Volume 2 Chapter 52: Attacking the Heart
The Song army's artillery showed its power in the battle, and there was naturally a mixture of sadness and joy inside and outside the city.
In the next two days, no matter how quiet the Song army was in the city, the Jin army did not make any movement. Even Zhang Yu did not come out to carry out the routine siege.
There was no way out. After this battle, the Jin army had a big problem just making personnel adjustments before the battle. Moreover, the situation was like this, and the Jin army had to make new decisions.
The twelfth lunar month was approaching. On this day, the weather turned cloudy and a cold wind began to blow. The only two remaining Wanhu of the Jin army gathered in Wanyan Wushu's rear tent to discuss important matters.
"Fourth Prince, why don't you withdraw your troops?"
After the three of them sat down cross-legged, there was a tense silence before Balisu suddenly spoke.
"Since Taizu started the rebellion, I have never heard of withdrawing the army because of the death of a few generals!" Unexpectedly, Wanyan Wushu, with his unshaven beard and dull eyes, did not get angry, because he might have thought that Balishu would raise this question a long time ago.
"I'm not talking about the mud bomb on the platform the other day!" Ba Lisu, whose fractured bones had not yet healed and whose arms were still drooping, responded calmly. "We have been on the platform for half a month, and the people on the city have also been patient for half a month, planning carefully just for this attack, which is just like an assassination. Although it has a miraculous effect, it cannot be considered a military method... It can only be used once, not twice, and it does not affect the overall situation... I have thought it through these few days, the key lies in the advantage of the Song army's artillery!"
Wanyan Wushu fell silent... It had been several days, and if Balisu could think of it, how could he not think of it?
Wanyan Wushu said nothing. Han Chang was warming up his wine and drinking it. Balisu continued to speak slowly:
"In fact, I have seen clearly in the army that there has been no mistakes since the Fourth Prince went south. Not only that, the previous ambush of Han Shizhong was outstanding. Even though the siege of Nanyang lasted for more than half a month, it cannot be said that there was any misstep at this point... But now, it is not that the Fourth Prince did not command properly, nor that the people and men did not fight bravely. Even Zhang Yu can be said to have done his best, but Nanyang City is indeed well defended! Ordinary equipment and extraordinary equipment have been used up in half a month, but they have not even crossed the first layer of the city wall..."
"The first city wall?" Wanyan Wushu suddenly frowned and interrupted.
"That's right!" Balisu replied solemnly. "Although I haven't been able to enter the city, after half a month, I have already understood the defense of Nanyang City. If there is no third trench and second wall in the city, I can't understand it! Even if we go deeper, the city has already been divided into fortresses and stockades, which is possible!"
Wanyan Wuzhu remained silent, as if he was unable to refute.
"But these are just some side stories," Balisu continued. "Since our dynasty started to fight, we have fought many battles with Liao, Song, and Xixia. According to them, there have been many powerful and daring tribes that have suddenly emerged over the past hundred years, but the only one that can annex Liao and overthrow Song is our Jurchens... Why is this possible? In fact, Lou Shi and my brother had a discussion that day. After all, it was because our Jurchens' field cavalry is unparalleled; when we besiege a city, we can also set up cannons and break through the walls, and nothing can be destroyed! Artillery is no less important to our army than cavalry! The key to the defeat the day before was not the death of a Wanhu or a few Meng'an, but the fact that our artillery had no power to fight back. Before the day was up, the hundreds of artillery that we had worked hard for half a month were all turned into dust! Fourth Prince, without artillery, how are you going to attack Nanyang?"
Wanyan Wushu was still speechless... How did he know how to fight without artillery? In fact, it was precisely because he didn't know that he had to hold this serious military meeting!
"Fourth Prince!" Balisu wanted to say more. "I, your humble servant..."
"Pull your speed!" At this moment, Han Chang, who had been drinking, suddenly spoke up. "According to what you said, the Song Dynasty can no longer be defeated? And if you say that artillery is useless, I remember that your Western Army did not take advantage of artillery in Taiyuan? How did you take Taiyuan in the end? What method did you use?"
"Taiyuan is different from Nanyang!" Balisu immediately refuted.
"Of course it's different!" Han Chang responded coldly. "When I first came to Nanyang, General Balisu said it himself, saying that Nanyang couldn't compare to Taiyuan! The battle of Taiyuan was so hard... Since we were able to conquer such a majestic Taiyuan back then, how can we not conquer Nanyang today?!"
"General Han, don't be angry!" Balisu was also a little angry.
"I'm not being angry, but today, since there are only three of us, I want to say something from the bottom of my heart!" Han Chang said seriously. "During the battle of Nanyang, so many generals died, so many soldiers were wasted coming from afar, and they worked hard for half a month, but they left in a moment of fear... When the time comes, General Balisu, you can return to Taiyuan and just say that you are a reinforcement, and that this matter has nothing to do with you. Instead, it was someone who was incompetent in using troops that caused you to lose your nephew! But what should I do if I, a helpless person like me, return to Yanjing? Will I have the nerve to lead the troops next time?! How will the Fourth Prince explain to the Third Prince? Will your Marshal take the opportunity to force the Fourth Prince?!"
These words almost made the confrontation between the Eastern and Western armies clear, as if pointing at Balisu and saying that he had no right to speak in the Eastern Army!
May I ask how Balisu could not be angry?
However, when Balisu looked at Han Chang with angry eyes, the latter remained unafraid.
