Chapter 818
Northern Expedition
Time flies, and in the blink of an eye, half a year has passed. During this time, the second batch of grain from the South China Sea has arrived, and with the grain in hand, the time is ripe for the Northern Expedition.
Meanwhile, the people within the territory of Hanwang spontaneously gathered together and began to coordinate among the various prefectures.
The Han people have been oppressed by the Mulan people for a hundred years, and the Han King's actions this time are to drive out the Tartars and restore China!
Therefore, propaganda teams were everywhere proclaiming the greatness of the King of Han and mobilizing troops. The entire Han territory was undergoing final preparations. After receiving news that the grain was in place and the armies were ready, Chen Jie...
Issue the highest military order immediately!
[Order Zhang Dingbian to attack Daoma Pass.]
Chen Xiaohu attacks Datong Prefecture.
Xu Da attacks Jining Prefecture.
At the order, the three armies that had been stationed on the border for several years were all excited. They had been stationed for nearly seven months, and there had been constant minor skirmishes between the two sides, but they dared not engage in a major battle. This had been driving these eager generals crazy with anticipation.
At this moment, the military order reached Zhang Dingbian's army. Zhang Dingbian read the brief words on the order and handed the note to Ni Wenjun. Ni Wenjun was of a higher rank than Zhang Dingbian, but since Zhang Dingbian was the commander-in-chief of the army, he had to obey Zhang Dingbian's orders.
Zhang Dingbian then handed the note to Ni Wenjun, who saw that it read: "The King of Han orders Zhang Dingbian's troops to attack Daoma Pass. No mistakes allowed!"
Looking at the orders above, Ni Wenjun exclaimed excitedly, "Finally, the fighting is about to begin! I've been so bored I could die!"
Zhang Dingbian took the note and handed it to Jin Yanzi. After Jin Yanzi read it, she gave it to Fu Youde. After the group had finished reading it, Jin Yanzi said, "We've finally arrived. We've almost finished preparing the siege equipment these past few days. It's time for a big battle!"
Zhang Dingbian said, "Yes, but Subutai of Daomaguan is no ordinary person. I've been observing his formations these past few days, and he's a master of military strategy. Now we're on the offensive, and they're on the defensive. This battle is bound to be a tough one."
Upon hearing this, Fu Youde said, "General, I am willing to be the vanguard and take on this tough challenge."
Zhang Dingbian looked at Fu Youde. Over the past seven months, he had found Fu Youde to be a kind and righteous man, so the two got along quite well. Hearing Fu Youde's words, Zhang Dingbian said, "Alright, let's get started. Fu Youde, you will be the vanguard. We will attack Daoma Pass first thing tomorrow morning!"
"promise!"
The people inside the tent shouted in unison.
Meanwhile, inside Daoma Pass, Subutai was listening to his subordinates' reports.
"Reporting to the commander, according to our scouts, the Han Chinese troops on the other side seem to be acting strangely. They have begun to move their siege equipment, and tonight they slaughtered cattle and sheep and the whole army ate meat."
Upon hearing this, Subutai frowned slightly and said, "It seems they are preparing to attack the city."
As he spoke, Subutai looked at his three most powerful generals: Agula, Batel, and Boriged. These three were all famous generals of the Golden Horde, who had killed so many white men in Europe that they dared not raise their heads.
Seeing Subutai's furrowed brow, Batel spoke up: "General, these mere Han Chinese are nothing but pigs and dogs. Why should you worry? Give me an army and I will slaughter them without leaving a single one alive!"
Upon hearing this, Subutai raised his hand and said, "Alas, we must not underestimate them. The one on the other side is Zhang Dingbian, the number one general they have been praising to the skies. I must say, he fought some good battles and he has some skill. We must not be careless."
Upon hearing this, Agula said, "General, you are the greatest general of the Golden Horde, and you have never been defeated in your life. Why would you be afraid of a mere Han Chinese?"
"Besides, we have 200,000 elite troops, while the other side has less than 170,000. Moreover, we are the defending side. I really can't imagine how we can lose."
Subutai chuckled and said, "There's a saying among the Han people: 'Be careful, or you'll never lose.' Don't underestimate anyone."
"However, there is no need to panic too much. After all, we have reinforced Daoma Pass. It won't be so easy for the Han people to attack it."
"General, I volunteer to lead the defense of this city wall tomorrow."
