Became a feudal lord in the late Northern Song Dynasty

Chapter 257 Are you too? Oh, me too

"Hebei Urgent Report."

After hearing these four words, Liu Ling raised his head. He was originally more concerned about the war in Hebei of the Song Dynasty, because the name of a person finally came to light and appeared in front of him again.

"Yue Fei wins anyway."

"In response to the king's words, Song general Liu Guangshi set up an ambush in Dezhou. Yue Fei sent his troops to bypass Dezhou and go straight to the Yellow River. Within three days, they went westward via the Yellow River and attacked Daming Mansion. Liang Fangping, the guard of Daming Mansion, abandoned the city and fled after hearing the news. Most of the imperial army was defeated, leaving Liu Guangshi's troops stranded in Texas alone."

"In this case, the north of the Yellow River will completely belong to Zhang Xiaochun."

Liu Ling remembered that there were many soldiers of the Song Dynasty Imperial Army stationed in Daming Mansion, but Liang Fangping made such a move, directly announcing that everything north of the Yellow River had completely changed hands, and even the impact of this battle would accelerate the destruction of the two rivers. Officials and soldiers moved closer to Zhang Xiaochun.

"Let the Hebei bank provide money and food to support Liu Guangshi's troops. Whatever he lacks, the bank will make up for him. Send an order to the rebels in Hebei and ask them all to join Liu Guangshi's command."

"This"

Kang Gongbi was stunned for a moment, and said with some doubts: "The Song people are fighting among themselves, why not let them fight among themselves, and we big men rashly get involved?"

"What's the matter?"

Because he may be the one to fight a tough battle first in the end.

The food levy was first collected from the official treasury of each city, and then the grass was harvested from the heads of the common people. In fact, there was looting in many places, but because of Liu Lingming's mandatory order, this situation did not happen. Not many, and all were quickly stopped and punished.

When the King of Han personally led his army to Linzhou, Li Liangfu finally captured the entire city. However, because of the casualties and the time it took to break the city, it took longer than Qu Duan. Even if the King of Han did not punish him, Li Liangfu had to do it in front of everyone. Ask for punishment in person.

When the seven states of Hebei were ceded, Liu Ling ordered the implementation of a gentle policy, greatly reducing the excessive taxes and miscellaneous taxes left by the Song Dynasty, taking the initiative to reduce taxes, and at the same time providing work relief to appease the refugees. Kang Gongbi thought it would be the same now.

We are all veterans, so it doesn’t matter if the march is harder, because we all know that after the war, we will definitely be able to go home and enjoy the happiness;
Furthermore, the Song people came to fight with almost no organized troops in the northwest. The Song Dynasty court dispatched almost all the main forces of the Western Army to Hebei. Originally, it was just in case the Han army took the opportunity to go south to Lianghe and the Western Army of the Three Routes. Abacus that can also take advantage of the situation.

The car curtain was opened again, this time with a curved end. After entering the car, he could not bow and salute. Liu Ling motioned for him to sit down and asked:

Linzhou, Yincheng.

"Military matter or private matter?"

It was dark at night, and the soldiers of the brigade were patrolling the streets. Li Liangfu personally led a group of soldiers to patrol Nancheng District. Because he was riding a horse and as the commander of the first army, he could still ride on the horse when he was sleepy. Take a nap.

Now the Yongxing Military Road area is relatively empty. The Song people's biggest reliance is the walls of various cities. They can only rely on the latter to delay time and wait for the army to return for reinforcements.

"It's a military matter."

In fact, it's not bad. In the hot summer, he can stay in the city without marching. In his free time, he can also invite a few ladies to come in and have fun with him. Li Liangfu comforted himself in his heart, but he didn't have any resentment.

The reason why the soldiers below were able to hold their nerves was partly because of the prestige of the King of Han, and partly because there was really no pressure.

"If we don't get involved, I'm afraid that the Song Dynasty court will really be penetrated by him."

"Isn't it?"

After capturing the two northernmost prefectures in Hedong, Liu Ling immediately sent his troops south. In addition to him, Li Liangfu and Qu Duan's three troops, the other main force of the Han army had already bypassed Fu and Lin prefectures and headed straight towards He left along the Yongxing military road of the Song Dynasty.

At present, although he still retains his position as commander, his duty has also changed from following the King of Han to continue southward to attack the Song Dynasty to staying in Linzhou to guard against reinforcements from the Song Dynasty in Hedong.

"The last general is from the Western Army of the Song Dynasty. I have something to say to the king in detail."

"The army rushed hundreds of miles away to capture the city. The food route was too long and could be cut off at any time. The only way was to collect food and recruit people from the local area."

Kang Gongbi glanced at the King of Han's eyes, and immediately lowered his head and began to write a document. After a while, he reported while writing: "The officials and personnel in Lin and Fu have been adjusted once. Almost all the officials in office have personally reported to the officials. Is it too harsh for us big men to just collect money and food from the local people?”

"Then why didn't you bring it up during the military meeting this morning?"