Moreover, although both of them were commanders of ten thousand households, Han Chang was the descendant of a surrendered general (he surrendered to the Jurchens with his father), while Balisu was from a distant branch of the royal family, with a good family background, and he also had an elder brother with considerable political skills and abilities to support him. The hidden status of the two was very different.
However, Han Chang was Wanyan Wushu's confidant after all. The two young men had been in contact long before the fourth prince came to power. Later, Wanyan Wushu came out to lead the troops alone. Coincidentally, Han Chang's father passed away, and Han Chang himself was able to take charge of the troops and become a member of the Wanhu clan. The two were able to form a subordinate relationship... In the final analysis, regardless of the Jurchen military council tradition, the one who is in charge of this military tent is still the fourth prince Wanyan Wushu!
"After the artillery battle at Taiyuan failed, how did you take it?" Wanyan Wushu suddenly spoke, but he asked Balisu a question that he already knew the answer for.
"Lock the city!" Balisu didn't know that his idea of withdrawing troops had been rejected. In addition, he was angry with Han Chang, so he felt a tightness in his chest for a while, but he could only respond.
"How to lock the city?" Wuzhu asked seriously.
"We will build another city outside the city to lock Taiyuan from all sides. Then, when the situation is settled and the city is out of ammunition and food, we will concentrate our main forces to capture the city..." At this point, Balisu couldn't help but hold his injured arm and lowered his voice to try to answer. "Fourth Prince, the method of locking Taiyuan can't be used in Nanyang!"
"Why?" Wanyan Wushu raised his eyebrows.
"Although we lost the artillery battle in Taiyuan, we didn't lose to such an extent today. When we locked the city, the artillery in the city had no more stone bullets to use, so we were able to calmly attack the city!" Ba Lisu continued in a low voice. "And now Nanyang's artillery is sharp, how can we lock the city under the enemy's artillery?"
"You can build the city outside the artillery range!" Han Chang suddenly interrupted.
"How big a project would that be?" Balisu felt it was getting more and more absurd.
"It doesn't have to be completely locked up," Han Chang replied calmly. "Just build some strong walls for the long term!"
"Does this mean to keep the city under siege for a long time?" Balisu suddenly came to his senses, but he looked at Wanyan Wushu again, because he had guessed that this was most likely the Fourth Prince's intention, and Han Chang was just responsible for saying it... and today's military meeting was also meant to subdue him.
"What do you think, General Balisu?" Wanyan Wushu did not say anything more, and Han Chang continued to ask. "After a long siege, when the city is exhausted and Marshal Talan has gathered his troops, we can capture the city!"
"I don't think so!" Balisu answered simply.
"Why?" Han Chang continued to ask. "Taiyuan was also surrounded for half a year."
"Nanyang is really different from Taiyuan." Balisu sighed, but still faced Wanyan Wushu earnestly. "Fourth Prince, please think about it carefully... One is the supplies in the city. Taiyuan was besieged suddenly that day, and when the city was broken, people almost ate each other. Nanyang is the secondary capital of Song Dynasty, and there will be no shortage of food and military supplies in the city; the other is the climate. Nanyang is different from Taiyuan. This place is almost at the Han River, and it will not freeze until the middle of this month. The place is hot and humid. If it is difficult to rain for a long time, when the weather gets hot next year, the soldiers will definitely be unbearable; the other is that there is a Song emperor in the city. With him, the morale will definitely be full! With these three things, plus the powerful artillery in the city, we can't fire the cannons. That means even if Marshal Talan gathers troops, how can we break it?"
Wanyan Wushu was also a little shaken for a moment.
"Nanyang is indeed difficult to attack, but if this city can be captured, I'm afraid the blame will be on the Emperor of Song!" Han Chang lowered his head and thought for a moment, but his words were so shocking that even Wanyan Wushu frowned for a moment.
Han Chang was not vague and directly expressed his thoughts:
"Please think about this, Fourth Prince. The reason why Taiyuan was captured was partly due to the frustration of the people in the city after losing all the reinforcements. Now that the Emperor of Song is sitting in Nanyang, after a while, the troops from all over the country will not hesitate to come to Nanyang. By then, we only need to defeat the reinforcements one by one under the city, and then the people in the city will gradually become unstable, right?!"
When Wanyan Wuzhu heard this, it was as if the clouds had cleared and the sun came out, and Balisu was choked for a moment.
"As for besieging the city, I just thought about it. Just as General Balisu said, Nanyang and Taiyuan are completely different. We should not copy the same method, but do the opposite." Han Chang continued. "As long as we build camps in the north and west of the city, we can ensure that the war horses have a place to graze and the supplies are continuously transported. The rest of the east side will remain empty, and the south side can be completely opened up... It just so happens that General Chizhanhui has passed away and no more Wanhu are promoted. We can go directly to the north and be directly under the command of the Fourth Prince."
"I understand that there is a lack of one side, but why do you want to completely let go of one side?" Bali Su paused for a while, but couldn't help asking out of curiosity. "Isn't it to restore communication between the city and the outside world?"
"If we can't restore communication between Nanyang and the outside world, it will be useless!" Han Chang sneered. "If you want to surround the three sides and force the Emperor of Song to leave Nanyang, let alone how to annihilate the troops who come to support the emperor in the future, just now, we have to let the people in the city know the bad news, right? Otherwise, wouldn't he just sit back and relax? "
"This is a strategy to attack the heart." Wanyan Wushu finally spoke, but he made up his mind while touching the short knife in his arms. "Balisu, you can't say that this strategy can't be tried, right?"
Wanyan Balisu thought about it again and again, but could not refute it.
