When the afternoon sun was a little hot, Emperor Zhao, together with Prime Minister Lu and President Wang, led the people to leave the Old Palace in Luoyang and return to the military camp outside the city.
Perhaps because they had just offered sacrifices to the last imperial attendant, Wang Boyan, who was riding a horse and carrying a bow and sword, the atmosphere was a little dull. The group slowly moved along the stream, and when they were halfway there, considering the age of Lu Xianggong, they stopped directly at a thatched shed by the roadside to rest for a while.
This thatched hut was probably used to sell tea, but now it was empty. The tables, chairs and other things were still there, and the owner had obviously left in a hurry. When Emperor Zhao, Prime Minister Lu and Governor Wang entered, the imperial guards had already hurriedly wiped the place with something, arranged the order and asked everyone to sit down properly. Then they went straight to the stove at the back, took some firewood and boiled some hot water.
Of course, for those below the rank of Zhongshu Sheren, there were no extra chairs if they wanted to sit, so they had to stand, but maybe they could get some hot water.
Once everyone sat down, they naturally started talking about the war, especially since Prime Minister Lu came from the south and was not very clear about many military arrangements in the north. He had been traveling continuously for days and had not been able to sit down and talk about the current situation.
"According to the military report, Han Shizhong should have crossed the river." Lu Yihao sighed . "The left army of his imperial camp is full of elite soldiers. After joining forces with Li Yanxian, there should be at least 60,000 to 70,000 people. I wonder if they can take down Hezhong Prefecture in one battle?"
After Prime Minister Lu spoke, at least half of the people around him looked at each other in surprise... Although Prime Minister Lu was courageous, decisive, and had always been good at riding, archery and swordsmanship, he was still far behind the professionals in military affairs.
Even Emperor Zhao felt that this was not right.
"Mr. Lu, you're overthinking." Seeing that no one around dared to respond, Zhao Jiu immediately laughed. "Hezhong Prefecture has a big city like Hedong City. As long as the defense is strict and everyone is united, even if the number of soldiers in the city is not as good as Han and Li, they can still defend for a month or two until the cannons are fired and the city is destroyed."
Lu Yihao nodded slightly.
At this moment, President Wang Yan couldn't hold back any longer and suddenly interrupted: "Your Majesty, my lord, there is actually a lot of discussion in Guanxi about Prince Han..."
Zhao Jiu didn't say anything, but Lu Yihao instinctively twirled his beard and raised his eyebrows: "What are you talking about?"
Wang Yan hesitated for a moment, then gritted his teeth and said, "It's not that I am discussing my colleagues without authorization. It's just that there have been constant impeachments in Guanxi. I have heard about it many times in Guanxi in the past... It is said that after the Battle of Yaoshan, Prince Han was given the title of Prince, but he gradually became lazy. In the Battle of Pingxia, the emperor used Yue Fei, Qu Duan, and Wu Jie, but he didn't make much contribution. It seems that he felt that his merits were too great to be rewarded, and the emperor was deliberately unwilling to use him, so he became even more unbearable. He was complacent and perfunctory in military affairs, but he was also afraid of the current situation, and he was enjoying himself among the people. He even thought of retreating and seeking perfection, and started to write poems and ink..."
Lu Yihao didn't like what he heard and turned to face Zhao Jiu.
"It's all just an act." Zhao Jiu said expressionlessly. "He privately wrote many secret letters to report on his affairs, regarding the Northern Expedition as his lifelong wish, and his words were sincere. He even wrote a poem to express his aspirations..."
"Your Majesty." Lu Yihao suddenly became serious. "There is nothing in the world that cannot be discussed with the Prime Minister."
Zhao Jiu gave a dry laugh and looked back at his surroundings.
Yang and Liu understood and pointed casually, and all the people standing retreated immediately, which saved trouble.
"Han Shizhong did behave like this." Zhao Jiu was honest when he saw that only his confidants were left. "This is his usual problem, not just after Yaoshan. He was slack after returning to Guanxi before Yaoshan. It's just that it became more obvious after Yaoshan and Pingxia."
"Then why not withdraw this person?" Lu Yihao frowned. "Instead, entrust the military affairs to him."
"Because it was Han Shizhong who was slacking off, not the Left Army of the Imperial Camp." Zhao Jiu forced a smile. "Han Liangchen has a thousand faults, but there are always two good points. First, he is the most loyal and brave man in the world. No matter how dangerous the military situation is, he will not refuse or be perfunctory. Second, he is very strict in managing the army. Even if he is lazy and has many faults, it does not prevent him from being very strict in managing his subordinates. The Left Army of the Imperial Camp under his command has strict military discipline, and the soldiers are brave and able to fight... Therefore, it is enough to encourage them to be brave before the battle... The so-called courage of my waist, he and his troops are truly worthy of the name."
Lu Yihao sighed when he heard this, as if he remembered something, but he was still a little worried: "Will the commander's laziness really not affect the combat effectiveness of his troops?"
"Since we are talking about this today," Zhao Jiu paused for a moment, but continued, "I might as well give you another tip... In August, when I was leaving Nanjing for Tokyo with you, we talked with the generals and officials along the way, and praised and criticized several people... Do you remember, sir?"
