Chapter 163: Strong Liquor Is Hard to Swallow

For the Zhennan General's Mansion in Jianghuai, the worsening situation in Jingzhou meant there was one more direction that needed to be guarded against.

The preparations for war in Jiangdong were getting more and more intense, with new developments reported every day from Jiangdu Guangling and Liyang.

Large numbers of ships and troops began to gather in Jingkou and Jianye.

Now the focus should be placed on Jiangdong, but the battle situation in Jingzhou forced Li Yuanhui to look at Runan and Yiyang in the northwest.

Although Yin Gong had been sent to lead his 3,000 infantrymen to occupy the three passes of Yiyang and guard the strategic roads in southern Yuzhou and northeastern Jingzhou.

However, in the direction of Nanyang County, Wancheng was also in danger.

After all, Rangxian and Xinye have been lost, and Wancheng is now an isolated city. Wancheng is the strategic hub connecting the western part of Yuzhou to Jingzhou. Beyond Wancheng is Yingchuan, and beyond Yingchuan is Luoyang.

Therefore, when Guan Yu launched the Northern Expedition, he actually had to capture Xiangyang and then head straight to Wanluo.

The Jianghuai side headed by Li Yuanhui was actually not that concerned about Luoyang, but to the east of Wancheng was Runan in Yuzhou, and to the west was Jianghuai.

If the Luoyang court cannot send troops as soon as possible, then Li Yuanhui will have to plug the holes along the Huai River.

However, it is obvious that after the imperial court learned about the situation in Jingzhou, it immediately dispatched Qu Tushi'an, who was laid off due to the reorganization of the central army, as the protector of Jingyu, to temporarily take charge of the military affairs of Jingyu and control the military affairs of the two states.

Qu Tu Shi'an was considered a confidant of the late emperor. He had previously served as the General of the Right Feathered Guards. After the central army was reorganized, he lost his military power.

It’s not because of his lack of ability, but because his biggest backer is the late emperor Murong Ying.

Murong Ying was gone, and he couldn't talk to the new emperor.

And because the new emperor himself could not completely decide on the appointment of the generals in the central army, he could only leave him idle for the time being.

The situation in Yuzhou and Jingzhou is critical this time, and a general is indeed needed to temporarily take charge of the military affairs of the two states.

The post of the guard general is obviously temporary, and most of Jingzhou is now in the hands of the rebels, so there is no need to worry about them becoming too powerful to be eliminated.

In addition, the central army also sent two armies, totaling 25,000 men, led by the Protector General of the Central Region, King Murong Hui of Xia, to cooperate with Qu Tushi'an in conquering the bandits in Yuzhou and Jingzhou.

Li Yuanhui was relieved after learning of the court's response. After all, given the current situation in the court, the decision could be made in such a short time, which should be due to the efforts of King Wei and Grand Tutor Duan.

Otherwise, several prime ministers, ministers, and generals would make things complicated.

Although the King of Wei and Grand Tutor Duan both have high prestige, they are old after all. It is impossible for them to oversee several prime ministers in everything. They can only focus on important and urgent matters.

This also shows that the problems in the Luoyang court still exist. It's just that there are two old people supporting it. Emperor Murong Chao still can't control the situation.
But there is always good news. In Hebei, Zhao Da won another victory and recaptured Guantao.

In addition, Zhai Rang, who had just taken office as the governor of Qingzhou, also sent troops to Hebei at the request of the court.

Zhai Rang led 30,000 troops and crossed the river from the lower reaches to Pingyuan County. At the same time, 20,000 troops led by Xu Maogong and Yang Kan headed straight for Bohai County after crossing the river.

As for the rear, Zhai Rang's brother Zhai Hong was appointed as the prefect of Jibei, and Shan Xiongxin was appointed as the prefect of Dongping. Each of them led 10,000 troops, mainly to guard against sudden changes in the court.

After all, the two sides were hostile not long ago, and now that they are fighting the enemy together, they are still somewhat hesitant and wary.

This is also human nature.

The results achieved by the Turks in Youzhou were very significant. The results of the Turks' driving the Han army finally showed up. Lü Zuoxiang, the former general of Guangling Murong Jian, and Liu Jiangong, the former general of Youzhou Army, as well as Wang Xuba, the ancient bandit leader, and Liu Huzhi, the Youzhou bandit, defected to the Turks. These two alone had a total of 100,000 followers.

