Chapter 660 0655 [Go for Broke]

Military rations were transported from the south, along the Yongji Canal to Guantao, and immediately crossed the Yellow River and entered the Zhang River. The diversion of the Yellow River 28 years ago changed the water system here. The eastern section of the Zhang River after the fork directly flows into the Yellow River.

The military rations were then loaded onto ships and followed the eastern section of the Zhang River, heading west to Cheng'an and entering the northern section of the Zhang River.

Then they turned into the Hulu River to Hengshui, and went north through Wuqiang to Raoyang, where Zhu Ming sent troops.

The military rations were transported by water throughout the journey, and not many civilians were needed.

Among the 30,000 new troops drawn to the north, 20,000 Huainan soldiers followed the military rations along this route. Another 10,000 Zhejiang soldiers went north from Shandong to join Deng Chun, Han Shizhong and others.

Because of their deep hatred, the generals in the south had to be separated to prevent the intensification of the conflict.

Li Gong, Cao Cheng, Yang Zaixing and others walked along the Huainan soldiers.

Yang Hua, Li Herong, Chen Tang and other pseudo-Chu surrendered generals, however, walked along the Zhejiang soldiers.

In late September, 20,000 new Huainan troops arrived in Raoyang smoothly. They replaced a batch of equipment and were led by Zhang Tong and Zhong Shizhong who were waiting there to head straight to Zhu Ming's camp forty miles away.

As soon as they arrived, a soldier came to pass on the order: "Generals, His Highness told you not to camp anymore, go to the prince's tent immediately to have a talk! As for the new Huainan troops you brought, rest here and eat."

Everyone was confused and followed the soldier to see Zhu Ming.

To the north of the camp was the Tang River and to the south was the Mudaogou. Zhu Ming set up his camp between the two rivers.

The narrowest part between the two rivers was full of Ming army camps, and the river became a natural barrier.

Although there were no rivers on the east and west sides of the camp, a four-meter-wide and three-meter-deep trench was dug on each side. The excavated soil was piled behind the trench to form a solid barrier.

With this arrangement, Wanyan Zongwang sent light cavalry to cross the river to investigate. After learning the situation, he had no desire to attack and could only wait for Zhu Ming to lead his troops across the river for a field battle.

Yang Zaixing followed the others into the camp, carefully observing the situation along the way.

After walking for a long time, they arrived at a large tent.

Li Gong took the lead in taking off his weapons, and Yang Zaixing, Cao Cheng and others also quickly took off their weapons and handed them over to the guards.

Bai Sheng stood there to greet them, and said, "Long weapons can be placed outside the tent, and short weapons can be brought into the tent. His Highness said that you are all fierce generals, and this is a battlefield, so you can't leave your weapons."

"Yes!"

The generals took the order and were happy.

Although they hadn't seen the prince yet, allowing them to bring weapons in had already made the generals have a very good impression of the prince.

The curtain was lifted, and the generals walked in.

There was a man sitting in the main seat, with a sword on his waist, starry eyes and sword eyebrows, and he was majestic without anger.

"Greetings to His Highness the Prince!"

The generals from the south wanted to kneel down, but they saw that the leaders Zhang Tong and Zhong Shizhong only performed the new military salute, so they also followed the salute with trepidation.

Zhu Ming smiled and said, "Sit down, everyone."

Zhong Shizhong was actually a little confused. He had already been transferred to the Privy Council as a civil servant, and this time he was inexplicably transferred to the front line.

After everyone sat down, Zhu Ming said, "I have prepared some food, but no drinking today. No one in the army is allowed to drink before the Jin soldiers are defeated."

"Yes!" The generals shouted in unison.

"Let's eat and talk," Zhu Ming asked with a smile, "Who is Li Gong?"

Li Gong had just sat down, and he stood up suddenly after hearing this: "I am here!"

"Sit down and talk," Zhu Ming nodded in approval, "You are elegant and majestic, and you are indeed a man of both civil and military talents."

"Yes!"

Being named by the prince, Li Gong seemed extremely excited, but also a little guilty.

