Chapter seven hundred and seventy second criticism
The war in southern Shanxi continues at the same pace as before. The first and second central battalion armies are responsible for besieging the Jincheng defenders, and the Taiyue marching battalion is responsible for sweeping the walled cities in northern Zezhou and southern Luzhou, and blocking the enemy in Luzhou.
The passage for the army to assist Jincheng in the south.
In addition to military operations, the ruling order in Zezhou was also established except for Jincheng, so that wherever the troops swept forward, the foundation would be established, and the Mongolian army would not be given the slightest chance to counterattack.
Of course, the goal of the first phase of the Southern Shanxi War Zone is to seize Jincheng, the prefecture of Zezhou, but it is not so easy to achieve.
In addition to the severe cold weather of ice and snow after the onset of winter, which is a severe test for the generals of both sides, on the one hand, the Mongolian army is constantly deploying troops and horses from Yanyun, Heshuo and more distant Liaodong (Bohai) to fill Luzhou.
Peeping troops came from Luzhou to the south to aid Jincheng; on the other hand, in addition to the nearly 40,000 defenders, there were nearly 200,000 women and children in Jincheng, half of whom were Mongols who had migrated south.
Especially the latter became the biggest obstacle to capturing Jincheng at this time and ending the first phase of the war in southern Shanxi.
In recent years, more than 500,000 people of the Mongol-Wu Nanyuan have migrated to the southern route. Due to their prominent strategic geographical location, the two prefectures of Zelu in southern Shanxi have become the focus of the Mongolian army's operations in the hinterland of the Central Plains, and have resettled nearly 40% of the ethnic groups in total.
At the beginning of preparations for the war in southern Shanxi, Han Qian, Li Zhigao and others thought that Wusu Dashi would evacuate these Mongols in advance out of consideration of preserving the vitality of their clan.
This will greatly reduce the difficulty of attacking cities such as Jincheng.
However, Wusu Dashi did not act as Han Qian and others expected.
Instead of evacuating the 200,000 Mongol people in southern Shanxi in advance, Wusu Dashi concentrated them all in the two powerful towns of Jincheng and Luzhou City, putting on a desperate and desperate attitude.
Han Qian guessed that the reason why Wu Su Dashi made such a decision was that he must have seen the rising power of the Chu Ting Young Man Sect, and at the same time, it also provided stronger psychological support for Yang Zhitang and Yang Yuanyan to take risks.
No matter how kind and merciful Han Qian was to the enemy generals in the past, for the Mongols who were besieged in Jincheng, the best situation they could face after the fall of Jincheng was that their wives and children were separated, and all the men were gone.
If they flee and are put into hard labor camps, women and children will not be able to escape and will be separated and resettled. They may have to be under the supervision of the local township secretary for the rest of their lives.
After the great victory at Zhiguanxing, Han Qian arranged this for the more than 20,000 Mongol people captured in Pingyang Prefecture, Jiangzhou Prefecture and other places.
He did not want to carry out a massacre, but considering the serious and sharp opposition among the Mongol people, he could only arrange it this way.
No matter how soft-hearted he is, he cannot allow him to return north.
However, all this has determined that the besieged defenders and people in Jincheng will have stronger and more determined resistance than any enemy city captured by Daliang soldiers and horses in the past. Even the whole city is old and weak.
Women and children will participate in the defense of the city regardless of their own safety.
Under such circumstances, if you want to attack Jincheng by force and attack Jincheng quickly, the casualties will be difficult to estimate. The safest way is to use overlapping trenches and camps to surround Jincheng tightly. When the day when the food and grass in the city is cut off, the city will not be attacked.
And fell.
However, Wusu Dashi had made full preparations before and scraped a large amount of grain and grass into Jincheng in advance.
Another safer way is to build a dam in the mountains south of Jincheng to store water and flood Jincheng.
As the state capital of Zezhou, Jincheng has a solid city and its terrain is higher than its surrounding areas.
This determines that in addition to building a dam upstream to store enough water, a ring embankment must be built around Jincheng to ensure that the entire Jincheng can be immersed in it after the water rushes down.
This will be a long-lasting and large-scale project.
Once a water attack is carried out, the civilians in the city are destined to suffer heavy casualties, but in any case, it is much better than taking the lives of generals who are loyal to Daliang and have made great achievements for Daliang.
Of course, in order to successfully implement the water attack, in addition to tightly surrounding the Jincheng soldiers and civilians in the city, they must also ensure that the Luzhou garrison cannot send reinforcements southward.
At the same time, we must ensure that the situation on the southern front does not undergo earth-shaking changes.
Otherwise, the Daliang soldiers and horses would have no choice but to withdraw southward with hatred.
