Guide to traveling through the Northern Song Dynasty

Fucheng.

This is the garrison area for crossing the Yellow River and attacking Hejian Prefecture.

After Deng Chun arrived with his troops, Ju Ming called a meeting of the generals: "You can attack Qingzhou (Qingxian) and Baoding Army according to the situation. The Jin soldiers in that direction may have come from Liaoyang. Li Bao will cross the sea and attack Banghai Road. It will make it difficult for the Jin Kingdom to transport subsequent grain and grass. The main force of our army will go north to the Zhending, Qizhou, and Yongning armies, and the main force of the Jin army on the east route will definitely be attracted."

"Since our army can attack from the sea, I'm afraid the Jin soldiers will no longer use the seaside road to transport food and grass, right?" Han Shizhong said.

Zhu Ming said: "According to the information provided by Yelu Yujian, most of the food and grass for the Jin soldiers came from the Banghai Road. Zhang Jue rebelled against the Jin a few years ago..."

At this time, the Liaoxi Corridor had been operated by the Liao Kingdom for hundreds of years, and a large number of swamp areas had been drained of accumulated water, making it accessible to large armies in the last years of the Liao Kingdom.

Zhang Jue's rebellion against Jin interrupted the development of the Western Liaoning Corridor. In order to prevent local rebellion from happening again, the Jin Kingdom moved most of the people there to the Shenyang area.

However, because Jinzhou surrendered early and did not participate in the rebellion, industry, agriculture, and commerce are now relatively developed, and the population is relatively not scarce. Jinzhou's silk brocade cloth was also a tribute to the royal family of the Jin Kingdom.

The main ethnic group in Jinzhou is the Han people, who were forcibly migrated there in the early years of the Liao Kingdom.

In addition, the main ethnic group in Laizhou (the city is near the mouth of Gouhe River) is the Jurchen people, who were the Jurchen disaster victims resettled by the Liao Kingdom. There are five Jurchens in total. The Jin Kingdom did not move them, but compiled them into Meng'an on the spot.

The two countries of Liao and Jin repeatedly competed for the Western Liaoning Corridor, which shows the importance of its strategic position.

"Once our army gains an absolute advantage on the main battlefield in Hebei, you should go north to threaten Luanzhou. Li Bao will cooperate when he gets the news. He will cross the sea to harass Haiyang County..." Zhu Ming pointed to the simple map and said.

"Yes!" the generals responded.

In this war, the Kingdom of Jin fought with all its might, even at the expense of seriously overdrawing its national power.

It was similar in the Ming Dynasty. All the resources that could be mobilized would inevitably lead to soaring food prices across the country. Moreover, Hebei, Shandong, Henan, and Gyeonggi Province have recruited a large number of civilians, which will seriously delay production activities.

The national treasury was not only empty, but also heavily in debt. It had to use private merchants and use future salt taxes, tea taxes, and customs duties to encourage them to help purchase transportation materials.

Regardless of Zhu Guoxiang and the cabinet, the academic disputes in the capital were very lively. In fact, they were all very busy.

Even the royal family’s inner treasury took out money and loaned it to the national treasury for military expenses without interest.

After reviewing the Shandong army, Ju Ming headed non-stop to Shenzhou, where Wang Yan's Eight-Character Army was stationed.

A year and a half ago, Zhu Ming gave the Eight-Character Army the designation, and Wang Yan went to Raoyang County, Shenzhou to train. Almost all of the soldiers are refugees from Hebei, and some bandits from Hebei have also been absorbed. Currently, they have 6,000 soldiers, as well as some logistics personnel and cavalry.

Yue Fei's troops were in Zhaozhou. They were also mainly composed of refugees and bandits from Hebei, and there were also many civilians who took the initiative to join the army.

"This year, in more than thirty battles, our army has only lost two or three..." Wang Yan reported the situation to Ju Ming.

However, Ju Ming did not ask about military affairs: "How about the Pseudo-Song Dynasty?"

Wang Yan said: "All the people in the villages of the Puppet Song Dynasty adjacent to Shenzhou have fled. There are also rebels in the territory of the Puppet Song Dynasty who often communicate with our army. Even the officials of the Puppet Dynasty also secretly communicate with each other."

The Ming Dynasty and the Jin Kingdom and the Puppet Song Dynasty had been in confrontation in Hebei for more than a year, and they did not do anything.

