At the beginning of the rising sun, the horn sounded in the camp of the Northwest Army in the west of Bianliang City, and a large number of soldiers and horses were assembled in a nervous dispatch.

As a soldier and horse stationed in the Western Xia grassland for a long time in chaos and resistance, the Northwest Army should be the soldier and horse who has experienced the most battles among the soldiers and horses of the Great Zhou. Although the soldiers and horses in the northeastern border towns have had friction with the Liao people for many years, the scale and intensity of their operations are far from being comparable with those of the Northwest Army. Moreover, the Northwest Army should be the most unique combat method in the Great Zhou Dynasty soldier and horse sequence.

Because the purpose of the Northwest Army stationed in the Xixia grassland was to maintain the security of what was already known as the Xixia Road and suppress the resistance of the local tribes. Fighting in the grassland desert of Western Xia requires a strong cavalry-based soldier and horse, not a soldier and horse who is good at defending cities and fortifying fortifications like other Great Zhou soldiers and horses, but does not have much achievements in cavalry combat. Of the 250,000 troops in the northwest, nearly 200,000 of them are cavalry, which should be the most powerful cavalry force in the Great Zhou army. That's what makes them unique.

Of course, there are gains and losses, and the main army is a cavalry suitable for running and fighting on the grassland desert, so compared with the traditional Great Zhou soldiers and horses, they lack siege combat capabilities. This is also the reason why they were blocked by more than 100,000 Liao defenders under the city of Taiyuan, and they could not conquer Taiyuan for more than a month. Because cavalry siege is not a good idea, the Northwest Army also does not have much training and combat for siege, and there are no strong cities in the northwest grassland that they need to attack. So in the end, it was only by collecting a bunch of siege equipment from the surrounding state capitals that he completed the conquest of Taiyuan Mansion.

But the flaws are not hidden, and the current scene of this army of 150,000 cavalry gathered outside Xicheng still gives people an overwhelming sense of oppression. The 150,000 cavalry stretched for more than ten miles outside the West City, and the scene of people shouting horses neighing and horns sounding shook the heavens and the earth.

Yuan Zhenqian was dressed in black chain mail and a bright silver-winged helmet and sat on a black high-headed horse. The red tassel on the helmet burned like a red flame in the morning sun, and the blue cloak behind him hunted in the cold wind, like a cloud of green smoke. Yuan Zhenqian, who was in the prime of life, rode his horse to stand on the high platform of the middle camp, and he had a solemn temperament. The angular cheekbones on his face were bulging, and a scar on the side of his nose did not destroy his temperament, but only increased his bravery.

Originally, according to the plan, today's northwest army was going to enter the capital, but at this moment, the assembly of the army was not to enter the city.

Last night in Lu Zhongtian's study, Lu Zhongtian and Yuan Zhenqian put their hearts in their hearts, saying that they would give up the post of privy envoy of the Great Zhou to Yuan Zhenqian. However, in order for Yuan Zhenqian to perform his duties better, to better convince the unruly generals of the forbidden army, and to enable Yuan Zhenqian to win a higher prestige in a short period of time, Lu Zhongtian made a suggestion to Yuan Zhenqian.

Lu Zhongtian told Yuan Zhenqian that as soon as the Northwest Army arrived, the total number of soldiers and horses of the Great Zhou Dynasty had exceeded 350,000. And after yesterday's failed siege, the Jurchen army's 300,000 troops still had a maximum of 2340,000 soldiers and horses. The number of Jurchen soldiers and horses has greatly exceeded the number of their own troops, and they have been completely crushed regardless of morale and equipment. In such a situation, the Jurchens should be attacked in a quick way.

