Volume 2 Chapter 66 Decision-making
The Jin army noticed the Song army's activities on the night of the 12th day of the first lunar month, or in the early morning of the 13th day of the first lunar month, almost immediately, probably because the moon was getting bigger.
There was nothing that could be done about it. The two sides were too close to each other. A sudden attack would only take an hour. So even though there had been no fighting between the two sides in the previous half month and there was a "peaceful atmosphere", the Jin army could not ignore the large-scale military movements so close to them.
However, the Jin army commander Wanyan Talai knew the reason earlier than these people, because on that night, someone defected to the Jin army camp and informed Talai of the "dramatic changes" that had taken place in Yanling City before the Jin army scouts returned with the situation.
"So... it's not your family who is in power in Yanling now?" That morning, in the dilapidated north of Changsha City, between the water, Talan came to the central army tent with a little irritation after getting up. He frowned and listened to the visitor's words. Even though he was in a bad mood, he couldn't help but take it seriously. "Did the angel from Nanyang take away his power?"
"There's even a hint of house arrest!" A Song general, looking embarrassed, stood under the tent, his face full of worry, cautiously restraining his hands. "I came here specifically to inform the Marshal of this matter..."
"Tell me in detail." Wanyan Talan frowned even more. "Who is this person? How could he easily seize your family's remaining military power?"
"It's the Imperial Censor Hu Yin!"
"What kind of official is that?"
"Second only to the prime minister, half a level higher than other officials..."
Upon hearing this, Talai immediately looked at the few Jingxi surrendered people sitting beside him. They nodded quickly, and some even wanted to stand up and explain... But Talai didn't have the enthusiasm to learn. He waved his hand, asked the man to sit down, and continued to ask:
"I see. I can't blame him. But when did that Hu arrive in Yanling?"
"I just arrived yesterday." This person answered every question, even a little eagerly.
Wanyan Talai nodded slightly, as this matched what he had learned about the situation in Nanyang yesterday morning.
However, at this point, Talai still did not ask about the military situation, but suddenly asked something else: "You said your name is Li Kui? Are you a commander under the Tokyo Garrison?"
"Yes!" The man below, Li Kui, quickly responded.
"Where are you from?"
“I’m from Yishui.”
“From JD?”
"Marshal is very insightful..."
"What good knowledge? I went to Jingdong last year, don't you know?" Talai replied unhappily. "If you are from Jingdong, why do you work for the Tokyo Resident Office? And according to what you said, you must be trusted by your resident, so you are afraid that Hu Yin will catch you, so you ran away... How did you get here?"
"Let the Marshal know." Li Kui said awkwardly. "I am from Yishui. After the fight between the Marshal and the Fourth Prince last year, I took advantage of the opportunity and occupied Mizhou with a few brothers..."
"Later, we were attacked by Li Cheng of Qingzhou next door. I had no choice but to lead the remaining soldiers to wander along Mount Tai, and first stayed with Zhang Rong in Dongping Prefecture. But Zhang Rong had his own group of brothers in Shuibo, and he couldn't tolerate me. So I had to continue looking for Yue Fei in Jeju. But Yue Fei had strict military discipline, and I couldn't bear it anymore, so I had to leave again and went to Tokyo..."
"After that, I went to Tokyo. Because I was born in Jingdong, I was also ostracized. I had to wander around in many places and I was too embarrassed to go back. It was not until my family became powerful that I was able to gain his trust because I was not reliable..."
"This time, I am not only worried about the Chief Censor getting hold of me, but I am even more worried about Yue Fei getting hold of me... I must escape from Yue Fei once..."
Li Kui kept on talking and rambling, which annoyed the scholars and generals around him, but Talai listened with great interest. He interrupted him from time to time and called a few relevant people to verify a few words before letting him continue talking.
This is Talan's advantage. Although he is rude, he is an older man after all. He is considerate and meticulous. As he gradually listened to the other party's words, he found that the method, time, and cause and effect almost all matched with what he knew and heard, so he felt relieved.
