Dawn of the Empire

Chapter 478 - 90

In the tent of the Chinese army, all the generals stood with their helmets pierced through their armor.After these days of training, the military appearance of the Baoyi Army is very neat, and it is no longer the appearance of a mob a few months ago.However, when Zhao Xingde talked about the rescue of Shuzhou, the generals were in an uproar.

"General Zhao, we are full of battles, less than 1 horses, and less than 1 horses in the town." Luo Xianshi said worriedly, "and most of them are infantry. There are 3000 cavalry, and Li Cheng's 6 to [-] rebels are helping the tiger, adding up to [-] to [-]. There is a huge difference between strength and weakness, how to fight this battle?"

All the generals agreed with Luo Xianshi and were unwilling to send troops to rescue Shuzhou.On the one hand, after the Battle of Fangzhou, Zhao Xingde was worried that the generals would underestimate the enemy. As the saying goes, a surprise victory cannot be relied on after all, but one cannot be relied on again. The most important thing in the confrontation between the two armies is strength.Therefore, although the Baoyi army is as imposing as a rainbow, the higher the rank of the general, the more he dare not despise the Liao army.When I heard that the Liao army in Shuzhou actually had as many as 6 to [-] people, I couldn't help but feel a little worried.On the other hand, the Baoyi Army has been stationed in the prefectures and counties near Ezhou for a long time, and this area has always been a rich land of fish and rice.In addition, Zhao Xingde allowed his subordinates to urge them to pay and pay, so the supply of food and pay was strong. Unknowingly, the whole army got used to the local area and was unwilling to leave the station easily.

"Rescuing Shuzhou is the decision of the prime minister and the privy envoy." In the eyes of the generals, General Zhao said with a firm expression, "There are thousands of people in the family, and one person is in charge. If each of them does his own thing, his lips will die and his teeth will be cold, and he will be defeated by the Liao army one by one. It's just sooner or later." Zhao Xingde sighed in his heart, and said in a deep voice, "So, we must rescue Shuzhou, and Shi Tong will lead two battalions of soldiers and horses to stay behind. After the food and grass are ready, we will send troops to rescue Shuzhou."

"Does your lord have any winning strategies?" Lu Mingyu asked with a bow.

Zhao Xingde murmured, "Shuzhou faces the rugged Dabie Mountains to the north, and the Dajiang River to the south, and the river flow is the narrowest here. There is only a narrow flat land between the mountains and rivers, which is controlled by the city of Shuzhou. There are sufficient troops, and this place is indeed easy to defend and difficult to attack. On the one hand, the cavalry of the Liao army cannot pass through the mountainous area, and even Li Cheng's troops are mostly from Huaibei, and they are not familiar with water warfare. Therefore, for the Liao army, the only option is to capture Shuzhou and control the main road of this plain. On the other hand, the land is surrounded by mountains and rivers, and the surrounding terrain is complex, so it is difficult for the Liao army to stop the continuous reinforcements. , Shuzhou is indeed possible to defend." If we persist until summer, the south is extremely hot and humid, and most of the Liao army is composed of Khitans and cavalry from the grassland barbarians. .But Zhao Xingde was worried that the generals would be lucky, so he didn't say anything.

"If there are enough troops?" Shi Jingkui murmured, "Does your lord want to recruit volunteer soldiers from the prefectures and counties to help defend?"

"That's right," Zhao Xingde nodded and said, "If Shuzhou is lost, it will not only be a dead end for the east and west roads in the south of the Yangtze River, but the door will be opened. If we can manage Shuzhou into an important town, we can use artillery* ** The land and water passages, the Liao army can't go west, but our army can go down the river and reach Jiangning in a short time." At this point, Zhao Xingde remained silent.Yue Fei was willing to take the risk of being outnumbered, but also to protect Shuzhou, he did have his considerations.He wants to use Shuzhou as a springboard to conquer Jiangning.Yue Fei worried that after the Liao army consolidated its operations in Jianghuai, it would be a hundred times more difficult to recover.And if the Jianghuai can be recovered quickly, all states and counties will quickly return.With the manpower and material resources of several roads to the southeast, the northern expedition to the Central Plains and the expulsion of the northern captives are just around the corner!

