History of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms

Chapter 624 A Dog's Journey Home 1
The main force of the Khitan in Hebei Province retreated completely, and Heyang and other places had also rebelled against Liao and surrendered to Liu. Liu Zhiyuan summoned all civil and military officials to formally discuss the specific route to the south.

Unexpectedly, most generals suggested that he "jump the hurdle", go east through Jingxing Pass, attack the land east of Taihang Mountain, seize Zhenzhou and Weizhou, clear Hebei, and then go south to recover Henan.

Liu Zhiyuan was greatly disappointed, thinking that he had been hiding in Shanxi for several months, but you still didn't understand my good intentions! So he said that he planned to go to Luzhou first, and then go directly south from Luzhou.

At this time, Liu Zhiyuan's favorite general Guo Wei proposed another idea:

Although the Barbarian leader is dead, the Barbarian army still has fighting power. Once we cross the Taihang Mountains, we will have too few troops, the roads are rugged, the battle line is long and narrow, and there is a lack of support and supplies. If we go deep into the enemy's hinterland alone, we will be easily cut off and thrown into chaos, and we will be caught in a dilemma. Therefore, the Hebei route should be PASSED;
Going south from Luzhou was difficult due to the rugged mountain roads. The people nearby were poor and weak and could not supply the army, so it was not the best choice.

Recently, Shanzhou and Jinzhou have surrendered one after another. We might as well bypass this area. In this way, we can enter Luoyang and Bianzhou in less than 20 days.

The three plans were the east, middle and west routes. After some deduction, Liu Zhiyuan finally adopted Guo Wei's suggestion.

Liu Zhiyuan appointed his younger brother Liu Chong as the governor of Taiyuan, and then led the army out of Yindi Pass and marched along the route of Jinzhou - Jiangzhou - Shanzhou - Luoyang.

As soon as the army set out, Shi Hongzhao at the Luzhou front sent a victory report: Zezhou was conquered!
Zezhou is located south of Luzhou, and tightly controls Tianjing Pass, which is the entrance and exit of Taihang Mountain. To the north of Tianjing Pass is Zezhou, and to the south is Huaizhou. The south of Huaizhou is close to the Yellow River, and Luoyang is on the other side of the river.

When the route to the south was being planned a few days ago, Prime Minister Su Fengji and others strongly supported the central route, saying that Shi Hongzhao had already controlled Luzhou, and the army would just follow the Luzhou-Zezhou-Tianjing Pass-Huaizhou-Luoyang route. This route was the shortest and most convenient, and it concentrated forces and was easy to capture.

According to historical records, the Sitianjian, which was in charge of astronomy, reported that according to the stars, it was unlucky for the army to go directly south, and it would be better to go a little west. So Liu Zhiyuan finally chose the western route.

The theory of astronomy and astrology is not credible. Behind this discussion is the intrigue between generals and ministers. Shi Hongzhao has opened up half of the route, so Guo Wei firmly opposes taking the Luzhou middle route, because once Liu Zhiyuan arrives in Luoyang from the middle route, Shi Hongzhao's prestige within the group will be greatly improved, crushing Guo Wei and others. So Guo Wei can't let Shi Hongzhao take all the limelight.

Jinzhou, Jiangzhou, Shanzhou and other places on the western route are all the "heroes" who have recently surrendered. Liu Zhiyuan's group has no military presence along this route at all. In theory, it should be more dangerous than the central route.

However, Guo Wei was close to the water and got the moon first, and Shi Hongzhao, who was far away at the front line in Luzhou, had no chance to defend himself. Shi Hongzhao could only slap Guo Wei and others in the face with facts.

The governor appointed by the Khitans, Zhai Lingqi, was stationed in Zezhou. At first, Shi Hongzhao's attack was not going well, so the cautious Liu Zhiyuan planned to transfer Shi Hongzhao back and abandon the central route. Su Fengji and Yang Bin tried to persuade him, saying that the western lands of Shanzhou, Jinzhou, Mengzhou, etc. had all surrendered, Cui Tingxun and Geng Chongmei were about to flee, and the "first island chain" set up by the Khitans was about to collapse. If they retreated at this time, it would inevitably shake the people's hearts south of the Yellow River, and their hearts would be volatile.

