Volume 4 Chapter 72: Dispatching Troops
Yue Fei sent his generals to sweep the Ningxia Plain, not only to find Li Qianshun and his son, but also to quickly establish a defense system to deal with possible military counterattacks.
The significance of finding Li Qianshun and his son is self-evident, but it is also necessary to defend against the counterattack of the Western Xia’s peripheral military forces... Because at this moment, except for the local military forces in the Yinchuan Plain which have suffered a large-scale blow, there is no clear news of damage to the rest of the Western Xia military forces.
Among them, the first and most important one is of course the direction of Hengshan on the other side of the Yellow River.
The north of Hengshan was originally the Five States where Li Yuanhao started his career and one of the four core ruling areas of Western Xia (the Xingling area in the front set, the area under the Yinshan Mountains in the back set, the five states of Hengshan, and the six states of Hexi). There were many Dangxiang tribes there, and because it was located on the front line, there were tens of thousands of troops stationed there all year round. In addition, at this time, Weiming Chago brought 30,000 to 40,000 main forces of Western Xia there. It can be said that most of the active military forces of Western Xia were gathered there.
Secondly, there are 20,000 reinforcements heading towards Hexi to resist Yelu Dashi.
Finally, there are the local forces of the Black Mountain Wei Fu Army that resisted the attacks of the Mongols at the Yinshan Pass. There is another core ruling area of Western Xia, the strategically important Houtao Plain.
This is not groundless worry. You have to know that five days had passed from the day the beacon fire was lit at the gorge to the second day when the city was captured.
Be lenient when you estimate the enemy's strength.
Assuming that Wei Mingchage received the warning from the beacon smoke transmission himself, rather than Li Qianshun receiving the message and then passing it on, and that he happened to have set up an emergency response system in advance, then his vanguard may have set out from Yanzhou, the westernmost part of the Hengshan front, three days ago. Yanzhou is 300 miles away from the Yellow River, and there is a desert in between. After three days and three hundred miles, it should be possible to reach Lingzhou, an important town on the other side of the river.
Relatively speaking, the 20,000 troops heading west to Hexi did not need to worry too much, because the 20,000 troops passed through the gorge and headed west ten days ago. Not to mention where they were when the beacon fire was lit, could they be seen? Even if they were seen, and without considering Yelu Dashi, Wang De was now leading 6,000 imperial camp infantrymen behind him to occupy the key point of the gorge, which was enough to deal with it.
Of course, the above measurements are all based on the leniency of the enemy, and they are the leniency at best.
In fact, everyone knew that after the beacon fire was lit that night, it was unlikely that Weiming Chage could see the military situation here across a desert of hundreds of miles, and the dispatch of such a large-scale army still required Li Qianshun's order... Otherwise, who knew whether it was a campaign to defend the king or a mutiny?
Besides, the Western Xia and Song armies were in a full-scale standoff on the Hengshan line. The two sides had a total of about 100,000 people, and the battle line stretched across five states. It lasted for nearly two months. Even if Cha Ge wanted to come to the rescue at all costs, how many days would it take just to mobilize the troops?
In fact, this is true.
In the next two days, three of the four states surrounding Xingqing Prefecture were quickly swept away, and Wang De at the gorge also opened up the road with the main force. Even though Shunzhou resisted firmly for some reason, the defense system of Xingqing Prefecture on the west bank of the Yellow River was basically rebuilt. At the same time, there was still no sign of Cha Ge's army returning to the other side of the Yellow River, and there was no sign of the Xixia army heading west in the gorge direction.
At this time, Qu Duan even suggested that they should send a troop to Lingzhou on the other side as a test.
Of course, Yue Fei did not agree. The reason was very simple... First, Li Qianshun's whereabouts were unknown, and second, there were some clues about Yelu Dashi's movements.
It would be inappropriate to split up the troops and cross the river at this time.
The news came from Li Shifu.
Not to mention the previous battle on the Yellow River and the fact that the Song army occupied Xingqing Prefecture, which really shocked many local Dangxiang tribes, just say that Li Shifu led 6,000 cavalry to sweep along the Helan Mountains. With the army approaching, even if you are a loyal minister of the Great White Gao Kingdom, you have to temporarily take shelter in the Song thieves... Do you understand saving the country in a roundabout way? Li Shifu is not a good man, so would he take 6,000 cavalry and go around when he encounters a resisting tribe?
