Ch.64Plains Battle (5)

While the battle between Mongol cavalry and Western Xia iron riders was at its height, some of Western Xia’s infantry had managed to reach the hill.

“Only a few thousand soldiers have climbed the hill so far.”

Zhao Yunchang nodded at his aide’s report. Then he turned to look at the soldiers climbing the hill.

“Put the archers at the very front. They need to reach the hill first.”

The aide nodded in agreement. Having archers on the hill was essential to intercept enemy cavalry from a distance.

Just as the aide was about to carry out the order, Zhao Yunchang raised his hand to stop him. Then he turned and pointed to the opposite hill.

“That hill appears higher than this one.”

“Y-yes, sir. But why does that…”

“If the enemy positions troops capable of long-range attacks there, our forces will suffer heavy casualties.”

The aide couldn’t respond to Zhao Yunchang’s observation. This was understandable, as they were already struggling to climb this hill, let alone having the capacity to occupy that one as well.

The aide bowed slightly and carefully offered his opinion.

“Your observation is absolutely correct, sir. However, since the enemy forces consist of cavalry, even if they positioned archers there, their arrows would hardly reach us here.”

Despite the aide’s reasonable explanation, Zhao Yunchang didn’t respond. He simply continued staring at the hill with a serious expression.

Seeing this, the aide could only wait silently for Zhao Yunchang’s answer.

“I need to issue orders to the iron riders.”

“What orders, sir?”

“Tell them to cease combat with the Mongol cavalry and seize that hill.”

Zhao Yunchang’s order made sense. Although only a portion of their troops had reached the hill so far, most would soon be able to climb up.

Therefore, there was no need to continue the battle with the Mongol cavalry. Instead of moving the infantry who were struggling to climb the hill, Zhao Yunchang ordered the mounted troops to occupy the opposite hill.

Since this was a perfectly feasible command, the aide immediately bowed.

“I will carry out your orders, sir.”

The aide then relayed the command to a messenger, who mounted his horse and galloped toward the iron riders’ position.

Zhao Yunchang silently watched the messenger disappear. Then he looked up at the sky.

Unlike before, clouds now outnumbered the sunlight, creating more shade.

“…This doesn’t bode well.”

“What do you mean, sir?”

The governor didn’t answer the aide’s question. This was merely his intuition.

Zhao Yunchang took a deep breath silently. He forcibly suppressed the inexplicable anxiety trying to emerge from within.

That was the only solution he could currently employ to reduce his uneasiness.

* * *

The Mongols had excellent eyesight. Without exaggeration, they could see distant objects with remarkable clarity.

Because of this, I could clearly see Western Xia soldiers climbing the hill even from a distance.

Most of the soldiers climbing the hill were carrying bows. Seeing this, I immediately recognized that the enemy commander was someone who knew how to fight against nomadic peoples.

“It will be difficult to use swarm tactics.”

Mounted on my horse, I expressed my disappointment.

The reason nomads were called a warrior race was precisely because of this tactic. Swarm tactics involved quickly approaching the enemy using horse mobility, then retreating while firing arrows or throwing javelins to continuously inflict damage.

This tactic was so frequently described that it was often portrayed as invincible. However, it was actually quite difficult and heavily dependent on battlefield conditions.

This was because if horse mobility was reduced, the tactic became restricted. Therefore, as the Western Xia commander was doing now, positioning soldiers capable of long-range attacks on a hill made swarm tactics difficult to execute.

Of course, deployment itself was possible. However, doing so could result in heavy casualties for our forces.

If this battle could bring all of Western Xia under control, the price would be worth paying. But I didn’t want to gamble when we hadn’t even reached Xingqing yet.

Therefore, I planned to use the hammer and anvil tactic as prepared earlier.

Buuuuuu

From the distance came the signal sent by Munglig. Our troops responded by waving flags.

The anvil was ready, so it was time to strike with the hammer.

“Charge!”

As I moved forward, thousands of cavalry followed behind me. The ground began to shake violently with their movement.

Thud-thud-thud-thud-thud

Along with that sound, the heartbeat grew louder.

“Cut down, tear apart, and overthrow the enemy.”

I said these words to hypnotize myself. Only then could I fully concentrate on battle.

Only when I focus on battle will the soldiers follow me.

Only when I cut down enemies will the soldiers’ morale rise.

Only when I remain unwavering will the ulus stand firm.

I am.

I am.

Ulaanbaatar.

“Uaaaaaaaargh!”

