Chapter 1 A Crucial March

From the moment they crossed the gorge, any Song army officer with a modicum of sense knew that the next one hundred and eighty *li* would be a march that determined everything.

The reason was simple enough.

If the Song army had previously relied on the strategic miscalculations and errors of the Western Xia to easily avoid their elite field forces, dodging the accumulation of lives and the attrition of time at key passes, and then launching a rapid突袭 (tūxí, sudden strike) to this point, then now, upon entering the Xingling area (what later generations would call the Yinchuan Plain), they would inevitably face the final, reactive response of a nation that had stood for a hundred years.

And it was an unavoidable reactive response.

Because the former was purely a matter of military deployment, while the latter, although ultimately manifested militarily, stemmed from the cohesion of politics, ethnicity, and culture—an intangible yet tangible force... Yue Fei, Qu Duan, Hu Hongxiu, and Liu Qi might vaguely perceive this concept from a fundamental standpoint, while Li Shifu and others might not understand it, but they knew that such a thing existed.

To elaborate, it wasn't as if no one had ever reached the gorge before. After Pingxia City was built, it controlled the upper reaches of the Hulu River, making this correct route of attack against Xia the Western Xia's greatest weakness. At that time, many said that Western Xia was doomed, and indeed, the Western Xia people had several decades of unease... Even during Emperor Huizong's reign, there was the story of Liu Fa invading this place.

But even the deepest incursions ultimately failed.

This was a matter of experience.

"Commissioner."

In the afternoon, the army marched downstream along the Yellow River, opposite the majestic Helan Mountains. After traveling another ten *li* or so, they saw a gathering place for the 番骑 (fān qí, barbarian cavalry) in the distance. These 番骑 (fān qí, barbarian cavalry) numbered over a thousand, and Hu Hongxiu immediately reined in his horse by the river. However, he ignored the 番骑 (fān qí, barbarian cavalry), instead pointing to a river fork behind them and offering a reminder. "Ahead is the Tang Canal entrance."

Yue Fei halted his horse opposite him, nodding slightly. The generals below Qu Duan also mostly stopped their horses, marveling at the scene.

Firstly, the Tang Canal was extremely well-known in this era, perhaps even more so than the gorge. The *dibao* (official gazette) had long introduced it. Many knew that this water conservancy project was built during the reign of Empress Wu Zetian of the Tang Dynasty, and later the Western Xia had always maintained and expanded it as if it were a treasure. By now, the canal irrigated as much as nine hundred thousand *mu*!

It could be said that three-tenths of the Western Xia's dominance was rooted here.

Secondly, from the Tang Canal entrance onwards, the Yellow River widened again, spanning hundreds of paces. Even many Hebei soldiers in Yue Fei's army felt that this was the widest part of the Yellow River they had ever seen, rather than its downstream reaches.

In fact, looking out from the small slope, one saw a vast expanse of river before them, stretching northward with a majestic and imposing air. Coupled with the clear sky and sunlight, the Helan Mountains, a hundred *li* away, looked like a herd of galloping horses. Between the mountains and the river was a flat plain, with several canals extending straight, and villages and fortresses faintly visible... Faced with this grand scene, one was truly at a loss for words beyond simply saying, "What magnificent land!"

"This place has been considered half a Land of Abundance since ancient times. There were ditches for irrigation during the Han Dynasty, but none of them can compare to the Tang Canal," Hu Hongxiu's words interrupted many people's sighs. "This canal is the largest and widest of all the canals in Xingling. It is six hundred *li* long, with nearly a hundred branches, and all the cities in Xingling can be reached. Following this canal downstream, another fifty *li* will bring you to the city of Shunzhou, and Xingqing府 (fǔ, Prefecture) is also downstream on this canal... The wooden rafts we seized in the gorge area originally came from this canal."

The surrounding generals nodded, because Minister Hu's meaning was already very clear: he was suggesting that Yue Fei leave the Yellow River here, turn onto the Tang Canal from the canal entrance, and advance along the Tang Canal.

This was a very reasonable, even self-evidently reasonable route.

It must be known that the Tang Canal was certainly well-maintained by the Western Xia on a daily basis. The edges were neat, the route straight, and the water inside was deep and free of silt. Therefore, after the wooden rafts carrying supplies entered the canal, the march would be exceptionally easy. Not to mention, according to Hu Hongxiu's information, there was a complete city, Shunzhou, only fifty *li* ahead, which could be captured and used as a forward base, and Xingqing府 (fǔ, Prefecture) was also adjacent to this canal further ahead.

