Chapter 33: The Battle for Xiangyang

  Liang Xiao watched Lanya's counting method, which was quite strange and different from the Central Plains. However, the steps were concise and not as complicated as those in the Central Plains. He couldn't help but nod slightly: "This is indeed the Huihui arithmetic? It really has some subtleties." He thought that if he hadn't fallen out with her, he would have sincerely asked for her guidance. For a moment, he felt regretful and sighed, then turned to Ah Xue and told her about his experiences over the past few days. Ah Xue listened as he spoke of the defeat of the Chigis Qan's army, and couldn't help but laugh silently; when she heard about the great war between Song and Yuan, she suddenly became tense again, tightly grasping his hand; when she heard that he had become the leader of the Chigis Qan's army, her heart was momentarily bewildered, as if in a dream.

  Lanya bowed her head and calculated for a while, solving the first question in more than 20 steps, but couldn't think of anything else. She stared blankly at the math problem. Liang Xiao's anger had dissipated by then. He had suffered from difficult problems when he was younger, so seeing her worried expression, he felt sympathetic and asked softly, "Can't solve it?" Lanya gritted her teeth and said in a low voice, "You...you specialize in creating unsolvable ghost questions to torment people?"

  Liang Xiao smiled, one hand supporting Ah Xue and the other holding a sword, swiftly solving it all the way. He knew that Lan Ya was not an ordinary person, so he simplified the complex steps, only writing down the crucial ones. In an instant, he finished the first question and then solved the second one. Lan Ya saw the ingenious parts, her eyebrows flying up and down, nodding repeatedly. Just as Liang Xiao was about to solve the third question, Lan Ya hastily said: "Don't solve it! Don't solve it!" Liang Xiao asked in surprise: "What? Have you figured it out?" Lan Ya's face turned red as she said: "I can't figure it out now, I'll think slowly and will eventually come up with a solution."

  Liang Xiao listened to this and felt a sense of understanding, smiling: "Good, you can't figure it out, I'll tell you again." Ah Xue smiled: "Brother, why aren't you scolding me this time? Ah Xue can't figure it out, but she's going to get scolded!" Liang Xiao gave her a white eye and said: "I explain a few steps, others will understand. You're just a stubborn stone head, even if I explain a hundred times, you won't understand." Ah Xue pouted and said: "Ah Xue is stupid anyway!" Liang Xiao glared at her and said: "Is being stupid something to be proud of?" Ah Xue leaned on his shoulder, giggling uncontrollably.

  Lanya saw how close the siblings were and felt a warmth in her heart. She sighed and said, "Liang Xiao, I should head back now, or Father will worry." Liang Xiao stood up and said, "I'll escort you back." He turned to Ah Xue and said, "Take good care of your injuries, I'll come visit again tomorrow." Ah Xue nodded and replied, "I'll wait for Brother!"

  Liang Xiao and Lan Ya rushed out of the camp, arriving at Zhamaluding's camp. Lan Ya stopped her horse, hesitated for a moment, then suddenly gathered her courage to ask: "Liang Xiao, are you the greatest calculator in the Central Plains?" Liang Xiao shook his head: "It can't be said! However, I haven't seen anyone better than me." Lan Ya's eyes lit up, and she smiled: "Liang Xiao, you may have trapped me, but you won't necessarily trap my teacher." Liang Xiao chuckled and asked: "Nazhaluding? Where is he?" Lan Ya replied: "He's at the Maragha Observatory in the Yelkhan Kingdom. It's the most magnificent observatory in the world, with countless books hidden inside, and the best astronomical instruments. My teacher goes there every day to listen to the voices of the stars in the sky." As she spoke, a hint of reverence appeared between her eyebrows.

  Liang Xiao fell silent for a moment, then said loudly: "Lanya, if you return to the Yelü Khan's country, please tell Nasulading that I have taken care of things in Central Plains and will go to Malaga to ask him for guidance. Let's see who is the greatest star scholar, who is the true king of wisdom!" Lanya heard these words, her heart skipped a beat, and she hastily asked: "Are you speaking seriously?" Liang Xiao smiled slightly: "Absolutely no false words."

  Lan Ya stared at him intently, then suddenly smiled, as if ripples appeared on the surface of mercury. She murmured: "I really want you to go now." Liang Xiao was surprised and said: "Why are you so happy? Don't you worry that your teacher will be defeated by me?" Lan Ya laughed and said: "The teacher doesn't care about winning or losing, only welcomes the visit of wise men." She sighed softly, with a hint of longing in her eyes. "I really want to see you meet him. The most brilliant Islamic wisdom and the most extensive Chinese knowledge will collide, what kind of sparks will be generated?" Liang Xiao turned his head, gazing at the flames of Xiangyang City, his expression dimmed, and he smiled bitterly: "Not now."

  Lanya followed his gaze, smiled slightly and sadly, turned around to ride into the camp. After a few steps, she suddenly turned her head back, staring blankly at Liang Xiao. Liang Xiao asked: "Is there something else?" Lanya's slender body trembled, hastily replied: "No, no!" Rushed into the camp, her cheeks flushed with heat, her thoughts were in disarray: "Lanya, what's wrong with you? Didn't you entrust your chastity and life to Xingxing? What's wrong with you?" Although she thought so, her heart was still fluctuating up and down, hard to calm down.

  The next day, Liang Xiao took over as the commander-in-chief of the Qingqi Army. For more than ten days afterwards, he devoted himself to training his troops. During this period, Liang Xiao continued to ponder the art of generalship and also sought instruction from Tuhetu on the Qingqi language in order to command the various armies.

  Lanya went to Asha's tent every day after that, studying arithmetic with Liang Xiao. Liang Xiao was infatuated with mathematics and had no intention of hiding anything, Lanya asked questions and he answered them all. Lanya watched him deduce arithmetic, his clever ideas pouring out, and she was even more amazed by his abilities, secretly sighing that the arithmetic of Zhongtu was indeed refined, already surpassing the arithmetic of Huihui in many ways. But thinking again, her teacher Nasuladdin's wisdom was like a sea, not necessarily weaker than this person.

  In addition to arithmetic, Liang Xiao couldn't help but ask Lanya about the origin of Arabic numerals. He finally learned that Arabic numerals originated from a place called Greece in the Western extremity. Over a thousand years ago, there were many great mathematicians there, including Euclid's geometry, Pythagoras' algebra, and Qinler's astronomy. The great Archimedes was even more impressive. However, wars continued unabated, Archimedes was beheaded by the Romans, Greece was destroyed in the flames of war, and precious knowledge was considered heresy, with some being burned or discarded, leaving behind only a few remnants.

  At this time, the Huihui people became powerful and fought for the true Lord to conquer Daxin. The army reached Greece, and some lost knowledge fell into the hands of Huihui scholars. The Huihui people studied Greek knowledge, developed it, and produced many great sages. The greatest sage of the time, Nasir al-Din, was the culmination of Huihui learning.

  Lanya said, "At that time, the Mongols rose again and our Abbasid dynasty was destroyed by Hulagu Khan. The teacher had to flee from place to place in the war, barely surviving, and had no choice but to use alchemy and astrology to curry favor with the Mongolian nobles and seek their protection. However, although Hulagu Khan respected the teacher and built an observatory for him, it was not for the teacher to study, but for him to use astrology to predict his own fortune. Nor did he want the teacher to create the most ingenious astronomical instruments, but rather to build siege engines to conquer the states that refused to submit to him." She said this with a faint redness in her eyes, "In fact, others thought the teacher's position was honorable, but they didn't know how bitter and sad the teacher felt inside."

  Liang Xiao recalled the hardships of establishing Tianji Palace, feeling a deep sense of melancholy. Suddenly, his heart surged with excitement. In these six years, he had exhausted all the arithmetic methods in China and thought there was nothing more to learn. But now, he suddenly knew that outside of China, there existed such profound and vast computational knowledge. He immediately devoted himself to learning it. Lan Ya happily taught him, but the Hu people's arithmetic had its unique counting method. Liang Xiao wanted to learn the most profound knowledge of the Hu people, so he started with their literature. Although he was intelligent, learning a foreign language was not easy.

  That day, Lanya taught arithmetic using palindromes on the sand table and wrote "Pyramid Calculation" and another question "Nile River Field Measurement". The previous question was to find the volume of the Great Pyramid of Giza (equivalent to solid geometry), and the latter question was to find the size of the cultivated land along the Nile River. Both questions came from Euclid's "Elements", Lanya asked Liang Xiao to translate and answer them.

  Li Xiaoyu broke through the Central Plains arithmetic, which was originally very easy to use Greek arithmetic to answer, but it was another difficult. The Greek algorithm is different from the Central Plains, and the Central Plains algorithm is very cumbersome, while the Greek algorithm seeks simplicity and beauty, and rigorous logic. In Lan Ya's words: "The numeracy of the Central Plains is like a scattered pearl, which makes people look at it with dizzy eyes; the numeracy of Greece is a string of bright pearls, although it may not be as beautiful as the Central Plains, but each one can be placed in the most appropriate place." She said lightly, but Li Xiaoyu spent more than ten days of hard work before mastering the key to Greek arithmetic.

