Jiuxi

Chapter 712: 710 [The Victory Place]

To the north of Jingzhou is Taikang City.

This was the first big city captured by the Western Army of the Great Qi, and now it has become a bridgehead for the Qi army's advance.

All the food, fodder and military equipment shipped from Jingzhou will be stored in Taikang City and then transferred in batches to the military camps in various places on the front line. Because this city is extremely important, there are 10,000 troops in the city alone, and there are also Qi troops stationed in several auxiliary cities outside.

From March 14th when the troops were dispatched to April 3rd, in less than twenty days, the Qi army successively recovered the five cities of Taikang, Guixian, Xinping, Chou'an and Guining, and pushed the border line northward by more than sixty miles.

All of Jing’s army’s southernmost defensive fortresses were destroyed.

Judging from the intensity of the war, it generally showed a transition from difficult to easy.

The Battle of Taikang was extremely brutal. The Jing army's resistance was extremely tenacious, but in the end, due to severe shortage of troops, the city defenses were breached by the Jingzhou Guangji army.

In the subsequent process of recovering Guixian and Xinping, the Qi army's progress was relatively smooth, at least there were not too many casualties.

When the Qi army planned to attack Chou'an and Guining cities, the Jing army abandoned the city after trying to resist. If they had not had cavalry support, they would probably have been wiped out like the Jing army in Taikang city.

At this point, the situation on the battlefield began to take shape.

The Jing army could only make a strategic retreat during this time of internal and external troubles. They did not seem to have expected that the Qi army would go all out and directly deploy more than 100,000 troops, so it was very difficult for them to cope with it.

A large mansion in Taikang City was requisitioned by the Qi army as a temporary governor's office. The owner of the mansion was naturally willing to do so, and even spent a large amount of money to replace the furnishings inside and outside.

Inside the hall, the three commanders of the Western Army were discussing military intelligence.

Yuan Xingqin, the marching commander of the Beijing Army's brave camp, said solemnly: "My Lord, Grand Commander, the day before yesterday our scouts discovered traces of the Jing Army's cavalry in the southwest of Xinping City. Judging from the direction they were moving, they might be trying to go around to the south and harass our logistics and supplies."

Han Zhongjie and Liu Shouguang looked at each other, and the former said calmly: "Don't worry, General Manager Yuan. I have already expected Wu Yanshu to play such a trick. The Anping Army will escort the team transporting food and grass throughout the journey, and the chariot formation will be enough to make the Jing Army cavalry return empty-handed."

Yuan Xingqin said respectfully: "Your Excellency has a brilliant plan, and I admire you."

"We don't have to flatter each other."

Han Zhongjie smiled and changed the subject, "I invited you two here today, first, to discuss and determine the next strategy, and second, to ask you to read the reply from the Duke of Shanyang. In fact, these two things can be combined into one."

Liu Shouguang and Yuan Xingqin both looked curious.

Han Zhongjie took two copied replies from the desk and handed them to the two men respectively.

After a moment, Liu Shouguang pondered and said, "What the Duke of Shanyang said... seems to be that he is worried that the Jing army will cheat?"

Han Zhongjie nodded and said, "That should be the case."

Seeing that he did not express his opinion directly, Liu Shouguang said cautiously: "In my opinion, the Duke's concerns are not unreasonable. As the successor of Qing Yugong, Wu Yanshu is definitely not an incompetent person. He cannot clumsily defend every city. The victory in the initial battle does not mean that our army will no longer have obstacles."

Han Zhongjie was not surprised that he supported Lu Chen's opinion.

Liu Shouguang was actually a rare loyal figure among the senior military officials of the Great Qi Dynasty. He had witnessed Lu Chen quell the rebellion overnight and was very impressed with the young man's military talent. However, he also knew the problems between the emperor and Lu Chen, so he spoke more tactfully.

Han Zhongjie pondered and said, "Then according to the governor's opinion, what measures might Wu Yanshu take?"

