When the general Liu Changzuo heard this, he realized what he meant. If he launched a surprise attack to relieve the siege, it would only be able to break the siege around Xia City, but it would still not be possible to completely break the siege of Dangxiang's army.
In this way, the siege of Pingxia City still cannot be solved.
But when you speak, you cannot listen to the superficial meaning; you must listen to the underlying meaning.
What exactly does Zhe Keshi mean by this?
This involved intrigues between the generals of the Western Army.
Yao Xiong said: "If we don't rush to break the siege first, what if Pingxia City thinks that we are just waiting on the sidelines? On the contrary, it will make the defenders unable to defend themselves. At least we can attack the Western bandits first."
Zhe Keshi objected: "The Xifu has issued an edict before, telling us not to fight in vain! The soldiers guarding the city should be self-aware and will not think that we will not save us until we die."
Yao Si put Zhe Keshi under his eyes and wanted to say more.
Liu Changzuo stood up and clasped his fists and said: "I understand your desire to fight, and I would like to thank you all on behalf of the officers and soldiers in the city!"
Some of the generals were embarrassed to hear this. In fact, except for Guo Zude, none of them wanted to fight, but instead competed for military merit and rewards.
In recent years, the imperial court has given the most generous rewards to border officials. Before, Xihe Road was always the most proud. Now, the imperial court has finally shifted its strategic targets to Jingyuan and Huanqing 2nd Road. How can these generals bear it?
If a general is promoted slowly, I don't know how long it will take to reach the top rank.
Only meritorious service on the battlefield can be achieved.
When a military general reaches the seventh rank, he can be called horizontal in the army. Hengxing is also called horizontal class. As the name suggests, you can walk sideways in the army.
Over the years, Xihe Road's military achievements have been like water, but it is no longer water, just like the overflowing sea. Not to mention the horizontal squad, there are even more than a dozen observation envoys, defense envoys, and regimental training envoys.
Even generals such as Peng Sun were promoted to deputy general manager.
In fact, many generals were thinking in their hearts that the elite party members, numbering no more than 50,000 to 60,000, must be clustered around the Queen Mother or Pingxia City.
As for the other more than 200,000 troops scattered outside, most of them are miscellaneous soldiers.
Therefore, as long as they bypassed the elite Dangxiang troops, there were so many miscellaneous soldiers in Pingxia City, and the generals on Jingyuan Road, Huanqing Road, and Qinfeng Road seemed to see a lot of "military merit" moving around.
Isn't this a ready-made high official sitting there?
Therefore, all the generals wanted to seize military glory.
The generals in the Western Army were not only complex in factions, but also in intrigues.
At that time, the generals at Huanqing Road, Jingyuan Road, and Yanyan Road were jealous of the military achievements and political power of Xihe Road, so they kept tinkering with the Privy Council and came up with a plan to conquer Hengshan to counter the imperial court's strategic policy of taking Liangzhou first.
At that time, Han Zhen not only acquiesced but also encouraged these generals in order to seize power.
As for Xu Xi, his brain was miswired.
In the years of war with Dangxiang that followed, there were endless disputes among the Western Army about taking credit and blame.
The miscellaneous fish troops each compete for the lead, and when they encounter the elite, they pass the blame to each other.
However, the Western Army is still much better than those military leaders in the late Ming Dynasty. Those military leaders were timid in foreign wars and brave in internal fighting.
Since the Qing Dynasty entered the customs, it has hardly fought any hard battles.
The Liaodong warlords, who were originally abused by the Qing Dynasty in Liaodong, once changed their guns, and their combat effectiveness exploded.
The nature of bullying the weak and fearing the strong is fully exposed.
The same goes for the generals and officials of the Southern Ming Dynasty. When the Qing army arrived, they either surrendered or hanged themselves. However, they fought for power internally and fought against themselves and the peasant army. They were good at fighting against themselves and the peasant army, and they suddenly became more ferocious externally.
Everyone wants to fight someone weaker than themselves, not someone stronger than themselves.
——
So Zhe Keshi put it bluntly, except for Guo Zude, all of you are here to relieve the siege, and you are all here to seize military glory.
