The gods began by supporting Guo Jing to become emperor

Chapter 242: The rare toughness of the Song Dynasty!
A few days later, envoys from the Song Dynasty rushed to Dali with gold, silver and treasures to borrow troops. Even though Dali was just a separatist place with few soldiers and generals, they could not care too much at this time.

However, the Dali royal family was in decline and was controlled by powerful ministers, so they directly refused and escorted them out of the country. Dali was only a small place, but it did not mean that they were unaware of the situation in the world. The Great Zhou was in its heyday, so how dare they get involved in such a war?

Of course, they did not dare to add insult to injury. Even if the Song Dynasty was in decline, it was not a target that could be bullied by a small country like theirs.

"Kill the dog official and welcome King Zhou!"

As soon as the envoys of the Song Dynasty arrived at Guangnan West Road, they encountered a rebellion. The local people could not bear the exploitation of the government, so they rose up in rebellion, and under the banner of King Zhou, they broke through the county town and swept more than 10,000 people to attack the provincial capital. Wherever they passed, everyone fled.

In order to resist the Great Zhou, the rulers and ministers of the Song Dynasty withdrew all the elite imperial guards from various places, leaving only the old and weak. Similarly, in order to train the army, the Song Dynasty increased taxes again. After being increased layer by layer, it became a heavy mountain for the common people.

As a result, the sporadic rebellions quickly became a raging fire.

At this juncture, the Song envoys were captured by the peasant uprising army before they could escape. When they found the gold, silver and treasures carried by the Song envoys, they became furious. They chopped them into pieces on the spot, divided their property, and then gathered people to attack the city.

So, they raised the slogan "The Song Dynasty is immoral, we are acting on behalf of heaven!" More and more refugees and merchants were drawn in, and the momentum became stronger and stronger.

……

At the same time, Guo Jing was stationed in Xiangyang, and his generals attacked the northern road of Jinghu Lake and advanced into the Nanyang Basin. The army then continued to capture cities and territories, attempting to open up a road to meet up with Zhang Rou in Shu.

In November, Jiangling City was captured.

In December, the two armies joined forces.

In the first month of 1230, the army was divided into three routes again. One route attacked the south route of Jinghu Lake, one route went straight to the west route of Jiangnan Lake, and the other route took the navy warships to conquer the counties around Poyang Lake.

In February, the Song army went down the river from Ezhou, defeated the Song general Du Gao at the mouth of Jingjiang River, and occupied Yuezhou.

In the palace, Zhao Hong, who had just succeeded to the throne, had already turned gray at an early age, with white hair on his temples and blisters on the corners of his mouth. "We lost, we lost everything!"

He has not heard any good news in the past few months. Every day, either a certain place was conquered or the defenders surrendered. Facing the powerful Zhou army, the Song Dynasty has never won once.

Unlike the invasion by the Mongols, this was a civil war among the Han people. The Song Dynasty had been doing evil things and exploiting the people over the years, and had long lost the support of the people. Wherever the Zhou army went, the first thing they announced was tax reductions and exemptions, and they did not prohibit commercial and travel exchanges.

Therefore, although the two sides were fighting, there was an endless stream of civilian merchants and travelers, and the news was faster than the military reports of the Song Dynasty. Once the decree to reduce taxes was issued, the effect was immediate. In addition, the Zhou army had strict discipline and never killed innocent people, burned, killed, and looted after breaking through the city. There were even local people leading the way, eagerly waiting for the arrival of the royal army.

Without the grassroots foundation, the rule of the Song Dynasty collapsed, and even the scholar-official families whose interests were related to them had long since abandoned the government.

"Sir, is there really no hope for our Song Dynasty? Am I going to be the king of a fallen country?" Zhao Hong asked with a sad look on his face, looking at the regent ministers in front of him.

Qiao Xingjian and others also fell silent. The situation collapsed too quickly. In the past two years, they had been working day and night, preparing for war and building city walls. They thought they could use the geographical advantage to stop the Zhou army.

However, reality slapped them hard in the face. The fall of Xiangyang City seemed to have triggered a chain reaction, and the situation collapsed faster than they had imagined.

The power of the dozen or so golden orders issued by Emperor Zhao was greater than he had imagined. Not to mention outsiders, even his own people could see it clearly. If it were not for the emperor's order, how could Xiangyang fall so quickly?

As a result, the traditional skills of the imperial guards rooted in the bones of the Song Dynasty awakened. Those who knew the times were heroes and joined the Han people and the great heroes who destroyed the Jin Dynasty without trembling.

Qiao Xingjian and the others certainly knew why, but the decision to force Xiangyang to send troops was a decision made by the majority of the court, and the emperor was only one of them. In other words, the emperor also took the blame for the court. The people below were not aware of this, so the account could only be blamed on the emperor.

"Your Majesty, the Song Dynasty is far from being at the end of its rope. Your Majesty, now we can only trust the soldiers on the front line."

