If he were in Bianliang, and it was difficult to contact the middle and lower-level generals to learn the real information due to various taboos, King Jing Zhao Tuan might not have a clear idea of how bad the situation was.
Even though he had a close relationship with Zhu Hang before and was deeply influenced by Zhu Hang and Wang Zhen, he sometimes felt that what Wang Qiyong, Wang Boqian, Yang Yongdong, and Hu Jinzhang said was not unreasonable.
Since the proposal of joining forces, King Jing Zhao Tuan has often been swaying between the two sides, finding it difficult to choose.
However, after leaving Bianliang for more than two months, he first had adventures in Tongxu and Yanling, and then rushed to Gongxian to capture the Ling army to defend the city. After Miao Yanxiong, Zheng Huaizhong and others led the Western Army to Yanshi, after Gongxian, he again
Qian Shangduan, Zhang Xin, and Deng Gui's assistants commanded the tomb-defending army in the northern ridge of Yehuang Ridge, constantly harassing the enemy from the flanks. What King Jing Zhao Tuan experienced may have been more tortuous and thrilling than the first half of his life.
These experiences also helped him see more deeply how bad the current situation is.
He realized that the Chihu people's ambitions were not bottom-line redemption and could only be satisfied by concessions; he realized that in addition to their powerful and elite soldiers and horses, the Chihu people's control and strategy of the entire battle far exceeded his previous control of the barbarians.
the inherent impression of the race.
The Chihu people were so aggressive, and after going south, they easily broke into cities and fortified villages, plundered huge amounts of wealth, killed willfully, and raped women. Why do you think they will just accept it when they see good things?
Even though King Chao Tuan of King Keng did not deny in his heart the system of advocating culture and restraining military force that Dai Viet had pursued since the founding of the dynasty, he at least felt that it was inappropriate at present.
The armies in Hebei and Hedong were in disarray, the Jianghuai and Jinghu Forbidden Forces were too weak to fight, the Western Army was hesitant, and the ministers in the DPRK were groveling without a bottom line, which also made him believe that Xu Huai was worried that the Chihu people would invade south again, and the Hehuai forces would change hands.
This made King Jing Zhao Tuan deeply worried about his fate after returning to Bianliang.
If Bianliang is destined to fall, wouldn't he be trapped in a prison by returning to Bianliang?
Before Xu Huai came to Gong County, King Jing Zhao Tuan hesitated whether to send someone to invite Xu Huai to Gong County to discuss countermeasures. Unexpectedly, Xu Huai came uninvited and brought unexpected bargaining chips.
First, Chen Zixiao, Xiao Yanhan, and Zhang Xiongshan were given a camp to stay in. The others also all retreated. King Jing Zhao Tuan only left Qian Shangduan, Xu Huai, and Xu Wuqi in the tent.
After sitting at the table, he asked: "The Japanese soldiers have withdrawn from the outskirts of Bianliang to the west and are concentrated in Zhengzhou and Xingyang. They will probably cross the river and withdraw north in the near future. When do you think the Japanese soldiers will come back?"
King Jing Zhao Tuan was also convinced at this time that the Red Husbands, who had tasted the sweetness, would not stop here, but the situation was too complicated and he could not judge when the Japanese soldiers would go south again.
And this also determines his choices, and his choices and trade-offs are destined to be much more difficult than ordinary people.
If the Japanese soldiers only temporarily retreated north, they would move south in autumn. There was only four or five months between them. Of course, he could find some excuses, such as being seriously ill and staying in Gongxian instead of returning to Bianliang; he could even just delay it.
, it’s not impossible.
If the Japanese invaders wait until the autumn of the next year and then invade the South, or if the Japanese soldiers decide to digest the newly occupied land in Hedong and Hebei first, they may even say that there is something going on with the Dangxiang people, and they intend to join hands with Dai Viet to contain the Red Husbands.
The people made it difficult for Chi Hu to go south in a short time. How long could he delay in Gong County?
