The prince is more stable

Chapter 454: Sword Pointing at Flying Fox
As Zhao Xiaoqian returned to the Longwei Camp, the atmosphere in the camp suddenly became tense.

Ordinary soldiers may not know this, but the generals of the Dragon Guard Camp all know that the army is about to set out again, and this time the target is the Feihu Bingmasi.

The army rested for more than ten days, and Zhao Xiaoqian upgraded the firearms. Now the morale of the Longwei Camp is high.

The Firearms Bureau has been very busy these days and has finally produced 100,000 paper shell bullets, which are enough to deal with a medium-sized war.

The soldiers trained day and night to adapt to the feel of the new firearms. After trying them themselves, the soldiers were excited about the upgraded firearms.

Today, the range of new firearms can reach 400 steps. More importantly, the emergence of paper shell bullets has greatly shortened the time for loading and reloading. The battlefield situation changes rapidly. The time saved can increase the chance of victory by at least 30% and greatly reduce casualties.

After the soldiers of the entire army tried the new firearms, they gave it rave reviews.

The entire Longwei Camp is now filled with an inexplicable sense of excitement. Every ordinary soldier is extremely excited. With the new firearms in hand, they can truly be called invincible. The Liao army that once dominated the world is nothing but a bunch of chickens and clay dogs in front of the soldiers of the Longwei Camp.

With morale soaring, the soldiers were even more eager to fight than the generals.

They knew very well that if the Dragon Guard Battalion went to war with the Liao Army, it would mean an opportunity in their lives.

They need military merit, money, conquering cities and expanding territory more urgently than the generals.

For this army with lax discipline but terrifying combat power, every war means accumulation of wealth, and the income is quite substantial. With the new firearms, the risk of war is not great. Who would not want such a great opportunity?
The next day, Zhao Xiaoqian beat the drum to gather his generals and discuss matters in his tent.

After three drum beats, all the generals arrived. Zhao Xiaoqian sat in the commander's tent, looking at the energetic generals, and the smile on his face deepened.

"Generals, I have decided that all of you will return to the camp today to review the troops, and the logistics department will prepare food, fodder, weapons and ammunition. We will march north early tomorrow morning. Our army's next target is the Feihu Bingmasi!" Zhao Xiaoqian said slowly.

The generals were excited and stood up, clasped their fists and shouted in unison: "As ordered!"

Zhao Xiaoqian nodded and said, "If nothing unexpected happens, the 30,000-plus Liao troops at Feihu Military Command should have been transferred north. There are no more than 5,000 defenders left at the command. Our army can capture them in one fell swoop."

The generals looked puzzled and didn't understand why His Royal Highness the Prince said this. Feihu Bingmasi was an important southern gateway to the Liao Kingdom. How could he transfer the troops away for no reason?

Zhao Xiaoqian smiled and said, "For reasons of confidentiality, I can't say much, but I can confirm that the Feihu Military Commission has indeed transferred 30,000 Liao troops. Yesterday, scouts reported that 30,000 Liao troops have crossed the Juma River to the north and are holding their ground on the north bank. The Feihu Military Commission now only has a few thousand soldiers."

Zhao Xiaoqian had kept the capture of the Liao crown prince a secret. Even when Yelu Yanxi was imprisoned in the Longwei Camp, Zhao Xiaoqian had issued a strict order that no one was allowed to approach or spy on Yelu Yanxi's tent.

Therefore, the generals of the Dragon Guard Camp only knew that there was a person imprisoned in the baggage camp, but they did not know the identity of this person and why His Royal Highness the Prince treated him so carefully.

As for the secret negotiations between Zhao Xiaoqian and Yelu Chun, it was even more impossible for him to let anyone know. Once the matter was leaked, the whole thing would be meaningless and the Song Dynasty would gain nothing.

Until this point, Zhao Xiaoqian still had not revealed the matter of the Liao Crown Prince. He could keep the matter to himself, and the Song Dynasty only needed to gain victory and benefits.

After a moment's silence, Zhao Xiaoqian continued, "Although I am confident that I can capture the Feihu Army, there are some things that we must guard against, so we must prepare in advance..."

"Zhang Rong, where are Generals Zhe Keshi and Zhe Keshi?"

The two stood up excitedly: "I am here!"

"I order you two to each lead 5,000 soldiers and horses, with ammunition and rations. Leave camp at midnight tonight and march quickly towards the Feihu Military Headquarters. Once you are five miles away from the headquarters, advance from the east and west to encircle us."

"Not only must you determine in advance whether there are any Liao ambushes nearby, but you must also eliminate any Liao scouts in the vicinity to create a pincer attack on the Feihu Army."

The two generals clasped their fists and said solemnly: "As ordered!"

Zhao Xiaoqian smiled and looked around at the generals: "Everyone, tomorrow we will see the soldiers of the Dragon Guard Battalion achieve another victory. From now on, the territory of the Great Song Dynasty will expand again. A full 400 miles south of the Juma River will soon be incorporated into the territory of the Great Song Dynasty."

"I congratulate you all in advance. The military's merit book is waiting for you. Fight bravely and your achievements will be reflected in the merit book. You will be promoted, rich, and even awarded a title. Your personal future depends on your own efforts. For the benefit of future generations, don't be afraid when it comes to risking your lives."

The generals shouted excitedly: "Kill!"

The roar from the commander's tent spread out, and many soldiers in the camp heard it and asked curiously.

Not knowing what was happening in the general's tent, many soldiers excitedly speculated that the army might be about to go on an expedition.

After the soldiers tried the new firearms, the entire army was eager to try them out and wanted to show their skills on the battlefield. Of course, more importantly, killing enemies on the battlefield meant military merit and huge benefits.

