Chapter 524: Bloody Battle at Mount Nailong
Guiyou also felt that the battle line was too long, so he had to gather his cavalry to occupy a few excellent positions and urge reinforcements to come up.
The eldest son Hecha quickly organized the Crusaders' spear phalanxes to attack the Shenwei Army. Three spear phalanxes consisting of hundreds of people from the Western Regions formed a diamond shape, like a long spear head stabbing at the Shenwei Army.
When Cao Youwen saw such a dense formation on Mount Nailung, he burst into laughter. He had never seen an army with such a stupid way of fighting.
In particular, the closer the three diamond-shaped battle formations were to the positions of the Shenwei Army, the more tightly they were arranged. The long spears stabbed towards the Shenwei Army at an angle, emitting a flashing cold light, like a huge needle mat moving towards them, which was quite scary.
As they were about to reach the Shenwei Army’s formation, Cao Youwen ordered the artillery to fire.
At the same time, he also saw the Mongolian cavalry moving out.
It turned out that Hecha wanted this group of white people to be bait to cover his cavalry's charge.
Cao secretly admired that the northern barbarians were not stupid at all. They used human flesh formations to attract his artillery fire, and the cavalry had already rushed forward with all their might.
The battlefield quickly entered a fierce fighting mode.
The result was no surprise. Two rounds of artillery fire destroyed the Mongolian spear phalanx and turned to intercept the Mongolian cavalry that had already started running. Zhang Zhi and Baturu had already led their troops to charge forward, and the two sides fought fiercely.
Your friend personally beat the drum in front of the big tent. The sound of the war drums was deafening, and the sound of the conch shells was floating in the air like a death warrant. The Mongolian army advanced to Mount Nailung three times but was pushed back by the Shenwei Army every time. The battlefield was filled with smoke and the ground was littered with dead and wounded horses and soldiers.
Cao Youwen was personally supervising the battle at the front line, and he was shocked to see such a tragic scene.
Zhang Zhi, covered in blood, told him that the fierce battle between the Shenwei Army and the Mongolian Army in Guyuan in the past was just like this. Today, the Northern Barbarians are more numerous and powerful, and their desperate attack is even more powerful. Fortunately, we have artillery. The Third Young Master gave us all the mortars of the entire army. Otherwise, it would be difficult to resist the Northern Barbarians' charge again.
However, artillery commander-in-chief Deng Guanghui reported to him: the mortar shells were consumed too quickly, and the king only ordered the artillery to fire, and they were anxious, as less than 30% of the shells were left.
Lao Cao became furious and asked him why he didn't save his temper.
This guy felt wronged. Every time, it was Lao Cao who yelled, ordering the bombardment of the group of enemies on the left, the blowup of the flag-bearing soldier in the middle, and the destruction of the catapult at the back.
Who cares whether there are shells or not?
Only then did Lao Cao calm down.
It was indeed he who caught Deng Guanghui and ordered the artillery to fire. Now that the ammunition was about to run out, how could he blame his subordinates?
He looked at the setting sun in the sky and shouted with determination: Collect the bodies of our brothers, use the enemy's corpses and horses as barriers, and fight to the death.
The generals shouted: fight to the death, and they dug trenches desperately, moved everything they could to build barriers, and plunged into intensive preparations.
The staff officer Qiu Wensong who followed behind him saw the soldiers digging trenches with military shovels, but the soil they dug up was too little. Looking at the horses scattered everywhere, he suddenly had an idea. He ran over to pull the pack horses over, tied iron shovels behind their buttocks as plows, and drove the horses to plow the land. As expected, the efficiency increased a lot.
So, the battlefield found a new way to dig trenches and started working on it in full swing.
In your friend's central military tent, this guy is venting his anger crazily.
Your friend also received a telescope presented by the generals below, and witnessed the fierce battle just now. He felt that the combat power of the Shenwei Army should not be underestimated.
His staff estimated that the Shenwei Army had less than 50,000 cavalrymen. However, in the previous attack and defense, he had sent out eight teams of 10,000 men to attack, and also included the three spear phalanxes that he had brought back from the Cumans with great difficulty. All of them were tall and strong, and extremely brave white slaves. They were all wiped out by the New Song Army's artillery bombardment.
Kuo Duan came in and told him: This team is the main cavalry force of the Shenwei Army, with four columns. It is an old unit organized by Zhao Qier using the new army concept.
A large flag with the word Cao on it was erected on Mount Nailong. He guessed that it was Cao Youwen, the former king of the New Song Dynasty, who was personally leading the team into battle. No wonder the soldiers were so brave and powerful.
When your friend heard Kuo Duan’s introduction to the situation, he felt that although he did not win the battle and did not take over Mount Nailung in one fell swoop, it was not shameful, because at least he was fighting against the ruler of the New Song Dynasty.
Xiao Guizi said to Kuo Duan: Don't be afraid, just watch me kill Cao Heizi. However, more than 30% of my troops have been killed, so it's time for you to join your men in the battle.
Kuanduan quickly said that it was not the right time yet, we had not seen Zhao Qier yet, that guy was our real enemy.
Xiao Guizi was extremely displeased. It seemed that he had just put all his strength into fighting the cavalry led by the King of the New Song Kingdom, and it was not a big deal. But it was a big deal to fight against Zhao Qier?
This guy had a black line on his face, and waved his hand to stop Kuang Duan who was about to explain, telling him to watch, the Western Expedition Army was not a pushover. He immediately gathered his generals and ordered them to reorganize the troops and fight again. His three sons were all going to fight, and each of them urged a battalion of soldiers to rush up the mountain and cut off the head of Cao Heizi, the lord of the New Song Dynasty, for him.