Of course, Wu Su Dashi was also betting that before Jincheng fell, the Chu army would send troops to attack Huaixi. In that case, Han Qian would have to mobilize a large number of elite combat forces from the northern front to go south to keep the foundation of Huaixi.
place.
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"... Among the people in the market, there was a private discussion about the Queen Mother and Liang Lord Han Qian, and your Majesty ordered it to be strictly prohibited. Otherwise, where would the integrity of the Chu state be?"
In the meeting hall of Changxin Palace, Qingyang's beautiful face was livid with anger as she listened to the "angry" advice of Huang Huixiang, the Minister of Household Affairs.
Lei Cheng once reminded her that there were people talking about her old friendship with Han Qian in the market. She didn't pay much attention at first, thinking that there were two high walls between the palace and the market. As long as no one in the palace gossiped, it didn't matter.
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If Zhang Ping hadn't caught him personally today, she wouldn't have thought that some people were really able to sneak in through every possible opportunity.
Zhang Pingyuan originally thought that by dragging out the palace attendant who was gossiping in front of the young emperor and killing him with a stick, he would be able to cover up the matter. At least it would not cause an uproar in the palace and would not leave a mark in the heart of the young emperor.
The shadow was too deep; but when he accidentally dragged the palace attendant to the Banyuan on the east side of Chongxi Palace for execution, Empress Dowager Mingcheng "bumped" into him at the right time and ordered the Palace of Internal Affairs to execute the palace attendant Mingzheng.
According to the laws of Chu, a private discussion in the palace would be punished with "great disrespect". This palace attendant could not escape death. However, the problem was that the Empress Dowager Mingcheng "unintentionally" revealed the matter, so Huang Huixiang immediately asked the young emperor to come down.
It is strictly forbidden to criticize the privacy of the palace in the streets and streets.
The good intentions of the Empress Dowager Mingcheng, Huang Huixiang and others, as well as Zhang Ping, Shen Yang and Yang En who were sitting silently in front of the imperial case, were naturally clear to their hearts.
And from the way the young emperor was so angry that his hands and feet were trembling, we could also tell how effective this tactic was.
But what can they say?
Could it be that at this time, they said that the person spreading the news was someone with ulterior motives, so that the young emperor, who was only fourteen years old, could listen and calm down the anger in his chest?
The young emperor was like a young wolf that was driven to a frenzy. He just rushed into the Changxin Palace angrily and smashed the clock that Han Qian had presented to him for his birthday. The Queen Mother Changxin could not stop her.
"Anyone who criticizes the palace taboos will be imprisoned and punished for the crime of 'disrespect'!" Sitting behind the court, the thin young man bit his lip and said every word, with the veins of the hand holding the armrest exposed.
I wish I could capture all the gossiping untouchables in Jinling City and cut them into pieces.
"I obey the order!" Jingzhao Yin Zhou Qinian stood up and said in agreement.
The young emperor has not yet taken charge of the government, so Jingzhao Yin Zhou Qinian directly stepped forward to accept the decree, which was against the rules.
Shen Yang, Yang En, and Zhang Ping frowned, realizing that the scene in front of them was not trivial, but they could not stand up to stop it. Could it be that Jing Zhao Yin and Zhou Qinian were asked to retreat, and the Queen Mother Chang Xin personally issued the same orally, and then called Zhou Qinian stood up and accepted the decree?
Qingyang's face was livid with anger, while Du Chongtao, Zhou Bingwu, and Zhang Chao remained silent at the right time; and Gu Zhilong, who had not yet succeeded Zhou Bingwu as the Privy Councilor, but was qualified to participate in the small court meeting, was even more thoughtful...
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Qingyang was so angry that one Buddha ascended to heaven and two Buddhas destroyed the world. Finally, the ministers resigned. Bin'er also rushed back to Chongwen Hall angrily. Following the palace maids and eunuchs, they retreated. The huge political hall of Changxin Palace was empty. All that was left was dozens of flickering candles.
Seeing Lei Cheng still standing there, Qingyang asked angrily: "I'm really mad at the Ai family. What do you want to do with that bitch Huang E?"
"It's not what Empress Dowager Mingcheng wants to do. It's actually King Xin, King Shou and Duke Tan Huang Hua who want to send troops to Huaixi next." Lei Cheng walked closer and said in a low voice.
"How is that possible?" Qingyang stared at Lei Cheng in disbelief. At this moment, he even suspected that Lei Cheng was trying to trick her, and said sternly, "Without Ai Jia and Shen Xiang, and Yang Houye's instructions, Zhou Bingwu would have the guts to listen to them. Manipulating?"