Liu Zhiyuan was hesitant, so he sent someone to the front line to ask Shi Hongzhao for his opinion.

Shi Hongzhao's judgment is the same as Su Fengji's. He believes that the current situation is one of advancement and no retreat!

Liu Zhiyuan did not recall Shi Hongzhao. Shi Hongzhao also changed his mindset, changing the military attack to a political inducement to surrender, and sent his general Li Wanchao to lobby Zhai Lingqi, who ended up opening the city and surrendering. Zezhou was recovered, and the gate of Tianjing Pass was opened.

On the bank of the Yellow River, Cui Tingxun, Geng Chongmei, and Zhaila gathered all their forces to counterattack Heyang. Zhang Yu, the leader of the rebel army who had supported the "Son of Daliang", was defeated and killed, and Wu Xingde, who occupied Heyang through a mutiny, was also defeated. Wu Xingde retreated into the city, closed the city and held on to wait for help.

When Zhela was planning to attack by force, Cui Tingxun advised him, "Forget it. The main force of the Liao Dynasty has already left. What's the point of keeping this isolated city? Are we waiting to be surrounded by Liu Zhiyuan's reinforcements?" After receiving the news that Shi Hongzhao had occupied Zezhou, Zhela, Cui Tingxun and Geng Chongmei decisively lifted the siege and retreated to Huaizhou.

Afterwards, Cui Tingxun and others made a strategic transfer in time to avoid being strategically surrounded by Liu Zhiyuan and to preserve the vitality of the Khitan. To put it bluntly, they abandoned the city and fled.

When they passed through Weizhou, they looted a lot. The rest of the troops left south of the Yellow River followed suit, competing to preserve the strength of the Khitan.

Shi Hongzhao and Wu Xingde joined forces in victory.

In other words, Shi Hongzhao, with his small vanguard force, had helped Liu Zhiyuan open the road to Luoyang and clear the obstacles along the way. However, Liu Zhiyuan's main force, which had gone west according to Guo Wei's suggestion, had not yet arrived in Jinzhou, and the road ahead was still full of dangers.

Liu Zhiyuan sent people to Hezhong Prefecture to lobby Zhao Kuangzan (son of Zhao Yanshou), the governor of the Hezhong National Protection Army, and told him that the Khitans had arrested his father Zhao Yanshou, and that he should stop working for the Khitans and surrender to Liu Zhiyuan.

Li Conglang, the governor of Jiangzhou appointed by the Khitans, also did not surrender and remained loyal to the Liao Dynasty.

This shows how dangerous Guo Wei's route is: Jiangzhou is between Jinzhou and Shanzhou, which is a roadblock; Hezhong is on the west side of the entire route, threatening the flank.

Liu Zhiyuan sent General Bai Wenke to attack Jiangzhou, but failed to capture it, so he personally came to the city and explained the pros and cons to Li Conglang. In the end, Li Conglang surrendered the city, and Jiangzhou was peacefully liberated.

The escape of Cui Tingxun and Geng Chongmei meant that the "first island chain" that Yelu Deguang had originally arranged to prevent Liu Zhiyuan from going south was completely destroyed, and Liu Xi, who was left behind in Luoyang, also abandoned the city and fled. As Liu Zhiyuan's group approached step by step, Xiao Han, who was left behind in Bianzhou, became the hope of the entire Khitan village, and he was almost the only one left south of the Yellow River.

During the days when Xiao Han was in Bianzhou, he did almost nothing. At that time, there were more than 50 palace maids from the Later Jin Dynasty in the palace. Xiao Han was very happy, "I want them all!" He ordered the eunuch Zhang Huan to hand them over, but Zhang Huan refused. Xiao Han sent people to forcibly break open the palace gate, snatched all the palace maids away, and then arrested Zhang Huan and tortured him with red-hot iron bars. In the end, this upright eunuch who was loyal and principled had his stomach burned through and his internal organs rotted to death.

Now, Bianzhou has become an isolated city, about to face Liu Zhiyuan's main force heading south. Xiao Han also did something very correct: strategic transfer to preserve the strength of Khitan.

Thanks to friend "Da Di Long Teng" for the reward and support. I will add another chapter today to show my gratitude!

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