Wang Jian stood on the top of the city and looked north for a long time.
Just after the New Year, he was fifty-seven years old. After being seriously injured, he had completely lost his previous physical strength and sat down slowly.
No one else was around to see it.
Zhang Jue has taken away almost all the young men in the city, leaving this section of the city wall unguarded.
Wang Jian leaned on the battlement, alone to resolve the emotions in his heart.
After repelling 100,000 Mongolian troops and killing the Mongol Khan, which is an unprecedented feat, people are still alive, and they will still be lonely and worried.
In the distance, there was the sound of neat footsteps.
Wang Jian gritted his teeth, supported the wall, and stood up straight again. He turned around and saw a group of young soldiers walking towards him holding spears.
Most of them are already thirteen or fourteen years old. The youngest is Wang Li who is walking in the front. He is only nine years old after the New Year, but the expression on his face is serious.
"Meet the general!"
Wang Jian smiled and said: "We're celebrating the New Year. If you don't help out at home, why do you come to the city?"
"Defend the city!"
The young people shouted loudly.
"General Zhang has led his troops to kill the Tatars, but there are still men in the city guarding the city!"
Wang Jian just smiled. The wrinkles on his face were no longer as resolute as they were during the war, but were a little more kind.
"You continue to patrol, I will help General Wang return to the General's Mansion!" Wang Li shouted.
He stretched out his hand, handed the spear out, and turned around.
Although his body is small, he exerts effort in every movement.
Wang Jian let Wang Li support him and slowly walked down the city.
"Diaoyu City has never been so quiet. It really looks like a mountain top." Wang Jian said.
Wang Li was sensible and responded: "It will be lively when General Zhang comes back from killing the Tatars."
They just got off the stone stairs and heard the young soldiers on top of the city shouting.
"There are soldiers and horses!"
"How to do it? How to do it?"
"Report to the general! There are troops coming from the north of the city..."
"Look at the flag, look at the flag, that's what my father said..."
"What do you think?"
After a while, the sharp-eyed young man shouted.
"It's the battle flag of the Song Dynasty. It's the word 'LV'. Look! It's two words..."
~~
Lu Wende walked into the general's mansion, sat down on the throne, glared at Wang Jian angrily, and shouted: "Where are the soldiers?!"
Wang Jian cupped his fists and said: "Report to Commander Lu, the last general has ordered Zhang Jue and Yi Shiying to lead the troops north to Lychee Road..."
He started when Li Xia left Diaoyu City.
This strategy of building a plank road openly and crossing Chencang secretly is very simple, and has been used by military strategists throughout the history, so it is not unusual. Li Xia and Lu Wende's troops were all used to attract the main force of the Mongolian army and create opportunities for Zhang Jue.
"boom."
The broken tea bowl on the case suddenly hit the ground, interrupting Wang Jian's narrative.
Porcelain shards scattered everywhere.
"Do you still have my eyes on Shu Shuai?!" Lu Wende was furious and shouted angrily: "Do you know that this is a serious crime?!"
Wang Jian knows.
No Shu commander has ever dared to rashly transfer troops from Diaoyu City and Chongqing Prefecture.
This is an important town on the upper reaches of the Yangtze River and the gateway to Sheji. Once the troops are empty, the Mongolian cavalry is so fast that the Song army's infantry will not have time to return to defense.
If Chongqing fell, the Song Dynasty would be in danger of losing its country.
Even if he knew that Brother Meng had no intention of attacking Chongqing after his death, he could never gamble.
There has never been a Shu commander who dared to take the initiative to return to the north without reporting it to the court.
At that time, the Song Dynasty united with the Mongols to destroy the Jin Dynasty. There was a lot of arguing in the court, and it took a long time before they decided to bring peace to Luo. When the Song army regained the three capitals, their foothold was not stable, and the Mongolian army had arrived.
The opportunity only lasts for a moment, who dares to make the right decision?
Wang Jian didn't dare to do it, but he and Li Xia lived and died together. They fought out of an army of 100,000 people and didn't care about their lives. How could he be stingy with making a promise?
How to go back on your word after making a promise?
He endured Lu Wende's anger and could not argue.
Lu Wende does have reasons to be angry.
The 30,000 Lu family troops resisted the 50,000 Mongolian cavalry for nearly a month in the field. Thousands of them were killed and Lu Wende was also seriously injured.