At this moment, Batel spoke up. After hearing this, Subutai thought for a moment and said, "Okay, then you lead your troops into Daoma Pass first, and we will follow behind."
Daomaguan was not large enough to support 200,000 troops, so Subutai's army rested in Baoding, which was not far from Daomaguan. Therefore, Batel was chosen as the vanguard this time!
At dawn, the sun rises in the east, shining on Daoma Pass and illuminating the pass like blood.
Above the pass, the wolf-head banner of the Golden Horde fluttered in the bloody wind.
Behind the battlements, countless eyes were fixed on the black tide gathering below the pass, the Han army's battle formation, like dark clouds pressing down, slowly approaching this formidable pass.
"coming."
At the highest point of the city gate tower, a towering, bearded giant whispered.
He was clad in iron-plated leather armor, and three claw marks on his left cheek ran diagonally from his forehead to his chin. These were marks left from a bloody battle with the Western Liao Tiger Army ten years ago. His name was Batel, which means "warrior" in Mongolian. He was one of the three great warriors under Subutai, the first general of the Golden Horde, and today's vanguard general of Daomaguan.
"General, the vanguard of the Han army is within 500 paces!" The messenger rushed up the city wall, panting.
Batel did not turn around; his hawk-like eyes remained fixed on the black banner in front of the Han army. Under the banner sat a general on his horse, wearing silver armor and a white robe, which gleamed coldly even in the twilight.
"Ha, Fu Youde, a defeated general~" Batel's face was full of disdain, but his right hand unconsciously tightened its grip on the curved knife at his waist.
Below the pass, in the Han army's formation.
Fu Youde reined in his warhorse and looked up at the formidable pass known as the "throat of Dadu" (the capital). Daoma Pass was built against the mountain, with near-vertical cliffs on both sides. The fortified gate in the middle was four zhang high, and the walls were made of bluestone. It had been repaired and reinforced by three generations and was indeed a dangerous place where one man could hold the pass against ten thousand.
"The commander-in-chief has ordered that the outer city must be captured before sunset!" The messenger arrived on horseback, his voice exceptionally clear in the tense atmosphere.
Fu Youde nodded slightly. He was thirty-six years old this year and had served in the army for twenty years, fighting in the south and the north. He rose from a centurion to the commander-in-chief of Zhu Chongba's army, and now, after surrendering to Chen Jiu Si, he was also a vanguard general. He knew that this battle would be a bloody one, but he had to fight it well. This was his first battle in the Han army, and if he lost, he would never have a chance to rise again!
At this moment, he looked up at Daoma Pass, his eyes filled with fighting spirit. Let these Mulan Tartars see how powerful I am!
"Pass on the order!" Fu Youde's voice wasn't loud, but it made the surrounding soldiers stand at attention instantly. "First wave, shield carts advance, archers provide cover, cloud ladders prepare!"
The war drums suddenly sounded.
Thirty iron-shielded carts were slowly pushed out from the Han army formation. Behind each cart were twenty heavily armored infantrymen, armed with short axes and iron hammers, and with sharp blades hanging from their waists.
Behind the shield carts, three thousand archers lined up in three rows, their arrows already nocked.
"put!"
At Fu Youde's command, three thousand crossbowmen fired simultaneously, arrows swarming towards the city walls like locusts. Almost at the same time, a sharp whistling sound rang out from the city walls—the defenders were counterattacking.
"Raise your shields!"
On and below the city walls, shouts, the sound of arrows piercing the air, and the clanging of metal filled the air as the first Han army unit, under the cover of a hail of arrows, pushed shield carts toward the city wall.
"Rolling log!"
Batel's roar echoed across the city wall, and the well-prepared defenders immediately cut the ropes. Dozens of massive logs covered in iron nails rolled down from the city wall, smashing onto the Han army's shield carts with a teeth-grinding cracking sound.
Several shield carts were smashed on the spot, and the Han soldiers hiding behind them had no time to dodge. Amidst screams, flesh and blood flew everywhere.
But this is only the beginning.
The Han army's siege ladders had already been erected on the city walls. These ladders were equipped with iron hooks at the top, making them extremely difficult to push aside once they were attached to the battlements. The first group of heavily armored Han soldiers, with sharp blades in their mouths, began to climb.
"Prepare the golden broth!" Batel continued, his expression unchanged.
Several large cauldrons were pushed onto the city wall. What was boiling inside the cauldrons was not some delicious food, but a "golden juice" made of a mixture of excrement, poisonous weeds and boiling oil.
