The prince is more stable

Chapter 418 The Enemy Is Disturbing Us
Yelu Yanxi was very young, about the same age as Zhao Xiaoqian.

He had been pampered since childhood, had never been slapped in the face by society, was born into a noble family, and was extremely favored by the emperor. After being named the Crown Prince, he was surrounded by mostly fawning ministers, so naturally he developed a lot of bad habits.

For example, being aloof and arrogant, or looking down on everything.

As the deputy commander of an army, Yelu Yanxi's judgment of the Song army at this time almost determined the fate of the Liao army.

Fortunately, Yelu Yanxi was not the head coach, and fortunately, the head coach was an old fox with rich combat experience.

Yelu Yanxi repeatedly belittled Zhao Xiaoqian and the Song army, but Yelu Chun just listened quietly and did not express any opinion.

No matter how close the uncle and nephew are, this man is the future king of the Liao Dynasty after all. Yelu Chun's emotional intelligence will not be so low as to refute him in person, otherwise how can he survive in the future?
However, Yelu Chun did not comment on Yelu Yanxi's evaluation, and even curled his lips slightly, which showed that he did not agree with what Yelu Yanxi said.

An ironclad fact is that in the wars between Song and Xia, the Song army never suffered a defeat, and even used military force to force the Western Xia to sign a treaty to cede cities and land.

In that battle, the Song army's new firearms appeared to the world for the first time. As a veteran of war, Yelu Chun could not have turned a blind eye.

The quality of the Song army's soldiers may not have been completely transformed, but what is certain is that the Song army's weapons must have been very powerful, and ordinary swords and knives were simply incomparable.

Hundreds of steps away, there was a loud noise, a burst of sparks, a puff of green smoke, and the enemy hundreds of steps away fell to the ground. Such a weapon is simply a divine artifact given by God. Who among mortals can resist it?

This time, all 10,000 Liao troops were wiped out, and not a single one escaped. It must have been because they were defeated by this new weapon.

Yelu Chun became more and more worried and under great pressure. If these 40,000 Liao troops were defeated, he couldn't imagine what would happen to him after returning to Shangjing.

Those ministers who do not obey him and the Crown Prince will probably pounce on him like a pack of hungry wolves and tear him to pieces.

"Your Highness, I'm afraid we have to change our plans." Yelu Chun suddenly sighed.

Yelu Yanxi was stunned. "How? Uncle, are you really scared by Zhao Xiaoqian?"

Yelu Chun showed no joy or anger, but smiled faintly and said, "No matter what enemy we face, we must not underestimate them. Since ancient times, arrogant soldiers have always been defeated. Even if we have the upper hand, we should attack them with all our might, just like a lion attacking a rabbit."

Yelu Yanxi opened his mouth and was about to retort, but then he thought that he was only the deputy commander of this army, and the real decision maker was still his uncle, and he was his assistant, so he had to give him some face.

Yelu Yanxi then asked with a smile, "How is the emperor's uncle going to change his plan?"

Yelu Chun said in a deep voice, "First, the Song State suddenly attacked the Liao army on our border. They launched a war without declaring war and did not abide by the rules. We must send an envoy to Zhending City to condemn Zhao Xiaoqian in person..."

Yelu Yanxi was stunned: "What's the use of this?"

"Of course it works. My Liao was in the right first. They were the ones who broke the Chanyuan Alliance first. In future wars, my Liao will have no worries. We fight in the name of justice, and no one in the world can say anything. The one who is wrong is the Song. When my Liao conquers Zhending in the future, even if we let our troops massacre the city, the Song will deserve it."

Yelu Yanxi thought about it and nodded in agreement.

"Secondly, the troops led by Zhao Xiaoqian are different from the Song army of previous years. Spies report that they are from the Dragon Guard Battalion, one of the four armies in Bianjing. They are fully equipped with firearms. We must not underestimate them. I believe we should send someone to report this to the capital and request Your Majesty to dispatch reinforcements."

Yelu Chun said with a wry smile: "I'm afraid our 40,000 troops are in danger. We need at least 20,000 to 30,000 reinforcements before we can fight."

Yelu Yanxi frowned. "Isn't the Emperor's uncle overestimating the Song army? Is this really necessary? If we go to the capital to ask for help, it will surely give those court officials an excuse to slander and impeach you and me. Even if we make great contributions, I'm afraid they will be completely negated."

Yelu Chun said firmly, "Asking for help may be embarrassing, but it's better than being defeated. Does your Highness understand what I mean?"

Yelu Yanxi hesitated for a moment, then nodded reluctantly: "The emperor's uncle is the commander-in-chief. We will do whatever you say. The army does not need to consider my nephew's status. I am only here to take orders from the emperor's uncle, the deputy commander."

Yelu Chun smiled and said, "The Crown Prince is becoming more and more stable. I am very pleased to leave the future of the Liao Dynasty to you."

"Since the Crown Prince has no objection, I believe we should halt the march, set up camp where we are, and await His Majesty's approval in the capital. What do you think, Crown Prince?"

Yelu Yanxi said indifferently: "Uncle, please do as you please. Since we have set up camp, I will take my guards to hunt nearby to relax."

