Han Shizu

Chapter 431 The Khitan has no shortage of troubled people
In August of the fourth year of Qianyou in the Northern Han Dynasty, soldiers from Hunan Lang went south to attack Ma Xichong, the false King of Chu who usurped power and throne. Xu Wei, commander of Tanzhou, and other generals fought against him. They fought in Yiyang, retreated, and lost thousands of troops.

Ma Xichong, the false King of Chu, was originally a general under his command and supported his superiors. He had no virtue and talent, and was promiscuous. He was trapped in Changsha and was difficult to control. The table invites troops to the Tang Dynasty.

Also favored by the audience, Hengshan King Ma Xie, who occupied Hengzhou and watched Changsha, also asked for help in the Southern Tang Dynasty, hoping to help him regain Tanzhou.

The Ma brothers, successively enshrined in the list, adding another one to the name of being a teacher, there is no better opportunity.This time, Bian Hao, the commander of the Tang Army who had already been instructed by the Tang Lord, commanded [-] soldiers, and came from Changsha in the west of Yuanzhou.

The Tang army passed through Liling in five days. After hearing the news, Ma Xichong, the false king of Chu, immediately sent envoys to reward the army.Ten days before approaching Changsha, Ma Xichong sent a note to the Tang camp to ask for his life. He led the Hunan generals in front of the city and was defeated in the dust. .

Next, Bian Hao issued a call to arms, declaring Ma's crimes, and sent troops to be stationed in various states.When there was a famine in Hunan, Bian Hao ordered a large amount of Ma's granary to relieve it. The people of Chu, whose strengths were in dire straits, did not object to the Tang army's occupation because of Da Yue.

Therefore, when Bian pickaxes entered Chu, they were as powerful as a broken bamboo.The land of Lingnan is temporarily out of reach, but Beilangzhou and Nanhengzhou are close at hand. They send letters to appease and send troops to deter them, hoping that they will submit.More importantly, it is to count the military merits, count the income, and report the victory to Jinling to ask for the merits.

At the same time that Bian Hao swept Hunan, Liu Renshan, the deputy envoy of Wuchang Jiedu in the Southern Tang Dynasty, also led thousands of naval forces to take Yuezhou.

Good news came one after another, and the monarchs and ministers of the Southern Tang Dynasty who were far away in Jinling couldn't help being overjoyed at the news of Hunan's "pacification".Having achieved great fame and great achievements, Li Jing, the lord of the Tang Dynasty, felt comfortable, and hosted a banquet in the Gui* Hall of the Tang Palace, where all the officials congratulated, singing and dancing.

Seeing that the land of Hunan really fell so easily, Li Jing, who was trembling and suspicious, immediately stood up, straightened his body, and spoke loudly.A courteous official said that since the Tang Lord came to the throne, he had never visited the suburban temple, so he asked for this. Li Jing replied with only one sentence: wait for the world to be a family, and then thank you.

Wei Cen, an admonishing doctor, served a banquet and said: "I will visit Yuancheng less and enjoy its customs. Once your Majesty decides the Central Plains, I will beg Weibo to be an envoy." Li Jing promised.

Taking Chu in one fell swoop seems to be the end of the world, and the arrogant changes of the Southern Tang monarchs and ministers are somewhat beyond the expectations of others.

Amid all the praises, it's not that no one sees the hidden worries.

Living man Lang Gaoyuan said: "I take advantage of the chaos of Chu, and it is very easy to take. I can see the talents of the generals, but I am afraid that it will be difficult to keep them!"

Situ Zhishi Li Jianxun said: "This is the beginning of the disaster!"

As for Han Xizai, almost in tears, he reminded Li Jing that the generals of Chu should be strictly ordered, be careful and vigilant, love and act prudently, and use the old things of "Pingmin" as a warning to prevent Chu from gaining and losing again.

It's just that, in this big environment of universal celebration, how could such strange words get Li Jing's attention and make him unhappy.Under such circumstances, Feng Yansi, on the contrary, probably recalled the embarrassment of destroying Fujian and being unable to defend it, losing all the blessings and riches of the land, and also spoke to Li Jing, but it was a little more tactful.

Only then did Li Jing issue an edict, rewarding Ping Chu and the Tang army, and at the same time telling him something.In order to ensure the stability of Hunan, all the members of the Ma clan were moved to Jinling with Bian Hao and surrendered.

After the Tang army captured Chu and swept across Hunan, the dark clouds that had gathered over the north for a long time were finally about to rain.

Since the beginning of autumn, the Khitan army on the front line of Tan and Ji has stepped up their invasion of Youzhou and the vast area in the south, robbing food and killing people.

To deal with this, the King of Yan sent thousands of cavalry under his rule to fight against the Khitan cavalry between the lands of Yan.The Han army was not spared either, and the front line of Cang and Hebei was also the key area to harass. Under the order of the court, He Fujin, the commander of the northern defense line, also ordered the commanders to send cavalry to fight.

In the shadow of cruel swords and swords, people in various states risked their lives to snatch corn and wheat.Both the Han army and the Yan army suffered a lot of casualties, and just now the guards grabbed some food, and the officials and civilians suffered a lot of damage.

Of course, the Khitan people didn't gain much, and they also lost a lot.During the month-long battle, the Han army and the Yan army were the rare ones who put aside everything and joined forces to fight against the enemy.Ma Quanyi and Li Yun of the Han army, and Zhao Siwan of the Yan army are famous.