"I remember that the emperor praised Yue, Wang, and Li, and criticized Wu and the two Zhangs." Lu Yihao answered without thinking, and then thought for a while. "Didn't he mention Han and Qu?"
"Yes, sir, do you know why?" Zhao Jiu asked back.
"Isn't it just a random thing?" Lu Yihao suddenly laughed. "There are both criticism and praise, and of course there must be neither criticism nor praise."
"Having said that, I really don't know how to praise or criticize them." Zhao Jiu finally told the truth. "Han Shizhong's army is strong but his generals are weak, while Qu Duan is a rare and handsome man among all the officers in the army. Qu Duan himself is both civil and military, Liu Qi is the only Confucian general who has withstood the test of war, and Li Shifu has a family of loyalty and bravery. Even the brothers Zhang Zhongfu and Zhang Zhongyan are rare and brave generals with political talents. The key is that they all know how to focus on military affairs... But the Imperial Camp Cavalry is indeed the weak point of our entire army. This cannot be changed by human power, but we have to invest a lot of effort and countless military resources into it."
Lu Yihao was stunned for a moment, then came to his senses: "Yes... The Imperial Camp Cavalry was hastily assembled, and most of them are foreign cavalry... Even if the generals are excellent, how can they be assembled in three years and then be compared with the Jurchen cavalry? But since we have to fight the Jurchens to the death, we have to have a sufficient number of well-equipped cavalry."
"Same reason." Zhao Jiu looked up at the straw hut above his head and narrowed his eyes slightly. "Here in the Imperial Camp Left Army, even if Han Shizhong himself is slack, his troops are veterans who have survived the fierce battle in Yanling at the beginning, with rich combat experience and sufficient military supplies. He himself has been in the army for decades and knows the importance of military affairs. He dare not mess around in the army. In addition, I can directly bypass him to give advice to Wang Sheng and Jie Yuan, so that the army's training, promotion, and transfer will not be chaotic. This is the only way to make the Imperial Camp Left Army still rely on the country... If he really messes around in the army, how can I tolerate him?"
"Having said that, we still have to hope for a strong army and wise generals." Wang Yan reluctantly interrupted.
"It's difficult." Zhao Jiu retracted his gaze and shook his head. "The current system of generals leading troops is a result of the current situation. It is a rare good thing that these people do not rebel or attack each other, and are willing to obey orders to fight against the Jin. How can we expect too much... Yue Fei and the front army of the imperial camp are considered to be strong and wise, so I gave him the real responsibility."
The few people around seemed to be thinking about something... Yue Fei was the real commander, which meant Han Shizhong was not. In fact, considering that Emperor Zhao came here in person, it seemed as if the Emperor was leading Prime Minister Lu and President Wang to supervise the army in person.
This was a combination of soft and hard tactics, warning President Wang not to hint to Emperor Zhao that if something went wrong, he could go out and take charge of the Eight Character Army again... He really didn't know why he left the army? Are you not satisfied with your current position?
but……
"How are Wu Jinqing and the rear army of the imperial camp?" Lu Yihao suddenly asked again. "If Han Liangchen is a figurehead commander, is Wu Jinqing a real commander?"
"Wu Jie is a rare person who has the same talent as Yue Fei, and even more so than Han Shizhong. His Imperial Camp Rear Army is not bad... But he and his Imperial Camp Rear Army are both the same old problems of the Western Army..." Zhao Jiu said frankly. "He can only be considered a half-real commander, just like Han Shizhong. I have to watch and control him, otherwise he can do anything."
"Where's Zhang Rong?"
"Zhang Rong and the Imperial Navy are certainly not bad. Zhang Rong is also one of the few people I trust. But the navy is only a specialist after all... It may be useful to control the Yellow River and advance to Daming Prefecture... But when it comes to the decisive battle, I am afraid I can't use him even if I want to."
"There's no need to talk about Zhang Jun, Li Yanxian, Ma Kuo, Wang De, and Li Qiong." Prime Minister Lu sighed slightly. "Zhang Jun is similar to Han Shizhong, but he and his troops are even worse. Li Yanxian is similar to Qu Duan, but he is slightly better than Qu Duan. His troops are mostly ruffians, so we can only see how effective they are when the battle starts. Ma Kuo is also a Taihang special. Wang De and Li Qiong are directly under the government."
At this point, when Wang Yan was about to say something, Lu Yihao thought for a moment and came to an interesting conclusion:
"So, this situation of great generals and the system of this dynasty are somewhat in line with the emperor's intentions on horseback... the so-called 'the general who is capable but the emperor does not control him wins'... the emperor entrusted Yue Fei with the task of commanding a certain area and no longer interfered with it. Then he personally went to the front line to supervise these generals with problems, learn from their strengths and make up for their weaknesses, make overall arrangements, and then delegate power at the right time and not interfere with specific commands. This can maximize the combined strength of the generals... is it true or not?"
Zhao Jiu was at a loss whether to laugh or cry. He didn't know whether to say yes or no.
Fortunately, although there were not many close ministers left, there were some like Fan Zongyin and Ren Baozhong, who immediately took over the conversation and began to flatter.
Then, because the general was no longer involved, most people were able to interrupt. Even Yang Yizhong, Liu Yan, Yu Yunwen, Mei Li and others took the opportunity to speak.
