I traveled with them to the Northern Song Dynasty

Chapter 172 Two-front victories, showcasing national prestige

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Only after being persuaded by the concubines of the harem, including Xiao Sese, Xiao Duolilan, Xiao Guige, and Xiao Shigu, did Yelü Yanxi allow Xiao Changge to send two envoys to Xiongzhou to hold them accountable.

Xiao Changge feared that Zhao Yu would kill the envoy he had sent, which would leave no room for maneuver and would lead to a full-scale war. Therefore, he sent Xiao Fengxian, who had successfully served as an envoy to the Song Dynasty and who had a good impression of Zhao Yu, and the Han official Zuo Qigong to Xiongzhou to meet with Zhao Yu.

Xiao Fengxian and Zuo Qigong arrived at the Baigou River. Fearing they might be accidentally injured, they raised a large banner with the words "Peace Negotiation" written in both Khitan and Chinese characters.

There is a bridge over the Baigou River. The southern end of the bridge is controlled by the Song army, and the northern end is controlled by the Liao army.

The "Peace Negotiation" banner carried by Xiao Fengxian's entourage fluttered in the wind, and Xiao Fengxian and Zuo Qigong, hiding behind several attendants carrying shields, crossed the river with trepidation.

Fan Chun sent someone to meet Xiao Fengxian and Zuo Qigong, and then sent a message to Xiongzhou, asking the Xuanfu Division to send an envoy to welcome Xiao Fengxian and Zuo Qigong to Xiongzhou.

Under Fan Chun's arrangement, Xiao Fengxian, Zuo Qigong, and their group were first placed in a remote military camp of the Eastern Route Army.

Zuo Qigong also wanted to take the opportunity to check on the situation of the Song army.

Unexpectedly, the men sent by Fan Chun did not give Xiao Fengxian and Zuo Qigong any chance to make contact with the Song army, and once they entered the camp, they were immediately taken into custody.

Seeing this, Zuo Qigong could only give up in frustration.

Just as Xiao Fengxian, Zuo Qigong, and their party were anxiously waiting in the Eastern Route Army's camp for the envoy to come and take them to Xiongzhou, the sounds of fierce fighting suddenly came from afar.

Xiao Fengxian was greatly alarmed and hurriedly stepped out of the tent to ask the guards, "May I ask, what is the reason for this?"

The guard replied firmly, "Please go back and rest, Ambassador."

As he said this, the guard placed his hand on the hilt of his sword.

Seeing this, Xiao Fengxian had no choice but to obediently retreat to his tent.

……

Let's turn back the clock two hours.

Wang Shan, the commander of the Western Route Army, was always a very enterprising and ambitious general.

In his early years, Wang Shan was convicted of misappropriating a reward. To atone for his crime, he secretly devised a plan to seize Qingtang. He led his army to capture Miaochuan and persuaded Xia Zheng to surrender. Later, he occupied Qingtang. The Song Dynasty renamed Qingtang as Shanzhou and Miaochuan as Huangzhou. For his merits, Wang Shan was promoted to the positions of Commissioner of the Four Directions Pavilion, Defense Commissioner of Rongzhou, and Prefect of Shanzhou. He was later appointed Military Commissioner of Weizhou and Circuit Intendant.

Unexpectedly, Wang Shan was a typical Western Army general. He later allowed his subordinates to plunder, which led to the Qiang people's rebellion. They joined forces with the Western Xia to besiege Miaochuan. The Song army suffered repeated losses of generals. He was then impeached by the transport commissioner for stealing property and killing to cover up the crime. He was demoted to Right Thousand Ox General and exiled to Fangzhou. Later, he was exiled to Changhua Army.

Just when Wang Shan was at the lowest point in his life, unable to bear the humiliation and preparing to end his own life, Zhao Yu ascended the throne and pardoned Wang Shan, thus saving his life.

Zhao Yu not only pardoned Wang Shan, but also, recognizing Wang Shan's aggressive nature, promoted him to the position of general of the Western Auxiliary Army, giving Wang Shan a chance to turn the tide.

Of course, Zhao Yu also personally warned Wang Shan that he could no longer use the same methods he used to lead the Western Army to lead the New Army. He even gave Wang Shan the military regulations and disciplines of the New Army compiled by Li Lin and told him to memorize them and follow them.

Wang Shan always wanted to repay Zhao Yu's great kindness in recognizing his talent and favor.