  He guessed and calculated, and was surprised to find that the "Pyramid of Gold" was actually a tomb for the Egyptian pharaoh. Lanyah explained the customs and stories of Egypt one by one. Ah Xue, who had been quietly listening on the side, suddenly became excited when she heard Lanyah's interesting story, and couldn't help but ask repeatedly: "Is there more? Is there more?"

  When Lanya finished speaking, Liang Xiao imagined the exotic scenery and couldn't help but sigh: "The labor of thousands of people is spent on building a tomb for one person. These Egyptian pharaohs are similar to our Qin Shi Huang!" Ah Xue laughed and said: "Brother, after you've won the war and avenged your enemies, shall we go to Egypt? Let's visit the Pyramids that Lanya sister mentioned, and also the lighthouse standing by the sea (Note: Refers to the Pharos Lighthouse, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, which once stood in Alexandria, Egypt, but was destroyed in the 13th century)!"

  Liang Xiao laughed and said, "It's good to be good, but if we go to Qincha and then Egypt, by the time we get to the Pyramids, we'll all be old men and women!" Ah Xue smiled but didn't speak, thinking to herself, "If I can spend my whole life traveling with my brother like this, then I won't have lived in vain!"

  Lanya looked at Ah Xue and suddenly asked in Huihui language, "Liango, your sister is really lovely, but what's with the whip marks on her body?" She had been holding back this question for a long time and finally couldn't help but ask. Liang Xiao smiled wryly and replied in Huihui language, stuttering as he explained what happened. Ah Xue listened to their conversation, thinking they were discussing math, and didn't suspect anything else.

  Lanya listened and murmured, "She's a girl, her body is full of scars, it won't look good in the future." These words struck Liang Xiao's heart, his face turned red and he was speechless. Lanya slightly raised an eyebrow and smiled, saying: "I have a prescription here, if you prepare the medicine according to it and apply it for several months, even the most unsightly scars can be removed." Liang Xiao was overjoyed, rubbing his hands together, saying: "Lanya, Lanya, this...this..." He wanted to beg her, but found it hard to open his mouth.

  Lanya smiled and wrote down the prescription, but then frowned and said: "This is a formula that our teacher obtained when he was practicing alchemy in the past. The materials required are extremely expensive, and it would be difficult to gather them unless one is incredibly wealthy. I'll go ask Father if he can try to raise enough money."

  Liang Xiao carefully examined the prescription, which was filled with precious items such as red gold, beautiful jade, precious stones, and pearls. He was a proud person by nature and did not want to easily accept favors from others, so he said: "I have already been very grateful for this prescription, as for the medicine, I will think of a way to prepare it myself." Lan Ya looked at him with a mixture of trust and doubt, wanting to persuade him, when suddenly they heard the sound of horse hooves outside the tent. Ah Su's personal soldiers rushed in, Liang Xiao put down his chessboard and asked: "Is there a battle?" The soldier replied: "Tonight, Ali Haiya launched a surprise attack on the floating bridge, the commander wants you to go take a look." Liang Xiao nodded and stood up, Lan Ya said: "I'll go too!"

  Three men galloped to the riverbank, where a small boat was already waiting to receive them. They abandoned the boat and boarded the warship, where the commanding general was on board. Bayan's face looked solemn, his eyes fixed on the front. At this time, dark clouds filled the sky, wrapping up the stars and moon, not a single ray of light could escape. Suddenly, a low command came from the distant warship, followed by the sound of splashing water. Two hundred Yuan soldiers, each carrying a large leather bag, jumped into the water and quietly drifted towards the floating bridge.

  This leather bag is called "hundu", also known as "hundun du", which is made by a unique technique, taking off the whole sheepskin. The sheepskin taken off in this way has only six holes: the sheep's neck, four hooves and tail, after sewing, it can be used to hold wine or water. This kind of "hundu" must be worn by Mongolian cavalry when they go on a long expedition, usually filled with water or wine, when encountering a big river with rapid currents, they would blow it up, tie it together, and form a sheepskin raft to cross the river. In those years, Genghis Khan's army had two "hundu" per person, sweeping across the south and north, destroying countless countries; When Kublai Khan conquered Dali Kingdom, he also relied on "hundu" to cross the turbulent Lancang River, conquering Dali in one move.

  This time, each Yuan army martyr had three "hundun" under him, two inflated and one filled with fire oil. In less than an hour, they bypassed the iron chain set up by the Song army across the river.

  Everyone on the Yuan army's warship held their breath, while the Song army's patrol boats seemed to be unaware of anything. Before long, the pontoon was less than 20 zhang away from the floating bridge, and many sailors let out low cheers. Just then, suddenly the bells on the bridge rang loudly, and Bayan shouted, "Damn it!" The other generals all changed color.

  In an instant, the Yuan army's warriors found themselves trapped in a large fishing net, with countless hooks on it, and bells hanging from both ends of the net. Once entangled, they would ring incessantly.

  Upon hearing the news, a large fire broke out on both banks. The Song army saw the Yuan soldiers struggling in the fishing net and burst into laughter, followed by a barrage of arrows. In an instant, over 200 people were killed or injured. However, this time the selected brave warriors were extremely fierce, and even in such an unfavorable situation, more than 50 people braved the hail of stones and arrows, desperately crossing the fishing net and climbing up the floating bridge. Once on the bridge, the brave warriors pulled out their knives, pierced the oil-filled "Hundu", poured the oil on the bridge, lit the fire, and set the bridge ablaze.

  Suddenly, the city gate of Xiangyang was wide open, and more than a hundred Song soldiers rushed up to the floating bridge from both sides. One group held guns and danced with knives, coming to fight against the Yuan army, while another group carried wooden buckets to put out fires. The Yuan army also divided into three groups: one team of Yuan soldiers raised their knives to meet the enemy, another team opened their quivers to block arrows, and the remaining team took down large hammers from their backs and struck the wooden pillars supporting the floating bridge with all their might. In an instant, several pillars were knocked down, and with a loud crash, a section of the floating bridge collapsed.

  The river wind suddenly rose, and the flames on the bridge surged up, burning with a loud crackling sound. The Yuan army's naval forces cheered loudly. Liu Zheng took advantage of the momentum to launch an attack, and the two cities of Xiangyang were also hit by cannonballs, with loud explosions echoing through the night sky.

  In the firelight, a white figure suddenly flashed out and rushed onto the floating bridge. The sword light flashed back and forth, and in the blink of an eye, several dead soldiers fell to the ground. Liang Xiao recognized Yun Shu and became enraged. Other generals also recognized him, and A Shi shouted: "It's him again!" Yun Shu's sword was like a gust of wind sweeping away fallen leaves, and with two or three passes, dozens of dead soldiers were left unscathed. The Song army followed up, putting out the fire, re-establishing the wooden stakes, and replacing other damaged areas with new wooden boards. Liu Zheng saw this situation and had no choice but to retreat his troops.

  Yun Shu's clothes were stained with blood, and he returned to the city gate. Lv De welcomed him with a smile and said: "Thanks to Yun Gongzi's clever calculation, he anticipated the Yuan people's move and set up this fishing net formation, making it impossible for them to escape. Haha, indeed they came floating in and left carrying their tails!" Yun Shu bowed his hands and said: "Sir is joking, the Yuan people's stealthy attack method was silent and invisible, and it was hard to defend against. But fortunately, my master had mentioned this method to me before, saying that the wonderful defense was none other than the golden hook fishing net formation. I just followed his teachings." He said with a hint of sadness between his eyebrows: "To be honest, sir, my master studied the heavens and the earth, and the 'Water Bird Fish Dragon Formation' was also taught by him. In these six years, he taught me many battle strategies. At first, I didn't understand the deeper meaning and complained about wasting time learning martial arts, not willing to work hard. Only now do I realize that he had anticipated today's battle situation and spent all his energy teaching me to help Lord Taigong succeed."

  Lü De exclaimed, "Your master's plan is indeed profound and far-reaching, truly a great man of the generation! But why didn't he come himself? If we could get his help, how would the Yuan people dare to be arrogant?" Yun Shu smiled bitterly and said, "I don't know about that." Lü De sighed and pondered, "Yun Gongzi, you have made great contributions many times. I want to let you take charge of the military, what do you think?" Yun Shu shook his head and said, "My master has an order, not to hold official positions in the Song Dynasty. I dare not disobey, being a humble staff officer is already satisfying." Lü De heard his resolute tone and had no choice but to give up.