The puppet regimes of the Jin Kingdom and the Puppet Song Dynasty often sent small groups of troops south to plunder, especially during the agricultural harvest season. The Ming Dynasty's army went north to intercept and kill the enemy's grain collection officials during the tax collection season.

The mass base of the Ming Dynasty was obviously better. Countless people took the initiative to report information and were often able to accurately grasp the enemy's movements.

The more than thirty battles Wang Yan mentioned were mainly ambush battles.

Since the Eight-Character Army gets the news from the masses and sets up ambushes at places where the enemy must pass, they can often carry out beautiful ambush battles.

Up to now, enemies from surrounding states and counties no longer dare to stray too far from the city.

Even some officials of the puppet regime began to flirt with the Ming army.

Wang Yan said: "The county magistrate of Boye is called Li Chi. He was originally a professor of military science in Yongning. The Jin people supported the puppets to establish the pseudo-Song Dynasty. He became the county magistrate because he took care of his family. First, the prefecture and county government went to the countryside to collect grain. I led troops to ambush and captured them. I killed two of the leaders and let them serve as internal agents for the rest. Then I used them to instigate several military and county officials to rebel."

"Excellent job." Ju Ming smiled.

Wang Yan added: "The chief clerk of Boye County sent a message to our army and was discovered by Li Chi. Li Chi did not say anything, but contacted the chief clerk and acted as an internal correspondent for our army. He also helped contact other officials. , Yongning military generals are also our people now. Once our army surrounds Yongning military city, these internal agents can use fire as a signal to open the city gate."

Ju Ming asked: "How many enemy soldiers are there in Yongning Army?"

Wang Yan said: "The Jin soldiers originally had more than five hundred people, all of whom were cavalry. Six months ago, another two thousand were transferred, and they were all Jurchen soldiers. The rest were the pseudo-Song Xiang army. They suffered too many defeats, and these Xiang soldiers There are only less than three thousand soldiers left in the army. I heard that they have been recruiting again recently, and a large number of rural soldiers are still being recruited. If our army kills them, at least half of the Xiang army and rural soldiers will switch sides."

"Where is Yongning Zhijun?" Zhu Ming asked.

"The name of Yongning Zhijun is Li Zhiyuan, and he used to collect liquor taxes," Wang Yan said. "This man is notorious. He will never dare to surrender. He can only serve as a dog for the Jin people."

Ju Ming and Wang Yan were chatting when suddenly a soldier came to report.

However, Li Chi, the magistrate of Boye County, sent someone to deliver a message. The Yongning Army had a new army from the Jin Kingdom arriving, and the general in command was Gao Jingshan, a member of the Jin Kingdom's Ten Thousand Households.

After reading the secret letter, Wang Yan frowned and said: "It seems that Yongning Military City is difficult to conquer in one fell swoop. Gao Jingshan has brought tens of thousands of troops over, and they are fighting outside the city."

"The enemy general here is Gao Jingshan, and Wanyan Zongwang's main force is mostly in Zhending Mansion." Ju Ming quickly made corresponding adjustments, "Let Guan Sheng and Yue Fei lead their troops to defend Zhaozhou and confront Wanyan Zongwang. I will take the main force under my command and go north with you, first destroy the Gao Jingshan army here. Then I will move my troops to the west, and attack Yan Zongwang from both sides with Guan Sheng and Yue Fei!"

Today is different from the past. Ju Ming is confident of defeating the Jin Kingdom's East Route Army head-on. After all, the real elites of the Jin Kingdom are in Shanxi.

The mission of the Shanxi Ming Army is to defend the Taiyuan front line and hold back Wanyan Zonghan's troops!

Of course, since Wanyan Zonghan failed to attack Taiyuan for a long time, he would most likely come to Hebei and join forces with Wanyan Zongwang. By then, Zhang Guangdao will have to wait for opportunities in Shanxi.

Over in Shaanxi, Yang Zhi has sent people to lead troops. In addition to the Sichuan elite under his command, there are also troops from Yao Pingzhong and others, and people like Wu Jie and Wu Lin will all come.

As for the Zhejia Army and Liu Jiajun, they are temporarily stationed in place.

Once Wanyan Zonghan left Hebei, Zhe Keqiu, Liu Yanqing and others took advantage of the situation to attack Shenwu, Shuozhou and other places.

…

Western Xia.

Wanyan Zonghan sent an envoy over, ordering Xixia to assist in sending troops, and promised to give the entire Dongsheng Prefecture to Xixia as reward.

