Chapter 210: Intent on Xiangyang City
Zhao Yulin asked him to speak.
Zhou Ping told him that when our naval brothers attacked Xiangyang and Jingmen recently, the Jingzhou army was very unfriendly. Not only did they conduct inspections and make things difficult for them every now and then, they also openly demanded money and property.
Zhao Yulin asked, didn’t we already tell you not to go to the Han River? Why are you still sending boats there?
Zhou Ping told him that it was necessary to purchase food and grass for storage, and secondly, they had to explore the area and then sail. Without General Meng's supervision, these guys turned into bandits, and they were no longer like the officers and soldiers of the Song Dynasty.
When Zhao Yulin heard his evaluation of the Jingzhou army, he immediately became alert.
The current Jingzhou army and rebels are no different from the Mongolian army. If these people change their clothes, wouldn’t they become Mongolian soldiers?
He asked Zhou Ping, do we dare to attack Xiangyang with only the navy?
Zhou Ping was stunned at first, then he bulged his eyes and said that he was not afraid of him, but the walls of Xiangyang City were strong and high, so a sneak attack was more likely to succeed, and it would not be easy to succeed by force.
Haha, this guy is self-aware and knows that Xiangyang City is not so easy to take.
Zhao Yulin said that of course we cannot act recklessly in a war, and asked him to go back and think carefully. If Xiangyang falls into the hands of the enemy, we must take it back.
Zhou Ping had a rough idea in his mind. Grandpa Yue and General Meng had been managing Xiangyang for so many years. The city was strong and the military supplies were sufficient. How could he take Xiangyang with his navy of less than 20,000 people?
It's okay to dream while lying in bed, but don't do it for real.
The brothers were all busy, and Zhao Yulin had a rare moment of free time. He read books and documents every day and accompanied Shunzhidi in basking in the sun. The couple lived a happy life as if they were on their honeymoon, and they became more and more inseparable.
Shunzhidi was tasting the forbidden fruit for the first time and was very interested in it. After dinner, the two of them went to bed early and soon began to have an in-depth and detailed communication.
Suddenly, the guard reported urgently: "Third Master, urgent military information, emergency troops reporting in."
Both of them were startled and frozen in time. Zhao Yulin took a deep breath, smiled apologetically, and quickly dressed and went to the study.
Urgent news came from the favorable direction that the Mongolian army had sent out troops from Luoyang and Nanyang. The enemy army marched southward and counties along the way surrendered one after another. Tangzhou had fallen into the hands of the Mongolian army and its troops were heading straight for Xiangyang.
Zhao Fan, the governor of Yanjiang, sent an urgent letter, asking the Shenwei Army to garrison Dengzhou immediately and assist in the defense of Xiangyang.
He smiled and said that the snakes had finally set out, and asked the captain of the guard to inform Yang Xingyun that after dawn the central army tent would be moved to Zhejiang and Sichuan with great fanfare.
When Zhao Yulin returned to his room, he saw Zhidi had already sat up and said with a smile that it was still early.
Zhidi pretended to be angry and said that it was such a bummer. The northern barbarians were too bullying and didn't even let her sleep well.
Zhao Yulin went over and fiddled with it, muttering to himself that homework cannot be sloppy and must be of guaranteed quality and quantity.
The couple quickly got into the mood again.
The next day, Shunzhidi was very happy, her face was rosy and she walked with the wind. The two of them rode on horses, chasing each other, and Shunzhidi's red cape fluttered in the wind, which was very beautiful.
In the evening, they arrived at the Zhejiangchuan Water Fort of the Navy and immediately convened a military meeting of the Southern Group.
Zhao Yulin smiled and said that the situation was basically clear, and asked Coach Yang to tell him what to do next.
Yang Xingyun hesitated for a moment and said that the young master's calculation was very accurate. As soon as the Third Column left, they got the news and set out. They were really a group of jackals. They came for blood as soon as they asked.
If the enemy continued to attack southward like this, Xiangyang would be in danger. He had already ordered Yang Jia's Fifth Corps to march into Dengzhou to block the enemy's passage southward to Xiangyang.
