On the tenth day of April, the weather was still sunny and tended to get warmer. Only the gentle breeze blowing along the Yellow River suppressed the heat to some extent.
Before leaving the scope of the morning, the Song army arrived at the Western Xia Palace east of Xingqing Prefecture without bloodshed.
Immediately afterwards, Commander Yue Fei publicly issued an order to discipline the entire army and not allow anyone to leave the team to plunder. After the battle, the civilians were ordered to collect the spoils, and officers above the commanding officer would not take a penny. The spoils would be distributed uniformly throughout the army, with officers taking double the amount and civilians taking half, with no partiality.
Up to this battle, Yue Fei had been famous for five or six years and had been a general for three or four years. His reputation in the imperial camp system was beyond doubt, so when this order was issued, the soldiers and civilians all cheered with excitement.
Then, amid cheers, the commander-in-chief gave orders again. He appointed Qu Duan to lead 2,000 armored cavalry as supervisors, in charge of military discipline and the general reserve. Li Shifu was to lead his own foreign cavalry to circumnavigate the city for reconnaissance. Zhang Jing was to lead his troops and supervise the civilians to demolish the Western Xia Palace from east to west, select building materials, and build ladders, battering rams and other crude siege equipment. Liu Qi was to lead all the troops forward to first put out the still burning fire in the palace, and then to pile up debris in front of the city, and even to set up siege positions.
Finally, Yue Fei called Zhang Xian again and handed the gunpowder bags he brought with him to his most trusted subordinate so that he could prepare them when necessary.
One more thing to say here: as a general, Yue Fei certainly knew everything about gunpowder. He personally checked and participated in the experiment of gunpowder bags when he went to Tokyo more than once, and he knew early on that the court already had two relatively mature types of gunpowder weapons:
One type is more combustion-promoting and is mostly used by navy. Zhang Rong and Li Bao's troops obtained the most. In fact, the Jurchens also had this type of gunpowder, and it generally conforms to most people's understanding of gunpowder.
In contrast, the other type of gunpowder, which Yue Fei brought this time, tends to deflagrate... In the eyes of Emperor Zhao, the power of this type of gunpowder is not that great, otherwise he would not have buried so much in the ground in advance to pretend during the public sacrifice. However, in the eyes of Chen Gui and Yue Fei, a mature use of this type of gunpowder is already useful enough - digging a tunnel under the city, and then stuffing enough gunpowder in, or directly hoarding gunpowder under the goose cart, and then stuffing it into the city gate, is enough to instantly break a gap in the city defense.
Unlike the various dissatisfactions of the Zhao family, this method of use, although seemingly simple, is actually revolutionary, because it will destroy the most popular way of breaking the city. With this weapon, the artillery array that takes tens of days to build will fall into an awkward situation, and the previous single-layer high walls will also be accelerated to transform into a typical multi-layer city defense system.
In fact, the gunpowder brought all the way from Tokyo was another important reason why Yue Fei was willing to take the risk of launching an advance on Xingqing Prefecture. It was also the basis for his confidence today... From the moment the White Ox Banner fell yesterday, in Yue Fei's eyes, this city was already in the pocket of the Imperial Camp Army.
But to be honest, after experiencing the battle yesterday and realizing that the Xixia people's gates were wide open and there was really no time to form an effective defense, Yue Fei did not want to use gunpowder in this situation... If possible, he would rather use this thing in Daming Prefecture, Hezhong Prefecture, Taiyuan, or Jurchen Xijing, as a secret weapon to quickly seize strategic points when crossing the river to the north in the future.
Of course, as a professional soldier, Yue Fei needed to be responsible for the casualties of his subordinates, so he had already made up his mind that if the sun reached the top of the Helan Mountains in the west and still could not break through the defense in front of him, he would immediately blow up the city gate and end the battle.
The Song army was well-organized, but the other side was not idle either, and there were all the usual dramas on the battlefield.
