Li Liangfu, the commander-in-chief of the Yinzhou Crusade Army, at this moment, completely failed to show the calm demeanor that a commander should have. He had the same expression as all the ordinary soldiers of the Xia Army, dumbfounded and blinded by everything in front of him.

The clouds in the sky are changing, the Wuding River is roaring and running, the loess hills and grass are bleak, and the plains are deserted with yellow dust. In the midst of this natural world, a huge iron-walled city suddenly appears. The city is square in shape.

The circumference is nearly five hundred feet, each

The iron wall is more than 120 feet long. The wall is no more than ten feet high, but it is connected with huge dazzling iron plates. It is integrated and tightly connected, like a giant jade belt surrounding the mysterious army.

It is hidden so deeply that it is difficult to see the reality.

Behind the Iron Walled City, to the left and right, within a radius of more than a hundred feet, were groups of cavalry, flying and closing from time to time, patrolling in all directions. The number of their men and horses was not at all inferior to that of the Xia army's cavalry.

Marshal Li swallowed hard. Although it smelled like mud, he didn't care at all. His voice was so dry that he was startled: "When was this walled city built?"

Ye Lirong, who arrived first, came galloping with a team of soldiers on fast horses. His big red face also showed horror and depression that could not be concealed. When he came to Li Liangfu's command, he stood on horseback.

After giving a simple military salute, I happened to hear Li Liangfu ask a question, and couldn't help but smile bitterly and answer:

"When the end came, the walled city had been half built. I wanted to send troops to harass it and delay its construction progress. However... the general also saw that the enemy's cavalry was very large, and our cavalry could not form a comparative advantage, so we did not

Dare to attack. And the enemy's stronghold is actually a chariot city..."

Li Liangfu was the commander-in-chief of the First Army. Of course, he had to put safety first, so Dahu was quite far back, located in the middle and rear of the Xia Army. The distance from the Iron Wall Chariot City was at least a thousand steps (about three miles) away, no matter how good his eyes were.

, I can’t see clearly under the car city either.

The half-spoke wheels were only two feet long. Now when Ye Lirong explained in detail, I realized that this formidable iron-walled city was actually nothing more than a vehicle-mounted plate, just a fence erected by hooking up with the cart. No wonder.

It was built so quickly.

Li Liangfu breathed a sigh of relief. The two armies were facing each other. What they were most afraid of was this kind of weird thing that was difficult to understand. Now that he understood it, he felt confident and could deploy his troops with peace of mind.

"I see... Hey, I don't know what Di Lie thinks. To build a turtle shell like this is to give up taking the initiative and wait for our army to cover it up." This iron-walled car city looks quite scary, Li Liangfu

But he disagreed with it very much. He always advocated using troops to complement each other, and it was impossible to put the whole army in one place to be beaten.

In this era, as long as a combat army has a large-scale cavalry army, whether it is the Jin Army, the Song Army, or the Xia Army, the tactics adopted are generally the same: attract the infantry from the front, and the cavalry will attack from behind. No matter how you play,

No matter how many tricks and tactics are devised, the ultimate goal is just for this! Once the cavalry flanks the enemy successfully, the battle situation will be certain.

The two wars that Li Liangfu personally experienced are enough to serve as an example. Once in March of the fifth year of Yongning (1119), Song Xihe's military envoy Liu Fa, under the orders of Shaanxi's Xuanfu envoy Tong Guan, led the army to attack Xixia Shuofang (now Lingwu, Ningxia).

Southwest). When Li Liangfu followed Xia Guojin

Wang Chage led his army to block a frontal attack in Tong'an City (today's Qinghai Huzhu). He secretly sent his elite cavalry to move back to its side and attacked from both sides. He defeated the Song army and captured and killed many people. In this battle, he killed the Xia army.

The Song Dynasty suffered a great loss of its good general Liu Fa, who was called the "God of Killing" by Xihe Jinglue.

The second time was the Yishui battle five years ago when Li Liangfu personally led 30,000 Xia troops and Jin general Wanyan Loushi. When the two sides were fighting fiercely, the Jin army commanded Oru and led the cavalry to attack from the side.

Causing the collapse of the Xia army. Thousands of people died.

, had no choice but to retreat to the wild valley and cross the stream, but a flood hit and he was drowned. In the end, Li Liangfu was embarrassed and led more than a hundred people to escape back to the Xia Kingdom. His reputation plummeted, and he had to surrender his military power and become a privy councilor in the court.

Deputy envoy.

The tactics of these two battles that had a profound impact on the Xia Kingdom were all frontal containment by infantry and flanking assault by cavalry. It is simple to say and everyone understands it, but it is extremely difficult to do it. And successfully implement this

A classic battle example is even more difficult.

