The sky is high and the clouds are light, and the autumn breeze is cool, which is a rare refreshing season of the year. Pen × fun × Pavilion www. ｂｉｑｕｇｅ。 ｉｎｆｏ

A winding cavalry unit was galloping south on the yellow leaves on the ground, and the brigade raised high smoke and dust everywhere.

This cavalry unit is all one man and two horsemen, and it is the vanguard of the southward counterinsurgency led by Yang Wenguang.

After Yang Wenguang received the document that he was appointed as the vanguard of the southward counterinsurgency, because he had prepared in advance, it did not take long to prepare, so he quickly selected the three battalions of elite cavalry and led the troops south. Zhong Hao naturally led the middle battalion of the Pingxi Army to follow Yang Wenguang south.

The marshal of the southward counterinsurgency army will wait for him at the Bashui camp outside Jingzhao Mansion. At that time, he will personally give him the Pioneer Seal, and let him lead the troops to the south in advance.

………………

"The general has an order, the whole army dismounts, and rests for two quarters of an hour!" A herald with a small red flag on his back galloped to the back of the line from the front army and shouted the order.

Hearing the herald's words, Zhong Hao couldn't help but let out a long sigh, he could finally take a rest.

When Yang Wenguang's vanguard heard the herald's shout, the order was forbidden, and soon they galloped to slow down, and then stopped and dismounted.

Generally, it is not an emergency, and the cavalry will not start and stop in a hurry, which can easily hurt the horse.

Zhong Hao, with the help of Wang San, got off the war horse with difficulty.

As soon as the knights got off their horses, they first wiped the sweat off their two horses, and then took off the cloth bags containing the fodder from the pack horses, so that the two horses could eat some forage, and then they sat down on the ground to eat some dry food and replenish some water. War horses are good partners of the cavalry, and they are also the most solid support of the cavalry, and the cavalry will take care of themselves only after settling their partners.

The cavalry needs to cherish its horsepower and maintain its war horses in order to have combat effectiveness. The vanguard army led by Yang Wenguang usually stopped to rest for two quarters of an hour after galloping for more than an hour to recuperate.

In fact, galloping for a long time can still cause great damage to the horse's hooves. Zhong Hao has been thinking about whether to invent the horseshoe these days. I didn't pay attention to it before, and I hadn't galloped so much, and Zhong Hao hadn't found that the war horses of the Great Song Dynasty had not nailed their horseshoes. Zhong Hao remembered this incident when he saw the march of the large army this time, and he took such care and maintenance of the war horses.

This horseshoe is said to have been introduced to China from Europe during the Yuan Dynasty, and there was no custom of nailing horseshoes to horseshoes in this era.

With horse iron, the horse's hooves can be better protected, and the number of horses scrapped due to horseshoe damage can be reduced, which is still very beneficial to the Great Song Dynasty, which lacks war horses.

However, there is no technical difficulty in this thing, and it cannot be kept secret, and it is estimated that if it is invented, it will soon be learned by the Western Xia and Khitan. They all have a large number of cavalry troops, and this horseshoe seems to be more useful to them, if they have a horseshoe, will it make their cavalry force stronger? Will it make the gap between the Great Song and their cavalry widen even more?

This is exactly where Zhong Hao is entangled.

If this horse iron hoof is made, it will cheapen the Tangut and Khitans, then it is better not to build it!

When this matter arrives in Jingzhao Mansion, you must take a good look at it with Yang Wenguang and ask him what he means!

………………

Everyone else was busy, but Zhong Hao got off the horse and sat on the ground, unable to move. Zhong Hao didn't have the strength to take care of his two war horses, so he naturally let Wang San do it for him.

Although Zhong Hao went to Hexi, he often rode horses, and his riding skills have improved greatly, and it is not too bad. But Zhong Hao really hadn't ridden and marched such a long distance. These days, at least one hundred and fifty miles a day are galloping, and now that it is the eighth day, Zhong Hao feels that his body is about to fall apart.

Fortunately, Zhong Hao calculated the distance, and he should be about to arrive at Jingzhao Mansion. When I arrived at Jingzhao Mansion, I should be able to rest for two or three days, and then I could finally take a little rest. More than 1,200 miles from Linzhou to Jingzhao Mansion, the vanguard of the counterinsurgency set out from Linzhou and traveled 1560 miles a day.

Zhong Hao sat on the ground and barely ate a few bites of fried noodles with water, and then he couldn't eat anymore. The inner thighs of the two thighs have already worn out of skin in the past few days, and they have scabbed over when they sleep at night, and they will wear out again the next day, which makes Zhong Hao miserable. However, there is a stubbornness that does not admit defeat, since others can persevere, they will inevitably be able to persevere, so they have been gritting their teeth and persevering.

In fact, a single cavalry traveling 100 miles a day, and a double cavalry traveling 150 miles a day, can only be regarded as a decent march for those elite cavalry of the Zhenxi Army and the Baojing Army, and it cannot be completely regarded as a rapid march.

