Northern Prefecture Rivers and Mountains

Chapter 264

"Could this be a ploy to lure the enemy?" Liu Huaizhen asked doubtfully.

Murong De is too ostentatious, spreading songs and making provocations, as if he wants everyone to know that he is going to attack Qingzhou.

Liu Daogui thought for a moment and said, "What is false can be made real, and what is real can be made false. Where else can Murong De go if he doesn't go looking for him now? The bigger the commotion, the more panicked Qingzhou will be, and the more people will flock to him."

Qingzhou is a very special place, part of which is in Hebei and part of which is in Henan.

Entering Qingzhou from the north is very easy; one only needs to cross the Yellow River. However, entering Qingzhou from the south or west is fraught with difficulties, involving numerous mountains and rivers.

"Should we chase them or not?" Liu Zun picked up his great axe and donned his armor with the help of his guards.

Liu Daogui looked across the way. Thanks to Lü Qiuxian and Deng Qifang, the Yan army's morale was extremely high, and now they had a large number of troops. There was little chance of winning if they chased after them.

Murong De has fought battles all his life, so he must be on high alert, waiting for me to launch a surprise attack.

To put it bluntly, Murong De is barefoot, while I am wearing shoes.

With 20,000 to 30,000 refugees in his hands, he had already gotten his first piece of the pie. Using infantry to chase down cavalry, Liu Daogui wasn't out of his mind.

"If it's going to rain, it's going to rain; if a mother wants to remarry, we can't stop her. If he wants to go, let him go." Liu Daogui placed all his hopes on Pilu.

This person has also weathered many storms; we just need to stall him for a while before pursuing him.

In the current situation, Liu Daogui is sitting comfortably on the sidelines.

To the west is Yao Xing, to the east is Murong De; whoever shows signs of fatigue, we will deal with them.

Liu Huaizhen said, "Murong De's retreat is a good thing for us. By handing over Yuzhou, the pressure on our army has been greatly reduced. We can now train the volunteer army, stockpile food and supplies, and observe the enemy's movements."

"That's right, we should remain unchanged in the face of all changes!" Liu Daogui slapped his thigh.

Xin Gongjing's defense of Luoyang was Liu Daogui's biggest bargaining chip.

Two hours later, the Yan army marched north in a grand procession.

The dust kicked up by tens of thousands of wooden carts blotted out the sky, and the warhorses stood like a long dike protecting the left and right flanks.

The bugle call echoed across the wilderness, and during the two months of confrontation, Murong De's momentum grew increasingly terrifying.

Tuoba Gui's massacre of 60,000 Yan soldiers at Canhebei was undoubtedly a stroke of genius, breaking the backbone of the Yan state in one fell swoop, but it was also extremely unpopular. To this day, the people of Hebei are in a state of chaos.

The counties that had been forced to surrender to Tuoba Gui due to the overwhelming force of his army rebelled again after the army left.

The various tribes of the northern nomadic peoples also migrated south to join Murong De.

After Tuoba Gui captured Ye City, his offensive faltered, and he ceased his attacks, allowing Murong Ce, Murong Nong, and others in Liaoxi to catch their breath.

Many people from the regions south of the Yellow River, including Si, Yu, Yan, and Xu, also sought refuge with him. These were mostly Hu tribes scattered throughout the Jianghuai region.

The Xiongnu people, in particular, were numerous in the Luoyang and Yuzhou areas.

Liu Daogui never expected that there were so many Hu people in the Central Plains, as if they had emerged from the ground overnight.

The War of the Eight Princes and the Five Barbarian Invasions have profoundly changed this land.

The Sima family fought a series of grueling wars over sixteen years, exhausting the vitality of China.

Without Ran Min's order to exterminate the Hu people and Huan Wen's northern expedition, the Han people in the north might have become extinct...

Among the refugees recruited, there were actually quite a few Qiang, Di, and Xiongnu people who spoke fluent Mandarin and whose appearances were very similar to those of the Han Chinese, and who were basically Sinicized.