Even just looking at the 番骑 (fān qí, barbarian cavalry) gathered at the canal entrance, one could guess that even they believed that the Song army would enter the Tang Canal and advance along the canal towards their capital.

However, precisely because of this, when Commander Yue Fei reined in his horse for a moment but did not give the order, everyone realized that the commander might have other ideas.

"Is Xingqing府 (fǔ, Prefecture) between the Tang Canal and the Yellow River?" After a moment, Yue Fei finally withdrew his mind from the mountains and rivers in front of him, and then asked seriously. "East of the Tang Canal, west of the Yellow River?"

"That's right," Hu Hongxiu immediately explained clearly. "Xingqing府 (fǔ, Prefecture) is not small in scale. Its west side is adjacent to the Tang Canal, directly drawing water from the Tang Canal through the water gate into the city, also using it for cargo transportation, while the east wall is fully twenty or thirty *li* away from the Yellow River. Even the palaces outside the city are more than ten *li* away from the Yellow River."

"Has this canal always been this wide?" Yue Fei nodded slightly, continuing to ask.

"Of course not..." Hu Hongxiu quickly shook his head. "On average, it is estimated to be thirty or forty paces wide, but there are also narrow places. I remember that there is an area only ten or so paces wide near Shunzhou, but even so, it will definitely not delay the wooden raft march, because these wooden rafts originally came from the Tang Canal."

Yue Fei still nodded, and still remained noncommittal, only asking a third question: "Do the Western Xia have a navy in the Yellow River? I have recently consulted records of Western Xia battles and it seems that there is mention of a Western Xia navy?"

Hu Hongxiu immediately shook his head: "I didn't see it, it should be a misunderstanding."

"It is indeed a misunderstanding, where would the Western Xia get so many troops?" Liu Qi suddenly interjected, then raised his horse whip and pointed to the wide river ahead. "Commissioner, please see, from here onwards, the Yellow River becomes wider and wider, even wider than Jingdong, but such a wide and level expanse also makes the river flow gently, making it convenient to cross... Only the river surface is wide, so a large number of wooden rafts and sheepskin rafts are needed when crossing the river, so it is only natural for the Western Xia to arrange troops at the ferry to guard the wooden rafts and sheepskin rafts, equipped with weapons, and also serve as guards. This has naturally been misrepresented as a navy."

"That's right," Qu Duan also suddenly interjected. "When I was young, I saw the so-called Western Xia navy once... Those Western Xia people on the river had neither decent ships nor proper other water equipment, wearing worn sheepskin jackets, carrying some riding bows, in fact, they were just *minfu* (civilian laborers) following behind the army to do transportation, both above and below despising them."

Yue Fei got the answer he wanted, and then nodded heavily, only turning to face Qu Duan after a moment, his face still impassive. "Commander Qu, can you quickly disperse the 番骑 (fān qí, barbarian cavalry) in front of us?"

"Commissioner, don't joke," Qu Duan also said without changing his expression. "Even ten thousand of my troops could drive away these 番骑 (fān qí, barbarian cavalry), but they have little equipment, good horsemanship, and are very fast, making them difficult to pursue. Once they scatter, they will gather again."

"I know," Yue Fei was about to say again. "I'll trouble Commander Qu to clean them up first, so as not to delay crossing the canal entrance later."

Qu Duan nodded, but remained still on his horse, immediately asking in return: "Commissioner's detailed questioning shows that you intend to abandon the Tang Canal and take the Yellow River?"

"Yes," Yue Fei still had some respect for Qu Duan, but only some respect.

"But what does taking the Yellow River mean? Could it be that you feel that we can't cope with the increasing number of 番骑 (fān qí, barbarian cavalry), and plan to turn around, cross the river downstream, and attack the empty Lingzhou on the other side?" Qu Da finally frowned upon hearing this, seriously facing him. "If we are going to attack Lingzhou, what was the point of letting the entire army cross over together at the gorge before? Such back and forth, how can we appease the morale of the army? Commissioner, I have a word for you. Everyone has come here because, first, there is great merit in front of them, wanting to achieve great things; second, they are also apprehensive, fearing that something will go wrong... Changing course at this time, abandoning Xingqing府 (fǔ, Prefecture) to take Lingzhou, although it can also be considered a meritorious achievement, but to be frank, it will only cause the army's morale to dissipate."

