Volume 1 Chapter 77: Before the Battle (Part 2)
Zhang Boying turned around hastily and wanted to refute, but he felt dizzy and didn't know how to start.
But it's really not his fault. It's a pity that he has been in the Western Army for twenty years. What he fears most is dealing with these central government officials, not to mention the Chief Censor, the emperor's trusted confidant and weak-armed person.
So, in desperation, General Zhang had to go to see his good partner Zhao Ding, Zhao Damu, who had shared the good and bad times with him.
But unexpectedly, faced with such a situation, even Zhao Ding and Zhao Yuanzhen were quite hesitant.
On the other side, Emperor Zhao, who had been sitting still, was silent for a moment. He first looked at the battle situation below the city, which he could not understand at all. Then he turned his head and fixed his eyes on one of the people sitting with him. He spoke before Zhao Ding could, "I don't understand military affairs, so I have been relying on Han and Zhang. Now they are arguing in front of the battle. The other civil officials don't need to say anything... Only Wang Qing, as the commander-in-chief of the imperial camp, what do you think?"
"I think it's possible!" After being stared at by Emperor Zhao for a while, the commander-in-chief of the Imperial Camp, Wang Yuan, who was feeling uneasy, perked up and quickly stood up and spoke.
Zhang Jun's heart skipped a beat, and he immediately lost the intention to refute.
Now, if it was anyone else, it would be fine, but Wang Yuan. When Wang Yuan had not yet lost power, he was the real commander-in-chief. Zhang Jun, a veteran soldier, simply acknowledged Wang Yuan as his godfather, and usually addressed him as "Daddy Wang" in private... This was one of the reasons why Liu Guangshi said that the two of them were in collusion when he came back that day, and it was not just empty talk.
As for this mess, after Wang Yuan lost power, countless officials who wanted to remove him had mentioned it in impeachment letters. Even Emperor Zhao had known about it for a long time. He wrote it down as a curious anecdote in a small notebook and often took it out to review it.
Now back to the present, although Wang Yuan has lost his power, Zhang Jun, his godson, has not been close to his father Wang for a long time. But no matter what, it is difficult for Zhang Jun to refute Wang Yuan now, because once he talks too much with "father Wang", he may make a fool of himself in public... Besides, Wang Yuan does not seem to be a real waste in military terms. He was just idle because he made a huge political mistake.
"Which place does the commander-in-chief think we should send troops to support?" Thinking of this, Zhang Boying could only bite the bullet and accept the responsibility, but he also made up his mind that if Wang Yuan dared to tell the emperor to send Liu Bao or his personal soldiers of Captain Zhang, he would let this commander-in-chief know what it means to have an out-of-date godfather who is worse than his son!
"The front (west) has too many soldiers and horses." Wang Yuan was already very excited after receiving a private hint from the government for the first time in half a year. Naturally, he was very excited and wanted to show his ability. "But the front of the Jin army camp is well-equipped and has the most soldiers and horses. It is difficult to attack easily. It is better to find one of the five generals on the front and send him to Han Shizhong. I think..."
"Let Yang Yi Zhong lead the imperial guards!" The emperor gave the order without waiting for Wang Yuan to finish his words, and this dispatch made General Zhang feel a little relieved.
Just like that, Han Shizhong's personal soldiers hurried away, and the people on the city waved flags and issued orders. Yang Yizhong did not dare to be negligent, and immediately withdrew, leading the imperial guard, which had reached a size of seven or eight hundred people, to turn south and support the east from the river bank.
It should be noted that the real Bianliang Imperial Guards had long been wiped out during the Jingkang Incident. The current guards were simply temporarily rebuilt after Zhao Laojiu ascended the throne, and were basically drawn from the elite troops from various places (for example, Yang Yizhong was transferred from Zhang Jun's army to the Imperial Guard). After Zhao Jiu took over, although he mainly focused on expanding his direct troops, the expansion of the Imperial Guards seemed to have never stopped. This was a unit with the most generous rewards and treatment, the best equipment, the most sufficient weapons, and theoretically the most elite troops.
Therefore, when Yang Yi Zhong led seven or eight hundred squads and marched quickly along the river bank from west to east, the sunlight shone in the east and the armor sparkled, instantly attracting the attention of everyone on the battlefield.
On the general platform in front of the Jin army's central tent, the Jin army's lookout naturally saw it clearly, but hurriedly reported to Jin Wushu.
