Chapter 60

"Did Ao Bai actually agree?" The emperors of the other three city gates looked at Emperor Chongzhen Zhu Youjian and the other two with surprise and joy. They had already planned to launch a strong attack on Beijing, but now they could decide the outcome through eight rounds of decisive battles.

This method of decisive battle was very satisfactory to all of them.

Emperor Chongzhen nodded slightly and said, "The Eight Banners are the Yellow Banner, White Banner, Red Banner, Blue Banner, Inlaid Yellow Banner, Inlaid White Banner, Inlaid Red Banner, and Inlaid Blue Banner. The White, Yellow, and Inlaid Yellow Banners are the Upper Three Banners, belonging to the imperial guards, while the other five are the Lower Five Banners. How should we decide the outcome?"

"Ha ha ha... There's no need to say. I have the great general Yue Pengju. In the first round, we'll wait until the Yue family army is defeated before you can be the substitutes." Emperor Gaozong of Song, Zhao Gou, laughed heartily. With 30,000 Yue family troops taking turns, they would definitely crush these Eight Banners.

The "glorious deeds" of these Qing troops were no less than those of the Mongol Yuan, such as the Ten Days of Yangzhou and the Three Massacres of Jiading, which occurred no less than a hundred times in total.

The Eight Banners were definitely the main force. Just thinking about the three-foot halo of merit floating above Guo Jing's head, Emperor Gaozong of Song, Zhao Gou, felt a surge of excitement.

Although these Eight Banners were not directly under his command, they were still his troops, and the heavenly merit they gained would probably be no less than that of Guo Jing, who had guarded Xiangyang for decades.

"Zhao Gou, are you still asleep?" Emperor Chongzhen Zhu Youjian said angrily. Originally, he could have directly agreed with Ao Bai to have the Eight Banners and an equal number of his troops decide the outcome in one battle. However, he chose to divide it into eight rounds because his troops could definitely match one banner of the Qing army.

Each banner of the Eight Banners had mostly between 20,000 to 30,000 troops. In the past, 9,000 Guan Ning Iron Riders defended Shun天府 (Shuntian Prefecture). The Qing army surrounded the last gateway to Shuntian, Zunhua. Emperor Huangtaiji led tens of thousands of cavalry to advance on Shuntian. It seemed that the scene of the Song emperors being captured by the Jin army was about to be replayed. Yuan Chonghuan led 9,000 Guan Ning Iron Riders, rushing hundreds of miles. By the time they reached Beijing, they were exhausted, and some soldiers were so tired they couldn't even hold their swords.

On one side, Emperor Huangtaiji personally commanded tens of thousands of well-equipped and well-fed Eight Banners troops; on the other side, Yuan Chonghuan and his exhausted 9,000 Guan Ning Iron Riders.

These 9,000 cavalry launched the first attack against the Qing army. Each of the 9,000 cavalrymen had a three-barreled musket, and a dense rain of bullets fiercely swept the Eight Banners. The Qing soldiers were caught off guard, and their ranks were immediately thrown into disarray.

After four hours of intense fighting, the Eight Banners were defeated by the 9,000 exhausted troops. Now, with 10,000 fresh Guan Ning Iron Riders and 20,000 palace guards, it would be effortless to defeat the less than 30,000 Eight Banners.

"Zhao Gou, you also want to hog all the glory." Emperor Zhengde Zhu Houzhao looked coldly at Emperor Gaozong of Song, Zhao Gou. This was not a city gate attack that required a bloody battle. Who knew if they would be fighting ordinary soldiers or the Eight Banners?

Now, directly engaging the Eight Banners, killing one would earn heavenly merit. The 20,000 Eight Banners would yield at least 20,000 merit points, and he would get at least 2,000 merit points, worth 20,000 points.

"Zhao Gou, you should have some self-awareness." Emperor Qinzong of Song, Zhao Huan, said. In the past, Yue Fei had already reached the heart of the Jin territory. Although he might not have destroyed the Jin, he could have won a great victory and ransomed himself and Emperor Huizong. However, Emperor Gaozong of Song, Zhao Gou, issued 13 gold medals to recall the Yue family army.

Emperor Qinzong of Song, Zhao Huan, would not give Emperor Gaozong of Song, Zhao Gou, a good face.

"Zhao Gou, ..."

...

Seeing that public anger was about to be aroused, Emperor Gaozong of Song, Zhao Gou, whose weak nature resurfaced, said, "I was just joking, joking. Each country will face one banner of troops."

Everyone's faces relaxed slightly.

"Our method of decisive battle has been decided. How will we determine the outcome among us?" Emperor Yingzong of Ming, Zhu Qizhen, said.