"The fast horse spread to the south of the Huaixi River, summoned volunteer soldiers from Zhouzhou County to carry their own weapons, packed ten days of rations, joined our army in Nankang, and then went down the river to rescue Shuzhou with great fanfare." Zhao Xingde still kept his heart , he worried that Shuzhou would be captured by the Liao army before the reinforcements arrived.Nankang is still designated as the gathering place for volunteer soldiers in prefectures and counties, which also means preparing for the second line of resistance.Since the Liao invaded the south, Huaixi and the counties and counties in the south of the Yangtze River have been in turmoil. The government and the powerful have trained volunteer soldiers to defend the land and defend against the enemy.But it's hard to say how many volunteer soldiers will come.

"This time to aid Shu, the navy is extremely important in the decisive battle with the Liao army. Iron barrel guns are very powerful. If possible," Zhao Xingde murmured, "The warship needs to be reinforced. If iron bars and hardwood are needed Wait for supplies, come tell me, and I will personally go and ask for them from the Military Supplies Office.” Zhao Xingde couldn’t help but think of the scene where Li Sihai’s warship fell apart due to the heavy shelling and the hull could not withstand the shock force on the Nanshan sea.

"Follow orders!" Du Licha, the superintendent of the battleship, said loudly.

The township army installed iron barrel cannons on river boats, and achieved great success in the first battle to open up Xiangyang.Not only did the Liao army quickly imitate it and install iron barrel cannons on the warships, but the Baoyi army also installed small iron barrel cannons on the original water bandit boats, named Xiaodoujian.Zhao Xingde also asked the Military Supply Office to buy some merchant ships that were sold at a low price due to the poor waterway of the Yangtze River, and installed several heavy iron barrel guns on the deck, and named it the Big Fighter.Small battleships can carry a dozen people, and large battleships can carry hundreds of people.The Baoyi army was originally dominated by Jingxiang water bandits, but now there are thousands of small boats, dozens of small warships, and eight large warships.It's just that the shock of the iron barrel cannon was so great that ordinary merchant ships couldn't bear it at all. The warship supervisor Lu Licha spent a lot of thought and thought on strengthening the ship, and spent more money than buying the ship itself.

"My lord," Shi Jingkui asked, "Can the prefectures and counties in Bianliang, Xiangyang be passed on?" It's more than half up.The prefectures and counties of the Song Dynasty are now all orthodox, and they are all three, forming a strange situation.However, under the pressure of the Liao army, the stage horses between the prefectures and counties have not been cut off. Apart from their differences in orthodoxy, they are actually in peace.

"Biography!" Zhao Xingde resolutely said, "Everyone is responsible for the rise and fall of the world!"

"Yes!"

The Baoyi Army was preparing to send troops in full swing, and sent the call to action to more than 100 states and counties in Huaixi and Jiangnan. The cloud of a great war enveloped the entire north and south of the river.Since the Liao army marched south, it has been invincible.There are many cavalry, and wherever the main force of the Liao army carrying iron barrel cannons goes, it is said that there is no city that cannot be conquered in three days in the Southern Dynasty, and there is no invincible soldier.The southeast camp and Xijing camp of the Song Dynasty gathered more than [-] troops, and relying on Xiangyang's victory, they blocked the Liao army's west road to the north of Xiangyang.However, because of the emptiness in the southeast, the Liao army's east road seemed to be in an uninhabited land, and now it is going up the river, trying to copy the back road of Xiangyang to send the army to the court.

For a time, the world shook.At this time, when all the prefectures and counties were in panic, they suddenly received a message from the township that they were determined to defend Shuzhou to the death. Zhao Xingde summoned three groups of volunteers to help the east, and prepared to gather in Nankang. Liao Kou fight to the death.These proclamations spread all over the country, and people's hearts were inspired.

............

"Mr. Zhao, is this knowing that it can't be done?"

