When the military report was sent to Tokyo, Zhao Jiuchu felt as if a stone had fallen to the ground, because just as he emphasized, the Jin Army was indeed here. But soon, as the military information was gathered, he
Falling into some confusion and doubt.
This confusion and doubt are twofold.
The first is the big aspect. After fighting for so long, it is common knowledge that the Jin Army's field armies are divided into east and west divisions. But this time when the war started, he only received military intelligence reports from the West Route Army, but not from the East Route Army...
... Logically speaking, in the Battle of Xiaowuxi, this knife should undoubtedly have hit the East Route Army, but why has there been no movement from the East Route Army?
Moreover, the intelligence that continues to come from the Taihang Mountains is a bit wrong, that is, most of the Meng'an Mooke who were placed in the central and southern areas of the Hebei Plain by the Jin Kingdom do not seem to show signs of large-scale mobilization... This is very strange, because Hebei
The meng'anmouke on the plain were themselves the main component of the East Route Army, and a small part also belonged to the West Route Army.
If the West Route Army deliberately did not fully mobilize in order to achieve a surprise attack, but only concentrated elite cavalry, then of course it is understandable. After all, the leader of the army was Wanyan Loushi, the almost undefeated Jin Kingdom general.
After raising troops, no one in the Song and Jin countries was qualified to question it.
But what happened to the East Route Army? Are they not ready to join the war?
Of course, it is possible that the East Route Army will be mobilized again in the follow-up, or that some elite troops are passing through the complex Yellow River waterway in eastern Hebei, preparing to bypass Jingdong to fight... These are all possible.
However, the detailed military situation of the West Route Army is now also full of doubts.
It stands to reason that when Wanyan Loushi suddenly sent out troops, he should have continued to follow the results of the last battle and capture Danzhou and Danzhou to the south of Yan'an Prefecture, but why did he go south to Tongguan?
And after capturing Tongguan, where will he go?
Will they go east to attack Shaanzhou, or will they go west to attack Chang'an? Logically speaking, they should attack Chang'an in order to encircle Yanzhou and Danzhou from the south. But if this is the case, why do they send out troops to suppress Shaanzhou instead?
However, since Tongguan was cut off, communication in the direction of Chang'an had to go around Luoshui, which inevitably delayed it for a few days, which was really surprising.
In short, all kinds of doubts filled Zhao Jiu's mind, making it difficult for the Privy Council staff and officials to come to a conclusion, which in turn caused doubts and indecision at the highest level of the Song Dynasty Central Committee.
However, the military situation was serious and could not be delayed for a moment. However, on the evening of the fourth day of the Lunar New Year, that is, the second day after receiving the news, as news came from Kansai, Zhao Jiu, regardless of the fact that it was getting late, held a temporary meeting in Wende Hall.
At the court meeting... the four prime ministers, the Privy Council, the ministers, the ministers, the six ministers, the scholars and other close ministers, plus the commander of the imperial camp in the capital, were all present, but no one else was summoned, but they wanted to make a decision.
React quickly.
"The military situation of the Jin Army is unclear. Zhang Jun, Yue Fei, and Zhang Rong must guard the defense zone and cannot move without authorization!" After the court meeting began, Wang Boyan proposed a basic prerequisite for the response on behalf of the Privy Council.
And this premise was actually recognized by the vast majority of people present.
Because these three places are directly facing enemy-occupied areas, and behind them are the key areas of the Song Dynasty. Behind Zhang Jun are Huainan and Southeast; behind Yue Fei and Zhang Rong are Tokyo and Nanjing, which have just recovered after suffering a large-scale invasion last year.
The heart of Henan.
"The soldiers and horses of the imperial camp along the river and the soldiers and horses in Tokyo City should not be touched without permission." The discussion continued, and someone soon put forward new opinions.
"Can you dispatch the imperial army to come to the rescue?"
"Han Shizhong should go to Luoyang, Xijing to wait and see the situation in preparation for any eventuality..."
"Han Shizhong is bound to launch an attack. His troops are recuperating in Huaixi, and the money, food and materials are all optimally supplied. This is to allow him to respond flexibly... But I think it is not necessarily necessary to attack Xijing and Luoyang, but to go to Nanyang first. When the situation is clear,
Let’s move forward again!”