The purpose of Li Liangfu's attack this time was to regain his strength and personally plan such a model. To this end, he had arranged for a surprise force to go out before yesterday. He was prepared to deal a heavy blow to the enemy at the critical moment and end it neatly.

It’s just that God’s calculations are not as good as those of man. I never expected that the Tianzhu Army would come up with such a trick and build a turtle-shell-like chariot city. In this way, the side attack of the surprise troops would be completely useless and in vain.

It's a waste of all your hard work.

After finally strategizing, he ended up "hitting the wall" all the time. This was the most depressing thing for Li Liangfu.

Ye Lirong naturally saw the coach's depression. In fact, he was not the same. He had personally arranged the marching route of the surprise army, but the result was that he was defeated before he showed his face. Although there was a small setback, the battle still had to be fought.

, and moreover, the fight must be lively and dramatic.

"Commander, all the main forces have arrived, do you want to start setting up the formation?" Ye Lirong asked something that was not nonsense.

Li Liangfu cheered up: "Set up the formation!"

As the commander-in-chief of the Chinese Army continued to issue orders, nearly a hundred cavalrymen with flags of various colors on their backs radiated in an arc outward from the banner of the Chinese Army, constantly conveying orders to each battalion, capital, and team, and at the same time, they carried the banners on their backs.

The flags are handed over to the officers of each battalion one by one as a basis for receiving orders when setting up the formation.

The Eight Thousand Xia Army (there are still 4,000 auxiliary troops and servicemen who have not yet arrived) are divided into three armies: left, center, and right according to their respective camps. The left army is a thousand cavalry troops under the command of the Shenyong Army Division in the left wing.

Death (owing one thousand auxiliary soldiers); the right army is auspicious

Youjunsi has one thousand cavalry and infantry (2,000 auxiliary soldiers are owed); the central army has more than 5,600 bodyguards. All 3,000 regular soldiers are present, and 2,600 auxiliary soldiers are also in place. There are still one thousand

Yu Fubing was still following Cao Ji, slowly moving forward.

Before going into battle, Li Liangfu and Ye Lirong had drawn up several formations, which could be randomly selected according to the specific conditions of the formations set up by the Tianzhu Army at that time. Fortunately, now, the Tianzhu Army had no formation at all. As a result, the Xia Army set up a formation.

It's much simpler, just arrange a fish scale formation that is most suitable for attacking difficulties.

Fish Scale Formation, the formation is like scales and waves, with each team standing in a row. The connection is tight and can form an uninterrupted wave-shaped attack, which is the most suitable for attacking a city.

The fish scale formation is also an infantry formation. The Xia army has a total of 2,500 infantry, arranged in a three-fold fish scale formation in the shape of an inverted "pin". The Shenyong Army on the left has 700 infantry, the Xiangyou Army on the right has 800 infantry, and the center bottom

They are the elite of the Thousand Steps. The structure of the fish scale formation is with the sword soldiers at the front, the crossbow soldiers in the middle, and the spear, stick and ax soldiers at the back. The formation of more than 2,000 people will take about half an hour to complete.

Thousands of Qingsheng Army light cavalry were scattered around the perimeter, patrolling and guarding, facing the Tianzhu Army cavalry at a distance.

Three hundred proton troops and five hundred iron kite heavy cavalry (unarmored) were divided into two teams, standing to the left and right of the commander's flag. Since the enemy army was unable to leave the camp, it was unclear whether these two heavy cavalry teams could be used this time.

It’s hard to say.

The Checheng of the Tenchu ​​Army is very quiet. It can even be said to be silent. There are only cavalry patrolling the outside. They are constantly galloping back and forth around the Checheng. Countless horseshoes raise large clouds of misty yellow dust, like smoke and fog, from the sky above the Checheng.

Floating past, it added a bit of mist and depth to the cold and silent metal city, like a mirage in the desert.

What is hidden in this weird car city? Li Liangfu wants to know, and Ye Lirong also wants to know. It is actually very simple. The fish scale formation has been arranged, move one of the wings forward to test the attack, and everything will be clear. However, Li Liangfu and Ye Li

Rongdu did not give this order

Order. First, because the army has thrown away its baggage and moved forward, and currently lacks siege equipment; secondly, both of them are generals who have experienced hundreds of battles. Although they cannot figure out the reality of this weird chariot city, they at least understand that what the opponent can do

Such a strange formation was created in the hope that the Xia army would attack.

The more the enemy wants me to do something, the less I can do it. This is a basic combat principle. Usually, the older and stronger the veteran is, the more he can do this without compromise. Li Liangfu and Ye Lirong are exactly like this.

veteran.