With a mighty roar, I drew my iron mace. A Western Xia soldier who belatedly noticed me looked at me with a startled expression.

But it was already too late. My mace was already flying toward his head.

Thwack.

A sound like a watermelon bursting was heard. And a vibration like electricity flowed through my fingertips.

“Who dares stand against Ulaanbaatar!”

At my words, the Western Xia soldiers wore startled expressions. The enemy troops began to panic.

I could feel that the enemy command was temporarily paralyzed.

This was because Munglig at the front was properly fulfilling his role as the anvil. With the anvil firmly in place, I and the steppe brothers intended to serve as the hammer.

“Crush them!”

“Tremble, cowards!”

“The warriors of the steppe have arrived!”

“Scream in terror!”

Under this wave of attacks, the enemy infantry gradually began to retreat. However, proving that the enemy commander was no ordinary person, the confusion among the soldiers on and around the hill quickly subsided.

Enemy soldiers with spears stepped forward, and behind them, archers took position.

Then they began to rain arrows upon us.

“Arrow attack!”

At my words, the Mongol soldiers immediately stopped fighting and began to retreat. This was because Mongol saddles had no shields to block arrow attacks.

As our attack halted, the scattered enemy soldiers gathered in small groups. When they formed small turtle-like formations, there was no longer any gap to penetrate.

The problem wasn’t just the lack of openings to attack.

If these small formations gathered together, our forces would eventually be surrounded. This would mean losing the mobility advantage of cavalry, so we couldn’t continue the hammer and anvil tactic any longer.

“Retreat! Retreat!”

At my command, the ulus soldiers waved their flags. Seeing the flag signal, Munglig led the Kheshig in retreat.

After confirming that Munglig had properly retreated, I led my soldiers to create distance.

As we retreated, I kept looking back. But contrary to my expectations, the enemy didn’t pursue us and maintained their formation.

“So the feigned retreat tactic won’t work either…”

I didn’t know who the Western Xia commander was, but I could immediately tell they were more cautious than expected.

Normally, when leading an army of 100,000, one would be tempted to pursue retreating enemies. This made sense because compared to 100,000 troops, our forces numbered only 30,000.

So logically, they should have pursued us, accepted some casualties, and surrounded us for annihilation.

But the enemy commander chose not to do that, instead deciding to observe our forces.

“The feigned retreat tactic didn’t work, but that doesn’t mean we have no tools to inflict damage.”

I reached out and took the bow hanging from my saddle. The soldiers beside me all drew their bows and nocked arrows.

“Hmmph.”

One breath.

After that single breath, the arrow that left my hand flew toward the enemy.

That arrow precisely took the eye of a Western Xia soldier who had been watching me.

“Aaaaargh!”

“Kuhuk.”

The Western Xia soldiers screamed in pain. As the ulus arrow attack caused significant damage to the Western Xia army, the enemy troops suddenly began to gather around the hill.

“Tsk… it seems they won’t tolerate any more casualties.”

I clicked my tongue as I watched the retreating enemy infantry.

We could have used our horses’ mobility to approach the enemy and continue the arrow attack. But doing so would put us within range of the enemy archers, resulting in casualties for our forces.

While I was thinking this, Chalukhab approached me.

“Haah… the commander seems more difficult than expected.”

I nodded in response to Chalukhab’s words. After surveying the surroundings, I asked him a question.

“How many casualties did we suffer?”

“About 300-400 minor injuries, 50-60 serious injuries, and one or two fatalities from what I know.”

Such significant casualties from just one engagement. This certainly made me realize that facing an army of 100,000 was no easy task.

Just then, the sound of hoofbeats approached me. The sound stopped precisely beside me.

“I have returned after carrying out your orders, my lord.”

I nodded at Munglig’s report and looked at him. Then I spread both hands to commend his achievement.

“Thanks to your role as the anvil, we were able to inflict heavy damage on the enemy. Well done.”

“I felt like I could have held out longer… but the enemy was formidable, making it difficult to endure further.”

If Munglig said this, it meant the enemy infantry were well-trained soldiers. Chalukhab carefully offered his opinion to me.

“It seems best to avoid direct combat.”

“I agree.”

In a strength-versus-strength confrontation, our forces were destined to lose. So there was no need for a head-on battle.

“Since the hammer and anvil card didn’t work, now we need to play a different card.”

I turned my head to look at the hill. There, an impressive trebuchet had already been set up, displaying its majestic form.