The prince is more stable

Chapter 422: Breaking the Promise and Sending Troops
Song army camp.

The soldiers of the Dragon Guard Camp have been ordered to return to the camp in batches. After entering the camp, the soldiers gathered together and laughed heartily.

It can be seen from their happy faces that they did not let down the opportunity to make a fortune given to them by Zhao Xiaoqian. Obviously, the soldiers all made some money.

The money looted was relatively small, but the spoils were plentiful.

Cattle, sheep, furs, precious herbs, grain, horses, etc. can all be taken to Zhending City and exchanged for money with merchants.

Even the Liao women who were captured could be traded. There were slaves in this world, but they could not be traded openly.

After just one expedition, the soldiers became much richer. After returning to the camp, the soldiers were grateful and respectful to Zhao Xiaoqian from the bottom of their hearts.

Soldiers these days might be described as simple, but they're actually not that simple. They shout slogans about loyalty to the emperor and patriotism, but no one takes them seriously. There's no concept of "serving the people," and bullying and looting are common.

But no matter what era, people's love and admiration for their financial sponsors are unconcealed and completely sincere.

Without being modest, Zhao Xiaoqian is now the financial backer of all the soldiers in the Dragon Guard Battalion.

As long as they didn't cross the line with Duke Zhao, and as long as they left the borders of the Song Dynasty, they could do whatever they wanted. More importantly, they didn't have to hand over the loot; it all belonged to them. Where could you find such a reasonable sponsor?
The soldiers returned to the camp happily, while generals such as Zhong Jianzhong entered the commander's tent.

The generals met and exchanged greetings.

For some reason, the commander's tent fell into an awkward silence.

After a long moment, Zhao Xiaoqian sighed and said, "Old Zhong, at your age, you should have long since passed the stage of puberty. Tell us what you were thinking at the time, and why did you have to shoot that arrow?"

Zhong Jianzhong looked very embarrassed and smiled bitterly, "Seeing that Khitan man laughing so happily on his horse, I was furious. I didn't want him to be so happy, so I couldn't help but try my skills..."

Zhao Xiaoqian sighed, "He's an envoy from Liao, coming into my camp to discuss matters. When two countries are at war, envoys shouldn't be executed. Haven't you heard that?"

Zhong Jianzhong confidently said, "I only shot the horse's buttocks and did not harm the Liao envoy in the slightest. Did I execute him?"

Zhao Xiaoqian was stunned.

Huh? This statement seems to be completely logically sound.

"Since he wasn't beheaded, then it's okay." Zhao Xiaoqian immediately threw Xiao Zhengyou out of his mind.

"My Lord, what did the Liao envoy say when he entered the camp?"

Zhao Xiaoqian sneered and repeated Xiao Zhengyou's words from the beginning.

When the generals in the tent heard this, they immediately started discussing it.

Zhong Jianzhong frowned and said, "This is Yelu Chun's delaying tactic. The Duke should not trust it."

"Yelu Chun must be waiting for reinforcements from the capital, so he sent envoys to negotiate peace and deliberately keep us calm. Once the Liao reinforcements arrive, Yelu Chun will immediately launch an attack."

Zhao Xiaoqian sneered, "You all saw it, didn't I? Yelu Chun is using a delaying tactic. Clearly, he has no confidence in his 40,000 troops, and he's even more wary of our firearms, so he doesn't dare act rashly. If we wait for Liao to send reinforcements, it will take at least two weeks."

Zhao Xiaoqian's expression suddenly grew serious as he spoke, and he said in a cold voice, "Our goal now is to wipe out Yelu Chun's 40,000 troops before the Liao reinforcements arrive! We must at least annihilate most of them."

The generals in the tent were suddenly excited, everyone looked excited and ready to fight.

Zhao Xiaoqian looked around at everyone and said, "I summoned you back to camp to gather our main forces and prevent them from being dispersed. Everyone, the real battle is about to begin."

"The previously formulated tactics of luring the enemy were originally based on the premise that Yelu Chun's troops would continue to march. Now that Yelu Chun's troops are stationed, our tactics must also be changed."

Zhao Xiaoqian looked at Zhang Rong and Zhe Keshi and said, "Each of you will lead 5,000 soldiers and horses. Tomorrow morning, leave the camp and march north towards Yelu Chun's troops. Split your forces fifty miles apart and attack from the left and right, forming a pincer attack to strangle Yelu Chun's flanks."

Then he looked at the two commanders of the Zhending Prefecture's garrison troops, Shao Jing and Feng Sheng, and said, "Tomorrow, you two will lead 5,000 troops north and approach Yelu Chun's main camp head-on. After harassing them, immediately retreat and lure Yelu Chun to pursue you. Regardless of whether he sends troops or not, your garrison troops will retreat immediately."

Shao Jing and the other man stood up and clasped their fists to receive the order.

Finally, Zhao Xiaoqian looked at Zhong Jianzhong and said, "The remaining 20,000 Dragon Guards are in your hands. Tomorrow, march north and form up about ten miles behind the Xiang army. Regardless of whether the Xiang army succeeds in luring the enemy, the 20,000 Dragon Guards will march forward and attack Yelu Chun's main camp."

Zhong Jianzhong accepted the order excitedly, then said nervously, "Didn't the Duke just promise the Liao envoy that the two countries would temporarily cease hostilities?"

Zhao Xiaoqian sneered: "Can you believe what I promised? I swear like I'm eating cabbage. Anyone who believes me is a fool. Just ask the women in my family, who still believes my oath now?"