When the Han soldiers climbed halfway up the mountain, scalding hot and foul-smelling liquid poured down.
"what--!"
The piercing screams echoed across the battlefield.
Soldiers drenched in molten gold fell from the ladders, their skin instantly festering. Even those who didn't die on the spot were essentially rendered incapable of fighting. A strange stench of burnt blood filled the air.
Fu Youde, watching from below the pass, saw it all clearly. The veins on the back of his hand gripping the reins bulged, but his expression remained stern: "Second team, advance! Archers, concentrate your fire on those manipulating the golden liquid on the city walls!"
The war drums in the Han army changed rhythm again, and another group of soldiers charged toward the city wall under the cover of a hail of arrows. This time, they were more spread out and climbed faster.
Batel patrolled back and forth on the city wall, occasionally cutting down Han soldiers who climbed up the wall with his own hands. His scimitar was stained dark red, and each swing brought up a spray of blood.
"General! Han troops have come up the western section of the city wall!" A centurion ran up to report, his face covered in blood.
Without saying a word, Batel picked up his scimitar and ran westward. Sure enough, three heavily armored Han soldiers had already scaled the city wall and were fighting with the defenders.
These Han soldiers were all elite warriors who had fought countless battles. The three of them formed a small formation back to back and managed to hold off the attack of more than ten defenders for a time.
"Get out of the way!"
With a loud shout, Batel immediately parted to make way for the defenders. The three Han soldiers, seeing the imposing presence of the approaching general, quickly adjusted their formation to prepare for battle.
Without further ado, Batel strode forward and suddenly accelerated when he was three steps away from the enemy lines. The leading Han soldier raised his shield to meet the attack, but Batel's scimitar bypassed the shield at an odd angle and went straight for the opponent's neck.
"puff!"
A head flew off, and blood gushed out.
Seeing this, the other two Han soldiers attacked from the left and right at the same time. Batel neither dodged nor evaded. He suddenly grabbed the spear that was thrusting at him with his left hand and pulled hard. The soldier lost his balance and fell forward, just in time to meet Batel's curved blade as he slashed back.
Seeing his companion die instantly, the third man knew he was outmatched. Instead of retreating, he lunged forward, trying to grab Batel. Batel snorted coldly, dodging to the side while delivering a powerful elbow strike to the back of the man's neck. The sound of bones cracking was clearly audible.
In just three breaths, all three elite Han soldiers perished.
"Hold this section of the wall! If any more Han soldiers come up, bring me your head!" Batel shook the blood off his sword and continued running towards the next dangerous section.
It was noon, but the fighting showed no signs of abating. The Han army had launched five offensives, and the corpses piled up like mountains at Daoma Pass, with many sections of the city wall breached and the defending troops suffering nearly half their casualties. But the pass remained in the hands of the Golden Horde.
Fu Youde was extremely anxious upon seeing this; he had encountered a tough opponent in his very first battle!
"Bring me my armor," Fu Youde suddenly said.
The guard was taken aback: "General, you want to..."
“I’ll go myself.” Fu Youde dismounted, and two bodyguards immediately draped him in double-layered heavy armor and handed him his signature weapon—a steel spear weighing forty-eight jin (approximately 24 catties).
"General, you mustn't!" the adjutant hurriedly dissuaded. "You are the vanguard commander; if anything happens to you..."
“Precisely because I am the vanguard commander, I must go now.” Fu Youde interrupted him, a resolute glint in his eyes. “You will oversee the battle here. If I die in battle, you will take over command. You must breach the city walls before nightfall!”
Having said that, Fu Youde picked up his gun and strode forward. Seeing this, his personal guards immediately assembled and followed.
The large banner bearing the character "傅" began to move towards the city wall.
On the city wall, Batel noticed the change almost immediately. He squinted, watching the general's flag getting closer and closer, and a smile appeared on his lips.
“Finally here.” Bartel licked his chapped lips and said to those around him, “Bring me my sword—that heavy sword.”
A moment later, two soldiers carried in an unusually broad and thick scimitar. This scimitar was half a foot longer and three-tenths of an inch thicker than an ordinary scimitar, with a serrated back. It was obtained by Batel from a famous Persian craftsman when he accompanied Subutai on his western expedition, and he named it "Blue Wolf".