These people recruited craftsmen for the Turkic Khan, built siege equipment, and instructed and formulated siege tactics, which was equivalent to filling an important link for the Turkic people in conquering cities.

In this way, ordinary county towns with low walls could be easily breached and could not stop the Turks. Every time they captured a city, the Turks would abduct all the daughters and children in the city, and most of the able-bodied men were forced into the army by the Han generals.

As for the property, food, poultry and livestock in the city, they were all their spoils of war.

Under such circumstances, many bandits who had been entrenched in Hebei flatly refused to be recruited by the Turks. Zhang Chengjin and Gao Kaida from Qinghe County and Luo Zixian from Zhuo County, the leaders of the rebels who had originally opposed the imperial court, led their rebel troops to attack the Turks' looting teams everywhere.

The powerful and wealthy local families in You and Ji states also organized teams to defend their homeland and fight against the Turks.

Among them were the brothers Lu Qiang and Lu Xiong, who were from the famous Fanyang Lu family. The Xiangguo tyrants, Su Yong and Su Zhenbian, father and son, each organized thousands of local soldiers, gathered people to fight against the enemy, and built forts.

Xue Shixiong, the General Du Liao and Protector of Liaodong, who was originally stationed in Liucheng, also led his 30,000 elite border troops, which were originally set up to guard against Goguryeo, back to the pass after receiving the military order from the court.

These 30,000 elite frontier troops are all from Youzhou and Liaodong, including 3,000 famous Youzhou cavalrymen. It is possible to foresee what changes will be brought about after this elite force joins the Hebei battlefield.

After spending a month to capture Ji County, the Turkic Shibi Khan also had to make a choice.

That's how it ends in Hebei.

Shi Shuhuxi, who had just returned from Guanzhong and had ridden a horse for a month, was invited to the palace of Shibi Khan by the Khan's personal guards as soon as he entered Jixian City.

"Meet the Khan."

After Shi Shuhu had paid his respects, he sat down without any instructions from Shi Bi.

Shi Bi did not show any dissatisfaction, but instead ordered someone to bring food.

"Even the most powerful goshawk and white wolf will become tired and hungry after traveling for a month. We talked while eating."

After Shi Shuhu Xi nodded, he picked up a sesame-covered sesame cake and started eating it, drinking the milky white mutton soup.

Shi Bi poured himself a glass of wine and took a sip.

"If this is mare's milk wine, I can drink a whole bowl of it in one gulp, but the wine that people in the Central Plains drink is called Shaodaozi. It's very strong and feels like a knife cutting your throat. I heard that this is the favorite wine of the people in Youzhou, and it can also keep you warm."

As the Khan's trusted advisor, Shi Shuhu Xi naturally understood his hidden meaning. He must have intended to withdraw his troops, but was reluctant to give up the territory he had already conquered.

"Khan, Hebei is one of the most important regions in the Central Plains. The Han people have a saying, 'The land of Yan and Zhao has been home to many generous and tragic people since ancient times.' This means that the people here are all generous, loyal and brave. And because it is close to the grassland, many people here are good at riding, shooting and martial arts. Although we were able to quickly attack Youzhou and Jizhou through the tunnel of Taihang Mountain at the beginning of the war because we borrowed the passage of Bingzhou and achieved good results, but you now know that the noble families, powerful people, common people and even bandits in Youzhou and Jizhou have begun to gather together to fight against us. Although we still have the advantage in terms of manpower with the Han army that defected to us, if we continue to fight for a long time, we may not gain any advantage here."

Shi Bi frowned when he heard this, he understood the reason.

The Turks were different from the Xianbei people who had long been assimilated into the Han culture. They were still a typical nomadic people, and they preferred the strategy and tactics of looting and then leaving.

Instead of fighting with the enemy over a certain city, the battle sometimes even lasts for several years.

For the Turks, this expedition to Hebei had already made them a lot of money, and withdrawing before Hebei became a quagmire of war was a very reasonable and correct decision.

But for Shibi Khan, he really wanted to turn Hebei into the land and hunting grounds of the Turks.

They can go south to plunder the core area of ​​the Central Plains at any time.

In order to achieve this goal, we must first launch one or several major wars to destroy all the Yan troops in You and Ji states.

They also had to face long-term resistance from the Han military and civilians in You and Ji states, and fight a protracted war of attrition with them.

These problems can actually be solved by the Han army that surrendered to them.

So what we need to think about is, is it really right to fight a decisive battle with the Yan army in You and Ji states now?
(End of this chapter)