"Naturally, when going to Nanyang, I have to go to Wuguan to support Kansai, but Kansai has already sent a message, saying that it has not..."
"Although Kansai has been summoned and has not been attacked suddenly, looking at the overall situation, once Kansai is attacked, Tokyo will be beyond its reach. Therefore, if Lieutenant Han really goes to Xijing, he may be fooled by the golden man's voice to attack the east and west, and divert the tiger away from the mountain.
Plan!"
"But if that's the case, what if Wanyan Lou's family really goes all out to attack Shaanxi Province? With the importance of Shaanxi Province, once it is lost, it will be the real isolation..."
"Can't the Eight-Character Army be sent to help? After all, Shaanzhou is always closer to the Central Plains and has convenient transportation. If Wanyan Loushi really comes to attack Shaanzhou, the imperial camp will have an army of 200,000. Where can't we send troops to support?
?”
It has to be said that the court meeting was still effective. At least it could help the ignorant ministers understand the situation a little bit.
But at the same time, I have to admit that the North Korean meeting clearly revealed the dilemmas of some strategic choices, such as the largest mobile corps, that is, whether Han Shizhong's troops should go to Chang'an or Luoyang? Should we send out the imperial camp at this time?
The army is coming to help? Can Wang Yan's Eight-Character Army be properly dispatched to provide reinforcements to the west?
Every action has its pros and cons, but it must be done, otherwise the military will be delayed. At this time, officials and governors who have a rough understanding of the pros and cons need to come together to make a final decision.
Of course, after two or three years of war, Zhao Guan's family still had some experience and judgment. After thinking for a while, he came to a rough conclusion in his mind:
First of all, when there are disputes about military matters, you should listen to experts, so these disputes should be based on the opinions of Liu Ziyu, Hu Hongxiu and other generals who joined the army, Wang Yuan, Qu Duan, Wang De, Wang Yan and other generals;
Secondly, Zhao Jiu himself always felt that Wanyan Loushi’s dispatch of troops this time was a bit strange, and seemed confused, but this kind of foggy performance combined with Wanyan Loushi’s reputation made people not careless... So, on the one hand,
It is necessary to leave enough room in the overall strategy, but at the same time, it is necessary to go all out for Wanyan Loushi.
"My decision has been made."
After hesitating for a moment, Zhao Jiufang spoke sternly from the throne.
As the candlelight flickered, the twenty or thirty people in the hall also listened solemnly and silently.
"Han Shizhong left Nanyang, walked through Wuguan, and went to Chang'an." Zhao Jiu took the lead.
"I second the proposal." Lu Haowen stood at the foot of the middle steps of the palace and was the first to answer. The other three prime ministers also bowed their hands and expressed their support.
Of course seconded!
This is a matter of choosing one of the two. The Zhao family is supposed to choose one on the spot, and then the chief officials second the decision to achieve a legal process.
So as soon as the words were spoken, no one argued about the matter anymore. The Prime Minister Xiao Lin and other ministers nearby also started drafting the decree on the spot according to the old practice of Bagong Mountain in Huaishang.
The official decision, the approval of the governor, and the issuance of the imperial edict are an unquestionable military order that represents the highest authority of the empire.
"Official family."
Just as Zhao Guanjia was about to continue talking, Wang Yuan, the commander of the imperial camp, suddenly came out and reminded everyone of a trivial matter: "Everyone knows the grudge between Wuguan guard Xin Xingzong and Han Taiwei. The military and national affairs are important and we must be careful. Don't do anything."
Unexpected changes occurred.”
Zhao Jiu suddenly felt enlightened and realized on his face, but he turned around on the spot and ordered to the minister who was writing the decree: "Lin Jingmo, Bachelor of the Hanlin Academy."
"I'm here!" Lin Jingmo's heart skipped a beat, but he didn't act in a hurry.
"If the decree is complete, you will deliver it in person. Then I will give you a gold medal. You must follow Han Shizhong to Chang'an and ensure that there will be no trouble along the way."
Lin Jingmo calmly bowed his head and continued to write the will.
