Chapter 217: The Han River as the Boundary
The Shenwei Army burned Xinye, and the county town was in chaos. Soldiers and horses set on fire by incendiary bombs ran around in all directions. The fire became more intense due to the wind. After launching the charge, the Mongolian army immediately swarmed out of the city. The dam in the upper reaches of the Baihe River had been dug to release water, and they easily flooded the Mongolian army.
But this was not the end. People on the opposite ridge were already shooting arrows into the river. The soldiers soaked in the water could not hold their bows and arrows firmly to fight back, so they could only allow the Song army to shoot them to death.
My god, Zhao Qier's men are so powerful that they came up with such a detrimental trick. They lost most of their elite soldiers without even showing them their faces.
After Taccaer and Hubili climbed ashore like drowned rats, they led the remaining troops to retreat towards Nanyang desperately. After entering the big valley of Funiu Mountain, they were completely exhausted. As they were about to reach Nanyang, the exhausted Mongolian army thought they were safe and stopped to rest.
Unexpectedly, thunder rocks, rolling logs and bundles of burning fireballs rolled down the mountain, followed by incendiary bombs, splitting bombs and blooming bombs that fell like hail.
Taccar was desperate and ordered a charge. Damn, Nanyang was right in front of them, they must run back.
There are Song troops attacking the mountain, and tens of thousands of Song troops are chasing behind, so there are dangers everywhere.
Fortunately, the 50,000 troops he left in Nanyang were willing to help, and the commander led 30,000 troops to break through two lines of defense and come out to support him, so Tachaer was able to return safely. Even so, when he returned to Nanyang City, less than 5,000 of the 50,000 troops he had taken out were still with him.
Hubili was also stunned when he saw such shocking damage.
Tachaer was certainly unwilling to take the responsibility for the disastrous defeat in which he suffered heavy casualties. He thought that he had been even more miserable than Hubili in this southern expedition, and that he had given only bad advice, just like his dog-headed military advisor. He angrily left Hubili and returned to his mansion to drink alone.
In fact, they lost all psychologically. Take the last battle for example. The Shenwei Army that ambushed in Funiushan Mountain consisted of only Yang Jia's 3,000 Bozhou soldiers. These soldiers, who had been walking in the mountains all year round, had an inseparable bond with the mountains. They could go up and down the mountains as if they were walking on flat ground, and it was even easier for them to launch a surprise attack through the jungle.
Yang Xingyun made good use of their expertise, setting up ambushes on high ground, launching short assaults, and using only fire attacks to drive Meng Junli out of the country.
Zhou Ping's 7,000 troops and the Shenwei Army that joined the pursuit later followed the Mongolian army from a distance as a deterrent. The Mongolian army was worried that their rear was unsafe, so they left troops behind to be eaten up soon. In panic, they dared not stay and fled in a hurry. After repeated defeats, they completely lost confidence.
Zhao Yulin was overjoyed after receiving the victory report from Xinye. He lay in the yard of the navy headquarters, basking in the sun and drinking tea. Not long after, the navy's battle report from Jingmen arrived.
The Yishuigui squad of the Shenwei Army chased after Li Boyuan and fought fiercely at the dock and the city gate. Li Boyuan's official ship was pierced and sank, and he was shot dead outside the city before he entered. However, Zhao Fan, the governor of Yanjiang, had already fled to Jingzhou, so the navy had to move in to maintain law and order.
Zhao Yulin was very satisfied and thought this was a good outcome, so he decided to station his troops there first.
In Luochuan, Cao Youwen was in charge, and Miao Gui commanded the army to counterattack, capturing two cities in succession and recovering Zhiluo and Luojiao counties, completely defeating the Mongolian army's spring offensive.
The Khan of the grassland was furious after receiving the battle report. This was his carefully planned southern expedition, but not only did he fail to grab any treasures, he also suffered countless casualties. In particular, Tacaer lost 5,000 Mongolian regular troops, which were the elite troops left behind by the great Khan.
In the newly built royal court, the Khan cursed the Song people for breaking the alliance and being perfidious, and he was determined to take revenge.
In his mind, he had long regarded the Emperor of Song as his own son. The losses from this expedition were so great that he had to vent his anger on the Emperor of Lin'an.
He took an unconventional approach. Without discussing who was right and who was wrong in the war between the two countries, he asked his prime minister Yelu Chucai to summon the Song emperor and rebuke him, saying that the colored glaze tiles that the Song emperor had paid tribute to him were all fake and inferior. Instead of being pleasing to the eye and making him happy, they ruined his carefully built bedroom and toilet. The colored glaze on the floor was warped and the tiles on the wall were cracked and shattered. The sight was so horrible that he could not even go to the toilet to relieve himself.
The Khan rebuked the Emperor Song for being too rude and presumptuous, and said that he must kill Zhao Qi'er to vent his anger, otherwise the Mongol cavalry would attack Lin'an directly...
In Xiangyang City, after receiving intelligence from various sources, Zhao Yulin asked his clerks to summarize it and report it in detail to Lin'an. This time the Shenwei Army had penetrated deep into Xiangyang, and he had to give an explanation to the court.
In the afternoon, Meng Gong from Huangzhou arrived in Xiangyang, and Zhao Yulin invited him to eat the time-honored Xiangyang pig's trotter. Old Meng first congratulated him, and then asked him how he knew that the focus of the Mongolian army was in Xiangyang?
He said with a smile that General Meng had gone to Huangzhou, and the Mongolian army would definitely think that this place was empty and they could come down and do whatever they wanted. But of course, brothers cannot let them do whatever they want on their territory, so they must defend it for them.
