Chapter 72: Confrontation

  The first update!

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  The wind whistled past his ears, and Aji sat at the front with a joyful heart, holding onto the horse's mane tightly. Suddenly remembering something, he turned back and asked loudly: "You're riding horses, how did you end up falling behind us?"

  He Yuqing rolled his eyes: "Do you think we want to?! Look back at those people fleeing like ants, they're all running with their legs spread wide, only I and Ah Xing are riding horses. How conspicuous is this target? Don't you see the high slope in front of us? That's where the Golden Dog's main camp is located, heavily guarded, and it just so happens to be right at the entrance to the mountain pass. We need to go around that high slope to enter the mountain. Do you think the Golden Dog will let us slip away from under their noses with such a conspicuous pair of riders?"

  In fact, He Yuanqing and Ah Xing had just tried to rush over, but were shot back by a sudden burst of arrows from seven or eight Jin soldiers rushing down the slope. With no choice, they could only turn their heads and kill the enemy to seize the horse. In this way, one person and one horse, the opportunity to rush over was even greater. It's just that I didn't expect that there would be one more horse, but two more people.

  Just as Ah Xing and He Yuanqing were considering whether to get another horse, the eight Jin soldiers who had previously driven them away with random arrows saw that they had killed a Jurchen Jin soldier right in front of them, and suddenly became angry.

  These eight Jin soldiers all belonged to the central army's thousand elite cavalry, and can be said to be the personal guards of the commander-in-chief of the Jin Eastern Route Army, Zong Wang. These people were all selected from the entire army for their mastery of combat techniques and rich battle experience as old veterans. Any ordinary soldier placed in another unit would be a candidate for squad leader or platoon leader. Due to their responsibility being to absolutely guarantee the safety of the central army, they did not participate in suppressing the rebellion. However, this does not mean that they would allow any prisoners to escape from under their noses.

  Previously, Ah Xing and He Yuanqing's plot was stopped by the eight Jurchen soldiers who were ordered to attack. Since they did not receive orders to pursue, these soldiers did not go further, only planning to drive them back and let their friendly forces surround and kill them. But now it is different, these two southern barbarians actually killed their own tribesmen and plundered horses within the Jurchen soldiers' line of sight. This is an insult and provocation to the great Jurchen warriors, which cannot be tolerated under any circumstances.

  After receiving the order to attack, the eight riders who were originally lined up in a row suddenly reined in their horses and galloped forward. The middle four riders took the center line, while the two outer lines of four riders each formed a fan-shaped radiation, vaguely forming a semi-encirclement.

  "Axing threw a glance at He Yuanqing: 'I'll take the four on the right, and you take the four on the left. Be careful not to let Golden Dog hurt that young man.'"

  He Yuqing glanced at Liu Dai behind Ah Xing, chuckled and said: "Don't mention me, you should also be careful. Hey, I'm telling the brother behind us, it's best to bandage your wound, don't wait until we're rescued, but the blood has run out."

  Liu Dachun smiled with a dry, cracked lip that was slightly pale: "Don't worry about it, it's just a flesh wound, I won't die. Young master, focus on killing the enemy, no need to be distracted by me."

  Two men lashed their whips heavily on the horse's buttocks, and the strong horse let out a long neigh, accelerating forward and rushing out.

  Axing's captured warhorse equipment is relatively complete, with a saddle bow, two quivers of arrows, a spare single-handed axe, and a cavalry arm shield. Originally, there was also a curved knife and a crow's head gun, but they were thrown away when he knocked down that Jin soldier just now.

  Ah Xing bit the curved knife in his mouth, put on his arm shield, and then took out his bow and arrow. Whoosh! An arrow shot out, and a Jin soldier who was charging forward reacted extremely quickly, twisting his body, and the arrow hit his shoulder. His body shook, but he didn't fall off his horse.

  At this time, the golden soldiers on both sides also raised their bows and shot two arrows in succession.

  A Xing swiftly used the bow in his hand to deflect an arrow, and then used his arm shield to block another feathered arrow. Then he took aim again, this time his target was the enemy's horse.

  With a whoosh, an arrow hit the horse's head, and the warhorse let out a mournful cry as it fell to the ground. The Jin soldier with the arrow in his shoulder was caught off guard and flew off the horse's head. He was unlucky enough to land on his shoulder, causing the arrow that had been lodged there to penetrate deep into his ribcage, piercing his lungs and heart, killing him instantly.