The truth was, at this point, there were very few choices, and the surrounding generals had already thought of some things.

However, Yue Fei was the Zhao Emperor's beloved general, with a high rank, one of the three flag-bestowing commanders, and he was known for his strict military discipline. This time, the three armies had joined forces here, and naturally there was no need to say more about his Imperial Guard's Vanguard Army headquarters. As for the Imperial Guard's cavalry and central army that followed, although most were Guanzhong people, they were all stationed around Tokyo, and had long known about the temperament, qualifications, and abilities of this Commander Yue.

Therefore, there was not much dissatisfaction up and down this time, but rather more fear.

But even so, it was still what Qu Duan said: since everyone had arrived here, how could they abandon Xingqing府 (fǔ, Prefecture) and attack some Lingzhou because of possible military obstacles?

Attacking Lingzhou would inevitably displease the army.

Therefore, since Qu Duan had spoken, the surrounding officers had no more scruples and stepped forward to advise him one after another.

One said that if they went to Lingzhou, they might let the Khitans take advantage, and the Khitans had both cavalry and camels, and might directly advance from behind the Helan Mountains!

Another said that Wei Ming Chage in the Hengshan direction would definitely return to aid them after receiving the news. If they really went to Lingzhou, the Western Xia reinforcements from the Hengshan direction might return and be trapped there instead.

Everyone repeatedly persuaded him, but Yue Fei just reined in his horse and remained silent.

After a moment, when the surrounding people gradually quieted down, Yue Fei spoke calmly: "You all think we should take the Tang Canal?"

The generals knew that the key moment had arrived, and nodded repeatedly.

"And if we take the Yellow River, you all think I am going to travel dozens of *li* more to cross the river downstream to Lingzhou on the other side?"

The generals continued to nod, but the clever ones had already tasted something different.

Qu Duan narrowed his eyes slightly, while Liu Qi and Hu Hongxiu even exchanged glances directly.

"Since we have arrived here, we must advance bravely and single-mindedly take Xingqing府 (fǔ, Prefecture) only," Yue Pengju finally said sternly and solemnly. "How can we go and take some Lingzhou?! Listen to my military orders: cavalry drive away the 番骑 (fān qí, barbarian cavalry), build pontoon bridges over the canal, and the entire army crosses the canal entrance, and set up camp there! Ask no more, and allow no doubts!"

The generals responded with a clamorous cheer, and Qu, Liu, and others did not dare to hesitate any longer... However, although these people were excited about Yue Fei's statement, they still had some doubts in their hearts, because Yue Fei still did not say whether he would take the Tang Canal or the Yellow River? Judging from his appearance, he clearly agreed to let the baggage and troops take the Yellow River.

But since they were going to take Xingqing府 (fǔ, Prefecture), why not advance along the Tang Canal, but instead take the Yellow River?

But the commander's authority was here, and any more words would be beyond redemption. Even Qu Duan would never be willing to cause trouble at this time and place.

Leaving aside others, only Minister Hu Hongxiu, wearing a turban, stayed with Yue Fei, looking down from a high position, reining in his horse to watch the battle. He saw the Tang Canal shimmering in the afternoon sun. Zhang Zhongfu personally led thousands of cavalry straight to the canal entrance, and Liu Qi led another thousand cavalry from the west side, trying to detour and outflank them, but they were still discovered by those 番骑 (fān qí, barbarian cavalry), who hurriedly scattered along the Tang Canal. On the other side of the canal entrance, another hundred or so newly arrived 番骑 (fān qí, barbarian cavalry) harassed them by shooting across the river, forcing the Song army's large force to split off a team of 神臂弓 (shén bì gōng, repeating crossbow) soldiers to scare away this group of 番骑 (fān qí, barbarian cavalry)... At this time, Minister Hu could not help but take another look at the hundreds of paces wide Yellow River, and suddenly understood something in his heart.

In this way, on the first day of entering the Xingling heartland of Western Xia, the Western Xia people only hastily gathered a thousand or so 番骑 (fān qí, barbarian cavalry). Not to mention casualties, they did not even cause effective delays to the Song army.