When the Song army put out the fire in the palace, an acquaintance immediately came down from the city wall to "comfort the army". It was none other than Xue Yuanli, the prime minister of Western Xia who had previously been on a diplomatic mission to Chang'an to meet the Emperor of Zhao Song and tasted the crow noodles.
Yue Fei also had an impression of this man. Moreover, as a general who was rare in those days to show concern for the lower-class people, he did have some thoughts of persuading the city to surrender and protecting the people. Besides, there was still time for the siege equipment, so he simply summoned him to have a face-to-face talk.
The two sides met in the open space in front of the meeting hall of the imperial palace. Yue Fei, who was sitting upright on a chair, did not move at all. Hu Hongxiu, who was a little evasive because of his hair, chose to turn his back. At the beginning, Xue Yuanli did not do anything unusual such as being neither humble nor arrogant or staying within five steps. Instead, he bowed deeply with great courtesy.
Seeing this, Yue Fei looked at Hu Hongxiu, who had turned his back but had glanced at him before, and his spirits perked up for a moment.
However, when Xue Yuanli looked up, he gave another explanation: "Jiedu Yue led foreign troops here, but not only did he not disturb the palace, but he helped put out the fire. Jiedu himself even stood by the Mingtang without entering, and did not do anything to humiliate our country. As a prime minister, Xue should thank him."
Yue Fei was filled with emotion, but his expression remained unchanged. He answered frankly: "If so, Prime Minister Xue Shu does not need to thank me. The civilians in the rear are already dismantling the big wood to make ladders. The gold and silver in this palace have already been promised to 30,000 Tiger Soldiers as rewards for this battle. The crowns, robes, and utensils that violate the regulations will also be dealt with according to the emperor's will... I will not enter the hall, but the military discipline is like this, and I have to set an example myself."
Xue Yuanli was not angry, but just paused for a moment, then bowed and asked again: "Speaking of this matter, the Song Dynasty is a big country, and the Dabai Gao Kingdom is a small country. When a small country makes a mistake, the big country should first send envoys to hold the small country accountable and give it a chance to correct its mistakes. Why did they enter the small country's capital without warning, demolish the palace, and then attack the capital?"
Yue Fei finally frowned, "Prime Minister Xue is confused. Wasn't it you who questioned the emperor in person at the mouth of the Jing River and then left with your face covered? If Xixia didn't know about the war between the two countries, it would be wrong unless you deliberately concealed it... Even so, it's not right. The two armies have been fighting in Hengshan and Pingxia City for several months. If Cha Ge hadn't led the main force to Hengshan, how could I have marched straight in? Why are you talking about whether to declare war or not at this time?"
Xue Yuanli did not stop for a moment after hearing this, and continued to bow: "Let's not talk about the past. I would like to ask, now that things have come to this, can Yue Jiedu withdraw his troops temporarily? The Great Baigao Kingdom is willing to cede the seven states of Hengshan to the Great Song..."
Yue Fei and Hu Hongxiu looked at each other, and they both clearly saw the word ridiculous in each other's eyes. What was the point of talking about such things at this point?
Besides, even if others don’t know, doesn’t the person opposite know the temper of the Song Dynasty officials?
Taking a step back, even if we don't talk about Emperor Zhao, if any general of the Song Dynasty came here, how could he retreat?
"If it is not enough, I am willing to send another 30,000 Tangut cavalry to lead the emperor to attack the rebel general Zhe outside the Yellow River... If it is still not enough, I am willing to send the crown prince to Tokyo..."
Xue Yuanli kept talking one thing after another, and the person opposite him, even though Yue Fei was usually calm, couldn't help but stare at Hu Hongxiu next to him repeatedly, and then sighed in his heart that the other party was being ridiculous... But he didn't say it out loud, because this ridiculous thing also happened six years ago.
At that time and moment, it was just like this moment.
In fact, Yue Fei had been patiently waiting for the other party to finish speaking before he spoke: "Mr. Xue, at this point, there is only one thing that can stop the war..."
Xue Yuanli suddenly became solemn.