The cavalry led by Yang Wenguang were all mounted cavalry, so in order to be able to march normally, they had to ride twice, one for riding and the other for carrying armor, weapons, rations and vests.

Of course, the so-called armored cavalry of the Great Song Dynasty is not exactly the same thing as the armored heavy cavalry before the Sui and Tang dynasties. The so-called horse armor of the cavalry of the Great Song Dynasty was actually just leather armor, not the kind of iron armor with a curtain, chicken neck, chest, horse body armor, rear mount, and parasitic before the Sui and Tang dynasties. The so-called mounted cavalry of the Great Song Dynasty actually belongs to the category of light cavalry, but the war horse is dressed in a leather vest, which can better protect the war horse and strengthen the impact when charging into battle.

There was no real armored heavy cavalry in the Great Song Dynasty, which was mainly due to the limited source of horses in the Great Song Dynasty and the low quality of the horses, and the high quality requirements of the armored heavy cavalry on the quality of the war horses, so it was difficult for the Great Song Dynasty to form a real armored heavy cavalry.

However, it is very tragic that the two main enemies of the Great Song Dynasty, Western Xia and Khitan, both have heavy cavalry, Western Xia has the "Iron Harrier", and the Khitan has the Tielin Army, and these two heavy cavalry have become a nightmare for the Great Song Dynasty on the battlefield.

Especially the "Iron Harrier", a heavy cavalry corps of 3,000 people, is the trump card in Li Yuanhao's hand. In the Song-Xia War more than ten years ago, Li Yuanhao often used the "Iron Harrier" as the "front army" to charge into battle. The "Iron Harrier" is well-equipped, riding good horses, heavy armor, and stabbing in, and twisting with hooks and ropes, although it does not fall immediately after death. In case of battle, the iron cavalry will break through the formation first, and the chaos will impact it; The infantry marched on horseback", which was simply a nightmare for the Great Song army. Later generations commented on this cavalry: Before the appearance of the Mongolian iron cavalry that dominated the world, the "Iron Harrier" was the most fierce cavalry in the world, and it was also the nightmare of all party enemies.

Although heavy cavalry can be indestructible at many times, it also has many disadvantages. Although these heavy cavalry are explosive, they cannot last, and they need a lot of auxiliary troops to help them carry armor and horse armor, and also help them with armor. This undoubtedly also limits their transfer speed, etc., so maneuverability is their hard wound.

Yang Wenguang's troops were meant to be the vanguard. The vanguard troops are mainly responsible for the task of reconnoitring the enemy's situation and testing the enemy's strength, and naturally they must have strong mobility, so it is naturally impossible to carry heavy cavalry, nor can they bring auxiliary troops who cannot keep up with the mobility of the troops. The troops led by Yang Wenguang were three battalions of soldiers, plus the middle battalion of the Pingxi Army, and there were no auxiliaries.

Until there is a chance to fight the Nong Zhigao army, these war horse armors will not be used for the time being. The reason why Yang Wenguang brought the armored cavalry was only so that when he had the opportunity to fight head-on with Nong Zhigao's army, he could ask for orders as an arrow to charge into battle and boost the prestige of the Yang general.

………………

After Wang San was done, he also sat down next to Zhong Hao, took out a sheepskin bag and drank a few sips of water, and ate some fried noodles with the water, and then sighed, and seemed to be much more comfortable. Wang San has always been Zhong Hao's personal guard, unlike the Pingxi Army Battalion, which practices every day, and often conducts long-distance cycling exercises. The soldiers in the middle battalion of the Pingxi Army have now improved their riding skills a lot, and this kind of strength of the march is nothing. In fact, Wang San has never ridden for such a long time, and it is the first time that he has marched with this intensity, but he has laid the foundation for practicing martial arts, and his body is very strong, and he can still hold on.

This fried noodles are also Zhong Hao's method, which is made of wheat just harvested this autumn with some lard and dried vegetables and dried meat, fried and ground into flour.

After Zhong Hao told Yang Wenguang about this method, Yang Wenguang asked people to try it out and found that it was really good. This chow mein is really good as a marching ration.

Of course, this fried noodles are now only used as rations for the troops on the march. Now in the interior of the Great Song Dynasty, it is not safe to meet the enemy by lighting a fire to cook, and when camping at night, it is still cooking properly.

Yang Huaiyu came from the front army to the rear army where the Pingxi Army was located, and when he saw Zhong Hao sitting on the ground grinning, he couldn't help but smile and encourage Zhong Hao: "Haha, big brother, hold on, today we can reach the Bashui camp outside Jingzhao Mansion!" "It seems that his eldest brother is not omnipotent, at least this horseback march is not good, and his martial arts are also low, and he still has some places that are stronger than him.

Zhong Hao smiled bitterly and said to Yang Huaiyu: "Fortunately, it's almost here, otherwise the eldest brother's leg is estimated to be really useless!" ”

"Haha, just wait for the calluses to come out on the inner thighs, and then you won't suffer so much! Doesn't the eldest brother often say that the blade of the sword is sharpened, and if you suffer a little to practice this riding skill, it will be very beneficial on the battlefield in the future! ”

"Alas, I hope I don't have to go to war again! When I go back, let's be my civil servant with peace of mind! ”

"Don't, big brother, the younger brother will follow you to make contributions in the future!"