The Song army also successfully crossed the canal entrance with the entire army before dark, entered the area between the Tang Canal and the Yellow River, and then directly camped... If the Hulu River was the outer shell and the gorge was the skeleton, then reaching this point was truly the Western Xia's inner core.

And the entire Xingling area, until now, was like a wild beast with a knife stabbed into its abdomen, convulsing and struggling completely.

That night, the Song army camped carefully, with its back to the great river and its front to the Tang Canal, and rested early. Under the cover of night, countless torches moved back and forth, and the cries and the sound of the Yellow River intertwined, and cold arrows were shot from time to time, all of which indicated that the Western Xia people were rapidly mobilizing and rapidly converging.

"This is His Majesty's decree?"

That night, in the brightly lit Shunzhou Prefecture in Western Xia, 知州 (zhī zhōu, Prefecture Governor) Wei Ming Zhangli raised his head in surprise, seemingly unable to believe it.

"What do you think?" The person who came to deliver the decree was Liang Wang (Prince of Liang) and Grand Tutor Wei Ming Anhui, the former Privy Councilor. His arrival at night with this identity was enough to show the seriousness of the matter. "Hurry up and do it!"

Wei Ming Zhangli sighed, seemingly still reluctant, and clearly wanted to say something... But at this moment, another burst of rapid hoofbeats broke the night, and then there were non-stop calls outside the door. The two of them heard clearly that it meant that the Golden Tablet Imperial Guards were escorting another important figure here.

Anhui and Zhangli got up solemnly to greet him. After a moment, under the light of the torches, as a golden-armored warrior carried a seven- or eight-year-old child into the room, Anhui and Zhangli were stunned, then shuddered together, and immediately knelt down and kowtowed heavily to the visitor.

"His Majesty has a decree." The golden-armored warrior placed the child, whose eyes were filled with panic, on the ground. Unexpectedly, the child could not stand steady, and had to quickly hold onto his hand with one hand, and only then could he take out a golden tablet from his waist with the other hand, and threw it on the ground on the spot, and kept saying, "Tell the two ministers that since the founding of the Great White High Kingdom, there has never been such a crisis... No one can be counted on at this time, only we can count on ourselves! Let Liang Wang (Prince of Liang) not delay, gather as many tribes as he can, and quickly harass the Song army, delaying them for as long as possible! And tell Zhangli that朕 (zhèn, I, imperial use) has no reinforcements for him, and Anhui's troops cannot be dispersed either, but must entrust the crown prince to him..."

Speaking to this point, the golden-armored warrior, whose face was covered with dust and who had not even had time to take off his helmet, swallowed a mouthful of saliva, and then勉力 (miǎn lì,勉強, barely) continued to deliver the decree: "Also tell Zhangli to delay for as long as possible... And if the Song army really comes along the Tang Canal, and Shunzhou cannot be defended, then kill the crown prince for朕 (zhèn, I, imperial use) to compensate the people of Shunzhou! In any case, he cannot be allowed to fall into the hands of the Song people!"

Liang Wang (Prince of Liang) Anhui kowtowed heavily, not even looking at the ignorant child, and rushed out of the door. Zhangli, who could not avoid it, also kowtowed heavily, and raised his head, his face covered with tears. He stepped forward and embraced the eight-year-old crown prince Li Renxiao in his arms, and only then did he say that he had received the decree.

The golden-armored warrior swayed and said softly, "Not only has the crown prince come here, but the Prince of Yue (Li Ganshun's youngest son) has also been sent to Lingzhou on the other side of the river overnight."

After saying that, he was about to turn back.

Zhangli, while holding his own crown prince with tears in his eyes, nodded his head, but suddenly reached out and grabbed the other person. "There is one thing that the locals are really hard to do, and I want you to help me."

The warrior turned his head back in confusion.

"The narrowest part of the Tang Canal is next to the city of Shunzhou..." Zhangli said with difficulty. "Only ten or so paces wide... Even just as a precaution, please take people to block that place! And not only this place... After this place is blocked, the water downstream will slow down. On your way back, take the opportunity to have people block several more places... In this way, if the Song army really comes from here, it will be enough to delay them for a while or two."

This time, even the golden-armored warrior was stunned, but he nodded heavily, and then left in a hurry.