"Alright, alright..." After listening to the long speech, Talan gradually relaxed and smiled. "Tell me about the military situation!"
"Let the Marshal know." Li Kui couldn't help but put his hands together and lowered his head to take a half step forward, but he stopped abruptly under the gaze of several soldiers beside Talan. "Hu Yin came to pass on the order. After taking over the military power, he ordered the commander of the entire army and the commander of the army to enter the city together, and then urged them to go to war to relieve the siege of Changsha..."
"So, the Song army will come to attack us soon?" Talai frowned slightly, seeming quite worried.
Li Kui shook his head repeatedly: "It is true that Hu Yin urged us to hurry, but he is new here and he is young. How dare the generals and officers in the army come here to fight with the Marshal's main force of more than 20,000 Jurchens just because of his words? Therefore, after a long discussion yesterday, the army argued with him for a long time, but they finally made a decision and decided to send troops immediately. The two routes are divided into two groups. One group will go north along the Wei River to attack Changge first, luring the Marshal's troops to rescue, but it is just a cover; the other group will go south across the Wei River to take advantage of the time difference and attack Linying. After taking Linying, they will cross the Ying River again, so that Yancheng and Xiangcheng can find a place to rescue and explain... This group is the main force, led by Yue Fei, who has a real army of 20,000!"
Talan thought about it and nodded slowly.
You know, right now the situation between the Five Rivers (Yingshui, Weishui, Qishui, Shangshui and Rushui) is already very critical for the Song army, and many key points have already fallen... For example, Changge, which connects Zhongmu and Changsha, is also the key point for the main force of the Jin army to return north, and it was lost at the beginning because of Han Shizhong's defeat; Linying, which was separated from Changsha by the Qishui River and controlled the upper reaches of the Yingshui River, was also lost because of Zhang Yu's surrender; and the two front teeth that directly controlled the Nanyang Basin, namely Wuyang and Xiping, also lost Wuyang... Therefore, the only strongholds that the Song army still had in this area at this time were Changsha where Han Shizhong was located, Xiangcheng where Lu Xing was located, Yancheng where Xu Shi'an was located, and Xiping where Zhai Chong was located, just four places.
Correspondingly, of the 40,000 troops under Wanyan Talan's command, except for the Wanhu led by Yelu Mawu, the remaining 30,000 main forces were originally distributed under these four cities in an attempt to continue the siege .
With this arrangement, the Jin army had a huge flaw when the rivers were frozen in the winter, and the cavalry could move back and forth to provide support easily and gather and disperse at will. However, with the arrival of the first month of the year, the weather warmed up slightly, and the ice in the south gradually melted, revealing the five rivers (Yingshui, Weishui, Qishui, Shangshui, and Rushui) that greatly inhibited the Jin army's mobility.
However, Wanyan Talan was not unaware of this. In fact, as early as after the fall of Wuyang City, he adopted and implemented an extremely safe tactic - he personally led 10,000 people to the city of Changsha, and the rest of the cities were surrounded by only a few Meng'an leading a few thousand soldiers. Then he let his son-in-law, Puchahulu, who had his hands free, personally lead 7,000 to 8,000 elite troops to provide support everywhere, and gathered the civilians and equipment, preparing to take down each city one by one.
But, didn’t Du Chong suddenly arrive on the opposite side with an army of 70,000 to 80,000?
Therefore, Wanyan Talan stopped this strategy. On the one hand, he asked his son-in-law Pucha Hubalu to lead the troops to accompany him at the foot of Changsha City. On the other hand, he ordered the other three places, as well as Yelu Mawu, to reduce their forces and concentrate support troops here. He also did not forget to ask Wanyan Wushu for some support, but Wanyan Wushu ignored him... And now, the troops here, including the surrendered scattered Han troops and the temporarily captured civilians, totaled 25,000, a total of 25 Meng'an's main force of the Jin army.
