Volume 2 Chapter 36: Dispatching Troops
Emperor Zhao has brought disgrace upon himself!
He had the Privy Council moved to the Yushan camp early on, and asked the two ministers of the capital to divide the capital into two parts in Nanyang and Xiangyang. He also personally sat in the army, looking as if he was facing a powerful enemy but was quite decisive.
In fact, on the first day after he entered the camp, he repeatedly said something like "it won't take long" in public in the military quarters.
However, the Jin army was nowhere to be seen throughout July. By August, all parts of Henan had completed the deployment of troops and the deployment of city defenses. Even Li Yanxian's troops, which were in the most dangerous situation, received two shipments of weapons and gunpowder from Nanyang, but the main force of the Jin army still did not cross the river... In a trance, not to mention the ministers in Nanyang, even the front-line generals and Emperor Zhao himself thought that the Jin army would not come. It can even be said that the imperial edict was an extremely effective strategic deception.
In early August, news finally came, which confirmed that the Jin emperor's edict was indeed valid, but it also brought shame to Emperor Zhao and the entire Nanyang Central Government.
It turned out that the Jin army did not fail to take immediate action. They took decisive action in early July, but from that time on, they encountered a strong counterattack from the entire Hebei righteous army... Compared with the thriving situation in Nanyang, since the Jin people regarded Hebei as their confidant, they had migrated a large number due to the aftermath of last year's war, Hebei was basically in a state of economic collapse and people were displaced, and resistance was constant.
As for the 200,000 Jin troops who went south this time, they were about to resettle the Meng'an and Mouke in various places in Hebei and carried out large-scale, formal and spontaneous levy and plunder in Hebei for the first time. The backward system and barbaric style of the Jin Kingdom doomed this levy to be brutal and destructive.
You have to know that the Han people are not two-legged sheep. Even if they were two-legged sheep, they would have to cry out, kick a few times, and bite a few times before being slaughtered, right?
As a result, the Jin army's work of gathering troops fell into difficulties from the very beginning, and the Hebei volunteer army grew stronger again... In fact, if Emperor Zhao really had enough revolutionary consciousness and revolutionary knowledge, he should have been awakened by the Hedong Red Turban Army that suddenly emerged and defected to the big and small Zhai.
But no matter what, it was not only the corrupt ruling class of the Song Dynasty who ignored the power of the people, but the Jin people also paid a bloody price for it... After determining the general plan of the marching route, Nianhan himself led a small force south from Yanjing to Damingfu to take charge. As a result, he encountered a group of rebels on the way and was almost captured. He had to flee back to Yanjing in a panic and only then did he march south after changing to a large force.
By mid-July, the Jin troops outside the Great Wall and Youyan had gathered together. Not only had the Meng'an and Mouke troops in various parts of Hebei arrived, but even three military and prefectural capitals in Hebei had been lost!
With no other options, Wanyan Erlido, the third prince of the Jin Dynasty , as the "military garrison" of Yanjing, could only lead the assembled troops from outside the Great Wall and Youyan to embark on a mopping-up journey from north to south, which was part of the original plan but unexpectedly difficult.
It was not until late July that they finally defeated the 200,000-strong Wumashan rebel army led by Zhao Zhen, the Deputy Marshal of the Army and Prince of Xin, in Zhending Prefecture, Hebei, not far from Yanjing.
However, I wonder if anyone still remembers someone's advice on the Huai River, which is the so-called "don't seek field battles or reckless battles, but seek to preserve strength for future response"... Anyway, Erlido never captured any Prince Xin afterwards, nor did he meet the actual leader of the Wumashan, their old friend of the Great Jin Kingdom, the so-called General Manager of the Northern Road of the Great Song Dynasty, Ma Kuo and Ma Zi Chong.
In fact, just three days later, news of Ma Kuo and Prince Xin came again from the northern foothills of Taihang Mountains west of Zhending. Then, countless remnants of the defeated army followed the news and fled into Taihang Mountains. The momentum was instantly revived, making the previous battle more like a necessary cover for a strategic shift than a battle.
The Jin army, which had just won a great victory, was discouraged by this... For the cavalry from Liaodong and Youyan, fighting on flat ground is one thing, but fighting in the mountains is another.
In fact, the commanders of the Jin army had another dispute. Some suggested dividing the troops to lock the northern Taihang Mountains and continue to move south to deal with the Eight Character Army; some suggested abandoning everything and ignoring the Song Guoyi Army in the mountains, and immediately sending troops after sweeping the plains; of course, some suggested surrender... In this regard, the actual commander of the Jin army, the third prince Wanyan Erlido, was caught in a dilemma. When an unexpected autumn rain arrived, the situation was completely delayed.
