Volume 3 Chapter 51: Defeat
On the 22nd day of the first lunar month, Han Shizhong led 25,000 troops of the Left Army of the Imperial Camp to Chang'an.
The reason why it was a little later than expected was not because Han Shizhong was busy bullying Xin Xingzong at Wuguan, nor was it the effect of rain... it didn't rain on the road to Wuguan... but because after the Song army's recognized first general left Wuguan, he quickly discovered the problems of the Jin army through scouts, local officials and Yuwen Xuzhong's warnings:
A total of 20,000 elite cavalry, led by Wanyan Loushi's eldest son Huo Nu, were standing still in Huazhou, located between Shanzhou and Jingzhao Prefecture (Chang'an), as if they were waiting for him.
So, Han Shizhong responded immediately.
On the one hand, he ordered the troops to be divided, with some troops seizing cities along the way one by one to serve as strategic fulcrums. On the other hand, he ordered the main force to slow down its pace and move forward carefully to ensure that the army was not exposed to the direct threat of the Jin army's cavalry.
When the troops marched to Lantian, a strategic point connecting the Wuguan Road and the Luoshui Road, the Jin army in Huazhou still had no intention of blocking them head-on. He made up his mind to leave Black Dragon Wang Sheng with 5,000 men to assist the garrison sent by Yuwen Xuzhong to defend Lantian, and then he and the main force of more than 20,000 men suddenly accelerated and rushed to Chang'an.
Then they arrived safely at the city of Chang'an.
It is said that the Chang'an City in the Song Dynasty was definitely not the Chang'an in the Tang Dynasty with an area of nearly 100 square kilometers, but it was still a huge city in the world. Therefore, Han Shizhong calmly led the people into the city and immediately ordered the establishment of small camps in front of each gate for cover.
But that was all. As Han Shizhong's army entered Chang'an, the Jin army, which had been as quiet as a virgin, suddenly rushed out. The power of the cavalry was undoubtedly demonstrated on the plains. The connections between the cities were cut off in an instant, the villages were set on fire, and the bridges and strongholds were occupied. Once a small group of troops was exposed, it would be a disaster.
The 20,000 cavalry swept across both banks of the Wei River, and the vanguard broke into the city of Chang'an like a storm.
Many cities along the way were intimidated by the strength of the Jin army and the reputation of Wanyan Loushi and his son, and they opened their cities and surrendered out of fear. Those that did not surrender were trembling like dead leaves in autumn even though it was spring.
Almost in one go, Wanyan Huo's army advanced directly to Baqiao and set up camp at this key point.
To be honest, if Han Shizhong had not come, faced with such momentum, the people of Chang'an would have been in panic long ago, especially the huge capital of Jingzhao, the thousand-year-old capital. Parts of it collapsed due to the earthquake that year, and although it was supplemented later, it also seemed not so solid... It's hard to say whether the city can be saved.
But wasn’t it Han Wu, who was known as the brave man of the government and dared to be the first in the world, who returned to Guanxi? Wasn’t it the 25,000-strong imperial camp left army that arrived in Chang’an City?
Han Shizhong, who had just set up camp under the city, took advantage of the fact that most of the Jin army had not yet gathered in front of the city. After learning a little about the city's defense structure, he took advantage of the city camp and the superiority of military strength and took the initiative to go out of the city to fight:
On this day, he first ordered Cheng Min, who was promoted to the commander, to lead only 3,000 Beiwei cavalrymen to attack the city. The so-called support from the city and the small camps in front of the city gates kept coming and going with the Jin cavalry. Then, taking advantage of the distraction of the Jin army, he suddenly ordered Jie Yuan to lead the Chuipian army to attack...
Four thousand destructive troops poured out from the small camps in front of the city gates, and some of them simply hung down from a certain city wall. The purpose was to gather all of them at a specific location in the shortest time possible to form a large formation.
By the time the Jin army realized their mistake and came to respond, the strong crossbow formation had already successfully captured the city. The Jin army was afraid of casualties and hesitated for a while.
At this time, the commander Wang Quan led thousands of people out of the city, each carrying a bag of soil, and they threw it in front of the crossbow formation of the Chuipian army and then left... At this time, several Meng'an soldiers in front of the Jin army dared not hesitate any more, and immediately reached a result after the military meeting. Then, 5,000 cavalrymen began to take the initiative to ride their horses and attack, but it was already a little late.