According to the combat power of the Jin army, with such a force, it would not be wrong to fight against the 70,000 to 80,000 troops of the Song army's Dongjing Liushou Division in the wild. In addition, there is a special situation in Changsha City at that time. It is said that the Qishui River came from the north, but it was divided into two in the north of Changsha, with the left one clear and the right one turbid, bypassing the city, and then merged into one in the south, forming a large river island.
Of course, the term "Hejianzhou" is not scientific because it is not caused by alluvial deposits.
However, it is also a fact that this area is extremely large and wide, twenty miles long and seven or eight miles wide, which surrounds Changsha City and Wanyan Talan's main force...Han Shizhong was able to hold on until now, partly because of this terrain; and this terrain also naturally provided Wanyan Talan with a layer of natural protection and gave the Jin army a huge sense of security.
In short, it was reasonable and even in line with military strategy for the Song army to give up attacking the Changsha City in front of them and attack the weak points on the upper and lower routes. It was an excellent choice.
Therefore, Wanyan Talan thought about it for a long time, but after not noticing any flaws, he finally nodded heavily and continued to ask seriously: "Who came up with this idea?"
"It is Yue Fei, the pacification envoy of Jeju!" After waiting for half a day, Li Kui, feeling uneasy, quickly answered.
"It's him, no wonder. After all, he is a figure who fought in Liangshanpo, and he should not be underestimated!" Talan sighed, but shook his head repeatedly, and looked at the guard in front of him. "Go to my back tent, open the innermost box next to the couch, and take out ten kilograms of beads to reward this Commander Li!"
The guard said nothing, and quickly brought out a large bag of pearls and handed it to Li Kui amid the sighs and exclamations of many people in the tent.
"Thank you for your hard work, Commander Li." Talan lay on his side on the main seat, squinting his eyes. "This is just a little bit of vulgarity, it's what you deserve... take it back!"
Li Kui did not dare to neglect it, and immediately held the pearl and bowed to express his gratitude. He stood up and turned back to leave... But he could not take more than two steps, and turned back with a bitter smile, and bowed to the ground again: "Marshal! I don't want the pearl anymore, and I beg you to give me a way out. Now that I am here, how can I dare to go back to Yanling? Although this pearl is good, I have to live to enjoy it, right?"
After hearing this, Talan finally pointed at the other person and laughed: "Speaking like this, you are the right person to tell the news... Do you know that if you dared to walk out of the tent just now, I would have had someone chop you to death... Keep the beads, and take a job in the civilian camp. When this matter is over, I will let you return to Jingdong to enjoy the wealth!"
Li Kui broke out in a cold sweat, and naturally hurriedly thanked him, then hurriedly retreated.
After Li Kui left, Talai did not ask his civil and military officials to discuss the matter, nor did he ask the two local Wanhu, namely the Bohai clan Da (Shangbai and Xiada) and his son-in-law Pucha Hubalu, to see him. Instead, he calmly asked people to prepare breakfast.
It was not until he had finished more than half of his breakfast that a scout came into the tent according to the system and reported that smoke had been rising from the city of Yanling since the early morning. Only then did he put down his bowl, drove away the idlers in the tent, and then called his son-in-law Pucha Hubalu to see him.
When the father-in-law and son-in-law met, Talai told his son-in-law about Li Kui and the scouts... Obviously, this right deputy marshal of the Jin army was even more excessive than Wanyan Wushu, but he simply threw away the big (white on top and big on bottom) and ignored it, leaving it to the father-in-law and son-in-law to decide.
Pucha Hubalu was in his thirties, the golden age for a Jurchen noble. Hearing his father-in-law's words, he naturally took the lead. After walking back and forth in the empty tent for a while, the Jurchen commander had a plan in mind, but he did not say it directly. Instead, he asked his father-in-law about his attitude:
"Has Taishan made a decision?"
Not to mention that Scholar Xiao Qin was not here, even if he was, this son-in-law was the person he trusted the most, so Talan was of course fearless: "I think! First of all, this is true, and Li Kui did not lie..."