But these Sichuan and Shu generals kept the secret from him, the mighty Shu commander, from the beginning to the end.
"Wang Jian! Am I too polite to you?!"
"Commander Lu, please calm down. The last general is responsible for this matter. The other generals were all deceived by the last general."
When Wang Jian finished speaking, he took off the armor on his head and placed it on the ground with difficulty.
"I will be willing to bear all the responsibilities on one person."
Lu Wende was furious and said word by word: "You can't afford it. No matter how great your achievements are, they can't offset your sins..."
~~
After meeting Wang Jian, Lu Wenfu stepped forward to persuade Lu Wende to calm down.
"Brother, why should you be angry? In any case, this Sichuan envoy is the eldest brother, and the credit for recovering Hanzhong will always belong to the eldest brother. Li Xia made it clear at the time that he would never dare to take away..."
"Don't mention this little beast to me!" Lu Wende yelled.
Lu Wenfu was startled, fearing that he would faint again.
"Ahem... Isn't it clear yet? This little beast has been plotting against me from the beginning to the end... Send people to kill him. I don't care what means you use, I want him dead."
"Yes, yes, we must kill him." Lu Wenfu said: "But, why not wait until Hanzhong is recovered?"
Lu Wende should not.
Lu Wenfu reminded in a low voice: "Brother, check the field."
"Um."
No matter how angry he was, Lu Wende finally snorted.
Lu Wenfu didn't understand why he had such a big temper. It was true that he was tricked by Li Xia. But as long as Zhang Jue could capture Hanzhong, it would be better than losing so many troops in vain and ending up with nothing, right?
~~
But after meeting Lu Wende, Wang Jian was not worried about his personal future and life.
He arrived at the Lu family's army and made great efforts to inquire... After that, his face gradually became worried.
Li Xia's overall strategy was basically successful, but there were bound to be some unexpected changes.
For example, Liu Zheng rebelled.
If Liu Zheng did not rebel, Li Xia might be able to let Lu Wende stay in Bazhong for a while longer.
But now that Brother Mo has gone north, Zhang Jue not only has to block Micang Road, but also capture Hanzhong... As you can imagine, the pressure is extremely high.
Wang Jian was worried, thought about it, and called Zhao An, the only general under his command who was still in Diaoyu City.
"Hurry to Jianmen Pass and tell Feiyu about Lu Shuai's defeat, and ask him to support Jun Yu in time."
Zhao An did not leave immediately. Instead, his face was full of concern and he asked carefully: "General, Marshal Lu, to you..."
"Go quickly!"
Wang Jian glared, scolded Zhao An angrily, and drove him away. He turned around and begged Lu Wende again to send troops to support Zhang Jue...
~~
But the news about the Mongolian army came faster.
On the fourteenth day of the first lunar month, while Wang Zhongchen was still storming Jianmen Pass, he received an urgent message from Brother Mo.
"What did you say?!"
Wang Zhongchen couldn't believe it and murmured: "Prince Zong was blocked by the Song army on Micang Road. How is this possible?"
He shook his head and fell into his chair.
"Damn it, it's a lie that Li Xia stormed Lizhou... Hanzhong... Hanzhong!"
"Send the order, and the entire army will march north to Micang Road immediately!"
Wang Zhongchen felt like a headless fly running back and forth here.
He just didn't think he could break through Li Xia's defense in a short time, so he chose to return to Micang Road.
Li Xia's reputation and deeds suddenly hit him, quickly arousing his deep fear.
~~
The location of Hanzhong is really important. It is the only place to pass from Guanlong to Shu, and it is also the only place for the Mongolian army to retreat.
Right now, the most important thing for the Mongolian army is to support Hanzhong.
In case Hanzhong is seized by the Song Army, it is even more necessary to leave Micang Road before then.
Otherwise, all the Mongolian troops trapped in Sichuan and Sichuan will become trapped animals, and truly become dogs that are beaten behind closed doors.
The center of gravity of the entire Sichuan-Shu battlefield is moving northward, and they are all heading towards Zhang Jue.
~~
In Diaoyu City, Lu Wende angrily rejected Wang Jian's request.
“I’ll say it one last time, I want to return Chongqing, and there will be no room for loss in Chongqing!”
~~
Only Li Xia launched the most ferocious offensive against Lizhou.
He knew very well that he would be Zhang Jue's only reinforcement...