It was these Dangxiang tribes living under the Helan Mountains who learned about the movements of the Khitans during their visit to Xingqing Prefecture to pay homage to Yue Fei.
It turned out that as early as when Yue Fei marched into Xingqing Prefecture, a small tribe, or simply a small group of horse bandits, passed through the rear of Helan Mountain and brought some scattered news from the Hexi region. At that time, some people said that more than 10,000 Xixia reinforcements who went out to support ran into the Khitans in the east of Xiliang Prefecture (Liangzhou), and were caught off guard and a large-scale encounter broke out with the Khitans in a small town called Jisang.
The result was that they were defeated in one battle and all the troops surrendered.
No one believed this news at first, because it meant that the Khitans were advancing at an extremely fast speed.
Of course, the Song army had already crossed the gorge by then, and no one cared whether to believe it or not... But now with more and more relevant information, the date, location , and army size are basically the same, so it is almost certain.
In other words, although it is unclear whether the 20,000 Xixia soldiers and the Khitans were both defeated or whether they were just an advantage for the Khitans, there is no doubt that the entire Hexi area now belonged to the Khitans, and that Yelu Dashi might appear at the foot of the Helan Mountains in the near future.
This is an 'ally' that must be treated with great caution... Compared to Lingzhou on the other side of the river, preventing the Khitans from taking risks is the most urgent task.
In fact, as soon as the message arrived, Yue Fei urged Liu Qi, who was failing in his attack on Shunzhou.
A day later, Li Qianshun finally got the news, but it was obtained by Li Shifu... Specifically, Li Shifu obtained it after capturing Tanliang City.
The so-called Tanliangcheng was a mountain castle built by Li Qianshun's grandfather, Emperor Yizong of the Western Xia, during his reign. It was located in a valley deep in the Helan Mountains northwest of Xingqing Prefecture. It was used to store grain in the rear and was a major strategic location in the Western Xia. Hu Hongxiu was temporarily in charge of the administration of the surrounding areas of Xingqing Prefecture. He checked the relevant documents and heard about the surrendered officials. After finding this place, he immediately informed Li Shifu through Yue Fei's headquarters. The latter also hurriedly abandoned many tribes and rushed there directly to control it.
Tanliang City was so empty and chaotic that it was unbelievable that Li Shifu and his vanguard of 2,000 light cavalry easily controlled the city. Not only that, Li Shifu himself also learned an important news from the local tribes - on the second day after Xingqing City was captured, someone came here with a golden medal from the King of Western Xia, asking the defenders to take all the livestock and sufficient food and fodder with them to go northeast, and at the same time asked the defenders to set fire to the city when they left.
However, how important was this city? Although the defenders saw the gold medal, how could they dare to burn it easily just because of a gold medal? Moreover, there were also people from the local tribe among the defenders, who went directly to the tribal leader to tell him about it... In the end, most of the defenders left with food and livestock, and the fire did not start.
As for the castle, it fell under the control of two small local tribes.
Just when the two local small tribes were in surprise, panic and confusion, not knowing what to do with the strategic reserve grain of the Great Baigao Kingdom, only a day and a half later, Li Shifu personally led thousands of cavalry here.
Seizing a large amount of food reserves was of course great news, but at the same time, considering the time and distance, the appearance of the messenger holding the gold medal of the Western Xia king coincided with Li Qianshun's itinerary.
The Western Xia king was obviously worried about the long journey to Hengshan, with the Yellow River and the desert, and the lack of supplies... or he was worried that going directly to Hengshan would be too obvious and he would be intercepted by the Song army at the river or on the opposite bank, so he chose to go north along the river to temporarily avoid the attack.
Of course, after heading north, where will this person go?
It might be that they were heading to Houtao, which was a strategic location and one of the four core ruling areas of Western Xia. But it was also possible that they just wanted to obtain supplies and then cross the river directly from Shengweicheng, taking a detour to Hengshan via Luotuogang.
But in any case, it seems a little too late... There is a time difference of one and a half days, especially in Dingzhou and the north of Tanliangcheng, which is still enemy-occupied area and the geographical conditions are completely unclear, so it is not a good idea to advance rashly.
