Do you know: I am the crown prince

Chapter 403 Rewards based on merit
After learning about the situation, Yelu Yixin felt that this was a godsend opportunity. When the second heavy snow fell in Liao Kingdom and a thick layer of snow accumulated on the roads, he chose to launch a surprise attack.

The roads were covered with snow, making it difficult for even the infantry to walk, let alone the cavalry.

In addition, Yelu Yixin had been defending against Yelu Chongyuan, so Yelu Chongyuan naturally did not expect that Yelu Yixin would launch a sneak attack at this time.

They were completely unprepared and there was betrayal from within, so they were easily ambushed by Yelu Yixin.

In the end, he fled deep into the grassland with only tens of thousands of cavalry.

Yelu Yixin knew that this was an opportunity to completely eliminate Yelu Chongyuan, so he naturally did not want to let it go and led his troops in pursuit.

Otherwise, once Yelu Chongyuan has recovered his breath, he will gather an army on the grassland and wreak havoc on the vast grassland. The cost of pacifying the rebellion will be even greater.

Bazhou City

Inside the central army camp, the Duke of England sat in front of a brazier, warming himself by the fire, pounding his legs hard with his hands, a look of pain on his face.

When Duke Ying was young, he participated in the Song-Xia War and later stayed in the north for many years.

The north is bitterly cold. I didn’t feel it when I was young, but as I got older, every winter my legs would become cold and painful.

It was okay when I was in Bian Jing, but now in the north, when the weather is cold, it is very uncomfortable.

However, he never showed it in front of outsiders and only showed pain in private.

"Report!"

Suddenly, a notification sounded outside the big tent.

"Come in!"

The Duke of England held back the pain, his expression returned to normal, he stood up and sat down in the main seat, speaking in a deep voice.

The curtain was opened, and a soldier walked in, bowing and saying, "General, news has come from the Liao Kingdom. Three days ago, Yelu Yixin led his troops to launch a surprise attack. Yelu Chongyuan was defeated and fled to the grassland with tens of thousands of remaining soldiers. Yelu Yixin is leading his troops in pursuit!"

The Duke of England was shocked when he heard this, and thought to himself, "Yelu Chongyuan is a fool." He hesitated for a moment and said, "Beat the drums to gather the generals!"

"Yes!"

The soldier who brought the news saluted and retreated. After a while, the sound of drums was heard outside the tent.

When the generals in the army heard the news, they rushed to the camp.

After everyone arrived, Duke Ying explained the situation and said, "Everyone, the Great Wall in the north has not yet been completed. Once the civil strife in Liao is quelled and Liao has some time to recuperate, they will certainly send troops to intervene. Therefore, the civil strife in Liao must not be decided now. I am ready to send troops to force Yelu Yixin to withdraw his troops and buy Yelu Chongyuan a chance to catch his breath!"

"Duke Ying, it is freezing cold now, and it is not a good time to send troops. Moreover, this move can easily lead to a war. Should we write a letter to ask for instructions from His Majesty?" Chen Yao said.

"Of course we have to ask for instructions, but the heavy snow in the north has blocked the roads, and it would take too long to ask for instructions. If it drags on, Yelu Yixin will chase deep into the grasslands, and it will be too late to send troops. This move is just to force the Liao Kingdom to withdraw its troops, not to really start a war.

The Liao Kingdom has been in civil strife for a long time, and it will not easily go to war with the Song Dynasty." Duke Ying said.

Chen Yao said anxiously, "But if His Majesty disagrees with sending troops, and we send them anyway, what should we do if His Majesty blames us?"

The Duke of England meant to ask for instructions as usual, but instead of waiting for the court's order, he should send troops first.

This is no different from executing first and reporting later. As the military supervisor, Chen Yao naturally does not want to take this risk.

Although the British public said that the possibility of starting a war is small, what if it happens?
If a war really broke out with the Liao Kingdom and we failed to win, or if the Great Wall in the north that had not yet been built was destroyed, someone would definitely need to take the blame.

The Duke of England is the Queen's father and the official's father-in-law. Wouldn't he, the military inspector, be the one to take the blame when the time comes?

