For more than 100 years of resistance in the Southern Song Dynasty, the smoke of gunpowder filled the Central Plains. In this protracted battle for the survival of the country, countless heroes and heroes have written chapters that can be sung and cried. However, among these glorious battles in the annals of history, there is a decisive battle that can be called the pinnacle of confrontation, which still makes future generations infinitely yearn for and admire. That was the Battle of Yuncheng, where Yue Fei, a famous general of the Southern Song Dynasty, and Wanyan Zongbi, the king of the Jin Iron Cavalry, competed here. Both sides were the most elite armed forces at that time, and this battle was a key battle that determined the situation of the late Southern Song Dynasty against Jin. What a thrilling scene? How did Yue Fei defeat the Iron Floating Massacre of the Jin State cavalry with infantry combat power? How will the mystery of all this be solved?
1. Betraying the alliance to invade the south and being ordered to go on the northern expedition
Since the disgrace of Jingkang, the Jin State has launched a long-term invasion and oppression of the Song Dynasty. After a long period of peace, the Jin State was ready to go, determined to annex the hinterland of the Central Plains in one fell swoop. However, Zhao Gou, Emperor Gaozong of the Song Dynasty, was originally the decree of the Gou'an Dynasty, but he disregarded the hatred of his ancestors and signed a humiliating peace treaty with the Jin State. At this time, the Jin Kingdom was in the midst of internal strife, and there were also lords and ministers who presided over peace. Before the ink of the contract was dry, the Jin commander turned his face and denied it, and in May 1140, he commanded the army to go south in four directions, brazenly tearing up the covenant.
The war suddenly began, and the Song army was caught off guard. At that time, Liu Qi was leading his troops north to Kaifeng to take office, coinciding with the surprise attack of the Jin army, but Liu Qi's lone army bravely faced the battle and turned the tide in Shunchang. Gaozong was shocked when he heard the news, and immediately promoted Yue Fei, Han Shizhong and other lords to recruit envoys and prepared to resist hard. At this time, the Yue family's army, which had been recuperating for a long time, came out of the cage like a tiger and showed its majesty.
The Jin army was overwhelmed when it moved south, and soon occupied all parts of Henan. The Song army was unable to resist and was defeated on all fronts. Jin Renzheng bet on using Yue Fei, who had cut off his foundation, as an arrow target, in an attempt to annihilate him in one fell swoop, thereby reversing the passive situation. However, Gaozong was afraid that the lonely city would be powerless, and repeatedly urged Yue Fei to rush north to rescue. As a result, the vanguard troops of the Yuejia Army, such as Zhang Xian and Wang Gui, flew straight behind the enemy and launched a counterattack. Under the command of Yue Fei, the Song army drove a large number of Jin troops out of the Central Plains with lightning speed, including Yingchang, Huaining, Zhengzhou, Luoyang and other places, and the situation was reversed.
2. The Yue family army of the tiger out of the cage
Since the Third Northern Expedition was forcibly stopped by Gaozong in 1137, the Yuejia army was stationed in Ezhou for three years, and he worked hard and waited for the day. This brave, well-trained, and brave army of the king is like a tiger that has been trapped for a long time, just waiting for the time to be ripe and show its majesty.
When Wanyan Zongbi, the commander of the Jin State, violated the covenant and the long-awaited Jin army suddenly launched a full-scale attack in May 1140, Song Gaozong was shocked and had to summon Yue Fei, Han Shizhong, and Zhang Jun to form the main force against Jin. Among them, the Wang division under the command of Yue Fei is the most elite division in the world.
Yue Fei waved his army north as soon as he received the order, and the army was surging like a torrent of steel, and it was overwhelming. The vanguard troops were led by Zhang Xian, the former commander of the army, and Yao Zhengqin, who was under the command of the You Yi army. When the two arrived in Shunchang, they joined Liu Qijun's army and launched a counterattack. Zhang Xian's army marched all the way, conquering the city of Yingchang on June 19, and occupying Huaining Mansion on the 24th, cutting off the retreat of the Jin army.
Immediately afterwards, Wang Gui, the commander of the Chinese army, led the people to the west, and in early July, he had recovered Luoyang, Xijing. Yue Fei also personally led the pro-army "Beiwei Army" to march to Kaifeng, and dispatched Yue's army from all walks of life to carry out a comprehensive sweep of the occupied areas of the Jin State.
