War is complex and simple; it is cruel and gentle; it is orderly and chaotic; it respects the balance of strength, but also talks about miracles and courage.
These things manifest themselves in completely different ways depending on the person's position and standpoint, but no matter what, war cannot be easy.
Therefore, Zhao Guanjia drank a few more cups of yellow soup after his old homesickness hit him, and complained about himself, which did not help the war situation. Looking back, he still had to face the severe reality of the war situation.
Let us say that in the late autumn of September, as the main force of the Jin army crossed the river and entered the battle, the Song-Jin war in the second year of Jianyan quickly entered a new stage, which was the most difficult stage for the Song Dynasty, that is, the so-called large-scale loss of cities and land.
That stage when troops are lost and generals are lost.
Throughout September, Zhao Jiukong sat in Nanyang, while messages from the front line came like snow:
Eleven cities in six counties of Zhengzhou fell, including three massacres;
Thirty-seven cities in sixteen counties of Kaifeng Prefecture were captured and fifteen cities in six counties were captured, and the city was massacred twice;
Sishui Pass was lost;
Twenty-one cities in sixteen counties of Henan Prefecture were captured and seventeen cities in thirteen counties were captured. The city was massacred once and burned twice;
Everything south of Hunchuan in Yan'an Prefecture was lost;
Weicheng in Huazhou fell and was burned to the ground...
All of the above, coupled with Zhang Jun's general Liu Bao's defeat at Luyi, Bozhou, triggered a massacre. As long as Nanyang knew for sure, more than 50 cities had been lost, seventeen battles were defeated, seven cities were massacred, and three cities were burned.
In the death system, there are envoys, one bachelor of the Zizheng Palace, six military governors, five commanders, and countless commanders and below.
As for the east of Shuntian Prefecture (Nanjing Shangqiu), the two roads of Jingdong and Jingdong have basically fallen again. Even if there are one or two remaining, it is impossible to have an impact on the war in the core area of the Central Plains after the heavy Jin troops are stationed in Nanjing... not to mention more
mentioned.
And if measured based on this, Jingdong and Jingxi Fourth Road have actually occupied 70% of the prefectures and counties!
However, during the march, the Jin people came this time. In addition to the routine large-scale massacre of the city, the destruction of the army, burning and looting, there was one thing that particularly attracted Nanyang's attention... That was the Wanyan Wushu in the direction of Zhengzhou.
Still Wanyan Talan in the direction of Puzhou, and even Wanyan Loushi as far away as Shaanxi, all carried out large-scale activities to persuade them to surrender. From the Tokyo Remaining Division who held military power, the generals of the Western Army, and the leaders of rebels and bandits from various places,
When going to various cities and places, the Jin people would send people to persuade them to surrender almost every time they fought.
Moreover, what shocked Nanyang even more was that from the intelligence obtained, it was known that the Jin Army basically kept its word... Any military leader who surrendered would definitely keep his troops and the promised official position would be given, and anyone who took the initiative to open the city
As long as the city pays a fixed amount of military rations, it will definitely be preserved.
Although they are unwilling to admit it, for these surrendered cities, the Jin Army seems to be more disciplined than the Song Army!
In contrast, once a certain city or place made a clear move to support the war, the Jin people would inevitably carry out a systematic and large-scale massacre and burning of the city after the war.
In this situation of ice and fire, some cities on the front line naturally began to resist the Song army. The cities refused to accept the Song army, and even direct betrayal and confrontation occurred one after another. As a result, it was extremely difficult for Tokyo to stay behind.
Tsukasa's troops began to be restrained on the outskirts of Tokyo, and had to gather around Tokyo City, where their scope of activity became increasingly narrow.
To be fair, for Nanyang, this situation is more terrifying and frightening than the massacre of the city and the second fall of Tokyo... because the Jin people actually know how to use political offensives to win over people's hearts, and the Jin Kingdom's will is to divide the Central Plains.
It's obviously no lie.
However, there is good news, that is, Han Shizhong's left army of the royal camp desperately raised their troops and successfully attracted Wanyan Wushu's attention. Since Han Shizhong's troops joined the original garrison of Shunchang Prefecture, Han Shizhong himself
Even after he personally settled in Yancheng, Jin Wushu showed sluggishness and hesitation in his offensive around Tokyo.
