Northern Prefecture Rivers and Mountains

Chapter 269 Potential

Shortly after returning to Huatai, news came from the south that Wancheng had indeed surrendered.

Most of the fortified cities and strongholds of Nanyang surrendered to Yao Xing.

The atmosphere in Xiangyang was tense. General Huan Zhen and the fierce general Huangfu Fu led two thousand infantry and cavalry in a proactive attack, defeating the Qin vanguard Yao Xiang's more than ten thousand men, capturing and killing three thousand. The fierce general Huangfu Fu also killed Yao Qin's Yueqi Colonel Tang Xiaofang and General Yao Liangguo.

After reading the battle report, Liu Daogui was astonished.

The Western Prefecture was indeed formidable; they faced Yao Xing's tens of thousands of troops without fear and even killed two enemy generals.

This battle also made Huangfu Fu famous, and he, along with Feng Gai, Fu Hong, and Huan Zhen, were known as the Four Tiger Generals of the Western Army.

Feng was a veteran general who had served as the garrison commander of Luoyang. He ambushed Fu Pi from Shancheng, inflicted a great defeat on him, and captured his crown prince Fu Ning and Prince Changle Fu Shou, sending them to the capital Jiankang.

Fu Hong was Fu Jian's eldest son. When Fu Jian was determined to conquer the south, Fu Hong tried to dissuade him, but Fu Jian did not listen. In the tenth year of Taiyuan (385), Fu Hong led more than 10,000 troops and defeated the Western Yan, capturing and killing 30,000, and became famous in one battle.

Later, Fu Jian believed the prophecy that "the emperor will be born from five generals and will live a long life," and decided to flee to Wujiang Mountain. He was killed by Yao Chang. Fu Hong led thousands of members of the royal family and relatives of the Former Qin to the Eastern Jin Dynasty. He was settled in Jiangzhou by Emperor Xiaowu Sima Yao and rose to the rank of Assistant General and Prefect of Jiujiang. He then joined Huan Xuan's forces.

The other person, Huan Zhen, was brave and fearless. As the son of Huan Shiqian, he was the most famous in the Western Palace and was known as a match for ten thousand men.

Like the Northern Prefecture, the Western Prefecture also absorbed a large number of refugees from the north, making it a formidable force; a few thousand men could dominate the world.

Yao Xing suffered a great loss, his morale was low, and he was too exhausted to fight any longer due to the long campaign.

However, Yao Xing was quite like Fu Jian, rewarding the orphans, widows, widowers, and widowers with grain and cloth. Those over seventy years old were also given clothes and walking sticks. The refugees were grateful for his kindness and moved back to Guanzhong together.

Luoyang has been temporarily stabilized, and Liu Daogui has completely established himself in Yuzhou.

The cities and fortified villages of Puyang and Jiyang in the east have all surrendered, and Liu Daogui now effectively controls the entire territory of Yanzhou, with one foot even in Yuzhou.

Half of the cities of Chenliu and Yingchuan were also brought under its jurisdiction.

Liu Daogui immediately rewarded the meritorious soldiers.

The land was divided among the families, houses were divided among the families, and even betrothed women who were not yet married were given land.

People were overjoyed.

In their letters, Xin Gongjing and Xiahou Zongzhi expressed their deepest gratitude. Both had sent their families to Luoyang, entrusting them to Liu Daogui's care. They were both aware of the situation in Luoyang and stated their intention to live and die with Luoyang, so as not to implicate their families.

Huatai was once the capital of Zhai Wei and was relatively well-fortified. Liu Daogui wanted to move the capital there so that he could keep an eye on Yuzhou, keep an eye on Hebei, and stay away from the intrigues of the imperial court.

When a general is away from home, he may not be subject to the constraints imposed by the emperor. In the future, when the emperor is far away, he will be less likely to be hampered by the rear.

When summoning everyone to discuss the matter, Liu Huaizhen was the first to object, saying, "Although Huatai is a fortified city, it has been under the control of the barbarians for a long time, and its population has dwindled. The Huai and Si rivers have been developed for a long time and are connected to Pengcheng. This is the foundation. How can we abandon the foundation for the trivial?"

Gao Xun also disagreed, saying, "If something happens in Jiangzuo, wouldn't the general be able to stay out of it? This move would cut off the Northern Army and Jiangzuo!"

Liu Daogui was so focused on the Northern Expedition that he didn't really think about the consequences.

Historically, apart from the Zhai Wei dynasty, Huatai has never served as a capital city.

This place is easily accessible from all directions, and the enemy could arrive at any moment, making the risk far too great.

Although he is currently on friendly terms with the Wei Kingdom, Tuoba Gui simply lacks the strength to advance south. Once he has consolidated his control over Ji and Bing provinces, they will inevitably clash sooner or later.

Back then, he used Murong Chui's troops to defeat the Helan, Dugu, and Kumoxi tribes. After rising to power, he turned his back on them and massacred 60,000 Yan soldiers at Canhebei.