"Please ask your king, the crown prince, and the king of Yue to come to my army. I will send them to Chang'an to be dealt with by the emperor." Yue Fei said calmly. "If so, I am willing to give up Xingqing Prefecture and station in Jingzhou."
"Jiedu Yue is joking." Xue Yuanli was silent for a moment, and finally laughed. "It is precisely to prevent the king and the capital from being lost that I have made all the conditions before... Could it be that Jiedu Yue thinks that the king and ministers of our Dabai Gao Kingdom are like your country, without resilience and integrity? Xingqing Prefecture has sufficient food and grass, and 100,000 strong men, which is enough to defend for several months. When King Cha Ge of Jin leads the army to defend the king, we will attack from both inside and outside, and then keep Jiedu Yue in the city as a guest."
Having said this, Yue Fei didn't even bother to mention Yelu Dashi, and simply raised his hand to see the guest off.
Armored soldiers from both sides went down and pushed Xue Yuanli back, but they did not detain or kill him. Instead, they let him walk to the foot of the city, then put him in the basket and returned to the city of Xingqing Prefecture.
Although this incident seemed a bit strange, it did not affect the overall situation at all. Thanks to the high-quality wood , the rough ladders and battering rams were ready by noon. At the same time, a large number of non-contact battles had already taken place outside the city... In addition to setting up siege positions, the various Song troops had already begun to test the entire line, as if everyone was already impatient.
Of course, at this moment, no one could guess who would get the first credit for this battle. However, among all the generals, the one who seemed to be the furthest away from the first credit for breaking the city seemed to have been determined long ago. It was Li Shifu, the deputy commander of the Imperial Camp Cavalry.
By the way, this Dangxiang general from Suide, most of his subordinates were foreign cavalry from the Hengshan area. Compared with their opponents in yesterday's battle, they were only more sinicized, better equipped, and had more than a year of military training. They were not suitable for siege.
And just because people don’t talk about some things doesn’t mean they don’t exist.
Li Shifu was the deputy commander of the imperial camp at a young age, and he inherited the title of founding duke as a special exception. In addition, judging by their performance in the battle of Yaoshan, it was impossible for anyone to openly doubt their loyalty.
Logically speaking, this person should be one of the most promising people in the world.
However, that was just a theory. Everyone knew that the court and the imperial camp were still concerned about his Tangut identity. Even before the battle, some people suggested not to let Li Shifu accompany him, in case he changed his ways and caused a disaster. Even Li Shifu himself knew this and wanted to downplay his Tangut identity, but the government valued him because of his Tangut noble identity and his ability to control and recruit foreign cavalry. So, he was helpless.
But then again, from the current perspective, the identity of the Dangxiang tribe still brought tangible benefits to Li Shifu. He led the foreign cavalry to monitor and investigate the periphery of Xingqing Prefecture. The local monks and laymen, rich and poor outside the city, were much calmer. When they inquired about the situation in the city and the main intersections outside the city, there was not much resistance.
However, these cannot affect the fact that he cannot participate in the siege.
In fact, when he led his troops to circumnavigate the city, he discovered that the water supply to the Tangqu in the west of the city had been cut off, and then he quickly sent people to investigate the two main water gates. Unfortunately, the Xixia people were not confused. Since the two main water gates were exposed, how could they not be on guard? The Fanqi saw clearly that the debris and bricks were piled up tightly behind the water gates, blocking the two water gates inside and out, and there were still militia archers stationed above to defend.
Seeing this situation, Li Shifu, who was originally excited, asked someone to report to the commander-in-chief Yue Fei, but at the same time he couldn't help feeling a little disappointed. He simply gave up the idea of ​​attacking the city and making merit in this battle, and concentrated on guarding the periphery, preparing to catch the leak after the war.
Back to the present, at noon, after Li Shifu arranged his own cavalry, he led two or three hundred of his own troops to circle around the outer perimeter of the city. It was not so much an inspection as it was a personal rectification of military discipline to prevent these cavalry, who had only served as imperial soldiers for two years, from losing their patience and bringing disaster upon themselves in front of the always fastidious Yue Jiedu.