The Song army's crossbowmen relied on simple fortifications to fight calmly with the Jin army, and Han Shizhong suddenly led his troops to break out from the flank to provide support. Nearly 10,000 troops from both sides fought fiercely in a narrow range of one to three miles in front of the city. Hundreds of corpses were left in just two quarters of an hour, but no matter what, the Jin army was still unable to drive out this elite crossbow unit lined up in front of the city, and they watched as the fortifications in this area became more and more complicated and the cavalry became increasingly weak.
Finally, due to the lack of a general to provide support, several Meng'an who could not bear the casualties gathered together again and simply withdrew, and the Song army successfully set up a camp here.
On the second day, the Jin army suddenly realized the real purpose of Han Shizhong's attack - to destroy the city wall behind the new camp of the partial army, which was exactly the part that had been rebuilt because of the collapse caused by the earthquake before Chang'an City was captured by Wanyan Loushi that day.
In other words, as soon as Han Shizhong arrived, he took the initiative to attack and took the lead in filling the biggest hidden danger in the city's defense.
That afternoon, Wanyan Huo Nu, who had just returned to Baqiao Camp from Weibei, rushed to Chang'an again. He circled the city and saw that Chang'an had tall walls and the Song army was in high spirits and well-equipped. He was also overwhelmed like the marching Meng'an. In desperation, the Jin army commander simply ordered all the front-line troops to follow him back to Baqiao Camp, and then wrote a letter to his father to complain.
Of course, it may not be accurate to say that she was complaining, because Huo Nu was not afraid of a hard fight.
But the problem is that, in the current situation, attacking the city is obviously an unwise move, especially with tens of thousands of cavalry. Instead of seeking a field battle, they divide their forces to attack the city from two sides. This is a tactical decision that only a fool would make... Huo Nu doesn't think that Li Yanxian is easier to deal with.
However , the only problem is that this idiot is a world-famous general who is invincible in East Asia and is the father that the girl admires and respects the most, so this person would not be so stupid!
So, Huo Nu gradually realized that his father had other plans, and he wanted to ask his father clearly what his plans were.
He could fight to the death, throw his troops under a fortified city regardless of casualties, and even take Wanyan Huonu's life, but he needed his father to say it clearly.
As long as he said it, he was willing to go through fire and water for his father, and he dared to guarantee that the 100,000 soldiers of the Western Route Army would also be willing to go through fire and water with him!
In the last ten days of the first lunar month, just two days after Wanyan Huonu sent out a handwritten letter and made some decisive psychological preparations, Wanyan Loushi personally rushed to Baqiao... After all, there was no need for Wanyan Loushi to be too mysterious to his own sons, especially the eldest son who had already become the commander-in-chief.
"Where are the troops from Jingyuan Road and Yanfu Road that I asked you to investigate in Weibei before, that is, Hu Yin and Wu Jie? How many troops do they have?"
The weather was clear, and Wanyan Loushi, who had regained his usual vigor, rode to Baqiao. He saw the willow trees along the river sprouting green, which made him feel refreshed. He was no longer tormented by the rainy days before. He simply did not enter the military camp, but stood under the willow trees on the bank of the Bashui River. He called his son out of the camp and asked him a few questions.
"Reporting to my father." Huo Nu hurried out of the camp. Seeing her father in a good mood, she also felt a little relieved. She simply dismounted, walked forward and hugged one of his legs, and answered directly by the river. "I have already personally investigated Hu Yin's side... After we went south to Tongguan, they directly divided their troops. Wu Lin, the younger brother of the Wu brothers and the military commander of Yanfu Road, was still stationed in Luojiao to guard against the direction of Yan'an, while Hu Yin personally led Wu Jie and tens of thousands of people from Jingyuan Road to the south. About four or five days ago, they arrived in Fuping area. It may be because Han Shizhong had already entered the pass at that time, and Chang'an City sent a message, so he stopped."
"It's pretty much what I thought. After Qu Duan left, at least no one in the Western Army dared to hold their own... Last time I came here, I didn't see such a beautiful scenery here." Lou Shi looked around, nodded repeatedly, and spoke casually. "What about Bashu and the rest of the Western Army's reinforcements?"
