Chai Kehong looked at Li Hongji's expectant eyes, remained silent for a moment, and said: "The last general will serve his duty."
He said, bowing and getting ready to go.
Li Hongji narrowed his eyes at Chai Kehong and asked Sun Zhen, the military and horse supervisor, to be summoned.
"Your Highness the Crown Prince!"
Li Hongji looked at his promoted confidant in front of him and said: "When we go to attack the Central Plains Water Village, you will keep an eye on the Governor for me. If he fights with all his strength, you should cooperate. If he is afraid of fighting, you will command the army.
No matter what means we use, we must break through the Central Plains Water Village."
Sun Zhen was shocked at first and said hurriedly: "The Governor is loyal to me in Jiangnan."
Li Hongji pursed his lips and said: "I also know the capabilities of the Governor, but he has an extraordinary relationship with Luo Youdu of the Central Plains, so we must pay attention to it."
The relationship between Chai Kehong and Luo Youdu is not a secret.
Chai Kehong ranked first among the military officials and had a close relationship with Luo Youdu.
The temples in the south of the Yangtze River, which were experiencing constant internal strife, had already issued documents to impeach them.
But they were all suppressed by Li Jing and Li Hongji.
Li Jing didn't care. He felt that the relationship between Chai Kehong and Luo Youdu could better alleviate potential problems between the two countries and avoid confrontation between the two countries.
Li Hongji, on the other hand, has no one available.
In the Battle of Huainan, the elite and generals in Jiangnan either surrendered to the enemy or were killed.
There are not many trustworthy generals in Jiangnan, which is not a martial artist.
Chai Kehong is now the only famous general in the south of the Yangtze River. Li Hong hopes to be able to secure the position of prince, thanks to Chai Kehong's victory over Wu Yue with a group of old and weak soldiers in the battle of Changzhou.
Li Hongji was extremely dependent on Chai Kehong's ability, and even made an exception to promote him to the rank of Grand Governor.
Chai Kehong did indeed demonstrate outstanding military capabilities. When he commanded the Jiangnan navy and the Central Plains navy, he won many times.
But Li Hongji always felt that Chai Kehong didn't try his best, always holding back and giving up when things were good.
The two armies have been facing each other for more than two months, almost three months.
Chai Kehong repeatedly defeated the Central Plains Navy on the Yangtze River, but upon closer inspection, the casualties on both sides were not large.
After Chai Kehong defeated the Central Plains naval forces with victory, most of his next steps were to withdraw the troops himself instead of taking advantage of the opportunity to cover up the enemy.
Chai Kehong's explanation was that he felt that Zhongyuan was holding back and fighting without really exerting any force. If the pursuit was too deep, it would be easy for the opponent to take advantage of him.
Li Hongji was fine after hearing it once or twice, but if it happened every time, he would inevitably become suspicious.
Now Lingnan cannot open up the situation, and Pan Mei suppresses Lingnan and Han Dynasty cannot raise its head.
Bashu has been destroyed, and I don't know what's going on in Dali.
Now only Jiangnan takes the initiative. Li Hongji has firmly believed from the beginning that only he can break the deadlock.
The only hero who buried the Central Plains court was Li Hongji.
Sun Zhen clasped his hands and said, "I understand!"
Li Hongji walked out of the commander's camp, stood at a high place and watched the Jiangnan navy maneuvering its boats. He glanced at Li Jing and Li Congjia, who were suffering in Hongzhou, and whispered: "Father, just watch and see how I can turn the tide.
, place my banner of the Tang Dynasty at the top of Bianjing City."
The mighty Jiangnan navy galloped on the river and headed straight to the north of the Yangtze River.
**********
Yangzhou Jiangbei Water Village.
Cao Bin got the news of the Jiangnan navy heading north as soon as possible.
"We are all deployed. This time, almost all the naval forces from the south of the Yangtze River are out. This is an attempt to forcefully attack our water village in the north of the Yangtze River... If we don't send troops, where will the morale of our army be?"
It was Zhao Kuangzan who said this.
His name is somewhat similar to Zhao Kuangyin, but he and Zhao Kuangyin are not the same.
Zhao Kuangzan's original name was Zhao Mei, later he was renamed Zhao Kuangzan. He was a native of Ji County, Youzhou. He was the grandson of Zhao Dejun, the envoy of Lulong Festival in the Later Tang Dynasty, and the son of Zhao Yanshou, the Khitan Prime Minister. During the reign of Emperor Yin of the Later Han Dynasty, he worshiped General Zuo Xiaowei. Later Zhou Dynasty was established, and he had official positions of left and right.