"I thought that if I really saw the Ma family master on the battlefield, I would pretend not to see him and let him go because of the friendship we had in Liaodong. I would just go and capture that Prince Xin. Who would have thought that the master who was so kind in the past would be so cunning now." In the main hall of a nearly empty mansion in Zhending City , there were only two people drinking together. Among them, the third prince of the Jin Dynasty, Wanyan Erliduo, looked at the wine and meat in front of him and listened to the sound of autumn rain in the courtyard. He just felt bored. "Fourth brother, you were still young at that time, do you still remember him?"
"How can you not remember?"
Wanyan Wushu raised his buttocks and squinted at the door. Outside the open door, due to the raging autumn rain, no one was out at all. Even some trusted guards were allowed to hide in the porch to drink. "I still remember that day when he shot an arrow, our father turned around and said to Nianhan that as long as there is one person like Ma Kuo among the 100 young officials of Song State, they must abide by the covenant..."
"I underestimated him at that time." Wanyan Erliduo sighed. "Although they are just a bunch of rabble, they only suffered from the lack of weapons, war horses, and experience. The hundreds of thousands of people are real... So it must be possible that his Ma Zi Chong is one in a million, right?"
"Whether it is one in a million or not is meaningless. It still depends on the individual situation and the fate of the country."
Wanyan Wushu crossed his legs and put his strength on his buttocks. He twitched his mouth and said disapprovingly. "At that time, we were in the mountains and rivers. Although we won two battles, we only had a few thousand elite troops. We couldn't even gather the Jurchens completely. The Liao Kingdom was even more distant, let alone the Song people. At that time, we naturally had to relax our thinking when looking at the Song people... Because they had a million troops and we only had 10,000 people, so as long as they could not defeat one in a hundred, we naturally didn't dare to have any thoughts. But after destroying Liao, we also had 200,000 or 300,000 troops. Looking at the Song army of a million, we would think that as long as the Song people didn't have a Jurchen hero for every five people, we could fight them."
Wanyan Erliduo listened with his ears perked up, then nodded slightly: "I know what you want to say in your heart, Old Four... You mean to say that the Song Dynasty's imperial camp in Henan and Tokyo now have at most 200,000 people. As long as there is not one person who can be compared with our Jurchens among two or three people, we will be able to dominate. So don't waste time in Hebei, and it is right to move south as soon as possible. Once it is delayed for too long, the Song Dynasty's troops in the south of the Yangtze River will be ready, and it will be easy to cause chaos... Is that what you mean?"
"Third brother understands my feelings." Wanyan Wushu raised his glass to him and nodded seriously.
Wanyan Erlido also raised his glass to face his brother, and then they each drank it all.
"Wuzhu, although I know you want to go south for selfish reasons, I don't think you have any wrong ideas." Wanyan Erliduo put down his wine glass and took the opportunity to bring up the current predicament. "But what about Hebei right now? Isn't Ma Kuo going to pursue? The Eight Character Army in the south won't be dealt with? Nianhan will have to wait in Damingfu! Moreover, Hebei is the foundation of our Great Jin Kingdom. The King and Yanjing are keeping a close eye on Hebei, and it seems that the Central Plains and Jiangnan will probably be separated as vassal states."
"Third brother, you are putting the cart before the horse." Wanyan Wushu sneered. "Let me ask you, why should the Central Plains and Jiangnan be separated as vassal states?"
"There are probably two reasons." Erliduo frowned slightly and raised his glass. "One is that we Jurchens are not used to the climate in the south. As long as the weather in the Central Plains gets hot, we will lose the will to fight. Moreover, I heard that the Song people have thousands of miles of territory south of the Central Plains, and it is even hotter there. Another reason..."
"Another reason is that there are too many Song people, and they are resisting strongly." Wuzhu sneered even more. "After all, we only have 120,000 elite troops. Counting the surrendered troops in Liao and the surrendered troops in Hebei, there are at most 300,000 troops. It's good enough that this army can suppress Hebei, let alone the Central Plains and Jiangnan. Moreover, the 120,000 "elite troops" are still one less to die, so they must be used to the best effect. It's just like the incident at Wumashan this time. We all know that the Prince Xin is a fake, and Ma Kuo is the backbone of Wumashan, but you still want to let Ma Kuo go after the war, why? Isn't it because you know that Ma Kuo can't do anything without the Prince Xin? And the Prince Xin is a fake, as long as the emperor of the Song Dynasty in the south recognizes him, he can also incite people's hearts."
Erlido narrowed his eyes slightly. He of course knew what his younger brother meant. Wanyan Wushu did not say anything more. The two brothers just looked at the rain in the yard in silence.