The topic also shifted from the gains and losses of Hezhong Prefecture to the reinforcements from Taiyuan and Longde Prefecture, as well as the response of the Jin army.
Moreover, as the withdrawal order was lifted, more people gathered together and the issue was further extended to whether East Mongolia and Goryeo would join the war, which would inevitably have a truly decisive impact on the war situation. If they did join the war, which side would they stand on?
And how long it would take to capture Yangqu City, the capital of Taiyuan Prefecture, and Yuancheng, the capital of Daming Prefecture.
These are serious yet interesting topics.
For example, although the Northern Expedition has officially begun, there is actually not even a manifesto... Although Zhang Shuxiang is said to have made one, he did not dare to issue it after the incident... So the Song army's attack was more like a surprise attack.
In particular, after the Battle of Yaoshan, the Song army set up dense military stations along the Yellow River to ensure that information transmission could be as smooth as possible in this era, and to ensure the mobility of troop dispatch as much as possible, which would obviously give the Song army further first-mover advantage.
In fact, many of the accompanying close ministers and officers believed that the main force of the Jurchens in Hedong might not have noticed the Song army's full-scale northern expedition until now.
The reason is very simple. The Third Prince died in Qinghe, north of Daming Prefecture. There are three possible ways to pass the message from Daming Prefecture to Hezhong Prefecture:
The first way is to travel 900 miles to Yanjing, and then Yanjing will send the message to Zhending Prefecture 500 miles away. Zhending Prefecture will send a message to Longde Prefecture and Taiyuan Prefecture at the same time. Once it reaches Taiyuan Prefecture or Longde Prefecture, the message will be passed to Hezhong Prefecture through Chenguanxing or Fenshui Channel.
The distances of the last two roads are similar. The one through Taiyuan is first a 350-mile mountain passage, then a 700-mile open passage. The one through Longdefu is a 600-mile highway, then another 300-mile Taihang passage.
The total journey is 2,300 to 2,400 miles, half of which will be carried out in the mountainous Hedong area.
The second possible way is that Daming Prefecture would send the news of the Third Prince's death directly to Taiyuan via Zhending Prefecture or Longde Prefecture while reporting to Yanjing, and then Taiyuan would pass it down to Hezhong Prefecture.
Doing so can directly save about a thousand miles of travel and more than one-third of the time.
If this is the case, Taiyuan or Longde Prefecture should have known the news by now, but Hezhong Prefecture may not have.
There is also a third way of transmission, which is the most direct and simple. While Gao Jingshan was reporting to Yanjing, he directly sent a message to Longde Prefecture. Longde Prefecture sent a message to Taiyuan at the same time, and Hezhong Prefecture at the same time.
There are three possibilities, all of which exist, but many people believe that it is the first one, because Gao Jingshan is the Eastern Army, and Wanyan Balisu of Taiyuan is the Western Army. There is no reason for the Third Prince, a king in charge of the front line, to privately pass on the news of his sudden death to Balisu, who is in a different system. Instead, he should have reported it to Yanjing as soon as possible.
Regarding this, although Zhao Jiu was very eager and thought it was the first one, he still did not express his opinion like Prime Minister Lu and President Wang. He did not say that the front line would give feedback in a few days, but that as an official he had to maintain this calm and composed attitude, as if he could expect everything.
By the same token, Zhao Jiu also had guesses about Eastern Mongolia and Goryeo, but he also did not interrupt.
In Eastern Mongolia, probably because of the vigilance against the surname Borjigin, even though several of Hebula's brothers and sons were patting their chests to express their loyalty, it did not prevent Zhao Jiu from creating an image of the final boss and the ultimate beneficiary of this battle in his mind.
The official believed without any reason that Hebula would most likely make a selfish choice based on the development of the war situation. He would unite with the weaker side and participate in the final decisive battle, just like the Eastern Wu in the Battle of Red Cliffs.
As for Goryeo, Zhao Jiu felt that those guys would never take action until the Song Dynasty was forced out of the Great Wall, but they would never turn against the Song Dynasty either. They would just keep being cautious and perfunctory.
The reason is simple... The North-South conflict among the Koreans, that is, the confrontation between the Pyongyang yangban and the Kaesong yangban, is itself a kind of unequal distribution of spoils.
The downfall of powerful officials brought the greatest political benefits to the group headed by Kim Bu-sik, a member of the Kaesong Yangban.
The rapid rise of the Jurchens greatly reduced the scope of Goryeo people's activities in the north, and the direct economic losers were the Pyongyang yangban in the north.
Therefore, the two groups in Pyongyang, whose politics and economy have been taken advantage of by others, frequently make trouble and call for the destruction of Kim.
But now, with the unexpected development of re-export trade, both parties, including the initiator Zhao Guanjia, have underestimated the scale and potential of this trade. As a result, the Pyongyang yangban, as the connector of the north, has greatly benefited from the trade, which has made them lose their basic desire to cause trouble with the Kaesong yangban.
It’s not that there is no more party strife, but that people in Goryeo, both north and south, are unwilling to disrupt the current situation of reaping the benefits of re-export trade.
In fact, the rapid rise of Eastern Mongolia in recent years was also stimulated by the re-export trade between Song and Jin... Even Emperor Zhao himself has been reluctant to stop this trade until now.