To befriend such a person is tantamount to asking a tiger for its skin.

“It was my oversight. In that case, let’s prepare to return to Gaoping.” Liu Daogui readily accepted the advice.

The main problem is that our strength doesn't allow it.

The Central Plains are overrun with nomadic peoples and have long been devastated. Even Zhai Liao and Murong De struggled to establish themselves, let alone themselves. The greatest advantage of the Huai and Si regions is their proximity to Pengcheng, where Liu Daogui still holds the position of Prefect.

Having made up his mind, he prepared to return.

Although this battle did not defeat Yao Xing, it did defend Luoyang, capture Huatai, and occupy the four prefectures of Xingyang, Chenliu, Puyang, and Jiyang. It absorbed nearly 50,000 refugees and can be considered as having swallowed a piece of fat meat.

In the current situation, the Qin state occupies the counties of Nanyang, Xiangcheng, and Hongnong, the Wei state has conquered Bingzhou and Jizhou, and the Yan state has retreated to the Youzhou and Qingzhou areas.

Even without a period of rest and recuperation, we still need to deal with various internal problems, so there won't be a major war in the short term.

Liu Daogui left Liu Huaizhen with 2,000 elite soldiers and 3,000 volunteer soldiers to guard Huatai, while the rest of the troops returned to Huaisi.

Huatai is connected to Kaifeng by the Bian River, which in turn connects to the Ying River. Both are part of the Central Plains Canal, but due to years of neglect, many waterways have become silted up and large ships cannot pass through.

Liu Daogui was pondering when he could dredge the entire Central Plains Canal.

Wherever the canal leads, that's where his influence will extend.

The online army they have might be second-rate in Jiangzuo, but in Zhongyuan they are invincible.

However, this project is too large. Having just taken in so many refugees, the first thing to do is to solve their problems of food and clothing...

As Liu Daogui was pondering, a group of scouts caught up with him on the riverbank. "Reporting to the general, Murong De has suddenly crossed the Yellow River to the east and entered Qingzhou. General Ren An abandoned the city and fled, and Pan Cong surrendered without a fight. Murong De's army is heading straight for Guanggu."

“Qingzhou is finished…” Liu Daogui sighed.

Xin Gongjing, with less than 10,000 men, managed to defend Luoyang, while Piluhun, with at least 20,000 elite troops and 60,000 to 70,000 able-bodied men, broke through with a single blow.

His subordinate generals either fled or surrendered...

"This is Murong De's proclamation. Please take a look, General." The scout held up a document.

The ship docked, and Shen Qing, the halberd bearer, disembarked to retrieve it.

Liu Daogui opened it.

"I, Murong De, am a descendant of Emperor Zhaowu of the Great Yan, and a descendant of the heroes of You and Ji. In the past, when the Central Plains were in turmoil and the Jie barbarians rebelled, I took up my three-foot sword and led a loyal and righteous army to restore the Yan dynasty from peril and save the people from suffering. Now, I carry the banner of benevolence and righteousness and enter the territory of Qingzhou, not to expand our territory, but to save the people from suffering and to establish a new world!"

"...He alone raised the banner of righteousness, restoring the order of three dynasties, ushering in a new era, punishing the wicked, hanging a bright mirror to illuminate evil, and sharpening a frosty blade to cut through thorns. Those who aid the rebels, though powerful, will be killed; those who obey Heaven's will, though humble, will be rewarded!"

This manifesto was written with overwhelming power, and there wasn't a single superfluous word.

With the fall of the Yan state, Murong De became the biggest beneficiary.

He crossed the Yellow River to the north, absorbed forces such as Murong Town and Murong State, and had many talented civil and military officials under his command. Even the State of Wei was very wary of him. Then he suddenly crossed the Yellow River to the east.

Having lived a life of ease and comfort for many years and having not experienced much warfare, Piluhun was naturally no match for him.

When Piluhun submitted to Murong Chui, his people always looked up to the Yan state. When Murong De's hundreds of thousands of troops came to attack, even if Piluhun wanted to resist, his men were unwilling...

Sure enough, two days later, news came from Qingzhou again: Piluhun abandoned Guanggu and, disregarding his 20,000 troops, fled north with his wife, children, and retainers to seek refuge with Tuoba Gui.

He was caught up by Liu Gang, the Archer Commandant of the Yan State, and beheaded in Ju City.

Murong De captured Qingzhou almost without bloodshed, immediately ascended the throne as emperor, and changed the era name to Jianping.

Murong Zhong was appointed Minister of Works, Mu Yuba was appointed Minister of Public Works, Feng Fu was appointed Left Minister of Works, and Mu Yuhu was appointed Right Minister of Works.

He made his wife, Lady Duan, empress, established an academy, and selected 200 sons of officials and nobles, as well as scholars of the second rank, to be students of the Imperial Academy.

(End of this chapter)