"I said the same thing. I know you are selfish, but I can't refute you." After an unknown amount of time, Erliduo sighed. "You are right. Only by killing the Song emperor in the south can the world be at peace..."
"I'm really not selfish." Wanyan Wushu drank a glass of wine, but his eyes suddenly turned red. "They all said that I encouraged people to go south for personal revenge. My eldest brother also thought so, and my third brother also thought so... Especially you, third brother, everyone got benefits this time, but you didn't. You obviously still have resentment towards me, so you are holding on to my suggestion. But I still have to say that the Song emperor in the south is not an ordinary bird! When the two people in Wuguo City were in power, people like Ma Kuo could only be imprisoned in the prison of Zhending Prefecture, waiting for us to save him because of our past friendship. But now the new emperor has given the two people in Wumashan status with an edict, and entangled us to this extent. Isn't it clear enough?"
Wanyan Erlido seemed to want to say something but stopped himself.
"What's the point of Hebei's public security... public security?!" Wanyan Wushu was getting more and more angry. "The root of Hebei's poor public security lies in the south. Why did we go south last year? Wasn't it to drive out the two wings, cut off Hebei's traffic with the south, and then Hebei would be safe? Why am I the only one who is selfish today?!"
Erliduo sighed slightly: "I don't mean to blame you blindly . After the second brother left, we brothers were the only ones supporting the army. It was really hard to fight against Nianhan. I was also afraid that you would insist on doing things on your own. If you get frustrated, others would blame you... You are now the military supervisor of the Capital Marshal's Mansion, unlike last time when you still had Talan to support you."
"It doesn't matter. Just think it's purely my selfish desire. I was blinded by revenge, but wasn't what I said wrong? Shouldn't I leave these jars and pots behind and head south?" Wanyan Wushu was getting more and more angry. " As long as the South is powerful and impressive, what does it matter if Ma Kuo and the Eight Character Army? As long as the Emperor of Song runs away from Nanyang with his tail between his legs, do you think Hebei will be safe? When we catch up with him, we'll chop off his dragon flag first, and then kill that kid from the Zhao family. Not to mention Hebei, the whole world will be at peace! Who knows, by then I'll stay in the Central Plains and enjoy the beautiful country, and never come back to make you angry again!"
Erliduo knew that if he continued talking, there would be a rift between the brothers, so he could only grit his teeth and said seriously: "Are you still going to go south immediately? Don't care about Ma Kuo and the Eight Character Army?"
"good."
"How are you going to fight?"
"Third brother won't cross the river, so don't worry about it."
"I just need to hold Nianhan back for you so that the reinforcements from the Western Route Army can be dispatched in time?"
"good."
"Do you need me to press down on that part of your body?"
"No need, this old bird dare not break his promise! If he dares to play tricks on me, I will make him know how powerful I am."
Erliduo nodded slowly, then stood up and sighed: "You go ahead, I will slowly gather troops and horses to support you."
Wanyan Wushu finally convinced his brother, but he stood up without saying a word, enduring the severe pain from his wound on a rainy day, and almost limped into the rain without even opening an umbrella or calling for help.
Erlido looked at his brother's back and frowned slightly. He always felt that his brother was gradually losing control, but it was not simply because of his age and promotion to power, but he couldn't explain the reason clearly.
In early August, the autumn harvest on the south bank of the Yellow River was gradually completed, but there was still no news from the Jin people. Even the main force of the Eight Character Army in the northern Taihang Mountains had not reported any information about a large-scale battle.
In a trance, the entire Song army on the south bank of the Yellow River, which was on high alert, was about to become a joke.
At this time, the commanders of various war zones who had already obtained the "right to self-determination" clearly issued by Nanyang also had other ideas.
On the eighth day of the eighth month, Zhang Jun, the governor of Huaidong, launched a tentative attack on Yizhou and won the first battle. Or it could be said that the local bandits in Yizhou chose to surrender. But no matter what, the vital Yishui Passage fell into the hands of Zhang Boying, who immediately rode back to report the victory.
On August 12, Zhang Suo, the governor of the two routes of Jingdong in Nanjing and Shangqiu, ordered his pacification envoys Yue Fei and Zhang Rong, and Kong Yanzhou, a native of Jingdong and a soldier of the Song army who occupied the Yanzhou area after the rebellion last year, to advance northward together, trying to defeat Liu Yu and occupy Jinan Prefecture before the arrival of the Jin army.
Just after the Mid-Autumn Festival on August 16, Yue Fei was ordered to lead his troops into battle.
However, on August 18, before Yue Fei had even left the territory of Dongping Prefecture under the jurisdiction of Zhang Rong in the north, he ran into countless defeated troops of Zhang Rong's army.