Yu Lin, Long Wu and others commanded the army. During the Battle of Huainan, he fought with meritorious service in many battles and was awarded the Baoxin Jiedu Envoy for his merit. He was a veteran general with status in the Central Plains.
Zhao Kuangzan has a good personality, without the unruliness of a veteran, and is very cooperative with Cao Bin's work.
But as Cao Bin repeatedly avoided fighting, Zhao Kuangzan couldn't stand it anymore.
Cao Bin smiled meaningfully
He said: "Finally I can't bear it any longer! General Zhao, wait a moment and wait for everyone to arrive. We have our own arrangements."
Cao Bin said no more, but asked people to invite Zhang Xiong, Shu Yuan, Han Chongs, Tang Jingsi, Zhang Congen and Zhao Chao to discuss the matter.
Not long after, Cao Bin's commanding officer had gathered many generals from this southern expedition.
When Cao Bin saw all the generals gathered, he said, "You must have received the news. Almost all the naval forces from the south of the Yangtze River were dispatched this time. The purpose is obvious. They are to attack our army's water stronghold in the north of the Yangtze River."
Tang Jingsi couldn't help but said: "The Jiangnan thieves are really too rampant and they are deployed, how can you still bear it?"
There was a slight complaint in his tone.
This general can only find his value and meaning on the battlefield.
Three groups of conquest armies, two groups of troops led by Luo Youdu and Gao Huaide, entered Shu early and destroyed Meng Shu. Not even satisfied, they went straight to trouble Dali.
And what about them?
Trapped in Jiangbei for nearly three months, not even an inch of land was captured, and the navy even suffered a small loss.
If their army hadn't been unable to attack, they would have been unable to hold it back long ago.
Cao Bin smiled at this moment and said: "Of course I can't bear it. I have endured it for a long time just for today."
Hearing what Cao Bin said, the generals suddenly felt at ease.
It turns out that this was all a ruse, in order to let the Jiangnan naval forces come out in full force and then annihilate them in one fell swoop.
Good idea!
Everyone thought how the plot would develop, but Cao Bin's next sentence was: "Deputy Commander Zhang..."
Zhang Xiong said seriously: "The end will be here!"
Cao Bin said: "You surround our army's water stronghold, lay iron ropes along the camp, place wooden stakes, and send soldiers to defend the camp. Without orders from the capital, you are not allowed to leave the stronghold to meet the enemy. If the Jiangnan navy wants to forcefully break the stronghold, just let him attack by force.
"
Zhang Xiong is the most stable. He knows that his talents are far inferior to Cao Bin. Even if he doesn't understand the reason, he still takes orders meticulously.
The surrounding generals are furious, why are they still cowering?
Cao Bin continued: "Commander Shu, you have lived in Jinling for more than ten years, so you should be familiar with the terrain there."
Shu Yuan didn't understand what he meant, but Cao Bin was one of the two giants of the Yuying Division and his direct superior.
Although he was dissatisfied with the ineffectiveness of sending troops so far, he did not dare to challenge the authority of his superiors. He answered honestly: "My subordinate is a general and has a certain understanding of the terrain. I have explored the surrounding terrain many times to comfort myself."
Back then, his father-in-law suppressed him and refused to let him lead the army, so he could only live a happy life.
Cao Bin said: "That's good. You lead five thousand light cavalry and drive towards Jinling City. It would be best if you can enter the city in one go. If you can't, then circle around to block the enemy and prevent the enemy from supporting them."
Shu Yuan is extremely utilitarian and would risk his life for the sake of merit. He never cares about the difficulty of the task and instinctively accepts orders.
Reacted immediately.
That’s not right!
How to drive Jinling City in Jiangbei?
Fly over?
Or swim there on horseback?
He was about to speak, but Cao Bin continued to make arrangements.
Han Chongsun made a surprise attack on the navy camp in the south of the Yangtze River, and Zhao Kuangzan led his infantry to attack Jinling City.
Other generals blocked all landing crossings south of the Yangtze River...
Cao Bin stood up and shouted: "This battle will make it impossible for all the naval forces in Jiangnan to get out."
－－－－－－Digression－－－－－
Thank you Shuyou for being a happy bad guy and thank you for your support!