"I'm not sure about Bashu, but the troops of Qinfeng Road had already gathered in Wugong and Meixian areas seven or eight days ago, with about ten thousand people. It should be that Yuwen Xuzhong knew that Han Shizhong's army was coming, so he asked them to stay behind as reinforcements... But I guess, it is also possible that he wanted to wait for Zhang Jun to lead the reinforcements from Bashu and Xihe Road to gather there and serve as a general reserve. It's just that there is no specific information at the moment, so it's hard to determine." Huo Nuqiang suppressed her doubts and replied patiently.
In any case, this is his basic duty as a subordinate.
"In other words." Lou Shi immediately pondered after hearing this. "When we went south, Jingyuan Road, Yanfu Road, and Qinfeng Road were not delayed at all. They also came to our aid in the shortest time possible, just like the east?"
"That's right." Huo Nu answered seriously. "After a year of training, the Song army has regained some spirit."
"Not counting Xihe Route, just these three routes and Jingzhao's Western Army, how many people are there? What is their combat effectiveness?"
"The number is unclear, probably less than 30,000 or 40,000." Huo Nu gave a positive answer. "In terms of combat power, except for Jingyuan Road, which was Qu Duan back then, and the 10,000 men led by Wu Jie and his brother, who are considered elite, the rest of the troops are far inferior to the elite troops of the Imperial Camp, and their weapons are even worse..."
"I have also carefully asked the local officials who surrendered in the past few days." Lou Shi nodded repeatedly. "The Western Army uses the money and food from Bashu, but it has only been rebuilt for half a year, so it looks weak... However, if the money and food are continuously supplied, with the endurance of the Song people in Shaanxi and the care of the Song emperor in Tokyo, this group of troops will sooner or later become elite, and I estimate that the number can reach 50,000... Don't you think so?"
"Yes." Huo Nu simply answered, but she was thinking about explaining everything to her father in her heart.
"Then let's wait a little longer." Lou Shi pondered for a while and spoke again. "I want to see if Zhang Jun will come and how many people he can bring with him?"
The living woman hesitated to speak.
"I know." Lou Shi glanced at his son and ordered calmly. "This month is the deadline. If Zhang Jun comes, we will withdraw our troops. If Zhang Jun doesn't come, we will also withdraw our troops!"
However, when she heard the word "withdraw troops", Huo Nu was already stunned.
Lou Shi laughed at this and said, "You wrote to me to ask for my opinion, and I came here today to give you my opinion. Why are you surprised?"
Huo Nu's mind was in a mess, and it took her half a day to sort out the whole story of this battle - there was a surprise attack on New Year's Eve, and then the whole army was delayed in Tongguan for more than ten days, waiting for the reinforcements of the Song Army to arrive. Then they attacked from both fronts, but failed. Now they have to wait for all the reinforcements of the Song Army to arrive before they can withdraw.
Judging from the situation, this is correct... Since Chang'an and Shanzhou cannot be taken, then just withdraw the troops. But the problem is, if this is the case, then what are the 50,000 or 60,000 elite troops coming south for?
If I had known this would happen, why did I do it in the first place?
"Daddy." Huo Nu tried to calm down and continued to hug her father's thigh and asked. "If we go back like this, won't we be laughed at by Ba Lisu?"
"Does he dare to laugh in front of me?" Lou Shi couldn't help but laugh. "Before, I told him to wait for reinforcements to arrive before attacking Shanzhou, but he didn't even have the courage to tell me in person, so he had to let the second brother tell him. Now he has the courage to do it?"
The living woman became more and more confused.
"They are all good lands." Lou Shi suddenly turned his head and pointed his whip at the surrounding wilderness. "Tell the Han people in the surrounding villages not to delay the farming season and to plant when it is time... In the last few days, you must also control your people, and not plunder, kill people indiscriminately, or trample on good farmland."
"Why?"
Huo Nu didn't hear the last part of the sentence clearly. He still asked this question with confusion about the withdrawal of troops and this attack.
"Because such good land will be ours in autumn!" Lou Shi raised his head and laughed, his helmet swaying back and forth, swinging the willow branches. "As for you, if you feel that you have lost face in this battle, you can be the last one to retreat and see if you can hit the Western Army and make them suffer."
Having said this, Lou Shi simply stretched out his leg and kicked his son lightly over, then held the reins and rode along the Ba River to see the willows, no longer paying attention to military affairs.
At the end of the month, there was still no news from Zhang Jun. Wanyan Loushi no longer hesitated and ordered the entire army to turn back along the original route. Tens of thousands of elite cavalrymen, as if they were at the mercy of their own arms, gathered between Tongguan and Huayin in an instant, and then moved north in an orderly manner.