Yelu Chun said with a smile, "Go ahead. There are wild beasts roaming in the plains nearby. Your Highness, please be careful and don't take any risks."

…………

Zhending Prefecture, the Liao border camp.

Zhao Xiaoqian waited in the camp for two days, but instead of Yelü Chun's Liao army arriving, he received bad news. Scouts from the Imperial City Division and the Dragon Guard Camp reported that Yelü Chun's troops had camped and halted their march two hundred miles from the border of Zhending Prefecture.

Judging from the scale and layout of the Liao army camp, it does not seem to be temporary, but rather a long-term stationing posture.

Zhao Xiaoqian was a little confused by Yelu Chun's actions, and it took him a long time to figure out what Yelu Chun was trying to do.

I have to say that an enemy that is difficult to predict will indeed increase people's pressure.

After receiving the news, Zhao Xiaoqian summoned all the generals of the Longwei Camp to discuss for a long time. Even after everyone put their heads together, they still couldn't guess the motive behind Yelu Chun's staying in place.

Finally, Zhao Xiaoqian got a guess that was closest to the truth. The news that 10,000 Liao troops were annihilated should have reached the Liao army camp. Yelu Chun was frightened. Even though he had 40,000 Liao troops under his command, he still did not dare to advance rashly.

The purpose of staying in place was either to report the news to the capital of Liao or to wait for reinforcements.

After all, it was too easy for the Song army to wipe out 10,000 Liao troops, and it would not be too difficult to defeat another 40,000 Liao troops. In this unfavorable situation, Yelu Chun, who has always been steady in his military style, is most likely to ask for help from Shangjing.

This is the only explanation, and it makes sense.

The 40,000 Liao troops stopped. The two armies were more than 200 miles apart. The generals of the Longwei Camp fell into quarrel again. Some believed that they should take the initiative to advance and force the 40,000 Liao troops into a decisive battle. Others believed that they should be cautious. The Song army had powerful firearms, but they were not suitable for charging into battle. It would be better to wait for the enemy to tire themselves out.

There was a fierce argument in the commander's tent. Each general had his own opinion, but all of them had their reasons.

As the head coach, Zhao Xiaoqian did not express his opinion, but just stared at the map in silence.

The enemy commander used his troops cautiously, so Zhao Xiaoqian did not dare to underestimate him.

Yelu Chun was under tremendous pressure, and so was Zhao Xiaoqian. If he lost this battle, the court in Bianliang would be in an uproar. Even if Zhao Xu trusted him, he would probably be disappointed in him. Under pressure from court officials, he had to dismiss him and recall him to Bianliang.

Zhao Xiaoqian didn't want his life to be dimmed by this battle, and he didn't want to be a rich and leisurely prince like his father.

After pondering for a long time, Zhao Xiaoqian suddenly slammed the table. The generals who were quarreling and cursing in the tent were stunned, and immediately stopped talking and bowed to ask for punishment for the impoliteness.

Zhao Xiaoqian ignored them and said through gritted teeth, "Let's get the fucking vote first!"

The generals were stunned and looked at each other, not understanding what he meant.

Zhao Xiaoqian looked up, his eyes somewhat gloomy, and said slowly: "I'll give you a chance to make a fortune. From today on, except for the 5,000 soldiers stationed in the main camp of the Dragon Guard Camp, all the rest of the troops will be sent out!"

Zhong Jianzhong asked cautiously, "Why are you sending troops out of the camp?"

Zhao Xiaoqian said viciously, "This place was once the Liao army camp. We are now in Liao territory. Since it is not our territory, we don't have to be cautious about what we do."

"In Liao territory, everyone went out to rob: money, food, women, and bring back anything they liked! The general direction of the burning, killing, and looting was north. Many small armies were looting while approaching Yelu Chun's troops, but they couldn't get too close. They would retreat after a maximum of fifty miles."

Zhong Jianzhong was stunned and said, "What the Duke means is..."

Zhao Xiaoqian said coldly, "Since Yelu Chun has backed down, I will take the initiative. I want to test his reaction and burn, kill, and plunder right under his nose to see if he can still sit still."

"He's under pressure, so I'll make it even more stressful. I can't let him stay where he is and wait for reinforcements at his leisure. That's called 'the enemy is stationed, I'm disturbing you'!"

Zhong Jianzhong's eyes lit up. "'The enemy is stationed there to harass us'... Your Excellency is brilliant! This is a brilliant plan! I never thought you, despite your young age, possessed such profound knowledge of military tactics. I truly admire you."

The generals also nodded in approval, their expressions full of admiration.

The corners of Zhao Xiaoqian's mouth twitched slightly.

This is unacceptable! This military strategy was not created by me, but by a great man thousands of years later. How can such a brilliant theory be attributed to him? Absolutely unacceptable!
Then Zhong Jianzhong suddenly frowned and said, "But if Yelu Chun doesn't fall for it and refuses to send any troops, and just watches us burning, killing, and looting in Liao territory, what should we do?"

Zhao Xiaoqian glanced at him and said, "Are you crazy? If Yelu Chun had held back, we would have robbed the money and food and returned. If we had returned with a full load, we wouldn't have suffered any losses."

"What did the Liao Kingdom do to our Song Dynasty? What's the problem with us replicating it exactly?"

(End of this chapter)