"What's going on?" When he arrived at a place in the south of the city, Li Shifu saw from afar a hundred men and women kneeling in front of a temple on the side of the road. There were also several monks talking and discussing with their subordinates nearby. He immediately reined in his horse and went forward to question them.
"General!" The leading foreign cavalryman hurriedly reported. "There are many people hiding in this temple. They tried to escape when they saw us, but we blocked them."
"Your Majesty." The monk saw the person in charge coming and hurried forward to explain. "These are all civilians and merchants who escaped from the city last night. They are familiar with our temple, so they hid here last night. There are no spies... I hope Your Majesty will be lenient for the Buddha's sake. I am willing to take them back to the temple, and then ask Your Majesty to send soldiers to guard them. After the war is over, we will let them go."
Li Shifu frowned slightly, and looked at the refugees again. He saw that most of them were old, young, women and children. The few leaders were mostly fat and white "officials". He felt a little impatient, and the war was about to start, so he said immediately:
"Those of you who have come to Xingqing Prefecture with my father and seen Li Qianshun, please identify them. As long as they are not Li Qianshun and his son, don't make any more trouble... The overall situation will be settled now, and nothing can be done wrong."
Upon hearing this, several guards hurried forward to identify and inquire.
But as expected, these people were basically the so-called smart people in the city, including merchants, wizards, and some low-level officials. Most of them were keenly aware of something when the defeated army returned to the city last night, and then fled at night. However, they set off a little late. Although they left the city, they did not know how aggressive the Song army was. They actually chose to stay in a temple outside the city, which was why they were caught by Li Shifu's light cavalry. Asking these people about the situation of the garrison in the city and the loopholes in the city was almost useless. It was not that they were unwilling to talk, but because the Song army came too suddenly. It was not until three days ago that they were suddenly alarmed, and there were only confirmed rumors two days ago, and the city was suddenly closed last night.
In this situation, even gods cannot provide useful information.
So, after looking at many people, he saw that there was no one who looked like Li Qianshun, and the children were about the same age as the Prince of Western Xia... Although he estimated that there was a 99% chance that they were not... he still made a gentleman's agreement with the monks in the temple to temporarily keep these families in the temple's custody and release them after their identities were confirmed after the war.
As for the rest of the people, with the rumbling of drums in the east, the war seemed to be about to begin. Li Shifu's impatience became more obvious, so he simply raised his hand to signal that all the remaining people should be let go.
The leaders of the refugees were all smart people, and with the monks present, they naturally gathered together and kowtowed to Li Shifu in front of the temple to express their gratitude.
Li Shifu had already lost his patience, so he waved his hand and turned to mount his horse. However, just as he was mounting his horse, he suddenly had an idea and turned his head to look at another person:
"Wasn't the water gate blocked long ago? Why are there water stains on the clothes of your family? How did they get out?"
The middle-aged man, who was obviously dressed as a merchant, was slightly startled. He looked back at his wife and children, and did not dare to hide it: "Let the King of Song know that the Tang Canal has many branches and there is more than one water gate through the city. The water has only been cut off for two days, and the two large water gates in the north of the city are all exposed. Naturally, they were blocked early. However, because the other water gates are usually deep, there is still water inside. No one has cleaned them up, let alone blocked them... When my family left last night, the city had been sealed. Fortunately, my father and I are good at swimming, so we found a water gate and took over from inside, and then we slid out."
Li Shifu's heart was beating wildly, and he hurriedly asked again and again: "What is the condition of the water gate? How deep is the water? How wide is the gate? Where is it? How can I dive through it?"
The man was also frightened, but in the end he dared not keep silent.
A moment later, Li Shifu and this man rode their horses to the southernmost end of East City, but were stunned by the scene in front of them.
This sluice gate is neither too big nor too small, and is large enough for two rafts to pass through. It should have both transportation functions and the function of conveying canal water to irrigate the land to the east. It is a proper sluice gate. And it is located in the East City on the front line, slightly south of the position led by Zhang Xian’s troops... According to this person’s description, although this iron mesh gate has been completely lowered, there are stones stuck at the bottom and it cannot reach the bottom , so there is actually a half-zhang high gap at the bottom, which is enough for sneaking.