Seeing this, Li Yanxian immediately dispatched troops to carefully recover the lost territory, and sent Li Qiong to cross the river to Pinglu; Han Shizhong did not hesitate and immediately led tens of thousands of troops to advance forward in an orderly manner; seeing this, Wu Jie also persuaded Hu Yin to personally lead 5,000 Jingyuan troops and 5,000 Qinfeng Road reinforcements as the commander-in-chief, a total of 10,000 people to pursue eastwards.
However, after Wu Jie, the commander-in-chief of Jingyuan Road who was eager to make a contribution, led his troops across the Beiluo River from Changle Town in Huazhou, he encountered Wanyan Huonu and his 10,000 cavalry head-on.
The two sides were fighting 10,000 against 10,000, but it was infantry against cavalry, unprepared against prepared. After one battle, the Western Army was defeated and the rout could not be stopped. When Wu Jie fled back to the west bank of the Beiluo River and checked the troops, he found that nearly half of the army had been lost.
Of course, there was also good news. When Wanyan Saba in the direction of Shanzhou tried to withdraw, he was pursued by Li Qiong and blocked by Zhao Cheng, an ambushor in Zhongtiao Mountain. He suffered a great defeat at the foot of the mountain, and this Wanhu of the Jin army barely escaped with his life.
But no matter what, the final outcome has no impact on the overall situation.
This is because the spring breeze in February is like a pair of scissors. It not only brings green to the Guanzhong Plain, but also sends away tens of thousands of Jin Army's Western Route Cavalry... In full view of the public, and without any possibility of falsehood, the main force of the Jin Army directly crossed the Puzhou Floating Bridge and entered the Hezhong Prefecture, the core area of the Jin Dynasty's rule.
At this time, due to the muddy spring rain, Zhang Jun and his reinforcements from Xingyuan Prefecture (Hanzhong), Xihe Road and other places had just arrived in Fengxiang.
All kinds of information were gathered in Luoyang and then spread to Tokyo.
Among them, the whole of Tokyo was naturally jubilant... because no matter what the details were, no matter how many specific wins and losses there were, the result was that the main force of the Jin army returned empty-handed, which meant that the Henan region was as solid as a rock, and that the Song Dynasty court was becoming increasingly stable in the Yellow River basin.
So there's no problem with Tokyo, an increasingly bustling city, being excited about this.
But in Luoyang, perhaps because the city was still a dead city a year ago, there was not much excitement.
On the contrary, for Zhao Guanjia, who had stayed in this city for nearly a month, at this moment, he felt an unprecedented sense of confusion and panic.
You must know that before this "war" began, Emperor Zhao judged that there would be a war between Song and Jin that would determine the fate of both sides. For the Song Dynasty, the success or failure of this war was related to whether it could gain a firm foothold in the Yellow River Basin. So after Wanyan Loushi went south, he was quite relieved.
Moreover, I have made up my mind to sell everything I have and throw it all away to win this battle.
However, as the battle progressed, Wanyan Loushi's procrastination and inaction made everyone, including Zhao Jiu, suspicious. But as reinforcements arrived and Zhao Jiu moved forward to Luoyang, he saw and judged his side's absolute strategic advantage with his own eyes, and gradually gained confidence and a sense of security.
However, this sense of security came to an abrupt end after Wanyan Loushi suddenly withdrew his troops.
Zhao Jiu was not the only one who felt it was absurd, everyone found it unbelievable... To put it bluntly, you, Lou Shi, the most famous general of the Jin Dynasty, have even taken off your pants, and this is what you do to the Song Dynasty?
However, as Wanyan Loushi's withdrawal of troops became completely certain, the accompanying Privy Council officials and military officers at all levels had to take the initiative to find excuses for the other side.
Some people believed that there was a big chaos within the Jin Dynasty and Loushi wanted to go back to fight for power; some people believed that Wanyan Loushi was old and weak, no longer as brave as he used to be, and his physical condition even seriously affected his command ability; some people believed that this southward march was just a show of force by the Jin army and had no real strategic intention, so once the Song army was fully assembled, they would naturally withdraw.
Of course, as a time traveler, as someone who was used to seeing world maps and who firmly believed that there would be a great war, Emperor Zhao certainly had his own unique guess... He sometimes wondered if Wanyan Loushi's inexplicable and fruitless "great invasion" was like a large-scale strategic reconnaissance for a real great invasion?