Hearing this, Zhao Hong's eyes were filled with disappointment.

Zhen Dexiu also sighed deeply. If Mongolia had accepted their surrender at the beginning, it would have been great. With Mongolia's support, Guo Jing would never dare to attack them. However, Genghis Khan refused.

……

In Xiangyang City, a group of Zhou generals gathered in the government office.

Zhang Rou said with emotion, "Your Majesty's edict is worth a hundred thousand soldiers."

Pei Andao, the Third Secretary, had his eyes twinkling. "The court of the Song Dynasty is corrupt and incompetent. A single imperial edict has shaken the people's hearts. This shows how the Song Dynasty exploits the people under its rule. We must take this as a warning."

Wang Shan nodded, "Master Pei is right. When the king issued the decree, the people of Song Dynasty were grateful for the king's kindness and helped us a lot."

Guo Jing sat in the main seat, looking more and more majestic. "The people are like water, and the emperor is a boat. Water can carry a boat, but it can also overturn it. The exploitation of the Song Dynasty was rampant as early as the Huizong period, but the taxes collected were embezzled by officials and abused by the royal family. They were not put to practical use at all."

"Take from the people and use it for the people. The court has the important task of protecting the country and the people and guarding the territory. The Song Dynasty court is unjust, and my Great Zhou should replace it. In the future, if my Great Zhou follows the old path of the Song Dynasty, there will naturally be heroes who will take up three-foot swords and overthrow the old dynasty. You should take this as a warning."

The civil and military officials were shocked and said in unison, "We will follow the king's instructions!"

Then, Guo Jing made the following plan, "Now that the land of southern Jing is in our hands and the Huai River is open, we should also go south, clear the Liangzhe Road, and then take over the Jiangnan West Road, and go straight to Huanglong to rule the world."

Shi Tianze asked in confusion, "Your Majesty, our army can attack the two lakes from the north and south of Jingnan, why do we have to attack the two Zhejiang roads?"

Guo Jing glanced at him and explained, "In this war, I must completely wipe out the south. Liangzhe Road, Fujian Road, and Guangnan Road cannot escape. Since ancient times, local separatism has been feared by power rather than virtue. I heard that Guangnan Road has already started a rebellion. Only by marching a large army south can we deter local forces."

"My teacher once said, those who do not plan for the whole are not qualified to plan for a region, and those who do not plan for eternity are not qualified to plan for the moment. The Song Dynasty has fallen, and I want to establish a new country. I must use this war to level the obstacles and sweep away the obstacles. Do you understand?"

Shi Tianze and the others were startled, "I understand."

The generals were looking at tactical plans, but Guo Jing was now looking at the issue from the perspective of a ruler. Even if he did this, the day of unifying the world would be delayed for a long time, and more people would die on the battlefield. But for the sake of long-term peace and stability in the world, someone had to do these things.

He must take back all the lost lands of Dali and Dai Viet one by one, not an inch of Han land can be lost!
……

After Jiangling City was captured, the garrisons of Changde Prefecture, Dingzhou, and Lizhou of the Song Dynasty surrendered one after another. The Zhou army stationed in Huangsha, Baling County, and a part of the troops were stationed in Changde, and continued to advance southward to besiege Tanzhou. Under the fierce attack of the Zhou army, Tanzhou defended for more than ten days, and the Song army suffered heavy casualties. The generals defending the city refused to surrender, and the soldiers in the city mutinied, killed the garrison generals, and surrendered.

Three months later, the Great Zhou successively captured Liangzhe Road and Fujian Road. The Zhou army surrounded Jiangnan West Road on three sides. An army of 20,000 by land and sea attacked Jiangzhou, and the gate to Nanchang Prefecture was wide open.

Half a month later, the Song army arrived at Nanchang Prefecture.

A mighty army of 150,000 arrived at the city of Nanchang. The flags blocked out everything that could be seen. The huge sea of ​​people divided into several routes, winding through the plains, hills and mountains, extending for more than ten miles towards the city. A large number of scouts radiated in all directions, running back and forth to bring news of the march.

Countless horses and infantrymen caused a large amount of ups and downs to fill the sky. In the marching square formations, archers and crossbowmen were protected in the middle of each route to avoid the possibility of being attacked in the middle. Although the marching speed was not fast, the densely packed advancement of 200,000 people gave a feeling like a flood overturning the earth.

On the city wall, the Song Dynasty imperial guards saw this scene and their mouths became dry and their legs became weak. When had they ever seen such a powerful army?
Qiao Xingjian and Zhen Dexiu surrounded Emperor Zhao Hong and observed the Great Zhou army formation in the distance. Under the sunlight, the Zhou army marched in neat steps, and their black armor reflected the sunlight, dazzling and eye-catching.

Their faces were pale, as if they were frightened by Chongxiao's murderous aura.

In the past, they had only seen lines of text in battle reports about how ferocious and powerful the Zhou army was. Now, these words had been transformed into entities, were within reach, and the impact they brought was unparalleled.