Coincidentally, Zhao Yu once again entrusted Wang Shan with his forte: finding opportunities to strike first and defeating the Liao army, which had not yet assembled. He also instructed them to focus solely on fighting, promising rewards for victories and punishments for defeats.

In Wang Shan's view, this was a golden opportunity for him to repay Zhao Yu's kindness and a perfect chance for him to turn his life around.

Therefore, after arriving in Fancun, Wang Shan kept studying how to defeat the Liao army and avenge his previous defeat.

Wang Shan learned from a captured Liao spy that Liao general Xiao Tabu also led 30,000 Liao cavalry to be stationed northeast of Fancun.

Xiao Ta was also a famous general of the Liao Dynasty, who played a certain role in resisting foreign enemies and maintaining domestic stability.

After several days of stalemate, the Song army, which had been actively looking for an opportunity to attack, took advantage of the fact that the Liao army had not yet fully assembled and launched a preemptive strike against them.

Xiao Tabu also stationed his troops on Beigushan Mountain, with 30,000 Liao cavalry arrayed in three routes to defend the area. Many Liao cavalry even carried three or four horses with them.

Wang Shan personally led his elite cavalry to garrison the summit of Nan Gushan Mountain, surveying the terrain and developing battle plans.

At the start of the war, Wang Shan ordered a 300-man heavy cavalry unit to descend the mountain and challenge the Liao army. The Liao army did not back down and, under the command of Xiao Tabuye, a 300-man heavy cavalry unit also descended the mountain and charged forward.

Just as the two sides were locked in a fierce battle, Wang Shan ordered Zhong Shizhong and Zhe Yanzhi to lead the rear guard of the Divine Machine Army to fight.

The rear guard of the Shenji Army used tiger-crouching cannons in conjunction with divine crossbows to fire, and the Liao army's heavy cavalry were hit by bullets and arrows and fell from their horses, and the vanguard showed signs of collapse.

Yao Gu led the vanguard cavalry of the Western Auxiliary Army in pursuit, but was counterattacked by the Liao army. Yao Gu was hit by an arrow and retreated.

At the same time, Wang Shan ordered the left wing of the Western Auxiliary Army to attack the right wing of the Liao army, but this also failed to achieve a breakthrough.

The rear guard of the Shenji Army continued to advance, inflicting heavy casualties on the Liao army.

Taking advantage of the situation, Wang Shan ordered the right wing of the Western Auxiliary Army to attack the left wing of the Liao army. The two sides' cavalry clashed fiercely, resulting in casualties on both sides. Ge Gu, the commander of the right wing of the Western Auxiliary Army, fought valiantly and died.

It is evident that the Liao army was quite powerful in combat.

Seeing that the battle between the Song and Liao armies had reached a fever pitch, Wang Shan personally led several thousand elite cavalrymen from the central army of the Western Auxiliary Army, charging straight from the mountaintop into the center of the Liao army's main force.

The Liao army only began to collapse completely after being attacked by this fresh force.

The morale of the Song army soared, and the entire army launched a surprise attack, killing more than ten of their generals and leaders, beheading thousands of enemy soldiers, and capturing more than 100,000 cattle, sheep, camels, and horses.

The remnants of the Liao army fled north.

The Song army pursued their victory for dozens of miles and captured more than a thousand Liao soldiers alive.

Seeing that fighting had broken out on the western front, Gao Yongnian, the commander of the eastern front, could no longer hold back.

Gao Yongnian was a non-Han Chinese, and when Wang Shan attacked Qing Tang, Gao Yongnian led the non-Han troops as the vanguard. During Zong Ge's rebellion, he led over a thousand cavalry directly to the city, opened up the Shengzhang Gorge road, repelled the rebellious Qiang, and repeatedly repelled the Qiang's fierce attacks. In addition, he fought alongside generals such as Miao Lü and Yao Xiong, engaging the Qiang in battles at Xilan Zongbao, Dungu, and Qiangou, displaying great bravery. He once single-handedly charged forward with his spear, killing the Qiang chieftain Biao Jisi amidst a massive enemy force, causing the enemy to flee in the night. He was undoubtedly a fierce general.

Later, when Wang Hou recovered the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, he sent Gao Yongnian with 20,000 troops out of Jingyuguan Pass to capture Anchuan Fort and reach Huangzhou, where Gao Yongnian was appointed as the prefect. In the battle against Xisheluosa, Gao Yongnian led the vanguard in a charge, defeating the Qiang army and assisting in the pacification of Shanzhou.