Leaving aside how the Western Xia people were cutting off their own wrists, how they were doing their best that night, let's just say that on the other side, when dawn arrived, the Song army was not happy to see the surrounding 番骑 (fān qí, barbarian cavalry) disappear, but instead became even more serious, because everyone knew that it was very likely that the Western Xia people had sent a general with authority to the vicinity overnight and organized these 番骑 (fān qí, barbarian cavalry).

In fact, Li Shifu sent out the 番骑 (fān qí, barbarian cavalry) to advance, and soon brought back the accurate answer: the banner of Wei Ming Anhui, the Liang Wang (Prince of Liang) who had governed Western Xia in the early days of Li Ganshun's reign, had appeared along the Tang Canal in front of them.

There, countless 番骑 (fān qí, barbarian cavalry) were gathering.

On the other side, as the sky brightened, Yue Fei did another thing that many people could not understand... It must be known that this was the golden time to seize the road and seize the time, but this Commander Yue began to make great efforts to deploy the marching formation while it was bright.

All troops were divided into small groups according to their arms.

For example, the cavalry was divided into the 番骑 (fān qí, barbarian cavalry) led by Li Shifu, and the armored cavalry led by Liu Qi, Zhang Xian, and others. Regardless of whether they were 番骑 (fān qí, barbarian cavalry) or armored cavalry, they were all divided into twelve teams. Each team of 番骑 (fān qí, barbarian cavalry) had less than three hundred men, while each team of armored cavalry had five hundred men;

At the same time, the infantry was roughly divided into three types: spearmen, archers, and swordsmen and shieldmen. Each type had twelve teams, for a total of thirty-six teams, and each team also had three hundred to five hundred men.

These troops, with swordsmen and shieldmen and spearmen forming a square array on the outermost side, and the archers slightly staggered and arranged on the inner side to march. At the same time, the 番骑 (fān qí, barbarian cavalry) scouted and roamed outside the infantry, and the armored cavalry stood in formation behind the archers, with the entire army staggered and orderly.

Finally, Qu Duan led the last two thousand cavalry and infantry in the center as the central army and general reserve team.

At this point, of the 30,000 soldiers who had set out this time, except for Wang De's 6,000 men in the rear, and the few troops left in Pingxia City and Xi'an Prefecture to serve as guards and decoys, the 21,000 cavalry and infantry located here were all broken up and formed into formations.

The generals of each unit, from Liu Qi down, including the *tongzhi* (統制, commanding officer) and *fu tongzhi* (副統制, deputy commanding officer), were also selected to be twelve people, and were roughly divided according to their own troops, and assigned down in turn, each commanding a team of spearmen, a team of swordsmen and shieldmen, a team of archers, and a team of armored cavalry... Moreover, when the 番骑 (fān qí, barbarian cavalry) were not acting as scouts but were instead engaged in defense, they were also divided into teams and belonged to these temporary commander officers.

As for the 6,000 civilian laborers who accompanied the army, a very small number boarded the wooden rafts to steer, but most of them advanced along the river under the cover of the large formation, either pushing wheelbarrows or assisting the wooden rafts by pulling ropes.

After tossing and turning until morning, the army maintained this strange formation, abandoned the Tang Canal, and then slowly advanced along the great river.

However, at this point, Qu Duan and others vaguely realized something, and there were no more disputes or doubts.

As the army advanced, in the slightly hot weather of the afternoon, smoke and dust suddenly billowed in the side front. Without Li Shifu's 番骑 (fān qí, barbarian cavalry) team bringing the news to him, Yue Fei and others had long known that this must be Liang Wang (Prince of Liang) hastily putting together some troops and hurrying over to harass them.

"Don't pay attention to them, continue to maintain the formation, and move forward without stopping," Yue Fei immediately ordered. "According to the previous arrangement, wait for him to attack!"

"Let's try it!" Wei Ming Anhui, who had been tossing and turning all night, wore a golden crown and looked exhausted. At this time, under the daylight, his face was full of wrinkles. "Remember, all the tribes are ready. Use bows and arrows. Shoot and leave. Not all the families and tribes have arrived yet. We only have four or five thousand people. Don't get entangled in battle!"

"The armored cavalry of each unit must not attack without orders!" Seeing the 番骑 (fān qí, barbarian cavalry) trampling on the green crops to adjust their ranks, the messengers in the central army also set out at the right time, conveying the most important military order on behalf of the commander. "Follow your own sequence, listen to the command of your own marching commander, and all commanders act according to the original plan!"

