Usurpation of Mongolia: My father-in-law is Genghis Khan

Chapter 117 All the powerful men belong to Zhao Shuo, the martial arts fairy Yang Miaozhen!
The situation Zhao Shuo encountered during his attack on Hebei this time was completely different from the last time.

Last time, his main opponents were the Jin Dynasty officers and soldiers, and eliminating some unruly local tyrants was just a side job.

But since the last time the Mongols retreated, countless dormant rural tycoons have occupied cities with their own private armies, while expressing their loyalty to the Jin court, claiming that they are organizing a "righteous army" to expel the Mongolian army and serve the country.

Although the Jin court knew that these people's loyalty was questionable, it was in urgent need of restoring its strength, recovering the northeast and attacking the Southern Song Dynasty, so it had to accept it.

This was the second time the Mongols attacked, and they captured Zhongdu in less than half a month. The situation was even more critical than the last time.

Wanyan Xun simply adopted Shuhu Gaoqi's strategy of "losing in the north and making up in the south".

The Mongol army was undoubtedly defeated, so the Jin Dynasty would transfer its elite troops to the south and make sure to recover the land and population lost to the Mongols from the Song Dynasty. As for who would resist the Mongols in the north? Leave it to these local tyrants.

He issued a series of decrees, not only promoting these local tyrants to higher positions, but also directly giving them local military and political power, allowing them to fight for their lives, property and official positions.

Li Ting was stationed in Baodi and was granted the title of Duke of Baodi.

Miao Daorun was stationed in Dingzhou and was granted the title of Duke of Zhongshan.

Wuxian stayed in Zhending and was granted the title of Duke of Hengshan.

Zhang Fu was stationed in Xiongzhou and was granted the title of Duke of Gaoyang.

Wang Fu was stationed in Cangzhou and was granted the title of Duke of Canghai.

Jia Tong was stationed in Boye and was granted the title of Duke of Yongding.

He moved all his slaves to Hejian and granted him the title of Duke of Hejian.

In the historical line without Zhao Shuo's travel through time, a similar event occurred four years later. The Jin Kingdom enfeoffed nine people as dukes in the area north of the Yellow River, giving them control of local military and political power and concentrating all local forces to deal with Mongolia. These were known in history as the "Nine Feudal Dukes."

But the current Mongolia is much stronger than the Mongolia in history, which has brought greater stimulation to the Jin Dynasty. Not only did they adopt a similar strategy in advance, but they also conferred far more than the "Nine Dukes", including seven in Hebei alone.

The strategy Zhao Shuo adopted was to simply and rudely attack with a flat attack.

First, Zhao Shuo led an army of 80,000 to attack Zhang Fu in Xiongzhou.

Zhang Fu was cunning and intelligent, and was known in historical records for his ability to use spies.

However, no matter how cunning and intelligent one is, it is useless in the face of absolute strength.

Faced with Zhao Shuo's 80,000-strong army, Zhang Fu was unable to resist and chose to surrender.

Of course, Zhang Fu's territory was not only Xiongzhou, but also Bazhou next to Xiongzhou.

Zhao Shuo was not in a hurry to continue his advance. He used an army of 80,000 to forcefully investigate the land and population of Xiongzhou and Bazhou, and divided the land into three grades: upper, middle and lower. Finally, he rented the land fairly to local farmers.

This move was not only to implement the "equal-field system", but also to send a clear signal to the entire Hebei Province that the Mongols had come and would not leave.

Of course, Zhang Fu's surrender didn't mean that all the wealthy families and local tyrants in Xiongzhou and Bazhou would cooperate obediently. They didn't dare to rise up in rebellion, but they were brave enough to disobey, bribe officials, and conceal the land they had.

Zhao Shuo's strategy was to encourage the people to report. Anyone who dared to prevent the people from reporting would be charged with treason and executed along with their entire family. Anyone who obstructed the implementation of the "equal field system" would also be considered a traitor and executed along with their entire family.

