Chapter 5

Chen Qing had no time to get along with his superiors or subordinates; he had to set out as soon as he took office.

Li Jiang handed him a command arrow, "The commander will lead the army to retreat west to Dasha Pass tonight. Scouts must go ahead to investigate for any enemy ambush. You will lead the second scout detachment to investigate the northern line of Jingzhao. If you find anything, send someone back immediately to report!"

"Understood!"

It was not yet completely dark, and Chen Qing led twenty-two cavalry scouts out of the valley, heading southwest...

It was late autumn, the weather was gloomy, and two days of heavy rain had made the air damp. A bleak layer of gray mist enveloped the desolate land.

The war had not ended; groups of Jurchen cavalry were plundering and killing on the Guanzhong Plain, searching for the remnants of the Song army.

Chen Qing felt as if he were in a dream. Two days ago, he was leading a drug enforcement team deep into the border, but in the blink of an eye, he was leading a Song army detachment deep into the war zone.

Nine hundred years of time seemed to be connected by a thread of fate.

...

The next morning, Chen Qing led his squad around from the south of the Wei River and galloped up a small hill. In the distance was a winding canal, and on both sides of the canal were endless wheat fields.

The golden wheat was already ripe, and despite the ongoing war, the farmers, with hearts burning like fire, rushed to the fields to harvest the wheat.

The continuous rain had damaged the wheat, and if it was not harvested soon, it would rot in the fields.

These farmers harvesting wheat were like canaries in a coal mine; the canaries could detect if there was toxic gas in the mine, and these farmers could prove that there were no fierce Jurchen cavalry nearby.

However, Chen Qing and his men could not stray too far from the main army. Just because there were no enemy troops now did not mean there would be none later.

Chen Qing saw a forest in the distance.

"Let's rest in the forest!"

Chen Qing led the cavalry westward toward the forest.

Just as they were a few hundred steps away from the forest, Chen Qing suddenly shouted, "Stop!"

Everyone pulled their horses to a halt. "Headman, what's wrong?"

"There are hoof prints on the ground!"

Only then did everyone notice the fresh, chaotic hoof prints on the ground, coming from the northwest, circling around, and extending into the forest.

"Ah! There's an enemy presence."

Everyone became tense, and Chen Qing shouted, "Don't panic, prepare your bows and crossbows for battle!"

Everyone immediately took out their bows and arrows, and the formation dispersed.

"Whoo—"

The horn sounded, and a group of Jurchen cavalry, about twenty men, charged out of the forest. They were all bare-chested, with disheveled hair and blackened faces.

They were not unwilling to wear armor; they just discovered the enemy too late. They were afraid of alarming the Song army scouts and letting the Song soldiers escape.

Just as the Song army scouts wanted to capture them for interrogation, the Jurchen cavalry also wanted to capture the other side to find out the whereabouts of the main force.

Twenty Jurchen cavalrymen were hiding in the forest, waiting for the Song army to fall into the trap, but they were discovered by the Song army cavalry.

Chen Qing secretly rejoiced, almost making a mistake by assuming there was no enemy presence because the farmers were working in the fields. He did not realize that the enemy had entered the forest at night and the farmers in the wheat fields had not noticed them.

"Fire!"

Chen Qing shouted, raised his crossbow, and shot an arrow.

More than twenty arrows flew through the air, aiming at the Jurchen cavalry, but the Jurchen cavalry suddenly disappeared from their horses, hiding under the bellies of their horses. More than twenty arrows only hit two horses, and the Jurchen cavalry remained unscathed.

After the arrows were shot, the Jurchen cavalry reappeared on their horses, drawing their bows and shooting arrows at the Song army. Their archery skills were very proficient, and the arrows were powerful. Two Song army scouts were hit by the arrows, screamed, and fell off their horses.

Standing still would make them live targets and expose them to the powerful charge of the enemy cavalry. They had to charge forward.

Retreating was impossible. The enemy's horsemanship was more proficient, and their speed was faster. They would be pursued and shot at from behind, and none of them would survive.

Chen Qing made a quick decision and shouted, "Follow me and charge forward!"

He waved his long spear and led twenty subordinates forward.

The two cavalry squads collided head-on with a loud "Boom!" Dirt flew, horses neighed, and soldiers screamed. The nearby farmers were frightened and ran for their lives.

The two sides engaged in fierce combat.

The Jurchen cavalry were all brave and skilled in combat, with excellent horsemanship, but they lacked coordination and fought individually.