Batel gripped the knife in one hand, tested its feel, and then strode toward the section of the city wall that Fu Youde was attacking.
Fu Youde has already climbed the ladder.
He was agile and, even in heavy armor, his climbing speed was no less than that of an ordinary soldier. Several guards followed closely behind, using shields to block the arrows and stones falling from above.
"Stop him!" The city guards spotted the elite squad and immediately launched a concentrated attack.
Logs, boulders, and arrows rained down, and a soldier was struck by a boulder, screaming as he fell off the city wall. Fu Youde didn't look back and continued climbing, less than ten feet from the top of the wall.
Just then, a dark figure suddenly appeared beside the battlements.
Batel gripped his sword with both hands, aimed it at the ladder where Fu Youde was, and slashed down fiercely!
"Crack!"
The ladder, as thick as a bowl, was severed in one section by this single strike, and the section where Fu Youde was located shook violently, almost causing him to fall.
At the critical moment, he thrust his spear into a crevice in the city wall, used the momentum to leap, and actually rose into the air, grabbing a section of intact ladder above with one hand.
Soldiers both on and below the city walls who witnessed this scene couldn't help but gasp in shock.
Before he could regain his footing, Fu Youde leaped up again, this time directly scaling the city wall!
"Excellent skills!" Batel praised sincerely, but his knife had already slashed out again.
Fu Youde had barely found his footing when he saw the blade flashing and had no choice but to parry with his spear.
"clang--!"
The clang of metal against metal echoed across the city walls, sparks flying everywhere. Fu Youde staggered back three steps before regaining his footing, feeling a numbness in his arms. He was secretly astonished: the strength of this man was unlike anything he had ever witnessed in his life.
Batel raised an eyebrow slightly. Although his strike was blocked, ordinary weapons would have snapped in two, but the opponent's spear was completely undamaged, clearly not an ordinary weapon.
The two finally faced each other.
Fu Youde, clad in silver armor and a white robe, still exuded an extraordinary air despite the bloody battle; Batel, his leather armor stained with blood, his beard bristling, resembled a lion of the grasslands. Their eyes met, and their killing intent clashed in the air as if it were tangible.
The surrounding soldiers automatically made way for a clearing, and the Han army and the Golden Horde soldiers temporarily stopped fighting. Everyone knew that the outcome of this battle would likely determine the fate of Daomaguan today.
"Fu Youde, vanguard of the Han army." Fu Youde saluted with his gun, a sign of respect for a powerful enemy.
“Golden Horde, Batel,” the burly man with a bushy beard replied, brandishing his sword.
Without another word, the two moved simultaneously.
Fu Youde's spear moved like a dragon, a cold star aimed straight at Batel's throat. This spear was as fast as lightning, and it was the Fu family's signature spear technique, "Meteor Chasing the Moon".
Batel neither dodged nor evaded, but instead slashed with his heavy sword, adopting an offensive stance. If Fu Youde insisted on stabbing him, he would surely be disemboweled by this blow.
Fu Youde's spear tip trembled, changing from a thrust to a sweep, and the spear shaft slammed heavily against the side of the knife.
With a clang, Batel's blade veered slightly, and Fu Youde seized the opportunity to advance, his spear pouncing like a venomous snake striking the opponent's ribs.
Batel roared and, instead of defending, punched Fu Youde in the face with his left fist. This was the fighting style of the grasslands, where one trades injury for injury and lives for lives.
Left with no other option, Fu Youde had to lower his gun and return to defense. The gun barrel collided with his fist, and both men took a step back.
The first round ended in a draw.
But the battle has only just begun.
Batel's swordsmanship was powerful and sweeping, each strike carrying immense force, the wind from his blades howling and stirring up dust within a ten-foot radius.
Fu Youde's spear technique is agile and unpredictable, sometimes like a venomous snake spitting its tongue, sometimes like a torrential downpour, always able to find a weakness at the last second.
"Clang! Clang! Clang!"
The clash of weapons was deafening, sparks flying. The two fought from the west section of the city wall to the east, leaving cracks in the crenellations and sending bricks and stones flying. Both the Han soldiers and the Golden Horde soldiers kept their distance, fearing they would be drawn into the duel.
Thirty rounds passed in the blink of an eye, and both men were injured. Fu Youde's left shoulder armor was cleaved open, and blood seeped out; Batel's right leg was grazed by the tip of a spear, so deep that the bone was visible.
But their gazes only grew more intense.
