Chapter 44: Battle of the Wasteland

  "After the Spring Festival ceremony is over, I will prepare to return to Hetao." Haotian said without hesitation: "Now there are still 800,000 cavalrymen under my command fighting outside the pass. At that time, they were allowed to rush thousands of miles away in order to reduce our pressure as much as possible and consume the enemy's war potential. Now it seems that this decision was a bit hasty at the beginning. So I want to go back early to welcome their return."

  He nodded: "Now the three countries in Northeast China are empty, but each country can still mobilize at least 200,000 troops. A thousand miles of rushing, is indeed a big move, but the risk is also very great. Winter ice and snow sealed the ground, which is originally unfavorable for combat. However, if all were light cavalry, it would be much better. It's just that Yelu Changhai of Mandan and Jinmei Liu of Haixi are not weak, and Kasinbas, the military commander of Baying, is still in the country. If this man takes action, your 80,000 cavalry will inevitably have a hard time."

  Hao Tian was shocked again: "Kasimbas? Who is this person? Why haven't I heard of him before?"

  "This man is the most renowned general beyond the Great Wall, with a reputation that has lasted for over sixty years. However, since the great commander was recalled from the Eastern Northeastern Long Wall defense line to the Heavenly Capital twenty-odd years ago, this person has been in seclusion within the country. As a result, few people have heard of his name since then, and you, General, are not even from the same era as him, so it's natural that you wouldn't know about him. However, this man is truly unfathomable. In his youth, at the age of fourteen, he led three hundred cavalrymen in a surprise attack on the Northern Army Corps' main camp, beheading over ten thousand soldiers and earning his reputation from that battle alone. From then on, he roamed freely beyond the Great Wall, becoming the bane of the Northern Army Corps. Even when our great commander was at the height of his power, he could only manage to fight this man to a draw. At that time, our country was still relatively strong, and although Kasinbas won battle after battle, he was ultimately unable to breach the Great Wall defense line. Later, when the great commander returned, this person let out a long sigh, saying 'the world is vast, but there are no more worthy opponents,' and then resigned from his post and went into hiding, disappearing without a trace. However, two years ago, the reason why the three countries of the Eastern Northeast were able to break through the Great Wall defense line in one fell swoop, annihilating the Northern Army Corps and the eight hundred thousand garrison troops, was all thanks to this man's plan."

  When Haotian was still in Tiandu Shengjing worrying about the appearance of Kasinbas, the legendary first general outside the pass, Xinkou, who was in the midst of the great army, had already deeply felt the old man's ferocity.

  When the first reinforcements arrived, they were the 40,000 cavalry led by Chun Jian Xiang. He and Xin Ke were both vanguards of the main army, but compared to Xin Ke's impulsive and reckless charge, he was undoubtedly more rational. His army had always maintained a distance of ten miles from the Blood Killers' army, and when he discovered that Xin Ke was surrounded, he did not rush into the battlefield impulsively, but instead sent a message to the Blood Killers' army behind him before dividing his 40,000 cavalry into two divisions. One division of 20,000 men was led by himself, while the other division of 20,000 men was led by his deputy, Sun De Min.

  The four thousand cavalrymen of Chun Jian's reward were all the robust men from the sixteen states of Youyun, who had been kidnapped. Although they were northerners, they had also been familiar with horseback riding and archery, but they were not strictly trained soldiers after all. However, relying on their passion and their deep-seated hatred for the foreign tribes outside the pass, their combat power was also remarkable. The commander of the infantry phalanx of the Mandan dynasty was caught off guard and his defense line was opened up with just one charge. Then, across the tens of thousands of infantrymen in between, Xinkai and Chun Jian's reward looked at each other from afar in the chaotic army.

  "Brothers, reinforcements have arrived! Follow me in a charge!" With a loud shout, the morale of his two thousand plus cavalrymen was instantly boosted, and they wielded their weapons with even greater force.

