Chapter 657 0652 [Embarrassing Retreat]

When Zhang Guangdao abandoned his carriage and wooden cannon and marched all the way to catch up, Chen Ziyi's soldiers had already captured the ridge that was blocked by the Jin soldiers behind him.

"Alas, it's still a step too late." Zhang Guangdao sighed.

Chen Ziyi sat on the loess slope, not in a very high mood: "Wanyan Loushi retreated decisively in the valley. If I had known earlier that he would not dare to charge a second time, I would not have sent heavy cavalry to confront the Jin soldiers. The entire army retreated." Entering the camp will save many warriors from death."

"This man is fierce and cunning. He sent people here to explore the escape terrain on his way to the valley. Otherwise, how could he have chosen this place to block our pursuit by guarding a mountain ridge? If it were other nearby mountains, It is not as convenient as this place to escape," Zhang Guangdao said. "The troops are still too small. If there are ten thousand more soldiers, Wanyan Lou's room can be left behind."

Chen Ziyi asked: "Do we need to attack Yu County tonight?"

Zhang Guangdao shook his head and said: "All the troops are exhausted from today's battle. Let's rest for the night and slowly march towards Yu County tomorrow. Wanyan Zonghan's army is almost reaching Yu County."

Wanyan Zonghan withdrew his troops from Shouyang and headed for the battlefield where the wooden cannons were firing. The straight-line distance was only seventy miles.

However, the route has recently been blocked by the Ming army, that is, the valley where the Zhai brothers returned to Shouyang to aid. Not only is the Ming military camp at the western exit of the valley, but the Zhao Jianzi city camp at Zhang Guangdao is also at the eastern exit of the valley.

Wanyan Zonghan could only retreat north first, then cross the valley to Yu County, and then rush south from Yu County to the heavy cavalry to attack the valley.

The Zhai brothers were sent back to Shouyang to aid. They spent half a day traveling by boat, then rested for half a day, spent two and a half days detouring to the southern mountainous area, and then launched a night attack to defeat Yan Zonghan's Dongda camp.

Wanyan Zonghan withdrew from Shouyang on the second day after Dongda Camp was breached.

Back and forth, about three days and four nights passed.

Zhang Guangdao sent the Zhai brothers back to Shouyang to help Shouyang, and it happened to be three days and three nights before Wanyan Lou's room was discovered and killed. Up to now, it had gone through a total of four days and four nights.

In other words, Wanyan Zonghan's army just set off from Shouyang this morning.

There are many loess mountains along the route, and there are also mountainous areas of 20 to 30 miles. It takes more than 100 miles to reach Yu County with seven twists and turns. The vanguard may have arrived, but Wanyan Zonghan's main force is definitely still on the way.

…

night.

Wanyan Zonghan's main force was still in the mountainous area. A fast horse came and was taken directly to the commander's tent.

The messenger knelt down and reported: "Marshal, the Privy Councilor has died of illness!"

"I know." Wanyan Zonghan felt heavy.

The highest military institution of the Jin Kingdom is the Du Marshal's Office. As the territory expands, local Privy Councils are planned to be established.

The first Privy Council was located in Guangning, which is the area east of Jinzhou. The original purpose of its establishment was to prevent Zhang Jue's rebellion. The Privy Council of Guangning at that time was Liu Yanzong, who directly took orders from Wanyan Zonghan (there are also historical data showing that the Privy Council of Guangning was put on hold due to the resumption of war before it was formally established).

Now, Wanyan Zonghan is in Yunzhong (Datong) and Wanyan Zongwang is in Yanshan (Beijing), and they have established a Privy Council respectively.

The Privy Council envoy in Yunzhong is Wanyan Xishi, and the Privy Council envoy in Yanshan is Liu Yanzong. They are mainly responsible for recruiting and training local soldiers and horses, and are also responsible for collecting food and grass on the spot.