On this side, as soon as the Song army's military order was issued, on the other side, the untrained Western Xia tribal 番骑 (fān qí, barbarian cavalry), watching the Song army's marching formation continue, moved out one after another without waiting for their allies to take their positions... Of course, they saw the mixed military formations of spearmen and swordsmen and shieldmen on the outermost side, and they also saw the armor on those outer soldiers, so of course they would not be foolish enough to crash into those formations, but instead galloped towards the gaps in the military formation, preparing to shoot arrows to harass them, or to look for those Song army 番骑 (fān qí, barbarian cavalry) who were spinning around the military formation.

However, at this moment, as the first branch of 番骑 (fān qí, barbarian cavalry) wearing ragged blue cloth robes and shaving flying bird heads galloped to the effective range, preparing to draw their bows, suddenly, the opposite Song army 番骑 (fān qí, barbarian cavalry) took the initiative to turn their heads, retreat from the gap on the side of the Song army infantry formation in the same sequence as themselves, and enter the military formation. The undisciplined Western Xia 番骑 (fān qí, barbarian cavalry) could not rein in their horses at all, and took advantage of the situation to chase after them, but were prepared to scatter their arrows over the Song army's infantry formation.

However, at this moment, when the Song army 番骑 (fān qí, barbarian cavalry) turned into the infantry formation, a volley of arrows shot out from the gaps in the Song army's constantly marching swordsmen and spearmen infantry formation.

In all fairness, this round of 反射 (fǎn shè, 反射,reflection) was a little less imposing compared to the Western Xia people's bows and arrows.

But the problem was that步弓 (bù gōng, infantry bows) had a longer range than 騎弓 (qí gōng, cavalry bows), and the Song army's traditional crossbows such as the 神臂弓 (shén bì gōng, repeating crossbow) and 克敌弓 (kè dí gōng, enemy-defeating bow) far exceeded those of the opposite 番骑 (fān qí, barbarian cavalry)... More importantly, unlike the Song army 番骑 (fān qí, barbarian cavalry), who basically had leather armor, and the officers who were basically fully armored, and the armored cavalry and outer infantry who were all wearing iron armor, these temporarily conscripted Western Xia 番骑 (fān qí, barbarian cavalry) basically had no armor.

Therefore, as the arrows shot out from the slightly slowed-down military formation, they immediately shot down the 番骑 (fān qí, barbarian cavalry) who had advanced rashly, causing them to fall on their backs and bleed all over the ground.

Without command, the Western Xia 番骑 (fān qí, barbarian cavalry) scattered back in a chaotic manner, and the Song army 番骑 (fān qí, barbarian cavalry) wearing leather armor poured out from another gap in the military formation, chasing after the Western Xia 番骑 (fān qí, barbarian cavalry) who were out of formation. Many 番骑 (fān qí, barbarian cavalry) were caught off guard and were shot down by the Song army light cavalry while regrouping... In general, this was the case throughout the army. Only one place was special, and that was where the armored cavalry stood out and blocked the 番骑 (fān qí, barbarian cavalry) from fighting, without gaining much.

In the distance, Wei Ming Anhui, the Liang Wang (Prince of Liang) of Western Xia, who had found a small slope to watch the battle, was stunned for a long time, but was terrified... He was not shaken by this little loss. In fact, this was just a test, and he did not expect that these hastily gathered tribal light cavalry could gain anything, but the problem was that during this engagement, the Song army did not stop at all!

That's right, although the Song army slowed down, the military formation was advancing calmly during the entire engagement!

This was the most deadly thing!

"Every ten *li* let the soldiers wearing armor go to the outer layer to rotate once, and the entire army advances without stopping. Today we will travel forty *li*," Yue Fei, slowly riding his horse under the banner of "Serving the Country with Utmost Loyalty," looked at the sun, and then looked at the smoke and dust billowing around Wei Ming Anhui in the distance, and turned around to look at Qu Duan calmly. "Tomorrow we will travel fifty *li*."

Qu Duan, who was riding alongside Yue Fei, did not respond directly, but instead said with some disbelief: "Can it actually be done?"

