Jiuxi

Chapter 956 954 [Unstoppable]

The ninth day of the twelfth month, Yongqiu City, Jingzhou.

The various units of the Qi army met here.

Including the Dingbei Cavalry, Firearms Battalion, Sharp Warriors Battalion, Heavy Armored Infantry Modao Army, Seven Star Army, Zhenwei Army and Panlong Army brought by Lu Chen from the Lei Ze battlefield, totaling more than 50,000 people.

Zhang Xu had more than 20,000 troops in the Wuwei camp of the Beijing army.

The Jingzhou Anping Army and Yangdi Army under Liu Shouguang had a total of more than 20,000 people.

The 40,000 troops brought by Duke Rong Xiao Wangzhi from the Pingyang battlefield.

Including the Guangling Army and Ruyin Army stationed in the Teng County area on the eastern front, the total number was about 150,000.

If the more than 60,000 people defending the northern and western parts of Dingzhou are included, the army under Lu Chen's command is close to 220,000, and they are all brave soldiers who have been tempered by the flames of war.

From the outbreak of the war at the beginning of the year to now, Da Qi has mobilized three border military governorships and three capital camps, with a total of more than 360,000 troops. It can be said that it has put in all its efforts without any reservation.

That is to say, in all the wars in the past year, nearly 130,000 Da Qi men died heroically, among which the Battle of Pingyang was the most tragic.

In order to completely annihilate the more than 70,000 Western Route Army of the Jing State who were isolated and deep in the territory, and to keep the Jing State Army God Qing Yugong, the Qi Army paid a heavy price under the command of Xiao Wangzhi. In a total of five fierce battles, nearly 60,000 Qi Army soldiers died on the battlefield.

The back hall of the Governor's Mansion.

"Go ahead, don't worry about me."

Duke Rong Xiao Wangzhi was leaning back in a recliner, covered with a wool blanket.

The old veteran, who had spent his entire life in military service, no longer had the look of determination and murderous intent on his face. At this moment, he was just an ordinary old man with a thin figure who was content with being ordinary.

Lu Chen knew why he was like this.

On the one hand, the Battle of Pingyang exhausted all of Xiao Wangzhi's energy. Although the Qi army had the advantage in manpower, an opponent like Qing Yugong was difficult to deal with, and Xiao Wangzhi did not have any firearms that could determine the outcome.

There were a total of five clashes and contests between the two. Except for the last annihilation battle outside Jinsha City, every previous confrontation was extremely dangerous, otherwise Xiao Wangzhi would not have vomited blood on the battlefield several times.

On the other hand, the Pingyang battle was so brutal that the soldiers almost risked their lives and fought to the death. Xiao Wangzhi, as the commander-in-chief, was under unimaginable pressure. In addition, he saw with his own eyes that Qing Yugong, his lifelong enemy, died on the battlefield. At that moment, he must have let go of a lot of things.

This is human nature.

Thinking of this, Lu Chen said with mixed feelings: "Uncle Xiao, thank you."

Xiao Wangzhi waved his hand and smiled, "What are you thanking me for? I want to thank you for giving me this opportunity. I have been buried in papers in the capital for the past few years. I thought I would never go to the battlefield again, let alone end my life-long struggle with Qing Yugong. Now that Emperor Jing and Qing Yugong are dead, no general in the Jing army can match you anymore. In addition, you still have the Firearm Battalion. The success of the Northern Expedition is in sight. It's time for me to take a break."

Lu Chen couldn't help but look at the third person in the room, who was also his other master.

Yuchi Gui said gently, "Don't worry, I will take care of him and I will definitely let him live another 20 to 30 years."

"What's the point of living so long?"

Xiao Wangzhi shook his head and smiled, then said to Lu Chen, "Let's get down to business. The Northern Expedition cannot be delayed. We must take advantage of the opportunity when the Jing army is out of breath and drive them back to the north of the Jing River in one go."

"it is good."

Lu Chen put aside his worries and slowly stood up.

"Lu Chen."

Xiao Wangzhi called him again, raised his head slightly and looked at the young man who had grown into a towering tree. After thinking for a moment, he said softly: "No matter what you plan to do in the future, after recovering the lost territory, you must push the court to move north to the old capital as soon as possible. Remember, the day when the Northern Expedition succeeds will be the day when your words will be final. In the future, unless you can destroy the Jing Kingdom, it will be difficult for your prestige to remain at its peak, so you must take the initiative in your own hands."

Lu Chen looked into the old man's deep gaze, bowed and said, "I'll remember that."

After he left, Yuchi Gui asked, "Why do we have to move the capital?"

Xiao Wangzhi curled up in the recliner and said calmly, "Da Qi has lost Jiangbei for nearly 20 years. The court has very little influence on these areas, which is equivalent to a blank sheet of paper. Once the court moves north back to the old capital, the royal family and all officials will rely on Lu Chen. This is his way of controlling the court. This kid currently has only Gao Huan and Wang An in the court. What role can he play? If he wants to replace them, it is not enough to have military power. After all, leading troops to fight and governing a country are two different things."

Hearing these remarks that were enough to shock the civil officials, Yuchi Gui simply nodded slightly.

Xiao Wangzhi continued, "If he doesn't use the move of the capital to control the government, Lu Chen's best chance would be to establish a substantive separatist regime in Jiangbei. However, this move has great hidden dangers, and he doesn't seem like the type of person who would be willing to lead his troops south to cause bloodshed in Jiangnan."

Yuchi Gui smiled and asked, "I'm afraid the Jiangnan court won't give in easily, right?"