Liu Shouguang pondered for a moment and said slowly: "The Jing army has more than 50,000 standing troops on the southwest defense line of Heluo, with Tongbai City as the core. Wu Yanshu has deployed about 60,000 to 70,000 garrisons on the eastern front, which means that the reserve forces he can mobilize, that is, the garrison in Heluo City, are about 40,000. Without other reinforcements, Wu Yanshu can only mobilize 80,000 troops in the southwest battlefield, which is difficult to pose a fatal threat to our army."

Yuan Xingqin interrupted, "If the Emperor of Jingguo can deal with Qing Yugong in a short period of time, he may be able to mobilize troops to the south to support Wu Yanshu. However, this kind of mobilization cannot be done quietly, and we can detect it in advance."

"What Chief Steward Yuan said makes sense, but there is another possibility."

Liu Shouguang glanced at the map on the west wall and said, "Wu Yanshu can bet that the Duke of Shanyang will not launch an attack, so he can quietly transfer troops from the east to the west and only leave the necessary troops at the border passes."

Han Zhongjie said: "This is very risky, and it doesn't seem like a decision Wu Yanshu would make."

He obviously had an in-depth understanding of Wuyanshu.

A head coach’s tactical plans may vary in many ways, but they all remain essentially the same, and there will not be any drastic contrast in style.

Wu Yanshu's use of troops may seem treacherous but he is actually steady. He may take risks on local battlefields, but he will not leave the door open and cut off an arm.

Liu Shouguang said, "That's why the Duke of Shanyang County gave this reminder. As long as our army slows down the pace of attack and is not in a hurry to capture cities, Wu Yanshu's back-up plan will be revealed sooner or later. Whether he is waiting for reinforcements from the Emperor of Jingguo or taking a gamble and transferring troops from the east, these methods will always have traces to follow, and our army will be more reliable if we take the right remedy."

Han Zhongjie remained silent.

Yuan Xingqin saw this and said, "General, if our army temporarily stops its operations, wouldn't that be fulfilling Wu Yanshu's wish?"

Liu Shouguang was stunned.

Han Zhongjie also sighed, "Grand Commander, it's not that I don't believe in the judgment of the Duke of Shanyang, but this battle really can't be dragged on. The civil strife in Jing is a godsend, but no one knows when it will end. Once the battle between the king and his ministers is decided, the winner will definitely turn his attention to the southern battlefield immediately. In other words, Wu Yanshu can wait, but our army cannot. We must use this time to seek greater victory."

Liu Shouguang frowned slightly.

He was very clear about the profound meaning of Han Zhongjie's words.

As a minister left by the late emperor to assist the new monarch, although Liu Shouguang felt that the emperor's attitude towards Lu Chen was a little hasty, it was difficult for him to raise any objection given his personality, and he could only do his best to do what the emperor had asked him to do.

Whether it was the adjustment of the generals of the various armies in Jingzhou or the cooperation with Han Zhongjie in the Northern Expedition this time, Liu Shouguang could be said to have done his best, and he didn't even mind that he, as the Grand Commander of Jingzhou, was only the deputy commander of the Northern Expedition.

The reason why the emperor insisted on the Northern Expedition was, on the one hand, that he did not want to miss the opportunity of civil strife in Jing State, and on the other hand, he also wanted to help him and Han Zhongjie establish their prestige so that they could compete with Lu Chen.

The problem is that Liu Shouguang thinks Lu Chen's concerns are in line with the right path. There can't be too many distracting thoughts on the battlefield, this is a principle that a general must understand.

It just seems difficult to do this now.

Thinking of this, Liu Shouguang said slowly: "My Lord, do you think our army will attack Kaocheng next?"

Kaocheng is located a hundred miles northwest of Taikang, controlling the only way to attack Tongbai City.

Han Zhongjie nodded and said, "If we want to take Tongbai, we must take Kaocheng. I intend to stabilize the front line first, and proceed slowly according to the established strategy. We must first clear all obstacles on both sides, and connect the east and west. In this way, our army can attack Kaocheng without any worries, and then plan for Tongbai."

Yuan Xingqin also said, "I second the motion."

This time Liu Shouguang thought for a long time.

Although he was only the deputy commander of the Northern Expedition, he was the Grand Commander of Jingzhou after all. If he disagreed with this strategy, Han Zhongjie could not force him to agree unless he took out the imperial edict.

