Persimmons are poisonous.

Chapter 1041 The Battlefield Isn't a Place You Can Just Come To

The thunder of galloping warhorses alerted the Liao army outside.

Yelü Xiuge, enraged by the destruction of the trebuchets, sneered as he saw the Song army charging forward.

"Fire arrows!"

A messenger beside him immediately spurred his horse forward, drawing a banner from his waist and sweeping it across the front of the formation.

With an army of over ten thousand men, shouting orders would likely exhaust them. Signal flags were a much more efficient method.

Upon seeing the signal flag, the commander of the archer formation simultaneously issued the order to attack.

Instantly, arrows rained down like a swarm of locusts, blanketing the pass.

"Defend!"

Li Shimin roared, grabbing a shield from his horse and holding it before him.

The Great Song dynasty was prosperous. Though only established for a few decades, the Yang family army, as the elite force, already equipped their warhorses with light armor.

Coupled with the terrain, less than one in a hundred arrows actually reached the Song army formation.

The arrows pinged against the shield, but Li Shimin's horse showed no sign of slowing.

Yang Jiye was completely unfazed, having experienced such scenes countless times during his years of campaigning. His only thought was to fight!

The generals behind him calmly used their shields to protect themselves, continuing their charge.

The only one among them who was truly disheartening was Zhao Guangyi.

This man, a scholar by background, had always enjoyed designing various military formations to prove his military prowess, even claiming to be comparable to Qin Shi Huang and Emperor Taizong of Tang.

However, faced with the sky-obscuring hail of arrows, he instantly became timid.

But with the army charging, he could not simply retreat as he wished.

Just as he was about to turn his horse, Li Xiuning struck him back with the butt of her spear.

"If you don't want to die, hold your shield properly, you hear me!"

"Commander, save me—"

Zhao Guangyi, helpless, could only call out to Yang Jiye for help. The feeling of imminent death was driving him to the brink of collapse.

Yang Jiye recalled what She Saihua had said and thought of his fallen subordinates at Jinshatan. He smiled slightly at Zhao Guangyi, then shouted.

"Your Majesty is wise, leading the charge from the front. How could this old minister dare to hold you back?"

With that, he used the tip of his spear to lift Zhao Guangyi's reins, giving a slight twist of his wrist. The reins were instantly wrapped around the spear tip.

Now, even if Zhao Guangyi wanted to escape, he had no opportunity, unless he chose to abandon his horse!

Although this seemed like a lot happened, it all occurred in the blink of an eye.

The distance of one to two hundred meters was covered in an instant, and they had reached the Liao army's front lines.

After two volleys of arrows, the Liao archers had retreated. The spearmen knelt slightly in front, their spear shafts planted on the ground, the spearheads angled forward – the most effective formation against a cavalry charge.

Seeing the spear formation, Li Shimin's lips curved into a cruel smile. He twirled his shield twice before suddenly hurling it towards the spearmen.

"Smash!"

Those behind him followed suit. In an instant, dozens of shields whistled through the air, crashing into the Liao spear formation.

The shields, reinforced with iron, weighed at least twenty to thirty pounds. The momentum of the charge, combined with the force of the throw, caused immediate disarray in the spearmen's ranks when they struck.

Before they could react, Li Shimin, leading the charge, plunged into the enemy formation.

He brandished his spear, thrusting, sweeping, and smashing, instantly penetrating deep into the enemy ranks.

Yang Jiye, seeing him fight with such ferocity, as if his competitive spirit had been ignited, wielded his long saber with great power.

Fang Er, observing the battlefield from his helicopter, seemed to see a reflection of Guan Erye in him.

That golden saber was as invincible as the Green Dragon Crescent Blade!

Upon seeing this, Yelü Xiuge let out a cold laugh and issued an order.

"Xiao Tianzuo, Xiao Tianyou!"

"Here!"

"You two will each lead your units, flanking to the left and right, and block the pass. Since they dared to come out, they will not be allowed to retreat!"

"Yes!"

After the two departed, Yelü Xiuge twisted his neck a few times, took a long saber from his saddle, and said to the generals beside him, "Follow your king and charge!"

"Charge—!"

The generals roared, following him, and charged towards Li Shimin and his men.

Warhorses galloped, kicking up clouds of yellow dust, startling birds in the ravine and beasts in the distant woods.

Mu Guiying, seeing the enemy army surrounding them, called out to Yang Yanzhao, "Father, it's time!"

"Understood!"

Yang Yanzhao nodded heavily and signaled his other brothers.

Seeing this, they each put away their spears and took out something from their backs.

It was the Type 92 heavy machine gun, with its bipod removed!

The entire gun weighed about 110 jin, and even without the bipod, it was nearly 50 jin.

Yet, this weight was only comparable to the fine steel spears they usually used! On the backs of their warhorses, on each side, there was a wooden box containing a 500-round ammunition belt!

On the helicopter on the way, Mu Guiying had already taught them how to operate it.

The seven men loaded the ammunition belts, chambered rounds, and then urged their warhorses to break away from the wedge formation, charging out in different directions.

The Liao soldiers, seeing individuals separated from the main force, excitedly raised their weapons and charged, eager for easy kills.

Yang Yanzhao, seeing the approaching enemy, sneered and raised his machine gun, unleashing a sweeping burst of fire towards the front.

"Kaka-kaka-kaka—"

The distinctive sound of the Type 92 heavy machine gun echoed across the battlefield.

This almost point-blank fire maximized the lethality of the heavy machine gun!

The bullets, fresh from the barrel, were like the whip of death lashing through the Liao army formation.

Mist of blood filled the air, and limbs flew everywhere. The screams of the Liao soldiers were incessant.

Yelü Xiuge, who had just arrived, looked at the scene before him in utter confusion.

Not only him, but all the Liao soldiers were shocked by this incredible killing power!

However, on the Song army's side, the Yang family generals, after a brief moment of stunned silence, became excited.

Regardless of what kind of weapon it was, it was on their side!

In their eyes, the seven young masters holding heavy machine guns and firing from horseback were like gods of war descended!

"The young masters are mighty! Brothers, kill the enemy!"

"Kill the enemy!"

The generals roared, thrusting their spears at the enemy soldiers who were still dazed.

Li Shimin had not personally charged into battle for many years. Hearing the sound of the machine guns, he couldn't help but curse loudly.

"Damn it! What a buzzkill!"

With that, he threw away his spear, pulled out his AK from behind, expertly chambered a round, and began firing.

In less than three minutes, the Liao army was in complete disarray.

Yelü Xiuge's face was ashen. No matter how hard he tried, he could not figure out why such a turn of events had occurred!

But the current situation told him that this battle could no longer be fought.

He glared at the deputy general beside him and shouted, "Pass the order, retreat!"

However, this was a battlefield, not a plaything.

Could it be as simple as wanting to engage or wanting to flee?