Wanyan's training room was specially located in the northern area of ​​Shanxi to recruit troops and food for Wanyan Zonghan and sit in the rear. Now the war is not over but he suddenly died of illness.

This is enough to give Wanyan Zonghan a headache!

There are three parts of Wanyan Jurchen, one is Huosu Pavilion, the second is Pressing out the Tiger Water (Aguda), and the third is Yelan.

The Wanyan Department of the Hesu Pavilion was the one that Zhao Li and Yelu Yujian crushed across the sea. They are the weakest, and their origins are somewhat unknown, but Aguda admits that their surname is Wanyan (more like a given surname).

Yelan's Wanyan tribe was very powerful. When Aguda planned to rebel against the Liao Dynasty, he only made up his mind with the support of Yelan's Wanyan tribe.

The Wanyan Xishi who died of illness this time was the son of the previous head of the Yelan Wanyan tribe.

As for the current head of the Yelan Wanyan tribe, his name is Wanyan Zhong. When the Jin soldiers attacked the Song Dynasty last time, he fell under the command of Wanyan Zongwang. This time, he did not lead his army south. Wanyanzhong stayed in Harbin, swinging back and forth and not knowing which faction he belonged to.

The internal strife in Jin Dynasty was very serious. Wanyan Zhong was conserving his strength. Half of the troops of Yelan Wanyan Department were not moved. The excuse was that they were putting down the rebellion of the Bohai people.

"Call Pu Lidu."

"yes!"

Wanyan Pulidi was the grandson of Wugunai and the third son of Alihexi.

Pulidi's second brother is called Wanyan Orun (Wanyan Yan). He is currently serving as a courtier in Harbin and is a pawn of Wanyan Zonghanbu in the Jin Dynasty court.

"Marshal!" Pu Liduo rushed to the marshal's tent to pay his respects.

Wanyan Zonghan said: "The Privy Councilor has died of illness. You go back and take charge of Yunzhong. Don't cause any more trouble in the rear."

Pu Li was surprised and asked, "Why did he die suddenly?"

Wanyan Zonghan said: "He was already sick before sending troops this time, but he didn't tell anyone about it. Don't wait any longer and rush back overnight."

"good!"

Pu Liduo took dozens of Qingqi and rushed back to Datong Privy Council overnight.

He was not only a strong general, but also relatively proficient in internal affairs. He once wrote a memorial to cancel the custom of using war horses for burial in the Jin Dynasty (at that time, he was not capable and the memorial was poorly written, but Wanyan Zonghan helped to revise it).

After Pu Litui left, Wanyan Zonghan hadn't slept long when several more fast horses came galloping towards him.

The soldiers walked into the commander's tent and whispered: "There was a huge defeat at the front, with tens of thousands of soldiers lost."

"What?" Wanyan Zonghan was so shocked that he lost all sleep, and quickly called the messenger in.

The person sent to deliver the news was none other than Wen Du Sizhong.

Wanyan Zonghan said sternly: "How did our army suffer a great defeat? Please tell us in detail!"

Wendusizhong has an amazing memory and strong language organization ability. He described the process of several battles very clearly. In the battle of heavy cavalry charging, he was responsible for exploring the terrain for escape, but after asking the Jurchen soldiers, he was able to tell the story in detail.

Wanyan Zonghan was a little unbelievable after listening: "When those artillery fired, all the cavalry charging the battle fell?"

"Only a few of those who rushed to the front dozens of steps were spared." Wendusizhong said.

Wanyan Zonghan asked again: "In the open field, did the Ming cavalry dare to fight in close combat?"

Wendusizhong nodded: "Yes."

Wanyan Zonghan asked again: "In the valley, did they use heavy cavalry to charge against the wall?"

Wendusizhong said: "According to our soldiers, those Ming heavy cavalry were also afraid, and everyone slowed down when they rushed to the near place. But they did dare to charge against the wall, and they were more densely arranged than us, just rushing to die together."

Wanyan Zonghan was silent for a moment and asked: "How is our morale?"