Within two months, Zhao Shuo chopped off more than 3,000 heads, and the equal-field system that dominated the two states was successfully implemented.

Then, Zhao Shuo's troops entered Baodi.

Baodi, which is Tianjin in later generations.

Li Ting, a native of Baodi, was knowledgeable in literature and calligraphy, skilled in riding and archery, generous and generous, and held considerable influence in the countryside. After the Mongol retreat, he and his brother Li Yun assembled a force of several thousand men and recaptured Baodi County. The Jin court, however, refused to appoint him as magistrate and instead granted him the surname "Wanyan." He was now granted the title of "Duke of Baodi," commanding Baodi and several surrounding prefectures.

However, at this point, the Wanyan surname is no longer valuable.

Compared with his life, promotion to a higher position is not that attractive to Li Ting.

Li Ting also surrendered to Zhao Shuo.

With the experience gained in Xiongba and Erzhou, as well as some grassroots officials trained in Xiongba and Erzhou, it only took one month for Baodi and the surrounding counties to undergo a complete transformation and completely become Zhao Shuo's base.

Then, it’s Cangzhou.

At this time, everyone knew about the Mongol army's land distribution, and the poor people responded in droves.

Duke Canghai Wang Fu knew that he could not hold Cangzhou, so he fled to Shandong.

Miao Daorun of Dingzhou, Wuxian of Zhending, and Jia Tong of Boye saw that the situation was hopeless and surrendered to Zhao Shuo.

Only the slaves of Hejian Yici refused to submit and continued to resist stubbornly, defending Hejian City to the death.

By the way, the slaves of Yishi no longer have the surname "Yshi", but have been given the surname "Wanyan" by the Jin court.

The Khitans of the late Jin Dynasty fell into three categories. One, like Yelu Liuge, rebelled and attempted to restore the Liao Dynasty. Another, like Yelu Chucai, although loyal to the Jin, knew the situation was hopeless and submitted to the Mongols. The last, unwaveringly loyal to the Jin, was willing to die for their country.

Then let’s make his wish come true!

This time there will be no need for such trouble. Zhao Shuo will divide 20,000 troops from his 80,000 troops each and go to the territories of Miao Daorun, Wu Xian and Jia Tong to implement the equal-field system.

Then, he led an army of 20,000, as well as the troops of Zhang Fu, Li Ting, Miao Daorun, Wu Xian, and Jia Tong, a total of 120,000 troops, and surrounded Hejian City.

It took ten days to build siege equipment, and then a military meeting was held in Zhao Shuo's central military tent.

"I won't say any more."

Zhao Shuo's dignified gaze slowly turned towards Zhang Fu, Li Ting, Miao Daorun, Wu Xian, and Jia Tong, and he said, "After this battle, all of Hebei will be pacified. I will establish a new Han army banner in Hebei, called the Bordered Yellow Banner, with a total strength of 10,000. In other words, one in ten of your men will be selected to serve as officers and soldiers of the Eight Banners."

The rest of the soldiers were all dismissed as civilians.

Those who are brave enough can become palace soldiers, while those who are less brave can only become ordinary citizens.

As for the five of you, let’s see how you perform in this attack on Hejian.

Whoever conquers Hejian first will become the commander of the Yellow Banner. The other four will only be commanders of the Qianhu rank.

So, today, Miao Daorun will lead his troops to attack the East Gate, Li Ting will attack the West Gate, Wu Xian will attack the South Gate, and Jia Tong will attack the North Gate. If they fail to capture the city today, the team with the worst performance will withdraw from tomorrow's battle and be replaced by Zhang Fu's troops.

Did you hear everything clearly?"

"Listen clearly!"

The five generals agreed immediately.

To put it bluntly, Zhang Fu, Li Ting, Miao Daorun, Wu Xian, and Jia Tong were all heroes in troubled times. It is pure nonsense to say that they had any loyalty to Mongolia or the Jin Dynasty.

