For someone like him, no matter how brave he was, it would be difficult for him to rise up.

Only under a commander of a minor clan like Yin Shuke could one rise to the high position of Lord of Mouke.

It should be noted that the position of the Jurchen Mouke is extremely valuable now, and the Meng'an above the Mouke is only just being established and there are very few of them.

Yin Shu came from a minor sect and liked to promote his subordinates, including Na Hai, who was a typical example.

His bloodline was hundreds of times inferior to Yin Shu's; Yin Shu was merely a minor sect, while Na Hai was practically a bastard.

He climbed to this position purely by fighting on the battlefield, risking his life; the dangers involved were so great that he could be described as having a life-or-death situation.

When they attacked Yingzhou, which was defended by Meng Nuan, he bravely led the charge and almost captured Jiazi Fortress. Later, Meng Nuan opened the city gates and launched an attack, which forced them to retreat.

Na Hai wore a layer of leather armor underneath, and the outer scale armor was removed from his left shoulder armor. His arm, which was still injured, was firmly fixed with a wooden board.

As he lifted the curtain and walked in from outside, a gust of cold wind blew, causing the flames in the hearth to flicker.

Despite his injuries, he still bowed to Yin Shuke and said in a gruff voice, "Yin Shuke, after receiving your orders, I dared not slack off and carefully patrolled the surrounding area before returning. There was no movement. Not a single bird feather could be seen within a radius of several miles."

Yin Shuke nodded and said, "Sit down and eat!"

Nahai added, "I heard that this army is entirely composed of cavalry. Do you think they might be launching a surprise attack?"

As he spoke, he sat down. One of Yin Shuke's guards got up, grabbed a wooden bowl, opened the iron bucket, and scooped out a bowl of meat soup that was already a little cold, with a few pieces of horse meat floating in it.

Horse meat actually tastes pretty mediocre, and it's tough and sour.

But they didn't care; as long as they were full, that was enough. The guard handed the bowl, dripping with soup, to Nahai. The latter didn't stand on ceremony, took it, squeezed in next to others to sit down, grabbed a piece of meat with one hand, and began to eat heartily.

Yin Shuke wiped his mouth and stood up: "It's alright, I asked around. Although they are cavalry, they are heavy cavalry. Even if they wanted to launch a raid, they couldn't."

Intelligence was scarce in the west because Han Shizhong had swept his way in, and local powerful figures flocked to his side.

Spies rarely obtain intelligence; they can only get some basic information.

"Nahai, you can rest for the night after you finish eating. I'll go on patrol tonight."

Another Jurchen man, Mouke Nianba, looked up and said, "Yinshuke, look, it's getting dark. The wind is strong and the clouds are heavy; it's likely to snow tonight. Even we Jurchen men stay in our tents in this weather and are too lazy to go out."

Who else could possibly get this far? Nahai has already scouted the area, and Yinshu, you've been working hard these past few days. Why don't I take over and go check it out myself?

Yin Shuke waved his hand and simply said, "I won't sleep soundly unless I go there myself; it will make me feel uneasy."

As soon as he finished speaking, Yin Shu strode out, and several guards dropped their bowls, wiped their mouths with their sleeves, and quickly followed him.

After they left, the remaining generals in the tent exchanged glances and shook their heads.

They had all followed Yin Shuke for a long time, so how could they not sense that Yin Shuke had been quite depressed lately?

During the pursuit of Yelü Yanxi, he was wronged and demoted once, and then fought a bitter battle in Yingzhou.

Yin Shuke, who was originally bold and outspoken, has become a bit strange. Zong Han, who once strongly supported him and regarded him as his right-hand man, has also become somewhat distant from him, intentionally or unintentionally.

There's no way around it, that's just how the Jurchens are. They're a place that doesn't believe in tears; only the mighty are respected.

If you fail repeatedly, you will become the object of everyone's ridicule.

It was already night, yet Yin Shuke still wanted to go on another inspection. Did he not trust Nahai, or had the bloody battle in Yingzhou made him timid?

Even if they do come, let's just get ready to fight.

Without fortresses and city walls, how could they possibly fight against the Jurchen warriors?

Although everyone has some reservations or even dissatisfaction with Yin Shuke.

Even the Jurchens, whose etiquette was crude and whose system was simple, did not believe in the right to gather in public to discuss their own nobles.

They exchanged glances, shook their heads, and could only bury their heads and continue eating.