Lü Zhongtian told Yuan Zhenqian that his plan was that tomorrow Yuan Zhenqian would lead 150,000 cavalry of the Northwest Army to attack the Jurchen army from the west, and he would order the general to lead 150,000 forbidden troops out of the city to attack from the east. The two armies were in a state of horns, smashing the Jurchen army to pieces. In this battle, their own side has an overall advantage, there is no suspense of victory, and the Jurchens will inevitably collapse. In this way, Yuan Zhenqian's Northwest Army will inevitably make great achievements as the main force of cavalry, and Yuan Zhenqian will also become famous for this battle, impressing the people of the forbidden army and the Chinese Wujing City. After that, he struck while the iron was hot and gave up the position of privy envoy to Yuan Zhenqian, and there was no objection from top to bottom. Because of this relief of the siege of Bianliang, the merit of defeating the powerful Jurchen enemy will silence all those who question it.

When Yuan Zhenqian heard such a plan, he actually had some doubts in his heart at first, and felt that it seemed that things were not so simple. But he was a little confused by Lu Zhongtian's words before, and Lu Zhongtian's heartfelt words made him doubt Guo Xu's words, so he was a little hesitant. But in the end, the reason why he agreed to this suggestion was that he believed that now that Guo Xu and Lu Zhongtian had agreed to be his privy envoy, this was a sure deal. And originally had the idea of attacking the Jurchens, the Jurchens were demoralized after the defeat in the siege yesterday, and their 150,000 cavalry should be able to break through the enemy camp with a thunderous sweep. I don't want to give this credit to others. Once the soldiers and horses enter the city, their cavalry runs to defend the city, that is to turn the active into passive, even if the defense of the city is successful, it is not their own credit. So to a certain extent, Lu Zhongtian is right, he wants to break the Jurchen soldiers and horses and take this Tongtian credit in his arms. At that time, no one would be able to question the office of the privy councillor.

In this battle, Yuan Zhenqian believed that the victory rate was as high as ninety-percent, and there was no possibility of losing if the forbidden army was flanking on the other side. Even without the help of the forbidden army, Yuan Zhenqian was full of confidence. The Jurchens were in ragged armor and short in stature, like a group of monkeys sitting on war horses in tattered clothes, and they did not look human. Is such a soldier worthy of a blow?

The trumpets were blaring, the drums of war were beating, and the air was filled with a solemn atmosphere. The generals rode over to report under the high platform, and the voices were endless.

"Report to Lord Yuan, the left battalion of the forward has completed the army, and wait for the order."

"Report to Lord Yuan, the forward middle battalion has completed the army, wait for the order."

"Report to Lord Yuan, the forward lancer battalion is ready......

“…… The cavalry battalion is ready......"

“…… The Long Knife Battalion is ready......"

Yuan Zhenqian nodded coldly, frowned and looked in the direction of Bianliang City, and asked in a deep voice, "Is there any news about the forbidden army in the city?" How's the preparation going over there? ”

A

The general said in a loud voice: "There is no news from the forbidden army yet, but the scouts have come to report, and the Jurchen army camp seems to be aware of it, and has begun to dispatch troops. ”

Yuan Zhenqian frowned and groaned for a moment, raised his head suddenly, and said sharply: "Don't wait for the forbidden army, we can't delay the fighter, wait any longer, the daylily will be cold." Passing on our military order, the whole army assaulted, maintained the formation, and went straight to the Jurchen camp. Tonight, Ben Shuai is going to use Yan Aguda's skull as a wine bowl to drink. ”

All the generals shouted in unison: "Obey!" ”

The drums of war shook the sky, and the trumpets sounded. Under the rising sun, 150,000 northwest cavalry began to move towards the snow field in Beicheng. The vast open wilderness and snow field northwest of Bianliang City provided a battlefield for the cavalry to gallop, and the Northwest Army of the Great Zhou Dynasty and the Jurchen camp were originally only separated by a distance of only ten miles, but in a quarter of an hour, the cavalry of the Northwest Army of the Great Zhou Dynasty arrived several miles away from the Jurchen camp, and the cavalry of the front army could already see the Jurchen cavalry running back and forth in the Jurchen camp from a distance.