Qu Duan paused, not daring to answer the question.

Now the top generals of the entire army knew the clear war goals, but what Qu Duan wanted to say was to warn them - a complete fortress defense system had been formed in the northwest of the Song Dynasty.

Xixia, which had always maintained an offensive momentum against the Song Dynasty, became increasingly weak precisely because of the existence of this system, so that it was later repeatedly counterattacked by the Song people.

Qu Duan was from the Western Army, so he knew this system relatively well. If the Han army were to attack head-on, if it was delayed, the consequences would be disastrous given the Han army's long supply line and limited strength.

But the tone of the war was set by the King of Han. No matter how carefree Qu Duan was, he would not dare to throw cold water on the King of Han in his face.

"Our army's planned advance route is to attack from the north of Yongxing Military Road. The advantage is that we can attack steadily. At the same time, the battlefield is far away from Hedong. We don't have to worry about reinforcements from the Song people in Hedong suddenly appearing nearby. But the disadvantage is."

Qu Duan stood up, took out a map from his arms, placed it in front of Liu Ling, and pointed out: "Within the Yongxing Military Road, the towns and forts on the north and west sides have the most. Even if any fort has very few garrison troops, The accumulation of numbers is enough to make it increasingly difficult for our army to advance.

The weather is scorching hot, so our army has the advantage of attacking quickly. Either a large-scale battle with the Song Dynasty and complete the victory in one battle, or it is to capture several important towns in the Song Dynasty first, and then other places will naturally spread the word. "

"However, if we march according to the original strategy, not to mention other things, at least it will be very safe."

"stable?"

Qu Duan reached out and took the brush in front of Liu Ling, and drew a big black circle on the map that marked the Yongxing Military Route prefectures.

"Does your Majesty know how many cities, towns, armies, prefectures, counties, military villages, and beacon forts within the Yongxing Military Road are combined?"

Before Liu Ling could answer, he raised his right hand.

"Not counting those abandoned forts, if we march according to the original plan, there will be at least more than 400 cities and forts that need to be attacked on the way. The general has an idea, so that our army only needs to attack two states and one prefecture. As long as they penetrate , we can attack Chang'an City immediately and seize Guanzhong!"

Liu Ling lowered his head and looked at the other march route marked by Qu Duan on the map, and his expression became strange.

Because if we follow the Quduan route, the entire march route will almost follow the dividing line between Yongxing Military Road and Hedong Road, and the end will be Hezhong Prefecture and Tongguan in the Song Dynasty. Only by capturing these two places can we march to Chang'an. .

As for the gold content of Tongguan, I can only say that everyone who understands it understands it. That place is much more difficult to grasp than the local military stronghold.

"Don't worry, Your Majesty, the northwest area, the north and the west are fine. After all, wars are going to happen from time to time. No matter how lax the armament is, it won't be much better, but the hinterland must have been in ruins for a long time. In addition, the imperial court has transferred three routes to the west. If the main force of the army goes to conquer Hebei, it is unlikely that there will be many troops left in Guanzhong that can fight.

Not to mention our Han soldiers and horses, even if the Xia people come at this time, they can still plunder many places. "

Liu Ling nodded and asked: "Then what if the Hedong reinforcements and the Third Route Western Army turn around and attack our army's retreat?" Qu Duan clapped his hands and said: "Our Han army is lacking. It’s an opportunity to face the enemy head-on with the Song people!”

The weather was so hot that it seemed like people could melt into their armor. Almost all the three Western armies had stopped halfway. Whether they were attacking eastward or returning westward, the soldiers under the three commanders had different opinions. Unfortunately, they were unable to take strict control and could only watch the situation on the east and west sides completely collapse.

Especially the east side.

Xu Huiyan sat on a chair, wearing light clothes, but it was still difficult to withstand the heat of the summer. Looking at the military report in front of him, he couldn't help but become more and more upset.

Outside, the deputy general walked in and handed him the latest military report, reporting: "The Han army went south and captured Hedong Prefecture and Lin Prefecture. Sun Ling, the magistrate of Lin Prefecture, died in the battle. The whole family surrendered. To the tenth.”

"Tsk."

Xu Huiyan, who had a more elegant face and temperament, couldn't hold back after hearing the news. He wondered: "I remember that there were no less than 30,000 defenders in those two prefectures. Could it be that the Han army had 300,000 people to attack and be defeated so easily? "

As a general of the Song Dynasty, Xu Huiyan had been in the Western Army for many years and was quite confident in his own fortress system.

"The Xia people have been unable to defeat the Xia people for many years. A few years ago, the Xia Lord Li Qianshun led his troops to attack the city, and he was killed by an arrow from a junior high school in the Song Dynasty."

The deputy general suddenly coughed and said: "It is written in the military newspaper that the Han general who led the army to capture Fuzhou has the same name as that of the junior high school student back then, both named Qu Duan."

Serving as a junior high school in the army during the Song Dynasty, and directly serving as the commander-in-chief of an army in the Han Dynasty, Qu Duan was undoubtedly a living brand in the Han army, which could directly undermine the fighting spirit of some Song Dynasty soldiers.

