Chapter 5

Luo Luo presents the second update, rolling on the ground to beg for favorites and recommendations.

......

The sound of drums shook the earth, as if the entire ground would collapse in the next moment. Everything on the battlefield was enveloped in the deafening cries of battle. When the Shi family's elite troops advanced to within thirty paces of the Song army's formation, the three rows of armored soldiers who had been kneeling on the ground rose up in unison at the command.

"Men! Form the formation and advance!" A Song army commander shouted hoarsely, waving his large saber to drive the shield and spear soldiers forward. If one were to look down from a high vantage point, they would see that on the battlefield, two walls of armored warriors, like moving fortresses, had collided! The Song army's spears pierced the chests of the Shi family's soldiers, while the Shi family's sabers slashed at the heads of the Song soldiers...

Chen Dexing once again drew his crossbow to full tension. Although he was an officer, he had no soldiers under his command, and on this battlefield, he was merely a special warrior—somewhat akin to a sniper in later times, with considerable freedom. This time, he aimed his arrow at a giant man who held a shield in one hand and a saber in the other. The man, standing nearly two meters tall, had charged into the Song army's formation, causing considerable chaos.

With a light "snap," the arrow flew like a meteor, piercing the giant's cheek, the sharp arrowhead penetrating his skull and emerging from the back of his head, carrying with it some pinkish brain matter. The giant didn't even have time to scream before he fell to the ground.

'Already the fourth person...' Chen Dexing thought to himself. This was the fourth person he had killed since his rebirth, one of whom was an unarmed old or weak person! Killing four people would be enough to qualify as a serial killer in later times, but Chen Dexing's nerves were so thick that he had no adverse reactions! He didn't know if it was his potential from his previous life to be a deranged killer, or if he had inherited a heart of stone after his soul transmigration!

"Snap!" Another arrow was fired, this time targeting a young Shi family officer who was shouting and fighting fiercely, and he too was killed instantly!

'Fifth person...' Chen Dexing squinted and scanned the battlefield, looking for new prey, but he heard the sound of metal clanging.

Was this the signal to retreat? Advance at the sound of the drum, retreat at the sound of the gong, and with the aid of horns, commands, flags, and lights, an army could be well-organized. In Chen Dexing's mind, there was a wealth of knowledge about battlefield command, all taught by his adoptive father, who was determined to pass the civil service examination to bring glory to the family...

The Shi family's elite troops were retreating, having lost about fifteen percent of their numbers compared to when they had charged in. If they didn't retreat now, they would collapse—most armies of this era could only withstand about twenty percent casualties in a single battle, and only those placed in dire straits could endure thirty percent or more. Therefore, commanders must never exhaust their troops, for once the army collapses, it would be like a landslide. On the battlefield, commanders must grasp the rhythm of advance and retreat, and promptly withdraw heavily damaged units. Covering the retreat of infantry or pursuing the enemy's defeated troops was the job of cavalry, and the Song army had a significant weakness in this area!

Because the Song army had no cavalry, the Shi family's elite troops retreated quite easily. The Song army's armored soldiers only pursued for a dozen steps, cutting off the heads of the fallen Shi family soldiers while cheering and retreating in formation. It wasn't that they didn't want to pursue, but the Mongol heavy cavalry deployed on the flanks were already stirring! If the Song army couldn't quickly restore their formation, a single charge would break their ranks, which were no longer protected by long spears and large shields. As for the Song army's armored soldiers who scattered to pursue the enemy, they would be no match for a Mongol cavalry charge.

"Alas, if we had five hundred elite cavalry, the Shi family's armored soldiers would have collapsed!" Liu Heshang, who had just fired seven arrows, was shaking his sore arm and sighing.

'If the war continues like this, the Southern Song will ultimately not be able to hold out!' Chen Dexing shook his head slightly, his thick brows knitted together.