"This is the Imperial Guard's army, with outstanding military discipline," Hu Hongxiu said excitedly from the side. "With such military discipline, coupled with the proper arrangement of the military formation, how can it not be done? And the key is that Commissioner is farsighted, abandoning the Tang Canal and letting the army march along the great river. The great river not only protects the baggage and civilian laborers, but more importantly, it also shields half of the military formation, so that the Western Xia people cannot detour to find weaknesses, and also allows us to only have to worry about defense on one side. Otherwise, how could we use that kind of emergency military formation to shield the entire army? In my opinion, the greatest advantage of this battle lies in the march. Commander Yue's inspiration is like a靈羊掛角 (líng yáng guà jiǎo,羚羊掛角, a deer hanging its horn, something done perfectly without any trace), relying on the river to advance, and inadvertently smoothed out this greatest difficulty... He truly has the demeanor of Li Yaoshi!"

Qu Duan nodded again... Moreover, who was Qu Da? According to his temperament, he was definitely not convinced by Yue Fei, so he might not agree with Hu Hongxiu's words about "Li Yaoshi." But he also saw that the biggest feature of Yue Fei's marching emergency formation was relying on the river, and this relying on the river seemed simple, but it was truly大巧不工 (dà qiǎo bù gōng, great skill looks simple). After all, everyone knows how to set up this kind of marching formation to deal with light cavalry harassment, but relying on the great river to set it up can save half of the defensive force, shield half of the attacked parts, and minimize the burden on the troops, making it light and simple, so that they can continue to maintain the march without stopping. But if they took the Tang Canal, they would not have this advantage, but instead it would become a weakness... The Western thieves would harass them across the canal, which was only a few dozen paces wide, and might even force the Song army to divide their troops, and then expose more weaknesses.

However, after nodding for a moment, seeing that Yue Fei was still looking at him, including Hu Hongxiu was also looking at him, he finally woke up, and then directly shook his head: "I know, the armored cavalry commander who pursued without authorization is my subordinate, I will personally execute him to uphold military discipline!"

After saying that, Qu Da rode out, taking his personal guards straight to the front.

After a moment, the Imperial Guard cavalry commander who had violated military discipline by unauthorizedly leading his armored cavalry out of formation was beheaded and displayed to the public. And during this process, the more than 20,000 troops of the Song army Imperial Guard were still advancing non-stop under the fear of Wei Ming Anhui, whose scalp was almost numb.

That day was the seventh day of the fourth month. Although they set out very late, the Song army actually traveled more than forty *li* before stopping at nightfall, and then set up camp on the spot according to the formation.

It was conceivable that if they set off directly in this formation early tomorrow morning, the Song army could travel even more distance, for example, fifty *li* should be no problem. But the problem was... of course, the problem for the Western Xia people... Until now, the straight-line distance between this Song army Imperial Guard and Xingqing府 (fǔ, Prefecture) was only about one hundred *li*.

And at the same time, they only had temporarily conscripted tribal light cavalry, but even with this kind of cavalry, the sooner the Song army arrived in front of Xingqing府 (fǔ, Prefecture), the fewer numbers they could deploy by then.

"Send the Prince of Yue back." On the eighth day of the fourth month, as the sky brightened, Wei Ming Anhui, who had not slept all night, said to a golden-armored warrior beside him in a 民宅 (mín zhái,民宅, private house). "Tell His Majesty that Yue Fei did not take the Tang Canal, but instead came along the great river, and the Prince of Yue did not have time to be sent to the other side... Also tell His Majesty about the predicament here... Just say that the good at war has no remarkable achievements, and this Yue Fei used a marching formation to force me to be unable to fight and dare not fight, which is really amazing! Also tell him that although this old minister is incompetent, he is not afraid to risk his life, but once I take action, there may not be a chance of winning, and instead I will have to scatter valuable troops. If there is any accident under the city of Xingqing府 (fǔ, Prefecture) by then, this old minister will be a sinner of the Great White High Kingdom for all time, so I must wait for an imperial decree from him before I dare to risk everything."

The golden-armored warrior did not say a word, and bowed and left with a three- or four-year-old child in his arms. After exiting the door, he turned around, mounted his horse, and went straight to Xingqing府 (fǔ, Prefecture)... It was not as if it was an army marching. If he changed horses non-stop, he could arrive in the afternoon.

ps: Thanks to fellow student 血落枫 (Xuè Luò Fēng) for the 130th *meng*, thanks to fellow student mousex for ascending to *meng* a second time.

Continue to sacrifice the new book *Sun Ce's Wild Ambition*.