But in fact, there were people who had reached this level before him.

Xu Huiyan smiled and said: "Is it possible that the King of Han specially poached our Song Dynasty? Why did he not let go of several small schools in our Song Dynasty? I remember that there was also a man named Han Shizhong in Han Dynasty, who seemed to be the same. Similar characters?”

"Yes."

"Ah"

Xu Huiyan didn't know how to evaluate it for a while.

On the surface, it seemed that Liu Ling was just like picking up trash, specializing in picking up low-level officers from the Song Dynasty as treasures, but those so-called low-level officers had already proven their abilities with their military exploits.

Being able to lead troops and fight are all talents of a general.

However, after Tong Guan's defeat in the Northern Expedition, the court was filled with remarks such as "the generals will not be succeeded" and "there will be no generals available".

Is it true that there are no generals available, or that there are always horses with a thousand li, but Bole is not always available?

In short, are all the people standing in the court a bunch of blind people?

Thinking of this, Xu Huiyan naturally wanted to try to recruit these generals from the Song Dynasty. As long as the price was high, he could buy anything in the world.

"Qu Duan was born in the Song Dynasty, and Han Shizhong was born in the Song Dynasty. They are very good. Even Mr. Zhong was born in the Song Dynasty. They were all officials in the Song Dynasty for many years. I don't believe it. They have no respect for the Song Dynasty." I miss you half a bit.

What's more, Zhong Shidao was an official in the Han Dynasty, and his younger brother Zhong Shizhong was leading the Western Army in Hedong. "

The lieutenant general hesitated for a moment and replied cautiously: "Qu Duan and Han Shizhong have both made great contributions in the Western Army for many years, but their achievements have been robbed and passed into the hands of others. Zhe Keqiu means that the whole clan has already How can it be done in the hands of the Han people?"

"Then the price is still not enough. I really need to give a good price. What can't I buy?"

While the two were chatting, another lieutenant suddenly came in outside with an ugly expression.

"Commander, the latest news is that something is spreading across Hedong."

Xu Huiyan looked at him.

"what's up?"

"General, I just heard that the Han people posted a reward for you and two other commanders, Yao and Zhong." The deputy general hesitated. Xu Huiyan was stunned for a moment and sneered: "The Han people are just offering a reward for my leader." It’s just level.”

"No, it's not." The deputy general added: "The Han people rewarded Gerry and said that if Commander Zhong is willing to surrender, they will give Anjia 400,000 guan in money and grain. If Commander Yao surrenders, they will give 200,000 guan. If you are willing to surrender, they will give... Wan Guan.”

Xu Huiyan suddenly blushed and slapped the brush in his hand on the table, making a crisp sound.

"Too deceiving!"

Hebei.

Although the Song Dynasty flag still stands on the Yuanzhou city tower, the imperial flag next to it has been changed from "Liang" to "Yue". It is hard to imagine that Liang Fangping was here with a group of officials and generals who were loyal to the imperial court to give guidance a few days ago. Jiangshan, and just a few days later, almost the same group of people were still there, but the person sitting on the Taishi chair was a different person.

Yue Fei looked at these people with a smile on his face, but he couldn't help but curse a few words in his heart.

When dealing with a group of fighting men in the army, as long as you straighten their hair, those Qiu Ba are actually far easier to get along with than these officials. The latter is like pig intestines that are impossible to clean. Even if it looks clean on the outside, the smell is still there when you eat it.

What's more, the officials of the Song Dynasty who got rid of Liang Fangping and opened the gate of Yuanzhou City to "welcome the king" were not very resistant. After all, the person above Yue Fei was King Kang, who also had the surname Zhao.

The prestige of the official family in Bianjing has also plummeted due to the disastrous defeats in many wars in recent years. The people in the court are still criticizing each other, and they can't decide whether to fight or appease regarding Hebei.

During the time they were arguing, the war in Hebei was almost over, and the Third Route Western Army had to stay there because of the weather, making it difficult to advance.

Yue Fei's attack lasted hundreds of miles, and the Imperial Guards were almost completely wiped out. Only Liu Guangshi's troops were still stationed in Dezhou, barely holding on to the city.

Zhang Xiaochun didn't want to fight anymore, and the imperial court didn't want to fight anymore. The Third Route Western Army was too lazy to go all the way to Hebei to fight. The last batch of elite Western Army who were willing to obey the imperial court's deployment had actually been exhausted in successive years of war, and they ended up It's right there for everyone to see.

In this case, it is necessary for a person whom everyone hopes to stand up to coordinate the opinions of both parties.

Zhao Mingcheng dusted off his clothes, looked at the Bianjing city wall in front of him, and let out a sigh. In front of him, the old Cai Jing came down to him with the help of two subordinate officials.

"Zhao Lang, your style remains the same."

"Xianggong Cai is no less generous."

The two looked at each other and smiled, saying nothing.

(End of this chapter)