"Morale is low," said Wendusizhong, "The Ming army's artillery volleys frightened them, and then the cavalry battles were defeated twice, and they also split their troops to cover the rear and fled in embarrassment. After so much, the whole army They are all in a state of panic. They are currently retreating to Yu County to rest. Some tribal leaders are clamoring to go back to their hometowns. "

Wanyan Zonghan was furious: "It's just a defeat, but they are clamoring to go home. It's so stupid and cowardly!"

Wendusizhong said: "They were frightened by the firearms and heavy cavalry of the Ming army. The Ming country has a large population and a vast territory. This year, my Jin Dynasty will probably not be able to win quickly. If it is delayed until next year or the year after, I don't know how many artillery the Ming army will build, and I don't know how many heavy cavalry the Ming army can train. When the leaders of various tribes think of these things, how can they be willing to fight with the Ming country again? "

"That's why we have to fight hard next time. We can't give the Ming country more time to build firearms and train cavalry!" Wanyan Zonghan roared.

He handed the army to the deputy general, took only a few hundred cavalry, and rushed to Yu County overnight.

At dawn, Wanyan Zonghan saw Wanyan Loushi and immediately asked, "Can you still fight?"

Wanyan Loushi said, "Yes!"

Then he added, "But Hezhameng'an has lost his main battle horse. When he puts on armor again, he may not be able to fight for so long."

"Can't you let Hezhameng'an take off his armor and then retreat?" Wanyan Zonghan said angrily.

Wanyan Loushi said: "The Ming cavalry is chasing closely. Once Hezhameng'an takes off his armor, the Ming troops will definitely chase him and fight desperately, and will not give Hezhameng'an time to put on his armor. Their main infantry is also chasing us. If they are held back by the Ming cavalry, our army is likely to be wiped out."

"We can only let Hezhameng'an wear armor and march. If the Ming army chases closely, let Hezhameng'an rush back to kill them. After repeated attacks several times, the whole army arrived at the mountain crossing safely. But Hezhameng'an's horses are exhausted, foaming at the mouth and it is difficult to continue crossing the mountains. I must order those horses to be killed, otherwise the Ming army will get them, and those horses can recover by resting on the spot!"

Wanyan Zonghan closed his eyes and thought about the situation at the time, and found that there was no good way for him to change.

Wanyan Loushi had three opportunities to withdraw safely, but they were all missed due to interference from various reasons.

The biggest reason is that the overall strategy of the Jin Dynasty was problematic. It must seize every opportunity to fight field annihilation wars and cannot be turned into siege wars by the Ming army. This led to Wanyan Loushi being alert but having to gamble hard, always unconsciously biting the bait of the Ming army.

Wanyan Zonghan asked: "You are familiar with the tactics of the Ming army, how should we fight next?"

Wanyan Loushi said: "It is best to rest in Yu County for a few days, otherwise it will be difficult for the soldiers I brought back to quickly restore their morale. The commander of the Ming army is like a smart hunter, setting a trap for me to get into. You must be very careful when fighting with such people. The infantry and chariot formation of the Ming army cannot be attacked by force. Those artillery are really powerful. You must lure them out and then look for an opportunity to rush after the formation is dispersed."

Wanyan Zonghan asked: "Why didn't you kill back when the Ming infantry pursued?"

Wanyan Loushi said: "The commander of the Ming army was too cautious. I originally wanted to lure them out and use cavalry to attack from all sides in open terrain. But even if this person was chasing, he was very slow in marching in formation. The whole army reorganized after walking a few dozen steps, and did not give me the opportunity to send troops to break the formation!"

Wanyan Zonghan was silent.

Wanyan Loushi suddenly remembered something and said with an ugly expression: "What we should worry about now is not the Yu County, but the Taiyuan and Shouyang directions!"

Wanyan Zonghan was shocked when he heard this and immediately figured out the problem: "We can't stay in Yu County to fight, the whole army must quickly withdraw to the north of Taiyuan!"