  The fire on the floating bridge gradually went out, and the two cities of Xiangyang returned to silence. Bayan listened to the gurgling sound of the river water, his face gloomy and speechless. After a long while, he said, "Whoever can destroy this floating bridge will be heavily rewarded!"

  The boat was quiet, and the generals looked at each other in dismay. Suddenly, Liang Xiao spoke up: "Is this true?" Bai Yan hesitated for a moment, then turned to him and said: "Do you have a plan?" Liang Xiao said: "I just thought of a plan to break the bridge, although it will consume a lot of manpower and resources, but we won't lose a single soldier." Bai Yan said: "It doesn't matter if it's labor-intensive. People can rest when they're tired, but once they're dead, they can't come back to life. As long as you can do it, whatever you want, I'll give it to you!" Liang Xiao nodded and said: "Good, first of all, we need to block the Han River and store water upstream." Everyone was shocked when they heard this.

  Shi Tianze frowned and said, "General Liang wants to accumulate water to destroy the floating bridge? That's difficult. Firstly, when the Song people built the bridge, they used large wooden pillars that were driven into the riverbed, which was quite sturdy; secondly, the Han River is gentle and wide, making it hard to accumulate enough water to destroy the bridge. The most difficult thing is, how can we divert the flow of such a large river?" As an old minister and general, he had given careful consideration to this matter, and having been in command of the naval forces for a long time, he was well-versed in the nature of water. Everyone nodded in agreement with his words.

  Liang Xiao shook his head and said, "I don't have to use water to flush the bridge, but I'll just borrow its momentum!" Everyone was stunned, and Bai Yan asked, "How do you plan to borrow its momentum?" Liang Xiao smiled and said, "Let me keep you in suspense for now. I need to investigate the water's momentum first, and then I'll tell you!" He also asked Bai Yan, "Great General, who built the Jiangxin Stone Pier?"

  Bo Yan frowned and said, "What's the point of asking this?" Liang Xiao said, "If one can build a stone platform in the rapids, they should also have the ability to block the river and divert its flow." Bo Yan said, "That person is still in Dadu, not here."

  Liang Xiao frowned slightly, but then heard Lan Ya say: "I have some knowledge of water conservancy, I can help you!" Liang Xiao was overjoyed and said: "With your assistance, it's better than having thousands of troops and horses." Lan Ya did not expect him to praise her in front of everyone, she felt ashamed and couldn't help but blush, lowering her head.

  Bo Yan thought for a moment and said, "This matter is too laborious. What if it doesn't succeed?" Liang Xiao casually replied, "Cut off my head." Everyone was shocked, and Liang Xiao's words undoubtedly set a military order. Alucai's lips parted slightly as if to speak, but Bo Yan had already said, "Alright. In the army, there is no joking. If it doesn't succeed, I won't show mercy. From now on, you can command all soldiers and craftsmen in the army! How many days do you need?"

  "Two months will be enough." Bai Yan was taken aback, and said loudly: "Alright, I'll hear from you within two months." He turned around and boarded the boat, without looking back, and went ashore.

  The crowd of generals couldn't help but glance at Liang Xiao with a mixture of envy and schadenfreude. They had long been dissatisfied with Bayan's promotion of this man, and now they saw Liang Xiao being overly ambitious and taking on such a task, their hearts were secretly delighted: "Cutting off the river and blocking the flow, how can two months be enough? This young man is eager for merit, he deserves to die!" Each of them sneered coldly and went ashore. Alu looked at him with one glance, sighed, and also turned to leave.

  Ali Haiya and Liang Xiao walked ashore together, both silent for a while. Ali Haiya couldn't help but ask: "Liang Xiao, how confident are you?" Liang Xiao replied: "Seven or eight parts!" Ali Haiya was surprised: "I thought you were fully confident, that's why I dared to speak so boldly!" Liang Xiao smiled: "There is no such thing as perfection in the world." Ali Haiya paused for a moment, nodded and said: "That makes sense. If you need my help, just let me know." Liang Xiao thanked him and returned to the Qincha camp on his own.

  The next day, Liang Xiao completed the wave meter and went to the Han River with Lan Ya to survey and measure the width and depth of the river. Three days later, they found a suitable location for building a dam. On the same day, he returned to the main camp and pondered overnight, drawing up a draft of the reservoir map and various mechanical designs. He then discussed and finalized the plan with Lan Ya. The two were an extraordinary talent from the Eastern Land and a disciple of the Western Domain's Grand Master, respectively. Now that they had joined forces, their combined efforts would surely produce remarkable results. After discussing for two days, the dam design was finalized, and Lan Ya gathered craftsmen to manufacture machinery according to the design and modify the ships.

  Liang Xiao was not in a hurry, training his troops during the day and studying mathematics at night. After finishing his studies, he listened to Lan Ya's report on the engineering situation. Lan Ya thought that he had made a military order, and she was very anxious in her heart, but Liang Xiao warned her not to mention this matter in front of Ah Xue, so she didn't dare say much. When teaching, she couldn't help but be absent-minded, often getting the math problems wrong. Liang Xiao's eyes were sharp, and with one glance, he knew that Lan Ya was distracted, so he teased her a few times, making her cry and laugh at the same time.

  Time flies like an arrow, and ten days have passed. On this day, Liang Xiao was training cavalry in the camp, ordering the troops to play a game of horseball. Horseball was originally a leisurely game played by Han nobles during their free time, which tested one's horsemanship skills. After learning from the Mongols, it became a method for training cavalry, with one ball and six goals, riders divided into teams competing against each other, holding colorful sticks on horseback, and scoring points by hitting the ball into the goal. This game was originally played between two teams, but Liang Xiao intentionally tested the troops' formation, setting up only four goals, dividing over 2,000 people into more than 360 teams of six people each, competing in a six-flower formation for three horseballs.

  Li Xiang stood on the platform, issuing commands. The training ground was filled with smoke and dust as over 2,000 people surrounded three red balls, competing for them. Every six people formed a team, each holding their position, not daring to make any mistakes. If their formation was disrupted, they would lose. At that moment, over 300 teams of horses and riders were moving in all directions on the training ground, changing formations, chasing and blocking each other, shooting arrows to obstruct, and competing for the balls. The scene was just like what people at that time described: "Halfway up the sky, colorful flags fluttered, a red ball flew down like a falling star. In front of the small pavilion, drums were beating loudly, horses with jade saddles galloped proudly, their manes and tails flowing in the wind." It sounds elegant, but this was a game played by over 10 people, whereas here there were 2,000 people competing. Horsemanship was essential, but if one couldn't change formations cleverly, it would be impossible to win. Therefore, the skill of fighting intelligently and cleverly far surpassed the elegance of comparing horsemanship.

  Liang Xiao watched from a distance. He saw three horseballs entering and exiting the four gates in an unpredictable manner, extremely fast. If it were an ordinary person, it would be absolutely impossible to remember how many times the ball had entered in an instant, but Liang Xiao's divine calculation was able to clearly see and accurately calculate the chaotic and disorderly movement of the horseballs, without missing a single one. Therefore, although this is the world's unparalleled method for training troops, only Liang Xiao can use it in the world. Otherwise, each team would remember how many times their own team had entered the ball, and if the spectators made an error in their count, they would inevitably invite complaints.

  In a short while, more than 200 teams were defeated and retreated to the side, leaving only about 100 teams fighting in the arena. Liang Xiao remembered clearly that Tuhatai and Li Ting's teams scored the most goals, almost neck and neck, followed by the teams of Kangguite, Yang Yi, and Wang Ke. These five people had been following Liang Xiao for a long time and had gained the deepest understanding of the Six Flower Formation, so their formation changes were far superior to those of the Qinchu Army soldiers. After another three quarters of an hour, only ten teams remained on the field, and Liang Xiao ordered one ball to be taken away, leaving only two balls to fight for.

  In an instant, the other five teams were scattered by Tuhatai's team of five. At this point, Tuhatai's team had scored the most goals, with Li Tingrui scoring three goals. Not long after, the teams led by Nangutai, Yang Jue, and Wang Ke successively collapsed, leaving only Tuhatai and Li Tingrui's teams on the field. Liang Xiao ordered his men to take away another ball, leaving only one ball on the field. Tuhatai's team had three hundred-man commanders who were skilled in horsemanship, but Li Tingrui's team was made up of ordinary soldiers. However, Li Tingrui was clever and resourceful, giving orders that changed the formation frequently, making it extremely difficult to break through. For a time, both teams played to their strengths, fighting fiercely without being able to gain the upper hand. The ball flew back and forth like shooting stars and flying arrows.

  The Qinchao soldiers saw the two teams slow to separate, and they were very bored. When training, Liang Xiao was extremely strict, but afterwards he let them relax. The Qinchao soldiers, having nothing better to do, started betting on which team would win or lose, some drinking water and singing songs, others pulling their pants down and urinating, the scene became chaotic and noisy.