Zhao Siwan is an unruly, ruthless, murderous person, and hostile to the Han court, but he played some role in the battle against Khitan.Leading the Assassins under his command, he killed more than [-] Khitan cavalry before and after, without a single prisoner, and actually staged a wave of "aspirations hungry for Hulu meat", and then bluntly said that the "hushi smell" was too heavy.The Khitan soldiers from far and near were shocked when they heard about Zhao.

But no matter what, the purpose of the Khitan's harassment was basically achieved.

At the beginning of September, Khitan Emperor Yeluruan called together [-] internal and external soldiers and horses, and sent them from Linhuang Mansion in Shangjing to officially launch the Southern Expedition.Due to the long-term disputes with the Khitan nobles, Yeluruan forced it through even if the army was finally mobilized.

That's why, from the moment the troops were mobilized to the south, there was a sense of disharmony among the Khitan army.The nobles and even ordinary soldiers complained quite a bit. Even with the mobility of the Liao army, the marching speed was extremely slow.Yeluruan repeatedly urged the troops to march in, but had little effect, so that at last, under the urging of the imperial tent's own army, they increased their speed.

By the end of September, a [-] Khitan army arrived at Wende County in Wuzhou, where they set up camp in the west of Wende, Huoshendian, only a little over two hundred miles away from Youzhou City.

One hundred thousand troops, tens of miles around the camp, people screaming and horses neighing, a part of the leather room army firmly protected the imperial tent.Lord Yeluruan of the Liao Dynasty temporarily stationed here, intending to reorganize the army and stabilize people's hearts.From what he saw and heard along the way, he also felt that something was wrong. The Pishi army was a pro-army of the imperial tent, and they were always elite and disciplined.

On the day of arriving at Huoshendian, Yeluruan ordered the earth to be built to build an altar, and led the whole army to pay homage to his father Yelubei, the king of Dongdan, and prayed for a smooth southern expedition.This is not a good choice, if it is Taizu Yelu Abaoji or Taizong Yelu Deguang, it may still have some effect.But after making arrangements, it seemed that it was barely stable.

A middle-aged general with a bitter face and dressed in aristocratic armor came on horseback and galloped lightly in the huge Southern Expedition camp.Sweeping his eyes around, he landed on the soldiers of the Southern Expedition around him, and the original worry in his eyes obviously increased.

His name was Yelu Wuzhi, and he was a well-known Khitan minister. He played a major role in the negotiation of Yelu Ruan's northward seizure of the throne with Shulu's mother and son's "crossing covenant", which made the Khitan regime go smoothly.

After Yelu Ruan came to the throne, he thought of his merits and talents and put more emphasis on them.This time, with the detailed and stable position of the right skin room, he will drive southward.

But at this time, Yelu Yuzhi was full of worries and worries, and his worries came from these Khitan soldiers who were recruiting.

He still remembers that when he was young, he went out with the Taizu, and all the soldiers of the tribe were overjoyed when they heard the battle.Even when Emperor Taizong plundered the Central Plains south, he was very active.

But now, depending on where they are, they are all in a daze, their minds are uncertain, and what's more, they complain.The gap between them, as a person with foresight and wisdom, Yelu Wuzhi can deeply understand.

From Taizong Yelu Deguang's time to now, the Khitan people have been fighting for nearly ten years, and all the tribes have been trapped here, and the national strength has been greatly damaged.However, in the battle of destroying Jin and the battle of Luancheng, the defeat of the king and the army collapsed, which caused great damage to the Khitan army.

The empires on the grasslands are not like the Central Plains, and in terms of resilience, they are far inferior to farming civilization.That is to say, with the old land of Bohai Sea and the Dahanzhou County along the Great Wall as supplements, the Khitan's strength can only be restored to its current level after a few years.

Under such circumstances, in Yelu Wuzhi's view, the most important thing is to recuperate, recharge your batteries, appease the people, and ease internal conflicts.It is not the actions of a wise man to rashly mobilize troops and resort to swordsmanship, especially such a large-scale mobilization of troops.

The conflict between the emperor and the domestic nobles became more and more serious due to administrative reasons, and the nobles and even the tribesmen were unwilling to fight.There is internal discord, and the army has no fighting spirit. Since ancient times, there has never been a person who can win a battle without the army's heart.

Although Yelu Wuzhi could understand some of Yelu Ruan's thoughts and considerations, he was not optimistic about this Southern Expedition from the bottom of his heart.

From Yelu Wuzhi's point of view, this is almost a gamble, a gamble that has a lot to do with the country's destiny.If it succeeds, the profits may not be as expected; if it fails, the general trend will be gone.

But this time the enemy, the big Han occupying the Central Plains and Hebei, is obviously not so easy to deal with.Their emperor was still the commander-in-chief of the "defeat of Luancheng", and he was not unprepared. He built many fortresses in Younan, deployed a large number of Han troops, and mobilized another 300,000 troops with his national strength. Not impossible.

The march was delayed all the way, and the best time to attack had been missed.Although Yelu Antuan has greatly disturbed the northern part of the Han Dynasty, this year's Han Dynasty is not like the previous two years, with continuous natural disasters. It can be imagined that in southern Hebei and the Central Plains, a large amount of grain has already been put into storage, and it will soon be turned into military rations. , Infuse the confidence of the Han court to send troops.

There is also the Yan army occupying Youzhou, which is also a tough bone. The Khitan people have owned the city for ten years, and they are well aware of its expansion and strengthening, and its strength.With such a nail stuck in the throat, how to deal with it after the war?
另外
With more and more unfavorable factors circling in his mind, Yelu Wuzhi subconsciously speeded up, almost rushing to pay his bills.

Although he knew that he might not be able to persuade him, he still planned to speak to His Majesty the Emperor.At present, there is still time to stop.

(End of this chapter)