But the good times did not last long, Jin Wushu's offensive was only delayed for less than ten days.
Entering the early winter, it was probably due to the reminder and suppression from Marshal Wanyan Nianhan of the Daming Prefecture behind him, or it may be that Wanyan Wushu had long wanted to take the opportunity to rest. In short, he still focused his attention on Tokyo City after recruiting 40,000 troops.
direction, and defeated the commanders Cao Cheng and Wang Shan in early October, and captured Zhongmou, which was only fifty miles away from Tokyo City.
In other words, the city of Tokyo was once again invaded by troops.
At the same time, new news came from Li Yanxian and Yu Wenxuzhong almost at the same time - after Wanyan Loushi conquered Yan'an, he divided 20,000 troops to let his son Wanyan Huonv garrison, and led 30,000 Jin troops northward.
After the Suide Army, they suddenly put down the Jinning Army in front of them, and turned to pass through the Xixia Youxiang Shenyong Army Division (later Yulin area), and surrounded Fuzhou, Linzhou, and Fengzhou with water.
The Fuzhou Zhe clan was caught off guard, and the castles fell quickly. The last definite news was that the Fuzhou Zhe clan, which had been loyal to the Song Dynasty for hundreds of years, should have surrendered, because the head of the Fuzhou Zhe clan, Zhe Keqiu, could be found soon.
He showed up again, but it was to persuade Wanyan Lou's family to surrender to the Jinning Army, which had effectively become an isolated island in the northwest. However, he was met by Xu Huiyan, the defender of the Jinning Army, who came to the city and scolded him in public, pointed his bow at his back, and then left in embarrassment.
.
At this time, Yu Wenxuzhong also mentioned that Qu Duan did not listen to his superiors and was ordered by Wang Shu, the general manager. For this reason, Yu Wenxuzhong had sent a special envoy to northern Shaanxi to urge and persuade Qu Duan and so on...
The situation has deteriorated. At this time, neither the Zhao family nor the other members of the Privy Council can dream of letting Han Shizhong close the door and hunt dogs at the pass northeast of Nanyang. In desperation, Zhao Jiu personally wrote a decree asking Han Shizhong to take the initiative regardless of the consequences.
Go north to rescue Tokyo.
There is no doubt about Han Shizhong's loyalty and bravery. After receiving the order, he immediately led his entire army northward despite knowing that his combat power was insufficient.
On October 11th, Han Shizhong himself stationed in Changshe, the capital of Yingchang Prefecture (later Xuchang area), which was only 150 miles away from Zhongmou.
On October 13, Han Shizhong left thousands of soldiers and horses in Changshe as backup, and also left his wife Liang here to settle down, but continued to lead 20,000 troops to Changge at the northeastern end of Yingchang Mansion.
It is only a hundred miles away from Zhongmou.
On October 14, Han Shizhong led 20,000 troops, crossed the Wei River eastward, entered the boundaries of Kaifeng Prefecture, and marched to Zhujiaqu Town that night.
But in the middle of the night, Lieutenant Han, who had just settled everything down and was still missing his wife and hesitating about the return of several sentries, was awakened by the sound of horse hooves, and then quickly got up and put on his armor!
"Lieutenant!"
Han Shizhong hurriedly put on his armor and walked out of the bedroom. He ran into several frightened subordinates of the Beiwei Army in the courtyard. The leader was Cheng Min, who had already become the commander of the Beiwei Army. "Is this the attack of the Jin people?"
"What do you think?"
Feeling the movement on the ground like an earthquake, Han Shizhong's face turned livid. Until now, he still didn't know that Wanyan Wushu had never 'ignored' him. The ten days of hesitation before were definitely preparing for this battle.
In preparation, the capture of Zhongmou was a strategy to lure the enemy. "The Jin people are scheming against me, Old Han! What kind of bullshit is the fourth prince just remembering the grudge against Huaishang!"
Cheng Min became more and more anxious: "Lieutenant, how many soldiers can this sound of horse hooves cost..."
"Three to forty thousand is not bad at all!" As he spoke, the commander of the Zhiyuan Army and the deputy commander of the imperial camp's left army, Xie Yuan, was short of armor and hurriedly came to the house that served as the camp of the Chinese army.
"Fifth brother...make a decision quickly!"