The Mongolian army quickly began to mobilize troops and pushed large catapults onto the battlefield.
The Mongolian army had already organized its battle formation, and at once they attacked, they rushed straight to Nailung Mountain like three sharp swords. Each of them was vying for the lead and vowed to go up the mountain to chop off Cao Youwen's head.
Zhang Zhi and Baturu were also inspired by the fast-moving enemy cavalry formation. They shouted and walked down the hillside with their generals to fight.
Cao Youwen felt the earth shaking and saw that the entire grassland was filled with enemies swarming in. Knowing that the critical moment had arrived, he shouted to the artillery to prepare and fire.
Deng Guanghui immediately ordered to hit the enemy's arrows first, and the mortars were divided into three groups and rushed towards three directions. The Mongolian vanguard opened fire to stop the enemy's advance.
Soon, the Mongolian army flooded over like the rising tide. The soldiers kept firing shells, and some of the gun barrels were red. He then remembered that there were not many shells left, and ordered ten shells to be left aside for him.
The cavalry of the two armies engaged in a melee again, and the iron cannons in the outer trenches began to block and fire, and even fired vertically at the enemy who were rushing straight towards them.
The battle was so bloody that it shocked the heavens and the earth and made the gods and ghosts weep. Both sides put forth all their resources and fought to the death.
Due to the shortage of troops and the running out of mortar shells, the Shenwei Army's cavalry retreated into the interception trenches they had set up and no longer engaged in head-on combat. They only made short assaults under the cover of artillery to stabilize the front line.
The sun was setting, the setting sun was blood-red, and the night gradually fell. The howling of wounded men and horses was everywhere, making the battlefield of Nailong Mountain even more eerie and terrifying.
The Mongolian army still failed to rush to the mountain and cut off Cao Youwen's head, so they reluctantly sounded the retreat.
When Cao Youwen saw that Zhang Zhi and Baturu were both injured, he said with some guilt that he had not expected the enemy to be so powerful and had put his brothers in danger.
Both generals said that they did not blame Lord Cao, as they were the ones who volunteered to die. The Shenwei Army cavalry were invincible and would never surrender.
The group of generals and soldiers behind him roared: Never surrender, never surrender.
Cao Youwen walked along the trench and told them to continue digging trenches and dig two more lines inside to shorten the front line. We must die in Nailung Mountain.
Back on the mountain, he looked up at the starry sky and said to himself: Brother Yulin should be here soon, we can survive tomorrow.
Chief of Staff Qiu Wensong whispered: Lord Cao is the backbone of our new Song Dynasty. We cannot afford any mistakes. We will protect the Lord and help him break through and return south at dawn.
Cao Youwen turned around and asked sternly: How dare you! When did you see me abandon my brothers?
He swept his cold eyes over the guards around him and said word by word: No one is allowed to talk about retreat, and anyone who dares to shake the morale of the army will be killed without mercy.
Qiu Wensong was so frightened that he dared not say a word. He carefully retreated and went down to the foot of the mountain to command his brothers to dig trenches desperately.
In the trenches, the warriors of the Shenwei Army worked non-stop. When they were hungry, they swallowed fried noodles with cold water and continued to work. The horse-blocking trenches were constantly extending.
A group of wounded soldiers were huddled in a cave halfway up the mountain, gasping for breath. A brother with a broken arm said that he had killed a white ghost today, and it was worth it.
A brother who was shot in the leg said that he was the most unlucky today. He was hit in the leg before he even engaged in battle with the enemy. It was a great loss. He would go to the battlefield to get it back after his injury healed.
An old soldier who was shot in the stomach coughed and said: "The Third Young Master said that those who have been to the battlefield are all warriors of our Shenwei Army, and they are all killing enemies and making meritorious deeds." The old soldier said confidently, "Just wait and see, the Third Young Master will definitely send brothers to rescue us, and we will all be alive and well."
The soldier with a wounded leg was still busy wrapping paper shell bullets, wanting his able-bodied brothers to use the paper shell bullets he made to kill these damn bastards.
Everyone's hands were constantly busy.
On the top of the mountain, Cao Youwen talked with the generals. There were only ten shells left in the artillery mortar. He ordered that no action should be taken without his order tomorrow and that the shells must be used at the most critical moment.
Zhang Zhi said: Leave another 5,000 brothers as infantrymen to join the trenches and snipe the enemy.
Baturu believed that all the brothers who were able to move should be mobilized to fight together.
Cao Youwen said: It has been like this for a long time. Tomorrow his guards will go to the trenches to guard, and he will go to the front line to kill the enemy in person.
Staff officer Qiu Wensong said resolutely that even if all the brothers died, it would not be the king's turn to go into battle, so he would lead the brothers in the central army tent.
Lao Cao gave the young man a thumbs up and praised his kindness, saying that he was a real warrior of our Shenwei Army, and not a single coward was a single one of them.
Deng Guanghui assured Cao that after the artillery fired the last explosive pack, they would pick up their swords and follow Lord Cao to kill the enemy, and would never be a coward.
The generals decided on a strategy and dispersed.
In the east, Meng Gong of the Jinning Army was anxiously waiting for news from Yulin Village in Jialu Village.
Ten days had passed, but no word had come from the Central Army Headquarters. We only knew that the army was still heading north. Du Baiyue was a little worried about the war in the north, fearing that something unexpected would happen.
Gu Shan was very excited. He said: "The Third Young Master told us to act according to the situation in ten days and attack Hedong. He thought that the enemy was attracted to the north, so it was a good time for us to attack. As long as we break through the enemy in front of us, we will be able to gain a large area in Hedong to gain a foothold."