  Although Xinkai was somewhat reckless, he was by no means a brave but brainless warrior on the battlefield. Seeing Mandan's infantry starting to squeeze in towards the center to prevent his two cavalry units from meeting, Xinkai immediately turned his horse around and charged towards his own flank. The soldiers on Mandan's flank were clearly caught off guard by Xinkai's sudden abandonment of the most likely opportunity for a rendezvous, and at that moment they were thrown into disarray by Xinkai's surprise attack, with thousands of cavalrymen instantly scattered by Xinkai.

  "Rubbish! So many people can't even stop the enemy's 2,000 cavalry!" Yelü Minghuang cursed viciously on the mountain ridge. However, after cursing, he thought that this was his main team after all, and couldn't help but feel a pang of heartache. He carefully asked the old man beside him: "Kheshig, do you think we should send some reinforcements?"

  "Go. Your 20,000 soldiers had to leave early. Alas, I originally thought that these 2,000 cavalrymen should be fish in a barrel, but unexpectedly their leader is so brave and fierce. Second Prince, you have your 20,000 soldiers surround these 2,000 cavalrymen tightly, such a brave leader, such united soldiers, they will surely come to rescue them at all costs. As long as we can attract their main force around these 2,000 cavalrymen, our plan is already half successful." Kashinbas sighed and said, but in his heart he was secretly admiring, the great dynasty of China really has a lot of talented people, such a brave general, it's hard to find one like him even after a hundred years in his own country. And yet, he's just a governor of Qingfeng River Suite. The divine state of China is indeed not to be underestimated.

  As Yelü Minghuang's 20,000-strong army arrived in time, the attack that was like a tidal wave was suddenly blocked. Although Xinkai was invincible and his soldiers were seasoned veterans, facing an enemy force ten times their own size, they eventually showed signs of fatigue after a prolonged battle. The balance on the battlefield began to shift towards Mandan's direction again. Fortunately, the task of these 20,000 soldiers was only to pin down Xinkai, not to annihilate him, so they were only passively defending, leaving a glimmer of hope for Xinkai.

  The troops on the side of Xin Ke were surrounded, and the side of Chun Jian Shang was not much better. His subordinates had never experienced any military training, their morale was exceptionally high, but in this battlefield that required more coordination and teamwork, they lacked experience and quickly fell into a disadvantageous position. However, facing an enemy army several times larger than themselves, they did not show any fear, even when swords were pressed against them, they did not retreat half a step, instead, they fought to the death, inserting their weapons into the bodies of their opponents, only then did they fall to the ground with a sense of relief. In that instant, they may not have been worthy of the title of excellent warriors, but they were undoubtedly fearless national warriors. For the sake of the tens of millions of people in Tian Chao, for the sake of their hometown and family in Shen Zhou, they gave up their lives without hesitation. Their eyes had a sense of reluctance, a sense of nostalgia, but not a hint of fear, perhaps their only regret was that the place where they fell was not their own country.

  Just as the battle was at a critical juncture, Sun Demin's 20,000 cavalry joined the battlefield in a timely manner. The Qing soldiers who were originally struggling to hold on suddenly regained their morale, and the disadvantage in troop numbers was immediately reversed. With 40,000 against 40,000, Chun Jian Shang, with high morale, even began to try to regain control of the battlefield. However, there was no joy in Chun Jian Shang's eyes, only deep worry. Since the enemy had carefully laid out such a trap, they would not have any other preparations. In this situation, they were still able to remain calm and not make a move, which could only mean that their ambitions were even greater. And their sole target was the 70,000-strong army behind him. Just then, a cavalry force of about 40,000 suddenly emerged from the wilderness, and Chun Jian Shang's heart suddenly relaxed, at least his mission had been accomplished.

  "Damn it! Who ordered that battalion to expose themselves prematurely?" Kassinbas thundered from the hill.

  "General Ka, it's an order from Young King Wang." Yelü Minghuang stepped forward with a slightly trembling heart. Although he had also experienced many years of bloody battles on the battlefield and was a prince of the Mandan Kingdom, when facing this old general who had dominated the six decades outside the pass, he still felt somewhat apprehensive.