Because the benefits are so great.
In a sense, this is trade between the two largest and richest countries in the world today... enough to make a country prosperous or a nation weak... otherwise, how could Emperor Zhao make up the financial gap for the Northern Expedition that seemed out of reach back then.
War is war, and business is business.
In this way, everyone talked a lot, and it was rare for them to speak freely. This also helped Mr. Lu Yihao to have a better understanding of the situation and geography in the north, which played the intended role.
After talking for more than half an hour and everyone was still in high spirits, suddenly, the sound of horse hooves and bells could be heard in the distance. Liu Yan nodded and signaled, and several Mongolian princes who had long been unable to stand in the Loyalty Team rushed out. A moment later, a messenger really came, and then through Liu Yan's hands, he carefully delivered a letter of urgent military intelligence to Emperor Zhao.
After opening it and scanning it, Zhao Jiu handed the document to Lu Yihao beside him, and then said in a deep voice without changing his expression:
"Li Yanxian replied that he did not go to Hezhong Prefecture."
Lu Yihao continued to read the documents without saying much. Wang Yan, the general commander of the imperial camp, immediately expressed his dissatisfaction: "The court has been planning for many years, and these strategies were approved by these generals themselves. How can they act on their own when the war breaks out?"
"It is said that the military situation has changed." Zhao Jiu looked around at everyone and responded casually, as if he didn't care about the matter. "He said that he originally wanted to close the door and fight the dog, first sweep Jiezhou and enter Jiangzhou. By then, with Tieling Pass in hand, on the one hand, he can seal the Chenguan Pass and block the reinforcements from Longde Prefecture in the southeast, and on the other hand, he can organize a defense line on the spot to resist the reinforcements from Taiyuan in the north, and then he can turn back and slowly deal with Hezhong. But he didn't expect that after the order arrived, as soon as he sent troops, he received a request for help and warning from Ma Kuo, saying that the main force of the Jin army in Taiyuan had been mobilized, at least three Wanhu around Taiyuan had suddenly come, but he didn't know if there would be any follow-up... So he simply led the entire army to Jiezhou, hoping to quickly open Jiezhou, and join forces with Ma Kuo to stop the Jin army in Taiyuan."
After hearing what Emperor Zhao said, not only Wang Yan, but also the other attendants and close ministers changed their expressions several times... They said that the military situation had changed and he intended to close the door and fight the dog, so they calmed down a lot. But when they heard that the main force of the Jin army from Taiyuan was coming so quickly, they became panicked again.
"Why are you acting like this? Isn't this what we just said about the officials urging at home, but the generals have to make decisions on the spot?" After reading the document, Lu Yihao didn't even bother to look at Wang Yan and the others, but directly put it away and handed it to Liu Yan, who was in charge of the military affairs, and argued. "From Hewai to Donghai, the battle line of the two countries stretches for 3,000 miles, but how can this 3,000 miles be a line? Each of them has depth in front and behind, cities and markets, dangerous passes, rivers and mountains, which are all different. Moreover, the hundreds of miles of Luliang Mountain in the middle cannot support the logistics of the army at all. After Taihang Wangwu separated the east and west routes of the Jin army, it is bound to separate us now... The general who is capable but the king who does not control will win... A river separates us. At this time, such an urgent military situation should rely on the generals on the front line to make decisions on the spot, and it must not be easily investigated."
"What Mr. Lu said is right." Zhao Jiu had a blank expression on his face and nodded before Wang Yan could.
"On the other hand, it was also right for Li Yanxian to seize Tieling Pass... Just think about it and you will know why the Jin army stationed a large army in Longde Prefecture. It was because this place was the most convenient place for support between the east and west." Lu Yihao continued to sigh. "To Hezhong Prefecture, there is the Chenguan Pass. To Daming Prefecture, it is directly in Huguan in Longde Prefecture. Then it is flat and even if there is a slight discord on the front line, you can retreat to Taiyuan in the northwest and Zhending in the northeast... The right time, the right place, and the right people, in the national war, everything must be considered to determine the victory or defeat."
"Something is still not right." Wang Yan, who definitely knew the geography of the place better than Lu Yihao, frowned even more when he heard this. "It's not impossible for Taiyuan to send a large-scale support to Hezhong. It's nothing more than what I just mentioned. Taiyuan knew the news of the death of the Third Prince and guessed that we might have to formally launch a large-scale northern expedition. In addition, Hezhong Prefecture was the first place to bear the brunt, so Balisu rushed to send reinforcements to the south at all costs... But since Taiyuan Prefecture knew the news of the death of the Third Prince, there is no reason why Longde Prefecture would not know, right? Taiyuan Prefecture sent reinforcements, there is no reason why Longde Prefecture would not send reinforcements, right?"
After Wang Yan said this, the people around him were all thoughtful, but soon, everyone around the imperial carriage was divided into two, half of the people almost immediately thought of something, and the other half were as confused as Wang Yan.
Perhaps he felt that the atmosphere was better today, and Wang Yan also maintained respect and restraint, or perhaps it was a bit awkward for Jun Qian to talk about this topic, so Lu Yihao hesitated to speak, and finally said nothing more.