And if it is, assume it is.
So does a military plan that requires 50,000 or 60,000 cavalrymen to spend a month conducting reconnaissance actually exist? If so, how large would it be? When would it be launched?
Moreover, what did Wanyan Loushi discover?
But in the end, Zhao Jiu suppressed this idea due to his abundant rationality as an engineering student and a little panic from the bottom of his heart... After hesitating for half an afternoon, he finally gave the order, letting Han Shizhong take advantage of the approaching army to destroy the thousand-year-old floating bridge in Puzhou, and then come directly to catch up with him and "return triumphantly" to Tokyo with him and Li Yanxian.
The day Zhao Jiu returned to Tokyo was February 13th, and on the same day, Wanyan Loushi also arrived in Taiyuan City.
On this day, Zhao Jiu, who had "returned in triumph", temporarily forgot the doubts and fears in his heart. With the help of his two confidants Yang Yizhong and Liu Yan, he wore a full set of fine steel armor, rode the iron elephant temporarily borrowed by Qu Duan, and under the Jinwu flag, together with the heroes of this battle Han Shizhong and Li Yanxian, they carried bows and swords, detoured to the south of the city, and led more than 10,000 elite soldiers from the imperial camp into the city from the imperial road.
Hundreds of thousands of people along the way lined the streets to welcome them.
On this day, Wanyan Loushi, the actual commander of the Jin Kingdom's Western Army, which "returned empty-handed", disbanded various troops along the way and let them return to their respective places. When he entered Taiyuan City, he was accompanied only by more than a hundred cavalry guards and his two sons.
On this day, Zhao Jiu held a banquet to entertain his meritorious officials. In the evening, he returned to the harem drunk. Madam Wu took a lot of effort to help him take off the armor on his body.
On the same day, Wanyan Loushi just had a quick lunch in the city at noon, then called back his second son Mouyan and his personal guards, and continued to wear full armor, and went straight out of the city to the east.
After walking for another six or seven days, Wanyan Loushi arrived at the city of Yanjing in late February.
This person did not visit his old comrade Wanyan Yinshuke, who had just been promoted from Taiyuan Garrison to Yanjing Garrison, nor did he visit his old leader Wanyan Nianhan, who was now powerful in the court, nor did he visit the princes... He just rested for a night in a large mansion outside the city where he knew thousands of people, had a meal of beef, and the next day, he revealed his identity and went directly to the Shangshu Province that was left over from the former Liao Dynasty in Yanjing City.
Lou Shi found out very clearly that ever since the death of the Crown Prince Wanyan Xie last year, which subsequently caused many chaos in the central government, this place and the imperial palace in Huining Prefecture had in fact become the places where the nobles in the central government fought for power and profit.
When the weather is hot, they stay in Huining Prefecture, and when the weather is cold, they come to Yanjing City... However, most of the time they stay in Yanjing City because it is so prosperous.
At this moment, as the weather had not yet completely turned hot, the King Wuqimai, the Prime Minister Wanyan Nianhan, and several of Emperor Taizu's flesh and blood, that is, the princes, were all here.
If they had come a few days later, they would have gone north again.
In the Secretariat, several central officials, including Nianhan, were all stunned when they heard that Lou Shi had arrived alone, but they quickly opened the door to welcome this famous general who was supposed to have just withdrawn his troops and stationed in Shanxi.
Lou Shi, fully armored, went straight to the hall and paid his respects to the King Wuqimai in the hall.
Wu Qimai, who was wearing a thin brocade jacket and had wrinkles all over his forehead, hurried down and helped Lou Shi up himself. He held Lou Shi's hands in the hall and said earnestly, "Wuliyan (Lou Shi's original name, nickname), you have made great contributions in Shanxi. If you have any problems, just send someone to tell us directly. We will never refuse . Even if you return empty-handed this time, no one will blame you. Why did you come here in person?"
Lou Shi's hands were held by Wu Qimai. He first glanced at the nobles in the hall and tried to recognize everyone. Then he sighed and spoke to the King of Jin in front of him:
"Woliyan heard that the king was going to die, so he came all the way from Shanxi specifically to see the king for the last time... He came too late, and I'm afraid we won't be able to meet again in this life."
Wu Qimai didn't know how to respond for a moment, because he himself didn't even know he was dying.