Even when he could no longer delay and had to return to Bianliang, he was likely to face a life of confinement that would never see the light of day for the rest of his life.
It had been a long time since Xu Huai's mind had flashed a clearly foreboding memory fragment. It was likely that the established historical trajectory had deviated, so he needed to keep his eyes open, weigh repeatedly, and judge how the complicated situation would develop in the future.
He did not directly answer King Jing's question. Instead, he pushed away the cases in front of him, leaned down and saluted King Jing Zhao Tuan and asked: "Mountains and rivers are broken, and the country is withering. Is Your Highness willing to turn the tide?"
King Jing Zhao Tuan did not expect Xu Huai to ask such a question and looked at Qian Shangduan with some hesitation.
Qian Shangduan was also stunned for a while, but then he understood. Maybe they had all kinds of scruples before and couldn't express their inner thoughts casually, but at this juncture, if King Jing can't stay in Xu Huai, Xu Wu Qi Er
If you reveal your ambitions in front of people, how can you get them to serve you to the best of your ability?
If King Jing cannot hand over the truth at this time, how can he ask Xu Huai to speak freely?
Thinking of this, Qian Shangduan also bowed his head to King Jing and said: "It is said that every man is responsible for the rise and fall of the world - Dayue is being invaded by barbarians and is dying, so His Highness has the unshirkable responsibility to save the country, and should not put his hope aside.
Leave it to other princes!"
Qian Shangduan's words have been made clear. If King Jing has no intention of fighting for the throne, how can he ask others to submit to him? Isn't it true that the more effective he is in front of King Jing at this time, the more he will be jealous of the new emperor in the future, which is rare?
A good death?
"In order to save the Zhao family from danger, Zhao Tuan will not dare to slack off or give up any time he can," King Jing Zhao Tuan straightened his back and said seriously, "Xu Huai, Shang Duan, sit down quickly.
, but if you have anything to say, please say it without hesitation, and don’t have the slightest scruple between you and me.”
Xu Huai sat up straight, straightened the cases, and said:
"The king reported that the Prime Minister passed away suddenly, and the generals of the main war faction lost a huge control. At the same time, the Xuanwu remnant army was demoralized because the court officials secretly communicated with the Chihu people. I had to use extraordinary means to spread the news of the King's death, hoping to
This inspired the determination of Bianliang soldiers, civilians and courtiers to resist the Hulu. However, the cunningness of the Red Husbands exceeded our expectations. Unexpectedly, they were so determined to withdraw their troops from outside Bianliang City, causing the main war faction's short-term power to suddenly decline.
At present, the voice of the main battle in Bianliang City has not yet gained momentum, but those who surrendered have been able to regroup. The situation in the DPRK and China will still not be conducive to resistance. As for when the Japanese soldiers will sweep in again, I will say
No, there are too many variables. It involves whether the DPRK and the Central Government will go to the Red Hu people to negotiate peace again; whether the DPRK and the Central Government can continue to hold on to Taiyuan, or whether the DPRK and the Central Government still insist on giving up Taiyuan, allowing the soldiers to easily control the condescending city.
It involves whether the Khitan's remnant forces in Xishan will stay or not, whether the DPRK will send Western troops to cross the river north to take over the defense of Mengwei, Zelu and other cities, and whether it can win one or two defensive battles in Hedong and Hebei; and Dangxiang
People's choices are more critical. Any of these variables can affect the whole body. Therefore, Xu Huai cannot judge when the Japanese troops will go south again. Even if the DPRK and the Central Government are resolute enough, it is not impossible for us to establish a line along the Hehuai River.
To take effective defense. If Xu Huai can persuade His Highness at this time, he should lead his army to cross the river after the Chihu people..."
"Crossing the river?" King Jing Zhao Tuan asked hesitantly.
He had never thought about this problem before.
Qian Shangduan was born as a scholar. He had been practicing in the local area for more than ten years and was experienced, but was not familiar with military affairs. Deng Gui had been serving in low-level military positions such as inspectors in various places for more than ten years and had not had the opportunity to form a strategic position.