The Xiongnu people among them regarded Emperor Gaozu of Han and Liu Bei of Shu Han as their ancestors.

Liu Daogui could only turn a blind eye.

When barbarians enter China, they become part of China; the debate between Chinese and barbarians has existed for over a thousand years.

People in this era don't care about these things at all.

In many places, the Xiongnu, Jin, and Di people lived together, farming and fighting together.

After countless hardships and sufferings, the integration of the northern tribes into the Han Chinese is an inevitable trend.

The biggest advantage of these people was that they could be cavalrymen if given a mule or donkey, and infantrymen if they carried two kitchen knives. With a little organization, Liu Daogui was able to create a force of 10,000 infantry and cavalry.

Like the Zhechongfu, it had positions such as Sima, Duhu, and Zhubu.

All officers of rank 1 and above were appointed by Tiger Warriors, with three veteran soldiers also assigned.

In other words, one Tiger Warrior leading one hundred followers can both enhance their combat power and strengthen control over them.

They train once every two days, and spend the rest of their time cultivating wasteland.

Food is the most important thing for people. The army gathered around Kaifeng numbered nearly 30,000, and the amount of food and drink they consumed every day was not small.

Although we have the support of various counties and fortified villages, we don't know how long this great battle will last, so we can't just sit around and wait for our resources to run out.

Half a month later, a scout arrived from the north with the report: "Murong De defeated Tuoba Shun, the Duke of Piling of Wei, at Dongping, capturing and killing more than 4,000 men. The Wei army has retreated back to Hebei!"

Piling is located in Wu Commandery, adjacent to Jingkou. When Tuoba Gui was still in the southern desert, he was enfeoffed as the Duke of Chenliu. Now that he has taken over Hebei, he has been enfeoffed as the Duke of Piling, which shows how ambitious he is.

Liu Huaizhen exclaimed in surprise, "This Murong De is indeed no ordinary person."

“He defeated Tuoba Zhang and Tuoba Yi in Ye City before. He is a man of military strategy. If he wins this battle, I’m afraid that Biluhun of Qingzhou will not be able to hold on.” Liu Daogui’s mood was somewhat complicated.

The centipede is dead but not stiff.

Murong De was the only remaining veteran general of the Yan state.

If Murong Chui hadn't forcibly supported his beloved son, the Yan Kingdom wouldn't have fallen to its current state.

Liu Huaizhen said, "I don't think it's a big deal for Murong De to take Qingzhou. He will definitely become a thorn in Tuoba Gui's side and can serve as a shield for our north."

Attacking Qingzhou from the south or east was blocked by the Ji River and Mount Tai. However, attacking Qingzhou from Jizhou would be very easy, whether it was Shi Le attacking Cao Yi or Murong Ke attacking Duan Kan.

Conversely, the three provinces of Yu, Yan, and Xu are connected by rivers such as the Huai, Ying, and Bian, and are closely linked to each other.

“You’re right. Everyone says that Qingzhou is the Eastern Qin, comparable to Guanzhong. In reality, Qingzhou is like a pocket. It’s easy to get in, but difficult to get out. No force that has moved here has ever succeeded.”

Liu Daogui has already established a firm foothold in Yuzhou. With every gain comes a loss. With his current strength, he can no longer concern himself with Qingzhou, north of Mount Tai.

Gao Xun said, "Now that Murong De has retreated, our army can take advantage of the situation and seize Huatai!"

Huatai is located north of Kaifeng.

The strategic value of this place is self-evident; it is a vital passage between the north and south banks of the Yellow River, facing Liyang and Fangtou across the river.

More importantly, it can inspire the people of the Central Plains and enhance its prestige.

"Order the attack on the platform two days from now!"

Liu Daogui made two preparations: on the one hand, he ordered Mao Dezu and Wang Zhongde to lead cavalry to follow behind Murong De to prevent him from suddenly returning; on the other hand, he sent scouts to Hebei to find out the movements of the Wei army.