"What's left to decide?! Are we able to defend or fight at this time?!" Han Shizhong put on his helmet, but did not put on the copper mask. Instead, he directly carried the copper mask and walked out with a ferocious expression.
"I have given you a military order... All units in the army, subject to the guidance of the commander-in-chief, hurry up and break out of the encirclement in the dark. One by one you can get away! But don't go back to Changge to the west. Go from the south. There are bridges at Songlou and Xutian in the south.
From there, go back to Changsha!"
Jie Yuan and the Black Dragon Wang Sheng and other generals who had just arrived outside the hospital were stunned for a moment, but they each took a breath and immediately turned around and left without looking back.
Let us also say that in the dark night, the horseshoes rumbled, and the main force of the Jin Army's cavalry rushed at night. Han Shizhong was caught off guard and could only break out in panic... He really resigned himself to his fate.
And when the battlefield turned into a chaotic battle as soon as the battle started, on a gentle slope a few miles north of Zhujiaqu Town, under a few torches, I saw Zhujiaqu Town reacting quickly and the battle was in chaos.
Wanyan Wushu, the instigator of a tall horse, could not help but frown slightly.
"Fourth Prince, there is no need to worry."
Secretly seeing Wanyan Wushu's unswerving expression, a middle-aged scribe who had just passed the palace examination and was appointed magistrate and had just surrendered carefully stepped forward and flattered him fervently. "According to the students, the fourth prince's attack in the east and west is also called Ming Dynasty.
Building a plank road to sneak into Chen Cang is a master of the art of war. It can be called a miraculous plan... Han Shizhong is surrounded by our Dajin cavalry, and he will definitely die here."
"What kind of magical plan is this?"
Wanyan Wushu frowned and looked at the scribe. He was about to get angry, but for some reason, he suppressed his anger after pinching his buttocks and spoke frankly. "Han Shizhong was able to fall into my previous trick of luring the enemy, but the overall situation collapsed."
I have no choice but to do this. If I were to take Han Shizhong's place, wouldn't I come to save Tokyo? As for what happened tonight, it was just relying on the cavalry. If Han Shizhong had 20,000 cavalry, how could I surround him?
?”
The scribe was stunned for a moment and didn't know how to answer.
The fourth prince looked at the chaotic battlefield ahead and became even more emotional:
"As for the current battle situation, to be honest, Han Shizhong's reaction was beyond my expectation. If it were me in that town, I would have been waiting for death. How could he make a decisive breakthrough so quickly? Just based on his reaction,
You can be called a famous general. If you are a scribe and don't understand military strategy, then you should say less and write me documents with peace of mind. In the future, our Jin Kingdom will establish a new emperor in Henan, and your future will be indispensable."
"Yes." The scribe quickly calmed down and faced him.
The surroundings returned to silence, and Wanyan Wushu continued to observe the battlefield calmly. However, as time passed and the shouts of death shifted obviously to the south, the commander of the Jin army who had just planned a perfect raid kept frowning.
, and the wrinkles are getting tighter... After all, as he said just now, designed to take advantage of the general trend, and with the advantage of the cavalry on the ground, this battle should have been a complete and sufficient battle of annihilation!
And once the Imperial Camp Zuo Army, the most effective unit of the Song Army, was systematically annihilated on the Henan Plain, and once Han Shizhong, the number one general in the Song Dynasty who could be called the backbone of Zhao Song officials, died in this town, then in Wanyan
From Wu Shu's point of view, this southern expedition was basically inseparable.
In fact, this was also the fundamental reason why Wanyan Wushu, after his brother Wanyan Yinliduo returned to Yanjing, forcibly changed his established strategy under the pressure of Nianhan and painstakingly designed this ambush and raid.
After all, for the fourth prince of the Jin Kingdom, the Battle of Huaishang was unforgettable, so how could Han Shizhong, who was the de facto commander of the Song Army at that time, be 'ignored' by him?
He will never forget Han Shizhong in his life, just like he will always remember that the fundamental target of this attack is the Zhao Song official family!
However, it was not until now that Wanyan Wushu discovered a major mistake in his plan - he should not have chosen to enter the encirclement at night because of the suddenness of the battle, because this would greatly reduce the effect of the original annihilation battle! He should have
From the beginning, Han Chang, Wanyan Balisu and others were asked to rely on the strength of the cavalry to complete the siege during the day, and then slowly plan for it.