Seeing him hesitate, Han Zhongjie said softly: "Brother Liu, His Majesty specifically told me before I left Beijing that this battle should be fought quickly and not give the Jing army too much time."

Liu Shouguang suppressed his worries and nodded, saying, "I'll follow your advice, Lord."

Han Zhongjie was overjoyed, and Yuan Xingqin's expression instantly relaxed.

……

Tongbai City, the General’s Mansion.

Aliheguyou was the commander-in-chief of tens of thousands of Jing troops on the southern front. He was also a descendant of the royal family and his status was even higher than that of Pucha. However, he was sitting at the bottom of the group in his own general's mansion and was extremely respectful to the middle-aged man on the main seat.

It was because the other party was Wu Yanshu, whom the emperor particularly valued.

"According to your arrangement, after our army defended Taikang, we gradually reduced the intensity of resistance in the subsequent battles. Chou'an and Guining were only defended symbolically, and the enemy occupied these two cities without paying much price."

Guyou felt a little melancholy. Although it was all Wuyan Shu's decision, it was still the fault for losing the city. If the final battle situation could not be reversed, he did not want to face the emperor's wrath.

Wu Yanshu knew his thoughts very well and said gently, "Don't worry, General. A temporary victory or defeat is nothing to worry about."

Guiyou said: "I believe you will be able to turn defeat into victory, but I don't know when the reinforcements will arrive?"

"Reinforcements?"

Wu Yanshu smiled and said, "The general has seen it."

Guyu was stunned.

Wuyan Shu certainly did not go south alone. This time he came to Tongbai with 8,000 cavalry and 20,000 infantry, but Guiyou did not think that this army was all the reinforcements.

You must know that the Qi army in the south is said to have nearly 200,000 troops, with flags covering the sky. The total number of troops under Guyu's command is only over 50,000, and the number brought by Wuyan Shu is only about 80,000. How can he fight against the aggressive Qi army?

"There will be no more reinforcements."

Wu Yanshu emphasized again, and then said calmly: "That's not right. The Tiger and Leopard Battalion has already set off, but they are moving slowly and will arrive before the decisive battle."

When he heard the words "Tiger and Leopard Camp", Guiyou's heartbeat suddenly quickened.

That was three thousand cavalrymen equipped with horses and men.

Thinking of this, Guyu couldn't help but say excitedly: "Great, with the help of the Tiger and Leopard Battalion, our army will win this battle!"

"We can't just rely on the Tiger and Leopard Battalion."

Wu Yanshu smiled faintly, stood up and walked to the sand table, and said leisurely: "I came to Tongbai in advance to determine the strategy of this battle with the general. From the current situation, it can be seen that the Qi army will not slow down the pace. Their next step will definitely be to target Kaocheng."

Guiyou followed and nodded, saying, "According to the intelligence sent back from the front line, the Qi army is gradually eroding all our strongholds south of Kaocheng."

Wu Yanshu raised his hand and pointed to the plain east of Kaocheng, saying, "This will be the main battlefield where our army will defeat the main force of the Qi army."

Guiyou was excited for a while, but still a little nervous, because the garrison of Kaocheng was less than 5,000, and with the 30,000 troops brought by Wuyan Shu plus the Tiger and Leopard Battalion, it was still unlikely to settle the matter once and for all. After all, the Qi army was no longer what it used to be.

He said cautiously: "Sir, the Qi army is powerful and its strength should not be underestimated."

"So I came here in advance to plan this battle."

Wu Yanshu turned his head and looked at him and said, "I have a rather risky plan that requires the general's cooperation."

He spoke slowly and Guiyou's eyes gradually widened.

After a long while, Guiyou said from the bottom of his heart: "It is indeed a bit risky."

Wu Yanshu asked confidently, "What do you think, General?"

Gui You gritted his teeth and said, "As long as the Qi army can be killed without a burial place, I am willing to take the risk with you, my Lord!"

Wu Yanshu raised his hand, patted his shoulder, and chuckled softly.

(End of this chapter)