In the past, the Tangqu Channel had a lot of water and the water was deep here, so it would be difficult for ordinary people to sneak through. Only people with excellent swimming skills could pass through.
It can be said to be quite secretive.
As for the man beside me, he probably didn't tell the truth. Judging from his attire and the things he was carrying, he was probably a small businessman, probably a peddler who smuggled and evaded taxes on a daily basis. Now I know the depth of this place...
There are also Xixia people on the city wall. They have at most four days to arrange the city defense. By the time they made up their minds to defend the city and enter the city lockdown, it was probably started yesterday. In such a hurry, compared with the houses, palaces, Buddhist temples close to the city, and the two large water gates on the west side of the city, there is still enough water stored below this place, so they naturally feel that they can rely on it.
In fact, the Song army did not arrange for a siege here because there was water. It was only because Li Shifu led his troops here that a group of people rushed over from the city to spy.
"Go and report the intelligence that Yue Jiedu just got." Li Shifu was stunned for a moment, then suddenly turned back, without any hesitation. "Send out ten people who are good at swimming, wear leather armor, and follow this person to dive... The rest of you should shoot arrows at him first to suppress and cover him."
The Tangut merchant was completely helpless, as his family and all his property were restrained, so he could only respond.
There was nothing fancy about the process. A quarter of an hour later, hundreds of cavalrymen below the city suppressed the defenders on the city wall, and then ten death-defying warriors followed this man and calmly dived into the city.
Afterwards, one after another, groups of ten people sneaked in from here.
After the thirty people entered, they alarmed the defenders in other parts of the city, and the sneak attack turned into a violent attack. However, at this time, the water gate had been lifted up by the Song army that entered first, and several wooden beams were laid under the water gate to serve as a bridge. Naturally, Li Shifu's troops rushed forward, dismounted, and rushed in through the water gate... At this time, Yue Fei's response had not yet arrived, but Zhang Xian's troops had already noticed this.
Seeing this, Li Shifu no longer hesitated, but dismounted immediately without changing armor. He directly abandoned his long weapon and bow and arrows, and just carried two swords on his back, then jumped from the wooden board on the water gate, intending to fight personally and win great merit.
It was not until this time that Li Shifu, who had just entered the city, discovered something strange: "Where is the guide?"
"This person changed his mind underwater!" The leader Zhang Qi was Li Shifu's childhood friend and the leader of the personal guards left to him by his father Li Yongqi. He certainly had no scruples when speaking. "He tried to push open the stone that was holding up the water gate, but I stabbed him with a knife underwater!"
Li Shifu was stunned for a moment, and was in a trance. But after a while, he came to his senses and found himself together with Zhang Qi, each holding two swords, two people with four swords, cooperating well, just like a tiger and a hungry wolf, killing continuously, and in a moment, they killed and dispersed the Xixia defenders who came to block them.
Then, seeing that Zhang Xian's troops had already poured in, the two men ignored them and, relying on their experience of having been to Xingqing Prefecture together and being familiar with the geography, they led their troops directly towards the old palace in the city.
By this point, the people on and off the city had already been completely alarmed by this place. Without Yue Fei's order, Zhang Xian had already sent all his troops to follow and break in from here. The Xixia defenders on the top of the city were also broken through a little bit, and then the whole side was broken, and then they gradually lost control and finally scattered.
After yesterday's battle, even ordinary soldiers could guess from experience that the city would fall. But no one expected that the city would fall so easily. No one expected that Li Shifu, who was ordered to intercept and investigate outside, would make such a great achievement.
However, as the Song army marched into the city in large numbers and cleared the city, Li Shifu's originally amazing military achievements were inevitably dimmed.
There are two reasons:
First, when the Song army entered the city in large numbers, they realized that there were only two thousand armored defenders in the city, who were the local armored cavalry and palace guards of Xingqing Prefecture who had escaped back yesterday. The rest were tribal troops who had rushed in from other places in the past two days. There were only more than a thousand armored soldiers on the top of the city.