  Liang Xiao gazed intently for a long time, seeing that Tuhatai had the upper hand, and Li Ting was not easy to deal with. He nodded slightly, thinking: "It's worth all the effort I've put in. If these two continue to train diligently, they will surely be able to hold their own in the future." As he thought this, he suddenly became aware of something and turned his head to look, seeing Bayan and Artai leading a group of soldiers on horseback, quietly observing from a distance. Behind them followed a Han Chinese official, about thirty years old, with a black beard reaching his chest, a lean face, and a pair of bright eyes fixed intently on the scene before him.

  Liang Xiao stood up, his whip cracked in the air, a sharp whine echoed throughout the field, Li Ting and Tuhai retreated to one side. With another crack of the whip, the Qinchu Army hastily put down their tasks, those who were defecating didn't even have time to wipe their buttocks, they pulled up their pants and mounted their horses, rushing towards the commander's platform in a frenzy. After Liang Xiao cracked his whip for the third time, the Qinchu Army gathered below the platform, each one standing in line, not a single person out of place.

  Bo Yan and others rode forward on horseback, and Liang Xiao stepped down to greet them. Bo Yan smiled slightly and said, "What a great polo match!" He looked at the crowd of soldiers, "Just now, everyone was in an uproar, have they all arrived?" Liang Xiao heard this and glanced around, exclaiming, "Huh? How come there are two missing?" A centurion stepped forward and said, "Diao Wu's stomach is not feeling well, Xue Si accompanied him to see a doctor, he just told me about it. I didn't have time to report to you!" Liang Xiao nodded and said, "You go take a look at whether he's seriously ill or not, I'll go visit him later." The centurion acknowledged the order and hastily left.

  Bo Yan was surprised and said: "Liang Xiao, you didn't take roll call, how did you know someone was missing?" Just as Liang Xiao was about to speak, a Han Chinese official suddenly burst out laughing and said: "Isn't it 'Three people travel together, seventy is rare; five plum trees have twenty-one branches. Seven sons reunite on the 15th of the first month, subtract one hundred and five to know'?"

  Li Xiang's heart moved slightly, and he cupped his hands in a smile: "May I ask the gentleman's great name?" Ah Shu smiled: "This is Guo Shoujing, Lord Guo, who serves as the Waterworks Supervisor of the imperial court. He is one of the few intelligent men among the Han people. This time, he has come to the south by imperial decree to build a large military water station." Li Xiang knew that the Yuan army had as many as 200,000 soldiers, and not only was it difficult to transport grain and hay, but also drinking water. If they drank unclean water, epidemics would spread, and tens of thousands of people and animals would die. Therefore, building a water station was a monumental task, requiring someone who was well-versed in waterworks.

  Artai turned around, facing the Qing army and shouted: "You can go!" But to his surprise, the soldiers didn't move. Artai frowned, about to speak, when Liang Xiao waved his whip and laughed: "Disperse!" The soldiers then dispersed with a clamor, shouting as they left.

  A Zhu was taken aback, turned around and gave Liang Xiao a punch, laughing and scolding: "Good you, Liang Xiao, teaching these wolf cubs to be so obedient? Not even listening to my words!" Liang Xiao smiled and said: "They listen to me, I listen to you!" A Zhu patted him on the shoulder, nodding and laughing loudly.

  Bo Yan smiled and asked Guo Shoujing, "Guo sir, what does the poem just now imply?" Guo Shoujing smiled, "This is a mnemonic for a math problem. The problem is called 'Unknown Quantity' or 'Sunzi's Math Problem', left by Sun Wu, the military saint of the Han Dynasty. The math problem goes: 'The quantity is unknown, three threes leave two, five fives leave three, seven sevens leave two, what is this quantity?' The poem just now is the solution to the problem, and according to it, the answer is twenty-three."

  Ah Shi Dao: "Lord Guo, I don't understand your literary words, but I've heard of the great name Sun Wu. However, what does this topic have to do with reviewing troops?" Guo Shou Jing glanced at Liang Xiao and smiled: "General Liang, I'm just a humble scholar!" Liang Xiao said: "Don't be modest!"

  Guo Shoujing continued: "This method is both a legacy of Sun Wu and in line with the Art of War. To put it simply, this is an extremely clever counting technique. As long as the soldiers are arranged in formations of three, five, or seven, one can infer the total number of troops. The famous Han Dynasty generals Han Xin and Tang Taizong Li Shimin must have known about this method. They were both masters of using this technique to achieve victory on the battlefield. Therefore, this military tactic is also called 'Han Xin's troop counting' or 'Qin Wang's secret troop counting'. The so-called 'secret troop counting' refers to the fact that no matter how many soldiers and horses there are, as long as they are arranged in formation, the general can silently observe the formation and instantly know the number. Speaking of this, he looked at Liang Xiao with a hint of admiration, "The principle is not difficult to explain, but it's extremely difficult to apply. If one's mental calculations are not divine, it's impossible to discern the situation at a glance. Since Tang Taizong and Li Jing, this troop counting technique has almost been lost. In recent times, only Yue Fei was said to be well-versed in it, but that's just hearsay. After Yue Wumu's unjust death in prison, his military methods were not passed down, and this technique was no longer used by anyone. Unexpectedly, Guo Shoujing has lived to see the day when he can once again witness Sunzi's wonderful techniques in General Liang's presence!"

  Bo Yan's expression was solemn, and he nodded his head. He said to Liang Xiao: "You write this method into a chapter, send it to me, and pass it on to the whole army, so that all the major generals know about it. As the saying goes, 'the military values speed', this tactic is very effective." Liang Xiao responded. Guo Shoujing smiled silently, thinking: "I'm afraid even if other generals knew about this method, not one of them could use it."

  Everyone was talking and entering the account. Baiyan took a sip of horse wine and asked, "Didn't you ask me who built Jiangxin Stone Platform earlier?" Liang Xiao's eyes turned, looking at Guo Shoujing, and smiled: "It must be Mr. Guo!" Baiyan sighed: "There is no joking in the military. You little boy are bold and reckless, making a military order in front of all the generals, don't you want to die? Fortunately, Mr. Guo arrived on time." Liang Xiao also smiled: "Really coincidental." Guo Shoujing frowned: "General Liang only asked for a two-month deadline. Now calculated, there is only one and a half months left, does the general have any preparation?" Liang Xiao said: "I'm not very clear about this either, it's all Lan Ya who is handling it." The other three people looked at each other in dismay. Baiyan frowned: "At that time, it will be your head cut off, and Lan Ya has nothing to do with it." Liang Xiao smiled: "I trust Lan Ya." Alu was dissatisfied: "She's just a woman! Can she be trusted?" Liang Xiao replied calmly: "She is a woman, but also a student of Nasir al-Din."

  Bo Yan and A Shi's faces both sank upon hearing this, but before they could rebuke him, Guo Zhi Jing had already smiled and said: "Now that you've seen General Liang, the Grand Marshal's military affairs are busy, please return to your tent!" Bo Yan listened to his words, feeling suspicious in his heart, and could only stand up. Liang Xiao saw him out of the tent, whispering: "Thanks." Bo Yan snorted coldly, turned around and mounted his horse, and left the camp gate with A Shi.

  Two people rushed out for a while, A Shi laughed and said: "You two are indeed from the same school. Your mouth is not sincere, on the surface you handle things fairly, but in secret you take care of this young master very well. Heh, under the pretext of building a water station, using dozens of fast horses, day and night, rushing to bring Guo Daren from Dadu to the army. This kid? His mouth doesn't say it, but his heart understands." Ba Yan frowned for a while, sighed: "A Shi, this child's talent is unparalleled, you and I can't compare. But he's too showy, I'm afraid he'll be envied by others." A Shi coldly smiled: "Whoever wants to move him, first has to pass through my gate." Ba Yan shook his head: "If he can't break the floating bridge within two months, no one can save him!" A Shi laughed: "You can rest assured, I know his temperament. His eyes are on top of his head, but he never boasts." Ba Yan looked back at the Jin Zha Da Ying camp and let out a long sigh.

  Liang Xiao ordered someone to invite Lan Ya into the camp and handed over the water conservancy map to Guo Shoujing. Guo Shoujing looked at it carefully for a long time, let out a deep breath, and slowly put down the map. Lan Ya hastily said: "Guo sir, isn't it feasible?" Guo Shoujing shook his head and said: "Where? This map is perfect, I suppose even your teacher Nasruddin couldn't find any flaws. What I'm sighing about is that this trip of mine was in vain, there's nothing for me to do."