Zhong Jianzhong: “…………”

Zhao Xiaoqian paused and said, "Of course, I still have to give an explanation. I clearly promised someone something, but then I changed my mind for no reason. This is not good. It makes me look like a traitor. I don't want people to misunderstand me like that..."

Zhong Jianzhong twitched the corner of his mouth and said, "Don't be so modest. Can you remove the word 'seems'?"
"How about this? Let's tell everyone that a battalion of a hundred men from our Song army disappeared near Yelu Chun's camp. Yeah, that's right, they disappeared!"

"The Duke of Zhao of the Song Dynasty was furious and ordered his entire army to march out to find the whereabouts of this battalion. Anyone who dared to stop them would be guilty of incriminating themselves, and the Song Dynasty army would destroy them with swords."

The generals in the tent looked at each other in astonishment. Other commanders employed troops with either caution or aggressiveness, but the essence of our Lord Zhao's military tactics seemed to be summed up in two words.

Shameless.

…………

The next day, before dawn, the Dragon Guard Camp was already bustling with noise.

The general shouted harshly and cursed while counting the soldiers, preparing food and weapons, counting firearms and ammunition, feeding the horses and putting on armor, and was busy all the time.

Half an hour later, a hint of dawn appeared in the sky, and 30,000 soldiers from the Dragon Guard Battalion marched out of the camp. The soldiers were in high spirits and morale was high. Everyone's face was filled with smiles and the fierceness before the war.

This time, Zhao Xiaoqian also followed Zhong Jianzhong's troops out of the camp.

There is no other way. No matter how lazy a person is, he cannot be too careless at such an important juncture of the battle. He still has to personally supervise the battle, otherwise it will be difficult to explain whether he wins or loses.

After the army left the camp, it was immediately divided into three parts. Zhang Rong and Zhe Keshi each led 5,000 soldiers and separated from the main army, heading towards the east and west respectively.

The remaining 20,000 troops continued to advance northward under the command of Zhong Jianzhong, approaching Yelu Chun's troops 200 miles away.

Zhao Xiaoqian followed the army, riding his horse in the middle of the team. His expression was very calm and he didn't seem to be worried about the outcome.

As the head coach at this time, what is he most concerned about?
Of course it's personal safety, but what about the country?
While riding his horse, Zhao Xiaoqian turned his head and gave earnest instructions to Chen Shou and Jia Shi who were riding side by side with him.

"After the two armies begin fighting, you must protect me. Of course, I won't be leading the charge. I'll stay behind the army and do that... well, plan and strategize. But just in case, even though the rear is safer, you still can't slack off."

Chen Shou and Jia Shi nodded solemnly.

Zhao Xiaoqian continued to instruct them, worriedly, "Remember, if our army shows even the slightest sign of retreat, you must immediately grab me and flee towards Zhending City. As the saying goes, 'As long as the green mountains remain, there's no need to worry about running out of firewood.' Without being modest, I am that towering 'green mountain.'"

Chen Shou and Jia Shi's expressions were a little tense, but they still responded obediently.

Zhao Xiaoqian continued, "If you try to pull me away and I pretend to struggle, yelling nonsense like 'Don't pull me away, I swear to live and die with my soldiers,' don't believe me. It's all just empty talk. Just obey the call of my heart and run for your life."

As he was giving detailed instructions to the two of them, a helpless sigh came from behind Zhao Xiaoqian.

When he turned around, he saw Zhong Jianzhong riding a horse behind him with a frown on his face and his cheeks twitching as if he had suffered a stroke.

"My Lord, you are truly... Let's not talk about whether or not you are shameless. Let's just say that your discouraging words show that you have too little confidence in our brothers in the Dragon Guard Battalion."

Zhao Xiaoqian smiled awkwardly, "Don't be offended, Old Zhong. I've always been a thoughtful person. I always think about failure before I think about victory. It's always right to plan ahead."

Zhong Jianzhong sighed again. "You were the one who deployed the tactics, you arranged the troops, and you even came up with this shameless excuse for starting a war. Now, before the two armies even start fighting, you're already planning to flee. What a terrible commander..."

Of course, Zhao Xiaoqian didn't care what he thought. When the two armies were fighting, his own life must be the first priority.

Zhao Xiaoqian then turned to Chen Shou and Jia Shi and said sternly, "Don't let me bother you. Remember my words: when it's time to flee, you must kill decisively without hesitation."

Chen Shoujia nodded obediently: "Yeah!"

Zhong Jianzhong followed behind, silently looking up at the sky and sighing desolately.

…………

The snow on the road had not melted yet, making the road difficult to travel.

The army had been on the march for two days and had only barely traveled a hundred miles, and was still about a hundred miles away from Yelu Chun's camp.

The entire Song army was dispatched and when they reached a distance of one hundred miles, Yelu Chun's troops were finally in an uproar.

Because there were countless Liao scouts patrolling and investigating in this area, it was impossible for the Song army to hide such a large-scale troop movement from the Liao scouts.

When the news was reported to Yelu Chun, Yelu Chun was first in disbelief, then flew into a rage. He immediately called Xiao Zhengyou into the general's tent and started cursing at him.

Didn't the two countries agree on a temporary ceasefire? What's going on now?

Calculating the time and distance of the Song army's departure, it can be almost concluded that the entire Song army set out on the second day after Xiao Zhengyou left the Song camp and headed straight for the Liao army camp.

So, what did you talk about? Did you just talk about loneliness?
Zhao Xiaoqian promised something, then broke it the next moment. What kind of integrity is that? He's worse than a scumbag who took off his pants.

At least the scumbag broke his promise only after he put on his pants. What about Zhao Xiaoqian?

Did you even get in? You're so impatient to break your promise.

(End of this chapter)