Wu Xian, in particular, was recorded in history as the leader of the Jin Dynasty's "Nine Lords." He later surrendered to the Mongols and served as Shi Tianni's deputy, defending Zhending together. Later, fearing that Shi Tianni would annex his power, he, instigated by Jin spies, killed Shi Tianni and returned to the Jin Dynasty.

There's no turning back this time.

Wu Xian fought and was defeated time and time again, but he fought again and again, like an indestructible cockroach, fighting against the Mongolian army. He continued to fight even after the Jin Dynasty was destroyed. Well, there was no other way to stop fighting, so he even pretended to surrender and secretly attacked Jinzhou of the Song Dynasty, which completely offended the Song Dynasty.

Anyway, Wu Xian's military talent is quite good, but what he lacks most is loyalty. However, he wants to be disloyal to Zhao Shuo now, is that okay?
The generous treatment of the Eight Banners Army really made the brave soldiers under his command jealous.

Even if he couldn't join the Eight Banners, returning home to be a commoner wouldn't be bad either. The soldiers under his command had all been given land in their hometowns. If he couldn't join the Eight Banners, he could just go back and be a good citizen. Why bother following Wu Xian and risking his life with no future?

Wu Xian suspected that if he had any second thoughts, he would be tied up by his men and brought to Zhao Shuo to report his achievements if he even let out a hint.

Since there is no hope of rebellion, Wu Xian can only place all his hopes on rising within Zhao Shuo's system.

Today is the crucial battle that will determine his fate!
He glanced at Miao Daorun with a provocative look in his eyes, and said, "General Miao, I'm afraid the battle for the Yellow Banner commander will be between you and me. Later, please don't hold back, or someone will say that I won unfairly."

Among Zhang Fu, Li Ting, Miao Daorun, Wu Xian and Jia Tong, he, Miao Daorun and Zhang Fu are the strongest, while Li Ting and Jia Tong are weaker.

Zhang Fu will not participate in the siege today, so the biggest competitor of Wuxian is undoubtedly Miao Daorun.

"Easy to say, easy to say."

Miao Daorun sneered and said, "This position of the Yellow Banner Commander is the most worthy one for Miao!"

In fact, Miao Daorun was more determined than Wu Xian to get the position of the commander of the Bordered Yellow Banner.

It's not that he is as unruly and unwilling to accept people's wishes as Wu Xian, but he is too regretful.

Miao Daorun was very familiar with the other four commanders of the Han army flag.

The Shi family has deep roots in Yueqing. Shi Tianni was a man who almost passed the imperial examination for the Jin Dynasty, so Miao Daorun had no confidence in winning.

Guo Baoyu is the hereditary Duke of Fenyang County and holds an official position, which even Miao Daorun cannot compare to.

But what about everyone else?
Zhang Rou and Yan Shi, what are they?

Miao Daorun used to be a wealthy man in Hebei, and he would never even look at Zhang Rou and Yan Shi.

Unfortunately, it was just one step away.

When Zhao Shuo first captured Hebei, Miao Daorun was hesitant about whether to be a good citizen of the Jin Kingdom or surrender to Mongolia, and chose to lose money to avoid disaster.

As a result, three or four years later, Zhang Rou and Yan Shi both became high-ranking officials of the Eight Banners.

And Miao Daorun has to compete with others for the position of Wanhu.

It would be so embarrassing if we couldn't even compete.

"What? You two think that the title of the commander of the Yellow Banner will belong to you alone?" Jia Tong snorted coldly and said, "Don't be too happy too soon!"

Li Ting also echoed: "Whether it's a mule or a horse, take it out for a walk!"

They are all heroes in troubled times. Even if their strength is a little different, who will submit to whom?

All four of them were eager to get the first credit for breaking through Hejian.