Especially since you never know when the ally you have to be on high alert for will arrive.
Just when Yue Pengju and his followers were determined to control the Yinchuan Plain, the political, economic, cultural and geographical heartland of Western Xia, and wait for Western Xia to split apart, on the other side, on the Hengshan front, there was finally movement that could no longer be concealed.
"According to the military intelligence report from Yang Zheng of Huanzhou, three days ago, the Xixia garrison troops in Yanzhou suddenly retreated in large numbers and their whereabouts are unknown."
On the top of the wall of Baoan Army's Luoluo Village, Guo Hao, who had hurriedly ridden here from the front line of Pingrong Village, was trying to persuade the commander-in-chief Wu Jie who was stationed here at the time. "Yesterday, I was at the front line of Pingrong Village, and there was also a secret report from the Hengshan tribe, saying that Weiming Cha Ge had gathered a large number of troops, but they had decided to go to Youzhou, which is located west of Hongliu River. I think Youzhou is an inner line, and the troops here are clearly intended to escape rather than attack. This morning, Weiming Heda personally sent his son to Pingrong Village, saying that Cha Ge was going to return to the west... It can be seen that Yelu Dashi and Yue Jieduchu should have succeeded, and are now approaching Xingling..."
"So, what do you want to say?" Wu Jie, with a yellow face, sat on the top of the city wall of Luoluo Village with a frown on his face, staring at the dark Hengshan Mountain to the north of him in a daze. At this time, Guo Hao came to persuade him with a cold attitude.
"General." Guo Hao quickly said in a serious tone. "I think Weiming Heda is a minister of Princess Nanxian after all. He is a noble Khitan who hates the Jin people to the core. Now that Yelu Dashi is coming to attack Xixia, he must be trustworthy."
"And then?" Wu Jie still frowned.
"General!" Guo Hao was getting more and more anxious. "Think about it, Yue Jiedu and Qu Da, Wang De, Liu Qi and their men are probably already at the gorge, and Yelu Dashi may also march from the Helan Mountains..."
"I'm asking you, do you have a plan? What do you want me to do? Why do you keep talking about irrelevant things?" Wu Jie suddenly stood up from the top of the city wall, waving his sleeves in anger.
Guo Hao was also furious for a moment, but he suppressed his anger and said, "General, I think we can follow Xiao Heda's strategy and immediately send at least 10,000 main forces to attack Longzhou. Together with Xiao Heda, we will surely win in one fell swoop and break the Hengshan defense line."
Under the setting sun, Wu Jie stood on the city wall with his hands behind his back for a long while, frowning and looking at Hengshan in the north for a long while. He didn't know how long he thought about it or what he was thinking about, but he finally shook his head and said, "We can try, but we can't give up easily! I will contact the Prince of Yan'an and Wu Er, and we will attack Yan'an from four directions...see how the Xixia people react, and also spy on the position of the Jurchens."
Guo Hao was greatly disappointed and wanted to persuade him again.
"You don't understand!" Wu Jie said with a wave of his sleeves. "Pingrong Village is in a critical position, you should go back earlier!"
Guo Hao was now completely helpless and could only follow military orders...but he was full of resentment, and did not even bow. He gripped the horse whip and angrily went down the city wall, then mounted his horse and led dozens of his personal guards to hurriedly return to Pingrong Village.
After Guo Hao left, Wu Jie still stood on the top of the city wall with his hands behind his back, and then he didn't even look at his subordinate, but just stared at Hengshan again. Only at this time, the setting sun gradually set, bringing up a piece of fire clouds, reflecting on Wu Jie's face, the light kept changing, and even his yellow face turned red from time to time.
Finally, as the sun set, Wu Jie finally issued the military order to attack Yan'an. Then he had a small meal and went to bed early. However, since he had all kinds of complicated thoughts in his mind, he didn't know how long he waited before he fell asleep.
But he had only slept for an hour or two when he was hastily awakened in the middle of the night by his younger brother and eldest son Wu Gong, who bowed and reported that Guo Hao had returned and had just arrived in the city. He said that he had top-secret military intelligence to report to General Wu... No one in the city dared to neglect him and could only let Wu Gong wake his father up.