Zhao Jiu did not explain directly, but glanced at Ren Baozhong.
The latter got the hint and quickly responded with a smile:
"Wang Jiedu, in my humble opinion, just as Taiyuan Prefecture probably knew about the death of the Third Prince, so they hastily sent their troops south without hesitation, Longde Prefecture probably also knew about the death of the Third Prince, so they did not dare to send troops."
Wang Yan was stunned for a moment.
Ren Baozhong saw the official looking at the roof again, so he continued to laugh:
"Think about it, Wang Jiedu. The route is the route, and the information is the information. Although Taiyuan and Longde both have the main force of the Jin army, and they all know the news of the death of the Third Prince of the Jin Kingdom, are they fundamentally the same? Wanyan Balisu, the governor of Taiyuan and the commander-in-chief of the military division, is a veteran of the Jin army, and the younger brother of Yin Shuke. He is the actual commander of the Western Army. The Jurchens did not dare to give him a kingship because they were afraid that he would live up to the title. When such a person heard the news of the death of the Third Prince, he would make a decision and dare to quickly march south to send troops."
Wang Yan finally seemed to understand.
Although Ren Baozhong knew that the other party had understood, since he had received the order from the emperor, of course he had to make it clear: "But what about Longde Prefecture? Not to mention that the four Wanhu in Longde Prefecture originally belonged to the Eastern Route Army, but the current commander of the Marching Division of Longde Prefecture, Wanyan Bendu, is only thirty-five or thirty-six this year. The north has always been compared to Yue Jiedu... But in fact, this person came to power because he is a close relative of the royal family. He was raised in the tent of Jin Taizu Aguda since childhood. He was known as the Golden Prince and was a confidant recognized by the three ruling kings of the former Jin Dynasty. Similarly, there is Wanyan Erluguan, the governor of the Western Capital of the Jin Dynasty in Datong... Such people, after hearing about the death of the third prince, without instructions from Yanjing or an order from a king, how could they make a decision on their own and send a large army to Hezhong Prefecture? Even if he later heard the news that our Great Song Dynasty sent an entire army to the north and prepared to rescue, he would probably first focus on Daming Prefecture, which has the greatest momentum of the war, is connected to the internal foundation, and belongs to the Eastern Route Army."
Wang Yan nodded repeatedly.
In fact, it’s not that he didn’t understand, it’s just that his mindset hadn’t changed. He had already come to his senses long before Ren Baozhong took the lead... This was the so-called strategic advantage brought to him by the Third Prince alone.
Erlido was just one person and not a famous general. There were always people from Yanjing to replace him in the rear. Why would the death of one person force the Song army to hastily launch a northern expedition half a year in advance?
The current situation speaks for itself.
In Hebei, Gao Jingshan did not dare to gather troops on his own to launch a decisive battle, so he could only watch Yue Fei and his men calmly swallow up Dizhou, Dezhou, and Bozhou in the two branches of the Yellow River East Road, and push the battle line to Daming Prefecture. In Hedong, the east and west routes were not well coordinated... Otherwise, with Balisu's keen battlefield sense and smooth command, he would probably send all the 80,000 households in Longde Prefecture and Taiyuan Prefecture to rush south at a high speed to enter Jiezhou. At that time, the Song army might really retreat directly for protection as they did in the previous rounds of battles.
The death of the Third Prince is priceless, literally priceless.
"Ba Lisu and Gao Jingshan are not in cahoots with each other."
Zhao Jiu's expression remained unchanged, but he continued to speak. "I had some hope before, thinking that Gao Jingshan might not dare to directly pass the news of Erliduo's death to Taiyuan, but only sent it to Yanjing... But now it seems that Gao Jingshan is still conscientious and responsible. And Balisu is even more calm and daring to make a decision."
"But it's still too late for the emperor." Ren Baozhong quickly flattered. "After all, Li Jiedu got in the way."
"It may not be in time, and it may not be possible to stop the enemy." Zhao Jiu replied expressionlessly. "The Taiyuan Marching Division under Balisu is almost the most powerful of the four marching divisions of the Jin army. He can dispatch more than just three million households. The three million households are just the first batch of combat forces hastily summoned from the surrounding areas of Taiyuan. Although Li Yanxian is outstanding, the troops under his command are of mixed quality. In such a narrow pass, they may not be able to stop the successive attacks of the Jin army... Moreover, Han Shizhong has not crossed the river yet, so he dare not send all the troops in Pinglu over."
"It's not just that." Wang Yan also stood up and reminded him immediately. "Your Majesty, Han Shizhong is arrogant, and Li Yanxian is also arrogant. I'm afraid that these two will compete for credit and make mistakes without reminding each other..."
"Not only that." Lu Yihao also spoke immediately. "The Jin army's quick reaction is really unexpected. Your Majesty, I think we must be lenient with the enemy from now on. If we are lenient with the enemy, Erliduo has been dead for a full 18 days. Assuming that Yanjing can also make a prompt decision, hold a meeting to decide on the candidate immediately after receiving the message, and then immediately rush south to Zhending Prefecture, and then send a golden messenger to Longde, the people in Longde Prefecture may also be about to move."
Zhao Jiu was repeatedly shocked in his heart, but after all he had been tempered, he still maintained a calm expression.