  Kasimbas's eyes were wide open, his silver hair was blown by the windless air, but his voice was exceptionally calm as he spoke to Yelü Minghuan: "If this commander hasn't remembered wrongly, at the beginning, Commander Yelü had handed over the command of the battle to this commander. This point, even your father the king didn't have any objections. Anyone who doesn't have this commander's orders, if they dare to privately mobilize the troops, is violating military orders and should be beheaded according to the law! Does the Crown Prince really think that this commander dares not behead you?"

  "Reporting to the General, I dare not!" Yelü Minghuan's heart suddenly felt a wave of fear. What kind of person was Kasinbas, who could be undefeated for an entire lifetime on the battlefield and had a reputation as the number one general among the three countries outside the Great Wall? What couldn't he do? Thinking of this, Yelü Minghuan's tone suddenly softened: "I didn't intentionally disobey the General's military order. It's just that if we don't take action, even if we can ultimately annihilate them all, it will definitely be a Pyrrhic victory. The 80,000 soldiers of my King's Guard Battalion will also be severely injured. Moreover, apart from these 40,000 ambush troops, we still have the General's army of 100,000. The enemy has at most 70,000 people. With 100,000 against 70,000, and with the General personally commanding, this battle is sure to win!"

  "If a large number of people can guarantee victory, then where did all the examples of fewer defeating more come from in history? The enemy army is all cavalry, even if they are defeated and flee, it's not difficult to escape. If you let them run wild, do you know how much harm and panic will be caused? As a soldier, one should have the awareness of dying on the battlefield! If you're really afraid of death, then you shouldn't join the army. Are all 80,000 soldiers in your Imperial Guard just soft eggs made of mud? Do you know that the premature appearance of this army will greatly reduce our follow-up attack power!" Kasinbas grew angrier as he spoke, and Yelü Minghuan's mistake had revealed a significant weakness in his carefully laid ambush. The main reason he chose this wilderness as the battlefield was because it was open terrain, making the enemy think there would be no enemy here.

  Actually, his ambush troops had been buried around the area long ago. Before that, Kasinbas had ordered his men to build many sheds with flat roofs in the low-lying areas around, and then covered them with ice and snow, while the soldiers hid underneath. So, at first glance, no one would notice that there was a hidden world under the ice and snow. However, this place is after all open terrain, although it borders a lake, but it's not difficult to escape. Therefore, Kasinbas carefully controlled his troops on the one hand, while closely monitoring the situation on the battlefield on the other hand. He couldn't let the enemy be too strong and shake his own foundation, nor could he destroy them too early. Who knew that the opposing general was not a mediocre person, and Yelü Minghuang was too reckless and impatient, which made Kasinbas's plan go awry.

  Kasimbas actually understood what Yelü Mingyuan was thinking in his heart. Although the three northeastern countries were of the same breath, they were not iron plates internally. Although everyone's interests were the same during the conquest of the south, within the allied army or among the high-level officials of the three countries, intrigue and struggle were a common occurrence. This time he used the 80,000 soldiers of the Mandan royal guard as bait, and it was naturally because this was on Mandan soil, they should serve as the main force. But did he not have any intention of weakening Mandan's military power? Yelü Mingyuan also seemed to see through his thoughts, which is why he let this army come out ahead of time. And there is another very important factor here, King Yelü Chongsang of Mandan has four sons, and until now he has not determined who will inherit the throne, so several sons are eager to move. The guard team has always been Yelü Mingyuan's territory, if it suffers too much loss, it would naturally be harmful to him without any benefit.

  Kasimbas's brow furrowed, and in this battle, he had concentrated all the troops he could gather in a short period. The large army of Yelü Chih and others was now too far away to be of any use, only able to block the enemy's escape route. So, Mandan could concentrate on one battle with just one royal guard battalion, tens of thousands of garrison troops around him, and his own 100,000 Baijing soldiers. However, if he let the enemy escape today, they would not be so easily deceived again in the future. The only hope was that the enemy's main force would not arrive too quickly, or that the enemy commander was a fool similar to Yelü Minghuang. If he could weaken the enemy's 40,000 cavalry by half, then even if the enemy's main force appeared, he would still have sufficient troops in his hands. But things did not go as wished, and with a low, mournful cowhorn sound, the enemy's army had already appeared on the barren plain. And was the enemy commander a fool? Kasimbas suddenly had some expectation.

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