The weather was already quite hot, and Wu Jie put on a coat in a daze and went out. He looked up and saw that the moon above his head was half full. At this time, a cold wind blew and he woke up with a start. He felt more and more ridiculous... Guo Hao was a son of a general and had a lot of experience. How could he be so impatient?
However, a moment later, something even more ridiculous happened.
"What did you say?"
Wu Jie was stunned and his clothes slipped off. Although Wu Gong was behind him, he was also dumbfounded and did not even try to catch it.
"General, I don't believe it for the moment, but Xiao Heda's youngest son doesn't seem to be lying. It's ridiculous for the whole family to lie to this extent."
Beside the brazier, Guo Hao, who had traveled back and forth three times in one day and drove hundreds of miles, was so tired that his face turned red and he was out of breath. But he still bowed his hands seriously. "According to Xiao Heda's youngest son, Weiming Cha Ge gathered troops in Youzhou and prepared to return to help. He had to tell the truth to the generals of various states... He said it was the Song army... He said there was a royal army of no less than 30,000 people, which broke through the gorge about three or four days ago. Xingqing Prefecture is in danger! The Yanzhou troops were the latest reinforcements he hastily sent after receiving the will of the Xixia king, and then the Iron Harriers were sent to Lingzhou early. Now they are gathering various troops and are about to gather a large army to go west to defend the king. As for Xiao Heda, Weiming Cha Ge also said something, saying that it was an emergency and asked him to be a little considerate, and then he took away his military power in public and replaced it with Weiming Yun Ge, and imprisoned him in Youzhou Prefecture."
"If so, how did he let his youngest son escape?" Unexpectedly, after listening to the other party's further description, Wu Jie calmed down.
"According to his youngest son, after Weiming Chage put him under house arrest, he led a few of his men to the west yesterday before the troops of Youzhou were fully assembled. Xiao Heda took the opportunity to intercede with Weiming Renli, the military supervisor left by Weiming Chage, to let his second and youngest sons return to Xiazhou to tell his subordinates that their families were safe. Weiming Renli was a Confucian scholar, so he readily agreed... The youngest son secretly left the team halfway, galloped for five or six hours, changed three or five horses, and detoured around the tribes under his control before arriving at Pingrong Village." Guo Hao responded quickly. "I didn't dare to hesitate. After asking clearly, I came directly."
Wu Jie did not respond to the words, but picked up the clothes on the ground and put them on, then paced in the narrow courtyard in front of the hall.
Speaking of which, unlike Guo Hao... Wu Jie actually has a lot of information.
For example, after Yue Fei turned around from Quwu Mountain, he reported to the imperial court immediately. However, according to Emperor Zhao's "trusteeship model" at that time, this level of military intelligence would have been directly transferred from Jingzhao to Wu Jie. Instead, it was Emperor Zhao who saw the copied report from Wu Jie later.
In other words, Wu Jinqing knew from the beginning that Yue Fei was going to Xingqing Prefecture. When the troops in Yanzhou evacuated at the first opportunity, he had already begun to consider a certain possibility.
But the problem is that this possibility is too exaggerated. It is impossible for him to take action based solely on the unusual movement of the Yanzhou garrison.
After all, Emperor Zhao once again handed over the entire command of the Eastern Front to him. He had to be responsible and had to find a balance between possibility, probability of success and results.
Relatively speaking, Wu Jie was also very clear about Guo Hao's thoughts... Yue Fei had made such great contributions, how could you, Wu Jie, ever catch up with him in your lifetime? Even Qu Da was going to make a comeback this time and become a great general, so aren't you worried, Wu Jie? And Liu Qi... The Liu brothers and the Wu brothers had always been talked about in the Western Army.
Moreover, Wu Jie did not find this idea ridiculous. He also served in the Western Army for 20 years and could not let go of these things. On the contrary, he thought about some things more than Guo Hao.
But the more this is the case, the more important it is to have a proper plan.
In addition to making careful plans, one must also have a real opportunity to seize the battle and then go all out... just like what Yue Fei and Qu Duan did this time.