At the same time, under the leadership of Lu Yihao and Wang Yan, many of the surrounding close ministers had changed their expressions, stood up solemnly, and were ready to obey orders in the straw hut.
“既如此，就不要等什么河中府的结果了……也不用管太原、隆德府是什么打算，反正这个时候是狭路相逢勇者胜，千万不能露怯……让八字军先过河，去支援铁岭关一带！”赵玖捏着马鞭坐在草棚里长凳上踌躇下令，语速缓慢，甚至多有停顿，但言辞却无丝毫回圜之意。“再将这里情形速速告诉韩世忠，让他自己决断……再通知所有各部，过河后，依照韩世忠、李彦仙、马扩、郦琼四人序列依次指挥……军情有变，咱们不必计较一个河中府孤城了，先争临汾。”
Wang Yan responded immediately… After all, the Eight Character Army was his old subordinate, and now that they had left, he felt closer to them.
Lu Yihao originally wanted to suggest to Emperor Zhao that he should send out the cavalry as soon as possible, but when he thought about what he had said before about the imperial cavalry, he didn't say anything.
After the decree was issued, naturally the attendant scholars, servants and other close ministers hurriedly wrote the decree and handed it to the loyal team in the imperial guard. The latter did not stop for a moment, and several people formed a team, each holding a waist badge, and rode away on horseback.
After all the messengers had left, everyone was in a heavy mood and had no mood to talk. So Prime Minister Lu came forward and asked Emperor Zhao not to delay any further on the road and to return to the Beimangshan camp as soon as possible.
Zhao Jiu naturally followed suit, but when he finally stood up, he paused, then pointed to the upper part of the straw shed and signaled to the accompanying squad leader:
"Take it down for me. Be careful not to damage other people's things."
The people around listened to the order in confusion, and then it was Prince Toli of Western Mongolia, who was tall and thin, who was lifted up with the help of several squad leaders. He went to touch the wooden beam on the top of the straw shed pointed out by Emperor Zhao, and indeed found something, which turned out to be a small cloth bag.
When I opened it, I found that it contained only a few loose silver pieces and seventy or eighty copper coins.
Zhao Jiu opened his pocket and turned to Yang Yizhong like a debt collector. The latter understood and immediately took out a few copper coins from his waist and put them in... Lu Yihao originally wanted to advise the emperor that it would be better for him to spend more time on major issues instead of doing such meaningless little things.
But thinking of what was just said, 'The one who has a capable general but is not controlled by the king, will win', and the fact that Emperor Zhao might have seen that the atmosphere was tense and was trying to remain calm, but it was not easy for him to make such suggestions, so he simply took a penny from a squad leader and put it in his pocket.
People around followed suit and hurriedly put money in.
After a short while, Emperor Zhao collected several dozen coins from the shed owner, who was probably being taken away to perform labor service, and then asked Tuoli to go back up and hide the cloth bag. Then he led the crowd out of the shed and set off towards Mangshan.
However, what the emperor did not know was that while he was putting on a show of false benevolence and righteousness and pretending to be calm, Han Shizhong, whom he criticized as "complacent, perfunctory in military affairs, fearing the times, enjoying himself among the trees, seeking retreat and seeking perfection, and playing with prose and poetry", and who would have been unable to play a role due to his own problems if Emperor Zhao had not been there to watch, had already ended the battle.
The battle was lackluster.
On the several miles wide flat land from Hedong City, the bridgehead of Hedong and the capital of Hezhong Prefecture, to Puzhou, Huyan Tong adopted a cautious attitude on the beach and only advanced after forming a battle array.
As soon as they left the beach, the four Meng'an who were hiding behind the city could no longer endure it, and immediately formed a typical Jin army formation, with the infantry in the middle advancing, and the cavalry on the left and right successively advancing to attack from both sides.
At first they did not notice anything unusual, they just thought that the formation of the Song army that was the first to arrive was very dense, and it would take some time and energy to defeat them.
So they sent troops to the beach to stop the Song army that was coming from behind.
However, they never expected that the next to land was the famous Cui Pian Army. Dense crossbow arrows were shot from the boats, giving the Jin army no chance to get close, so that this second army was easily set up in front of the river beach.
At this time, the Jin army was already a little nervous. Two of the four Meng'an who were in charge began to try to discuss, but the result of the discussion was some hesitation... Because Wen Dun Sizhong was a bastard, he would probably be punished if he went back like this, so it would be better to fool around for a while, no matter what, they would leave when the time came.
After this hesitation, Cheng Min, who was in charge of the third attack, led the Beiwei cavalry to land calmly under the cover of the Cuipian army and the shelter of Huyan Tong's troops. Then they engaged the Jin cavalry directly on the river beach, making it difficult for the Jin army to escape.
To be honest, the Jin army had four Meng'an and twenty-five Mouke, which means two thousand five hundred cavalry plus one thousand five hundred infantry. This configuration was already very powerful. The Song cavalry came to the crossing in a hurry, so at the beginning, the four Meng'an were still a little confused, and even secretly delighted.
I always feel that compared to those long spears and large crossbows, this cavalry that is determined to bite off its own cavalry at all costs will be more likely to achieve results and then report to Wen Dunsizhong.
