On August 15th, the fourth year of Qianning, the war in Songzhou suddenly became intense.
Guo Qi, the military commander on the left wing of the Tielin Army, led his troops to capture Yi County. After the city was captured, he felt pain at the losses caused by the enemy's resistance and massacred the county magistrate, dozens of people below the county captain, their families, and hundreds of party members. Exiled to Taozhou.
On August 16, Zhen Xu, the military envoy from the right wing, led his troops to attack for three consecutive days. Regardless of casualties, they conquered Chuqiu County and exiled more than 300 households to Taozhou.
Seeing how violent their actions were, Ningling and Yucheng counties dismissed the local villagers they had recruited and Kaicheng surrendered.
Xu Hao, the envoy of Du Youyi, led the cavalry to Ningling and rushed to disperse Liang general Wang Tan in the east of Xiangyi, killing and wounding more than a thousand people.
The main force of Zhe Zong's Weisheng Army surrounded Xiangyi and launched an attack.
Songzhou was completely occupied, and the remaining Xiangyi County became a military stronghold and lost its economic significance.
"You don't know if you don't fight, but you will be shocked if you fight." Ye Li Yulue, the deputy envoy of the Tielin Army, has been under great pressure these days. The king gave him the "number one card of the forbidden army" and did not dare to let it go to waste.
The Tielin Army had no more than ten thousand people at the time, and it continuously transferred elite soldiers to other departments to serve as backbone veterans and lower-level officers, improving the Xia King's control over other troops. But for the Tielin Army itself, it was not a good thing, they could only New recruits are constantly being added to the full establishment. Fortunately, this process is relatively slow, giving the troops time to bring in new recruits, so the impact will not be too great.
Later, recruiting Shen, Guang, and Shou 10,000 new recruits to form the right wing at once was a bit big. So far, the training has only lasted two and a half years, and it is almost the same as Liang Ren's Tianwu Eighth Army. As for who It's hard to say whether they can fight. Maybe the Tielin Army will take advantage of it in terms of morale.
What really improved the combat effectiveness of the troops was the Ruzhou training, which carefully selected 4,000 strong soldiers, dispersed them and organized them into each battalion. This really brought about improvements.
The Tielin Army usually trains quite decently, and the Ye Liyu strategy is also very tight. But when it comes to actually going into battle, it always feels a bit boring and lower than he expected.
To put it bluntly, if you fight less, you will see more blood. This time the whole army is sent to Puzhou for camp. It is estimated that they will not be able to come back in a short time. Continuous wars are inevitable. I hope they can be well tempered. , don’t lose this sign. Wuwei Army and Tianxiong Army are very unconvinced by Tielin Army’s status as the boss!
"After the grain and wheat were put into the warehouse, I recruited masters in Songzhou." Li Tangbin was sitting in the state office, surrounded by a circle of generals.
After the end of the Xuzhou War, within more than two months, the Xia army made successive attacks and captured 20 counties in the three prefectures of Bo, Song, and Su, with a population of 13.4 million. The two prefectures of Ying and Cai also had 14 counties. After some cleaning, the population of 300,000 to 400,000 was accounted for, and control was relatively stable.
But overall, Henan's population and economic losses have been too serious, and they are in urgent need of recuperation.
After the wheat ripens in August, Li Tangbin will seize the favorable opportunity to launch a new round of offensive and break into Puzhou.
"Where do you want to attack?" Zhang Guihou, the commander of the hall, asked.
He looked good, and he was completely devoted to King Xia and stopped doing what he wanted. This was all Zhu Quanzhong's fault.
"In September, the left and right Wuwei armies will march eastward. It's hard to say which camp they will be sent to." Li Tangbin said: "Maybe they will be assigned to Puzhou camp, and the military strength will be much lighter by then. I have decided to attack Shanzhou first. Here.
The enemy states of Lian Cao, Yun, Yan, and Xu are the key, and obtaining them will provide convenience for the future advancement of the three towns to the east."
The situation is becoming increasingly clear now.
According to the news just received, thousands of Qingzhou cavalry troops have arrived in Yanzhou, and large groups of troops may follow.