In terms of actual power, the military supervisor is greater than the commander-in-chief. When the two have a conflict of opinion, the military supervisor can even take over the military power directly. "If anything happens, I will take full responsibility." The Duke of England said in a deep voice.

"Duke Yingguo, that's not what I meant. I just think that sending troops to threaten may not be effective. Compared to the Liao Kingdom, which has strong cities to defend, it is better to ask for instructions from His Majesty first." Chen Yao said.

If he agreed directly to what the Duke of England said, it would seem like he was afraid of his responsibility.

Although this is true, Chen Yao also has to save face.

"The Liao Kingdom has withdrawn troops from the border several times, and now the city garrisons are insufficient. Once the Song Dynasty sends troops, the Liao Kingdom will definitely send troops to support. Although the Liao Kingdom defeated Yelu Chongyuan in a surprise attack, the chaos has not yet been quelled. In this case, the Liao Kingdom can only withdraw its pursuing troops. If the Liao Kingdom does not withdraw its troops, I will really capture a city. I don't believe that the Liao Kingdom will not withdraw its troops." Duke Ying insisted.

Seeing this, Chen Yao stopped trying to persuade him. After all, he had said everything he needed to say, and the Duke of England had also promised in front of everyone that he would take responsibility if anything happened. Even if something really happened, it couldn't be blamed on him.

The other generals will not stop it. The role of military generals can only be reflected on the battlefield.

Who doesn’t want to be awarded a title for meritorious service, and to have a wife and children blessed with wealth?

If they were still a little afraid at normal times, at this time the Liao border was short of troops, so there was really nothing to be afraid of.

Seeing that no one objected, the Duke of Ying immediately ordered the troop deployment. In order to pose enough threat to the Liao Kingdom, he directly mobilized 100,000 troops.

The Song Dynasty had five strategic borders to defend against the Liao Dynasty, and vice versa.

Because the Liao Kingdom occupied too much Han territory, the border facing the Song Dynasty was also a plain.

The Song Dynasty was able to receive intelligence from the Liao Dynasty. The Song Dynasty mobilized an army of 100,000, so such a large movement could naturally not be concealed from the Liao Dynasty.

In fact, the Duke of Ying had no intention of hiding anything, and he deliberately made a big fuss to let the Liao Kingdom know the news.

His purpose was to force the Liao Kingdom to temporarily give up pursuing Yelu Chongyuan and give Yelu Chongyuan a chance to catch his breath.

The border guards of Liao were terrified when they heard the news. While they were on guard, they sent people to Shangjing for help.

In the face of Yelu Chongyuan's siege, Yelu Yixin mobilized border troops several times. One reason was that he did not think that the Song Dynasty would dare to take the initiative to invade the Liao Kingdom. Another reason was that he had no choice.

But no matter what, it is an indisputable fact that the Liao Kingdom’s border troops were short of manpower.

It was only that the Duke of Ying did not really want to launch a surprise attack, otherwise it would not be difficult to break through the Liao defense line by launching a sudden attack.

But there is no point in doing so. If the Song Dynasty wants to drive the Liao Kingdom back to the grassland and recover lost territory, it must fight a protracted war and take back the dangerous passes in the north.

Otherwise, no matter how much territory they conquered, they would not be able to retake the dangerous pass. Once the Song Dynasty withdrew its troops, the Liao Kingdom would be able to retake it sooner or later.

Faced with the border defenders' request for help, Empress Xiao of Liao knew that this was intended to force Liao to withdraw its troops, but she did not dare to take the risk.

After nearly a year of civil strife, the Liao Kingdom was severely damaged. Many cities within the country are now in chaos and people are in panic.

If the Song Dynasty really broke through the border, it would deal a heavy blow to the prestige of the Liao court.

While Empress Dowager Xiao mobilized troops to rush to the border for support, she also sent someone to tell Yelu Yixin to bring his troops back.

…………

Zhao Xing had not yet learned of the news from the border. He was busy drawing up rewards for the meritorious soldiers.

The rewards for the soldiers were simple, just some money, food and land.

But it is different for officers and soldiers; promotions and rank increases must be carefully considered.

(End of this chapter)