In Qingyang's view, even if Huang Hua, Yang Yuanyan, and Yang Zhitang were completely in cahoots, they would still have the guise of Queen Mother Mingcheng, but they would still need to obtain the Forbidden Army Talisman from Zhou Bingwu before they could mobilize the Chu Forbidden Army troops.
Zhou Bingwu may have selfish motives, but as a veteran general of Chu, how could he not know that there was no national edict discussed in the political hall, privately awarding military talismans, and other conspiracies?
When the time comes, won't he be afraid that the whole family will be taken to the execution ground by the bodyguards and soldiers, and their heads will be chopped off and rolled to the ground?
The Guards' Pro-Army currently seems to be headed by Du Chongtao, Zhang Han, Guo Liang and others. However, when Shen Yang, Yang En and others led the reorganization of the Guard's Pro-Army Metropolitan Governor's Office, firstly, a large-scale addition of civil servants to supervise the army was established to provide checks and balances. Generals such as Du Chongtao, Zhang Han, and Guo Liang first decentralized military command and lowered it to the level of Du Yuhou to ensure the stability and loyalty of the bodyguards and soldiers guarding the capital.
If the guards and soldiers do not rebel or mutiny, the center is still in their hands. What can Yang Yuanyan, Yang Zhitang, Huang Hua and the others do?
"Zhou Bingwu, Du Chongtao, Zhang Chao and others will not listen to their mercy at this time, but if King Xin and King Shou send troops to invade Huaixi without authorization, and after cooking the raw rice into cooked rice, they will win the support of His Majesty, Zhou Bingwu, What choice will Du Chongtao, Zhang Chao and Gu Zhilong make?" Lei Cheng asked, "If they hadn't planned so deeply, they had managed to sneak an informant into His Majesty's side in recent years, why would they sacrifice it so easily now? Lost it? At this time, they are taking great pains to arouse Your Majesty’s hatred for the King, and are taking great pains to destroy Your Majesty’s confidence in the Queen Mother. They must have a big plan!”
"Han Qian has already expected this, so it means that a trap has been dug for them in Chuzhou?" Qingyang asked, staring at Lei Cheng.
"It was not easy for your Majesty to besiege more than 200,000 Mongol soldiers and civilians in Jincheng this time. It was not easy for your Majesty to drag hundreds of thousands of Mongol soldiers and civilians to Luzhou. It was also not easy for your Majesty to persuade the Lord of Shu to firmly maintain the idea of harmony and friendship with Daliang. If you don't waver, if you mobilize the elite troops on the northern front to go south at this time, all your previous efforts on the northern front will be wasted. The capture of southern Shanxi may be postponed, but it will give the Mongols a chance to breathe, and the world situation will become complicated and strange. "It's harmful," Lei Cheng said. "Even if you expect that King Xin and King Shou may be in danger, your Majesty still doesn't want to withdraw troops directly from the northern front for the time being. Currently, there are only 20,000 troops in Chuzhou. Do you want to increase the number of troops in the future? Or Talking about whether the strategic direction of Daliang should be completely changed from north to south, Your Majesty still needs to make adjustments based on the results of the first battle. Does the Queen Mother also need to make early preparations?"
"What preparations should the Ai family make?" Qingyang sat down on the cold brocade couch and suddenly understood the conspiracy of Yang Zhitang, Yang Yuanyan and others. How could he come up with a complete countermeasure in a hurry?
Could it be that Yang Zhitang was summoned to the palace to scold him and ordered him to give up the risky plan of conspiring with Yang Yuanyan to send troops to attack Huaixi?
"If King Xin and King Shou arbitrarily send troops from Yangzhou and Shouzhou into Chuzhou, the initial stage will be smooth, but with your majesty's youth and vigour, a full-scale war between Liang and Chu will be inevitable. Queen Mother, Prime Minister Shen may not need to prepare anything extra by then. , just follow the emperor's heart and public opinion. However, if King Xin and King Shou send troops to Chuzhou and are frustrated by Zhao Wuji, then they want to escape the accountability of the Queen Mother and Shen Yang afterwards, and there is no guarantee that they will not take risks. The Queen Mother must beware of this!" Lei Cheng said.
"Since Han Qian has guessed Yang Zhitang and Yang Yuanyan's intentions, and only uses Zhao Wuji's 20,000 troops to defend Chuzhou, is he also intending to show weakness?" Qingyang said, "If the Ai family's guess is correct, even if Zhao Wuji is here Chuzhou only has 20,000 soldiers and horses at its disposal. Can we still kill Wang Xinyu and return home?"