Zhu Wei has 30,000 troops, Zhu Jin has 30,000 troops, Wang Shifan has 50,000 troops, Zhu Zhen has 40,000 troops, Zhang Tingfan has 10,000 troops, Zhu Quanzhong has about 70,000 troops, and Yang Xingmi has sent troops north to Xuzhou plus Hao and Si garrison of about 30,000 troops. Consider
To the vaguely hostile Wei Bo 80,000 warriors, the total is 340,000 horses.
These are all the yamen or outer town armies of each vassal town, and they are full of combat effectiveness. Although there is a lot of moisture in them and there are many recruits, the number alone is really amazing.
Judging from the population, territory, money and food they control, they have far exceeded Zhu Quanzhong's heyday. The only advantage is that these forces are not integrated into the hands of a group, otherwise they will be a monster that far surpasses Liang Jun.
Fortunately, Li Ke was stopped by his 150,000 elite soldiers who had been fighting bloody battles all year round. Otherwise, the world would have been too difficult to fight, and no one would surrender, even if they only had one soldier in hand, they would want to make a comeback.
"There are Huai people in the south, east and north of Suzhou. Yang Xingmi's primary target must still be Suzhou." Li Tangbin said: "This man has great ambitions. I heard that he is still attacking Du Hong of Ezhou recently. After Ding Hui arrived in Anzhou, he
It’s somewhat restrained.”
Ding Hui led 20,000 people all the way to Anzhou City. The Huai people sent troops to help, but they were defeated, with more than 2,000 casualties. They surrounded the point for reinforcements and won the first battle. Ding Hui's Youguo Army still had fighting capacity.
"If General Feng's battle does not go well, we can attack Xuzhou from Shanzhou south to reduce the pressure on him." Li Tangbin said, "If the battle goes well, then we can attack Cao Dan and force Zhu Zhen to express his stance."
Everyone nodded.
The enemy forces are powerful, but they are not united. Each has its own agenda and plans, which gives them the opportunity to defeat each other.
Zhu Zhen may not be an enemy, but he must be allowed to express his position first. If he insists and refuses to speak, then he will be killed.
"There is another benefit to capturing Shanzhou." Li Tangbin said: "Threatening Yun and Yan, the siege of Puzhou will be relieved."
Puzhou was besieged for a long time, but some people broke out of the siege to deliver news.
The city is still strong, but there is not enough food and grass. The Feilong Army has even slaughtered a large number of mules and horses early to reduce food consumption. Everyone else in the city, Shao Lun, He Gui, Du Guangyi and others, will die if they die. Li Tangbin
I don't care. But if something happens to Liang Hanyong and the king's daughter becomes a widow, Li Tangbin doesn't have the courage.
"The troops who have returned to the river to rest and recuperate will go on an expedition in mid-September. By then they will be on the battlefield in Zhengzhou, and the flank threat from Bianzhou is not a worry." Li Tangbin added: "Zhu Quanzhong had the most soldiers, but he was the most looked upon. He turned over
Can’t afford big waves.”
In the direction of Zhengzhou, the Tiande Army launched a massive attack after receiving reinforcements.
In early August, he was defeated by Zhu Youyu in Wansheng Town, losing more than a thousand troops. On August 9th, he defeated Liang general Zhu Youwen in Zhongmu County, and took advantage of the situation to attack Bajiao Town, where he was repulsed by Zhu Quanzhong.
In the direction of Huazhou, the Zhenguo army stormed Yangwu and defeated it. Then they attacked Suanzao County and failed to capture the city for seven days. Liang General Hua Wenqi led his army to help, and the Zhenguo army retreated to Baoyangwu.
Zhongwu Army and Jianrui Army continued to besiege Weishi. Zhu Youlun led his army to come to the rescue, but the cavalry army was severely defeated, with more than 3,000 soldiers lost.
The five armies of Tiande, Zhenguo, Zhongwu, Jianrui, and Iron Cavalry still have more than 30,000 infantry and cavalry. The Liang people also have about 70,000 yamen troops. In addition to Xiangyong, there are hundreds of thousands of soldiers and horses. It is difficult to eat for a while.
However, the Liang people attacked everywhere and tried their best to break the squeeze and blockade on them, but they were always in a state of tug of war and failed to achieve success. If the stalemate continues, it will definitely become more and more difficult as the money, food and materials are consumed.