The historical knowledge and battlefield tactics in his mind told him that although the Song army seemed to have won this round, in reality, the Mongols had the upper hand! The Song army's formation and the advantage of their bows and crossbows made it normal to repel the Shi family's elite troops. This wasn't a victory, but just the beginning of the battle... It was like the trench warfare of later times, where the attacking side rarely broke through the defense in a single assault, often requiring many repeated attacks to gradually wear down the defenders before capturing the position.

For the Song army, which had no cavalry, they couldn't pursue and expand their gains after repelling the enemy. If they were defeated, they would be trampled by the Mongol cavalry! Even worse, with thousands of Mongol cavalry watching, Jia Sidao and Li Tingzhi found it difficult to maneuver their troops, as any chaos during movement could lead to a Mongol cavalry charge and a collapse!

On the contrary, the Mongol infantry could even lie down and sleep on the battlefield! The Song army couldn't possibly send infantry to attack them.

At this moment, the Mongol army's command horns sounded again! Another three infantry formations emerged from the Mongol main force, still targeting the Wu Rui Army where Chen Dexing was stationed. This time, it was the Mongol Han troops, similarly equipped with leather helmets and armor, holding shields and sabers. Under the lead of three "Zhang" banners, they marched confidently across the battlefield. The Mongols who had been shooting arrows earlier had retreated, replaced by another two thousand Mongol cavalry—Mongol cavalry were not only skilled at charging but also at archery, each equipped with both a crossbow and a horse bow, the former for dismounted shooting and the latter for mounted shooting. Of course, Mongol arms were made of flesh and blood, and they would also tire, so they adopted a tactic of rotating archers.

This was to wear down the Song army's strength through attrition!

Chen Dexing took a deep breath. What could he do about the Mongols' plan? He wasn't the supreme commander Jia Sidao, just a warrior with a minor rank! And even if he were Jia Sidao, could he come up with a brilliant strategy to counter the Mongol cavalry and save the Song dynasty? Even if such a strategy existed, it wouldn't yield immediate results.

He decided to focus on getting through this day first.

With this in mind, he began to concentrate on the approaching Mongol Han infantry. In his previous life as a senior seaman, he was familiar with distance measurement. He also knew from the internet that a Song dynasty step was about 1.5 meters in modern terms, so 120 steps was 180 meters. At this distance, he could estimate quite accurately by eye.

"Snap!" After a slight bowstring sound, Chen Dexing fired another arrow, which drew a half-circle in the air and, as if guided by an eye, pierced the face of a burly soldier, who screamed and fell to the ground!

"Good! Excellent archery!"

At this moment, on a wooden platform by the Baozhang River (Yangzhou's city moat, known as Slender West Lake in later times), a middle-aged man in purple official robes, wearing a long-winged hat, lightly clapped his hands. His narrow eyes gleamed with a calm demeanor and a burning desire. Beside him were several officials, some in full armor, others in green robes and winged hats, and a few civilian scholars without official attire, all frowning as they watched the battlefield.

"Xiangfu, is that a military commander of the Wu Rui Army? Does he have an official position?"

A man in a green robe, with a somewhat rough appearance, stepped forward and bowed. "Sir, his name is Chen Dexing. He is a Mengbu Chengxin, currently serving as a trainer."

"He already has an official position..." The middle-aged man, known as the Chancellor, was Jia Sidao, the supreme commander of the four ten-thousand Song army on the battlefield. He showed a hint of regret and nodded slightly.

The man Jia Sidao called "Xiangfu" was Li Tingzhi, the actual commander of the Wu Rui Army. Li Tingzhi was originally from Meng Gong's school, and Meng Gong was his patron, so after Meng Gong's death, he mourned for three years—during this era, the relationship between a patron and his protégé was similar to that of master and servant. Even after Li Tingzhi passed the imperial examination and became a civil official, he remained a disciple of the martial Meng Gong.

The reason Jia Sidao showed regret was that Chen Dexing already had an official position. If he were a commoner, Jia Sidao could have recruited him with a recommendation. In these times of war, a valiant warrior like Chen Dexing was no longer as unpopular as in peacetime.