In the face of the rapid offensive of the Yuejia army, the Jin army was vulnerable and retreated. In just a few months, the Song army has advanced to the shore of the Luohe River, which is only separated from Kaifeng by a river. The war took a sharp turn, the Jin army was in chaos, and Wanyan Zongbi's Kaifeng base had been opened, and it could be crushed by the Song army at any time.
At this time, although the Jin State had dispatched reinforcements, the exhausted Jin army was difficult to defeat the Yue Clan's Xiongshi. At the critical moment, Yue Fei adopted the strategy of dividing troops to guard the army, cutting off the internal and external ties of the Jin army, and further shaking the foundation of the enemy army. At this point, the Jin army suffered heavy casualties, suffered heavy losses, and almost lost its combat effectiveness.
On the other hand, the morale of the Song army was like a rainbow, and it was extremely brave, like a tiger. The division of the king showed his skills, and Yue Fei can be regarded as a joyful battle in which he learned to start over, take revenge, and reproduce the majesty of the famous generals of the Northern Expedition. This elite general, who had been forged for a long time, finally took on its fierce edge under the command of Yue Fei, turning into a blade that was about to pierce the life gate of the Jin Kingdom.
3. Dugu seeks to fight the golden soldier trap
Yue Fei personally led the main force to attack Kaifeng, and the Jin army retreated day by day, and the chances of winning the battle for many years gradually emerged. However, when the Song army arrived at Kaifeng, the Jin army used a series of cunning tactics to lure the enemy deep and inflict heavy losses.
First of all, the Jin army flatly denied that Zhang Fangping, the king of Yuzhang, who had made a contribution to the suppression of the rebellion in the Song Dynasty, was an internal response, and lured the Song army to besiege the palace, thus falling into the trap of encirclement. Secondly, the Jin army set up ambushes at the east and west roads in an attempt to cut off the Song army's retreat. What's more, the Jin army dug three feet into the ground and culverts led into the city, in a vain attempt to set fire to the plains when the Song army attacked the city.
However, many conspiracies were nothing to the experienced Yue Fei, who had already seen the enemy's tactics. In order to avoid being encircled and passively beaten, Yue Fei decided to take the initiative to attack and pursue the victory.
So, he personally led the 3,000 men and horses of the pro-army to fight out of the siege, and the lone army approached the city of Kaifeng. The Beiwei army is brave and unmatched, and every place it goes will sweep in a big way, and the Jin army's position is in chaos. Soon, Yue's army had cut off the east and west traffic arteries of Kaifeng, and surrounded the Jin army in the Zhengzhou area.
However, the Jin army had many generals after all, and as the war dragged on, the Song army's bows and arrows gradually ran out. In addition, the Yue army was advancing too fast, the supply line was becoming longer and more difficult, the logistics were exhausted, and there was little grain and grass left. What's more, the Jin army is full of conspiracies, and ambushes are everywhere. As a result, the death squad soon fell into an unprecedented desperate situation.
Just when the Song army was gradually showing fatigue, the Jin army took retreat as advance, deliberately feigned defeat and showed weakness, intending to lure the Song army into a completely desperate situation. The Yue army's war horses had no forage, and they responded to the battle in a hurry, facing up to the insults of the Zhongjin army and waiting for an opportunity to attack.
A large number of Jin troops feigned to flee, and the Wei army took the bait in pursuit, and thus fell into the ambush of the Jin army. There was a main force in front of it, and reinforcements arrived in the back, and the Song army was almost at the end of its rope. At the critical moment, Yue Feifang ordered to "ambush on all sides and raise drums to defend himself", wanting to consolidate himself by swinging a formation to observe the military situation.
Fourth, Yang Zaixing descended to the earth
At the moment of crisis, a little-known young general actually stepped forward and shone brightly, resolving Yue Jun's urgent need. He is Yang Zaixing, a ranger of the Song Army.
At that time, the Beiwei army was surrounded by enemies on all sides and was in danger of being surrounded by the Jin army at any time. At this moment, Yang Zai excitedly moved forward bravely and swept straight to the camp of the Jin army. His strength is infinite, dust flies everywhere he starts, and blood flows everywhere he waves. Soon, the Jin army was in chaos and could not be defeated.
Yang Zaixing's subordinates were ruthless, and fought their way out of the bloody road. The eight formations and eight willows of the Jin army were broken one after another, and the three battalions and six formations of the garrison were even hoeed by him, and they turned into a mess in an instant. For a time, the Jin army panicked, fled in all directions, and abandoned their armor.