However, Han Shizhong's Beiwei cavalry may be more powerful than Yue Fei's Beiwei cavalry, especially since Han Shizhong personally led hundreds of his personal guards to join them.
The Jin army soon discovered that something was wrong and realized that they had been hooked... It was impossible for them not to realize it, because the Song cavalry that dared to cross the river and engage in a melee with their own Jurchen cavalry had better equipment than their own, better war horses than their own, and even better knight horsemanship than their own.
At this moment, this group of people looked back at the copper-faced shields that they had previously ignored, but now seemed to be carrying warnings and jokes, and they suddenly woke up from their dream.
What on earth made him so brave that he gathered 4,000 soldiers, of which only 2,500 were traditional Jurchen cavalry, and came to the wilderness to fight against the 40,000-strong Han army?
But it was too late. In the wilderness between the city and Hejian, the Beiwei army dispersed and held the Jin cavalry tightly, then destroyed the detachment and advanced calmly from behind. Huyan Tong's troops stood still. At the same time, Wang Sheng sent the entire left army of the Imperial Camp to cross the river one after another, so that the Song army increased in number, and there were bronze-faced armored soldiers everywhere. The scene became more and more horrifying.
After fighting for about another half an hour, seeing that Wen Dun Sizhong in the city had no intention of sending reinforcements, the 4,000 Jin soldiers were completely defeated, the 1,500 Han soldiers almost all surrendered, and the 2,500 Jurchen knights scattered. Of course, they would not try to enter Hedong City... Instead, a small number of them directly fled into the early winter wilderness, and more followed their instincts and went to their respective garrisons... Although Hedong City was large, it was impossible for it to be filled with 10,000 infantry and cavalry on a normal day. These soldiers and horses were usually stationed in military camps and branch cities around Hedong City, and even in Jin to the north and Yuxiang to the east.
In this regard, it was only natural that the Song cavalry, who had been prepared for this, followed the enemy purposefully and in accordance with tactical moves.
In a trance, a beach blocking battle, or the originally planned demonstration battle, quickly came to an end and the Jin army was defeated.
The Song army certainly didn't take this seriously, because it was the elite troops of the Left Army of the Imperial Camp who crossed the river first. The Cui Pian Army and the Bei Wei Army, the two lifelines of the Left Army of the Imperial Camp, all went into battle, and even Prince Han himself went into battle... In this kind of chaotic battle involving thousands of people, whenever Han Shizhong went into battle, he would be able to defeat them with ease.
It would be strange if we don’t win.
Of course, some people still find it hard to accept.
For example, Wen Dunsizhong, the governor of Hezhong, was an envoy of Aguda. He was always arrogant, both internally and externally. But it was obvious that he was especially arrogant towards the Khitans and the Song people. Moreover, this arrogance became more exposed and obvious as the Song army had repeatedly encountered setbacks and turned back under the city of Hedong in the previous few years.
In fact, even within the Jin Dynasty, few people regarded him as a normal person... They were attracted by his arrogance and knew that he despised the Song army and would never waver, so they arranged him to stay in Hezhong, and the Fourth Prince Wuzhu personally instructed him to guard carefully and wait for help every time the Song army came.
So every time he could see tens of thousands of Song troops evacuating in an orderly manner under the command of Li Yanxian and leaving without a fight.
But today, seeing four Meng'an and twenty-five Mouke, in the past, they would have been able to disperse the 100,000-strong Song army. However, they were swallowed up by the Song army that showed its claws across the river, and they were stunned on the spot.
It's not that no one wants to persuade the man who stayed behind in Hezhong. The situation has changed a lot... At Yaoshan, they couldn't win by fighting one against two. It has been five years since Yaoshan. Not to mention one against one, it's still one against two. The Song army has 40,000 soldiers and you have 4,000... Although the enemy sent out cavalry to attack their side first and didn't send back to support them, they are afraid that they will be attacked and Yuxiang and Linjin will be taken. That is indeed a bit tricky, but can you really expect to win from the beginning?
No matter how arrogant he is, looking at the overall situation of confrontation between the North and the South, he must have felt a little uneasy, right?
At this time, we should think carefully about why the Song army suddenly risked their lives? Why did Han Shizhong's imperial camp left only a few troops to support them and crossed the river without any care? It seemed that the whole army was going to cross the river!
Did something go wrong?
But why didn’t anyone tell Hezhong Prefecture?
Did Taiyuan have any intentions by not telling Hezhong Prefecture?
However, no one dared to say this .
Because Wen Dunsizhong is a real villain, and if you make him unhappy, someone will die.
And everyone believes that although this person has some problems, he is also talented. With his talent, he must have thought of these problems a long time ago and even come up with answers.
“Not appropriate.”
Han Shizhong took off his bronze mask and helmet, sat on his horse, looked at the generals, and frowned. "It's only been a few years, and the Jin army is so unwilling to fight?"
"When the prince goes into battle, it's natural for him to capture enemies with ease." Wang Shixiong, who saw blood for the first time in battle, quickly praised him sincerely... Even though he had already begun to give in to Han Shizhong in normal fights, when he really went into battle, he realized that this was different from the usual competitions of strength and martial arts.
This Prince of Han usually boasts that he is "the best in the world" and that the title "unparalleled in the world" bestowed upon him by the emperor is no exaggeration.