"Kill!" Yuan Zhenqian raised the long knife in his hand and let out a loud roar. For a while, the sound of shouting and killing shook the sky, and tens of thousands of cavalry of the Northwest Forward Battalion drew their long knives and roared in unison. The long knife is like a forest, shining with a dazzling halo in the sun, and like the sparkling light of the waves shining in the sun, surging and brilliant.

The Jurchen army had apparently discovered the movements of the Great Zhou Northwest Army not long ago, and they were obviously well prepared. In the middle of the camp, tens of thousands of Jurchen cavalry rushed out of the camp and charged head-on without fear. The two sides are like two turbulent torrents, colliding fiercely together in less than a tea time. When the soldiers and horses of the two sides collided together, it was as if time had frozen at that moment.

The blood mist was fluffy, the stumps and severed arms flew down, and the blood-sprayed human head flew up and spun in the air. The clashing of blades, the sharp grinding of blades piercing armor, the sound of maces hitting helmets, the neighing of horses, the screams of terror before dying, the cursing of the killer, the wails of the slain. All the sounds are intertwined in this moment. Not only is the scene of the flesh and blood of the two sides flying as far as the eye can see, but also all the sounds are in the ears at the same time, forming a terrifying sound wave that pours into the ears.

In that moment, everything froze. But the next moment, the head fell to the ground, the blood stained the snow, and the horses and knights fell to the ground. The moment the two sides collided, hundreds of lives were taken in an instant, and thousands were injured.

……

Guo Xu slept soundly last night, and defeating the siege of the Jurchens was the first reassuring thing, but more importantly, the incident that succeeded in persuading Yuan Zhenqian to be loyal to him last night would subvert the pattern of the entire imperial court. With Yuan Zhenqian's help, he will no longer be alone. With the 200,000 Northwest Army as the backing, Lu Zhongtian definitely did not dare to act rashly. Therefore, Guo Xu slept very peacefully last night, and he even felt that this was the most solid night he had ever slept in his life.

However, when he opened his eyes, he received news that shocked him. Someone reported that Lord Yuan led the Northwest Army to fight a decisive battle with the Jurchens outside the northern city, which made Guo Xu stunned. said that the army entered the city today, why did it suddenly start a decisive battle with the Jurchens? Although the Jurchens failed in the siege, their main force was still there, and at this time, could they win a decisive battle with them? Why did Yuan Zhenqian take this risk?

Guo Xu hurriedly got up, changed into armor and robes and rode to Beicheng. On the wall of the northern city, Lu Zhongtian and a group of main generals of the forbidden army had already watched the battle here. Lu Zhongtian even ordered someone to move the desk and the Taishi chair, drinking tea while watching the battle.

"What's going on? Why did Yuan Zhenqian fight the Jurchens? Who gave the order? Guo Xu didn't even have time to watch the battlefield outside the city that shouted to kill the earth-shattering, so he asked Lu Zhongtian.

Lu Zhongtian smiled faintly: "Who gave the order?" Isn't it your emperor's order? ”

Guo Xu said angrily: "How can it be me? I didn't give such an order. ”

Lu Zhongtian sneered: "The emperor wanted to appoint him as a privy envoy last night, of course Yuan Zhenqian wanted to show it. So today, in order to prove his ability, he led his Northwest Army to take the initiative to attack the Jurchens. He wants to make a great contribution to the five-body body that we all admire him, and prove that he is the best candidate for the privy envoy. Although the emperor did not give an order, didn't this give an indirect order? ”

Guo Xu was speechless and frowned at the battlefield. The ant-like battle between the two sides under the city is in full swing, and the follow-up soldiers and horses of both sides are preparing in the rear, and more troops are about to be put into the battlefield, and the fierce battle between the two sides will be more fierce. At this moment, it seems to be a balanced situation, but Guo Xu remembered something, and suddenly the cold hairs on his body stood on end.