"It's not just that." Zhao Jiufu, who was reminded, ordered again and again. "Li Ruopu, a scholar of the Imperial Academy, went to Shaanzhou to look for Li Yanxian, Wan Qixian, the imperial censor, went to Jezhou to look for Yue Fei, and Fan Zongyin, a member of the Zhongshushe, went to Xuzhou to look for Zhang Jun... The living man
Yu Yunwen went to Baima Jin to look for Zhang Rong... When I go to the army, I will have gold medals to represent my authority, but I am not allowed to interfere in the military. I want you to coordinate the conflicts between the armies and alleviate the inappropriateness between the local and the army."
Those whose names were called were Li Ruopu and Fan Zongyin who were present and took their orders at that time.
However, Lin Qifu, the Secretary of the Ministry of Household Affairs, also pointed out that since Yu Yunwen was Zhang Rong's son-in-law, he should avoid suspicion, and he was too junior to be appointed... The key point is that the situation at Zhang Rong's place was normal, and there was no need to send his son-in-law there to show his favor.
Sincerity, this not only shows that the situation is too tense, but also shows that Zhang Rongweng's son-in-law is not trusted enough.
Zhao Jiu, who was already hesitant about the appointment, immediately realized it and changed the candidate again. Instead, he asked a supervisory censor to call Li Ruoxu, that is, another brother of Li Ruoshui and Li Ruopu, to come out to coordinate with Baima Jin.
.
At this time, Zhao Jiufu made a decision, and the imperial army did not move out, but still stayed in the southeast. Although there were waves, they still passed through calmly with the support of the governors.
"As for Shaanzhou, I have thought about it."
Finally came to the last key question, but Zhao Jiu calmed down completely. "The left and right deputy commanders (Wang Yan and Wang De) of the imperial camp should be sent to march west together for support."
"How about Tokyo?" Zhu Shengfei, the Minister of Rites, couldn't help but ask.
"If there are soldiers and horses coming to capture Tokyo, it is impossible for them to fall from the sky." Zhao Jiu said calmly. "Either they come across the river from the north, or they come from Jingdong in the east, or they come from Shaanzhou in the west... No matter where they are.
Where did the seeds come from? As long as we arrange them properly, we can always mobilize our troops in time to deal with them. On the contrary, because of the sudden appearance of Wanyan Lou's room, we lost our position. This one didn't dare and that one couldn't, so it played into the Jin man's hands."
Zhu Shengfei immediately fell silent.
"And I have thought about it." Zhao Jiu said more calmly. "Wanyan Lou's move south is very strange, but in any case, before he increased his troops, his troops were there. According to Li Yanxian's report,
That's about 40,000 to 50,000. According to the intelligence from the Taihang Mountains in Hebei, the fierce troops in Hebei have not yet moved. His West Route Army still has to guard Taiyuan, Yan'an, Hezhongfu and other important towns. So the only troops he can move at the moment are these 45,000.
Ten thousand...with such a force, if he attacks Chang'an, Shaanzhou cannot be taken care of; if he attacks Shaanzhou, Chang'an cannot be taken care of; if he attacks both sides, he cannot take care of both sides!"
The atmosphere in the palace became slightly calmer for a moment, and Liu Ziyu, Hu Hongxiu, Wang Yuan and other knowledgeable people in the palace also nodded slowly to show their approval.
"It's not just that," Zhao Jiu continued. "In fact, no matter where he takes it, as long as he can't succeed in one blow, we can arrange it properly so that the armies from the east and west can attack calmly and force him back."
The people in the palace felt more and more relieved, and several generals who had never been able to say anything took the opportunity to shout.
Of course, some people could not help but express some objections: "In the officialdom, each army has its own faction, such as Li Yanxian's troops are called Li Jiajun, Han Shizhong's troops are called Han Jiajun, and the Western Army has been an independent army for hundreds of years. Why should they be allowed to arrange it properly?
Spend troops, money and food to save others?"
The person who spoke was a crooked person, but unexpectedly, as soon as he said this, there was a lot of agreement...
But Zhao Jiu seemed to have expected it, and simply expressed his last thought: "So, I am going to Luoyang to take charge... Unless I am on the front line, no one can control Han Shizhong, Li Yanxian, the Western Army, and the Imperial Camp.
All departments of the Chinese army are working together to do this... What do you think?"
ps: Before this chapter was published, Qidian’s background showed that 147,000 words were updated this month...