Although they were still eating, everyone's mood had soured. The horse meat, which was already unpalatable, tasted even worse now.

A cunning leader, laughing, spoke of Wanyan Balisu and his men's behavior, causing everyone to burst into laughter and mock him relentlessly.

Some people even imitated Ba Lisu's way of walking with his hands behind his back, which was quite comical.

As he laughed, he looked at the horse meat he was chewing and realized that the Tartar who had been laughing the loudest was suddenly feeling a bit bored.

It seemed that Balisu and his men weren't so funny after all. He even wondered if he would regret not having enjoyed himself properly in his final moments if he were to die in battle in the next few days.

Having lived for nearly forty years, I need not elaborate on how bitter my first half of life was.

Although it was exhilarating to overthrow the Liao Dynasty, things never truly settled down. They had plundered so much stuff and so many slaves, and hadn't even had a chance to properly enjoy it.

Is Ba Lisu really that funny? It seems like he didn't do anything wrong. Under him, it's better than under Yin Shuke!

As subordinates of Yinshuke, they certainly do not have any members of the main lineage or royal blood; most of them come from small tribes, and some are even bastards like Nahai.

Previously, everyone was only able to be on par with those noble Wanyan disciples because of their status in front of Zonghan, thanks to their silver skills.

If Yin Shuke goes through these few beatings and becomes so timid that he is no longer valued by Zong Han, what will become of everyone?

If it really comes to that, everyone can imagine the outcome: the fighting will be tough, the spoils will be meager, and all we'll get will be nothing but watching helplessly.

Saying even one more word could get you beaten, or even killed.

Who says the Jurchens are crude and barbaric, that they don't scheme against each other...?

Stepping out of the pungent-smelling tent, Yin Shu was certainly unaware that his generals were already harboring some ulterior motives. He often pondered problems, but always from a higher level.

Judging from Zong Han's intentions, Yin Shu might still be somewhat interested, but he wouldn't care about the others at all.

These past few years have been a bit unsettling for Yin Shuke.

It seems that the Jurchens' fortunes were exhausted when they reached him.

One misfortune after another kept hitting him.

His subordinates' unconditional trust in him as their commander had begun to waver slightly, and Zonghan's trust in him seemed to have disappeared as well.

He took a breath of the cold air, and his spirits lifted.

Looking up, I saw that darkness was approaching, with leaden-gray clouds hanging low, seemingly pressing down on the ground. Behind the clouds was the setting sun, dim and lifeless.

Just like his mood, he was very depressed. He felt that his luck was both good and bad enough.

Even those who can gain the emperor's trust and defeat the last Liao army can capsize in a ditch.

That damned God, He never wanted to make things easy for me.

Just as Yin Shu was about to return, his eyes suddenly widened, and he abruptly drew his weapon, his teeth clenching in a chilling sound.

"Enemy attack!"

"There is an enemy attack!"

Before the guards could figure out what was happening, the ground suddenly began to tremble.

The Helan Mountain Corps, which was galloping in on light cavalry, paused slightly, and then the auxiliary troops began to busy themselves.

From the back of the packhorses, they adorned their main force with heavy armor and covered the vital parts of their horses with leather armor as well!
The light cavalry instantly transformed into heavy cavalry, then brandishing their lances, they charged into the camp.

Han Shizhong took the lead, with the auxiliary troops and the main force separated in layers behind him.

Two thousand eight hundred elite heavy cavalry began their assault on the camp, while the auxiliary troops slowly deployed from behind.

The distance between the two increases, creating a large blank area.

The main force of heavy cavalry was arranged like arrowheads, while the auxiliary troops were arranged in a goose feather formation, which was quite awkward.

This is an extremely confident strategy, confident that the main force can crush the enemy, while the auxiliary forces can clean up the mess from behind.

Upon approaching, Han Shizhong leaned down, almost lying on the horse's back, gripped the lance with both hands, and suddenly leaped from among a group of guards, thrusting the lance downwards to pierce the Jurchen Tartar in front of him.

Yin Shuke, who personally patrolled the camp, was already being cautious enough, as he was wearing armor.

But he never imagined that such a heavy cavalry force would come to attack his camp.

No matter how strong a person is, how can they withstand the charge of heavy cavalry with their flesh and blood?

In their first encounter, Yin Shuke, the second-ranked fierce general in the Jurchen western army, was pierced by Han Shizhong.

The battlefield is ruthless; it won't show you any mercy because of your past achievements. (End of Chapter)