"Since the war has already started, why didn't Lu Xiang send the forbidden army to participate in the battle. At this moment, sending the cavalry of the forbidden army to outflank from the east side, forming a two-sided flank attack, wouldn't it be possible to break the Jurchen soldiers and horses? Guo Xu said loudly.

"It's easy to say, fighting a war is not a game, the battlefield is ever-changing, who can guarantee victory?" Lu Zhongtian said coldly.

"But you just watched the Northwest Army fight the Jurchens alone? The Jurchens have heavy cavalry, don't you know? Shouldn't we be able to help immediately? Yuan Zhenqian is afraid that he can't resist it. Guo Xu stomped his feet and shouted.

Lu Zhongtian took a sip of tea and said lightly: "Your Majesty, that's his own choice, the forbidden army in the capital has less than 160,000 soldiers to fight, and less than 60,000 cavalry, how to support?" It is a stupid move to fight the Jurchens head-on, Yuan Zhenqian has already committed a taboo by sending troops to fight with him privately, he is stupid, should we also make mistakes? Once the forbidden army loses and the losses are huge, what protection will Bianliang have? It is impossible to send troops, and we can only wait and see what happens. ”

Guo Xu's heart was cold, he sneered and pointed at Lu Zhongtian and said, "I understand, you are not saving you when you die." You hope Yuan Zhenqian is defeated, right? You must have given the order to attack. Lu Zhongtian, I can see through your thoughts, it must be you, I'm sure

It's you. You just want to prevent Yuan Zhenqian's soldiers and horses from entering the city, are you afraid that you won't be able to control the situation after he enters the city? Hahaha, Lu Xiang, my good grandfather, my Great Zhou Jiangshan is going to die at the hands of you old thief. You...... You're so ruthless. ”

Lu Zhongtian's face was furious, Guo Xu was still smart, he guessed the truth of the matter at once, it was really rare. But even so, so what? He no longer cares if he knows the truth or not, he has already made a decision. When the chamberlain lurking in the Chongzheng Hall told Lu Zhongtian about the overheard conversation between the emperor and Yuan Zhenqian last night, Lu Zhongtian made a decision. The layer of hypocrisy between him and Guo Xu is about to be torn off, and there is no need to cover it up at all. Guo Xu wants to let Yuan Zhenqian's soldiers and horses enter the city, how is that possible? After Yuan Zhenqian's army entered the city, he no longer had the ability to control Guo Xu. If he really wants to fight, the good situation he managed so hard will be over, so he must make a final decision.

He actually wanted to kill Yuan Zhenqian directly last night. But the Northwest Army is completely outside his control, and the generals of the Northwest Army are not his own people. In order to win over Yuan Zhenqian, he deliberately did not carry out a purge operation against the Northwest Army, so killing Yuan Zhenqian would not work, but would anger the 200,000 soldiers and horses of the Northwest Army, leaving a huge hidden danger for himself. So the way he thought of was to trick Yuan Zhenqian into fighting with the Jurchens. He knew that the Jurchens were powerful, and the Tiefutu heavy cavalry was invincible, and Yuan Zhenqian didn't know that the Jurchens had the existence of the Tiefutu cavalry, and of course he wouldn't tell him this. Let him die. If he wins, the Northwest Army will also lose most of it, and it will be unable to compete with him. It is better for him to lose, he will die at the hands of the Jurchens. And you just need to sit on the mountain and watch the tiger fight, and watch the play well.

"Your Majesty, you've started to talk nonsense, you know? The old minister has a heart to serve the country, how can you insult the old minister and misunderstand the old minister? No matter how bad the old minister is, he is also your grandfather, and the emperor really doesn't care about the rules. No wonder the emperor even dared to kill his father and brother and the queen mother, does the emperor even want to kill the old man today? Lu Zhongtian said coldly.