Zhang Xuji, the magistrate of Raozhou, sighed after receiving the appeal.He has a beard and hair, but he is not a Jinshi. If the former Zhizhou and other officials hadn't abandoned their seals and fled, and the state was recommended by the public, he would not be able to be a Zhizhou in this life.The army of the Liao army marched along the west of the river, Zhang Xuji had already planned to wear official robes, holding the prefecture seal, and his family to die for the country in the prefectural government.After receiving this letter of appeal, he called his eldest son, Zhang Jiurong, and ordered the [-] volunteer soldiers of the Xiang Army who commanded the county to take all of them to Nankang.

"Father, if this army goes, there will be no more soldiers in Zhoucheng?" Zhang Jiurong hesitated.He was haggard, and his figure was as thin as a bamboo pole.This is a side effect of being ordered to study hard by my father since childhood.If it weren't for the fact that other gentry were unwilling to die, the task of leading the volunteer army would not have fallen to him.

"The Liao bandits are powerful. If they really come to take Raozhou, the [-]-armed army will be of great help. As the governor of the state, I have the responsibility of guarding the land. My family lives and dies in Raozhou. Before you go to the Nankang army, if you Those who are timid and insult my Zhang family lintel will not be considered as my descendants of Zhang family." Zhang Xuji smiled wryly, stretched out his hand to stroke his beard, and said, "" He hesitated for a moment, then said: "In the future, it will be on my stele. , engraved with 'Great Song Raozhou Public Discussion Office Raozhou Zhizhou Zhang Gongxuan'."

"My child understands." With tears in his eyes, Zhang Jiurong knelt down and kowtowed respectfully to his father three times.

............

On the Xinzhou post road, a man in rough clothes fell down on the side of the road, with a few arrow feathers stuck in his forehead and chest, and his breath was gone.The horse lingered beside its owner, and one person held the rein, stretched out his hand to open the horse's mouth, took a closer look, and looked up and down the horse's figure, then turned around and said happily: "Master, this is the real Hexi Ma, you're not very old, so this time we've made it."

But the head of the family didn't hear anything, looked at the dead man, frowned and sighed: "I killed the wrong person this time." He turned around, handed over the letter found on the dead body to the military adviser, shook his head and said: "This man was sent by Mr. Zhao to call volunteers to Baozhou to fight Liao thieves. You should also read Mr. Zhao's article." The military adviser took the letter and read it, his face turned ashen, and he stammered: "Then, master, what shall we do?"

"What else can I do?" The big boss stomped his feet and regretted, "Call the brothers in the village, and I will personally go to Nankang to plead guilty to Mr. Zhao." Soon after, more than a hundred people in poor armor led a fine horse, Go west along the mountain road.

............

In the Yamen of the Shezhou Mansion, Huang Zhongdu, the magistrate of the state, carefully invited his staff member Zhan Zhen into the inner room, and took out a piece of paper from his arms to show him.After Zhan Zhen saw it, his face changed color, and he said in surprise: "This Yue Fei is a crazy general. Are Chen Dong and Zhao Xingde also going crazy with him? How can Shuzhou be able to defend it? Not to mention Liao soldiers, Li Cheng's troops Passing by outside the state city, the team can't see the end at a glance."

Shezhou is the place where Fangla's "rebellion" began. Over the past few years, the officers and soldiers and the "rebellion" bandits have killed so much that the people here are strong but sparsely populated, so the Liao army's crossing the border did not cause much disturbance.Huang Zhongdu originally worshiped Xiangyang, and with the belief of resting with the people, he demoted Bianliang as soon as Li Chengjun arrived.

"My lord, do you see?"

The room was dimly lit, and Huang Zhongdu murmured: "This battle will always be fought, and we must be more careful. But these days, it is always better to have multiple roads. Send a few people to Nankang to take Li Cheng's troops to the next level." Tell Zhao Xingde the true and false. It can be considered as a sympathy for the future." "Yes." Zhan Zhen moved slightly in his heart and nodded vigorously.