"Did Han Shizhong see through General Puluhun's thoughts?" Shi Wenbin asked carefully.
"General Shi, you have been in Song for a long time. Do you know how well Han Shizhong studies?" Jin Wushu was also a little nervous, but when he thought of the agreement with Puluhun and the performance of Li Guangbi in the history books he had just ridiculed, he didn't want to show it. After thinking for a moment, he asked a question that made no sense.
"How can Han Shizhong read?" Shi Wenbin sneered when he heard this. "The Fourth Prince doesn't know that when he led troops to suppress rebellions in two routes in Jingdong, he never called out the names of scholars who were not officials or had lower official positions. He always mocked them by calling them 'Zi Yue'! When writing a document, he always said 'those two 'Zi Yue', come and help me write a notice', which made the army's staff indignant... How can such a person read?"
Jin Wushu immediately breathed a sigh of relief: "If he didn't read books and didn't know the classics, he wouldn't understand Puluhun's determination. I'm afraid he only used common sense to guess that a surprise attack should be done quickly rather than later. He also saw that there was progress in the east, so he asked the Emperor of Song for some elite reinforcements, intending to attack urgently."
"But should we send more troops to the east?" Shi Wenbin continued to ask carefully.
"Not for now." Jin Wushu thought for a moment, then pointed to the front (west), and became more serious. "A few hundred soldiers are not a threat... Let's look at the front. If the Song army dares to send troops to support from the front, I may have to lead the two Meng'an in front to fight and directly roll into Xiacai!"
"The Fourth Prince is the one who truly understands military affairs..." Shi Wenbin hurriedly and carefully flattered him.
"Commander Han, I'm here on orders." After a moment, Yang Yizhong, covered in blood, came along the river bank, and saw Han Shizhong's flag standing on the bank, facing the east gate of the Jin Kingdom's main camp. Han Shizhong himself was also reining in his horse to watch the situation, so he leaned on his sword and spoke directly. "Please give the order."
"Yang Dalang, you're here at the right time. Let me ask you, do you understand the flag signals and military orders?" Han Shizhong turned his head on his horse, his eyes as sharp as lightning, and looked at him seriously.
"Commander Han, don't joke around." Even though Yang Yizhong had just escaped from the battlefield, he couldn't help but feel a little ridiculous at this moment. "My grandfather and father have been in the military for several lifetimes, and I grew up in the army since I was a child. If I don't understand the flag and military orders, wouldn't I have lived in vain for more than 20 years?"
"That's good!" Han Shizhong nodded slightly. "The trenches on the east side are about to be leveled, you will hand over all your squads to Wang Sheng, and I will stay here to command the flags!"
Yang Yizhong felt increasingly confused: "The commander asked me to come and help you with the dispatch? Then where is the commander going?"
"The time has not come yet, so I won't go anywhere for now." Han Shizhong shook his head. "I will just stay here with you and watch."
Yang Yizhong's thoughts were completely confused, and he had no idea what was going on, but as a military leader, he had no choice but to obey. Immediately, Han Shizhong dismantled hundreds of bright imperial guards in public, with the team leaders as the direct commanders, and deployed them in public. Under the eyes of the Jin army, they all rushed into the siege sequence on the east side.
"Puluhun!"
On the east side of the camp, in a vast open space that looked extremely large because the military tents had been dismantled, there was silence here, unlike the bustling scene outside. However, seeing the obvious increase in the number of troops by the Song army, an experienced Xi officer wearing a mask could not help but speak to Puluhun, who was sitting on the ground next to him, relying on his status and qualifications. "The Song army has increased its troops. Should we ask the Fourth Prince for some reinforcements?"
Puluhun, who was also wearing a mask, turned his head and asked coldly: "Xiao Yuli, did I issue an order before that all cavalrymen, except for Alibu, the Mouke, should line up their horses, sit down and keep silent, and only listen to me?"
This was not a good thing to hear, and Xiao Yuli was panicked for a moment, so he quickly loosened the reins and fell to the ground to apologize.
However, the chief Meng'an under Wanyan Wushu shook his head again: "You actually let go of the warhorse? Can't you forgive you because you are a noble of the Xi tribe and the father-in-law of the Third Prince?"
Xiao Xili looked up in surprise and was about to explain when the Jurchen Mouke Alibu, who was nearby, came forward with several Jurchen armored soldiers. They personally held the man down in front of Puluhun and more than a thousand Jin cavalrymen, and grabbed the man's gourd-shaped iron helmet and pulled it back.