If the main force of the Jin soldiers is dragged in Yu County by Zhang Guangdao, then their retreat is likely to be blocked.

First, there is a mountain pass in the northwest and northeast of Shouyang, which is the only way for the Jin soldiers to withdraw to Taiyuan.

Second, there is also a mountain pass in the northeast of Taiyuan, which is also the only way for the Jin soldiers to withdraw.

If the Taiyuan and Shouyang defenders of the Ming Dynasty received the order to occupy the mountain pass. And Zhang Guangdao separated the elite and rushed to Shouyang from the river valley by boat to help these friendly troops defend the mountain pass, then the Jin soldiers would never think of returning to Datong again.

The military rations brought by Wanyan Loushi and the local military rations in Yu County were all taken away by Chen Ziyi and his troops.

As long as the Ming army blocked the mountain pass, they didn't need to do anything else. The Jin soldiers would be wiped out after they used up their food and grass.

Before dawn, the Jin soldiers abandoned their extra baggage and marched quickly with only food, horses and armor.

At the same time, they sent a large number of brave cavalry as pioneers, running madly with only dry food, to occupy those mountain passes to ensure a smooth retreat.

Wanyan Zonghan must lead the entire army and retreat to the north of Taiyuan, so as not to be afraid of being blocked by the Ming army.

Three passages, one has been blocked!

The Ming army in Taiyuan is more than enough to defend the city. It is difficult to fight in the wild, and it is even more difficult for them to fight in a fortified battle.

In order to ensure smooth retreat and food routes, Wanyan Zonghan divided hundreds of troops to guard Sanjiaokou. Yang Weizhong led thousands of weak troops and repeatedly attacked for many days but could not capture it. Therefore, the mountain pass on the Taiyuan side was difficult to capture and had to wait for Zhang Guangdao's elite to pass.

There are two mountain passes in the north of Shouyang.

The northeast side was too close to Wanyan Zonghan's main force, and the Zhai brothers did not dare to capture it because they did not have enough troops, so they concentrated their forces and occupied the northwest side. They only need to drag on the bloody battle for a few days before Zhang Guangdao comes to support them and block the entire Jin army in a small basin between the mountains.

"Marshal, the mountain pass northwest of Shouyang is blocked!"

On the afternoon of the second day, the vanguard troops sent people back to tell them the news.

Wanyan Zonghan was about to increase his troops to attack. Wen Du Sizhong said: "There is a small valley nearby. I led the troops to explore it the year before last. It can be passed through there! But if you continue to the west, Ming troops will probably block the road, so you can only go along Follow the river valley all the way north, then climb over the steep mountains to reach the upper reaches of the Hutuo River. From there, you can lead the troops back to Wutai County, and then go southwest to Xinzhou."

After all, Zhang Guangdao still did not have enough troops to block all the passages.

There are so many valley passages in Shanxi that anyone can pass through them regardless of the consequences.

The main force of Shanxi's Jin soldiers first passed through a twenty-mile-long valley (later known as Cenfeng Village and Shijiao Village), then went north through a mountain basin (later known as Xiyan Town), and then followed the seventy- or eighty-mile long valley. The long winding valley retreats northward.

As they crossed the river valley and began to climb the mountains, the first snow of the year fell.

During the march, some wounded soldiers died of infection. By the time they reached the upper reaches of the Hutuo River, they had lost hundreds of people due to non-combat losses. Many other soldiers were sick, the whole army was exhausted, and some of the horses died.

As for the civilian husbands, they gradually abandoned most or even part of the food and grass.

In the winter, Wanyan Zonghan stationed troops in Xinzhou and was seriously short of military rations.

Zhang Guangdao did not go to Taiyuan to confront Wanyan Zonghan from the north to the south. Instead, he sent troops to attack Chengtian Village, trying to get through Jingxing and kill Zhending Mansion, and cooperated with friendly forces in Hebei to attack the puppet capital of the Song Dynasty.