  Lan Ya happily said: "Great, I've been worried day and night, afraid it wouldn't work." She glanced at Liang Xiao with a hint of blame, saying: "He's so calm, just saying 'don't worry, don't worry', it's infuriating!" Guo Shoujing smiled: "General Liang has a plan in mind, of course he's not worried." Liang Xiao waved his hand: "Not being afraid is a lie, but rather than worrying and being anxious, why not just give it a try. Lan Ya is a Huihe scholar, her water conservancy skills are better than mine. Now with Mr. Guo, a master of water conservancy, lending a hand, I believe within a month's time, we'll be successful." Guo Shoujing smiled: "General Liang is too modest, I'll do my best." Liang Xiao smiled and bid farewell, leaving to attend to military matters, leaving the two to discuss in detail.

  In half a month, Guo Jing and Lan Ya directed five thousand workers to build ten strange giant ships in different places along the Han River. Eight were wide and flat from top to bottom, while two were narrow and long with huge mechanical devices on top.

  Liang Xiao knew that the giant ship was about to be completed, and he transferred his military duties to Ah Shu. He personally went to the banks of the Han River, where he directed Guo Shoujing in setting up the dragon bones and installing various mechanisms. Next, they dug a huge pit under ten giant ships, causing them to gradually become suspended in mid-air. They then set up long and short wooden stakes below, which were gradually removed, allowing the ship to fall straight into the pit, level with the ground. Finally, they divided the tens of thousands of tons of excavated soil into three layers and pushed it into the upper deck of the giant ship.

  Lan Ya led the people along the river to set up a fence, with wooden machinery. In just three short days, nearly 10,000 soldiers were mobilized, and tens of millions of pounds of soil and rocks were rolled down from the mountains on both banks, reaching the wooden fence. Guo Shoujing then built a dam along the fence using these soil and rocks.

  The earth and rocks were loaded, and Liang Xiao led the people to dig a short ditch in front of each giant ship, which connected to the Han River at an angle. The river water flowed into the deep pit through the short ditch, and the giant ships floated up quickly. The soldiers pushed the boats along with the current, and eight wide giant ships slid into the river one after another, arriving at the dam construction site. This section of the river was the narrowest, and Liang Xiao set up eight buoys on the surface to mark the location clearly.

  As they approached the buoy, Guo Shoujing dropped anchor and stopped the giant ship. Lanyan then commanded the water troops to turn the machinery, and the movable wooden boards at the bottom of the cabin opened, allowing the river water to pour in. The eight giant ships carrying earth and rocks sank into the river from above the buoy. Four up and four down, over ten zhang high, they blocked the river and formed the foundation of the dam. Two more narrow and long giant ships were placed on both sides of the dam, and Liang Xiao ordered the digging of canals to connect them to the river. Guo Shoujing and he each led a long ship into the water, one to the left and one to the right, sinking onto the foundation above. The distance between the two ships was only about ten zhang, with their decks several zhang above the water surface. At this point, the water between the two ships began to churn rapidly.

  Lan Ya led the crowd to fill up ten ditches and repair the long dam. Liang Xiao and Guo Shoujing stood at both ends of the long ship, with twenty huge iron chains, suspending a giant cage, ten feet square, filled with large stones, into the water. The river was immediately blocked, and the upstream surged violently by ten feet, the water level exceeded the cage, and it became even more turbulent and uncontrollable. But there were stone dams on both banks of the river to block the water, preventing it from bursting.

  The people on the city wall saw that the Yuan army was busy all day, and they had a vague feeling that something was wrong, but they couldn't quite put their finger on what it was. It wasn't until the dam was completed that they realized the Yuan army was going to cut off the Han River, and everyone was shocked and suspicious. Lü De said: "What's the point of the Yuan people cutting off the river? If they want to flood the city, they should be cutting off the lower reaches of the river, so that the Yangtze River flows backwards into Xiangyang. But the city gate is far from the water, and the Han River is wide and flat, making it difficult to flood the city. If they want to use the water to attack our floating bridge, by the time the water reaches the bridge, its momentum will have dissipated, and even if the bridge boards are washed away, there's some logic to that. But destroying the bridge piers is impossible." Yun Shu thought for a moment, then said: "To prevent the strong current from washing away the bridge boards, the governor can send more people and animals to carry heavy objects to weigh down the floating bridge." Lü De was overjoyed, thinking that this plan would be foolproof.

  Lei Xiao had built the dam, and ordered the Yu army to push a hundred sharpened logs into the water. Each log was tied with cowhide ropes to several large stones weighing over 100 kg, making it difficult for them to float on the surface of the river, like fish and dragons trapped, unable to escape, only able to flow straight down to the bottom of the river, reaching the wooden cage gate, crashing back and forth. Lei Xiao ordered the soldiers to lift the wooden cage and open the gate to release the water. In an instant, a hundred giant logs followed the roaring river water, rushing out in a line, then gradually dispersing, lurking in the turbulent waves, rushing straight downstream.

  At this time, the Song army led by cattle and horses, ordered to garrison on the pontoon bridge, seeing the big water rushing over, with a heart to humiliate the Yuan people, they took off their clothes one after another, facing the river water, shouting with joy. Who knew that the wooden bridge shook violently, and there were muffled sounds coming from under the water. Before the crowd could come back to their senses, hundreds of wooden stakes supporting the pontoon bridge collapsed first, the pontoon bridge suddenly collapsed, and the Song people fell into the water one after another.

  The Song general on the city wall was stunned. No matter how hard he tried, he had not expected that Liang Xiao's painstaking efforts to store water were actually intended to use the powerful current of water to drive the logs and destroy the floating bridge pillars from below. Before he could think of a countermeasure, Liang Xiao stored and released the water again, and the second round of logs quietly approached, this time destroying all the bridge pillars. Only the bridge planks above were left, which were swept away by the turbulent river waters, spinning and flowing downstream.

  More than 100,000 yuan in military pay was seen, and cheers could not be stopped, the sound shook the floating clouds. Bohai and other generals stood at the gate, seeing this, they couldn't bear the excitement in their hearts, and shouted loudly: "Liang Xiao, you've done a great job! What reward do you want? Just say it!" The other generals looked at Liang Xiao with envy and jealousy in their hearts, afraid that he would be promoted again and become equal to themselves.

  Liang Xiao pulled out a plain letter from his bosom and handed it to Bo Yan, saying: "Can the commander prepare for me half a year's worth of the medicinal materials on this prescription?" The other generals were all surprised when they heard this. Bo Yan took the letter, glanced at it, and was puzzled in his heart: "You asked me privately about this matter, I can easily take care of it with a wave of my hand, why must you make it seem like a reward?" He furrowed his brow and asked again: "Is that all?" Liang Xiao said: "That's all."

  Bo Yan let out a soft sigh, turned around and handed the medicine to the medical officer, who quickly prepared it. Liang Xiao thought that Ah Xue would be able to remove the scars on her body and restore her former icy skin, and she felt an indescribable joy in her heart.

  Bo Yan's eyes flashed like lightning as he scanned the various generals, his voice ringing out: "Now that the floating bridge has been destroyed and the two cities are cut off from each other. The city walls of Fan City are low and small, with relatively weak military strength. As long as Fan City is broken, Xiangyang will become an isolated city. Except for Liang Xiao, all the generals returned to their positions, mounted and led the army to press on towards Fan City."

  The troops dispersed after receiving the order. Bayan asked Jamāl al-Dīn: "Is the 'Muslim cannon' ready?" Jamāl al-Dīn replied: "Two have been completed, and they can be used in two days." Bayan laughed loudly: "May Heaven bless the Great Yuan! I reward you with 200 taels of gold. Lead your men to transport the cannons to Fan City, blast the city walls, and smash them into powder for me!" Jamāl al-Dīn obeyed and hastily left.

  Bayan turned his head and smiled at Liang Xiao: "I guess, the Song army has no floating bridge, Lü De must dispatch a naval force to rescue Fancheng. Although it's slow, it's not easy to deal with. Do you have any way to break him?" Liang Xiao smiled: "To make ships turn around, we must remove the fishing net." Bayan understood and smiled: "Good, I'll send 3,000 people to take turns cutting trees and bundling stones. If that's not enough, I'll give you another 5,000 people to carry large rocks and giant logs on the mountain. Remember, be sure to cut off both cities so they can't rescue each other."

  Li Xiang responded. Before long, the sound of cannons was heard, and the troops began to approach Fancheng. Bai Yan got off the dike, mounted his horse, and personally directed the battle. As he had expected, Fancheng was in a precarious situation, and Lü De quickly dismantled the fishing net and dispatched naval forces to rescue it. Yun Shu presented a plan, suggesting that they drop anchor with their ships and lock them together with iron chains to form a floating bridge. Lü De immediately followed his advice, mobilizing hundreds of ships to be locked in a chain, connecting the two cities.

  Li Shuo saw the fishing net withdrawn, and ordered the removal of the stone weights, causing the logs to float up to the surface. Guo Jing opened the sluice gate, releasing a torrent of water that carried the logs rushing down, smashing the bottoms of the Song army's warships one by one. In an instant, the river water flooded in, sinking countless Song ships. Lü De and Yun Shu were shocked and pale, hastily ordering their naval forces to set up fishing nets to block the river. Li Shuo did not give them another chance to lay out their nets, continuously gathering logs and sending them rushing down, sweeping away the Song army's naval forces.