According to Cai Songyang, the Tiande Army envoy, Zhu Quanzhong is now focusing on protecting Huazhou. He cannot protect Songzhou, and he does not want to protect it.
This strategic choice is actually easy to understand and communicate with Wei Bo.
In addition, it will be late August soon, and the Xuzhou camp will launch a large-scale "Autumn Harvest Offensive", which mainly focuses on harvesting the grain in the fields. Even if the robbery fails, it will make it impossible for Liang Jun to harvest comfortably, and perhaps
Can take the opportunity to annihilate some Liang Jun troops.
"After understanding the strategy, we will go back to prepare our equipment and train our troops." Li Tangbin ordered: "First, we must collect the general's food supplies. This is the most important thing."
******
At night in Puzhou, the sound of killing shook the sky.
Liang Hanyong personally led two thousand soldiers out of the city. After a bloody battle for half an hour, they finally drove back the traitors and rescued He Gui.
"If General Liang hadn't fought to save him, Gui would have died." After returning to Wengcheng, He Gui, who was almost out of strength, took Liang Hanyong's hand and almost burst into tears.
"Why did General He say this?" Liang Hanyong sighed: "Last month when I went out to fight in the city, I was injured and fell off my horse. It was General He who carried me back. They are all brothers, no need to say more."
He Gui nodded, and the two of them helped each other into the city.
Shao Lun was patrolling the city, and Du Guangyi stepped forward to greet him.
"I saw those Shaqi thieves just now." Liang Hanyong suddenly said.
Du Guangyi was startled and asked: "Isn't Tuoba Renfu a yamen general in Qingzhou?"
Liang Hanyong nodded and said: "Qingzhou soldiers are coming. Wang Shifan must have agreed to send troops. Now the three towns of Yun, Yan and Qing have united."
He Gui's face didn't look very good.
Zhu Jin and Zhu Wei combined an army of 50,000 men and captured men everywhere in Puzhou, driving them to attack the city and die. Sometimes, just to consume the defenders' arrows, they could drive thousands of strong men and women to attack the city. This time even if they can
After the siege was lifted, there were not many people left in Puzhou. In its heyday, the large county with a population of more than 400,000 people was so dilapidated that it was hard to say anything.
"How dare they?" Du Guangyi frowned and said: "Yesterday, when I was interrogating the Yunren Military Academy, didn't I say that the king is unstoppable in Henan and has already taken control of the counties in Songzhou? Aren't these people afraid?"
"What's the use of being afraid? Zhu Quanzhong was very powerful back then, so why don't we just follow him?" He Gui said: "However, I do think Zhu Jin and Zhu Wei may have to break the siege and leave."
"That's right." Liang Hanyong agreed with He Gui's view and said: "Thieves who join forces with each other for benefit will eventually defeat each other for benefit. If King Xia's army attacks Yanzhou, Zhu Jin will be the first to retreat. Zhu Wei can't make a sound with his palm alone, so he will definitely escape.
As for Wang Shifan, hehe, Zhu Jin and Zhu Wei are not working hard, so why should he stand out? A mess of people will be destroyed."
"If only 30,000 to 50,000 troops come, I'm afraid it won't be enough." He Gui added, "It would be best to have 100,000 troops."
There are currently nearly 9,000 defenders inside and outside Puzhou City, including more than 6,000 Feilong Army soldiers, less than 2,000 Puzhou soldiers, and 1,000 Yunzhou soldiers. Li Tang Binruo only led 30,000 to 40,000 people, which was really not enough, because he did not consider
Wang Shifan joins.
"Don't worry, your Majesty has 300,000 soldiers and horses. After harvesting the grains in summer and autumn, we can recruit the master and the local warriors, and the military supplies are sufficient. It will not be difficult to mobilize an army of 100,000. If we take all the two states of Song and Shan,
The road to Puzhou has been opened, and it will come quickly." Liang Hanyong said: "I will wait until all the hardships are over, and it will be September."
Hearing what Liang Hanyong said, He Gui and Du Guangyi were also very excited. If there is no hope anymore, the sergeants may borrow their brains. It is best to wipe out the three towns of Yun, Yan and Qing in one battle.
The main force, in this way, can easily collect empty states and counties in just a few months.