If we fight a few more battles with the Liao army, will there still be poor people in the Dragon Guard? In the future, everyone will be rich, so we can just change the name to "The Wealthy Corps".

…………

That night, just after midnight, Zhang Rong and Zhe Keshi had already assembled their troops. In the quiet camp, 10,000 soldiers of the Dragon Guard Battalion lined up in neat rows. In the silent night, only the impatient neighing of the war horses could be heard.

After inspecting the troops, the second general ordered an equipment check, and with a final wave of his hand, ordered the troops to march.

In the dark night, ten thousand soldiers of the Dragon Guard Camp quietly left the camp and went their separate ways.

The next morning, the remaining 20,000-plus Dragon Guard Battalion soldiers were fully equipped and lined up for orders. Among these 20,000 men were the 10,000 former imperial guards from Zhending City, who had been incorporated into the Dragon Guard Battalion only a few days earlier. Before departing, Zhao Xiaoqian carefully observed the morale of this imperial guard.

This imperial army had been under Zhang Lan's command, but it had never fought any glorious battles and had more defeats than victories. Now that they were about to set off, the morale of the imperial army was very ordinary, which was incomparable to the excitement of the Dragon Guard Battalion's soldiers who were eager to fight.

Zhao Xiaoqian was not surprised. These 10,000 men had just been incorporated into the Dragon Guard Camp, and were still holding the old cold weapons. If they were still so motivated under such circumstances, it would be a miracle.

Don't be in a hurry. What cannot be taught on the training ground can be taught on the battlefield.

An elite army must go through the baptism of blood and fire, otherwise it will always be a mob.

Zhao Xiaoqian rode on his horse, looked back at the generals behind him, and said in a deep voice, "Are you all ready?"

All the generals shouted: "Ready!"

Zhao Xiaoqian stared at Zong Ze and asked, "Are you ready?"

Zong Ze knew Zhao Xiaoqian's intentions clearly. He glared at the ten thousand imperial guards and shouted, "Are you ready?"

Ten thousand imperial guards roared in response: "We are ready!"

Zong Ze was not satisfied. He took off his helmet and slammed it into the ranks, shouting angrily, "Didn't you guys get enough? You're dying even when you reply!"

The ten thousand imperial guards finally gathered their spirits and shouted like a tsunami, "We're ready!"

Zhao Xiaoqian looked at Zong Ze in surprise.

This historical grandfather was a serious civil servant before he was promoted.

In the sixth year of Yuanyou, he was granted the title of Jinshi. His skillful brushstrokes could produce a brilliant and moral essay, but now he is so vulgar and barbaric, uttering foul language without hesitation. He does not have the demeanor of a Jinshi at all. He is clearly Brother Zong Ze from Liangshan...

This is like a senior professor from Peking University or Tsinghua University holding a machete and taking a group of thugs to collect protection fees from street vendors. The scene is very incongruous.

Feeling Zhao Xiaoqian's surprised gaze, Zong Ze's old face flushed, and he explained awkwardly: "It's impossible to be polite with these rough guys. They don't understand reason. I can only curse them if I curse..."

Zhao Xiaoqian said with a smile: "I understand. I am very impressed by the old master's good command of the army."

After thinking for a moment, Zhao Xiaoqian said with a serious tone of regret, "I strongly oppose your retirement from the literary world..."

Zong Ze was stunned. I... quit the literary world?

When did it happen?

…………

The army set out, heading north.

After more than 20,000 soldiers and horses left the camp, countless scouts hurried back and forth to report military intelligence and the geography ahead.

This expedition was of great importance, and Zhao Xiaoqian did not dare to be negligent at all. During the march, he would occasionally summon military generals to discuss matters. In addition to reporting scout intelligence, he would also discuss the marching route with the generals and inquire about the situation of food and supplies in the rear.

The main camp was over 300 li away from Feihu Bingmasi, and it took about five days to march there.

Fortunately, the weather has been suitable recently. It is spring, the flowers are blooming, the road is dry, and the temperature is suitable. These factors that can affect the marching speed did not cause any delays to the Song army.

Five days later, Zhao Xiaoqian ordered his troops to set up camp thirty miles away from Feihu Bingmasi.

Zhang Rong and Zhe Keshi reported that they had previously investigated the area around Feihu Bingmasi and found no ambush, but they did manage to wipe out several groups of Liao scouts.

At the same time, scouts also came to report that after investigation, there were less than a thousand defenders in the Feihu Bingmasi. Not only that, the scouts also found that many war horses were left in the Bingmasi. The exact number was unknown, but it was at least ten thousand.

Zhao Xiaoqian smiled. It seemed that Yelu Chun was really anxious. There had been no news about the Crown Prince for a long time, and Yelu Chun could no longer hide the news in the Liao capital, Shangjing. That was why he took the initiative to withdraw the troops of Feihu Bingmasi, leaving only a thousand defenders as cannon fodder.

As for the 10,000 war horses, Yelu Chun did not break his promise and really left them for him.

To be honest, people like Zhao Xiaoqian in ancient times had experienced what it was like to be the client's father, and it was really great.

That’s right, in this transaction, Zhao Xiaoqian is the father of Party A, and Yelu Chun can only be the son of Party B.

All the initiative is completely in Zhao Xiaoqian's hands. God forces him to be a father, and he has no choice but to be one.

"Pass the order down, the entire army should set up camp and no one is allowed to move without military orders..." Zhao Xiaoqian ordered.

Zhao Xiaoqian then called Chen Shou over and whispered, "Keep a close eye on Yelu Yanxi. Also, send a secret messenger to Yelu Chun to deliver a message. Tonight at midnight, our Song army will seize the Feihu Bingma Division and hand over Yelu Yanxi to the Yishui River at 11:00."

(End of this chapter)