  But after a day's work, the Song army's large and small ships were rammed and sunk by the logs, and they were forced to retreat downstream. Zhang Hongfan took advantage of the situation to counterattack against the current, and the Song people's naval forces were facing the logs in front and suffered from cannon fire arrows behind, unable to think of a way out, and jumped into the water to save their lives one after another. After another half-night battle, the Song army's naval forces were completely defeated, and the wreckage of the ships was scattered all over the Han River. From then on, the two cities of Xiangyang and Fancheng were cut off from each other, and each became an isolated city. Bayan personally directed the troops, and the Yuan army attacked Fancheng day and night without distinction. The defenders of Xiangyang had the heart but not the strength, and tens of thousands of soldiers and civilians looked at Fancheng in the distance, wailing and crying out loud, shaking heaven and earth.

  Lü De suffered a great defeat, and was overcome with grief. But as the commander-in-chief, he had to hold back his tears and persevere. After discussing with Yun Shu, they decided to send several people who were skilled in swimming to secretly cross the river to Xiangzhou and ask for help from the imperial court.

  Three days later, the trebuchet was transported across the Han River and set up outside the horse-blocking wall of Fan City, about a thousand paces away from the city tower. Liang Xiao looked far into the distance, that stone cannon was about nine zhang high, with a body as thick as two arms can reach around, ten zhang long, with an axle in the middle, shorter at the front and longer at the back. In front, it hung a giant stone of over 10,000 jin with iron chains, behind were dozens of large and small gear wheels. More than ten people grabbed the handles, using the gear wheel mechanism to amplify their strength, only then could they lift up the giant stone, letting the tail net fall down, loading more than ten big stones inside.

  In an instant, Zamaluding gave the order and the crowd let go of the ropes. The iron chains were quickly retracted with a loud noise like thunder. Liang Xiaoyan was still several miles away but could hear it clearly. He saw the 10,000-jin boulder sink down, while the 300-jin boulder flew into the air and fell towards the top of Fan City.

  In the blink of an eye, the Song army saw the most terrifying thing in their lives. The tall watchtower was instantly crushed to powder, dozens of Song soldiers were smashed into meat patties by the huge stone, and the catapults were crushed to pieces under the rocks. For a time, the sound of shock, the sound of miserable cries, and the sound of screams rose and fell on the city wall of Fangcheng, forming a deafening din.

  Two "Huihui cannons" alternately bombarded the city of Fan from the east, and the city tower was reduced to dust, with no one able to stand. The Song army's general led his infantry and cavalry in a charge out of the city, wanting to destroy the cannons, but the Yuan army had already taken precautions. Both sides engaged in a fierce battle outside the city, but the Song army was outnumbered and retreated back into the city. Seeing that the Song army had no strength left to counterattack, the Yuan army boldly moved the Huihui cannons forward 500 paces, advancing right up to the city wall, with large stones falling straight down into the city like a rain of thunderbolts.

  After a fierce attack for half a month, the defense of Fan City was completely destroyed. The Yuan army took advantage of the situation to set up cloud ladders and broke into the outer city. Eight thousand Song soldiers retreated to the inner city. Ariq B?ke and Liu Zheng each dispatched large armies to surround the inner city.

  Song Ting learned that Xiangyang was in a desperate situation, and the court was shocked. Jia Sidao hastily mobilized 100,000 troops from both land and water, ordering Xia Gui and Fan Wenzhu to lead the reinforcements to Xiangyang again. Ba Yan received news from Da Song's secret agent and saw that the Song army's naval force had been destroyed. He then recalled Liang Xiao, leading the Qinchu Army to garrison Bai Zhang Mountain and resist Fan Wenzhu. He ordered A Tu and Shi Tianze to seal off all waterways with their naval forces, blocking Xia Gui.

  More than ten days later, Fan Wenhutu led his troops of 100,000 to approach Bai Zhangshan. He had always been timid and afraid of battle, and had no intention of advancing to reinforce the city. He came here just to make a show, so as to give the imperial court an explanation. When he arrived fifty miles away, he set up camp to observe, but unexpectedly Liang Xiao obtained intelligence and led the Qinchao army to launch a surprise attack at night. Fan Wenhutu's camp was not yet settled, and it collapsed with one blow. The Qinchao army's men and horses were scattered all over, killing several tens of thousands of Song soldiers until blood flowed like rivers. Fan Wenhutu gathered his defeated troops and hastily retreated to Yingcheng.

  Liang Xiao assessed the situation, took advantage of the victory to pursue and attack, ordered Tu Tuo Ha to lead 500 men back to defend Bai Zhang Mountain, and personally led over a thousand elite cavalrymen, each carrying two horses and fifty quivers of arrows. For three days and two nights, they did not dismount or remove their armor, crossing mountains and ridges, repeatedly attacking and killing. The Song army only felt that the Jurchen soldiers were like ghosts, appearing and disappearing at will. Ten thousand men were repeatedly charged and defeated by over a thousand cavalrymen, almost completely annihilated. Fan Wenhut put on peasant clothes and hid in the mountains, barely escaping with his life. The Song army that retreated back to Yingzhou was only one percent of its original strength, and the defending troops at Yingzhou saw this and were all terrified.

  Liang Xiao led his army to pursue to the foot of Ying City, and the Song army closed the door and bent their bows, waiting in a tight formation. Liang Xiao pretended to be exhausted and retreated with his horse. General Zhang Shijie of the Song Dynasty observed his formation and felt that there was an opportunity to take advantage of it, so he opened the city gate and launched a surprise attack. However, due to fear of the elite troops of the Imperial Guard, he specially dispatched 4,000 elite cavalrymen, with 2,000 pursuing from behind and 2,000 ambushing on both wings.

  Liang Xiao saw the situation and fled north, with the Song army pursuing closely. The Jin army turned back several times to fight, but they were outnumbered and gradually showed signs of collapse. When they reached a flat area far from Yingcheng, the Song army finally caught up, and in one blow, the Jin army split into four teams and scattered in all directions. The Song people divided their troops to pursue and kill, and the formation dispersed. At this time, Liang Xiao turned back and blew his horn, and the Jin generals and soldiers changed horses while running wildly, suddenly counterattacking from all sides. The six-flower array rotated smoothly, with arrows flying like a slanting wind blowing rain. Four thousand Song cavalry were crushed, with human and horse corpses filling the mountains and fields everywhere.

  Zhang Shijie saw from a distance and hastily led his troops to provide reinforcements. Unexpectedly, the Jurchen-led army did not know fatigue, and Liang Xiao pointed with his long whip, and the army turned back to charge at the reinforcement troops. In the midst of the chaotic battle, following his commands, the Jurchen-led army formed six small liuhe formations into one medium liuhe formation, six medium liuhe formations into one large liuhe formation, and six large liuhe formations gathered into a massive liuhe formation. The massive liuhe formation took shape as the "Qingfeng Zhi Xiang" (Azure Blade Formation), with momentum like a sharp and unparalleled long sword, piercing through the Song army's central forces, leaving them shattered and scattered like autumn leaves, as if entering an uninhabited territory. The entire Song army was defeated, and Zhang Shijie could only lead his remaining 3,000 troops to retreat back to Yingzhou.

  Liang Xiao waved his whip to recall the troops, but saw that the fifty bundles of arrows were almost exhausted. He carefully observed that although the soldiers and horses looked strong and powerful, they were actually extremely tired and unable to bear it. So he led them back to the large camp at Bai Zhang Mountain. Although Zhang Shijie was a famous general in his time, he had just suffered two defeats and watched as Liang Xiao's troops retreated slowly due to exhaustion of both men and horses. He did not dare send even one soldier or recruit after them.

  After this battle, the Song army lost 50,000 soldiers, and the prestige of the "Yellow Hair Demons" shook the Great Song. In the Jianghan region, it can stop children from crying at night.

  Song Jiang learned that Fan Wenhu's infantry and cavalry had suffered such a disastrous defeat, and was shocked several times. Seeing Zhang Yong's naval forces approaching, he didn't even fire an arrow before turning around and fleeing back to Yingcheng. Looking again at the miserable state of Fan Wenhu, he felt greatly relieved in his heart.

  Half a month later, the Yuan army suddenly entered Fan City. After six years of stalemate between the Song and Yuan dynasties, Fan City finally fell, and Xiangyang became an isolated city.

  In the same month, Yu Ting issued an edict, with Liang Xiao's military achievements being outstanding, leading the Qinchao Army General Manager. Baiyan will merge 4,000 new Mongolian elite cavalry into the Qinchao Army, and the Qinchao Army will increase to 7,000, with strong military power, unparalleled at the time.