Therefore, under the clear sky, a rather unusual scene appeared on the battlefield: a large army in a square formation of vehicles, ready to go; a large army in good shape and ready to go, but it was slow to make any offensive moves. Both sides were waiting.

, the Xia army had to wait to see what tricks the Tianzhu army was playing; the Tianzhu army was waiting for the Xia army to attack in order to hit them head-on.

Thus, an invisible battle that tested the general's patience, determination, and the overall quality of his soldiers began before the official war began.

The few thin flowing clouds in the morning seemed to have been baked by the steaming heat. The midday sun shone down unobstructed, leaving cracks in the withered yellow soil. The ground was steaming with heat, and as far as the eye could see,

The rocks, vegetation, and even the air seemed to be distorted into bizarre shapes.

The hot wind blew through the hard yellow earth, bringing up the sky full of sand and dust. A huge car city in the wilderness, an army of flag-hunting soldiers, stood silently. The dilapidated and long-empty Shendui Station by the Wuding River stood there.

Like a lonely bystander, squinting coldly, witnessing...

The Xia Army's cavalry was okay, but the heat was really severe. Let the horses run briskly, and naturally there would be wind in front of them. Even if it was hot wind, it would be good. But the Xia Army's infantry was devastated. The Shenyong Army and Xiangyou Army's

The infantry wore half or full body leather armor, with their heads

The Xia Kingdom has no shortage of cows and horses, so there is no shortage of leather. But all regular soldiers basically have a good cowhide armor. This armor greatly improves the defense of Xia soldiers in battle. They are soldiers

Protection of life.

But now, this guarantee of life has become a reminder!

Under the strong sun moxibustion, the cowhide armor emitted bursts of unpleasant smells, and the leather became soft and mushy. When it stuck to the skin separated by a layer of Geyi, it was as hot as a branding iron shackles on the head.

I feel stuffy, and my hair seems to be burnt. The sweat all over my body, after soaking through my heavy clothes, slowly flows, gathers in the crotch, soaks it, and makes the thin skin between the two crotches itchy and painful, making it extremely uncomfortable.

Not only the physical torture, but also the mental crippling light pollution!

The 500-foot-long fine iron baffle of the Iron Wall Car City reflects the sun and emits a strong and dazzling light. Under the condition of being exposed to the sun at noon, if you accidentally glance at it, your eyes will be dazzled and you will feel nauseated and dizzy.

In less than half an hour, many of the Xia Army's infantry were already red-faced, with chapped lips, scratching their hands and feet, and were on the verge of collapse. Soon, the first soldier who collapsed from heat stroke appeared, followed by the second, and the third...

…When the number of fallen soldiers reached thirty, the Xia army’s position began to waver. Then the supervising team appeared, like wolves and tigers, beating with sticks and whips. After a lot of trouble, they forcibly stabilized the formation.

Ye Lirong, under the command of the Central Military Commander, looked worried: "Commander, if this continues, I'm afraid I won't be able to hold on for half an hour... Even if the formation is stable, the soldiers will not have the physical strength to fight."

Li Liangfu gritted his teeth and said: "I know that if we wait a little longer, the enemy will be more miserable than us. Let's see who can survive until the last moment... Send someone to see when the baggage train will arrive? Before the attack, my soldiers will

You need a good meal and siege equipment. In addition, send two hundred riders to the Wuding River to fetch water for the soldiers to drink..."

Is the Tianzhu Army more miserable than the Xia Army? Di Lie would say, Li Liangfu. You are really good at thinking!

Fighting in such sultry weather. The Tianzhu Army was just as hot, but compared to the Xia Army, it was much better.

The infantry in the main force consisted of three battalions, with more than 1,300 people (the artillery battalion only had 300 people). They were all crammed into 200 tanks, with six or seven people crammed into each vehicle. It was a bit boring.

Fortunately, the chariot was ventilated from all sides and was not directly exposed to the sun. The soldiers were squatting in the chariot, chatting and spanking. If Soldier Xia saw this scene, he would probably regard it as paradise.

Engineers and baggage soldiers, as well as coachmen and horsemen, all hid in the shadow of tanks or transport vehicles, and some even got under the wheels. Anyway, as long as they were not directly exposed to the sun, they were still energetic.

There are probably only two most comfortable places in the iron-walled carriage city: one is the two pavilions built with bamboo boards and ventilated on all sides in the city. These are temporary field rescue stations. In order to ensure the treatment of the wounded, the conditions here are the best.

At present, only the hundreds of military doctors and health workers from the medical capital are relaxing and enjoying the cool weather; there is another place, naturally, which is the command nest car that can be climbed high to see the distance.
To be continued...