However, the enemy can still attack Xiangyang via Xinye and Tangzhou, and it depends on whether the Jingzhou army can hold it. We need to support the defense of Xiangyang, and he plans to use the main force of the Second Column to advance eastward to Nanyang to force the Mongolian army to return for support.
Zhao Yulin was not very satisfied with the plan and said it was just a solution and everyone should discuss it together.
After the meeting, Zhao Yulin told Yang Xingyun that we cannot just obey the orders of the governor of Yanjiang and be willing to be a helper. Xiangyang is a military town that plays a strong role as a pillar in Jinghu. Once this city is lost, the Mongolian army will go down the river to Jingmen and then to Jingzhou to control the river, which will cut off the connection between our Sichuan and Lin'an court.
Therefore, Xiangyang must not be lost.
It is not the Yanjiang Administration Office that must defend Xiangyang, but our Shenwei Army must defend it.
He put Yang Xingyun down and went back. In the study, Shunzhidi had already hung up a hand-drawn map of the situation around Nanyang for him.
The woman asked him with a smile if he was okay. She asked the soldier to draw it.
Zhao Yulin pulled the woman over and held her tightly in his arms, kissed her and said: "That's right, your husband is very happy." He let go of Zhidi and observed her carefully.
The guard outside the house announced that Commander Yang had arrived, and then Yang Xingyun ran in.
He asked why I was so nervous?
Yang Xingyun showed him a secret letter, saying that the 50,000 main forces of the Mongolian army had already entered Tangzhou City.
Yang Xingyun told him that intelligence showed that Xiangyang was in chaos, and it was hard to say whether the governor Zhao Fan would surrender.
Once the Xiangyang garrison surrenders to the Mongolian army, the Shenwei Army will face a powerful hostile group in the east, and the consequences will be disastrous.
Zhao Yulin patted him on the shoulder and said with a smile, "Very good, you have found the key point."
He invited Yang Xingyun to sit down and asked Shunzhidi to bring two bowls of new tea.
Zhao Yulin told Yang Xingyun that as the head coach, we should have a sense of the overall situation, always put ourselves in the situation, and consider the overall situation from an outside perspective when solving problems.
He asked about the current situation of military reorganization.
Yang Xingyun told him that although they started late, they were all veteran soldiers and could go into battle and kill the enemy after being gathered together and changing flags and clothes.
At present, the 20,000 troops of the new Third Column and the 20,000 troops of the new Second Column have been gathered, but their combat effectiveness is definitely weaker than that of his old Second Column.
Zhao Yulin said that was for sure, but the Southern Group plus the navy had at least 80,000 to 90,000 troops. Were they still afraid that they could not capture Xiangyang City?
When he said this, Yang Xingyun's face was already full of surprise.
Zhao Yulin continued to say that behind his Southern Group there were new recruits in training who could be brought to the battlefield, as well as the support of countless people in Hanzhong, who were his strategic reserves.
The enemy's movement to the south to capture Xiangyang has become very obvious. What we should study is launching the Battle of Xiangyang and defending Xiangyang.
Yang Xingyun said that we should immediately send a message to the Third Column and call them back. We should change the feint into the main attack and directly attack Nanyang to cut off the enemy's north-south transportation. The Mongolian army will definitely retreat.
He shook his head and said that military orders could not be changed overnight. Since the Third Column had already gone north to reinforce Guanzhong, the vanguard troops should have entered the Lantian camp by now, as they had other important tasks.
Yang Xingyun felt that the defense zone was so large that it would be difficult to carry out the Battle of Xiangyang with only the few soldiers he had, and he began to hesitate.
This fierce general fought decisively on the battlefield, but he was a little lacking in strategic planning.
Zhao Yulin said that in terms of quantity, we are indeed far behind.
But in terms of tactics and infantry equipment, we are much stronger.