"Pass my military order." Wu Jie stared at the half-moon above his head for a long time, and suddenly spoke. "Additional military orders to Wu Lin, let him march all his troops, and quickly advance to Yan'an. Use double the strength you have... Don't worry about any pots and pans, abandon the Diaoyinshan camp, and attack Ganquan with all your troops!"
Wu Gong nodded and said yes, and was about to turn back to write the military order, but Guo Hao was very anxious and wanted to persuade him again.
"Don't be in a hurry... Let's finish talking first." Wu Jie took a long breath and continued to solemnly pass on the order. "Write a letter to the Prince of Yan'an, explain this matter, and ask him to do his best to attack Linzhen and Yanchang, so that the living woman can't take care of both ends."
Wu Gong bowed again to show that he understood.
"I will personally write another memorial, asking the emperor to go north and bring at least 10,000 elite soldiers from the left army of the imperial camp to... come to Fuzhou!"
As Wu Jie bowed from afar this time, Guo Hao finally came to his senses.
"Finally, while the main force of Xixia is heading west, Brother Weimingyun will go to Xiazhou to gather troops. We will immediately send out troops and attack Hengshan fiercely... Let's see if he will turn back!"
"How many troops should be sent out?" Guo Hao couldn't help but.
"Send as many as you can!" Wu Jie turned back suddenly. "You go to Longzhou, and I will go to Hongzhou myself. We will each send 10,000 people. Let Yang Zheng send troops from Huanzhou as well. No matter how many soldiers there are or how few are useful, I want him to send them all to attack Yanzhou! Then send an order to the various tribes in Hengshan at the same time, telling them not to be indecisive. If they don't come this time, the Song Dynasty will never accept them again! Then when you send troops, take Xiao Heda's two sons with you, explain the matter of Yelu Yudu and Yelu Dashi to them, and then say that Yelu Dashi's force is 50,000! Tell them that Yelu Dashi has already arrived at the foot of the Helan Mountains, and the emperor has already promised them the Hexi and Houtao! Let them go back to Xiazhou to rebel! Go to Youzhou to save their father! They, father and son, have been running Xiazhou for decades, and have accepted many Khitans. If they don't move this time, they deserve to die!"
Guo Hao was very excited and bowed deeply before leaving.
He took less than two steps and turned back to ask, "General, when will we send out the troops?"
"I will send troops tomorrow morning!" Wu Jie responded coldly. "You lead thousands of troops on your own and go on a journey alone. When you send troops, what does it have to do with me?!"
Guo Hao was not angry but happy when he was mocked. He bowed hurriedly and left.
After Guo Hao left, Wu Gong also went to pass on orders and do things, while Wu Jie looked up at the sky for a long time before returning to his room and writing a memorial by hand. After finishing it, he considered it again and again before sealing the box and sending it away, but fell asleep again, only telling his eldest son to call him back in the morning when everything was ready and the army was about to set out.
Just as Wu Jie fell asleep again, Yue Fei was awakened in the official residence of Xingqing Prefecture, hundreds of miles away. "Have the Xixia people arrived in Lingzhou on the other side of the river?"
"No." Yue Fei's personal officer Bi Jin said respectfully. "It was reported by the foreign tribes outside the Helan Mountains... The Khitans numbered tens of thousands, with countless war horses and camels. The marching formation was scattered and stretched for dozens of miles. They passed through the outside of the Helan Mountains from yesterday afternoon to evening without stopping for a moment, regardless of the soldiers falling behind and the livestock dying, and went all the way north until midnight when they rested... The foreign people saw it and reported the news to Deputy Governor Li, who asked the governor to give instructions."
"I didn't give him instructions, only to you." Yue Fei narrowed his eyes and thought for a moment, then calmly gave the order. "Record this matter clearly and send it to the imperial court immediately! Then send an order to Wang De, and ask him to go to the Xishou Baotai Army Division and the Jingsai Army Division to try to persuade them to surrender, and investigate the beginning and end of the battle in Hexi... That's all."
After saying this, the man fell directly onto the couch and fell asleep in a moment.
Bi Jin was stunned, but after a moment, he could only whisper "I understand" and then step back.
