Fang La looked at the moat in front of him and fell into silence.
The soldiers in the front row also fell silent as they looked at the moat in front of them.
Is there anyone who builds a moat like this? It’s so crazy!
It is no exaggeration to say that if you stand at the widest part of the river, if you are a little short-sighted, you will not be able to see the situation of the city on the other side. At first glance, you will think that this is the Han River!
After the air became quiet, Fang La pretended to laugh lightly and said to the left and right: "The Yan army has built Xiangyang City so well. Once our army captures it, they may not be able to capture the city again if they want to.
When the time comes, the Jingxiang defense line will become a self-contained entity, and it will be able to accomplish a lot!"
Shi Bao immediately said loudly: "What the Holy Duke said is reasonable. The Yan army reinforced the city defense in this way. It is obvious that they are afraid of the power of our army and insist on holding on. Our army has taken the initiative and can advance and retreat freely. Why should we be afraid?"
All the soldiers nodded.
The advantage of the attacking side is that they can retreat if they cannot capture the city. This at least provides some psychological comfort. Moreover, Fang La had already predicted the construction of Xiangyang and was fully prepared when he arrived.
Compared with the last time when the troops were divided into two groups and there was a fire in the backyard, the lineup of the army this time is undoubtedly strong.
The four generals Shi Bao, Li Tianrun, Si Xingfang, and Pang Wanchun arrived together, as well as Zheng Biao, Du Wei and other young generals with special skills, working their lives up and down, while Wang Yin was behind to provide full support with food, grass and baggage.
If Xiangyang was not located at the gateway to the south, which stuck their necks and had to be captured, Fang La would have been confident in attacking any important city in the world, even Damingfu, which had been held for several months by the main force of the Liao army.
Overcome it.
Now it was time to pay attention to tactics. He took a deep breath and ordered: "Xiangyang is located in a dangerous location. It needs to be surrounded by forts on all sides and besieged for a long time. Then we can advance by land and water to conquer Fancheng and completely cut off Xiangyang's food and grass. If we can encircle the point and provide reinforcements, Yan will be defeated."
If the army is defeated outside the city, it will shake up morale and wait to break the city! Generals, please!"
The generals clasped their fists heavily: "No!!"
"Fang Lajun has experienced so many setbacks, but it is not easy to maintain his morale!"
"The plan to attack out of the city has been temporarily abandoned. We still focus on holding on."
Xu Ning and Zhang Qing stood on the wall with their eyes like torches, watching the actions of Fang La's army without any contempt.
The Guangxin Army and the Zhenrong Army guarded Xiangyang and did not participate in the previous southern war. However, the Department of Secrets reported major and minor matters, coupled with the intelligence collection of the previous scouts, they almost witnessed all the disturbances that occurred in Jinghu.
To be fair, both Xu Ning and Zhang Qing believed that Fang La would never come back, and even if they could barely maintain the morale of the army, they should choose other attack targets.
But that was actually useless. Once they established a firm foothold in Xiangyang and the Yan army marched southward, Fangla's Jinghu would be equivalent to Zhao and Song without the Yanyun Sixteenth Prefecture as a barrier. The gates were wide open and they were ravaged.
Attacking will destabilize the morale of the army, delaying will cause slow death, and neither can see the future.
As a result, after going through all kinds of twists and turns, Fang La was still able to personally lead the army to attack, and the army was not in chaos, which was simply a miracle.
At least Xu Ning and Zhang Qing both admitted that they would not be able to command such high levels of command over their soldiers in adverse circumstances.
However, they were not afraid, they just did not want their subordinates to suffer unnecessary casualties, so they began to check the defense:
"The northern city wall is only a few feet away from the river, making it a target for archers and making it difficult to attack the city through the Han River."
"The coasts of the Han River in the south and east are mostly tidal flats. Large ships cannot reach the shore at all, and the cavalry has no use. Coupled with the sixty-foot moat, they can only look forward to it and sigh."
"If Fang La's army wants to attack, there is only a narrow passage to the west..."
"Come on, let our army see how capable the rebel army in the south is!"
…
Yanjing Palace.
Wang Qing, Fang Yuye and Fang Jie were sitting in front of the palace gate, with a bit of fatigue on their brows.
They arrived in this northern capital yesterday and rested overnight in the posthouse.
But it was obvious that none of the three had slept well. After all, the person they were going to see next might be the most powerful person in the world.
No!
It's more than possible...
"His Royal Highness Prince Yan is indeed a wise Lord, and my choice was right!"
Wang Qing was physically exhausted but energetic.
As Fang La said before, he chose to surrender to Yan Ting not only for Fang La, but also for himself.
As a former member of the Ming Zun Cult, he also tried to steal Fang La's power and replace him. Although Wang Qing was capable, other rebel leaders would not be able to tolerate him.
Taking refuge in Yan Ting is undoubtedly the best choice.
Facts have proved that his bet was right, and King Yan directly summoned him, and the three of them went all the way north and entered the palace to meet the saint.
Compared with the direct descendants who followed the King of Yan to regain Yan Yun, the latecomers are undoubtedly inferior. However, there are very few southerners in the Yan court. This advantage should be used well and we must seize this opportunity.
However, before officially entering the palace, Wang Qing looked at Fang Yuye again. This wife was not particularly smart, so she hurriedly warned her again: "Madam, please don't be rude when you meet the king. You are not only my wife, but also my wife."
It represents Mr. Fang’s face!”
Fang Yuye's eyes were complicated and she whispered: "Please rest assured, husband, I understand..."