  The three Jin soldiers who were surrounding and killing him were shocked and angry, they all raised their bows and shot, the arrows pierced through the air, and the three arrows intersected as they arrived.

  A Xing put away his bow and arrow, one hand pressed the horse's head, the other hand pressed Liu Da, while his body bent down to the lowest point. Three sharp arrows flew over his back at the same time, one of which scratched his brown clothes, it was really dangerous.

  A Heng's heart sank, knowing that his own riding and shooting skills were not bad, but they were not his strong suit, and he couldn't compare to these nomadic warriors who rode horses and shot arrows as easily as eating. And now he had to take on three of them at once, he really didn't know how he would die. The only way out was to get close, engage in hand-to-hand combat, and render the enemy's bows and arrows useless.

  At this thought, Ah Xing resolutely turned the horse's head to the right, took down the large curved knife from his mouth, and rushed towards the nearest and outermost Jin soldier. The two sides charged towards each other, and in the blink of an eye, they were about to collide. Because the enemy was too close, the other two Jin soldiers on the side also had to put down their bows and arrows, take out their swords, and rush after them.

  Ah-ching wielded his sword, Jin Bing swung his short axe, the two riders rapidly closed in, their blades clashing - there was no expected metallic ringing sound, only a crisp cracking noise. The hardwood handle of Jin Bing's short axe, as thick as an egg, was severed with one strike, and at the same time, so was his neck.

  A Xing tightened the reins, and the war horse charged forward for over a dozen steps before turning back. Behind them, two Jin soldiers were chasing after them, each wielding a wolf-toothed club and a spiked mace.

  A Xing raised the curved knife in front of his eyes, cutting off a handle and adding a head, and the curved knife also cracked open a finger-sized gap. Although it can still be used, the two Jinbing who came to kill were holding heavy weapons, and after a few hard knocks, this knife was about to break. A Xing took a deep breath, drove his horse, and charged fearlessly at the enemy.

  In the instant when three horses crossed each other, two Jin soldiers on both sides took advantage of their powerful horse strength and speed to heavily strike their heavy weapons at Ah Xing.

  Ah Xing's lips were tightly pursed, his eyes gleaming like a sharp knife. The moment he came into contact with the enemy, his hands suddenly parted. The shield on his left forearm accurately blocked the hammer's impact, but the heavy blow also shattered the shield into pieces. At the same time, Ah Xing's right hand curved knife collided heavily with the wolf-toothed club that was swung at him. In the ear-piercing sound of metal clashing, seven or eight iron teeth on the wolf-toothed club were cut off by the knife blade. Similarly, the curved knife also snapped in two from its original notch under the powerful impact of the wolf-toothed club.

  The change in Ah Xing's move was extremely swift, as if the curved knife had snapped in mid-air. But he saw his body leaning heavily to the right, his right arm stretching out long, the broken blade swinging back swiftly, and at the same time breaking open the golden soldier's helmet neck guard and the large artery on the side of his neck. The golden soldier dropped his wolf-toothed club, covered his neck, and stumbled off his horse.

  Two rounds, two gold soldiers were killed, and one gold soldier was left.

  A Xing didn't plan to fight him again, he quickly threw down the broken blade, picked up a single-handed short axe from the side of the horse saddle, and turned his head to shout at Liu: "Duck!"

  Liu Da was shocked and bowed his head low, Ah Xing turned around and threw out a flying axe. The short axe spinning like the wind heavily chopped into the back of the Jin soldier wielding a nail-headed hammer twenty steps behind the chaotic horse, cutting him down from his horse.

  Axing, who had just killed four Jin soldiers, was slightly panting, with beads of sweat visible on his forehead. He moved his left arm slightly, and it seemed to be okay, although it felt a bit numb and sore, possibly swollen, but it wouldn't affect the upcoming battle.

  With Ah Xing's combat strength, it wasn't enough to kill four squad leaders and ten squad-level Jin soldiers, his physical strength had already declined to this point. This was all because of the food rations provided by the Jin army for the prisoners, which basically consisted of black beans mixed with a small amount of crushed millet, only about one he (about 3-4 liang). Such rations, for horses, would be excellent high-quality feed, but for humans... hmm, it wouldn't starve you to death, but don't expect to have any energy.

  The saddle of the war horse that Ah Xing had captured had a dry ration bag containing dried meat and hardtack, as well as a water skin, showing how fully equipped the Jin soldiers were. Ah Xing wanted to replenish his strength, but there was no time - on the other side, He Yuanqing was surrounded by three Jin soldiers who were trying to kill him.