In other words, the city defenses of Xingqing Prefecture were made of paper and would be easily broken. They were even worse than imagined.
Secondly, Li Shifu raided the city, but was caught in hand-to-hand street fighting inside and outside the old palace. He failed to capture Li Qianshun and his son until the rest of the troops quickly surrounded the place.
Up to this point, all the troops in the army were like crazy, sending all their elite troops to search repeatedly inside and outside the small Xixia Old Palace, and the scope was getting larger and larger. Gradually, they showed a tendency to kill blindly, and looting, killing, and even rape had already occurred.
At this point, for some unknown reason, Li Shifu simply gave up on looking for Li Qianshun and his son to accomplish this great feat, and went directly to the city gate to welcome Yue Fei's four-character banner.
A moment later, Qu Duan entered first and began to enforce military discipline, arresting soldiers who had violated the rules and sending them to the streets... Then Yue Fei entered from behind with a large flag, without stopping for a moment, questioning people along the way, depriving looters of their rewards, and killing indiscriminately and violently on the spot.
When he came to his senses, Qu Duan, Yue Fei and Hu Hongxiu had all arrived at the Old Palace. The generals also came to their senses and gathered in a pool of blood in front of the palace.
"What do you mean he can't be found?" After hearing the report, Qu Duan, who was riding on the Iron Elephant and standing at the intersection in front of the Xixia Old Palace, couldn't help but get furious. "The city was captured so quickly, where did he go? Even if it was a rat, you guys with so many men and horses could have trampled it to death."
However, the generals looked at each other in silence... and just went to look at Yue Fei.
Yue Fei frowned slightly, then turned around and looked at a group of surrendered people. They were the people he and Qu Duan had gathered together while enforcing military discipline along the way.
One of them understood, thought for a moment, sighed, then stepped out and saluted: "Jiedu Yue... I'm sorry to say that my king and the prince went out together after receiving the King of Yue the day before yesterday, and never came back... At least I haven't seen the king in person in the past two days."
As soon as these words were spoken, Qu Duan and others, although they were on the verge of a great victory, could not help but become a little furious. Yue Fei, Hu Hongxiu, and Li Shifu, who was the first to rush into the Old Palace, were all startled for inexplicable reasons, and instinctively felt that something was wrong.
"If that's the case, it makes sense that the city's defenses are so weak, but who is the president of the city?" Yue Fei, who was also riding a horse and standing under the banner, asked seriously.
"Of course it's the Prime Minister Xue Yuanli." The man bowed again. "The so-called decree was brought out by this man from the old palace, and when the king went out the other day, it was this man who was entrusted by the king in public."
Yue Fei finally understood what was strange... If Xue Yuanli was the president of Xingqing Prefecture, why did he personally serve as an envoy before the war? If he was caught or killed, wouldn't the city be in disarray?
But soon, Yue Fei came to his senses. Although Hu Hongxiu was a little slower, he also came to his senses.
There was no other reason. It was precisely because of this that this man did this. Li Qianshun and his son were not in this city. The remnants of the defeated army in this city could be easily defeated. Compared with this city, he had to conceal Li Qianshun's whereabouts as much as possible... Therefore, he pretended to go out of the city at that time, just to make him, as the commander of the Song army outside the city, mistakenly believe that Li Qianshun was in the city.
But no one expected that the Song army would break through the defense just half a day after the war started... Of course, maybe he also thought of it, but he was just doing his best. And in a sense, this man's plan was actually successful.
"Xixia has been established for a hundred years, so there must be some explanation." Yue Fei finally narrowed his eyes slightly, then reined in his horse and drew his gun under the banner, looking around. "Where is Xue Yuanli?"
Now, the generals who came to seize the old palace looked at each other again, but were shocked to find that not only were Li Qianshun and his son not there, but even Xue Yuanli had not been snatched away by anyone.