The Song army scouts, though hastily assembled and not proficient in horsemanship, were all elite soldiers selected from the army. They were well-trained, emphasized formation and coordination, and their armor was more solid than the Jurchen cavalry's bare-chested state.

For a moment, the two scout units were evenly matched, with continuous screams and increasing casualties on both sides.

"Shoot the horse first, capture the leader first!" Chen Qing waved his iron spear and charged at the enemy's centurion.

Chen Qing had not practiced spear techniques; he used the heavy sword techniques from fencing, focusing on finding weaknesses and striking accurately.

As the two horses met, the enemy's wolf-tooth club fiercely struck Chen Qing, creating a strong wind.

Chen Qing dodged to the side and thrust his spear at the enemy's abdomen, moving very quickly. Before the enemy could withdraw his club to block, Chen Qing suddenly changed the direction of his spear, aiming at the enemy's horse.

It was unexpected, and the horse could not dodge in time. "Puff!" The spear pierced the horse's head.

The horse fell immediately, pinning the centurion's leg under it. Before the centurion could get up, Chen Qing stabbed him in the back from behind. The centurion screamed and died on the spot.

The death of the leader greatly affected the morale of the Jurchen cavalry. This was a common trait among all nomadic soldiers. They did not have the hatred of a nation's destruction or family's ruin; they came to the Central Plains only to plunder wealth and women.

The soldiers relied on the desire to plunder to maintain their morale, which was fierce but lacked resilience. Once their morale waned, they felt it was not worth it and did not want to continue fighting.

The Jurchen cavalry was no exception. With the leader dead and the soldiers realizing they were at a disadvantage, they began to think of retreating.

The Song army scouts, however, were greatly encouraged, fighting more bravely and coordinating well. They often formed a three-to-one advantage, and in a short time, several Jurchen cavalrymen were stabbed off their horses.

"Retreat!"

A Jurchen decurion shouted, and everyone turned their horses and fled.

Chen Qing had been watching him, aimed his crossbow at the enemy's horse, and shot an arrow. It hit the horse's hind leg, causing the horse to collapse and throwing the Jurchen decurion a dozen feet away.

The remaining eight Jurchen cavalrymen had already fled far away. Chen Qing did not order a pursuit; they had captured three prisoners, which was enough to gather information.

"Take them away for separate interrogations!"

The Song army scouts grabbed their hair and dragged them away.

Chen Qing sat on a large rock, feeling somewhat exhausted. They had killed three thousand enemies and lost two thousand of their own. In this battle, they had killed nine Jurchen cavalrymen and captured three, but they had also lost six of their own, which could only be considered a Pyrrhic victory.

If it were not for him killing the enemy's centurion and the Jurchen cavalry's slight underestimation of the enemy, not wearing armor, they would have definitely lost today.

Experiencing the strength of the Jurchen cavalry, if the Eighth Army encountered the main force of the enemy cavalry, they would be completely annihilated. Chen Qing became anxious.

...

The results of the interrogation shocked Chen Qing. Wanyan Zongbi was leading a main force of ten thousand cavalry only thirty miles to the east. They had indeed discovered the Eighth Army's trail yesterday and were waiting for the Eighth Army to appear.

Time was extremely urgent. Chen Qing hastily buried his comrades' bodies, killed the three prisoners, and immediately led his subordinates northward.

Fifteen minutes later, Chen Qing met the main force of the Eighth Army marching southwest.

After listening to Chen Qing's report, Li Jiang was also shocked and immediately led him to Wang Yan.

"Report to the general, Headman Chen has obtained intelligence that Wanyan Zongbi is leading ten thousand cavalry only thirty miles to the east."

Wang Yan's expression was serious. This information was very timely, and the situation was severe. If the enemy cavalry attacked, they would be completely annihilated.

He realized that they probably could not avoid this disaster.

Chen Qing had thought of a strategy on the way. He clasped his hands and said, "Report to the commander, it is only about thirty miles to the Wei River. There is a pontoon bridge there. If we send a detachment to block the enemy and buy time for the main force to retreat, there might still be a chance!"

Deputy General Fu Xuan's eyes lit up, and he hurriedly whispered, "General, this is indeed a good plan!"

Wang Yan sighed inwardly. This meant sacrificing a few brothers to save the majority of the soldiers!

Although Wang Yan was reluctant, he accepted the only feasible plan.

"Bring the life and death slips!"