flstandardbreds Chapter 157 Landmines on the Road to Lijiazhai
Chapter 157 Landmines on the Road to Lijiazhai
从鹤壁城出来的四万金军人马开始朝着汤阴县挺进，领队的是刚从南线战场调过来的张召坤将军，他们这支队伍和胡升的步军不同，他们大部分都是轻甲骑兵为主。
就在他们走到汤阴县南部的中云村的时候，一个金军斥候兵前来汇报：“启禀将军，根据我们的查探，前方还有两里地就到了李家寨。”
Zhang Zhaokun pondered for a moment while riding his horse. This Li Family Village was Li Zhen's stronghold. If he could conquer it, all the wealth inside would be his.
张召坤马鞭一挥：“大家听令，调转马头，目标李家寨。”
So the Jin cavalrymen began to march northwest, with dense fields of corn growing on both sides. A curious Jin soldier reached out and broke off an unripe ear of corn, biting into it without even peeling it.
"Pah! What a horrible thing! It tastes awful."
Unexpectedly, the corn that had been thrown on the ground was spotted by a warhorse nearby. The warhorse opened its mouth and bit into the corn it had never eaten before, chewing it heartily.
Several Jin soldiers nearby were also puzzled: "What are these things that the farmers here are growing? They're so tall, I've never seen them before."
Unbeknownst to these Jin soldiers, less than ten meters away was a fully armed squad of Li family army soldiers, who, with drone reconnaissance, already knew the Jin soldiers' movements and size.
The leader was a battalion commander. He looked cold and said in a low voice, "Listen to my orders, everyone. Our mission is to break up their formation. Once we succeed, we will withdraw immediately. We will organize into platoons and everyone will meet up by the river."
Just as the middle of the Jin army reached this point, a firework sounded in the sky. Instantly, countless soldiers of the Li family army rushed out from the cornfields on both sides, armed with semi-automatic rifles, their gleaming bayonets blinding.
"kill!"
"Clap clap clap..."
"Boom! Boom! Boom!..."
The sound of bullets and grenades throwing the Jin army into chaos. With the cornfields providing excellent cover, the Li family army caught the Jin soldiers completely off guard.
Hearing the commotion, Zhang Zhaokun realized he had been ambushed, but he did not panic. He loudly commanded his lieutenants to organize their troops for a counterattack.
The reason Li Jiajun's soldiers launched their attack amidst the Jin army was because the central position was precisely where the grain they were escorting was located; this grain was the primary target of Li Jiajun's soldiers. In the ensuing charge, countless grain carts burst into flames, billowing thick smoke rising into the sky—a truly spectacular sight.
The thunderous sound of horses' hooves pounded the ground, and some unsuspecting Jin soldiers were unable to dodge in time and were sent flying.
在一个低矮的土墙后三架机枪早就等候多时，随着机枪排长一声令下，那些刚组织起来准备追击李家军士兵的金军骑兵开始感受到了机枪的威力。
"Da da da... da da da..."
It's important to understand that although this Jin army was small in number, it still numbered several hundred. In battles against the Southern Song army, these few hundred Jin cavalrymen were enough to hold their own against Song troops two or even three times their size. This was not only because the Jin cavalry was formidable, but more importantly because the Southern Song lacked warhorses. Most of the warhorses they used at that time were imported from the Western Regions, and their speed and endurance were inferior to those of the Jin army's horses.
除此外就是军心，南宋军队军中贪腐严重，克扣兵饷那是常态，最要命的是还吃不饱，这谁还想去当兵。久而久之宋朝军队就成了那些作奸犯科犯人的集聚地，这些人还指望他们上阵杀敌保家卫国，不给你阵前起义就算是不错了。所以无论是南宋还是北宋，军队将军战斗力指望的还是各自的私军，也就是自己的内卫部队，他们不光吃得好喝得好，而且都和自己的将军沾亲带故，所以战斗力还是可以的。
After the machine gun barrels were smoking, the hundreds of Jin cavalrymen on the other side all fell to the ground, and the warhorses that had been shot but were not dead lay on the ground howling.
The machine gun platoon leader immediately grabbed his machine gun and said to the man next to him, "Hurry up to the riverbank, there will be more golden men later."
Less than ten minutes after they left, another cavalry force, even larger than the first, charged in. The Jin general leading the charge frowned, looking at the gleaming yellow bullet casings on the ground, and asked, "Where are they?"
A Jin soldier with a bandage wrapped around his arm ran over and said, "General, those people were here just now. Look, their traces are still on the ground."
The general jumped off his horse, squatted down to examine the situation, and then frowned, saying, "Who exactly are these people? Not only are they elusive, but the weapons they use are also so mysterious."
“将地上的那些黄东西都捡起来，到时候给张将军看看。”
After all that commotion, Zhang Zhaokun reorganized his troops and began marching forward again. It was already afternoon, and he had to reach the vicinity of Li Family Village before dark, otherwise he would waste a lot of time.
Just a mile from Lijiazhai, the Jin army at the forefront was suddenly blown away; to be precise, several Jin soldiers had their arms or legs blown off. Although seriously injured, these Jin soldiers did not die on the spot, and soldiers from the medical corps came to bandage them.
后边的队伍继续超前走着，结果没走出去几步又是一声爆炸声传来，又有几名金兵被炸了。
"What's going on?"
张召坤问斥候。结果斥候们也都傻了，这条路他们昨日已经走过一次，为何今日会出现如此光景。
Wang Changdao is now in charge of Lijiazhai. Following Li Zhenyuan's original plan, he has laid the landmines that were purchased from Da Mao. These landmines are specifically designed to injure people's legs, with the aim of slowing down the enemy's march, reducing the enemy soldiers' combat effectiveness, and increasing the pressure on local medical and logistical support.
因为在战场上一旦有一名士兵被地雷炸伤，那就得有两名士兵将他抬下战场，这样就会有三个士兵脱离战斗。如果地雷数量够多，敌人的士兵足够倒霉的时候，那战地医院就得投入大量的人力物力，增加了敌人后勤的压力。
Undeterred by the danger, the Jin army continued their advance, only to be repeatedly bombed. Within an hour, twenty or thirty Jin soldiers had been wounded. Since the main road was impassable, they tried to traverse the sides, but were similarly bombed. This left the Jin soldiers utterly bewildered. What kind of formation was this Li Family Stronghold using? Why was it so formidable?
Left with no other option, Jin general Zhang Zhaokun had to halt his march. He sent out all his scouts, hoping to find another route to bypass the enemy.