Dongsheng Prefecture, which later became Dongsheng, Zhungeer Banner, Yulin, Dalate Banner and other large areas.

Jin Guo was really guilty this time and had no assurance of victory at all. He wanted to mobilize all his forces to go south. Therefore, they not only asked Goryeo to send troops, but also wanted Xixia to help.

"Your Majesty, the Jin people are accustomed to renege on their promises. Wanyan Zonghan gave away all the land they promised before," Li Renzhong, the Prime Minister of the State, advised, "This time, even if I send troops to Daxia, I will really help the Jin Kingdom win. Yan Zonghan will not hand over Dongsheng Prefecture."

Li Qianshun asked: "What does King Jin think?"

Brother Richard said: "Our army was defeated badly last year and our army has not yet recovered. How can we still fight against the Ming army?"

Li Renli suddenly said: "Your Majesty, we can actually help the Ming Dynasty cut down the gold!"

"Oh?" Li Qianshun became interested.

Li Renzhong retorted: "Once the Jin Kingdom is destroyed, the Ming Kingdom will definitely come to attack our Daxia. In my opinion, it is better to let the Jin and Ming countries continue to fight. The longer the fight is, the better it will be for both sides to lose. I Daxia will take the opportunity to hibernate for a few years and accumulate more Some grain and grass, when the ten-year-old children have grown up, they will be recruited as soldiers at the age of fifteen or sixteen. At that time, there will be soldiers and food. If you retreat, you can defend the city to protect yourself. If you advance, you can invade the Dongsheng Prefecture and Baguan of the Jin Kingdom. Land. If the Ming Dynasty is weak after a long war, I, Daxia, can still occupy Xihe and Hengshan."

Li Qianshun nodded and said: "This is a mature way of planning for the country."

Brother Richard wanted to gain military glory and restore his prestige as soon as possible, saying: "While the Jin Kingdom is fighting with the Ming Kingdom, our army can take advantage of the opportunity and capture Dongsheng Prefecture!"

This is someone who wants to poke Wanyan Zonghan’s anus!

Brother Richard was frightened by the Ming Dynasty's firearms and did not dare to fight the Ming army again. As for Dongsheng Prefecture of the Liao Kingdom, there were not many garrison troops to begin with, and Wanyan Zonghan had to mobilize troops to go south. Brother Richard felt that this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Li Qianshun hesitated and said: "What if the Jin Kingdom wins? If our army steals Dongsheng Prefecture, Wanyan Zonghan will surely retaliate."

"The Ming army has the power of firearms, how can the Jin people defeat them?" Brother Richard was so impressed by firearms that he felt that he would be invincible with firearms. "The Jin Kingdom will definitely lose this battle, and we, Daxia You must not miss this opportunity. If you are a little slow, you will never have the chance to capture Dongsheng State."

In terms of military affairs, Li Qianshun believed in Brother Richard very much and thought that what the King of Jin said made sense.

But Li Renzhong said: "I think it is better to recuperate and stay dormant for a few years before launching an army. Our Daxia treasury is empty and we can no longer fight."

Brother Richard said: "If we don't take the opportunity to seize Dongsheng State, we will wait to be cannibalized by the Ming Kingdom in the future. We must first fight to expand the territory!"

Li Renli said: "We should first surrender to the Ming Dynasty. Ming Xia will always be the country of father and son. As long as the Xia Dynasty does not send troops, the Ming Dynasty will not fight. The permanent diplomatic relations between the two countries will make the people happy. Your Majesty, please choose a clan immediately Daughter, married to the royal family of the Ming Dynasty."

Three people, three different suggestions, Li Qianshun didn't know who to listen to.

In the end, Li Qianshun decided to combine three plans: "Our Daxia treasury is indeed empty, and we can no longer fight a big war. The King of Jin can lead eight thousand elites and quietly go north to spy. If the Dongsheng Prefecture of the Jin Kingdom is indeed empty, he can conquer it in one fell swoop. Take it. Our army's sneak attack on the Jin Kingdom is a great gift to the Ming Kingdom, and we can take the opportunity to marry the Ming Kingdom. It is also an expedient measure to surrender to the Ming Kingdom. Daxia should rest and recuperate in the past few years and stock up a lot. Some food just in case.”

Wanyan Zonghan persuaded Xixia to send troops to help, but to his surprise, Xixia turned around and stabbed him in the chrysanthemum.