"The Xixia people said so?" Thousands of miles away, on the east side of the Yellow River, in the real Hedong area, the Jin Wei Wang Wushu, who had marched hard to Shizhou opposite the Jinning Army and Suide Army, was also called out of the tent and was also stunned. "Yue Fei reached some gorge in the heart of Xixia seven or eight days ago?"
"Yes." Wen Dunsizhong bowed his head respectfully.
"Is the road from that gorge to the capital of Xixia smooth?"
"yes."
"How far?"
"About less than two hundred miles?"
Wanyan Wushu was stunned for a long time before he said, "I was deceived twice by the Zhao Song emperor? Or was Yelu Dashi also deceived by him?"
Wen Dunsizhong bowed his head and said nothing.
At this time, another person opened the tent and walked in. It was none other than the commander-in-chief of the Western Army, Wanyan Balisu. When he entered and saw the appearance of Wuzhu and Wendun Sizhong, he knew that the other party had already known the military situation, so he simply frowned and stood solemnly.
"The five Wanhu we brought... one Wanhu will be given to Sali, and he will continue to cross the river from the front to Suide Army... The only mission is to control the ferry and the passage, and make sure to receive the entire army from here." After an unknown amount of silence, when the morning light outside was already a little bright, Wushu gritted his teeth and said, "The remaining four Wanhu, don't stop, cook immediately, go upstream, and seize the rear trap!"
This time, not to mention Wen Dunsizhong was shocked, even Balisu frowned for a moment, but the latter soon raised his brows and suddenly realized.
"After what happened seven or eight days ago, the Dangxiang people's confidant Xingling is no longer safe. By then, the Song army will defend the river, and the Xixia people will collapse without a fight!" Wuzhu didn't know that Bali had woken up quickly, so he looked at him seriously, but his face was ferocious. "It's not too late to help them defend Hengshan now. Houtao is a strategically located place. It is high above, controls the grassland in the north, and suppresses the old Xixia territory in the south. It is also to the north of the Yellow River. It can easily send troops from Xijing and Taiyuan to travel back and forth. It is also a barrier between these two places! At this time, how can we go to Hengshan and abandon Houtao?! Of course, we should send all our troops to fight for Houtao!"
Balisu bowed and replied solemnly: "King Wei, please understand! I also think the same way!"
Just like this, early in the morning of April 14, Wu Jie left Hongzhou, Guo Hao left Longzhou, Yang Zheng left Yanzhou, Wu Lin left Yan'an, Han Shizhong left Yan'an, Wanyan Sali shouted out the Suide Army, Wanyan Wushu and Balisu led four Wanhu and hurried north to attack Houtao. Even Yelu Dashi's vanguard Xiao Worila set off early in the morning, regardless of the hardship, and quickly headed north from the foot of the Helan Mountains to Houtao.
At the same time, Weiming Chage, regardless of everything, divided into three groups and rushed to the west of the capital to rescue the emperor.
At this time, on the entire battlefield, north of Fuzhou, almost everyone was out in full force and marching forward with all their might. Only Yue Fei's troops, who were in the center of the vortex, were guarding the cities on the Yinchuan Plain and still doing the boring act of using the Xixia national grain reserves to win people's hearts.
The contrast is huge.
Of course, the biggest contrast was made by Emperor Zhao. Far away in Tongzhou, he had not yet received Wu Jie's memorial, but he was so bored with the withdrawal of the Jin army that he started shooting crows and rabbits again.
"Your Majesty, a great shooter!"
In the morning, as Zhao Jiu shot another bird dead with one arrow, Zheng Zhichang immediately clapped his hands in response. "Yesterday, I was thinking that Your Majesty shot more than 70 rabbits and more than 30 crows in one day, which adds up to more than 100. No emperor in ancient and modern times can match your ability. You are simply the best archer in the world..."
In response, Emperor Zhao, who had something on his mind, naturally declined: "This is nothing... Wait two days, I will find two toads and shoot them for you to see."
Whether it was Zheng Zhichang or Lu Benzhong next to him, they all came to their senses at once and wanted to praise him together.
At this moment, Hu Yin, the transport envoy of the five routes in Guanxi, who had come to the side of Emperor Zhao for some reason, suddenly stood by and made a correction: "Emperor, that word is pronounced chu chu, not yu chu."
Zhao Jiu put down his bow, feeling momentarily disappointed.