He failed the imperial examination three times in Beijing, and became a military scholar instead. He was extremely loyal to the Song Dynasty, and Song Huizong did not treat him badly. Now he has become a military general of the new dynasty, and he is praised by the prince of the Ming Dynasty, which is somewhat sorry for the emperor of the Song Dynasty.

Cao Cheng was looking forward to it, hoping that he could also be named by the prince.

Zhu Ming asked, "Who is Cao Cheng?"

"I am here!" Cao Cheng stood up. Halfway up, he found that the prince asked him to sit down, so he squatted with his hands folded, almost sticking out his butt to answer.

Zhu Ming nodded and said, "He is also a fierce general. He will kill enemies and make contributions in the future."

Cao Cheng was so excited that his face flushed, and he shouted, "I will definitely fight bravely and expand the territory for my Ming Dynasty!"

"Excellent," Zhu Ming nodded and smiled, and asked again, "Who is Yang Zaixing?"

Yang Zaixing bowed and said, "I am here."

Zhu Ming said, "I have read the victory report. You are also very brave. You should keep up the good work in the future."

Yang Zaixing said, "I will die for the court!"

After chatting for a while, Zhu Ming said, "In the Hebei battlefield, our troops are divided into three places. I personally led the heavy troops to the middle road, intending to quickly conquer the Yongning Army. Even if we can't defeat it for the time being, we must lure the main force of the Jin soldiers to come to the rescue and reduce the pressure on the friendly forces in the east and west. Unexpectedly, the Jin people knew I was here, and Wanyan Zongwang led the main force to attack quickly. "

"Since he is here, he wants to fight me, but I will not let him do it!"

Zhong Shizhong asked: "How does your highness plan to use the army?"

Zhu Ming said: "I will lead the troops westward and take Gaocheng (Gaocheng) along the Hutuo River. After taking Gaocheng, the pseudo-Song capital Zhending is right in front of us! And the 20,000 new troops you brought will be stationed in the camp I built here."

"If Wanyan Zongwang comes to attack, you will defend the camp to the death. If Wanyan Zongwang rushes to support Gaocheng, you will wait for an opportunity to go north, fight if you can, and delay if you can't. Don't worry about me. If Deng Chun and Han Shizhong's Eastern Route Army need reinforcements, you can divide your troops to attack Hejian Prefecture! "

"The only ones who can fight among the Jin soldiers are the Jurchens, Xi people, Khitan people, Bohai people and the old Liao Han'er. These strong soldiers only have a total of 50,000 or 60,000, and they have to be divided into three groups to deal with our army. My dear Wherever you lead your troops, the main force of the Jin soldiers will follow, especially in Zhending Mansion. The main force of the Jin soldiers will come to rescue you."

"So you and the Eastern Route Army don't face many Jin Guoqiang soldiers. Most of them are the Hebei Han Army newly recruited last year."

"Many of these Han troops in Hebei are unwilling to fight, so they can use psychological tricks. Those who are willing to surrender will be accepted. They are not allowed to kill prisoners without permission, and are not allowed to plunder the people in enemy territory. The better our military discipline is, the worse the Jin soldiers' military discipline will be. , the more Han troops and people in Hebei are willing to surrender."

"Zhang Boring will stay here as the chief general, and he will be assisted by the deputy generals in Zhongshi. Li Gong, Cao Cheng, and Yang Zaixing will each lead one."

Zhong Shizhong suddenly asked: "Will Wanyan Zongwang leave some elite troops to defend the city? He will only hold on to the west and east roads, but will lead the main force to attack our army's east road?"

"Probably not," Ju Ming said. "As long as I show my flag, he will follow me wherever I go. He has insufficient troops and food and must defeat me as soon as possible. If he dares to lead the main force to the east road, Even if I can completely annihilate the Eastern Route Army, I can still take advantage of the opportunity to capture the Zhending Mansion and the Yongning Army!"

From Tianjin to Shandong, the land east of Nanpi, Jin Bing had no desire to occupy it.

It is a yellow flood area covered with salt and alkali. There is only one Cangzhou in this huge territory, and there are only two counties in the entire state. Even if the Jin soldiers are defeated, they won't be able to grab anything. If they want to continue going south, they must conquer Yongjing Military City.