No matter how many of these miscellaneous soldiers on the periphery are eliminated, it will not help. If they cannot defeat the party elites below the city, it will not benefit the overall situation at all.
In the Battle of Lanzhou that year, the Song Army also annihilated hundreds of thousands of party soldiers, but the elite Bubazi, Tieyaozi, and the Sixth Squadron in the Imperial Garden were not eliminated.
It's the same today.
What's the use of you just attacking the salted fish outside, if you don't go straight to the city and attack the elite party members? You still can't break the siege of Pingxia City.
Therefore, Liu Changzuo said this to save the respect of the generals. As the saying goes, if you see through something but don't tell it, you are still a good friend.
All the generals stopped talking, and Liu Changzuo continued: "The thieves and bandits are so powerful that it is difficult to fight for a while. Our army is also waiting for the opportunity to fight. We must not waste the battle and lose our spirit."
"Once the Western thieves have nothing to plunder in the wild, they will inevitably rely on their baggage. When our army confronts its soldiers and horses here and attacks their baggage, the thieves will be defeated!"
After listening to Liu Changzuo's words, the generals were still worried.
Zhe Keshi said: "With Mr. Guo in the city, what are you worried about? I guarantee with my head that there will be no loss in Pingxia City."
After hearing what Zhe Keshi said, the generals were speechless.
Liu Changzuo said solemnly: "Everyone go back and spread out your troops and horses. Once the soldiers and horses of the Western bandits under the city retreat, they will ambush you on all roads!"
"Anyone who delays the opportunity to fight will be subject to military law!"
——
Coming out of the tent, Mr. Miao and his son Miao Lu, who were born in Xihe Road, looked calm and relaxed.
What military honors has Xihe Road not received in recent years?
Followed by Zhang Jinglue Xianggong, the elder, the elder and the younger, as well as Li Xian and Wang Hou.
After Miao Shi had already served as an official at Jiedu, Miao Lu relied on his father's influence and his own military exploits over the years to reach the rank of horizontal class before the age of thirty.
Just now in the big tent, Miao Lu folded his hands and looked at the generals fighting with his face flushed. The rich man with a mentality like a rich man looked at a few beggars fighting for a broken bowl.
I'm still complaining in my heart, these people are so poor and crazy now.
You must know that in history, it was Miao Lu who was trying to take credit and passed the blame to Zhe Keshi, who was almost ordered to be executed.
But now Miao Lu's mentality is completely different.
After leaving the tent, Miao Lu said to Miao Shu: "Father, I think the rest of the Dangxiang tribes are vulnerable. If our soldiers and horses on Xihe Road want to fight, we will defeat the elite Western thieves under Xia City!"
Miao Lu now looked down upon Dangxiang's other soldiers and horses. Most of them meant that I was fighting for the elite.
This is the result of the confidence accumulated after consecutive victories.
Miao said: "Idiot, we have won a lot in these years, and now we have elites like Liangzhou Zhi. It seems that we can fight against the elites of the Western bandits in the field."
Miao Lu nodded repeatedly.
Miao said: "But let me ask you, the founders of the past dynasties only relied on their own 100,000 elite soldiers to conquer the world and suppress all directions!"
"Why is it that in the hands of descendants, even if there are millions of troops, they are still vulnerable and unable to defend the border?"
Miao Lu said: "Dad often told me that this is the principle that soldiers are more valuable than their elites."
Professor Miao said: "Not bad."
"These tens of thousands of elite soldiers under Pingxia City are the capital of Li Yuanhao's fortune and the foundation of the Western Bandit's founding of the country. We can't eat them in one bite."
"Let's sharpen the knife, feed the horse, let other people touch it, and then make a decision!"
"Yes!" Miao Lu's eyes flashed.
"Dad is right, and there is one more thing. I see that Liu Changzuo is a kind and understanding man. When the time comes, he will not and will not dare to lack the military merit of our Miao family in front of the court."
Professor Miao scolded: "Just be clever!"
Miao Lu smiled broadly.
——
In Pingxia City.