Boom boom boom!
The catapults of both armies roared, and countless stones were thrown at each other's catapults.

"Charge! Kill!"

"Capture all the slaves of Yici alive!"

"Behead those who retreat!"

"Behead one level and you'll be rewarded ten taels of silver!"

"The first one to reach the summit will be rewarded with a thousand taels of gold!"

……

With shouts, Li Ting, Miao Daorun, Wu Xian and Jia Tong each sent out 5,000 of their most elite troops, braving the rain of stones, and launched a general attack on Hejian City from four directions.

"Oh my god! Li Ting, Miao Daorun, Wu Xian, Jia Tong... are you really that serious?"

The slaves of Yici who were supervising the battle on the Hejian city wall were completely dumbfounded by such a powerful attack.

From the flags, he had already recognized the four troops attacking the city and wondered who they belonged to.

He also knew that it was impossible to defend Hejian City with the 10,000 or 20,000 troops under his command. To defend Hejian City was just to die for the country.

However, no one expected that Li Ting, Miao Daorun, Wu Xian and Jia Tong, who were desperate to surrender to Zhao Shuo, would fight so hard.

Well, the catapult artillery battle hasn’t even finished yet, and they just launched a strong attack.

It would have been fine if they had just launched a brute force attack, but they even sent out such elite troops!

Still attacking so hard!

If you had used this ability earlier to fight against Mongolia, why would my Great Jin only have Hejian City left in Hebei now?

The same army was as soft as sheep in the Jin Dynasty, but as strong as tigers and wolves under Zhao Shuo's command. Why was the difference so big?
I’m afraid that the Great Jin Dynasty is really going to be finished!

Of course, no matter what Yici's servants thought, it was too late now.

Li Ting, Miao Daorun, Wu Xian, and Jia Tong first sent their most elite troops, personally supervised the battle, and offered a generous reward using their personal property. When the battle reached a critical moment, the four of them all donned three layers of iron armor and headed straight for the battlefield.

In the end, Miao Daorun took the lead and broke through the east gate of Hejian City first.

Originally, if history had unfolded normally, Miao Daorun would have been the leading figure in Hebei, commanding Li Ting, Miao Daorun, Wu Xian, Jia Tong, and others, and attempting to restore Zhongdu City. If he hadn't been betrayed by his subordinates, how could Wu Xian have become the leader of the Nine Lords? Even Zhang Rou was his subordinate.

Now, it is only natural for Miao Daorun to be the commander of the Bordered Yellow Banner.

Of course, Zhang Fu, who didn’t have a turn to go to the battlefield today, didn’t think so at all.

Although the title of Wanhu of the Bordered Yellow Banner definitely belongs to Miao Daorun, there is no way to change it.

However, the son-in-law once accidentally mentioned the word "Eight Banners".

There are still three banners with Wanhu who have not been found yet.

Can I fight for it myself?
At the post-war summary meeting that evening, Zhang Fu asked, "Is your son-in-law interested in Shandong next?"

Zhao Shuo nodded slightly and said, "You can say that."

Zhang Fu said, "Currently, in Shandong, the Jin army and the Red Turban army are engaged in a fierce battle. The most powerful figure in the Red Turban army is named Yang An'er. Yang An'er has occupied Qing, Wei, Mi, and Ju prefectures, proclaimed himself king, and established a system, naming his reign Tianshun.

Yang An'er not only had many skilled and skilled generals and soldiers under his command, but he also had a younger sister named Yang Miaozhen, who was not only beautiful but also had eyes like a cold pond and a face like a peach blossom. She was also a master of the pear blossom spear technique, and was known as unrivaled in the world. Although this claim of being unrivaled was a bit exaggerated, it was true that in Shandong, no one could defeat her in single combat.

Please, Prince Consort, do not reorganize my troops for the time being. Let me lead the charge into Shandong. Destroy the Jin troops and defeat Yang An'er!"

(End of this chapter)