For a moment, Qu Duan snorted coldly, and the situation became more and more awkward with the coach Yue Fei who rarely had a gloomy face.
After a long while, in an awkward silence, Li Shifu suddenly seemed to think of something and walked directly to the gate of the old palace, which was already in a mess and covered with blood. He searched for a while among the pile of corpses and construction waste beside the gate, and then he turned out a head covered with countless dust and blood stains, rubbed it directly on the corpse, and then turned around and presented it:
"Jiedu, is this the person?"
Before Yue Fei could identify him , Qu Duan in front of him glanced at him and nodded directly: "It is this guy. He sat opposite me at the mouth of Jing River that day. I remember his features clearly... You are really lucky."
Everyone was completely speechless and looked at Li Shifu with sidelong glances.
Li Shifu was a little embarrassed and could only explain: "When I attacked here, it was he who came out in armor and led a group of golden-armored warriors to resist. He was old and weak, and although he was a little crazy, he couldn't even walk steadily. He was beheaded by Zhang Qi, the commander of our army, with a single blow. He didn't think about anything else at that time."
"No problem."
Yue Fei was filled with emotion, but his face showed no sign of it. "He is just a loyal minister of a fallen country. He deserves what he wants. We still have to go to other places to find the whereabouts of Li's father and son and pursue them relentlessly. There is no need to worry about these things... But Deputy Commander Li, you have not only broken the city first, but also killed the bandit leader. Such a meritorious service should rank first in this battle. Congratulations!"
The generals around had different reactions when they heard this. Some smiled apologetically, some were still angry, and some even sneered... But everyone knew that under the current system, it was impossible to ignore the contribution of this foreign boy, especially when the head coach in front of them was Yue Pengju.
Considering his age, his current position, and the generosity of the government, I don't know how many people were jealous.
However, Li Shifu, who was the focus of everyone's attention, hesitated for a moment, then suddenly threw down the head, bowed and clasped his hands: "Jiedu, I am willing to exchange the merit of breaking the city and killing the bandits for a favor..."
Yue Fei frowned slightly and did not respond directly.
Li Shifu continued to bow and said sincerely: "Please enforce military discipline in all units and treat the people of Xingling well... Of course, if there are those who do not obey the king's rule, I am willing to personally go and punish them."
The expressions of the people around him eased a little, but Yue Fei was still frowning.
It should be understood that Yue Fei was not a person who would relax military discipline and plunder the people. Especially after these few months of contact, he personally felt that although the Dangxiang people had strange clothes and customs, they were still deeply influenced by Han culture.
Moreover, now that Xingqing Prefecture is lost, as long as we quickly sweep the surrounding areas, and then resist the counterattack of Weiming Chago across the river and prevent Yelu Dashi from turning against us, the century-old foundation of Western Xia will suddenly collapse like a mountain collapse or a river overflow... By then, Hengshan will be unable to take care of it, and the Dangxiang people in Xingling will inevitably be divided into two, one will be lost to China, and the other will be taken by Khitan. Would killing and looting the Dangxiang people on a large scale at this time be like sending food to Yelu Dashi?
Not to mention, one of the fundamental reasons why Emperor Zhao launched this war in the first place was to build up cavalry on a large scale.
Therefore, considering the emotion, reason, merit and benefit, there is no need for the other party to ask Yue Fei to enforce military discipline, because he would never relax military discipline... Didn't you see that it was Yue Pengju who personally ordered the chopping off of people's heads just now?
I'm afraid this person is desecrating himself because of the ethnic embarrassment and because he has achieved such a great feat, and he feels a little uneasy.
Of course, it is also possible that this person is young and has not thought too much, so his thoughts may be straightforward.
But no matter what, this is not the time to worry about these things. Given Li Shifu's status and the importance of this battle, Yue Fei will talk to Emperor Zhao about the whole matter.
With this thought, Yue Pengju no longer cared: "I understand, let's put it this way... Minister Hu."
Li Shifu quickly stood up, and Hu Hongxiu, who was still wearing a turban, also turned around and stood with his hands clasped.