  Bo Yan rested for a month and then advanced to Xiangyang. Liu Zheng led the Yuan army's naval forces upstream, arrayed his troops by the city of Fan, approached the water gate of Xiangyang, ordered A Tu to besiege the south, A Li Hai Ya to besiege the west, and personally led the main force to besiege the north, surrounding the isolated city of Xiangyang so that not a drop of water could leak through.

  Bo Yan knew that Xiangyang City was strong and had abundant food, so even with the trebuchet, it would not be easy to capture. After discussing with other generals, he decided to defeat the enemy without fighting, surround but not attack, and sent Liu Zheng to persuade Lü De to surrender.

  Liu Zheng was originally a surrendered general of the Song army and also an old acquaintance of Lü De. He rode alone to the foot of the city wall, only then did he shout out, but arrows rained down from the top of the city wall, Liu Zheng's shoulder was hit by an arrow, and he fled back in disarray. The Mongol generals were all greatly enraged, Liu Zheng even more so, swearing oaths that after breaking into the city, he would definitely massacre everyone in Xiangyang.

  Bo Yan saw that he could not surrender, so he dispatched an army of 100,000 men to besiege Xiangyang from all sides. He personally led the main force from the north and set up a trebuchet, ordering Liang Xiao to lead the Qinchu Army to guard the artillery platform, in order to prevent the Song Army from using their elite cavalry to capture it. He then led 20,000 soldiers, arrayed with giant cloud ladders at the rear, so that as soon as the Song Army on the city wall was hit by cannon fire and became disordered, they could immediately use the ladders to climb up onto the city wall.

  Bai Yan issued the order, and Zamarudin launched a counter-attack with his cannons. The walls of Xiangyang were high, thick and strong, far surpassing those of Fan City. Zamarudin fired three rounds in succession, but they only hit the city wall, causing the entire city to shake violently. Seeing this, Zamarudin disassembled the cannon, moved it forward by 100 steps, and used smaller stones to fire again. Finally, one shot hit the top of the city wall, killing two Song soldiers. The Song people were all shocked and cried out in unison.

  The Huihui cannons fired another ten rounds, each hitting the city tower, killing and wounding many Song soldiers, who immediately fell into chaos and fled. Bayan was overjoyed and heavily rewarded Jamāl al-Dīn, then ordered his infantry to pull twenty giant cloud ladders with a thousand oxen, carrying one thousand crossbowmen, beyond the Huihui cannons, approaching the walls of Xiangyang.

  At this moment, at both ends of the Xiangyang city wall, two strange objects rose up, about 10 zhang high and over 20 zhang wide, rising and falling, shaped like a pair of giant grey eagles flying in unison.

  Zamaluding ordered the men to pull back the Huihui cannons, when suddenly strange objects appeared on the city wall. In a moment of hesitation, those two strange objects simultaneously roared loudly, and two hundred jin giant arrows flew out, one left and one right, straight towards the Huihui cannons. The soldiers pulling the ropes were shocked and fled in disarray. Liang Xiao hastily ordered the Qinchao army to dodge, just as he gave the order, a loud explosion shook the ground, and mud splashed everywhere. When the dust settled, the two Huihui cannons had been smashed into powder. Zamaluding was also hit by flying rocks, his head cracked open and bleeding, and he fainted on the ground.

  Bo Yan finally came to his senses, and the two monsters turned out to be two giant crossbows that had never been seen before. After being shocked, he ordered the troops to retreat, but it was too late. Yun Shu commanded the Song army to fill the crossbow with fire arrows, this time using ten shots at a time, each weighing ten kilograms, and shooting them in rapid succession. In an instant, twenty cloud ladders were destroyed and burned, the archers and crossbowmen fell to the ground with their bodies on fire, screaming and falling, either dead or injured. Nearly a thousand head of cattle encountered fire and became frightened, refusing to listen to orders, dragging the remains of the cloud ladder and rushing back into the Yuan army's formation. The Yuan army, although composed of elite soldiers and strong generals, was thrown into chaos. Yun Shu took advantage of the situation and ordered the two giant crossbows to rotate in all directions, striking the Yuan army with no place to hide, causing them to suffer heavy casualties, with everyone fleeing for their lives. Liang Xiao hastily led the Qinchao army to charge forward, using strong bows to shoot and kill the cattle that were charging into the formation, attempting to stabilize the situation.

  The cloud is distinct, and the order is given to raise the bed crossbow high, aiming at the Jin army. Several crossbow sounds, more than a dozen Jin soldiers fell from their horses, blood and flesh blurred. The Song army had repeatedly lost to this invincible iron cavalry, hating them to the bone, seeing them suffer losses, they were overjoyed, shouting in unison: "Tianxia - Breaking Array! Tianxia - Breaking Array!" The sound was like thunder, echoing through the blue sky.

  In the midst of shouting, Yun Shu shot several arrows, specifically targeting the Jurchen army. Although the Jurchen cavalry was fast, they were wrapped in the defeated army and could not dodge or evade, suffering heavy casualties for a time. Liang Xiao urged his horse on, whipping it to gather the troops, but unexpectedly a loud whistling sound arose, and a giant arrow came flying towards him like lightning, straight at his face.

  Liang Xiao's hands moved incredibly fast, and in the brief moment when there was no time to react, he abandoned his horse and rolled away. The horse let out a miserable whinny as it was cut into two segments by the stone arrow, pinning him underneath. At this moment, several mad cows with white foam dripping from their mouths charged forward wildly, and in an instant they would trample him under their hooves. Tutaha saw the situation and shot out a string of arrows, killing the four leading cows.

  Liang Xiao took advantage of the gap, drilled out of the dead horse, but his forehead was scratched by an arrowhead, and fresh blood flowed continuously, his eyes were dizzy. In the daze, he only saw the cow's horns swaying, a mad cow rushed over, and with a flash of his body, he slapped the cow's head with his palm, and the cow fell to the ground with a mournful cry. At this time, Nang Gutie led the horse to hurry over, Liang Xiao turned over and got on the horse, doing his best to restrain the Qincha army from retreating.

  Lü De saw the Jin troops fleeing, and personally led a large army to rush out of the city. Five thousand elite cavalry were in the center, two thousand crossbowmen on the right, and Jiang Fei and Fang Lan led southern heroes with swords and shields on the left. The three wings of cavalry followed behind the defeated army, killing them mercilessly. For a time, the Mongols' blood flowed all over the fields, and their defeat was unstoppable. Baiyan beheaded several high-ranking generals, but could not stop the momentum of the defeat.

  The Song army pursued for two thousand steps in one breath, the Yuan army was killed and wounded countless times, had long since lost its military formation, only thinking of how to escape the arrows and stones, each and every one of them had completely lost their will to fight, allowing the Song army to slaughter them at will.

  Bo Yan had never suffered such a great defeat since he took command of the army, and after his shock and anger, he didn't know how to respond. Ali Haiya came to rescue from the west, Shi Tianze also led the navy ashore to reinforce, but were all defeated by the giant crossbows on the city wall. The Song army deliberately avenged the defenders of Fan City, with all their might, three gates broke out, relying on the divine crossbows on the city wall, everyone fought bravely and forgot about death.

  Li Shuo rushed out two thousand steps away, saw no arrows or stones hitting him, and knew that the divine crossbow's range had reached its limit. He reined in his horse, turned around, and let out a clear whistle. This whistle was like a long gust of wind blowing across the battlefield, and even amidst the cries of killing, it was crystal clear. The Qinchu army's discipline was strict, and upon hearing the whistle, they stopped fleeing and regrouped their horses to form an array. The Six Flower Array is not limited to six people; with three or five people, there are corresponding changes.

  It was as if the chaotic battle of horseball, with troops in a state of confusion, having to stabilize their formation and not be dispersed, while also finding a way to attack the enemy. Liang Xiao's training methods were now showing their remarkable abilities. The surviving Jurchen army was divided into six divisions, each led by Liang Xiao, Tudaha, Nangutu, Li Ting, Wang Ke, and Yang Ye. From the city wall, the Song army saw what looked like six large flowers blooming on the battlefield.

  Lü De ordered the troops to intercept with all their might, not allowing the six armies to merge. Liang Xiao shouted again, and the six armies moved in a "returning snow" formation, with an unpredictable and ever-changing array of troops, gathering and dispersing without direction, repeatedly charging at the Song army's formation. In an instant, they broke through the blockade and merged into one army. Lü De saw that their numbers were only 2,000, and ordered the main force to surround and annihilate them. Liang Xiao waved his long whip in the air several times, and the troops understood, each transforming on their own, and in an instant, the formation became a cross shape, changing into a "Southern Dipper" formation. They intentionally allowed the Song army to surround them, waiting for them to close in, when suddenly they transformed into a "whirlwind" formation, with Liang Xiao as the axis, wielding his spear and bow like a whirlwind, wildly sweeping through the heavy encirclement. Nearly 10,000 Song troops instantly fell into chaos. Lü De saw that things were not going well, and hastily ordered the army to retreat. The Song troops scattered in all directions, fleeing back along the road they came from.