Lei Cheng said: "I don't dare to guess what your Majesty is thinking, but this is what your Majesty asked me to tell the Queen Mother. Next, Feng Yi and the others will withdraw to East Lake, and Cai Chen will also Jiang Gao is ill and recuperating in the house. The old bones of the old slave are of no use anymore. He is in Changxin Palace. The Queen Mother can call her whenever..."
Those with a little bit of discernment, even if they don't know the deeper plots of Prince Shou's Palace, can still know that the young emperor and the Queen Mother and their son are almost the same, even if they don't turn against each other; and once Yang Zhitang returns to the center, he will definitely persuade His Majesty to take charge of the throne.
Han Qian was also not sure that Zhao Wuji could severely damage Yang Yuanyan in the first battle in Chuzhou. Yang Zhitang and the others were trying to nip the danger in the bud, so they decided to make arrangements according to the worst plan. At this time, Cai Chen chose to report his illness and cut off from Changxin Palace. .This also requires Cai Chen to show to Yang Zhitang and Yang Yuanyan that they can adapt to the situation and protect themselves wisely, so as to ensure that no matter how the situation in Chu Ting changes, he will not be excluded from the core.
Qingyang sat behind the court case in despair, and after thinking for a long time, she suddenly realized that the situation had reached this point, and she had no ability to change anything. But then she thought sadly, even if she was better than Gaozu, who founded the great Chu empire, The emperor could not escape the tragic ending of sudden death in his later years, the separation of his sons and the death of his wife. What could she, a weak woman, do to struggle?
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"Huang Huixiang, Huang Hua took advantage of the rumors in the palace today. I think he is deliberately trying to arouse His Majesty's dissatisfaction with the Queen Mother and hatred towards Lord Liang. His plan is very big!"
After Xue Ruogu resigned as the governor of Yangzhou, he stayed with Shen Yang as a guest of the court. He was no longer qualified to go out of the palace and participate in court meetings. He heard Shen Yang in the Yamen of Shangshu Province and Yang En mentioned that in the palace today. Of course, with all the things that happened, we can expect that the people behind the whole thing had great intentions.
"Feng Yi visited my house a few days ago and mentioned that if King Xin and Shou rashly attack Huaixi, Liang Jun will fight back fiercely, and Chu will bear all the consequences," Yang En said with a sigh, "It seems The people in Luoyang have already noticed that the wind direction in Jinling has changed, but I actually expect King Shou to be more patient..."
"Since Luoyang has predicted that King Xin and King Shou will make changes, then their deployment of only 20,000 troops in Chuzhou is most likely a trap?" Xue Ruogu said in shock, "Shen Xiangping advised King Shou not to act rashly!"
"What kind of trap is there?" Yang En sighed and shook his head. "Han Qian calculated that Yang Zhitang and Yang Yuanyan would only have at most 40,000 soldiers and horses available for danger in the early stage, so he placed 20,000 elite troops in Chuzhou. Fight the first battle with Yang Zhitang and Yang Yuanyuan in an upright manner. Even if this is a trap, can Yang Zhitang and Yang Yuanyuan not step on it?"
"You need to use all your strength to tie the chicken, not to mention that the Liang army is an elite soldier who has fought in hundreds of battles. The Chuzhou army is said to be an elite army with twice the strength, but it has not fought a tough battle for several years?" Xue Ruogu looked at Shen Yang expectantly. , said, "Since war with Liang Jun is inevitable, we should give up the factional dispute."
Shen Yang shook his head and said: "As Marquis Yang said, even if it is a trap, King Shou and King Xin must go there first. Only King Shou and King Xin go there first, Du Chongtao, Zhou Bingwu, Zhang Chao , Zhang Wei and the Zheng family can keep up with them. At this time, it is no longer possible for a few of us to give up our prejudices. The only solution now is to wait and see. The only thing Yang Zhitang and the others can strive for is perhaps only There must be Gu Zhilong who is eager to gain a foothold in the center..."
Xue Ruogu thought about it. Needless to say, Zheng, Zhang Chao, Zhang Han and even Zhou Bingwu all advocated maintaining the status quo. Even though the central committee had many disputes, they finally reached a consensus and decided to go to full-scale war with Liang Jun. I don’t know what happened in the middle. Many twists and turns.
And by that time, Liang Jun would already be ready to fight on the southern front, right?
Perhaps the best strategy for King Shou and King Xin to ignore the central government and use troops without authorization is to resolve the dispute and directly enter a full-scale war.
It's just that Liang Jun has 20,000 elite troops in Chuzhou. If he launched an offensive with 40,000 troops stationed in Chuzhou and Yangzhou in the early stage, can he achieve the results worth looking forward to? Can Yang Zhitang persuade Gu Zhilong to join their conspiracy?