The Song Dynasty on the Sand Table

Chapter 265 Giant Eel

In the fourth year of the Jianyan era, 1130 AD, it was late spring and early summer!

Talan, the Left Deputy Marshal of the Jin Dynasty, received another piece of news that nearly drove him to despair.

His son-in-law, Puchagubalu, and his beloved general, Wanyan Teli, fought a fierce battle with Zhang Rong, a hero of Liangshan, at Suotou Lake.

Zhang Rong's troops were familiar with the terrain of Suotou Lake. Taking advantage of the low tide, they lured the Jin soldiers into the shallow water, causing the Jin army's ships to run aground and get stuck in the mud. Zhang Rong then led his troops back to fight and won a great victory.

The Jin army suffered 10,000 casualties in this battle, with Puchagubalu and Wanyan Teli killed in action.

In the original history, this event occurred in 1131, and Talai personally led his army to a defeat. However, in this timeline, because Talai was mocked and forcibly detained in Changyi County by the rebel army of Jiaodong Peninsula, he did not personally lead the army to fight this battle, and the war also came a year earlier.

Time has changed, people have changed, but the outcome remains the same! This is the corrective power of history.

When Talan heard the news, he was completely stunned. His nephew, Jin Wuzhu, suffered a crushing defeat at Huangtiandang and almost couldn't return to Jiangbei. His son-in-law had also died in battle at Suotouhu, and his beloved general, Guwei, had also died in battle at Jiaoshui County...

The Jin Dynasty's dream of swiftly destroying the Song Dynasty and unifying the world was utterly shattered.

For the first time, Talan realized that the Song Dynasty was very large, truly very large.

The Song Dynasty had a vast and magnificent landscape with all sorts of strange terrains. The Jin army was skilled in cavalry warfare, and when they encountered the Song army in places like lakes and marshes, they completely lost their advantage and could only be beaten to a pulp by the Song army.

At this moment...

Talan transformed from a staunch advocate of war into a proponent of peace.

"Withdraw the troops!" Talan waved his hand and gave the order in a depressed mood: "Let's go back to Yanjing. I want to talk to everyone about the Song Dynasty."
-
"The Jin soldiers have retreated."

When the news reached Jiaoshui County, the whole town erupted in cheers and jumped for joy.

Of course, the most excited were the people who had fled from Weizhou and Mizhou.

Many of them had already begun to fantasize that after the Jin army retreated, the Song Dynasty would take the opportunity to launch a counterattack, recapture Weizhou and Mizhou, and they could return to their hometowns, pick up their beloved little hoes, and start cultivating their small plots of land again.

Those in power will certainly understand this expectation.

At this moment, Yue Wenxuan, possessed by Wang Zhaoshi and Gong Erniangzi, along with all the civil and military officials of the rebel army, gathered together for a meeting.

Zhang Yong, a military general, spoke first: "Since the second year of Jianyan, we have set a strategy to defend the Laizhou, Jiaoshui, and Jimo lines to the death. Although the Jin army has retreated, they may come again at any time. How can we think of attacking and seizing territory just because we see a slight weakness?"

Ji Menghan, a member of the civil official faction, said: "The Jin army will retreat for a long time this time. At the earliest, it will be autumn. Only after they have collected a batch of grain can they launch another attack. We have more than half a year, which is enough time to rebuild the defense line. We also have sufficient manpower and resources now. It is not impossible to build a large number of passes and earthen forts in Weizhou and Mizhou to rebuild the defense line."

The military commander Guan Sheng said, "The larger the territory to defend, the more passes and fortresses we need. It's not that easy."

The civil official Qi Chongli said: "But the large number of refugees pouring in from Weizhou and Mizhou has increased our manpower and resources. Now we have more people available. Let these refugees go to Weizhou and Mizhou to build passes and earthen forts to protect their homes. They will be very motivated. I think we can build the defense line in about half a year."

There is a clear division of opinion between the civil and military officials!

Military officers are more concerned with how to win battles, but civil officials have to consider many other things. They not only have to consider expanding the cultivated area, but also many other miscellaneous matters.

Just like in the game "Romance of the Three Kingdoms," military generals only need to focus on "training" and then charge into battle. But civil officials have to develop "agriculture," "commerce," "security," "recruiting and employing talent," and "winning the hearts and minds of the people"... The civil officials all know that there is no future in simply defending the Jiaodong Peninsula!
We must strive for progress!
At this moment, Wu Jialiang, who was skilled in both literature and martial arts, spoke up: "Young Master Yue, how long do you think it will be before the Jin bandits return this time?"

His question hit the nail on the head!

We must strive for progress, but the key question is when the Jin invaders will arrive.

If the next time comes too quickly, then any ambition is just wishful thinking; if the next time comes after a long interval, then why not?

What's more interesting is that Wu Jialiang didn't ask Wang Zhaoshi, but rather Yue Gongzi, who was standing in the corner of the room, pretending to be dead without saying a word or moving.

The question was too abrupt, so Yue Wenxuan had to switch his focus to his life-size figurine, stepping out from the corner of the room with a smile: "Why is Mr. Jia Liang asking me this?"

Qi Chongli was also curious: "Yes, how do we ask Young Master Yue?"

Wu Jialiang's expression was strange: "I don't believe anyone else's predictions, I only believe Young Master Yue."

Qi Chongli: “???”

Yue Wenxuan shrugged: "Excessive trust will put pressure on me."

To be honest, I'm feeling a little pressured.

He used to be able to make any "predictions" without hesitation, but the early arrival of the victory at Suotouhu a year earlier has made him more cautious about making predictions now, fearing that the "history" he knows might deviate significantly from the present timeline, which could be fatal.

Yue Wenxuan: "Brother Guan Sheng, do you still have any connections you can use in Jinan?"

Guan Sheng shook his head: "There aren't many people we can use."

Yue Wenxuan: "I remember you had an old subordinate, Liu Sanlang or something, a soldier from Jinan. He came to join us before the war with the Jin army. Can you call him over and ask him about it?"

Guan Sheng quickly went to call someone over. Liu Sanlang had shaved his head a few months ago, but after these past few months, a layer of short hair had grown on his head, and now he really looked like a monk who had returned to secular life.

Guan Sheng asked, "Liu Sanlang, do you have any relatives or friends in Jinan?"

Liu Sanlang quickly replied, "Yes, I am a native soldier of Jinan Prefecture, and I still have many old neighbors and friends living there."

“Very good. Take the risk and go back to Jinan to help us establish a news outpost,” Yue Wenxuan said.

Liu Sanlang was a little nervous: "Being a spy? I'm not good at that."

"No, no, no, it's not about being a spy." Yue Wenxuan laughed. "You don't need to find out any military intelligence. That's not important. Just mingle among the common people, interact with all sorts of people, and pay attention to the various rumors circulating in Jinan. Just keep an eye out for one thing: whether any of the local fishermen in Jinan have caught a giant eel in the next few months as a sign of good fortune and presented it to the local officials. If so, come back and report immediately."

Upon hearing this, everyone was completely bewildered: "What does this mean?"

Yue Wenxuan: "This is a secret of heaven, and secrets of heaven must not be revealed! Everyone, get ready. If Liu Sanlang reports that he has caught a giant eel in Jinan, we will immediately send troops to occupy Weizhou and Mizhou."

(End of this chapter)