Only when his family knew their own affairs and the Khitans themselves did they know how much their losses were in the battle of Luan City. When he received the battle damage report, Yelu Ruan's face turned green and his heart was bleeding.
It's too awful!
Among the dead and wounded troops, in addition to Xiren, Mohe, Shiwei and other tribesmen, there were also a large number of Khitan soldiers. The upper-level Khitan nobles, generals, and chiefs of various tribes also suffered heavy casualties in the chaos, like Yeluba.
Several senior generals such as Reed were killed in battle. These people were the cornerstone of maintaining Khitan rule.
The troops that could accompany Yelu Deguang were all the elites of the Khitan. Their injuries were so serious that they might shake the foundation of the rule. This defeat cannot be fully explained by the injuries of the muscles and bones.
The casualties of the army were only one of them. What also made Yelu Ruan feel distressed was the large amount of wealth and materials accompanying the army. They spent more than half a year plundering and plundering in the Central Plains and Hebei, and now it seems that all of this wealth has been used as a wedding dress for the enemy.
, it is also very important to the Khitan people.
You must know that since Shi Jin and the Khitan broke up and turned against each other, in the past few years of wrestling, Yelu Deguang also resorted to military violence, and the losses suffered by the Khitan were not small, especially in the two battles of Qicheng and Yangcheng.
They suffered serious losses. The Khitan people were already in dire straits and their troops were exhausted.
Last year, when Yelu Deguang went south to destroy the Jin Dynasty, he came with almost the entire country. Originally, even if he could not occupy the Central Plains for a long time, even if Yelu Deguang died, he would rely on the treasures plundered in the Central Plains to be transported back to the country.
It would be enough to give the Khitan a lot of blood, alleviate domestic conflicts, and at the same time achieve further development.
It even helped Yelu Ruan return to his country to fight for the throne. But now, the great situation has been lost, and it has been lost to his grandma's family.
At the same time, Yelu Ruan's heart was filled with reluctance and regret. The defeat in the battle at Luan City was too frustrating. There is a saying that the Khitan has never suffered such a heavy blow since the founding of the country. Even the defeat of Jin last year was
Before the Khitan army exerted much force, the Later Jin Dynasty fell by itself.
However, just half a year later, in a foreign country, in Luancheng, hundreds of thousands of cavalry were defeated in an inexplicable way. Perhaps after careful consideration after the war, we can reflect on some problems and summarize some experiences. At this moment, it is still
Yelu Ruan, who endured the pain and licked his wounds in Zhending City, still found it difficult to calm down and think seriously.
Especially after the news about Luan City after the war and the situation of the enemy army reached Yelu Ruan's ears. The enemy army only had 8,000 people among the 8,000 Longqi Army. Their hundreds of thousands of elites played up the opponent's background. Yelu Ruan
His mentality immediately collapsed.
In front of the returning generals, Yelu Ruan shouted excitedly that he would lead his army to turn around and fight back to avenge him and bring him shame with blood. There were many Khitan noble generals who had the same idea as Yelu Ruan.
The Khitans have never suffered such a loss, and they will definitely take revenge.
However, after all, there are some people who are relatively clear-headed, or relatively stable people. For example, Zhang Li among the Han officials, and Yelu Anbo among the Khitan people.
"The Liu family has few soldiers. The previous victory was only due to a sneak attack. Zhen Ding still has tens of thousands of strong soldiers. Why not send his troops south to attack them? Are you afraid and timid about the enemy?"
Yelu Ruan sternly questioned the dissuasion of the generals headed by the two men.
Zhang Li was not young yet. He suffered from the great military disaster and became more and more old. However, he looked determined to be a loyal Khitan minister and urged him excitedly: "Your Majesty, although there are many generals in Zhending City, they have returned from a great defeat.
, the morale of the army is scattered and morale is low. How can we compete with the enemy who is showing the potential for a great victory? Moreover, the opponent has Jin soldiers and Yan soldiers to help, and our army does not have an absolute advantage in strength. In this situation, can we go south to compete with them?
"
"Yan Bing? Sooner or later, I will make these traitors pay the price!" Speaking of Yan Bing, Yelu Ruan became even more furious. Suddenly his eyes narrowed and he stared at Zhang Li coldly: "If those Han soldiers hadn't betrayed, how could our army have done so?"
As for this? Does Duke Zhang have any ulterior motives in discouraging me from marching?"
Yelu Ruan was not too fond of Zhang Li, not because he was a Han official, but because this man was too relied upon by Yelv Deguang.
Faced with Yelu Ruan's question, Zhang Li blushed all of a sudden, with shame and anger on his face. He raised his hand and pointed at his heart: "Your Majesty has shown me the kindness of knowing and meeting you, and you are extremely polite and do not think of the evil of betrayal.
I can only repay you with all my heart. If King Yongkang doubts my intentions, he can express his sincerity and make his ambition clear!"
But seeing Zhang Li's emotional look, Yelv Ruan shrugged his nose, avoided looking, sat down angrily, and became silent. Seeing Yelv Ruan's reaction, Zhang Li's rapidly beating heart slowed down and kept a low profile.
, silently saying in his heart: This is the only way we can do it.