Unlike Wang Shan, who was appointed to the Fourth Army by Zhao Yu at the lowest point in his life, Gao Yongnian was appointed to the Fourth Army as a general when he had already achieved great success.

Historically, he was betrayed by the familiar soldiers he had recruited, captured by the Qiang people, and later killed by Doroba, who dug out his heart and liver to eat.

Zhao Yu was well aware of this matter, so when Zhang Chun recommended Gao Yongnian to serve as the General of the Eastern Auxiliary Army, Zhao Yu immediately agreed.

Although Gao Yongnian was a non-Han Chinese, he was highly Sinicized and authored "Yuanfu Longyou Lu," making significant contributions to the Song Dynasty's wars on the northwestern border. He was a man of both literary and military talent, and utterly loyal. After the western front campaign began, Yelü Wotela, a Liao general on the eastern front, secretly dispatched a light cavalry force of 3,000 men to reinforce the western front.

Yelü Wotel served under Emperor Daozong and Emperor Yanxi of the Liao Dynasty. He made significant contributions to military affairs, including campaigns against tribes such as the Zubu, which helped stabilize the Liao Dynasty's borders.

Yelü Wotelai was well aware that if the Song army on the eastern front were to engage him in battle at this time, it would affect the morale of the Liao army on his side.

However, Yelü Wotela believed that he had secretly transferred these three thousand troops, and the Song army should not have been able to detect his small actions. Even if they had, they might not have been able to seize the opportunity.

If these 3,000 men were to appear on the western front, they could greatly boost the morale of the Liao army and even turn the tide of battle.

Little did they know, the Song army possessed telescopes, and Gao Yongnian constantly ordered his men to use these telescopes to observe the movements of the Liao army on the opposite bank.

This allowed Gao Yongnian to learn about Yelü Wotela's underhanded tactics immediately.

Gao Yongnian immediately ordered: "Form ranks and go into battle!"

Fan Chun was still a little hesitant. He asked, "Should we wait a little longer? What if it's a trick by the enemy..."

Gao Yongnian asserted, "Even if it's an enemy's scheme, we have 50,000 troops at our disposal, plus the Divine Machine Army, while they only have 30,000 men. What is there to fear?"

The new army had a dual-command system, and Li Lin had established this rule from the very beginning: the supervising officer had the final say in peacetime, while the general had the final say in wartime.

Therefore, Fan Chun had no choice but to fully cooperate with Gao Yongnian's decision to fight.

Soon, the vanguard of the Eastern Auxiliary Army began firing at the Liao army, arrows raining down.

The Liao army was caught completely off guard and suffered countless casualties.

Meanwhile, the Shenji Vanguard Army, led by Liu Zhongwu and Zhong Shidao, launched an attack on the river bridge.

Gao Yongnian then specifically ordered the left wing of the Eastern Auxiliary Army to detour to the upper reaches of the Baigou River, find a shallow place to cross the river, and prepare to launch a surprise attack on the Liao army.

Upon seeing this, Liao general Yelü Wotel's expression changed drastically. He never expected the Song army to detect his movements so quickly and react so swiftly. He hurriedly ordered his men to reorganize their formation and prepare for battle, but in the chaos, orders were not effectively communicated, and the Liao army's formation was thrown into disarray.

Gao Yongnian stood at the front of the battle, his telescope clearly showing the Liao army's every move. He waved his command flag, giving orders with composure.

"Pass down the order: the Shenji Vanguard must accelerate its advance and cross the river bridge before the Liao reinforcements arrive!"

At this moment, arrows rained down along the banks of the Baigou River.

The crossbowmen of the Eastern Auxiliary Army's vanguard carried out their volleys in an orderly fashion, the sound of arrows piercing the air mingling with the screams of the Liao soldiers.

Under the leadership of Liu Zhongwu and Zhong Shidao, the Shenji Vanguard Army, like a sharp blade, plunged straight into the river bridge.

The Song army's divine crossbows and tiger-crouching cannons had a range far exceeding that of the Liao army's bows and arrows, and the dense rain of arrows and cannonballs kept the Liao army from raising their heads.

Taking advantage of this gap, the Shenji Army rushed across the Baigou River Bridge and, together with the Dongfu Army's left wing coming from upstream, surrounded the Liao army.