At this time, Puluhun had just stood up himself, but he did not even remove the mask of the Xi nobleman. He just took out his hard bow and pulled out a long Jurchen arrow from the quiver in front of the man's waist, then drew the bow and aimed it at the man's eyes... It is said that Jurchen arrows are famous for their long and sharp arrowheads and their ability to penetrate armor. The arrowheads are even five or six inches long. Xiao Li knew how powerful they were, but no matter how hard he struggled, he could not get rid of them... And Puluhun just loosened the bowstring casually, and the arrowhead completely sank into the man in front of him. After the latter was shot, his hands and feet trembled, and then he was motionless.
After killing this man, Puluhun sat back as if nothing had happened, but he still held the horse and sat still. The armored cavalrymen of various tribes around him were all shocked, but they dared not move at all.
Just like that, after just a moment, the two 'Han' reinforcements' among the Meng'an who were ordered to 'fight to the death' in the front saw 'countless' shining imperial guards rushing towards them, and their momentum was lost again. After the outer fence and trenches, they finally lost another layer of the inner wall.
Han Shizhong's central army cheered and, under the command of Wang Sheng, nicknamed the Black Dragon, rushed forward and pushed down the low wall made of mud and wood, further opening up the way for the advance!
At the same time, another rider galloped to the foot of Xiacai City, climbed up to the top of the city wall, held the command flag in his hand, and bowed his head:
"General Zhang, please send at least 1,000 more troops to our Commander Han! Please send troops from the front (the west side of the Jin army camp)!"
Zhang Boying laughed when he heard this, but he didn't say anything... He wanted to see if this bastard Han Wu would ever stop? ! Who could persuade him to send troops today? !
"Your Highness, the Imperial Censor, Zhang Jun..."
"Zhang Zhongcheng, stop talking nonsense!" Zhang Jun turned around angrily and shouted at him. "I don't know what Han Wu is planning, but I know that the Jin army camp in front is the most heavily guarded, and there are two Meng'an, with extremely strong forces. If we withdraw another 1,000 soldiers at this time, I'm afraid that when our army is exhausted, Wanyan Wushu will personally lead the central army and the two thousand Jin soldiers to fight bravely... In just a few miles, if we can't resist and are in a state of collapse, I'm afraid Xiacai will also be swept away by the defeated soldiers, and this place will not be saved! If this place is not saved, who can save it?!"
"I think what Commander Zhang said is very true." Zhao Ding did not hesitate any longer. "The safety of the emperor should not be taken lightly!"
"I think so too." Wang Yuan also stood up seriously and bowed to Zhao Jiu.
Zhang Jun was silent.
"Mr. Zhang... I'm talking about General Zhang. Come here, I have something to tell you." Zhao Jiu thought for a moment and finally spoke on his own initiative, waving at Zhang Boying.
"Your Majesty! I..." Zhang Jun hurried forward, bowed his head, and was about to continue persuading him, but unexpectedly, Emperor Zhao suddenly reached out and held his hands. He was also startled and quickly knelt down on his knees.
"Did Zhang Qing notice that?" Zhao Jiu sighed and tried to whisper. Even though it was a low voice, many people could hear it when no one dared to speak on the city wall. "If I don't put my hands on my knees, I will tremble... Because today I saw with my own eyes thousands of soldiers fighting, the momentum was overwhelming, but there was only smoke and dust, and I couldn't even understand the battle situation. I was confused and really afraid that I would be defeated and die here today!"
Zhang Jun hesitated and didn't dare to say anything. In fact, he didn't know what to say.
"But I am afraid, but I also understand that the situation has reached this point. The victory or defeat depends on you and Han Qing. I am useless." Emperor Zhao continued slowly. "I don't understand your dispute. Han Qing is in front of the battlefield. I can only rely on Zhang Qing at this time. I hope Zhang Qing still remembers what he said at the Feishui River that day, and tries his best to maintain a little for me... Zhang Qing, I am really afraid of death, but I really want to win this battle, so you must tell me the truth. Can you really not agree to Han Qing ?"
Zhang Jun knelt on the ground, panicking and hesitant, but finally nodded with gritted teeth: "I roughly guessed that Han Wu wanted to borrow troops to spy on the strength of the camp, so he had to dispatch troops from the front line... I will let Liu Bao go along the river bank to find him, and then change the supervision team into a death squad, and send them all! Please rest assured, as long as I am alive today, I will definitely protect your safety!"