Yongjing Military City is also the headquarters of the Eastern Route Army.

The city is high and the pond is deep, and it is heavily defended.

Under such circumstances, Wanyan Zongwang would lead the main force to fight against the East Route Army only if his brain was damaged.

Zhu Ming asked Zhang Bor: "Can you understand me?"

Zhang Boring replied: "Understood."

Ju Ming said: "You have little battle experience. You have only fought once in Shaanxi and led your troops to quell the Shandong bandits. When fighting, you should listen to the advice of Zhongshi. I called Mr. Zhong from Kaifeng to specially I'll be your military advisor."

"Yes!" Zhang Bor stood up with his hands raised.

Zhu Ming glanced at Li Gong, Cao Cheng and Yang Zaixing again: "You three have warned me that there is not enough army rations and you are looting along the way. This is excusable. But now there is enough army rations. If you dare to launch troops and plunder again, you will not be spared." !”

"I will obey your orders!"

The three of them stood up quickly, not daring to slack off.

Zhu Ming continued: "You and the new Huainan army under your command will not know the soldiers, and the soldiers will not know the generals. This is a taboo for military strategists. I asked you to lead the troops north along the way. I guess you already know the officers under your command. But there are officers who will not listen to you. Order?"

"Never." The three responded immediately.

Ju Ming said: "Including Zhang Boring and Zhong Shizhong, you generals must guard the camp for half a month and not send out troops. Try to get familiar with the soldiers under your command."

"As you command!"

Five people shouted in unison.

The next day, in front of the Jin soldiers on the north bank, Ju Ming swaggered and left the camp, freeing up the camp for the newly arrived Huainan soldiers.

Then he held high the banner and the handsome flag, and walked slowly towards the west for a while, and then crossed the river and headed south.

This is telling Wanyan Zongwang that the Ming Prince has led his troops to fight Zhending. If you want a decisive battle, you should follow him quickly.

Wanyan Zongwang learned the news and personally brought a group of cavalry to check.

Ju Ming's main force was crossing the Mu Daogou River, but the big banner was always planted between the Tang River and Mu Daogou, as if he was afraid that Wanyan Zongwang wouldn't be able to see it.

Wanyan's mother also came: "Could it be a lie to lure our main force to the west, and Prince Zhu would take the opportunity to attack Yongning Military City?"

"It shouldn't be false," Wanyan Zongwang shook his head, "Our army only needs to leave an elite force to defend the city, and the main force will soon be able to return for reinforcements. Prince Zhu's pretense is ineffective. Their reinforcements have arrived, and Prince Zhu has more troops available. , so I personally led the troops to attack Zhending Mansion, hoping to destroy the small court there first. "

Wanyan Xiyin said: "He wants to fight in Zhending, which is exactly what we want."

Wanyan's mother suggested: "Just transfer all the elites from the east and middle roads to the decisive battle. Leave the Yongning Army and Hejian Prefecture alone, and just leave the Han troops in Hebei to garrison."

Wanyan Xiyin strongly objected: "The Han soldiers in Hebei cannot fight. If we don't keep some elite troops from Dajin, they may not even be able to defend the city."

"If you can't hold it, you can't hold it. It's all Han land anyway," said Wanyan Yanmu. "We also took away the military rations from the middle and east roads, leaving only one or two months of food for the Han army in Hebei. As long as We can win the decisive battle in Zhending Mansion, and we can win back no matter how many cities we lose."

Wanyan Xiyin said: "The land that the Jin Kingdom has conquered is the land of the Jin Kingdom! Now support the puppets and wait a few years before they can truly annex it."

The two argued and continued to argue.

Wanyan Zongwang thought over and over again and made up his mind: "I will lead the main force to Zhending first, and you will go to the middle and east routes respectively. Once I am sure that Prince Zhu is there, you will send troops and food to help, and all the elite will be transferred to Zhending. The other two routes are unnecessary. There is no room for failure in this battle. Prince Zhu’s weapons are sharp. I’m afraid it will be difficult to win after dividing the troops.”

Wanyan Zongwang was planning to make a desperate move.