Dream of the Red Chamber: Start by gaining Zhao Yun's martial prowess, and be ennobled in a sin

Inside the golden tent of the Northern Yuan royal court, Jia Jing's shout stunned everyone.

Seeing that the Northern Yuan soldiers inside the tent dared not move rashly, Jia Jing remained calm and said in a deep voice to Zhuque beside him:

"Zhuque, take Bayar and bring down the Northern Yuan army's banner outside the tent, replacing it with the Han army's flag we brought!"

Jia Jing's move was inspired by Han Xin's strategy of "taking Zhao and replacing Han" and "taking the flag and replacing the banner" in the Battle of Jingxing.

At the end of the Qin Dynasty, Han Xin led his army to attack the State of Zhao. King Xie of Zhao and Lord Cheng'an Chen Yu gathered their troops at Jingxing Pass.

The army was said to number 200,000, but Han Xin's forces numbered less than half of that.

Faced with a powerful enemy, Han Xin devised a brilliant plan, the core of which was a psychological war centered around the "great banner," a symbol of morale.

By secretly replacing the Zhao army's banner, he completely demoralized the Zhao army, and ultimately launched a combined attack from within and without, achieving a victory against overwhelming odds and annihilating the Zhao army.

As a result of this battle, Chen Yu was killed, King Zhao was captured, and the State of Zhao was destroyed.

The banner is the "spiritual center" of an army.

In today's battlefields where communication is poor, soldiers cannot see their commanders directly and can only determine whether the command system is still in operation by observing the position of the main banner.

As long as the banner is there, the army is there; when the banner falls, the army scatters. This is the purpose of beheading generals and seizing flags.

When soldiers discover that their own banner has been replaced by the enemy, their first reaction will inevitably be "the commander-in-chief is dead" or "the rear has been lost".

Fear can spread rapidly, and organizations can quickly disintegrate.

This is the military strategy of "winning hearts and minds," which uses various tactics to precisely strike at the enemy's psychological weaknesses.

Now Jia Jing has captured the Northern Yuan Khan and a group of ministers, completely paralyzing the Northern Yuan army's command system and organizational capabilities.

If the banner outside the golden tent could be replaced with the flag of the Han army, it would further demoralize the Northern Yuan army.

Then, Niu Jizong and others will lead their troops to attack. Before the battle even begins, the Han army will have already secured victory.

This was a battle plan that Jia Jing had already devised before coming to the Northern Yuan royal court, with the aim of minimizing his own casualties and maximizing the gains.

In this battle, he and Zhuque only focused on capturing enemy leaders and changing their flags, leaving the rest to Niu Jizong and other Han soldiers.

Upon hearing Jia Jing's order, Zhuque immediately straightened up and bowed, saying:

"Yes, Your Excellency!"

Immediately, Zhuque dragged the distraught Bayar out of the tent.

The Northern Yuan troops scattered along the way, fearing for the safety of Batu Mongke who was being held hostage by Jia Jing, and none of them dared to rashly order an advance to stop them.

Batumonke's expression changed, clearly realizing Jia Jing's purpose, and he wanted to speak up to stop him.

But Jia Jing only gave him a cold look, which made him feel as if he had fallen into an ice cave, and he couldn't utter a single word.

Zhuque pressed Bayar down and quickly led him to the tall flagpole outside the golden tent.

At the top of the flagpole, a huge golden banner fluttered in the night wind.

That was the symbol of the Golden Family, the emblem of the Northern Yuan Khan, and the spiritual pillar of tens of thousands of Northern Yuan soldiers on Wolf Mountain.

The golden flag is embroidered with gray wolves and white deer in black thread. These are the totems of the grassland people's faith and sacred objects passed down by Genghis Khan.

Zhuque, holding a gun, gestured for Bayar to come forward and change the flag.

Bayar staggered toward the flagpole with a sorrowful expression, grabbed the flag rope, and his hands trembled so much that he could barely hold it.

He pulled with all his might, and the golden banner slowly descended.

The moment the great banner fell to the ground, the Kheshig soldiers who were still watching and bewildered exclaimed in surprise.

"The Great Banner...!"

"The Great Khan's flag...!"

Some were bewildered, some were terrified, and some were at a loss.

Bayar clutched the golden banner, trembling all over, unsure of what to do next.

Just then, Suzaku reached out from behind him, took the banner, and casually tossed it to the ground.

Then he took out a Han army flag that he had prepared beforehand and handed it to Bayar...

The flag was red, with a large Chinese character "汉" embroidered on it in gold thread.

Suzaku said coldly to Bayar:

"Go up."

Bayar paused for a moment, his hands trembling as he tied the flag and pulled it up with all his might.

The red Han flag slowly rose along the flagpole, its brilliance particularly striking in the firelight.

When it rises to the top, it unfolds with a "whoosh" in the night breeze.

The area around the golden tent fell silent for a moment.

at the same time,

Earlier, Jia Jing's loud shout echoed throughout the entire camp halfway up Wolf Mountain, waking countless Northern Yuan soldiers from their sleep.

The three hundred Han army vanguards who accompanied Jia Jing and others up the mountain also heard the shout. They were all ready and had been secretly watching the direction of the golden tent, waiting for the right moment.

As the sound came, You Shiyong and Ma Guocheng, who were leading the team, perked up and exclaimed with delight:

"The Marquis must have succeeded! It's our turn, brothers, light the fire!"

At the command of the two men, the Han soldiers lit the rockets they had brought.

As the torches drew near, the linen cloths soaked in kerosene burst into flames, illuminating the stern faces of the three hundred Han soldiers.

"Mount up! You all know the location! Shoot towards the areas with the most people in the Northern Yuan camp, the stables, the supply depots, and the vicinity of the central tents."

"Now that the Northern Yuan Tartars are leaderless, completely disrupt their camp and burn these sons of bitches to death!"

Ma Guocheng's gaze was fierce as he stared intently at the Northern Yuan army camp in the darkness, and he decisively gave the order.

At Ma Guocheng's command, the Han soldiers mounted their horses one after another, tightening their reins, their fire arrows burning fiercely in their hands.

The Han soldiers raised their heads at a 45-degree angle and aimed the rockets directly at the target location of the Northern Yuan camp.

"Ready!"

Ma Guocheng continued to roar, and all the soldiers drew their bows taut, the tension foreshadowing their power.

"put!"

At this command, all the Han soldiers released their bowstrings at the same time, and three hundred rockets soared into the sky.

Three hundred rockets, trailing long plumes of flame, streaked across the night sky like three hundred shooting stars.

In the darkness, this fiery red patch was so dazzling that it illuminated a section of the sky.

The sight of this scene left the Northern Yuan soldiers speechless, their breath caught in their throats, and their expressions changed drastically.

A meteor shower fell from the sky, and the firelight drew three hundred graceful arcs in the air before crashing down towards the Northern Yuan camp.

The tent caught fire the moment the rocket hit the ground.

The kerosene on the linen ignited upon contact with the cloth, and the flames spread rapidly.

Some rockets pierced through the tents and landed on the felt inside, instantly igniting a patch of it.

Some of the arrows hit the hitching posts outside the tent, splashing oil and igniting the surrounding dry grass.

Next up was the kerosene canister.

After firing several rounds of rockets, the three hundred Han soldiers, led by Ma Guocheng and You Shiyong, split into two groups, charged forward on horseback, and hurled the pottery jars in their hands.

The earthenware pot smashed against the tent, the stable, and flammable surfaces, shattering and splattering kerosene everywhere.

In an instant, flames broke out all over the Northern Yuan army camp.