Xiao Wangzhi also laughed and said calmly: "He has been shouting in the old capital for so many years. This is the righteousness that Lu Chen can rely on. If the court insists on not agreeing, he will send a troop to Jiangnan to welcome the Queen Mother and the Emperor. This is called having a legitimate reason. If the court dares to take the risk and openly break away, don't forget that Lu Chen still has Li Zongjian in his hands. He is the authentic bloodline of Emperor Gaozong."

"Tsk, tsk."

Yuchi Gui was inspired and said, "You old foxes are more calculating than each other."

Xiao Wangzhi smiled but did not answer. He looked at the curling green smoke emanating from the stove in the corner of the room, and the figure who stood proudly between heaven and earth in the past quietly emerged in his eyes.

The sky is clear... Xiao Wangzhi is loyal to this land and is willing to contribute everything for the people of the world, but he absolutely does not want to see a second Marshal Yang appear in the world.

On the other side, the Governor's Office meeting hall.

Dozens of generals gathered here.

When Lu Chen walked in, everyone stood up and bowed, saying, "Greetings, Your Majesty!"

From Anlu Hou and Jingzhou Grand Commander Liu Shouguang, to the two Beijing camp commanders Chen Lanyu and Zhang Xu, to Chengzhou Governor Tong Shiyuan, the Jingzhou generals headed by Fan Wendi and the Dingzhou generals headed by Li Chengen, dozens of people were in unison, without any discordant noise.

"No need to be polite, everyone, please take a seat."

Lu Chen sat down at the commander's seat, glanced at everyone from left to right, and said straight to the point: "After the two major battles of Lei Ze and Pingyang, Emperor Jing and Qing Yugong died one after another. The Jing army was heartbroken. The situation is very good for our army. There is no need for me to say more. You should all know that the next step is for our army to recover the lost land in Jiangbei, but-"

"I will make it clear in advance. The closer we are to victory, the more we must avoid setbacks. Everyone must strictly follow my orders. If anyone disregards my orders and acts on their own, I will not let you off lightly, no matter what your official rank or title is, or how many contributions you have made. Do you understand?"

"understand!"

Everyone responded in unison.

"very good."

Lu Chen slowed down his tone, turned to look at Liu Shouguang and said, "Commander-in-Chief Liu."

"The humble position is here."

"Please lead 20,000 soldiers and horses to Yongqiu and be responsible for the transportation of logistics and food for the Northern Expedition Army."

"I accept my order from my humble position!"

Liu Shouguang certainly knew that now was a great opportunity to gain military merit, but he also understood the profound meaning of Lu Chen's arrangement. Only people he trusted could shoulder the important task of logistics.

Lu Chen was very pleased, and looked at the military hero next to Liu Shouguang and said, "Marquis Yongding."

Zhang Xu immediately stood up and said, "I am here."

Lu Chen said slowly, "I appoint you as the commander of the Eastern Route Army. You will be under the command of the Guangling Army, the Ruyin Army, and the Dingwei Army of the Jinwu Camp, totaling 30,000 infantrymen. You will set out from Teng County and head north, first taking Changyi and Qifeng, and then heading southeast to Heluo."

Zhang Xu was slightly startled, and then he noticed that the surrounding tiger generals were looking at him, so he said respectfully: "I obey your orders!"

As the commander-in-chief of the Wuwei camp, he had more than 20,000 direct subordinates under his command, but now Lu Chen had the final say on military affairs, and he had no right to question them.

Lu Chen did not explain, and said to Chen Lanyu on the other side: "Marquis Linjiang."

"The humble position is here!"

"I appoint you as the commander of the Western Route Army, which includes the Jingzhou Anping Army, the Yangdi Army, and the Wuwei Camp Lingwei Army, also 30,000 soldiers and horses. You will set out from Yanwu City on the western front, recover Xinxi, Pingyu, Baoxing and other places along the way, and head to the southwest of Heluo. Can you do it?"

"I will definitely fulfill your mission!"

Compared with Zhang Xu's hesitation, Chen Lanyu, who was also transferred away from his own troops, did not hesitate at all and agreed straightforwardly.

Chengzhou Governor Tong Shiyuan was envious. Although Zhang Xu and Chen Lanyu seemed to be just figurehead commanders, the military power was still firmly in the hands of Lu Chen. However, a figurehead commander was still a commander-in-chief, and when rewards were given out in the future, the two of them would definitely be among the top.

However, he also knew that he had little experience and could not rank ahead of Liu, Zhang, and Chen. For now, he could only continue to perform well in front of Lu Chen to have a chance to soar in the future.

Lu Chen looked around at everyone and slowly stood up. Dozens of generals immediately stood in awe.

"The rest of you will follow me to attack the Jing army's Tongbai defense line."

Lu Chen looked at the excited faces and said sternly: "Everyone, this time our army will advance on three fronts. We must show our determination to win. We must meet at the foot of Heluo City within a month. Recapture the old capital and recover the country!"

"Recapture the old capital and recover the country!"

The clarion call for counterattack was sounded.

The war went more smoothly than the Qi generals had imagined.

After losing the two backbones, Emperor Jing and Qing Yugong, the defense line of the Jing army was vulnerable, and they were in chaos internally. Even though they still had more than 200,000 soldiers, they were fighting each other without a unified deployment.

Some people fled north with their troops, while others stayed behind in the garrison, living in constant fear.

The Qi army's offensive was like a tide, advancing hundreds of miles a day. The Jing army fled in defeat.

From Jiangbei Road to Tongbai, from Yaoshan Pass to Dingfeng Road, the Qi army's counterattack was like a raging storm, and the war lasted for more than two thousand miles.

In this vast northern land, the flags of the Qi army fluttered in the wind, and the drums of victory resounded between heaven and earth!
(End of this chapter)