Tibet.

Chapter 1317: The Eastern Expedition Begins
Ma Lin shook his head. "There is no official news from Bohai Kingdom at present, but some fishermen said that Bohai Kingdom has been destroyed by Japan."

Guo Ziyi frowned, "Do you think it's possible?"

"Almost! I know that the main force of the Bohai army has surrendered to the Khitan. If there had not been a drastic change in the Bohai country, they would not have surrendered without any warning."

At this time, a soldier came to the door of the tent and reported, "Marshal, there is an urgent letter from the Privy Council!"

“Come in!”

Soon, a messenger came in quickly, bowed and saluted, "I am Yang Huaiyu, a military officer of the Privy Council, and I am here to deliver a letter under orders!"

After that, he presented a scroll of documents. Guo Ziyi took it and said with a smile, "General Yang, you have worked hard. Do you have any other message?"

"Besides, there are many family letters. I have already handed them over to Sima Mao. There is nothing else!"

"Okay! Please ask General Yang to go down and have a good rest!"

Guo Ziyi ordered his personal soldiers, "Have a good treat, don't neglect them!"

Yang Huaiyu thanked him again and again and withdrew. Guo Ziyi looked at the urgent documents from the Privy Council and said to Ma Lin: "You are right. Bohai has been annexed by Japan. They massacred in Shangjing and killed almost all the nobles of Bohai. The emperor asked us to send troops according to the original plan, but when making decisions, we must take into account the situation of the tripartite alliance between Japan, Khitan and Silla."

Ma Lin breathed a sigh of relief and still marched forward according to the original plan. He was worried that the emperor would keep his troops inactive again, allowing the three families to fight among themselves. Who knows how long it would take?

"When will the Liaodong River thaw?" Guo Ziyi asked again.

"Not until early March!"

Guo Ziyi stood in front of the sand table with his hands behind his back, looking at it for a while and said, "I remember there seemed to be an official from Bohai State. Is he still here?"

Ma Lin nodded, "The commander-in-chief is talking about Gao Hongyuan, the former governor of Longyuan Prefecture in Bohai State. He has now joined us and serves as a military officer under me in the warehouse department. He is indeed very capable and a talented person."

"Where are the others?"

"I have brought him with me and am waiting outside the camp."

Guo Ziyi hurriedly said, "Please ask him to come in. I have something important to ask him."

Not long after, Gao Hongyuan, dressed in a civilian military uniform, walked in quickly. He had also heard the news that the Bohai Kingdom had been destroyed. Although it was only a rumor and had not been officially confirmed, he believed it without a doubt. He knew the brutality of the Japanese army. How could such an army not start a massacre when entering the prosperous Shangjing?
He was also very glad that he escaped with his wife and children. At present, Gao Hongyuan has joined the Tang army. He is smart and capable, and speaks and acts in an orderly manner. He is highly regarded by Ma Lin, so he is appointed as the assistant military officer of the Cangcao. Of course, there are several assistant military officers in the Cangcao, and Gao Hongyuan is responsible for managing military rations.

"Your humble servant Gao Hongyuan pays respect to the Marshal!"

Guo Ziyi smiled slightly and said, "General Gao is a Han Chinese, right?"

"I am a Han Chinese from Yingzhou, from the Yingzhou branch of Bohai Gao family!"

"Then why did you join the army in Bohai Kingdom?" Guo Ziyi asked curiously.

"Reporting to the commander, after the establishment of Bohai State, they promoted sinicization, but there were too few people who could read and write, so they came to Yingzhou to recruit scholars. I took their exam and passed the A grade, so I was directly appointed as a county magistrate. I thought it would be good to be an official, so I took my wife and children with me. I served as a county magistrate for a term and was promoted to the governor of Longyuan Prefecture."

"How long have you been in Longyuan Mansion?"

"I have been in Longyuan Prefecture for almost ten years."

"That's good. Please ask General Gao to come over here."

Guo Ziyi brought Gao Hongyuan to the sand table. He pointed at Longyuan Mansion and asked, "Does Longyuan Mansion freeze in winter?"

Gao Hongyuan shook his head. "Longwan is a very good ice-free port. With Longwan as the center, the coastline of about 200 miles is ice-free."

Guo Ziyi pointed at Longwan and said, "I guess all the ships in this bay are from Japan!"

"That's right! There are still many ships that originally belonged to Bohai Kingdom, but now they all belong to Japan."

Guo Ziyi nodded and pointed to Jeonra Island in the south of Silla and asked, "Jeonra Island is under our control now. Do you know how long it takes to sail from Jeonra Island to Longwan?" "I have heard that it takes about twenty days."

Guo Ziyi calculated in his mind that there were less than fifty days left until March. The fleet would depart from Pingzhou and would reach Longwan in about forty days. If they could rest for a few more days on Jeju Island to replenish water and food, it would not take much longer.

"I understand. Please continue to work hard, I believe you will have a bright future!"

Gao Hongyuan was very smart. He glanced at Ma Lin and whispered, "If General Ma agrees, I am willing to be the guide and lead the Tang army to Longyuan Prefecture. I have a high reputation in Longyuan Prefecture, and the people there will definitely welcome the Tang army!"