Guo Xu's face turned pale, Lu Zhongtian even said such a thing, it was already a complete tear with himself. When the usurpation of the throne that the court and himself had tried so hard to deny came out of his mouth, it was to tell everyone that the matter had been confirmed. Lu Zhongtian pushed himself out, he dissociated himself and didn't want to be the defender of the secret. He abandoned himself completely.

"Who wants to lead the army out of the city with me to kill the enemy? After breaking the enemy, he will be a great hero of my Great Zhou, and I will reuse him as a high-ranking official and treat him as a father and brother. Who wants to serve the country at this time? Guo Xu asked loudly.

None of the people standing beside Lu Zhongtian answered, and they all looked at him with disdainful and indifferent eyes.

"Hee-hee-hee...... It's not a good thing to be treated by the emperor as a father and brother. Who dares to be the emperor's father and brother? When the time comes, I don't know how I died. Lu Tianci said with a hippie smile, and everyone immediately burst into laughter.

Guo Xu's face turned red, gritted his teeth and said, "Okay, you all don't want to, I will go by myself." Even if I fight for this life, I will help Yuan Zhenqian retreat from the enemy. ”

Guo Xu turned around and left. Lu Zhongtian's faint voice came from behind him: "Your Majesty, you can't go anywhere." Come and send the emperor back to the palace, without the old man's order, the emperor can't go anywhere. ”

Guo Xu turned around in shock, he saw Lu Zhongtian's indifferent gaze, and his heart was cold.

……

The battle outside the city has entered a white heat, and most of the soldiers and horses fighting in the first echelon of the two sides have been killed or wounded. At present, it seems that the situation is evenly matched, and the Northwest Army seems to have a slight upper hand. This is a remarkable thing, and it is rare for the soldiers and horses of the Great Zhou to be able to stabilize their positions and even gain the upper hand in a head-to-head battle with the northern cavalry. This was due to the experience of the Northwest Army in fighting in the Western Xia steppe for many years.

The fierceness of the Jurchens lies in their skill in hand-to-hand combat and their superb riding skills, and they truly achieve the unity of man and horse, and can play all kinds of tricks on horseback. The advantage of the Northwest cavalry lies in discipline and coordination, they cooperate with each other to charge and fight collectively, on the surface it looks like a dozen cavalry with a dozen horses surrounded and attacked by the Jurchens, but in fact that is their tactic. In fact, the Jurchens had not encountered a real strong enemy after attacking the Great Zhou, and the Northwest Army they encountered at this moment was the first strong opponent they encountered in a head-on battle, so the battle between the two sides was even more tragic and evenly matched.

After yesterday's siege failure, Wanyan Aguda was very angry. In the face of the Northwest Army that suddenly appeared, Wanyan Agu was extremely unwilling to order to stop the siege. But with Wanyan Aguda's character, he refused to stop there, but many generals under his account suggested that they withdraw their troops immediately, because the number of soldiers and horses on the other side was already much higher than his own, and Bianliang could not be attacked.

Wanyan Aguda and everyone discussed for a long time, and finally adopted Li Guoqiu's suggestion and prepared to lead the army eastward to capture a large area in the Jingdong area, especially Yingtianfu. In this way, there is a foundation based on this. If the other party sends troops to stop it, it is unwanted, and Wanyan Agu understands that only the field side is the only way for him to win. Once the field battle is head-on, Wanyan Agu has full confidence. If the other party can't shrink back, then he will stand firm and sweep the land of Jingdong, and even march to the land of Jianghuai. In that case, it's a long-term approach. Although Wanyan Aguda didn't want to do this, it could only be so.

However, the news that came in the early hours of the morning made Wanyan Agu very excited. The Northwest Army of the Great Zhou actually showed signs of attacking, which was great news. What I was most afraid of was that they would shrink into the city, but I didn't expect the other party to want to take the initiative to attack, wouldn't it be right in the middle of it. Therefore, when the Northwest Army launched an attack, the Jurchen army was already ready to face the battle.