Zhang Li was an upright and vindictive man, but he was not stupid either. He had seen the signs and knew that his life would not be easy after Yelu Deguang's death. Taking advantage of the new defeat of the Liao army, he was already thinking about finding an opportunity to flee south.
I even regretted that I didn't stay decisively during the chaotic battle that night...
Angrily, he inspected the troops in the city. Yelu Ruan decisively stopped shouting. He had no idea about the morale of the troops. He just didn't expect that with the strong city to rely on for rest, not only did it not improve, but it continued to deteriorate.
the trend of.
"Your Majesty, what Zhang Li said makes sense. At this time, with the state of our army, it is really not suitable to send troops to fight. Stabilizing people's hearts and restoring morale is the most important thing!" Several confidants were summoned to discuss.
Yelu Anbo once again admonished Yelu Ruan.
Glancing at him, Yelu Ruan was not so stubborn this time, but his heart was really unbalanced: "It's really hard to calm down the anger in my heart just by letting the Liu family kid go like this!"
But Yelu Anbo said: "Lieutenant generals, who are not full of anger? The king needs to calm down and consider the long term."
Sighing, Yelu Ruan asked: "In your opinion, what should we do next?"
"The Southern Dynasty is already a land of disputes and cannot be stayed for a long time. The soldiers miss their homes and return home, so they should return north as soon as possible!" Yelu Anbo said: "It is conceivable that after the news of the Battle of Luancheng spread to the world, the resistance of various states in China will
Even more intense. Before the impact expands, order the officials and generals in each state to lead the troops to withdraw northward!"
Hearing this, Yelu Ruan's eyes lit up at this moment: "There are still no less than 100,000 troops in the Central Plains and Hebei states, and they can be gathered together..."
Before Yelu Ruan could finish speaking, Yelu Anbo shook his head and said: "Your Majesty, today's Southern Dynasty is a quagmire. If we don't get out in time and sink into the current situation, we will only be unable to extricate ourselves, and the losses will be even greater!
"
"Do you also have the same idea?" Yelv Ruan looked at several other confidants. Some hesitated, nodded, or remained silent, but they did not express any clear objections. It can be seen that the battle in Luancheng gave these people a great setback.
feel.
"Does it mean that even Hebei has to be handed over to Liu Zhiyuan?" Yelu Ruan said in a sweet tone.
Mentioning this, Yelu Anbo sneered and said: "Your Majesty, how can it be so easy to do this in the Southern Dynasty? Since the Tang Dynasty, there have been many emperors in the past forty or fifty years. You can be sure that as long as I
As soon as the army retreated, many people stood up to oppose Liu Zhiyuan."
"Judging from the past performance of the Han people, they will never give up until they fight to the death and determine the winner. Your Majesty, you only need to lead me, the Khitan son, to recuperate in the country and watch the internal friction. The land of Youyan is still with us.
Keep it in your hands until you regain your strength one day before heading south again."
Yelu Anbo's suggestion sounds quite reasonable, but if you don't talk about anything else, how can it be so easy to restore power first...
However, Yelu Ruan thought about it and nodded in agreement.
"Right now, for the king, there are more important things!" Yelu Anbo said in a deep voice, his eyes roving twice.
"What?"
"The country cannot be left without a master for a day. The king should ascend to the throne as soon as possible and inherit the great cause!" Yelu Anbo suddenly stood up and knelt down.
Seeing this, Yelu Ruan was not surprised at all. He just frowned and waved his hands repeatedly: "Our army was defeated like this..."
"That's why we need measures to boost morale, inspire military morale, and stabilize the situation!"
Yelu Ruan was silent. If he said he was not moved, it would be impossible. Even before the battle of Luancheng, he had planned how to wait for the Liao Emperor's position where everyone expected him to.
However, at the moment when he suffered a big defeat, he was very hesitant: "There is also the emperor's uncle Yelu Lihu in Beijing, and the Queen Mother Shulu will definitely support him. In my current situation, how can I win over him!"
"Therefore, it is even more necessary to gather the military power left in the Southern Dynasties!" Yelu Anbo said: "Besides, the emperor's brother is cruel, arrogant and unpopular, and he will definitely not be the king's opponent!"
Yelu Ruan felt a little upset. Luan Cheng's defeat made Yelu Ruan feel a little less confident.
As if he saw Yelu Ruan's concerns, Yelu Anbo continued: "The fault of the defeat of Luan City does not lie with the king, it was the evil cause planted by the late emperor..."
He stood up, with a sullen face, and after lingering for a long time, Yelu Ruan raised his hand: "Immediately send messengers to inform the garrison troops in various places about the withdrawal. Over there in Luan City, keep watching!"
"yes!"
...
With the dispatch of the messenger, the Liao army was basically determined to completely withdraw from the land of the Southern Dynasty. Compared with the good harvest from Kaifeng and the return north, this time it was full of resentment and went crazy before leaving. Not to mention other places,
As soon as it was finally settled, the Liao army looted it, which also led to more intense resistance.
Although Yelu Ruan kept hinting that he wanted to return to the north to seize the throne and hide his strength and bide his time, the Liao soldiers who went north could not hide their dejected and embarrassed temperament at all.