"Of course it's true." Hubalu quickly approached his father-in-law and nodded repeatedly. "The military intelligence and tactics are all correct... The key is that what this person said is not some extremely confidential military intelligence. Our scouts can also distinguish it clearly, but it will be a little later. So he is really a spy, and he is also selling these simple military intelligence for the future."
Talan nodded repeatedly: "I think so too, so there is no need to worry too much about whether this person is real or not, just tell us how to deal with it now..."
"I have three plans." Pucha Hubalu responded immediately.
"Tell me."
"The best strategy is to ignore Changge in the north and Ying in the south. When the enemy army is divided into upper and lower parts or left and right parts, Lord Taishan will abandon Han Shizhong and mobilize all the troops here to attack Yanling City directly! By then, not only will a great victory be expected, but Taishan will also surpass the Fourth Prince and become the first meritorious official in this southward expedition!"
"You know nothing!" Talai shook his head after hearing this. "I won't say your plan is too hasty, and whether Yanling can be conquered in a short time. I won't say Han Shizhong is a tiger-like character, and he can't relax until he is dead... I just want to ask you, what military merits do your father-in-law want at this time? I have become the deputy marshal of the capital's marshal's office, and I am only below a few Bojilie. Do you really think that I can still trample on the descendants of the Taizu family with my military merits? If I want to take the next step in the future, I can only rely on the grace of the king."
Pucha Hubalu was slightly stunned, but he still understood something, and nodded slightly: "Master Taishan is right... the child is young and ignorant... then what about the middle strategy?"
"What does the middle strategy say?"
"Of course we should follow the plan. We should call Yelu Mawu to go south to protect Changge, and then notify Linying to prepare. I will take ten elite soldiers with me to cross the Zhuoqi River to the west bank... We will calculate the timing and ride on horseback to crush the most courageous main force of the Song army under the city of Linying! After this battle, although the Song army still has a certain size, it will definitely lose its courage and can only watch us destroy the four cities. Then the situation will be back to normal."
Talan hesitated for a moment, then continued to ask: "What about the worst option?"
"The worst plan is actually simpler... Forget about Linying. I will cross the Qingqi River and wait for orders. Once the enemy moves, I will use the advantage of cavalry to set up an ambush under Changge City, and then attack the Song army that set out first from the north."
"What is this?" Talan was puzzled for a moment. "What's the meaning?"
"Taishan, think about it... What is the key to this battle? Is it Xiping, Xiangcheng, or Yancheng? None of them. For us, the most important thing is Changsha and Han Shizhong."
"That's very appropriate." Talai suddenly realized. "I understand what you mean... Changsha is the base, Changge is the retreat, so it must be saved; and the gain or loss of Linying is not a problem, the key is that the road is still long, and we still have to cross the river. The Song army set out late, so if we can quickly defeat the enemy army that is using Changge as a cover, then the Song army may not dare to attack Linying again?"
"Master Taishan has said it very clearly." Gubalu praised him repeatedly, but then said seriously, "So, Master, just make the decision, and then just sit here, and I will go and defeat the enemy!"
Talan hesitated for a moment, but then slowly responded: "I think the worst option is the best!"
Pucha Hubalu nodded immediately... He didn't think there was any particular strategy he should choose. His father-in-law was becoming more and more lazy, so it would be good if he could make a decision.
However, Talai himself could not help but explain a few more words: "Gubalu, I have already refuted your best plan, so I will not say more. In fact, according to my mind, the most reliable middle plan should be the best... But I have also used troops and hunted with Emperor Taizu, and I have some ideas about military tactics in my mind... In military matters, the simpler the better! No matter what strategies or ideas, the more you think about them and the more you do them, the more likely it is that something will go wrong! And don't delay! There is a saying in the Song Dynasty, delay will lead to changes! So, I chose your worst plan!"
"Master Taishan is absolutely right!" Pucha Hulu immediately sat up and responded. "Then I will mobilize the troops and cross the river to wait for orders. Once we receive the military intelligence report from the front, we will move out immediately?"