Guo Chengzheng was working very hard to defend the city. At this time, people couldn't sleep even if they wanted to.
Guo Cheng had no intention of sleeping before, because people would be particularly excited during a war.
However, Guo Cheng had not slept for three consecutive days and nights, so he lay down in the shack and fell asleep.
However, when Guo Cheng'er heard the sound of cannons and stones was slightly weaker, he suddenly woke up and said: "The Western bandits are coming soon!"
The seven or eight followers on the left and right all said: "General, it's the Western thieves who have retreated."
Guo Cheng was stunned, nodded and said: "Immediately count the troops, horses, and defensive equipment."
"yes!"
Guo Cheng walked up to the top of the city and saw several soldiers who were so tired after the battle that they wanted to take off their armor.
Guo Cheng scolded him on the spot.
Such a mistake could lead to death due to armor-removing wind.
Guo Cheng saw a young soldier who had been hit in the chest by a cannon stone. Seeing his appearance, Guo Cheng knew he was dead, so he leaned down and asked, "Who else is at home?"
"There is also an old mother who has been unable to get out of bed for many years!"
Guo Cheng nodded and said to the soldiers on the side: "Twenty guan from my salary and send it to his home!"
"Thank you, Lieutenant, for showing mercy!"
After saying this, the soldier passed away with a smile.
Guo Cheng reached out and wiped his blood-stained face clean, then stood up and continued his inspection.
Along the way, I met several wounded or dead soldiers, and I used my own salary to support their families.
All the soldiers knew that Guo Cheng was very fond of giving, so he often didn't have a penny with him, so he was able to kill the soldiers.
Guo Cheng walked around, but felt that although the situation of defending the city was very tragic, Pingxia City was still strong enough to support it.
Guo Cheng comforted the troops at the top of the city and said: "The Western bandits are so poor in skills. I'm afraid that the reinforcements from outside the city don't know the importance of the reinforcements. They rush to help and miss the opportunity to annihilate the Western bandits under the city in one fell swoop!"
"My sworn brother (Guo Zude) said at the beginning that he would never save someone even if he was killed. This is what I am most worried about!"
After hearing Guo Chengzhi's words, the generals felt a little calmer.
As he spoke, he heard the sound of trumpets under the city wall. It turned out that the party's troops only rested for less than half an hour before continuing to attack the city under the black sky.
At this moment, under the city of Pingxia, countless fires were burning in the camp of the party's soldiers and horses.
Dangxiang's army pushed the newly built high cart and other objects back into the siege.
Doing this without stopping for a moment was to tire out the Song army in the city and undermine their will to resist.
——
In Xinxiaoguan City.
The newly built fortress has been piled up.
Weiming Amian led an army of 30,000 troops and surrounded Xinxiaoguan.
Xinxiaoguan was the retreat route for Dangxiang's troops, so Dangxiang's most famous general, Weiming Ami, was stationed here.
The newly built Xiaoguan City is a 500-step city, which is at best a small village.
After the city was built, in order to escort more than 20,000 civilians back, half of the 7,000 cavalry originally built the city were taken away.
Just a few days after the civilian soldiers left, party troops surrounded Xiaoguancheng.
Xu Xi looked at the party soldiers and horses below the city who were preparing to attack the city. He didn't have any anxiety in his heart, but was vaguely happy.
It is not so much that Shen Kuo anticipated all this, or that the Song Dynasty arranged careful arrangements at the top levels of the party to accurately pass the information to Shen Kuo.
Now surrounding Pingxia City, the Song army must have completely deployed its troops and formed a huge pocket.
As long as Dangxiang fails to conquer Xiacheng, he will be fully pursued by the Song army.
Xu Xi prided himself on being a prodigy in marching and fighting, no less talented than Sun Wu, otherwise he would not have gone around the homes of high officials to sell his knowledge before he became an official.
But no one took him seriously until they met Zhang Yue.
Thinking of this, Xu Xi thought to himself, as long as I can annihilate the army of Western thieves, even if I, Xu Xi, die here, I will have repaid His Majesty and the Prime Minister for their kindness!
Xu Xi glanced at the numerous party troops and horses under the city.