  Liang Xiao was extremely wary of the two bed crossbows and did not dare to pursue. The long whip swung again, and the Jincha army's formation changed, changing into a "Long Hongzhen array", with the array forming an arc shape, the top of the arc in front, and the two wings behind, slowly advancing more than 200 steps, suddenly arrows and stones flew over, falling in front of the array. Liang Xiao reined in his horse and raised his whip, and the troops stopped in unison, with an unusually neat formation.

  Liang Xiao guessed that the giant arrow would be hard to hit again, so he stopped his horse and looked around. In front of the city wall, the Yuan army's men and horses were lying all over the ground, their flags scattered everywhere, the remains of the cloud ladder still smoldering with wisps of smoke. Many soldiers were also lying on the ground, their limbs broken and severed, letting out mournful cries.

  Liang Xiao saw the tragic situation and personally led 300 elite troops, riding fast horses to rush out, forcing their way through the Song army's formation, suddenly arriving at the city gate, and rescuing the surviving wounded onto horseback. Yun Shu secretly shouted "Well done" and waved his flag, launching arrows and stones. This time Liang Xiao was prepared, relying on his exceptional horsemanship and divine tactics, gathering and dispersing his troops, changing formations without pattern. Yun Shu shot dozens of arrows but didn't hit a single person, instead mistakenly injuring many friendly soldiers, and could only helplessly stop.

  At this point, the Yuan army finally stabilized its footing. Bayan was powerless to fight again, gathered his defeated soldiers and retreated north into the big camp. The Song army's military prestige was greatly boosted, with cheers and shouts like thunderous waves. Lv De was overjoyed, ordering people to sneak out of the city at night to report to the Song court, firming up the determination to rescue Xiangyang. That night, he set up a banquet to reward his troops.

  Two invincible giant crossbows, originally "poor Confucian" Gong Yangyu referred to the design of ancient and modern crossbow cannons, not only powerful and unmatched in the world, but also able to rely on mechanical rapid elevation and rotation, aiming at precision. Moreover, loading cannonballs is also very convenient, one shot is fired, and the second shot is loaded immediately. Because it has up to 36 arrows per shot, coinciding with the number of 36 heavenly circles, it is named "Tian Gang Breaking Array Crossbow", which is indeed the best defensive weapon in the world.

  On that day, Yun Shu entered the city and drew a diagram to ask Lv De to send craftsmen to build it. Although it had been built for some time, due to its complex structure and laborious installation, Lv De was skeptical and did not pay much attention to it, so he delayed and neglected the work. It wasn't until the "Huihui cannon" broke through the city of Fan that Lv De, having no other choice, reluctantly agreed to try it out, adding more manpower to assist Yun Shu in rushing to complete the work day and night. In the end, two were completed ten days later and installed on the city wall. When the battle was about to begin, Lv De intentionally hid them and did not fire, using a tactic to lure the Yuan army to the foot of the city, then raised the "Tian Gan Breaking Array Crossbow" and first destroyed the "Huihui cannon", then attacked the Yuan army's formation. The crossbow lived up to its name, breaking through the enemy lines with one shot. If not for the Qinchaju army's strength in stemming the tide, the Yuan people's losses would have been even more severe.

  The Yuan army suffered a disastrous defeat and returned to their camp. Bayan hastily assembled his generals to discuss countermeasures. Jamāl al-Dīn came with his injuries, along with Lan Yu, to apologize to Bayan. Bayan shook his head and said, "This is not your fault, it's all because of my rashness and impulsive advance that we suffered this defeat today." Instead, he rewarded Jamāl al-Dīn with a hundred taels of gold and ordered him to go rest and recover from his injuries, but kept Lan Yu behind and asked, "Can the Huihui cannon be made to shoot even farther?" Lan Yu replied, "Once my father and I have designed an instrument, it cannot be improved upon. Our technique is not capable of making it shoot any farther. Moreover, we fire our cannons from below upwards, while the trebuchet fires from above downwards, which already has a great advantage."

  Shi Tianze was moved by these words and sighed, "In the past when Mengke Khan attacked Hezhou, he was also injured by the strong crossbow of the Song army and died. But that 'broken mountain crossbow' was not as powerful as this crossbow today. These two crossbows only need to be placed on the city wall, and no one can rush in." Liu Zheng also said, "The Song army's crossbow machine has always been sharp. In the past when Song Taizu broke through Nan Tang, he used strong crossbows to pierce the elephant's belly and break through the Nan Tang elephant array; during the Song-Liao war at Chanyuan, Kou Zhun commanded the Song army and used a thousand-step strong crossbow to kill the Liao general Xiao Tianzuo in the military formation, forcing the Liao people to retreat. But no matter what, there is nothing as frightening as this strange crossbow. To break this crossbow, we must have an even stronger stone cannon."

  Many generals had lingering fears, you spoke one word, I spoke one sentence, and many idle words were spoken, but no main idea could be grasped. Seeing Bayan's thick eyebrows tightly locked, his face grew increasingly gloomy. Guo Zongjing hesitated for a long time before suddenly standing up and saying: "Great General, why haven't we seen General Liang Xiao?" Bayan said: "The Qinchao army was at the forefront of the battle and suffered heavy casualties. General Liang was also injured, so I let him return to camp to rest." Guo Zongjing said: "General Liang is skilled in clever strategies; it wouldn't hurt to summon him to ask for his ideas, perhaps he has a plan." Bayan recalled Liang Xiao's feat of breaking through the floating bridge and nodded, ordering someone to summon him.

  Li Xiang entered the tent, listened to everyone's discussion, and after a moment of contemplation, said: "Today I have carefully examined it, and the reason why the Huihui cannon is so powerful lies in its reasonable design of the gun body and the gear chain mechanism. In the Huihui book given to me by Lan Ya, there are the theories of levers and gears passed down from the Greek mathematician Archimedes. Archimedes once said that as long as you cleverly use the fulcrum, the longer the lever, the greater the force; as for the wonders of gears, eccentric wheels, connecting rods, and axles interacting with each other, Archimedes also had brilliant theories. I think that by simply lengthening the gun body and adding more gear chains, we can definitely make the stone cannon shoot even farther."

  Lan Ya suddenly said: "I just wanted to return the cannon is for fighting, never thought it would come from Archimedes' studies. But if you add gears, you have to change the style of the big gun!" Bai Yan heard that there was a way, and he was overjoyed in his heart, but his face was still gloomy, ordering Liang Xiao to build a stone cannon within two months, with Lan Ya, Guo Shoujing, and Zhamaluding as assistants.

  That night, Za Ma Lu Ding presented the drawings of "Hui Hui Pao". The four men deliberated for two days, re-drew the drawings, named it "Xiangyang Cannon", and ordered craftsmen to manufacture it.

  The stone cannon was completed, and Liang Xiao tested it on Bai Zhang Mountain, firing a 100-jin stone block, which flew 200 steps farther than the previous cannon but still fell short of the "Tian Gua Broken Array Crossbow". After discussion, the crowd decided to rebuild an even larger stone cannon. This time, after its completion, more than 100 people were needed to turn the eight cranks, but as soon as they started turning, the iron chains made of refined iron broke one by one. The crowd was stunned for a moment, and Guo Shoujing sighed: "Human strength has its limits, so does material strength." Jamāl al-Dīn also felt disheartened and said: "Teacher built it that big, but it can only be that big." Everyone thought of the deadline and secretly worried.

  Liang Xiao was silent for a moment, calculating on the ground, then suddenly said: "If we build a platform in front of Xiangyang City, we can launch cannons from it. As long as the platform is half the height of Xiangyang City, we can reach 1,600 steps." Lan Ya said: "The stone cannon weighs tens of thousands of catties, if it's too high, how do you get it up there? Even if you're clever and use a mechanism to lift it up, it's still not as far as that crossbow. The platform hasn't even been built yet, and it'll be destroyed!" Liang Xiao didn't say a word, and launched a stone weighing around 10 catties from the cannon, which actually reached over 1,800 steps. Zha Ma Lu Ding frowned: "The stone is too small, it can't hurt anyone."

  Liang Xiao's heart skipped a beat, and he suddenly said, "What if it's not the stone?" Zhamaluding was startled and asked, "If not the stone, then what?" Liang Xiao furrowed his brow and gazed back at the Xiangyang city wall, remaining silent for a long time. When Lan Ya asked again, he finally spoke up, "I have an idea! But it's a bit too ruthless." The three of them were shocked and asked him to explain, but Liang Xiao hesitated for a moment before speaking. After hearing his words, the three of them looked at each other in dismay, and for a while, no one spoke.