The following evening, news came back from the north that Tuoba Gui was busy moving the capital to Pingcheng, building palaces, ancestral temples, and altars of the state, in preparation for ascending the throne as emperor.

The war lasted for two years, starting with Murong Bao's attack on Wuyuan. The Wei Kingdom took over Bingzhou and occupied half of Hebei, but it was already showing signs of fatigue.

Tuoba Shun suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of Murong De, partly because Murong De was indeed formidable, and partly because the Wei army lacked reinforcements.

At this point, they probably won't head south.

Murong De focused his energy on Qingzhou, leaving only three or four thousand men in Huatai.

Liu Daogui placed 12,000 volunteer soldiers at the front to train them in actual combat, with 7,000 Jianwei soldiers following behind.

Although the 20,000-strong army did not possess the earth-shattering momentum of Murong De, their morale was high.

Especially the volunteer soldiers, their eyes turned red with envy when they heard about the rewards from the military government.

"Whoever breaks through the enemy lines, is the first to scale the walls, slays a general, or captures a flag will be promoted three ranks, rewarded with 10,000 strings of cash, 500 shi of grain, 300 mu of land, and a mansion!"

"Killing one enemy is considered one pillar of merit, and you will receive three hundred coins and one bushel of grain..."

"The wounded will be compensated with one shi of grain, the families of the fallen will be allocated thirty mu of land, and their children will be raised by the military government..."

The military commanders and officers of each army loudly proclaimed this.

Liu Daogui has been in this business for so many years, and he has always held firm to one principle: a hundred slogans are not worth a penny.

Slogans are necessary, but rewards are indispensable.

A generous reward will surely attract brave men; as long as the money and provisions are in place, even slaves can become killing machines.

Sure enough, someone in the militia immediately let out a beast-like howl: "Kill!"

"kill--"

Morale was immediately ignited, and roars came one after another.

The city of Slippery shivered in the morning breeze ahead.

However, the city had been fortified by Zhai Liao, with high walls and deep moats. If the defenders were determined to resist to the death, it would certainly take some effort.

Liu Daogui least wanted to fight these kinds of siege battles, which were purely attrition warfare and cost lives. However, siege battles were indispensable in the Central Plains.

Liu Huaizhen urged the laborers to push more than a hundred wrecked vehicles and cloud carts up.

Yellow, black, white, and red banners fluttered in the wind, depicting fierce tigers with bared teeth and claws, lifelike and majestic.

Beneath the banners, the army stood like a mountain.

Although the eight buildings were abolished, the banners remained.

After a short period of training of more than a month, the volunteers were actually quite decent, at least able to recognize their own flag colors.

Wherever their banner pointed, they marched in.

North of Huatai City, the Yellow River roars, like a giant dragon stretching across the sky and earth. North of the Yellow River, the land is vast and desolate. Liu Daogui has finally made it to this place. If he can cross the Yellow River, his life will not have been in vain.

However, that day is certainly not far off.

The Northern Expedition was the will of the people and also the general trend in Jiangzuo.

"Report—Wei troops have appeared to the north!" A scout rushed over at that moment.

Liu Daogui was taken aback and looked north.

Amidst billowing dust, a cavalry unit, like a long snake, galloped in and stood solemnly on the north bank, silently observing the south bank.

A rough estimate suggests there were no fewer than five thousand people.

A tall banner bearing the inscription "Yu Li" stands on the riverbank, beneath which a general holds a long black spear, exuding an imposing aura.

Gao Xun's expression changed. "Could it be Yu Lidi, who conquered Xindu? He's said to be as brave as ten thousand men!"

Liu Zun said, "The Wei army has arrived; it seems that Huatai will be difficult to capture."

Huatai was the gateway to the Central Plains, and the Wei army was certainly aware of its importance.

Their involvement has complicated the battle.

If Liu Daogui cannot quickly take down the platform, he will face a predicament of being attacked from both sides.

“These days, everyone dares to boast that they are invincible. I want to see if he has the guts to cross the river and fight. Give the order to attack the city!” Liu Daogui waved his hand.

(End of this chapter)