"That's not what I meant." Han Shizhong shook his head and became more serious. "The Jurchens are really not as good as they were in previous years... I don't know how many of them are veterans and how many are new recruits..."
"They are quite capable of fighting." Deputy Commander Jie Yuan rode over, causing Wang Shixiong to immediately avoid him. "Fifth brother, think about it. We dispatched the Beiwei Army and the Cuipian Army, and there were several times more troops and horses to join the battle, but they were able to tangle with us for more than half an hour. Counting the time they spent on the previous attack on Hu Yan, it was a full hour or two... Isn't this enough to be capable of fighting? It's nothing more than that they didn't know that we were going to use all our strength, and they underestimated the enemy and fell into the trap... This example is just a lip service."
"That's not what you mean." Han Shizhong shook his head and sighed. "What I mean is that the Jurchens can fight us one to one, one to two, in terms of military strength, generals and morale. It's no longer the situation where we couldn't defeat them with tens of thousands of troops and dispersed a thousand garrison troops in Hebei. At that time, I was naturally not afraid, but others can't be counted on at all. If that's the case, this Northern Expedition may really sweep the two rivers in one fell swoop and recover our homeland in one battle, and I can really win a good reputation in my lifetime and after my death."
Jie Yuan was silent for a moment, and Wang Shixiong beside him was also stunned. Although the two of them did not know what "reputation during life and after death" meant, they both had the same thought at the same time - could it be that he, the Prince of Han, did not think that the Northern Expedition could succeed at the beginning?
"Something is still wrong." Han Shizhong finished his sigh, still frowning. "Why does Wen Dunsizhong look down on me so much? Look at his arrangement, he threw out four Meng'an at once, does he really think he can take a bite of my flesh? Does he think I will not even send the whole army like in previous years? Doesn't he know that the war has already started?"
"It must be so." Jie Yuan looked back at the top of the Hedong city wall. It can be imagined that the Jin Kingdom's Hezhong garrison must be in a daze on the top of the city wall at this time.
"That makes sense." Han Shizhong seemed to be thinking. "This man didn't know that our government was launching a large-scale northern expedition, and Li Yanxian was nowhere to be seen... Either Taiyuan didn't know, or Taiyuan knew and abandoned him, or Taiyuan had already sent reinforcements so it didn't matter to tell him, but Taiyuan's reinforcements didn't arrive in time, or were blocked by Li Yanxian... Shanren (Jieyuan's character), you are a kind person, don't you think so?"
"It can only be this way." Jie Yuan listened to this frivolous and musty joke that he hadn't heard for decades, suppressed his discomfort, and replied with difficulty.
"Then do you think Hezhong Prefecture is still a place where I can show my abilities?" Han Shizhong asked anxiously.
Even though Jie Yuanshan thought that he and the young Marshal Han had known each other for decades and they had a brotherly relationship, he couldn't help but be completely confused at this moment - you thought that the Northern Expedition might not succeed, and you were still thinking about writing poetry, which almost delayed your crossing of the river. How come you suddenly became like a different person?
No, how come I suddenly feel like I’m 20 years younger and full of curiosity about the whole world again?
What did Emperor Zhao write to you?
Is there another marriage? Is the queen definitely from the Han family?
Suppressing all distracting thoughts, Jie Yuan tried to answer: "What exactly does Fifth Brother mean? Just give the order!"
"How many soldiers are there in this city?" Han Shizhong asked, pointing to Hedong City.
"If there is no reinforcement, the maximum number is six thousand..." Xie Yuan blurted out.
"And the rest?"
"There is only one Wanhu in the entire Hezhong Prefecture!" Jie Yuan blurted out again, and at the same time he was angry in his heart, you are a marshal, didn’t you even know this before?
"Let Wang Sheng lead 20,000 men to lock the city!" Han Shizhong suddenly gave a solemn order. "Xu Shi'an, Dong Min, Chen Jue, quickly divide your troops to sweep the surrounding towns. You, Hu Yantong, Cheng Min, follow me, with 12,000 troops, to seize Tieling Pass!"
Jie Yuan and Wang Shixiong quickly bowed and agreed.
As the saying goes, speed is of the essence in war. Now that Han Shizhong realized the current situation in Hezhong Prefecture, he had to either abandon the land or the Jin army would not have time to react and would be blocked by Li Yanxian's troops in Linfen. Anyway, the key to the battlefield was not here, so he decided to kill two birds with one stone. On the one hand, he let Wang Sheng take the credit for Hezhong Prefecture, and on the other hand, he did not hesitate to order his elite troops to gather together, and then march forward in a hurry regardless of everything.
The unrivaled banner had just crossed the river when it abandoned Hezhong Prefecture and headed east.
At this time, Wen Dunsizhong, the governor of Hezhong, who was watching the battle from the city wall, finally came to his senses and began to tremble all over, as if he was extremely angry, after witnessing the defeat of his own army and Han Shizhong's big banner directly leaving him behind and heading east. Just as everyone carefully stepped back a few steps, the governor of Hezhong suddenly lost his composure, fell down on the city wall, and cried with his face covered:
"Bali Su abandoned me! Ben Du abandoned me! Li Yanxian abandoned me! Han Shizhong also abandoned me!"