"Alas, let's talk about it. But this is going to be in the back team again, just eating soil, you will be choked to death, and you will talk about fart achievements! ”

"Then the eldest brother will be with Daddy, the general, so follow me to the front team, anyway, this team is accompanied by Lao Cui!"

Two quarters of an hour later, another small group of heralds gave the loud order.

"Hey, Zhongrong, hurry up, help me get on the horse!"

………………

As the sun set, Zhong Hao finally saw the towering Chang'an city wall from afar.

Chang'an City, a thousand-year-old ancient capital, looks extremely majestic and magnificent under the reflection of the sunset.

However, the army naturally could not enter the city easily, and the vanguard led by Yang Wenguang only looked at Chang'an City from a distance, and then continued to move forward, heading to the Bashui camp on the east side of Chang'an City.

After passing Chang'an City, it is very close to the Debashui camp.

When he was still a few miles away from the Debashui camp, he saw dozens of cavalry galloping from the main road in the distance.

As the commander of the left battalion of the Zhenxi Army of Yang Wenguang's former army, Xu Liren immediately ordered a guard.

Although it is unlikely that they will encounter the enemy here, and the number of their own side is dozens of times that of the other party, if the other party is the enemy, they can crush the dozens of cavalry in the place at any time, but after hearing Xu Liren's order, the officers and soldiers of the left battalion immediately took off the weapons on their horses, and they were meticulously on guard!

When the team of knights galloped closer, Zhong Hao saw that the dozens of horsemen were all wearing Great Song Dynasty armor and wearing a Great Song Dynasty helmet with red tassels, which should naturally be the Great Song army.

At the head of this group of cavalry was a handsome young man in bright armor, Yang Huaiyu seemed to recognize him, and smiled at Zhong Hao on the side: "It's Di Yong, the second son of the marshal's family has come to greet our vanguard troops!" Let's go up and greet us! Then he explained the situation to Xu Liren and asked him to cancel his guard.

"Good ......" Zhong Hao immediately stepped forward to greet Yang Huaiyuchi.

Zhong Hao has also heard of this Di Yong, of course, the reason why he heard of him is not because of how good he is, but because this kid is so handsome, almost everyone in the Great Song Dynasty knows his name. Especially those big girls and little daughters-in-law, no one knows their names, and he is even called the 'human appearance' of the Great Song Dynasty. Di Qingduo had been known as the most beautiful man in the Great Song Dynasty for many years, and later this title was taken away by his second son.

When the galloping horse approached, Zhong Hao found that this kid was indeed good-looking, very handsome and chic, and with that bright armor, he really had a sassy and heroic appearance. Zhong Hao used to boast that he was a handsome guy, but compared with the "human-looking" Di Eryi in front of him, he found that he could only be regarded as improvised.

"Di Er, haha, this armor is good!"

"Haha, that's, it's like a fake Shanwen Jia! Hey, who is this? ”

"This is my eldest brother, but now he is a fake lord, you still haven't seen him!" Although the title of the Great Song Dynasty is not valuable, if you don't achieve a certain position of civil and military officials, you really can't be knighted. The Great Song Dynasty generally wanted to be knighted, at least the civil ministers should be above the Shaoqing Supervisor, and the military ministers should at least be the deputy envoys of the various departments. So Zhong Hao has been knighted at such a young age, which can be regarded as a very good thing.

Zhong Hao hurriedly smiled: "General Di, don't listen to Zhong Rong's nonsense, under Zhong Hao Zhong Wenxuan, you call me Wenxuan!" ”

"Ah, it turned out to be Zhong Sima, and I've been famous for a long time." Zhong Hao went south with Yang Wenguang's vanguard this time, and Yang Wenguang arranged a position for Zhong Hao as a marching horse, but it was a deputy position, and Zhong Hao was not responsible for specific matters, and he had his own main post of marching Sima scheduling. Yang Huaiyu actually did not have a regular military position in the Zhenxi Army, and this time he was also arranged by Yang Wenguang to march Sima.

"Hey, you two don't want to scream nonsense from Major General Di and Zhong Sima, just call each other the words!" Saying that, Yang Huaiyu said to Zhong Hao: "This Di Lao Er is younger than the eldest brother, you can call him Ding'an!" ”

"How?" Zhong Hao waved his hand.

Di Yong smiled and said, "Little brother has seen Brother Wenxuan!" ”

Zhong Hao saw that Di Yong was easy-going, so he no longer took care of it, and said with a smile: "Ding'an, you are too polite!" ”

Di Yong and Zhong Hao greeted each other, and asked Yang Huaiyu: "Uncle Yang, I'll go and see you, my father ordered me to make a special trip to meet Uncle Shi!" ”

"In the Chinese army, let's go, I'll take you over!" (To be continued.) )