This is the excitement a martial artist feels when they encounter a true opponent.
"That's exhilarating!" Batel laughed wildly, his swordsmanship suddenly changing again. It was no longer wide and sweeping, but became unpredictable and strange. The sword light fell like moonlight, omnipresent. This was the killing move he had comprehended from the Persian swordsmanship - "Crescent Slash".
Fu Youde felt the pressure increase dramatically and retreated repeatedly, his spear technique gradually becoming chaotic. Just as he was about to reach the edge of the city wall, he suddenly let out a long roar, and his spear technique simplified from complex to simple, reduced to only three moves: thrust, sweep, and parry. But these three moves, in his hands, were transformed into something magical, each one precisely striking the key points of Batel's sword technique transitions.
"The Spear-Breaking Style?!" Batel exclaimed in surprise. He had heard of a martial art in the Central Plains that was specifically designed to break weapons. Could this be the technique?
Fu Youde did not answer, but his spear thrusts grew faster and faster. Batel gradually felt the strain; his swordsmanship had been completely countered, and each strike seemed to deliberately collide with the tip of his opponent's spear.
In the fiftieth round, Fu Youde suddenly feigned an opening, leaving his chest wide open. Unsuspecting, Batel swung his blade down. Just as the blade was about to strike, Fu Youde shifted half a foot to the side like a ghost, his spear shooting out like a venomous dragon, aimed straight for Batel's throat!
This shot embodied Fu Youde's lifelong skill; even before the gun arrived, the wind from it stung Batel's skin.
On the brink of life and death, Batel suddenly let go of his knife and lunged forward, intending to take the bullet with his own flesh and blood, while simultaneously punching Fu Youde in the temples with both fists!
perish together!
Fu Youde hadn't expected his opponent to be so resolute, but by then it was too late to change his tactics. As the spear tip pierced Batel's left chest, he also felt a ringing in his ears and his vision went black.
Both of them fell to the ground at the same time.
"General!"
"General!"
The Han soldiers and the Golden Horde soldiers cried out in alarm and rushed toward their fallen commander.
Fu Youde struggled to his feet, blood slowly seeping from his seven orifices. Batel's two punches had injured his skull, and his vision began to blur. He looked at Batel lying on the ground, the iron spear piercing through his chest, but Batel was still alive, trying to grab the spear shaft and stand up.
“You…are very good…” Batel grinned, blood gushing from his mouth, “but Daoma Pass…you can’t take it…”
Before he could finish speaking, a deafening roar suddenly erupted from beneath the walls. Fu Youde strained to see what was happening and witnessed the main force of the Han army finally arriving, countless torches illuminating the night sky as if it were daytime. Under the central banner, a familiar figure sat astride his horse—General Zhang Dingbian had arrived in person!
"The commander-in-chief is here! The commander-in-chief is here!" The Han army cheered and their morale soared.
Batel also witnessed this scene. The last glimmer of light in his eyes gradually dimmed. With his last strength, he pointed north, towards the Golden Horde. His lips moved, but he could no longer utter a word.
Fu Youde drew his spear, and Batel's body slowly fell to the ground. This general, one of the three great warriors of the Golden Horde and the garrison commander of Daoma Pass, died in battle atop the city walls.
"Seize the flag!" Fu Youde shouted with all his might.
The guards immediately rushed forward, cut down the Golden Horde's wolf-head banner, and replaced it with the Han army's black banner.
When the defending troops on the city wall saw that their commander had been killed in battle and that their banner had fallen, they finally collapsed, and the remaining troops began to retreat into the pass.
Fu Youde leaned on his spear, gazing towards the interior of the pass. The outer city of Daoma Pass had fallen, but the inner city remained, and Subutai's main force had yet to appear. He knew that the real bloodshed might have only just begun.
As dusk fell completely, Han army banners fluttered in the firelight atop Daoma Pass. Corpses lay strewn across the walls and ramparts, rivers of blood flowing freely. A heavy, lingering stench of blood filled the air.
Fu Youde wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and said to his deputy, "Reorganize the troops and prepare to attack the inner city. Before dawn, I want Daoma Pass to completely change hands."
In the distance, beneath the central banner of the Han army, Zhang Dingbian gazed at his own troops' flags fluttering atop the city walls and nodded slightly. But his gaze then turned to the darkness further north, where the main force of the Golden Horde was gathering. (End of Chapter)