Zhang Xin's vision was even worse. Yang Qiye was the son of Yang Lin and was only in his early twenties. The other generals of the tomb-defending army had just been promoted from the bottom.
Who can discuss these issues with King Jing Zhao Tuan?
"Crossing the river? What are you doing crossing the river?" Qian Shangduan also asked in surprise.
"Pursue the enemy forces retreating northward, coordinate with the defenders in Taiyuan and other places, take advantage of the enemy forces' northward retreat, and recapture the lost cities along the way. This will give the government no excuse to force His Highness to return to Bianliang, and the world will be in a state of peace.
The generals, ministers and soldiers who have the will to fight will surely be the first to serve in front of His Highness’s tent!”
In Xu Huai's opinion, King Jing Zhao Tuan had no future or way out if he stayed in Gong County.
Emperor Tianxuan once and twice sent an edict to return to the capital. King Jing and Zhao Tuan could find excuses to delay. However, after the soldiers retreated north, they rushed from Gongxian to Bianliang. They could go back and forth in one day at the fastest. Emperor Tianxuan sent envoys one after another.
After the edict was passed, King Jing Zhao Tuan repeatedly resisted the edict. Emperor Tianxuan and King Jing were sympathetic to the love between father and son. Did they have any other ideas?
If Emperor Tianxuan issued an order to Zhou He, Miao Yanxiong, Zheng Huaizhong and others, ordering them to forcibly confiscate the military power of the mausoleum guarding army, put King Jing under house arrest and escort him to Bianliang, how would they respond?
This is something they cannot cope with if they stay in Gong County.
Even the generals of the main war faction would feel that it was unreasonable for King Jing Zhao Tuan to continue to stay in Gong County after the Japanese troops withdrew northward.
Only by crossing the river, chasing the tail of the retreating Japanese troops northward, harassing and harassing them all the way, and recapturing the lost city, can this be regarded as the legitimate name for "the general is outside, and the emperor's orders are not given to him".
The generals and generals of the main war faction in the DPRK were inspired by this, and they could openly and honestly dissuade Emperor Tianxuan from recalling King Jing.
Not to mention Hedong, there are still a large number of strongholds in Hebei that are still holding strong. Only by leading his army north can King Jing recruit the elite forces selected by the cruel war.
"The bandits are so strong, how can we pursue them with the mausoleum defenders?" Qian Shangduan can easily imagine the benefits of crossing the river to the north, but the question is whether he wants to and whether he can do it are completely different things.
At this time in Gong County, although Yanshi, Meng Jin, Miao Yanxiong, Zheng Huaizhong and others responded passively, the hundreds of thousands of strong Western troops still attracted the attention of the main force of the Western Front soldiers. The defending army was not afraid of the retreat and relied on
The favorable terrain on the northern slope of Songshan Mountain enabled guerrilla attacks to harass the enemy, and the battle was barely effective.
If the army crosses the river and goes north alone, these favorable conditions will no longer exist. It will also have to face the advantageous and more mobile soldiers. Self-protection will be a problem. Do you still want to pursue the enemy in tandem?
"After the main force of the Chihu people's Eastern Route Army crosses the Yellow River, it will inevitably retreat eastward from Mengzhou and Weizhou to northern Hebei, swallowing and digesting the cities in northern Hebei. It is more likely to retreat to the Yanji area to rest and recuperate, and truly start from Zhi.
Guanxing and Taihangxing retreated north through the Taihang Mountains and joined the main force of the Chihu people's West Route Army. They were mainly Cao Shixiong, Xiao Qian, Yue Hailou and other surrendered troops and a small number of captive cavalry. These troops may not all go north.
We must retreat, but their combat effectiveness is not daunting, and we are not trying to decisively fight with their main force, or try to intercept them, but more of a follow-up attack, so the problem will not be too big!" Xu Huai said, "If we are determined to cross the river, we can
Be quick, at least until there is a new decree from the imperial court, Zhou He, Miao Yanxiong and others will not forcefully stop His Highness!"