Everyone's brows furrowed slightly. Emperor Gaozong of Song, Zhao Gou, gave a grateful look to Emperor Yingzong of Ming, Zhu Qizhen, who smiled. In his heart, he felt relieved. Emperor Gaozong of Song's Yue family army numbered 30,000, and they could not all be deployed on the battlefield. Emperor Yingzong of Ming decided to use part of them.

"We will decide the order by drawing lots. After the battle, the army with the least casualties will be considered the greatest contributor." Emperor Taizong of Song, Zhao Guangyi, thought for a moment and said. The Yang family and the elite troops selected from 200,000 elite palace guards would benefit most from this method.

"I agree!" Emperor Chongzhen said first.

"I agree." Emperor Gaozong of Song, Zhao Gou, also nodded.

"I agree." Emperor Huizong of Song, Zhao Ji, said.

"I agree." Emperor Zhengde of Ming, Zhu Houzhao, said.

Seeing that more than half had agreed, the other emperors could only reluctantly nod. Once more than half agreed, these emperors could not easily oppose.

"We will now draw lots." Emperor Taizong of Song, Zhao Guangyi, smiled. His proposal was accepted by everyone, which showed that he still had considerable prestige, and he felt very happy. The military advisor in the tent had already prepared the lots. Under the somewhat nervous gazes of everyone, Zhou Yang took the lottery box.

"Let's start!" Zhou Yang said, looking at the almost identical pieces of paper.

The emperors took turns drawing lots.

"Ha ha ha... My luck is really amazing. I'm the first one." Emperor Huizong of Song, Zhao Ji, looked proud, holding up the paper and strutting like a proud goose, showing it to everyone.

"Hmph!"

The other emperors all gave a light cold snort. Hearing this, Emperor Huizong of Song, Zhao Ji, looked even more excited. The more angry the others were, the better his luck seemed.

"I'll go prepare now."

Emperor Huizong of Song, Zhao Ji, walked out of the tent with a swagger, and the other emperors also left to prepare their troops. Zhou Yang returned to the Love Apartment. Under the puzzled gazes of Hu Yifei and others, he took a camera and quickly left the apartment.

"Do you know when Zhou Yang returned to the apartment?" Hu Yifei asked, puzzled. Wasn't he out with Zeng Xiaoxian?

Everyone shook their heads.

After returning to the tent, Zhou Yang placed the bamboo helicopter on his head and flew over the northern gate. The camera was not to film the battle but to capture the appearance of the troops before the battle. As long as the faces were not clearly visible, this video could be dubbed by Zeng Xiaoxian, making it the best video of ancient Chinese special forces.

Zhou Yang praised himself for this idea but decided to fly to the eastern gate to see how Emperor Huizong of Song, Zhao Ji, and his gathered troops looked.

"Song Jiang, quickly gather all the Liangshan troops and select 30,000 of the most elite troops for me." From a distance, Zhou Yang could hear Emperor Huizong of Song, Zhao Ji, speaking. In front of him was a short, dark-skinned, and respectful-looking man.

After about an incense stick's time, Song Jiang had selected 30,000 elite troops. Although the 800,000 troops were many, they were not very useful. Only 30,000 could be selected from the front ranks. Looking at the tall and strong soldiers, Emperor Huizong of Song was very satisfied.

Zhou Yang turned on the camera and filmed the Liangshan troops marching towards the northern gate.

"The Red Banner will go first. Once they win, Yangzhou will be their territory." Ao Bai said to a fierce-looking, over nine feet tall man beside him.

"Your Majesty, rest assured. The Eight Banners are not afraid of anyone when matched in equal numbers," the fierce man said excitedly. Thinking of the prosperous Yangzhou, his blood boiled. It would soon become the pasture of the Red Banner.

The leaders of the other banners also looked envious and excited. Choosing Ao Bai as their emperor was indeed the right decision. It should be like the great grasslands, where everyone has a pasture. Learning the Han system was truly annoying.

The fierce man led the Red Banner towards the city, and Song Jiang also brought 30,000 elite troops to the north of the city. The two armies faced each other from a distance.

Both the soldiers and the generals had bloodshot eyes. Emperor Huizong of Song, Zhao Ji, had promised Song Jiang that if he won, he would be appointed as a third-rank general. Each soldier who killed an enemy would receive 10 taels of silver, to be distributed immediately upon returning to the world.

Boom!

The two armies, like two raging torrents, collided fiercely. Instantly, people and horses were thrown about, and blood and flesh flew. In the next moment, Song Jiang's troops immediately split into 36 groups, each led by a Tian Gang and two Di Sha, quickly dividing and attacking the Red Banner's cavalry.

---

The page is filled with advertisements.