Fang La asked the princess to follow Wang Qing and surrender to Yan, which was no less than a bolt from the blue for Fang Yuye. She cried for a long time and could not let go of her noble status.
But when he really went deep into the Yan Kingdom and looked at the prosperous development of the states and counties, Fang Yuye became more and more silent.
Internally, Yan Ting felt that the expansion rate was not fast, but from the perspective of a bystander, the Central Plains were taken in, including Hedong, and Guanzhong was taken from a bag. This speed of pacifying the north was incredible, and it was enough to make the south despair, not to mention that this kind of rule was still
Extremely stable, it does not mean that the territory is empty, but in fact it is only superficial...
What made Fang Yuye's heart sink to the bottom was that even Fang La was planning to build his own palace after becoming king. King Yan, who had such power, still lived in the dilapidated palace built by the Liao people in the past, and he was not greedy at all.
Enjoy.
The shocks came one after another, and she wanted to persuade her brother. What was the point of resisting? Just surrender...
"The martial arts of Yan Ting's Imperial Army are quite impressive!"
Compared to Wang Qing's and Fang Yuye's thoughts, Fang Jie's considerations were the simplest, and his eyes fell on the palace guards.
All of them have good martial arts skills and are unique in the Fang army. Especially the young man who is walking at the front. He has a broad chest, strong bones and strong muscles. He has thousands of kilograms of strength in his body, strong qi and blood, and is very handsome.
Rare!
Wu Song felt the sharp gaze, glanced sideways at Fang Jie, and walked forward steadily without making any sign.
He was still young and did not join the Sixth Ministry as an official. Instead, he was left by King Yan to serve as the captain of the guard. He occasionally taught martial arts and had the pleasure of making rapid progress. This young man was very happy for this and felt that no other high official could compare with him.
Such a blessing.
The journey was not long, and when they arrived in front of the Zichen Palace, Wu Song and his guards were waiting outside, and the servants brought the three of them in.
Following the steps of the eunuch in front, the three of them subconsciously relaxed their steps. Wang Qing and Fang Yuye's hearts were beating uncontrollably, and they kept pursed their lips nervously.
In comparison, Wang Qing thought through the name of the palace that in the Song Dynasty, the Zichen Palace was generally the front hall where officials viewed their dynasty.
The court meetings at the end of each month, the congratulations on completion of the suburban temple ceremony, and the reception of envoys from various countries were also held in this hall.
If the rules in the palace have not changed, what is the significance of His Highness King Yan receiving them here?
In fact, there is no deep meaning. Li Yan is too lazy to think about such small details and meets ordinary foreign ministers in Zichen Palace. He is only here because the palace was well built by the Liao people and the access to the palace is convenient.
At the same time that the three of them entered the palace, he came over from behind, immediately attracting two figures to bow down: "Your Majesty, Wang Qing, pays homage to His Highness King Yan!" "Your Majesty, Fang Yuye, pays homage to His Highness, King Yan!"
Fang Jie was slow for a moment, then hurriedly bowed down and said angrily: "Your Majesty, Fang Jie, pays homage to His Highness King Yan!"
Seeing that they were about to kowtow three times and bow nine times, Li Yan raised his hand: "Get up, there is no need to perform this etiquette unless it is a grand ceremony."
"yes!"
Wang Qing stood up slowly. When he saw him standing up, Fang Yuye and Fang Jie followed suit.
These three people were not qualified to give seats. Although Li Yan had met them before, he still looked at their identities and encouraged them: "I am very happy that these three people have returned home. I hope they will act diligently and faithfully and serve the country.
"
Wang Qing felt happy.
Their behavior can be described as "abandoning the darkness and turning to the light". Although Fang Yuye and Fang Jie definitely felt uncomfortable, they did not dare to be resentful. The word "extricate oneself and return home" was used to describe Li Ji, a famous general of the former Tang Dynasty, "
After extricating himself and returning home, he conquered the Eastern Capital from the King of Qin and achieved great success in the battle."
Although there was no difference in nature, the implicit expectations were quite different. Wang Qing almost bowed down again, but after observing his words, he noticed that the man frowned slightly, so he quickly stopped and bowed his hands: "I will definitely live up to Yan."
His Majesty the King wishes!"
The next step is the appointment of officials. Those who surrender must be promised high-ranking officials and generous salaries, especially when there is a change of dynasty.
Li Yuan of the former Tang Dynasty was like this. From the time he raised troops in Jinyang to the time he invaded Chang'an, he was granted many high-ranking official titles. The same was true for Zhao Kuangyin of the Zhao Song Dynasty. If he did not succeed in winning the country, he would use official positions to win people's hearts. One reason why the official positions in the Song Dynasty were so chaotic was that
Zhao Kuangyin asked the surrendered officials from various countries to at least retain their original positions, but was unwilling to give them real power afterwards, so he came up with the extremely cumbersome official position system.
However, Li Yan was different from those two people. He accepted Wang Qing and the others and bought the horse bones for a thousand dollars, but not many reasons. It was more because Wang Qing was talented and had been operating in the south for a long time, so he could put it to great use.
He opened his mouth and asked: "When Fang La sent envoys to our Yan court, did he also form an alliance with the Yang thieves in Sichuan and Sichuan?"
Wang Qing was startled at first, and then his pupils suddenly swelled. He had already realized that although the other party readily agreed to his and Fang La's strategy because of his courage, he also followed the plan:
"In this battle, Yan Ting not only wants to capture Jingxiang and occupy strategically important areas in the south, but also aims at Sichuan and Shu, which are most easily separatist when dynasties change?"