  When Ah Xing single-handedly took down four Jin soldiers, He Yuanqing also clashed with another four Jin soldiers.

  If the four Jin soldiers shot arrows at He Yuanqing from a distance, it would be enough for this kid to drink a pot. Those Jin soldiers were also thinking of doing something, but at this time He Yuanqing made a special move: he raised his chin high, stretched out his arms wide, and a short axe kept spinning in the palm of his left hand, revealing an unspoken contempt and provocation.

  Four Jin soldiers were apparently enraged. In terms of martial arts, the Jin soldiers had never been afraid of the Song people. Especially these few Jin soldiers, they were the elite among the elite, and claimed to be able to defeat 100 Song soldiers alone. Just like the psychological advantage of Japanese soldiers over Chinese soldiers in later generations, how could they be afraid of this kind of direct challenge?

  Seeing the four Jin soldiers put down their bows and arrows, three of them dismounted and stood still, while only one of them, also wielding a short axe, stepped forward to duel alone. He Yuanqing secretly let out a sigh of relief; he was not even as good as Ah Xing in horseback archery, how could he dare to play this game with the Jin soldiers? Deciding the outcome with bravery suited him just fine, and it was one on one, which couldn't be better.

  He Yuanqing burst out laughing and said to Ahji in his arms: "Take a good look, that horse will be your mount later."

  The two sides quickly approached each other, both holding their short axes at an angle, getting closer and closer... Ajie's eyes widened, his whole body stiffened, staring blankly at the axe blade flashing with a faint blue light, growing larger and larger in his pupils...

  At the moment when the two horses crossed, He Yuanqing pressed down Ajige's thin body with force. The two short axes collided heavily together. In the midst of sparks flying everywhere, He Yuanqing shook his hand and the two short axes flew up into the sky simultaneously. He Yuanqing stretched out one hand suddenly, grabbed Jin Bing's arm that he didn't have time to withdraw, and pulled him down from the horse with great force. At the same time, He Yuanqing threw Ajige's small body into the air, just landing on the back of a riderless horse. If not for Ajige hugging the horse's neck in time, he would probably have fallen off.

  He Yuanqing burst out laughing and shouted at Aji who was running further and further away: "Kid, if you can turn your head around, that horse is yours!"

  Aji shouted loudly while struggling to sit steadily on the back of the stumbling horse: "Don't worry, just watch!"

  He Yuanching, who had just taken down his opponent in one move, then made another move that drove Jin Bing crazy: he lifted the sturdy body of the captured Jin Bing high and slammed it to the ground like a stone. With a loud crash, dust flew everywhere, and Jin Bing let out a miserable cry, spitting blood with every breath, probably not far from death.

  The remaining three Jin soldiers' eyes turned red, and in that instant, the situation developed too quickly. By the time they reacted, it was already too late to rescue him. Enraged, they simultaneously spurred their horses forward, brandishing their long spears and short blades towards He Yuanqing. But what could He Yuanqing use to defend himself? Pitifully, he only had a small arm shield.

  The original owner of the horse that He Yuanqing seized was a Aliji soldier. It's also clear that there won't be any complete equipment, and it's already good to have a short axe paired with an arm shield. There was originally a bow and arrow, but Zhang Li picked them up.

  He Yuanqing is now relying on this arm shield, which is only the size of a face disk, to barely block the pursuit and killing of three Jin soldiers. Fortunately, there are no heavy weapons like wolf-tooth clubs among them, otherwise he would have to play empty-handed against white blades - although, whether he has the level of Yu Zai or not is hard to say.

  He Yuanqing was indeed very fierce, but not strong enough to take on three ten-fu-long-level veterans armed with weapons bare-handed. Mounted combat is different from infantry combat, and the most important thing is the weapon, especially long-range weapons have an advantage. When both sides engage, it often takes only one encounter to determine life or death, and what's being compared is experience, bravery, eyesight, accuracy, arm strength, and other practical things. Without any fancy moves, it's just a straightforward attack, with no room for error, and the outcome is decided in an instant. Those scenes of two horses clashing, turning around each other, and the generals on horseback engaging in dozens of rounds of fierce fighting only appear in historical dramas and novels, but in actual combat, it's a completely different story.

  So He Yuanqing is now running east and west, opening up distance, occasionally using his arm shield to block the Jin army's close-range attacks, but unfortunately he has no inch of steel in his hand and cannot counterattack.

  Just then, Ah Xing arrived.