Seeing the situation deteriorate rapidly, Yelü Wotel was extremely anxious. He knew that if he could not stabilize the situation in a short time, the Liao army would surely collapse. Therefore, he personally led his elite troops, intending to break through the Song army's encirclement with his best forces and boost morale.

However, Gao Yongnian had anticipated Yelü Wotela's move. He ordered the right wing of the Eastern Auxiliary Army to cross the river at a shallow point downstream and flank the enemy from the side, forming a three-pronged attack with the Shenji Vanguard Army and the left wing of the Eastern Auxiliary Army.

Although Yelü Wotela's personal guards were brave, they gradually became overwhelmed by the Song army's relentless offensive.

The key issue was that the Shenji Vanguard's firepower was too intense; in direct combat, the Liao army simply couldn't withstand it.

On the battlefield, the sounds of explosions, shouts of battle, clashing weapons, and neighing warhorses mingled together, creating a deafening roar.

The Song soldiers fought bravely and relentlessly, their eyes gleaming with a desire for victory, while the Liao army gradually succumbed to despair, their morale plummeted, and signs of defeat were already evident.

At this moment, Gao Yongnian personally led the central and rear armies of the Eastern Auxiliary Army across the river and launched a general offensive.

The Song soldiers were like tigers descending the mountain, unstoppable.

Seeing that the situation was not good, Yelü Wotera tried to break through the encirclement and escape, but was stopped by a junior general of the Song army. The two fought for only a few rounds before Yelü Wotera was captured alive.

With their commander captured, the morale of the Liao army plummeted, and they collapsed in disarray.

Gao Yongnian ordered all his cavalry to launch a surprise attack, which continued until they reached the walls of Xincheng before returning with the captured prisoners.

In this battle, the Eastern Route Army killed and captured thousands of Liao soldiers, and seized more than 100,000 cattle, sheep, camels and horses before returning home.

Zhang Xun and Fan Chunquan successively sent fast horses to Xiongzhou to report the victory to Zhao Yu, and at the same time requested permission to push the battle line forward.

Upon receiving the news of the victory, Zhao Yu was overjoyed and immediately promoted Wang Shan and Gao Yongnian to military governors, and Zhang Xun and Fan Chun to military commissioners. Others who had made meritorious contributions were to be counted and promoted and rewarded as soon as possible.

Meanwhile, based on the suggestions of Zeng Bu and others, Zhao Yu permitted both the Eastern Route Army and the Western Route Army to move towards Zhuozhou as their next target, awaiting Guo Cheng's command to capture Zhuozhou...

Three days later, after the Eastern Route Army had finished resting and set off, Zheng Yunzhong and Ma Zhengcai, the accompanying officials, came to pick up Xiao Fengxian and Zuo Qigong.

Zheng Yunzhong was quite active in diplomatic affairs at this time. He participated in diplomatic activities between the Song and Liao dynasties on many occasions and played a certain role in handling some diplomatic matters. The Liao people were very familiar with him, so Zhao Yu sent him to serve as an accompanying envoy.

Ma Zheng was the father of Ma Kuo, a famous foreign minister during the Song Dynasty.

After Zheng Yunzhong and Ma Zheng received Xiao Fengxian and Zuo Qigong, Xiao Fengxian, who was full of questions, hurriedly asked, "The sounds of battle yesterday resounded through the sky. I wonder how the battle went?"

Zheng Yunzhong smiled slightly, his expression filled with pride: "Yesterday, the two fronts were attacked simultaneously, and our army won great victories on both fronts. On the eastern front, we even captured your commander-in-chief Yelü Wotera alive, which has enhanced our national prestige."

Xiao Fengxian and Zuo Qigong were shocked! They never expected that the Liao army would be defeated on both fronts, and even the famous Liao general Yelü Wotera was captured by the Song army!

Xiao Fengxian and Zuo Qigong quickly pressed for details.

Zheng Yunzhong and Ma Zheng, who wanted to intimidate Xiao Fengxian and Zuo Qigong, did not hide anything and told them everything they knew that did not need to be kept secret.

Upon hearing this, Xiao Fengxian and Zuo Qigong felt a chill in their hearts. They knew that their mission this time was likely to be in vain.

Fortunately, judging from the reception they received along the way, the Song Dynasty attached great importance to their visit. Regardless of their true purpose, at least in terms of formality, the Song Dynasty maintained impeccable etiquette. This gave them a glimmer of hope amidst their despair…

……

(End of this chapter)