Yang Zaixing, who was too brave, immediately mounted in pursuit, his eyes were like torches, and everywhere he looked was pierced by his divine sword. Soon, the Jin army was routed and reduced to a plate of scattered sand. Yang Zaixing took advantage of the victory to pursue and directly capture the Jin army camp, and the Jin army guarding the camp was even more defeated. At this time, other soldiers of Yue's army also followed his thunderous methods and followed the attack, making a decisive reversal in the tide of battle.
Soon, Yang Zaixing captured alive Wanyan Zongzhen, the left deputy marshal of the Jin Army. This fierce general of the Jin army is known for his reputation for being invincible in a hundred battles, and the battle formation is enough to make the Song army panic. Now, he was captured alive by Yang Zaixing, which undoubtedly greatly damaged the vitality of the Jin army, and confirmed the overall victory of the Song army.
After eliminating the elite troops under Yan Zongzhen, Yang Zaixing not only relieved the urgent need of the Beiwei army, but also completely damaged the vitality of the Jin army, and was unable to stop the sharp spirit of the Yue army. A few months later, the Jin army was left with only the remnants of Kaifeng's nominal division in Henan, and its foundation was shaking.
With this outstanding performance, Yang Zaixing was awarded the title of envoy of Tongzhou Festival, and jumped from a grass citizen to a senior general of the Song army. Since then, Yue Fei and Yang Zaixing have also formed an indissoluble bond and become comrades-in-arms who share life and death.
5. The pinnacle duel between the two elites
After a series of battles, Song and Jin decided to fight in Yuncheng. The Jin army was led by the brave and warlike iron cavalry general Wanyan Zongbi to lead the elite troops to the border, intending to annihilate the Song army in one fell swoop and reverse the passive situation.
Wanyan Zongbi relied on the combat power of the cavalry and was determined to kill the killer. He gathered the most elite 30,000 iron cavalry troops in the Jin Kingdom, plus heavy troops to guard Yuncheng, and was fully armed to wait for the Song army. On the other hand, Yue Fei has been biting the Jin army since he was surrendered to the Northern Expedition that year. This battle was a shame, and Yue Fei also made the elite Wang Shi do his best, and personally supervised the commander.
The lineup of the two sides is amazing, just like the heroes of the world. The cavalry of the Jin army marched to the formation, shining brightly; The Song army was in high spirits. The two sides have been going back and forth for several days without opening their eyes. It can be said that you come and go, soldiers and disasters, and sit on an equal footing, and it is difficult to distinguish great achievements.
Just when the Jin army was stubbornly resistant, the Song army's foot soldiers were holding on to the unbreakable, and the two armies were stalemate, Yue Fei threw out a few tricks, so that the Song army took the lead. First, he commanded the Lingnan marksmen to trap the Jin cavalry with superb archery skills. Then, he ordered the Huguang Iron Shovel Water Attack Team to cut down and shovel the Jin military fortifications and disrupt its combat preparations. In the end, the vanguard was harassed by beating drums and confusing the Jin army. The Jin army, which was completely taken by surprise, was unable to cope and suffered heavy losses.
As a last resort, Wanyan Zongbi decisively decided to use cavalry to rush to the decisive battle and annihilate the enemy in one fell swoop. The Jin army gathered in an instant, attacking the Jin camp like a violent storm, and the momentum was terrifying. Yue Fei ordered the Song army to set up a formation in Yinshan outside the city, build layers of peripheral fortifications, and wait for the opportunity to respond to the enemy.
The cavalry of the Jin army was so fierce that it only took one blow to submerge the Song army. But at this critical juncture, Yue Fei once again cast a killer move: the Cloud Ladder Army and the Digging Army suddenly came out, giving the Jin Army a gloomy attack! Just when the Jin army thought that it had surrounded the Song army, it fell into the encirclement of the Song army. It was really difficult for the cavalry of the Jin army to deploy in the city, fence barrier and other places, and the strength was weak, and finally the dragon spear cut off the Jin army Tai who was attacking the Song army. A blood-soaked encounter then unfolded in Yuncheng, and the scene was tragic.
In this way, although the Song army was mainly foot soldiers in the Battle of Yuncheng, it still won a surprising victory, overcoming rigidity with softness and completely conquering the Jin army. The Song army's tenacious perseverance and resourcefulness enabled Yue Fei to continue the glory of the Northern Expedition in the past, so that the foundation of the Jin State was completely shaken, and it has been in a state of collapse ever since.