He analyzed to Yang Xingyun that the Mongolian army had many cavalrymen, but they had to at least walk on the main road to run. Our infantrymen had to walk on two legs, but we could take shortcuts by taking mountain roads and wading through waterways to catch up. Since we had few people, we would not attack the city by force, but would arrange for a false force to march north to attack Luoyang and threaten the rear of the Mongolian army. We could mobilize the enemy to annihilate them in the movement.
He revealed all his judgments and ideas , which was equivalent to teaching Yang Xingyun step by step. The brother was very excited. He drank the tea in the teacup, stood up and left. After walking a few steps, he came back and told the young master to have a good rest while he went to discuss with his brothers.
Zhao Yulin looked at his receding back and smiled foolishly, thinking that if he was not a time traveler, his brain would be similar to Xingyun's. It was difficult for them to be in charge of a region at such a young age.
Shunzhidi came over and pulled him to rest, and said shyly that it was already three o'clock in the morning.
The sound of roosters crowing came from afar, and Zhao Yulin noticed that it was late at night. He felt sleepy all of a sudden, so he yawned and fell directly onto the bed. The little woman scolded him for being lazy and undressed him with concern.
The next day , Yang Xingyun held another military meeting and decided to launch a campaign to defend Xiangyang and annihilate Tachaer's main force. He ordered Qu Zhengxiang's new Third Column to immediately launch the action, with Liu Qiguang's Fifth Corps as the main force to move north, aiming to occupy Song County and Lushi County and threaten Luoyang.
The new Second Column raised its flag, and Yang Xingyun personally led the army to launch a feint attack on Nanyang.
The main force of the Second Column secretly left Dengzhou, looking for an opportunity to annihilate the main force of Tacaer.
The navy gathered in Laohekou stronghold to prepare for the battle of Xiangyang.
The Southern Group of the Shenwei Army quickly took action. The military camp suddenly revealed the numbers of two new armies. What is the Shenwei Army's New Third Column? The Lingmeng Army's spies of the Shenwei Army's New Second Column were dumbfounded.
Where does the team come from?
Seeing Liu Qiangguang of the new Third Column riding on a tall horse and leading the team, he was confused. Could it be that the Third Column of the Shenwei Army did not leave?
Changed the flag but still in Zhejiang and Sichuan?
The Mongolian spies did not dare to be careless. They immediately wrote a secret letter, fixed it to the leg of the sacred eagle and released it. The sacred eagle turned in the sky and flew straight to Nanyang.
At the naval stronghold of Zhejiang and Sichuan, Zhao Yulin said with a smile that he had nothing to do now, and he went to the navy to supervise the battle.
Yang Xingyun didn't let him leave and asked him to stay in Zhejiang and Sichuan.
He said everywhere is safe, and nowhere is safe. In order to confuse the enemy, he went to Zhou Ping alone and asked Zhidi and the guards to follow Yang Xingyun.
Everyone was dissatisfied again, saying that he was taking too much risk. Shunzhidi also looked concerned.
Zhao Yulin asked Zhou Ping with a smile, can't the navy guarantee his safety?
Zhou Ping immediately patted his chest and assured him.
He said that was right. If the enemy found out that he went directly to the navy, our plan would definitely be exposed, and it would be meaningless to make a feint to contain the enemy.
If there is any change in Xiangyang City, Zhou Ping's 20,000 navy will not be able to defend it.
Therefore, he had to go to the navy for help.
Everyone understood that there were dangers lurking everywhere and this was the only option.
Zhao Yulin hugged Shunzhidi tightly in public, smoothed her bangs and said, "This time, I'll use Madam as bait. We must ensure the safety of the central army camp." He shouted to the captain of the guard.
Yang Xingyun and the captain of the guard both promised in unison that they would take good care of Madam Shunzhidi.
He didn't dare to look at Shunzhidi. He patted Yang Xingyun on the shoulder, handed him an envelope and told him to remember, when attacking, he must be ostentatious and undisguised, and when retreating, he must disguise himself to the point of being unrecognizable and never drag his feet.
Then, he turned around and left resolutely.
The captain of the guard still dispatched ten brothers to follow him.