"Go!" Talai simply nodded, but gave another warning. "When you leave, ask Wang Canjun, the military officer of the civilian camp waiting at the door, to keep an eye on Li Kui for the next few days..."
"Yes!" Hubalu did not hesitate any longer and stood up and left.
After watching his son-in-law leave the tent, Wanyan Talan continued to eat his breakfast with his head down. However, after taking a mouthful of porridge, he found that it was already cold. He slammed the table and shouted, which startled countless scholars, soldiers and attendants outside the tent to come in and quickly replace the food with hot food for the right deputy marshal of the Jin Dynasty.
After breakfast, Talan summoned the remaining soldiers and sat quietly in the central army tent. Countless Jin army scouts were constantly coming and going like a revolving lantern, constantly sending news about the Song army in Yanling.
Excellent war horses can gallop at full speed and reach dozens of miles in an hour in a short period of time. Therefore, the movements of the Song army are basically only half an hour behind the Jin army's central camp.
Sure enough, in the morning, a horse galloped to the front of the tent, but dismounted and brought a key military information. It said that after the morning, a part of the Song army suddenly set out to the north along the Wei River. Judging from the flag, it seemed to be the Ma Gao troops under the command of the Tokyo Garrison...
This was a sudden action by the Song army after the two sides had "lived in peace" for dozens of days. Ma Gao was a famous commander of the Tokyo Garrison, so many people in the account who were unaware of the situation were naturally shocked. However, Talan knew the truth but did not care. He even issued a military order, asking his son-in-law, who had already lined up in a complete formation on the east bank of the Qingqi River, to be patient and wait a while .
And then, news continued to arrive that after Ma Gao, the troops of Liu Wenshun, Ma You, and Xu Yan of the Tokyo Garrison, a total of at least four commanders, were marching northward together. Not only that, on the other side of the Wei River, there was also a similar-sized army with clear flags, marching northward.
Talai no longer hesitated at this time... Not to mention how many Song troops were on the other side of the Wei River, just these four commanders were enough to live up to the word "pretext". He immediately issued orders, asking the scouts to rely on their numerical advantage to hunt down the Song scouts to ensure that the Song army had insufficient vision and could not discover his son-in-law; at the same time, he simply asked his son-in-law to quickly lead ten thousand cavalry to set up an ambush under Changge City.
After another hour, when it was estimated that the son-in-law had gone far away, the scout came again to report that there was a sudden movement under the opposite Yanling city. It was a troop with a large flag with the word "Yue" on it that began to move out, heading diagonally to the southwest... The reason why it was said to be coming, not going, was because Changsha was originally due west of Yanling, and the straight-line distance between the two sides was shrinking slightly for the time being... Then the scout also said that although this troop deliberately stopped its movements, judging from its quantity and quality, it was definitely not ordinary.
Talai became more and more certain that it was correct, so he naturally still didn't care.
After noon, scouts reported that Yue Fei's troops of the Song army had arrived at the lower reaches of the Qishui River and paused for a while, probably trying to rest and then cross the river. At this time, needless to say, considering the time difference and the speed of the war horses, Pucha Hubalu should have almost reached Changge, which was farther away.
Everything was under control. The key was that Talai had not encountered anything surprising during this expedition, so the right deputy marshal was inevitably a little bored. He just waited for Yue Fei to cross the river and then prepared to disband the military meeting and go to sleep.
But the next moment, a rider galloped to the front of the military tent, sweating profusely, and went straight into the central military tent to report something: "Marshal! Yue Fei suddenly changed direction and led 20,000 troops to attack us directly!"
The whole tent was in complete silence. Talan did not react at first. He lowered his head to take a sip of tea. When he looked up again, he saw that countless people below Da (white on top and big on bottom) were staring at him. He was stunned again before he suddenly realized:
"Oh, Yue Fei is coming towards me?"
From what he said, it was clear that he didn't care.