When the young Emperor Zhao Hong saw this scene, he felt both envious and frightened. It would be great if all the Song army were like this, but they were the enemy.

Guo Jing looked at the tall city walls in the distance and narrowed his eyes. "This city seems to have been built not long ago. Look at the towers and the city walls. There are not many signs of wind and rain."

"Your Majesty has a keen eye." Wang Shan praised behind him, "I have checked. After the Song Dynasty moved its capital to Nanchang Prefecture, it began to mobilize labor to build the city. It was not until last year that it was completely completed."

"Song Taizong once said: Mountains and rivers are about virtue, not danger. He made Kaifeng his capital, but his descendants were trapped in that city. Without the protection of mountains and rivers, his descendants did not make progress, which led to the Jingkang Shame. In the end, they were driven here by the Jin people. I don't know how much manpower and material resources were consumed in building such a city. They deserved their defeat."

When the army arrived at the city, they did not attack immediately, but set up camp twenty miles outside the city, and then sent envoys into the city to contact the Song Dynasty.

"Sir, how many soldiers are there in the city now?" In the hall, Zhao Honglong grabbed his clothes with his hands in his sleeves and asked anxiously.

Zhen Dexiu bowed and replied, "Your Majesty, there are still 50,000 soldiers in the city. If we recruit young and strong men, we can gather 10,000 people, which is enough to hold the city."

"But, as you can see, Guo Jing has so many troops under his command. Can we defend the city with just these people?"

The only answer he got was silence. Zhao Hong sighed, "At this point, there is no point in fighting any further. Enough people have died." Although he didn't say it clearly, the meaning was self-evident.

Instantly, several important officials were stunned. Zhen Dexiu said angrily, "We are ready to fight to the death, why did Your Majesty surrender first?"

Qiao Xingjian shouted even louder, "The imperial court has nurtured scholars for a hundred years, and they will die for justice today. Your Majesty, any of us can surrender, except you. Guo Jing is a descendant of Guo Rong. A hundred years ago, Emperor Taizu seized the Guo family's kingdom. A hundred years later, Guo Jing will certainly seek revenge, and we must fight!"

At the critical moment, the small Zhao Song court was unusually tough. They were soft to the Khitans, soft to the Jin people, and servile to the Mongols, but they were tough to Guo Jing, who was also a Han Chinese.

Even when the army was at the gates of the city and at their doorstep, they still refused to surrender.

Seeing the indignation on the faces of the people in the hall, Zhao Hong swallowed and could only nod in agreement.

Therefore, when the envoys of the Great Zhou entered the imperial city and tried to persuade the Song Dynasty to surrender, they were angrily rebuked and attacked by the officials of the Great Song Dynasty. Zhao Hong insisted on fighting to the end and would never surrender.

Seeing this, the envoy said nothing more. He just bowed to Zhao Hong and left without looking back.

……

Guo Jing was not surprised to learn that the emperor and his ministers of the Song Dynasty were determined not to surrender. Instead, the civil and military officials were extremely puzzled. Is it still necessary to continue fighting when it has come to this?

Anyone with a discerning eye can see that they are bound to lose, but they still insist on fighting. Isn't this courting death?

This is seeking death. Before the arrival of Zhou's army, all the civil and military officials who could run had run away, and the rest were diehards. Before dying, they did not want to linger on, so they knelt down and bowed their heads to Guo Jing.

Even if many people died and all the people in the city were tied to their chariots, they did not hesitate.

Guo Jing guessed their thoughts and sneered, "Since they don't surrender, then fight. Guanying, I leave it to you!" After saying that, he looked at Lu Guanying.

Hearing this, Lu Guanying's dark face was filled with excitement. He had waited for this day for a long, long time, and it finally came.

"The last general takes command!"

The whole next day, there was no movement in the Great Zhou military camp. The Song army defending the city was tense and felt extremely tortured.

Early in the morning.

"Boom, boom, boom!"

The rumbling sound of war drums spread all over the place.

The ground shook, and roars came from far and near. When the ground rose up and trembled, countless war horses stepped forward and trampled on the ground. The torches they held were like a fire dragon, heading towards the Nanchang City in front. Behind them, there were infantrymen with full armor following closely, with flags standing tall.

In the dark night, the torches illuminate the sky as bright as day.

Lu Guanying stood not far from the city wall, issuing orders in an orderly manner, his eyes full of excitement.

The sound of orderly footsteps came from outside the city, and human figures spread out front and back. At the end of the field of vision, fire formed a straight line, and horns sounded in the sky. Waves and groups of arrays stretched out in formation, and people's pupils suddenly shrank in their sight as they looked over from the city wall.

Figures on the city wall ran and shouted, infantrymen holding shields stepped forward, archers ran to the back with quivers on their backs, arrows rustled as they shook their heads, and the beat of alert drums sounded on the city gate tower and spread to the city.

The siege has begun!

(End of this chapter)