"I'll leave all matters concerning Xingqing Prefecture to you," Yue Fei said calmly. "Settle the people, restore the city defenses, repair the ruins...all matters will be decided by Minister Hu."
Hu Hongxiu naturally responded.
"General Qu." Yue Fei continued to call people. "Jingzhou and Huaizhou are the closest to Xingqing Prefecture, and they are both on the river bank. They will definitely know about any movement here immediately. I will give you two thousand cavalry and four thousand infantry. With the momentum of destroying Xingqing Prefecture, quickly go to sweep these two places and find the whereabouts of Li's father and son. After the sweep, do not come back, and directly set up river defenses in these two places."
Qu Duan did not dismount either, but bowed directly to Tie Xiang.
"Liu Qi, Deputy Commander-in-Chief, I will give you 1,000 cavalry and 2,000 infantrymen to go to Shunzhou..."
Liu Qi also responded directly.
"Commander Zhang." Yue Fei looked at Zhang Jing again.
Zhang Jing came out in response.
"Take one thousand cavalry and one thousand infantrymen and go north along the Tangqu Canal to Dingzhou... We haven't penetrated deeply into the north yet, so be careful."
Of course Zhang Jing had nothing to say.
"Vice-Governor Li!"
Li Shifu quickly bowed his head again.
"Our army has 21,000 soldiers this time, not counting Vice Commander Wang behind us, about half cavalry and half infantry. So far, we have lost about 700 soldiers... It can be called a great victory." At this point, even Yue Fei himself paused for a moment before continuing. "Now, the remaining troops have sent out 11,000 people, including 4,000 cavalry and 7,000 infantry. There are more than 6,000 cavalry and more than 3,000 infantry. I will keep the infantry to assist Minister Hu, and the remaining cavalry, 3,000 foreign cavalry and 3,000 armored cavalry, are all with you!"
Li Shifu was shocked and looked up.
"I don't want you to attack the city, but to go to the foot of the Helan Mountains and sweep the Tangut tribes along the mountain. Tell them that Xixia has fallen and the Song Dynasty has risen. Let them come to the city to meet the Chinese generals and serve the Chinese emperor from now on." Yue Fei calmly gave the order to the young Tangut general in front of him. "If you are willing to help the emperor pacify the Tanguts, you should work hard here... Do you understand?"
Li Shifu nodded heavily.
"Watch out for Yelu Dashi coming suddenly from the opposite side of Helan Mountain."
After giving the last instructions, Yue Fei finally dismounted and came to the face of the head in front of him. He slightly bowed to the Han minister of Western Xia, then got back on his horse and led the flag towards the government office in the city.
Hu Hongxiu sighed, then turned around and left with the surrendered officials.
Qu Duan, who was riding an iron elephant, passed by here and stopped his horse to sneer, "These people only know how to imitate the officials every day, but they don't know how to learn with a pair of different eyes."
After saying that, Qu Da just raised the spear in his hand, flicked it slightly, and hit the head with a faint bird-like hairstyle far away like playing polo, and then it fell into the pile of heads that the soldiers on the side had piled up with great difficulty. Not only did it scatter the heads, but it also made it impossible to tell which one was Xue Yuanli.
Then he walked away.
The only thing is that his complacent attitude forms a sharp contrast with his restrained behavior before the troops go out and during the march and battle.
The remaining generals, including Liu Qi, Li Shifu, Zhang Jing, and dozens of others, stared at the heads, then looked at Qu Duan who was going away, and stared at each other for a long time, until the cheers in the city gradually rose with the big flag, until it shook the mountains and rivers, and then they finally realized... No matter where Li Qianshun and his son were, 30,000 troops raided Xingqing Prefecture from Hulu River, such a big thing actually happened? !
Can wars be fought this way? Can things be done this way?
A remarkable achievement has been made, a great thing has been accomplished?
But looking around, the fragrant breeze is coming from the south, the whole city is cheering, the Helan Mountains are towering in the west, and the river is surging in the east. This cannot be false.