Guo Ziyi was overjoyed and said to Ma Lin with a smile: "It shouldn't have any impact!"

Ma Lin nodded, "No impact at all!"

After Gao Hongyuan left, Guo Ziyi said to Ma Lin, "Your Majesty said that we must prevent the Khitan, Japan, and Silla from colluding with each other. I am considering sending troops to Longyuan Prefecture, attacking the Japanese navy from the water, occupying Longyuan Prefecture, and pinning down the Japanese army from the east, while cutting off the connection between the Japanese mainland and the Bohai Kingdom!"

Ma Lin gave a thumbs up and praised: "It's a very smart strategy. What about Silla?"

"Silla's side is even simpler. I will also send a navy to hang around the doorstep of their capital. That will be enough to make them cautious."

Ma Lin thought for a moment and said, "There is a problem here. As far as I know, Silla also has two factions. The hardliners have been in absolute control for decades, so they have been constantly annexing the land of Andudu Protectorate. If it were 30,000 naval forces, they might consider it, but our main force is going to Longwan, and the remaining troops may not be enough to deter the hardliners of Silla."

Guo Ziyi smiled slightly and said, "First the courtesy, then the benefit! They don't know what's good for them. The remaining navy I have is enough to block the Liao River!"

The next morning, Guo Ziyi led thousands of cavalrymen south, and Gao Hongyuan followed. In the evening, Guo Ziyi arrived at the mouth of the Ru River, where the main naval force of the Tang army was anchored, with a total of 30,000 naval forces and more than 800 warships, including more than 20 10,000-stone sea ships. These more than 20 10,000-stone sea ships had been modified and equipped with hidden wheels.

The paddle wheels of a ship or vehicle are installed on both sides of the outside, which is called a paddle wheel. But if the paddle wheels are installed under the hull and are covered by the hull, this is called a hidden wheel.

Compared to paddle wheels that were easily destroyed by the enemy using fishing nets, wooden sticks and the like, hidden wheels were much better. Wang Zhan, the director of the Military Equipment and Ship Supervision Bureau, led thousands of people in Fuzhou and Quanzhou to comprehensively transform the Wanshi warships. After two years of unremitting efforts, nearly thirty ships were successfully transformed. This time, twenty-four of the transformed Wanshi hidden wheels were deployed to Liaodong.

The main naval commander this time was Li Chengshi, who led 30,000 naval troops and 800 battlefield ships to station at the mouth of the Ru River. This was also the place where the Sui and Tang naval forces were stationed when Emperor Yang of Sui and Emperor Taizong of Tang attacked Goguryeo.

The navy did not belong to the Liaodong Army, but it was under the jurisdiction of the Marshal's Office of the Eastern Expedition. Guo Ziyi, the deputy marshal, was Li Chengshi's superior.

Li Chengshi went out of the camp to welcome Guo Ziyi. Guo Ziyi was exhausted but had no time to drink a sip of water. He immediately said, "I brought a sand table. I'll set it up and tell you!"

A sand table was set up in the big tent, and Guo Ziyi asked first: "How long can the navy's current food supply last?"

"Reporting to the Marshal, about a month!"

Guo Ziyi asked again: "If you were asked to lead 20,000 troops to go to sea and sail for a month, how many ships would you need?"

Li Chengshi thought for a moment and said, "We need to bring all the 10,000-shi warships, and a hundred 3,000-shi warships will be enough."

Guo Ziyi then pointed at Bohai and said, "At present, Bohai has been annexed by Japan. The world is worried about the alliance between Japan and Khitan, so I am considering sending the main force of the navy to attack the Japanese warships in Longyuan Prefecture and completely annihilate the Japanese navy. At the same time, I will cut off the support of the Japanese army in Bohai from the Japanese mainland and pin down the Japanese army in Bohai so that they cannot join forces with Khitan."

Li Chengshi bowed and said, "I obey your orders!"

Guo Ziyi pointed to Tamra Island and said, "This island is about 20 days' sailing distance from Longyuan Prefecture. You can use it as a logistics supply base. When you arrive at Longyuan Prefecture, a supply fleet will be sent here to support you."

Li Chengshi nodded, "I understand, but I am not familiar with the terrain of Longyuan Prefecture and need a guide!"

Guo Ziyi smiled, "I've already thought of it for you!"

He waved his hand, and Gao Hongyuan quickly walked up to him, clasping his fists and saying, "General Li, long time no see!"

Li Chengshi was overjoyed and quickly said to Guo Ziyi: "The guide I was talking about is General Gao!"

Guo Ziyi nodded, "Then we have a common goal. Time is running out. The army will prepare for one day tomorrow, and the navy will set out the day after tomorrow!"

On the 20th day of the first lunar month in the first year of Jiaxing, an expeditionary force consisting of 24 10,000-shi hidden-wheel warships, 200 3,000-shi warships and 100 5,000-shi warships, led by the naval commander Li Chengshi himself, and loaded with 20,000 naval troops, left the mouth of the Rushui River and sailed towards the distant Bohai Kingdom in a mighty manner.

(End of this chapter)