Meng Gong led his troops to Zaoyang and captured Tangzhou. He wanted to ask Zhao Yulin to withdraw from Xiangyang, but he didn't know how to say it. After hearing what he said, it seemed like he was occupying the city and not leaving.
Meng Gong asked again tentatively, saying that his troops had recaptured Tangzhou. In that case, we can use Tangzhou and Zaoyang as the boundary and rely on each other to fight against the northern barbarians?
Zhao Yulin hurriedly said that this was very good, and immediately raised the cup to toast him, thanking the general for his great help without any reservation.
The two men agreed to use the Han River as the boundary and rely on each other to fight against the northern barbarians together.
After returning, Meng Gong said to his subordinates somewhat helplessly: What's going on? Our territory is getting smaller and smaller, and our troops are getting fewer and fewer, while the Shenwei Army has strong soldiers and horses, and their territory is getting stronger and stronger.
The deputy general believed that General Zhao was on the right track and was very strict in military discipline, so people with lofty ideals flocked to him. It was said that the Shenwei Army had no less than 300,000 soldiers, all of whom were elite soldiers who had been trained intensively.
Meng Gong was a little puzzled. He was still leading the troops in the traditional family system, spending his family wealth to support the troops, but the generals under him acted recklessly without any supervision.
Because he is an old subordinate of Shi's son, the court will take care of him to some extent. The guaranteed military pay is a huge advantage. However, all the people at the lower levels are doing the business of drawing salaries without doing anything. People with lofty ideals must be disheartened to see this. As the saying goes, a good bird will roost in a new tree. Naturally, fewer passionate young men will go to him.
As soon as he returned to Zaoyang, he reported to him that Lord Zhao from the Administration Office had sent a letter.
Meng Gong took it and opened it. He found that Zhao Fan had actually fled to Ezhou without Zhao Yulin chasing him. He even sent a letter asking him to negotiate with the Shenwei Army, offering him a huge reward for returning Xiangyang, and specifically ordering him to keep the government office intact.
Meng Gong was so angry that he tore the letter into pieces and scattered them into the air.
It is said that Zhao Yulin said goodbye to Meng Gong at the dock, and just as he entered the city, he saw the female gang leader coming towards him. She smiled and invited him to the government office for tea.
They went to the small hall in the back hall and sat down, and the maid immediately brought them some fresh and fragrant Emei snow buds .
Zhao Yulin was stunned when he saw it, and picked up the tea bowl and brought it closer to smell the fragrance.
The female gang leader liked his focused expression more and more, so she asked the commander, "How is it?"
He smiled and said that the Emei Snow Buds were fragrant and tender, very good, very good.
The female gang leader pretended not to know and said that the lord was really knowledgeable and could tell at a glance that he was from Emei.
Zhao Yulin said with envy that his savior was the head of Emei, and that he would be given some of the new tea.
The female gang leader was even more delighted when she heard this. It turned out that this kid didn't even know that the leader of Emei was her biological daughter. Then she got the position of the chief steward of Xiangyang based on her own strength.
She casually said that it was too early for the young girl to proclaim herself the leader.
Zhao Yulin said to her with a smile: Don't judge a person by his appearance, and don't underestimate the sea. Although the leader of Emei is young, he is very talented and will shine in time.
The female gang leader smiled calmly and invited him to taste tea, but her heart was full of joy.
He took two bites and said that Xiangyang had changed a lot in the past few days. The streets had been cleaned up, idle people had been organized to work, and there were garrisons patrolling the streets. The general manager was thoughtful and thoughtful, and did things in a thoughtful and appropriate manner, which made the people happy.
The female gang leader felt more comfortable after hearing this and asked him if he had anything else to say.
Zhao Yulin hesitated for a moment and said: The Beggars' Sect has many eyes and ears, and we still need the leader's care when we are in a favorable situation.
The female gang leader said happily that it was natural, what else?
He said that the duty of our Shenwei Army is to protect our country, but we will not be lenient towards officials who harm the people. Don't worry about the court's blame, just do it with confidence. If there are people who pretend to obey but actually disobey, and commit crimes, just arrest and punish them. In this way, the lives of the people in Xiangyang will get better and better.
Zhao Yulin didn't know why the female gang leader suddenly changed her personality and became so nice. He was a little uncomfortable with it, so he stood up and said goodbye after taking a sip of tea.
In the evening, when Guo Jing came back, the female gang leader was very happy and cooked for him and served him wine. Guo Jing smiled and asked his wife what treasure she had got that made her feel so good?
The female gang leader said with a smile that Yulin had been here today and praised her for a good job. She asked her to work hard and the Shenwei Army would give her strong support.
The Shenwei Army is Zhao Yulin, which means that Zhao Yulin will provide her with strong support.
Then he said happily that Yulin also praised Xiang'er for her beauty and intelligence, and that she was his savior.
Guo Jing said in a muffled voice that the commander-in-chief was nice to everyone and was the same to everyone.
The female gang leader felt that her husband's ideas were not on the same channel as hers, and she was very bored because she could not find any resonance. After drinking a glass, she went to admire her small courtyard.
She looked at the bookshelf that separated and was very fresh and exquisite, so she ran over to hold it and examine it carefully. Perhaps because she had drunk too much, she felt too much force and felt the bookshelf shaking. She immediately felt strange and called Brother Jing to come over and take a look.
Guo Jing had been busy all day, and when she saw the luxurious big bed, she wanted to climb up and sleep. When she was called over by her husband, she naturally put her hand on the bookshelf and leaned against it. The female gang leader clearly felt that the bookshelf moved again, and they were both startled.
People who practice martial arts are particularly sensitive to force. Even though the bookshelf is filled with books and ornaments and looks very stable, as long as it is movable, they can still feel the slightest shake.