Of course, now that the matter has come to this, it is useless to think too much, and Wanyan Wushu can only stand here and wait for the dawn.
In the winter, it was very late in the east, and it seemed that the more worried you were, the more likely it would be. Wanyan Wushu not only did not wait for the good news that Han Shizhong had been captured, but instead waited for a piece of news that could be called negative testimony.
"So, you fought with a large and elite Song Army bronze-faced cavalry last night, and were repeatedly charged by the opponent, and escaped from the south?" Wanyan Wushu looked at Wanyan Bali who saluted him.
Su, frowning slightly. "Not Xi Mian?"
"No." The clan general, Wanyanbali of the West Route Army, replied calmly on his horse. "He should have guessed that we sent people to fetch Changge City, so he went directly to Changshe (later Xuchang) Jiancheng from the south.
And he left. However, last night, the men's arrows were like rain, and the cavalry also fell off countless horses. Maybe Han Shizhong would have been trampled into the mud a long time ago..."
"There is no such thing as a man like Han Shizhong who can't speak!" Wanyan Wushu said without any expression on his face and interrupted him directly.
"It means that Han Shizhong will not die." Wanyan Balisu frowned slightly and spoke carefully. "After all, we won a great victory last night. The Song people lost nearly half, and at most ten thousand people escaped, and they were able to follow in a hurry to gather at Changshe.
It is estimated to be only a few thousand. It seems insufficient..."
"What exactly do you want to say?" Wanyan Wushu interrupted the other party again.
"I mean, Han Shizhong's army has been destroyed. When will the fourth prince go to capture Tokyo?" Wanyan Balisu was slightly angry and couldn't help raising his head in response. "It is said that Zongze in Tokyo City is gradually dying due to the suffering of the recent war.
It's just to stabilize the morale of the military, so it's kept secret. In this way, when we take Tokyo easily..."
"Why should I go to Tokyo?" Wanyan Wushu interrupted the other party for the second time.
Wanyan immediately fell silent... If he contradicted him forcefully, it could certainly be said to be Marshal Du's order, but there were some things that he really couldn't comment on, especially his brother.
After coming back, I have been in poor health, and I was given special instructions when I came here.
"Ba Lisu, are you trying to say that Marshal Du has the order?" However, Ba Lisu wanted to give face to the fourth prince, but Wanyan Wushu, the fourth prince, did not want to give face to Ba Lisu at all. Instead, he directly condescended to him on the slope.
Defeat it in public.
"Yes." Wan Yanba Lisu had no choice but to hold his hands at each other at the foot of the slope.
"It's good that Marshal Du has orders, but I am the dignified commander of the First Army. How to deal with the military affairs here is my responsibility." Jin Wushu said calmly. "What's more, I still have the will of the king... Pull away from the speed.
, I ask you again, what is the first order of the king? Is it that wherever the Emperor of Song is, he must be chased to that place?"
"Yes!" Wanyan was angry again, but there was nothing he could do.
"Which is more important, the will of the king or the military orders of the marshal?" Wanyan Wushu followed closely.
"So what does the fourth prince want to do?" Ba Lisu finally pretended to be impatient to avoid this helpless question.
"Of course I went to Nanyang to find the Emperor of Song Dynasty according to the king's decree!" Wanyan Wushu finally changed his face.
"What about Tokyo?" Ba Lisu was speechless.
"Aren't there still tens of thousands of lazy soldiers?" The fourth prince finally became impatient. "Don't worry about the stragglers. You are the vanguard and go south to Changshe immediately. I want to see if Han Shizhong is dead!"
"That's all." That evening, in Changshe City, Han Shizhong was lying on the couch, his back bloody and bloody, while Mrs. Liang held up a basket with tears in her hands. It was densely packed with arrows, but she didn't know how many there were.
catty.
It was obvious that the Jinren's arrows were good at breaking through armor. They shot into his back through the armor, were nailed into his flesh, and were just taken out.
Han Shizhong raised his head, glanced at the basket weakly, and then suddenly smiled evilly: "It's enough for one blow... Let the blacksmith in the city take this and make it into a short knife. In the future, I, Han Wu, will use this knife to cut Wanyan Wushu alive!"
The surrounding generals and soldiers, who were originally depressed and sad, became energetic after hearing these words.